The Paladin in the Abyss-Chapter 664 - 688: Lord’s Manor
Chapter 664 -688: Lord’s Manor
No tent could remain intact after a Barlow Flame Demon entered, so the spellcasters of the Allied Forces created a temporary palace for the generals to stay. However, the palace was far from exquisite; it looked like a huge pot turned upside down on the ground, with dark red light twinkling through the cracks in its walls, making one worry that the structure might collapse at any moment.
“Even if it does collapse, I’ll have a big fellow to hold it up for me,” thought Lancelot as he walked into the temporary palace of the high command of the Allied Forces, accompanied by the guiding Succubus.
The sounds of combat that had been audible moments before became clear as they turned a corner, and before Lancelot’s eyes, the noise turned into a tangible scene. He found himself at the edge of a spacious hall where two enormous Barlow Flame Demons were engaged in intense hand-to-hand combat, while a third Flame Demon sat crumpled in a corner, his face swollen and bruised, his eyes filled with humiliation and resentment.
Lancelot recognized the two combatants as the former Lord of the Volcano Fortress, ‘Destruction Flame’ Visuvius, and the one known as ‘the Pale Fire,’ Tu’a. Observing them closely, Lancelot understood how Visuvius could have held the Volcano Fortress alone for so long – Flame Demons typically stood around twelve feet tall, but Visuvius was nearly fifteen feet tall, a whole two heads taller than his kin, resembling the difference between a gorilla and a baboon in size.
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There was no suspense in the outcome of this uneven duel. Visuvius completely let Tu’a attack as he pleased, not even bothering to raise his arms to defend himself. A few punches to his chin merely caused him to sway on the spot, but when he countered with a staggering hook, the ‘Pale Fire’ General’s figure was hit so hard it seemed to leave an afterimage, and for a moment, Lancelot even wondered if his soul had been punched out.
One had to admit, setting aside other factors, the sight of two Barlow Flame Demons brawling with bare fists was extremely spectacular. After all, they were Demons of the highest order, embodiments of brute force, savagery, and destruction. The visceral fight caused Lancelot’s palms to sweat and his breathing to quicken as a senseless desire for destruction rose within him.
Lancelot and Benny were not the only spectators. Around the hall, there were several giant stone chairs; the six-armed Serpent Demon Sonam sat in one of them, next to the Flame Demon General who had “collaborated” with Lancelot before, Sonam’s old acquaintance Babos. It was clear that Babos hadn’t fought with Visuvius yet, and his expression indicated he had no interest in doing so anytime soon. The Succubus who had accompanied Lancelot discreetly pointed out Sonam’s position to him, then quietly retreated.
Despite ‘the Pale Fire’ Tu’a’s continuous efforts to counterattack, after being knocked down for the third time, he no longer had the strength to rise again. Visuvius grabbed his defenseless opponent, roared into his face,
“Say it again, whose fault is this? Answer me!!”
Hot columns of fire spewed from his mouth, like an angry Red Dragon enveloping the other’s head. But since both were Flame Demons, the fire could cause no harm. It seemed more like a visible case of bad breath—hardly damaging, but highly insulting.
“Had enough, Visuvius?” Babos, seated on one of the stone chairs, said in a patient tone, “You’ve proved you’re the strongest. Can you sit down now so we can discuss how to take back that fortress that belongs to you?”
“Do you think it’s my fault too?” the burly Flame Demon glared at his counterpart seated high above. “Come down here, and let me show you what truth is!”
“I’ve already seen the truth, no need to experience it again,” shrugged Babos, “As for the loss of the Volcano Fortress… well, of course it’s because those Bartez are too cunning. What else could it be?”
“Hmm… right!” Visuvius replied breathlessly, and Lancelot wasn’t sure if he was simply taking the offered way out or if he really was that foolish. The former Lord of the Volcano Fortress sat on the largest stone chair, his gaze sweeping over his still unconscious kin, catching sight of the Human Knight still standing at the edge of the arena.
“Who is that? A mercenary?” Visuvius said, looking at Lancelot, “Sonam, out of respect for your master, I won’t kill him. Get him out of here quickly, don’t let him hear our military secrets!”
“If I were you, I wouldn’t do that,” Babos spoke again, “If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t be sitting here wasting time with you.”
“Who is he?” Visuvius looked at Lancelot with suspicion, “What did he do?”
“When you were held up by that bunch of ice demons, steel demons, and domineering demons today, a knight riding a nightmare streaked across the field like Yeg’s envoy, killing all the spellcasters who had been ordered to evacuate Bartez’s forces early.” Babos answered calmly, turning his head to look at Lancelot, “At that time, it was you riding on the back of that beautiful nightmare, fast as a shooting star… I’m not wrong, am I?”
“He did that? A human?” Visuvius’s eyes widened in disbelief, “How is that possible?”
“I told you, he’s fast.”
“Maybe you saw wrong, General Babos.” Lancelot shrugged, “There are quite a few mercenaries who can summon nightmare steeds…”
“It couldn’t have been anyone else.” The flame demon in the black plank armor shook its tattered wings, “After all, it was with your help the day before yesterday that I was able to kill that demon refinement from the deep prison named Kabumore…”
“Kabumore was killed by you?” Visuvius’s expression became even more astonished, “That’s impossible, Butcher, this isn’t even its native plane of existence!”
“Yes, yes, I stand corrected,” Babos rolled his eyes, “I should say that it was sent back to Barto’s cesspit, by beheading it. And this, of course, couldn’t have been done without the help of this Sir here.”
“You flatter me, General, I was simply trying to survive the attacks from the deep prison demon refinement…”
“Cut it out, you would definitely be the very last of those mercenaries to fall, even if you were to die.” The Flame Demon General waved his hand, “But what’s most important is those thorns…”
“Those thorns were also your doing?!!” Upon hearing this, Visuvius stood up abruptly from the chair, “Well done! I want to bestow a reward upon you!”
“That really has nothing to do with me.” Lancelot vehemently denied, “It must have been some druid among the mercenaries.”
“Don’t you want to hear what the reward is?” Visuvius looked at the human knight skeptically, “It’s the one I’ve worn close to my body for many years…”
“I am a knight, I absolutely cannot claim someone else’s reward!!!” Lancelot’s face turned green with insistence, “Please keep your generous reward for the one who truly deserves it!”
“Hmph… you fools, what good does it do you to deny it?” The former Lord of the Volcano Fortress wrapped his loincloth back around himself with some annoyance, “In any case, you still have some skill… So, what exactly is your relationship with Sonam?”
