As they entered, the atmosphere shifted. Inside, William found a few fierce-looking masters with fierce looks on their faces. They looked like n who had lived far too long on the front lines, their skin scarred and their eyes cold.
"They are my most trusted fellow elders in the Blue Purgators," the leader introduced them with a casual wave. "Sit. Do you like drinking?" He gestured toward a large, ornate bottle filled with a dark red, potent-slling alcohol.
"Thanks," William said, taking the seat opposite the leader at the circular table, "but I don't like drinking. I prefer to keep my head clear."
"Cool, but I do," the leader said, clearly in a buoyant mood. He poured himself a glass and took a slow sip before leaning forward, his gaze intensifying. "So, the war is won. No more threats are waiting for us here, only opportunities. Isn't that right?"
"Only for ," William calmly corrected, setting a firm, imdiate boundary between his gains and theirs. He wasn't about to let the Purgators think this world was a joint trophy.
"For you, the threat is over, and it is finally safe for you to travel back to the upper realm. You've achieved your vengeance and secured your survival. That is your gain."
"I heard about that underground city portal of yours from my daughter," the leader said, his smile widening, yet his eyes remained as sharp as ever. He leaned back, crossing his arms over his chest.
"She said you handled a force from that damn palace from our realm. A group of those arrogant btches who think they can outplay everyone as they have so level of beauty... And you managed to defeat them. Isn't that right?"
"That's true indeed," William nodded, his expression neutral. He didn't let the ntion of the daughter or the palace ruffle him. "Your daughter must have visited lots of places in my world during her stay. She is quite the explorer."
He restrained himself from asking how she was doing specifically. He didn't want to show any personal attachnt or vulnerability in front of these battle-hardened elders.
Besides, he was absolutely sure his friends and guild masters wouldn't let any harm befall her; she was a guest of the Fox Guild, and in William's world, that was the highest form of protection.
"She is fascinated with your world," the leader kept smiling, though the temperature in the tent seed to drop a few degrees.
"She said the whole world is under your control now. Every place she visited was all under your guild's banner. Which reminds , how co such an advanced concept as a unified global guild finds its place in such a lower realm? Usually, your people are too busy killing each other over scraps, not to build sothing so... Cohesive."
"A stroke of luck indeed," William chuckled, smartly evading the direct answer. He wasn't about to explain his life story to him. And yet he didn't want to look rude or hostile at the sa ti.
"Luck seems to favour you too much, then," the leader laughed, but his eyes were void of any fun or joy. They were dead serious, pinned on William like a hawk. "Still, I'm curious about your future plans, especially those regarding our world... The Upper Realm. See..."
Before William could find another clever answer to evade the question, the leader leaned forward, his spirit power flaring slightly, a subtle reminder of the power gap between them.
"You know too much about our world for a lower realm boy. You helped us, and ended with us owing you big ti. You already have plans for that cursed palace, and I know you are an enemy of the Fox. But I want to know how far your plans are willing to go. Are you just defending your ho, or are you looking to set the upper realms on fire?"
"That's exactly what I want to speak about right now," out of the blue, William stood up.
His sudden movent caused the elders to tense; they all exchanged silent glances, looking too worried over what William could do. Ignoring the surge in tension, William moved aside all the drinking glasses and expensive bottles from the table with a sweep of his hand. He reached into one of his storage rings and took out a grand, heavy roll of parchnt, plus an ink bottle and a fine-tipped brush.
His sudden actions, coupled with his change in tone, confused everyone in the tent. The elders exchanged silent, bewildered glances which carried lots of questions and doubt.
However, with a firm look from their leader, none opened their mouths or said anything to stop him. They watched in fascinated silence as William flattened the parchnt on the table.
"See, this is the map of the Upper Realm," William said. Without beating around the bush, he began to draw.
He didn't hesitate. His hand moved with natural movent as if he were used to drawing this map for a long ti. "There are five big continents," he narrated as the ink bled into the paper, "and lots of large islands that people used to call pseudo-continents. These are the known places of the big empires, guilds, forces, and academies up there, right?"
William kept drawing, and the more he moved the brush, the more shocked everyone beca. This wasn't a child's sketch or a traveller's vague mory. The map he drew was so detailed it looked as if William had lived his entire life in the Upper Realm, travelling every mountain pass and fighting in every valley.
But it didn't stop at geography. William began marking specific dots. He mapped out trade routes, lined out perfectly each kingdom and empire, and located precisely where each well-known force, guild, academy, and even hidden powers existed up there.
There were spots where hidden academies were tucked away in dinsional folds, locations of unknown ancient clans which had chosen seclusion from the world for centuries, and even the secret rallying bases of hidden forces like the Blue Purgators themselves.
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