Elden Ring: Atai vows to have a perfect ending

Night fell without us noticing.

On the south bank of Lake Yakir, I curled up beside the Blessing Point, staring blankly at the fragmented and ethereal golden light.

······How should I go on?

No, rather, why did I come to this borderland, to the real world of Elden Ring?

Suddenly, Torrett seemed to have discovered something and raised his head alertly.

"······Good evening, Lord Fader."

To my surprise, it was Melina. Could this blessed point actually summon Melina?

Oh, no, it happens again.

This is the real world of the Elden Ring. Melina is a spirit who follows Atai on adventures. She can come out whenever she wants.

But I still regard her as the little wooden figure in the game.

“······You’re here?” I didn’t know what to say, so I just greeted him dryly.

Melina nodded slightly and knelt down opposite the blessing point.

There was silence between us for a long time.

“...if my feelings are wrong, please forgive me, Lord Faded.” Finally, it was Melina who spoke up and broke the silence. “Your heart is filled with fear and confusion...May I ask what happened?”

"I..." I didn't know how to answer. I closed my eyes and the scenes of death emerged in my mind: Nelius, the crushed soldiers, the dragon orcs... and myself immersed in a pool of blood.

"Melina, Miss." I sighed and said the conclusion in my mind directly, "I'm sorry, I may not be able to fulfill my promise to you... Please, find another Faded One to take you to the Golden Tree."

"why?"

"I...it was me who deceived you. I am not a real warrior, but an ordinary and unknown person."

"I cannot comprehend what you mean, Master Fader."

"So, I'm not a Fader, nor am I an invincible warrior who longs for the Elden Ring!" For some reason, my heart was filled with impatience, and my words were like a bursting dam, chattering, "I'm not from your world at all, but an ordinary office worker with no special abilities! Ah, although I resigned, I should be considered an otaku... Do you understand?"

Melina looked at me and repeated my words: "Not from our world?"

"Yes!" So, I squeezed out all the chaotic memories in my mind and tried my best to describe to Melina the peaceful and prosperous society, the ordinary people who were powerless and could be found on the street. I even told Melina about the fact that "Elden Ring" was a game.

Of course, I didn’t mention some key endings, or special situations like Lani where one party needed to remain hidden.

Melina was also quite shocked when she heard this, her eyes widened with disbelief.

“So, now you know! I am not the strong Fader that you think and need!” I held my head. “I am very timid... The death here has made me breathless. Really, I am going crazy!”

The night wind blew gently, passing through the grass and bushes, making a slight rustling sound.

From somewhere, the howling of wild wolves came, empty and lonely, so distant that it almost sounded ethereal.

Silence fell between us again for a long, long time.

“······Actually, I also lied to you, Lord Faded.” Melina spoke slowly.

"Ok?"

"I'm sorry. I once said that I would take over the position of the Finger Witch... but I have no way to guide you." Melina looked at me with a little guilt in her eyes. "Just like now, I don't know how to give you guidance."

She raised her head and looked at the dazzling golden tree on the other side of the river. Her calm voice seemed to be filled with sadness. "Besides, I have actually lost my existing mission... I have forgotten the mission that my mother gave me at the golden tree, and the reason why I could continue to live even if my body was burned and turned into a body in the form of a soul."

My heart trembled slightly, like a stone falling into the lake.

Raising her eyes, she met Melina's gentleness. She smiled bitterly: "If you think about it this way, you and I are somewhat similar, Lord Faded."

“······They are not the same.” I retorted awkwardly.

"No, it's the same. Without a mission, I don't even know why I live in this world." Melina smiled slightly and reached out to touch Torret's head. "Could this be the reason why Torret chose you and let me meet you?"

"咴~" Torret responded happily and licked Melina's palm with his tongue.

But...

"I'm really timid, especially when it comes to death... Whether it's someone else's or my own, it scares me to death. Whenever I think about it, my whole body starts to tremble and I can't even move." I still wanted to persuade Melina to leave, "If you follow me like this, maybe you won't be able to accomplish anything."

"Death is certainly scary. After all, I have experienced it once." Melina paused, then said firmly, "But I believe, Lord Faded, you will not die easily!"

"for······"

"Excuse me, but I have been observing you. I even doubted for a while whether you were truly blessed and guided." Melina continued, "But every time you fight, you tell me that you are worthy of the name of a hero."

"That was just because I borrowed the relevant knowledge of the game and barely defeated the opponent."

"And isn't that knowledge your power?"

"But that's just a game after all, with AI settings. You are living beings and you won't act exactly as I want." I felt helpless, thinking back to that madman Nelius. His fighting style and madness were almost different from those in the game, and I almost fell into his hands once again.

"Game, game, perhaps this is your greatest arrogance, Lord Fader."

"Eh?"

"Like you said, we are living beings, not the game you mentioned... In this land of suffering, since the ring was broken, everyone, every living being has tried every possible way to survive." Melina's words were so true, like a scalpel, accurately falling on my heart. "But from your words, I seem to feel a little awkward. No matter what, do you always treat this place as a game? Or am I just a game in your eyes?"

"Of course not!" I was eager to refute, but... looking at Melina's serious and worried eyes, I hesitated, "Of course... not."

its not right.

Perhaps, deep in my subconscious, I still regard this world as the "Elden Ring" in the game, as a more advanced VR virtuality.

Therefore, when I encounter phenomena that conflict with the game, I always feel embarrassed and even begin to have an immense fear of the unknown behind it, which then turns into an obsession with death.

...Perhaps, I have never taken a serious and thorough look at this world from the beginning to the end.

"I am very happy to hear your denial, Lord Faded. At least it shows that you don't hate me and that's why you asked me to leave." Melina suddenly changed the subject.

——How could that be? I can’t wait to like you, little wooden boy.

"Mother said that this world is indeed full of dangers, but she still longs to bring peace and stability to this beautiful and vibrant land, as well as more blessings... just like the original world you described, Lord Faded." Melina lowered her eyes. "I'm afraid I don't have the same lofty ideals as her. Originally, I just wanted to go to the golden tree and explore the reason for my survival... But now, can you allow me to modify our agreement, Lord Faded?"

"Ok?"

"Can we, along with Torrett, explore this land that our mother has protected? Perhaps, during this time, we can all recall our mission and the reason for our survival." This time, Melina took the initiative to extend her hand to me and asked with a smile, "Lord Faded, is that okay?"

“······Of course!” I couldn’t help but be moved and subconsciously held the other person’s hand.

Even Torret neighed joyfully and rubbed his head against our clasped hands.

"By the way, Lord Fader, since you come from another world, could you please tell me your real name? It will be more convenient to call you that way."

“Um… my memory of that seems a little fuzzy.”

"Really? What a shame."

"······zero."

"Ok?"

"Melina, you can call me 'Zero'. In my world, zero is a circle, a nothingness with nothing, or it can be the starting point of everything... I like the pronunciation of 'Zero' very much, and it can also represent that our journey truly begins from now on, from zero. This is the promise between you and me."

"I understand. Well then, please take care of me once again, Master Zero."