The column of silver-violet spatial light did not carry Alaric back to the snow-swept northern ramparts of Azure Fall City, nor did it deposit him inside the steaming subterranean cavern of the Earth-Heart Profound Spirit Vein where he had departed the Eastern Continent a month ago.
Instead, as the dimensional fold snapped shut with a muffled chime that resonated only within the sixth-tier spatial-anchoring runes beneath his boots, the cool, pine-scented air of Steele Manor's underground vault was instantly replaced by the warm, humid, blossom-perfumed breeze of a central-provincial spring evening.
