The Paladin in the Abyss

The bathing water was somehow disconcerting, though. It was a pure black, sourced directly from a black pond in the Blood Abyss, but not at all filthy. It was the only water in the entire Mogrondale City that contained no toxins, diseases, or curses and could be directly consumed by mortals, and even Alamir's Divine Arts found nothing amiss with it.

However, out of caution, the group had a Priest conjure up a large barrel of real, clean water to rinse themselves with after their baths, which at least gave them some psychological comfort.

Bruto was the last to enter the bathhouse, and after the Dwarf finished, the scene in the bathroom looked as though someone had tossed an alchemical bomb into a cesspit. Even Kalalin had to use a spell to clear the drains, which were completely clogged with the Dwarf's shed hair.

The cool bathwater not only washed away the dirt and grime from their bodies, but it also took away the weariness of the journey, reviving their spirits. An hour later, everyone was ready to head downstairs to indulge in a lavish meal as a reward for themselves.

Of course, they still donned their full armor, weapons at their waist, and shields on their backs, looking as if they were prepared to dine and dash.

But of course, they would never do such a thing, moral preferences aside, the skinless corpses hanging over Blood Lake quite effectively demonstrated the consequences of that action. And to be honest, in the Abyss, spending money is actually harder than earning it. Bruto had already tossed all the gemstones into Lancelot's Dimensional Bag, simply because the Dwarf found them too heavy.

After parting with a yellow jade worth five hundred Gold Coins, they enjoyed the most sumptuous meal they had since arriving in the Abyss. Although they still preferred Koula's cooking, the Halfling would never find such rich ingredients in Twin Bridges Town.

In fact, Koula himself was the happiest eater of them all. This race of unfussy gourmets has never been picky about food—they express their appreciation for all food in the simplest of ways, by eating it.

Due to Lancelot's generous spending, Pakos was very enthusiastic, but Lancelot naturally did not let his guard down because of the host's honest and lovable appearance, always maintaining a very respectful attitude. It wasn't difficult to do so because his Spirit Perception constantly reminded him that Pakos felt more dangerous than the Red Dragon back in Twin Bridges Town that traded gemstones.

While the Halfling innkeeper was bustling about, peddling various goods and services, on his third approach to the table, Lancelot casually brought up the question he was truly interested in:

"Mr. Pakos, do you know where I could buy the latest maps? We're looking for a route to a lower plane."

"I would be more than happy to sell you one; in fact, it's one of my main businesses," Pakos said with a curious expression on his face, "but I can only regretfully tell you that I cannot provide you with a map, at least not right now."

"Why?" Bruto asked curiously, "You didn't even ask us which layer we were headed to."

"That's a matter of our guests' privacy, and there are not many lower planes worth visiting," the Halfling proprietor said, winking at the Succubus, "But the issue isn't where you want to go. The problem is that an extremely important item has recently gone missing in the city, and even the lofty Lords of Withering are unable to locate the positions of the various Portals within the Blood Abyss anymore."

"Is it the Eye of Sarizdon?" Lancelot asked calmly, while keeping a watchful eye on the other's reaction.

"That's right." Surprisingly, the former Lord of Withering who seemed quite adorable readily admitted it yet he smiled at Lancelot, "I heard there was a group of passing mercenaries who helped the city patrol team take out those shape-shifter thieves."

"What exactly is the Eye of Sarizdon?" Kalalin couldn't help asking curiously, "I mean, what does it have to do with the locations of those portals in the Great Abyss?"

"On the outside, that Divine Artifact is nothing more than a black sphere, nothing remarkable. It's useless to you all, only a few of the old fellows living in the Skeleton Tower can use it." Pakos shrugged, "What I know of its use is that it can view every corner of the Great Abyss and consequently draw a map that's very important to this city. Unfortunately, shortly after the artifact was stolen, an earthquake occurred here, which means the portals' locations got scrambled again."

"Why is the map so important?" Little Isha asked curiously, "Can't you just take a ship here?"

"Because this place is merely a hub, my beautiful vampire miss, merchants who come here usually have destinations elsewhere." The halfling innkeeper spread his hands, "If those Lords of Withering don't find a way to get back the Eye of Sarizdon quickly, this city will soon lose its reason for existence."

"With your identity, you must have already received the latest intelligence," Kalalin looked at the adorable former Lord of Withering with hope, "those shape-shifters didn't manage to take the artifact away, the Eye of Sarizdon is still in the Great Abyss." Your next read awaits at My Virtual Library Empire

"I did hear about this news, but certainly not earlier than you," Pakos gave everyone a toothy smile with an obvious implication.

"It was indeed us who defeated those shape-shifters; they weren't particularly difficult to deal with," Lancelot admitted straightforwardly, "We need to get a map as soon as possible. Is there anything we can do?"

"Oh, do you have any complaints about my rooms and food?" the halfling innkeeper exclaimed dramatically, but Lancelot could easily tell the other was just putting on airs.

"They are fantastic, but they aren't free," Lancelot shrugged, "We are a group of mercenaries; finding things is within our line of work."

"The Great Abyss is nothing like the open fields of the Plains of the Abyss," Pakos chuckled, "Please trust the withered masters of Mogrondale City—they are certainly more anxious than you. I'm confident that artifact will soon return to its rightful room in Kai-Oine. Until then, why not stay here and trade your shiny gemstones for the top-notch services I offer?"

Lancelot knew there wouldn't be any more progress in the conversation, so he shifted the topic to some customs and cultures within Mogrondale City, then politely ended the conversation.

Later that day, everyone gathered to discuss the next course of action, but unfortunately, they had too little information and ended up without a conclusion.

Bruto did come up with an idea: to find out some information about the current Lords of Withering from the streets to see if it was possible for Lancelot to take one out directly. Doing so would definitely make participating in the search for the artifact's whereabouts, or acquiring a map afterward, no trouble at all for a Lord of Withering.