Strongest Warlock - Wizard World Irregular

"So what do you think?" Ashmedai asked the Vampire Progenitor, who was eyeing his son with a calm expression on his face.

"My son has gotten rusty after living a long life of degeneracy," Vlad replied. "I hope this wake-up call is enough to make him understand that the world is now a different place compared to how it was a hundred years ago."

Just as Ashmedai was about to say more, something caught his attention.

Vlad, who was sitting beside him also sensed something, making him frown.

"Those reckless fools." Ashmedai placed his wine on top of the table before standing up. "I thought that they were too lazy to care, but it seems that I have underestimated their stupidity."

"Erras seems to be more important to them than you initially expected," Vlad commented before standing up as well. "It seems that this war is being pushed up faster than we expected."

"We still need more time on our side," Ashmedai said before taking a sidelong glance at the projection showing Ethan and Godfrey.

"Then, we'll buy them the time they need," Vlad said as his eyes turned golden. "I've been getting rusty like my son. A little bit of exercise will help."

"You call a precursor to an all-out war with Progenitors a warm-up exercise?" Ashmedai chuckled. "Well then. Let's not keep them waiting."

Vlad nodded.

A moment later, the two Progenitors disappeared from Ashmedai's Domain and reappeared at their homebase in the Lands of Saraqael.

When they appeared, they saw a few Progenitors, as well as other lesser Deities, who were also there to hold the front lines of their domain.

Ashmedai and Vlad scanned the familiar faces before approaching their closest friends.

They were none other than the King of Fairies, Oberon, and his Queen, Titania.

"How long do you think the barrier will hold?" Ashmedai asked Oberon, the one responsible for keeping the barrier active.

"Half an hour," Oberon answered. "Well, I don't mind if they break it now. I'm itching for a fight."

"Are you really a Fairy?" Ashmedai smirked. "Why are you so bloodthirsty? For a second, I thought you were the Imp King, not the Fairy King."

"Haha, very funny." Oberon scoffed. "Can't you make yourself useful like Manzat? That guy is busy making rainbows appear outside of the barrier, and angering these pesky vermin from the other planes."

"Sorry, but I don't do rainbows," Ashmedai replied. "But don't worry. I'll roast them with my purple flames later. It's colorful enough. You know how it works, right?"

Ashmedai then glanced at the Champions, who were going to fight alongside them in this battle.

Standing at the very front was none other than Ethan's Grandfather, Balthazar Azael Valentin.

By his side were his sons, Lleu and Vincent.

Behind them were their wives, Catherine and Cliodhna.

Several other Champions were also present, and they were Midgard's last line of defense against those who wished to invade their world.

Suddenly, a cracking sound reverberated in the sky.

Cracks had started to appear in the barrier, prompting everyone to take out their weapons in preparation for battle.

"Anyone wish to have a bet on who will be the MVP of this battle?" Ashmedai asked.

"You're on." Oberon smirked.

"What is there to bet?" Vlad shook his head helplessly. "Obviously, I'll win."

"No, you won't."

"Not happening."

"Vlad, just watch from the side. You're too old for this."

The other Progenitors teased the Vampire Lord, but the latter only smirked at them.

Finally, the crack widened until the barrier shattered into countless pieces.

The moment the barrier was destroyed, the Progenitors took off to the skies and clashed with the other Progenitors.

Their Champions, on the other hand, clashed with the armies of the Dimensional Invaders.

A bloodbath ensued not long after, dyeing the lands of Saraqael in the colors of war, chaos, and mayhem.

***

Far away from this chaotic battle, the Flying Ship boarded by Ethan and the other members of his party finally took flight.

Their destination was the Northwest of the Lands of Milesians, which was known as the Red Wastes.

It was a desert with sand as red as blood, spreading for miles on end.

Ethan and his comrades understood that although Godfrey would guide them to World's End, that didn't mean that he wouldn't purposely make their travel difficult.

They could already tell that the Vampire Lord was up to something bad, but since they couldn't confirm it, they had no choice but to follow the route that he had written down to reach their destination.

"Young Master, your grandfather once told my father that the Red Wastes is home to Chudo Yudo. It is a multi-headed Dragon with three heads and three pairs of wings. If I remember correctly, this monster is around a hundred meters tall."

Merric didn't bother to lower his voice, allowing everyone to hear it.

Godfrey smirked after hearing Merric's explanation, not agreeing or denying the validity of the information that Ethan's retainer had shared.

"How long till we arrive at the Red Wastes?" Ethan inquired.

"If we increase our speed a bit, we will arrive within a day," Merric answered. "If we retain our current speed, a day and a half."

Ethan pondered before giving the Catkin the order to increase the speed of their Flying Ship.

He didn't know why, but he suddenly had a bad premonition. He couldn't tell if this feeling was due to the dangers of the Red Wastes, or if it was something else entirely.

'I might just be overthinking things,' Ethan thought before going back to the cabin to meditate and calm down his mind.

Godfrey watched the young man leave while cursing him under his breath.

However, he almost cursed out loud when Lyall suddenly appeared beside him with a mischievous smile on his face.

"Damn it, woman." Godfrey glared. "What do you want this time?!"

"Why are you reacting like this?" Lyall arched an eyebrow. "Are you suddenly allergic to women or something?"

'I'm not allergic to women. I'm only allergic to you!' Godfrey cursed internally because he would rather have a nice chat with Ethan than talk to Lyall, who was making him feel uneasy.

"Hey, did you pick a dangerous place to go?" Lyall asked, not caring about Godfrey's annoyance. "Is the monster we're going to meet strong? How strong is it? Is it stronger than you?"

Faced with these questions, Godfrey decided to return to his room and lock the door firmly.

He was starting to think that bringing Ethan and his comrades to their destination faster was a better option than taking a few detours.

Because the longer he delayed, the longer he would have to deal with the crazy girl who was harassing him every time they saw each other.