"I think we'll have to split up."

Merry was right, while Alexa knows the whereabouts of both Monster Lords, that doesn't mean we could get both of them at the same time.

I think the Shadow Lord made a deal with the Zombie Lord.

It seemed to know that we could follow one of them, so they split up as a distraction to not get in the way of the real goal, reaching the Fake System.

"I don't think it's a debate that I'll go after the Shadow Lord and the Iligers while you'll go after the Zombie Lord."

"Yeah, I don't think the Coral Kingdom would've let us pass with so many armed soldiers anyway. The Stone Nation was an exception since we knew each other and it was just the Holy Army."

I looked over the battlefield one more time seeing how the bodies were looted and then thrown into a fire pit.

Gruesome sights, I don't know if I'll sleep well tonight.

"I think I'll leave Merry, I don't see a reason for me to stay here anymore."

"You leaving already? But you didn't say bye to the Pope, or even Green. I'm sure there are a few places and people you want to visit before you'll go."

Merry tried to make me stay longer, probably because she wasn't used to the corpses yet.

But the Sandstone Kingdom is the last place I'd like to visit in my spare time.

Too many bad memories in one place and the chances of people figuring out my true identity kept increasing.

"Merry, you are a hero and someone who would see more of those kinds of battlefields. I don't think you should run away from it, instead you have to face it."

She froze at my words for a few moments, before taking a deep breath and looked at the battlefield.

"You're right, sorry for holding you down, have a safe trip."

That hurt, she understood the message but it still hurt.

"Thank you... good luck in your battle as well."

With the final goodbye said, we split up, and I walked under the moonlight over the desert.

After we traveled far enough, Violet appeared beside me and put her hand on my shoulder trying to comfort me.

This made me smile and appreciate the friends I have beside me.

"Thank you, Violet, I'm already feeling better. Also, thank you for saving me that night, I would've been a goner without you."

Suddenly her face turned purple which made me smile.

"You're welcome..."

She responded in her raspy voice.

I think I'm starting to get used to this.

Suddenly she punched Alexa out of nowhere, making the blue angle hit the sand a few blocks away.

I was confused by this but quickly realized what happened.

"Alexa, please stop trying to scan Violet, she doesn't like it and you know it."

I let out a sigh and went to pick the angel up, with Violet showing her displeasure on her face.

"No, you'll have to regenerate on your own as a punishment for annoying Violet."

Now my monster friend was happy and the demi-god was annoyed at the extra work.

We walked for hours where I talked with Violet about her invisible life and what she was doing while we were in towns.

She used a small number of words, and it was fun for me to interpret what she was saying.

Sometimes she would get frustrated from lack of understanding while other times she would laugh at what I was saying.

Alexa was preoccupied with its regeneration so it didn't join the conversation, and that's probably for the best.

The sun was getting up in the sky and I was starting to get tired.

"Alexa, how far is the Shadow Lord?"

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

<800 blocks far, and growing sir.>

I think I traveled more than 200 blocks, which only means that the other party is still moving at a fast pace.

If I skipped a few nights or even drank a few potions I think I can catch up with them, but then what?

It could order the Shadow Lord to kill or distract me.

And it's not like I wanted them in the first place, the Iligers are the true danger.

So I shouldn't concentrate on catching up with them, instead, I should think of a way to get rid of the Iligers in the Coral Kingdom, or at least the ones who know the way to Alexa's main body.

But with my speed, I would get to them either after the Prince or exactly as the Prince arrives which would not help my upcoming battle.

That means that I should take on a riskier approach by going through the Nether.

Unfortunately, I don't have a loadstone set at the Puperfish City to help me travel, and the compass that I have to get to the General doesn't work in the Nether.

That means I'll have to build a portal every couple hundred blocks and check the compass to see if I'm on the right track.

The annoying part would be that I'll leave behind portal frames which surely would attract unwanted attention.

I guess I'll have to break them and build them underground.

Of course, I'll brake the connection as well so nobody will accidentally end up in another dimension while mining.

I looked around one final time and dug a small hole.

Then out of the hole I made a room illuminated by a lantern hanging from the ceiling.

With the preparations done, I built a portal frame, splashed Alexa with an invisibility potion then lit the obsidian frame.

The space began to bend, then it broke, making a connection between the two dimensions.

As the connection was made I could see what was beyond the frame, and the only thing I could do was curse my luck.

POV: The Mad Prince

Boredom.

That's the feeling I had all my life ever since I was born.

I have all the richness a Brute would dream of, and all the knowledge a Pigling would trade for.

For I am the Prince of the Nether, and everything is or will be under my rule.

I was blessed with a golden body and a sharp mind, but I would call it a curse more than a blessing.

There's no more challenge for me to overcome, everything is too easy or short-lived, that's why when I get bored, I take my army and conquer the rest of the Nether, stimulating my bored mind for a few more days.

Today was like any day on a march towards a fortress that is supposed to be ruled by a powerful black skeleton that is written to be from the creation times.

A challenge to say the least.

Just as I was preparing to eat my meal, space started to fold in the middle of the camp, and an obsidian frame appeared out of thin air.

Everyone in the camp froze and looked at what just happened taking their weapons ready for a fight.

In the middle of the frame stood a man with black armor that made me shiver.

Blood was getting pumped into my veins, my mind suddenly became sharp and my soul was screaming not to lose this opportunity.

What I was seeing in from of me was what I was searching for, the life that I always wanted.

The man took out his crossbow with a weird-looking arrow and it pointed at the frame of the portal.

He was trying to destroy the portal, I can't let him do that!

I took out my crossbow and shot my arrow at his crossbow making it explode and taking all parties involved by surprise.

But even in the middle of the explosion, the man didn't seem to take any damage.

Before he could take another action I ran and tackled him to the ground, using the confusion to my advantage.

As soon as I passed the obsidian frame, I felt that something wrong was happening within my body.

I couldn't explain it, but I knew if I stayed for too long in here I would die in extrusion pain.

And since I couldn't stay for too long in here I picked the heavy man up and threw him in the camp where he was quickly surrounded by veteran soldiers.

"Stop! Don't kill him, I want to talk first."

The man quickly got up, looked around, and saw that he was surrounded. Then he took out a Perl and was ready to teleport back into the portal.

But the Brutes surrounding him weren't ordinary, but the best Warriors who had ample experience to react to any situation.

So at the first sign of the pearl, somebody shot an arrow breaking it in his hand.

The portal still gave him hope, so that meant I had to destroy it.

From my inventory, I took out a glowing red potion and threw it at the obsidian frame.

When the bottle was broken, a huge explosion appeared spreading fire everywhere and blowing everyone back with the shockwave except for the black man.

"Seriously, why did you even do that? What do you want from me?"

The man seems to accept his situation, at least partially.

He had his sword out and ready to place blocks for some reason.

"Give up and answer my questions, otherwise I'll have to kill you!"

"How do I always end up in those kinds of situations."

The man in black armor spoke with frustration.

I tried to read his expression, but the shadows of the helmet made it impossible, most likely with the help of an enchantment.

"Follow me."

With that, I made the man follow me to my house.

Once inside, I told the soldiers to wait outside and they did without any question.

Now, I was alone with a man from another world who was looking all over the place for a plan to escape.

While I was confident about defeating him, I had a feeling that I would suffer heavy losses if a fight broke out.

This made my Brutes blood boil but the Pigling head was keeping it in check.

"Who are you stranger from another world, and what's your intention?"

The man finally looked at me studying me with from head to toe.

"My name is Hu- no it's Trader in this world, and I came to explore the land in this place. Unfortunately I accidentally opened a portal in your camp."

So he was giving me a false name, and a plain excuse.

"You can call me the Mad Prince, my father is the Ruler of the Nether a Brute, while my mother is one of his many concubines a Pigling. Now tell me Trader, why shouldn't I kill you for attempting to assassinate noble blood?"

"Wha-never mind, this is a clear attempt of getting under my skin. What do you want from me? Otherwise you wouldn't left me alive."

I could only smile at the man, I liked smart people the most since they tend to think their superior from others and would talk endless if you pulled the right strings.

And this man, seemed like the smart kind.

I wonder how long it would take before he'll talk.

"You don't seem afraid even in this situation like you have an escape plan. Even I the Mad Prince don't think I can escape this place alive, so what gives you this confidence?"

"Let's just say, that I find myself in those kinds of situations more often then not."

Looks like he has some amusing stories to tell, but I'll double the guards around the house just in case he actually has the strength to get out.

"Then I'll get straight to the point. How do I opened portals to the Overworld?"

The man froze.