Arlo carefully read the contents of the page before smiling and reciting the incantation, his tone turning serious as he focused on not messing up the words, knowing that a mistake would waste his magic power.
"Spirits of the veil, hear my plea; from the realms beyond, I call to thee..."
As he chanted, a yellow magic circle formed above his head, rotating and expanding slightly to cover the area around his body.
"Heed my call, Intermediate Class Barrier Magic: Barrier!"
The moment Arlo completed the incantation, he felt a subtle change in the air around him. A yellow, spherical forcefield manifested, encasing him completely.
"Whoa!" Arlo exclaimed, surprised by the barrier's appearance. He stood up and inspected the yellow forcefield, amazed by its flawless spherical shape without any visible openings.
Arlo gently tapped the barrier with his fingers, surprised by its sturdiness. "It seems to be centered around me," he observed as he began to walk around the room, noting how the barrier moved alongside him with each step.
As he examined the barrier more closely, Arlo couldn't help but wonder about its true strength. The book had mentioned that the barrier's power was directly proportional to the amount of magic power supplied to it, and as long as it remained active, it would continue to draw from his reserves.
[MP: 81 -> 80%]
Despite this, Arlo noticed that his magic power had only decreased by a single percent upon activating the barrier, and it seemed to stabilize after a minute of maintaining it.
"With this, I'll be able to stay safe when I return to the other world to test out stronger spells and explore!" he exclaimed, a sense of excitement building within him. However, a slight frown crossed his face as he added, "But the barrier does stand out... If only it were see-through. Well, I guess that's too much to ask for-"
Suddenly, the barrier vanished, cutting Arlo's words short. "Huh? Did I dispel it?" he wondered aloud, stretching out his hand to investigate.
To his surprise, his finger made contact with the barrier, revealing that it was still present, but had merely become transparent.
"Amazing! Now I can walk around with the barrier active without drawing attention to myself! It's perfect!" Arlo exclaimed, his joy overflowing.
He held the book tightly against his chest, rubbing it affectionately against his cheeks. "I'm so glad I found you. I can't believe I ever doubted you."
As Arlo held the book up, gazing at it with a smile, he realized just how long it had been since his once-hollow eyes had been filled with such genuine happiness. Without even realizing it, his arms began to tremble, and tears welled up in his eyes as he continued to stare at the book.
"With you by my side, I know I can change," Arlo whispered, clutching the book tightly to his chest. "Even a weak F-Rank hunter like me will be able to conquer a high-ranked labyrinth gate on my own. I won't be a disappointment anymore... My life will finally have meaning."
As he spoke, tears streamed down his face, but he quickly wiped them away, determination burning in his eyes.
Glancing at the clock, which now read 8:46 PM, Arlo's thoughts were interrupted by a sudden realization.
'They're still not home? Maybe I should call-' His musings were cut short by the sound of the front door opening downstairs.
"Ah, they're back,"
Arlo quickly made his way out of his room, eager to greet his family after what felt like an eternity. It had been far too long since he had felt such a strong desire to see them.
However, as he reached the top of the staircase, Arlo froze, a wave of guilt crashing over him. Memories of how he had been living flooded his mind—the countless days spent shut away in his room, avoiding interaction with his loved ones at all costs.
He couldn't even recall the last time they had shared a meal together as a family, and yet, here he was, ready to act as if none of it had ever happened.
'What am I doing?' Arlo thought, placing his palm against his face as he turned back towards his room. 'I have no right... They'd probably be annoyed just looking at me.'
As Arlo began to retreat, a voice called out to him from the bottom of the staircase, stopping him in his tracks. "Huh? Arlo, you're out of your room today?"
His heart sank as he slowly turned to face the source of the voice. There, standing at the foot of the stairs, was a stunning girl with shoulder-length blonde hair and vibrant, ocean-blue eyes. Her casual clothes were dampened by the rain, but it did nothing to diminish her beauty.
Arlo instantly recognized the girl; there was no way he wouldn’t—it was his one and only sister, Serena
"Yeah..." Arlo responded from the top of the staircase, his eyes averting his sister's gaze.
"That's a relief," she said, a hint of guilt in her voice. "I'm sorry for eating your food earlier today. Have you had anything to eat? I'm starving since I just got back from work, so I was going to cook something. If you're hungry, we can eat together..."
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Arlo glanced back at his sister, noticing the nervous and worried expression on her face. She probably expected him to reject her offer, as he had done so many times before.
"I already ate..." he began, watching as a saddened smile appeared on her face, her head lowering in disappointment. "But I'm still hungry... so if you don't mind..."
Instantly, her expression shifted to one of pure joy as she looked back up at him, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "A-Alright, I'll call you over when the food is ready!" she exclaimed before rushing off to the kitchen.
Arlo remained at the top of the staircase, scratching his cheek in surprise at her enthusiastic reaction.
About half an hour later, Arlo was called to the dining table, where plates and food were already set out. The dish Serena had chosen to make was spaghetti bolognese with tomato sauce and meatballs. Unlike the plain cup noodles he had just had, the food on the table seemed to sparkle invitingly.
Arlo quickly took his seat alongside Serena and, after taking a bite, unintentionally blurted out, "It's good..."
Serena, who had been silently glancing at him throughout the meal, broke into a flustered smile upon hearing his compliment. "I've been practicing," she stated, her voice filled with pride.
Pleased by her reaction, Arlo continued to eat with his gaze lowered, his posture a little stiff but nonetheless enjoying the moment they shared together.
"It's been a while since we last ate together, hasn't it?" Serena asked, her voice tinged with a hint of nostalgia.
"Yeah, speaking of which, where's Sylvia?" Arlo inquired.
"Mum? She's still at work,"
"At this hour?" Arlo's eyebrows furrowed in concern.
"Yeah, she got another job. She works one in the evening and one at night. I'm thinking of getting another one too,"
Arlo's confusion grew. "But why? Shouldn't her first job be enough to cover the bills?"
Serena's smile turned somber as she elaborated, "It was, but recently the bills have been getting higher due to all the damage caused by the monsters. Habitation zones are shrinking, and for people like us who aren't hunters, we have to put in a lot more hours just to earn enough to survive."
Upon hearing this, Arlo clenched his fist, his head lowering in shame. The food he was chewing suddenly tasted bitter.
'I'm... I'm really a piece of shit... Even though they've been working so hard, I've done nothing but shut myself in my room all day... We're not even biologically related, yet they've done so much for me...'
Noticing the sudden shift in Arlo's demeanor, Serena quickly raised her hands, attempting to lighten the mood. "I-It's not that bad though! You know how Mum is, she doesn't like staying at home. And even for me, there's this cute bag I want to buy and-"
Serena's words were cut short as Arlo abruptly stood up, plate in hand, and made his way to the dishwasher.
"It's fine... I know you're just saying that to make me feel better. I'm sorry for making you two take care of me. Don't worry, from now on, I'll be the one taking care of you both."
"Arlo..." Serena whispered, her eyes wide with surprise.
“Tell Sylvia to quit her second job. I’ll take care of all the bills from now on, starting from the end of this week… Oh and thank you for the food. It was delicious.”
With those final words and a grateful smile, Arlo left the room, leaving a worried Serena behind. She sat there, her mind racing with concerns about her brother's intentions.
"Take care of the bills... He's not planning on working as a hunter again, is he? Even after what happened last time..." Serena muttered to herself, her brow furrowed with worry.
A wave of guilt washed over her as she realized the impact of her words. "I'm such an idiot. Just when we were finally starting to spend more time together..."
After a few moments of contemplation, Serena abruptly stood up, determined to set things right. She made her way up the stairs and stopped in front of Arlo's room, gently knocking on the door three times.
"Um, Arlo, please don't worry about it. You really don't have to go back to being a hunter. We both know how much it hurt you last time... So... That's why..." Her voice trailed off as she waited for a response, but only silence greeted her.
Despite pouring her heart out, there was still no answer from the other side of the door. Confused, Serena hesitantly turned the doorknob and stepped into Arlo's room. Much to her surprise, the room was empty, with no sign of her brother anywhere.
"Arlo...?" Serena called out, her voice barely above a whisper.
-
"I'm back..." Arlo whispered to himself as he took in his surroundings.
Once again, he found himself standing in the heart of a medieval town, its cobblestone streets bustling with life. People dressed in period attire hurried about their daily routines, while horse-drawn carriages clattered along the uneven roads.
Arlo had done it; the spell had been a success, and he had returned to this other world. Everything seemed just as he remembered it, with one notable difference.
During his previous visit, the sun had been shining brightly overhead, but now the moon was out, despite having spent no more than two hours in his original world, it appeared that a significant amount of time had passed here.
'Time really does work differently in this place,' Arlo mused.
As he began to navigate the town, Arlo couldn't help but notice the curious gazes his unusual clothing attracted.
'I hate standing out, but I'll have to bear with it and focus on the plan,' he thought, determined to stay the course. 'Right now, I need to find a secluded spot to practice my spells in secret. Once I've grown stronger, I'll return to my original world and work as a hunter to earn some money.'
The nature of his surroundings continued to captivate Arlo as he explored the town. From the vastly different architectural styles to the diverse beings walking the streets, there was no shortage of fascinating sights to behold.
"Another world, huh?" Arlo muttered, his mind wandering to the differences between this place and the dimensions he'd encountered while traversing gates in his own world. "Those places are filled with nothing but death and monsters."
As he strolled along the roads, Arlo clutched the grimoire tightly to his chest, his eyes darting left and right, analyzing every detail of his new environment.
"This looks like the typical fantasy world with medieval style culture that you’ll find on any online novel or anime. A world where there are beings that look like human, also known as demi-humans and probably stuff like adventurers and knights…”
Having spent most of his time as a shut-in at home, Arlo had immersed himself in countless online stories with similar settings, making the current situation feel somewhat familiar.