Somewhere in Serisis.

00:35 am. 23rd Banem 1092.

31 Days to World's End.

Drixlia huffed as it absent-mindedly dug at the bare ground. The kirin was bored out of its mind, but it could not risk leaving its current position. Every now and then, a curious or foolhardy monster would attempt to draw near, but most times, a well-placed lightning bolt was sufficient in chasing them away. Luckily, this was not a high-leveled area, so barring any unfortunate miracles, there was no chance of any local monsters overpowering it.

Crack!

A crack in the ground drew Drixlia's attention. The kirin harrumphed with excitement as the tear slowly widened until a hand broke through. Kashi emerged from beneath the ground with a slight frown. He had no choice but to bury his body underground to prevent the local wildlife from treating it as lunch. But, it did not take away the unpleasantness of awaking to a dust covered body.

Kashi sighed and futilely dusted himself off. "Thanks, Drix." Kashi patted the kirin with a grateful smile. Burying his body was not complete insurance. Some beasts had excellent smell, and bad luck was something he genuinely feared. So, he had Drixlia guard his body. It was a boring job, but the kirin completed it nonetheless.

Meanwhile, the monsters who had gathered around Drixlia, awaiting their chance, dispersed upon sensing the daeben's power. They only dared confront Drixlia under the assumption that the delicious being buried underground was dead. Since Kashi was not only alive, but even stronger than Drixlia, there was no longer any point.

Kashi ignored the retreating monsters. The experience points from these low-level creatures weren't worth the effort. Instead, he checked the in-game clock. Indeed just over 14 hours had passed in-game since he logged out. By now, both the Merrite and Rosen delegations should have returned to Orez. He would take care of them before going dealing with his issues.

With this at the back of his mind, Kashi patted Drixlia. "Take care of me just a little longer." He chuckled as Drixlia harrumphed and bumped its head against his. "All right. I'll be right back."

Kashi closed his eyes. When he opened them, he stood in the sky above Yggdrasil. The daeben quickly flew to the ground where he found the Merrites, Rosen and Maggots resting beneath Yggdrasil's branches.

Kashi really did not feel like talking, so he briefly informed the group that it was time to leave. He would take them to their specific destinations in a minute. The daeben left those words behind, and then returned to the real world before anyone could ask any questions.

Upon his return, Kashi took out Rosario's brush. He drew a massive ten-meter sigil on the ground, and then used [Lock]. Perhaps because of its size, it sucked out 10,000 MP before its completion. Then, as expected, the sigil caused a massive commotion as it forcefully absorbed mana from the world. Luckily, this was a remote location. No one noticed aside from a few curious monsters.

Kashi examined the sigil, and then, when he was certain it was functional, he once again returned to Orez. This time, however, he appeared near the shores, far away from the settlements. He then, once more, drew another sigil and used [Lock]. When the sigil finished forming, Kashi walked into it, and then activated [Dimension Piercer.] He hoped it would send him to the one in Destia.

Unfortunately, he received an error prompt.

A blinding light burst out and consumed Kashi. Within seconds, he pierced through space and appeared on a field outside Riven. Several Residents and Summoned gaped at the daeben who appeared from nowhere. Their jaws dropped even deeper at the kirin.Kashi frowned. Well, that put a damper on things. It appeared he had to wait a little while longer until guests could independently travel through his world. The daeben sighed and then returned to Destia. "No choice then." Kashi regarded Drixlia with a wry smile as he took out a painting from his inventory. He placed a hand on Drixlia, and then ripped up the painting.

Kashi chuckled as he glanced at Drixlia. "You really stand out." Drixlia rebutted with an angry harrumph, but Kashi ignored it. He took out Rosario's brush and then spent a few minutes drawing a carbon copy of the sigil in Serisis. Finally, he activated [Lock]. Kashi stepped out of the way, ignoring the stunned shouts as the portal gobbled up the surrounding mana.

When it was complete, Kashi opened a portal. The first contingent, King Parissius, his delegates, Leila and Stryke stepped out. Jade, Syel, Shoko, Shadow, Lunette and Miote remained in Orez.

King Parissius revealed a wry smile as he looked at his surroundings. "You couldn't drop us closer?"

Kashi smiled apologetically, and then pointed at the sigil behind him. "Sorry. I don't think they'll let me make that inside the town."

"And what is that?"

"You'll find out in a few seconds." Kashi and King Parissius shared a mischievous smile before the daeben turned to Leila. "Sorry. I'll be depending on you."

"Mm." Leila understood the importance of the next few weeks. She had to ensure the Maggots were prepared for the battle. Which meant more intensive level-boosting raids and supporting the crafting of higher-level weapons. No doubt. These upcoming days would be the greatest test of her time as Vice-Guild Master. Leila had the administrative side covered. But there was one place she could not help. One thing that bothered her. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"I'm fine." Kashi affirmed, but his smile was off.

Leila could tell because she had seen the daeben's true smile. But she could not tell what exactly was wrong. She could do many things, but mind-reading unfortunately, was not one of them. "Fine." Leila sighed. She decided to trust in Kashi this time. "Just don't overdo it. We're here if you need help."

"Yeah!" Stryke, affected by Kashi's mood also appeared subdued. His cautious gaze as he observed Kashi's expression belied his apprehension. "You have us."

Kashi looked at Stryke. "Punk."

"Ow!" Stryke cried out as he grabbed his forehead. A significant bump had risen from the spot Kashi flicked.

Pat! Kashi placed his hand on Stryke's head, and then gently ruffled it. "You're still too young to be worrying about me." The daeben then waved as he stepped back onto the sigil. "Take care of yourself. Don't slack off or you'll be eating my dust." With those words, he stomped his foot on, and then transferred 10,000 MP to the sigil.

Kashi felt a sensation similar to when he used Rinks once the sigil activated. He was suddenly 'aware' of one other door. As long as he willed it, he would be transported there. Kashi had no reason to hesitate. He once more stomped on the sigil and then said, "[Pierce]"

Light poured from the sigil, swallowing everything above it. A few seconds later, it disappeared, leaving a stunned crowd behind.

King Parissius stared at the empty spot. "BAHAHA!" The dignified King suddenly burst out laughing. "Oh. Yes. They definitely wouldn't let you build that in the city." He understood now why Kashi dropped them off here. No matter how much King Parissius trusted Kashi, the city would not stand to have such a major security breach.

King Parissius looked at the teleportation sigil, and then at the onlookers. The fact that Kashi did this in the open meant... "Destroy it."

Two wind blades suddenly shot out from either side of the king. Boom! The ground exploded, destroying all traces of the sigil. The delegates shivered as Narkis and Alex silently sheathed their blades. Moments later, they once more 'disappeared' from sight.

King Parissius examined the destroyed sigil. Once he was certain the diagram was not salvageable, he nodded with satisfaction. He turned to look at Leila. The halben sensed his gaze and returned an approving nod. 'Ah. As expected.' King Parissius smiled. It was truly gratifying to work with intelligent people. "It would appear we both have work to do."

"It would seem so." Leila nodded. She shared a look with Stryke, and then looked to the south. "I must apologize. I shall not be able to accompany you back."

King Parissius smiled and waved his hand. "Go do what you must. We will begin preparations on our end." He watched as Leila nodded, and then headed for the stable outside Riven with Stryke. Her stallion was resting there. When the young woman was out of sight, the young king's gaze turned solemn. "Once we get back, summon the Minister of War. We do not have much time left."

The delegates vehemently nodded and then followed behind their king as he returned to Riven. Of course, a hundred soldiers marched out to escort and protect him long before he reached the city walls.

King Parissius frowned as he walked into the bustling city. Four Weeks. He had to vastly improve the country's soldiers in four weeks. Only then would they stand a chance. Not just against the Chaos Order, but the increasingly powerful Summoned. The world would not be the same following that battle.

They had to be ready.

Merchant's Guild, Merriheim.

1:12 am. 23rd Banem 1092.

31 Days to World's End.

Kashi and Drixlia appeared in front of the Merchant Guild in a flash of light. The daeben let out a sigh of relief. This was the last stop. He had dropped off Absalon, Jade, Asha and the dwarfs at Aygorzi. Absalon immediately went to prepare the troops, while Jade rushed back to her lab. The new, hard deadline determined she was about to encounter a series of sleepless night as she sought to perfect everything needed for the battle. Asha began a journey to gather willing fighters to join this battle, and finally King Xafier ordered the dwarfs to ramp up production of new weapons and armour. This would be the first large-scale transaction among Aygorzi, Serisis and Rosendun. They could not mess this up!

Kashi looked at the merchants, who quickly bent their heads, and continued about their business. There was not a soul in Merriheim who did not know Kashi of the Hopeful Maggots. A man who caused chaos wherever he went. This was his reputation. It was best not to get involved with this living disaster.

The man in question did not care for the fearful or judgmental gazes. Kashi opened his portal, allowing Miote, Shadow, Lunette, Shoko, and Syel to exit. Kashi first looked at Miote. "I'll leave the bank to you."

Miote grinned. "Yeah, don't worry about it. I'll make sure we have enough cash to fund this battle." The chesch glanced at the siblings. Well, it seemed this was not an atmosphere for him to hang around. So, he tapped Kashi's shoulder and then walked into the Merchant's Guild. "See you soon, Kashi. Try not to die."

"Wait!" Kashi's call stopped the merchant in his tracks. "Catch." Kashi flung the spare pocket Syel gave him.

Miote caught the pocket with confusion in his eyes. Clack! That confusion cleared up the second he opened the case. Miote, who had followed the progression of Kashi's powers very closely, instantly guessed the purpose of the small picture. The chesch's eyes narrowed as he glared at Kashi. His lips parted, revealing a beautiful grin that did not reach his eyes. "Looks like this is not the time. But, we'll need to have a looong discussion on gradual progression in business. Kashi-dono."

"Sure. Hehe." Kashi replied with nervous laughter. He had pissed off Miote multiple times in the past, but this was the first time the chesch genuinely seemed like he would tear Kashi a new one if he got his way. Kashi swallowed and then patiently watched Miote retreat into the building.

"I guess that covers everything." Kashi sighed as he looked at the remaining four individuals. These four were special, even in this crazy guild. They did not have any outstanding duties, but none could be ignored. Kashi quickly worked out a plan on how to best utilize their time. "Uh... Lune... Lunette." Kashi's hesitation came through in his uncertain tone. "Please, gather the orchestra, and any volunteers for the Bard Division. Practice as many new songs as you can. If the enemy is as sly as we think, we'll need all new songs to catch them off-guard. The bards' buffs might just decide this battle." The daeben then said to Shadow. "Protect her. Make sure no harm comes her way. The Chaos Order knows she exists by now. They might make a play."

Shadow frowned. "If you want to protect her, why not stay?"

"I have to go." Kashi shook his head. There would be no point if the others were with him. He needed to be alone to find himself. Razznik was right. Even now, he was still depending on his teammates. That was a fatal flaw that was making him weak.

"Are you at least going to say what's going on with you?"

"...Sorry."

Frustrated, Shadow jerked his head to look at his sister. "And what about you, Sis? Not going to say anything!?"

Lunette bit her lip, but ultimately nodded and said, "Be careful."

Shadow cursed under his breath, but there was nothing he could do about it. Trauma was not something that could be overcome overnight, or just because someone wished it away. In this regard, perhaps Mato Ryumaki made them 'too human.'

"Thank you." Kashi, oblivious to Shadow's internal struggle, thanked Lunette. He then turned to Shoko and Syel. He immediately felt a headache incoming as he looked at these two cheat lifeforms. What to do with them? He could not send them out to one-shot destroy the West Claw's rebels. That might piss off those strong recluse characters. Eventually, Kashi shrugged and gave up. "You two do whatever. Just be back in time for the final fight."

Shoko grinned and elbowed Syel in the gut. "Hey. We finally got some vacation time. What do you want to do? We cannot really level much in these three weeks." This was true. The higher you climbed, the slower leveling got. Of course, you could beat this by constantly fighting higher-level creatures. Unfortunately, both Shoko and Syel were around Level 175.

In a world with a level cap of 200, there weren't many monsters around Level. 180 and above. It would take too much time to search for and start killing these monsters. At most, they would only gain 3 levels by the end of the third week. It was not worth the hassle.

The people who designed Destia evidently wanted the gamers to focus more on quests once they reached the higher levels. After all, only by putting emphasis on quests over monster-slaying could the poor fauna of the world survive.

By the way, Kashi levelled quickly despite rarely level-battling or raiding like other players, precisely because of his main quest plot-line. Multiple level increases accompanied every territory added to Rosendun's. Smaller boosts in experiences also occurred when smaller targets were met. For example, when Leila first opened relations with Serisis.

Syel looked at Kashi, Lunette, and then rested his gaze on Shoko. A small smile spread on his face as he said with twinkling eyes. "Fancy a date?"

"What?" "What?"