I got a little bit too much into mercilessly dumping useless information about the world when writing this chapter. The majority of said exposition will be marked by —'s. Feel free to skip anything in between if you don't feel that invested. You won't be missing anything story-wise.

CHAPTER 2 – GATES OF THE CAPITAL

⌈I want you to tell me where you really came from.⌋

I was shocked. Did he already figure it out? What gave it away!? Did I ask too many questions? I guess I’ll have to explain… I lack the social skills to weasel my way out of a situation like this anyway.

⌈Do you know of a place called Earth?⌋

I hesitantly inquired.

⌈That’s your home village? I haven’t heard of it.⌋

⌈It isn’t exactly a village..⌋

⌈A town then? No, I’d have heard of it then.⌋

⌈Not that either..⌋

I have no idea what to tell him. ‘Oh yeah, it’s a parallel world that exists in a plane completely separate from yours!’ won’t probably be an acceptable answer.

⌈Say.. Would you believe me if I was sent here from another world?⌋

⌈Another world? Like the Realm of the Gods or something? You don’t look all that godly to me.. I just wanted to know what your hometown was. You know.. to be sure that you aren't a criminal or anything.⌋

⌈I’m sorry, but my hometown doesn’t exist in this realm, nor the Realm of the Gods.⌋

⌈Alright, alright... I’ll give up. You don’t have to tell me if you really don’t want to. You probably wouldn't hurt a fly either. But! You should know that dozing off in a forest like this is dangerous. You don’t even have a weapon to defend yourself with!⌋

Crisis averted! I feel guilty though. He thinks I’m lying, but I guess sometimes fact is stranger than fiction.

Wait a second! A weapon?

Empty. Of course...

The sheath strapped to my back was empty. I wanted to cry at my stupidity. Why did I have to have my blade shatter at the final clash against the Dragon of Origin!? I’ve always wanted to swing a real sword around, too. To say that I'm disappointed would be an understatement and a half.

But... There’s still something I can use as a weapon, is there not?

⌈Seth, do you happen to know if magic exists?⌋

⌈Sure does! I’ve only ever heard adventurers and mages from the past era use any though.⌋

⌈Mind if I try something?⌋

⌈H-Hold on! You can cast magic!?⌋

⌈I'm not sure yet.⌋

⌈Hahah, good luck then. Don’t burn the forest down!⌋

I could feel the sarcasm oozing through his words. Well, I guess it would be pretty entertaining, that is if it wasn’t directed towards me…

But I’m glad to hear that magic still exists. Most of the moves I, or rather my character and current self knew, were impressive finisher moves like Origin Burst and Grand Thunder. I guess I should stick to the basics, as I don't seem to be able to really use my eye properly either. I had mastery of all the elements with Origin being the strongest, but what about something basic? Fireball, maybe?

Alright, let’s give it a try!

I took a stance, aimed at a tree before me, and held my left hand out. I braced my arm with my right hand and chanted.

⌈O, Flame, eternal. Cleanse the evil that opposes me, and burn the impurities from within, 【Fireball】!⌋

The word 'Fireball' bewitchingly resonated across the woods, and at that very moment, I felt huge amounts of energy of some kind draining towards my hand, similar to when I tried to activate my eye. A burning sensation enveloped my palm as the energy was swiftly discharged. I was astonished..

Did it really work? Just like that!?

⌈Ahahaha! Cleanse the evil, burn the impurities! HAHAHA!⌋

Seth was rolling down on the grass crying his eyes out laughing.

I saw a single spark slowly floating down in front of me. That was the fireball!?

⌈Pheeew. I'm out of breath.. What was that!? For a second there, I thought you were going to annihilate the tree and the forest along with it! That sure was something, wasn’t it? Hahaha!⌋

Seth snickered.

God dammit. I shouldn’t have tried this in front of him. It would’ve been humiliating enough without someone giggling at my misfortune. But what was even more unfortunate was my inability to use magic like before. Or, well, like I had expected to be able to...

I seemed to have lost all those powers I wrote about. At least the Eye of Origin still works, even if barely. For now, I should set regaining the ability to cast magic again as my goal. Seth had calmed down a bit, but he had tears falling down his cheeks. Really?

⌈Was it really that funny..?⌋

⌈For sure! An epic chant like had me anticipating some sort of ancient forbidden magic! For it to end up being nothing more than a tiny cinder that wouldn’t be able to light up a stack of dried up hay on a tranquil summer day. Hahaa! That’s a story to tell the folk back at the village when I go home.⌋

⌈I’d rather you not..⌋

⌈Too late, Mr. Magician! O, Flame, eternal! Cleanse the evil that opPOH–⌋

With a loud thud, his sentence quickly came to a halt.

I punched the fucker square in the chest. He took the blow pretty hard, yet he didn’t raise his fists against me. I probably wouldn’t have stood a chance if he did. Now that I think about it, punching Seth was a horrible idea…

⌈Guh… Ow. Ahahaha! I guess I did deserve that. Anyway, I did promise to tell you about the world on our way to the capital. Shall we set off, magic man?⌋

He snarkily continued while holding his chest.

⌈My name isn’t ‘magic man’, you know?⌋

⌈Maybe. It’s just hard to call you by your name when you haven’t even introduced yourself yet. I don’t happen to own one of those weird eyes either.⌋

⌈Oh, right. I guess it’s a bit late for introductions, but my name is..⌋

⌈..⌋

⌈…⌋

⌈Yes? Your name is?⌋

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⌈I.. can’t seem to remember?⌋

⌈Eh?⌋

Now that I think about it I never wrote the name of ‘my alternate’ down. I guess I just assumed that it was the same as what I had during my life on earth, but I can’t seem to remember that either. Amnesia? Why can’t I remember my name!? Are my past memories starting to fade away? No... It's not that either.

⌈I can’t remember what my name is.⌋

⌈What am I supposed to call you then, magic man?⌋

⌈Anything but that..⌋

⌈Mr. Magician?⌋

⌈Very funny...⌋

⌈Yeah, I guess you've had enough of my jokes for now... But, am I really going to have to name you on the spot?⌋

⌈Well, I can’t really imagine you coming up with a good name anyway.⌋

He started to think of a fitting name as if I had just challenged him to do so.. It was quite funny to see a carefree guy like him so deeply lost in thought. It took a good while, but suddenly he blissfully threw his hands into the air like a kid.

⌈How about Light!? You know, since your eye lights up and your hair is pretty light!⌋

He shouted out.

And surprisingly enough, the name wasn't half bad!

⌈Eh!? It’s like the stew all over again! When I least expect it, you manage to surprise me.⌋

⌈How about it?⌋

⌈It’s great!⌋

Aaah, Light is such a cool name! Well, I guess it does scream of eternal 8th grader, but I can't help myself. You could call it a guilty pleasure of mine... Thank you, Seth. Thank you! For all the lame jokes you make, you definitely come around once it’s needed.

⌈It’s definitely not because the punch you threw was lightweight..⌋

⌈Goddammit, of course there had to be something like that. Whatever. I’m fine with Light despite that. Nice to meet you, Seth. My name is Light.⌋

⌈What’s with the formalities? I suppose you haven’t introduced yourself yet after all. Nice to meet you, Light. I'm–⌋

⌈Isn’t this just a tad bit awkward?⌋

⌈Yeah. It is..⌋

I'm glad we agree..

With those words, we started making our way towards the capital. Seth told me all about the events that took place 20 years ago. Everyone knows the Convergence of Gods, the event that marked the beginning of the current era.

All the races across the continents begun their movement towards the human capital simultaneously, as if the Gods themselves commanded so. It was a warning about what was to come.

It took no less than a single cycle of night and day before the chaos spread across the land and hell was released down on to the world. In an instant, the whole world became a battlefield, and in the following month, as the Races fought towards the capital, the population dwindled down to a fraction of what it was.

The incapacitated forces of the Races made their last stand on the outskirts of the capital, and the moment when they thought that all was lost, the Gods themselves descended from the heavens. Nobody seems to remember anything else about it. Actually, they seem to be surprised themselves when they realize they can’t remember. I wonder if that has anything to do with me forgetting bits of my past life, such as my name..

It seems that the world I knew of, or rather, wrote of, was barely even comparable to the one that existed now. Nearly everything I accidentally brainstormed into existence, had been ruined. Entire cultures were destroyed. Centuries of progress gone within mere days.

To offset the grave losses, the Gods gave the Races the gift of Adventurers. Individuals blessed by the Gods, who exist for the sole purpose of paving the path towards a brighter future. Or so they say... If the Gods have such power, why did they let the Races get overrun by monsters in the first place!? I'm pissed off. Big time.

—

I was curious about the Races too, and whether the races I wrote of still existed, even if they weren't the same anymore. Though I wasn't really a fan of excessive exposition either, I thought it'd be best for me to learn all I could about the world I was thrown into.

There were six races in total, with each living in their corresponding realm. Just as I had remembered. Humans populated the realm of Ies, the last bastion of the Races, and the land we currently walked on. Mostly consisting of grassy plains and flowering forests. It's supposedly extremely standard, as far as the environment goes.

Up north was the realm of the beautiful snow elves, Omi. Contrary to what the name might imply, the northern realm wasn’t a frozen wasteland, rather it was a climate similar to the Nordic countries back on Earth. Snow elves were the personifications of beauty, though their beauty wasn't the only favoring quality. They were also highly compatible with magic. Nevertheless, Seth seemed to insist that the beauty was their most important quality, and I guess I'd have to agree. I'm getting anxious just thinking about meeting one. But it's not because of that. No, not at all...

East from the human realm, bordering the sea, was Eto-Ies, the realm of Beastmen. Beastmen were indistinguishable from humans, apart from the fact that they possessed animal-like features, such as tails and ears. Precisely as one would expect. Their senses are also elevated to different degrees, based on their species. Seth’s father was apparently a beastman, which would explain his crimson eyes. Crossbreeding between the races exists? That’s uhh… Good to know? I'm not sure how sensitive of a topic that is in this world.. But then again, I wouldn't mind settling down with a snow e– ehehee..! His father was nowhere to be seen after the Convergence, but he seems adamant about him still being alive.

Right between the realms of beastmen and snow elves laid Ilija, the grand forest of dark elves. While the beastman realm had multiple environments, and a complex landscape consisting of plains and mountains, the dark elven realm was just a forest. But apparently calling it 'just a forest' would be an understatement grand enough to be considered discriminatory, as the variety of life in the forest was unbelievable. My first thought when I heard that was something along the lines of ‘no way that’s true’, especially after being shocked to the extent I was just by having a glimpse of the forest we were currently wandering through, but apparently this forest is just a ‘mere magical forest’ compared to the home of the dark elves. I really need to go and see the forest myself sometime...

Down in the southern mountain range laid two different realms side by side. The realm of dwarves, Ontu. And the realm of the dragonkin, Aarme. The dwarves were your generic fantasy dwarves. Short and stumpy craftsmen with long beards and no manners. The dragonkin, on the other hand, were humanoids of different sizes, possessing numerous draconic features, such as scales, a tail and dragon horns. These features varied greatly between the dragonkin. While one dragonkin could have huge horns and smooth skin, another could be completely clad scales and have no horns at all. Dragonkin aren't quite how I imagined them to be, but they do sound pretty interesting nevertheless.

The dwarves and dragonkin used to live in a symbiotic relationship before the Convergence, with the dwarves working the mines and the dragonkin patrolling the mountains, and as a result, the borders of the two realms were unclear. I can't help but wonder how the cultures of the two manifested into reality. The dragonkin were peaceful folk, inspired by far eastern cultures of my old world, while the dwarves were rowdy drunkards with little to no finesse outside of matters concerning craftsmanship. While in written form, the two could easily live in harmony despite their differences. But in reality? I wouldn't exactly keep my hopes high...

The final realm, not counted among the six others, was an ancient realm in the west, abandoned centuries before the Convergence. It was a realm of floating islands in the skies, said to be the place where the ancestors of all the races first descended down onto this land. The ancient lands of legend went by the name of Orionia. That name sounded familiar, but I can’t seem to put my finger on it. The floating islands too. I recall something along the lines of the current me beginning his journey from said islands. I was currently processing way too much information to properly recall anything about that.

—

Though we were ambushed by a fair few monsters on the way, such as some green grotesque beasts I could only assume to be goblins, our journey never came to a halt, as Seth swiftly disposed of the monsters with his polearm. Seeing him engage in combat like that really got my blood pumping. He really wasn’t all talk! I was impressed. Though.. the guts of the goblins weren’t exactly easy on the eyes. I was enthusiastic about trying to fight monsters before, but after witnessing its gruesome reality in person? I'll admit, I'm having second thoughts.

⌈We’ve arrived!⌋

Seth shouted enthusiastically.

We made our way out of the forest on to the edge of the overlook of the capital. This was, without a doubt, the spot where the current me brought down the Dragon of Origin twenty years ago. The sight left me breathless.

Down in the vast valley beneath, laid the capital of the human race. Though I often described the city as heavenly, I was struck by an immense feeling of Deja Vu, as my expectations were shattered into a million pieces once more. The buildings in the central area were built of a marble-like stone, towering multiple stories high, decorated by interlaced streams of magical energy running across the otherwise solid structures. The outer districts, on the other hand, featured a variety of different materials in their constructs, however, the architecture was no less impressive.

Though the metropolis was very densely packed, it seemed to live as one with the environment, as the growth seemed to flourish freely within. You could practically feel the life force emanating from the city. The great white walls protecting the capital looked like they could take on an army or two and not budge an inch. No wonder it still stood proudly unscathed after the Convergence.

Even from up here, one could see the streets bustling with the populace, as well as people filling the outskirts, collecting fruits and vegetables from the various fields, trees, and bushes that filled the grasslands around the walls. This was truly a fantasy world. Even Seth’s eyes were glistening in amazement. I never thought I’d see something like this in my entire life! Oh, wait. About that…

⌈Alright!! What are you waiting for Light!? Let’s go! Let’s go already!⌋

To be honest, I was just as enthusiastic as he was. I could hardly contain myself.

⌈Alright, Seth! Don’t get left behind!⌋

We raced down the path on the cliffs, although it did feel more like an obstacle course. I felt the breeze run through my hair as I dashed along the downhill path. I couldn't seem to shake the feeling that I've been missing out on so much in my past life...