Oh, apparently someone called "Godfry" was ruling as Elden Lord before Marika. That's the demiurge, probably.
The game's world design and aesthetic seems to be influenced by medieval European folklore, which is wonderful. But, of course, they couldn't help themselves and stuck in a bunch of gross bodyhorror monsters and general weirdness, not to mention the nihilistic moral ambiguity of the situation.
Also, too many sushi creatures wondering around. Giant land-dwelling crabs, lobsters, octopuses, shimp people, is the ocean closed for renovation? Gtfo, sea bugs.