Chapter 496. The Prince and the Father (1~)
Cale, holding the sacred mirror and the certificate in his hand, couldn't help but exclaim.
—What the hell is this?!
There was no other option.
Fwoooooosh—
A brilliant black light enveloped Cale's body.
—Human, should we stop the teleportation? —Raon's stunned voice reached his ears.
—But, human, I'm sorry! The teleportation has already started! —he immediately added.
Yes: the night before, after having grandly celebrated the succession ceremony for the Demon God's heir in the Demon World, Cale had only thought about escaping the next morning. So, he activated a teleportation heading towards Aurora, the leader of the Mediators Alliance.
He planned to leave the Demon World through her and reach the New World.
—Eh—
Cale looked ahead in astonishment.
There, with a bored face, the Demon King was handing him the certificate as if to say "here, you deal with it" and said:
—What's the problem?
—Whoa!
Cale was left speechless.
'How did they know?'
He was trying to escape in secret. And besides, that certificate...! —what kind of document was that?
Even though the teleportation had been activated and Cale was disappearing, the Demon King's voice sounded indifferent:
—Since I hate hassles, we omitted the ceremony.
The advisor Ed, standing next to the Demon King, avoided Cale's gaze.
—What?! —Cale couldn't manage to say anything else.
Grand Duke of the Demon World? What was that? Did it even exist? And besides—Pope? Why are you giving it to me? And government, authority...!
Cale couldn't articulate the words.
Fwoooooosh!
The light enveloped Cale and the teleportation activated. The last voice he heard was the Demon King's:
—I've already sent him.
A chill ran down Cale's neck. He closed his eyes and opened them.
—Welcome, Your Grace Duke.
Before him stood Aurora, the leader of the Mediators Alliance and the only blood relative of the previous Demon King, smiling courteously.
—...Duke? —Cale stammered.
—Yes. Although it hasn't been officially proclaimed throughout the Demon World yet, we found out beforehand.
—How...?
Aurora's gaze shifted to the side; Cale followed it with his eyes.
—And who are you?
At Cale's question, Mol —one of the Demon King's eight courtiers, the general named Mol— gave a crooked smile. He was the treacherous hand behind many things.
—I have received orders from the Demon King to follow you and gather information about the hunters. —he added— Of course, with Lord Cale's consent.
Cale sighed. He tried to move in secret, but the Demon King and his strategist weren't easy guys to fool: they had already anticipated his movements and prepared their plays.
—Well... —Cale ended up accepting it. There was an agreement between both sides, and his escape attempt had been improvised.
—If there's someone who connects directly with the Demon King, it's better if it's me. —said Mol.
—Then I'll go with you. —he responded.
Mol joined Cale's group. Cale, exhaling, explained to Aurora that they would enter the New World at that moment.
Mol, observing Cale and his entourage, placed his hand on his chest. A faint vibration emanated from the sacred mirror, the divine object that reacted to sacrifice. A forgotten god was responding to the detector. When Ed was assigning the envoys from the Demon King's castle, Mol volunteered —the elite military of the Demon King—. The strategist didn't want to send him, but Mol requested to go.
'...It seems he has detected it.' —thought the Demon King, and allowed Mol to leave.
'What a frightening person.'
Mol felt a chill: serving the Demon King while carrying a sacred object of another god in his possession. Still, curiosity won and he approached Cale.
'I want to observe him more closely.'
Mol wanted to keep a closer watch on the human who called himself Cale Henituse.
'...why is he acting like this?'
This human, who had remained serene in front of the Three Emperors and the Dragon King, now seemed hurried.
'Or is it annoyance?' —thought Mol. Cale gave the impression of being irritated.
Mol observed attentively, intrigued.
And suddenly he was surprised!
—Ah, seriously! How annoying! —exclaimed Cale, looking towards the sacred mirror and angry.
It was no wonder. A message had recently arrived:
<The date of King Zed Crossman's death has been moved up. Whatever he is plotting, it seems he will die in two weeks.>
—Two weeks! —thought Cale. —In two weeks Crown Prince Alberu Crossman's father will die! The King of the Roan Kingdom is going to die!
'What the hell is that King Zed doing? He just disappeared off the map...'
—Shall we move now? —asked Aurora cautiously. Cale nodded, murmuring:
—I won't let the king or any god get away unscathed...
Aurora swallowed. Immediately, Cale's group entered the New World.
—Oh, exalted among the wicked! —greeted an adorable Darkbear cub, approaching with a bright smile.
—Ron. —Cale made a gesture with his eyes; Ron handed the cub a bag.
The cub stood still for a moment, and something peeked out of the bag, emitting a sharp little sound.
—Eek—!
The cub, upon looking, understood:
'A dragon...!'
Although small like a snake, it was a dragon with enormous power: too strong for the bear to face. Cale said to the cub:
—He will also live now in the Seventh Evil.
Cale's voice was etched into the cub's memory, as he witnessed amazing scenes: Eden Miru (the baby dragon), Raon next to him, the Ancient Dragon Eruhaben, and even Sheritt, the former Dragon Lord who taught Eden Miru through portals connected to the Seventh Evil.
The small dragon in the bag... was a mini dragon!
—Dragon...! —stammered the cub, stupefied— A dragon field...!
The bear trembled with emotion.
—Why is he like that? —asked Cale, and Eden Miru, with the tired face typical of his "average age of 10 years", responded sleepily:
—...I'm fine.
Raon approached and greeted him:
—Eden Miru, how have you been?
—Fine —he responded.
Eden Miru, with chubby cheeks, asked shyly, glancing sideways at Raon as if avoiding his gaze, and Cale smiled restrainedly. Meanwhile, Cale was quickly heading towards his room: the God of Death was in danger, and in two weeks Zed Crossman was going to die. They had urgent matters.
—I am great, so I'm fine. Ah, and by the way, our human is now the Grand Duke of the Demon World! —announced Cale.
—What? —Eden Miru looked at him in astonishment.
—And besides, he's the Pope in the Demon World.
——!
Eden Miru looked at him strangely, but Cale pretended not to hear.
—Zed Crossman will die in two weeks —Cale informed them—.
The faces of the group turned serious: Ron, Beacrox, Eruhaben... for the Roan Kingdom, it was critical news.
—And besides, the God of Death might disappear soon; he needs a body to descend —said Cale.
At that moment, the faces of Sui Khan, Choi Jung Soo, and Choi Jung Gun changed. Cale had brought his entire group from the Demon World to the Seventh Evil of the game Raising My Precious Absolute God.
<I'm currently running away and hiding; if I'm caught, I could disappear.> —was a message that appeared.
—I think the priority now is the God of Death over King Zed —said Cale, addressing Eden Miru—. Did you understand the situation? Summarize only the essentials for me while I'm away.
Eden Miru, with a serious expression, nodded. Despite looking tired, his cheeks were much chubbier than Raon's; perhaps because he was more of a baby.
—For now, there are no signs of enemy movement —he said—.
—The enemy: the hunters from the Five-Colored and Transparent Blood families have not been detected inside the New World. Also, we are trying to locate the position of the Absolute God.
He recalled the Jungle Witch, a bug-NPC capable of locating the Absolute God. Cale had received the system mission to guide the Jungle Witch to her destination.
[Hero and Companions Mission!]
[Guide the Jungle Witch to her destination.]
[Time Limit: Unlimited]
'This has to be resolved by the hero and his companions,' thought Cale. He didn't expect immediate progress, as the hero Alberu Crossman and his companions —Cale, Choi Han, Rosalyn, Raon— were busy.
—Also, the power expansion is being executed discreetly —Eden Miru reported—.
Cale nodded. Thanks to the system, many things were being managed in secret: they were preserving the operation without alerting Transparent Blood. The New World was being protected by discreet maneuvers.
—The territories of the Three Emperators and the Seventh Evil have devised plans to absorb other domains —Eden Miru added—.
—If they get your permission, they will execute the plan immediately.
—Can we delay it for two weeks? —asked Cale.
—We will prepare it better —responded Eden Miru with satisfaction.
Cale felt proud: that Dragon Half-Blood, whom he had previously seen as impulsive, was capable and reliable. After a thousand years of experience under the "white star", veteran experience is not to be dismissed.
At that moment, Cale heard Raon shout:
—Eden Miru! Time to eat! Let's eat! Our human says children must eat and sleep well. So eat, Eden Miru!
Eden Miru, surrounded by the half-dozen "average 10-year-olds", got up to go eat.
—Human, you must eat too! You are the skinniest! —someone said.
—Yes, I'll ask Ron to prepare food for me —responded Cale—.
—I'll go where mother is to eat —said another.
Cale —who was less worried about the food and more about the fact that Raon was going to see Sheritt, the former Dragon Lord— smiled wryly and, while Ron went to eat, spoke calmly:
—I've contacted the Crown Prince; as soon as he responds, I'll go see the King.
—Where is he? —asked the voice of the Ancient Dragon.
—In the Marine Union —responded Cale, looking at the sacred mirror.
The New World was huge, with seas and archipelagos; the Marine Union was the grouping of maritime islands: a chaotic place full of pirates and players. That was where Cale had to go with the hero Alberu Crossman.
—Isn't the Marine Union a place for pirates? —muttered Choi Han.
—Exactly —confirmed Cale.
In the Marine Union, the "Great Step" episode was unfolding: users could become kings! That's why the area was a mess: pirates and player groups fighting for control.
—In a place like that, there will be no shortage of dead bodies —commented the Heavenly Demon coldly—.
Cale let the remark pass and asked Alberu:
—What about Rosalyn?
—They need someone to take care of the Third Zone —answered Alberu.
—Let's talk on the way —proposed Cale.
After a wait for other members who were logging in, everyone gathered and, with a teleportation glow, arrived at the Marine Union.
---
The power bodies were organized: 3 large, 5 medium, 10 small —the Marine Union was part of the "five medium". Upon disembarking at the port, Cale didn't hesitate.
—Ron.
—Yes.
—Buy a ship.
—Right away.
Ron set off. Cale looked at his group; the composition had changed since they were in the Demon World.
—Are we going to sea already? —said Archie enthusiastically, clashing his fists. Archie, a member of the whale race, smiled like a tough guy.
—Save your strength —advised Witira—. The Marine Union is a place where pirates and users wreak havoc; we will go for the king hidden amidst the chaos.
Cale had brought the dominators of the sea, the whale race, to ensure they found the king they needed to locate.
—It's reassuring —Alberu Crossman smiled.
—Yes —responded Cale—. If we go for real, we will sweep through: we'll find the king, bring the Marine Union under control, and thus forge greater forces against the Five-Colored family.
While Cale and Alberu conversed, Beacrox, Choi Han, General Mol, and Captain Sui Khan observed.
—The Prince and our human are laughing with scary faces!
—This doesn't look good.
—If they act like this, it's a sure thing.
Raon, the great dragon Raon Miru and Hong —the poison absorber— and On, who manipulates fog, spoke naturally. On, in cat form, climbed onto Cale's body and perched on his shoulder, whispering in his ear:
—The sea is where the fog is the scariest.
Cale laughed with an exhalation.
—You're brilliant.
On smiled mischievously; Cale and the others looked at him, and Raon and Hong moved away a little.
The group, after so long, was heading to the sea again. By the way, Cale and his team had never lost at sea.
But when Ron returned from looking for a ship, he announced:
—There are no ships available.
The Heavenly Demon muttered:
—Well then, we'll have to take one from the pirates.
All eyes settled on Cale.
