Why are all the people in my chat group rumored to be from the outside world?

As if bidding farewell to his past self, Ember turned around, climbed the stairs, and entered the Firelink Shrine.

But when he finally stepped inside the building, it was completely different from what he remembered.

The place is dark and old, with the only source of light being the faint candlelight.

And here... there seems to be no trace of human activity.

But there was someone there, after all, Ember saw him, and he saw Ember.

"...This is terrible."

A bad feeling welled up inside him, and Yu Jin walked down the steps one by one toward that person.

"The commotion you've created is quite significant, and... very dazzling. I like it very much." On the throne, a short king gazed at Ember.

"Hehe, thank you for your praise, but may I ask you some questions?" Ember came to the throne and looked up at the king slightly.

Ludows, King of the Dwarves.

The other person was also quite different from the gaunt appearance he remembered.

"I'd be happy to answer your question. It just so happens that I haven't spoken to anyone in a long time," Rudaus nodded.

"What's going on here? Why are you all alone?"

“Because they ran away.” Rudolf’s gaze fell on the empty thrones.

"They chose to abandon the act of passing the fire."

"And I am the only one left here."

"In order to continue this era."

Rudauth's gaze fell on Ember, and he said leisurely, "You're early, and you're late."

Ember: "...I'm not spreading this outside, am I?"

Chapter 25 The two should—pass on the torch.

I'm so stupid, really.

No one has ever said that time travel will necessarily take you to a timeline you are familiar with.

Yu Jin sat on the stairs of the Fire Ritual Site, contemplating life.

He deduced from Rudolph's words that Rudolph had only recently taken up the position.

The second bell had not yet rung, and the ashes had not yet emerged from their slumber.

So Ember really did arrive too early, far too early, so early that even the Fire Keeper hadn't been chosen yet, and there was no one there when I arrived.

How should I put it now? Yu Jin was somewhat confused.

“What are you thinking about? Why don’t you tell me?” Ludos, sitting on the throne, looked at Ember beside him on the stairs.

"Well, how should I put it? My feelings are very complicated right now," Yu Jin sighed.

Yu Jin felt like he was on a roller coaster, going up and down, one second he was enlightened, and the next he was defeated by reality.

With another long sigh, Yu Jin turned to look at Ludovic beside him and said, "Give me some advice, like what should I do right now?"

Rudaus chuckled: "I don't have any particularly good advice. The only advice I can give you is to do more research."

"Go see more?"

Rudaus nodded.

"Although the flame I ignited was small, it was enough to bring a brief period of order to this world."

"If you feel lost, take a look at this era."

Ember stared at him blankly for a long time before finally saying, "Uh, shouldn't you have asked me to go and capture those escaped Lords of Cinder?"

Rudauth shook his head and looked at the candlelight beside him.

"This is not your task. When the second bell tolls, the Firebearer will awaken from his slumber to continue this era."

Rudauth looked at Ember again: "I don't know who you are, or what you are, but I think I probably know why you came here. So if you're feeling lost, you can go and see this era that I ignited."

When Rudows said his last sentence, his tone was a mixture of helplessness and pride.

He was the chosen Lord of Cinder, and he came here voluntarily.

He was willing to contribute to this era, but looking at his gradually withering body, even with the strongest will, he would feel helpless.

Ember looked at the king on the throne and suddenly said, "I will try to save this world."

"It's neither about passing on the fire nor extinguishing it."

"That's a method you would never imagine."

Rudauth blinked, as if he didn't react for a moment.

Yu Jin stood up and dusted off his backside.

"Although there's no solution right now, I'll find one eventually."

Ember strode toward the center of the Firelink Shrine, where there was a basin, and took out the Spiral Sword from his spatial backpack.

"Shouldn't it be fine to just stick it in?" Yu Jin muttered to himself before inserting the sword into the basin.

Soon, flames rose from it.

During this process, Rudaus stared blankly at the figure.

Finally, an expression appeared on his face that was incomprehensible to most people.

There's no such thing as an easy way to save the world. It's been thousands of years. If there really were such a way, it would have been discovered long ago, but it hasn't.

Of course, Rudolf wouldn't utter such discouraging words. He simply stared silently at the embers below until they disappeared from his sight through the connection established between the embers and Lothric via Firelink Shrine. Only then did he slowly close his eyes, and Firelink Shrine fell silent once more.

-

Swords clashed, people wailed, and a stench filled Yu Jin's nostrils.

Yu Jin suddenly opened his eyes.

what's going on?

He listened to the shouts around him and looked at his surroundings.

"I should have arrived in Lothric. What's going on outside?"

Ember looked toward a door, and the sound clearly reached his ears from there.

Ember moved closer to the door, allowing himself to hear the sounds outside more clearly.

"Are you still knights of Lothric?"

"The flames are flickering and we must immediately send Prince Lothric to the Firelink Shrine to continue this world!"

"And what about you? What are you doing! Answer me! Are you still knights of Lothric?!"

“I’m sorry, but these are His Highness Lorian’s orders. As a knight, I should obey the orders of my followers!”

"Hopeless!"

Now I understand.

Yu Jin stroked his chin, deep in thought.

The current timeline is earlier than the beginning of the original story.

The flames have dimmed by this point in time, and the world is now heading towards its end. This is a scene that the people of this world have long anticipated. They had previously chosen several Lords of Cinder to burn as fuel to ensure the continuation of this world.

The embers had already seen one, and that was Ludos on the throne. However, on the other thrones, the fire had been extinguished, and the king was nowhere to be seen.

But how can that be?

Without firewood, the world would soon descend into the Dark Ages.

Therefore, as a nation whose primary purpose is to pass on the fire, Lothric naturally has to carry out this task.

In their country, there was a young prince named Lothric who was chosen from birth to be the King of Cinder.

However, the little prince, who was supposed to link the fire, refused to do so with his brother.

This led to a contest between the two factions.

"So, are the two factions outside fighting right now, the Firelinkers and the non-Firelinkers?"

Ember is in a bit of a predicament right now.

"Rudows, is this what you want me to see? I can only say it's a pile of rubbish."

Just then, a terrifying tremor came from beneath my feet, along with screams from outside.

Ember heard someone shout that it was magic and that everyone should get away.

Then the ground beneath their feet shook violently again, and when the shaking stopped, all that remained were screams of agony.

"...It seems like the fighting is quite intense. This must be from the very beginning of the battle." Yu Jin made a quick assessment in his mind, but just then, he heard a pattering sound coming from outside the door.

"Someone is approaching this way!"

Yu Jin focused his mind and listened to the sounds outside.

It sounded like... crawling.

With a click, it sounded like someone was leaning against the door, followed by heavy breathing and cursing.

"Damn traitors! How could they do such a thing!"

"They are betraying the fire!"

“Nonsense.” Yu Jin rolled his eyes.

They've already flipped the table; isn't that making their stance clear?

They had no intention of passing on the torch at all.

Cough! The man coughed violently, as if he were coughing up his internal organs.

A dozen seconds later, the man finally stopped coughing, leaned against the door, and his breathing gradually weakened.

"Did that spell damage your internal organs...?"

"It seems I can't hold on much longer, damn it! If I were strong enough, if I were qualified, I would definitely link the flame! Instead of being like those traitors!"

"They have betrayed the world! They have betrayed the people who believed in them!"

The knight's voice grew softer and softer, and his breath gradually faded away.

He was going to die, and he was perfectly aware of it.

"I'm sorry, Father, Mother, Sarian, I couldn't keep my promise to you."

The knight uttered words that sounded like his last, but just then, one of the double doors behind him opened, and in his eyes, which had lost their luster, a hand appeared in front of him. The knight, who had no idea what was happening, only felt something enter his mouth, and the next second, a sharp pain shot through his injured abdomen.

what!what!what!

Seeing the person rolling on the ground, Yu Jin innocently took a step back.

"Holy crap! Could it be fake medicine? It's cheaper at ten points, but it says it can save lives! It's just... it hurts a bit."

Seeing the reaction that was clearly more than just a little pain, Yu Jin gasped for breath.

"Hang in there, get through this! Think of your family!" Yu Jin whispered.

He had heard everything the other person had said earlier.

It was the other person's words that made him stop thinking about running away.

Soon, Ember looked at the knight who had stopped rolling, gave an awkward smile, and reached out to cover the knight's wide-open eyes.

"Hmm, very good, still alive. You're welcome."

The other person's breathing had stabilized; they simply couldn't bear the pain and fainted.

That's it? You still need to practice!

He threw the unconscious knight into the room, and Ember looked outside at the scene of the great battle.

Just as he had heard, swords clashed, magic clashed, blood splattered—this was what Ember saw... the real world, the real battlefield.

Was this war meaningful?