The Paladin in the Abyss

Tijana dismissed her maidservant and walked shoulder to shoulder with Lancelot through the bustling streets of the blacksmith district. Beside them, Dwarven artisans ran back and forth, and occasionally a cry of alarm would signify the discovery of a new casualty under some rubble, followed swiftly by a pair of Dwarfs carrying a stretcher hurrying past.

"What do you understand about souls?"

"Before coming to this plane, I always thought it was just a concept," Lancelot shrugged, "Now I roughly know a soul is truly an existence separate from the body, it carries our consciousness, memories, and emotions..."

"Then, how do you comprehend the term 'mortal'?"

"Mortal?" Lancelot pondered for a moment, "Generally, it refers to those humanoid beings with limited lifespans that age as time passes... Occasionally, when I'm lucky enough to win during sparring, you also use that term to remind me not to get too cocky..."

"Hehe, if it were merely a matter of strength, you wouldn't be considered a mortal by now..." Tijana said with a gentle smile, "The soul is the essence of a mortal, without it, one cannot truly live but is merely a walking corpse. In fact, defining a mortal is directly related to the soul—if a creature's body and soul can separate, then it is a mortal, and only mortals possess this duality. Some powerful wizards can even leave their bodies while still alive, without necessarily becoming more vulnerable."

"What about beings like you?"

"Whether it's me, those Aira friends you met in Androlina, or other inhabitants of the higher planes like Celestials, we are all beings of different planes. Our 'essence' and 'physical form' are unified, not possessing the duality of mortals, which means that if killed on another plane, there would be no body left to resurrect on the spot."

"But you're instantly and completely reborn in your native plane, right?"

"For the most part, yes, but it's not always 'instant' or 'complete'; there are far too many potential influencing factors..." The Succubus Lord shook her head, "And if killed on our native plane, unless special arrangements were made in advance, it is a true death. Our essence would merge directly into the plane itself, leaving no possibility for resurrection, not even for deities."

"So, resurrection techniques only work on the mortal dead?" Lancelot asked softly, although surrounded by various noises, it seemed as though only he and Tijana existed at that moment.

"Yes, death separates a mortal's soul from their body, and resurrection recombines the two." The Succubus Lord looked into his eyes and nodded gently, "Perhaps you've heard that normally, when a mortal dies, the soul goes to the Domain of the Vague, waiting for an envoy of their life's deity to escort them, or to receive judgment from the King of the Dead..."

"And only under normal circumstances can resurrection techniques be effective?"

"Exactly. If a soul, for various reasons, doesn't reach the Domain of the Vague after death, resurrection will yield no results." Tijana turned at the next street corner and signaled the Human Knight to follow, "There could be many reasons, such as being trapped by some magic or relic, turning into a Resentful Spirit due to overwhelming emotions at the time of death, meeting with mishaps on the way to the Domain of the Vague, or already being judged guilty by the King of the Dead, serving a sentence in the City of Judgment..."

"Which situation does Master Barrend belong to?"

"I don't have an answer to that," the Succubus Lord sighed, "I only know what it is not—the attackers have all been killed, and no magical items capable of storing a soul were found on them; the protective array of Twin Bridges Town is still in effect, preventing those items from being transported elsewhere. I also cast a highly advanced Divination Technique, confirming that the Dwarven Artisan's soul has left this plane. Your Elf Priest, capable of performing Fifth Circle Divine Arts, as a priest of a benevolent deity, if even his Resurrection of the Dead is ineffective, it also rules out the influence of the spellcaster's ability..."

During their conversation, the two had already arrived at the door to the Craftsmen Committee. This round fortress was the largest building in the blacksmith district; now its hall was filled with injured dwarves. The stone floor was dirty with bloodstains, and some healers were busy providing treatment to the wounded, but there did not seem to be enough of them.

As soon as the figure of the Succubus Lord appeared, everyone tensely stopped their actions and bowed to her, while Tijana simply waved her hand, signaling them to continue.

"Lady Tijana, and Sir Lancelot." A succubus in a silky white robe approached them, her normally alluring attire now marred with irregular bloodstains, "Is there anything you need from me?"

"You have done very well, Iyeta," Tijana acknowledged her subordinate's performance, "How are the wounded?"

"Thanks to the effects of the healing rings, those with serious injuries have stabilized, but because there are so few of them, it will take time for everyone to fully recover..."

"Hmm, I've already issued a procurement commission. Should an event like this happen again, we will be better prepared. What about the situation downstairs?"

"Seven of the dead have been resurrected, leaving thirty-one. The priests have exhausted their energy and have all gone to rest. However, aside from Master Barrend, there were also cases where Masters Habik, Soladin, and Nan Fudo could not be resurrected."

"I see..." Tijana's expression darkened, "I'll go downstairs and take a look, you keep busy."

"As you command, Lady Tijana."

Following the silent Succubus Lord, Lancelot descended into the cold cellar of the fortress. Compared to the noisy, chaotic hall, this place was as quiet as the world of the dead, partly due to the blue glow of the magic wall lamps on the walls, which also drew the heat from the air and brought the temperature of the entire cellar down to freezing.

Naturally, this kind of environment was ideal for storing easily spoiled food, or corpses.

It didn't take long for the two to find Bruto and Alamir; the dwarf sat expressionlessly beside his father's cold body, his eyes lifelessly staring into the air; the elf priest was crouched beside him whispering something, and at the sound of the human knight and Succubus Lord's footsteps, he looked up and gently shook his head.

"Seems like you can't do it either..." Tijana, with her arms crossed, looked around somewhat helplessly, "This is troublesome."

"...I want to know..." Bruto raised his head, as if awakened by the voice of the Succubus Lord. His eyes were as black as a starless night, his voice harsher than anyone had heard before, "...is there any other way?"

"Of course," the Succubus Lord nodded, "You two make your own journey to the Netherworld."