Honestly, if you’re playing Elden Ring and you haven't spent some time with Rya, you’re missing out on maybe the only "pure" soul in the entire Lands Between. She’s weird, sure. She stands with a hunch that makes your own back ache just looking at her, and she’s essentially recruiting for a house of blasphemous assassins. But in a world where everyone is trying to stab you or become a god (or both), Rya—or Zorayas, if we’re being formal—is surprisingly earnest.
The thing is, her quest is easy to mess up. Like, really easy. If you’re the type of player who just charges through bosses without talking to the NPCs tucked away in the corners of Liurnia’s swamps, you’ll breeze right past her. And if you kill the big bad of Volcano Manor too early? Poof. Quest over. No closure for the snake girl.
Finding the Strange Girl in the Swamp
You’ll first run into Rya in Liurnia of the Lakes. Look for a stone gazebo near the Birdseye Telescope, just north of the Laskyar Ruins. She’s distressed because some "thug" stole her necklace.
That thug is Blackguard Big Boggart. He’s chilling at the Boilprawn Shack nearby, cooking up some shellfish and acting like he owns the place. You have two ways to handle this:
- The Diplomatic Way: Buy the necklace back for 1,000 Runes. It’s pocket change in the long run, and it keeps Boggart alive so you can buy his (actually very useful) Boiled Prawns later.
- The Violent Way: Kill him. You get the necklace, but you lose out on his later quest steps and his crab-selling services.
Once you give the necklace back to Rya, she hands you a Volcano Manor Invitation. This is your "golden ticket." If you take the Grand Lift of Dectus later on, she’ll be waiting at the top to warp you straight to the Manor. It saves a lot of hiking through the jagged rocks of Mt. Gelmir.
The Secret of the Slithering Walls
After you join the Volcano Manor "family" by talking to Lady Tanith, Rya hangs out in one of the drawing rooms. At first, she’s just the polite scout you met earlier. But things get weird fast.
Basically, you need to do the first assassination contract (Old Knight Istvan). When you come back, Rya will mention hearing "slithering" inside the walls.
Then, she disappears from the drawing room. Check the rooms across the hall. You’ll find a massive, man-sized serpent standing where Rya used to be. Don't attack! This is Zorayas. She explains that this is her true form, born of a "noble" grace.
Breaking the Illusion
To keep the momentum going, you’ve got to find the source of those noises. In the room next to her, there’s an illusory wall. It’s the one with the crooked portrait. Roll into it, and you’ll find yourself in the dark, "true" version of the Manor. This leads you into the Prison Town Church.
Go back and tell Rya what you found. She starts questioning everything. Her mother (Tanith) has been lying to her, and the poor girl is having a full-blown identity crisis.
The Godskin Noble and the Serpent’s Amnion
To push the rya elden ring quest to its climax, you have to fight your way through the lava-soaked town until you reach the Temple of Eiglay. There’s a Godskin Noble there. He’s a pain, but once he’s down, look on the altar behind where he stood.
You’ll find the Serpent’s Amnion. It’s a grisly item, basically the remains of the ritual that birthed her.
Give this to Rya. It breaks her heart. She realizes she wasn't born from a "royal grace" but from something much darker and more repulsive. She’ll disappear from the Manor shortly after.
The Three Endings: Which One Should You Choose?
This is where most people get stuck. You’ll find her hiding in a small room under a bridge in the lava section (you have to take the elevator up from the Temple of Eiglay and jump off halfway, or trek through the lava).
She’s miserable. She asks you to kill her. Tanith, meanwhile, gives you a Tonic of Forgetfulness to wipe her memory.
1. The "Mercy" Kill
If you do what she asks and kill her, she dies. She thanks you. You get the Daedicar’s Woe talisman. It’s a tragic end, and honestly, it feels like the "wrong" choice if you actually like her character.
✨ Don't miss: Kingdom Classic Having a Family: Why Players Keep Looking for a Feature That Isn't There
2. The Potion Path
You give her the tonic. She falls asleep. After you kill Rykard and everyone leaves the Manor, she’ll be back in the drawing room, but she’s forgotten everything. Once you leave and come back, she’s gone, leaving the talisman behind. It’s a reset, but it feels hollow.
3. The "True" Ending (Best Outcome)
Don't kill her. Don't give her the potion. Just leave her there.
Go kill Rykard. Come back to her hiding spot. She’ll realize that even though you had the means to end her pain or wipe her mind, you didn't. She finds the strength to leave on her own terms. When you reload the area, she’s gone, but she leaves you a heart-wrenching note—Zorayas' Letter—along with the talisman. She’s going on a journey to find herself.
Why the Daedicar’s Woe Matters
You get this talisman regardless of your choice, but it’s one of the most infamous items in the game. It increases the damage you take. It’s essentially "Hard Mode" in item form.
Most people think it's useless. But for challenge runners or people who want to show off their dodging skills, it’s a badge of honor. Lore-wise, it represents the "disturbing likeness" of a woman who birthed grotesque children—a direct tie to Rya’s own origins.
How Not to Fail the Quest
If you’re hunting for that letter, keep these "points of failure" in mind:
- Killing Rykard too early: If the Lord of Blasphemy dies before you give Rya the Serpent’s Amnion, the quest usually stalls out or skips to the end.
- The Tonic: If you give it to her, you can't get her letter.
- Boggart: If you never talk to Rya in the swamp and just go straight to Volcano Manor, you might lose the chance to interact with Big Boggart entirely.
Final Thoughts
The rya elden ring quest is a rare bit of humanity in a game that usually rewards you for being a mindless killing machine. Seeing her go from a slumped-over scout to a proud serpent woman who chooses her own fate is rewarding in a way that just "getting a big sword" isn't.
If you haven't finished it yet, go find her in that gazebo. Just make sure you bring 1,000 Runes for the crab-man.
Next Steps for Your Playthrough:
Check your inventory for the Volcano Manor Invitation. If you have it, head to the Altus Plateau and look for Rya near the top of the Dectus Lift or at the Lux Ruins. If you've already reached the Manor, make sure to find the illusory wall in the room next to Zorayas' snake form to unlock the Prison Town area.