I reign supreme in the Western fantasy world for eternity.

The reputation of being a "hero" was clearly useful; after a brief silence, Ian began to recount his past:

"As I said before, twenty years ago, I chased a deer into the depths of the forest, and when the fog cleared, I was standing on a hillside unfamiliar to your world."

Unable to speak the language and surrounded by unfamiliar surroundings, my royal dignity forbade me to beg or steal. So I had no choice but to pretend to be mute and survive on the gold coins and jewelry I carried with me.

"It took me more than half a year to learn the basic common language. Later I found that my battle aura could still be used in that world, although it was far less powerful than it was here, but it was enough to deal with low-level monsters."

I registered with the Adventurers' Guild, took on low-level quests, and learned magic while earning money...

Ian recounts his experiences, from his initial predicament of being transported to another world twenty years ago due to language barriers, to his struggles in making a living by doing quests at the Adventurers' Guild, and finally to his journey of learning magic and making companions.

As Ji Tian listened, he realized that the man was not getting to the point at all, so he raised his hand to interrupt: "Make it short."

Ian was taken aback, and after a moment of hesitation, he spoke again:

"I met Evan while doing a quest at the Adventurers' Guild, and he immediately recognized that my battle aura was not from this world."

I told him about my past, and he felt there must be a way for me to return to my original world. He was willing to help me on the condition that I assist him with his research.

Mia frowned and asked:

"So you imprisoned Dean when he came into this world? For what you call research?"

Ian shook his head with a wry smile upon hearing this:

"No, it's mainly because I've known Evan for over a decade and consider him an excellent scholar and friend, so when Dean told me he might one day destroy the world, I didn't believe him."

When Dean tried to assassinate him, I was even less convinced, but it wasn't until I saw that blood-red sky that I realized Evan was more insane than I had imagined.

Ji Tian pondered and asked:

When was the last time you communicated with Evan?

"About three hours ago, he said, 'It's going well, it's just a matter of time.'"

Mia repeated the word, "Three hours? What could he possibly do in three hours that would be irreversible?"

"If it's him, that's enough," Ian replied briefly.

Ji Tian gazed at the increasingly dense crimson sky: "So, what do you think he'll do after he gets the World Tree?"

"...I don't know, but I'm certain of one thing: Evan is truly devoted to his research and doesn't care about power. He's not researching the World Tree to become king. As for what he really wants, only he himself knows."

These words surprised Ji Tian, ​​and at the same time made him feel a little emotional: doing something out of pure thirst for knowledge is even more dangerous.

Ji Tian turned to look in the direction of the golden dragon and the tiger demon. The blood-red light reflected on them, dyeing their scales and fur a dark red.

The tiger demon's body was still trembling slightly as it desperately resisted the World Tree's summons.

He turned back to Ian: "One last question. What special abilities does the World Tree possess? I've heard before that it can bring infinite possibilities, could you be more specific?"

"Sorry, I don't know either."

Then we can only judge its abilities and status by its name.

No matter how you look at it, it's not simple. We must make the most thorough plans, even if it means breaking through to the next level in this world ahead of schedule.

With a thought, Ji Tian began to try to recall the spiritual power that had dissipated in his original world, and said at the same time:

"I need to catch Evan first. Little Flower, can you take us to the location of the World Tree?"

The golden dragon raised its vertical pupils, glanced at the crimson sky in the distance, then looked at Ji Tian, ​​flicking its tail: "It's possible, but what will you do after you fly over?"

"Let's catch that troublemaking adventurer first, and then we'll deal with the rest."

"Come on up, everyone."

The golden dragon stood up, spread its wings, and the swirling air currents scattered the fallen leaves and dust on the ground.

……

Another world, a mountain range filled with flowers.

Beneath the vine-covered sky, the campfires still flickered in the dim light.

A few petals, already torn into small pieces, lay spread out in front of Amy, and she was idly folding them into some kind of shape.

Lila squatted down in front of her, her hands resting on her knees, her light brown eyes fixed on the movements in her hands.

"Sister, what are you stacking up?"

"A paper crane—no, a petal crane—is at least more interesting than eating raw flower petals, isn't it?"

As Amy spoke, she placed the folded flower petal crane in her palm, lifted it up to look at it, and then swallowed it in one gulp with a frown.

"Sister, you said you studied at the Royal Capital Magic Academy? What was it like there?"

Amy's eyes lit up at this, and she said with great interest:

"That place is huge. The library alone is as big as an estate. There's even a thin mist hanging over the restricted area. It's said to be a magical barrier set up to prevent students from sneaking in."

"Did you peek, sister?"

"I...of course I didn't! I'm a well-known model student at the academy!"

"Really? Then why did you say you were bombed in the library yesterday?"

Amy answered without changing her expression:

"That was an experimental accident. I participated in the academy's alchemy competition that year, intending to improve a rune structure that could instantly cast fireballs. However, I drew the runes backwards, and instead of instantly casting fireballs, I accidentally cast my own robes."

"So, you were blown up while drawing runes in the library?"

Amy smiled awkwardly upon hearing this.

"Hmm~ You guessed right."

"Were you punished?"

"I was punished. The head of the teaching department made me copy 'Basic Theory of Magic' three times. That thing is so thick. I copied it two and a half times, and my roommate helped me finish the other half."

"Your roommate is really nice to you."

"Okay? She used my staff to roast sweet potatoes for three months, so we're helping each other out."

Lila was amused and was about to ask something else when a muffled buzzing sound suddenly came from above her head.

The sound came from above the vine-covered sky, initially low, but quickly becoming clearer, closer, and louder.

Amy looked up.

The vine-woven sky was trembling violently, and cracks appeared between the originally tightly intertwined vines, from which purple lightning shone.

"boom--!"

A deafening roar exploded from the sky.

The vines collapsed inward the instant the sound reached them, and several thick vines snapped off from the edge of the dome, curling and falling downwards, crashing to the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.

But the vines quickly grew back, blocking out the sky.

Amy suddenly stood up, looked up at the sky that kept cracking and then healing, her pupils contracting slightly.

"Is this... reinforcements arriving?"