World Gate Online Volume 8 Chapter 6: The Coming Of The Storm

"Hey, did you hear? It seems that the missing previous city lord has come back!"

"The previous city lord Rick? He's back?"

"Yeah, I've heard of it. I have a friend in the city guards who personally saw it. Not only is he back, he also brought along a lot of powerful deities!"

"Don't tell me…he's planning to retake the city lord position?"

"Could be. Some say he's going to control from behind the scenes though."

After reuniting with the others, we went to find a good inn to stay for the day and ate in a nearby tavern.

Since we got here, everyone seemed to be talking the same topic, this being the return of the previous city lord who was supposedly missing for a long time now.

Not that it has anything to do with us though.

"Here are your orders." (???)

While we try and listen for any important rumors, the waitress came at the side while bringing our food and drinks.

Hmm…is this beer? Ugh, I'm really starting to miss soft-drinks…I wonder if I can create one with [Water Creation]?...Aaand I don't know what they're made of…

Well, I'm not really a beer guy so I'll just go with water.

"Hehe, thanks little sis Kaye~" (Momo)

"Big sis Momo, no need to thank me! I'm not the one who cooked your food." (Kaye)

While we were off selling our stuffs, it seems Momo visited some taverns and befriended a lot of people. She was also the one who recommended this place.

This Kaye girl is around 13 years old…at least, her appearance looks that way. She has yellow hair and eyes and looked very pleasing to the eyes.

In fact, some people here seem to only visit here because of her. Though, no one seems to have succeeded in dating her.

"Little Kaye, whatever you do, don't join the [Frozen Heart Sect]. Please." (Gabriel)

…And she has a big rack as well…for a 13 year old…

"Hehe, even if I want, I don't have enough money for that. Plus, my talent is normal." (Kaye)

Really? A 13 year old mid [DemiG.o.d Stage]? Normal?

Ughhh…the logic of this place…

Well, not like I can speak.

"So Lucas? How's your a.s.sessment? Harem material?" (Momo)

"Why do you always think that way for every girl we met!?  And stop elbowing me!" (Lucas)

"But she's cute right?" (Momo)

Seeing Momo pointing at her, Kaye's face blushed and averted her gaze.

"See? She likes you!" (Momo)

"Hey! She blushed because she was embarra.s.sed for suddenly being called and pointed as cute!" (Lucas)

"So you also think she's cute?" (Momo)

This girl…hmph, two can play at this game.

Feeling a little mischievous, I pinched Momo's chin with my index and thumb as I stare at her in the eyes.

"I think you're cute." (Lucas)

…That…was a lot more embarra.s.sing than I thought.

"See? You also blushed." (Lucas)

Shaking the embarra.s.sment, I just laughed and continued eating while avoiding the look the others gave me.

Gah! It really was embarra.s.sing!

Note to self, don't do that again.

…They're still staring at me right? I can feel them staring at me. Stop staring at me!

"Hehe boss Ying Huang, I heard there's a good looking waitress here. Maybe she'll suit your taste."

"Oh? Where is that waitress?" (Ying)

"Ah, there she is boss! Near that table."

Hm? What is it this time?

"Oi, go look for another table, I, your father, will be sitting here. Hehe, the girls can stay and accompany this boss though." (Ying)

Finally looking away from the food, I turned to the arrogant guy and looked around.

"There are other free tables." (Lucas)

"Hah!? Are you courting death!? This master is called Ying Huang! The [Yellow Earth Clan] sect master's only son!"

[Yellow Earth Clan]? Where have I heard that…oh! Right, the enemy sect of that guy from earlier, Jarrod.

Right, didn't I also promise that I will punch them if we see them? Well, I didn't say it out loud but in any case, I need something to forget the earlier embarra.s.sment so…sucks to be them.

"Heh! So afraid that you've gone silent? Don't even try to beg for mercy, I, your father, will end- Guboh!?" (Ying)

And that my friend, is the sound of face meeting fist…clad in qi and mana.

"B-boss Yin-!?"

Before the two lackeys can even finish speaking, two [Implosion Palms] have already struck their chests.

And no, they're not girls…What? Admit it, when you see or hear the word chest, you immediately think of b.r.e.a.s.t.s and girls…What? No? Suuure.

"Eh? Lucas, what happened to laying low?" (Bram)

"What? They're with that yellow thingy clan right? Isn't it fine?" (Lucas)

"I bet you just wanted a distraction from that move earlier loverboy." (Gabriel)

"Pshh, how can that be?..." (Lucas)

I waved my hand sideways to dismiss the thought. At this time, that guy called Ying finally stood up and started pointing at me while his other hand is holding back his nosebleed.

"You you youu!" (Ying)

Me me mee!

…Hmm…did I activate [Jester Mode]? It seems I haven't fully separated the jester personality as I thought…

"Do you know who I am!?" (Ying)

"Uhh yeah? You just did the intro thing like some third-rate villain right? And why did you think I hit you anyways?" (Lucas)

"Y-you…you!!!" (Ying)

Come on, can you say anything other than 'you'? Cause I can't understand it at all.

"My son!" (Yang)

Suddenly, another guy shows up which looks like an older version of the other one. This must be that Yang Huang guy, the sect leader of [Yellow Earth Clan] himself.

What the h.e.l.l is this guy doing here?

Doesn't the final boss show up in the end?

"Father! That guy doesn't put our, [Yellow Earth Clan], in his eyes at all and attacked me! He even took my table!" (Ying)

…Seriously? There's got to be a limit to how people can twist the truth here.

I looked at the surrounding witnesses and found out that none of them talked back, some even looked away and pretended to not see anything.

Sigh…this world is truly…

"Hmph! A mere trash dares to act tough!?" (Yang)

…This seems to be getting out of hand…well, let's just get this over with.

"You guys want to fight as well?" (Lucas)

"You started it, just end it already." (Bram)

These guys don't really know how to back up a friend do they?

I used [Blink] to immediately appear in front of him and grabbed his neck before slamming him to the ground.

"Listen up, this is what's going to happen. You will take your trash son away, seclude yourself and your trash son in a room for a million years, and never show yourself to me again." (Lucas)

I showed the [Lauwers Sect] badge close to my chest so only he could see it.

Seeing the surprise and unwillingness in his eyes, I activated [Terror Stare], [Dragon's Wrath], and looked directly in his eyes.

"Any problems?" (Lucas)

"N-no! No s-sir! T-this one understands!" (Yang)

Hearing his response, I smiled and let go.

"Oh, and leave Jarrod and his guys alone." (Lucas)

Remembering Jarrod, I said so indifferently, with this, it can be considered as problem solved without anyone getting killed right?

Shrugging away, I sat back on the table with everyone else and continued eating.

To Bram and the others, they only raised an eyebrow at me and shrugged as they also continued eating. But to Kaye and the other witnesses, their eyes popped out and they mouth was so open, it can fit an entire apple.

"What happened to not using that thing?" (Bram)

"Well, if I didn't use it, this whole place will probably be torn apart if we fight right? Plus, it's time consuming. And I'm not in the mood for a full blown fight." (Lucas)

"Ugh, I was waiting for a smack down." (Gabriel)

"Then why didn't you fight and just watched? Not that I need the help, but it's not like you need my permission to fight either right?" (Lucas)

"True, but it's fun to watch you get beaten. Though it didn't happen." (Gabriel)

"…Are you mad at me? You're mad right? You're definitely mad." (Lucas)

"Haha, I'm not!" (Gabriel)

…Which is it? Was that the sarcastic laugh or not? Cause I can't tell!

"I think we overestimated this world. Do we still have to stick together from now on?" (Liza)

We all looked at each other upon Liza's words.

Hmm…it's true, it seems we overestimated the power of the people from this world. Until now, there hasn't been anyone formidable enough for us to team up. The last time we teamed up, we defeated that fero-beast without any trouble at all.

But…that vision still troubles me after all. I don't want to be left alone if possible. Well, I still have Vil and Fen.

"That's true, shall we split up?" (Bram)

"Hmm…how about we split up after leaving the [Lauwers Sect's] territory just to be sure?" (Lucas)

After all, I'm the only one who has the ultimate VIP pa.s.s in our group, once we leave the [Lauwers Sect's] territory, that badge will be useless anyways.

The others thought about it for a moment before finally nodding.

"Alright, tomorrow morning, we'll head out of [Crown City], leave [Sword Crown Continent] then start moving to the next continent, the [Misty Clouds Continent]. From there, we can split up and choose which continent to visit next individually in the [Gold Mountain Sect's] territory." (Bram)

All of us nodded and finished eating.

After saying goodbye to the still dumbfounded Kaye, we walked towards our inn.

On the way, we pa.s.sed through another marketplace, there, a stall caught my attention.

There was this sense of familiarity when I looked at the vendor but I can't quite put my finger on it.

Another thing that got my attention is the items for sale…they're stones! Well, they looked like normal stones but they're not.

Using [Ore Appraisal], I found out that they were actually flash ores! Huh? There was actually an ore like this?

Wondering how it works, I picked one and poured my divine sense on it.

*Bang*

Immediately afterwards, a blinding light came out from the ore. It happened so fast that there wasn't any time for me to react!

"Ahahaha! Another idiot who poured divine sense to check that ore!"

"Dammit! If you're gonna make a fool out of yourself, don't include us as well! My eyes!"

"Sigh, they should really put a warning sign there!"

"…Lucas…just what are you doing?" (Bram)

Huh? Wha? What the h.e.l.l!?

It didn't say in the description that the flash ore will activate when being used by divine sense! That's why I checked!

From the description, it says that one needed to bind it by blood, thereafter, one can activate it at will!

This means…

"Oh no, you went and activated it! That will be 100 divine stones." (???)

"You! Don't think that I don't know! That ore was bounded by blood and can only be activated when bounded! You're the one who activated it!" (Lucas)

Hearing my words, everyone was surprised, including the vendor.

Seeing that the vendor didn't refute immediately, some people in the crowd were angry.

"Oi! Was what he said true!? Give me back my 100 divine stones!"

"G.o.dd.a.m.n! You d.a.m.n swindler!"

"So it was like that!?"

"Haha, how can it be like that? I'm being wronged here!...Later idiots!" (???)

The vendor swiped his hand on his merchandise and sucked everything in his spatial ring before making a run for it.

He actually ran away! And he's fast!

Huh? I can't sense his cultivation at all!

Since I wasn't able to sense his cultivation using divine sense, I used [Enemy Appraisal] instead and I was surprised in what I saw.

Not only is his cultivation actually that of a low [HighG.o.d Stage], he's actually a person that I knew!

Gondorrer Gravelheart! AKA Wargon!

d.a.m.n! No wonder that flash bomb effect felt so familiar!

"…What was that all about?" (Bram)

"Sigh…let's hope we don't see that guy again…" (Lucas)

"See who again?" (Wargon)

!?

How…Since when is this guy standing on my side!?

"Y-you…you…" (Lucas)

"Come on. Can't you say anything other than 'you'? Cause I can't understand it at all." (Wargon)

T-this guy…actually reused my words earlier!

Did he actually hear me think that earlier!?

"Who's this guy? You know him Lucas?" (Gabriel)

"Sup, the name's Gondorrer Lucasucks *cough* dammit, Gravelheart. Gondorrer Gravelheart! AKA Wargon!" (Wargon)

Hey! I heard that!

"…How is Gondorrer Gravelheart equivalent to Wargon?" (Momo)

"Don't ask me. This guy was the one who named me. Afterwards, he threw me away." (Wargon)

"You're the one who asked me to throw you!" (Lucas)

This guy has gone from being weird to annoying as h.e.l.l!

"O…kay…well, we'll go ahead in the inn then." (Bram)

No!!! Don't leave me with this guy alone!

*Vi vii*

*Sha shaa*

Vil! Fen! Even you guys are leaving me!?

Vil hopped on top of Momo's head while Fen curled herself on Xene's arm as they yawn sleepily…how can these two sleep so much!?

"Now then! About that flash ore earlier…" (Wargon)

As if a.s.suring I don't escape, Wargon placed his arm around me and grabbed my shoulders as he led me elsewhere.

…Let's change topic!

"U-umm…right! Where's Yuu and Aura?" (Lucas)

"Oh, those two? Don't worry, where I'm bringing you, you'll also see them. So about that flash ore…" (Wargon)

"Ah?" (Lucas)

How come the topic went back so fast…

While we walked, I tried a lot of times to change the topic only to have it back immediately numerous times.

Well, at least the topic never progressed when we finally got to our destination.

Wargon led me to the city lord's palace…wait, what!?

I remember saying a while ago that the return of the previous city lord has nothing to do with us, now I'm here!? In the city lord's palace itself!?

"Uhh…why are we here?" (Lucas)

"Wait a bit." (Wargon)

Wargon opened the door leading to the dinner hall where a bunch of people sat inside.

There was a large burly man that reminded me of vikings, a ferret, a hamster, an average looking guy, a…slime? Is that a slime? There's also a few more people. One of which was a person wearing a round frame gla.s.ses.

Hm? That guy is…he's the person I b.u.mped earlier! That time when I saw those visions!

"Hyou! This is him right?" (Wargon)

"Yeah, that's him alright. The man who will be devoured by darkness." (Hyou)

Huh? What's this all about? Devoured by darkness?

Why is it suddenly decided that something ominous will happen to me!? I didn't do anything!

"Haha, so this is him? Good good good! Haha, now we don't have to worry about finding the place of that battle. See Rick? It's good that we followed you back! Hahahaha" (???)

"Ahaha…haha…ha…right…" (Rick)

The burly man laughed loudly which seemed to make the entire room tremble.

This guy…is a peak [HighG.o.d Stage]!

And is that average pathetic looking person the previous city lord Rick!?

"What exactly's going on here, Wargon?" (Lucas)

"Hn? Oh, you see, Hyou here has the ability to see the future. Though uncontrollable, so far, all his future visions have happened perfectly." (Wargon)

"Yeah…I already figured that out…so what is it you want with me?" (Lucas)

"Ah right, he did mention that you also saw the vision. I wonder why? Still, I bet it sucks to see your own death huh?" (Wargon)

…What's with that 'I have nothing to do with this person anyways' kind of att.i.tude oi!?

Aren't I the one who named you!?

"The future isn't written. I won't let that happen to me." (Lucas)

"That might be true. But there is something you should also know." (Hyou)

Hm? Don't tell me there's another future vision about me?

They did call me the man devoured by darkness…

"Before I met you today, I had another vision. A vision about an earth-shattering battle. It's a battle that takes place on the air, there are three major persons involved. A man that belonged to the darkness, a man devoured by darkness, and a man who escaped the darkness. Among them, the man that belonged to the darkness is the same person who will 'kill' you. The crow head." (Hyou)

…What?

Three persons?

If that is so…then why is it that there are only me and that crow head in the vision that I saw?

Did the future change?

"…What's the outcome?" (Lucas)

Hyou shaked his head.

"I don't know, the vision only lasted for a while. A three-way stand off. What happened before and after that, I'm afraid I don't have the answer for it." (Hyou)

"…Then what does the third person look like?" (Lucas)

"The vision was blurry, I was only able to see his distinctive red hair. As for you and the crow head, I was only able to determine it was you two from the recent vision." (Hyou)

…So unreliable…

"Then? What do you want with me?" (Lucas)

"Of course so that we can partic.i.p.ate! How can we possibly miss such an exciting fight!?" (Dok)

Dok, the burly viking from earlier, joined in the conversation and said something absurd.

"Hey, I have to take care of two possible opponents, then you want another faction to join in!?" (Lucas)

"Yeah?" (Dok)

"…Fine, but you guys are on my side!" (Lucas)

"Sure, that crow head seems to be stronger than you anyways, since you're gonna get killed anyways, so it's better to fight stronger opponents!" (Dok)

………………………

After a lot of shouting, cursing, debate, and stuff, I finally walked out of the city lord's palace with an exhausted appearance.

"Are you sure we can trust those guys?" (El)

"Well, even though Wargon's like that, I still think he's trustworthy enough. For that guy to actually join a group means that he trusts those guys as well. Plus, for experts like them, it's better for me to ally with them than to fight them to the death right?" (Lucas)

"I guess that's also true, still, don't let down your guard." (El)

"Yes mom~" (Lucas)

"Whose your mom!?" (El)

I chuckled lightly as I start to ponder about my future plans.

After this business in this world, I need to get back to [Harus] and rank up my jobs. If I succeed in ranking up my [Wanderer] cla.s.s, maybe I can finally use skills for 2nd rank jobs. After all, all my borrowed skills are only from beginner jobs...except from the special skills, the rest is practically useless.

I also need to change into [Texture Painter]…why? Isn't it cool to be able to paint real textures?

Hmmm…!?

As I started imagining painting in the future, something in the corner of my eyes grabbed my attention.

At that time, I don't know why but somehow, something made me be compelled to look into that carefully.

With this distance, it was still no problem for my [Dragon Eyes] to carefully look from afar.

What did I see?

"Crow…head…!" (Lucas)

It's him! It's definitely him!

It's the b.a.s.t.a.r.d who's going to kill me!

…that red hair is not here, Bram and the others are here, Wargon and his group will also side with me…

"? Lucas? What's wrong?" (Wargon)

"…Lucas, don't do this!" (El)

"Kill…" (Lucas)

I pushed the ground with my foot and sprang froward in great speed!

If I kill him now…that future will no longer happen!

Author's Notes

I'm back~

So sorry for the super lateness of this chapter, as for my excuse explanation, click the spoiler tag below. (If you're not interested, just skip it.)

Spoiler :

P.S.: I forgot to include Lord Fifth last chapter! Have faith in Lord Fifth, gain eternal life! When Lord Fifth appears, who dares cause strife!? or something...owell