Otek slowly lowered himself into the heated bath. It was decorated like a pond, with a beautiful landscape. There were trees, flowers, and of course mushrooms growing everywhere.

  The bathing facility had gotten many upgrades over time, and now that it was one of the paid attractions in the town, it had kicked it into an even higher gear. There were plans to add many new baths and even something called a sensory deprivation chamber.

  Otek did not know what that was, but Mafu had suggested it could be good for training the elemental affinity one had. He was eager to try it.

  Otek had gotten the water element. He had managed to create a little bit of water from his hand but still had no idea how to do anything else.

  Otek looked over at Goran, who slowly sat down in the pond a bit away from him. He had looked suspicious everywhere they went so far. Otek was not the one meant to look after Goran, but this was the men's bath, and Mikaela was, as such, not allowed in here.

  Goran slowly relaxed as the hot water loosened his muscles and involuntarily sighed. Otek laughed a little bit, and Goran immediately opened his eyes to look at him.

  "I see the relaxing power of the bath is universal." Otek explained.

  "It is indeed almost divine." Goran responded honestly.

  "If you think about it, since Mafu is the one heating the water, it would be semi-divine." Otek quipped.

  Goran opened his mouth and shut it again and looked to be thinking heavily.

  "Is he really a god?" Goran asked after a while.

  "Does it matter?" Otek answered. He then continued: "He is an immortal being who exists everywhere in the kingdom at once. He feeds all the people, grants us elemental affinities, and helps or advises us in progressing our skills and crafts. He even spawns dungeons for us to train in. What has your god done for you lately?"

  Goran looked at Otek with a serious look. Another long moment of silence followed. Otek leaned his neck back onto a rock on the edge of the pond and closed his eyes for a while.

  "You are right; it does not truly matter what a god is. I've never truly worshipped Doloran. I don't deny his existence or his dominion over the empire. If I had, the Inquisition would have killed me already. But this world... it feels more free than mine. The very air I breathe and the earth I step on do not hold me down."

  "Mikaela said something similar to that. According to Mafu, it is most likely an effect of Dolorans' territory. Both Mafu and Doloran seem to control their territory, but Doloran's essence must be different from Mafu's. Maybe his power works off of the principle of 'control' or something similar. Mafus's desire is growth, so he has no need to control anyone."

  Otek was perfectly honest with Goran, as Mafu and Mikaela had ordered him to be. Otek also did not see any reason to hide anything from this man. If the enemy wanted to know about the Amanita Kingdom, they surely had a way to infiltrate.

  Even if this man betrayed their trust and gave this information to the Templars and the empire, Otek had faith that they were strong enough that it would not matter. He had talked with Parek and Jod enough to know that only "Faithful" was over level 150, which the leadership of the Amanita Kingdom theorized would be the "third gate."

  And no one was impossible to beat. Otek knew that he could beat Oran if they were not in a forest, and he got close before Oran spotted him. Benoit was tricky, but with wide attacks that hit a large area, his stealth would give him fewer options of where to attack.

  His stealth was also not as impossible to see through as Oran's, with the advantage of it working well in all environments, while Oran's was only really useful in forests, bushes, and other nature-related hiding spots.

  Jod was impossible to beat, but only in the Amanita Kingdom. Same with Parek and the other dukes, although Otek thought he had a chance against the dukes even in the kingdom.

  All of this was to say that even if this "Faithful" was a monster, he would have a weakness. And the other threats Jod, Benoit, and Mikaela had warned them about were around Oran and Otek's level.

  This meant that in the Amanita Kingdom, they would have the overwhelming advantage. In a few years, they would even have an advantage in Dolorans' world, because it did not seem that the strong people were leveling up anymore.

  Mafu thought it had something to do with Doloran having to maintain control over them. For example, it was known that the man called "Unstoppable" was actively disobeying Doloran. He had been used in wars in the other world but had always been forced by Doloran and only did the bare minimum he could.

  It was all theories and plans right now, but Otek was not worried. In fact, he was looking forward to the day they would fight against the humans. After all, it was Mafu's mission, and Otek was eager to pay Mafu back for the help they had gotten. Both he and his people.

  Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

  He rubbed his neck, loosening the muscles that had tightened. Maybe he'd request to follow Goran back to the other world. He was looking for a fight after all, and after the Hollow were removed, there had not been anything but dungeons and hunting trips with Oran.

  "I'll try to convince the baron, not because of all that Mafu said or what you said. This feeling here, the people I've met—it is all so much better than back home. No guarantees, though; the baron is a man set in his own convictions."

  "Good," was all the orc warrior said as he was calmly drifting off into a half-coma.

  ---

  Mikaela checked her equipment as she walked up to the portal. It was a habit she had developed after travelling through it a few times already.

  Goran, Otek, and she were going back to the baron's estate. Otek had requested to follow them, instead of a few warriors. It soothed Mikaela's worries a bit.

  The Templars had lost against Otek two weeks back. Goran had taken those two weeks to thoroughly investigate the Amanita Kingdom. However, Mikaela thought that the Templars being defeated would elicit a response.

  A "named" enemy would surely appear. Faithful, everburning, unstoppable, the lady in red. It was a mantra she kept repeating in her head while reminding herself of their characteristics.

  There were others, of course, but these four were the most problematic.

  As they arrived in Doloran's world, the orc guards in the camp greeted them with a salute. Otek waved them off, and they immediately set off for the baron's estate.

  Their travel would take a week or so again. This time they would have to camp the entire way, though, as Otek was with them. Mikaela was not keen on staying in an inn with an orc, even though he could technically use stealth to get in and out.

  Otek looked like a happy kid everywhere they went. He inspected the forest as if he had never seen a tree before as they passed through it. When they reached civilization again, his eyes maintained their intrigued glow.

  On the fifth day of travel they were passing by a small village when Otek spoke up.

  "Stop. There is a strong one further up." He had already moved in front of Mikaela before she realized it, weapon in hand.

  Further up there was a small lake, with a fishing dock and hut next to it. Mikaela waited with Otek for a few seconds before Otek put his weapon away.

  "He might not be hostile. If he is, we are dead. I will talk to him." Otek stated and moved forward while dropping his weapons to the ground.

  Mikaela and Goran did the same.

  As the group approached the small dock, an old man came into view. He was sitting on a small wooden stool and had long grey hair draping down his back.

  His face was not visible, but he looked skinny. He wore a wide-brimmed hat, one that was commonly used by farmers to ward off the sun. From its brim hung different hooks, baits and line sinkers, and other accessories used for fishing.

  He wore a blue and grey robe, weathered by continuous use over the years. In his hand was a simple fishing rod.

  As they came up behind him, Mikaela noticed that for a while now she had had a harder time breathing.

  "Haven't seen one of you before. What kind of creature might you be?" The old man asked in a clear, calm voice. It sounded off in some way.

  "An orc. From the world across the portal," Otek answered, also in a calm manner.

  The man retrieved his line and quickly wrapped it around the fishing pole in a practiced manner. He then stood up and turned around to face the group.

  His eyes were a brilliant light blue that seemed to almost glow. His gaze piercing them made Mikaela feel extremely uncomfortable, as if she could hide nothing from this man.

  "Hm. Do you have any good lakes for fishing over there?" The man asked Otek as he inspected the orc.

  "I have not seen any, but there is a river. I have not tried fishing there, but there might be some fish in there," Otek said, his body now a little bit more tense than before.

  "You don't seem eager to fight. That is a smart choice." The old man now looked in Oteks eyes.

  "It would not be much of a fight. You already control this area." Otek answered.

  Mikaela looked at Otek in a questioning manner before realizing what he meant. The area was strange. When she looked at the sky, it seemed a little bit distorted. Like she was looking through water.

  The old man chuckled and responded.

  "You are a bright one, indeed. Many humans have fought me over the years, as they realize I am strong. None have realized my distortion before you." The old man was suddenly standing in front of Mikaela, studying her.

  She had not seen him move at all, and no sound had been heard. She involuntarily jumped back a bit, but the old man was already gone from in front of her. He was now studying Goran.

  "Do I need some sort of pass to get to your world?" The man asked Otek while studying the man.

  "No. If you tell them that Otek has granted you passage, you will get through just fine." Otek said.

  "Are you sure I won't attack people in your world?" The old man continued.

  "In our world, there are stronger people than me. Even so, you do not strike me as someone who would fight people for no reason."

  The old man chuckled. He almost seemed like a kind and old man when he did, but his movements were too precise to completely shake off the tense feeling Mikaela had.

  "True. All I care for is fishing. I wish other people were like you; it'd be more peaceful that way. Especially those Templars approaching right now."

  Otek looked at the old man and then towards the direction the old man was looking. Indeed, more than a few templars were approaching. It seemed to be more than ten, at the very least.

  "Do you think they are coming for you or for me?" The old man asked with mirth in his eyes.

  "For us. We have had conflict before." Otek answered honestly.

  The old man looked lost in thought for a moment and then stepped towards the Templars that were now visible in the distance.

  "Well, as a thank you for granting me passage to your world, I will chase them off for you."

  The Templars were riding horses, and they were in a full gallop. It did not take them long to get close.

  As they approached, it was obvious that they were after Oteks's group, as they shouted about targeting the green man first.

  Before they could even start their attack, however, a creature manifested in the sky. It was as large as the new cathedral Mafu was building underground, maybe even bigger.

  It was a fish of some sort, and it was transparent. Its jaw was half of its body, and as it neared the templars, it opened its jaw wide. Inside of the jaw were endless teeth. The teeth were a few meters long, hooked, serrated, and gleaming white.

  The fish roared as it dove towards the Templars, sending a shockwave that cracked the earth. The horses died on the spot, while the Templars tried to use their skills and shields to block what they could.

  Blood flowed from their noses and their ears, and their screams were quickly cut off as the fish descended.

  "Oh my. I think I might have overdone it," the old man said in a happy tone.

  Oteks's group stood there in silence, not daring to say anything.