"The Exotic World of Ballians. The mysterious World of Shattered Dreams."

As Dorian came up on deck of the Flying Ship, he carried himself with a proud, upright Aura. He pulled ever so slightly on the Law of Valor, keeping it always just a bit active. The energy drain was negligible, but it did wonders for how he appeared.

Dorian was well aware that if a person wanted to see something, that person would be more likely to see that thing, even if wasn't actually there. The expectations these Shades had for him was something he counted on.

They all thought they would see a proud, majestic hero.

And so that was how he appeared. The Aura boost from the Law of Valor helped build this up. The Shades came into this expecting something, and that is exactly what they came out with.

"Great Hero Lord Inigo!"

"Vast Greatness Lord Inigo!"

"Undying Emperor Lord Inigo!"

As Dorian came on deck, he was greeted with several muted cheers. A good dozen of the Mystic Martial Artists that had joined Dorian's army were up top either admiring the view as the Flying Ship reached the end of the World Bridge or just in conversation with each other.

There were a few Wizards that had joined Dorian's army, but almost everyone was a Mystic Martial Artist. It was much easier to become a Mystic Martial Artist than it was to become a Wizard.

"Greetings, my fellow soldiers. Praise the Light." Dorian turned to the Martial Artists and nodded his head slightly, holding his shoulders square. All of these warriors wanted a piece of the glory of Dorian's journey, regardless of any danger.

"Praise the Light!"

"Kill the Demons!"

"Wooooo!"

The warriors responded with passionate, but still muted cheers.

Everyone on deck was aware that Dorian's 'Wife' Helena was injured and ill. As a result, even the loudest of the warriors kept a quiet tone out of respect.

It was a remarkable show of discipline that left Dorian genuinely impressed.

As Dorian moved past the Martial Artists, he walked up with the King Class warrior to the edge of the ship, near the front. He looked out past the edge, to what was before him.

A grassy World Bridge ended just a few kilometers away. He could make out the portal that allowed it to tunnel through Chaotic Space at the end.

Beyond that, however, was a deathly, black and grey darkness. He could make out parts of the World Bridge as it descended downward. But, eventually, everything else was obscured from his vision.

'The Exotic World of Ballians. The mysterious World of Shattered Dreams.' He repeated the words, this time in his head.

Most World Bridges were heavily interconnected with others. That was how the Worlds of the 30,000 Worlds were designated. Worlds that had clustered World Bridges were considered part of one region, while Worlds that didn't connect were considered part of another.

There was no true 'East' or 'West' in that regard, beyond the interconnectedness of the network of World Bridges. Shaptle, the Normal World that bordered Moria and was used as the base for those exploring the Demonic Ruins on Moria, was somewhat unique in that regard.

Only 3 World Bridges lead to it.

One from a Normal World that was very close to the southern part of the Commune, more than 25 Worlds away from Dorian's current location.

One from a Normal World situated closer to Dorian, 19 Worlds away, but still within the southern part of the Commune.

And, lastly, one from the Exotic World of Ballians.

In that sense, it could be seen as a huge shortcut. By taking this route, you could jump past an enormous number of Worlds.

For Dorian who was on a bit of a time crunch, wanting to help Helena recover as soon as possible before she was discovered, traveling an extra 19 Worlds sounded like a death sentence. Furthermore, all of the experts traveling with him believed that he was on an urgent mission, one where he couldn't afford to waste a single second, and especially not several weeks.

For him to maintain his image, he couldn't afford to take any slow paths.

Thus, this shortcut was his only option.

Ballians was not an extremely dangerous Exotic World. It also, however, was not a safe one.

The World of Shattered Dreams was a World that had been ravaged by one of the ancient High Generals under the Demon Emperor, a Demon known as the Dream Mentor. This Demon specialized in Magic that related to dreams.

While this didn't sound like a particularly powerful field of Magic, and, in the eyes of most, it wasn't, the Dream Mentor was a monstrously powerful figure. His mastery of Dream Magic was so complete and mighty that he was considered the greatest Dream Wizard to have ever existed.

And it was here, on Ballians, during one of the epic fights that decided the fate of the Demon Race, that the Dream Mentor died. Slaughtered under the blades of the Five Great Heroes.

'You managed to kill him… But left behind the remnants for me to deal with.' Dorian sighed, staring at the ominous entrance.

'I really don't have much of a choice.'

The Exotic World was covered in a dream-like miasma that made reality itself seem distorted. However, to experts at the Lord Class, or even experts at the Grandmaster or Master Class, the Dream Miasma could do almost nothing to them.

Even someone in Helena's condition would be completely unharmed by its effects.

Only those at the Sky Class or below might be adversely affected, and even then only slightly.

The Dream Miasma just made visibility far more difficult. Apart from that, everything else would function normally. The side-effects of the grand battle many years ago were widespread, but that didn't mean they were inherently dangerous.

After all, while the Dream Mentor had been an Angelic Class Wizard, he was one of the lower ranked members among that group. He was powerful, but he was not a God. Even he could not intentionally cast a Spell that could destroy an entire World.

All they needed to do was fly for 800 kilometers in one specific direction, through the Dream Miasma, and they would escape scot-free. The World Bridge to Shaptle was, thankfully, not too far from their starting point.

The only thing they needed to worry about were the danger zones that were leftover from the battle with the Dream Mentor.

'And it's possible I can just twist Fate to make the journey easier.' He thought, nodding his head. Perhaps it wouldn't be that bad.

"Holy Highlord, the Flying Ship we charted has been commissioned to take us all the way to Shaptle. Shall I give the order to proceed?" From Dorian's side, the King Class Shade Fabian, known by his nickname Smiting Spear, spoke up, helpfully informative.

Of Dorian's three Captains, Fabian was, by far, the most talkative. The other two, an elderly female and another elderly male, were much more taciturn. Dorian could sense the passion these elders had, however. It seemed they held deep personal feelings in regards to the Demon Race and approved of Dorian's mission enough that they chose to join him.

Dorian glanced at the King Class Shade and then nodded. The ship had slowed to a stop, floating in mid-air through the power of Magic as it looked forward towards the mysterious, dangerous World.

"Give the order."

"You heard the leader! Everyone! Prepare yourselves, we are entering Ballians! Be on your highest level of alertness while we are moving!" The Shade barked out orders, in a voice that was somehow authoritative and spreading, but also muted.

"Hear, hear!"

"Onward!"

"Let's do this!"

A deluge of muted cheers greeted him and, slowly, the ship shifted forward once more, picking up speed as it began to fly towards the looming darkness in front.

'Here we go…' Dorian thought, his face an expressionless visage.

'The last World till we reach Shaptle.'

.. .. .. .. .. .. ..

On a world quite distant from Dorian's location, two great leviathans of the sky could be seen, soaring high above the earth below. Two mighty drakes that sent nearby beasts fleeing in terror at the mere sight of them.

One was jade colored while the other a dark, burnished gold.

"We're almost there now, Mira." The golden scaled dragon let out a loose roar, speaking in Draconic as his wings thundered before him. Sparks of energy seemed to fly off his body as he flew, twirling chaotically in the sky.

"I know… I know. I'm just worried, that's all." Mira replied, shaking her smaller dragon head slowly.

Both of the two dragons were buffeted slightly by the furious winds that were crashing about them. They flew above a large sea of frozen ice, interspersed with large, towering mountains.

The Exotic World of Flouta, a frozen world covered in mountains. It also happened to be home to the agreed upon Neutral World between the Wise Jade Tribe, the Golden Flame Tribe, the Heavy Wing Tribe, and the Green Tailed Tribe.

'The Heavy Wing Tribe…' Mira thought, her draconic eyes tightening slightly.

They were all dead.

Slaughtered in their entirety. Not a single drake that had been near the homeworld of the Tribe remained alive.

There were a few Heavy Wing Tribemembers that survived due to not being at home or being out on missions/enjoyment. But, in essence, the Tribe was wiped out and dead. The 12 Tribes were now 11.

The Tribe had been killed by a powerful, brutal being. A creature that called itself Zero, taking the form of a huge, towering Lion with a bright, golden mane.

A so-called 'Anomaly,' similar to the other 'Anomaly' that was reported allegedly aiding and supporting the Red Wing Tribe. Only, this Anomaly here was decidedly not a friendly one.

The Heavy Wing Tribe had been famous for their defensive prowess. In terms of raw defensive power, not a single other Tribe would be able to measure up. It was the niche their Tribe had dominated.

And, despite that, they were still all dead.

It was a horrifying thought for her to consider.

The duo flew silently for a few minutes, hurtling forward at an extremely fast speed. The cold weather didn't seem to have any real effect on either drake, brushing up against them to no avail.

"It reminds me of him." Mira made an observation as they flew, her voice quiet.

"Who?" Aiden responded, glancing over at her.

"Her companion. The man responsible for the destruction of the Demon Race." She nodded.

"Yukeli of the Absolute." As she spoke his name, her entire body shivered.

A second pause appeared as Aiden processed her words. They flew in silence for a few more moments, passing over a clump of drifting clouds.

"It doesn't matter who he is. All that matters is that he is an avowed enemy of our race. We cannot let the other Tribes fall." Aiden responded, sighing. A seed of worry lay in his heart as he considered the dangerous being that was running amok.

"I know…" Mira shrugged, a decidedly odd gesture on her relatively petite, but still large, draconic frame.

"This might serve as the stimulus we need to get the Tribes to join back together." She took a new, more optimistic approach.

"Maybe. All we know, right now, is that this Anomaly has moved on to the Red Wing Tribe. You said a different Anomaly has joined up with that Tribe, right? I don't know how their kind works, but shouldn't those two be similar in power? Maybe they will kill each other." Aiden queried, his voice curious.

"I don't know." Mira shrugged again, this time helplessly. The information she had was limited, even when using the long-range communication Artifact to hold several conversations back and forth.

"We should know more once we reach the Convention." Her eyes flashed cooly,

"I still am surprised this is even happening." Mira's original plan and been to return to the headquarters of the Golden Flame Tribe alongside Aiden, and report her findings to them first. Her own Tribe, in terms of raw battle power, was one of the weakest among the 12.

However, as they were returning home, they had been informed of this event, and even personally requested to join it. The duo had complied and made full haste here.

"To think that our longtime rival Arthur Telmon would send a personal representative here to talk about this incident and offer his support." She shook her head,

"What in the Heavens is going on?"

..

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