Bai Shi picked up the other ceremonial straight sword from the ground and examined it carefully.
The forceful thrust against the shield had slightly chipped the tip, but it wasn't a serious problem.
He sheathed the sword and blew the whistle, summoning Torrent back.
Torrent had run off to a nearby hill to eat berries.
Bai Shi found a tent, dismantled it, and then began collecting the scattered weapons and shields from the ground.
He hadn't been able to loot the soldiers he killed before because he couldn't carry them. But now, with Torrent, a true workhorse, it was a different story.
Bai Shi took inventory. He had four standard Lordsworn's Greatshields, two Brass Shields, four Lordsworn's Straight Swords, and two Battle Axes.
He also found several torches, all of which had been used for a long time, so he threw them away.
There had been about three or four long spears, but he had broken all of them during his mounted combat because they were a significant threat.
"Oh, I almost forgot one."
Bai Shi picked up the Godrick Knight's spear and shield.
Their names appeared before him: Partisan and Gilded Greatshield.
The Partisan was a spear with a wide blade, capable of not only thrusting but also powerful slashes.
The Gilded Greatshield was a heavy shield used by the knights serving Godrick. Most of its original gold coating had flaked off.
Bai Shi couldn't possibly use all of this equipment himself. He would keep a few pieces and sell the rest to Kale.
Selling all of it would surely earn him a good amount of Runes.
The armor on the corpses was also worth a lot of money, but Bai Shi had a bit of a moral code. He would at least let his enemies keep their dignity.
Next, Bai Shi walked up to the large carriages parked in front of the gate.
The tall carriages were painted a deep black, and white candles, similar to the ones in the graveyard, were lit on them.
Bai Shi knew that these oversized, wagon-like objects were actually mobile coffins.
Dying nobles who had not yet found true death rode in these coffins, moving around the Lands Between, searching for a way to die and find release.
The coffins seemed to be empty. Perhaps the nobles had already gone on their journey to find death, leaving their carriages in this "parking lot."
Bai Shi went to the back of a carriage. There was a secret compartment where funerary items were placed.
Since these nobles weren't actually dead, Bai Shi felt no guilt about taking the items.
Inside was a greatsword: the Lordsworn's Greatsword.
It was also a standard-issue weapon, longer and heavier than the Lordsworn's Straight Sword. It was difficult to wield with one hand and could only be used properly with two.
He went to another mobile coffin and did the same, finding a Flail.
It had a wooden handle connected to a chain, which was attached to an iron ball covered in spikes. Its armor-piercing capabilities looked impressive.
Bai Shi gave it a swing, but it seemed he didn't have enough Dexterity. He almost hit himself in the face.
'I have to try every time to see if I have the right stats, and I'm not even sure which stats I'm missing. It's a bit annoying.'
'I wonder if I can ask a blacksmith later to show me the required stats for a piece of equipment.'
While thinking, Bai Shi found the last item's location at the Gatefront.
It was in a basement under a ruin. He opened the heavy iron door, and a treasure chest lay in the center of the basement, with a faint glow coming from its cracks.
When Bai Shi opened the chest, a gust of wind surged through the small basement.
Inside was a small bag of gray, translucent crystals and a small whetstone with a secret inscription.
These were the Ash of War: Storm Stomp and the Whetstone Knife.
An Ash of War could be infused into a regular weapon with a Whetstone Knife to change the weapon's skill. The Whetstone Knife also allowed for changing the weapon's damage type.
Bai Shi looked at the Ash of War in his hand, deep in thought.
He knew that this kind of common Ash of War wasn't special. There were many people in Stormveil Castle who used it, so it couldn't have been the cause of the sudden wind.
Remembering the sudden gust of wind he felt in the Chapel of Anticipation, Bai Shi took the Spirit Ashes of the Stormhawk King from his pouch.
"Is that you? Are you trying to tell me something?"
The Ash of War: Storm Stomp was from the same faction as the ancient king. It wasn't strange that the king's spirit would react to it.
But Bai Shi didn't know if it was simply reminiscing about its glory days or if it had some other meaning.
The ancient king's spirit did not respond.
Bai Shi shook his head. It seemed he would have to wait until he got the Spirit Calling Bell to find out for sure.
Bai Shi returned to the surface and carefully searched the area to make sure he had looted everything at the Gatefront.
He then bundled up all the equipment. It was incredibly heavy.
Just as Bai Shi was trying to load all of it onto Torrent's back, Melina couldn't help but materialize.
"Wait a moment. You're not actually going to make Torrent carry all that, are you?"
"How could Torrent possibly carry all of this?"
Bai Shi, who had bundled the equipment himself, knew exactly how heavy it was.
"I can't help it. It would be a shame to leave all this equipment behind."
Bai Shi blinked innocently.
Melina sighed.
"I forgot to tell you yesterday, but you can store items at a Site of Grace."
"Oh? That's convenient?"
Bai Shi thought about it for a moment. Something didn't feel right.
"Wait, not many people can see Grace anymore, but there are still some. What if they take my items from the Site of Grace?"
"That won't happen," Melina said, organizing her thoughts.
"The space within a Site of Grace is completely separate."
"When you are at a Site of Grace, you disappear from the outside world. Even if someone else is resting at the same Site of Grace, you won't be able to see each other."
"And the guidance everyone sees is different. For example, I know a group of Tarnished who are messengers for the Church."
"They believe in the Two Fingers, and their guidance upon returning to the Lands Between is to carry out the Two Fingers' missions, not to become a king."
Bai Shi nodded. Since the Sites of Grace were separate, he could store his items without worry.
"By the way, do Sites of Grace have any other uses?"
Bai Shi was very concerned about whether he could fast-travel in this world.
With the map being so big, if he couldn't teleport, his legs would be sore from riding back and forth.
Melina hesitated. She hadn't wanted to tell Bai Shi this so soon. After all, he hadn't passed her test yet.
Although Bai Shi had fought well, his opponent was still only a knight.
Melina knew what kind of terrifying enemies Bai Shi would encounter if he wanted to become king.
So, the most important thing was for him to have a heart that followed Grace and sought to become the Elden Lord.
If he had that heart, Melina was sure his power would eventually increase.
But whether or not he had that kind of heart wasn't something that could be seen in one or two battles.
However, since Bai Shi had asked, Melina did not hide the information.
"A Site of Grace has another important function: you can travel between any Sites of Grace you've touched before."
"If you want to use this function, just call on me at a Site of Grace. I will take you there."
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