A Glimmer of Hope and the Trojan Trick (Continued)

Slay them all.

Exterminate them.

Miss Surtr felt no anger; she simply couldn't tolerate the presence of creatures that preyed on their own kind in her field of vision.

The trash must be cleaned up.

Cleaning up trash requires precision and speed.

The outermost priest was cut in half. The broken remains were burned up in the air, leaving only some fragmented ash.

A form emerged from the flames, and with a sweeping sword, it severed the head of the second priest.

The third priest was a female prayer master. She responded with a low growl, her body engulfed in murky flames as she lunged at Miss Surtr, who had materialized. However, the flaming Coiled Sword was merely raised and thrust forward, and a hole the size of a water vat burst forth from her fleshy body, almost tearing the obese figure in two.

The priest fell, and the fourth priest swung his flail to shield the last priest—his flail and half his body were torn apart by the dissipating flames. But at that moment, the last priest had already completed the steps of his spell.

It chuckled softly and stretched its hand toward the sky, about to send an alarm communication spell into the air!

It failed—for a verdant predator swooped down from the sky, severing its arms and pinning its upper body to the solid ground. A bladed foot then emerged and blocked the creature's mouth.

"You need prisoners, don't you, Surtr?" Kal'tsit, who was jogging and barely keeping up, leaned against a thick tree, panting as she spoke in a steady voice.

Prisoners... Yes, she does need prisoners.

"Thank you for your help." She nodded to Kal'tsit —she rarely thanked Kal'tsit instead of apologizing.

At the same moment, the Fire Keeper, unable to use teleportation magic, gracefully approached, raising her hand, and a radiant glow flowed from her sleeve. The ropes binding the adults and the iron cages imprisoning the children were all broken.

"Leave this to me, Miss," the Fire Keeper said softly. She emitted a gentle light that brought a moment of peace to the poor abductees. The next moment, the men, women, and children huddled together, weeping bitterly.

Miss Surtr then approached the last priest, and as she drew near, the emerald green dragon-snake released its bladed legs, allowing the human-like creature to speak.

"You're all dead! Whoever you are, you're all dead!" the priest howled, letting out a roar laced with suppressed pain. "The bishops will find you, skin you alive, eat your flesh, and stuff your bones into the mud, mixing them with the giants' dung!"

"It seems you have a lot of faith in your bishops," Miss Surtr, tilting her head slightly.

"You simply cannot imagine—"

"Indeed, unimaginable." A wisp of dark red Profaned Flame ignited at the tip of the girl's finger. The priest, watching the flame, gradually blurred in his vision. "So, tell me more, shall we?"

She said. As she spoke, the flames at her fingertips danced rhythmically and lightly.

Spells and allure—all fire-based creatures, when their spirits are weak, cannot escape the allure of fire.

The next moment, a wealth of information poured out of the priest, who was bewitched by the flames, including everything from the terrain and personnel configuration to the church's password and the saint's porch.

As Surtr had anticipated, all three archbishops of the Deep Church were present— Louis, MacDonald, and Clim, each overseeing the priesthood, the knighthood, and the order of prayer, respectively. Somewhat interestingly, Rosaria, Mother of Rebirth, was absent, implying that the archbishops were not as divided as depicted in the game. All the priests devoutly served Saint Aldrich and his ideals.

This means that the Deep Church is heavily guarded.

This means a direct attack, facing hundreds of heavily armored church knights, thousands of combat-capable priests and prayer masters, and a large number of hybrid giants kept in the swamp. It also means facing a fortified church that provides them with strong protection, its every corner and vulnerability sealed by magic.

If we go back half a month, Surtr might not have needed five minutes to wipe them all out.

But now...

"Is my strength insufficient..." Surtr released his grip, and the unleashed Profaned Flame completely engulfed the last priest. The entire interrogation lasted fifteen minutes. After repeatedly verifying the crucial details, the Profaned Flame devoured the soul of this being, bestowing upon it eternal torment.

She turned her head to look in the other direction.

The Fire Keeper had already calmed the poor souls down. Kal'tsit, who hadn't immediately retracted Mon3tr but whose back was no longer cracked, also played a significant role—somewhat unexpectedly, Kal'tsit seemed to easily become friends with the children. She even allowed one little girl to reach out and touch her feline ears.

The child and Kaimiaomiao both chuckled softly.

—Is it similar to the techniques used to discipline Red? Indeed, Kal'tsit usually has the demeanor of a kindergarten principal.

Miss Surtr tilted her head. As she approached, the commoners, who looked like ordinary villagers, bowed to her in gratitude and offered their blessings.

"Miss," the Fire Keeper added. "They are all civilians living in villages outside the woods. Four days ago, the priests of the Sunken Church began arresting people. This group is the second batch from their village—the first batch was taken to the Sunken Church just six hours ago."

"Yes, I know." Surtr nodded. "They're planning a grand feast to entertain a distinguished guest from Irithyll."

"Is he the Pontiff's Messenger?" the Fire Keeper asked cooperatively.

"Perhaps, but it could also be Pontiff Sulyvahn himself... The banquet will only begin after the distinguished guests arrive. In other words, these people are at least still alive now. At least most of them are alive."

Miss Surtr closed her eyes.

Take gentle breaths.

She had no desire to save people, but she also couldn't tolerate the moral conflict that was right in front of her.

"Fire Keeper, I'm going to take a risk," she said softly.

"Then you will definitely need the aid of magic," the Fire Keeper said with a smile. After obtaining her consent, she turned to look at the group of innocent villagers. With a soft voice, the villagers bowed repeatedly to her, as well as to Surtr and Kal'tsit, and then hurriedly grabbed their children or children they knew, quickly disappearing into the woods.

They left.

A particularly handsome child caught Surtr's eye as he left—just a glance, of course; she didn't know the child's name was Anri. She didn't know that this undead companion from the game was actually a normal living person at this point in time—but it didn't matter. It was just a trivial incident, simply signifying that a tragedy had been nipped in the bud.

So, the next step.

The carriage was still intact, and the horses had become tamed under her willpower. The Fire Keeper raised her hand, and the light distorted. The light magic from Oolacile then warped the Fire Keeper's figure, making her silhouette, posture, and aura identical to one of the priests.

She also cast the same spell on Miss Surtr.

"You have obtained the password and can come and go freely—as long as we can deceive the knights guarding the church entrance, we can sneak into the Sunken Church. And once we successfully enter the cathedral, we can try to rescue those poor people who are trapped. Perhaps you can even find an opportunity to defeat that fallen saint."

"This is difficult." Surtr tilted her head, trying to adapt to the new posture and physique. She learned quickly, and in the blink of an eye, she was already lifelike. "The Sunken Church is heavily guarded, and there are many places that we, as the two priests we are playing, simply cannot enter. Unless you can cast the spell again inside the cathedral—but I think that would trigger the alarm."

"Yes." The Fire Keeper lowered her head. "I'm sorry, Miss, I'm confident that my disguise spells can fool even the Archbishop of the Deep. But I can't yet imitate the spellcasting techniques of the Priests of the Deep—if I could absorb some of their souls, perhaps I could..."

"Don't do that." Miss Surtr raised her hand to stop her. "Unrestrained soul absorption will only bring consequences many times worse than corruption—do your best, save if you can, I will...try my best."

She turned her head to look at Kal'tsit, who was standing to the side, trying to join the conversation.

"Kal'tsit, could you please meet us outside?" she asked.

However, she received an unexpected answer.

"I have a better plan." Kal'tsit looked at her, her gaze fixed. "I'll go in with you."

"Having one more person doesn't necessarily increase the success rate..."

"No, you can." — And the next moment, Kal'tsit picked up the handcuffs and shackles from the iron cage and locked her own hands!

"That will do." Miss Lynx's words were filled with determination. "I've heard the intelligence. That enemy, that guy named Aldrich, is a 'gourmet.' And he'll definitely be interested in a 'food' from a unique race, one that most ordinary people have never even encountered!"