System's POV

The members of the Elite Team who would investigate the Kingdom of Seneros were carefully handpicked by Thirteen.

He deliberately picked those who knew of his secret—Erica, Sherry, Diana, and Drazzat.

Mobility played an important role in this mission, so Rocky's help was indispensable. This alone barred him from considering those who weren't part of his circle.

David and the other chosen leaders were tasked to watch over the Wanderers, who were currently staying in the caves Rocky had dug a few miles away from the human kingdom.

The barrier in the vicinity was too strong for Tiona's clone to enter, which put a temporary halt to their investigation.

Still, the clone had gathered some valuable information.

There were at least eight creatures inside the city with the strength of Rank 8 and above.

Knowing this, Thirteen deemed that it would be too dangerous for Rocky to try to break the barrier by force.

As soon as Thirteen's team reached the hundreds of meters mark from the edge of the purple barrier, he and his team went out to investigate.

"I sense something ominous from this barrier," Drazzat said as he gazed at his right hand, which was uncontrollably trembling due to the presence he could feel inside the city.

Ratatoskr, who decided to check what they were doing, had also joined the team to inspect the Kingdom responsible for instigating the Goblin Emperor into stealing their Shard of Origin.

"T-This… this barrier feels so vile," Ratatoskr commented. "Just being near it makes me nauseated."

Even Erica, Sherry, and Diana were not feeling too comfortable with being near the barrier.

They were already dozens of meters away from it, yet even from that distance, they could still feel the overwhelming pressure that the barrier was radiating.

Thirteen picked up a rock and threw it on the barrier to confirm his theory.

The moment the stone hit the barrier, the former instantly disintegrated, making everyone's gaze harden.

Unfazed with what happened, Thirteen took out his bow and nocked an adamantine arrow on it.

"Everyone, get behind me," Thirteen said. "This might cause a chain reaction, so it's best to be safe than sorry."

His team didn't question his words and obeyed him without a second thought.

Once he was sure that everyone was safely behind him, Thirteen released the arrow and watched it fly straight toward the barrier. Just like the stone, it disintegrated right in front of his very eyes.

"Sh*t," Erica muttered.

Adamantine was one of the strongest metals in the world. For it to be destroyed so easily only meant one thing.

Anyone who touched the barrier would also be destroyed.

While the humans were still reeling from their discovery, an amused voice reached their ears.

"I see that we have some uninvited guests here. It's quite unfortunate, but I can't show any of you my hospitality."

Thirteen raised his head to look at the top of the City Walls, where a middle-aged man stood with a faint smile on his face.

The others did the same, and almost took a step back when they realized the rank of the person that they were looking at.

'A Monarch,' Thirteen frowned. 'And not just an ordinary Monarch, but a very strong one.'

Thirteen had been in contact with a few Monarchs during the battle in the Rigel Continent.

But even the strongest Monarch he knew, the Leader of the Central Government, was weaker compared to the man who was looking down at them from the city walls.

"Are you the King of this Kingdom?" Thirteen asked.

"Yes," King Xanmara replied. "You may call me Xanmara. Are you the leader of the Lowborns who came from the other side of the one-way portal in the Randall Stronghold? You're much younger than I expected."

"The name is Zion Leventis," Thirteen declared. "Are you an Absolute?"

King Xanmara nodded. "Indeed, I am an Absolute."

"No, you're not." Thirteen shook his head. "You're just an Absolute Hybrid."

The King of the Kingdom of Seneros narrowed his eyes. None of those who dared to call him a Hybrid lived to tell its tale.

Thirteen had taken a good look at the information about the Absolute Heaven, saved up inside his Soul Core, and learned a few things from it.

Although the information was not complete, it was enough for him to know what kind of arrogant race he was dealing with.

"A Lowborn like you should know when to shut up," King Xanmara replied.

"What if I don't want to shut up?" Thirteen sneered. "What can you do about it?"

"Arrogant Lowborn," King Xanmara sneered back. "Are you being brave now because there is a barrier that separates us?"

"Yes," Thirteen answered. "Do you think I'll say something so arrogant in front of a Monarch without knowing if they can retaliate or not? I'm not stupid like you."

"Such insolence!" shouted an old man, who suddenly appeared beside King Xanmara. "How dare you talk to His Majesty so brazenly?"

"I dare," Thirteen replied. "Old dung, what can you do about it?"

"O-Old dung?! You bastard!" The old man was truly feeling incensed by the teenage boy's taunts.

Thirteen didn't know that his teammates were starting to feel anxious. Unlike him, they didn't know if the Monarch had the ability to cross the barrier and attack them.

Of course, they were not aware that this was also part of Thirteen's plan to confirm whether those inside the city could pass through the barrier so easily.

Depending on the outcome of his experiment, he would be able to form a plan on how to best deal with their current situation.

More people appeared on the city walls, with some of them wearing armor.

Clearly, they were the Guards who were meant to protect the city, and all of them were glaring at the teenage boy as if they wanted to rip him to shreds.

"Looks like all of you are just talking," Thirteen snorted. "If you guys have what it takes, then come out here, so I can beat the crap out of all of you."

"Insolent child, you dare?!"

"Courting death!"

"Filthy Lowborn doesn't know his place!"

King Xanmara didn't say anything and simply glared at the teenage boy, whom he could easily kill with a single poke.

But since he couldn't destroy the barrier, he could only bottle up his anger.

"I know that you're summoning something," Thirteen said, which surprised the King and his Ministers. "But I'm telling you now that you are bound to fail."

"Bound to fail?" King Xanmara asked. "Foolish child. I swear upon my name that as soon as this barrier disperses, I will personally hunt you down to rip out that filthy tongue of yours."

"Why wait, when you can do it now?" Thirteen made a gesture for the King to come closer. "Unless you're feeling scared?"

The teenage boy had already confirmed that just like they were unable to break past the barrier protecting the city, those inside it could also not leave it so easily.

Even a Monarch as strong as King Xanmara was unable to do so, which made him understand just how powerful the barrier was.

But just as the teenage boy was going to order his subordinates to leave with him, King Xanmara's voice reached him.

"Three weeks. After three weeks, I will hunt you down like the filthy Lowborn that you are."

Thirteen eyed the Monarch standing on top of the castle wall before walking away.

But after taking four steps, he turned around to look at the King and smiled faintly.

"I'll see you sooner than you think, King of Hybrids," Thirteen stated. "Let's see if you can still be arrogant by then."

After saying what he had to say, Thirteen jumped into the hole that appeared in front of him and vanished from the King's view.

Erica, Sherry, Diana, Drazzat, and Ratatoskr also jumped into the hole without saying a single word, reuniting with the teenage boy inside their Mobile Fortress.

They were all shaken, not expecting that they would be dealing with a Monarch.

Contrary to his comrades, Thirteen was still feeling calm. As long as King Xanmara was unable to leave the city, they had nothing to worry about.

Also, now that he knew how strong the enemy was, he understood that he needed to find a different approach on how to complete their mission.

'I'll check the surroundings first,' Thirteen thought. 'If I don't really see any other option, I will have no choice but to push through with my Plan B.'

For the time being, Thirteen ordered Rocky to go back to the caves, where the other Wanderers were staying, to inform them about their discovery.

At first, he thought that it would be best to not tell them about the Monarch. But he changed his way of thinking.

Letting them know the truth was better than lying to them.

While he might lie about many things, he believed that telling them that they were facing off against a Monarch and seven more creatures that were likely Rank 8 and above was the right thing to do.

That way, whether they decide to follow him in the future or not, they would know that they were following a person who they could trust.