Benny stared by the window of their room at the Sun Dragon while leaning on the staff (in its cane form) and taking in a breath of fresh air. After spending so much time in bed, Benny found it a bit difficult to walk. So he was using his staff in its cane form as means of support. He felt stupidly like an old man but nonetheless he did admire the practical uses of it.

It took three whole days before Benny was allowed to discharge. Thanks to Nia being his primary care Remedician, Benny did not worry about the hospital bills.

Although during his stay he had a couple of visitors.

First, of course, were the local Royal Knights.

They questioned him for hours about the exact details of what happened. Even though he made sure to specify every single detail, they were quite persistent to get more information and lasted at most three hours. It took a very stern Nia, demanding that her patient needs rest and that as she was there she vouched that he already told them all there is, to get them to leave.

Then there was Sylvia, who was there to convey Mr. Venditore’s thanks in to capturing the Grave Brothers and getting rid of that demon that had been kept sealed in his office. He couldn’t be there in person due to some inquiries and relocating a temporary area for the shop. They were temporarily transferred to an auxiliary shop across town until they managed to repair all the damages in the main shop. Benny had to admit that he was impressed by Mr. Venditore’s ability to bounce back up. Sylvia quietly whispered that as a reward he was free to have anything in his shop for free. Benny said he’ll check around when things settled down for both of them.

Grateful as he was, Benny had his own series of questions. The most important was why he had that thing in the first place. He thought it would be best to ask in person the next time he sees Mr. Venditore.

Benny sighed feeling a little aged from all this. And his leaning on a cane was not improving that image.

“Hey Benny, you should be taking it easy!”

Tenryu’s voice called out to him that snapped him back to the present. He turned and saw Tenryu wearing his training gi with his sword slung over his back.

“I’m fine, Tenryu! Geez…”

Tenryu flinched upon looking at him. Benny scratched his face while sighing exasperatedly.

“You know, Tenryu… that’s starting to become really offensive.”

“I can’t help it. That “eye” of yours is strange. Well, anyway I’m off to train. See you later!”

And with that Tenryu left the room.

Benny raised a hand towards the area over his “left eye”. He couldn’t exactly refute it.

***

An explanation about this…

The day after Benny woke up from his coma.

Nia had determined that it was time to change the bandages. Benny remembered how he felt apprehensive at that time. He somewhat remembered that Emrys had supposedly healed his eye in his dream but he wasn’t sure if it was truly the case in real life

She finally removed the remaining wraps, his head felt strangely lighter after all those bandages removed. His left eye was closed and his eyelids felt misshapen and numb. It was slightly sensitive to the light. But the fact that Benny could notice some light from behind his closed eyelid could only point that his eye may have been healed.

Nia bent down to pick up some wash cloth from the basin and prepare a disinfectant to clean the wound. While she did that, Benny struggled to open his left eye. It was tough at first because he felt his eye had almost glued shut. Gingerly, he raised a hand to help open it. Even though he could almost hear his older brother telling him to keep his hands away from such a wound as it might lead to further infection.

But as he thought that, sure enough…his eye popped open.

And like a newborn opening their eyes to their world for the first time there was a strain with the sudden brightness. But when it all became clear he saw he could see out of it perfectly!

He was about to say that to Nia as she looked up.

“Alright Benjamin, I’m just going to clean the wound and…gasp*”

That reaction was albeit unexpected at the same time something to expect. After all, he just had his eye slashed by demon and was expecting it to be lost.

“B-B-Benjamin! Y-your eye!” stammered Nia in disbelief as she drops the cloth.

“I-I know…I think my eye’s been healed-”

But all of a sudden, she grabbed his face and looked at his left eye carefully. This caused him to blush profusely.

“W-What is it?”

She let’s go and stands up. “Benjamin, wait right here. I need to call my colleagues.”

“Eh? What’s going on? H-Hey Nia!” He tried to call out to her but she ran out already.

A few minutes later, she along with few Remedicians wearing long white lab coats came in and observed his eye. All of them had expressions of being dumbfounded and disbelief as they muttered to themselves.

“How can this be?”

“His eye was definitely lost! This is unbelievable!”

“Are you sure you didn’t make a mistake while treating him?!”

“Are you insulting me? I never overlook things such as this!”

“It’s completely healed…No, from the look of that eye…”

This was getting out of hand.

“C-Can somebody explain to me what’s going on?” Benny raised his voice.

It was Nia who approached him, holding a small mirror in her hands.

“Benjamin, I think it will be easier if you look at it yourself.”

At first, Benny didn’t understand her words. But the moment he glanced at the mirror…

His right eye was normal. It was the shade of deep blue that he always had.

But as for his left eye, there was a thick scar that ran from his eyebrow down to just below his eye. But it was his eye itself that shocked him.

Instead of blue, his iris…was silver!

He had heard his brother once explained it. Benny had what was definitely called heterochromia: two different colored eyes. Even though it’s genetic, one can get the condition if they suffered an injury on the eye.

Even though he knew this…the first thing that came to mind was that he looked like some chuunibyou weirdo.

The next thing that came to mind was him mentally screaming,

EMRYSSSSSSSSS!!! WHAT THE BLITZ DID YOU DO TO MY EYEEEEEEE?!!!

“B-Benjamin? You’re shaking! Are you okay?”

Nia’s voice snapped him out.

“Oh! I’m okay…just a little shocked that is.”

Nia looked at him doubtfully, “Well, to be honest with you Benjamin. Your eye being like this is not uncommon for people who suffered injuries to their eyes. This is especially true to a number of Adventurers. I guess you can take this as a memento of that occasion.”

“I don’t really want a memento like a mismatched eye.”

“Actually, Mr. Estrella…what concerned us is that you definitely had lost your eye. So seeing it healed like that is quite a shock.” says a tall Healer with a well trimmed beard.

“Are you sure none of you did this?” Benny asked innocently.

It was a lie of course. He knew who is responsible for this. But he can’t exactly say that a ghost in his dream did it. .

“Only a very powerful Druid-class could’ve done something like this. And even then, this is a very high-tiered Healing Magic. Did someone visit you and healed that eye of yours?”

“Apart from the local Authorities and Sylvia from the Venditore Armory, no one else.” answered Benny.

“Are you sure? If there is someone else who visited you, we must know who they are. This is something we can’t overlook. We must know who healed you!” demanded a plump Healer.

The other Healers began to look at him with preying eyes apart from an elderly Healer with a trimmed beard. Nia, on the other hand, was troubled between wanting to know as well and getting them to back off.

Benny glances at them, silently activating the Aura Sight as he did so. From the looks of their Aura… generally they weren’t ill-natured but it would seem that they are fueled with extremely inquisitive and fiery passion.

It would seem that they would’ve gotten well with Emmett.

“I was out for a week and I only woke up yesterday. Nia and the Fyreroars were with me the whole time so they know who has been visiting me. I should be the one asking you guys if there was someone else who came here since the time I was unconscious. I’d be worried about the security measures of this facility if that were the case.”

Benny’s cold water…or rather gasoline words set ablaze things in a different way.

“How dare you?!” the plump healer retorted in outrage. “We conform to the Zentorah Standards for Healers to ensure our patients’ safety and well being is being-”

“Healer Nicholson, that’s enough! You are stressing the patient unnecessarily.” says the elderly Healer with a trimmed beard.

“But Chief Healer Artho!”

Chief Healer Artho stroke his beard, “If you think about it, it’s only natural Mr. Estrella wouldn’t know or be fully aware. The fact that he had been healed in such an extraordinary way without anyone knowing how or who did it would obviously be his immediate concern.”

“But this is just it, Chief! This is no doubt a Grand Tier Magic for Healing! We must know who did this and how!”

The other Healers agreed but Chief Healer Artho shook his head.

“I know you are all excited. Frankly, I too… But it would seem our little patient here knows nothing. Do you Mr. Estrella?”

“No. I don’t.”

Benny lied with a straight face.

“And there you have it.”

Nicholson and all the other Healers looked a little dejected that their trail of knowing someone who has the ability to cast a powerful Healing Magic had vanished before they even began to search.

Benny pitied them a bit so he decided to give them a small trail, “Don’t you guys have a visitor’s record or something?”

“Indeed we do.” nods Chief Healer Artho, “So Healer Nicholson…rather than ask a patient who was unaware the whole time, perhaps you should check the logbook?”

“Y-Yes…”

.The Healer Nicholson immediately rushed out to check the log book.

“Mr. Estrella, I’m sorry for our behavior. To encounter such an amazing occurrence related to healing, we Healers who have passion for the field can get a little over excited.” Director Artho apologized to him.

“No harm done. Or rather I’m sorry for my sharp tongue just now.”

“Ha! Ha! Pay no mind. In fact, what you said is actually true. But for now, I’d like to check the condition of your eye right now, if you don’t mind?

Benny agreed to allow the other Healers to check his eye. All the while he saw Nia giving him a suspicious gaze.

She later questioned him if there really was something to it. She actually suspected him of healing himself using what may be contained in the Spellbook. But Benny admitted that he didn’t heal himself and though he felt someone visited him while he was half-asleep (almost a lie.) Nia looked even more suspicious but decided that as long as he was okay then it was fine with her.

Although it was clear she still believed that Benny may have done that by himself and emphasized not to meddle around with Healing Magic. Misuse of such can lead to worse damages than to what you were trying to heal.

Of course the biggest reaction to this eye thing came from Tenryu who came later at noon to bring him some lunch.

“BENNY!!! WHAT THE BLITZ HAPPENED TO YOU EYE?!!!”

“Keep that volume down! You are bothering the other patients!” Nia swatted him in the head with her purse.

Benny thought this was way too lively after just waking up from a coma.

***

Back to the present, Benny decided to heed Tenryu’s words and sat beside the low table in their shared room. Tenryu had gone out earlier for his usual training while Ate Flare went to do some groceries for tonight’s special dinner.

Apparently, there was supposed to be a little celebration for Benny’s complete recovery.

He was supposed to be resting after having he just recovered but he felt a little restless. Benny pulled out the pocket watch from underneath his shirt and flipped it open. He clicked the small windows containing his photos of Abuela and his mysterious Abuelo. He brushed a wistful finger across the photo of his younger self and his great-grandmother.

In these past few weeks, too many things had happened for him to entirely make sense of. He had been transported into another world, using Magic and discovering he had some amazing abilities, having to face an otherworld creature that left its permanent mark on his face. Not mention having found out that his family had a mysterious history with this world.

Abuela…why didn’t you tell anyone about this? Benny sighed as he fell prostrate on the table.

He wondered how everyone he knew was doing right now.

Was his family worried about him? Did they realize that he disappeared? If they knew he had been lost at sea and his body hadn’t been found, were they holding a vigil or maybe a funeral for him?

Benny did not like that idea.

Then his thoughts shifted towards his concern for his friends Ace, Anna and Terri, and even Anna’s driver Manong Dario, they were with him at that time he traveled into this world. In that dream, Emrys told him that they survived that storm and were alive but their locations were unknown. This whole time he had put it on the back of his mind but now that things settled down he couldn’t help but worry.

How were they in his old world? Were they rescued by the coast guard and reunited with their families?

Or maybe…

If things were just like the light novels and fantasy stories…there is a huge chance that they might’ve been brought here as well.

Were they caught up by his Spell when he casted that Magic? Were they somewhere in this world with him? Where they alright?

He sincerely hoped it was the former. He couldn’t forgive himself if they were brought into this world and made to go through the things he had experienced or worse.

Benny felt the overwhelming guilt and stress rush at him again.

He knew deep down that he couldn’t do anything and that there were things beyond his control. It was unnecessary stress for the moment.

But still he felt those negative emotions come at him.

Shaking his head, Benny tries to reaffirm his goals. He had made a goal to find a method to find cross between the two worlds. While at the same time resolved to live his life here at the fullest. Benny has decided to add another goal: to keep an eye out if his friends are truly in this world and to be ready to help them.

That’s the very least he could do right now.

He glanced at the pocket watch again and saw it was just past 2 o’clock in the afternoon. With a sigh he closed it shut with a click.

He turned it around his hands while glancing at the gem affixed on the pocket watch.

Know that I think about it…there was something about this gem. It glowed when I was in that void.

It just dawned on him. Like the Spellbook the pocket watch had been given to him by Abuela.

Could this thing be…a Magic Tool too?

For a moment, Benny stared at it hard and then…

“Ow!”

Benny’s left eye started to throb painfully like he had been poked there.

Instinctively, he tried to lift his hand towards it, thinking he might’ve gotten dust or maybe there was something like a complication. But when he blinked his eye again something else caught his attention.

A holographic screen appeared over the pocket watch like a UI in an RPG game.

“W-What the blitz is this?!”

But as he gazed at it he noticed there were some words written there. It was written in the English language which strangely felt nostalgic after a long time. A single line was on top.

Abraham’s Treasured Memento

Benny recognized the name as that of his Abuelo. He read the rest of the text in the floating screen.

Made entirely out of rare Golden Mithril and crafted by Argon Vulcan, this pocket watch was personally commission by its first owner Abraham as a gift for the love of his life, Sarah.

Sarah…

That was Abuela’s true name. A name she never mentioned to the rest of her family (apart from Benny himself.) The part about this watch being a gift to Abuela, who was described as the love of his life, made it all the more special. This made Benny a little guilty as the rest of the family had thought that Abuelo had abandoned her.

But Benny couldn’t help but continue reading. There was some more info about its weight, size and the number of parts it was made of and even including info about the photos it held.

The photo mini-frames are protected by a Preservation Enchantment.

Over the photo of his great-grandparents were the words…

A photo of Abraham and Sarah on the day of their engagement.

An engagement photo? So they were supposed to be married. Benny really now began to wonder what really happened that caused Abuela to be transported to the other world. He also felt sorry for how the life of happiness she was supposed to have with Abraham had been snatched from her.

Benny looked at the details of his photo with Abuela.

A photo of Sarah, now known as Glinda, with her great-grandson Benjamin and…taken on June 6, 2010…

Benny noted that the photo of him and Abuela was taken sometime when he was seven. It was a period of the many lapses of his memory. Despite wanting him to know more but that was all there is.

After decades of delicate care it was given to its present owner Benjamin.

Seeing his name there was a bit unexpected.

At that point, Benny realized that this had something to do with his left eye which was still throbbing. Emrys had not just healed his eye. He may have also bestowed upon him some strange power to appraise something.

“Great. Another eye ability? Is this Nar*to’s Three Great Doj*tsu or something?”

Benny clicked the pocket watch closed once more. And with that all the holographic screens disappeared. That was a relief because he was slightly worried they were going to keep popping up.

“Emrys…the next time we meet, you and I need to have a loooong talk about this!”

He was half-expecting a voice to say something but no such thing occurred. Benny lay his chin on the low table once more and let out a sigh.

“I’ve changed way too much…”

Benny glanced at the pocket watch once more, trying to catch his reflection of the shiny Lapis Lazuli. A new screen appeared over the blue gem.

Protected by Concealment Enchantments.

Hmm? A Concealment Enchantment? Was there something about this that needed to be protected? Benny thought to himself.

He surmised that a Concealment Enchantment was a Spell that protects something from attracting attention. Then again it was a large, precious crystal. Naturally, it would attract some rather unwanted attention. Benny thought it might’ve been the case.

He decided t not think much of it. All this was already making his head hurt.

He needed to do something to get his mind of things.

A light bulb seemed to click in his head. He had just the right idea.