Chapter 269 Mechanical voice  

Alec held his bleeding stomach as he lay down beside a boulder. His breathing was ragged and if one looked closely they would see a lot of wounds on his body.

He felt dizzy due to the blood loss. He took out a healing potion from his storage ring and poured it on his wounds.

After taking another breath to calm his wild heart, he stared at the winged man's body lying a few meters away from him with anger and disgust. A bright sword was protruding out from the man's chest.

Alec shut his eyes when he recalled how he almost died a minute ago if not for the strange chain Principal Ratric gave him before they left the Kingdom.

The moment he appeared in the realm, he felt something amiss with this place. Also, the ground beneath his feet was dry and barren. So, how was it possible for this place to have any treasures?

Still, he started moving in a straight direction but only after a few hours, he encountered a cruel sight.

Two strange-looking individuals with bat-like wings were toying with a girl. Alec's eyes chilled at the sight. Anger welled up inside his chest and even though he clearly knew they were stronger he attacked them with everything he got, but in the end, he was too weak.

One of the two dark individuals easily overpowered him and mocked his bravery. At the same time, the other dark individual dragged the girl away under his red-rimmed eyes.

Alec wanted to save the girls at all costs. He used everything at his disposal but it didn't work. In the end, the dark individual who had been fighting with him for the past few minutes got bored. He wanted to finish him as soon as possible. So, he could follow his friend who took the girl away.

However, when the man's pointy nails neared his chest a sudden force burst out from his chest. The man cried out in pain and immediately held his hand. Alec's mana was almost dry but he gathered every bit of his strength and swung his sword desperately at the man.

It was as if time stopped for a second, his old sword which had not been much useful in the past suddenly shone brightly and before he could register what was happening the sword was already embedded within the man's chest. Alec was bewildered at the sudden bright light that appeared out of nowhere. When he acquired the sword from the Tower of Opportunity it was old and rusty but now it was shimmering in a bright color.

He opened his eyes and stared at the dark sky. His usual bright eyes were now filled with coldness.

"Dark race."

It was fortunate that he had the system appraisal skill or else he would have never found out about this race.

A chilling expression spread out on his face. He remembered the last time he felt so weak. It was the time when his friends were killed by the monsters. He was weak in the past and even now he was still weak.

Amidst his troubled thoughts, he swore to kill that man who dragged the girl away, even if it took him a lot of time. He would kill him no matter what.

Alec punched his fist on the ground with a cold expression and even though his wounds were still bleeding, he dragged his body to stand up.

"I am sorry."

A sharp breath escaped from his lips as he stared at the sky. The girl's tragic cries still echoed in his mind. He knew it was not his fault but he felt guilty because he wasn't able to save her.

As he walked aimlessly above the dark ground, after a few minutes an old voice sounded inside his ears. He looked up at the sky when the ground started trembling.

Under his blank gaze, hundreds of treasures lands appeared above in the sky. They looked majestic.

Alec looked at the nearest floating land and climbed the stairway that emerged from the land. He needed strength and for it, he was willing to take any tests.

.....

Meanwhile, after Kyle pushed the gate open he didn't see anything. He narrowed his eyes at the darkness spilling out from the open gate.

"I can't see anything. Bia how about you go inside to check?" Bia's round eyes widened as she stared at him with a deadpan expression.

-'Just step inside. Why are you trying to make me a meat shield?'

Kyle clicked his tongue and gingerly peeked inside with a cautious expression. After careful consideration, he conjured a fireball and threw it inside. The fireball traveled in the darkness for a second but vanished in the next second.

Kyle frown. He grabbed a rock from nearby and threw it inside the gate. Again, the rock vanished within the darkness.

"It seems I have no choice but to step inside."

With a sigh, he activated his skill 'ice armor' and walked in the gate.

A tremendous force coiled around his body and pushed him downward. Kyle's head buzzed and his vision changed abruptly.

It was like he traveled from one place to another. Kyle's eyes widened at the sight in front of him. He was standing in a large bright room surrounded by nothing but white walls.

Bia flapped her wings and flew around the room with an anxious expression.

-'What is this place? Also, there is no exit!'

Kyle's eyes trailed at her figure for a second before he noticed the rock he had thrown a while ago. It was lying on the ground.

While the duo was looking around the room, suddenly a mechanical voice sounded in the air.

"Welcome participants to the 'last' treasure land."

Kyle and Bia both abruptly turned around to find the source of the voice but even after their eyes traveled everywhere they didn't see anyone.

"Counting the number of participants...."

"Total participants two; A (C+)-Rank divine beast and a (??)-Rank human."

"Loading.... unable to detect the rank of the human due to an unknown artifact. Automatic rank would be assigned."

"Conclusion; Total participants two; A (C+)-Rank divine beast and a (F-)-Rank human."