Chapter 493: To the Elf Kingdom
“Lucien?” Max muttered, surprised to hear from him again after so long. The familiar voice brought back mories of strange tis and even stranger encounters, but what caught Max off guard more than the call itself was what Lucien said—soone who could help with his soul problem.
Max’s heart skipped a beat at the thought.
‘Is it the Witch of the North? I should check it out,’ he thought, his gaze drifting across the tenth floor of the Tower of Truth, now empty of demons. With them gone, he felt the tower would return to its peaceful state soon enough—a place of learning and growth instead of tension and conflict.
That was the kind of tower he had envisioned since gaining his Authority.
Turning to Alice and Lenavira, Max’s eyes softened. “I have a matter to attend,” he said calmly, his voice steady but sincere. “And I promise… after I’m done with this, I’ll co for you.”
But Alice, as always, saw through him. She narrowed her eyes, her voice sharper. “What soul problem is he talking about, Max?” she asked, clearly not convinced by his vague promise.
Max hesitated. He opened his mouth to speak, but the words caught in his throat. What could he even say to ease her worry? There was no simple explanation for the damage he carried inside.
But then, he exhaled slowly, making his decision. “Co with then,” he said, eting her eyes with quiet determination. “You’ll know everything.”
He had kept her in the dark before, thinking it was for her own good—but not anymore. If she was going to be by his side, then she deserved to know the truth. All of it.
“You should co too, since we’re going to your kingdom after all,” Max said, glancing at Princess Lenavira with a faint smile. She blinked, caught off guard for a second, then quickly nodded in agreent.
Without wasting ti, Max turned toward the crack in space—a strange shimring tear floating behind him—and stepped through it.
Alice followed right after him, her eyes flicking around warily as if expecting the tear to shift or vanish before she passed through.
Lenavira ca next, her expression a mix of curiosity and caution as she entered. And then, the mont all three figures disappeared through it, the crack quietly sealed itself behind them, fading away like a mirage under sunlight—silent, clean, and absolute, as if it had never existed in the first place.
***
Just as they passed through the crack, the strange sensation of stepping between realities faded and the three of them—Max, Alice, and Lenavira—found themselves standing in a clean, spacious hall bathed in soft white light.
The walls shimred with faint golden threads, as if space itself was stitched together by sothing ancient and powerful. It was the hall Max had walked once before.
And at the center of the hall stood a single figure—a young man no older than sixteen, with sharp red eyes and unruly red hair that brushed past his brows. Lucien.
His presence was oddly relaxed, almost carefree, but the mont he saw Max, a smile tugged at his lips. “Max, you’re here… and alive. Good.”
His gaze then shifted gently to Alice. “You must be Max’s friend. Welco to my ho.”
“I am Alice.” Alice nodded lightly introducing herself, her expression a bit confused as she unable to see through his strength.
Lucien turned toward a sleek door tucked at the edge of the hallway, clearly intent on leading them further in, but before he could reach for the handle, Max spoke up, his voice low and direct. “Is the Witch of the North here?”
At that, Lucien paused and offered a faint smile, one that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Yup. Not just her—seems like sothing major is brewing between the two continents. A lot of people are moving pieces behind the scenes. Leaders from Valora are gathering too.”
Hearing this, Max’s expression tightened, a sharp glint flashing through his eyes. Whatever was happening, it wasn’t small.
Lucien opened the door with a light push, and they stepped into his room. Surprisingly, it was barren—just a bed pushed against one side, a wooden table with a pair of VR gaming glasses lying idly on top along with a chair and nothing else.
As always.
‘Does this guy only play gas or what?’ Max thought to himself, eyeing the plain room. The only standout object—a pair of VR gaming glasses on the table—seed oddly out of place for soone involved in the political and mystical complexities of two entire continents.
And it wasn’t like anything else Max had seen other than the VR gaming glasses in his room for the last two tis he was here.
Before he could dwell on it further, Lucien turned to them with a polite smile. “Princess Lenavira and Alice, you two must wait here,” he said gently but firmly. “The place I’m about to take Max is… forbidden. Even I can’t bend the rules enough to bring anyone else in. So, forgive my inability to take you and please wait here quietly.”
Max instinctively frowned at the words, but he didn’t argue. Deep down, he understood. The Witch of the North was not just another power—she was a legend, a mystery cloaked in secrecy, and anything related to her likely demanded an equally veiled approach.
And if sothing wrong go down there, forget about Alice, he couldn’t even protect himself. So he didn’t mind if Alice stayed behind for this.
He turned to Alice, his voice soft. “I promise I’ll tell you everything when I’m done with this.”
She looked at him with worry swimming in her eyes, but she nodded. “Take care.”
A small smile curved on Max’s lips. “You too.” He held her gaze for a mont longer, then turned to Lucien. “Let’s go.”
Without another word, Lucien placed a hand on Max’s shoulder. A pulse of energy shimred between them—and in the blink of an eye, both of them vanished from the room, leaving Alice and Lenavira behind in the quiet stillness.
“Alice, you wanted to visit my elf kingdom, right?” Princess Lenavira said with a soft smile, her eyes glowing with pride. “Let’s go. It’s ti I show you just how amazing my kingdom truly is.”
Alice’s eyes lit up instantly, the gloom of the past year finally lifting from her face. She nodded quickly, unable to contain her excitent. “Let’s go! Let’s go!” she said with a laugh, grabbing Lenavira’s hand as if they were old childhood friends about to embark on their favorite adventure.
And with that, the two girls walked out of the room together, their footsteps light, voices full of anticipation echoing through the quiet halls. For the first ti in a long while, there was joy. There was laughter between them.
***
Max suddenly found himself floating in an utterly bizarre realm, a place that looked nothing like the normal world he knew. Everything around him floated—tables, TVs, chairs, stacks of books, strange tools, even clothes—all drifting in a soft pink space that shimred like the inside of a bubble. It felt like being trapped inside soone’s daydream.
There was no ground, no ceiling, just endless pink hue and drifting objects that had no business being together.
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