Bai Shi stroked his chin, now understanding Ranni's perspective on the Great Runes.
As a native, even a demigod couldn't avoid the disadvantages of incomplete information.
There were certain things that only a transmigrator like Bai Shi would know.
For example, the primeval meteor that had once merged with the Crucible, and the original Elden Ring.
In fact, the concept of Great Runes likely only came into being after the first Elden Ring was shattered.
All subsequent laws and rings were pieced together from the fragments of that original law.
Bai Shi raised his next question:
"What information do you have on the current bearers of the Great Runes?"
Ranni listed the bearers she knew of:
"My mother, my two brothers, you, the Haligtree twins, the 'Omen King,' and the 'Black Blade' each hold a Great Runes.""...No, wait, there's one more."
"The 'Fell Omen' who appeared on the battlefield."
"The 'Fell Omen' is the one you defeated at the gate of Stormveil Castle, but that was just one of his projections."
"According to my brother Radahn, who has fought him, although he is an Omen, he seems to also possess a Great Rune."
Bai Shi nodded.
Ranni and the others didn't know that the 'Omen King' was the 'Fell Omen'.
No wonder they thought they were two different people.
But the story of the two brothers, Morgott and Mohg, was quite extensive in the game.
So even if the intelligence from Ranni wasn't entirely accurate, it didn't matter. Bai Shi could infer some of their abilities based on their anchor Great Runes.
What Bai Shi wanted to know more about were the Great Runes of the Haligtree twins.
Malenia's Great Rune could be guessed from the game.
But in his past life's game, Miquella was only ever mentioned in text and remained quite mysterious.
Bai Shi knew almost nothing about him.
Unfortunately, when Bai Shi asked about Miquella, Ranni shook her head.
"Although I've had contact with them both, we weren't close enough to share the secrets of our Great Runes."
"However, Miquella is indeed someone to be wary of. You need to be careful."
"During the Shattering, I felt he was preparing to hide things and betray us. His attitude toward my brother Radahn was also very strange."
"But he mysteriously disappeared during the Shattering. I don't know where he's hiding or what he's plotting."
Bai Shi knew he had been abducted by Mohg and taken to the Mohgwyn Dynasty.
Since he was in the Mohgwyn Dynasty, perhaps there was no need to worry too much...
Despite saying that, a sense of unease about Miquella lingered inexplicably in Bai Shi's mind.
Bai Shi thought it over and over, but he couldn't pinpoint the reason for this strange, unfounded feeling.
Ranni thought for a moment and continued to speak.
She decided to tell Bai Shi about the powers of Rykard's and Radahn's Great Runes.
Rykard had sought the power of the great serpent, only to be devoured by it, and had now become a man-eating monster.
Radahn, on the other hand, had been afflicted by the Scarlet Rot, which was incurable. He had lost his mind and fallen into a state of madness and collapse.
It was unlikely that either of her brothers could be saved.
Since she had already decided to kill her brothers, it was better to give Bai Shi all this information in advance.
Although she lamented her brothers' fates, Ranni was not the kind of person to be held back by it.
If telling Bai Shi this information would help him defeat Radahn, then she must tell him. This was the decision that best served their current interests.
"I'll tell you the effects of my two brothers' Great Runes as well."
"Their two runes are the source of almost all my knowledge on the subject."
"A complete Golden Order can control the cycle of life and death."
"As far as I know, some Tarnished received a powerful blessing outside the Lands Between, which is why they can be resurrected after death."
"My brothers Radahn and Rykard's Great Runes respectively contain the principles of the Golden Order governing life and the return to the Erdtree's cycle."
"Radahn's Great Rune grants him incredibly vigorous life force, almost endless stamina and FP, and it has also given him a colossal physique."
"As for its unlocked effect... it's quite simple and direct."
"As long as one has the will to live, the Great Rune will heal their wounds."
"The extent of the healing depends on the strength of their will."
Ranni sighed.
"Unfortunately, my brother's willpower is exceptionally strong."
"Back when he was ambushed by the 'Fell Omen' and had his chest pierced through, he healed instantly and threw himself back into the fight."
"Unfortunately, his opponent was tough, and the two ended up in a stalemate."
"But even if his body is unharmed, the Scarlet Rot that erodes the mind and spirit is something the Great Rune cannot cure."
"Still, the reason he's been able to struggle under the Scarlet Rot for so long is thanks to the power of the Great Rune."
Bai Shi frowned.
"With an effect like that, how can he be killed?"
"If he wanted to die, he would have succumbed long ago. But he's still wandering the battlefield, which surely means he doesn't want to die."
Ranni shook her head.
"The Great Rune only provides an effect; it doesn't come without a cost."
"Just as your blessing requires Runes, even if my brother is unwilling to die just yet, his Great Rune is already failing."
"'When the stars fill the sky, the festival of combat will begin.' This is proof that his Great Rune is starting to lose its power."
Bai Shi let out a sigh of relief. If that was the case, then it was manageable.
"Then what about your other brother, Rykard?"
Ranni told Bai Shi the truth about him as well:
"The Great Rune my brother Rykard possesses increased his total FP, while also boosting his strength and the power of the sorceries he casts."
"As for its unlocked effect, it's related to the cycle of returning to the Erdtree. It's complicated, but it's not very helpful in combat."
"However, he also used the power of the Great Rune to perform a forbidden ritual, creating a batch of special lifeforms—the Man-Serpents—to supplement the armies of Volcano Manor."
"He originally wanted to use the power of the Great Rune, after devouring the great serpent, to reincarnate himself through a 'shedding' ritual."
"That way, he could, by his own will, command the full power of the god-slaying serpent."
"But he failed. He has been completely devoured by the serpent, likely losing the battle of wills."
"The effects of that Great Rune have probably changed completely, tainted by the serpent's power."
Bai Shi carefully committed all the information Ranni provided to memory.
This was all content not found in the game and required special attention.
Moreover, Ranni was pretty much the only source through which Bai Shi could access this kind of intelligence.
The attribute boosts provided by the Great Runes didn't seem to be related solely to their position in the Elden Ring.
It seemed to also be related to the bearer's personality and abilities, likely distributed on that basis.
Radahn, as a general and the most powerful gravity sorcerer, was a hybrid of physical and magical prowess. Having increased health, FP, and stamina was the most suitable, and it also matched the game.
As for Rykard, his physical strength was somewhat lacking, but judging by his use of the Blasphemous Blade and his replication of incantations as sorceries, he also seemed to be a physical-magical hybrid.
Perhaps his base stats were too low, which was why he got a boost to strength and intelligence.
After being devoured by the serpent, the principle changed, turning into stealing life force from defeated enemies.
Bai Shi remembered that Morgott's Great Rune had the highest health boost, most likely related to him being an Omen of the life-giving Crucible's blessing.
From what he had seen so far, the power of the Great Runes truly exceeded Bai Shi's imagination.
Especially their unlocked secondary effects—none of them were weak.
Although Godrick's anchor rune boosted all stats, their single-stat bonuses were likely higher in value.
But how much higher?
Bai Shi didn't know. After all, the base stats of a demigod were different from a Tarnished's.
After telling Bai Shi everything she knew about the Great Runes, Ranni handed him a peculiar object.
It was a stone disc, covered in all sorts of arcane inscriptions.
The more Bai Shi looked at the disc, the more familiar its shape seemed.
But he couldn't remember where he had seen such a pattern and design before.
"This is for you as well. If you have anything to take, just put it all in here."
"Everything in this warehouse is yours."
"If you need anything, don't be polite. Just take it."
She wouldn't be needing it anymore anyway, so it was better to use it all to equip Bai Shi's army.
After hearing Ranni say he could put things inside, Bai Shi finally realized.
Well now, wasn't this the large, circular stone platform found on the ground outside evergaols?
Only, Ranni had used some method to shrink it down to a very convenient size.
Ranni instructed Bai Shi:
"You can store items inside, but the space isn't very large, and it has lost the ability to hold living creatures."
"I have some matters to attend to, so I'll be returning to my tower first."
Although it had its drawbacks—the storage space wasn't large, so stuffing in a siege engine or something similar was impossible.
But regardless, this was the first time Bai Shi had encountered something like a storage ring in the Lands Between.
It wasn't that Bai Shi hadn't tried to find something with a similar function before.
After all, a storage ring was extremely convenient, which was why it appeared in so many different works of fiction.
But no matter how much he inquired or searched, Bai Shi had never heard even a whisper of it from anyone.
Should he say, as expected of a demigod?
Whether in terms of resources, influence, or power, they were on a level that other beings in the Lands Between could hardly touch.
Then Ranni left first, returning to her tower.
On one hand, she needed to go back and reorganize the current intelligence to plan her next steps.
Bai Shi's arrival was a huge help, and she could now move more aggressively toward her goals.
On the other hand, she was tired.
This doll's body couldn't fully contain her soul, so she had to slumber frequently, otherwise it would burden her spirit.
——
Bai Shi was left alone in the cave, looking at the considerable amount of supplies, a smile tugging at his lips.
He never thought he'd get to experience the feeling of being kept by a sugar mommy.
Thanks to Ranni's generous sponsorship.
Bai Shi took a look around.
The most numerous and valuable items in the cave were the smithing stones.
A great many were stored here, ranging from [1] to [8]. There were few [1]s through [3]s, with the most being [4]s through [6]s.
The numbers of [7]s and [8]s were quite small, likely not even enough to upgrade a single weapon.
Originally, Carian miners would dig up some smithing stones while excavating glintstone crystals, cracked crystals, and the like.
Plus, they had tunnels specifically for mining smithing stones, so the quantity was even greater.
During wartime, the demand for upgrades from low-level soldiers was high, and their attrition rate was great, requiring constant forging and reinforcement.
Stronger warriors were more likely to survive battles, so they used fewer smithing stones.
Thus, the remaining smithing stones were, paradoxically, the more precious [4]s through [6]s.
Moreover, as Radahn and Rykard conquered lands across the Altus Plateau, their armies would sometimes occupy local mines or seize smithing stones from storerooms.
Many of the smithing stones Ranni had prepared went unused, and now Bai Shi was benefiting from it all.
As it happened, Bai Shi had a warehouse full of [1]s to [4]s in Stormveil, but he could hardly find anything higher.
These [5] and [6] smithing stones were enough to upgrade a great number of weapons for his army.
As for Somber Smithing Stones, they were quite rare compared to the regular ones.
In the mines, it would take a very, very long time to dig up just one.
But Ranni had several complete sets of Somber Smithing Stones from [1] to [6].
That was enough for Bai Shi to upgrade several unique weapons to +6.
And on top of that, there were two [7] Somber Smithing Stones.
Anyway, Bai Shi only had a few weapons he was used to, so this was more than enough.
These smithing stones would have been difficult to transport, as there were no Sites of Grace nearby.
But with the disc Ranni gave him, he easily stored them all away.
After stowing the smithing stones, Bai Shi continued his search for other useful supplies.
However, there wasn't much else that caught his eye; they were mostly things that could also be produced in Stormveil.
But the various sorcery scrolls and prayerbooks were a pleasant surprise.
Magic from various schools was collected here, including even things like Freezing Mist and Frozen Armament.
In addition, Bai Shi found all the remaining Carian royal sorceries.
Including Carian Retaliation, Carian Phalanx, and the like.
As for the incantations, they looked like they had been looted from the corpses of other factions, with many of the prayerbooks still stained with blood.
Bai Shi also got his hands on the Dragon Cult Prayerbook he had been longing for, allowing him to officially learn various lightning incantations.
Besides that, there were some incantations of the Erdtree, including the classic buff, Golden Vow.
All in all, Bai Shi had reaped a bountiful harvest this time.
Both his personal strength and the power of his forces had been greatly enhanced.
But this would probably be the only boost of this kind.
These supplies were more than her two or three followers could ever use, so there was naturally no need for her to accumulate new ones.
Ranni probably didn't have any other resource caches. The things here were likely everything she had left from before.
Bai Shi packed up all the supplies he wanted to take and headed toward Ranni's tower.
Melina's voice suddenly sounded by his ear:
"Bai Shi, later... could we go to a Site of Grace?"