‘It’s clear now. Unless her injury and corruption are both treated, it’s impossible to save her.’
Neo’s gaze moved towards the flower placed at the top of the bed.
Using the flower without her permission was not something he wanted.
‘If nothing works, then I will try to enter her mind with my trait, and see if it’s possible to talk to her mind in her dreams, and ask for permission to use the flower.’
Neo and Olivia left the Shadow Space when it was time to meet Kane.
The Sword Saint came back with Percival, who looked quite healthy.
“Yes, all of you are right.”
Kane chuckled, noticing their reactions.
“I took Percival to a healing pond to make sure he was fine and dandy for the expedition.”
“Another pond?” Olivia muttered.
“Hahaha, we have quite a few ponds. All of them have their own purposes.”
The group had a weird expression as they nodded.
Kane held one last meeting before they set out to meet the Grand Expedition.
“As I’ve said before, I have a clue to help you guys leave this place,” Kane said and turned to Olivia. “I know you must have a trump card that gives you confidence you can leave this world, but I have seen many examples of people thinking the same and failing.
“Please don’t take my words the wrong way, but I think all of you should try to follow the lead I will be giving you and find a way out of this place,” Kane explained.
“Please go on,” Olivia said, showing that she wasn’t offended by his words.
Kane took out a picture from thin air and placed it on the table.
The woman in the picture had white hair and red eyes.
She was a familiar face.
However, unlike the indifferent expression he was used to, the woman in the picture was smiling.
“Julie de Beaufort. She was able to leave Tartarus a few years ago.
“For some reason, she later returned and has been hiding inside the Abyss of Nightmare since then.
“One of the goals of the Grand Expedition is to find her and get the method of leaving Tartarus.
“Coincidentally, she is also from our world, and….”
Kane stopped speaking, noticing their reactions.
“You recognize her?”
“We do,” Percival spoke, trying to make sense of the situation. “She is the Tyrant Queen.”
He explained about Elizabeth to Kane.
“I see, so there is someone who looks exactly like her and shares the same family name. This is news to me,” Kane nodded.
“We feel the same. No one ever came across any information about the Tyrant having a twin, much less that the twin lived in Tartarus,” Percival commented.
While no one paid attention, Olivia shifted her gaze to Neo.
Her eyes were questioning him if he knew about this.
Neo remained expressionless.
The meeting ended shortly after.
Then, Kane brought them towards the meeting point of the Grand Expedition.
“Follow me closely, and don’t do anything rash,” Kane warned.
The group moved through the jungle for two days and nights.
Neo used the time to master the Language Spell and the World Energy Concealment Spell to a usable degree.
“We are here,” Kane suddenly said.
They walked towards the mountain’s top, revealing the space beyond.
The sight gave a shiver to the group.
Millions, if not tens of millions, of beings were present in the plain below.
Some looked like humans, having four limbs.
Most had a bizarre, monster-like appearance.
A round body, having the lower half of a snake, or wings of a bat.
The ranks of the Grand Expedition were made of countless species.
The weakest among them was Empyrean.
Tens of thousands were Paragons, and thousands were Exalted.
Watching an assortment of an army that could crush their world with ease made the group freeze.
The reason for Neo’s shock was different.
‘This is the Blood Sea Army that will invade Luminera in a few years.’
Neo was sure of his guess.
He recognized some of the monsters.
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The two giant monster brothers that were taller than most skyscrapers were the most conspicuous. He remembered them from the book.
‘Something is weird here.’
‘The army that attacked Luminera was a brainless monster army for the most part.’
‘But these guys are all sentient.’
‘Not to mention, they are much stronger than their monster versions that will invade Luminera.’
While Neo was busy sorting his thoughts, Kane chuckled.
“There is no need to be nervous.”
His words snapped the group out of their stupor.
“You four might not be the strongest. But you are good enough to walk among the ranks of the Grand Expedition with your head held high.”
“You told us we were cannon fodder,” Percival joked, having recovered from the shock.
“That was a white lie. It was meant to motivate you to get stronger.”
While the two talked, Neo scanned the members of the Grand Expedition with his senses.
‘The more I see it, the more I get baffled.’
There was no need to say how strong an army consisting of thousands of Exalted, tens of thousands of Paragons, and millions of Empyreans was.
But the real strength of the army was somewhere else.
Seven powerful presences were present inside the tent at the center of the Grand Expedition.
Their presence was stronger than the combined presence of everyone else in the Expedition.
‘Strong.’
Only one thought was present inside Neo’s head.
‘They are strong.’
Just then, one of the presences suddenly disappeared.
“Those are some new faces.”
The space next to Neo distorted, and a woman walked out.
She had dark purple hair, amethyst eyes, and an extremely alluring aura that made one’s heart beat loudly.
Olivia, Nicolas, and Percival were instantly bewitched by her beauty.
Only Neo remained clearheaded.
“Two of you resisted my charm?” she spoke, surprised.
Her eyes looked at Neo and the blue flame floating near Neo’s shoulder.
Suddenly, Neo opened his mouth.
“You, are you an Outer God?”
“Of course, I am, sweetie.”
Her small teasing smile was mesmerizing.
Neo could feel her power of charm behind that smile.
It was an extremely strong ability.
If not for his mental resilience, he would’ve fallen for her at the first sight.