Just like that, another week passed, although he stopped trying to think about his goal. Instead, he thought about a different, far more important goal: Getting stronger.

The End of Days was a ridiculously difficult game, even with saves, but without any way to retry? He would be dead as soon as he left town. And, though he didn't really know the place, it hurt him to realize he had to leave. He also had to go to the Academy, as that would be the fastest way to get stronger.

So there he was, doing all of the exercises he knew, as many times as he could. Pushups, sit-ups, he even went running, something he had not done for at least a decade.

He was still going strong after three hours, barely sweating. Truly, a young body was the best.

Footsteps echoed down the hall, but Greg still kept going, too focused to notice anything that wasn't his body moving. Then came a knock, one he recognized.

Without thinking about it, he called, "Come in." The next moment, he was looking up to Lily Silver, who looked down with slight agitation before it reddened.

She walked out, closing the door behind her, and calmly said, "Can you please put a shirt on?"

"It's not like I'm totally naked," Greg replied, standing up. He grabbed a washrag, rubbing at where the sweat was most concentrated, before putting on a shirt. "Alright, you can come in now."

She did so, placing her back against the door after closing it. She stood there, a red tinge still on her face.

Feeling awkward, Greg cleared his throat before asking, "Is there something you wanted?"

She jolted like a machine being turned on, quickly recovering her composure. "Yes," she stated. "But I've forgotten what it was. What were you doing on the floor?"

Tilting his head, Greg answered, "Working out."

"What's that?" Lily asked, glancing at the ground.

"It's what you do when training muscles, isn't it?" He started to feel a little embarrassed, his face heating up higher than Lily's.

She narrowed her eyes, focusing them on him. "Why wouldn't you train your mana?"

"Uhh..." he started, but couldn't think of anything to say. For some reason, he forgot about mana, the totally fair source of power that acted the same within everybody's body. He was even watching Janus and Leia, who used magic, the physical manifestation of mana, to perform their feats. Mana triumphed all forms of physical fighting, though that did not mean you couldn't be a melee fighter; it just meant mana had to be imbued to the weapon. That was sometimes called Ki, Spirit, and Chi, among other names.

"Are you unable to feel yours?" she asked pitiably, as though he was a child learning to walk. "I suppose it's possible. Leia would be more apt at helping you with that, though."

She started turning around when Greg had a thought. "Wait!" he called, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Would you mind... teaching me the sword?" he asked.

"Absolutely!" came her immediate reply. "Let's go; right now!"

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Just like that, she dragged him to the forest clearing that was used for the mock fights, taking out two wooden swords nearby. She gently threw one towards Greg, who managed to catch it after almost fumbling it.

"Alright, so, we'll start off with swinging the sword," she said, standing incredibly close to Greg's side. "Just copy what I do."

She then proceeded to move faster than Greg could see, the tip of her wooden sword planted deeply into the ground. With a firm yank, it came out, flinging dirt around.

"Huh?" Greg said, staring blankly at her.

"That was too fast, wasn't it? My bad." She repeated the same swing, this time moving at a snail's pace. Anyone, no matter the level of skill, would have called that swing perfect.

"That was perfect!" Greg exclaimed, lowering his sword to the side.

"No," she responded, placing it in a buckle on her hip. "That was pretty bad. Now, your turn."

Greg gulped, raising the sword to the sky with both hands.

"Stop," she immediately ordered. "That's not what I did at all. My arms weren't so locked, my wrists were looser, and my body wasn't so tense. Again."

So he lowered the blade before raising it again, trying to relax a little. Again, he was stopped. "Why is your grip so loose? You lose that sword, and you're dead. If you're that relaxed, are your strikes going to have any weight? Again."

So he tried, again and again, and again, and again, and again. And at least a hundred more times, though she was never satisfied by how he held it.

Finally, she snapped, plainly telling him, "Stop." before walking over to a tree. In a fit of rage, she must've swung the sword, as the tree in front of her was cut in half.

"Why aren't you listening!?" she yelled, stomping back towards him. Greg didn't say a word, allowing her to continue yelling. "I give you clear instructions, and you ignore me, making the same mistakes over and over again! I'm not teaching you again! You hear me!?" She started muttering obscenities as she walked away, leaving heavy footsteps in the dirt.

"Well, that could've gone better," Greg stated, dropping to the floor.

Agreed, the pop-up said.

"Say, do I have any mana?" he asked, forcing a smile.

Why would you?

"Because I'm half from this world?" he replied, looking to the sky.

And you are half not. Thus, mana and anti-mana counteract, destroying any trace of mana inside your body.

"I should've guessed. Then, is there a status, like from End of Days?"

No.

With that final answer, Greg started walking back through the forest, following the path.

When he got back to the Bakery, Dio was awaiting him. Greg paled at his expressionless face, as he stood outside, arms folded. He didn't seem to move, not even to breathe.

"Come inside," was all he said when Greg got close enough before heading in himself. Full of fear, he followed.

Dio walked them to the kitchen table, unusually empty at this time. He motioned for Greg to grab a seat, so he did.

He didn't sit down at first, though; instead, he went through the cupboards, taking out ingredients for a stew.

After he was finished preparing the ingredients, he placed them into a pot, putting it on to cook.

Finally, after all of that was done, he sat down across from Greg.

"Do you remember your mother?" he asked, voice solemn.

Greg froze, quickly searching through his memories. "No, I don't," he responded, unsure what to do. Dio, however, nodded.

"Yes, I suppose you were too young to remember it." He sighed, turning his eyes towards the roof. "She didn't die to Monsters; no, she left, of her own volition. The week before it happened, she wasn't acting like herself, saying weird things like, 'I died, didn't I?', or 'I've missed you'. She was more anxious, too, rarely staying still, even while sleeping, like she had to go off and do something. In words that I'm not so proud to repeat, I asked her about it. No, I pretty much forced the explanation out of her mouth. She told me that she had 'Regressed backwards in time from 79 years in the future'. Obviously, I didn't believe her, lashing out in confusion, rather than anger. She easily knocked me out, and when I woke up, she was gone, leaving behind a note. It contained four words: Adopt the three kids."

"Janus, Leia, and Lily?" Greg asked, shock slowly forming on his face. Though there was barely any information about Greg Baker, there was none about his mother.

Dio nodded, continuing. "I didn't know what she meant until I found them. Even if she hadn't placed that note, I think I would've, anyway." Finally, he took his eyes off the roof, instead placing them, a raging fire behind them, on Greg. "All of this is to say that I'm not stupid. You're not my son. Not fully, anyway. Greg loved Baking. He never missed work. And, most of all, he never tried to be stronger. Now, who, or what, are you?"