The Paladin in the Abyss-Chapter 529 - 553

Chapter 529: 553 Chapter 529: 553 “What are we waiting for then!” Bruto kicked straight into the air, swinging the stone door that Lancelot was holding open and barked, “Hurry up!”

“I shouldn’t have stolen his opponent just now,” Lancelot said helplessly, shrugging at his companions behind him and turning to follow the Dwarf forward.

As soon as they stepped through the stone door, everyone’s nostrils were immediately assaulted by the stench of rotting flesh. Behind the door was a spacious cavern, with corpses impaled by spears standing in a corner, and next to them was a broad stone table hosting the torso of a dissected human male, his legs and arms chopped into sections and tossed into a cart beside it.

There were four Fencer Trolls in the room, three dressed as warriors, and the fourth with a blood-stained apron around his waist, looking like a warrior moonlighting as a butcher. All four enemies were startled by the sudden appearance of the group, but they were holding their weapons, clearly forewarned of the intruders.

“Damn Cannibal Tribe, stinking to death!”

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Bruto roared angrily and instantly threw his Warhammer, then raised his Shield and charged at the nearest enemy. Lancelot was slightly slower, running while conjuring thick vines with one hand to seal off the two distant exits to prevent any escapes.

As the two charged forward, the enemies quickly reacted. The butcher-dressed Fencer Troll began to cast, turning the ground into mud, while the other three prepared to hurl their weapons at those who had stumbled into the muck.

...

However, the Fencer Trolls’ plan completely backfired. Under Alamir’s Divine Arts, the boots of the Human Knight and the Dwarf hadn’t sunk half an inch into the muddy ground, and when they reached their enemies, they were utterly unprepared for battle.

Lancelot’s first sword strike flung his opponent’s weapon away, and the second opened a wide and long gash on the thigh. Meanwhile, Bruto’s Warhammer had left his target nearly unconscious, and the following Shield bash completely knocked the enemy to the ground, by which time the Warhammer had reappeared in his hand.

Their companions who entered a step later didn’t stand by idly. Kalalin summoned a number of pale blue Arcane Missiles from a scroll, blasting them at the third Fencer Troll, while Little Isha silently appeared behind it, coolly aiming her Cold Iron Shortswords at the seams of the leather Armor and stabbing down.

But the most astonishing effect was by Alamir. Typically, the Elf Priest would cast the Holy Fire Technique from a safe distance when there was no need for close combat or no one in need of Healing Divine Art—the Technique’s name may suggest fire, but it actually invokes searing light to inflict Radiant Damage.

Under the effect of the Holy Fire Technique, the aproned Fencer Troll didn’t even have time to let out a scream before its body began to rapidly Petrify from the top of its head. In just a few seconds, it had become a grey-white statue.

On the other side, Lancelot had thrust his Longsword into his opponent’s chest, while Bruto was mounted atop the Fencer Troll he’d knocked down, repeatedly striking his opponent’s head with his Warhammer.

The only one having trouble was Little Isha. Her surprise attack wasn’t enough to kill the enemy instantly, and the violent struggle prevented her from withdrawing her weapons. Now the Fencer Troll had two shortsword hilts sticking out of its lower back and was roaring wildly, swinging its massive Battle Axe, trying to strike the unarmed Wanderer.

Fortunately, her fundamentals were solid. After a series of feints, changes in direction, and rolls, the Battle Axe didn’t even graze the edge of her clothing. While given more time, Little Isha would surely have watched the Fencer Troll bleed to death from the Paralyze-enchanted wounds (the Troll was unaware of this), the group was short on time, so Lancelot decided to give the young lady a bit of help.

It really was just a slight move, because little Isabella was not evading recklessly. By following a deliberately planned route, she exposed the enemy’s back to her companion. With a simple thrust of his longsword, Lancelot impaled the Fencer Troll.

“Rakka… slag… dun dod…”

“What did it say?” Lancelot turned to ask the Dwarf, “I think I’ve heard other giants shout those last few words before.”

“Slag dun dod is a common giant phrase, meaning ‘kill them all,'” Bruto shrugged, “You’ll often hear them mindlessly repeat it, slag dun dod, slag dun dod.”

“Thank you, brother.” Isabella ran over somewhat embarrassed to retrieve her weapons, “I didn’t expect it to have such tenacious life force…”

“Don’t mention it,” Lancelot replied, patting the little girl’s head gently, “You handled what came afterward very well.”

“Planning how to withdraw your dagger before you stab is a very useful life lesson. You’ll gain more insight into this as you grow,” the old Reap added as he came closer.

At the other end of the cave, Alamir was already checking the bodies. He removed the corpses impaled on spears one by one, then examined their eyeballs and the wounds on their bodies.

“Four humans, two men and two women, no signs of weapon training, all civilians. They were alive when skewered on the spears, and there are multiple newer piercing wounds on their bodies. It seems the Fencer Trolls had fun stabbing them with sharp instruments after impaling them,” the Elf Priest declared the cause of their deaths in a somber tone, “Lancelot, please help burn their bodies…”

Lancelot nodded silently, and with a light wave of his hand, several small blue-green Fire Lotuses landed on the bodies and instantly ignited into a blazing fire. The charred smell of burning flesh rose, replacing the previous stench of decay, but it felt even worse.

“Let’s keep moving.”

Lancelot formed a spell with his hands and dispersed the vines blocking the two exits. Following Bruto’s advice, they chose the right passage, as the Dwarf was certain it would lead to higher regions inside the mountain, and the tunnel did ascend in a winding path as he had predicted.

The next cavern they arrived at was quite spacious, with spring water flowing out from within the mountain, pooling into a pond over fifteen feet in diameter, its surface littered with various debris and pieces of corpses. Obviously, such water was not fit for normal consumption, but from the surrounding traces, it seemed the residing Fencer Trolls might not care about this.

There were no enemies in the cave, but Lancelot’s Spirit Perception inexplicably felt a surge of unease. However, before he could voice his concern, Isabella called out to stop everyone in their tracks.