They proceeded to continue their story. Every word uttered from their mouths contorted King Gulben's face into a frown, shock, and anger.
He couldn't believe that his brother would be so cruel to his kingdom. He didn't even hesitate to unleash the curse of the undead upon his people.
The curse that had the same properties as the one that killed his wife.
Gulben let out a long sigh as if he had just released a heavy burden from his shoulders. But the burden had not yet lifted.
"(Fortunately, you managed to defeat it.)" the king then turned to Aurdis. "(You did a good job summoning the forces from the Forest Elf.)"
"(Actually, the reason we won was not only because of the Forest Elf, father. It was Erend who did a lot,)" Aurdis said.
"(Erend again?)" King Gulben looked at Aerchon and Saeldir, who were also present before him. They nodded, confirming that what Aurdis said was right.
Afterward, they recounted how the king of the Daemon transformed into a great giant. Something that couldn't be fought by them, who were already weakened by the curse Laston had bestowed upon them.
$$$
They took turns describing how Erend appeared seemingly from nowhere, then transformed into a Dragon and fought against the king of the Daemon.
"(So he is that strong,)" King Gulben murmured.
"(Yes, Your Majesty. He has helped us overcome problems several times, and his presence as our ally is something important in my opinion,)" Saeldir said.
Hearing even his Archmage say such things, King Gulben's respect for Erend and his view of him increased even more.
"(Then, we must make him our ally,)" he said.
Aurdis smiled. Perhaps with this, her relationship with Erend would become much easier in the future.
That smile didn't escape Aerchon's notice. But he remained silent.
"(Now, we should decide on our main problem. About something called the Great Calamity.)"
The atmosphere in the room became tense again now that they had returned to the main issue.
Saeldir explained what he had found during their journey. His research revealed things that were nothing short of horrible and inevitable.
~~~
A week passed in the blink of an eye, as King Gulben, along with Aurdis, Aerchon, and Saeldir, busied themselves preparing for what they needed to do to face the arrival of the Great Calamity. Meanwhile, Erend, on the other side of the world, was also busy.
He continuously delved into the Dungeon World, grinding for levels. He almost never stopped whenever there was spare time, and now he had reached Level 70.
Reaching such a high level was a remarkable achievement. He felt much more powerful now. However, Erend still felt that his strength was lacking if he wanted to stop the Great Calamity.
The image of the great entity consuming the world that had appeared in his dreams a long time ago returned to his mind, making it difficult for Erend to sleep.
This was also what kept him excited to enter the Dungeon World, despite all the struggles he faced in fighting the monsters within that mysterious dimension.
He also had to continue carrying out his duties as a soldier. Although the issues with the Chaos God were now resolved, the aftermath of that problem still haunted the country.
$$$
"Yeah. Well, I'm still a bit annoyed with him, but we don't have time for that. So, I put it aside and told him everything that has happened."
Erend listened attentively as Aurdis explained. He was also curious about what the King of the Elf Palace, who had left his people, looked like now.
He didn't know what to feel about meeting him. After all, he was the one who had essentially caused the major problems that befell their world and their realm.
Aurdis also recounted the events involving the Chaos God. She mentioned that her father seemed frightened by it.
Erend chuckled at the thought that the King had no idea what he had heard. He hadn't been the one to enter the Chaos Realm, witness the disturbing conditions of several domains of the Chaos gods, and kill two of them.
It was understandable that he was afraid. He should be.
After recounting all of that, Aurdis finally got to the important matters.
"My father said there are a few things we can do to increase our strength to face the Great Calamity. One of them is an artifact hidden in a dangerous place."
That was another piece of good news Erend heard. "We should retrieve it, right?"
"Yes."
"Alright. When should I go there?"
"As fast as you can."
---
Erend immediately relayed what he heard from Aurdis to Adrien and Billy when he arrived at the military headquarters the next morning.
Both of them appeared optimistic yet surprised.
"So, that irresponsible King is back," Billy muttered.
Adrien snorted. "Is he just going to brush off all the problems he caused?"
"There are more important matters than that now. Aurdis said there's some kind of artifact that can boost our strength," Erend said. "We have to help them retrieve it."
Billy let out a sigh. "So, we have to go back to that place again, huh?"
"Yes, as soon as possible."
They immediately met with General Lennard a few minutes later. Erend explained in detail what they needed to do.
Now that the General knew a lot about the other world, they didn't need to lie too much anymore.
"Do you really have to go?" General Lennard felt somewhat reluctant as the three of them prepared to leave his side.
"Yes, General. What we do in that world will also benefit this one," Adrien said.
"Fine then. I'll take care of everything here."
After getting the permission, they prepared to depart for the other world.
~~~