I'm stupid. Really, truly stupid.
Ember sat on the steps of Firelink Shrine, reevaluating his life.
From Ludleth he learned the truth: this was right after Ludleth had linked the flame.
The second bell hadn't been rung. The Ashen One hadn't woken.
So yes—Ember was early. So early that not even a Fire Keeper had been chosen. The shrine was empty.
What now?
He was lost.
"Tell me what you're thinking," Ludleth said gently from his throne. "Perhaps I can help."
"Uh… it's complicated. My mood is a mess." Ember sighed.
It felt like a roller coaster. One moment he'd found clarity, the next reality punched him in the face.
He sighed again, turned to Ludleth.
"Got any advice? Like… what should I do now?"
Ludleth chuckled softly. "I have no special counsel. Only this: go and see more."
"See more?"
Ludleth nodded. "Though the flame I lit alone is small, it can still bring this world brief order."
"If you feel lost, then go look at this age."
Ember stared at him, then asked after a while, "Shouldn't you be telling me to drag those runaway Lords of Cinder back?"
Ludleth shook his head toward the candlelight.
"That is not your task. When the second bell rings, the fire-bearers will awaken from slumber to sustain this age."
He looked at Ember anew.
"I don't know who you are, or what you are. But I believe I know why you've come. If you fall into confusion, go and see this age—lit by my flame."
His last words carried both pride and helplessness.
He was a chosen Lord of Cinder, and he came willingly. He offered himself to prolong the age, yet as his body shrank and dried, even the firmest will could feel weary.
Ember suddenly said, "I'll try to save this world."
"Not by linking the fire, and not by ending it either."
"I mean another way—one you'd never imagine."
Ludleth blinked, not quite processing.
Ember stood and dusted off his pants.
"I don't have the answer yet, but I will find it."
He walked to the center of the shrine, where a basin stood, drew the Coiled Sword from his backpack—
"Just stick it in, right?" he muttered, and thrust it into the basin.
Flame rose at once.
From above, Ludleth watched him, wearing an expression no one else could read.
A way to save the world was never easy. If such a way existed, someone would've found it in thousands of years.
But Ludleth didn't say that. He only watched until Ember vanished through the shrine's connection to Lothric, then slowly closed his eyes.
Silence returned.
—
Swords clashed. People screamed. The air stank of blood.
Ember jerked awake.
What the—
He listened, taking in his surroundings.
"I should be in Lothric. What's happening out there?"
The sounds were clear beyond a door.
He crept close and listened harder.
"Is this how Lothric knights behave?!"
"The flame is fading! We must send Prince Lothric to Firelink Shrine at once to keep this world alive!"
"And you? What are you doing? Answer me! Are you still Lothric knights?!"
"Sorry, but these are Prince Lorian's orders. As knights, we obey the one we follow!"
"Hopeless!"
Now he understood.
Ember rubbed his chin.
This timeline was even earlier than the main story.
The flame had already dimmed. The world was approaching its end. They had foreseen this long ago and selected Lords of Cinder to burn as fuel.
Ember had met one of them—Ludleth. But the other thrones were vacant.
That couldn't stand.
Without fuel, the world would plunge into darkness.
So Lothric—a kingdom founded for the purpose of linking the fire—moved to execute its duty.
They had a prince chosen from birth as a future Lord of Cinder: Prince Lothric.
But the prince and his elder brother refused to link the fire.
Two factions formed, and war followed.
"So it's the pro-fire and anti-fire sides fighting outside?" Ember muttered.
"Ludleth, this is what you wanted me to see? I can only say: total crap."
Then the ground shook violently, and screams rose outside.
Someone yelled about sorcery—get out of the way!
Another quake hit. When it stopped, only wailing remained.
"…They're really going at it. Must be the first phase of the war." Ember judged—then heard wet, shuffling sounds approaching the door.
"Someone's coming this way."
He held his breath.
It sounded like… crawling.
A crack. Someone slumped against the door. Heavy gasps and curses followed.
"Damn traitors… how could they do this?!"
"This is betrayal of the flame!"
"Duh." Ember rolled his eyes. They'd flipped the table. Their stance couldn't be clearer.
Cough—cough! The voice hacked violently as if lungs were tearing.
After ten-odd seconds, the coughing eased. The breathing faded.
"That blast hit my insides…"
"I can't hold on. If I were stronger, if I were worthy, I'd link the fire myself! Not like those traitors!"
"They betrayed this world! Betrayed the people who believed in them!"
His voice grew smaller. His presence thinned.
He was dying. He knew it.
"Sorry… Father, Mother, Salyan. I couldn't keep my promise…"
He spoke what sounded like final words.
Then one of the double doors behind him opened.
In his dimming eyes, a hand appeared—before he understood what was happening, something was shoved into his mouth.
Next instant, his wounded abdomen erupted in agony.
"AAAH—AAAH—AAAH!"
Ember stepped back innocently, watching him roll on the floor.
"Holy—was that fake medicine? Ten points is cheap, but the description said it saves lives… just hurts a little."
Watching that reaction, Ember sucked in a breath himself.
"Hang on! Think of your family!" he whispered.
He'd heard the man's words clearly.
Those words kept him from simply slipping away.
Soon the knight stopped rolling.
Ember wore an awkward smile, reached down, and gently closed the knight's wide, staring eyes.
"Good. Alive. Don't thank me."
His breathing was steady. He'd only passed out from the pain.
That's it? Needs more training.
Ember dragged the unconscious knight into the room and looked out over the battlefield.
As he'd heard—blades clashed, sorcery collided, blood flew. This was the… real world. A real war.
Did it matter?
To the people below, yes.
This was the only way to preserve their age, their world, their loved ones.
To Ember, it mattered too—because it reminded him this wasn't just the Dark Souls III he remembered.
There was life here. Order.
He finally knew what to do—at least for now.
To save the world, he had to link the fire immediately, adding fuel to the flame that Ludleth was sustaining alone.
Then hurried footsteps approached. A squad arrived beside him, startled at his appearance.
No armor. Strange clothes. A civilian? There shouldn't be civilians left in the city.
"Who are you?!" a knight demanded.
Ember grinned at them. "A fire-linker."
A comrade, then. Before they could ask why he wore no armor, Ember waved them off.
"Gotta go."
In their horrified gaze, wings burst from his back.
"First time flying with these, strictly speaking. Hope they work." he thought.
They did.
With a beat of wings, he rocketed into the sky.
From high above, he could clearly see the war's lines.
"Those two should be where the most people are."
His eyes locked onto the densest cluster.
A mass of soldiers fought desperately to hold a position, trading blood with the pro-fire army. The defenders were outnumbered and dwindling—but they didn't retreat a step.
They were protecting something—and that was what Ember needed.
"Then let's do this!"
His wings stopped fluttering like a butterfly and became the tail fins of a fighter jet.
He dove with a scream of wind.
"Defend! Unknown object overhead!"
"Mages, shoot it down!"
Soul light flared on staffs. Dozens of heavy Soul Arrows screamed up.
Seeing the familiar attack, Ember smiled wider.
"You can't stop me."
At the moment they would have hit, he veered sharply, dodging them all. Now the soldiers finally saw it—a winged human.
Too late for more preparation.
The mages stacked barrier after barrier, trying to stop him.
Could Ember break them?
Absolutely. Effortlessly.
He planted a foot on the barriers.
Crackling booms rang out—not only barriers shattering, but bones in his own body screaming.
"Break!"
The barriers exploded.
Under stunned eyes, he punched through the wall behind them and landed in the inner sanctum the defenders were dying to protect.
The defenders wanted to turn around and drag the intruder out, but they couldn't break away.
The pro-fire army didn't know who he was either, but seeing enemy panic, their leader pressed the assault harder.
"You are… what?" Lorian lowered his brother from his back onto the high platform, drew the sword embedded in the floor, and aimed it at the one who'd interrupted their ritual.
"Ow, ow, ow…" Ember hissed inwardly, then stared in surprise at a whole, intact man.
"Huh? Why aren't you crippled yet? You were talking earlier too."
"I'll ask once more—who are you?" Lorian's harsh, hoarse voice demanded.
"…Never mind. Doesn't matter."
Ember met the brothers' eyes and delivered it clearly:
"You two… should link the fire."
-------
Enjoying the story? Support the author and get access to early chapters by joining my Patreon!
Find me at My : pat*eon*com/RuneA
I, Herta's Fiancé, the Universe's Number One Male Fist (114 Chapter (Simulpub-Full) )
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Succubus in Sixth Street (400 Chapter)
Reborn in Type-Moon, My Sister is Aoko Aozaki (254 Chapter)
MyGO!! A Story Voiced by Me (140 Chapter)
BLEACH: Blade of Purification (158 Chapter)
Konoha: Starting the Game as Yoriichi (400 Chapter)
My Real Job is Spying on Konoha, but I'm Also its Hokage (140 Chapter)
The Pinnacle of the Navy! Starting from Being Captured by Garp (172 Chapter)
Watching Yu-Gi-Oh! short videos is making the veteran players lose...(80 Chapter)
Uma Musume : The Trainer Who Just Wants to Live (200 Chapter)
Zenless Zone Zero The Random Kamen Rider (200 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: It All Began With Me Being Stepped On by Arlecchino (120 Chapter)
Naruto: I Can Synthesize Summoning Beasts (96 Chapter)
Demon Slayer: The Great Swordsman's System, Disciple of Yoriichi (140 Chapter)
My Wife is a General, but I'm an Emanator of Abundance! (160 Chapter)
Type-Moon: My Nine-Fold Path (140 Chapter)
Uma Musume: They're Peeking at My Diary, and All of Tracen is Panickin (Ending)
The Wild History of Type-Moon world (70 Chapter)
Reborn in Conan, But I Refuse to Be the Bad Guy (80 Chapter)
Ruan Mei is begging me to go back? But there's no going back anymore (140 Chapter)
Just a Slacker at Tracen Academy (165 Chapter)
Survival in Blue Archive (70 Chapter)
Kimetsu no Yaiba: Doma Wasn't Hated Today, Either (100 Chapter)
The Vibe of This Chat Group is a Little Off (100 Chapter)
Heartbreak Simulator: I Broke Them and Made Them Cry (80 Chapter)
The Talentless Trainer Doesn't Want to Restart (80 Chapter)
A Journey Starting as a Quincy (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: The Master of Romance Obstruction (80 Chapter)
Uma Musume: You Can't Be a Hero Without a Little Chemical Enhancement (40 Chapter)
Honkai Impact 3rd Your Boyfriend is Really Amazing (40 Chapter)
Warhammer 40K: My Fiancée, Fulgrim (180 Chapter)
Classroom of the Elite: Trying to Capture Me! (120 Chapter)
Genshin Impact My Named Senji Muramas (150 Chapter)
A Chef, the Vice-Captain of the Rocks Pirates? (160 Chapter)
Naruto : My Uchiha Girlfriend is Too Tsundere (130 Chapter)
Type-Moon: Reincarnated in a Lostbelt, I Became the Alien God (90 Chapter)
The Way These Horse Girls Look at Me Is Terrifying! (160 Chapter)
Naruto: Tsunade's Deskmate (130 Chapter)
I Just Want to Live a Normal (50 Chapter).
Genshin Impact: A Hundred Confessions? It's Just a System Task (70 Chapter)
OnePiece : Starting as a Veteran of the Roger Pirates (60 Chapter)
Uma Musume : I Have Special Horse Taming Techniques (180 Chapter)
Uma Musume : My other self is a Horse Girl (110 Chapter)
Jujutsu Kaisen : All Affection Stats Maxed Out (190 Chapter)
Satou Kazuma's Decision to Live by Swindling, Starting from Re:Zero (60 Chapter)
Bleach : Ichigo! Take Over the Soul Society (78 Chapter)
Crossover Anime: The Master of Plagiarism with a 'Love Obstacle (130 Chapter)
Arknights Succubus Nurturing System, But I'm a Quiet Office Worker (80 Chapter)
Genshin Impact: Using My Personas to Break the Hearts of Players (50 Chapter)
One Punch Man : i am King? (140 Chapter)
Genshin: My Stats Are Irresistible (50 Chapter)
Naruto: Master of Dream Fulfillment! (60 Chapter)
Why Are All My Chat Group Friends Spin-Off Characters? (80 Chapter)
If there's a particular novel you're enjoying on Patron, please give it a 'like' so I know to focus on it