King

"Uh, hello... I was just wondering who you are, and, ah, are you perhaps a native here?" Jax asked, standing behind the young man. He scratched the back of his head and forced a friendly smile.

He struggled to keep his voice steady, though. For all he knew, this guy might suddenly lunge at him without warning. Jax thought it would be wise to maintain a safe distance, just in case something unexpected happened.

But would keeping a distance really ensure his safety if the guy decided to attack? Looking at the corpses of the over a hundred Cute Puffies piling up on the ground, a sudden shiver ran down his spine. He felt that even if he tried to flee, he would still end up getting killed if the guy truly wanted him dead.

Just where did this demon come from?

Suddenly, the mysterious young man turned around, his piercing gaze locking onto Jax. He regarded Jax with a nonchalant expression, his silence hanging in the air as he didn't respond immediately.

The young man's silence made Jax increasingly uneasy. He shifted uncomfortably, forcing out a dry, awkward laugh, and scratched his cheek nervously with his index finger. In hindsight, he should have made a run for it while he still had the chance, shouldn't he?

Meanwhile, the young man's gaze bore into Jax with a deadly intent. Someone as insignificant as Jax was merely expendable, better off dead. His distrust of humans ran deep, and in his twisted mind, every last one of them deserved death.

However, his curiosity got the best part of him as he restrained his bloodlust from acting up. His eyes narrowing into slits as though peering through the other party's very being.

"How come you're here? How did you enter this land?" The young man's response came after a brief pause. But instead of providing a straightforward answer, he fired back with another question, his tone inquiring and slightly accusatory.

He was well aware that no human, regardless of their abilities, could enter and leave the Forbidden Land at will. This knowledge only deepened his puzzlement. How was it that a fragile and insignificant brat like the one in front of him was able to move about that place?

Jax's query about the stranger's identity momentarily slipped his mind. He scratched his head, responding with the hint of uncertainty, "Uh... I'm not really sure either. I was just transported here by that Scroll."

He was just as perplexed, how could he answer such a question? He, too, was desperate to know how he ended up in that place.

"A scroll?" The young man repeated, his eyes clouded with skepticism and bewilderment. Yet, despite his doubts, he sensed that Jax was telling the truth. It seemed that the boy had indeed been transported to this place with the scroll he mentioned.

If it was indeed a scroll, it must have been a spell crafted by a skilled Spell Caster, imbuing it with powerful teleportation magic. But what puzzled him was how such a valuable and rare item had ended up in the possession of someone as insignificant as Jax. Something didn't add up, and his instincts told him that there was more to this than met the eye.

"So, you opened this scroll and were suddenly transported here?" The young man's eyes narrowed slightly as he pressed for more information, his voice tinged with a hint of curiosity. "Who gave you that scroll?"

"No one gave me the Scroll, and I didn't even open it," Jax replied with a sigh. He shook his head slowly with a look of bewilderment on his face before he continued, "It just suddenly appeared in front of me and revealed those weird, cryptic messages."

"Then it asked me if I wanted to accept the Lord's Quest," Jax explained, his eyes distant as he recalled the events. "As soon as I replied 'Yes', I was instantly transported here in this very place."

"Now that I think about it, I'm actually on a mission," Jax recalled, his expression turning serious and a bit worried. "I need to collect souls from the monsters here. So, if I may..." He gestured towards the pile of corpses in front of him, his eyes locked on the young man as he asked, "Can I collect their souls?"

"Hold on, did you just say a scroll suddenly appeared in front of you?" The young man's eyes narrowed, his expression skeptical. His interest was piqued, and he didn't even register the rest of Jax's words, his focus solely on the mysterious scroll.

After all, If a scroll truly appeared before Jax as he claimed, that would imply the scroll possessed some form of sentience or autonomous ability. Such an item would be extremely rare and valuable, likely classified as a top-grade item.

"What kind of scroll is that? Show it to me." The young man demanded, his voice taking on a commanding tone. His demeanor also shifted, and his eyes gleamed with a mix of curiosity and authority, as if he was accustomed to issueing orders to others.

"Hmm..." Jax hesitated for a moment. He had no intention of sharing the Scroll with anyone, but the memory of the young man's effortless slaughter of the Cute Puffies made him reconsider.

Forcing a smile, he acquiesced, prioritizing his own survival. The threat of death at the young man's hands was too great to ignore, and Jax valued his life too much to take the risk.

And also, Jax's recent introduction to the Scroll and his unfamiliarity with the new world left him unaware of the Scroll's true significance. Had he known its actual value and the potential it held as a lifesaver, he would have been even more guarded and hesitant to reveal any information about it.

The thought of sharing its existence would have been unthinkable, and he would have taken greater care to keep it a secret.

"That scroll... Here, take a look," Jax replied, his hand extending as he called out, "Scroll."

As soon as Jax summoned it, an ancient, mysterious-looking scroll materialized in front of him, hovering in mid-air. Its worn, yellowed parchment remained tightly rolled, exuding an aura of age and secrecy.

The young man's eyes widened in surprise as the Scroll suddenly appeared before him. At first glance, it seemed like an ordinary, albeit ancient, scroll. However, as he gazed deeper, he sensed an otherworldly aura emanating from it, as if it held a profound purpose and significance that transcended the mundane.

The young man's curiosity was piqued, and he felt an inexplicable pull towards the mysterious Scroll.

Not only did the Scroll appear suddenly when summoned, but it also floated in mid-air, defying the laws of nature. Moreover, the way it seemed to respond to Jax's call, as if it had a sense of familiarity or even loyalty to him, only added to the enigma.

He definitely hadn't seen this kind of Scroll before.

"I must take it!" A fierce thought and determination ignited within the young man as he gazed at the Scroll. He was convinced that anything capable of capturing his attention was undoubtedly a treasure, and he was determined to take it, no matter what.

With a calm and deliberate motion, the young man raised his hand to claim the Scroll. He was in no rush, confident that even if Jax attempted to resist, he could easily overpower him and take the Scroll by force.

Jax suddenly began to sweat. That guy... was he planning to...

Grab.

Jax's worst fears were confirmed as the young man's hand closed in around the Scroll, his fingers wrapping around it in a tight grasp.

The young man's eyes gleamed with a sense of triumph, and Jax knew he had to act fast if he wanted to protect the Scroll — and himself.

"Ah, you can't..." Jax began, but his words trailed off as something unexpected happened, catching him off guard.

''Ahhhhhh!!!!''

As soon as the young man's hand closed around the Scroll, a burst of intense electricity erupted, enveloping his entire body. He let out a blood-curdling scream, his voice echoing through the air as the electricity seemed to torture him, slowly draining the life from his body.

The young man's knees buckled, and he collapsed to the ground, his body convulsing in agony as the electricity continued to course through his veins.

Boom!

The moment he released his grip on the Scroll, the young man's body erupted in a violent explosion, leaving his body charcoal black.

But the young man remained alive, his upper body still upright as he knelt on the ground. However, the horrific experience had left him stunned and speechless, his eyes wide with shock as he wondered if he was indeed still alive.

"Ah... Are you okay?" Jax asked hesitantly, scratching his temple in awkwardness. He didn't know why, but that young man suddenly screamed out of nowhere, and then kneeled on the ground like a fool, and then finally exploded.

Did that Scroll cause it? Jax wasn't sure, but he believed that it was the cause of the young man's bizzare experience.

With a cautious gesture, Jax extended his hand to help the young man up, while also carefully retrieving the Scroll. He better kept his things safe from robbers.

The young man swiftly regained his composure, refusing Jax's offer of help as he struggled to stand up on his own. Though his legs wobbled beneath him, he gritted his teeth and managed to steady himself, attempting to brush off the ordeal as if nothing had occurred.

Cough. Cough.

"I'm okay, mind your own business," With a rough cough, the young man cleared his throat, his voice laced with a hint of embarrassment. He brushed off the dust from his clothes, trying to save face.

"Damn it!" The young man cursed inwardly. His eyes turned serious as a terrifying thought crossed his mind. "Is that a Divine item? If it is, I'm in trouble. I won't be able to take it from him by force... unless he willingly hands it over, it's impossible for me to get my hands on it..."

Only a Divine rank item would choose its owner selectively and fiercely protect themselves against those who would seek to steal them. Even if the owner was killed, the item would not be obtainable, instead vanishing along with its master, rendering it impossible to claim.

The only ways to acquire a Divine item were through its own acknowledgment, where the item itself accepted the individual as its new owner, or through the voluntary bestowal of the item by its current possessor. Any other attempt to obtain it would be met with failure.

He must find a way to let that kid give it to him.

But it was strange.

The young man's eyes narrowed into slits as he gazed at Jax with a mixture of confusion and curiosity. He couldn't fathom how someone as unremarkable as Jax, a brat with no apparent exceptional talents or abilities, could possibly have acquired a Divine item.

What was it about Jax that the Scroll had seen, that had led it to acknowledge him as its owner? The young man's frown deepened as he struggled to understand this inexplicable phenomenon.

Only a single possibility crossed his mind. Did someone actually give that Scroll to him?

Now, the young man was curious about Jax. His initial intention to kill him had given way to a desire to learn more about this brat.

Unaware of the truth, the young man continued to speculate about Jax and the Scroll, oblivious to the fact that it was merely a mysterious scroll with an unknown origin. Its appearance a result of an inexplicable phenomenon, and not a Divine item at all.

He just happened to mistake it as a Divine item since it had characteristics resembling that of a Divine. However, he overlooked a crucial detail. Divine items invariably left an unmistakable mark of divinity on their owners.

As for Jax... The young man could see it if he wanted to, but Jax didn't have a shred of divinity at all. He simply looked like the normal person that he really was.

"You asked about my identity earlier, right?" Suddenly, the young man spoke. A strange smile spread across his lips as he raised his hand, offering a handshake. "I am called King," He took a moment of pause before he continued. "How about you?"