From Hogwarts to Strixhaven.

Chapter 445 Visitors from Hell
The raid launched by the traitor Marcus of the Flame Fist was extinguished as easily as a candle flame. Apart from knocking over a few glasses and smashing a few tiles, it caused no damage to the camp.

His helpers were a group of flying demons, which does not mean that the supreme god and the devils of hell had cooperated.

Those low-level demons had long since turned into corpses, and were even put to good use, transformed into flying ghouls to assist Marcus in launching a surprise attack.

“…You’re saying they’re all undead?” Jashira asked from the second floor of the inn, surrounded by a large group of people around the invaders’ corpses. “That doesn’t make sense… I’m certain those cultists who shouted the names of false gods during the battle were all living people. I wouldn’t doubt that those cultists colluded with hell demons, but turning hell demons into undead… that’s a bit inexplicable…”

"The facts are right in front of us, we just don't know the reasons behind it yet." Ivy stood up, he had completely guessed what had happened.

These flying ghouls were most likely killed by Katheric Som himself. As a chosen one of Melkor, the god of the dead, it was perfectly normal for him to be able to use some necromancy.

In his view, having these winged creatures launch a surprise attack on the End of Light Inn and then bring his daughter, Isobel Som, back to the Tower of the Moonrise was undoubtedly a mission that would achieve multiple goals at once.

Not only could she place her own daughter under her protection, but she could also completely devour the Harpists' Alliance, which had been harassing the Tower of the Moonrise, with Shar's Shadow Curse.

What's even better is that only the traitor Marcus of Flame Fist was deeply involved in this mission. As long as Marcus is killed after the mission is completed, no one will notice Isobel's existence.

Although Ivy only had a vague understanding of the plot while playing the game, she still remembered a few key points.

For example, the Night Song in the Temple of Shar is a winged angel, and Isobel's surname is actually Som, and Katheric Som is her father.

In reality, based on what Minsala, Halsin, and Jahira all mentioned, the Katheric Somme family were once believers in Serene, and the entire Reisven region was even once the parish of this Silver Our Lady.

It's not hard to see why Ketherrick switched allegiance to Shar, or even why he changed allegiance three times before becoming a chosen one of the God of the Dead, Melkor.

He just wanted to reunite with his daughter.

Now, Katheric is nothing more than a tool in the power struggle among the gods. Being manipulated and then abandoned by the gods is his destined fate.

This served as both a reference and a warning for Ivy. Regardless of which being in the higher or lower planes of Toril he was to deal with, Katheric Som and his own experiences were enough to make Ivy wary.

As for the demonic undead creatures that attacked the End of Light Inn, they were most likely spies from Hell.

They may belong to the Blood War Army of the Demon Grand Duke Zariel, or they may belong to Campion Raphael, who has always wanted to make a deal with the Evil Ones.

After all, Zariel only discovered the Supreme God and her church after he noticed his military dogs had escaped from Avernus.

Although Raphael had anticipated the conspiracy that was sweeping through Sword Bay, the sorcerer Corella Heartfire, who was monitoring the adventurers for him, had already been killed by Ivy, and even her soul had not escaped.

It would be perfectly normal for him to send out some devils to monitor the movements of his potential clients.

"But what does this mean?" Floric was also confused about the situation and could only speculate based on the corpses on the ground. "Is Katheric making a deal with the devil?"

Ivy glanced indifferently at the dark-skinned high elves. Anyone could see that the devil was involved, but the relationship between the devil and the Supreme God was still a blind spot for everyone.

“I think Katheric has already clashed with the devil, otherwise there would be no need to transform a flying ghoul with some intelligence into a completely mindless ghoul.” Ivy stopped the evil thought of using the Yeoge Chains. “These corpses have been deeply defiled by necromancy, and they will no longer respond to spells like speaking to the dead. However, Marcus, he was just roughly given a pair of dead wings, so he should be able to respond to your spells.”

Ivy declined to comment on the crude stitching technique. As a master of necromancy, he was also adept at creating stitched-together undead creatures, though those were byproducts of researching body part transplants into different clones. Severe rejection reactions would kill the original body, but Ivy's magic could bring these deceased bodies back to life. The only problem was that many magical creatures' special organs were only functional when they were alive; the deceased's body was difficult to control as readily as it was in life, let alone after all its parts had been replaced.

Although he had figured out a way to make the assembled undead creatures use parts from other corpses, Ivy still couldn't get this trick to work on parts from more than two different corpses.

"What is your mission?" Because poor Marcus died from the mental impact of Gael's illusion, he never saw the evil thoughts on the first floor of the tavern until his death, so the magic on the various chains of the Fate Seeker was able to work as usual.

Marcus's corpse, enveloped in a ghastly green light, spoke lifelessly: "Capture... the... priest of Serene... alive..."

"Who gave you the order?" the evil thought continued to ask.

“Somme… General… the chosen people of the Most Holy God…”

“If something happens to Isobel, everyone in the inn will die…” Jahira asked, puzzled. “Why did he specifically instruct that they be alive, instead of killing them outright?”

“Why would someone like him do such a thing?” Isobel, who had calmed down, was also there, mainly because her room was the main location of Marcus's attack. “He was a powerful, resentful, and twisted guy. I can understand why he wanted me dead. As for why he wanted to capture me alive… I don’t know… and I don’t want to know. Especially after witnessing Raven’s horrific state…”

“If you fall into Ketherrick’s hands, your fate will be no better than death.” Advisor Floric shook his head. “He will definitely want to torture you, imprison you, and break you.”

Florick's speculations about Katheric's cruel methods undoubtedly stirred up the bloodlust deep within Evil's bones.

A flush rose on her pretty face, and a maniacal smile appeared on her lips, as if she were already immersed in the fantasy of going on a killing spree.

“Evil thoughts.” Ivy put her hand on her shoulder. “Don’t think like that. Marcus’s treasure is waiting for you.”

Yes, just as Jahira and the others were discussing why Katheric wanted to capture Isobel alive, Evil had already asked the five questions that the dead were allowed to ask.

Besides the two questions Marcus couldn't answer, Evil also obtained a clue about valuables: they were in the cemetery outside the inn, and judging from Marcus's tone, they should belong to a missing Flame Fist soldier.

"Ha—yes!" Xie Nian took a deep breath, and the crazed and bloodthirsty expression on her face disappeared, replaced by the familiar look of a skilled assassin with an unusual love for treasure.

Ivy suspects that the ancestor of Evil Thought is a dragon that Baal personally dealt with, because apart from the Baal blood in his body, Evil Thought's greed for treasure is exactly the same as that of a dragon.

This conjecture is not unfounded, as evidenced by the various books Ivy found. In an era when the gods descended to earth, Baal left his bloodline among various races as a trump card for future resurrection. After Baldur's Gate was repeatedly plunged into turmoil due to Baal's schemes, many scholars investigated this period of history, and their works are practically everywhere.

"Who wants to go to that cemetery with me?" Xie Nian asked, his usual cheerful demeanor returning.

Karak, her close friend who had been somewhat worried about her, was the first to respond: "Perhaps you need a pair of strong arms? But I want half of the stuff!"

"make a deal."

After the two left arm in arm—ever since she gained control of the flames on her body, Karak had developed a particular fondness for physical contact with others—Jasira looked at Ivy: "What's wrong with her...?"

“Just like her name, she is plagued by some evil thought… She is a Baal descendant, and is fighting against the blood of the god of murder taking over her entire mind.” Ivy had only intended to cover up the evil thought, but then she remembered Karak’s description of Jahira—the hero who protected Baldur’s Gate from Baal’s conspiracy.

Perhaps this half-elf, who has lived for nearly two hundred years, can offer some other perspectives on the Son of Baal.

“I knew Baldur’s Gate could never escape his shadow.” Jasera looked at Ivy reproachfully. “You shouldn’t have said that in front of so many people!”

“Don’t worry.” Ivy’s lips didn’t move at all, but her voice still reached Jasira’s ears. “It’s a kind of sound illusion, like I’m whispering to you. I guarantee that apart from you, neither the harpist nor Flame Fist in the hall heard our conversation. Of course, as long as you don’t reveal any obvious information in the conversation, that’s a piece of cake for a high-ranking harpist agent, isn’t it?”

Jahira's expression relaxed a little, but she still complained, "You really shouldn't have told me this. While we're worrying about the Supreme God and his army, are we supposed to be constantly watching for a ticking time bomb that could explode at any moment?"

“I just thought you could offer her some comfort as someone who’s been through it all.” Ivy continued to use her illusionary voice to speak with Jahira. “You know, fighting against one’s nature isn’t easy, especially for a child of Baal.”

“Then the only thing she needs to know is to firmly be herself, not Baal… not anyone else.” Jahira almost blurted out the words “Son of Baal.” “God, I should have told her that myself…”

Jahira shook his head and loudly announced to the harpists and Flame Fists who were watching the second floor closely: "Katheric tried to steal our End Light, but he has failed once again! Repair your armor, sharpen your blades, we must prepare for the final war! To bury the Supreme God completely in this darkness he brought!"

"It's getting late, friends." Jasira didn't close the door, and the noise from the first floor of the inn easily entered Isobel's room. "The sentry duty for tonight has been arranged. I'll tell them to watch their heads, and I'll also arrange another shift to guard the roof to ensure everyone gets some rest. Time waits for no one, and we still have a lot of work to do."

Advisor Floric agreed and, along with several Flame Fist warriors, left Isobel's room with the corpses of Marcus and the Flying Terror. Before leaving, Ivy used magic to clean up the large amount of blood and ashes, ensuring that the priest of Serene could have a good rest.

However, Ivy's troubles did not decrease after closing the door; on the contrary, they increased.

Gale, who had made great contributions with illusion magic in the previous battle, brought Asdalon and Will to find Ivy.

The three of them had taken care of some personal matters after the battle.

Gale was answering questions from Roland, the apprentice mage; Will was teaching the children of Tiflin swordsmanship; and Asdallen was alone in a corner, savoring red wine, the vintage of End of Light perfectly suited to his taste.

Now that these three have come knocking on my door together, Ivy knows it's definitely not going to be anything good.

Sure enough, as soon as Gale saw Ivy, he whispered, "The devil has come!"

"Raphael?" Ivy asked in a low voice, and casually opened the door to an empty room on the second floor. The room was filled with all kinds of boxes, and there was hardly any room to step.

“And there’s also Mizora, the patriarch of Will!” Gale said in a low voice as the three followed them in.

As a sorcerer, Will is not allowed to discuss his patriarch with others. Fortunately, when the incident occurred, some of his companions witnessed Mizora's appearance; otherwise, Will would not know how to describe the information he received to his companions.

“Oh, two Campiones.” Ivy nodded. “What new deal have they proposed this time?”

Asdallen and Will, sitting on the box, exchanged a glance and spoke first: "Raphael came to me and told me what the hellish runes on the back really meant—it's a sacrificial ritual, offering seven thousand souls to the devil Grand Duke Mephisto in exchange for the power of 'Ascension'! That vampire lord who turned me into a clone, Kazador, hopes to become an Ascended vampire this way!"

“It seems this is Raphael’s precondition. What are the terms of the deal?” Ivy held up a finger, stopping Asdalon before he could finish speaking. “Let me guess, how do you turn the tables and become the priest instead of the sacrifice?”

Now it was Asdell's turn to be surprised: "How did you know? He... he did say that, and the terms of the deal were very simple: all you had to do was help him kill a Blood Armor Demon..."

“It’s not hard to guess, my friend,” Ivy said calmly. “Remember our conversation after we first met Raphael? I said he was a Cambylon who longed to become a devil, and you are now a derivative who longs to become an ascended vampire. Now, you have something in common. Think carefully about what I said, Asdalon, and you will find the answer.”

“You mages are really good at dealing with demons!” Will exclaimed, looking at Asdalon lost in thought. “I’m even starting to have confidence…”

“Mizola’s task for Will was to retrieve a great demon, a vital asset of Zariel, which was imprisoned in the Tower of the Moon by the Supreme God,” Gale explained, meeting Ivy’s gaze. “Perhaps this is the origin of those flying hordes of demons, who followed the great demon and plunged headlong into the Supreme God’s trap.”

“Cambion isn’t the real devil, and I don’t think Mizora can afford to risk failing this mission. Zariel would definitely tear her apart. So I made a small condition.” Gale innocently shrugged.

Will couldn't help but roll his eyes: "You made a deal with the devil using my soul, yeah. Now I understand why the Orb of Destruction is in your chest. You just regained your archmage powers yesterday, and today you've caused this mess... God, half of Faerûn's calamities are caused by mages like you!"

"So, your condition is..." Ivy gained a new understanding of Gale's ambition.

“We can go and rescue the captured Great Demon, but Mizora must break Will’s magical bond,” Gale said solemnly. “He is a hero of Baldur’s Gate, the renowned Blade of the Frontier. He should not be used by the devil!”

"But what about it?" Ivy pressed on.

“But…” Gale’s expression turned somewhat embarrassed, “Mizora’s contract has supplementary clauses. We must complete the mission first before we can have any room for negotiation…”

“You see,” Ivy said to Asdalon, “dealing with the devil is never a good choice, especially when you have other options.”

(End of this chapter)