Knights Of The Dragon Cult

"How much longer do we have to wait?", an older man politely asked Taraghlan while sipping on honey-infused Rowa wine. He was clad in golden armour, its cape flowing over the comfy chair that he leant back on. Despite his greying hair, his frame was wide and intimidating, a Gravelstone Seal entwined between his fingers - an honour only given to the highest-ranking member of the Draconic Cult.

"The Lord will arrive when he is ready", Taraghlan repeated the same sentence once more as he stood to the side in the lavishly decorated hall, but was immediately interrupted by the sound of flesh hitting wood.

"Do not play games with us!", a younger, more robust version of the older man growled from the side, similarly clad in golden armour. His eyes gleamed with youthful vigour and a fiery temper. "The Dragon Cult deserves your respect!"

"I presume you would pay for that, sir", Taraghlan replied, eyeing the crack in the table.

"You-"

"My, my, is this how far the Dragon Cult has fallen", a voice floated down the stairs, halting the younger man who'd begun to rise from his seat. "Damaging property in the house of their host? That's new."

"My Lord", Taraghlan bowed as Godrick descended into the hall, clad in a long white robe embroidered with an intricate gold design, relief evident in his eyes.

"Am I to take this as a threat?", he raised a golden eyebrow at the older man who seemed a tad bit surprised at meeting a different Godrick. Did he expect to see a cowardly, spineless man in his place? Well, too bad.

[Observe]

(Character Sheet

 Roidh

 Age: Eighty-three and three months old

 HP: ???

 FP: 110

 Strength: ??

 Dexterity: ??

 Endurance: ??

 Vigor: ??

 Mind: 11

 Intelligence: 5

 Faith: ??

 Skills:

 [Spear Mastery (Passive) Level ???]

 [Sheild Mastery (Passive) Level ???]

 [Blessing of the Ancient Dragon Lansseax (Passive): ???]

 ???

 Incantations: ???)

"I apologise on behalf of my protégé. The Cult will compensate for the damages", Roidh spoke smoothly, not bothering to get up at Godrick's arrival. Despite being well into his eighties, he barely looked to be in his late forties, but his eyes did seem to twinkle, curious at the change in Godrick's demeanour. 

'Is this some kind of powerplay?', Godrick thought, noticing that he did not deny it being a threat. 'Both of them didn't bother standing up to greet me while Roidh must be someone really high up in the Dragon Cult to have such monstrous stats and Kristoff as his protege.'

He glanced over at the younger man who seemed to have calmed down. Long brown hair and dull gold Grace-given eyes. The face of the would-be hero who would capture Godefroy the Grafted in the first siege of Leyndell.

[Observe]

(Character Sheet

 Kristoff

 Age: Twenty-four years and one month

 HP: 130 {Healthy}

 FP: ???

 Strength: 14

 Dexterity: ??

 Endurance: ??

 Vigor: 13

 Mind: ??

 Intelligence: 5

 Faith: ??

 Skills:

 [Spear Mastery (Passive) Level ???]

 [Sheild Mastery (Passive) Level ???]

 [Blessing of the Ancient Dragon Lansseax (Passive): ???]

 Incantations:

 [Lightning Spear: Summons a Lightning spear and hurls it before the caster. Charging causes a lightning bolt to strike the point of impact.]

 [Lightning Cage: Summons a Lighting cage and binds it to the target. Slows down and constantly damages the target]

 ???)

"This table was quite dear to me, you know", Godrick gave out a fake sigh, continuing to stand. If they refused to stand up and greet him, then he'd make them look up at him as he talked. He was just as petty as them, if not more.

"As I said before, the Cult will compensa-

"Personally carved by a friend of mine, you know", Godrick interrupted him.

"The Cult shall com-

"It's from the wood of my favourite tree", he continued while Roidh looked up at him with a strained smile.

"We understa-

"Who unfortunately passed. May he be ushered to the roots by Rosus."

A vein bulged in Roidh's forehead as he finally shut up, a look of defeat on his face. Meanwhile, Kristoff stared blankly at Godrick as though he was staring at an alien. The briefing on Godrick painted him as a completely different person.

"Now that I've established the weight of what you've done, let's move on to why you came here in such a hurry", Godrick leisurely picked up a piece of bread on the table and began to chew. "Surely, it can't be because of the letter, I presume I explained myself thoroughly."

"It is because of the letter", Roidh shook his head, looking a little miffed at having to look up at Godrick. "You claim you've duped Godefroy the Grafted into thinking you were allied with him. Why should we believe you?"

"Did I not say that I would come with you? I'll be at your mercy."

"How do we know you're not a snake and will double-cross us the moment we reach our destination? You could be leading us into an ambush!", Kristoff snapped from the side but was shocked when he was instantly backhanded by a gauntleted fist with immense power.

"Kristoff! Watch your mouth", Roidh glared at Kristoff who was cradling his jaw while Godrick looked on with amusement.

It was one thing to show mild disrespect, but calling a descendant of the Golden Lineage a snake was a grievous offence. Snakes were directly opposed to the Erdtree, after all.

"Tsk tsk, another thing the Cult has to compensate me for", he tutted much to the chagrin of Roidh. "To answer your question, if I were to lead you into an ambush, would you not be fighting against traitors either way? I would be leading you to the enemies of the Erdtree in either scenario - enemies that your Cult has sworn to eradicate."

"We just wished to confirm the information. It was too sudden and shocking accept at once", Roidh countered his hand firmly on Kristoff's shoulder as though warning him to not interfere.

"Are you accusing me of lying, Dragon Knight?", Godrick said with fake outrage. "Accusing a descendant of Godywn the Golden with treachery!"

"I..we understand", Roidh hurriedly getting up and bowing for the first time. Their plan to intimidate and pressure Godrick into admitting that he's a traitor or trying to get something out of him failed. "Your contribution to the defence of Leyndell shall not be forgotten. If the information you've given us is accurate, we'll depart in two weeks."

"That is well and good, but what of compensation?", Godrick halted Roidh.

"What of it?", Roidh frowned. "King Morgott the Grace-given is magnanimous. Upon the success of the mission, we will all be rewarded generously. As for the table and my protégé's words we will wor-

"I do not wish for Morgott's gifts. The Cult may have it all," he said firmly, causing Roidh's brows to rise. "But that is only if the Cult gives me something in return. I wish for the Blessing of the Ancient Dragon."

Roidh's face instantly fell while Kristoff looked shocked.

"How do you know of that?", Roidh muttered, his fists clenching and faint traces of gold lighting flashed in his irises.

Taraghlan who stood to Godrick's side frowned, his hand slowly moving to his Estoc but Godrick calmly stared back at him.

"I'm a descendant of Godwyn the Golden. You tell me", he said pointedly.

"Even so...", Roidh's frown deepened.

"My Ancestor was the reason your Cult exists", Godrick said, furrowing his brows. "I've been immensely generous with you so far. Do not threaten me again, lest you wish to lose your head."

He could not let the Cult walk all over him. No matter how distant, he was still of the Golden Lineage and doing so would undermine his position.

Roidh unclenched his fist while Taraghlan breathed a sigh of relief. His actions were pointless anyway. He would not last a few seconds with the Dragon Knight.

"I do not have the authority to grant the Blessing", Roidh shook his head.

"Then bring me to somebody who can", Godrick replied, looking pointedly at the large crack on the table making the old Dragon Knight sigh.

"The only one who can give out Blessings is the Dragon Priestess, Sire", he said in a defeated voice, finally addressing Godrick with a title. "I shall get you an appointment with her in a week. It's the best I can do."

"Your best is all I need", Godrick smiled before looking at a bruised Kristoff. "You should watch your mouth too, boy. Strength can only take so far."

All he received was a mumble of acknowledgement before Roidh hurried his protege out of his mansion looking like he'd just swallowed a lemon.

***

"My Lord, I recall that you'd gotten the table as a part of a set when buying cutlery", Taraghlan whispered from his side a few minutes after the Dragon Knights left, laughter evident in his voice.

"I needed a way for one of them to snap", Godrick shrugged. "And what better way is there to piss off somebody than constant interruption and blatant lies that they have no choice but to accept?"

'Well, I got what I wanted at the end', he thought. 'Using Dragon Incantations without a blessing should be impossible. Any other benefits would be welcome. As for gaining access to Dragon Incantations...the rogue Leyndell Knight would be useful, but that's in the future.'

***

"Five hundred thousand gold coins, a million silver, Knight Grade Weapons and armour, Three Golden Order spellbooks, and....this...", Godrick took note of the golden talisman that he cradled in his palm as he rested in his study. It depicted two hands cradling a cup collecting sap flowing from the Erdtree.

"That is indeed the general description of our inventory, my Lord. The more detailed version is in this manuscript here", Taraghlan nodded, passing him a thick roll of paper. "I have also procured the talisman pouch that you requested. Moreover, the cartful of St Trina Lilies, Mushrooms and Clay pots is ready. Unfortunately, I was not able to procure Miquella Lilies and Sacramental buds. Nobody wished to part with theirs."

Taraghlan passed a worn brown pouch with a golden inscription of the two fingers.

"Make the preparations that I mentioned before. I need to be able to leave with my possessions at a moment's notice. You've done well. Thank you", Godrick nodded, accepting the pouch and dismissing Taraghlan, noting that his steward had clenched his jaw unnaturally hard when mentioning Miquella, while his hand that was missing a ring finger unconsciously cradled the withered finger around his neck.

'Interesting', he thought as he watched his steward exit his study before looking back down at the talisman. 'There was nothing regarding the withered finger in Godrick's memories. Something to remember.'

[Observe]

[Blessed Dew Talisman:

Talisman depicting a drop of the Erdtree's sap, a blessed boon. It was once thought that the blessed sap of the Erdtree would drip from its boughs forever but that age of plenty swiftly came to a close, and with time, the Erdtree became more an object of faith. Restores 2HP/s.]

'The exact same as the talisman in the game', he noted while turning his attention to the worn pouch.

[Observe]

[Small, withered bag, knitted by hand. Allows the activation of a talisman without the use of FP(Focus). Can only activate one talisman.]

'So I can activate a talisman without needing a pouch?', he observed before being reminded of the silencing talisman that Taraghlan carried. He'd repeatedly mentioned that it was a heavy drain on Focus and that it was nearly impossible to use while in battle.

'Good to know', as he tied the pouch to his hip and slipped the talisman into it.

[Equipped Blessed Dew Talisman: +2HP/s]

The change was instant. A euphoric sensation of refreshment came over him as the soreness in his muscles slowly receded before vanishing. He felt far more alive than he'd ever felt before. Training with Earnan would be so much easier.

'Ah, only if this wasn't one of a kind', he lamented, remembering that the talisman was exceedingly rare and unique. If he sold this, he could become the richest person in Leyndell, barring King Morgott, in an instant. After all, the talisman held the crystallised sap of the Erdtree. It was not only life-saving but also sacred.

It was only due to his Golden Lineage that he had inherited as a heirloom.

"Ah, Nepotism. Never change", he chuckled to himself as he took out a Finger Seal, one issued to soldiers before pulling out the Basic Soldier Spellbook provided to him by Earnan.

It was time to delve into the world of magic, sorcery and incantations.

***

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