Death Knight

Arthur, clad in death knight armor as dark as a black hole, appeared before the three of them.

Even Allen, whose character had been tempered into steel-like resolve, could not help but collapse onto the ground at the sight.

"How is that possible?"

Avilan paid no attention to what was happening before him. His gaze and thoughts were focused more on Myth's skills and magical items. This world was actually identical to everything in Myth; he simply had yet to gauge the power of its spells and combat.

Arthur sensed Avilan slowly walking away. He did not know why Avilan had revived three insignificant humans, but since his master had revived them, his master naturally had his reasons.

"Despair Fortress is short on manpower. If you don't want to die, work properly. Don't try to escape, unless you want to drag your village down with you." As Arthur spoke, terrifying blue light burst from beneath his helmet.

Allen and the other two prostrated themselves on the ground and hurriedly agreed.

Perhaps they truly did not fear death, but they feared implicating the people in their village. The villagers were their Achilles' heel.

Allen's team quickly gathered again, yet they did not dare show even the slightest hint of resistance. The master here was too powerful—powerful enough to drive them into despair.

Over the next few days, they were assigned to the Horned Demons' search parties, following them everywhere to loot gold coins. Watching chest after chest of gold being dug out from the ruins every day, they went from red-eyed greed to utter numbness.

Despair Fortress Guild President's Room.

The changing room beside Avilan's room was crammed chaotically with all kinds of items, to the point where there was barely anywhere to stand. There were cloaks and other equipment Avilan could use, and even full-body plate armor he had no use for whatsoever. It was not just armor either; weapons ranged from staffs to greatswords, with everything one could ask for.

These were all weapons and equipment Avilan had transferred from the guild warehouse. Most were of gold quality, while the silver-quality equipment generally possessed special attributes. As for anything below that, there was not a single piece.

"Gu Tianzhen's subordinates were truly thorough. They really did not leave me a single piece of equipment above gold quality." Avilan looked over the dazzling array of gear in the room, a cold gleam flashing through his eyes.

From among the many weapons in the room, Avilan casually selected a level-one-hundred gold-quality staff. Its design was ancient and simple, its dark green shaft shining brilliantly under the light. Symbols resembling writing were carved into the staff, and the reflected light made them clearly visible.

Avilan picked up the staff and swung it up and down. It was extremely light, as light as a feather. After all, his usual class was Demon Lord, a warrior class.

Most of the time, he used heavy weapons such as two-handed greatswords or lances. The weightless staff instead felt somewhat unfamiliar in his hands.

Though Avilan was a warrior class and had relatively low growth in intelligence-related spell attack, the intelligence he had accumulated through training after reaching level one hundred was still not to be underestimated. Even a level-zero Fireball could easily wipe out low-level Demonic Beasts. That was the advantage of levels.

It was like a mage wearing knight gear: once they reached max level, the spells they used could still easily one-shot children in the beginner village.

He took out a staff named the Light Spear Staff, then changed into a white mage robe that represented holiness and purity. The hem of the robe was trimmed in gold, and a silver cross representing light and justice rested upon his back.

With just one set of equipment, Avilan transformed from a terrifying, evil Demon Lord into a holy, righteous light-element mage.

Yet the demon tail behind him swayed with his mood, filling Avilan with extreme frustration.

In the game, a demon tail had merely been decoration, completely useless. But in this world, it was real, and even reacted differently according to fluctuations in his emotions.

Avilan had even considered cutting off the tail, but this seemingly useless thing was actually what regulated and balanced the demonic essence within a demon's body. Once removed, Avilan's strength would drop by at least half, leaving him both furious and helpless.

In the end, he could only helplessly coil the tail around his waist like a belt. Still not reassured, he found a clasp to fasten it down, lest it slip out at a critical moment.

Avilan leaped straight down from the open-air balcony. A simple Falling Feather Spell sent him drifting down from a building over a hundred meters high like a feather. It was a sensation he had never experienced in his previous life's game, as thrilling as skydiving.

Looking at the tall and majestic Despair Fortress, a surge of heroic emotion rose within Avilan.

Despair Fortress itself had been built using Neuschwanstein Castle as its model. Its builder had a personality full of romance and fairy-tale wonder toward life. Shen Jiecōng was precisely such a person, and back then, it had taken quite some effort for them to force someone like him to design Despair Fortress this way.

He was an architectural designer from Biguiyuan, and he had built it by enlarging the model of Neuschwanstein Castle. However, the main structure was black, because the location of Despair Fortress had been shrouded in black clouds all year round. Combined with the black walls, it gave off a mysterious, imposing, inviolable feeling.

It could be said that all the mechanisms, traps, and city structures within Despair Fortress had basically been completed by him alone.

All because Shen Jiecōng had a dream—a city entirely designed by him and built under his direction.

Unfortunately, that dream had ultimately shattered. The magnificent castle's surface was blotched black and white, scarred all over, and several of its towers had collapsed, revealing nothing but decay.

The castle itself was still in relatively decent shape. In comparison, the city district did not even have a single proper building left, with broken walls and ruins everywhere, devastation filling the eye.

Avilan clenched his fists tightly. He swore that he would make this dream whole again, to comfort Shen Jiecōng's spirit in heaven.

The central courtyard was littered with rubble and collapsed wreckage. As his feet stepped over it, constant creaking sounds rang out—the noise of stones grinding against one another. Before long, he saw the shattered gatehouse, so damaged it was nearly on the verge of total collapse.

He only needed to take another step to walk outside, yet despite the vast open space before him, Avilan's foot never crossed the threshold.

Because he had encountered something far too unexpected.

Avilan saw several strange figures. It was the Horned Demon leader, now fully armed and leading a four-man Horned Demon squad tasked with guarding and clearing the gatehouse.

The instant Aslan appeared.

All the Horned Demons' gazes focused on Avilan, yet they did not move afterward. They merely stared without blinking. Their stern eyes were oppressive enough to make one feel pressure.

They were all Demonic Beasts around level twenty to thirty, stationed here by Arthur and responsible for guarding the surrounding area.

In such an enormous Despair Fortress, there were only this few guards. It was clear just how shabby Despair Fortress had become.