CHAPTER 461: 461. MYSTERIOUS GIRL FROM ANOTHER WORLD

"We are definitely not going inside," Tyler muttered firmly, narrowing his eyes at the ordinary bubble in front of the massive door. His tone wasn’t panicked, but resolute.

He waved his hand, and the phantom black mist that clung to him like a shroud began to unravel. The haunting silhouette of Phantom Blackwood faded away, revealing his original appearance. Lily and Mana did the same, dispelling their Phantom Pirate disguises in unison.

It wasn’t about safety— it was about perception. They looked like demons from hell in that form, and looking like devilish raiders wouldn’t earn them a warm welcome from the people on other side.

Just then, from the skies, figures descended on dragons and winged beasts, landing near the gate like a royal procession. The time inside moved faster, but even with the acceleration, it was clear enough that these people had noticed the opened passage.

Tyler, Lily, and Mana watched in silence. These weren’t enemies, at least not yet. Inside the barrier, a man wearing an ornate crown stepped forward— his bearing regal and composed. Standing beside him was an elven mage, leaning on a gnarled wooden staff that pulsed with energy. Behind them was a tall orc clad in thick armor, gripping a massive shield, and off to the side stood a young girl wearing a silver mask. She remained still, silent, like a trained attendant.

The king scribbled something onto a sheet of parchment, rolled it up, and sealed it inside a crystalline glass container. With a nod, he passed it to a fully armored knight, who walked up to the edge of the shimmering bubble.

He paused, then hurled the container toward the gate.

The moment it passed through the temporal barrier, the pressure crushed it with a sharp crack! Glass shards floated like petals in the water, but Tyler was already moving. With a flick of his fingers, he wrapped the paper in a sheath of protective aura, preventing it from tearing apart.

"Let’s see..." Tyler unrolled it.

None of them could understand a single word. The script was unfamiliar.

"I don’t understand their language." Tyler clicked his tongue. He reached into his storage and pulled out a sound transmission device— a simple one that could record voice and repeat messages. He activated it and used divine sense to speak into it calmly: "I don’t understand your language."

Then he repeated the same phrase in multiple dialects— languages from across both worlds he had lived in.

Satisfied, he wrapped the device in a dense layer of aura and gently launched it through the bubble.

The armored knight on the other side caught it. The force pushed him a step back, his feet digging into the soil. He looked up at Tyler in astonishment, then carried the device back to the king.

Inside the barrier, time moved faster— much faster. From Tyler’s perspective, they watched everything unfold like a video that was playing in 2x speed or even more than that.

Then, unexpectedly, the masked girl stepped forward.

She reached out, took the device with delicate fingers, and held it for a moment. Her silver mask tilted as if she were examining the strange artifact. Then, calmly, she spoke into it.

Tyler raised an eyebrow. The device was a standard model from the Boundless World. So it’s not difficult to figure out how it works. But he was little suprised that they were able to use it quickly.

She activated it correctly and recorded her message. Then she passed it back to the knight, who infused it with energy and hurled it through the barrier once more.

Tyler caught it easily, smirking a little as he did. The knight’s expression twisted into something annoyed— the smirk had lasted longer from his perspective.

He played the message.

"I will come near the gate," the girl’s voice said, her tone hushed but urgent. "Please save me... I will give anything you want."

Her voice trembled slightly— there was fear, desperation, and sincerity in her words.

Tyler hesitated. He didn’t particularly want more trouble, and this clearly spelled trouble.

But then came the next part.

The exact same message repeated—but in Zi World’s language.

"Help me... I will come near the gate... Please..."

Tyler’s eyes narrowed.

Her dialect was strange. Slurred. It wasn’t fluent—but it was definitely Zi World language. She had likely only learned bits and pieces, just enough to plead for help. It was enough to spark Tyler’s curiosity.

Lily noticed his change in expression. "Oh are you going to save another Damsel in Distress?"

cough.. "Ahem... not that reason." Tyler said, "But that second voice recording... she used my old world’s language. "

"You will definitely bed her in few weeks. Thousand Lydia Bet." Mana said.

"Then I will Bet too... Same Thousand Lydia. He will Bed her in a week." Lily also joined.

Tyler didn’t respond to that, he pretended that he didn’t hear anything.

"So?" Lily asked.

"We wait," Tyler replied. "Let’s see if she can actually reach the gate."

Tyler turned the sound transmission device over in his hand, activating the recording function again. His voice was calm, but laced with curiosity.

"Your world seems to operate on a different time ratio than ours," he began, speaking into the device. "At first, I assumed this was just a secret realm with altered temporal flow— but now I’m sure. It’s not a realm. It’s an entirely different world."

He glanced back at the massive underwater gate that bridged the two worlds. "This place you’re in... it’s connected to our world through this submerged ruin. Our world is called the Boundless World— a land of Immortals and Immortal Practitioners. The energy in this world is called Aura or Prana, not Mana. Mana doesn’t naturally exist in our domain. But the energy inside the device sent by your knight—it was definitely Mana."

Tyler paused for a moment before continuing.

"Tell your people these facts. Maybe it’ll help them understand what they’re dealing with. As for how you managed to trick them into letting you come this far... well, I’ll leave that to your wit. Good luck."

He finished the message, wrapped the device in protective aura, and tossed it back through the shimmering bubble.

Minutes passed on their side.

But inside the bubble, hours ticked by. They could see it. The king, the elven mage, and the other residents of that realm debated, argued, and eventually gave in. The masked girl— the one who had pleaded for Tyler’s help— stepped forward. She was flanked by the same knight who had previously delivered the messages.

"She really convinced them," Lily muttered. "She’s got guts, I’ll give her that."

Mana crossed her arms. "Let’s hope it’s not a trap."

The masked girl stopped near the border of the bubble. She exchanged a few last words with the knight and pulled a small pouch from her bag.

Then, without warning, she flung a powdery substance straight at the knight’s face.

It exploded with a sizzling hiss. Even the enchanted armor he wore began to melt under the chemical assault. The knight screamed, staggering backward, yanking off his helmet to reveal a handsome face marred by the corrosive powder.

His eyes locked on her—now full of fury.

He lunged, trying to grab her wrist.

But before he could reach her, an Abyssal trident streaked through the air and pierced his shoulder, sending him flying like a ragdoll.

The scene inside turned chaotic. The king and his court leapt into action, shouting, gesturing, running toward the gate. The elven mage raised his staff, ready to cast something. The orc guard tightened his grip on his shield.

But the girl— her ankle suddenly grabbed by the wounded knight— stumbled just inches from the gate. The knight looked up, his face twisted in rage, and his hand yanked her back but soon his face turned into fear.

The girl was confused and looked back.

It was Tyler.

He’d stepped through the gate.

And with one effortless motion, he raised his leg and kicked the knight across the jaw like a ball, sending him tumbling dozens of meters into the air before crashing into a heap.

The masked girl stared, stunned. So did everyone else.

Tyler calmly looked around, breathing in the air of this new world. The scents, the atmosphere—it felt different from the Boundless World. Yet the Mana in the air felt familiar.

"This energy... it’s exactly like what I sensed in Dusk and Dawn," he muttered under his breath. "Could it be the same world?"

He turned, glancing back through the gate. Lily and Mana stood frozen like statues in the water on the other side—motionless from this world’s perspective. Time here flowed differently.

"So this is how we looked to them... mmmm" he murmured.

He also felt the girl smells so nice that he actually wanted to a bite. Tyler was not sure why He felt like that but he controlled his urges.

Then a layer of protective aura, shielding her quietly. With a flick of his wrist, he pulled a small seashell from his pocket dimension and dropped it to the ground.

The girl barely had time to react as Tyler slid his arm around her waist, stepped back toward the portal, and yanked her through it.

The gate shimmered— and snapped shut behind them.

The king, now standing before the sealed entrance, let out a deep sigh. His face was unreadable.

He stooped down and picked up the seashell that Tyler had dropped.

"What’s this?" he muttered.

The elven mage stepped forward quickly. "Your Majesty, wait—!"

But it was too late. The king infused the shell with Mana.

A small crack echoed through the chamber.

"Barrier!" the elven mage shouted, slapping a glowing hand to the king’s chest.

A shimmering barrier sprang up just as the seashell shattered into pieces.

From the broken shell flowed a river of strange objects—glittering aura stones, shimmering prana stones, books wrapped in weather-resistant cloth, curious devices with flashing buttons, enchanted charms, compact weapons, and bizarre artifacts of unknown origin.

The king stepped back in awe.

Tyler is a merchant after all.