The Paladin in the Abyss

Elves are naturally endowed with keen senses and have excellent dark vision; under normal circumstances, this would not be an ideal choice. But at this moment, Alamir's attention was fully captured by the human and the dwarf. He watched their every move with concentration, imagining how he would respond if he were in their shoes.

Unlike the solemnly dressed bishops young Isabella had known, who seemed amiable, this elf completely overturned her impression of the clergy, starting with that exquisite yet sturdy full body armor.

Of course, one could not blame her, for a girl who has lived her life in the court had little chance to interact with adventurers, let alone become a priest who adventures.

But in reality, Shuni's priest was still pretty good; if it were the church of Heim or Losanda, who see upholding justice and combating evil as their divine office, people would be unable to distinguish them from ordinary warriors until they performed divine arts.

Having chosen her target, young Isabella started cautiously moving closer to the elf. The dim lighting around provided good cover, and with the skills she had learned, she masked her breath, movements, and noise, like just a shadow shifting with the clouds.

When she was less than fifteen feet from Alamir, she stopped again, waiting for the right moment. Lancelot, who had already sensed her with Spirit Perception, could not help but silently praise her. Being able to stealth to this distance without alerting others was quite an achievement.

The human knight decided to go easy on her. He quickened the movements in his hands, performing several flashy sword techniques, and little Isabella took advantage of the opportunity Lancelot had intentionally created for her. She swiftly and silently moved behind Alamir, her eyes darting around before inserting the wooden short sword into the elf's boot, then silently retreated back.

Tijana, who had been watching the entire process, could not help but laugh out loud, attracting everyone's curious glances.

"I don't see anything funny about that," Bruto protested discontentedly, "This guy has been trained as a warrior since he was a child, and I spent most of my life by the forge."

"You have the nerve to say such things?" Barrend scolded his son while casting an uneasy glance at the Succubus Lord, "Most of the time, you were on the streets of Rivet Fort, running away from your mother's pursuit. You've spent more time there than by the forge by far!"

"It's none of your business," Tijana said with a wave of her hand, while pointing towards where the vampires stood, "Little Isabella has arrived. She's the main character tonight, isn't she?"

Everyone looked in the direction she was pointing and saw the young vampire girl walking confidently into the area, holding a wooden short sword in her hand.

"Good evening, Miss Isabella," Lancelot, leaning on his weapon, gave the young girl a very formal knightly salute, "Are you ready for your second test?"

"The second one?" Bruto asked curiously, "What was the first test then?"

In the meantime, Alamir noticed something unusual by his feet. He reached into his boot and pulled out a wooden short sword, leaving a puzzled expression on the elf's face.

"That was the first test," Lancelot explained with a smile, "Give it back to little Isabella. I think you might have been watching a little too intently just now."

Alamir quickly realized what had happened. The elf let out a resigned smile, tossed the wooden short sword to little Isabella, who caught the hilt of the sword accurately. Her fluid catch impressed everyone.

"Take it easy on me," Bruto said, rubbing his right shoulder, which Lancelot had repeatedly hit, as he moved to the side with a relieved sigh.

"Whenever we're adventuring, all sorts of unexpected situations can occur, forcing us to confront enemies alone," Lancelot slowly raised his wooden longsword, "When that happens, you can only rely on yourself. Right now, I am a..."

"A Goblin brigand," Bruto suggested.

"Um, a Goblin brigand," Lancelot nodded in agreement, "And you must protect yourself!"

"Come on!" Little Isabella said confidently, while assuming a ready stance.

Lancelot slashed diagonally downwards, controlling his strength and speed to nearly that of a commoner (which was actually quite difficult for him at this time). It was a very basic attack, merely a greeting.

Little Isabella didn't attempt to block the attack at all. Instead, she stepped left, slightly crouched down, and easily dodged the sword.

But Lancelot wasn't planning to let the little vampire off that easily. His wooden sword quickly followed with a horizontal slash aimed directly at her waist, three times faster than before.

The girl chose to dodge again, deeply squatting almost to the ground, elegantly straddling with her right foot, and slipping past Lancelot's attack once more.

"Good!"

Lancelot couldn't help but praise Little Isabella's evasive moves, but his hands didn't stop there. The wooden sword swiftly folded back and struck at twice the speed, targeting the little vampire's chest—this was Lancelot's signature triple combo's last strike. Experience more on My Virtual Library Empire

"Don't!" Kalalin, who had been intently watching the duel, suddenly cried out anxiously.

Though Lancelot didn't understand what Scholar meant, he immediately stopped his motion. At this moment, Little Isabella burst forth with astonishing speed. She crouched down again, her short sword parried Lancelot's thrust, while her left short sword stabbed upward, almost at the same time Lancelot stopped, reaching right under his arm.

"Are you alright?" Lancelot looked at the little girl with concern. She was in an odd state, gasping for breath, and the red glow in her eyes was gradually fading.

"I... I don't know." Like someone awakened from a trance, Isabella quickly retracted. "My mind was blank just now. I've practiced that move, but I've never done it so fast..."

"A wooden stake through the heart is a fatal attack for vampires, and you just happen to have a wooden sword in your hand." Kalalin explained from the side, "You scared her."

"So that was actually an instinctive reaction when facing the threat of death," Lancelot nodded, "I've had that experience too, more than once saved by the body's instinctive response. Let's continue now, see if we can trigger that state again."

Little Isabella didn't quite grasp Lancelot's meaning but nodded anyway, once more assuming a fighting stance.