The Void loomed large in the sky, lazily swirling and expanding with every passing minute as it blotted out what little light there was in the Subcon Forest.
Count Bleck had sensed a gentle, pulsing energy here like that of a Pure Heart, which meant that the heroes couldn’t be far behind. Except... Mr. L had been waiting in this world for just over an hour and had seen no sign of the trio. After letting the Sammer Kingdom get completely wiped away, he would have expected them to redouble their efforts to save the next world from crumbling into nothing; was it possible that instead, they had simply thrown in the towel? Had their failure crushed their spirits and slowed them down more than Mr. L and his robots ever could?
There was something unsettling about the thought of the heroes just giving up, but Mr. L brushed off his own discomfort with a quiet scoff. Good. Let them sob over the world they had failed to save. With them out of the way, there would be nothing to interfere with the count’s plan.
“If the heroes don’t show up in the next ten minutes, though, I’m leaving,” he grumbled to himself, absently picking his way deeper into the woods. There was a flash of movement in the corner of his eye and for a brief moment he thought it might have been them, but when he turned around, he was faced with what could only have been an inhabitant of this place.
He blinked at her from behind his mask, taking in her screen with interest. He had no desire to get to know anyone here, but he couldn’t help but be curious— despite working with robotics every day, he had never seen anything quite like this. What was the harm in getting a closer look as he waited for his foes to arrive?
“Hey,” he said slowly, taking a step forward. “You live around here? You might want to get inside, or find some cover. These trees are going to start flying pretty soon.”
