The Paladin in the Abyss

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"Twin Bridges Town has always been like a lighthouse on the bank of the Stygian River, attracting those runaway slaves, mortals who've strayed here, and ambitious adventurers. It's one of the few places willing to shelter them, and the price is very reasonable."

"Recently, I've been receiving numerous complaints, near the Screaming Woods upstream, a Bagula named Kuka has been abducting passersby with reckless abandon."

"I can't possibly take out every guy on the menu who belongs to the mortal races, but it keeps attacking travelers headed for Twin Bridges Town, and there's no doubt that this is an affront to me."

"Just eight hours ago, I sent a maid to warn it, but she hasn't returned yet. Clearly, that buffoon has done something to her."

"Your mission is to bring poor Grais back to me and give Kuka whatever punishment you can administer."

The Succubus Lord produced a scroll, and with a mysterious fluctuation, it seemed as if shadows were diving into it.

"This is the Mission Scroll, it has the target location and detailed information about Bagula Demons," Tijana tossed the scroll to Lancelot, "There's also Grais's portrait inside—she has quite the pretty curled horns, so don't you go doing anything weird with it."

Lancelot carefully opened the scroll and glanced over it, confirming there was nothing wrong with it.

"Are you really that curious," Tijana mocked, "Grais might be suffering unspeakable torment right now. If you want to see her, you better set off quickly."

"I hope she's unharmed," Lancelot said as he bowed with Bruto. "We will take our leave now."

Tijana waved her hand, indicating they were free to go.

"Wait a moment."

Just as Lancelot was about to step out of the hall, Tijana called out to her again.

Lancelot turned around and caught the object that Tijana threw at him.

He looked down to find he was holding an emblem engraved with the Twin Bridges Town emblem, emitting a strong evil aura as if it had just been blessed with magic.

"The scent of goodwill on you creatures... it's simply too strong. In this world, even a stone on the ground would wish to come alive and attack you," Tijana explained, "Carry this trinket with you—it'll conceal the presence of any good creatures within a radius of five meters. It's effective for three days."

"Thank you," Lancelot expressed his gratitude for the Succubus Lord's kindness, managing to hide his surprise quite well, unlike Bruto, whose eyes were almost bulging out.

"Also, if Grais is alright, don't bother with that fool Kuka. Just bring her back as soon as possible."

"Understood," said Lancelot, waiting on the spot to see if there were any more instructions.

"Alright, now get out," the Succubus Lord suddenly seemed to lose her patience, turning her head away from him.

Lancelot bowed again, then turned and left with Bruto.

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After leaving the castle, the pair first made their way to the blacksmith district to bid farewell to Bruto's father.

The old Dwarf had already agreed to let Bruto go on an adventure, but he was still very worried. He hugged his son for a long time, repeatedly reminding Bruto to be cautious, and handed him a newly crafted warhammer.

This hastily finished Ram's Horn Warhammer didn't look particularly impressive, but its luxury of using powerful steel as the main material made it much heavier than it appeared. The handle of the hammer was inscribed with mysterious Dwarf Runes in mithril, and the head was inlaid with a mountain crystal. This endowed the hammer with magical effects: whoever held it gained a boost in strength, and there was a chance when swinging it to unleash the mountain crystal's energy, delivering a devastating blow to the enemy.

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The shield that Lancelot gave to Bruto had also been enhanced, its face hardened, while the back was likewise engraved with power-boosting Dwarf Runes in mithril and inlaid with mountain crystals.

All these precious materials were generously sponsored by Lancelot himself. His thinking was straightforward; he wanted to elevate Bruto's survival capabilities as much as possible.

Only by surviving could one gradually become stronger, and as for splitting enemies in half, having him around was enough for now.

After parting with Barrend, Lancelot summoned his demonic steed again. It sniffed Lancelot back and forth, seemingly very puzzled by the change in its master's scent but still obediently let the two of them mount its back.

Lancelot controlled the mount to trot along the Stygian River, while telepathically signaling Dingke to keep up. Quasimodo Demons possess the ability to transform, allowing them to take the form of small animals to follow their masters.

Bruto, seated with his back to Lancelot, was studying the Mission Scroll that Tijana had handed to them.

"Kuka, elite... elite level Baal... la Demons..."

"Bagula Demons." Lancelot corrected.

"Ah, Abyssal language makes my head spin reading it; this script is mostly cursed anyway."

Bruto said helplessly. Having spent over a year here, he had learned to speak the language of the Abyss, but reading its script was still very difficult. The language of the Abyss, resembling hieroglyphics, is derived from the various insane natural phenomena of the Abyss and is mentally unbearable to read.

"You read it; I'll take a look at the picture. This gorilla-like demon is Kuka, right?"

"Correct. Kuka, an elite Bagula Demon, nearly 10 feet tall, estimated to weigh around 1000 pounds, wow!"

"That's a big one. Apart from that mouth full of fangs, it's basically an enlarged gorilla. What is this long passage on the side about?"

"Mostly about its behavioral patterns and combat style." Lancelot had a photographic memory, another benefit of becoming a Spiritual Cultivator. He recited the content from the scroll, "Bagula Demons, when in trees, possess incredible agility, skilled in climbing, jumping, and ambushing. They have natural invisibility and can also see through an enemy's invisibility spell."

"Their main weapons are their incredibly powerful fists, and if the opportunity arises, they can also bite your head off from your neck with their mouth. They like to hide in the dark and launch ambushes, using their terrifying leaping ability to jump on your head before you can react and deliver a rapid succession of devastating blows."

"They have a supernatural ability called 'kidnapping,' which can forcibly transport one large or two small creatures over a short distance, difficult for normal beings to resist. This ability allows them to remove an injured target from its teammates to be dealt with one-on-one. It will also use this ability to capture innocent travelers as snacks for its amusement."

"Sounds like it would likely use that ability on me." Bruto was somewhat anxious.

"It shouldn't, as long as you're fully defending, it won't be able to do much to you in the short term, and since the transportation distance isn't far, I can quickly come to support you. Bagula Demons aren't stupid; they can only use that ability once a day. If I preserve some strength from the start, it's very likely to assume that I am the easier target."

"Good plan. Anything else?"

"It mentions it appeared in Screaming Woods about half a year ago, initially only attacking those who entered its territory, but later began leaving its region regularly to attack passing travelers." Lancelot frowned as he remarked, "I feel there's something off about this."

"What part seems off? Based on the description, this Kuka sounds like a model demon of the Abyssal Plane."

"The issue is the pattern. Within a hundred miles, you'd only find a speck of order from Tijana, and I can't see any reason why a wild demon would behave in any orderly manner. Demons don't need to feed; abduction and torture are merely out of a cruel nature, they relish in the screams of living beings being torn apart and don't have a need to replenish their food stores regularly."

"Who cares, we just have to find this Succubus Grais, and then use my new hammer to give a few knocks on that stupid gorilla's head, and the mission is done."

"Let's hope so," Lancelot mused as he looked at the Twin Bridges Town emblem in his hand.

A bat was following them from a distance, that was Dingke.