BakingTray POV:

  The two giant knights escorted us across the nd.

  Everything around us felt unreal—but not hostile.

  Purple grass swayed softly beneath our feet, bending gently as we walked, while blue-leaved trees shimmered faintly above us, their glow casting calm, steady light across the fields. The air itself felt different—lighter somehow, cleaner—like the world was quietly watching, not judging.

  Still... it was unmistakably not our world.

  This wasn't just another zone.

  It felt like a pce that existed on its own terms.

  I scratched my chin, thinking hard, trying to piece things together. Getting pulled through that rift had already been strange enough, but what bothered me more was how sudden everything had been. One moment we were finishing a quest, the next—

  Here.

  "We are here."

  One of the knights stopped and spoke.

  I looked ahead.

  There was nothing but open grassnd.

  "Uhm... excuse me?" Lavapup asked, raising an eyebrow and crossing her arms. "There's... nothing here."

  She wasn't wrong. We couldn't have reached anything yet—we'd barely been walking five minutes.

  Before I could respond, the ground beneath us began to glow.

  A wide magic circle formed under our feet, deep golden runes lighting up one after another in a slow, deliberate pattern. The knights began chanting in a nguage I didn't understand—steady, controlled, almost ceremonial.

  My body reacted on instinct anyway.

  I reached out and took hold of Lavapup's arm, not pulling her away—just grounding myself.

  "...Alright," I muttered quietly. "Let's see where this goes."

  Golden light bloomed upward, bright but warm, wrapping around us instead of crashing down. For a moment, my vision washed out completely.

  Then—

  We were standing before a massive castle.

  Its purple walls rose high into the sky, pristine and smooth, reflecting the soft moonlight cast by three enormous orbs hovering far above the nd. Their glow was steady and calm, bathing the realm in a quiet silver-violet light.

  The structure didn't feel imposing.

  If anything, it felt... welcoming.

  Like it had been waiting.

  I stood there in silence, slowly loosening my grip on Lavapup's arm.

  Letting go of her completely, I tried to understand the feeling rising in my chest as I stared at the pace before us.

  One of the knights turned around, his gaze drifting past me before locking onto Pup.

  "Let us proceed. His lord is already awaiting your arrival."

  His ghostly voice echoed through the hall, sending a strange shiver down my spine.

  Lavapup swallowed audibly and nodded, and we followed them inside.

  I barely managed to keep my jaw from dropping.

  The first thing my eyes nded on was a gigantic statue, seemingly made of pure diamonds, glowing in beautiful shades of white and turquoise. It acted as the main light source of the massive entrance hall, bathing everything in a soft, almost gentle radiance.

  Somewhere above, a slow harmony unfolded—wordless and distant.

  It didn't rise or fall dramatically, instead flowing evenly, steady and reassuring, like a vow that had already been kept.

  The glistening crystal floor looked as if it had been shattered and mended again—like the frozen surface of an ocean, its waves stopped mid-motion.

  "This is supposed to be a pace?" I whispered, more to myself than to anyone else. "Looks more like the memorial of a god..."

  My hand glided along the crystallized purple handrail, held up by finely crafted golden balusters.

  The next room we were guided upon was only describable as mesmerizing.

  A throne hall rger than anything I had ever seen before stretched out before us. Turquoise crystal pilrs rose from the ground, holding up a shimmering, pristine white ceiling that seemed almost too perfect to be real.

  The deep blue floor reflected the light above like a calm sea beneath a starless night sky, every step mirrored beneath our feet.

  At the far end stood a massive throne of purple and gold. Upon it sat a spectral man, ghostly fog constantly spilling from his form, drifting and curling as if he were only half anchored to this world.

  "My lord, we have brought the Prophesied Maiden as per your request."

  One of the knights spoke as both dropped to their knees in unison.

  I couldn't tell where the being's body truly began—or where it ended. His teal, translucent form shifted subtly as he leaned forward upon his throne, looking down at us from above.

  "I welcome you, great maiden..."

  His voice echoed through the hall like countless pipe organs pying at once, deep and yered, sending a tremor through the very air.

  The pace itself seemed to respond, resonating with him as though it were an orchestra obeying its conductor.

  The magical pressure radiating from this being was overwhelming—far denser than even Zindel's had been.

  "Uh... yeah, it's good to be here," Lavapup answered hesitantly. "I guess..."

  She shifted uncomfortably, fidgeting with her fingers, clearly unsure of where to stand or how to act.

  I stepped forward and dropped to my knees, mirroring the knights, eager to finally ask the question burning in my chest.

  "It is a pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty," I said, keeping my voice steady. "This humble man wishes to ask for your knowledge."

  The Spirit King's massive form shifted once more.

  "What is your name, mortal?"

  He asked, resting his head on his fist while awaiting my answer.

  "This humble guard's name is BakingTray, oh great lord!"

  I answered without much hesitation, despite the excessive mana exerting from his body pressing down on me like a weight.

  "What is your purpose, young child?"

  He asked again, brushing his translucent beard, while Lavapup stood next to me, still unsure of how to act or what to do.

  "I am a friend of the Maiden, as well as her guide and sworn protector!"

  Complete bullshit, obviously. We were simply party members.

  But I had my suspicions—this was a high-value quest Lavapup had unlocked.

  So naturally, I intended to sweep up as many crumbs as possible.

  "Uhm—he is speaking the truth. I can assure you of that!"

  Lavapup intervened. Her acting was barely mediocre, the stutters were there, but it was nothing that couldn't be worked on.

  I smiled, gd she got the concept, and slowly rose back to my feet.

  "I would like to ask what exactly your connection to the Maiden is," I continued, "and why we—or rather she—were summoned here?"

  The teal giant let out a deep sigh and straightened himself on his throne, his gaze shifting toward the brown-haired girl.

  "Young dy... you may not know this yet," he began,

  "but you possess powers far greater than even my own."

  And with that, he began to expin everything.