Fate's Encounter

The violent shaking sent every transcendent scrambling to stabilize themselves with witchcraft.

"What's going on? Is someone attacking us?"

Every structure in Barbie Restaurant had been inscribed with magic-pattern arrays that stabilized space. No matter what state the restaurant was in or where it was—flying, drifting, even moving mechanically—those inside would never feel it shake.

Yet now, they were experiencing such violent tremors. There was only one possibility: someone was attacking Barbie Restaurant! The force of the attack had already exceeded the magic-pattern arrays' limits!

As the unceasing attacks rolled in like waves, the magic-pattern arrays teetered on the brink of collapse. The exquisite crystal chandelier hanging from the center of the hall swung from side to side like a pendulum. The crackling sounds of collisions blended into one continuous din.

As the only ordinary person present, Angel had thought he would surely make a fool of himself amid such violent shaking. Yet just as the fractured floor was about to fling him away with its jolting rhythm, Soup Weasel spun over in a ballet pose. He used some unknown witchcraft, and Angel, who had been on the verge of losing his balance, suddenly felt an unusual steadiness.

Though he was clearly standing on a shaking floor, he felt even more stable than if he were standing on solid ground.

Wizards truly are the most miraculous beings in this world, Angel thought.

While Angel was still marveling, Gloria suddenly rose into the air and shouted angrily toward the outside.

"Sanders, what are you trying to do?!"

After that question, the shaking abruptly ceased for a moment, and a soft chuckle drifted in from beyond the curtains.

"Heh heh, I merely wanted to come in and confirm something. Unfortunately, the defenses inside were too strong, so I had no choice but to meet them head-on."

The deep voice made everyone's expressions change. None of them had expected the one attacking Barbie Restaurant to be Sanders!

If it had been anyone else, they might have had the strength to fight if they joined forces. But against the man outside, even if they doubled their numbers, they might not escape unscathed.

Sanders had forcibly detained Sabo in the Devil Sea. Sabo had secretly summoned Jeral and the others only because they represented the organizations behind them, not because they had the ability to stand against Sanders! If Sanders had not cared about offending the wizard organizations, they could only flee while he had not yet been thoroughly enraged.

.

That was because Sanders had advanced to a Level 2 wizard decades ago, while every wizard on their side was only Level 1. The difference between Level 1 and Level 2 might not have seemed great, but the depth of that gulf was even greater than the gap between apprentices and formal wizards! Moreover, even among Level 2 wizards, Sanders stood among the very best.

They found it strange, however. Had Sanders not always been mild toward Barbie Restaurant? Why had he suddenly flown into such a rage? And he had said he wanted to enter to confirm something—what exactly was it? Was it so important that he would not hesitate to fall out with Gloria, prompting him to attack so fiercely?

Gloria had thought of that as well, and her thoughts went even further.

Every dozen or so years, Sanders would come to her to synthesize Twisted Baworms. Though she and Sanders could not be called close friends, they did share a basic acquaintance. Generally speaking, Sanders had always treated Barbie Restaurant mildly, because she was the only one in the entire wizarding world capable of synthesizing Twisted Baworms. More importantly, Sanders was one of those who knew of "that Great One."

With his deterrence looming over them, Sanders would never easily fall out with her.

Yet under such double deterrence, Sanders had still dared to act. Unless this matter was exceedingly important—unless it absolutely concerned his own future—otherwise, with Sanders's indifferent nature, he would never behave this way.

"Something concerning his future, so important that he does not even care about Twisted Baworms. Could it be..." Gloria's thoughtful gaze flicked toward the youth standing beside Soup Weasel. "Is it because of him?"

Angel, the fortunate youth Toby had taken a liking to.

What was there about him that Sanders was so eager to "confirm" that he would not hesitate to fall out with her?

If it was not him, then why had Sanders suddenly attacked just as Angel was about to undergo his talent test?

Gloria looked Angel up and down, her gaze finally settling on his bare back.

A flash of insight struck Gloria, and she vaguely formed a guess.

She remembered Angel's earlier account, in which he had said that he entered a strange and bizarre world. She had not thought much of it then, but combined with Sanders's drastic actions now, there seemed to be some inexplicable connection between the two.

Sanders was known as the Phantom Demon Master. Those unfamiliar with him might think Sanders specialized in illusions. But Gloria knew that the title Phantom Demon did not simply refer to his attainments in illusion arts. There was another, far greater reason: an exceedingly strange other plane—the Nightmare Realm.

The Nightmare Realm was a plane with an unstable location. It had only been recorded in the Record of Wilderness Expeditions Across Boundless Planes two hundred years ago. To this day, no stable passage connected it to the wizarding world. At present, the only way to enter the Nightmare Realm was by chance, through spatial holes that randomly opened when it periodically drew near the wizarding world.

Everyone who had entered the Nightmare Realm so far had done so by such chance. To date, fewer than ten people had entered the Nightmare Realm and returned to the wizarding world intact. That alone showed how terrifying the Nightmare Realm was.

Those who had successfully returned to the wizarding world spoke of the Nightmare Realm in veiled terms. Whenever they mentioned it, they carried deep apprehension and plainly visible greed. Their evaluations of the Nightmare Realm were astonishingly similar—

"Project reality, illuminate illusion, create truth."

Gloria had never been to the Nightmare Realm, but she knew that much of Sanders's skill bore the shadow of that realm. And that description of the Nightmare Realm reminded her of what Angel had described earlier.

—Exactly the same as Pat Manor, except that a group of strange creatures lived inside.

Was that the Nightmare Realm's "projected reality"?

At that thought, Gloria linked Sanders and Angel together once more.

If the place Angel had gone to during his talent test truly was the Nightmare Realm, then Sanders's sudden aggression had an explanation.

Though Gloria had more or less figured out the crucial point, how she should handle this matter now became difficult.

On one side was the most honored holder of Barbie Restaurant's gold card; on the other was the Phantom Demon Master renowned throughout the Southern Region.

"That Great One" had already left the Southern Region centuries ago. Deterrence based solely on reputation would eventually reach its limit.

Gloria's silence was met by Sanders's continued rampage. Amid the violent shaking, even the chandelier's candle flames were flung loose. If not for the control of Soup Weasel and Greasy Bird, the fire would already have spread. Yet in those few short minutes, several magnificent carpets had begun to burn.

In the end, Gloria sighed, waved her hand, and ordered Greasy Bird to lift the restrictions on the banquet hall.

After wavering between the two ends of the scales for so long, she had still chosen Sanders. Sometimes reality always forced people to bow their heads; no matter how beautiful the future, it was still only an illusion.

As the curtains in the hall were drawn aside, tap, tap, tap—

A black-clad man filled with aristocratic bearing strode in with firm, steady steps. No one could have believed that this refined middle-aged man was the culprit behind the storm-like assault just moments before.

Angel, too, secretly observed the newcomer. Short, curled gray-green hair showed beneath the brim of his black felt hat. His face, touched lightly by the years, remained strikingly handsome. A golden monocle rested on his high nose bridge, while he wore a black tailcoat, white silk gloves edged in gold, and carried a black cane.

Every movement Sanders made was incomparably elegant. The aura he carried was like that of an aristocrat whose lineage had endured for thousands of years—distant yet exquisite, making people feel from the depths of their hearts that he could only be admired from afar. Even drawing slightly closer felt like a desecration.

Sanders's every step tugged at the hearts of everyone present.

What had he come for? What did he want to confirm? Every transcendent watched the man who had remained so calm and composed, their eyes full of confusion and a trace of fear.

At last, Sanders stopped before Angel.

"Good afternoon, young man."

The two faced each other, and Angel was somewhat at a loss. Especially after the recent shaking, his legs were weak as he leaned against a table. He had taken off his clothes and had not yet put them back on, leaving his upper body bare. Cold wind blew in from beyond the curtains, the draft so biting that it made him shiver.

The bare-backed youth and the nobly dressed Sanders stared at each other in that awkward tableau.

Heloline was somewhat puzzled. "Could Sanders have come for Angel?" Otherwise, how could she explain Sanders attacking just as she was about to test Angel?

A sense of crisis suddenly rose within Heloline. It was not the threat of danger to her life, but the crisis of being about to lose some opportunity—or rather, a feeling of regret.

Moro, who had originally been standing beside Angel, suddenly flung his hand aside and leaped several steps back, putting distance between himself and Angel. He did not dare approach Sanders. Even stealing a glance at him made Moro's skin crawl.

When Sanders stopped before Angel, understanding flashed through Gloria's eyes. "So it really was for him."

For a moment, the scene fell silent.