Chapter Forty-eight: Realm of the King

In truth, there was another reason why Lando left so decisively. In just over two months, the Silver Tower would descend upon this world, and with Hannah's talents, joining it would be effortless. Even if the other arcanists failed to notice, he could recommend her himself. There would be plenty of time in the future to study the connections and changes between them.

Lando entered the mountain forest, casually found a cave, chased out the 'little cutie' dwelling inside, set up his defenses, and then placed the teleportation array.

Charging, locking, teleporting.

Not long after, Lando once again arrived in the laboratory. This time, he intended to spend more time thoroughly exploring every corner.

...

In the southern reaches of the Kingdom of Flames, amid the vast uninhabited wilderness, an earth-shattering battle unfolded, unseen by any soul.

At this moment, Locke was in a rather sorry state, yet his expression remained calm and composed. His opponent was Prince Sandy, known as the Prince of the Sun.

Prince Sandy carried himself with elegance, his attire immaculate, untouched by dust. He did not appear to be in the midst of battle, but rather out for a spring excursion.

“Give up, Locke. You are no match for me; you should know that,” Prince Sandy spoke, his voice tinged with a hint of melancholy.

Locke smiled faintly and replied, “Impossible. The descendants of Furyken only move forward, for the hurricane never ceases!”

Prince Sandy sighed. “If that is your answer, then for the sake of this world, I must lay you to rest here.”

Prince Sandy raised his sword, flames igniting upon him in layers, growing and intensifying, until suddenly, at a certain moment, they broke through some unseen limit. The fire surged outward, painting the world in a blazing red.

Locke stared in shock. Surrounded by this world of flames, he felt all his might suppressed. The Prince before him no longer seemed a mere mortal, but a deity commanding the world.

“What... is this?!”

Prince Sandy looked at Locke’s stunned face and spoke calmly, “It seems the inheritance of the Hurricane King truly is lost. You do not even know the Domain of Kings?”

“In the ancient era, a hundred races flourished, war ravaged the land, and four kings emerged, striding across the four extremes, grasping the heavens and earth. With unparalleled strength and wisdom, they led their followers to victory after victory.”

“At that time, among the hundred races, humanity ranked only in the middle tier. Some powerful tribes were born extraordinary, and their strongest were far beyond what humans could hope to match. Do you think the four kings relied on mere force to defeat and subdue those tribes, leading humanity to glory?”

“It was the Domain of Kings that made it possible! With this domain, even when faced with tens of thousands of ferocious warriors, the four kings could stand firm and crush them easily. They could even merge the Domain of Kings with their armies, forming the mighty King's Army!”

“This is the reason behind the four kings’ undefeated legend!”

A long silence fell between them. Just as Prince Sandy thought Locke had yielded, Locke suddenly raised his head, and at the same time, a sharp, blade-like hurricane surged up from him, growing layer upon layer, expanding with a roar, turning half of the fiery world azure.

Locke saluted his opponent and friend with his sword. “Thank you for telling me, Sandy!”

Prince Sandy saw this, and his eyes showed not regret, but joy—and sorrow.

Boom!

Boom! Boom!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

It was as if two gods clashed, shaking the world, their battle’s aftermath enough to shatter mountains and reverse rivers.

The fight raged for three days. When Jerome and Prince Sandy’s retainers finally found them amidst the ruins, Prince Sandy’s clothes were in tatters, his body covered in crisscrossing wounds. Locke lay bloodied on the ground, a bowl-sized hole in his chest, clearly beyond saving.

Prince Sandy gazed at the fading Locke, lifted his head in confusion to the sky, and murmured, “Is fate mine?”

“Young master? Young master! Locke, young master!”

The hoarse cries interrupted Prince Sandy’s confusion, stopping those who wished to seize Jerome. Prince Sandy turned and left without another word. His followers looked at one another, but after surveying the traces of the battle, followed him in awe.

“Cough, cough, Grandpa Jerome, I’m not dead yet.”

Jerome was first delighted, but upon seeing the wound in Locke’s chest, he realized this must be the final flicker of life, and sorrow overwhelmed him.

“To think, cough, I failed. Cough, cough, in my whole life, I made only two friends. Cough, one unreliable, and the other—well, he finished me off, ha-ha, cough, cough, cough.”

“Young master…”

“Let me finish, cough, cough!” Locke grew weaker, passing the Sword of the Wind King to Jerome. “Remember that person I told you about? If you find him, give this to him, and tell him—be careful, don’t die…”

“Young master!!!”

As Prince Sandy departed, he paused, his followers behind him seeing only his back bathed in sunlight. Though scarred, his dignity was undiminished.

On the prince’s face, hidden in shadow, a glimmer of crystal flashed.

When he lifted his head, he was still the admired, invincible Prince Sandy.

Feeling the ceaseless surge of power within, he murmured, “Everything is coming to an end!”

...

Back in the laboratory, Lando, mired in existential doubt, suddenly sensed something. He glanced about suspiciously, but nothing happened.

Scratching his head in confusion, he once more puzzled over his predicament.

It was now his second day in the laboratory. After a full day of careful and thorough exploration, Lando confirmed that aside from the central altar, the rest of the place had been scoured clean, as if by a pack of dogs.

The altar itself was actually a necromantic array used for experiments. As it needed to connect to the core energy of the earth, it had been inscribed directly into the mountain, which was why it hadn’t been dismantled.

But thinking about it, it made sense—the Earth Kingdom had discovered this place thousands of years ago; anything that could be taken had long since vanished.

Leaving the laboratory, retracting his defenses and teleportation array, Lando felt he had achieved his goal in the Earth Kingdom, with many unexpected gains besides.

Through the system, Lando could easily sense Hannah’s situation. Their link had not weakened in the slightest, making him realize that distance had no effect on them—though he wondered what would happen if separated by two worlds.

Next, he would attend the auction held by the Brasso family. Since there was still plenty of time, he did not need to rush.

PS: A quick note—I won’t be making two-character chapter titles anymore. For someone as hopeless at naming as me, it’s just too hard. Since I’m at it, asking for some favorites and recommendations isn’t unreasonable, right (❤ε❤).