[Living Verse, Omniverse 101, Megaverse 10, Multiverse 101, Universe 1]
GRETOLING EMPIRE,
Half of the Gretoling Empire resides around the circumference of the Milky Way Galaxy, and the other half exists inside an artificial galaxy called G-2.
Planet G-2.3,
We are on another galaxy?!
This is bad. This is bad. This is worst.
What are we going to do now?
My teammates were starting to regain consciousness. Thank God.
That mysterious man who teleported us…
Damn it.
Mala came closer to me.
She looked confused. Honestly, so did I.
[Mala]: Where are we?
She asked, cold sweat forming on her forehead.
[Pratik]: On a planet, I guess.
I immediately got punched in the face.
Yeah… that was expected. I should've answered more seriously.
[Mala]: Can you act seriously for once in your life?
She said, slightly angry.
[Pratik]: I am trying to figure it out myself.
I replied in a low voice.
Grimori and Kel were waking up by then.
[Kel]: This atmosphere… I can sense far more toxic and harmful gases than Dragon Empire.
Yeah. Probably carbon monoxide or something.
It's suffocating. If we were normal humans, we'd already be dead due to temperature and gas composition.
[Pratik]: I wanted to say a proper goodbye to Girishika though…
Yeah… I couldn't.
Man, this feels bad. She must be crying because we disappeared. I wonder what Master Krishna is doing right now.
[Lila]: What should our approach be?
[Kel]: It's obvious. We need to keep a low profile.
[Grimori]: Yes. Our bounties have increased significantly. Many dangers will come after us. Staying hidden is best.
[Mala]: Should we disguise ourselves as native species?
[Kel]: Probably. This planet lacks advanced intelligent species, but the planet in the fourth orbit might be habitable. We should study their anatomy and blend in.
They were all talking seriously.
Meanwhile, I felt like I was being sidelined again.
They always forget me. It's like I'm some protagonist with insane potential but treated like a background NPC.
[Mala]: How are we supposed to reach that planet?
[Kel]: In that case, I th—
[Pratik]: Can't we just teleport there? That would be easier, right?
Everyone stared at me blankly.
Is something wrong?
[Kel]: You can teleport?
[Pratik]: Yeah. I just learned recently.
To be honest, I analysed it during the fight against Crocus.
I couldn't replicate it then, but the two days of training with Master Krishna helped me visualise and manifest it properly.
[Mala]: Can't you just teleport us back to Dragon Empire?
Oh. That's actually a genius idea.
Nope.
Bad idea. Worse idea. Worst idea.
The teleportation I learned only works within a one light-year range at best. If Dragon Empire is beyond that, we'd get dumped into empty space one light-year away from our current position.
Also, I've only learned spatial teleportation—not wormhole expansion.
Wormhole teleportation can cross any distance, but it requires approximate coordinates or at least a stable spatial anchor.
[Pratik]: I haven't learned that kind of teleportation yet.
[Mala]: I see… even teleporting us here is already impressive.
She said, slightly disappointed.
Sowwy.
We moved forward and I teleported us to the nearest planet.
This planet was called G-2.4, the fourth planet from the system's star.
Surprisingly, everyone here looked human.
We didn't even need disguises. We just changed our clothes.
Their outfits looked like something from ancient or medieval India.
Soon, we reached a dome-like arena.
Fights were being arranged there.
We decided to participate to earn some money.
We needed currency to survive. Here, it was copper, silver, and gold coins, each stamped with a woman's face.
The locals said she was the first ruler of the Gretoling Empire—and supposedly the closest being to their god.
I didn't fully understand it, so I didn't ask further.
We signed up for fights.
The crowd was massive—abnormally huge.
That's when we heard it.
The prince of the entire Gretoling Empire would be participating in this tournament.
While Lila, Mala, Grimori, and Kel were thinking deeply…
I was already smiling.
A nasty, greedy smile.
Perfect.
If this brat prince is arrogant, I'll beat him in front of everyone.
My teammates looked at me with disgust.
It took only ten minutes for me to reach the finals.
They did the same—but got eliminated later for using sorcery, which was against the rules.
My smile widened even more.
Now it would be just me and the prince.
Finally.
The golden moment arrived.
I stepped into the arena.
Then the announcer declared:
SORCERY HAS BEEN ALLOWED FOR THE FINAL MATCH.
Hmm…
Seems like the prince either has influence over sorcery rules or wants a serious fight.
Maybe I underestimated him.
I became cautious.
The gates opened.
A six-year-old kid walked in.
Wait.
Am I really fighting a kid?
Seriously?
He looked cute—green hair, bright eyes.
Girls his age probably adored him.
[Pratik]: Am I really going to fight a six-year-old kid?
I murmured.
"I am ten years old."
He replied.
Does that even make it better?
He's still a kid.
The announcer hyped him up heavily.
The crowd went wild—cheering, shouting, even blowing kisses.
This brat… seems popular.
[Pratik]: What's your name, kid?
"My name is Yash Chandrika Putra."
What?!
Yash Chandrika Putra?!
The same Yash who's supposed to become one of the heads of the Griffins Crew alongside me?!
Wait… I think I heard that somewhere.
[Pratik]: Sorry, can you repeat that?
[Yash]: How about you defeat me… and make me say it again?
He took his stance.
That wasn't a child's posture.
That was trained.
This kid… knows martial arts.
Alright.
I won't hold back.
[Pratik]: I see. Trigger 2, Density.
[Yash]: Iron Kick.
Our kicks collided.
A massive shockwave exploded outward.
Barriers shattered.
The sky above tore apart from the impact.
Let's see how this goes.
TO BE CONTINUED…
---
EXTRAS,
DRAGON EMPIRE SPECIAL,
Crocus has been escorted to the deepest prison of Moro Planet by Griho himself.
In the darkness, Crocus began refining his Dark Energy coating and sorcery techniques.
His power slowly started returning.
From 10% after unsealing, he reached 12% within just two days.
He is preparing himself to fight Pratik again… after a decade or more.