Dimensional Keeper: All My Skills Are at Level 100-Chapter 374: Cursed Land

Max's breath caught.

'Is that… the Tower of Truth?'

A strange pull stirred within him. Curiosity. Wariness. A feeling that whatever lay within that tower—it wasn't ordinary.

But before he could reflect further, a ripple of energy pulsed behind him.

His Three-Dimensional Body reacted instantly.

Danger.

The air twisted—dark auras swirled—and within seconds, the demons arrived. They emerged from the teleportation rune in a blur of shadows and flame, their eyes locking onto Max.

"Damn it!" Max hissed, spinning on his heel. Without thinking, he summoned the flames from his back, trying to launch himself into the air.

But instead of soaring—

He leapt.

Barely a few feet.

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He landed hard with a skid of red dust, eyes wide. "What?!" he gasped. "I… I can't fly here?!"

Panic flickered in his eyes. But then—

He looked again.

And what he saw on the demons' faces wasn't bloodlust.

It was hesitation.

No… not hesitation.

Fear.

They weren't advancing. They weren't charging at him. They were just… standing there. Rooted at the very edge of the teleportation rune, not stepping even an inch farther.

Max's confusion deepened.

'Why aren't they moving toward me?'

One of the demons snarled, but even that sounded forced.

"Kid… you got lucky today," he spat. "Real lucky."

Another chuckled bitterly. "Hmph. You just happened to land in that place. Otherwise, you'd be dead where you stand."

Max narrowed his eyes. 'That place?' What did that mean?

They weren't explaining. They weren't even attacking.

Instead—one by one, they began to vanish.

With sneers and scornful parting words, they reactivated the teleportation rune.

"Don't get too comfortable," the Peak Seeker Rank demon muttered darkly. "We'll see each other again soon. Just don't let anyone else kill you before then."

With that, he too disappeared—his figure swallowed by the fading light of teleportation.

And then—

Silence.

Max stood alone in the vast, lifeless land. The sky overhead cast a red hue over the cracked ground. The wind didn't move. Nothing did.

He looked around again, more wary now than ever.

"…They just left?" he muttered, disbelief painting his voice. "Just like that?"

His gaze slowly shifted back to the Tower in the distance.

Something about this land had frightened the demons. Something had made them retreat without a fight.

And that something, Max realized, might be connected to the place the tower stood upon.

"…Just what kind of place have I stepped into?" he whispered, his voice nearly swallowed by the barren silence.

Just as the eerie stillness of the barren land settled around him again, the teleportation rune behind Max began to hum. A soft, steady blue light pulsed from the ground, growing brighter with each beat—until, in a flash, a figure materialized atop the glowing formation.

Max turned swiftly, on guard.

The figure before him was tall and ethereal—an elf, unmistakably so. She had long, golden hair that shimmered like sunlight, cascading down her back in silken waves. Her skin was pale as moonlight, flawless, and glowing faintly.

Eyes the color of pure emeralds regarded him with cold disinterest. She wore an intricately woven white-and-green robe.

Her beauty was... staggering.

For a brief second—even Max, who had seen far more strange and terrifying things in the last year than most saw in a lifetime—felt his breath catch.

'Damn...' he thought, blinking once. 'The other female elves I've seen look like distant cousins next to her.'

He cleared his throat and tried to speak, regaining composure.

"You must be the one who guided me here," Max said, his tone even.

But the moment those words left his mouth—her expression froze. Then twisted.

Her emerald eyes narrowed, and her lips curled in unmistakable disdain.

"You—" she said coldly, her voice sharp like glass. "How dare a mere human speak to me in such a casual tone?"

The temperature in the air seemed to drop as her voice rang out, haughty and commanding.

"I am of the High Bloodline," she declared. "The only princess of the Sylvaria Kingdom, heir to the ancient throne of the Elves, Lenavira of the Brightborn."

She stepped off the rune, her robe flowing around her like liquid moonlight, her chin tilted high. "Learn your place, human."

Max stood there, momentarily frozen—not from fear, but from sheer shock.

He blinked.

Then blinked again.

'Her face… it's unreal. But that ego? It might just be more dazzling than her entire royal wardrobe.'

He let out a slow, quiet exhale.

'Looks like the most beautiful elf in the world is also the most arrogant one I've met so far...'

"Cough… Forgive me for my earlier words, Lenavira," Max said with a small, apologetic nod—though the apology couldn't have sounded more hollow if he'd tried.

Not that the princess noticed.

"It's good that you understand," she said haughtily, as if she were graciously blessing him with her approval. Then her expression shifted into something sharper. "Also, for a human to call me by my name is… extremely lowborn. You should address me as Your Royal Highness Princess Lenavira."

Max blinked.

"Your Royal Highness Princess Lenavira…" he echoed flatly, lips twitching into a wry smile. 'Who even wants to be called by such a ridiculously long name?' He sighed inwardly. 'This woman definitely has a few screws loose.'

Still, he pushed forward. "So, Lenavira... what is this place? Why did the demons just leave like that after arriving?"

"The answer lies in the Tower of Truth—" she began, her tone turning slightly more informative.

But then she stopped abruptly and glared.

"I told you not to call me by name!" she snapped. "It's Your Royal Highness Princess Lenavira."

Max rolled his eyes, but kept his tone civil. "Alright, alright… so what were you saying again, Your Royal Highness Princess Lenavira?"

She narrowed her eyes at the sarcastic lilt in his voice but chose to ignore it.

"And stop talking to me so casually," she added icily before continuing. "Now listen carefully. The reason the demons backed off without a fight is because this land—everything within a thousand-mile radius of the Tower of Truth—is classified as a cursed zone."

Max raised an eyebrow. "Cursed? What kind of curse are we talking about here?"