Crimson Servant

John's eyes couldn't help but fall on the paladin. He was sleeping at the door. The blond hair on his head was stained with dust, like gold crushed in the sand.

"The similarity between your son and Karl shouldn't be that handsome face."

"No, the similarity between them is their arrogant and arrogant attitude. Maybe that face should have a woman's lip print, but I would rather have my shoe print on it."

John raised the corners of his mouth and nodded in agreement, "I really envy your insight into seeing through the appearance and getting to the essence, Jurgen."

Jurgen hummed somewhat proudly.

"My child has many advantages that make me proud, but after many years of separation, what remains in my memory are only the flaws that once made me angry."

John rubbed his chin, thinking about the difference between Jurgen and himself. Regarding Nora and the others, I can sum up many shortcomings of those three people, but whenever I think of them, the first thing that comes to mind is their characteristics that attract me. They are extraordinary.

This is the difference between people.

"So he is an enhanced version of Karl, right? The druid should not have intellectual deficiencies."

"John, you and Carl can always create some interesting sparks that make people laugh. As for the evaluation of that kid, rather than saying that he is a smart Carl, I think he is more like you who is not tough enough."

The dwarf's bright black eyes shone brightly, "I have only seen your physical characteristics once. It was that of a terminally ill old man, with half of his feet already in the grave."

"Weakness is etched in your bones, but your soul is so young."

"Perceiving your mental state through this dim body is like feeling the fire burning in the dead wood. This process is as joyful to me as digging out precious ores from thick rock formations. I really want to meet the one who cultivated you. Let’s have a good chat with the adoptive mother…”

Then Jurgen changed the topic.

"However, after hearing about your adoptive mother's personality, I'm afraid your tenacity comes from a twisted process that I didn't want."

"Now, I just want to toast you, kid, for your unyielding growth."

The warlock couldn't understand the druid's thinking, but he could feel Jurgen's kindness. He took the medicine bottle handed by the dwarf, and John looked at the dark green bottle wall in a daze. John didn't think that was something worthy of praise. The purpose of enduring the blessings of Vertis was to live. If this will to survive was worthy of celebration, should I still be grateful to the demon god who gave me suffering?

Jurgen lay back down again. His injury had just healed. After treating John's wound and chatting for a while, he already felt trapped. The dwarf druid rested again, his body got into the bedroll and huddled into a small mountain.

John, who was about to recover from his fracture, was not sleepy. His crimson and corrupted body weakened his need for sleep. He sat next to the campfire, used a wooden stick to push away the feathers that started to emit white smoke from the lightning, unfolded a spell book with the corners rolled up, and immersed himself in reading.

The only sounds left in the dungeon were the wailing of firewood and the occasional turning of paper, and everything was sleeping in warmth.

The night passed.

The Sun Team woke up one after another and enjoyed the thick soup cooked by the druid. Jurgen added some spicy seasonings to the soup and took a sip, which instantly eliminated the remaining sleepiness.

Lightning took out the dried meat and cut it into long and thin strips, soaked it in the thick soup and ate it happily. When he looked up again and was about to fill the second bowl, he found that the eyes of the druid and the warlock were focused on him.

The three people sitting around the campfire turned their attention to the paladin at the edge of the fire, or to the paladin pretending to be asleep.

Carl Demiras has long been awake, and the disciplined, diligent and self-denying paladin prays at the prescribed time every morning. But today, the awakened Paladin did not make a sound. His consciousness was still in that battle, immersed in the time when Jurgen risked his life to stand in front of him.

It is foolish to cause danger because of one's own recklessness, and it is even more shameful to hurt one's companions because of one's own stupidity. Carl is a proud man, and the more proud a man is, the less he can tolerate mistakes. He was now shameless to face Jurgen, and the thought that his bravery had happened in front of that evil warlock made Karl's face even more distorted.

You must make up for the mistakes you made.

When they are resting, I will guard them. The guard will be on the outermost side. Stay away from the campfire, Carl, it's your own punishment.

They started to eat. Well, the old man's voice was very loud, and it seemed that he was recovering well. Lightning, why are you making so much noise while eating! It makes me a little hungry, hold it in, Karl, it's just a meal, this is your own punishment.

Carl's thoughts were easily understood by a few people with delicate minds. The exploration of the dungeon will continue, and allowing the Paladins to continue punishing themselves will only weaken the overall strength. They need someone to accept him as a representative and understand him.

Jurgen is too heavy on Karl, and the result is likely to be counterproductive.

John was too insulting to Karl, and the result was very likely to backfire.

Lightning became the only candidate. In fact, the arakkoa were mentally prepared for their identity as peacemakers.

When the arakkoa walked up to Carl with a bowl of soup and shook him awake, the paladin looked grateful. He held the bowl of soup like a noble Holy Grail, and the process of walking to the campfire was like stepping into a glorious palace. Under the firelight, the paladin's eyes were blazing, he raised the soup bowl to his head and solemnly swore an oath.

"Friends, I hereby apologize to you for the consequences of my recklessness. Under the witness of a great notary, I will never let the same thing happen a second time." After that, Karl put the wine in the bowl. He swallowed the food in one gulp, and the spicy taste made his face turn red.

"Do you Paladins have to swear an oath to eat? Please don't put extra meaningless burdens on the food. The taste in your mouth will become strange." John's words made the stiff atmosphere return to irritability. Lightning and Jurgen were as usual. The same started the coordination relationship between the Paladin and the Warlock.

It has become a daily routine for the warlock to make the paladin angry with a few words through the druid and ranger.

Leaving the temporary camp, John and others began to explore the surrounding area.

Away from the elevator in the center, the third level area was in darkness. They held the torch high, and then they discovered the dense branches above their heads and the hanging vines in front of them.

Trees, trees everywhere, twisted branches intertwined into a network in the air, and the gaps exposed were not big enough for a halfling to pass through. Jurgen felt very uncomfortable in such a dense forest. No matter how quiet the jungle was, the druid could hear the singing of the spirits of nature. But among such prosperous plants, there was no sound in Jurgen's ears.

The Sun Team followed the vague path to explore. Carl and Lightning had to wield their swords to cut off the branches blocking the way. Jurgen looked around the bushes, touching the exposed aerial roots and the soft soil under his feet, with a solemn expression.

John put away the adventurer's manual.

"The information from the Adventurer's Guild is no longer of use. It simply explains that the third floor used to be the herbal garden of the Asht people. The plants here are growing crazily, occupying every inch of space. Several items in the record The path is completely covered with roots, so instead of following the map, we should create a new path ourselves."

"Then it's up to us to explore on our own."

"Great!" Karl, who was leading the charge, turned back and pointed at the chest-high bushes in front of him, "Which side do you think is the right way?"

"Jurgen?" Without the druid, John would go straight in a random direction because he couldn't see the difference at all. There are druids, so of course it’s worth asking friends of nature for their valuable advice.

There was a sound under the bush, and the small branch and leaf swayed together.

"This place has abandoned the spirit of nature, and the way of harmony is out of control here. All plants, whether it is a grass or a leaf, they are all growing, growing uncontrollably and without reason. In the soil There is simply no nutrition to support such a wanton plant. Let me think about it again..."

"Oh my God, it's not them, it's it. It's a whole. It's symbiotic with each other and sharing nutrients. This... damn mage should have let them rot when they were still seeds."

John interrupted the druid's complaint, "We need a direction, Jurgen, those Asht mages are history."

A hand reached out from the bushes, pointing in one direction.

"I can't be sure, but if it's a general direction."

"Go that way, that's the direction where life energy is the thinnest."

"If there's no plant there, there must be something else."