What is an offensive priest?

Chapter 12 The Passage to the Underdark!

Upon hearing this, everyone...

All eyes turned to the enormous stone coffin in the center of the church.

At this moment, as all the spirits of the dead returned to silence and the eerie mist dissipated, the coffin revealed its true nature.

Standing eerily in the center of the rotunda surrounded by stone pillars, it resembles the gaping maw of some ancient, mysterious beast.

"What else is hidden here?"

Kro was clearly exhausted from the torment of the skeleton warriors earlier; his hand gripping the sword hilt was slightly heavy.

Richard did not answer.

He stepped forward, his boots landing on the stone slabs covered in shadowy aura.

"Sir Richard, be careful!"

Seeing Richard's rash behavior, the Drow mage Avil couldn't help but remind him.

Having gone through several battles, it was always the priest in front of him who turned the tide. This drow mage had long since let go of his initial arrogance and wariness.

Richard merely raised his hand in greeting, without stopping.

He walked to the edge of the coffin, placed his hands on the cold stone edge, and leaned over to look inside.

Then, he froze on the spot.

The others, seeing this, immediately sensed something was wrong.

"Damn it!"

Kro cursed under his breath, the blade of his sword gleaming with the light of a sacred weapon, and cautiously approached the coffin.

The thief Maurice also placed his hand on his poisoned dagger, ready for battle at any moment.

But when Chloe cautiously approached Richard and followed his gaze into the coffin, she was also shocked by what she saw inside.

"This is……"

The coffin was completely empty!

There was no corpse as expected, no burial treasures, and not even the swirling, eerie mist that had been there before.

There's only... one hole!

A circular cave that plunges vertically downwards and has no bottom.

The cave walls were not rock, but some kind of dark purple, translucent crystalline substance with vein-like purple patterns flowing across its surface.

Deeper into the cave, an even denser, dark aura surged forth like a living thing, bringing a bone-chilling cold.

This is not a coffin at all.

It was a well.

A vertical shaft leading to the deepest part of the earth, disguised as a coffin.

The other two also came forward at this moment.

They were stunned by what they saw.

"What's going on?"

The thief Maurice's voice was deep and hoarse.

"aisle."

Richard finally spoke, his voice somewhat grave.

"If I'm not mistaken, this should be a passage to the Underdark!"

The Underdark!

Upon hearing this, both Kro and the thief turned to look at the drow mage beside them almost simultaneously.

"Isn't that your hometown?"

A strange look flashed across the drowsy mage's purplish face as he instinctively tightened his grip on his staff.

"Yes...yes."

Master Zhuo'er's voice was somewhat hoarse.

"I'm still shaken," Chloe said.

"No wonder this coffin is so large; it turns out it's an entrance to the Underworld."

"Fortunately, we discovered it in time, preventing anything from crawling up from underground."

Richard shook his head at this moment, pouring cold water on his wishful thinking.

"No!"

Paladin Crow turned his head and saw Richard slowly stand up, his face showing no relief, only a growing sense of solemnity.

"The entrances to the Underdark are never singular; often, by the time people discover them, they have already reached the surface through other passages!"

Kro tried to comfort her, but her voice was not very convincing.

"Perhaps it's not that serious. Maybe it's just a playful drow elf wanting to travel around Faerûn?"

Richard did not respond.

The recent blockade of Blackrock Town by the Santalite Order, the Nightmare Gift potion originating from the Underdark within the gnolls, and this mysteriously appearing passage.

All of this inevitably evokes associations with dark and sinister places.

However, their purpose is still unknown.

"Never mind, we've already obtained the lava lizard's gland extract. Let's go back to Blackrock Town first."

"As for this passage, let's seal it off for now."

As a well-established adventure team, collecting loot is an essential step.

But as a knight of the Steme family, Crow obviously looked down on the tattered clothes of these impoverished bandits.

Master Zhuoer was only interested in the ancient books in the monastery.

Only the thief Maurice was focused on and enjoying looting the corpses.

"Hmm, what kind of gold coin is this?"

"These don't look like gold coins circulating in the market!"

The thief found a special gold coin on the black-robed priest. It glowed red and had a screaming face engraved on one side and in Hellish language on the other.

Richard took the coin and examined it briefly. The gold coin carried a sulfurous smell unique to the Barto Hell, and one could vaguely sense the shrieks of souls.

"This is... Soul Coins!"

As a mage with extensive knowledge, Avel recognized the origin of the coin.

The words had barely left his mouth.

The thief Maurice's eyes lit up with a burning desire as he snatched the gold coins back from Richard's hand.

"These are what I confiscated!"

"These are my gold coins!"

Kro shook his head helplessly.

"Please don't mind him, Your Excellency Richard. That's just how he is when he sees something precious—like a mouse seeing cheese!"

Richard shook his head, not paying too much attention.

-

night.

The silhouette of the Howling Mountains, under the moonlight, resembled the spine of a sleeping behemoth.

The adventure team set up camp on a rocky riverbank.

The river is the Silver Scale Stream, which originates from the melting snow of the mountains. The water is clear and cold, and it shimmers with tiny silvery light under the moonlight.

There is a small grove of hemlocks on the east side of the riverbank. The trees are tall and dense, providing a natural barrier for the camp.

The drow mage Avir chanted a spell, casting a first-level protective spell, Alarm, on the camp.

It will be automatically triggered when there is an invasion from the outside world, eliminating the need for shifts to keep watch and allowing everyone to rest in peace.

The thief Maurice also slipped into the night, patrolling the hemlock forest near the camp, secretly setting several traps and sprinkling powder to repel wild animals.

Richard sat on a flat, dark blue rock at the edge of the riverbank, taking in the entire scene.

As expected of an adventure team from Baldur's Gate, their combat coordination was excellent, and they were also very careful and thorough when setting up camp.

He held a pebble he had scooped up from the stream in his hand, his fingertips unconsciously tracing the smooth texture of the stone's surface.

The stone traced an arc in the air before falling into the heart of the river, creating ripples that gradually spread outwards.

Just then, he heard light footsteps behind him.

"Sir Richard, may I speak with you...?"

Richard raised his head.

Under the moonlight, the drow mage Avir stood behind him, his deep purple spider silk robes fluttering slightly in the night breeze.

Richard pointed to the empty seat next to him.

"Please do as you wish."

Avel sat down beside the rock, his crimson eyes gazing at the rippling river, unsure of what to say.

After hesitating for a long time.

"When...did you notice it?"

His voice trembled slightly, as if hiding some guilt.

Although the expression was subtle, Richard understood what he meant.

"From that duel in the church temple."

"Adult male drow elves not only possess exceptional magical talent, but must also undergo special weapons training."

"When encountering a regular warrior class in close combat, although they cannot fight back head-on, they are not completely helpless."

Hearing what Richard said, Avel lowered his head, his eyes looking somewhat dejected.

He originally thought he had disguised himself very well, blending in with the adventure team for months without his teammates noticing anything amiss.

But in Richard's eyes, it was full of flaws.

"Since you've already guessed it, why don't you expose me?"

Seeing that Richard did not respond, he hurriedly added.

"The reason I disguised myself like this is simply to avoid unnecessary trouble and harassment from certain people. I assure you I meant no harm!"

Richard seemed unconcerned, speaking in a flat tone.

"All I need to do is ensure you have no hostility towards Blackrock Town. Your true identity and the reasons for your disguise are none of my concern!"

Listen to Richard's brief and straightforward answer.

Avel breathed a quiet sigh of relief, but a strange meaning flickered in his crimson pupils.