Chapter Text
Here he was, in the Lands Between. So lively, so crowded, so full of people. It was one of the most active capitals in the world, where celebrities and many other well-known faces made their names spread wide and far. But every beautiful thing has its dark side, and the Lands Between still had many problems lingering: beggars, burglaries, wide-spread gang activities and racism. But people were too blinded by the bright colours of the buildings to even notice that.
“How do you feel about your upcoming Elden Chef competition, which is to be held next month, Chef Godfrey?” From the radio, a driver and a passenger could hear the conversation between an interviewer and the biggest celebrity of this town—Chef Godfrey, who had consecutively won the Elden Chef for the past twenty years!
Godfrey, upon hearing the question, just let out a quiet laugh before slapping his own thighs, creating a shockwave that stunned even the interviewer. “I’m rather looking forward to it. With each year passing, the competitors seem to grow more in terms of skills and tenacity, and that forces me to constantly adapt. To cultivate more of my knowledge. I am excited to see what this year will bring.”
“Such a humble response from the undisputed king of Elden Chef.” The interviewer chuckled before he cleared his throat again. “Now Chef Godfrey, if I’m not so blunt to ask, but the people on the Internet were bombarding your Eldenbook profile with questions about your dubious relationship with your dark-skinned maid-
“That’s nonsense.” Godfrey hummed. “‘tis but a false rumour to stain my reputation I’ve spent all my life building up. I am, and forever will be faithful to my most beautiful wife—my queen Marika!”
“My apology, Chef Godfrey!” Godfrey just laughed and forgave him rather quickly.
“Hah.” The passenger suppressed a sarcastic laugh before shooting his hand up to cover his mouth. Seems like this righteous Elden Chef had many secrets hidden. But eventually, every mask slips, and every secret will be revealed. “Just turn right here. I can walk from this block, thank you.”
“You new to the Lands Between, boy?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh boy, with that cute face of yours, you would be targeted by every damn filthy smuggler in a two-kilometer radius.”
“But they say the Lands Between is the land of opportunity, like Ashina and Yharnam. Can’t say I’d miss out on my chance.”
“It’s a gamble, boy. A gamble that you either have to come out a winner, or die in some alleyway, addicted to Cessblood and Frenzied Blunts like many others like you had. Once you have sunk into this mess, you would find yourself stuck where you are, lost in a place you have never been.” The driver’s eyes gazed at the passenger from the rear-view mirror, but the newcomer of the Lands Between still had decided this long ago, months before he even made this trip. “Trust me, kid. I have gone through it myself.”
“You seem wise for a taxi driver.” The car halted in front of an apartment—the passenger’s destination. Thanking and giving the driver Runes as payment, Tarnished opened the door and walked out along with his luggage. As he had the windows closed, he never realized how loud and crowded this place was, and from down here, he could see some people standing on the balconies smoking or minding their own business. The only problem was that they looked rather broken and poor.
“Welcome to the Lands Between..." Garnished mumbled.
---------------------------------------
“This is your room, sir.” The receptionist, Kale, handed Garnished his room key as the newcomer stepped in. The room wasn’t particularly big, but at least it fulfilled his every need already. The only downside was that his privacy was almost nonexistent due to how thin the walls were. “Happy stay, sir.” Kale left, and Garnished nodded at him before throwing his stuff on the bed and crashing on it himself.
“Ugh…” He just wanted to rest his eyes for a bit, but he had promised his beloved mother that he’d call her upon arriving at the Lands Between. As tired as he was, Garnished grabbed his phone from one of his pockets and lazily dialed the number. After the first ring, a voice came from his phone. “Mom? Yeah, I reached the Lands Between. Crowded place… Well no, I haven’t made any friends yet. Guess I have to get adjusted to this environment before I could put my trust in anyone.”
He sat up with a light groan. “I’m fine, you don’t have to send money or food to me. I can handle myself. Plus, I never really like Rowa Fruits.” He flicked his nails before his eyes moved to look at the window, which could let him see the neon-light brimmed buildings from this height. “About father? You needn’t worry at all. He was out of our lives. Gone… Alright, I’ll call you soon. Love you, mom.”
With that, he hanged up and sighed to himself. Just like what the driver said, he wouldn’t make it until next month if he wasn’t able to find a job. But he knew that many restaurant chains were in need of new employees, and coincidentally, he was aiming to join the Elden Chef show. He could cultivate himself with cooking knowledge and skills by working in the Shardbearers’ restaurants.
After all, his goal was to face Chef Godfrey in cooking combat.
Quickly pulling out his laptop and browsing through many websites to learn more about the restaurants. “Messmer’s Flame, they serve kebab and impaled meat. Mohg’s Nihiling Experience, as smooth and tender as… a youngster, okay, they serve steak and meat. Godrick’s Scions, specialized in seafood, most notably shellfish.”
He leaned back against his chair, tapping his lips with his index finger as he pondered his choice. So many damn choices, but Garnished didn’t know what to choose first. He could go with Godrick’s Scions since his mother taught him a lot about seafood and how to efficiently deshell crabs and lobsters. “Hmm… Maybe this first.” He sent his CV to Godrick’s Scions website and spun around in his chair, and now all he had to do is wait.
Well, in the mean time, he should go out, explore a bit to get to know this city’s layout, memorize some faces and ask around. After all, when one moves on to a big city, you oughta have some connections. “Okay dokey, I’m hungry already. I can cook for myself, save some money. Just need to go the grocery store.” Grabbing his jacket, Garnished stormed out of his apartment like a breeze and walked down the crowded street.
He subconsciously pressed his hands against his jeans’ pockets to make sure that no sleight of hands could pickpocket him, and it’s true, he could feel many strange hands brushing against his as he tried to squeeze through a line of people. “Excuse me. Passing through here.” Garnished managed to get on a high-speed train and sighed in relief as the doors shut in front of him.
Even though an hour had passed since he first arrived, Garnished noted that life in big cities was so suffocating. It was significantly different from his rural life with his mother; it was noisier and dirtier too. But in order to survive in the Lands Between, he must survive whatever hardship this capital would throw at him. He must rise to the top, to achieve the title Elden Chef to make his name known.
“Body builder. Philantrophist. Chef. A loving husband. A happy father of three. Is Sir Godfrey what we men should strive to be!?” The speakers began to play some ads about the famous chef again. Garnished bit his lips, shaking his head in discontent before he put on his ear buds and turned on some music. Finally, some inner peace…
“Want a break from the ads?”
Motherfuck-
“Thank you, sir. Please come again.” Garnished smiled as he exited the supermarket. With this much groceries, this should keep him full and happy for at least a month. Well, he was going to conduct some experiment to hone his cooking skills, and since he applied for a place in Godrick’s Scions, his hands should be stenched by the scent of sea.
But this place ain’t so bad. Sure, beggars and prostitues, or preferably called Night Maidens, fixated their eyes on Garnished as he walked past an alleyway. They gazed at his bags of food with clear jelousy, but as long as he ignored their pleading, he shouldn’t worry a thing.
A bald man nodded his head as his masked friend, who put his hands on his hoodie before walking around. With Garnished just about to walk into a sharp corner, the bald man ran and intentionally bumped into him, causing them both to fall on their butts. “Hey! You blind or something, mate!? Watch the damn corner!”
Garnished was a man who seeks no violence, so he quickly tried to deescalate the situation with a remorseful nod. “Sorry. My bad, truly.” But the bald man seemingly just wanted trouble, it seems. Just as Garnished gained his footing and dusted off his bottom, he suddenly grabbed his collar and shook him violently, continuously mocking and taunting him with his silly British accent. Garnished bit down his anger and just nodded, keeping his anger in check. It’s his first day here in the Lands Between, so he didn’t want to cause any trouble here.’
The ruffian gritted his teeth, and his eyes would occasionally glance behind Garnished to see that his mate was slowly sneaking from behind. “It’s nice and all, buddy. But I am in a hurry.” Garnished grabbed the bald man’s wrists and easily overpowered him with an absurb strength that surprised the ruffian.
Almost instantly, the masked thief dug his hands into Garnished’s jeans, and immediately the man dropped the ruffian and turned around with wide eyes. It was just a stage the whole time; the bald man just kept Garnished distracted long enough for his friend to act. The masked man’s hands were empty, indicating that he didn’t manage to snatch Garnished’s wallet, so the bald man finished the job all by himself and ran off.
“Motherfuck!” Garnished delivered a punch to the masked thief, grabbed his groceries, and began to chase after the bald man. But what the thieves didn’t know was that Garnished was one atheletic and energetic motherfucker, and he could easily catch up to anyone as long as the terrain was flat. But the city’s packed and dense population would considerably slow him down.
“Give it up, mate!” The bald man turned back and taunted him. “Welcome to the Lands Between!” He ran into an alley, and quickly Tarnished ran into it with no hesitation. He was skeptical about it since he had no idea what could possibly lie ahead, but that was his fucking wallet, which had his money and personal belongings! Garnished would run to the end of the world just to retrieve it.
He pushed through a broken door and heard the man’s laughs from above. Quickly climbing up the ladders with his grocery bags held by his teeth, Garnished felt immense fury as the bald man sprinted again and jumped off a window. Foolish, they were on the third floor, so the impact would certainly break his legs.
“Catch up, slowpoke!” Garnished’s eyes widened as he peeked outside, seeing that the thief safely landed on the filled trash bin, softening his impact. It was a gamble of course as he could have his ass stabbed by glasses. Garnished didn’t hesitate to jump down to continue the chase. The thief ran off again, using his knowledge of this block to make an escape, but Garnished, like a pain in the ass, just kept going. “Tchh!”
The bald man cleanly parkoured past the iron fence that was nearly three meters tall. Even an experienced and agile thief like him took dozens of tries to master this trick, and he was certain Garnished would do nothing but accept his loss. “Ciao- Heh?” Garnished jumped past the fence with a single leap, making the bald man’s eyes go wide before he desperately broke into a run. “Oi oi oi, slow down, would ya?”
Then, something terrible had happened. This block… It belonged to an infamous gang called Dung Eaters, and if anyone saw him here, they would defile his corpse for all eternity. Not good, truly not good. The bald man turned around and raised his hands up in surrender. “I yield. I yield!” But it was too late. Garnished lunged at him and tackled the man down to the ground. “I said I yield, you halfwit!"
“Gimme back my damn wallet!”
“Who are these dumbasses?”
“Dunno about that new face. But I recognize that chrome dome bastard. He owes the boss a shitton of Runes. Boss said we should bring his head.”
“Wait, hold up there, bruvs!” The bald man stood up and waved his hands, and Garnished narrowed his eyes in confusion as he backed away, still holding his damn wallet. “I’m pretty sure I just happen to look very much like the guy who owes you all. Th- There must be a misunderstanding.” The gangsters totally seemed unconvinved and had their daggers ready. “Run!”
“The- Gah!” Garnished and the bald man both ran for their lives as the mobsters all began to hunt them down. Great, just an hour in the Lands Between, he was robbed, forced to chase after this guy and then some gangsters were trying to kill them. What a great day, it is.
They were cornered into a dead end, but Garnished looked up to see an opened window, which they could use to evade these men before they found them. The bald man didn’t even know what to do, frantically looking around for a way before he saw Garnished leaping into the building. But instead of running away, he actually reached out a hand to him. “Grab my hand.”
“What… Are you really doing this for me?”
“No! You have my damn wallet!”
The thief clicked his tongue before reluctantly taking his hand and being pulled up. Just as his feet safely went out of view, the mobsters arrived, heads shaking like maniacs as they saw no signs of the two wanderers. They continued to run through the hallway, almost ramming into an old man, but he still somehow dropped his kettle, spilling hot water all over his feet. “Curse you!!”
“Tha- Thank you for that, mate! You’re a lifesaver!”
When they finally got out of the Dung Eaters’ turf, both of them now could catch their breaths, and the bald man collapsed against the wall with deep sighs of relief. He couldn’t believe that he, more like they made it. And somehow, this wanker still had his bags of groceries with him the whole time. “Gimme that back.” Garnished snatched his wallet back from the bald man’s hand and checked his Runes, which thankfully remained untouched.
“I… I learnt my life-lasting lesson today now… To never steal from the like of you.”
“Patches?” All of them looked to their left, seeing the same masked man approaching them with gasps of exhaustion. “Oi, what in the world were you thinking, mate? Running off to their turf? You’re lucky to have your ass intact!”
“It’s ‘cause of this runt!” The bald guy, Patches, pointed at Garnished, who just crossed his arms with a disinterested look on his face while he was leaning against the wall. “This bloody bollock cornered me. Left me with no choice but to go deeper.”
“Then you shouldn’t have mugged me.”
“Oi oi oi, mate.” The masked man shrugged his shoulders. They were really tired, so they all just sat down together as if they had known each other for a long time, but Garnished slightly backed away to avoid them. “We’re just making a livin’ here, mate. If we don’t, we starve. The dog-eat-dog mindset is deeply engraved into this city.”
“And the rich refuse to share their good, while people like us have to mug guillible souls like you to survive the next day.” Patches added in before he pointed at the masked man. “This is Boggart, a pure musclehead. And I’m the great Patches, as you already know, known for his chivalrous and forthright spirit.”
“Bugger off, would ya?”
Garnished blinked, not knowing why these two lowly thieves just smiled at him in such a friendly manner. They were just chasing each other like five minutes ago. “So, water under the bridge, are we clear now?” Patches grinned; Boggart nodded gleefully.
“Whatever…” Garnished mumbled. But thinking again, these guys seemed to know a lot of things about this block, where he was coincidentally living. After all, the Lands Between was filled to the brim with smugglers, gangsters and a lot of shits nobody would expect. “Okay, but you two fuckers owe me. So…” He put his hands on their shoulders, slightly gripping as Patches and Boggart grunted. “You two will, from now on, inform me of everything I should know about this damn city. Every gang activity, every scam, every honey trap so I would avoid them.”
“Oh, that we could do. Right, mate?” Patches nodded at Boggart, who did the same with a restrained smile. The masked man really felt that punch from earlier, and it was still practically ringing in his cheek despite his protection. Just what is this motherfucker’s abnormal strength?
“Say, friend, why are you here of all places? Why not Yharnam, the capital of fashion?”
“Or Ashina?” Boggart crossed his arms.
Such normal dreams, all. Garnished crossed his arms with a grin of confidence before he pointed at himself. “To become the Elden Chef. To break Godfrey’s streaks.”
Both of the thieves’ eyes went wide before they looked at each other. This dumbass here is bold, ambitious too, but mostly stupid. As long as Chef Godfrey was still breathing, no one could hope to claim that title. It was widely said that the show’s main appeal was the opportunities to see Godfrey effortlessly eliminating all cotenders. The people just wanted to see the undiputed Godfrey in action.
But they also could see Garnished was quite determined too. And they had seen that glimpse of hope and dream in these eyes before, and now, their owners were probably crawling in the streets, begging for any scraps of food. For the Lands Between could build up dreams, but also could crush them.
“We’ll see to that…”
“Ciao!” Patches chuckled as they parted ways after they had exchanged each other’s contacts. Garnished clutched his bags of groceries, rolling his eyes in reluctancy before he walked back to his apartment. Out of earshot, Patches and Boggart began to whisper something to each other, mostly about that fool Garnished.
“Who the hell named ‘im Garnished? Did his old man fall off the stairs or somet’ing?”
Patches shrugged his shoulders.
---------------------------------------
Finally back at his apartment, Garnished dropped his groceries on the floor and hopped on bed immediately. Exhaustion washed over him like thunderous waves, and he had no energy left to even lift something up. He lifted his forearms off his eyes and stared at the ceiling; this place was just like what the driver had warned him.
But Limgrave was just a district of the Lands Between, and maybe with enough money, he could rent a much bigger apartment in Leyndell, which was said to have a significantly lower poverty rate and violence. That’s right, he snapped his fingers. He had to endure this place for only a few months, then he could fuck off.
His phone rang inside of his pocket, and Garnished quickly grabbed it and checked his FromSoftwaremail, or Fmail in short. He was initially expecting some kind of spam text from his crazy ex, but the message was directly sent from Godrick’s Scion’s website. “Wait…” He sat up and took a deep breath, his fingers twitching and trembling in anticipation before he tapped on the message.
“I’m…” His eyes gradually widened in surprise. “They accepted me… We have deemed you suitable for our job. If you are free tomorrow, please meet us at the main branch of Godrick’s Scion in Limgrave at 10 in the morning… Let us all be one with master Godrick. Sincere, Gostoc, your would-be generous manager…”
Garnished threw his fist up into the air, suppressing a loud scream of bliss back as he grunted instead. This is it; his journey to the title Elden Chef now officially began. But this is just a mere step of a million-step long path. The road is still long and tedious, but Garnished believed that he’d have the strength to push through. He couldn’t fail his mother.
“Fuck yes!”
Tomorrow.
What the fuck is this restaurant? It did have the sign writing Godrick’s Scion and was pretty damn big, being rated as one of the best restaurants in Limgrave as a whole. But what in the world is this type of decoration? Feet and hands made out of clay were hanged everywhere, decapitated bodies and fake blood were put against the walls, and it didn’t give off a restaurant that served seafood at all. This looked like a dungeon!
“Ah, there you are! Welcome, welcome! To Godrick’s Scions!” A frail, sick-looking man came forward to greet Garnished, who immediately realized it was Gostoc – the manager of this restaurant. “Give me your hands, mind you?”
“What?”
“It’s a tradition enforced by Master Godrick himself. People with…” Gostoc giggled, and that crept him out a lot. “beautiful hands were said to bring good fortune to the restaurant chain. No worry at all, it’s just a quick inspection, you have my word.”
Tarnished, not knowing what to do. Gostoc’s unnerving smile was deeply engraved into his brain, forever haunting him for the rest of his life. Despite that, Garnished hesitantly offered his hands to Gostoc, whose grin widened with malicious intention as he carefully ran his fingers across the man’s palms. Quite rough, like that of a wrestler or man who works heavy labour. But putting that aside, Gostoc could feel the gentleness of his fingers in spite of their rough and big appearances. He was a special case, and Master Godrick is fond of ones like him.
He is perfect!
“You seem to have passed our test, good Garnished.” Gostoc giggled and released his hands. With him officially being part of their family, whose bond, as if it were like being grafted altogether, was heartfelt and loving, Gostoc welcomed him into the restaurant. “We bid you welcome to Godrick’s Scions!”
‘What’s wrong with these guys?’ Everything.