Lich for Hire

Ambrose had always thought of himself as a scholar.

Even back in his adventuring days, he had never been one to take on a powerful enemy head-on.

He was well aware of his own strengths. Considering how miserable his career as an adventurer had been despite all his years of experience, he was clearly not protagonist material. There was no point in throwing himself recklessly into a fight.

Even now, backed by his Golden Throne and having achieved combat power on par with the most powerful of legends, Ambrose still preferred to leave the fighting to others.

A single charge from Milena had bowled the rock giant off its feet, but she hadn't done it any real damage.

Her lance was no ordinary weapon, but all it had managed to do was scuff the giant's foot. The chips of stone it had knocked loose were smaller than a fist.

The rock giant wasn't stupid, either. Rather than trying to get back up after it fell, it simply began to roll.

The altar wasn't particularly spacious. A single roll of the rock giant's body would cover most of it.

Ambrose had already vacated the field, taking up a position next to Sariel on the assumption that the giant wouldn't attack its own master. He'd guessed correctly. The giant ignored him entirely and rolled toward Milena.

Sariel glanced at him, mocking. "It seems I was mistaken. You're no warrior."

Ambrose was unbothered. "Do you expect a lich to be a warrior? There must be some misunderstanding."

The two of them chatted away. Meanwhile, the rock giant was on the verge of crushing Milena.

Ambrose had assumed Milena would use her superior horsemanship to slip out from under the descending heap of rock.

Instead, she chose to meet it head-on.

Vast quantities of dark magic surged out of her body, manifesting as a tangible wave that crashed into the rock giant.

The shockwave rattled the entire underground chamber. Milena's magic actually halted the momentum of the rolling rock giant despite its hundreds of tons of weight.

Even Ambrose was a little stunned.

He had woven Milena's soul himself, but for a death knight, what mattered most was her physical body. He had no idea what Black Rose had done to give Milena such absurd reserves of dark magic. Milena might actually be able to hold her own against Gareth at this point.

Having stopped the giant's roll, Milena charged again. The magic gathered at the tip of her lance condensed into a pitch-black drill that bored deep into the giant's body, punching clean through its right arm.

The giant let out a low roar and swung its other arm down at her. This time, Milena didn't try to absorb the blow. Instead, she rode her whisperwood warhorse nimbly across the giant's body, lance flickering again and again, leaving its stone hide pitted and gouged.

Sariel was impressed. "An excellent fighter. Can her eyes identify weak points?"

Ambrose nodded. Milena's golden right eye could see through all forms of concealment. In practice, it also meant that she could see through any magical structure. The giant was obviously a magical construct, and knowing its weak points made every strike that much more effective.

Sariel watched Milena with growing interest. "Is she your creation? Sell her to me. I can offer you whatever you want."

"She's my daughter," Ambrose answered.

"Daughter?" That actually pulled Sariel's gaze back to him. "How does an undead have children?"

Ambrose smiled faintly. "I'm afraid that's a trade secret."

Sariel studied him for a long moment. The longer she did so, the more perplexed she became.

"So what if she's your daughter?" she pressed. "Liches have no sense of morality. You would be willing to sell anything. Name your price."

Ambrose shook his head. "Honored Lady, you misunderstand me. It's true that I'd accept almost any deal. I'd happily package up the entire divine pantheon and sell them off if I could. But I don't have that authority. Milena is my daughter, not my merchandise. How can I sell what isn't mine to sell?"

Sariel watched him for another long moment, then offered him a smile of genuine appreciation.

"Very good, Lich, very good. A pity you've made yourself my enemy. Still, based on what you just said, I'll keep a place for you in my legions when the time comes for you to fall to Hell."

Ambrose looked uncomfortable. "Is it certain that I would fall to Hell?"

Sariel was puzzled. "You just said you'd happily package and sell off the entire divine pantheon. If a man like you doesn't go to Hell, who would?"

Ambrose: "..."

While they talked, Milena thoroughly worked the rock giant over.

For all its strength, the giant was too clumsy to lay so much as a finger on Milena's clothes. Its own crushing blows had landed on its own body more than once.

Milena, meanwhile, kept driving her lance at the giant's weak points. Before long, it had lost its mobility entirely.

A short while later, the giant lay scattered across the floor in pieces. But Milena was visibly exhausted as well. Her magical reserves were nearly drained; the effort had hollowed her out.

Sariel applauded. "A beautifully fought match, little girl. Have you any interest in joining my legion? I'll allow you to live freely in the mortal world. You'd only have to answer my call when summoned. In exchange, I can make you far stronger than you are now."

If Ambrose wouldn't sell his daughter, Sariel was perfectly willing to recruit her directly. Milena's rare antimagic talent was striking enough on its own, but what really drew Sariel was how she had fought: her relentless forward pressure, her willingness to meet a giant head-on. That was exactly the kind of warrior Sariel collected.

The terms Sariel was offering were generous, with almost no strings attached. The only catch was that Sariel's wars tended to be brutal, and the casualties among her warriors were severe. There was also the matter of the target of those wars: usually other gods, or even the mortal world.

If Milena accepted, she would gain the favor of the Archduchess of the first layer of Hell. She would also, very likely, be making enemies of every living being in the mortal world.

That said, Ambrose didn't intend to interfere.

Milena was his daughter, but not his property.

To Ambrose, either option could make sense. He had chosen to help the tiflings only to keep Lyon from becoming the unrivaled power on the continent. That was a calculation rooted in his own interests, not a moral conviction that an infernal invasion of the mortal world was wrong.

It was all a matter of perspective and interest.

When Gareth had cut his way through Lyon all those years ago to avenge himself, even Tir, the God of Justice, hadn't been able to fault him for it.

From Sariel's perspective, taking vengeance on the mortal world made perfect sense. From the perspective of Hell's devils, invading this world was their natural-born duty, the most reasonable thing imaginable.

So the choice belonged entirely to Milena.

Milena looked uncertainly toward Ambrose, hoping for guidance.

"Can't decide?" he asked.

She nodded. "I... don't know."

"Then don't rush." Ambrose turned to Sariel. "The great Archduchess of Hell surely won't begrudge a young girl some time to think. Milena isn't even a year old. You wouldn't pressure a child with so little experience of the world into making such a monumental decision, would you?"

Sariel let out a cold snort, but didn't dispute Ambrose's claim.

"Milena, you're the first mortal to make me wait. But your father is right. A child's decision might well become regret in the future. I'll give you ample time to consider. When I ask the question a second time, however, I expect no further delay."

Flames erupted around Sariel as her form began to fade.

Ambrose leapt up in alarm and called out hastily. "Wait! You said that completing the challenge would earn me the Dragon Queen's plan."

Sariel fixed him with a stare. "How can you be so thick-skinned when liches don't even have skin? You dare claim you completed the challenge?"

"You said I could use any means at my disposal. Aren't devils supposed to honor their contracts above all else?"

Sariel had no intention of arguing with him. The reason she had come to meet Ambrose in Tiamat's place was simply that Tiamat hadn't wanted to come. The Dragon Queen had said outright that she wouldn't have any direct contact with the lich, because she'd only come out the worse for it.

Sariel hadn't believed her, and was, in fact, deeply curious about Ambrose. Add to that the moment in Domina Lowry's dream when she had glimpsed him directly—Sariel had sensed something unusual about that scene, as though another deity were lending the lich aid.

It was interesting enough that she had decided to come learn about Ambrose for herself.

Now that she had seen him, she could confirm that this lich was indeed more cunning than even the Prince of Lies. Sariel knew that arguing with him further would be a waste of effort.

Instead, she beckoned Milena over. "Come here."

Milena walked uncertainly to Sariel's side. The Archduchess of Hell leaned down and murmured a few sentences in her ear.

Ambrose tried to eavesdrop, only to find his perception sealed off by some force he couldn't penetrate.

Within a few seconds, Sariel had finished her whispered message. She turned back to Ambrose. "I've told the secret to your daughter. Reasonable enough? I never specified the manner in which I'd tell you, after all. Farewell, lich. I hope you can puzzle out Tiamat's secrets. I'm rather looking forward to the look on your face when you finally do."

Sariel dissolved at last into flame and vanished, leaving Milena and Ambrose both staring blankly.

Ambrose stroked his chin and mused, "What did she mean by that? Is she saying that knowing their plan won't change anything?"

He shook his head and turned to Milena. "What did she say to you?"

Milena looked stricken. "I... I don't know..."

"How can you not know?"

"I couldn't understand the language she spoke at all!"

Ambrose paused, then quickly recited a phrase in an oddly inflected tongue. "This language?"

Milena nodded immediately. "Yes! That language. I didn't understand a single word."

Ambrose knew at once that they were in trouble. Sariel had whispered her message to Milena in the infernal tongue, and there was no way Milena would be able to remember any of it.