The Lore of Elden Ring is Rotten

Scarlet rot is one of the deadliest things in the Middle Lands. Because it has no real cure and, as is known, not even the demigods could avoid its effects. I guess no one told you about bowling conservation, huh? Anyway, what's really interesting about Scarlet Rot is that it's actually a very old legend, predating Malenia and all the horrors found on Caelid. And to understand where it all began, we have to go down to the Lake of Rot, where we can find some descriptions of elements that speak of this time. For example, here in the southeast corner, we can loot a crown of fungi that forms this imposing helmet, and which says "Long ago, great lords served the scarlet rot.

Perhaps those fungal bodies served as crowns." And the rest of this ensemble is made up of mushrooms that are considered "sacred garments. For those enthralled by the Scarlet Rot that roots them to the earth." So we already have this hierarchy of mushroom lords who served Scarlet Rot back then, as well as the worshipers who worshiped him. And you might think it's strange that these beings could worship or serve a disease, but scarlet rot is much more than that, because scarlet rot is not a mere disease. No. To prove it. You just have to look at the Crystaliano.

Crystalline inorganic beings. And yet, they can be affected by rot like anyone else. There are even some Crystalians who are infected with rot and can transmit it to others as well, because it is not really just a disease. Instead, the Lake of Rot map calls it the "divine essence of an outer god." something that was sealed long ago in this underground world. And if you've been following the Elden Ring story for a while, you should be no stranger to the concept of an outer god. They are these abstract and indeterminable beings that imprint an order or a will on the world through their avatars, their servants and their vessels.

And in the case of Scarlet Rot, its order is one of decay, where beings are placed in a progressive state of death with the intention of achieving this glorious rebirth that will follow that process. The Poison Armament description tells us this, saying that "those who dwell within the poison know all too well the rot or death that begets life that comes to all alike." That is, it is the cycle of rebirth put into practice. A great example of this is Miquella's Haligtree, which could be completely dead if it weren't for the fungi that have sprouted on the tree.

And of course, we also see this in Caelid, where Flowers of the Rot are about to bloom despite all the decay. Of course, it is debatable whether this type of life is even desirable. But it cannot be argued that it is life, and the agents of the God of Rot certainly find it desirable. That is why they do everything possible to provoke this sacred cycle of rebirth in others, infecting them with poison and rot, and putting this cycle of rebirth into practice. In that sense, there is an extremely curious object that you can find in the Great Cloister and it is called the Scorpion Sting.

This is a dagger that glows with Scarlet Rot, and it is called a ceremonial tool, which I believe means that any ceremony in which this dagger was used would have been a ceremony to stab and infect another being with Scarlet Rot, it would have been a ceremony. to spread your precious affliction to others. But the really interesting thing about this dagger is that it is made from the tail of a large scorpion. And it is also specifically said to have been crafted from the relic of a sealed outer god. And when you consider that phrase, you realize that it is saying that this dagger was made from a relic of the Rotten God, who was also a large scorpion.

That's what it seems to say, anyway. I mean, many historical relics from our history are often the physical remains of deceased saints or holy people. So the God of Rot really could be, or at least could have manifested as a large scorpion. So I guess the scorpion's stinger is something like the eye of the Fallen God or the Three Fingers of Frenzy or that whole winged thing Death has. It's a small remaining hint of the visual identity of these ephemeral Outer Gods that's meant to stimulate the imagination, even if we never really find out what these Outer Gods are like, and whatever the Rot really is, she and her Scarlet Rot essence eventually They were conquered. or sealed, at least. this was done by a legendary figure known as the Blind Swordsman.

As the story goes, the blind swordsman was favored by a fairy called the Dancer in Blue. The fairy granted them a curved and flowing sword, which had the design of running water. And with this sword, the blind swordsman sealed an ancient god, a god that was

rotten

. There is quite a bit to unpack in these descriptions. First, who or what was the fairy called Blue Dancer? Well, I think the Warriors' blue cloth outfit gives us a clue. He reveals that the blue color of her fabric "symbolizes living waters." And the fabric depicting the blue dancer is designed to look like water.

The description goes on to say that "just as still waters become polluted. Stagnation leads to decay." That is why warriors must always remain adrift. Basically, this is saying that flowing water is the antithesis of putrefaction, which thrives in stagnant water. And I think this is just speculation, but I think the blue fairy could essentially be some kind of river spirit. If you've ever seen Hayao Miyazaki's Spirited Away, then you'll know what kind of being I'm talking about. In that movie, quickly, a stinking sludge monster arrives at the bathhouse, where it is eventually revealed to be actually a river spirit whose river was bogged down and corrupted by pollution.

But once its waters are unblocked, the river's spirit is restored. And Elden Ring, by comparison, also has two legendary rivers called Siofra and Ainsel, which just so happen to flow underground next to and around the Scarlet Rot that was finally sealed so long ago. So I don't think it's a stretch to think that the Blue Fairy could have occupied or been a supernatural extension of those underground rivers. I think it's a fun theory and I think it helps explain the Blue Fairies' relationship with water and why it might be a natural enemy of the God of Rot.

Then the Blue Fairy gave the blind swordsman a flowing sword and he fought with the power of the flowing water to seal the God of Rot. But what is unclear here is how exactly the blind swordsman sealed the Scarlet Rot God. Did you know that he, sword in hand, fought a big scorpion boss in one-on-one combat and simply sealed the essence of him? Or was it the more abstract battle of his where the eternal city was dammed and rivers diverted to surround the rot and contain it underground or something? These details are left to your imagination, but one way or another, the God of Scarlet Rot was sealed, but he was not defeated.

And he would eventually come back. And this time he would do it in an empyrean vessel, corrupting Malenia, a demigod at the same moment of his birth. Like her brother Miquella, Malenia was born Empyrean. Empyrean, meaning she was essentially a valid candidate to replace Queen Marika as god. And as such, it seems that she was a ripe candidate for the meddling of an external god, and it is unclear how the God of Rot afflicted Malenia as soon as she was born. But that's how it was. And that's a shame because the great rune of Malenia states that it should have been the most sacred great rune of all, if not for what I assume was the meddling of the God of Rot.

And speaking of big runes, in the sister video to this one, we talk about how Miquella was essentially the other side of Malenia in many ways, especially in the cut content, where the twins were "born of an inseparable destiny and were said to have the power ". ruins of abundance and decay between" them and to reflect this duality, it appears that Miquella is in this constant state of overflowing abundance. While Malenia was in this constant state of overflowing death, we essentially see this tragedy unfolding in some statues of Malenia. As You can see back then, she actually had all her limbs once until the rot continued to take hold, moving her inexorably towards her inevitable death and rebirth as well.

And that must have seemed inevitable because it seems that in those early days few forms were known. to protect from rot. Fire was probably the most obvious. And then there was also the act of consecration, which is essentially the act of decla

ring

something to be sacred, which was done with the weaponry of Malenia and her knights. And apparently it helped his armaments at least resist the rot. But his flesh was still susceptible. Therefore, Malenia's knights were called Cleanrot Knights, and swore to fight alongside Malenia, despite the inevitable, if gradual, rotting of her flesh. And it was this fact that made these warriors so fierce, because they had basically already accepted her terrible fate.

And, logically, they had nothing more to lose in the battle. These knights were awarded the winged sword insignia that was awarded only to those who fought alongside Malenia the Cut One. Curiously, this is the only element that gives Malenia the title of "the cut one." And I guess it refers to a time when Malenia was known for her skill despite her fragmented body, as they call it in Japanese. And I suppose it's possible that she wasn't yet known as the Sword of Miquella at the time, though that's just my own speculation. In any case, Miquella's Malenia Blade is her most common title and it is easy to see why she would devote herself so fully to her brother, since her brother was so dismayed by her condition that she He dedicated himself to finding a treatment for the rot.

And this search for a cure dramatically affected Miquella's worldview. For example, he was previously a faithful fundamentalist of the Golden Order and also had all the magic. But he would abandon those practices since they couldn't do anything to treat his sisters' damn rot. Instead, he followed a path of pure gold and made for Malenia a needle that could be inserted into her flesh, alleviating rot and preventing the progression of the putrefaction disease. If he is interested in knowing why pure gold was able to do this and work that way, I recommend you watch this video afterwards, where he talks in detail about Miquella.

But we learn about the specific effects of the needles in the game when we give them to a character named Millicent, who also suffers from Scarlet Rot. Millicent is this great parallel to Malenia that teaches us a lot about what Malenia might have felt or experienced. So Millicent has also lost a limb and is also losing her memories of it. And when we find her, she can't even move. But as soon as we apply the needle to her, she will be able to function and fight once again. Therefore, it is fair to assume that Malenia received similar benefits when her brother inserted the needle.

It's also worth noting that the multiple spiers we find in the game are not finished. Even the final version of this needle can only be used in the Storm Beyond Time in Farum Azula, where it essentially allows you to cheat fate. And that makes sense here because you are outside of time in this place. Then perhaps you can prevent these afflictions from the external gods before they even happen. So, perhaps if Miquella had been able to imbue her needle with some time warping capabilities, she could have eventually undone the effects of the God of Rot entirely.

But unfortunately the needle was never finished. The needle is not all that Miquella created with pure gold. She also designed for her sister a prosthetic arm, leg, helmet, and armor of pure gold that, again, like Millicent, surely allowed her to overcome her one-armed deficiency and reach new heights as a fighter. So Malenia's prospects were already improving. But things did not end there, as Malenia would meet a man who would become her mentor, and he would give her this last invaluable tool that could be used against the scarlet rot. We see her encounter unfold in this image of the prosthetic wearer's family heirloom, which depicts a scene from a heroic tale.

You can even see Malenia's arm and leg prostheses in this picture if you look closely, so I assumed this meeting took place after Miquella's intervention with all pure gold prosthetics. So her mentor was, as you might have guessed, the blind swordsman, the man who first sealed the rot all those years ago. The same thing. And after encounte

ring

her mentor and her floating sword, she gained wings of incomparable strength. This encounter says a lot about the blind swordsman. He must have known that Malenia was basically inhabited by her former enemy and yet he doesn't try to kill her here.

Instead, he takes her under her wing and teaches her the techniques he himself once used to stop the rot in the first place. It's a pretty clever thing and maybe we shouldn't.expect less from someone who was able to defeat an external god in the first place. That's why Malenia's sword skill is called Dance of the Waterfowl. That's why Malenia regained health by attacking during the fight with her boss, moving relentlessly like flowing water, the damage from the rot was compensated and Malenia was able to achieve incomparable strength and maintain her pride. And it was that same pride that she would abandon in her fight with Radahn.

Radahn was born to Queen Rennala, who was Queen of Caria, and King Consort Radagon, who was formerly a great champion of Erdtree. Thus the order of the moon and the Erdtree were united, and while Radahn was a true Carian and certainly competent in the art of sorcery, we can see in his character an inclination toward another path, an aspiration to be like Godfrey, for example. , who was the first EldenLord and also his father, Radagon, who would become the second Elden Lord. After all, Caria was a largely matriarchal society, which meant that power passed to the princesses of the family.

So perhaps it's no surprise that Radahn wasn't as motivated by his Carian heritage compared to his sister Ranni, for example. So the Radahn Ensemble was decorated with a golden lion symbolizing Godfrey and his ruling beast, and states that "from his youth, Radahn was naturally captivated by the Lord of the battlefield." Then, his golden helmet was designed taking into account his flaming red hair, which Radahn inherited from his father, drawing attention to the fact that he liked the heroic implications of being Radagon's son. Radahn and his knights were appropriately known as Redmane, combining Radahn's red hair with Godfrey's lion's mane.

And Radahn was even quoted as saying, "I was born a Champion Cub. Now I am the lion of the Lord of the Battlefield," which borders on being a declaration of complete loyalty to Godfrey and the Golden Order. But we'll get to that debate a little later. So naturally, this was a guy who reveled in the art of war and even in his youth as a Caria royal, it seemed. Radahn was already a renowned general. We can infer this thanks to a man named Jerren. The Eccentric's Armor specifically says that "after spending time as a guest of the Carian Royals, he became a guest commander of General Radahn." Therefore, Radahn must still have been in close contact with his Caria family since Jerren met Radahn through these Caria royals, and when they met, Jerren and Radahn immediately seemed to share a certain bond because, to Although Jerren preferred to have a nomadic existence, he decided to become General Radahn's guest commander.

And then, despite the temporal implications of such a title, Jerren, "this restless tumbleweed" as they called him, would be bound by an honorable oath. And he and Radahn swore an honorable death to each other, promising that they would die honorably in battle, even if it was death at the other's hands. Therefore, it is not indicated which battles Radahn was fighting at the time, nor for which war he needed a new guest commander. But of course, the world is very different at that time, and there is much of the history of the Middle Earths that we don't know.

So I suppose it's possible that the battles were fought in distant lands like Limgrave and Caelid. After all, the map of Limgrave East says that this path was traveled by many soldiers in the past. Perhaps Radahn's forces also took this path. And this was before Caelid suffered from the scarlet rot. So things could have looked very different here, although admittedly we have this shot from this trailer showing that it still looks a bit like a red hell here with the red sky. And this was technically before Scarlet Rot took hold. However, Caelid still had some culture to boast about.

For example, in the heart of Caelid there is, or was, a city of sorcery called Sellia. And despite Radahn's relationship with Caria and Raya Lucaria as well, presumably, it was here in Sellia that he studied to learn gravitational magics that probably couldn't be taught anywhere else. He did this as the story goes, all so he would never have to abandon his beloved but skinny steed because gravitational magic could ease Radahn's weight and allow his skinny horse to carry him further and further. Also, in case you don't know, the horse's name is Leonard, according to the data.

That is the name we will use in the future. And the interesting thing about Leonard is that he's specifically called skinny, as if that's the reason he can't carry Radahn, who is huge. Shouldn't Radahn's size be the reason he can't ride a horse? So I personally think Radahn didn't become that big for a long time. I think there's good evidence to support that. For one thing, his throne at Leyndell is a regular size. Two, the portrait of him is that of a simple grown man. And lastly, we see a brief shot of Radahn fighting in this image where he barely matches Morgott in size.

Personally, I think Radahn probably only grew in size when he acquired a Great Rune. Anyway, at this stage, it's clear that Radahn initially learned gravitational magic for the sake of his horse, but that set of gravitational skills would certainly come in handy as the years went by. On the one hand, these gravitational magics were passed on to some of their elite soldiers, such as Ogha, who was the "longest-serving member of the Red Mane Knights", who "studied techniques for manipulating gravity alongside Radahn". The equipment and abilities of the Redmane Knights were actually heavily inspired by Radahn. For example, the surcoat of the Redmane Knights of Radahn depicts a red-maned lion raising a sword in the image of Radahn.

All of them proved that they were worthy of the name red mane. Even the design of his Great Shield takes that symbolism further, as it is shaped like a tusk and features the crest of a red-maned lion. And these knights were strong like Radahn, with descriptions saying that they were reputed to be masterful warriors, and it was popularly said that the Redmanes knew no weakness. But for all their battle prowess, a conflict loomed that no military force could prevent. And I'm not talking about scarlet rot, I'm talking about the stars. But fortunately, for this upcoming conflict, Radahn was able to enlist the help of a master with a lot of knowledge.

According to Gravity Well witchcraft, Radahn's master was a stone-skinned Lord of Alabaster, and these Lords of Onyx and Alabaster were a completely different race from humans and were said to have been resurrected when a meteorite fell ago. a long time. And meteor witchcraft tells us that the reason they were called lords was out of awe of their destructive power. And it seems that Radahn was requesting his help because a similar destructive and meteoric power was on its way to Sellia. We previously established that he explicitly learned gravitational magic in order to ride a horse. But Collapsing Star Sorcery also explicitly says that he learned gravitational techniques so he could challenge the stars, which I think suggests there were two distinct periods of learning for Radahn: learning for the sake of his horse, and then learning for the sake of his horse. of his horse. to keep Sellia safe.

And there is also plenty of evidence to suggest that Radahn's actions here were defensive. For example, the sword tombstone in Caelid specifically tells us that Radahn "kept Sellia safe." Starscourge Heirloom tells us that Radahn "faced the falling stars" as if they were the aggressors. Finally, this event was also called the Starscourge Conflict, suggesting that there was some kind of clash here, like a back and forth, so to speak. So Radahn seemed to anticipate that this event would come, but I guess that's not so strange considering Radahn was of Carian lineage and was famous for reading fate in the stars.

So I think anticipating a starfall would be pretty easy for them, and I think it would make sense that Radahn would want to intervene if he was headed to Sellia, which is where he learned magic from him in the first place. So Radahn took defensive measures and I guess you could argue that he even went a little overboard because he not only defended Sellia from the falling stars, but actually sealed the stars' movements completely. So after Radahn challenged the stars, it was said that fate in the night sky no longer existed. And this manifests itself literally in Ranni's Questline, for example, where Radahn has to be killed so that the stars can unfreeze and one of them can literally crash into Limgrave and open the way to Nokron.

If it weren't for Radahn, I feel like a star would have passed through Sellia and opened a path to Nokron like that all those years ago. After all, the Eternal City of Nokron is said to sleep beneath Sellia. So Radahn really could have intervened here at the last moment since a star is released and hits Limgrave, as soon as you kill Radahn. However, I admit it's a little strange that that star hits Limgrave and not Sellia, where she was meant to defend. I wonder why. Anyway, there's one more thing I want to talk about here. And it could also be argued that Radahn could have intervened in Sellia and frozen the stars in the name of the Golden Order.

After all, the object description of the telescope literally says that "the destiny that was once written in the night skies was shackled by the Golden Order," and Radahn was a fan of Radagon and Godfrey, who were two defenders of the Order. Golden. So it's definitely possible that he did this in the name of the Golden Order. Personally, however, I believe both things can be true. I think Radahn was clearly motivated to defend Sellia from the meteor shower, and I think the Golden Order would benefit from one of their vassals accomplishing such a feat. Radahn And most of the demigods at that stage, in fact, were technically on the side of Marika's Golden Order.

So I guess technically Radahn was aligned with the Golden Order and could have technically chained the stars in his name. But the impression I get from Radahn is that he has no real loyalty to anyone but himself and his men. This is my speculation, but I think it's because no one in the current era or anyone in the game hates him. Even his brother Rykard has his picture on the wall, and Rykard hated anything that had to do with the Golden Order. So while I think Radahn served the intent of the Golden Order, I don't think he was beholden to it, especially in the later years when the Elden Ring was shattered.

Because remember this scene with Morgott, you willful traitors, everyone! Morgott labels all the demigods as traitors to the Golden Order, including Radahn, who we see in a confrontation with Morgott, suggesting that he may have abandoned his loyalty to the order and marched towards Leyndell after the destruction. Because Radahn, like his demigod kin, had claimed a Great Rune. And it's easy to assume that a warmonger like him would have had great ambitions for power and might even have aspired to become an Elden Lord. And it is at this time, when the demigods were facing each other, that Malenia enters the scene once again because Malenia.

Blade of Miquella marched towards Caelid, past Godrick in Limgrave and towards Radahn. Honestly, Godrick is nothing more than a stuck-up redneck. Gentleman? Do not make me laugh. He first hid among the women to flee the capital, then he hid from Radahn in that castle. Then he insulted Malenia, lost to her in battle, only to lick her boots, instead of dying like a man. Ha! Aren't you ashamed? The big girl's blouse. This dialogue from Kenneth Haight is a great piece of history, as he tells us about this last crucial part of the devastating war. At this point, Godrick had simply failed to usurp Leyndell Capital and had fled with his tail between his legs to Stormveil.

Here he hid for fear of Radahn, who was a close neighbor in Caelid. And it makes sense that he would fear Radahn, whom many considered the strongest of the demigods. But while he hid here, a different army approached from the north, not from the south as Godrick must have feared. Malenia and her Cleanrot Knights were passing Stormveil on their march south from Haligtree to Caelid. And this event, this step is marked on the Liurnian Highway Sword Tombs that say that "nothing will hinder the sword wings of Miquella and the Cleanrot Knights." These tombstones tend to mark battle points, and Kenneth claims that Godrick insulted Malenia and lost to her in battle.

So I guess this is where that happened. As for the nature of the insult, well, we've cut the dialogue with Godrick to help us here. There is only one tree and only its branches. That are bathed in true rays of gold. Not the foolish King Aguero. No. He does not classify malformed twins either. So Godrick considered Miquella and Malenia stale and deformed. So I guess the insult was along those lines, which wasn't smart of Godrick. Malenia must have ruined it, but the telling thing is that she didn't kill him. And that is a curious detail becauseThis was the Devastating War.

We're supposed to believe that all the demigods were fighting for power, but if Malenia sought power here and sought other Great Runes to acquire to restore the Elden Ring and live up to Miquella, or her own Empyrean promise, then one You would think she would have killed Godrick, shown him no mercy, but let him live. So to me, that suggests that Malenia might not have been on this march south to seize power, because if she didn't claim Godrick's Great Rune, then she probably wasn't here for Radahn's either. So why did Malenia advance with all her strength towards Radahn on this southward march?

I feel like there are three options, four if we count the theory that Malenia could have pursued Radahn to gain control of the Elden Ring. But as I just explained, I feel like that's unlikely. The second option, although still unlikely in my opinion, is that Malenia could have sought out Radahn simply to fight him. After all, he was widely considered the most powerful of the demigods, as was Malenia in many cases. So it's not ridiculous to think that the two could have fought simply by pitting their forces against each other. But, in my opinion, that is a rather unsatisfactory answer.

Option three, I think, could be because Malenia was looking for her brother. At this point, Miquella could have already been kidnapped by Mohg, so perhaps she was simply looking for him. She intentionally heads directly south and towards Caelid, and Mohg's palace is essentially below Sellia and below the area where Radahn and Malenia fought. So I guess it's possible that Malenia had some information that led her here in search of Miquella. But again, this is just speculation. But my favorite theory is the fourth, which is that Malenia, and by extension Miquella, could have wanted Radahn to die for the same reason that Ranni ultimately does, so that the stars could resume their movement and put certain destinies back into play. .

And you may wonder, but why would Miquella want the stars to resume her movement? Well, perhaps Miquella's own destiny was locked in stagnation. After all, we found a demigod Amber Starlight Shard in Miquella's hideout, and I feel like it should be worrying that her fate could have fallen like this. But I think the best answer is that Miquella wanted the stars to move again so that the moon could properly eclipse the sun. This was a ritual that Miquella seemed to believe would revive Godwyn the Golden, her brother. And we talk about this a lot more in this video, and I can definitely see how stars in stasis would prevent the moon from eclipsing the sun.

I really like this answer, but I'd love to hear her theories. There are surely more than these four options, but in the end, there is only one answer I trust, and that is that we cannot say with certainty why Malenia fought Radahn. Not yet, anyway. But whatever the reason, it must have been good, because it was during this battle that Malenia sacrificed everything. There is something I must return to Malenia. The will that she once was his. Her dignity, her sense of self that allowed her to resist Scarlet Rot's call. the pride she abandoned to fulfill Radahn's measure.

In the Elden Ring story trailers, we see this legendary fight unfold. The Cleanrot Knights finally arrive, with Malenia taking on the Redmane Knights and manage to sink a ton of spears into Radahn during their confrontation. In fact, you can see these spears still sticking out of his back to this day. So Malenia and Radahn seem to be the only two left standing. Malenia sacrifices her prosthetic arm to get closer to Radahn, grabs her sword and plunges it into both of them, giving us a close-up view of the two characters. Here Radahn looks monstrous, which I theorize could again be due to him being tainted with the madness of a great rune, although that's just speculation.

And we can also see here Malenia's lips moving, murmuring some final words, or perhaps her incantation for Scarlet Aeonia, which envelops her and Radahn, ending their fight. In the first chapter of this video, we talked at length about Malenia's battle against the Scarlet Rot within her, but right now she seems to lose that fight, perhaps intentionally, and allows the Scarlet Rot to take over. Millicent, who is a great parallel to Malenia, says that it was then that she sacrificed her dignity, her sense of self, her will, and her pride. Malenia did all this just so she could fulfill Radahn's measure.

Thus, Scarlet Rot exploded outward, infecting Radahn and the land itself as their battle reached a horrible stalemate. In the end, neither side was in a position to continue fighting. So technically Malenia didn't lose, so technically she was still undefeated. Few survived the Battle of Aeonia, but one who did was the Cleanrot Knight, Finlay, who, in an act of unimaginable heroism, carried Malenia's sleeping form to the Haligtree. They achieved it alone, fending off all kinds of enemies along the way. But back in the center of Caelid, the Scarlet Flower of Malenia remained. A close dialogue from Phantom says "sublime, I tell you, the first flower of Aeonia bloomed in this very place.

Malenia, may you become a goddess." Currently, Caelid features at its center a giant spiraling tree similar to the first Scarlet Flower of Malenia. So it's probably the same Scarlet Bloom that the Ghost says. This was the first flower of Aeonia and the beginning of the Scarlet Swamp in this land. And at the center of all this is another curious thing. There is a chief named Commander O'Neil who carries the commander's banner, which says: "Even after his Lord fled, Commander O'Neil continued to brandish this flag in the devastation of the

rotten

battlefield. The only veteran who remembers this battle with pride." And it's hard for me to say exactly which side O'Neil would have been on.

He summons the spirits of exiled soldiers who have no real affiliation to speak of. Although I will say that you can summon one of Millicent's sisters to help you fight O'Neil, which could suggest that she is opposed to the idea of ​​rot and that she could have fought for Radahn. Although I feel like you can go both ways because the Commander's Banner says that his Lord fled and both Malenia and Radahn fled this battle anyway. When you defeat O'Neil by luring him into the Scarlet Rot guise, because it's fun, he doesn't just drop the commander's banner.

He also drops a relic from the Battle of Aeonia, a broken needle of pure gold that was once buried within Malenia's own flesh, repelling the scarlet rot from her until it breaks. A really interesting question here, considering the needle is broken, is whether Malenia intentionally broke it when she plunged her sword into it and Radahn. Perhaps she knew that would make the rot inside her flare worse than ever if the needle broke, and allow her to defeat Redan. Millicent explains that the explosion of rot in her is worse after she pulls out the needle, almost as if it has been building up inside them all this time.

I stop even to tell you, but I pulled out the needle myself. Scarlet Rot is writhing now, worse than ever. It's pretty clear that this is where the final moments of the battle took place. And we even found Cleanrot Knights able to soar outside when you're around, even now. But we didn't find Radahn anywhere near here either. Instead, we find him closer to his former home at Redmane Castle. In a nearby catacomb, the spirits of the war dead actually continue to clash, refusing to give up even in death and outside of Radahn is exactly the same.

And although he is foolish, he is still alive, managing to even keep the stars in stasis even now, because he is still in possession of the great rune of him, which began to burn to resist the invasion of the Scarlet Rot. His feet have rotted away due to the Cleanrot Knights' spears remaining in his flesh, but he continues to fight by simply using those spears on his back as arrows to fight off anyone who threatens him, refusing to give up and die any further. anything other than an honorable death. Are you into festivals? Or flowers? to the south, a great party to make the stars spin. to the east, the hardened bud of a future flower.

But do you dare to enter? in the heart of Scarlet Rot? As the rot takes hold, Caelid becomes a new hell and the land itself becomes a threat. Even the dragons in this place were forced to flee and would make a new nest on a plateau that would be nicknamed Dragonbarrow. And since then no one has dared to enter it. That being said, some dragons did not emerge unscathed. The Dragon Ekzykes succumbed to the Scarlet Rot, although he did not forget his hatred and, sadly, Greyoll, the mother of all dragons, who also dwarfs them all, can be found at death's door, surrounded by her children and completely ruined by Scarlet Rot. .

Something sad. Thanks for the 50,000 runes. And in the end it was Scarlet Rot from Malenia. In reality, it is not Malenia herself who would eventually lead the Redmane Knights of Radahn to defeat. According to his armor, when they were defeated by Scarlet Rot of Malenia, the Red Mane Knights burned the crest on the left chest of their armor to indicate his determination, saying: "Oh, dear home, I will never see you again." . , because our duty is to stay here. A bulwark against the plague" knights using fire to burn their own crest in this way is a great symbol because fire was their only weapon to fight rot.

And interestingly, according to the Armorer's Cookbook, many of these fire-related tools and techniques were passed down by a gunsmith who served the great General Radahn, as his books contained knowledge on how to deal with rot The application of fire in particular. clearly became a big part of their identity, from now on. The corpses of rabid wild animals were piled up and burned. Long walls of smoldering flames were built to prevent the rot from spreading to the neighboring lands. their own castles. They burned churches and even managed to seize some chariots of fire to help in their fight.

They used torches, braziers, arrows, everything. And fittingly, Knight Jerren's beloved sword, a Flamberge, became the symbol of the castle itself. Thanks to the flame-shaped undulation that this sword gives, it is difficult to pronounce the name. And Jerren himself remained at Castle Redmane to periodically host a celebration of war, calling champions from far and wide to deliver death. A death for his friend, who is now rotten and crippled by madness, who now only wants an honorable exit. Meanwhile, among the Malenia aeonian butterflies, pale pests emerge from the Aeonia swamp, and although they look like simple insects, they are not.

These creatures are intelligent with a quote-unquote "sharp intellect" that allows them to make amazing weapons from sharp shells. They can also cast spells and even tame wild beasts. That said, they are ultimately creatures of worship, and Gowry actually calls them dumb, which certainly contrasts with the description of them as intelligent in this article's description. Anyway, pests are also called abandoned children of the goddess and abandoned servants of the Goddess of Rot. And it's not hard to see why. Not only was Malenia pushed too far at the very moment of its flowering when these pests supposedly emerged, but it also resents and resists the scarlet rot within it unless pushed to its absolute limits.

So of course these pests are abandoned in that sense as well. And who wouldn't hate them? Honestly, is there anything more annoying than this bloody attack? However, the pests persist. They even have a quoteable line of dialogue in the Scions of Rot's Exaltation talisman, which reads "Rot by the Scarlet Goddess. O Scarlet Blossoms, bloom in distant lands, and return to us unwanted children." Which brings us to the phrase "Scarlet Blossoms." This may not literally be talking about Scarlet Rot flower buds, but I think it's talking about real people. I think these are these five sisters. Scarlet Blossoms.

They are Pollyanna, Maureen, Amy, Mary and Millicent. She is a green and undeveloped bud, waiting to blossom into magnificence. superior could well overshadow its sisters. So it seems that these pests, including Gowry, perhaps have a great interest in cultivating these scarlet flowers. I would prefer to talk about the militants' questline in a future episode of Prepare to Cry, as well. than subscribe. and activate notifications. But for now I'll wait for it. But essentially, Gowry does all of this in anticipation of these daughters becoming Scarlet Valkyries, who he believesthat they might one day serve Malenia when she ascends as the Goddess of Rot.

At this point, Malenia had not been seen for a long time. Not since they took her to Haligtree. and the location of Haligtrees itself was a mystery to many, but there were still those who revered and adored it. And not all of them were pests. Some of them were human, like Maleigh Marais, the castellan of the Shadowed Castle. Maleigh wears the Marais mask, which is something only the head of the Marais house wears. She bears the image of the first of her lineage and describes this long dual history of the Marais family, who served as executioners and castellans of Shadowed Castle.

Appropriately enough, his historical sword is the Marais Executioner's Sword, a broad-bladed weapon that would eventually be used against them. For one day, they made the mistake of capturing a bell hunter named Elmemer, but Elemer, who knew battle skills that allowed him to move objects with his own will, snatched the sword at the sight of his impending execution and overthrew his captors. . But it doesn't seem like she wanted to rule the castle in his place. Instead, the castle falls into ruins. And when we find him, Elemer is simply standing looking at a huge portrait, which is an image of Malenia, who some believe is to blame for the castle's fate.

A nearby ghost laments the state of things and states: "The Marais House is ruined. Only desserts for falling in love with that severed harpy. No wonder the guilty cretin has taken over the castle and our historic sword" on the outskirts of the castle. In fact, you can find and fight Maleigh Marais, the castle's former castellan who has now been overthrown. She wields the Antspur Rapier, which is a weapon reminiscent of the scorpion dagger we mentioned at the beginning of the video, as it is also a sword formed from a chitinous creature. In this case it is the stinger of a giant ant.

Fittingly, then, his description reminds us that "Scarlet Rot is an old legend" and goes on to state that "Maleigh Marai of the Shaded Castle was a private believer" in Scarlet Rot. And, in fact, he finally found her own personal goddess. The Robe of Marais explains why he was so in love with her, stating that "all children of the House of Marais are born sickly" and that is why "Maleigh Marais was deceived by the beautiful and fierce goddess who was born rotten." Malenia was, after all, a powerful and fierce figure despite her affliction. However, it's easy to see why Maleigh Marais admired her.

I suppose he may have taken this veneration too far, as the castle sinks into a poisoned swamp and the throne room is filled with prosthetics that mirror Malenia's. In fact, he may have even found Malenia's own prosthetic. As you can loot the Valkyrie Prosthesis here, which says "Golden Prosthesis, once used by the armored Valkyrie, a masterpiece of craftsmanship. With practice and skill, it can be used as skillfully as a real arm. When Maleigh Marais, Lord of the Shadowed Castle, embraced this prosthesis and claimed to feel the presence of his personal goddess." Now, I'm not really sure if this is Malenia's real prosthetic or not.

I feel like debates could be made for and against that, but either way, it makes it clear what a bigot this guy was. But in the end, the castle isn't much more than a home for a few surviving Cleanrot knights who would understandably feel at home in such a place. And I guess they have nowhere else to go. While Malenia sleeps in Haligtree, where she does very little else until you arrive and trigger what I believe is her second transformation. {Malenia] Wait. The scarlet flowers, once again. You will witness true horror. Now, screw you! Now, I have bad news for you in this final chapter.

So you know how difficult it was to defeat Malenia, right? Well, what if I told you that wasn't her final form? It may not be, as Scarlet Aeonia's description reads: "Every time the scarlet flower blooms, Malenia's rot advances. And with the third flower, she will become a true goddess." That is why it is known that the first flowering of Malenia was in Caelid. And we know that she flourishes in a fight against us. So the debate is: Is this mid-fight bloom the second bloom of Malenia or the third? Some would say that this is Malenia's third bloom and that she has already become the Goddess of Rot.

After all, she literally has "Goddess of Rot" as a title. And there's a flower right outside her boss's room, which might have been the site of her second bloom. So how do you argue against that? Well, for starters, the flower outside might not be yours. On the one hand, it would be a little strange if he had a second bloom that is never described, right here when he sleeps in the next room. But not only that, in front of this flower, you actually loot the Traveler's Outfit, which is the same outfit that Millicent and her sisters wear, and also Melina.

Considering that Millicent and her sisters are sprouts from Malenia, and considering that Millicent also leaves one of these flowers behind when she dies, it's not ridiculous to think that one of these sisters could have already bloomed here. And I don't think the fact that Malenia has "Goddess of Rot" in her boss title means much. Many, like Gowry and the pests, already believe that Malenia is the Goddess of rRot. Instead, Scarlet Aeonia's description specifies that her third bloom will make her a true goddess. And I think all of the above is just a brief glimpse of the God of Rot shining through.

But the biggest evidence that Malenia has not yet reached her third bloom, in my opinion, comes from Gowry, who goes to great lengths to care for Millicent, encouraging us to kill her, even so that this betrayal can turn her into a Scarlet Valkyrie who will serve to Malenia. It must be done by your hand, not by another. In fact, Millicent trusts you deeply. If she cuts off that betrayal-fueled trust, her bud will bloom more vividly. When Malenia ascends to godhood, Millicent will also be reborn as a Scarlet Valkyrie. If Millicent dies, she flourishes, and Gowry hopes she will be resurrected after this.

So considering that there is also a flower in Malenia's boss room, which appears after defeating her, I feel like it's possible that Malenia could also have another revivification after this. And you pointed out one last piece of evidence in the comments of my recent Oracle short. In that video, I argued that the Oracles could be there to announce Miquella's return as a god, since his Spiritual Ashes state that "it is said that when the Envoys of the Oracles appear, playing their flutes, they do so to announce the arrival of a new god or era." But I completely forgot to mention that they might be here to announce Malenia's ascension as a god.

So thank you all for pointing it out. If you haven't already, I would appreciate it if you tried some of my short content. It's extremely difficult to fit everything into 60 seconds, but it's a fun challenge and I'm very happy with some of the short stories I've published. I could tell in those shorts. Anyway, I personally wouldn't be surprised if we found some incarnation of Malenia again in the DLC and she would be signed up for that fight whenever she resurrects again with the lower half of her being a scorpion or something. But what I find the most disturbing thought about Malenia's possible third bloom is that Gowry believes a scarlet bloom will be more vivid if she thrives on betrayal.

That's what we see in Millicent's quest line. So what if Malenia's third bloom could be more vivid if she is betrayed by her brother Miquella? But it's late now and I'm really getting into deranged speculation territory, aren't I? That's probably my cue to end the video. Special thanks to Mispap1 for the footage and editing help, as always, and special thanks also to Quelaag for reviewing this script. And thanks, as always, for watching. Subtitled by in2thevoyde