Dimensional Descent

On a corner of the Guild World, Anya sighed and shook her head.

It was hard to tell exactly what sort of place she was in. All the walls were white and had a slight glow to them. However, there were no windows or even a door. The only thing in this room outside of Anya herself was a statue of a woman with a beauty that felt almost computer generated. She was too perfect, without a single flaw and without a weakness. Whether it was the symmetry of her face down to the ratio of her hips to waist, to her bust and bottom, even the individual strands of her hair… It was all immaculate.

This statue radiated an aura that Leonel would find familiar, having sensed it once before in his life. However, even to someone who had never sensed it before, they would feel the need to bow and prostrate themselves before this woman.

All this said, as difficult as it was to tell exactly where Anya was, deciding what it was she was sighing about was even more difficult.

At that moment, Anya’s bracelet rang once again. She bowed toward the statue and took a step toward the blank walls, vanishing as though she had walked through an invisible doorway.

”You’re trying to encroach on my territory?”

The voice came from nowhere and everywhere at once.

This time, Anya was in a simply decorated room without an ounce of anything special to it. It seemed like any other luxurious hotel room, except for the fact this wasn’t a hotel at all.

”There is no such thing as encroachment when it comes to the word of the Goddess.” Anya replied lightly.

”How sanctimonious of you. It might not be an encroachment to you, but if I see any of your disciples, I’ll kill first and ask questions later.”

”Is there a need to be like this?” Anya asked with a sigh.

”I’m getting tired of that loftier than thou tone. It would do you good to remember exactly what it is your Goddess represents. No amount of pure light and white clothing can wash your stains away. I’ve already given you my warning. Don’t test me.”

Anya shook her head. ”Earth has already entered the Fifth Dimension. Their Fold of Reality has already expanded past just their Solar System and has consumed a dozen others. At this rate, they’ll truly be on pace to swallow the whole galaxy by the time they are prepared to enter the Seventh Dimension. This piece of the pie isn’t something any one person can swallow, and to try to do so is a foolish dream.

”Your attempts to monopolize these gains for yourself will end horribly for you. There is a harmony that must be achieved.”

All Anya received in return was a sneer she could practically hear through the phone.

”You make stealing the territory of another sound so noble. People like you disgust me the most.”

The person didn’t wait for Anya’s response and simply ended the call. They had already given their warning, they didn’t have the patience to say anything more. The longer they spoke with this Anya, the more they wanted to watch her head implode like a hammered watermelon.

Anya shook her head once again and sighed.

**

Leonel took deep breaths, beads of sweat falling down his brow.

Much of this was from the difficulty of controlling the ship, but another large part was rooted in the fact he had entered that battle with just 30% of his stamina remaining. He had avoided using Mage Arts as a result for fear that he would be sucked dry before he could actually do anything.

’But, this isn’t bad too. We made a nice little profit.’ Leonel grinned.

Leonel thought of the Urbe Ore he had gained. He had only taken the metallic leg sleeves of about 60 or so warriors of Shield Cross Stars, yet he had gotten over a thousand kilograms of Fifth Dimensional Urbe Ore out of it. It seemed that crime really did pay.

Leonel had half a mind to target the Shield Cross Stars offices so that he could build up the wealth he was lacking. But, in the end, he decided against this.

The current Leonel couldn’t see the true depths of Shield Cross Stars. Without fully understanding his opponent, it would be foolish to provoke them too much. At the same time, Anya’s warning still lingered in his mind, making him realize that cornering this galaxy wouldn’t be nearly as easy as he thought it would be.

In that case, he had to change his plans. He still needed resources and information, but how he would use them would have to change.

’I should also return to Earth since that’s where the boys are… It’s about time we regroup and make some moves.’

Leonel weighed his options and decided to put his other thoughts aside. He would return to Earth first, gather everyone up, then move forward.

The chess pieces on the board were moving too fast. Leonel wasn’t even at the point where he could see the whole board to begin with, but he was already being overwhelmed by a small corner of it.

’No, I can’t return to Earth empty handed. Also, the Milky Way Guild has yet to properly suffer for their actions…’

At that moment, a talisman lit up within Leonel’s spatial ring. At first he was stunned before his mouth spread into a wild grin.

’Your timing couldn’t be any better, Elthor.’

Leonel’s mind raced as it quickly memorized the information Elthor was sending to him. A list of Disaster Planets, branches, and stores the Milky Way Guild owned were all systematically organized by Leonel. In the blink of an eye, Leonel had a grasp of much of the Milky Way Guild’s situation.

Leonel wasn’t naïve enough to believe that this represented all the assets the Guild had, but it was more than enough. In fact, he was surprised that Elthor had managed to gather so much.

’That woman he’s working with… Isn’t simple… She knows too much, who is she exactly?’

Leonel frowned for a moment before throwing it to the back of his mind. It didn’t matter who this woman was. She might have all this information, but he would be the one to act on it.

As they say… Crime pays.