Toni coughed slightly; his dry throat bothered him. There was a vase with water in the room near an empty cup. He filled it up, sat down behind the desk, and slowly hydrated himself. Then, he put the cup down and gently massaged his neck. He could feel the marks left by the rope with his fingers and was surprised he didn’t seem to suffer from any grave injury.

Toni sat in the room for what felt like an eternity to him. He went through Ansel’s memories to get a better idea of who the man really was. The sun’s first ray of light shone through the window. He heard movements in the small house.

It’s probably Jarod getting up.

The house they lived in couldn’t be called as such by Toni’s standards from his previous life. It was a two-bedroom dwelling. Ansel occupied one of the tiny rooms, and Jarod was in the other one. His uncle slept in the living room. Ansel wanted to trade places with his uncle, but the man insisted on having them sleep in the bedrooms.

Ansel respected and loved his uncle deeply. He had raised him when his parents died and always treated him like his own son. He worked in a bakery, making bread. Jarod was still in secondary school. They could only afford to put him in a public school. It was four silver coins a month. Compared to private schools, it was a bargain. The quality of education was also decent.

Toni heard someone knocking on the door. His first thought went to the dagger.

“One second.”

Ansel quickly hid the weapon away under his bedsheets. He found a scarf and quickly wrapped it around his neck before opening the door. Jarod stood there, half asleep.

“Morning, brother.”

“Good morning, Jarod.”

The adolescent gave him a weird look. Toni realized his mistake and tried to correct it right away.

“I’m messing with you, little brother.”

Ansel rarely calls him by his name. He mostly addresses him as little brother.

“You must be in a good mood this morning,” Jarod said.

Toni simply answered him with a smile.

“Dad brought bread home yesterday. We can have some for breakfast. I’ll scramble some eggs that we can eat with it.”

“I’ll brew us some tea,” Toni said.

“What’s up with the scarf?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. I was a bit cold.”

“I hope you’re not sick.”

“I’m fine,” Ansel replied with a reassuring smile.

They both went into the tiny kitchen. Jarod took the last two eggs, broke the content into a bowl, and added a pinch of salt before using a wooden spoon to mix everything. Toni poured water into an old metal pot and put it to a boil. Jarod heated some oil in a pan before adding the eggs. There was a frying noise when the liquid and the oil met. The teenager immediately started to scramble the eggs. Toni took out the pot from the fire when the water started boiling. He added four mint leaves and let them sit in the water. They couldn’t afford real tea, so they could only improvise. Mint leaves were relatively cheap, and it made for a good alternative.

They sat down. Both the bread and eggs had a taste Toni never experienced before. Despite the small portion of his meal, he was somewhat satisfied. The bread filled him up.

“You should be getting ready for your classes, little brother.”

Jarod nodded. He quickly finished his meal and washed both plates. He went to his room to get dressed before leaving the house.

Toni was by himself. His uncle was already at work. He had to wake up hours earlier than both of them to go to the bakery and start baking bread for the day.

He went back to his room, sat behind the desk, and opened the black notebook. He had memories of some of the content of the book; therefore, he focused on the things that were missing from Ansel’s memories. There was one page that caught his attention the most.

“Traveler’s Formula.” Toni read.

The title immediately picked his interest. He was familiar with the first word. Avid to know more, he read the rest of the page and discovered the formula was in fact some bizarre incantations. There were also notes on the margin written by Ansel.

“Existence of other worlds? A possible way to make contact? Found this formula in an ancient ruin.”

The notes increased Toni’s interest in the Traveler’s Formula.

What if this is a way for me to go back to where I belong?

Many thoughts crossed his mind. He wanted to try out the formula. Though he had no idea what would happen, his desire to go back compelled him to take the risk.

I need to clear my head. I’ll go for a walk first.

Toni showered and dressed up. He wore gray pants, a white t-shirt, an old black turtle neck sweater, and a gray vest. His original intention was to put on a black shirt instead of the turtle neck. However, he needed to hide the marks on his neck for the time being. He pondered for a moment before taking the dagger with him. He secured it on his right hip with his belt before concealing the weapon with the only coat he owned. He looked at himself in the mirror and was somewhat satisfied with his appearance. He exited the house shortly after.

The streets were busy. Toni was comfortable walking among the crowd. However, when it came to cleanliness, he’d seen better. He often saw trash on the ground and some areas had a very strong smell that would deter most people from getting near them. Surprisingly, Toni wasn’t as bothered by it as he thought he would be.

Is it because I’m in Ansel’s body? Is that why I feel so familiar with the environment here?

It was the only explanation he could think of. He walked to the market and was immediately welcomed by numerous voices.

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“What can I do for you, good sir?”

“Roasted Chicken! Best in town!”

“You want some shrimp, sir? They’re fresh!”

“This hat would suit you, sir. Please take a moment to try it on.”

Toni continued his walk. He did not slow down even once.

We’re out of eggs. I should get some.

Jarod cooked the last eggs for breakfast. He discreetly put his hand in his coat pocket and felt the coins inside. He counted six Copper Coins and three Silver Coins. A Copper Coin is lighter than a Silver Coin. Using that information, he was able to determine the amount of money in his possession.

He also knew that 10 Copper Coins are equivalent to 1 Silver Coin. And 100 Silver Coins are worth a single Gold Coin. For the currency denomination, There was a 1 Silver Coin denomination and a 10 Silver Coin denomination. Furthermore, there was a coin for 1, 10, 50, and 100 Gold Coins. Above the Gold Coin was the Black Note. 1 Black Note was worth 1000 Gold Coins. There were three denominations for the Black Note, 1, 10, and 100 Black Note bills.

Toni saw a stand with eggs. He approached the merchant.

“I’d like a dozen eggs, please.”

“Sure thing, sir.” The seller answered.

He packed the goods in a bag and handed it to Toni.

“Three copper coins.”

Toni retrieved the money from his pocket and gave it to the merchant. He then continued wandering the streets.

“Bear meat! Seven copper coins per kilo.”

Toni thought it’d be nice for them to have meat and bought a kilogram of the bear meat. It wasn’t much considering it was for three people, but it was better than nothing. He gave the merchant a silver coin and got 3 copper coins back.

“Young man, would you care to have your destiny read?” An old woman near a tent said to him as he was passing by her.

Toni saw the sign saying 1 silver coin and shook his head.

“I’m good, thank you.”

“You’re my first customer today. I’ll do it free of charge.”

Her reply caught Toni’s attention. Not that he believed that his destiny could be known, but he was fascinated by fortune-telling. He had always been. He’d read many books about various techniques used to foresee one’s future. But above all, he was curious to see how they do it in this world. Moreover, it was familiar with the woman's business technique. If others saw him in the open tent, they would be more likely to come in themselves. Not charging him was a way to attract more people.

“You can read my destiny?” He asked.

“I can get a sense of it.”

“What do you use?”

“Dice Clairvoyance.”

They also have Dice Clairvoyance in this world! Wait a minute, he can’t be a coincidence.

Ansel’s memories gave him some information. It was a method created two centuries ago by a man named Wilem Von Shroeder. The man was also notorious for other inventions such as the railroad and the camera, among other things. He was also a writer who had published many books. His ambitions were colossal as he also ruled over a country. But a man with such ambitions was bound to have many enemies. Despite being a key member of the Wise Sphinx Guild and having the backing of the organization, he was killed by other forces fearing he may eventually become a threat to them.

The things Wilem invented were too similar if not identical to many inventions from Toni’s world.

Is Wilem Von Shroeder a Traveler like me? It’s possible. There were probably other people before me. I need to find out more about this.

“As long as it’s free, I’m fine with it,” Toni replied.

“Please follow me.” The woman said, inviting him into the tent.

There was a table and two chairs in it. The old lady sat and gestured to Toni to take the seat facing her. The man pulled the chair and sat down. The woman retrieved three dice from her black robe and put them on the table. Toni recognized the 8-sided dice with the inscriptions on every side. Each one of them has a different inscription.

It’s exactly like the Dice Clairvoyance from my world. I really think Wilem is a Traveler like me!

The woman also produced three black goblets and put them on the table.

“The Dice Clairvoyance art is about the three main parts of one’s life. Namely, the Before, the Now, and the After.” The fortune-teller explained.

Toni nodded.

I’m familiar with the concepts. I read about it. The Before is one’s past, the Now is the present, and the After is the future.

The woman took out a piece of red cloth and covered the dice and the goblets hiding them from Toni. She then proceeded to shuffle them around while putting a die in each goblet. Once she was done, she lifted the cloth.

“Young man, what would you like to know first? The Before, The Now, or the After.”

Toni decided to test the woman. He had encountered many fake fortune-tellers in his previous life and developed a skepticism towards anyone claiming to be one.

“The Before.” He answered.

“Choose one goblet, shake it, and flip it down before revealing the die.” She instructed.

Toni took a few seconds to make his decision and grabbed the goblet on his right. He shook it mildly before slamming it down against the table. He looked at the old lady as he lifted the black cup.

Damn!

He couldn’t help but silently curse when he saw the inscription that was facing up. The old lady’s expression also changed. Toni decided to play dumb though he knew the meaning.

“Is something wrong?” He asked.

The woman looked at him with disbelief.

“Death! Your Before is Death. I’ve never seen it before…”

“Death?”

“Have you had a near-death experience in your past?”

“None I can recall,” He lied.

“Then you died.”

“Don’t joke with that.”

“It’s no joke. The die has spoken.”

“How can I be here if I already died?”

The old lady shrugged her shoulders.

“Do you wish to continue?” She asked.

The previous reading piqued Toni’s curiosity. and he wanted to know more.

“Yes.”

“The Now or the After? Choose.”

“The After.”

“Pick one goblet. You know what to do.”

Toni chose the goblet on his right. The one that was previously in the center. He shook it and flipped it down before revealing the die.

This… The inscription… It’s the Joker.

Toni looked at the woman.

“Young man, you’re quite peculiar. I wish to be compensated this time.”

“What? You want money!? But you said it was free.”

“I did, and I read your Before for free.”

“How much?”

“One silver coin.”

Toni shook his head. One silver coin was 50% of his current fortune.

I don’t need her to explain it to me. I know what the Joker inscription means… endless possibilities, a clean slate. There is pretty much nothing I can’t do. All options are open to me. The sky is the limit. It’s not a bad read for the future.

“I cannot afford it. But thank you for the free one.” He said, getting up from his chair.

The old lady did not say anything as she watched him leave the tent. Toni decided to go back home and try the Traveler’s Formula.