When Lulan Vuia's guard, Verat Vuia, turned back, he saw Niear Cia. "As I thought! You brat—you were the one who betrayed us from the start!" Verat shouted in anger, his voice trembling with pain. His eyes were filled with fury as he raised his sword, glowing white with deadly energy. He swung it with all his strength, using his strongest fatal move.
Before the white lesser bim could even arrive, Niear Cia had already disappeared. He used his second-dimensional artifact to escape instantly. Niear Cia had once been rich—richer than anyone in the group. He owned many powerful artifacts, more than the whole team combined. That was why he could act so calmly.
"You coward! If you have courage, then fight me face to face!" Verat Vuia roared, his voice echoing through the forest.
Niear Cia didn't answer. He quietly took out another artifact and dropped it on the ground. A white circle appeared beneath their feet, glowing brighter with every passing second. The air trembled as strange energy spread through the forest. Niear Cia running out of the circle and stood at a distance, watching. When they died, he would leave quietly.
"You brat! My sister died for you, and now you're trying to kill us too?" Lulan Vuia shouted, his eyes bloodshot with fury. "My sister truly loved the wrong person!"
Their voices were full of pain and anger as the circle grew hotter and brighter. The ground cracked beneath their feet, and the smell of burning filled the air.
Watching them, Niear felt his heart grow heavy. His face remained calm, but deep inside, guilt and sorrow filled him. They were once his comrades—people who fought beside him. He wasn't a demon, and he wasn't a heartless. He clenched his fists and whispered, "It's just for survival. Every living being kills other life forms to survive. Like how we kill the monsters to survive. I don't need to feel guilty. If I don't kill them now, one day I will die for them"
The white circle flashed brighter and brighter, until it was almost blinding. Verat Vuia fell to his knees, blood dripping from his mouth. His body trembled for a moment before falling still. One by one, the others followed, their screams fading until only silence remained.
Niear sighed deeply. He hadn't wanted things to end this way. The forest that once looked colorful and full of life now seemed cold and dead.
He walked forward slowly, stepping past the burned bodies, and stopped beside the monster's corpse. Its body still gave off a faint glow. He pressed his hand against its chest and pulled out a glowing sphere—the monster's energy core. It was from a third-dimensional creature.
The glowing ball shone brightly in his hand, but his eyes were dull. He felt no joy, only a deep heaviness inside. His gain could never match his loss. He had made the entire Vuia family his enemy. Staying in the Cia Empire now meant certain death. But even if he escaped, he didn't know if he would be safe anywhere else.
"I can use this third-dimensional monster's energy ball to travel to the nearest empire," he muttered quietly. Then, gripping the glowing sphere tightly, he began to run.
He ran as fast as he could, his cloak fluttering behind him. The colors of the rainbow forest faded in the distance. After hours of running, he finally reached the forest's edge. He was exhausted, but he couldn't stop. He needed to find a road, a city, or someone who could help him.
After walking for a long time, he finally saw a man standing beside the road. "Brother, do you know where the nearest city is?" Niear asked.
The man pointed behind him and said, "Go that way. Follow the path and you'll find it."
Niear nodded without saying thank you. The man watched him go and murmured, "That kid… he's a Dimen human, I think."
Niear didn't care. His mind was filled with worry and exhaustion. After some time, he finally saw a huge city ahead. The white walls shone under the sunlight, and the tall towers reached the clouds. It was beautiful, but Niear had no time to admire it.
He entered the city and walked through the busy streets until he found one of the richest shops. The place was full of merchants buying and selling rare items. For Dimen humans, trading materials like energy balls was normal.
"What's the price of this?" Niear asked quickly, placing the glowing sphere on the counter.
The shop manager, a short man with sharp eyes, looked at it carefully and said, "It's a low-quality third-dimensional energy ball. I'll give you 700 Dimen stones for it."
Niear frowned. "It's from a third-dimensional rainbow rabbit!" he said angrily.
The manager raised his eyebrows, pretending to be surprised. "Oh? From a rainbow rabbit? Then I can pay 1,500 Dimen stones."
Niear smiled slightly. He thought the price was fair and agreed right away. He didn't even try to bargain—he didn't know how. He had grown up in a rich family where he never needed to.
After getting the Dimen stones, he went straight to the caravan zone. The area was crowded with merchants, travelers, and beasts pulling large wagons. After searching for a while, he found a caravan heading toward the Fesian Empire.
"How much for one seat?" Niear asked the caravan master.
"Only 600 Dimen stones, young master," the man replied politely.
Niear thought to himself, "That's ten times more than a southern region trip. It must be dangerous. No wonder they charge this much." He also regretted the Dimen stones he had given to the Vuia family's caravan group before.
The journey to the Fesian Empire was long and dangerous. Many monsters attacked the caravan, and several groups of robbers tried to ambush them along the way. But the guards were skilled and brave. In the end, they all arrived safely—except one guard, who died by accident. A few unlucky merchants lost their goods, but most reached safely.
When Niear finally saw the tall silver walls of the Fesian Empire, his eyes widened slightly. "So this is the Fesian Empire…" he whispered softly, his voice filled with both awe and worry. Then his face darkened. "But what if they find out who I am? If they learn I'm from the Prince of the Cia Empire, they'll kill me for sure."
Originally, Niear had planned to go to the Ghiena Empire, but fate had other plans. Because of a few small twists, he ended up here instead.
The Cia Empire shared borders with both the Ghiena and Fesian Empires. Ghiena was the weakest among them, while Fesian was the strongest. Naturally, Cia Empire and Ghiena Empire became allies, standing together against Fesian Empire. They always tried to suppress the Fesian Empire's power—but no matter how hard they tried, they could never win...