Elden Ring: 10 Secret Stories & Locations You NEED To Find
7. Rykard's Torture Chambers
Praetor Rykard is an interesting figure in Elden Ring, as someone who's shown to be both surprisingly noble in ideology yet horrifically inhumane in action.
Demigod sibling to Ranni and Radahn, Rykard rebelled against the Greater Will, earning him the title of "Lord Of Blasphemy". Despite this, he gained the loyalty of many great fighters, going to war against the Golden Order.
However, in his lust for power, he gave himself over to the God-Devouring Serpent and began gulping down warriors to make them "family", leading to many of his loyal soldiers to denounce him and seek a weapon that could kill him.
However, even before his time as serpent, closer inspection of the Volcano Manor in Mt. Gelmir shows that Rykard engaged in horrific tortures and experiments. He tortured nobles to extract information, possibly even as part of his duties as Praetor, and performed experiments on the artificially created Albinauric people.
It shows that even then, he had few qualms when it came to achieving his goals, and finding this by discovering secret walls and passages, and talking to noble ghosts, is a valuable part of the Volcano Manor experience.