Frilian at Elden Ring

Celia's heart skipped a beat, but she showed no mercy in her words: "I had high hopes for Lyman, what a pity."

"His training is far from sufficient; how much room for improvement does he have in his lifetime?"

The surrounding mages nodded in embarrassment. As everyone knew, this elderly elf, known as the progenitor of magic, took on disciples in order to discover more magic and hoped that everyone would explore more paths, but the results were minimal.

pity.

"Master, would you like to go and take a look at the Elf Village? I heard it's developing quite well, and it should have gathered most of the elves, and it's even showing signs of developing into a town."

"I don't get along with those reclusive guys who never leave their homes... but do they realize that things are changing?"

Celia looked on with a look of reminiscence.

"The collective change in the elves is worth investigating. I will make a trip there later and also meet with Frilian."

Of course, I can't easily set off right now. It's best to wait until this round of conflict stabilizes before making any moves. For example, I could ask the Central Region to provide support to the front lines. Otherwise, trouble might break out as soon as I leave.

Although she has never actively sheltered anyone, she still feels responsible for the current situation.

"So what are you planning to do next?"

"We need to go to the remaining non-participating countries in the north to lobby them. We should take advantage of this opportunity to solidify the human front."

"Since I'm just killing time anyway, I might as well go for a stroll if I need to."

"Great!"

Seeing her apprentices' joyful expressions, Celia sighed, forced to admit that Frilian had influenced her. She should lead by example in her teaching and use a positive attitude to change her surroundings. She wondered what kind of magic Frilian had used; even the conservative elves were developing.

Choosing to change the most difficult object to change demonstrates extraordinary willpower, determination, and skill.

So Celia also decided to change.

Since a junior elf is actively promoting magic, why not try it myself? Perhaps I can find some inspiration that I wouldn't normally notice. Why not?

……

In the palace of the Labyrinth Kingdom, the royal council once again discussed an old topic: the Tomb of the Fallen King.

The chief minister said leisurely, "Your Majesty, we cannot allow this labyrinth to fall into the hands of the association; they certainly have ill intentions. Moreover, monsters are already spreading in the outer areas; how can we guarantee that the disaster won't escalate further?"

“Those magicians are too dangerous, and they are not under the command of the court. They will definitely become a stumbling block to the kingdom’s rule. We must be wary of them.”

King Anders V, seated on the throne, pondered for a moment and nodded.

In reality, the conservative nobles had always been wary of the magic association, which operated outside the established system, and viewed uncontrollable military forces as tantamount to treason. If it were just a simple organization, it wouldn't have mattered, but the domestic mages were drawn to it.

They refused the royal army's invitation and instead joined the association.

Outrageous!

Over time, who do these magicians actually identify with? How much control does the kingdom still have? It's utterly lawless.

The king said decisively, "Let's use the matter of the desolate royal tomb as an excuse to let them explore it. It would be best if they died. Even if they don't die, we can find a reason to detain them. We must make the association bleed a lot and teach this arrogant organization a lesson."

"The royal family must demonstrate unwavering authority and not allow a group of magicians to steal the spotlight."

However, some objected: "Isn't this too radical?"

The chief minister, however, refuted this first: "Hasn't His Majesty already decided to temporarily open the royal tomb? But some accidents are inevitable, such as landslides that could trap people, which would be very difficult to handle."

In short, a lesson must be taught.

Only by making the association look foolish and embarrassed can it be easier to clean up the mess.

The others had no choice but to suppress their objections, and the Imperial Council eventually reached a decision to use the royal tomb to create an accident, teach the association a lesson, curb their arrogance, and redefine the affiliation of magicians.

"If necessary, the military can be deployed."

Suddenly, the king gave a sinister order: "This is the last resort."

"Are you referring to defending against monsters or those messengers?"

"All."

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, a chill creeping down their spines. Why had His Majesty suddenly become so domineering?

However, an order is an order. As long as the association backs down, everything will be fine.

Midway to the Tomb of the Fallen King.

The mountain path was more difficult than expected. The rugged road stretched out beneath Frillie's feet, with long, steep slopes appearing frequently. It seemed endless, with no gentle breaks in sight.

Never mind experiencing local customs and traditions, skipping class is the only option at times like this.

Whenever they encountered a mountain blocking their way, she would use gravity magic to make a giant rock float up, carrying the four of them over the obstacle and saving them from taking unnecessary detours.

The journey involved flying for a while and walking for a while, which made for a rich experience.

Compared to the north, the vegetation became increasingly dense as we went south. We encountered several primeval forests along the way, and even though the group had excellent stamina, they struggled for quite a while to navigate the tangled roots and even almost got lost at one point.

"It's not like when I was younger."

At this moment, Wayne leaned against a tree and let out a long sigh of relief. "It used to be so easy to march."

"Sorry, I'm not good at physical exertion either."

Lyman washed his face by the stream and finally regained some energy, but he still looked tired.

The team's journey was far from simple; they encountered thieves and monsters along the way. They couldn't just ignore them and leave, so they decided to spend some time clearing them out before continuing.

It's exhausting.

The only good news was that the village that had benefited from our good deeds gave us a lot of gifts; otherwise, with only the supplies we brought at the beginning, we would soon have to start hunting and living a primitive life, because resupplying was more difficult than we had imagined.

As Vlame spread out the map and took notes, he said, "Some towns that used to exist have disappeared. Your information is outdated."

"Detailed map updates might not happen every three to five years, which is enough time for residents to flee and leave."

Wayne shook his head regretfully.

As the commander, he knew very well that this was wrong, but the lack of communication between regions and the fact that all nations had not yet formed a united front were causing problems.

"Those empty towns are quite scary..."

Recalling what he had seen and heard along the way, Vlame clicked his tongue. In the villages where the refugees had left, the wind howled and ghosts howled at night. If he hadn't always been sleeping with his master, he probably would have had nightmares every night.

Having a mage from the Age of Gods by my side makes me feel so safe; I get plenty of rest every day.

"Don't worry, we're not far apart now."

Lyman pointed into the distance and said, "Just over that mountain and you'll get there."

"I've prepared false identities for adventurers in advance. We'll first act as an exploration team to scout and adapt to the situation. Once the visiting delegation arrives, we can openly operate together."

"and many more!"

Suddenly interrupting their casual conversation, Frillie's expression turned serious. Following her gaze, they saw a deserted village. They had seen similar scenes before, but the problem was the lingering, intense stench of blood.

The wind blowing from the mountain pass brought an atmosphere of carnage.

However, a typical death scenario should not cause even the world's top magicians to show concern.

"You perceive distances farther than we do, so what did you see?"

The experienced Wayne had a hunch that it was probably some kind of torture scenario. That's why Frilline, the teacher, was worried about frightening the children, but having witnessed the siege of Northwind Fortress, she figured it wouldn't be a big problem.

The silver-haired girl didn't explain much and strode forward, followed closely by the warriors, with the other two bringing up the rear.

Looking forward to it.

Logically, the warriors should be in the lead, but the team's composition is special, so we'll disregard that. Although Frilian's role is that of a priest, she's actually a jack-of-all-trades, always taking the lead in trying things out no matter the situation. Along the way, she's the most curious and has even fallen into a mimic's ambush.

She led the way into the village, where a bright red corpse lay on the ground, its muscles exposed and its lines clearly defined, yet it hadn't bled much.

Lyman said coldly, "Some demons use similar skinning methods—pure slaughter, without any emotion or intimidation. It's because of these sporadic cases that the association suspects they've infiltrated from the rear..."

"The important thing now is to be wary of enemies lurking in the shadows."

Wayne looked around.

"There's no one here. I've scanned the area with my senses."

"If there are demons, I will not let such atrocities go unpunished; I will strike them down immediately."

It was rare for Frilian's tone to show a hint of anger.

"In addition, recently some demons have been using human skin as a material for magical disguise, and they can even temporarily imitate it without the aid of a special medium."

Lyman's intelligence sent a chill down one's spine: "So be careful, there aren't many people we can trust before we destroy it."

"cough!"

Vlame covered his mouth, his face contorted with nausea, then turned his head away and patted his chest, trying to suppress the urge to vomit.

Although we were prepared, we never expected such a shocking scene to come into view so suddenly, giving us no chance to react and presenting the bloody reality right in front of us.

This hellish scene is even more visually striking than the North Wind battlefield of yesteryear.

A feeling of nausea brought tears to her eyes. Through her hazy vision, the silver-haired girl hugged her, enveloping her in warmth, and patted her back with her slender hand.

"I'm sorry you saw this."

"It was my own choice. As long as the demons continue to ravage, we may not see each other today, but we'll see each other tomorrow."

The red-haired girl breathed a sigh of relief. "Master, don't worry about me. Our priority is to investigate this matter thoroughly."

Upon hearing this, Frilian said nothing more and instead entered the village to search.

The building and interior decorations remained largely unchanged, indicating that the battle was proceeding very quickly.

wrong.

Many people showed no fear before they died, seemingly without any wariness of the approaching party, which is strange, since the characteristics of demons are so obvious that they would not be mistaken.

"It's either hypnosis, illusion or other mental magic, or it's a disguise that lowers people's guard and then kills them in one blow."

Lyman asserted, "And I suspect the village has a backup plan; it's impossible for them to leave a single flaw."

He stroked the bloodstains on the ground and muttered to himself:

"The smell of blood is likely to attract powerful monsters, so a massacre scene is an excellent trap, and investigators are unlikely to escape unscathed—"

boom!

Suddenly, an explosion occurred beside her, but the shockwave was blocked by Frillian's barrier.

It was a pre-planned ambush, clearly indicating that the murderer was prepared to be discovered at the scene and then intend to silence the witnesses.