Whilst Naybeah was reaching the zenith, the culmination of the probably most defining battle of her life so far, Aiden was still having a hard time coming over the shock of all the shocking changes his new minions have gone under.

Tak, the guard captain of the Temple Guards, has evolved in a much more drastic manner than he had expected. The small, measly little [Draconic Skink] has grown into a hulking, massive beast. 

The little reptilian warrior that looked more like a walking metal bucket than the fearsome veteran now shifted in a grandiose manner. A huge giant, bulging muscles ripping the fabric of his clothes and stretching the metal plates of his armor to their absolute limits.

He did somewhat resemble that of a dinosaur as Aiden looked at him. The uncrowned king of the prehistoric, Jurassic era, Tak was akin to a Tyrannosaurus Rex, but instead of the flimsy useless forearms, it was proportionate to gorillas, reaching down to the ground as it provided further support to his massive heavy frame.

Finishing sizing up himself, Tak’s glowing yellowish gaze went higher, stopping as it landed on the still hooded merchant. Though his face was still shrouded in darkness and shadows, Tak no longer doubted his identity. He could feel an equally strange, mysterious connection between them. 

Tak could sense his new Master at all times. If he focused and concentrated on it, he could even faintly sense vague emotions and even some blurry, hazy images appearing inside his mind. 

Whilst the images were not clear, it depicted a bright land, with clear blue skies. Something he had only seen described in the myths and most guarded, treasured secrets, legends of his tribe.

A time of yore, where their people weren’t forced to reside deep underground. A realm before the Scorching. Whilst it was dominated by the Bareskins, a hateful race that was known as the Heralds of the Doom, it also told tales about vast cities hidden deep in the abundant marshlands and deep murky swamps. 

They were feared by the outsiders these sacred settlements were called as Temple Cities. In any case, these were tales of the old, a part of the world’s past. Nowadays, all that remained were ruins and wreckage, reclaimed by nature growing rampant with the scarcity of conquerors to further plague it, it had grown rampant over the years, the decades… the centuries.

The once-proud majestic metropolises of pyramids were most likely overgrown with foliage and were probably home to monsters and beasts spreading and propagating without any opposition.

Still, the blurry images reminded Tak of those old tales he had read in the church libraries. Whilst he couldn’t make out anything more, he did spot a large, colorful dot that somehow, even without knowing what it actually was, made his heart tremble with an unknown source of excitement.

“[Reptilian] H-home?” Tak muttered, unbeknownst to him, a tear escaped from its confines, and made a new trail in a downward slope, spiraling towards the ground. 

Surprised to feel the sudden, powerful and energetic thumping of Tak’s heart smiled silently before nodding and muttering a curt “Uhm” in response, much to the other party’s increase in joy.

“[Reptilian] Huh? Home?” Alerted by his word, the other, now transformed and evolved set of captains also raised their heads, instinctively focusing on the connection they all shared between themselves and their Young Master.

As they focused, they each received the same blurry, hazy, but bright and colorful image, showing the land of promise, their new home. They each turned shocked one after another. Yelps and louder sighs were exchanged in the dark alleyway as they each realized and felt the same increased heartbeat.

Aiden silently watched as they all reacted in a similar fashion to his shared thought. He had shown an image; a memory of Haven to their new family. Whilst they couldn’t go there yet, he still wanted to show them that the Promise of the New Paradise he vowed about was not just a lie, but it was there, waiting for them.

Aiden also smiled not just because he knew that he was successful in tempting them and that they each saw the same sight, but also because he was finally successful in yet another incredibly important task.

Suddenly, the shared mental channel between them all resonated in a new frequency, the seven new additions to their ever-growing family have felt a group of new, and previously unknown mental signatures joining.

An excited, high-pitched voice squealed into the channel first. 

‘M-master? Is that you, Master?!’ Thuk’s excited yell rang in everyone’s ears.

‘My Lord, have you finally returned? Finally, we can feel your presence once again…’ Roas spoke in his excited, croaky tone, still trying to act as the most mature as the eldest of them all. 

Sensing numerous new signatures in the channel that he had not felt yet, he couldn’t help but ask. ‘My Lord, may I ask who these new people are? Are they new members, joining the family?’

Aiden couldn’t help but smile, smile like a goofball as he could finally hear the voice of his missed friends. 

‘It’s good to be able to hear and feel you all once again… My friends.’ Aiden’s voice rang out. 

‘Oh, thank you… Master, you are finally back!’ Gob and Thuk’s excited yell came in unison, quickly followed up by a hearty laugh coming from Glohn the once tribe leader of the goblins, now the elder Primal Goblin Dragonkin and one of the council members of Haven’s first and currently only settlement.

Aiden waited silently and with a bright smile donning on his face as his minions exclaimed their excitements over their sudden reunion. After they eventually calmed down, he continued.

‘I know you have lots of questions, just as I do. I’m sure that lots of things have happened whilst I was away and unable to re-establish our connection. Before you ask, Galina is still not with me, but just know she is alright… As for why is she not joining… let’s just say she is occupied at the moment.’ Aiden said, sighing as she could feel the turmoil the poor little girl was burdened with. His heart ached to know that he couldn’t go and save them, the distance was just too great.

‘Is that you, Aiden? You finally dare to contact us, after going silent for so long?’ Suddenly a familiar, mature feminine tone rang out in their connection. A huge, powerful presence appeared, silencing all chatter in an instant. 

Aiden, as he heard the voice, instantly went quiet. His face began to shift to reveal all the surging emotions that boiled deep inside him. The happiness first turned to shock, then to surprise… before ultimately returning to a deep, and great joy.

“Master!”

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>>>Check out my latest novel: The Strongest Demon Lord in the Modern World<<

It’s an urban modern-day styled story, with a reverse transmigrated (‘Banished’) immortal entity from the fantastical world of Nova!

Planned Tags and Genre:  # CULTIVATION  # R18  # BETRAYAL  # TRANSMIGRATION  # URBAN  # ACTION  # ANTIHERO  # OVERPOWERED (romance maybe at some later point)

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