Think back to how you first met Fia asks to hold you. Did you remember that part about giving some of your "lifely vitality" as well as "stout-hardedness" as a reward for an hug? It wasn't just a cute exchange of Elden Ring Runes words on her part: Her hug literally reduces your maximum HP by 5%, a debuff indicated by the mysterious red square icon that I talked about in the past. It might not sound like a lot however, I guarantee you that it's likely that you'll wish you had the 5% back in the end of a difficult boss fight no matter what the reward she will give you occurs to be.

Fortunately, regaining that HP that was lost is as easy as using the Baldachin's Blessing in your inventory.

Does Fia's health-sapping, pseudosexually transmitted disease a hint of the Deathbed Companion hiding something more dangerous in Elden Ring's campaign? I'm not able to say for the moment, but over a decade of Souls experiences have taught me to take your chances with anyone you meet within these game worlds. I certainly wouldn't put it beyond FromSoftware to use something as innocent as giving free hugs at the end of the road to buy Elden Ring Items facilitate some sort of horrible plot twist.