MMORPG : Ancient WORLD

"Sir Asher, I am Hidden One, and it is a pleasure to meet you," Alex said, trying to mask his emotion of surprise.

"A weird name, but I have seen worse," Asher said with a wide grin as he shocked Alex's hand with a slow nod.

"Young man, you are quite impressive,"

"Reaching the stat maximization of both previous ranks, achieving greater mastery over the concept of Darkness and Chaos, and being chosen as a Domain Ruler,"

"You've surpassed most in ways that few could even dream of," Asher said, rubbing his chin, his ghostly white eyes locked onto Alex with a scrutiny that felt like it could pierce through flesh and bone.

Alex froze, his breath catching in his throat, as he questioned, how does he know?

But quickly realized that his entire skeleton was covered in runes and while they were invisible to most, to someone like Asher, someone with his power and knowledge, would see them as plain as day, and if he knew of their nature, it answered how he knew who they belonged to.

While Alex considered the possibility that Asher might know the hidden truth about the Domain Rulers, Asher placed his arm around his shoulder, leaned in close, and whispered in his ear as if concerned about someone overhearing them.

"You have my blessing to marry my daughter, but make sure you don't get caught by my wife doing something until you're in her good graces," Asher said with a cheeky grin, his tone carrying a playful edge.

Alex looked at him from the corner of his eyes and was about to say that he had never even seen his daughter, let alone had feelings for her, but he kept his thoughts to himself, not out of choice, because, before Alex could respond, another voice broke through the moment like a blade cutting through the air.

"You two can talk once we are at our destination," Lady Elara said as she appeared beside them, fully clad in battle armor, her presence commanding and severe.

She wore a full body light armor, woven from fine silver threads that shimmered with an ethereal glow, etching ancient patterns. A winged crown sat atop her head, gleaming under the faint light.

In her hands, she held a glimmering glaive with the ease of someone who had wielded it for millennia, while a shield hung on her back, pulsing faintly with silver light, as if holding its breath for the incoming battle.

She stepped forward without a word, a portal forming around her with a crackling hum of energy, and with a single step, she was gone, leaving a crack in the very fabric of space, a window to another place.

"This is going to be fun," Asher said as he pushed Alex into the portal.

Alex was greeted by a barren wasteland consumed by darkness. The sky overhead was choked with thick, roiling clouds that blocked out any hint of light, the air was heavy and oppressive, making each breath feel labored and strained.

The land itself was a grim expanse of twisting cracks and jagged fissures, oozing with dark miasma that writhed and twisted in the dim, oppressive gloom.

The stench that permeated the area was a nauseating blend of sulfur, rot, and something faintly metallic, clinging to the air like a persistent, foul reminder of something wrong.

In the miasma-filled surroundings, the vast city stood out, and Its architecture was a marvel of spiked towers and jagged spires, all crafted from dark obsidian that reflected the light with an unsettling, cold gleam.

At the heart of Nocturna stood the Dark Citadel, which stood towering above the twisted spires and jagged towers of the cityscape. It was a palace that embodied the city's essence of foreboding grandeur.

The streets were a maze of narrow alleys, paved with blackened stone, with most not even having any light source, while the few that did have light were far and few, but even when there was no area with bright lights, as if it was an unspoken rule that no criminal was willing to break.

The city was bustling with activity, but not like one would expect from a sprawling metropolis, as the majority of inhabitants were hidden beneath cloaks or masks, while there were others who roamed the streets without a care, yet all of them did their business with silent care, making exchanges with seemingly telepathy or whispers.

Alex was surprised, to say the least, by the sight before him since the city was where the very fabric of order had unraveled, a refuge for the most nefarious criminals, and here every crime was not only permitted but expected.

"No crimes are to be committed on the second day of the week," Asher said, seeing the confused look on Alex's face.

"It looks like I won't be having any fun any time soon, so let me escort you to the dimensional gateway," Asher said as he began descending to the ground, Alex following right behind him.

'I expected to visit this place in some weeks if not months, but I am not complaining,' Alex thought, thrilled that everything was going smoothly, much better than he ever expected.

"How much do you know about the three Clans," Asher said as he slowly led the way toward the city door.

"The Drakaryx clan is ruled by a figure titled The Inheritor, housing members of various races with no strict rules of joining like the other two clans,"

"It is the strongest and the most active clan, as the clan recruits every year from all over the domain, owns various businesses, is not allied with any of the three Empires, not officially, and the clan also contributes to the domain through various charitable works, so the clan is also the most famous and beloved,"

"The Umbryssan clan is ruled by the Benevolent Father, a clan for only the Giant Race, but everyone knows that the giants are just second class, and the true ruling power is the Titans, and the clan is also closely tied to the Empire of Iron,"

"The Tharokarn Clan is ruled by a figure called The True King, a self-proclaimed title, and the clan is comply shut off from the rest of the domain, only housing the members of the Tharokarn Race, ethereal beings of pure energy," Alex said, telling all the important stuff he knew about the three clans.

At this point, the due had reached the massive gates of the city, and like welcoming him, the gates began to crumble into fine black dust, drifting away with the sudden gusts of cold wind.

It was as if a sudden wind of death had come, and as the door turned to dust and scattered away, the walls followed behind, and it did not take long before Alex heard the first terrified screams.

"You seem to be an intelligent man, so tell me what you think of the sudden chaos in the ancestral land. Is it natural or the work of someone powerful?" Asher questioned, paying no heed to the chaos he had unleashed.

"I think someone could be behind it, but for all I know, it could be natural or the work of the Realm Ruler," Alex answered, sharing what he thought of the situation.

Alex knew that there had been past apocalyptic events, some lasting a few weeks and some taking centuries, each one causing catastrophic damage to life. While rare, it was not unheard of for the realm to open while going through such an event.

So Alex was speaking his mind when he said that it could be the Realm Ruler since it was known that no one alive in the realm was even an ant to her.

"It is the work of someone very powerful, but it is not the Realm Ruler," Asher said, the screams of thousands doing nothing to soften the edge in his voice.

"It is the work of the True King, that bastard plans to bring down the entire realm, and I am not talking about engulfing it in chaos with some goal of mass cleansing,"

"That religious maniac wants to destroy the realm, and if he succeeds, only a handful of people will survive, who will only live a short breath longer than the rest,"

"In the end, only he would survive from this entire realm," Asher said, his words like the final toll of a death knell.

The truth hung heavy, oppressive, and suffocating as the very air seemed to thicken as if reality itself recoiled from the horror of what was to come.

Alex felt like Asher was lying, only to consider why he would do it. And then only to think, why was someone of his status even telling him what it achieved? Was he just sharing his burden with an ant or just throwing it out there, knowing what it could do even if the entire realm knew?

Alex tried to ask why the Realm Ruler would allow such a thing to happen, but no words came out as the weight of the truth Asher revealed was more than he could handle.