The cleric’s tent smelled of crushed bitter-root and rubbing alcohol.

Kaelen sat on the edge of a canvas bed. A young priest had cleaned his face, applied holy salve to his bruises, and wrapped his ribs in linen before rushing off to tend a drunken mercenary.

Now, the tent was empty. The bustling safe zone faded as the camp settled into an exhausted slumber. The bonfires reduced to smoldering embers.

Kaelen closed his eyes. He didn’t feel tired. The Saintess’ Vitality he’d acquired pumped refreshing energy through his veins, completely banishing physical fatigue.

He focused inward, plucking the spiritual string connected to Seraphina.

’Are you in the right position?’ Kaelen projected.

’I’m directly above the eastern perimeter barricades,’ her voice echoed smoothly in his mind. The telepathic connection felt incredibly intimate, a private sanctuary hidden from the Church. ’The guards on this side are asleep on their feet. The shadows are very thick.’

’Good. I’m moving out.’

Kaelen got out from the bed. He pulled his tattered shirt over the fresh bandages, making sure the heavy leather grimoire was secured against his lower back.

He moved like a ghost. Exiting the medical tent, Kaelen suppressed his mana signature. He navigated the sprawling camp with effortless precision, slipping between snoring adventurers and dimly lit wagons. Nobody noticed the supposedly crippled support boy vanishing into the dark.

He headed east toward the edge of the safe zone.

Here, the holy crystals flickered weakly. The toxic purple miasma pressed against the invisible barrier, swirling like hungry smoke. Kaelen stepped over a low stone wall and sat on a jagged boulder, perfectly positioned within a pocket of dark shadow.

He didn’t wait long.

Ten minutes later, the gravel crunched. Kaelen didn’t move, but his heightened senses mapped the intruder’s approach. It was a heavy and deliberate steps, though the person tried desperately to be silent.

Roderick stepped into the dim light that surrounded the area.

The knight had stripped off his thick steel chestplate. He wore only a padded leather tunic and dark trousers, gripping a blessed greatsword tightly. His face was pale, slick with sweat, and his eyes were glimmering with paranoia.

"Looking for me?" Kaelen asked smoothly.

Roderick gasped, raising his blade. He spun toward the boulder. Seeing Kaelen sitting casually and unarmed, the knight let out a shaky breath.

"You should have stayed in the medical tent, leech," Roderick sneered, taking a cautious step forward. "It would have been much easier to smother you while you were asleep."

"But then, you’ll have to explain a corpse in the middle of camp," Kaelen replied, remaining seated. "Out here? You could easily claim I got lost into the miasma from shock."

Roderick’s eyes narrowed. "You’re surprisingly calm for a dead man."

"And you are surprisingly talkative for an assassin." Kaelen tilted his head. "Why did you do it, Roderick? Why not hold the line? The crawler was only Level 45. Your shield could have taken the impact."

"Because I am destined for greatness!" Roderick hissed, gripping the hilt of his sword. "I am a noble of the Silver Vanguard! I am not dying in a filthy hole protecting Level 1 trash. My life has value. Yours does not."

"The Church teaches that all lives under the World Tree are sacred," Kaelen mocked gently.

"The Church teaches compliance to the weak," Roderick spat. "The strong survive. That’s the only true law. You were a battery to ensure I walked out alive. I’m just speeding up the process."

"The strong survive." Kaelen tasted the words, a dark smile spreading across his face. "I completely agree with you."

"Any final words, Vance?" Roderick asked, raising his flaming greatsword for a deadly downward strike.

"Just one," Kaelen said softly. "Now."

Roderick frowned in confusion.

Before the knight could swing, a streak of pure white crashed from the cavern ceiling.

Seraphina landed silently behind Roderick. She moved with gracec and ease. She was unarmed, but a Level 85 Paladin didn’t need steel to break a Level 32 coward.

She gripped Roderick’s right wrist. The knight gasped as her fingers crushed his bone like an iron vise. Seraphina roughly wrenched his arm backward. A terrible snapping sound echoed around the silent area.

Roderick screamed, and immediately dropped his greatsword.

Before he could pull away, she kicked the back of his knee. The joint buckled. Roderick fell to the hard ground with extreme pain.

Seraphina dug her heavy boot between his shoulder blades, pinning him flat against the dirt. She grabbed his unbroken left arm and pulling it sharply behind his back.

"What is this?!" Roderick screamed, his face pushed into the gravel. He tried to fight back, but her strength felt inhuman. "Who are you?! Let me go!"

Kaelen stood up, walking at a leisurely pace until he stopped a few inches from Roderick’s face.

"You said the strong survive," Kaelen whispered.

"Guards!" Roderick tried to scream.

Seraphina covered her mouth with both hand. She leaned down, her hood falling back just enough for the ambient crystal light to catch her face.

Roderick’s eyes widened. He recognized those flawless features and golden eyes painted on the cathedral’s stained-glass windows. He thrashed wildly, but her grip was too strong.

"Be quiet now," Seraphina whispered coldly into his ear. Her voice lacked any holy warmth. It was the voice of a predator. "You disgraced the Vanguard. You broke your oaths. You are entirely unworthy of the light."

Kaelen crouched down, meeting his terrified gaze. "You were right about one thing, knight. My old class was useless. But the abyss gave me a promotion."

Kaelen raised his right hand.

[Activating Skill: Abyssal Aura.]

Thick violet energy poured from Kaelen’s palm. The magic condensed, forming a jagged spike of pure void energy. The air temperature plummeted below freezing.

Roderick burst into tears, shaking his head frantically, begging for mercy with his eyes.

"I’m running out of patience," Kaelen said.

Without hesitation, he thrust the abyssal spike directly through the back of Roderick’s neck. The dark magic severed his spinal cord and burned his mana core in a split of second.

Roderick went completely stiff, then completely limp.

[System Alert. Hostile Entity Eliminated. Level Gap detected. Bonus Experience awarded.] [Host Level Increased: 38 -> 40.]

Kaelen dismissed the spike, then wiped a drop of blood from his cheek, and stood up.

Seraphina released the corpse, looking down without a single ounce of remorse. Her fanaticism was gone, replaced by unwavering loyalty to her new master.

"It’s done, Master," Seraphina said, bowing her head slightly.

"Search his pockets," Kaelen commanded.

She quickly went through Roderick’s tunic, pulling out a leather coin pouch and a silver spatial ring. She handed them over.

"The ring is bound to his mana signature," she explained. "But your extraction skill should easily override the lock once we have a quiet moment."

"Good work," Kaelen said. He picked up Roderick’s fallen broadsword. It was a beautifully crafted weapon with a blue leather hilt. He throw it to Seraphina. "You needed a blade. This will do until I buy you something better."

She caught the sword easily, giving it a few experimental swings. "It is poorly balanced, but sharp. Thank you."

Kaelen looked toward the barricades. Beyond the crystals, the third-floor staircase plunged back into the total darkness of the Chasm.

"Are we returning to the surface?" Seraphina asked. "If the Guildmaster finds this body tomorrow, the safe zone will go into lockdown. They will summon the Inquisitors."

"Let them lock it down," Kaelen smirked. "I’ll not be here. And neither will you."

"Where are we going?"

"We’re not going up yet," Kaelen decided, turning his back on the safe zone. He stared into the lightless depths of the dungeon. "The Grand Inquisitor locked you down here for the power of the primordial temple. The system calls my class a mythic anomaly. I need to know exactly what this grimoire is, and I need a place to build my strength where the Church can’t reach us."

"I see... You want to clear the Abyss," Seraphina realized, her eyes widening. "The Vanguard has never pushed past the fifth floor."

"The Vanguard is weak," Kaelen said. He stepped over the low stone wall, walking directly into the toxic miasma. The poison parted around him, repelled by his aura. "We are going deeper."