Elden Ring: Putrefaction of Gold

The Return of an Impure Dross

With Saints Bridge in his possession, Godwyn began the next part of his counter-offensive. It was nothing terribly sophisticated or even honorable. Iji seemed not to care about wasting precious energy on adhering to any of these abstract concepts, only on the outcome.

It soon became apparent why Marika did not wish for the trolls to roam free among her lands in their failure to subject themselves to the rules of the Golden Order. There were no rules, only outcomes, which led to the betrayal of the giants. And once a traitor, always a traitor.

Godwyn had to admit that the old troll's tactics were effective beyond his wildest imagination. Everything from the guerrilla tactics focused on sabotaging equipment to poisoning food to burning fields Radahn had taken over to feed his soldiers was fair game. Along the roads, Godwyn had his men pull off road tiles and dig out trenches so the wheels of Radahn's siege equipment would fall. They took hours to dislodge, leaving the men Radahn used to transport them vulnerable to attack and the General diverting more soldiers to retrieve them.

This was provided that Godwyn had yet to set them on fire first.

While nothing was decisive, it was enough to vex the Redmanes. Even when they retook the Saints Bridge within days, it hardly mattered, as by that time, Godwyn's men spread out in various cells within the eastern part of Limgrave and the western borders of Caelid. They hid in multiple villages, caves, and catacombs and made good use of the Gael Tunnels to navigate the border without notice. The ability to find and weed them out was far more than what Radahn could manage long-term, so he had to push forward with his plan to invade Stormveil, with or without the equipment to mitigate his losses.

Tiche watched all this, even as her mother warned her to stay out of the conflict.

As three score weeks passed, she couldn't take it any longer and took her knife before heading toward Radahn's camp. Given how often they were targeted, more guards were around the siege equipment. But they were also constantly distracted, trying to maneuver around another of Godwyn's traps. They tried to put boards over the trench and precariously align the wheels to cross it.

It only took Tiche dealing with the spotter and moving one board a mere six inches to the right. As the front wheel inched its way forward, it slipped off the ill-placed log and landed right into the ditch.

"In Marika's name, why had ye not warned us it was about to fall in," shouted one of the Redmanes.

Tiche laughed as they moved to the front and found their hog-tied friend thrashing in the weeds. It might have been easier to kill him, but not knowing which one of those rascals was the father to that little orphaned girl, she hadn't the heart to deprive the sweet child of such a figure.

Radahn was livid when he spotted his men shouting at each other over the carriage and ordered them at once to get their acts together to dislodge it and then report back to their sergeants for a sound disciplining.

His casual mention of the Elden Lord arriving caught Tiche's attention, and she knew she had to stay.

She found a place outside Radahn's tent where she might huddle down and listen. It was hours before the carriage arrived, but Tiche had techniques of meditation that kept her from losing any focus. She would watch out over the camp, stare at it, and memorize every little detail. She would even get as observant as the position of rust spots or patches of dirt on their boots, which she used to identify and count the number of soldiers. She would retain and make mental notes of each little speck of information until she might recall it to perfection.

And she did not quit such a game even when the carriage from Leyndell rolled up to the camp.

Radahn came to greet his father as Radagon stepped out from the carriage. Tiche was impressed with the Elden Lord's physique. He was muscular with long, braided red hair. Rumors stated that he was cursed with that tint after his battle with the giants, and he hated it, but Tiche thought it was rather impressive. It made Radagon hard to miss.