The signal Kalé mentioned was a simple gesture—just a snap of the fingers.
He hadn't said who the person was, but Lloyd figured that since it was someone Kalé vouched for, they had to be reliable... right?
That's what he thought—until he suddenly remembered. In Dark Souls III, the one who had the best relationship with a thief, and had even saved his life once, was...
Patches.
Now that he thought about it...
"Hey, Kalé, have you ever heard of someone named 'Patches'?"
"Hm... I might've. But I've heard a lot of names in my time—it's possible I've forgotten. If you're in a hurry, I can ask my other customers..."
"No, it's fine," Lloyd waved it off. "I'm not in a rush to find him."
He was just asking out of curiosity. Who even knew if Patches existed in this world?
After wrapping up the topic, Lloyd glanced at the sky—it was getting late. He stood up and left the half-ruined church.
He mounted Torrent, found a nearby hillside, lit a bonfire, pulled out his Coiled Sword and stuck it into the flames. Then he sat down and gazed toward the strange, unfamiliar world beyond.
The undead didn't need sleep. At most, they'd feel a bit mentally fatigued and take a short rest.
But coming straight out of a simulation and then going through so much in just a day, Lloyd needed time to sit and process it all. It also gave his two companions a chance to rest if they needed it.
"If you two want to rest, go ahead. I don't need sleep—I can keep watch."
The fire crackled softly. A few red butterflies, as if scorched by flames, fluttered in and landed on Melina's shoulder. She turned slightly, lowering her voice.
"I don't need rest either."
Alice remained silent. She stood at the edge of the hill, gazing out into the distance. In her deep blue eyes shimmered something that looked like countless stars.
The three of them gathered around the fire—some sitting, some standing—each lost in their own thoughts.
...
Tick...
A drop of rain fell into Melina's palm.
"Is it about to rain?"
Lloyd noticed it too. He looked up at the sky, where dark clouds had begun to gather.
Weird. Why does the weather in the Lands Between change so fast? It was perfectly clear earlier...
"It's going to pour," Alice added.
After all, with all the wild flames burning earlier in the day—even if the scale didn't seem huge thanks to Lloyd's law—the heat had still evaporated a lot of moisture. Now that things had calmed and the temperature was dropping, all that vapor was bound to fall.
"Uh... either of you have an umbrella?"
"What's an umbrella?" Alice asked.
"It's something that keeps the rain off."
Neither of them moved. Lloyd thought for a moment, then pulled out the Dragonslayer Greatshield—a silver-white shield that looked kind of like a big metal mushroom.
He enlarged it, held it up like an umbrella, used his weapon to prop it up, and waved them over.
"Don't worry about lightning—this baby's got 95% lightning resistance."
Alice tilted her head thoughtfully, then teleported under the shield.
Melina hesitated. But seeing Alice take shelter, she paused, then quietly stepped under it as well.
Then came the downpour.
The night stretched on in silence, filled only with the sound of rain, washing over the stillness shared between the three.
...
After a while, Melina turned her head slightly, remembering something.
A Smoldering Butterfly had landed on her shoulder earlier, drawn to the flame. Now, it was drenched—its wings dim, the fire fading.
In the Lands Between, Smoldering Butterflies were common. Drawn to flame, they willingly burned themselves, leaving behind remains used as "fireseeds" for crafting flame-based tools.
There was another kind—Black Pyreflies—native to the Land of Shadow. They were similarly drawn to her brother's flame, with the same fate. They, too, became fuel for fire-based crafting.
But in truth, flame wasn't necessary for these butterflies to survive. If anything, it was what killed them.
As if driven by some unseen purpose, they sought out flame—only to die in it, leaving behind nothing but ashes for others to use.
This one, though its flame had been doused by rain, looked no different. Its battered wings, still speckled with ember, wouldn't last much longer.
Melina stared at it for a while.
She didn't know why, but something stirred within her as she watched that broken, fluttering butterfly struggling to stay alive.
The back of her hand throbbed faintly, and her tightly shut left eye stirred slightly.
One was a scar left by the flames of the past. The other, the Gloam-Eye—once the vessel of Destined Death, now hollowed of its core.
She didn't know what had come over her. When she came to, she instinctively reached to brush the butterfly from her shoulder.
But just as her hand lifted, a finger appeared—reaching out before she could—and touched the battered, struggling, dying butterfly.
A soft light flared.
Flames sparked from the fingertip, carrying a flow of soul energy into the butterfly's frail body.
It caught fire once more.
But this time, unlike before, the fire was a warm, soft orange—like the comforting glow of a Warming Stone.
As the fire burned, the butterfly's shredded wings grew whole again. It fluttered into the air, lifted from Melina's shoulder, and soared into the rain. Not falling, but glowing gently, it flew farther and farther, vanishing into the distance.
Lloyd scratched the back of his head when he noticed Melina watching him.
"Uh, it looked like it was about to die, and I had some healing magic I wasn't really used to... Thought I'd use it for practice."
It was the truth. In the simulation, he'd always cast spells strictly by the book. But this was the real world. After taking a bit of damage earlier, he'd wondered if he could get more efficient—use less FP and cast a weaker version.
Then he happened to spot the butterfly on Melina's shoulder, so he gave it a shot. A softened "Warmth" from his fingertip.
And it worked.
But now that he thought about it—reaching out without asking, touching her shoulder... yeah, not great.
Melina didn't respond. She just looked at him for a moment, then turned back toward the darkness.
The butterfly was gone, but somehow, gazing at where it vanished, she could still see a trace of light.
The phantom pain and that uneasy stirring inside her—both had quieted without her realizing.
...
Seeing that she wasn't upset, Lloyd let out a breath, pulled his hand back, and returned to his own thoughts, staring into the rainy night.
The rest of the night passed in silence.
Until dawn broke through thinning clouds...
...
"Where'd you get this map?"
After the rain stopped and they'd finished prepping to move out, Alice approached Lloyd and handed him a map fragment.
"You didn't notice it earlier when you cleared that stronghold. I picked it up for you."
As soon as he took it, his Elden Ring system popped up a notification—he'd unlocked the map function.
Opening it, he saw it displayed the surrounding terrain, his own position, and a few glowing golden Sites of Grace. Clicking one of them brought up the option: [Teleport to this Site of Grace?]
Fast travel?
Lloyd paused, but quickly thought of a problem.
Could he bring others along? If not, what about Melina and Alice...
Alice answered calmly, "Normally, you can just go by yourself. If needed, I can bring her to you."
"Wouldn't that be too much trouble?"
"It's fine. I don't have anything else going on."
She didn't seem to mind. Although her current incarnation wasn't strong enough to teleport freely on her own, the modification she'd done to assist Lloyd had formed a link between them.
In game terms, he was like a moving Site of Grace. If she wanted to, she could teleport to him at any time—and bring someone along.
"Thanks."
With that settled, Lloyd opened the map again. The longer he looked, the more his expression shifted.
Why does this look... less like a linear sandbox and more like a full open world?
He squinted, uncertain.
Then it hit him.
Wait. He wasn't in a simulation anymore!
Everything had felt so familiar up until now—palette-swapped monsters, reused elevator designs, even what looked like a reskinned High Wall of Lothric. It had made him forget, made him think he was back in a guided, on-rails world.
But staring at this map, he finally understood—this was real.
There were no fixed paths, no rails. He could go wherever he wanted, however he wanted.
And if that was the case...
"Melina, are you in a hurry to reach the Royal Capital?"
She looked over and shook her head slightly.
"Not really. Why?"
"No reason."
Lloyd put the map away, raised his whistle, and summoned Torrent.
"Just thought I'd do a little exploring first."