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It was just a short while before 9 AM when, as per Allen's instructions, everyone had gathered at the Westirifer training arena.
This was no ordinary small training facility. It was a massive open ground located right beside the Ducal Palace, surrounded on all four sides by large concrete pavilions. The field was so enormous that it could easily accommodate 50,000 people training at the same time.
Among the gathered crowd, the representatives from HolyCross State were Aria, Delya, and Paul Librator, along with several ministers and their 8,100 soldiers. As usual, a look of contempt was plastered on Paul's face. The only difference was that Aria had scolded him severely the previous day, so today he was relatively quiet.
From the Keilname State, Elder Guntor, Lady Talmora, Jeffrey, Fobila, Rkliona, and Fifi had arrived. In a way, almost the entire Keilname family was present.
Finally, the people from the Westirifer Duchy had split into two distinct groups. One group consisted of those who were going for training, and the other consisted of those going for the picnic.
The training group included Commander Vance, Apprentice Head Knight Graham, and the apprentice knights: Anna, Lina, Elina, Laysa, Nora, Eilin, and Edena. Along with them were Tristian, Jacob, Uncle Jeff, and Jasper.
On the other side was the picnic group, which included: Mia, Amelia, Westeria, Ruby, Vinni, Jenna, Veronica, Daisy, Trainy, Crotivia, Dimancy, Jamica, Rosa, Gima, Nibara, and Jasper's 19 concubines. Additionally, nearly 30 maids from the Velmora family were also present, who were going to serve the pregnant women during the picnic.
In a sense, all the men of the Velmora family were heading for training, while all the women were going for the picnic.
Once everyone had assembled in the arena, a question arose in everyone's mind: How exactly were so many people going to reach Getildamare Town together?
If they were to march on foot or ride horses, it would take at least half a day to reach there.
Thinking the same, Paul once again opened his mouth. Looking at Veronica with clear contempt and ridicule, he said,
"So, Lady Veronica… Do you have any idea how we are supposed to reach that so-called Getildamare Town? I may not know the geography of your duchy, but even if it's just a neighboring town to your capital, it should still take more than two hours to get there."
Even though Paul's tone was rude, everyone focused on the content of his question. They all wanted to know the answer.
The only people who knew about Lucifer's true capabilities were Graham and the seven girls who had gone to Morthveil with him. However, they couldn't defend Lucifer because he had strictly prohibited them from revealing his methods to others.
Paul asked Veronica while clearly trying to insult both her and Lucifer. Veronica replied with complete confidence,
"Sir Paul, when my husband arrives, you can ask him yourself. He is quite secretive about his abilities and hasn't disclosed them even to me. So for now, I don't know."
When Paul heard Veronica say that she didn't know how Lucifer planned to take everyone, he opened his foul mouth again and sneered,
"You don't know because that pig husband of yours doesn't have any capabilities… not because he is secretive."
As soon as everyone heard Paul's words, they became quite afraid — especially the people from HolyCross State.
But right at that moment, a sudden voice echoed across the arena:
"Here I am… Don't speculate about my methods."
The owner of this voice was none other than Lucifer himself.
After the voice rang out, Lucifer strode into the training arena and jogged lightly toward the group.
As soon as Lucifer entered the arena, he noticed that all the soldiers from HolyCross State were already mounted on their horses, as if they were ready to begin a long march.
Seeing this, a faint smile appeared on Lucifer's face. He controlled himself and addressed the HolyCross soldiers:
"All of you soldiers, please dismount from your horses. I will not be taking you to Getildamare Town by marching."
Upon hearing Lucifer's words, not only the soldiers but most of the people present became confused.
In that confusion, Mia asked Lucifer,
"Luci… If we're not going by chariot or horses, then how exactly are we going?"
Hearing Mia's question, Lucifer replied,
"Mommy… You know how huge our Ducal Palace is, right? I have installed teleportation spells in various places so that you and the others can instantly move between any floor or room whenever you want?"
Mia nodded and said, "Yes."
But the moment the people from Keilname State and HolyCross State heard Mia's affirmative answer, they were utterly shocked.
For the people of Westirifer, teleportation magic might be common, but in the outside world, it was nothing short of a myth. Many archmages had never even used teleportation magic in their entire lives.
When Lucifer heard Mia's confirmation, he continued,
"So, just like that, Mommy… I will teleport all of you together to Getildamare Town. You know I've gained even better control over my space magic now."
Hearing this, Mia said,
"Oh, is that so? That's fine then… I was actually worried about how you would take so many people at once. Now that you've explained it, everything is okay, Luci."
For the people living in the Westirifer Ducal Court, teleportation was a normal, everyday thing. Lucifer had created numerous teleportation portals on every floor, allowing anyone to move freely between rooms.
However, for the outsiders, the casual conversation between Mia and Lucifer about "teleportation" was anything but normal.
Even Elder Guntor, who had been in Westirifer for three days, still had no idea about it. He had been climbing down nearly 11,000 steps every day to reach the ground floor.
The people from HolyCross State also didn't know whether Lucifer was telling the truth or simply lying, because they had only stayed on the ground floor of the Ducal Palace and had never been given the chance to experience teleportation.
When Paul heard Lucifer's claim, he scoffed,
"How much do you want to bluff and boast, kid? Do you really think we are all fools?
Teleportation magic? In this era? It's impossible."
Seeing Paul's reaction, Lucifer looked at him with a smile and said,
"You are nothing but a damn frog living in a well, always croaking at everyone… Now shut up and watch."
After saying this to Paul, Lucifer stretched his hand toward the sky and chanted:
"Void Transit"
As soon as the chant was completed, four massive magic circles appeared in the sky above the entire arena. One after another, they descended toward the ground. The moment the last magic circle touched down, every single person in the training arena — except for the horses — vanished instantly.
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As soon as Lucifer's spell ended, all the people arrived at Getildamare Town.
Getildamare Town was located on the eastern boundary of the Westirifer Duchy, and its boundary touched the Light Forest and the Death Zone.
Speaking of the Light Forest, it could be said that it was indeed a forest, but it didn't have many dangerous animals. Instead, the animals found here were mostly herbivorous.
But if one went further east from the Light Forest, or in the north-east direction from Getildamare Town, the area of the Death Zone would start.
Its name wasn't Death Zone because going there meant immediate death, but because surviving there was extremely difficult.
The reason survival was so hard was that the Death Zone was the frontier part of the Savannah, but this area was filled with swamps. Because of the swamps, poisonous snakes, insects, and amphibians were found here, along with some prehistoric reptiles like titanoboa and suprecroc.
At this moment, the place where everyone had landed after the teleportation was at the meeting point of Westirifer's grassland, Getildamare Town, and the Light Forest.
Or it could also be said that all the people had landed at the boundary between the Light Forest and the grassland.
The weather here was pleasant and refreshing.
To the west, as far as the eye could see, the vast grassland rippled with golden waves of swaying oats and barley fields under the gentle sunlight.
On the eastern side, the landscape gradually shifted, with the terrain becoming slightly wilder and more varied.
The air was crisp and pure, carrying the sweet scent of fresh grass and wildflowers. Birds of various kinds chirped melodiously from the trees, filling the surroundings with lively music.
The soft, soothing sound of the clear Buanwo River flowing nearby created a calming melody that touched the heart.
Scattered around were numerous small, picturesque plateaus, each adorned with sparkling natural fountains that cascaded down in gentle streams, adding a touch of serene beauty.
The view of Getildamare Town itself felt like a slice of heaven — nestled beautifully at the edge of the grassland and forest, with its charming structures blending harmoniously with the natural surroundings.
But Lucifer did not want to take any risk, so as soon as they landed, he deployed a protective barrier magic as well... which prevented any dangerous creatures from outside from entering, and any dangerous creatures already inside would be eliminated automatically.
After all, no matter how beautiful Getildamare Town was, it was still a town next to the forest... so encountering snakes, scorpions, and other types of poisonous life forms was not surprising, and Lucifer did not want to take any risk.
As soon as Lucifer cast the protective barrier magic, he then said to the people who had come with him...
"Welcome to the town of natural beauty.... It's Getildamare."
As soon as everyone heard Lucifer's voice, they woke up from their stupor and looked at him with great confusion.
The ones who were not confused were the Westirifer apprentice knights, Mia, Amelia, and Westeria.
The apprentice knights had already seen Lucifer use his Void Transit spell before, so it was natural that they were not surprised. On the other hand, Mia, Amelia, and Westeria did not care how big an impossible task Lucifer had accomplished... they only knew that Lucifer could do anything... they had complete faith in him.
On the other side, the two people who were the most shocked and troubled in the group were Paul and Elder Guntor... and the reason for both of their shock and trouble was the same... how Lucifer had done this.
And if one were to compare between the elder and Paul, Paul was even more bewildered.
After all, before coming here, he had said all kinds of things to Lucifer, but now Lucifer had really mass-teleported more than 8000 people at once.
On the other hand, Elder Guntor had seen Lucifer stop time... somehow he had digested the fact that Lucifer had performed this feat.
Meanwhile, all the people from HolyCross State, apart from Paul, were looking at Lucifer as if he were some wonder.
This situation was not only with the people from HolyCross... the Keilname family also had the same feeling.
And apart from them, in the Velmora family, except for Mia, Amelia, and Westeria, everyone else was looking at Lucifer as if they did not even know him.
Lucifer's teleportation had become a shock for all of them because this was not ordinary magic... it was legendary class magic that only a few pureblood dragons could use, and even they could only do it for small distances, with the capacity to teleport only in single digits. But here, a human had done what even those legendary pureblood dragons could not achieve.
While everyone was looking at Lucifer in amazement, Lucifer said... "All of you, look... I have enclosed a 60-kilometer diameter area here with my protective barrier magic... So you all are free inside this barrier and can do whatever you want... This barrier has made the Buanwo River, fountains, grassland, and parts of the Light Forest safe for all of you... So my request is that you all stay inside it."
After saying this, Lucifer looked at the soldiers of HolyCross State and said... "So now, shall we start your test?"
When they all heard Lucifer's voice... at this moment, no one was taking him lightly anymore... Everyone understood... that this test was going to be one of the toughest tests of their lives... or perhaps the toughest, with no limit above it.
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