Volume 1 Chapter 522

Chapter 522: Just Call Me Doyle!

Once mounted, Lolth and Dorothy’s journey became significantly more efficient.

The golden carrot not only motivated but also nourished the horse, giving it an extra burst of energy. In less than half a day, they had already left the western borders of South Sotua.

Despite the poorly maintained roads of South Sotua, they soon found themselves traversing the wilderness, teeming with wandering monsters.

However, after Lolth released a faint Superlative Level aura, the monsters showed no intention of approaching to meet their demise.

South Sotua, nestled among hills, grasslands, and swamps, boasts a generally flat terrain and a warm climate. However, the habitable areas are surprisingly limited.

This scarcity has led to a situation where each castle governs its own territory.

After departing from the cluster of cities near the western border, they were about to enter the most desolate heart of the United Kingdom of South Sotua.

Most mercenaries prefer to take a detour through the northern mountains rather than venture into this area without a specific mission.

This is a forbidden zone, riddled with rivers, lakes, and swamps, and is one of the continent’s most notorious forbidden lands.

Black Lake Marsh.

Venturing deep into this area, one might encounter creatures even more terrifying than those found on the southern coastal shores.

Only a few remaining Orc tribes and some desperate fugitives inhabit this place.

Lolth, however, felt quite at ease.

The outskirts of these so-called "forbidden lands" are surprisingly safe.

These areas have become forbidden primarily due to the presence of one or more powerful magical creatures at their core.

Although these creatures are formidable, in reality…

If you merely pass by the outskirts, they pose no real threat.

Thus, as long as one does not provoke them or disrupt the delicate balance among the creatures within, there is little danger that Lolth cannot handle.

The ground beneath their feet gradually turned muddy and damp, the air grew heavy with the stench of decay, and the surrounding vegetation shifted from sparse grasslands to deep green, seaweed-like plants, along with bamboo and shrubs thriving in the moist environment.

Large, peculiar insects occasionally scuttled across the ground, and in some murky, slow-moving waters, a tentacle or a pair of cold, malevolent eyes would occasionally emerge from the depths.

They had now entered this forbidden zone of life.

The monsters here were far more ferocious than those wandering the open fields outside.

Lolth sensed numerous "watchful" gazes.

Dorothy seemed a bit frightened, drawing closer and clinging tightly to Lolth.

"Don’t be afraid, Dorothy. You could easily handle these monsters," Lolth whispered soothingly.

Most of these monsters are at the beginner or intermediate levels, with Elite Level monsters comprising less than a third of the total.

For ordinary people and average Superoperators, the sheer number and density of these creatures indeed make this a forbidden area…

However, for Superoperators with some skill, the true danger lies in the powerful beings that reside deeper within.

Even though some of these monsters have reached Superlative Level, Dorothy could indeed manage them if she were in her normal state.

Her abilities are particularly effective against monsters.

The more abundant the monsters in such a scene, the more advantageous it is for her to perform.

Of course, Dorothy could no longer utilize her extraordinary powers.

She was no different from an ordinary person.

However, after being comforted by Lolth, Dorothy seemed to feel a bit better.

"I understand, teacher," she whispered softly, gently resting her head on Lolth’s shoulder.

The two continued to move along the edge of the swamp. To help their new mount adjust to the environment, Lolth enchanted its legs so it could traverse the swamp as if it were flat ground.

Even though a great battle was raging hundreds of miles away, there was no sense of it here.

It was a journey of less than half a day.

However, because the outer area was relatively safe, there were still mercenaries hunting monsters and completing tasks here.

The unique magical creatures in the Forbidden Black Lake Marsh are often rare materials for crafting various Magic Potions and magical items, making them a valuable resource in this mercenary kingdom.

Soon, Lolth sensed a wave of magic emanating from not far ahead.

It seemed to be a group of mercenaries who were resting and had set up a simple protective magic circle.

From afar, one could even see the glow of a campfire.

Lolth glanced at the dimming sky and realized it was time to rest.

Although she could forgo rest to hurry, Lolth did not plan to do so.

First, eating and sleeping on time is Lolth’s creed and principle, and she wouldn’t break it unless necessary.

Second, Dorothy really needed to rest on time right now.

Even though resting on time might not significantly aid in healing her soul, Lolth still believed that any bit of recovery is better than none.

"Are you tired?" Lolth gently patted Dorothy’s head and asked softly.

"Just a little bit," Dorothy thought for a moment and, not wanting to act tough, replied.

"Then let’s take a break. There’s a mercenary camp ahead," Lolth said, tugging on the horse’s reins, turning the horse around, and guiding it toward the direction of the mercenaries.

It’s not that Lolth was incapable of setting up a camp by herself in the wild; it was just that the place chosen by the mercenaries was indeed quite nice, the best spot for camping in the area.

Interacting with Dorothy and the others might also help the little girl recover.

Communication is very important for a human.

"What a coincidence… Never mind, I won’t avoid it. I’ll think of it as a rehearsal before entering the Holy Empire," Lolth murmured to herself as she slowly approached the campsite.

She could sense that there were fifteen people in the camp.

Besides the leader who was at Superlative Level, the others were at Professional and Ordinary Elite Level.

There were even two Apprentice-level individuals, probably there to handle logistical tasks.

This was a small, typical mercenary group from South Sotua.

Lolth could even hear them laughing, drinking, and making noise.

As she approached without overly concealing her presence, the sentry mercenary soon noticed Lolth.

Lolth saw the mercenary standing at the edge of the protective magic circle glance at her from a distance. After a quick and rough magical scan, the mercenary turned to shout something to the others drinking by the campfire.

After that, the leader of the mercenary group glanced at her and quietly gave a few instructions to the person beside him, who seemed to be his deputy.

Lolth watched the scene with great interest, not bothering to eavesdrop on their conversation.

Dorothy wasn’t nervous either; she simply lifted her head and asked Lolth,

"Teacher, what if they have bad intentions?"

Although she had lost her memory, she understood that the term "mercenary" often implied a mix of good and bad people.

There was still a decent chance they might encounter "bad people."

Hearing Dorothy’s words, Lolth smiled.

"Then we’ll just have to take them all down—honestly, they wouldn’t stand a chance against you here, let alone me."

As Lolth spoke, Dorothy blinked.

"Oh, really? Then wouldn’t it be better if they weren’t bad?"

Dorothy whispered softly.

Her tone remained gentle, but her words left Lolth slightly stunned.

She looked at Dorothy with a puzzled expression.

"Huh? Why do you say that?"

Dorothy realized she had misspoken and quickly covered her mouth.

"Oh—I just wanted to see how you act when you’re serious."

She explained, her ears turning a little red.

She had accidentally let her true thoughts slip…

To be honest, Dorothy wasn’t sure why she had that thought.

Perhaps it was because the feeling of being protected by Teacher Lolth throughout their journey felt so wonderful?

So, she wanted to experience more of that sense of being "protected."

Due to her memory loss, Dorothy had become less adept at hiding and avoiding her emotions, and she had also forgotten that she should steer clear of such feelings.

Still, she vaguely sensed that she couldn’t express her intense and direct emotions to Lolth so openly.

So she hastily made up an excuse to cover it up.

Her flustered reaction made Lolth notice that something was off with Dorothy.

However, being concerned for her student, Lolth didn’t realize that the issue lay in Dorothy’s feelings for her.

Instead, it left her somewhat puzzled.

"Oh no, I hope this memory loss and soul issue won’t cause Dorothy’s personality to change drastically."

"No, no, it must be that Dorothy already harbors some negative thoughts; she just hadn’t revealed them before."

"That’s true, after all, the environment we live and grow in is rife with deceit and scheming… I can only seize this opportunity to correct things."

Lolth pondered this and concluded that while her reasoning was mostly correct, the outcome was mostly wrong.

At that moment, the "vice captain" of the mercenary group, a robust woman of Elite Level, carrying a knight’s sword, approached Lolth and Dorothy.

"Hey, you two… I noticed you heading our way. Do you need any assistance?"

Lolth glanced at the female knight, gently pinched Dorothy’s lower back, leaned in close to her ear, and whispered softly.

"In a moment, just say you’re my sister. I intend to take you back to the Holy Lieto Empire to receive treatment from the church."

The warm breath and the natural fragrance of the succubus enveloped Dorothy more tightly. Lolth’s breath brushed against Dorothy’s heated ear, and with her slender, soft fingers pinching the ticklish part of Dorothy’s lower back, the already blushing girl felt her mind swirl, barely registering Lolth’s words.

"I understand, sister."

She responded almost instinctively, her voice trailing off with a hint of warmth.

Lolth looked at the female knight, who was holding Dorothy, and smiled warmly as she dismounted.

"Hello, miss mercenary… I am an appointed priest from The Church of Light, who worked as a mercenary in Oakwood City to the west. Due to the war there and my sister falling ill, I plan to return to the church in Lieto to help her recover."

"If it’s not too much trouble, may I stay at your camp for one night? I will pay a fair amount for it."

Lolth spoke politely, introducing herself.

Although it was for future preparations for visiting the Lieto Empire, a priest from The Church of Light is quite popular in South Sotua.

No mercenary would dislike someone who is trustworthy, highly capable, and whose divine spells mainly focus on healing and are effective against dark creatures.

Moreover, Lolth also took out many copper coins from South Sotua and the common copper coins of the continent to show her sincerity.

This is also a strategy of Lolth’s, just like why she chose to give that chef mostly copper coins instead of simply giving some gold coins.

The rewards received by the lower-class mercenaries are mostly small copper coins and silver coins.

Taking out too many silver coins or even gold coins at once is very likely to attract attention.

Even if the other party does not have bad intentions, it undoubtedly tempts them to take action against you.

Testing the nature of strangers is meaningless… especially when it comes to testing a mercenary’s greed.

Do we really need to test if they are greedy or not?

Of course, Dorothy seems quite keen to see them fail the test…

But for Lolth, it’s better to avoid trouble.

At least now the other party has shown a relatively friendly attitude, and Lolth is willing to be as friendly as possible with them.

Indeed, when the female knight heard Lolth’s identity and purpose and saw the copper coins in her hand, her original friendliness turned into warmth.

"Oh, it’s the esteemed priestess of The Church of Light—so we are naturally welcoming her!"

"There’s no need for such a large reward; an ordinary fee will be just fine."

She took ten copper coins from Lolth’s open palm and stood in front of the two.

"We are just having dinner… You arrived at the perfect time."

The vice-captain of the female knight turned and walked toward the camp, calling for Lolth to follow her.

Then, she waved her arm and shouted to the people in the camp.

"Hey, everyone—no need to worry, it’s a priestess from The Church of Light!"

"Those who were hurt before don’t need to spend on those poor-quality Magic Potions anymore!"

As she said this, she seemed to remember something and looked at Lolth.

"I haven’t asked the pastor lady how to address her yet."

"Ku…"

Lolth almost said it out loud, but she thought that this fake name was likely already blacklisted by The Church of Light, so she quickly changed her words.

"Doyle Candice, just call me Doyle."

Lolth said seriously.