Chapter 87: Other World Threat
"This is not easy," Terrence commented as soon as he stepped out through the main gate of the abandoned settlement.
He turned around and looked back up at the high-stretching slope he had painstakingly climbed down earlier. Thinking about the sheer physical effort required to climb back up there on time made him deeply reluctant to carry out his plan.
"If I want to properly investigate this place, I should get deeper into the area and travel far from the portal," Terrence mused out loud. "But if I travel too far and end up failing to reach the time limit, harsh consequences will fall on me."
He let out a heavy sigh, taking a moment so he wouldn’t rush his decision. Deep within his heart, however, he desperately hoped that another settlement might be situated relatively close to the one he had just discovered.
"Whatever. I will just turn around and return when I feel like I’m already getting too far away."
Terrence transferred his attention over to the Sky Dragon hovering nearby.
"Scout at least a one-kilometer radius around us and look for a similar settlement like this one," Terrence instructed firmly. "If you find one, do not attempt to enter or investigate it by yourself. Return to me immediately."
The Sky Dragon noted his command with a quick nod and immediately flapped its wings, rapidly increasing its altitude into the open sky.
As soon as the Sky Dragon left, Terrence found himself with plenty of one-on-one time alongside his Shadow Hound.
"I haven’t actually named you yet, have I?" Terrence muttered, looking down at the creature. "Sorry, buddy. I already gave one to Avery first."
As if understanding every single word coming out of his mouth, the Shadow Hound let out a soft, short whine. Terrence couldn’t help but feel a sudden wave of embarrassment that he hadn’t prioritized his very first companion.
"Sorry... I know we have been together far longer than Avery, but it was honestly just a silly misthought on my part. You know how busy and chaotic things have been for us lately."
The Shadow Hound let out a sharp, short bark, its body language clearly showing it still hadn’t accepted Terrence’s weak apology.
Terrence crouched down on the dirt and gently caressed the dark, fluffy fur of the Shadow Hound. He still genuinely wondered where all the hard, iron-fused metal particles disappeared to whenever he affectionately caressed the beast’s body.
Well, that wasn’t a pressing problem right now.
"Okay... okay... calm down, boy. I already have a perfect name thought out for you."
The Shadow Hound raised its head in high anticipation, its ears perking up as it hoped the name wouldn’t be terrible.
Terrence smirked faintly.
"I will name you Noir. Because your coat is pitch black, and the letters are actually scrambled letters for ’iron.’ How is that? Do you like it?"
Noir nodded its head with intense enthusiasm, absolutely loving its new name as its tail wagged frantically back and forth in wholehearted approval.
"Good..." Terrence stood up straight and looked ahead toward the open ground beyond the main gate.
He noticed there was a narrow, cleared pair of parallel dirt paths stretching forward—a terrain feature clearly created for vehicles to travel on. His brows furrowed in confusion, silently asking himself why he hadn’t noticed this obvious road earlier.
"Hm... if a road like that exists... then the possibility that another settlement is nearby is definitely not slim," Terrence mumbled as he stepped forward, kneeling down to inspect the vehicle tire marks closer.
He raised his gaze to look further down the road, watching it stretch endlessly into the dense, wild foliage where soft beams of sunlight kissed the ground through the heavy canopy of the forest.
"If that’s the case... Wait, there’s an even bigger question I should be asking. The Golem Turtle should have only existed inside that basic C-Rank dungeon, and that parasitic leech beast too. They were complete anomalies to that place... So does that mean standard dungeon ranks can be completely ignored whenever there’s another rift hiding inside a dungeon rift?"
His head felt heavy, his temples throbbing with a sharp, piercing ache from overthinking. It felt a bit dramatic, but he hadn’t taken a single second of proper physical rest since his original dungeon run before stepping into this parallel world.
"I really should take a proper rest, but doing that will only waste my remaining time limit... I need actual answers."
It wasn’t as if Terrence was completely unable to return—he was just deeply unsure of what lay ahead—which was why, despite his uncontrolled excitement, he still wanted to get this exploration over with quickly.
If he could secure the crucial answers he wanted right now, maybe he could finally get his plans straight and stay several steps ahead of other people back home.
He was unsure of what tangible physical loot he could gather here, but he could at least walk away with revolutionary ideas. He already had a groundbreaking product concept for a public Beast Index, which could single-handedly raise his name and personal reputation as a rising store owner. Moreover, his daily mission wouldn’t be a problem anymore—he figured that broadcasting a massive public announcement would work just as effectively as telling it directly to strangers that he sell beasts.
There wasn’t a huge personal stake in playing it safe here. But he could gather priceless operational ideas, which was exactly what he wanted most.
"The possibility that there’s another dimensional rift inside this world is extremely high. Maybe over there, there are even high-tier wild beasts we can actively hunt..." Terrence suddenly paused mid-thought. "Wait, didn’t I think the exact same way earlier before entering this place? But what actually happened when I got here?"
He shrugged his shoulders dismissively. It wasn’t a waste of effort at all.
After some time had passed, Avery returned from the sky with fantastic news. The young flying beast had successfully spotted a very similar settlement located further away from the entry point, but it wasn’t overly far from their current geographic location.
"Good job! We need to head over there right now—and fast."
Terrence immediately braced his body, preparing to disembark down the road, but both Noir and Avery suddenly froze in place, adopting stances of intense hostility directed toward the forest path ahead.
Danger was approaching—there was no doubt about it.
Given how suddenly hostile and alert his beasts had become, it meant whatever was coming had only just arrived in their immediate vicinity.
Terrence took a deep, steadying breath before rolling his shoulders and stretching his neck. He was going to have to fight once again, but an encounter meant his visit to this world wouldn’t end up being a boring waste.
"What kind of beast is approaching us?" Terrence asked aloud, but as soon as a tall, humanoid silhouette stepped out from the shadowy tree line, his brain completely stopped thinking about wild beasts.
"What the..."
The physical appearance of the figure emerging before them was remarkably similar to the Vampire Butler beast he had previously sold to Winter—except its skin was an unnatural, ghostly pale.
Unlike standard humanoid beasts, there was usually a massive, obvious disparity in posture between high-intelligence humans and wild humanoid monsters. But looking at this individual... Terrence was absolute certain it wasn’t a beast.
"This is a high-intelligence alien lifeform living in this world... It’s literally wearing proper clothes."
The bipedal creature standing before them had two arms and a body frame that was far too similar to human anatomy. However, its long, pointed ears stood out as the most obvious physical difference separating their species.
Not only was it an intelligent lifeform, but it was also an immediate physical threat—it was armed with a long metallic sword and adorned in lightweight silver body armor. Its piercing green eyes locked onto them with pure, unbridled hostility, and its long blond hair was tied neatly behind its back, making Terrence’s hypothesis about a civilized society infinitely stronger.
Suddenly, bright golden window materialized directly across his vision, pulsing aggressively:
[Warning: You must leave this unknown dimension immediately. You do not belong here, Host.]
[Consequences: If you do not leave within one hour, everything you possess will disappear completely. Everything.]