After we exited the hot spring hotel, a car that had already been waiting for a long time pulled up. We got inside, and it immediately began driving quickly, reaching a speed of eighty miles per hour.
Only after we entered the city and tall buildings appeared around us did the car slow down to forty miles per hour.
It was obvious the area had already been cleared. There were escort vehicles on the road, but there were no other cars at all. The reason we were not speeding recklessly was because they were worried about accidents—things like terrorist attacks.
Of course, Sylvar Crowe was not afraid at all.
Aside from missiles, nuclear bombs, or large-scale heavy firepower, ordinary rifles could not harm him.
Because Sylvar Crowe's aura was always active, he could maintain En and sense incoming bullets. If the attack came from within two thousand meters, he could defend against it with reinforcement. At most, it would only cause a little pain. There would not even be any bleeding.
Even while sitting inside the car, Sylvar Crowe kept his eyes open. He constantly checked the surroundings.
At an intersection ahead, he suddenly noticed something.
There really were terrorists waiting there with guns.
They were hiding near the entrance of a convenience store, waiting for our car to reach the intersection so they could open fire.
Without saying a word, Sylvar Crowe took out his magic book. He opened it and began flipping through the pages while still sitting in the car.
Then he glanced toward the convenience store about one hundred meters away at the intersection.
The pages of the magic book continued turning.
His magic power began draining rapidly.
This was a moment to demonstrate strength. He could not allow the people from the United Nations to underestimate them.
Lelei saw Sylvar Crowe flipping through the magic book and asked, "What happened?"
"It's nothing. I'm just dealing with a few rats hiding in the gutter," Sylvar Crowe said calmly.
While he answered, his magic had already been activated.
A large amount of freezing air began spreading from the floor inside the convenience store.
Perhaps because they were too nervous, the terrorists did not notice anything unusual.
A thick layer of ice suddenly formed beneath their feet.
The ice seemed almost alive. It began spreading upward from their feet toward their waists.
Some of the terrorists noticed and tried to run forward a few steps.
But it was useless.
In just a moment, every terrorist inside the store had turned into an ice sculpture.
When the car passed the convenience store at the intersection, the driver accidentally glanced inside.
He immediately felt shocked.
Inside the store stood several frozen figures.
The driver could not help thinking that this must be the legendary Ice Hero. The power was terrifying.
He had not even seen the enemy yet, and they had already been eliminated.
Looking at those frozen sculptures made his entire body feel cold.
Were they frozen to death?
Even if they deserved it, they should still have been sent to court.
Then the driver shook his head slightly.
Forget it. This was not something a driver like him should worry about.
Sylvar Crowe was sitting in the passenger seat.
He noticed the driver hesitating as if he wanted to say something, so he spoke first.
"They aren't frozen to death. They'll thaw out in about an hour. What are you afraid of?"
"What a pity," Rory Mercury said regretfully. "We didn't hear the cries of their souls."
The driver instantly felt his scalp go numb.
"Don't say such scary things so seriously, Rory," Sylvar Crowe said helplessly.
"Okay. I'll listen to you, dear," Rory Mercury replied with a charming smile.
Now it was Sylvar Crowe's turn to feel his scalp tingle.
Behind him, three different gazes were fixed on his back.
One gaze felt as hot as fire, as if it wanted to melt him.
The other two were as cold as winter, as if they wanted to freeze him solid.
After that, the entire ride remained silent.
Only the girls sitting in the back row continued chatting softly while looking at the scenery outside the windows.
When we finally arrived at the large conference hall, countless people were already seated inside. Almost every seat was filled.
In front of each seat stood a tall microphone stand.
Everyone sat there quietly, looking like students waiting to listen to a lecture.
Under the guidance of a staff member, Sylvar Crowe walked to the main podium.
Lelei, Tuka Luna Marceau, and Rory Mercury sat down in the seats behind him.
Sylvar Crowe leaned slightly toward the microphone.
"Well… can you hear me?"
He did not wait for any response.
"I'm not planning to wait for any answer from the people here in this hall, or the people watching in front of their televisions, phones, or computers."
He simply continued speaking.
"A few days ago, a palace-like structure suddenly appeared on the streets of this country."
"I call it a Gate."
A reporter sitting in front of him raised his microphone and prepared to ask a question.
He looked completely stunned.
He had not even asked anything yet, but this man had already begun talking on his own.
Was he joking?
Sylvar Crowe ignored him completely and continued.
"This Gate leads to the 'other world' that countless people have dreamed about, fantasized about, and imagined."
"So let me introduce that world to you."
"First, the country I attacked."
"That country is already near the end of its dynasty."
"As everyone knows, dynasties usually decline after a few hundred years."
"That country has already reached the end of its lifespan."
"The emperor does not have many years left to live."
"The reason he still dared to attack us after witnessing our strength was because we were like someone giving a dying patient a brief moment to breathe."
"He tricked the armies of neighboring nations into coming here and sending themselves to their deaths."
"By doing that, his own country could maintain dominance for a little longer."
"He's quite a character."
"What a pity."
"In the face of absolute power, tricks are meaningless."
After saying that, Sylvar Crowe paused for a few seconds.
He allowed everyone in the hall time to process the information.
At that moment, a reporter sitting across from him opened his mouth to ask a question.
Sylvar Crowe immediately raised his voice and spoke again.
The reporter's words were instantly suppressed before they could even come out.
The poor reporter looked extremely uncomfortable.
He had prepared a question, but he could neither ask it nor interrupt.
Sylvar Crowe suddenly raised his voice.
"That's enough about that."
"Now let's talk about the Gates themselves."
"In the other world, Gates appear once every thousand years."
"Each time they appear, they connect to a completely different world."
"And every time someone passes through, they survive in that world."
"Over time, countless different species began appearing in the other world."
"For example… legal lolis, dwarves, and gnomes."
"And beastfolk."
"This is great news for certain fans."
"There are girls with cat ears, dog ears, wolf ears, rabbit ears…"
"There are even snake-haired Medusas."
"And of course… there are elves."
"The very elves that countless people on Earth have dreamed about."
"So tell me—are you tempted?"
"If you're tempted, it's better to take action than just sit there imagining it."
"Of course, if none of this moves you…"
"Then you must be a person with extremely strong willpower."
Sylvar Crowe suddenly changed the topic.
"Now for the key point."
"Lelei, Rory, Tuka."
"Please introduce yourselves."
Lelei stood up.
"My name is Lelei La Lalena. I am a fifteen-year-old human magician."
Tuka Luna Marceau stood up next.
"My name is Tuka Luna Marceau. I am an elf. I am one hundred and fifty-six years old."
Rory Mercury stood up last.
"My name is Rory Mercury. I am one of the twelve apostles of the god of death. I am nine hundred and sixty-one years old."
The moment those words were spoken, the entire hall exploded into chaos.
Everyone became desperate to confirm whether what they had just heard was real.
A reporter immediately stood up and shouted loudly.
"Is that true?!"
Lelei stood up again.
"In our world, the average human lifespan is between sixty and seventy years."
"Tuka is an elf."
"Elves are naturally long-lived."
"And she is a rare fairy-type elf."
"According to legend, elves like her can live almost forever."
"Rory was originally human."
"But after becoming an apostle of the god of death, her physical age stopped changing."
"She became a demigod."
"After roughly a thousand years, a demigod abandons their physical body and becomes a spiritual apostle."
"Eventually, they ascend and become a god."
"So Rory does not really have a concept of lifespan."
After hearing this explanation, the entire hall fell into chaos again.
Ten seconds passed before the noise finally settled slightly.
Sylvar Crowe continued speaking immediately, not giving any reporter the chance to interrupt again.
He raised his voice dramatically.
He imagined the rhythm and gestures of a dictator giving a mass rally speech.
"Do you want animal ears?"
"Go through the Gate."
"Do you want immortality?"
"Go through the Gate."
"Do you want power?"
"Go through the Gate."
"Everything is on the other side of the Gate!"
"Everything!"
His voice grew louder and louder.
He waved his arms dramatically while speaking.
His tone suddenly changed.
His voice became melancholic and regretful.
"What a pity…"
"What a pity!"
"The Gate has a time limit."
"And now most of that time has already passed."
"About five days are gone."
"There are only twenty-five days left."
"Oh, and by the way…"
"I found this book about Gates in a library in the other world."
"It records information about Gates."
He displayed a picture of the book.
Then he flipped directly to the final page.
Strange characters were written on the page.
Below them was a translated explanation in the language of this world.
It stated that a Gate appears every one thousand years.
It remains open for approximately thirty sunrises and sunsets.
Sylvar Crowe gave everyone enough time to read the text.
Then he continued speaking.
"So time is running out."
"My fellow people of Earth."
"If you want to go…"
"Talk to the United Nations."
"Of course…"
"The other world is not exactly peaceful right now."
Sylvar Crowe laughed loudly.
Without giving any official in a suit the chance to ask questions, he immediately activated his space magic.
He turned toward the three women.
"Let's go."
Lelei, Tuka Luna Marceau, and Rory Mercury stood up.
They walked into the space corridor he had opened.
When they stepped out on the other side, the first thing they saw was the Gate.
Back in the conference hall, the entire audience erupted into panic.
Everyone rushed toward the exits.
A magic ability that could directly cross space.
Was that really magic?
If someone possessed that level of power, even missiles and nuclear weapons would not necessarily threaten him.
Sylvar Crowe and the others appeared less than one meter away from the Gate.
The security guards stationed nearby had not even reacted yet.
Before they could do anything, Sylvar Crowe and the others had already walked through the Gate.
Inside the dark passage connecting the worlds, Rory Mercury spoke.
"Why did you say so many things to them?"
Lelei also looked confused.
Tuka Luna Marceau stared at Sylvar Crowe quietly.
Sylvar Crowe shrugged.
"I said all that nonsense because I want more people to come to this world."
"I want them to come voluntarily."
"After all… technology is interesting."
"For example—ice cream, instant noodles, comfortable beds, modern clothing, soft blankets."
"All those things are very convenient."
Sylvar Crowe continued speaking.
"I thought about it carefully."
"The Gate will definitely close eventually."
"So instead of letting it close randomly…"
"It's better if I control it."
"At least that way…"
"People who shouldn't be separated will have the chance to reunite."
Sylvar Crowe laughed.
"What kind of things will happen?"
"What interesting things will appear in this world?"
Lelei nodded thoughtfully.
"In terms of chemistry, there are indeed many things I would like to study."
Tuka Luna Marceau also nodded.
"The clothes in that world are indeed simple and beautiful."
Rory Mercury smiled slightly.
"If that's the case, dear…"
"Then everything must be correct if it's your decision."
A faint blush appeared on her face again.
Sylvar Crowe looked confused.
Whatever the situation is, why does it somehow always get connected to me?
He did not dare say those words out loud.
But he could not help thinking something else.
Could you please change the way you talk to me?
Meanwhile, at the United Nations, every country had already begun arguing about the Gate.
How many people should go?
How should they go?
Should this country even be allowed to control the Gate?
All of these issues were being debated intensely under the watchful eyes of the five major powers.
The order allowing people to enter the Gate was approved in only two seconds.
The only remaining question was the number of people allowed to go.
An hour later, the United Nations reached a decision.
It was not because they wanted to argue longer.
It was because the people of the world could not wait any longer.
Wealthy elites were pushing the process forward aggressively.
After all, they had already enjoyed every luxury in life.
The only thing they still feared was death.
Public opinion across the world exploded so quickly that a decision had to be made immediately.
People from all over the world would be allowed to go.
However, time was limited.
And large amounts of technology, knowledge, food supplies, and agricultural equipment also needed to be transported.
So the number of people allowed through the Gate would be limited.
The wealthy would receive priority.
Across the world, rich individuals began selling their assets at extremely low prices.
They converted their wealth into weapons, ammunition, and manpower that could accompany them to the other world.
This suddenly created massive economic gaps.
Many ordinary people unexpectedly gained opportunities to rise in society.
Of course, those wealthy individuals did not want money simply for themselves.
They wanted to bring large numbers of bodyguards and weapons with them in order to survive in the other world.
In some countries, people could also obtain the opportunity to travel through the Gate by lottery.
The appearance of another world had captivated humanity.
Ten million people registered.
The registration fee alone was ten thousand yuan per person.
Naturally, that money all went to their respective governments.
But none of that had anything to do with Sylvar Crowe anymore.
Because he had already returned to the other world.
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Author's Notes:
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