"But isn't sending a king as an envoy a bit excessive?"
Richard looked at Wild Wind, one brow lifting slightly. "You think I'm a king?"
Wild Wind's hoarse voice carried a trace of solemn depth.
"You are already the Uncrowned King of this alliance. If the war ends normally, only two paths await you: death or becoming a king.
I do not think you will die."
"I hope you're right." Richard smiled freely. "But you got one thing wrong. I seek power not for power itself, but to erase that monster.
If that monster disappears, power... will not matter much to me."
"Not important does not mean it will be abandoned." Wild Wind's voice remained calm. "Some things are better to have than not have. If you want to cast everything aside and travel through the Endless Dimensions, or other World Clusters, you had better find a successor... Consider it a lesson from our history."
The disappearance of the First Curse Demon Emperor had dealt an enormous blow to the Curse Demon Empire. If Wild Ghost Sage had not risen so suddenly, the current map of the Cluster might well have looked entirely different.
"I'll remember that."
A great Rune gate opened before Richard and swallowed his figure.
Not far from them, the massive fleet had already drawn close to the world. Tractor beams as thick as mountain ranges covered half the world, yet the world barrier remained utterly unmoved.
At the center of those beams, a dominator-level Civilization Devourer avatar was using the power of the tractor beams to complete an enormous spell capable of engulfing the world.
"I can't let you have your way."
A ghostly, savage cackle came from within Wild Wind. His entire body instantly swelled, growing until it was almost larger than the Civilization Devourer's