Lukas awoke in a quiet room. Bright red morning sunlight peeked through the thin slits of the shutters as he laid in bed, unsettled. Back when he was trudging through the anomaly, he’d often wished for a proper shower, food, clothes, and a soft bed to lay on. All parts of a normal, humane life.

But now that he had it all, and more, it seemed like he was incomplete.

Like he had left a part of himself back in the anomaly.

The bed was comfortable, but sleeping on hard stone had blunted his appreciation for softness. Tanya often barged into the room, only to see him spread across the floor, dozing away. The food was different, with all sorts of exotic tastes, but he had a strange urge to heat it over a fire first to avoid infection. The room was comforting, but the slightest shift would wake him up, his alert eyes instantly scanning for enemies.

My name is Lukas Aguilar, he mentally repeated. His ability to stay focused drastically increased over the past week, but he still religiously maintained the regular chanting of his mantra.

I’m from Earth. My home planet was destroyed. I became an anomaly. I am trying to find a way to get Inanna back.

After a few more repetitions, he finally stopped and pushed his legs off the bed. His lower extremities were still weak, barely allowing him any movement. Just walking from the bed to the bathroom by himself had nearly rendered him catatonic with pain the other day. Tanya brought him meals four times a day, but she always maintained a professional distance. She gave him a shoulder when he needed to use the head, and then a shoulder for the way back.

It made him wonder whether she had to take care of his bowel issues when he’d been less… conscious. He’d never worked up the nerve to ask her about it.

Some things were better left unsaid.

Between Tanya’s visits, his debilitating headaches, and his own lack of physical strength, Lukas had been largely limited to the life of a handicapped patient. But the worst part of it all was—

“Burst.”

Skill Inactive.

Omphalos Energy Level — Suboptimal.

He clenched his fists. “Shatterfist.”

Skill Inactive.

Omphalos Energy Level — Suboptimal.

“Burst! Burst!”

His arm was stretched to its limits, his hand as far away from his body as possible, but not a wisp of lifeforce escaped the skin of his palm.

Recommended De-activation of Warmonger Protocol

Anomaly-Host-Mind State — Deranged.

Even now, the Screen managed to have the last word.

“Give me everything on Omphalos Energy levels.”

Omphalos Energy Levels.

Optimal Energy Level

130 Grand Units (100%)

Current Energy Level

22 Grand Units (17%)

Recommended Minimum Energy Level

26 Grand Units (20%)

RECOMMENDATION

ACTIVATION OF LEGACY PROTOCOL

And that was the cusp of the matter.

Whatever happened during Inanna’s spell had incapacitated the Omphalos for good. For its own survival, it had cut off Lukas’s consciousness and taken over his body. From what Tanya had described, he’d been constantly drawing power from his surroundings, not unlike the genius loci back in the anomaly.

And if he wanted things to go back to the way they were, all he needed to do was to give in.

If he were to activate Legacy Protocol, he’d get back a lot of his functionalities. But it also meant he’d lose the skills he gained in the process. His progress would be eroded— a result he wasn’t willing to accept, especially with Inanna no longer there. No, he’d have to find another way to gain energy and push its levels past 20%.

Lukas sighed. As much as he disliked it, the truth was that his days of throwing out power like it was going out of fashion were over.

But so what?

He wasn’t always powerful. He had gained skills. He had leveled up. And with said skills came power.

Power to get what he wanted.

Power enough to make him become the apex predator in the Crypt of Fiendish Worms.

Power allowing Inanna to perform a spell that could—

He frowned. That could—

Lukas gritted his teeth in silent fury as he slammed his fists into the wall—

“DAMN IT! DAMN IT! DAMN IT!”

“What the hell are you doing?” Tanya bellowed as she ran into the room. She strode right up to him, uncaring of the furious expression on his face as she thrust a single finger into his chest.

“Listen, Lukas Aguilar, my house may not be up to par with whatever comforts you were used to, but you will behave while you stay under my roof. Lash out like that again, and I will throw you out myself! Do you understand me?!”

Lukas glared at her.

Tanya returned it. Tenfold.

After several angry seconds, he looked away.

Tanya’s gaze softened. “Look, whatever it is you’re suffering from, you’ll get through it. Everyone does. Smashing the walls of my only home isn’t going to help either of us.”

“I— I’m sorry,” he mumbled. “It’s just that, I feel so fucking helpless.”

“That’s because you are.” Her hands went to her waist as she looked down at him. “You’re healing. You’re supposed to feel like that. But you’re getting better with every passing day, and soon you’ll be able to remember everything. The way I see it—”

“It’s not gonna help.”

Tanya arched an eyebrow.

Lukas bit his lip. “I’m not gaining any power back. This place is made out of stone. It’s cold and inert. There’s nothing here that I— that my body can absorb power from.”

“Well excuse me for not owning an enchanted mansion that you can suck dry,” Tanya scoffed.

Lukas raised his arms in surrender. “That’s not what I meant. Listen, I lost a lot of power back in the anomaly. Whatever my spell did, it fucked me over. I need to be in the open, to feel the sun on my face and the soil beneath my feet. Maybe that’ll get the energy flowing again enough for me to use my skills.”

Tanya tilted her head. “You’re saying you can absorb energy from nature to fuel your attacks?”

Lukas opened his mouth to deny it, but then decided against it. There was a time for nitpicking, and this was not it. “Yeah. That’s exactly what I am saying.”

Tanya sharply exhaled, and dropped her shoulders. “Fine. Then let’s get you out of bed!”

The residence was more like an inn than a shop. There was a decent-sized communal dining room in the front, which Lukas learned was actually a luncheon. There was a small workshop section on the left, with most of the lower and higher stories dominated by long hallways with guest rooms. Several large hallrooms remained closed, and many others had enchanted false-doors to keep nosy people away.

The Meewich Gate, Lukas learned it was called. An inn frequented by adventurers, craftsmen, and traders of a more seedy variety.

That Tanya was one of the inn’s longest-staying guests spoke volumes of her.

“It’s cheap, it’s an easy place to get in and out of, and I don’t have to deal with incompetent nutters who have nothing better to do with their meaningless lives than stare at my ass,” she had said.

Lukas didn’t offer a comment, but in defense of said ‘nutters’, she really did have a great ass.

Still, by far, the greatest surprise had been—

“What do you mean there’s no moon?”

When he had incredulously asked that, Tanya just owlishly blinked.

He was in a different world alright, Haviskali, of the Llaisy Kingdom. Whatever this world was called, it didn’t have a moon. But on the other hand, it had two suns. And if his limited knowledge of astronomy was correct, they were two red dwarfs. Both were on opposing sides of the realm, yet the world had an equal day and night span. Lukas tried to wrap his head around that, but it only worsened his pounding headache.

In any case, his experiment had been a phenomenal success.

Current Energy Level — 18%

A whole percent.

Just you wait, Lukas mused to himself, caressing the pendant with his fingers. I’ll get you back in no time.

The increment was from merely basking in the sun and feeling soft green grass beneath his feet for five hours. The passerby populace had given him odd looks, probably wondering why he was sitting in the sun despite sweating rivers. Tanya, of course, sat nearby, pretending all the while to not know who he was.

He shook his head.

Some people.

Still, at this rate, it wouldn’t take too long. As soon as his energy levels reached twenty percent, he could use lifeforce again like before to heal his body at a faster rate. Of course, it’d be best if he maintained at least double that to avoid falling back into a coma all over again.

If only there was a way of doing that without being the odd one out. One could only sit in the sun doing nothing for so long. Using ‘getting a tan’ as an excuse wouldn’t make it past the week.

“So how exactly do your powers work?” Tanya asked, casually resting her shoulder against a wall as she watched him. “Somehow I doubt it’s by sitting in the sun and absorbing light like a plant.”

Lukas hesitated. “It’s a bit… complicated, and I don’t fully understand it. But should we really be talking about it out in the open?”

The blonde’s lips twitched.

He frowned. “What?”

“You really didn’t notice it, did you? We’ve been speaking in Aatlesh, a local dialect from Baramunz. Speakers of the tongue are quite rare, even in the Baramunz Kingdom, let alone Llaisy.”

Lukas shrugged. “Sounds all the same to me.”

“This language spell of yours is rather impressive,” Tanya replied wistfully. “That’s probably one of the reasons why Zuken is being so helpful in getting you back on your feet.”

“What do you—”

“You think I could have just brought you into the kingdom without his help?” Tanya snorted. “I don’t know how it is in your homeland, but the security here is good at their job. Zuken forged documentation for you as a freelancer from Baramunz, complete with paperwork and a false history to go with it.”

Lukas whistled, thoroughly impressed. Considering how young he seemed, Zuken Banksi certainly sounded like someone who’d be on one of the Forbes lists back on Earth. It made him wonder whether this world even had lawyers. And if not, what would he do for a living? Adventure into other anomalies like this one? Unless he managed to kill everything in sight and absorb another powerful Omphalos, being an adventurer would be a complete waste of time.

Still, it’s best to keep your options open.

“I sent him a letter about your ability to heal in nature,” Tanya continued. “If what you say is true, we might get you sorted faster than we expected.”

“Sorted?”

“You still want to be an adventurer, don’t you? Banksi owns a private guild now.”

“You work for him then,” Lukas concluded.

“I always did. Zuken hired me for the anomaly mission. I found his conditions acceptable and decided to work for him long-term.”

“And Elena?”

“What about her?”

“She… doesn’t exactly seem like a spiritist.”

That got a laugh out of her. “She isn’t, not really. And she bears a healthy, but somewhat irrational, fear of you. Keep that in mind when you talk to her.”

“Oh, is she visiting soon?”

Tanya nodded. “Next week, along with Zuken. I expect some others will too, if only to test your strength.”

Shit.

“My… strength?”

“What you’re capable of. Where you stand. How much use you will be to Banksi and Haviskali as a whole. Throw in my own involvement and your fabricated backstory, and I imagine people will have a lot to discuss with you.” She paused. “There might also be people like Bergott, who will look down on you.”

“I see.” He should’ve expected it, really, but hearing it first hand didn't do much to calm his nerves. He could only hope he healed up enough by then. The last thing he wanted to be seen as was weak.

“Is there anyone in particular I should be careful not to turn my back to?”

Tanya’s teeth gleamed as her lips twisted into a Chesire grin. “You are an Outsider residing in the Asukan Empire, Lukas. Do not turn your back to anyone.”