Count Mortelli stared at Lucian silently, before gesturing at the nearest knight.

"Take this fool away and execute him. Clowns aren't required to stop the threat to the kingdom."

The knight stepped forward, only to be stopped by Glenn's purple hand.

'Yeah, let's oppose the noble fucker and protect the more royal nicer guy! Yeah!'

Glenn grimaced as he tried his best to ignore Diamanes' jeers.

"Oh, shit, are we already going up against Mortelli? Hell yeah!" Nelg was similarly pleased, almost jumping out of Glenn's soul.

Count Mortelli raised an eyebrow. "Are you with this idiot, Devil's Hand? I suppose we will skip on your strength as well. Such a waste. Knight—"

The Count suddenly stopped talking as the blood drained out of his face. He clenched his throat in horror as Lucian took one step after the other toward him.

"I see. You dare ignore the Royal command, then?" Lucian hissed as the light twisted around him, forming an ethereal veil reminiscent of the twilight. Mortelli fell to his knees, his eyes bloodshot and his limbs trembling. The Order of Wolves' knights unsheathed their swords covered in Aura, ready to lunge at Lucian, but Mortelli managed to raise a hand and stop them. As if seized by realization, everyone but Glenn's group fell to their knees and stared at the ground.

"Veil of the Cleaner's Workshop greets His Highness the Prince," exclaimed Veil without wasting a second.

"We greet His Highness the Prince!"

"We..."

Every group followed his example, while Glenn scratched the back of his head.

"So you're the next king in line? Huh. Somehow, I'm not that surprised..." he muttered. Lucian turned back and winked complicity before returning to his stern, majestic demeanor to address Count Mortelli. Glenn turned to the side to find the two Black Heirs, who were as confused as he was, and Milena practically crawling on the floor, mortified.

"Glenn, Glenn, it's the fucking Prince! Kneel!" She hissed a whisper, terrified. Glenn looked at her, his hands in his pocket as he contained a laugh.

"Lucian, Brother," Glenn insisted on the word as a grin crept up his face, "So you're a Prince. Should I kneel to you?"

Munirp's Prince swept around in absolute horror. He hurriedly raised his hands in front of him and shook his head.

"No, no, of course not!" He pointed at Count Mortelli with a knowing expression. "I only abuse my position on those who deserve it! And, you're my Big Brother, how could I force you to kneel?!"

Glenn nodded with a smile. "Alright, that's fine with me."

Milena observed the exchange with awe, unable to believe her eyes.

'You were really quick to adopt him as your brother once you knew he was a Prince,' noticed Diamanes.

Glenn almost shrugged. 'He was the one to insist on it! I just...resolved myself to accept it, okay?'

Diamanes' laughter didn't stop Glenn from being happy. Seeing the man who had destroyed Redan's reputation and life in King's Rise kneel helplessly was a joyous sight he couldn't get enough of.

"Anyway, Count Mortelli, I'll forgive you on the case that your family always did their utmost for the prosperity of the kingdom." Lucian waved his hand dismissively, relieving Mortelli from whatever curse had befallen him. The Count coughed, heaving with difficulty as he pushed himself up. He bowed to the waist, his previous condescendance nowhere to be seen.

"I beg you to accept my deepest apologies, Your Highness. I- I didn't believe you right away due to the rumors surrounding you," coughed Mortelli apologetically. Lucian yawned and turned away.

"Sure, sure, whatever. I accept your apology. Now, can we get back to working on Munirp's safety instead of those ridiculous power trips?" Mortelli opened his mouth to reply but Lucian didn't let him. "Oh, also, leave the Devil's Hand team to me. Do whatever you want with the others, but Glenn and his colleagues will be under my direct supervision. I'm sure there won't be any problems with that?"

Count Mortelli clenched his teeth tightly as he kept his head bowed. "Of course not, Your Highness. We live to serve you."

Lucian clasped his hands together, beaming with a radiant smile. "Excellent! Now, who takes which Rift? I'm following the Devil's Hand team, just to let you all know."

"Cough..." Mortelli walked back to the table and pointed at multiple locations. "We will leave the largest Rift to you, Cleaner Veil. The Magi Brotherhood will take care of the second larger one, while..."

The Count gave everyone their targets and almost wrapped up the meeting when Lucian raised his hand, stopping him. "Sorry, but you practically threw us at the least dangerous Rift." The Prince frowned as twilight shone over his shoulders. "Are you daring to put the strongest in this meeting in the least interesting location?"

Count Mortelli almost choked on his saliva. "N- No, of course not, Your Highness. W- Which Rift would you be willing to take care of with the Devil's Hand?"

Lucian grinned widely as he pressed his finger on the largest one, which had been attributed to Veil's team. "This one will be perfectly fitting for us to show the glory of Munirp to our enemies!"

Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

Veil laughed, his bandages unfurling slightly. He coughed and tightened them back up, turning away from Mortelli's glare.

"...Very well, Your Highness. I will adjust the plans so that—"

Lucian yawned and walked away. Glenn couldn't contain it and laughed broadly, openly mocking the Count. He and his team followed Lucian without giving Mortelli another glance. Milena was dragging her feet as she bit on her nails. She got closer to Glenn and whispered in his ear.

"Why are we following the Prince? And why is he bringing us to the most dangerous place? What did you do to him?"

Glenn blinked at her. "Why are you assuming I did anything?"

Milena gritted her teeth. "Because you always do!"

"It's true," nodded Sahro as he chimed in, his fox yawning on his shoulder. Liara followed his example, nodding furiously. Glenn looked at his team and sighed.

"You're all exaggerating, I swear..."

'No, they're not. But hey, just assume it! Rock it out, you never stand on the sidelines! That's a true victor's mentality!'

"Sorry Glenn, but they're telling the truth..."

Glenn looked at the sky. Sometimes, he truly felt like he was alone against the world. Lucian stopped once they had walked far enough from Mortelli's tent.

"Sorry that I pulled you into this without asking." Lucian suddenly bowed to them. Milena hurriedly raised her hands, panicked.

"No, please, Luci- Prin- ugh... Your Highness!" She forced him up, terrified. Sahro shook his head while Liara watched her curiously. Glenn scratched the tip of his nose and shrugged.

"It's fine. We need to build up as much contribution as we possibly can, and taking care of the most dangerous place sounds like the best way to do that."

Lucian frowned. "You need more fame? What for?"

Glenn moistened his lips and smiled apologetically. "Sorry Lucian, but it's not something I can share with you. I do need to respect your position, after all."

"...If that's how it is." Lucian sighed.

'Just say you don't want the noblest guy to interfere in your conflict with another noble fucker. That'll be faster!' Diamanes cackled.

"Anyway, we will be working with you to take care of the Rift. That's fine with me, I saw how skilled you were," nodded Glenn. "We won't be in trouble if you die during the expedition, will we?"

Lucian made a wry smile. "Well, uh, let's just do everything we can to avoid this eventuality, yes?"

Glenn scoffed. "Of course. Anything you'd like to share about yourself before we throw ourselves into the unknown?"

"Uh, my favorite color is orange, I love painting and I'm a relatively powerful Magi," Lucian said off the top of his head. Milena blinked confusedly while Liara chuckled softly. Sahro stretched his hand out with a respectful smile.

"You look strong. At least you won't hold us back. And you do sound nicer than other noble bastards."

Milena choked, coughing her lungs out. Glenn bit on his lip, his hands on his waist.

"That's enough time wasted. Let's get to it. The faster this expedition into...wherever this Rift will lead is over, the faster we can all go back enjoying some real rest."

"Sounds so lame!" blurted out Diamanes aloud. Lucian snapped and looked at Glenn curiously, but the latter didn't say anything. He couldn't be bothered to. Pebble phased in and out of existence as he rolled next to Glenn, refusing to use his little paws to walk like any normally behaved creature with legs. Liara played with Raijin, Sahro's fox, while Milena stared at Lucian and Sahro talking casually with wide, crazed eyes.

The strange group headed off to the target Rift. Magic barriers contained the phenomenon, stopping bolts of destruction and resisting the erosion of reality. Glenn stopped as he peered into the Rift. It was nothing like the other Rifts he previously experienced. Instead of being a dark, strange hole into reality that seemed to lead to nowhere, this Rift was like a window to another plane of existence. The colors shifted as monstrous arms and claws tried to push through the magic barriers, pushed back helplessly.

"Hmm...They trust these barriers quite a bit, don't they?" Glenn said as he looked at the magic with his Mana Sight. Lucian nodded slowly.

"It's a spell called Reality Seal. I think Sir Exan was the one who specifically developed it to counter reality warps caused by Rifts. Most traditionally taught Magi know this spell."

Sahro clicked his tongue. "Sealing the enemy won't solve the problem. We must cut the issue at the root!"

Lucian patted Sahro's shoulder in agreement. "You are correct, Brother Sahro! We must destroy this evil at once, for Munirp!"

The Black Heir glanced at Lucian, confused. "Brother...? When did I become your brother?"

The Prince either didn't hear him or simply didn't care as he walked to the magic barrier with an expectant smile. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

Glenn grinned as his Mana swirled around him. The Magi in charge of this part of the magic barrier screamed a warning before dismissing the magic. Monsters emerged from the Rift in a swarm, but they were mercilessly slaughtered by the combined might of Glenn's group. Without a shred of hesitation, all of them went through the Rift, heading off into the unknown.

The sensation was very similar to a teleportation, only much, much worse. Their guts twisted and wrenched into a painful mess as colors exploded in their eyes. Another trauma-inducing second later, they were past the Rift. Immediately, the pungent scent of sulfur and ammonia overwhelmed Glenn.

It took barely an instant for him to establish large Saturn Rings around the group, protecting them from any sudden threat. The shrieks and cries of monsters echoed from all sides, followed by bursts of air and crackling fire. Once Glenn recovered from his nausea, he finally understood where his group had landed. A landscape that looked like hell, literal tsunamis of weak monsters and rivers of lava. An aura of death permeated the vicinity, whispering in their ears.

The thing that truly drew Glenn's attention were the countless eyes making up the skies, staring down with morbid curiosity. They were all moving in different directions, making for a constantly shifting sky. No stars in that one, only eyes.

"This is the fucking Beyond!" He cursed aloud as his Mana flooded the vicinity. The pressure from the unwelcoming plane disappeared, but Glenn's Mana wasn't as infinite as he liked to believe. Liara pushed herself up, her face pale with blood trickling out of her orifices. Sahro rubbed his nose with a mechanical finger as he held his sword straight in front of him. Milena's eyes were wide with horror as she tightly clenched her dagger, her mind-related magic swirling around her. Lucian...Lucian looked amazed, his hands in his pocket as he looked at their surroundings. The Prince didn't seem disturbed whatsoever, simply enjoying their stroll into hell. Twilight shone on his shoulders, covering him like a royal cloak.

Glenn suddenly made a realization. "Shit, Liara, you need to get out of here! This place is deadly for those below the Fourth level—!"

A wave of white Mana and Aura exploded out of the Black Heiress Princess, compressing itself into a small egg that floated above her chest. Her eyes gleamed with bright, white light as the Inheritance Sigil glowed with incredible power. One moment later, the light disappeared, and the egg cracked open. A small, cute round bird flew out of it before perching itself on Liara's shoulder.

Sahro grunted as crimson lightning flared up into his mechanical arm and around his sword. "Well, wasn't that a timely breakthrough?"

Liara looked at her hands with a soft smile, before pressing them to the ground. A large ring of light appeared around them before rising and floating above the group. The monsters touched by the light immediately went up in flames, burnt to a crisp. Glenn laughed in awe as Nelg appeared in his hand, a longsword shining under the ominous gleam of the Beyond.

"Well, it's good to see that no one is lagging behind!"

And then, as if of one mind, hell rained down on the Beyond's creatures.