"No...I..."
The viscous hostility gripping around his neck jolted the saint from his tranquillity.
"Can you repeat what you just said?"
Even when facing the behemoth itself, the saint might not have shuddered to this extent.
"I...Sorry...."
The flames burning in Karina's eyes had ruthless deportment. It desired to burn the other party to cinders.
But just as she was about to choke the fellow saint's life out of his body, the portal produced an odd bombilation and murky humanoid shadows appeared in it.
"Demons."
Finding the emergence of multiple presences from the portal, the kings raised their guards and pulled out their weapons. Karina had already retracted her killing intent and was ready to launch a devastatingly powerful spell at the potentially powerful threats.
But contrary to their assumptions, Lazarus and others stepped out of the portal in an unhasty manner.
"Hmm...did something happen?"
After perceiving Karina's spell on the verge of execution, the Great Saint probed.
At once, the levitating magical formula vanished and the fluctuating mana was restabilised.
"Who are these people?"
The response was another query, to which Lazarus replied. "These three were trapped in the Stygian Realm through a turn of events."
The zoomorph saint's frowned at the old man's words. "Is it just me or do you really not know how to count?" The former's hands crossed in front of his chest.
"..."
Lazarus felt the three pairs of eyes scanning the people behind him with doubt. He immediately turned around and his eyes widened.
"Where did that guy go?"
The armoured blond-haired knight commander and the elf stared at each other in perplexion upon realising that Adam didn't exit the portal with them. Turning around, there were no more figures lingering inside the self-destabilising block of glass.
And in front of their eyes, the gateway collapsed!
"..." The saints.
"..." The kings.
"..." The rescued.
Puzzlement and mystery veiled them as Lazarus could only gaze at the crumbling portal. At the same time, the duo of Aaron and Thalia had grim expressions.
Where the heck did that guy go?
How can he be missing from the group when he entered just after we leapt in?
Wait a minute. Does this have multiple openings?
...
Many questions drifted through the hearts of the rescued duo. Sensing their fluctuations, Lazarus could only scratch his head in wonder.
"I can tell that he has definitely entered the portal but his destination was slightly altered. Currently, he should have already appeared anywhere on the continent." The best thing he could do was to provide some explanation while smiling wryly.
Forthwith, the two strangers introduced themselves and Lazarus affirmed their racial identity. Aaron went on describing how they ended up in the Stygian Realm and how they were tortured. He went on speaking about the earthling and his extraordinary recklessness. The fact that he tamed a treasure-tier artefact wasn't kept hidden.
***
Meanwhile, somewhere else on the continent.
"How did I come back here? Where did those three go?"
Standing on the brown patch of land that separated the grassland into two was the earthling. Pivoting around, he realised that he was taken back to where he was taken from.
This was the exact spot where he stood before the surroundings inverted.
But how?
Many questions popped up into his mind, but Adam forcefully dispelled them.
"Status."
/◄▫◆▫◇▫◆▫◇▫◆▫◇▫◆▫►\
▹ Name: Adam (26/M)
▹ Race: Zoomorph
▹ Level: 31 [2,099/19,840]
▹ Class: Berserker
▹ Innate Skill: Auto-Healing
▹ HP: 9,891/9,891
▹ MP: 81/81
▹ STR: 98
▹ AGI: 67
▹ INT: 39
▹ A.P: 12
▹ Martial Arts: Unarmed Mastery (D), Spear Mastery (E), Axe Mastery (F), Sword Mastery (F).
▹ Magical Arts: ---
\◄▫◆▫◇▫◆▫◇▫◆▫◇▫◆▫►/
'Now that I'm back, I should consult the sage and find out what's wrong with the Art of Ascension. I also noticed that the others have an extra line of info called Skills. Enquiring about those wouldn't hurt, would they?' With a flick, he dismissed the interface.
Raising his head, Adam caught the sight of the setting sun. The canvas levitating above the heads of countless beings were smeared with a range of red and orange shade. The presence of clouds only increased the beauty of the painting.
"To the Prime Celestial Preserve, it is."
Taking one last glimpse of the red fireball, Adam turned in a direction and stepped forward. His pace steadily increased and his figure vanished into the woods.
***
"You two can stay in the palace for the night."
The ruler of Trunail brought Aaron and Thalia with them. After listening to what they experienced and witnessed on the other side, the rulers and the saints couldn't dismiss the probability of a full-scale war soon.
Their first-hand observation of the floating castle and the gigantic empire within walls accompanied by the hordes of corrupted beasts had enchanted a deathly silence inside the chamber.
Breaking this stillness, the elf king spoke and send them away under the guidance of his servants.
After watching the duo leave and the doors closing behind them, the rulers turned their gazes to the Great Saint.
"There's nothing we could do about the portals. The otherworldly beings have been opening up these gateways for at least a millennia. The best we could do is to prepare for the worst.
Also, convey the word to every empire and kingdom. Let them all know that a war is about to dawn upon us.
And...that berserker named Adam, create a sketch of him from the descriptions and assign trustworthy individuals to passively search for him. The information about him must be kept confidential. He could be a worthy ally for our Logos Alliance."
After completing his words, Lazarus stood from his seat and spoke. "I am departing to the Avastha Empire. Their archives are old and ancient and must contain some record of the past events."
Those sitting around the table nodded solemnly and Lazarus' figure flashed and disappeared. Shortly, the kings and the saints concluded their conversation and departed from the spot.
"Forces from oblivion will return one day.
Father, is your prediction coming true?"
Standing alone inside the chamber, the tall elf in his sixties stared at the ceiling and heaved a sigh. The memories of his father lying on his deathbed flickered through his eyes. Previously, he knew not what those final words of the former king conveyed. But now, he can get a rough outline of the future.
Better be safe than sorry.
Walking to the door, the king continued to fidget with a magic stone that appeared in his palm. The extravagant decoration of runes on it indicated that it wasn't a common stone found on the roadside.
As his figure slowly paced towards his bedchamber, his finger hadn't come to a halt.
***
Shu~
Under the veil of darkness, a peculiar note reverberated throughout an unknown forest. The dull noise of slicing the air was produced by a fast-moving body.
[C-grade Cobblestone Giraffe ahead. Turn right.]
Under the accurate guidance of Endevil, Adam avoided encounters with beasts. Unless the creatures took initiative to a deathmatch, Adam was reluctant to needlessly slaughter them.
Plus, it was nighttime. Let the animals sleep in comfort.
Pacing according to the instructions, Adam kept moving towards the Prime Celestial Preserve. It was only when Endevil alerted did he realised that he had actually journeyed more than two hundred kilometres, reaching the near vicinity of the grassland border.
'Can you sense anything?'
[The guardian of this portion of the outer section is a pseudo-X-rank Nightmare Viper. It is awake and has already discerned our presence.]
'What is its peculiarity?'
[It sprays its venom to induce irresistible hallucinations for a prolonged duration, indiscriminate of who inhales it. Though its fangs can't pierce through the armour, the mental torture would be devious and meandering. I suggest taking another route to enter.]
'Suggestion accepted.'
Withdrawing into the woods, Adam began to move through the shadows of the trees. After assigning Endevil to provide accurate details of the guardian beasts, he departed.
But...
"You've got to be messing with me, right?!"
Adam was gravely infuriated and discontent with the search results.
[No, I'm not. It looks like the guardian beasts have been replaced with a much powerful one of the same rank.]
It's one thing that guardianship has been reassigned. But what's with those names?
Banshee Ape, Iron-Tooth Panther, Mist Wolf, Vampire Owl, Acid-Silk Weaver, Hexapod Fire Hound, Assassin Monkey, Gold-Scale Stallion, Giant Marsh Crab, Tyrant Anaconda, High-Orc Barbarian, Frenzy Griffin, Dragon-Blood Harpy, Sprit Eagle, Skyliner Falcon, Elder Thunderbird, Adamantium Turtle, Ice-Spitting Salamander, Mythril Tusker, Flame Lynx, Blue Basilisk, Hell Rodent, Galling Sting Hornet, Giant Lucid Mantis and many more...
Without breaking the fluency of the situation, Endevil continued to provide the pieces of information regarding all sixty guardian beasts.
"Hah!"
Sluggishness that was burdening Adam over the period was vast and he caved in. Falling on his knees, his torso was barely standing upright.
'Endevil...'
[I'm sorry, Adam. Though none of them can surpass my defences, it is highly likely that you'll be tossed around like a rubber ball. Even the Hornets are the size of a football.]