CHAPTER 13: NEGATIVE TIME

"Alright, lads, let's get a bit serious. 100%. Be prepared, kids," Xerd said, his voice heavy with authority.

Greg laid down on Drakonix's back while Drakonix was flying toward the southern continent, planning his next moves to dominate. The wind was gentle, not fierce on his skin, thanks to Drakonix's careful flying. They finally reached the southern continent and both primordial dragons landed in a plain valley, suitable for a battle between powerhouses.

"So, what's the golden lion like?" Annabelle asked, curious about Xerd.

"He's just a bully, a big bully," Drakonix replied, with Leviathan agreeing by nodding her head.

Annabelle listened closely to their stories, occasionally interrupted by Leviathan, who would add her own details or elaborate on things Drakonix had missed. Greg, on the other hand, laid down on Drakonix's back, frowning. He felt that something was wrong, something missing.

Suddenly, Xerd, the golden lion, appeared, cutting the storytelling short.

"You're here, you bully? Prepare to lose and get beaten this time, old man," Drakonix said confidently.

Greg and Annabelle dismounted the dragons' backs and moved away from the battlefield. Greg's instincts screamed at him, telling him something was off about the scene.

"I'd rather not stress myself doing that. I already got the information I need. While being invincible to attacks is something to brag about, being unable to hit your opponent is terribly embarrassing. I don't want to waste time fighting with kids. I can no longer discipline you, so I don't see the need to continue a pointless battle," Xerd said with an indifferent expression.

"Oi, have you gone senile? What are you talking about?" Drakonix asked, confusion washing over him. What was the bullying old man blabbering about? Plus, how did he know about the new ability bestowed on him? Did he have a way of spying on him all this time? That was pretty scary, and Drakonix started giving Xerd dagger stares. Xerd, of course, remained totally unfazed.

Greg, however, couldn't help but start sweating profusely. He had a dangerous guess about what was happening.

"Hmm, I attacked you countless times, should've reached infinity. Attacking at the cellular level, even atomic level, to see if I could find a weak point. But surprisingly, there was none," Xerd said, clearly amused.

Greg felt a primal fear rising within him from Xerd's words.

"You... you manipulated time and turned it backwards, didn't you?" Greg asked, his fear escalating.

"Hmm, it seems you have good instincts and observation. Impressive and useful, I must say," Xerd replied.

"But no, I didn't turn back time. You see, we fought... well, I fought those two lizards before you guys arrived," Xerd said calmly, causing Greg's eyes to widen.

"And of course, let me clarify, it wasn't a simulation; it's what you call negative time. You see, I moved so fast that time itself couldn't keep up. I flowed with the future time until the past time could finally catch up to me. So, we fought before you arrived."

Silence. Absolute silence from everyone present.

"Old man, you're joking, right? How is it possible that you're too strong?" Leviathan said, truly feeling fear for the first time. She couldn't believe Xerd had been this strong all along.

"Enough of the fear and admiration. Why did you come to see me? It's definitely not just to settle scores, is it?" Xerd asked.

"No, we wanted you to accept our Patrons as yours, but guess we don't have a way to force you to do it," Drakonix said weakly, any plans to confront the monstrous golden lion fading away.

"Well, don't be discouraged, little ones. It was my plan to serve him before, but I fear I cannot just yet, to prevent them from finding him," Xerd said, his gaze shifting toward Greg.

"What are you talking about? You'll serve him? That's weird. You can't be that fixated on his abilities, right?" Leviathan asked.

"Little ones, we were all made to serve him, that's our purpose. I cannot say more for fear of making them discover him," Xerd calmly replied, before appearing at Greg's front instantaneously.

"Well, my lord, I advise you to grow stronger as quickly as possible. Your true enemies are far away and far stronger than me, by a long shot, if I may say so. So, grow stronger for the sake of this world. I can't say more than I already have. When you've grown strong enough, I'll serve you wholeheartedly. But for now, doing so will only cause more harm than good to you, something I do not wish to happen."

Greg listened to Xerd's words, but couldn't wrap his head around it. Enemies he didn't know of? Far stronger than Xerd? That was a lot to absorb. He finally had a reason to grow stronger quickly.

---

Jessica sat calmly, sipping the coffee she had ordered from the café, patiently waiting for Kyle.

"Hope I didn't make you wait long, dear Jessica?" Kyle said, sitting across from her, with others joining in.

"Meet my friends, who have agreed to help me. Wealthy and skillful people who deserve the spot more than Nemesis and can't stand to see someone take their place like we did," Kyle added.

"Oi, you never told me we were visiting a beauty, Kyle. Would've brought a rose along," Walker, one of Kyle's friends, said while lecherously eyeing Jessica without reserve.

"Trash, move along with trash. Let's start talking about how to take Nemesis down, or I'll get out of here," Jessica said, clearly irritated.

"How dare you—" Walker started to protest.

"Enough, Walker. We have more important things to discuss for now," William said with a straight face.

"Alright then, let's get straight to business. First off, we need to place a bounty on his head to pressure him, rewarding any player who PKs him. That should really pressure him. Then, we need information about him as well. It's not good to fight an unknown enemy," Kyle said, and the discussion began. Everyone brought innovative ideas on how to defeat Nemesis.

Jessica felt bad about hurting a player like him, but she hardened her heart. She wouldn't mind hurting anyone as long as it was for Greg. She had finally accepted the truth—she loved Greg and would do anything to support him.