It wasn't long before a meeting of three had been converged.
One was a young man wearing black robes alternating in deep blue soft armor. This young man was the heir of Cliff's Edge Terrace, Reynred Solar.
The second was a young woman wearing bright white robes alternating in a light sky blue soft armor. This young woman was the heiress of World's End Falls, Jilniya Falls.
The last was a short young man wearing red robes matched with violet soft armor. This young man was the heir of the Mirage Pavilion, Wilas Mirage.
If one were to witness this scene, there would only be one of two reactions to have. Either one would be impressed, or disgusted.
Reynred sat in the middle of a dense forest with a tea spread before him. A small round table housed precious herbs being steeped in hot water and delicate, neatly arranged pastries.
He sat at the table, one leg crossed over the other, as though he wasn't in the wilderness at all. One would think that he was taking a break of leisure within his own personal garden rather than being on an expedition within one of the most dangerous Danger Zones of Terrain.
"Is all of this really necessary, you sissy? You called us here to waste our time eating pastries and drinking tea?"
Wilas exploded the instant he saw Reynred set up. He and Jilniya both thought that he had already captured that ugly bitch. They had never expected that he would call them here without rhyme or reason. Did he not understand the situation?
Their three powers had invested too much into this. Not only had they invested many resources into making sure the opening of the Zone remained secret, but they had lost large amounts of man power forming expeditionary squads to clear a path toward it. What was this fool thinking?
Reynred's hand paused, causing the tea cup in his hands to stop just before his lips. A hint of cold killing intent flashed for just the briefest moment. In the end, he managed to control himself.
"We need a better plan than the one we have now. If we continue to follow this ugly woman into this mountain range… I'm sure you know the kind of consequences we could face. This isn't a playground."
Hearing these words, both heirs became slightly more serious. Even the perpetually silent Jilniya grew a level more serious.
"What do you propose?" Wilas said after some time.
Reynred took a long sip of his tea before placing the cup down.
"There are only four passageways out of this mountain range. Pressure Winds Valley, Reverse Flow River, the Mountain Sands Path and the Mountain Sands cave network.
"I think we all know that no one has come out alive from that cave network since the Fourth Dimension descended. I suggest our main forces control these three passageways. As for the fourth, just in case of anything unexpected, we can send a few scouts with decent strength.
"That whore isn't very powerful to begin with. If not for her cunning, she would have long since fallen beneath my blade. The moment we lay eyes on her will seal her death."
Reynred's gaze turned frosty. He had actually suffered a loss at the hands of a Third Dimension swine. How could he not feel disgusted?
Wilas and Jilniya looked toward one another.
"What if she dies? Wouldn't it all be for naught?" Jilniya finally spoke her first words.
Her voice was light, delicate, and didn't carry the slightest hint of emotion. She seemed detached from everything. But, then again, it seemed as though all those from World's End Falls were exactly like this.
Reynred sneered. "In the end, even if it's a Variant Zone, it's still ultimately a mere Tier 1 Bronze Zone. How great could the treasures possibly be?"
The two heirs looked at one another and shook their heads. No matter how one looked at it, Reynred's words simply sounded like sour grapes.
Compared to other Zones, Variant Zones had exceptionally low difficulty and provided rewards that were disproportionately greater. After all, they were meant to provide hope to a dying world, how could it not be like this?
It wasn't surprising for a Tier 1 Bronze Zone to have rewards within in comparable to a Silver Zone. Reynred was just speaking nonsense. However, he was too lost in his own world to care for the opinions. It was clear that his hatred for this young woman had surpassed his desire for this treasure.
Reynred shook his head.
"We can't afford to bet our lives here. Those important matters I'm sure you two are aware of aren't as far away as it might seem."
Wilas frowned. "Hmph. The only reason I'll be migrating along with the rest of you is because the elders have already decided on it. I'm not like you shameless individuals who give up so easily."
This time, it was Wilas' turn to be looked upon oddly. However, they didn't have the mind to say anything to reprimand him. Instead, the meeting dispersed. Soon a net designed to capture one young woman would be perfectly deployed.
…
At that very moment, Aina had entered a cave. If the three heirs had been there, they would have been shocked to realize that this ugly woman they were chasing had actually entered one of the many networks of tunnels beneath the vast mountain range.
Unfortunately, Aina didn't know anything about the dangers of this place. In truth, after Leonel sent her here with her teleportation ticket, she had appeared not far from the Variant Zone. It was then she entered, not knowing that she would be ruining the plans of so many large powers.
Teleportation tickets were actually designed such that new comers would be taken to prepared stations. After all, any world that had entered the Fourth Dimension was used to visitors from other worlds. It was a part of evolution.
However, that little fool Leonel didn't know that one had to prepare appropriately for a teleportation as every small factor was important. Namely, Aina's ax had still been in her hand at the time. As a result, it influenced her teleportation and sent her off course.
In the end, here she was, being chased to the point of entering these dark caves with nothing to rely on but the ax in her hands.