"2,205…"
Drakmor expected some kind of reaction, anything that would give away how Alexander felt about the figure.
Unfortunately for him and his colleagues, Alexander showed no bodily reactions, seemingly unaffected by the figure.
That was a lot of universe for one being, no matter how powerful, to purify. Most of them had been around when Alexander purified and erased the first corrupted universe.
It took him several hours to erase that ruined universe. Just imagining the duration Alexander would have to take made the chiefs anxious.
This was why the dragon expected some sort of reaction. Seeing Alex remain indifferent left him uncertain and apprehensive. But that was just one of the concerns.
'A-Alex…?'
Alexander's friends, on the other hand, were quite shaken by that number. Julia could not help but stutter as she called her beloved's name.
'Isn't that too many universes?'
'Perhaps…' Alexander calmly replied, leaving his friends baffled.
'What do you mean, perhaps?' Ross's red eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
The redhead glanced at the universe in the distance as he pondered, unravelling everything he knew about their current situation.
'There's something at play, isn't it?' Ross deduced, directing his gaze back to Alexander.
'Something is going on?' Julia was not particularly invested in knowing what was going on. However, hearing Ross's words made her think.
'The corrupted essence would not just act without someone actively channelling it.' Cassandra expressed her thoughts. 'And knowing what everyone has come to know…'
'Only Alexander can purify the corruption.' Julia completed with a frown behind her hood. 'Those bastards know he won't sit back and watch.'
'Exactly…' Cassandra affirmed.
'What are you going to do?' Ross asked after a couple of seconds.
'Play along.' Alexander answered. 'The corrupted Enforcers are planning something. Also…'
His gaze swept over the subordinate Enforcers gathered around the boundaries of the universe. Alexander counted more than one hundred Enforcers with corruption in their existence.
'We have a few spies among us.' Alex shared a mental map with his friends, marking those bearing the corruption with red.
'What do you intend to do with them?' Julia asked, her tone cold and calculating.
'Nothing… They are nothing compared to the chiefs. My guess is that they are around to sell the play.' Alexander explained.
'Sell the play?' Julia echoed, puzzled.
'It wouldn't make sense to have hundreds of thousands of gathered Veilwalkers here without more than a few corrupted ones.' Cassandra inwardly smiled.
'I see…' Julia's blueish-white eyes gleamed dangerously. 'The same should apply to the other 2024 universes.'
'Yep.'
Alexander answered as he pondered the current situation deeply. There was only one conclusion that came to him, no matter the scenario he painted.
'They want me out of the way if they fail to corrupt me…' Alexander inwardly stated to himself. 'And the best way to achieve that is for me to walk into the space where they have the most control.'
An uncomfortable silence persisted after Drakmor mentioned those figures until the Enforcers received word from their subordinates.
"We're ready for you, Lord Alexander." Nyssa spoke after receiving confirmation. "The inhabitants have all been evacuated."
Alexander did not immediately respond, prompting the Enforcers to wait for him. As much as some of them hated his current demeanour, they could not afford the consequences.
"What about the other universes?" Alexander asked instead, never once looking over his shoulder. His gaze had been fixed on the universe since his arrival.
"Two hundred and fourteen low-level universes and seventy-six mid-level universes have been cleared," Calyndra answered.
The numbers did not actually matter, as there was only one Alexander. Fortunately for everyone, the inhabitants were the priority.
Veilwalkers could swiftly replicate their universe within their inner realms, allowing them to carry the life of said universe with the inhabitants being none the wiser.
"Lord Drakmor, Lady Calyndra, Lady Velmyra…" The sudden call of their names captured their attention. "Accompany my friends to a low-level universe each."
Like the Enforcers, Alexander's friends were baffled by the arrangement. And before any of them could express their confusion, Alexander added.
"My friends will be in charge of purifying the corruption out of those universes."
Drakmor stared at Alexander calmly, his mind quickly deducing the reasoning behind Alexander's instructions. 'He's sending them away…'
"Yes," Drakmor answered while the lady Enforcers nodded.
They were not naive enough to believe Alexander entrusted the lives of his friends to them. This only meant their lives were not in danger at all.
At the same time, it was a test to see what they would do if the unexpected occurred. Would they stand by and watch, or would they act?
Meanwhile, Julia was fuming and expressing her disagreement with the arrangement. 'I want to come with you!'
Naturally, Julia was smart enough to see through Alexander's ploy. But that did not mean she agreed. She wanted nothing more than to be beside Alexander.
'I'll be fine, Julia.' Alexander soothed her. 'I'm playing along, remember?'
'Would they come after us, or would they only focus on you…' Ross calmly laid out Alexander's thought process. 'Are you sure this is okay?'
'I am… My last encounter with them should have given them a pretty good idea of what I'm capable of. For them to do something like this…' Alexander left the rest hanging.
'How does that make it fine?!' Julia was not having any of it. 'You don't know what they have installed for you!'
'Julia, my essence is within you three and our universe.'
'...'
That was all it took to snap Julia out of her anxiety and calm her down. Alexander was his essence, and his essence was him.
The entirety of their conversation took less than a second to conclude. And not once had they revealed any outward reaction, their demeanour calm and collected.
Finally, Julia turned around and faced the Enforcers, her piercing gaze locking onto Drakmor. With a single step, she flickered and arrived before the dragon, her height matching his.
"I'll be in your care…" Julia said.
Drakmor nodded, holding Julia's gaze with a straight back. As foreboding as her eyes were, they were not to Alexander's level.
Cassandra executed a void shift and appeared before Clayndra, the very tigress from whom she felt a subtle suppressive power.
Fortunately for her, the Nexis Radiant shielded her from any of its effects. She held the tigress's gaze but did not say a word, tension building between the two.
'Tch, this brat has no respect.' Calyndra inwardly sneered. Had it not been for Alexander and his essence, she would have made her bend the knee.
"Lady Velmyra…" Ross greeted his assigned Enforcer with a nod.
"Master Ross," Velmyra replied in kind.
Although a prideful phoenix, she valued her existence and had no complaint with the arrangement. After all, they agreed to Alexander's conditions when they asked for his help.
"Be careful, Lord Alexander." Drakmor suddenly stated, getting a subtle nod from Alexander, the only bodily response since his arrival.
The dragon then disappeared with Julia, and the others followed shortly after. Left alone, the other Enforcers focused their gaze on Alexander, waiting for him to make a move.
"What are you thinking about?" Rycan finally spoke after staring at Alexander for the last couple of minutes.
"How deep the rabbit hole goes…" The reply came.
However, before a follow-up could come, Alexander's figure faded, soon disappearing like a mirage. Every Enforcer who stood behind him had their eyes widened in shock.
'Where did he go?!'
'There!'
Heads snapped towards the edges of the universe, where Alexander stood. As for the subordinate Enforcers, they scurried away the moment they saw him, their cores thumping anxiously.
'Since when?!'
No one had seen or sensed him move. It was like Alexander was always standing right there, and they were just realising it!
The Chief Enforcers subtly gulped before shifting to appear behind him, the distance between them and Alexander as wide as a planet.
"I'm going in…"
Alexander's voice echoed through the void before he took off, swiftly plunging and disappearing into the open Veil Tear.
With the universe already cleared of inhabitants and Veilwalkers, there was no one around to get in his way.
"..."
"What a scary child…" An Enforcer commented several seconds after Alexander disappeared into the universe. "Do you think he will be alright?"
"Is that even a question?" Rycan chuckled. "We all know what this is. For him to go in there without hesitation shows the confidence he has in himself."
"Where I'm from, we call that presumptuousness."
"But he hasn't failed once. This might not be any different."
"We should clear the area." Rycan chipped in, putting an end to the conversation. He sent the command over to their subordinates, prompting everyone to leave the universe's boundaries.
"..."
Among the subordinate Enforcers, some patiently waited for the radiant flare to light up the dark void.
'It's starting…'
Meanwhile, Cassandra, Ross, and Julia reappeared at random, low-level universes equally surrounded and observed by subordinate Enforcers.
'Hm?'
Upon arrival, the two Immortals immediately noticed the weakened restrictions.
'Incredible…' Julia could not help but inwardly mutter to herself. 'I feel as light as a feather!'
The difference was exceedingly apparent, more so than they had expected. It was like comparing heaven to earth!
Rumble…
With a wave of her hand, Julia made the surrounding void quake for billions of kilometres, the simple gesture blowing apart the surrounding void energy.
The gesture felt so effortless that the Knight princess gawked behind the hood of her cloak.
"Congratulations are in order, Miss Julia," Drakmor commented from the side, prompting Julia to look his way. "You have adapted to the extreme restrictions of the higher-void."