What exactly was Queen Marika thinking? That was the question.
It was a question that had perplexed countless scholars of the Ring.
They could only speculate based on the game's story, but there were always parts that didn't add up.
The only thing that could be confirmed was that Queen Marika was dissatisfied with the Golden Order, even going so far as to furiously denounce her other half, Radagon, as a loyal hound of the Golden Order.
But why she felt this way was also unknown; there were too many possibilities.
Her motives were unknown, her origins mysterious.
There was no way to know why she had shattered the Elden Ring.
Marika gained nothing from shattering the Ring. On the contrary, she was impaled and imprisoned within the Erdtree.
No, if I keep thinking about this, my diverging thoughts will influence me, and I might fall into a trap of my own making.
It's better not to speculate freely until more concrete evidence is found. Otherwise, any scrap of a clue would just be forced to fit my previous theories.
That would only lead to seeing the 'truth' I want to see.
Bai Shi asked Erlisa about the Banished Knights. The Ancient King had been waiting for a while.
"You said before that you knew the Banished Knights. Could you tell me about them?"
"I have some connection to them myself, and I'd like to know why they have ties to you in the mountaintops."
Erlisa recalled that group of knights.
"It happened after the Stormhawk King was defeated by Godfrey."
"The former Storm Knights were scattered, eventually losing the blessing of the storm and becoming the wandering Banished Knights."
"Originally, if they had surrendered, the Erdtree would have likely taken them into its ranks on account of their formidable strength."
"However, even after the king they served was defeated, the knights spontaneously united and led their soldiers to continue the fight."
"This act angered the forces of the Erdtree. After defeating them, they prepared to execute them all."
"But a general under Godwyn the Golden, named Niall, cut off one of his own feet to plead for the defeated knights' lives—not to recruit them, but simply out of respect for their loyalty." Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹•𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑒•𝙣𝙚𝙩
"In the end, he unexpectedly won the allegiance of most of the knights. Those who were unwilling to follow were sent to various frontiers."
"After the war with the Ancient Dragons, Godwyn, for his achievement in ending the conflict and turning the dragons from foes to friends of the Erdtree, was granted Castle Sol in the mountaintops as his domain."
"But Godwyn remained in the capital, only sending Niall and the Banished Knights to be stationed at Castle Sol."
"As neighbors, we Zamor people, who were still under the Erdtree's grace at the time, had a good relationship with them. We even exchanged martial techniques."
Bai Shi listened silently to Erlisa's tale and finally understood.
No wonder Commander Niall and those spectral Banished Knights guarded that lonely city of Castle Sol. That also explained why the Banished Knights there could use ice storms.
'Their lords were dead, they should have just surrendered.'
The Ancient King wasn't angry that the Banished Knights followed the old general. Finding a commander who appreciated their loyalty meant they had found a place to belong.
Bai Shi took the opportunity to sort out the timeline. After the earliest war against the giants ended, the Erdtree's great enemy was vanquished, and the wars of unification began.
The Ancient King had once told him they were connected to the Ancient Dragons. Although he didn't elaborate, the dragon designs on the Banished Knights' helmets suggested the relationship was anything but ordinary.
Godfrey warred against the Stormhawk King. At the same time, the Ancient Dragons attacked the capital, but their assault was thwarted by Godwyn, who had remained to defend it.
Whether the Ancient Dragons were truly won over by Godwyn or simply saw that the Stormhawk King's cause was lost, after the war, the Erdtree and the Ancient Dragons turned from foes to friends, even teaching Dragon Communion in the capital.
At this point, Godfrey's army had likely not yet been exiled, because it was after the war with the Ancient Dragons that Vyke was chosen by Lansseax.
Was Godfrey exiled before the war with the Carians, or after?
The question was of little consequence; it made no real difference whether it was before or after.
Bai Shi temporarily guessed that he was exiled before the Carian war, at which point Radagon had already begun to make his move. If Godfrey had still been around, Radagon's fame would likely have been overshadowed.
The story then continued with Radagon marrying Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon, only to later abandon her and marry Marika.
After that came the Night of the Black Knives, the death of Godwyn the Golden, Marika shattering the Elden Ring, and the beginning of the Shattering war.
Now that the timeline was clear, there would be opportunities to follow the chronological events and uncover the secrets of the ancient past.
Bai Shi's confidence soared. The beginning is always the hardest. With the timeline established, he could slowly supplement it with evidence later. Sooner or later, he would have a chance to figure out Marika's objective.
Bai Shi continued his questions:
"How does your strength compare to others in the Lands Between? And what about mine?"
Bai Shi wanted to get a sense of his current level, to know where he stood in the Lands Between.
Upon hearing this, Erlisa thought for a moment.
"My current strength is not what it was at my peak."
"Though I may be boasting, in my prime, my strength was not among the very top tier of heroes, but it was still considerable. I would be no weaker than an ordinary Crucible Knight or Carian Knight."
"As for you, in times of war, you would be worthy of the title of hero."
After getting a general idea of his current power level, Bai Shi asked Erlisa the final and most important question:
"You must have seen demigods before."
"Do you think, with my current strength, I have a chance of killing a demigod?"
Erlisa stared at Bai Shi, looking him up and down.
"You... want to kill a demigod?"
"Queen Marika shattered the Elden Ring and then disappeared. Some of the demigods obtained fragments of the Ring."
"If I want to become Elden Lord, I must kill them and take their Great Runes."
Erlisa had been imprisoned for too long and didn't know this was the current state of the Lands Between.
She thought it over carefully and gave her opinion.
"Though it will be difficult, killing them is not impossible. You definitely have a chance to win."
"I have indeed seen some demigods before, and even fought alongside them."
"There are disparities among the demigods, too. The difference between the strong and the weak is like night and day."
"The weakest of them can be defeated even by a war hero like myself."
Bai Shi believed her when she said she could defeat the weakest of the demigods.
He remembered that the spirit ashes of Ancient Dragon Knight Kristoff mentioned he had been granted an Erdtree Burial as a hero for capturing Godrick Gofuah.
Godrick's grafting techniques were inherited from Gofuah's line. Even with a Great Rune, he probably wouldn't be absurdly strong. This put Bai Shi at ease.
As long as the power gap wasn't insurmountable, he'd kill a demigod all the same.
"Though I don't know how strong the demigod you intend to kill is."
"But if you're going to kill a demigod, I'll go with you."
"My revenge... shall begin with the demigods."
A dangerous chill emanated from Erlisa.