Chapter 288. Guulrahn's Slums
With the ledger under his right armpit, Lyruk took out a knife and made an incision in his left palm, letting the blood fall on the ground.
[Orrotus, I summon thee! Come forth and collect what you are owed!](Lyruk)
Eyes bulging at the sudden declaration, Michael rushed forward to the spot already burning with hellfire not even five meters to his left, where a large silhouette was emerging from below.
Without giving it much thought, he used Reap on the demon, not wanting to allow it any room for action.
Unfortunately, the skill and the scythe were bounced back by a barrier, prompting a toothy grin from Orrotus.
Sneering at the Wanderer for a moment, he turned to glance at Lyruk, who had already fallen onto his ass and was peeking at him through the legs of the Golem.
[Ah! At last, Lyruk! Did you truly think you could make a deal with the Burning Hells and escape the flames?](Orrotus)
[AAAAAAAARGH!](Lyruk)
The sudden scream attracted Michael's attention. When he turned around, Lyruk was surrounded by hellfire, burning as if kerosene had been poured on him.
Neither the Golem nor his Skeletons could approach, and there didn't seem any way through which the man could be saved.
Sighing, the Necromancer activated Blood Mist, allowing the demon's mace to pass through his incorporeal body.
[ Orrotus, The Debt Collector (Elite) - Level 54
*Waller: Manipulates the earth to create a wall around the target. ]
Annoyed, Michael snorted and used Evade to close in on the demon once his body restructured its physical form and the mace descended upon him once more.
Once in range, he reused Reap, followed by Decrepify and Corpse Tendrils.
He didn't bother using Corpse Explosion since he needed to vent, but the demon's laughter pissed him off further.
"Pitiful miscreant. Is this the best you could do? You created a puppet to come here and play, and this is the extent of your powers?"
[Hahaha! There's no need to goad me, Wanderer. I came here to collect my dues. Why would I spend resources stupidly when my purpose is to gain them?](Orrotus)
Seeing that his plan wasn't working, Michael stopped torturing the demon and used Corpse Explosion to send him on his way.
Adding his minions's attacks on top of the miasma, the demon collapsed while still roaring with laughter.
[ Side Quest complete - Scorched Debts
Reward 1: 34,848 experience points
Reward 2: 2,750 gold coins
Reward 3: Random Cache. ]
In the place where Lyruk stood, there was now only ash drawing the man's silhouette.
"*Sigh* I'm sorry, Lyruk. Looks like I wasn't able to protect you. At least, through your sacrifice, the ledger is no more. Rest in peace."
After a quick prayer, the Necromancer reopened his Quest interface and saw it empty once again.
Without anything to pressure him for time, he checked the MAP for the closest Dungeon he could see in the explored areas.
"Looks like I'll have to ask Beatrice for all Dungeons' locations in the Steppes. Judging by the Region Progress tab, I only cleared 10/21. Let's see... Guulrahn's Canals is the closest one, huh?"
[ Dungeon: Guulrahn's Canals (Level 50)
Description: A rot that even the cannibal tyrant will not touch is below. ]
Raising an eyebrow at the description, Michael used his only teleportation available outside of the Dungeons to travel to the Hidden Overlook.
It was the closest location to his destination.
Exiting the Waypoint, he felt the same gloomy atmosphere in the caves, but the number of people sticking around was much less.
Not only that, but the looks in their eyes were much greedier and savage than before as well.
'The bigger portion of them must've already retreated to Ked Bardu or other closer locations. That's why the number of refugees increased when I arrived there this morning.'
Ignoring the poisonous looks he was getting, Michael checked his active blessing and realized that he had about 24 hours left.
Checking in with Helen and Mina before starting a new wave of Dungeon diving, he ended up spending almost half an hour on the 'phone.'
Apparently, the details Neyrelle found about the Vizjerei Mage Clan were quite interesting, so the girl would spend today in the Horadric Vault as well.
Asking Helen to ensure the three imps return home tonight so as they don't bother Gonk too much, Michael rubbed the bridge of his nose, realizing that he might not be looking to have children any time soon.
Using the improv ladder still attached to the wall of the cave, the Necromancer re-entered Guulrahn.
Even after the Wanderers assaulted this place and exterminated most of the cannibals, without the Cathedral sending Priests to help purge and cleanse the homes, streets, and the underground of the city, people could not return to this place.
Unfortunately, that prompted the nearby tribes of cannibals to return to Guulrahn only days after, making it again a place swarming with these disgusting flesh-eaters.
Downing two more Elixirs as he made his way to the Dungeon, the Necromancer realized that he could've used the back entrance connecting to the prison he had previously escaped through but decided against it.
"After all, not only can I collect these bundles of experience, but I can also help Beatrice control the number of pests."
After almost an hour of having 'fun' clearing the streets of Guulrahn, Michael realized that the city itself had become a Dungeon.
He felt the moment he passed through a thin film and found himself standing atop the same house he had previously descended.
To make matters even stranger, a combination of smoke and blood mist covered the city's skyline, alluding a bit too much to the Necromancer's first 'visit' to the city.
[ Dungeon Quest issued - Guulrahn's Slums
Objective: Free the prisoners (0/10). ]
Checking the MAP, he confirmed that his surroundings had been reduced considerably, showing an independent space, just like in a Dungeon.
'Sanguine Alley, huh? I don't remember the name of this place when I first came down here to rescue Oyuun and find more intel about Elias. Does it mean that somehow, the city turned into a Dungeon? Isn't this Uber bad?'
Operating his Ring of Communication, he contacted Beatrice again. To break the bad news to her, he first asked for some assistance after explaining he was trying to clear all Dungeons in the Dry Steppes once, and he was aiming for Guulrahn Canals next.
Unfortunately, even after the Representative agreed to hand the information to the City Guards in Ked Bardu so he could collect them later, when she heard the Guulrahn itself might've turned into a Dungeon, Beatrice completely lost it.
Standing atop the building while scanning for the alley below and listening to the many expletives coming from the other line - none of which were necessarily aimed at him, but it somehow felt like it was his fault - the Necromancer spotted some Demonic Hornets flying at low altitudes between the houses.
The wait proved to be a bad thing, as the hornets targeted a woman tied to a post, stinging her multiple times.
Her screams of pain and terror subsided eventually, decreasing the number of people Michael had to save to nine.
Hanging up after Beatrice calmed down sufficiently and said she'd be visiting the Hidden Overlook herself, the Dungeon conquest was finally started.
It was indeed a strange combination of Demonic Hornets and Cannibals, with Michael having to deal with them as he 'replayed' the prison infiltration plan Lorath set in motion in the past.
As unfortunate as it was, each time he would 'save' one of the prisoners, they would vanish in thin air after they ran less than ten steps away from him.
Since they were trapped souls and not living people, the Wanderer moved slower and inspected all nooks and corners of the Dungeon, hoping to find something interesting.
The first such thing was a Greater Radiant Chest - similar to a Resplendent Chest, but slightly 'greater' - where he gained his first pot of gold from this Dungeon.
After swatting away an Elite and ten other Minion-level cannibals that ambushed them, he opened the chest and raised an eyebrow at its contents.
'Two Rare item boxes, 5 Gem Fragments for each type, 5 Angelbreaths, 7 Bundled Herbs, 7 Rawhides, 7 Iron Chunks, 17 Murmuring Obols, and 12,280 gold coins. It has to be the best loot I got from a chest up to this point.'
Happy with his gains, Michael continued exploring the Dungeon until he found the corpse of a dead prisoner who stood out more than the most.
Eyes shining, he dashed to it and began searching its bones for collectibles.
"AHA! There is one! What the!?"
[ Oyuun's Letter ]
Seeing the name, the Necromancer was slightly befuddled. Oyuun was already saved and escorted out, trying to recover from the mental scars this place caused her in a different town.
What is this letter under her name doing here?
After some internal debating, he calmly opened it and began reading its contents.
[ Dearest,
Death comes for this hellhole we call home. There was a pale stranger, Elias, he called himself, skulking about the kitchen halls today.
When he saw me, he approached to ask about the prison warden. I directed him to the palace guard.
Only hours later, and the servants are whispering about some disaster at the dungeons. It can only be him.
I have an awful feeling. Will you meet me tonight at the teahouse? I could use a warm cup. And your company.
-Yours awalys, Oyuun ]
Sighing, he carefully put the letter in his inventory, deciding to visit the couple in Farobru a bit later.
He wouldn't hand this to Oyuun, but Zolaya might want to hold onto this piece of memorabilia.
Reaching the gates leading to the prison, which were closed the last time he visited, the Dungeon Quest also experienced some changes.
[ Dungeon Quest update - Guulrahn's Slums
Objective: Slay the Possessed Brute and collect the Jail Key. ]
The Elite in question was pretty weak, dying after Quarterback and the rest of his minions ganged up on him.
Michael observed the situation from afar while taking some time to study his skill tree.
Once the key dropped, the Quest changed, and the exploration continued into the Forlorn Cells.
Strangely enough, the space inside the prison decreased considerably, with not even half of its cells being present in the Dungeon.
Unsure if the devil was a cheap bastard or if there were other limitations besides the materials needed to form this new Dungeon, another 'Slay all enemies' request prompted the Wanderer.
This time, there were some undead here and there, attacking the Necromancer alongside their cannibal friends.
[ Dungeon Quest update - Guulrahn's Slums
Objective: Travel to the Torture Chamber. ]
After doing what he was told, Michael stood face to face with a Boss called Resurrected Malice.
As a spellcaster-type creature, it moved constantly to put distance between itself and the melee minions assaulting it.
Fortunately, either because this Dungeon was relatively new or because his overall damage increased after his continuous growth, the Boss fell in less than five minutes.
"Two Rare item boxes and one Legendary. Let's see... Oho! A shield, huh? Hmm... the focus is much better, so let's stick with that for now."
[ Undying Dread Shield
Legendary Shield
587 Item Power
-----------------
440 Armor (+440 when compared with the currently equipped item)
* 53% Blocked Damage Reduction
* 20% Block Chance
* + 80% Main Hand Weapon Damage
* + 145 Thorns
------------------
* 4.0% Impairment Reduction
* +72 Maximum Life
* +44 Intelligence
Legendary Aspect: When you cast a skill, you heal for 0.8% of your Life Points. Double this bonus while below 50% Life Points. ]
Raising an eyebrow and deciding to salvage this item since he didn't have that Aspect in his Codex, Michael left the Dungeon and found himself back in the Hidden Overlook.
Most of the skulkers vanished, and he could immediately see why. A large group of high-level Wanderers were looking at him with unfriendly eyes, only to calm down after hearing his name.
Not that he was anyone important. Beatrice probably let them know he was the one to discover the new Dungeon, so he had a bit of leeway.
After exchanging some greetings and intel about the new headache they had to deal with, he straight jumped into another Dungeon.
'Finally, it's time to deal with the actual goal I set for this city.'
Only to rub his eyebrows when he realized where these canals were.
'Isn't this the place we used to sneak into the palace when we chased after Elias? Why is this a fucking Dungeon as well?'
Calling Beatrice and informing her about this, he heard a relieved sigh from the other end, explaining that it had always been a Dungeon.
Apparently - according to her - Lorath must've used some means to traverse the Dungeon and reach their goal, the hidden passage/alcove. It seems that the separate space 'acquired' by the devils can be temporarily anchored and used as a bridge if one knows how.
Mentally calling bullshit and feeling that the Horadrim might actually be the final bosses he had to deal with if they kept getting buffs like this, the Necromancer quick-traveled once inside the Dungeon and found himself back in Ked Bardu.
His inventory full, it was time to make more money.