You promised to wreak havoc on the dungeon, but instead you've got Dragon Slime!

……

Bacchus Castle.

Deep underground, magma surges.

When Elodis learns from her father the true identity of the emaciated figure hanging above the scorching heatwave...

He gasped for breath in the scorching air above the lava, almost choking, his face filled with disbelief and horror.

"You mean... he's the legendary lord who fought Lagos, the Balrog, for the throne of the Underworld... the architect of Elias, the Lord of Hell, Perkins?!"

After the fall of the previous Great Lord, the power struggle that shook the entire underworld was reduced to two true giants:

Lagos the Fire Demon and Elias the Lord of Hell.

The two are evenly matched in rank, and their wealth and power are enough to shake the entire underground world's structure. Each controls a terrifying SSS-level dungeon.

However, in an attempt to overpower Lagos, Elias ultimately resorted to a self-destructive strategy. He instructed his personal designer, Perkins, to invite Perkins's own brother to a family dinner.

It's worth noting that the chief designer of the Balrog Lagos is this designer's own brother!

Both brothers were at the pinnacle of dungeon design skills.

At that family dinner filled with the atmosphere of betrayal, Perkins successfully extracted the core design blueprints of the SSS-class dungeon "Eternal Furnace" from his own brother and presented them to Elias.

Elias then visited the elderly former Highlord as a candidate.

Right under the nose of that ruler, he dared to risk using the "Eye of the Underground" to directly contact Solomon, the Grand Master of the Adventurers' Guild in the surface world.

He revealed all the secrets of the "Eternal Burning Forge" on the condition that Solomon would spread this core information to top adventurer teams, greatly increasing the success rate of conquering the "Eternal Burning Forge," thereby severely damaging the reputation of the Balrog Lagos and paving the way for his own ascension to the top.

However, Solomon, who was in charge of the behemoth that was the Adventurers' Guild, immediately reported this despicable deal and betrayal to the then-reigning Grand Lord!

The enraged former high lord issued the cruelest of judgments:

Elias and Perkins were stripped of all their titles and ranks, all their wealth was confiscated, and they were listed as traitors whom the entire underworld would hunt down with all its might!

The underworld issued a blood-red wanted notice for this, with a bounty so high it could drive anyone mad!

"At that time, I was lucky enough to catch a glimpse of their trail."

Count Bacchus's voice was like ice from the ground, devoid of any emotion.

“But I only handed Elias over, in exchange for a generous reward and a negligible promotion. As for Perkins…”

A chilling smile tugged at the corners of his dry lips:

“I hid him.”

The count's withered fingers traced across the scorching air:

"I extracted all his unique, ingenious, and even taboo dungeon design experience and strategies from him..."

"It was with this knowledge that I single-handedly created that infamous S-class dungeon, the 'Carnival Maze'."

A flicker of fervor and reminiscence flashed in his cloudy old eyes:

"Thanks to the immense wealth and terrifying prestige it brought, I, a mere lowly knight, have climbed all the way to my current position as a count! Haha..."

After he had exhausted his usefulness, he discarded Perkins like a useless tool in this meticulously crafted inferno, imprisoning him with iron chains and torturing his mutilated body and mind with scalding lava.

Elodis felt a chill run down his spine to the top of his head. He had never imagined that his illustrious family had such a dark and sordid origin.

Even more unexpectedly, this seemingly lifeless prisoner was the key figure who triggered the upheaval in the underworld.

"So... what exactly do you want to do by keeping him here?"

Elodis's voice trembled uncontrollably.

Count Bacchus did not answer him, but took a few steps forward, almost stepping onto the edge of the lava lake.

His cloudy old eyes were fixed on the barely alive figure on the chains. He raised his voice, his tone laced with a cold mockery:

"Perkins! Don't play dead in front of me!"

The churning lava emitted a deep, rumbling roar.

The iron chains emitted a teeth-grinding scraping sound.

The person, teetering on the edge of death, slowly opened their heavy eyelids.

Pus and festering wounds blurred his face, but in his deep-set eyes, two faint yet stubborn flames of life still burned, along with... a deep-seated hatred.

His throat bobbed, emitting a low, grating laugh, like the rubbing of gravel, filled with endless resentment and contempt.

"Bark...Barkus...do you want...me, this...useless person...to...be your...dog...again?"

Every word he uttered seemed to be squeezed out from a ruptured lung:

"Dream...kill me...or...throw me up...to collect the reward...it's up to you..."

Count Bacchus's wrinkles deepened, and his smile appeared unusually eerie and profound.

“Perkins, don’t be so quick to refuse… What if I told you there’s an opportunity now…”

He deliberately dragged out the melody, each syllable carrying a devilish allure:

"An opportunity that can both avenge your best partner, Duke Elias, and give you... your freedom again. What do you... think?"

"Hahaha……"

Perkins's broken laughter grew even harsher, filled with heavy sarcasm and disdain:

"You...think...I...would...still...listen...to...your...nonsense...and...believe...you...just one more time?"

He struggled to turn his head, and forcefully spat a mouthful of filthy saliva mixed with pus and blood into the lava pool beneath his feet, which instantly evaporated into a wisp of white smoke due to the high temperature.

Count Bacchus didn't care at all.

He slowly reached into the inside pocket of his coat and rummaged around.

Then, he took out something.

It was a small, unremarkable object with an odd shape, and it was difficult to immediately discern what it was in the dim light of the lava.

Bacchus held it in his palm and gently, almost playfully, shook it, exposing it as much as possible to Perkins's blurry vision.

"So……"

Count Bacchus's voice carried a confident, playful quality, like the flick of a viper's tongue:

"What if we add this? This thing...you...recognize it, right? Could it...change your mind?"

Chapter 82 Perkins' Daughter

When Perkins's almost glued-together eyelids finally managed to open, his cloudy, bloodshot eyes finally made out what was in Bacchus's palm—

The simple bracelet made of dull, unlustered metal rings.

His charred body suddenly erupted with terrifying power!

The mangled body convulsed and writhed violently, the massive, rusted chains stretched taut, emitting a mournful metallic wail as they strained under the weight!

Each struggle pulled the heavy iron chains, causing them to crash against the surrounding pitted stone walls.

Large chunks of rock crumbled and fell into the churning lava pool below, hissing and spewing acrid white smoke and lava foam.

Elodis cried out in surprise, staggered backward, and nearly tripped over the loose stones.

That inhuman burst of power lasted only a moment before dissipating like the receding tide.

Perkins, as if he had exhausted the last of his strength, breathed heavily, his broken bellows-like throat squeezing out a tearing roar:

"You—! This thing—! Where did you get it?!"

Count Bacchus sneered, closed his five fingers, and put the small metal bracelet back into his sleeve.

He looked down at the withered figure limp in the chains, his voice like a cold blade, precisely slicing into the deepest wound:

"I saved you back then, handing over Elias in exchange for my own gain. His execution was deserved. But what about your family? I thought the sins of the family shouldn't be visited upon them, but Lagos, the Balrog, ha—"

A cold, gleaming pleasure flashed in Bacchus's eyes:

"With his vengeful nature, how could he tolerate the bloodline of his enemy remaining in the world? Your parents, wife, young brother... all were wiped out overnight."

Perkins froze, as if the last thing supporting him had collapsed.

After a few seconds of deathly silence, a bloodcurdling scream filled with endless despair and resentment burst forth from his shattered chest, like the dying cry of a wild beast:

"Why! What did they do wrong?!"

Bacchus relished the collapse of his enemy, a cruel satisfaction on his face:

"But heaven has mercy, your youngest daughter... happened to be taken by her wet nurse to visit relatives in a neighboring town that day, and escaped the disaster."

"I felt pity for her and sent someone ahead of time to 'properly' settle this poor little thing. This bracelet was her treasure that she held in her palm day and night when she was a child."

Perkins's body, covered in blood and wounds, trembled violently, and for the first time, a mad flame called "hope" ignited in his desperate eyes!

"My daughter...she...where is she?! What have you done to her?!"

He struggled again to lunge at Bacchus, the chains clanging.

"Don't be impatient!"

Bacchus calmly pressed his hand to his cuff, a cruel smile curving his lips:

"Don't worry, she's doing very well. She grew up safely under my protection and even learned some skills."

He strode forward, looked down at the charred prisoners at his feet, and threw out the devil's bait:

"Do me a favor. If you succeed, you'll regain your freedom and be reunited with your daughter. Otherwise..."

He made a throat-slitting gesture, his smile icy:

"I had no choice but to 'clean up' this last problem. After all, if Lagos finds out that I'm harboring the daughter of a traitor... the consequences would be unimaginable."

Perkins was breathing heavily, despair and the last vestiges of hope tearing at his eyes.

Silence weighed heavily on everyone's heart like a boulder, with only the roar of lava echoing through the air.

Still hesitating?

Bacchus made a move to leave, waving his hand impatiently:

"Time waits for no one..."