With a method to manage the Scarlet Rot contamination in Caelid, Bai Shi was in high spirits.
He was even humming a little tune as he left the Roundtable Hold.
Although it was just a possibility for now, it was far better than having no direction at all.
When it came to Caelid, Bai Shi was determined to take charge if he could.
The creatures in Caelid had all suffered a disaster they should never have had to endure.
These lives, these "less important" lives that no one in the game cared about.
Who cared about the suffering they went through?
And who would question "why?" on their behalf?
Bai Shi wanted to save them.
He had decided this back in Castle Morne.He didn't see himself as a savior, nor could he guarantee that he would succeed.
He simply wanted to do it, arrogant enough to want to change this world.
It wasn't selfless or noble, just a desire to satisfy himself.
Besides, Caelid was a vast place, truly deserving of the term "expansive."
If such a large area could be governed and reclaimed, that would be excellent.
However, Bai Shi wasn't after this territory.
Even if he stood in the center of Caelid, activated his Fengling Yueying, and set a fire to burn away all the Scarlet Rot, it would be a long, long time before Caelid recovered enough to produce resources.
By the time he finished governing and utilizing Caelid, Bai Shi would probably already be the Elden Lord.
Bai Shi was well aware of this.
So, he considered the territory merely a bonus; his main goal was to save the living beings of that land.
It had to be said, Bai Shi was truly an idealist.
Yet, as it happened, he possessed the ability to turn his ideals into reality.
Caelid was now a complete quagmire. No one could manage it, and no one would bother to.
It was a joke; the effort and reward were completely disproportionate.
Only a guy like Bai Shi would do such a thing.
But someone had to do it, right?
Among the other demigods, the only ones who might have cared about Caelid were Radahn and Morgott.
It went without saying for Radahn; after all, it was his own land.
It was just a shame he had fallen into madness, leaving only his soldiers to struggle against the Scarlet Rot.
Morgott would probably have taken action after the dust settled, for he was the benevolent, Grace-given King.
——
After reaching an agreement with Hilbert, Bai Shi prepared to set off for Caelid.
First, he changed his initial destination, deciding to pick up Hilbert first.
She was a crucial figure for the future governance of Caelid.
According to Hilbert, some strange creatures had appeared around her recently.
They resembled insects with pale white exoskeletons, but they stood upright like humans.
Although she hadn't clashed with them yet, their pale bodies disgusted Hilbert.
The rustling sound they made when they moved was especially skin-crawling.
She didn't know where these damn things came from, but they might have been attracted by the neutralized zones created during her experiments.
Bai Shi knew what they were as soon as he heard the description—it had to be those disgusting Kindred of Rot.
Caelid was now a land completely overrun by Scarlet Rot.
As a result, worshippers of the Scarlet Rot were flocking there from all over, making a pilgrimage.
Among these followers, the "mushroom people" were relatively friendly.
But there was another group, a more radical and cruel faction of Scarlet Rot worshippers.
To them, the blasphemous act of clearing the Scarlet Rot was unforgivable.
In that case, he had to hurry over and protect Hilbert; he couldn't afford to lose her to an accident.
From the Roundtable Hold, he entered the space of grace.
Melina looked Bai Shi up and down with her golden right eye.
With his weapons in hand, Bai Shi projected an incredibly sharp and aggressive aura.
"Hmm, that set of gear suits you very well. You look handsome."
Being complimented by Melina was completely different from being complimented by anyone else.
Bai Shi felt a bit flustered, reaching up to run a hand through the gray hair adorning his crown, messing it up.
Only when he was with Melina could he so relaxedly show his various emotions.
Seeing Bai Shi like this, Melina couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle softly, her eyelashes fluttering.
Bai Shi watched her smile and smiled along with her.
At the same time, his resolve hardened once more.
He had to find a way to restore Melina's body.
And this time, he would absolutely not let her suffer the pain of burning again.
——
Returning to Stormveil, Bai Shi immediately sought out Lanslet.
As the deputy regent, Lanslet had been managing all the affairs, large and small, within Stormveil Castle.
He had done an excellent job, and Stormveil was developing steadily.
Therefore, Bai Shi didn't have to worry about the city falling into chaos after he left for Caelid.
Bai Shi would be leaving Stormveil for Caelid for a considerable period.
Before he went, he had to give out all necessary instructions and at least arrange the general tasks.
Anxious to depart, Bai Shi went directly to Lanslet's office.
When Lanslet saw Bai Shi personally coming to find him, he shot up from his chair and bowed respectfully.
Bai Shi paid no mind to such formalities and got straight to the point.
"Lanslet, I will be leaving Stormveil for a while to make a trip to Caelid."
"It could be a few weeks, or as long as a month or two. I hope you can continue to manage Stormveil well during this time."
Lanslet was shocked to hear this.
"What! You're leaving Stormveil for a long time?!"
Although Bai Shi had often wandered around and studied sorcery before, not really managing affairs, he could always return immediately if anything happened in Stormveil.
But going on a long journey was completely different.
To be honest, Lanslet felt extremely uneasy, even breaking into a cold sweat.
All sorts of terrible scenarios kept flashing through his mind.
He even considered outlandish situations like a coalition of lords attacking Stormveil.
He was worried that he couldn't protect Stormveil on his own.
Unlike Lanslet, Bai Shi's imagination wasn't running so wild; he was quite relaxed.
He was a hands-off boss, after all.
And he believed that in his absence, Lanslet would manage everything perfectly, just as before.
"It's fine, it's fine. I have faith in your administrative skills."
Lanslet stammered, "Uh, it's not that..."
Bai Shi blinked, unsure of what Lanslet was trying to say.
"Haha, you can't be worried that I'll die out there, can you?"
Lanslet shook his head, quickly denying it.
"You are so powerful, I believe you can safely navigate any situation."
"It's just... you are the backbone of Stormveil, after all."
"Besides, I've heard that Caelid is a terrible place..."
"Even with your great strength, facing something like the Scarlet Rot might carry unexpected risks."
Seeing Lanslet's concern for his safety, Bai Shi raised an eyebrow.
He patted Lanslet's shoulder, telling him not to worry.
"What warrior doesn't get injured? Besides, I'm going there to participate in the festival of combat and face Starscourge Radahn directly. It would be strange if I didn't get hurt."
Lanslet still had his reservations and continued, "With you away from Stormveil, we'll be at our most vulnerable."
"If you're not here, no matter how well Stormveil develops, it will just be the next piece of meat on the chopping block for the other demigods."
His worries were not unfounded; there were indeed demigods who might attack.
Not Morgott, the Grace-given King—he had to guard the Royal Capital Leyndell and wouldn't have the time to leave.
But Mohg, Lord of Blood... he was all too familiar with sneak attacks.
But no matter what, Bai Shi had to go to Caelid.
If he hesitated because of potential risks, wouldn't he be throwing the baby out with the bathwater?
Besides, whether it was Stormveil or any other force he might subdue in the future.
They were supposed to be his support, not his burden.
The Tarnished he had recruited were all warriors.
In addition to the Tarnished, he had also trained many proper soldiers from the native inhabitants of the Lands Between.
It would be too embarrassing if they were defeated the moment he was gone.
"Alright, don't overthink it. I'm leaving it to you. Do a good job."
"As for emergencies, I'll leave a mark in the city. Have a few Tarnished keep an eye on it, and touch it if anything happens."
"No matter the situation, I'll return immediately through grace."
Bai Shi handed the tasks over to Lanslet.
"Next, gather the people who signed up last time, distribute the dragon flesh, and intensify their training."
Since the call for volunteers was announced, a steady stream of people had signed up to consume dragon flesh.
The ability to quickly enhance one's strength was incredibly tempting, and the price was merely a trivial thirst for blood.
After Hakan bravely volunteered to be the first to eat the dragon flesh.
Then, a few more volunteers were brought in to try it, and their results were similar.
Bai Shi had confirmed that the dragon flesh did indeed provide a small boost in power.
In terms of stats, it was roughly a random one or two-point increase in Vigor, Endurance, Strength, and Dexterity.
Weaker individuals would see a slightly greater improvement.
Furthermore, the more dragon flesh consumed, the larger the boost.
Although the increase per stat was not much, for mid-to-low-tier warriors whose stats were generally in the teens or twenties, it was a huge enhancement.
"Oh, right, the corresponding armor also needs to be crafted."
With that, Bai Shi took out a blueprint and handed it to Lanslet.
This blueprint was also Melina's handiwork.
This set of armor covered every part of the body, leaving not a single gap.
It was adorned with intricate dark patterns all over, making it look magnificent.
The set Bai Shi had planned for them was the Dragonblood Knight Set.
The Dragonblood Knights craved dragon blood.
It was the most fitting equipment for them.
Actually, Bai Shi had originally planned to use the Lothric Knight Set.
It wasn't because the Dragonblood Knight set was inadequate, but because the Lothric Knights were truly impressive.
The Lothric Knights fought alongside wyverns, so it was somewhat related.
Although Bai Shi couldn't procure a few wyverns like Lothric.
He could let dragons fight alongside them from within their stomachs.
But in the end, the Dragonblood Knight set was still the most suitable for their identity.
Armor for other units could be crafted later.
For the time being, the Dragonblood Knights would be the most elite unit and the quickest to train.
However, Bai Shi didn't plan to rely on such a force indefinitely; it wasn't a long-term solution.
They would shoulder the main burden in the early stages of development, but later on, armies trained through normal means would need to take over their responsibilities.
"Also, start conducting assessments in the training grounds. Examine their qualities in every aspect; this data will be useful later."
"In the future, we will train them separately based on these qualities, forming armies with different characteristics that can coordinate on the battlefield."
"We need more, and stronger, armies."
Lanslet took the blueprint and noted everything down.
"Besides matters of the army, are there any other instructions?"
Bai Shi thought for a moment. There wasn't much else that needed special mention; he could just carry on as before.
"Nothing else of note. For the city's development, just follow the original plan. Ensure good coordination between the different races."
"Recently, you can take the trained soldiers out for practice. Target the various caves in Limgrave and clear out the beasts and enemies inside."
"Then arrange for a group of Demi-Humans to plant cave moss inside. Remember to plant the kind that grows small crystals."
"The more, the better. It would be best to fill the caves completely."
"The number of city guards needs to increase, and their training must be strengthened. More and more people are arriving, so the guards will have more work to do."
"Oh, and the city's repairs and other construction projects need more attention as well."
Bai Shi thought it over carefully one more time and concluded that he hadn't missed anything.
So, he said his farewells and left.
Before departing, Bai Shi also informed the others around him, then set out for Caelid alone.
Erlisa and the two Crucible Knights had wanted to come along.
But Bai Shi told them to stay in Stormveil, in case a crisis really did occur and they were left without any high-tier combatants.
Bai Shi mounted Torrent and rode out from the city gates.
Torrent was still wearing the same regalia from the coronation, although many of the small, scattered ornaments had been removed.
Bai Shi had asked Torrent if he wanted a suit of barding made for him.
But Torrent wasn't interested, thinking his current decorations looked better.
Crossing Stormhill, Bai Shi passed several villages along the main road.
These were small settlements under Stormveil's jurisdiction, and their leaders had all received symbolic titles after his ascension.
This was also Bai Shi's first time inspecting his domain.
The settlements varied in size.
The larger ones had several thousand people, enough to be called towns, and had simple defensive structures.
The smaller ones had only a hundred or so people, or even just a few dozen, and were truly just villages.
Under Bai Shi's command to develop agriculture, many wastelands had been reclaimed to meet the demands of farming.
The city's population had grown significantly, and without stable logistics, development would inevitably be affected.
In the past, the city's needs weren't particularly high; a little farming supplemented by hunting was enough.
But now, the city was supporting professional soldiers who did not produce goods, so additional agricultural development was essential.
In a patch of woods, Bai Shi found a dilapidated shack with a Site of Grace beside it.
Or rather, the shack had likely been built after someone discovered the grace.
If he wasn't mistaken, this was the Warmaster's Shack where Bernahl would normally be found.
It could also be said that it was a place where the soon-to-be-king Bernahl had temporarily rested.
But it was empty now as well; he wondered if Bernahl had already returned to Volcano Manor.
He followed the road, heading straight for Caelid.
After a long journey, the signs of civilization grew sparse.
There were no more villages on either side of the road, only a few wooden structures like watchtowers.
As he passed a soldier's camp and set foot on a large bridge, a booming voice called out:
"Hey, can anyone help me?"
"I've been stuck here for days! Help me, I'm starving to death!"
"Oh, wait, I'm a jar. I don't think I can starve to death, hahaha!"
"...Please! Somebody help!"