The towering figure was a Parasite Host.
But unlike most Parasite Hosts, it hadn't become one passively. It had sought out that 'Shura' and sworn fealty—becoming a Parasite Host by choice.
As for why...
"I want to live. Preferably forever."
That was what it said, kneeling before Shura.
It was the truth.
Honestly, chasing longevity and immortality isn't strange for a living being. The catch is that a Parasite Host's immortality is really only the immortality of the insects inside them. The host gains a kind of undying state only as a byproduct of the parasites preserving their environment. And whenever the parasites are hungry—even if the host won't simply starve—the insects feed by devouring the host's flesh and blood.
The pain, the distortion—ordinary people can't bear it. That's why few would willingly accept this kind of "immortality."
Yet faced with this eternal torment, this endless punishment, the towering figure didn't recoil. Before anyone could impose it, it went to ask for it. In the throes of extreme agony, it swallowed far more insects than usual, boosting its undying nature while also magnifying the suffering...
"If a single worm would grant you undying, why swallow so many?" Shura himself found it baffling.
At first the towering figure couldn't explain. After arriving in the Lands Between, it understood.
Because that damned place in the Land of Reeds—people there aren't meant to be human.
Many beings from the Land of Reeds roam the Lands Between; Lloyd had dealt with some, like the Old Man. Even the Old Man—whose only language seems to be "fight, thrill!"—spoke of that place with contempt.
"Fighting all the time, no rules, no order..."
"I like combat, sure, but I prefer honorable duels. That place... ugh."
"Ambushes, poison, clubs, even hurling people..."
"Challenge the strong? No. The lot of them scatter like quail when they see me. Even those of similar strength won't fight; they only strike at the weak..."
Since before the Golden Order was founded, the Land of Reeds has been mired in endless internal strife. Today you kill him; tomorrow he burns your house; the day after both of you get ambushed with dung. Over time the place kept some outward trappings of civilization, but people's hearts went mad—cut off from the world and consumed by internecine chaos.
In that hellhole, wounds were ordinary, death as natural as breathing. Even someone like the Old Man was a moral exemplar there and gathered followers. The towering figure whom Lloyd opposed was a monk from the Land of Reeds who had once overseen rites for the dead—whether they worked is another story.
Because it had encountered death so often, two paths opened: one grows numb to death; the other becomes terrified of it and clings to life at any cost.
The Old Man belonged to the first. The towering monk belonged to the second.
So when it heard of that sudden, horrible method of eternal life, it didn't shrink back. Its eyes lit up.
It would survive—by any means.
Even if parasites infested its body, even if the gnawing pain never stopped day or night, it would live. Over time it even grew used to—and strangely grateful for—the feeling of being eaten. Only the living feel pain, and that pain proved it was alive.
As it adapted, it found the ordeal had forged its spirit. Its mental fortitude and tolerance for suffering shot up. Wounds that would make others scream were ordinary to it; agonies that would knock most unconscious barely made it frown. Coupled with parasite-granted regeneration and its own fierce skill, it couldn't imagine what might kill it.
Yes—this had to be right.
On the road to the Lands Between it stood beside Shura, staring at the landmass rising on the horizon, hope shining in its eyes.
It would survive, by any means. At that point, nothing could kill it—except—
"Please, let me die."
On the white snowplain, the towering figure half-kneeling begged, voice full of pleading.
Its head dangled, clamped in insect jaws; its body was pieced together with the glue of humanity, blood drained and refilled countless times. Its soul had long since been shattered—polluted then cleansed in cycles—leaving its core and consciousness in tatters.
It wasn't that it hadn't tried to fight. Especially after its first defeat—after an unknown presence bestowed that filthy power of bodily regeneration—its confidence briefly soared.
Afterwards, as the strange power poured into it, the pain was unbearable, yet it grew immensely strong, even driving the ant on the other side to the brink of death several times.
But now, as it finally collapsed to its knees, it realized the truth—that had only been an illusion.
The ant had simply wanted to prolong the fight, to keep it from breaking down too quickly. That was why it let itself be struck, even going so far as to hold back its own strength.
Once it understood this, its final bit of resolve crumbled.
The naginata lying on the ground remained untouched. Even when its opponent picked it up and tried to press it into its hands, it refused.
It no longer wanted the naginata.
It only wanted death.
It had once yearned so desperately for immortality, willing to endure the torment of countless venomous insects gnawing at its heart just to keep living.
But now, for the first time, it hated its own undying body. For the first time, it truly felt that death was the most beautiful thing in the world.
"Kill me."
It repeated the plea.
Faced with this state, Lloyd—rarely for him—didn't mock its weakness or crack a joke.
Because this one was tough.
Thirty-seven times. Thirty-seven times!
Those Who Live in Death give out after four or five deaths. Even the brainless insects he tested could barely hold out twenty times at most.
But this thinking being before him had endured thirty-seven full deaths before finally falling to its knees.
And why could it withstand so many?
It certainly wasn't just a regular soldier.
When it first appeared, its name had flashed before Lloyd's eyes:
[Immortal Monk]
A name, a health bar—normally, that should mean death after one kill.
But aside from the fact that this one already had three lives, Lloyd had also tested and confirmed something else: even bosses could be revived. As long as their bodies hadn't completely dissolved after falling, he could open Alice's Covenant System, apply two special traits, and bring them back to fight again in a new form.
Of course, that depended on whether the target could withstand it. Blindly stacking traits might break even the strongest. If the overload caused an uncontrolled explosion, cleaning up the mess would be worse than fighting the boss itself.
Still, compared to ordinary mobs, bosses had greater strength, unique Law-bound properties, and naturally gave far better rewards.
A body with tremendous endurance, the undead's regenerative ability, and willpower strong enough to endure thirty-seven health bars before breaking...
Take this for example: the fight dragged on, and it wasn't easy. At one point Lloyd almost went down for real.
But the resources it dropped afterward were enough to revive ten Gaels.
What a model worker!
So even after its collapse, Lloyd held no complaints. Once it spoke, he granted it a swift death.
Then, as a final gesture, he picked up its Spirit Ash, traveled to the foot of the Erdtree, and buried it beneath the roots.
"May you stay this strong in your next life."
At those words, the Spirit Ash beneath the roots quivered, nearly dispersing on its own.
...
After dealing with the Immortal Monk, Lloyd returned to his exploration.
Why didn't he use the resources he had just acquired to summon a few more old friends from Dark Souls?
Because he lacked fragments.
Thanks to the Immortal Monk's efforts, Lloyd had farmed plenty of 'materials' useful for summoning, but material alone wasn't enough. He needed the corresponding Dark Soul Fragments.
And fragments were obtained either by sheer luck—like stumbling across them in the Lands Between, as with Gael—or by finding traces of old friends within the corruption he had spread.
But traces alone weren't enough. There had to be sufficient memory, awareness, and the essence of existence itself to form a basic fragment, which could then be supplemented further.
At the moment, Lloyd did have another fragment.
But the Seath inside that one didn't even need his help. If not for him holding the spacetime structure steady, she could have broken out on her own...
With that thought, Lloyd pressed forward.
After another round of clearing, he came across a Flying Dragon on the frozen surface of a lake.
[Borealis, the Freezing Fog]
It was a powerful dragon, yet it didn't attack immediately.
Recognizing it as a Flying Dragon, Lloyd followed Greyoll's instructions and displayed the Dragon Mother's Emblem talisman.
Sensing the aura from the talisman, Borealis dispersed the storm of ice and snow that had engulfed the frozen lake. While not exactly tame, it at least showed a measure of friendliness.
But just as both Lloyd and the dragon believed the battle would be avoided...
Flame Lightning flickered.
An unknown presence cast its gaze, channeling power through a rift in spacetime directly into Borealis's heart.
But...
"Did I summon you?"
Lloyd unchecked the auto-selected 'Flame Lightning' option in the system, and that power was immediately repelled by his Law.
Borealis regained its senses.
Then, the rejected Flame Lightning formed a mouth in midair, crackling as it spoke.
"Come on, man, that's just lame.
He was having the time of his life fighting, and you just banned him? What's the point of that?
We were brawling just fine earlier—what, now you're drawing your sword and acting like you don't know him?"
Lloyd's reply was straightforward.
"I'm not about to kill this kid just to give you a fight."
"Ah... right..."
The presence behind the Flame Lightning finally realized the problem.
When it had fought him using the earth dragons' bodies, those dragons had already gone mad. For them, death was mercy.
But Borealis wasn't mad. He was still himself—and clearly on good terms with Lloyd. That changed things.
"How about putting some kind of protection on this kid?"
Lloyd thought for a moment, then nodded.
"I'll try it."
He spoke with Borealis briefly, got his consent, then cast Tears of Denial on him (forcing him to survive with 1 HP). Only then did Lloyd reselect the 'Flame Lightning' trait and let the lightning surge into Borealis's heart.
And then, with Flame Lightning flooding through him, Bayle returned to the world. With this new body, his power was greater than ever—and because of it, he had also inherited the force of frost.
Flame Lightning. Frost Mist. The Arrogant Dragon.
Who in this world could possibly resist—
"Comet Azur!"
Bayle dropped dead.
While Bayle possessed the body, Lloyd had already buffed himself and switched into full magic-damage gear.
The instant Bayle revealed his health bar and began his roar, Lloyd unleashed a torrent of sorcery.
By the time the roar ended, Bayle was already face down in the snow.
"...What the hell, how's your damage that high..."
Bayle didn't complain about Lloyd's fighting style—it was perfectly normal by his standards.
The only reason he hadn't dodged was because he underestimated the spell. He thought he could tank it to look tough. Instead...
"Next time. Next time I'll definitely kill you."
With that, the Flame Lightning faded away.
...
Once Bayle was gone, Lloyd switched to his main account. He dropped a Warmth, cast several healing incantations, and restored Borealis's condition.
After he recovered, something strange happened inside Borealis. With a series of heavy thumps, he opened his jaws and spat out a phantom heart made of pure Flame Lightning.
[Acquired Item: 'Heart of Flame Lightning']
An advanced Dragon Heart, strong enough to count as three.
Pocketing the loot, Lloyd spoke with Borealis a while longer and learned a few things.
Borealis had once lived at the peak of the Consecrated Snowfield, but the Fire Giants had driven him down when he failed to defeat them.
More recently, he'd noticed many beings converging on that peak. Out of curiosity, he flew over to see. Behind the last surviving giant of a clan nearly wiped out by the Golden Order, he saw a massive black fragment that had appeared from nowhere. It radiated an eerie, terrifying aura...
"That'd be you."
Lloyd turned to the guiding flame. The little fire nodded, then beckoned him onward.
...
Lloyd continued forward, following the flame through wave after wave of enemies, until he reached the snowy summit.
There he found many Hand Monsters like those he had seen at Caria Manor—only far larger. Some fingers were the size of grown men.
Strangely, none of them attacked. Instead, when they saw him, they crowded around him, almost pitifully, and pointed toward the Those Who Live in Death and Parasite Hosts battling them.
Though he didn't fully understand, Lloyd still stepped in to help. After he did, the Hand Monsters instantly became his allies, ready to follow his commands.
Borealis, still curious and wanting to see what would happen, had followed him to the summit. When he saw Lloyd surrounded by Hand Monsters, he almost dove down to help—but when he noticed how they treated Lloyd, he forgot to flap his wings and nearly dropped out of the sky.
Seriously? You can fight Mad Dragons all you want and they won't care, but this?
...
And just as Lloyd finished dealing with the enemies and was comforting the Hand Monsters, a certain four-headed dragon—who had a habit of reading messages without replying—finally opened the chat window.
What it saw was Lloyd, standing in the middle of the Hand Monsters, patting and consoling them one by one.
Placidusax went silent.
All four heads fell silent.
It didn't understand. But it was shaken to its core.
"Yo, Old Placidusax, here you are agai—"
Clunk.
This time, before Lloyd even finished his greeting, the old dragon dropped the loot and disappeared.
[Acquired Item: 'Ancient Dragonrock Smithing Stone']
[Acquired Incantation: 'Thundercloud Form']
One material that could strengthen ordinary weapons up to +25, and an incantation that transformed the caster into a thundercloud—briefly invulnerable, able to move freely, then strike down with a lightning blast when descending.
The wind-up was long, but the range and damage were solid. Not exactly broken, but under the right conditions, it could shine.
"Read and run again, huh. That's how Ancient Dragons in the Lands Between are."
After muttering about Old Placidusax's habit of leaving him on read, Lloyd pocketed the rewards and moved on, accompanied by his newly recruited hand monsters and Borealis circling above.
...
Before long, he reached the spot where the flaming cauldron atop the mountain was visible, the massive chains leading up to it looming in view. There, he saw two figures.
One was the Deathbed Knight Fia, whom he'd met before. The other wore the attire of the Land of Reeds—plain and unremarkable, but most likely the 'Shura' the Immortal Monk had spoken of.
When Lloyd arrived, the two were locked in a standoff, each backed by their own followers: elite Those Who Live in Death and elite Parasite Hosts.
Both leaders turned their heads as Lloyd approached.
Their brows furrowed when they recognized him, though they weren't surprised.
But when they noticed the Hand Monsters trailing behind him, the atmosphere shifted.
Wait, this guy...
Lloyd walked closer through the awkward silence.
They didn't dwell on him much—after all, Hand Monsters, while creepy, weren't particularly strong, and there weren't that many of them...
BOOM!
A massive ice dragon plunged from the sky, landing beside Lloyd as snowstorms swept across the battlefield.
Then, a vast black void split open, and Astel—who had departed earlier—slid through the rift, her swarm of minions in tow.
Finally, Millicent and Melina stepped out from behind Lloyd.
One's steps spread rot across the ground. The other's hands burned with the flame of Destined Death.
"What's this, you want a team fight?"
Lloyd spread his hands and grinned casually.
Without waiting for an answer, he tilted his head toward the flaming cauldron in the distance and shouted.
"I'm here! Where the hell are you—"
Silence.
No response followed his call, as if he were yelling into emptiness.
Then, far away, a shadow shot skyward, swelling larger and larger as it drew near.
Before either faction could react, the shadow closed in. It was a giant-sized cleaver.
BOOM—
The blade crashed down between the two enemy factions. The ground quaked violently, shockwaves blasting them off their feet.
Lloyd, however, stood untouched.
As the dust began to clear, a towering silhouette emerged.
A giant.
The last of his kind, who should have remained by the flaming cauldron.
Yet here he stood—and from the massive black fragment at his back, an arm reached forth.
A massive armored arm, embers still glowing across its surface—an arm Lloyd knew all too well.
It stretched out, grasped the cleaver, and lifted it high, pointing the blade directly at Lloyd.
The meaning was plain.
Clicking his tongue, Lloyd smacked his lips twice.
"In this state, I can't beat you. You don't mind if I bring a couple of helpers, do you?"
The armored hand gave a small nod.
Lloyd turned back to his assembled monsters and fiends, exchanged a few quick words, then had them retreat for now. He glanced at Millicent and Melina beside him.
"Careful. I know this one—he's no easy fight..."
Yhorm the Giant. Once one of the four chosen Lords of Cinder.
Formidable in his original state, requiring specific equipment to fight effectively.
And after joining Lloyd, he had gained even more enhancements, far stronger than his original self.
Judging by the arm jutting from the shard, this was Yhorm in his later form. Not on the absurd level of that overtime dragon whose tail was a weak point, but even with only an arm, he was strong enough.
But...
Wasn't that perfect?
Lloyd stripped off his sorcerer's gear, funneled his Intelligence and Focus into Strength, and pulled out a massive slab-like greatsword, fitted with the Lion's Claw Ash of War.
He raised the blade, pointing it at the giant across from him.
The massive cleaver aimed back at him.
"Here we go."
"You two, ready."
BOOM.