CHAPTER 174

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[The Beyonder POV]

The preparations were ready.

The grand stage for the event that was about to unfold was ready.

And, I couldn't be happier.

The Tournament of Desire.

I laughed, wondering if the desire of my creations would be stronger than the desire of Alex and his companions.

"Let the games begin," I grinned.

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[Alex Walker POV]

Today, like every day, I was doing a raid with my leveling team.

It is, after all, like they say, there's no other way like the grind.

Right now, our party was separated, putting each and every single one of us in a different part of the map. This was part of the mechanic of the raid because right now, we all had to deactivate a rune, that powered the shield protecting the main boss.

At the same time.

Each rune was hidden, granted we knew where the rune was, generally speaking, but we had to search, be attentive, so to speak.

The rune I was looking for was located inside a small forest within the raid, which made my search a bit complicated, because sadly the rune was around the size of my hand, meaning it could be hidden anywhere around, behind a tree, behind a rock, heck maybe even inside a tree.

"A treehouse?" I whistled, finding a rather big treehouse in the middle of the forest. I grinned at this, a single treehouse in an old forest, it basically shouted, the rune was inside.

Chuckling, I jumped to the house, avoiding the rickety ladder leading to the house. 

With a heave and a cloud of dust, I opened the door to the house and peeked inside, the last thing I needed was to pull more monsters than I could handle. 

However, much to my delight, the treehouse seemed to be empty.

So with a smile, I walked into the house, taking a good look around, surveying the dusty furniture and broken portraits that seemed to clutter the entire place. 

"I wonder where the rune is," I muttered.

Sighing, I started my search, moving every piece of furniture, looking for the rune, but as the minutes passed, I started to question if the rune was in the house at all.

Heck, perhaps the house itself was a trap to waste time.

{Everyone, as to make this search, quicker, I would like to point out, the runes we are looking for are within a  shining gem, once you get a glimpse of it, it's impossible to miss,} The Ancient One informed in the chat.

I chuckled, it seemed she had been the first one to find the rune, not that it surprised me.

"An attic?" I blinked, noticing the door leading to it, wondering who the fuck would build an attic inside a treehouse.

Shaking my head, I took a deep breath, before opening the door leading to the attic with my [Telekinesis], then with the door opened, I jumped inside the attic, taking in the musty smell of the room, immediately regretting my choice. 

Errors had been made.

It smelled like someone that only eats taco bell had been farting there for decades, and the smell had basically integrated into the room as a permanent addition.

Summoning a glade from my inventory, I continued my search, looking around nervously, because if it smelled like shit, there was usually shit to be found, and I didn't want to step on it.

Then, as I walked deeper and deeper into the seemingly endless attic, something catches my attention. A faint glow from the back of the room, the glow itself palpitated like heart, following a rhythmical pattern. 

Grinning, I carefully make my way to the back of the room, glade at hand, where I found what I had been looking for. The rune.

"Heck yes!" I chuckled, announcing in the chat I had found my rune, much to Thor's dismay who was competing to find the rune first, I guess he would have to fight for third place now, I had secured the second.

As I chuckled at that thought, an involuntary shiver runs down my spine as a mirror appears right in front of me.

"Lovely dimension," A voice I don't recognize echoes inside my skull, seemingly coming from everywhere around me. With no idea what was happening, I try to create a gap between me and the mirror but find myself held in place. 

Was this a boss? A secret one? I wondered, thinking how to escape him, hoping the mechanic didn't need a second person, because if it did, I was fucked.

I hoped not literally.

Suddenly, as I tried to make some sense of what was happening, the voice chuckled in amusement, "No need to be afraid, I'm not one of your monsters, but I suppose in a way, I'm a monster, aren't I?"

It was here, when I came to the realization, this was not part of the raid, "Who are you?" I asked, sending a panic signal to my party.

As I asked this question, a creature starts to form in the mirror, at first, the thing that was forming within the mirror looked, alien, but as the seconds passed, that foreign look, change into that of a man wearing a white tux.

[The Beyonder LV????]

No… I was still not ready!

"Now, don't worry that little head of yours," The Beyonder chuckled, bending down ponderously.

Sorry, but that won't happen, I'm worried the fuck up!

"What do you want?" I asked.

"A lot of things, but right now?" The Beyonder hummed, smiling at me, "I want to see the limits of your desire."

The limits of my what?

"Here's the deal, if you pass my test, I'll give you one wish," The Beyonder grinned, "What do you say, a simple test, and you'll get a wish from me!"

Why was he even bothering me in the first place?

Oh… I see it, he's like a kid burning the wings out of a roach, just for fun.

"What test?" I had no other choice anyway, but to play the game, and hope to win.

"A tournament, your warriors, against mine, the winner takes it all!" The Beyonder declared.

I already knew what I wanted, for him to get the fuck out of my dimension, leaving me and my people alone, forever.

"Will you honor the wish?" I asked.

The Beyonder turned to look at me, an offended look on his face, "Of course, what's the point of making a game, if I won't follow my own rules, needless to say, some wishes are off the table," he finished, his tone turning unnaturally cold.

"So, if I were to ask you to never bother me, or my people again, would you do it?" I asked.

The Beyonder laughed, seemingly amused by my choice of wish, "Only if you win," he replied.