"Are you sure we don't have to go to work tomorrow?" Erend asked Billy who was stopping by his house.
Now they are sitting on chairs on the front porch of Erend's house.
Their houses are really close together, so since childhood, Billy has often played at Erend's house.
Billy came in casual clothes that he wears every day when Erend just came back from his Daily Quest.
"Don't worry. I saw Major Lennard last night. She give me a message from the General that we have another day off tomorrow," Billy explained, then took a sip of his coffee.
"Ahh, an afternoon coffee is always delicious."
"Sorry. I haven't had time to go to your house," Erend said as he sat down in the chair next to Billy.
"Don't worry about it. We still have plenty of time."
Erend suddenly became silent because he remembered about the Calamity he saw in the dream that time.
'A plenty of time, huh?'
What he heard from Tut was deeply disturbing. Because he only had one year to prepare before that Calamity happened.
Erend sighed. Billy could hear the sound of his heavy, long breaths.
"What are you thinking?" Billy asked.
Erend took a little longer to answer. "Nothing."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah." Erend smiled. "You don't have to worry about that."
Erend said the same thing Billy said earlier. Billy thinks that's a little ironic.
Erend again looked as if he was holding a very heavy burden that he couldn't share.
If that was the case, Billy think he couldn't do anything. As always.
"It turns out that great power brings great trouble, huh," Billy said.
Erend turned to him. "What are you saying?"
"In fact, you have to do a lot of things. Things you can only do by yourself."
Erend was silent and stared at Billy for a few moments.
Billy's words left him speechless. He had just realized that he was indeed alone in dealing with problems related to the other world.
The upcoming Monsters, Dark Elves, the Great Calamity, etc.
"What can I do? Only I can stand against it," Erend said.
Billy just kept quiet and took another sip of his coffee, which only had half a cup left.
'Erend, I need you.'
Suddenly, Aurdis' voice echoed inside Erend's head.
Erend's eyes widened and his body stiffened.
Shortly after that, a notification from Systema appeared.
[ New Urgent Quest! ]
[ Urgent Quest: Repel the Army that attacked Elf palace and handles Chaos Magic Storm. ]
[ Progress: Army repelled (Not complete yet), Chaos Magic Storm (Not completed yet) ]
Billy who realized that immediately turned his head.
"What's wrong?" Billy asked worriedly.
"I have to go," Erend replied.
"Okay, let's go!"
After that, Erend said goodbye to his mother. Saying that he wanted to go with Billy for a while.
Billy hurriedly finished his remaining coffee and followed Erend.
"What happened?" Billy asked in a confused tone.
"Aurdis called me," Erend replied.
"The Elf Princess?"
"Yes."
"Yeah. I think you should help her if she needs help."
The two of them went to an old factory that had been abandoned for decades in Slum.
"Why don't you do it in your house? Can't you just hide in your room?" Billy asked.
"If I'm in the room too long, my mother might get suspicious," Erend said.
"Oh right." Billy nodded.
Because it was already evening, the sun was not shining as brightly as before.
Several parts of the factory were already covered in darkness.
Coupled with the absence of lighting because there is no running electricity, this place is usually associated with horror stories.
But Erend and Billy knew that there was nothing here but old engine scraps and bugs.
They had often played in this place since childhood so they were also used to this environment.
"I don't know how long I have to be there," Erend said.
"Don't worry. I got your back."
Billy shook the flashlight he was carrying. Erend nodded.
Then he spoke inside his head.
'I'm ready. Open the Portal.'
A moment later the Portal appeared before Erend. From inside the Portal Erend felt a strong pressure that made his body feel heavy.
"Ughh... What is this?"
It turns out that Erend wasn't the only one who felt it. Billy also felt a strange pressure.
"I'll go now."
Whatever lies behind this Portal must be something bad. Aurdis who suddenly asked for help must be caught in it.
Then, what is Chaos Magic Storm, and, what army?
Erend steeled himself. Then start walking inside.
Erend entered the Portal and it immediately disappeared.
Once the Portal disappeared, Billy no longer felt that strange pressure.
"Shit, Erend will definitely meet something bad there," Billy muttered with a feeling of worry.
~~~
As soon as Erend arrived across the Portal, what he saw immediately put him in a state of shock.
The sight of Elf palace was completely chaotic.
What was even more surprising was the presence of the Ogres and Daemons of Calamity.
"What the hell is going on here?" Erend muttered with a deep frown.
He didn't understand at all. Why can everything be like this?
Erend even saw that an Elf turned into a terrible monster. Then, another Elves wearing green robes killed them with their bows and daggers.
The corpses of the dead Elves turned into roots.
As if all that wasn't enough, from above came a strange sound of thunder.
When he looked up, all he saw were dark clouds gathering.
Lightning with reddish, blue, green, and black colors flashed behind the gray clouds.
"What the hell is that thing?!"
Erend was completely confused. What's up there is definitely not an ordinary cloud.
Not long after, a familiar figure landed in front of him with a weak body.
After landing roughly, he couldn't even stand up anymore.
"Saeldir!" Erend drew closer to Saeldir. "What is going on here?"
Saeldir looked at Erend weakly, then pointed up. "Aurdis is in danger."
Erend immediately looked up in the direction Saeldir was pointing at.
Above, covered by clouds and waves of dark Magic, Aurdis was struggling against a red-skinned creature wielding an axe.
"Are you okay?" Erend asked Saeldir.
"You don't need to worry about me," Saeldir replied.
As soon as he heard it, Erend didn't wait any longer and immediately ran.
~~~
Visit freewe𝑏nove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺 for the 𝑏est n𝘰vel reading experience