System's POV

Chapter 1331: Return To Solterra

When Thirteen regained his senses, he found himself standing on what seemed to be an ancient ruin.

Soon, he heard gasps of surprise as the other Wanderers, who were sent to the same location, looked at their surroundings.

“Look! Isn’t that Roland Du Lac?!” a young man pointed at Roland in shock. “The Hero is with us!”

“Isn’t that Sir Derek?!” a young lady squealed. “I’m a fan!”

Thirteen was at the very corner of the ruins, hidden behind a pillar. Because of this, no one saw him right away.

Seeing two of the members of the Hero Party among them, all the young men and women couldn’t hold back their joy.

Roland glanced at the Wanderers and was relieved to see no first-timers among them.

The age range of the Wanderers in the scene was above sixteen years old and above, which meant that they had already accomplished at least two or more missions in Solterra, and were no longer considered amateurs.

But this discovery also made him understand that whatever mission was given to them wouldn’t be that simple.

As if waiting for that moment, they all heard a notification sound inside their heads, and details of their mission flashed in front of them.

———

< Chain Quest: The Dawn Of The Apocalypse [Part 1] >

— The Celestial, Zaphiel, had raised an army with the intention of retrieving the divine treasure of Pandora.

However, this is none of your concern. Your mission is to stop his army from reaching the Temple of Olympus, where they would acquire the first key to unlock the treasure they seek.

< Optional Mission >

Mission: Find ways to prevent Zaphiel from gaining Pandora’s Treasure.

Note: If the key falls into the hands of Zaphiel’s Army, the second mission will be twice as hard as the first one.

———

“A Chain Quest…” Roland narrowed his eyes after reading the contents of the mission.

“Are we really going to do this?” Derek frowned. “Can we really offend a Celestial?”

The Celestials and Fiends of Solterra were very close to becoming Demigods.

They already had enough accumulation to take that step, and the only barrier preventing them was the laws of the world.

This was also the reason why Zaphiel wished to gain Pandora’s treasure. Only with it could they break free from the holds of the God that watched over Solterra.

Thirteen rubbed his chin because he now knew who the troublemaker among the Celestial was.

“Zaphiel,” Thirteen muttered. “I knew this guy was trouble when I saw him in the past.”

When Erasmus was still Cassiel, they had roamed many places in Solterra.

There was more than one occasion when they heard rumors about Zaphiel building an army to change the status quo of Solterra.

Back then, Erasmus thought that the Celestial planned to wage war against the Fiends, who more or less didn’t care about the things that were happening in the world.

The Fiends might get along well with each other, but they didn’t really like to meet up like the Celestials.

Mammon was the exception to this rule since both the Celestials and the Fiends do business with him.

While everyone felt anxious at the thought of going up against the army of a Celestial, Derek finally noticed Thirteen, which made his eyes widen in shock.

“Master!” Derek shouted and waved in Zion’s direction.

The other Wanderers wondered who Derek’s master was, so they turned around to look in the direction where he was waving.

When they finally saw Thirteen, a collective gasp spread among the Wanderers.

All of them were too shocked to even say anything because right in front of them was none other than the Supreme Commander of the Alliance, the legend who secured a victory against the Jinns and Artemians in the Cygni Continent.

Roland was also surprised to see Zion with them on this mission.

Although he was still a little bitter that Shana had become the teenage boy’s fiancée, he was also happy because Princess Laventia made him feel special.

He was starting to move on from his feelings for Shana, and frankly, he couldn’t think of anyone who deserved her better than Zion.

“Master, why aren’t you saying anything?” Derek approached Zion anxiously. “Did you notice anything strange with this mission? Or is there any danger around us?”

Tiona, who was wrapped around Thirteen’s neck like usual, glanced at Derek and flicked her tongue in his direction, as if telling him to calm down.

“I was just about to check our surroundings,” Thirteen said. “But I think it would be a good idea if everyone helped as well. Please, summon Avatars that can fly or move quickly on land. We need to scout our location and check if there’s anything dangerous in the surroundings.”

As soon as he spoke, Derek didn’t hesitate and summoned one of his Avatars, a Horned Eagle.

The Eagle had a wingspan of three meters and was a Rank 4 Monster.

It was a monster that was not meant to be ridden, but more of an attack-type monster that could also scout when needed.

“Scout the surroundings, and report to me if you see anything suspicious,” Derek ordered. The Horned Eagle nodded before soaring towards the sky to follow its Master’s words.

One by one, the Wanderers also summoned Avatars that could be used for scouting.

They were all very excited to follow the Supreme Commander of the Alliance, who was their idol.

Some of the ladies were also looking at the teenage boy with blushing faces, which would have made Erica roll her eyes if she saw them.

But since she wasn’t there, no one could stop the ladies from trying their luck to seduce Zion.

For them, becoming the lover of the Supreme Commander of the Alliance was similar to winning the lottery in life.

While everyone was sending their Avatars to scout their surroundings, Thirteen also summoned his black banner and ordered the Demons to scout the area thoroughly.

There must be a reason why they were sent to the ancient ruins, and he planned to make sure that there was nothing dangerous around before he decided on what course of action to take for the time being.