"Gone?"
Laketon shrugged, "Really gone. The monster respawn rules in Infinite Dimensions reset every 24 hours. I can only summon the monsters from the spawn points within the 24-hour period."
"Oh, I see."
Orson shook his head helplessly. He had just triggered the "grind mode," and within just a few minutes, the entire battlefield was cleared of its monsters. He wasn't quite satisfied yet.
However, now that he understood Laketon's ability, he wasn't worried about finding other monster respawn points to keep grinding. Reaching level 80 and obtaining the final Soul Seal was just around the corner!
"It's time to combine these things."
Orson checked the Fragment of Chaos in his inventory. He still needed to visit the royal city's black market to find an NPC and use Titan's Vertical Eye to exchange it.
Once the Fragments of Chaos (upper, middle, and lower) were combined, he would become the first SSS-class professional in Infinite Dimensions.
After clearing the battlefield, Orson waved his hand and quietly changed into the "Orsix" disguise.
Even though wearing the Light Elf King's Emissary title and attending the Infinite Dimensions War Supreme meeting in the royal city made it impossible for the major imperial families' NPCs to harm him, it didn't include the various Dragon Kings or top-tier figures from the Infinite Dimensions races.
Orson had made countless enemies, and this trip to the royal city felt like a lamb walking into the tiger's den—he had to be cautious.
"Make way! Make way! The mage lord has arrived!"
Under the towering gates of the royal city, two exquisitely designed magic warships descended from the sky.
A group of high-ranking imperial soldiers, wearing platinum dragon-patterned armor, surged forward.
They wielded their blades arrogantly, driving off NPC merchants heading to the royal city for business.
An inconspicuous old man in a gray robe disembarked from the ship, followed by several famous high-level magic scholars from the empire.
"Damn, the leader of the Pondenorlin City Mage Guild, the Grand Magus Flamebound!"
"What Pondenorlin? It's now called Forever City! My US Forever City, the domain of the Golden Masked Boss!"
"Recently, top guild players have been spotted around the royal city, looks like something big is about to happen."
A group of players gathered, whispering and exchanging information.
"Hazel's teacher?"
Orson stood quietly by the side with Laketon, blending in like an insignificant imperial lackey.
Flamebound, the old man, was no ordinary person. He had created dozens of powerful spells himself. His combat power might only be Saint Lord-Class, but his status in the mage guild was exceptionally high.
Later in the game, he would craft Forbidden Curse-level spells and rise to the rank of Saint of the Empire.
Many magic-type trial-takers' Forbidden Curse spells were derived from his teachings.
"This NPC looks… familiar. Hasn't Orsix met him somewhere?"
"Strange, the player attributes around him are untraceable."
Orson frowned when he overheard the players. He had tricked quite a few people with this fake identity, and now it wasn't safe to use it.
At that moment, another ship descended, unloading dozens of mage NPCs, many of whom, like Orson, wore the empire's mage robes, and their levels ranged between 60 and 70.
Orson had a quick idea. While the royal guards were distracted, he swiftly slipped into the group.
"You reckless fool, are you trying to die?"
Orson accidentally bumped into an NPC in front of him. The NPC, wearing the title of Magus, looked at him arrogantly.
"Sorry, sorry," Orson lowered his head with a forced smile.
The NPC turned to a female mage beside him, immediately adopting a sycophantic attitude. "Were you frightened, Miss Hazel?"
"Uh… No." The female mage, Hazel, shyly muttered, lowering her head and fiddling with her fingers.
Hazel?
Orson froze, his eyes widening in realization.
It was the cute, clumsy, big-breasted girl from before!
Valessi: "The royal land of the King of Kings, I offer my utmost respect! Miss Hazel, is this your first time here?"
Hazel: "Mm-hmm."
Hazel turned her head away, clearly uninterested in the mage's sycophantic behavior.
She happened to lock eyes with Orson, tilting her head in surprise. "You're…"
Orson smiled faintly, raising a finger to signal her to remain silent.
Hazel covered her mouth and nodded, and Orson nodded back, following the group into the splendid royal city.
The streets were lined with strange magical buildings, many of which were religious structures belonging to the Holy Light Church, towering like skyscrapers that reached the heavens.
At present, many players from the first-tier of the major regions frequented the Holy Light Royal City, but due to the high-level monsters and dungeons around the area, very few guilds organized monster hunting missions.
However, there was a significant benefit to staying here—almost all the players were at the top tier of the regions, and even the items sold at stalls were of the highest quality.
Many of the top God-tier players came here to purchase rare magic potions, equipment materials, and to take on easy but rewarding side quests like delivering messages or finding lost items.
Though Hazel didn't recognize Orsix, she remembered Orson's face clearly.
After all, when she was kidnapped by orcs and thrown into a pit, it was Orson who recovered her equipment, personally helped her change, and escorted her to Pondenorlin City.
Orson remembered that thrilling moment… and it really left an impression.
"I can feel some incredible changes in you."
Hazel's big, shining eyes stared at Orson.
"Holy Light Mage Hazel is staring at you."
In that moment, it felt like Orson transformed right before her eyes.
The man before her radiated intense elemental energy; his body almost seemed transparent, with blood and fire merging into one.
He was like the Fire Elemental god himself, radiating such overwhelming heat that she couldn't look him in the eye.
"Why am I seeing you here?" Hazel blinked, curiously looking at Orson.
"Perhaps it's the will of the Light God," Orson smiled, slightly pressing his lips together.
NPCs from the Platinum Family were easily swayed by anything related to the Light God or the Holy Light Dragon King. They were often mindlessly respectful.
Orson was somewhat surprised, though. Hazel, despite being a higher-level NPC, was unusually sharp. She could perceive changes in him that even other NPCs couldn't.
Old Terry: "Hazel, stop whispering, mind your status!"
"Sorry, master."
Hazel blushed, lowering her head and sticking her tongue out at Orson.
Flamebound frowned, his face turning into a crumpled mess as he glanced at Orson. His gaze sharpened, and he seemed to notice something odd about the young man.
Orson narrowed his eyes but didn't respond.
Flamebound, however, didn't expose him.
Orson followed the group of mages down a side path, where a huge gray-white stone statue appeared before him.
The statue wore a magical hat that obscured its face, and the staff it held was very recognizable—it was a black crystal pillar.
Holy Light Empire's First Magic God, Commoryed.
Orson murmured to himself.
The First Magic God wasn't considered a taboo deity, but he had left behind ten scrolls containing Forbidden Curse-level spells.
Using these magic scrolls to summon the Forbidden Curse was like summoning a god into the world; NPCs could unleash them directly without incantations.
These scrolls, though one-time use items, were the Holy Light Empire's secret trump card.
When the Hardcore Mode was enabled in the past, four Forbidden Curse scroll incidents occurred in the US region, burning down cities. Not only did it kill the Heaven Demon, but millions of trial-takers also perished under its power.
Flamebound led the group into the Mage Guild headquarters, and Orson took the opportunity to slip away, planning to come back another day… for the girl.
"Low-tier mage, I've had my eye on you for a while! Who allowed you to speak to the noble Miss Hazel?"
Just as Orson made a move, a mage named Valessi grabbed his robe and yanked him back.
With a fierce glare, Valessi hissed, "She's the Platinum Family's future empress candidate! The future empress! And you, some lowly thing, think you can approach her?"
Orson was dumbfounded by the insult.
The Kings of the empire would run away from him like mice avoiding cats. Yet, here was this little Lord daring to get in his face?
Hazel, sensing the disturbance, turned back, her expression showing an unreadable emotion. She seemed like she wanted to say something but hesitated.
Ding Dong—
"You have received a hidden quest clue."
Hidden Quest: [Family Sacrifice - Hazel]
Difficulty: Abyss-Tier
Quest Details: Prevent Hazel from being favored by the emperor and becoming a candidate for the empress.