Elden Ring: With God Mode Enabled

Chapter 363: Messmer: No... You Can’t!

Messmer’s expression was a complex storm, his face turning a deathly pale.

His gaze darted back and forth between Melina and Bai Shi.

Finally, after repeated, agonizing confirmation, Messmer was forced to accept the reality of the situation:

Bai Shi was, without a doubt, one of the graceless.

A Tarnished, bereft of the blessing of gold.

Messmer had never imagined he would live to see such a day.

As a warrior with unshakeable faith in the Erdtree and profound reverence for his mother, one of his sacred duties was to deliver death to the ‘unblessed,’ to consume them with the fire of Messmer.

But now, his own sister was telling him she had chosen a Tarnished as her consort?!

Seeing the shy, blissful expression on Melina’s face, Messmer felt his world collapse.

How did it come to this...?

Reuniting with the sister he hadn't seen in ages, confirming her identity, and seeing that his beloved sister had found her own happiness...

Two joyful occasions overlapping should have created a time of dreamlike bliss...

But why... why had it turned out like this...?

Messmer glared at Bai Shi, gritting his teeth as he forced the words from his throat, one by one:

“Could you... properly introduce me to him?”

“I am rather curious to know what talents he possesses to have so utterly captivated my sister.”

Bai Shi heard the heavy emphasis in Messmer’s tone, and the corner of his mouth twitched.

He’d almost forgotten that the Fire Knight he met in the Tower Settlement served under his new brother-in-law.

They weren’t particularly friendly toward the Tarnished, or the ‘graceless,’ as they called them.

In truth, Bai Shi could have used his own blessing to reignite the golden light in his eyes.

Had he done so, Messmer certainly would have had no objections.

But even realizing this, Bai Shi felt it was unnecessary.

He was a Tarnished. That was a fact, so why bother hiding it?

Besides, it was better to resolve this kind of family conflict early. Otherwise, it would surely lead to disharmony after marriage.

Bai Shi had no desire to be constantly criticized behind his back by his brother-in-law. It was best to settle the matter for good.

Melina also noticed the weight in Messmer’s voice, but she wasn’t surprised.

She and her brother used to be very close. It was only natural for him to react this way upon their first meeting, not knowing Bai Shi.

It seemed she would have to give Bai Shi a proper introduction to change her brother's impression of him.

Melina cleared her throat and spoke again.

“Bai Shi is no ordinary Tarnished. He is the Tarnished who is destined to become the Elden Lord.”

“Outside of the Land of Shadow, there is almost no one left who can rival him.”

“I believe it won’t be long before Bai Shi becomes Elden Lord and mends the Elden Ring.”

Messmer froze, then spun his head around and shouted,

“What?!”

“But... he’s graceless! A Tarnished!”

Irena, who was playing with the winged serpents, jumped in fright at Messmer’s sudden outburst.

The winged serpents turned their heads and exchanged silent glances with one another.

Messmer took a deep breath, trying to calm himself...

...but it was impossible!

If Bai Shi were merely Melina’s partner, that would be one thing. Messmer wouldn’t stand in their way over it.

After all, love was unpredictable; even mortal enemies could become husband and wife.

Melina had clearly set her heart on Bai Shi, and he would only wish his sister happiness, not interfere in her relationship.

However, a Tarnished aspiring to become Elden Lord—that was something Messmer could not simply accept.

Before Melina could respond to Messmer’s doubt, Bai Shi shook his head and cut in.

“So what?”

“What have the Tarnished ever done to you? You’re discriminating.”

Messmer shot a venomous glare at Bai Shi and retorted,

“Mother would never entrust the mantle of a king to one of the graceless!”

Melina pressed her lips together and said with a touch of resignation,

“Brother... the mission Mother entrusted to me was to help a Tarnished become Elden Lord.”

“The warriors who lost their grace and were exiled were destined to return on this day.”

“They would battle, slay, and die upon the fractured Lands Between, all to one day reveal the Elden Ring anew.”

“And Bai Shi is the one chosen by Torrent. He is also the one I have chosen.”

Messmer’s eyes widened as he glanced at the Spirit Steed Whistle in Bai Shi’s hand.

He knew very little of what had transpired after the Land of Shadow was sealed away, save for the scant news Miquella had brought.

But the fact that Torrent had chosen this man was proof enough of the truth.

Melina continued her explanation.

“Throughout our journey, I came to feel the strength of his heart, his gentleness, his resolve.”

“As I walked by his side, I found that I could no longer look away from him...”

But by now, Messmer’s mind had gone completely blank. Melina’s voice seemed to drift further and further away, and he no longer had the heart to listen.

Messmer had bent his back in service his entire life, but today, his spine had finally snapped.

When Melina finished speaking, she saw that Messmer was still silent.

Having heard Melina’s words a second time, Messmer could no longer control his expression, his face contorting into a fearsome grimace.

Finally, he clutched his chest, staggered back two steps, and muttered in disbelief,

“Mother, did you truly entrust the duty of a king...”

“To one of the graceless?”

There were three women who mattered most in Messmer's life: his mother, Marika; his sister, Melina; and his consort, Rellana.

And now, both his mother and his sister had chosen the graceless.

Messmer covered his face with his slender hands, obscuring his expression completely.

“...This must not happen...”

“...How can we let a graceless one become king?”

“Graceless... Graceless!”

“No, you can’t!”

As he roared, a violent flame erupted from his palm.

Lifting his head, Messmer fixed his gaze on Bai Shi and began to walk forward, step by step.

He knew this was his mother’s decision, but why?!

Why, why, why?!

Anyone else could become Elden Lord! It didn’t have to be him! But why did it have to be an unblessed, graceless Tarnished?!

“If you have what it takes, then prove it to me!”

Startled by Messmer’s reaction, Melina immediately leaped back, positioning herself in front of Bai Shi.

Bai Shi reached out, patted her shoulder, and gave her a confident smile.

“It’s alright. Let’s let our actions do the talking.”

“I’ll go easy on him.”

Stepping past Melina, Bai Shi calmly faced the advancing Messmer.

“You want proof? Then I’ll give you proof.”

“I’ll show you that power is the only thing that makes a king!”

With a silent roar of fury building in his heart, Messmer’s pace quickened until he was charging straight at Bai Shi.

As he ran, his greatspear ignited with black-and-red serpentine flames, exuding an extraordinary aura.

Seeing that Messmer was also a fire wielder, Bai Shi smiled faintly. The embers rekindled on his body as he summoned the Sword of Night and Flame.

However, Bai Shi refrained from igniting the blade with the sun’s blistering heat; he was afraid he might incinerate his new brother-in-law.

The next moment, Messmer’s flaming greatspear was upon him, and the two divine weapons clashed.

The fiery spear skillfully parried the Sword of Night and Flame, its momentum barely diminished as it lunged toward Bai Shi.

In his normal state, Bai Shi was slightly lacking in strength, but strength wasn't his main advantage at the moment.

Bai Shi swiftly backed away to create distance, but Messmer's greatspear followed him like a shadow, striking with the speed of a serpent’s bite.

The black flames seemed alive, their tongues constantly lashing out at Bai Shi.

The winged serpents attacked from the left and right at extremely awkward angles, restricting Bai Shi’s movement.

The spear tip grazed him several times, but Bai Shi nimbly evaded each strike.

However, Bai Shi could also tell that Messmer had no intention of aiming for his vital points.

This was only natural. Messmer had no desire to take Bai Shi’s life.

As for his sister’s beloved, he merely intended to make Bai Shi abandon his reckless fantasy of becoming king.

The Gravel Stone Seal in Bai Shi's hand suddenly flared, unleashing the power of the storm.

Dark clouds gathered, and crimson dragon lightning became the only light in this place.

Amidst a tornado so fierce it could tear anything to shreds, strikes of ancient dragon lightning followed, gradually consuming the ground where Messmer stood.

Witnessing this technique that altered the very weather, Messmer grew vigilant and slowed his assault.

He gauged the power of the attack and quickly devised a countermeasure.

Black-and-red serpent flames gathered into a ball in his hand, which he hurled into the tornado, causing a violent explosion.

The continuously erupting flames triggered a chain of explosions, causing the storm and the dragon lightning to gradually subside.

However, shielded by the storm, Bai Shi had already prepared his next move.

Unlike the strategy of a warrior who fought with blood-pumping abandon until the world itself wore down, a sorcerer or a prophet’s attacks had to come in waves, one after another, until the enemy was submerged.

Bai Shi swung the Sword of Night and Flame. Glintstones shimmered, and the magic infused into the blade instantly created a Terra Magica at his feet.

But that wasn't all. Bai Shi employed a technique he hadn’t used in a long time, one he had learned from his teacher, Sellen.

Dual casting—Crystal Release and Shattering Crystal.

A mass of pure crystalline shards formed in front of Bai Shi before shattering into countless fine pieces.

The crystal fragments exploded at close range, blanketing Messmer like a shotgun blast.

At the same time, an irregular block of crystal floated up into the air.

From it rained down a majestic torrent of crystal shards, covering the entire area.

This was a sorcery that only Crystallian leaders could perform, earning it the name "Crystal Sun" for its appearance.

Under his current stats, the sorcery's damage was astonishingly high.

Having just broken through the storm and dragon lightning, Messmer was immediately confronted with point-blank Crystallian sorcery.

Caught in such a close-range bombardment, Messmer was momentarily thrown into disarray.

His entire body was pelted by the dense shower of crystal fragments, each impact drawing a spray of blood.

Messmer spun his spear, whirling it around him.

Flames poured from the greatspear, sweeping up the crystals and forming a defensive barrier.

His winged serpents also spat fire from their mouths, melting the remaining crystals that he couldn't fully block.

The Crystal Sun in the sky did not suppress Messmer for long before a phantom greatspear pierced through it, shattering it in mid-air.

However, the moment Messmer dealt with the Crystal Sun, Bai Shi had already closed the distance again.

He conjured the massive head of a phantom dragon that lunged at Messmer, while countless glintblades formed a neat circle around him.

Messmer dodged the dragon's bite, but the Phalanx of glintblades had already been activated, shooting relentlessly toward him.

Gradually, Bai Shi seized control of the battle’s rhythm.

Messmer could only barely fend off the overwhelming onslaught, accumulating injuries large and small.

Although his wounds were healing just as quickly, being constantly suppressed was not a sustainable strategy.

Realizing his predicament, Messmer made a decision.

An increasingly terrifying flame power gathered within his body, tinged with the aura of an evil serpent.

This was a portion of power drawn from the evil serpent that Messmer was usually reluctant to use.

His winged serpents, sharing his thoughts, helped maintain this power defensively, preventing the serpent’s influence from breaking through.

Finally, the flames finished gathering safely.

Messmer lifted his head, and a violent surge of fire erupted outward, instantly turning the entire valley floor into a sea of flames.

Under the terrifying sweep of fire, every single attack Bai Shi had launched was instantly erased, leaving no obstacle between them.

After unleashing the blast that cleared the field, Messmer charged forward again without the slightest hesitation.

The after-effects of the flames were gathered like a sheet of cloth and hung on the tip of his spear, which instantly became a red blur stabbing toward Bai Shi.

Meanwhile, on the ground around them, the residue of the creeping flames coalesced once more, forming countless phantom greatspears that erupted from the earth.

Bai Shi’s expression was one of delight. Surprisingly, he made no move to dodge or evade.

Messmer’s eyebrow twitched, and he subconsciously held back a fraction of his strength.

However, as the greatspear pierced Bai Shi's side at an angle, Messmer suddenly understood his opponent’s unusual reaction.

The pitch-black, scorching flames crawled over Bai Shi’s body like living things, yet they struggled to inflict any substantial damage and were gradually consumed by the embers on his skin.

The phantom spears made of fire were even more pathetic, shattering and dissipating the moment they touched Bai Shi’s body.

The flames, tainted with the aura of the evil serpent—flames he himself had to handle with care—burned Bai Shi’s body to almost no effect.

Bai Shi smiled faintly, pushing aside the greatspear lodged in his side as the wound rapidly healed.

Although he rarely needed to rely on this feature, he was under the blessing of the sun.

Now, with a Great Rune reinforcing the laws of his being, this blessing was fully activated to its peak state.

Bai Shi’s fire damage reduction was approximately ninety percent.

Casually dispelling the flames, Bai Shi met Messmer’s gaze and said,

“Do you want to continue? I’m ready whenever you are.”

By now, both men had a clear understanding of each other's strength.

And Bai Shi had yet to use any of his truly powerful spells, such as the Comet Azur from his Sword of Night and Flame.

Messmer's single golden eye stared silently at Bai Shi. Finally, he gave a cold snort and withdrew his greatspear.

By this point in the battle, Messmer had calmed down.

In his heart, he now acknowledged Bai Shi’s strength.

Though he had avoided vital areas, he had not held back on the power of his attacks.

For most of the fight, Bai Shi had held the upper hand.

Even with his own advantages in strength and speed, he could barely land a hit on Bai Shi, which spoke volumes.

Furthermore, the vision he’d had through the evil serpent showed Bai Shi in a completely different form.

In that state, Bai Shi’s physical strength was certainly no less than his own, and might even have surpassed it.

But the most critical factor was that near-immunity to fire.

For Messmer, a wielder of flames, that alone was enough to extinguish any desire to continue the fight.

Although he still had reservations about Bai Shi’s identity, he had to admit that Melina had chosen well.

Messmer took a deep breath and spoke.

“You are an excellent warrior.”

“But as for your fitness to be king... I will reserve judgment.”

“...Come. We will talk in the Shadow Keep.”