Stupefied, it took Lark a moment to realize they were back inside his living room and quickly got off of Wangshi. Gushi bounded up to him not long after.

“Scan!”

A new information box loaded:

“Updated! Wangshi (human) (Shi Clan)

*Titles: Caretaker, Returner

Known Affinities: Wind

Age: 55

Lvl 1

Conditions: Head pain. Causes 1) Owner. 2) Recently recovered memories. (Will take five minutes to heal).

STR: 50

DEX: 100

INT: 100

MG: 100

SPT: 100

LUK: 50

Skills (magic proficiency will slowly recover.)

Wind Magic - Wind Walker, Wind Needles, Wind Blade

Cooking

Farming

Alchemy

Tracking

Sword Mastery

Sniping Mastery

Knife Mastery

“Wangshi? Speak.” Lark shook his caretaker’s shoulder.

“What? Am I your mutt?” Wangshi groaned as he slid up the couch, curling his knees up to his chest. “I haven’t felt this terrible since I had drinks with your dad. Were pants always this tight? Was this couch always so hard? And when did the day get so dark…Lark?”

His caretaker peered at him from his half-asleep position. Lark had taken refuge near Wangshi’s feet and had cupped his hands over his face. The tips of his ears to his chin flushed in a dark-pink shade.

“I’m so glad you’re okay.”

Lark’s reply was met with silence and for the first time in his life, Lark couldn’t decide if five minutes felt too long or too short. He smoothed his hands over his eyes and hair which was matted with heavy sweat and got up from the couch. “I’ll go prepare some tea.”

If Wangshi heard him, it didn’t show. Lark stepped out of the room, walking briskly to the kitchen where he could do the same routine. Boil water. Get tray. Seep Black Rose tea leaves. For about ten years, he’s practiced this method to give back some happiness to Wangshi. Admittedly, he started off clumsily since he was only six years old when the custom started, but it felt natural. Routine.

Now, his hands shook over the porcelain cups as if he were six again.

Ten years. That’s all the time he spent watched over by Wangshi, which was even more than the combined company of his birth parents. In Lark’s mind, this was considered normal; and how it would always be. He never gave it a second thought, except for the fact that they weren’t blood-related, but Wangshi was always there for him in his brightest and darkest moments. The reliable, ninja caretaker: Wangshi.

Now, Wangshi was not all just simply that. His caretaker had his own family to take care of. Twelve years on Earth, after separation by both family and homeland; it was unfathomable.

Of course, he needed to reunite them. He had to.

Gushi made an effort to comfort him by patting his hair dry. Lark took Gushi off his shoulder and held him up where he thought the armpits might be. “Has Wangshi seen you yet?”

“Young master Lark!” Wangshi called out. Lark hurried back to the living room, where his caretaker was holding up his sword. “You were there with that slime of yours… during the mission. You were a witness. But how could you be? I’ve watched you grow up since you were six.”

Wangshi suddenly smacked the sword’s handle against his head and scolded himself. “Remember!”

He’s regaining some of that monster strength. Lark squeezed his lips together in a wry frown. Fortunately, the sword was still sheathed and Lark jumped in with Gushi to prevent Wangshi from hurting himself anymore.

“I…was there.”

His caretaker looked up. “You were?”

“Many things happened when you were unconscious,” Lark remarked solemnly, nodding to Wangshi’s shirt, which was still stained with dried blood. “The cultists realized you had transversed worlds before. If they had let you returned to your home, you’d been marked as a Returner and regain your powers, plus more. So they created an elaborate mind trap to kill you.”

Wangshi’s eyes glazed over for a second as if remembering the events of this morning.

Lark raised the Trinity Watch to Wangshi’s eye-level. “This, and the pyramid from grandfather’s lab, helped me save you. But everything came at a cost.”

He pulled his shirt down to show the pattern carved over his heart and heard a strangled cough from Wangshi’s throat. If he was concerned about the tattoo, or if he recognized the symbol, Lark wouldn’t know until later. “Sphinx, the sentient being inside the pyramid, hasn’t explained what it all means, but if I learned anything from today, it’s that magic is dangerous.”

He knew alien-technology brought about convenience. It made everyday tasks easier, faster, and safer. The truth of the matter though was that alien-technology was not from Earth. It was brought in under the guise of super-advanced design. Moreover, no one was upfront with this truth.

Misinformation caused suffering; but at its core, magic did this horrid transformation. In spite of the potential danger, Lark needed its illogical powers to save everyone because after he discovered the World Gate through Wangshi’s memories, it became painfully clear, there was more to this diabolical scheme, which involved Earth’s exposure to magic and shifting people across worlds.

Wangshi sat back on the couch in deep thought. “Young master…Lark. I had a daughter your age, no, that’s not right, she would be about your age now. Twelve plus four… ” he began counting his fingers and then scratched his head. “Never mind that. The point is, I remember.”

Lark stared at Wangshi’s bloodstained collar, anywhere but his caretaker’s eyes. He sensed the frustration behind the words. Remembering, or not remembering didn’t erase the fact he’s been away from his real family for far too long.

“And then I think about what if your father wasn’t there when I arrived on Earth? If someone else had found me and taken advantage of me, or if I became lost to exposure.” Wangshi’s voice trembled.

“But if you hadn’t saved me today, I wouldn’t have been able to remember them, nevertheless know I had a chance to go back to them.”

Bitterness entangled with sorrow and joy fought in Lark’s heart and like how he usually dealt with complicated feelings, he wanted to mask them with pain. As he was about to wring out his tense shoulders, Wangshi wrapped an arm around his head and pressed it against his chest.

“You give me the highest honor of knowing you, Lark Rune. Your father would be very proud of how far you’ve come.”

Then Lark entered one of the strongest bear-hugs he’s received since he was a kid. It felt a bit awkward now that he was older and taller, but he didn’t refuse it, knowing tears were about to stream down his face.

“Hell, I think my father would be proud. Did you see that sandworm up close? I’d rather take on fifty Redcaps than deal with that creature again.”

Lark muffled a laugh as Gushi bounded up to him and wiped his face dry again.

“You also owe Gushi some of your thanks. I couldn’t have done a lot without him.”

Wangshi rubbed his goatee while examining the slime. “Intriguing, he doesn’t have the same stench as the other ones. Even Celestia had some colored-slimes, but it’s my first seeing a silver one. He’s almost transparent.”

Then the caretaker poked the sides of Gushi’s smooth, silvery coat. “This sensation…is oddly familiar.”

Lark coughed into his fist. “Anyways, let’s recap.”

His eyes pointed down to his wrist. The Trinity Watch maintained its sundial appearance along with the pyramid as its centerpiece. “Sphinx, show yourself.”

Responding to his request, the pyramid glowed in neutral silver light, and inside his head, Sphinx instructed him with more cues. Stifling a groan, Lark grumbled in front of a confused Wangshi, “Summon, Master Sphinx.”

In the same manner as his holographic applications, his look-alike appeared, floating above the sundial watch in all his mysterious glory. Though the three-dimensional graphics couldn’t quite capture Sphinx’s complete quintessence.

“Why didn’t you tell me about this function earlier? It would’ve been a lot easier to communicate with you like this.” Lark frowned and yet his mysterious guide only replied with a lazy eye roll.

“Because, you’ve only recently unlocked this function through soul growth, haven’t you learned anything?”

Lark paused at Sphinx’s words. Soul growth? The game-like requirement he needed to access advanced functions hidden in the Trinity Watch—that soul growth?! Wait, what about his agreement with Nympha? He wished to ask but Sphinx zipped a finger across his mouth.

Wangshi squinted, pulling his lips back into a thin, flat line as he leaned in to meet the sentient creature living in Lark’s watch. “When did your watch produce an A.I. hologram? And why does he look so much like you?”

“Sphinx isn’t an A.I. like COSMO, he’s real. Like you and me. After you fell unconscious, I was desperate and used Blood Rite on grandfather’s pyramid. And after, he took on my appearance and has been…helping me since through these game-like interfaces.”

Lark raised his hand above Gushi and said, “Scan.”

As expected another black box appeared with all of Gushi’s updated stats and Lark prodded the screen quickly absorbing its information. Cupping the black cube above his hand, he showed it to Wangshi, who only looked back him with a blank face.

“You don’t see it—do you?” Lark sighed. “It’s like an information box that tells me a person’s skills, base power stats, and in Gushi’s case, an event log.”

“Really?” Wangshi rubbed his chin and curled his thumb over his sword’s handle. “What do you see in my box?”

Lark lightly scratched his ear. “Your stats are average, and your known affinity is wind so your skills branch from that. There’s some other stuff about cooking, farming, masteries, and clans, but this box also lets me see a person’s conditions—”

“That’s right, the clan must’ve acted upon my disappearance. I wonder if Yaling and Yuuna are okay.” Wangshi sat back down on the couch, looking deeply unsettled with the information relayed. “Young master Huan Shi was alive last I saw. But if he succumbed to the battle, my family might be in trouble.”

“Nympha told me only one other person died, the really big dude with tattoos.”

“…Aulo? But how? He was supposed to be at the base when the dark enchanter ambushed us with his army in the forest.” The old caretaker squeezed his eyes as if searching for answers inside his mind. “Something must’ve happened between the time I was knocked unconscious and when we resurfaced. Dula forced me awake with an innocuous potion and Arelli was already fighting waves of Vodanoi and orcs. But before that, I remember Jaime said ‘Grab them.’ Does that mean he saw you, too?”

Sphinx was the one who replied. “I’m the one who channeled Lark and Gushi into your Mind Space. The matter is actually more complicated than the first layer of Mind Space, where one just interacts with their own imagination and memories. But because you were poisoned with a rank D mind curse, in order to undo the seal, I used spirit channeling which delves deeper into the Mind Space and touches upon the Spirit World and into a space known as the Palace—”

“The Palace of Memories!” Wangshi’s eyes widened from shock. “That… even it was to save me...is incredibly dangerous. My ancestors warned of the Spirit and Mind Eaters which roam there, but it isn’t just that, our memories can alter if things that were seen weren’t supposed to be there.”

“Lark was more than ready to accept the consequences if that meant waking you up faster. ”

“I can’t trust if my memories are true or not anymore. And anyone else that saw you will have their memories altered as well because the palace touches upon everyone’s memories in a given time and area to create consistency.” He looked sharply up at Lark and then at Sphinx. “If we were in Celestia, there would be huge consequences for this. Not many people can channel into the Spirit World and those that can usually reside within the Sanctuary.”

“What in heavens are you?”

Without missing a beat Sphinx answered, “A lonely god’s creation.”

Sphinx wouldn’t budge more on the topic of his origin or relay any more information than what he had already given Lark. Instead, he returned his form inside of the watch after saying, “Personally, I think we’ve gained a lot of out this trip, and I’ll be analyzing this information until further notice.” A bzzt later and his hologram disappeared.

Lark frowned and reverted the sundial watch back into digital-mode, where the pyramid reappeared inside a circular icon next to SIM. The calendar said it was still Saturday and the time read: 8:45 PM. Only about five hours had passed real time even though it felt like ten.

These spirit and mind ventures were moving at one to two ratios with the real world. Lark noted while relaxing his arm. On the other hand, Wangshi wore a heavy expression, not at all put at ease by Sphinx’s input. Lark thought he would’ve felt the same had he been in Wangshi’s shoes though.

He’s trembling. Lark noticed Wangshi’s hands gripping the sword again.

Oh shit, the tea! “I’ll be right back.” Lark moved off the couch, but Wangshi held his arm back in a vice grip and flipped Lark’s palm faced up.

“Your body is unique. I should have realized that sooner. If I had paid more attention to your fate lines, then maybe you would’ve awakened your latent talents and adapted better,” he said and traced the diagonal palm lines. Wangshi smoothed over the lines with his thumb and pressed into the meat and bone whenever a new line crossed over. It was a crude method of palm reading, he learned from his wife, a talented follower of the Oracle studies. Now he would pass on all his knowledge to someone he considered to be like a son.

“Talented. Creative. Brave. You’re lacking in strength, but you will make up for it in abilities.” Not once did Wangshi frown as he assessed Lark’s palms, but his caretaker looked him in the eye tentatively, which frightened him.

“I wasn’t able to protect you or your friends. But I hope, you’ll still consider me as your protector and now, teacher.”

“You’re going to teach me magic?” Lark’s heartbeat quickened, mixing the news with both fear and joy to his head.

“Basics,” Wangshi said. Lark caught a wisp of a smirk before Wangshi let him go to retrieve the cooled tea.

9:15 PM — Lark didn’t feel tired at all. Excitement rose in his chest as Wangshi cleared out the garage for them to practice. He had changed into his exercise clothes when Gushi leaped onto his head. The springy slime decided to style his hair in the same manner as Wangshi, but his bunched up hair barely produced a one-inch tail.

“Although I said I would teach you, magic isn’t prevalent on Earth, do you know why?”

Lark shook his head slowly. “Sphinx mentioned something about it, but I didn’t really get it.”

“In Celestia, magic comes from external and internal mana. Internal mana comes from our bodies, and external energy we take from outside or refine our internal mana. Take electricity, it can be stored in wires and batteries, but lightning is its unrefined form.”

Wangshi swung his sword. A light-green sheen enveloped the outer layer. “This is an example of internal mana becoming external mana. I’m constantly releasing energy to produce a coat of protection around my weapon. The color is green because that’s my inherited qi essence of wind. Others may call it different names though, like elemental affinities or attributes, my clan calls it qi, for our inner life force. If you recall, others can produce a host of other colors, each embodying a different nature like ice or fire.”

Lark nodded recalling various instances of the water dancer’s swords coated with blue mana, the light enchanter’s golden sword, and Aulo’s shiny, metallic spears.

“But packaged mana is also known as external mana.” Wangshi waved a hand over the inlaid stones. “These are cloud stones with imbued magical essence. They lighten the overall weight of the sword and aid in wind damage. They also, allow me to fly with certain limitations.”

A cool air whipped under Wangshi’s feet as he spoke and Lark could see him hover an inch above the ground.

“Earth doesn’t have the correct environment to allow people to manifest internal qi to its greatest potential as I’m showing you. However, as you might’ve noticed. Earth has external energies such as ley lines which power magical tools. Now that I’ve regained my memories, it’s clear to me that alien-technology like your air traveling car or airboots collect power from ley lines.”

“The potion I made, also used the ley lines' energy,” Lark added, raising his hand.

“Ehmn, yes. Thank you for that.” Wangshi scratched his cheek. At the same time, the green mana dissipated and he landed on the balls of his feet. “As you see, one needs complete concentration to maintain mana-coating or anything which requires internal mana like charms and enchants.”

“So Wangshi, does this mean I can’t use magic like you?”

“Right, because you haven’t produced enough qi essence.” As disappointment was about to de-motivate Lark, Wangshi followed with, “However, your spirit qi is stronger than average.”

“Is that so?” Lark asked in disbelief. When he checked his stats after forming a contract with Master Nympha, his magic was about 25 points, while his spirit power dropped into the negatives by a hundred points. Sphinx had mentioned something about soul growth earlier though. Did something happen between accepting the Familiar status and coming back to the real world? Lark inhaled a shallow breath and then lifted his watch again. Scan.

With a simple thought, several information boxes loaded and he gasped.

“Trinity Watch level up!”

“Item: [Trinity Watch] (accessory) (living)

Lvl 2

Bought from the mysterious inventor at Soko’s Auction House. Imbued with soul and magic properties. Functions remain hidden until the user has experienced the required soul growth amount.

Holding 2 of 4 artifacts

Craft material: ???, soulsteel, ???, ???, ???

0.4 lb.

Created by ???

Paid by Lark Rune with 558,000 U.S. dollars.”

“Unlocked functions:

Upgraded navigation system: Combined with SIM’s map-making abilities. The navigation system will allow the user to store digital maps of places already visited.

Manifestation of Captured Spirits: Trinity Watch can now manifest holograms of captured spirits, pets, and familiars through soul link.

Soul power gift: As a reward for entering your first familiar contract without dying, the Trinity Watch has rewarded you with increased soul power! Please, don’t die so soon.”

His stats menu changed once again with only modification to his SPT points. They were now permanently changed to 200 points, which meant the soul power gift had rewarded him with initially 300 points.

Does that mean he narrowly avoided SIM’s harsh spiritual training? A shiver tingled over his ears as he imagined a whisper from Sphinx, you wish.

“Naturally, many would be jealous of your spiritual base,” continued Wangshi. “In the clan, increasing spiritual power was harsher than increasing one’s mana pool. Unlike inner mana pools, which can increase with diligent use, spirit power won’t rise if one simply practices with it.”

With a pause in his speech, Wangshi retrieved a gun from inside his inner pocket.

Lark couldn’t breathe. It was the cultists’ gun. The same cold, red surface glistened under the garage’s fluorescent lights. Locking his eyes on it, he saw Wangshi open up the cylinder. Zero bullets. Then snapped it back in.

“Sharpshooters aren’t that common in Celestia. Bullets were considered a waste of materials. And if you missed your targets…” Wangshi looked down the barrel. “That’d be like watching money drain out of your pockets.”

“Keep it. Impressively, you managed to shoot out psionic bullets without anyone teaching you.” He tossed the revolver to Lark who caught it like a hot potato.

For a moment, it felt right in his left hand like how he would feel about a pair of well-fitted shoes or jeans. When he steadied the handle with his right hand, it burned. The flaps of skin between his fingers stung and his throat suddenly felt dry. How many times did he shoot with this thing? Maybe eight rounds?

The first time he held the revolver, absolute fury empowered him to lock onto his goals. All he wanted to see was the bodies of his enemies drop dead. Now, that he was calmer, it gave off a completely different impression like his fear was fueling it to burn him. Was it all just in his head?

“Scan.”

“Item: [Revolver](spirit weapon)(uncommon)

+ 25% Burn effect, +2%Critical damage, +15 MG(if user has Fire affinity)

Durability: 40/40

Graded as a rank E spirit weapon. Simple to use and versatile weapon to use for beginners. Fire runes are inscribed within the chamber to add fire damage upon the target.

Craft material: lava stone, soulstoul, silver ore

Created by the Wishes of the People

Given to Joffrey Gullivan

Stolen by Cornelius Goodwing

Given to Wang Shi”

“Cornelius Goodwing?” Lark spoke aloud. Unwilling to hold it any longer, he placed the revolver back inside his storage ring and directed his questioning to Wangshi. “Where’d you get this gun?”

“As you recall, I collected two guns. One from the assassin at the funeral, and the other from the air traffic incident. The cultists took the one I had brought to the school, which was the one from the funeral assassin. This one is from the more recent one.”

“You mean the one you kidnapped here?” Lark’s eyes grew big and he hurriedly looked down at the Trinity Watch. “Summon Sphinx.”