The next day, he was woken up by Vïta—more violent than their mother. She dragged him out of bed until he fell to the floor; nothing too serious, just sibling rivalry, the real kind. Why fight so early in the morning…
He got dressed, had breakfast, and finally went to class. At noon, as planned, he left, heading for the unusual tree after coming up with an excuse for Louis, who more or less believed him. He saw that the trunk still had its hole, just as imprecise compared to reality as before. He thought for several long minutes and then made his decision: he was going in!
He stepped back about ten meters, tensed his muscles, and sprinted toward the portal-like opening, jumping forward with his hands stretched out in case he had miscalculated.
With his eyes closed, he felt a new breeze—clearly purer than the one in his world. He slowly opened his eyes to see where he had landed. To his right, plants he had never seen before stretched before him: a flower with thorny petals and a stem resembling a silk thread, a green-and-blue bush filled with fluorescent violet fruits that looked like blueberries. His senses seemed sharper than they had been just moments ago. He could smell the scent of wood, flowers, and the water flowing in the river he had seen in his two dreams—now just a few hundred meters away.
How was this possible? And would he find the three people he had seen?
He decided to check out the mysterious river first. Walking toward it at a normal pace, he slowed down as he neared the edge of the ravine and stopped at the border, unconcerned about the ground giving way. He was used to high places—when he was a child, he would wander along paths just as dangerous, if not more so, in the Swiss Alps.
Suddenly, without warning, he was pushed from behind, making him spin three-quarters of a turn. He saw an animal—or at least, what could be called one—that resembled a boar. It had gravel-like fur, steel teeth, bright brown eyes, and rose-gold legs that could be mistaken for flowers.
He noticed that his fall was slowing, just as the river's water seemed to decelerate before reaching the lower stream. He adjusted his posture as best he could, positioning his feet to absorb the impact. When he hit the water, he was almost at a standstill and landed on both feet without difficulty, quickly scanning his surroundings.
The wood in this area looked perfect for a fire, and behind the waterfall, there was a hollow large enough to fit a truck. He set out to gather firewood, build a fire, and find a way to inform his parents that he would be gone for the day.
He didn't expect to have any signal, but he had just enough to send a clear message:
Mom, I got carried away in the forest, so I might be home late. See you later.
Well! Maybe it wasn't the best message, but it would have to do!
After a while, he started feeling hot, and since it was still early afternoon, he decided to walk a bit and try out some things he had seen in animated series. So, before leaving, he checked to see if there was magic in this world.
He stretched his right hand forward, palm perpendicular to his arm, and closed his eyes. He tried to imagine a blue flame forming in his palm… nothing. Then he tried to picture a stream of energy flowing through his arm. He felt a new sensation, but still, nothing visible. He gave up—for now—and continued on his way, searching for a way to climb back up, when he stumbled upon a camp that seemed only minutes old.
The person should be returning soon.
He sat down, wondering if he could communicate with them. He hadn't heard any words in his visions.
Suddenly, a man appeared—somewhere in his twenties, with blond hair and a slight height advantage, standing around 1.81 meters. He was eye level with Aaron, except that he was holding a well-forged iron sword, pointing it at him.
He spoke in unfamiliar words, but Aaron could easily guess that he was asking who he was and what he was doing there.
Before he could even utter a response—which he was sure wouldn't be understood—the piece of obsidian he had seen during his first visit to the forest suddenly appeared between him and the tip of the man's sword.
It was obsidian! And incredibly smooth, reflecting a magnificent deep violet hue.
As he admired the piece, it explained something he hadn't understood before. Everything had happened so quickly—the night had fallen, and now the piece was speaking to Aaron in French, which surprised him at first, but he quickly accepted it. After all, it had been watching him in his own world, so it wasn't shocking that it spoke his language.
He answered its questions one by one, but two of them made him think:
"Why are you here? And do you want to live two lives?"
"I came because you made me want to, with those visions. And then you brought me through the passage to this world. And if I can, then of course!"
The piece continued, simply stating that it would break the language barrier for him so he wouldn't have to learn all the different languages of this new world.
"The rest is up to you. This is the first and last time I'll save you—good luck!" it finished, in a friendly tone.
"Obsidian," as he decided to call it, then left without telling Aaron where it was going.
He turned back to the man and decided to test if he could understand him.
"Good evening… do you understand me?" Aaron asked."Perfectly," the man replied almost instantly. "The piece asked me to wait and told me that you were lost. Is that true?""Well, yes. And I'd really like to learn more about this world!"
"This world? It's yours too, isn't it?""Actually, no, not really. I arrived here by passing through a rather large, strange, multicolored tree at the top of a magnificent cliff. Then, I got pushed by some kind of steel boar, and here I am," Aaron explained."That's quite the story you have there. And you expect me to believe you? ...Well, with that living piece of obsidian, I'll believe you," the man conceded. "But I'll tell you right now, I'm just a simple swordsman—not one of the best, far from it. So for now, get some sleep. We'll see tomorrow."
Without responding, Aaron fell asleep until dawn—no longer than that, which surprised him, as he usually woke up around noon. Without further ado, he got ready and followed Kurio, who said they were heading toward a capital called Usay.
They walked for hours, engaging in simple conversations, including the question that mattered most to Aaron: "Is there magic in this world?" The answer was yes, but very few knew how to use it.
Upon their arrival, Aaron was stunned by the towering walls, several dozen meters high and extending for many kilometers, as well as the central tower, which seemed somewhat out of place in the circular layout. The stone appeared to be at least two meters thick—no tank from the Second World War could break through it. That was his first thought. However, he noticed archers stationed in oversized openings within the walls.
The guards at the entrance asked for identification cards—guild cards—which Aaron didn't have. Kurio explained to them that Aaron had simply gotten lost, lost his card along the way, and that they were heading in to get a new one. The guards allowed them to pass, and their first stop was the guild building.
The structure resembled an embassy, flanked by two guard towers—without a doubt from other nations, and seemingly no others.
Inside, the atmosphere was that of an overcrowded restaurant, except that there were no actual restaurants. Instead, it was a place for reunions, gatherings, or even showing off.
As soon as they entered, the people inside lowered their voices for a moment to glance at the newcomers before resuming their conversations, which remained just as loud.
However, Aaron realized that if he focused on a specific person, he could understand them perfectly. It seemed unnatural, but he didn't dwell on it.
Guided by Kurio, he approached a woman who was clearly working there. She greeted them after asking a few men to wait before continuing their one-sided discussions.
Upon seeing Aaron, she had an almost imperceptible shock—new sensations! His heartbeat quickened, but he didn't falter over so little. Her skin glowed under the dim light of the building, her eyes were as clear blue as a river's water, and her long, shiny red hair caught his attention. A dream woman, he thought. No wonder some might seek to have her for themselves.
She was dressed simply—a mid-length purple dress with a white collar and neatly rolled-up sleeves. Her gaze was piercing, yet she seemed stuck in his eyes. She can't read me through my eyes, he thought, because he could see what she was trying to do. He quickly understood that she had been broken at a very young age but wasn't about to make a scene in front of everyone. It lasted only a few seconds—two at most.
"Welcome, Kurio. How are you? Are you bringing me a volunteer or another lost orphan?" she asked, with a smile that seemed genuine."Well, a lost volunteer," the tall man replied. "I can't tell you everything because it's a long story, and you probably wouldn't believe it anyway.""All the better then. Let's go to the registration room where you can explain everything to me," she said with a challenging look.
She stood up and motioned for them to follow her to the left side of the building. They ascended well-maintained marble stairs, and on the upper floor, a long hallway stretched to the right, lined with numerous doors, each leading to an office representing a different nation, as suggested by the various emblems displayed on them. At the end of the corridor was the registration room—this one, however, bore no flag.
They entered one by one, finding themselves in a peculiar room. A magnificent table sat in the center, with two chairs facing each other. There was a plaque made of a material Aaron had only seen in Kurio's bag when they were in the forest—though in smaller quantities. The floor was covered with a carpet woven from a wool softer than anything he had ever felt on Earth.
Ilîa, as she introduced herself, took a seat behind the desk and gestured for Aaron to sit across from her. She explained what needed to be done and handed him a sheet of paper before listening to Kurio's explanation.
As Kurio recounted the recent events to Ilîa, Aaron placed his hand on the strange plaque as instructed by the woman. A number appeared above his hand:
6758
Is that a lot or not? We'll see.
Next, he stood up and, as requested, delivered the strongest punch he could onto the material. It neither hurt him nor damaged the counter.
9241
Even higher. He just hoped these numbers weren't exaggerated—it might put off readers—otherwise, he'd attract more attention than necessary.
On the provided sheet, the questions were basic: Name, First Name, Age, Origin, Control Power, and Strength.
He quickly understood that the first number represented "Control Power" and the second "Strength," so he filled them in accordingly. Without even noticing, he wrote in the required language. He was adapting quickly!
However, he left one box blank—Origin. He didn't know what to put there, so he skipped it.
By the time Aaron had finished filling out the form, Kurio had also finished explaining the situation to the receptionist. Aaron glanced at her to see if she believed the story. Looking into her eyes, he saw suspicion—but also a significant amount of curiosity.
"Alright, you're obviously done," she said. "Since I trust this gentleman, I'll believe what he told me, even though it's quite difficult to accept."
She took a map from under the desk and handed it to him, showing where was the tree Kurio had asked her to display for Aaron. The boy immediately knew where to go and asked if he could leave. She handed him another card with his information, listing "Usay" as his origin, and told him he was free to go.
He took the card she had given him and set off toward the tree. After leaving the city, he walked for a few more hours before arriving at his destination. The tree was there, but… that was it. The portal had disappeared.
He felt stress rising but tried to stay calm. Checking his phone, he saw that while an entire day had passed in this world, only an hour had gone by on Earth. His mother had replied with a simple "OK," which helped him relax. She wouldn't start worrying for another two days.
With that in mind, he decided to return to the great city of Usay and gather as much information as possible. After walking for several more minutes, he spotted a translucent green creature about 300 meters away. It appeared gelatinous and carried a reddish core inside it. It looked like a eukaryotic cell the size of a German Shepherd.
Aaron picked up a stone about the size of a knife, got into position, and hurled it toward the creature's core.
The stone took two seconds to reach its target, piercing through the core and vaporizing it—just as a 120mm shell would. Dark blue liquid splattered from the creature.
For a few seconds, Aaron felt a surge of energy flow through his body before the sensation faded. He took out his newly issued card to check if anything had changed and noticed a new number had appeared:
Lv.: 1
Had he just reached Level 1? That's what it seemed like, at least.
He approached his fallen target and picked up the creature, making sure to preserve as much of the remaining liquid as possible. At that moment, he made his final decision: He would grow stronger until he could find a way home. But before that, he needed to gather information and equip himself properly.
Carrying the roughly ten-kilogram monster with ease, he resumed his journey toward the great capital.
By the time he reached the western gate, where the twilight greeted the entrance, he presented his card himself and was admitted—despite the creature dangling from his wrist. He headed straight to the guild building, and once again, the same thing happened: two seconds of silence, discreet (or not-so-discreet) glances, and then the usual buzz of conversation resumed—though quieter this time, as the number of people had dropped to a third of what it was earlier.
Ilîa noticed Aaron and gestured for him to come over, which he did.
"Good evening. I was wondering what I could do with this," he said, holding up the creature, its light blue liquid still oozing."Well, we can take it and give you money in exchange," she explained. "It's a rather rare and valuable monster because of its liquid, so it should fetch a small fortune, even though it's one of the weaker ones. I'll check right now!""Okay," he simply replied."Just one question—how did you kill it?" she asked."Oh! Well… I threw a stone at it.""What? You just threw a stone and managed to hit its core? That's the first time I've heard of that… But now that I look at it, only half of it remains… Alright, let me check!"
Three minutes passed before the young woman returned with his reward.
"Here is one gold coin, five silver coins, and two bronze ones," she said, handing him a bag that felt surprisingly heavy for such a small amount.
"Thanks," Aaron replied, about to open the bag to see what made it so heavy, but Ilîa stopped him, urging him to check it later when he was alone for safety reasons. That brief touch earned him jealous looks from several of the remaining men in the guild.
Night was beginning to fall, so when Aaron stepped outside, he started looking for an inn. He wandered in circles for about fifteen minutes before finding what looked like a hotel. The place was rather dark, but he needed somewhere to sleep.
Stepping inside, he found himself face-to-face with an old man standing behind the counter, dozing off while standing—without a chair. This surprised the young man, who greeted him with a "Good evening" before asking if he was alright. The old man didn't respond at first, but when Aaron stepped closer—about two meters away—the man finally spoke:
"You're not from here, boy, nor from anywhere nearby. How did you end up here?"
Aaron briefly replied that he didn't really know himself but had arrived by passing through a tree.
"I see," the old man continued. "I've heard a few things about similar stories, and I fear that, since you're here, they might be true. My name is Endras, and I'd be happy to help you."
With those words, Aaron realized that the old man wasn't senile at all—far from it. He could feel Endras's gaze on him despite the man's long eyelashes drooping over his almost-closed eyelids. The innkeeper wore simple brown clothing and visibly very old black pants that blended perfectly into the dim surroundings.
Aaron asked if he could stay the night, and Endras quickly agreed. The price was two bronze coins. In exchange, he explained the value of each type of coin to Aaron and asked him to share all the information he had before his arrival.
Aaron accepted the deal, knowing he could trust the innkeeper. However, he was disappointed by one thing: Endras couldn't teach him magic. But he did give Aaron information about someone who could.
With that, the young man decided to sleep for now and deal with everything else tomorrow.
He went up to the room assigned to him and stepped inside. Expecting a run-down space, he was surprised when he opened the old wooden door. The walls were a stunning shade of blue, the floor was made of marble, and a bed—almost luxurious for one person—stood in the center. A window faced the opposite direction from the view outside, but the room's size still made sense.
Aaron jumped onto the bed and felt it embrace his entire body—soft as a marshmallow. It swallowed him up, and before he knew it, he had fallen asleep.