Lich for Hire

The Umbral Depths was vast. Even setting aside the undead, the living population alone was enormous.

Leaving that much faith unclaimed was a real waste.

Ambrose had considered putting all that faith to work more than once, but his master, the God of Alchemy, was a conceptual deity and had no use for it.

Those who said, "Praise the God of Alchemy," weren't actually channeling faith to him. Rather, they were reinforcing the conceptual standing of alchemy itself in the minds of mortals.

The deeper alchemy embedded itself in the world's consciousness, the broader its reach, and the stronger the God of Alchemy would grow.

Belief, as such, didn't matter. Recognition did. This was why Ambrose had never tried to coerce anyone into praising the God of Alchemy. Forced praise would tarnish alchemy's reputation much as the mess in Alkhemia had, and the God of Alchemy's power would actually suffer as a result.

But even if the God of Alchemy couldn't make use of faith, someone else could.

Ambrose's Golden Throne could convert faith into gold, but the conversion rate was poor. Channeling all those worshipers into his own throne would be a waste.

Leyla, on the other hand, was a different matter. She was at her weakest at the moment. Despite being a reclusive goddess in the past, she had possessed a respectable following back then. For her, faith would be enormously useful.

A goddess who was willing to sleep with him was probably a goddess who could be trusted.

This was surely the fastest way to grow Leyla's strength.

Black Rose, for her part, had no objection to a deity she could genuinely rely on. Her own ambitions were too daunting, and most gods couldn't be bothered to answer her at all.

Ambrose taught Black Rose how to operate the magic mirror and left the two ladies to work things out between themselves.

Converting the gray dwarves, gnomes, mycelids, drow, and other races of the Umbral Depths was no simple task. The spread of religion wasn't Ambrose's specialty. He left the experts to it.

He went straight to the sacrificial altar within the royal palace.

He had thought he might need to find Milena and have his daughter help prepare the offerings, but by the time he arrived, the summoning circle was already humming to life.

Milena beamed at him. "Father, everything's ready. The summoning ritual can begin whenever you like."

Ambrose couldn't help but feel touched. Black Rose really was good to him. She had already prepared everything without his even needing to ask.

The summoning circle began to glow. Flesh, souls, resentment, and the natural drow predisposition toward betrayal—all the things Shara enjoyed. There was enough material here for her to manufacture a few more Night Judges to put to work.

Black mist gathered, condensed, and once again resolved itself into Shara's form.

The moment the goddess laid eyes on Ambrose, her expression turned thunderous. "What do you want this time, you damned lich?!"

Ambrose: "..."

The misunderstanding between them really did run deep.

Off to the side, Milena looked stunned. This was the Dark Goddess herself, a deity of considerable renown. How was she losing her composure the moment she saw Father? She wasn't carrying herself like a goddess at all.

Ambrose hastened to placate her. "Goddess, there's no need to get so worked up. Our previous transactions have all been pleasant enough, haven't they? I've never deceived you. There's no cause for this kind of anger."

Shara's voice cut through him. "Your mouth is honey-glazed poison. Don't try to use that cunning tongue on me again!"

Ambrose looked the picture of innocence. "Goddess, liches don't have tongues. Every word I speak resonates from the soul itself. That is to say, every word comes from my heart."

Shara's head felt like it was about to swell with rage. If she could, she would have bitten the lich in half on the spot.

"Whatever you summoned me for, get to it. Another word of nonsense out of you and I'm leaving. I'd rather forfeit the offerings than listen to you."

Milena's mind had gone completely blank. Shara's tone was uncompromising, as though she were terrified of giving Ambrose the slightest opening to make trouble for her. Was her father someone even gods feared? That couldn't possibly be right.

Ambrose decided not to push his luck and got straight to the point.

"The Dragon Queen has a major plan in motion in the Unholy Kingdom, and it's about to unfold. Would you happen to know its specifics?"

"No." Shara's reply was flat and final. "Tiamat and I aren't that close. We don't share everything."

"Surely you've at least heard rumors?"

Shara smiled. "I have. Why don't I just let Tiamat tell you herself? I can summon her down to speak with you in person."

The threat was meant to cow him. To Shara's astonishment, Ambrose answered without hesitation. "By all means. Bring the Dragon Queen here."

Shara stared. "Do you not realize what you've done? You defeated Tiamat's chosen and handed him to me. Now you intend to disrupt another one of her schemes, and you want to face her? In person?"

Ambrose shrugged. "Why not? She can't exactly kill me outright."

He was still mortal, technically speaking. And besides, the elven pantheon had pledged to shield him from Tiamat. With a shield that sturdy, the smart move was to draw as much aggro as possible. Anything less would be a waste.

Shara felt that she would never understand this lich. She had never encountered a mortal so utterly absurd in her entire existence.

"Fine. You chose this yourself. Consider it a wish granted."

Shara swallowed the offerings whole and vanished.

The summoning circle, however, continued to glow. The summoning hadn't ended.

After a long stretch of waiting, a column of fire erupted from the circle. The entire altar was bathed in red, and even Ambrose felt the searing heat.

He recognized the flames at once. This was hellfire.

Hellfire wasn't merely hot. It was deeply corrosive and capable of inflicting damage directly on the soul.

The grandeur of the entrance suited Tiamat's reputation perfectly.

Just as Ambrose was bracing for five dragon heads to emerge from the flames, a pair of enormous wings of fire spread wide instead. A face appeared, exquisitely beautiful, but cracked and broken.

Wasn't this Sariel?

Where was the Dragon Queen? That useless Shara had gotten the wrong god!

Before Sariel could speak, Ambrose hurried to bow his head. "Honored Lady, I hadn't expected to meet you here. I'm afraid I haven't prepared a gift for the occasion. I beg your forgiveness."

Sariel's enormous flaming form gradually contracted until she was about Ambrose's size. She stepped down from the altar and approached him.

"Lich. I've heard your name. I've heard it many times."

"That's an honor."

Sariel smiled. "It hasn't been in a flattering context. To Tiamat, you are the most cunning and treacherous being in the mortal world, one who ought to take the divine domain of lies away from the Prince of Lies. To Shara, you are the boldest blasphemer she has ever encountered, who has never shown a god the slightest reverence. Your words are poison, capable of corroding even our divinity."

"Misunderstandings, one and all! Mortals can't possibly grasp the workings of the divine mind. Communication errors are inevitable. But anyone who spends time with me will come to see that I am, above all else, a mortal who values fairness."

Sariel studied the lich before her, then said, almost wistfully, "Shara was right. Mortal, there is no fear in your heart at all. But I'm pleased. I like people like you. It was fearlessness, once, that drove me to charge into Hell. Had I not been betrayed, I wouldn't have become what I am now. I admire warriors. I admire those who press forward without hesitation.

"Lich, have you any interest in becoming a knight in my service? You don't seem burdened by the morality of the living. Become my knight. Help me bring this mortal world into Hell's domain. You will have everything you desire."

Ambrose answered without a moment's pause. "I'm flattered by your interest, but I must regretfully decline. I'm a lich. We liches have our own god."

"Ha! You mean Valarun? Please. Do you really think he doesn't know your situation? You don't actually worship him. Otherwise, why would he, patron of evil liches, leave you be?"

Sariel skewered his lie without hesitation, then continued. "But since you've refused, I won't extend the invitation a second time. Lich, don't you want to know what Tiamat and I are planning? I'll give you a chance."

Sariel drew the flaming sword at her hip and drove it into the ground.

A geyser of fire erupted from the impact, twisting itself into the shape of a five-meter-tall fire giant.

"You know my preferences well enough. I admire warriors. I admire strong fighters. Defeat this giant, and I'll tell you everything you wish to know."

She tore a strip from one of her flaming wings and pressed it into the giant.

In the next instant, the giant launched itself at Ambrose in a blurry streak.

The reflexes of a legendary ranger let Ambrose react in time. A single Mist Step carried him out of harm's way.

Wherever the fire giant passed, hellfire spread across the floor in great swathes. Its enormous fist slammed into the ground and not only shattered the stone but left a crater of molten rock behind.

A single blow from that fist would have reduced Ambrose's bones to ash on the spot.

He didn't use the opening to counterattack. Instead, he turned to Sariel. "Honored Lady, am I free to use any means at my disposal?"

Sariel, now down to a single wing, nodded. "Of course. I know you have many cards still hidden. Whatever you choose to use, I'll be watching with interest."

"Many thanks. In that case... Milena, now!"

At Ambrose's call, Milena summoned her whisperwood warhorse. An enormous antimagic field unfurled, swallowing the fire giant within it.

The roaring flames vanished in an instant, leaving behind only the giant's red-rock body.

Sariel hadn't expected Milena to possess this kind of ability. An antimagic field of that scale? This wasn't merely an antimagic effect. This was a higher tier of magical suppression.

The giant Sariel had summoned had to be limited to a form the mortal plane could sustain, which meant it was naturally susceptible to such suppression.

"Impressive," Sariel said. "But you think this is enough to win?"

Though most of its fire had been extinguished, the rock giant hadn't lost all of its momentum. It continued lumbering toward Ambrose, though far more slowly than before.

And neither could Ambrose cast spells within the antimagic field. Faced with a hulking rock giant of obvious physical might, he resorted once more to the same tactic.

"Milena!"

At his shout, Milena's lance was already driving into the giant's foot. The colossal force of the impact threw the multi-ton creature off balance.

Melee combat? That was Milena's department. She was a death knight, after all.