《The Other World Soldier》


 1. The Beginning

    At night, in the middle of nowhere, a building can be seen on fire. People running in and around it fighting each other. On one side there were a group of international terrorists and on the other side, soldiers had just been ambushed here.


    The mission that they had received had been quite simple, get in the compound, in the silence of the night. Get the hostages out of the grasp of terrorists and get out before anyone can notice anything out of place. The mission had been quite simple at the start but soon had taken a turn for the worse.


    "Retreat! Retreat! Get the hell out of here. Watch each other''s back and pull out. We need to get out of here right now!"


    Colonel Shepherd had been barking orders at his men as they retreated. They had been ambushed in the middle of the mission and a few good soldiers had lost their lives. He did not want the rest of the soldiers to lose their lives for nothing.


    He had been watching the back of his men while taking cover from the ongoing fire.


    ''How did this happen? There is no way that they knew we would be coming. The mission had just been approved a few hours ago. Unless we were betrayed.''


    The dread had been eating Shepherd alive that one of his men might have betrayed him. He was not ready to accept that it was anyone on his squad that betrayed them. He could blindly trust his life to these men and they could trust him with theirs.


    "Keep going boys we need to make it to the extraction point. Alpha will be sending a helicopter out for us, We just need to get there. Keep going! James! Stop daydreaming in the middle of the battle and get a move on."


    Shepherd Yelled at James who had been falling behind the others. He had been lagging behind the others in a daze and had just fallen down. After hearing Shepherd he snapped out of it, got up, and fell back in line with a single response.


    "Yes Sir."


    "We''re three minutes out from the extraction point Alpha. The helicopter better be there, and mind telling me why are we the ones getting ambushed when we were the ones to attack them? Were we betrayed?"


    Shepherd wanted to know as soon as possible if the leak came from them or not. He could not take it anymore, knowing the traitor might be among them. He had been yelling his orders nonstop, because of all the noise from gunfights and blasts.


    They were running in the middle of a burning battlefield while taking cover from the fire at small intervals. They were running through a forest at the moment. The temperature of the place had risen up from the burning trees and still blasting grenades.


    Their mouths and throats had dried up from the heat and constant screaming. Although their mouth and throat were dry as a desert their skin, their uniforms were drenched from the never-ending streams of sweat and blood.


    While running from their pursuers in midst of the noise from the battlefield Shepherd''s comm gave a static as it conveyed Alpha''s devastating message to Shepherd. Dropping the morale even more than it was.


    "The Chopper is ten minutes out Shepherd. You guys have to hold on for ten more minutes and help will be there. Just hold on! As for your other question, we can only wait and find out. Get back to safety first, then we will talk."


    "That is a negative Alpha. My men cannot hold on for another ten minutes in this hell hole. We are getting surrounded by the enemy from all sides. We are sitting ducks here." Shepherd did not push Alpha for his other question because he was right, this was not the time for it. They needed to get out of here first.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.


    While Shepherd had been talking to Alpha he was distracted for a moment and had taken a hit on his left arm. He stumbled and fell to the ground. He was out in the open and had to take cover so he crawled to cover and safety.


    ''Goddamint! Let me get out of here alive and I will find out just who it was that betrayed us. And I promise there will be hell to pay!''


    Shepherd was furious that he did not know who went behind their back and sold them out. He just wanted to bite into their neck chew them out. He leaned on a tree and tried to patch his wound with one hand which was hard.


    Sergeant John rushed over as he saw his battalion commander get hit. "Are you alright sir!" John Inquired. He helped quickly bandage his arm. It was hard for Shepherd to do it with one arm so he did it for him so that they could move on. It was not safe for them to stay in one place for that long. As the enemy was gaining ground on them.


    "I am fine Sergeant." Shepherd took his hand and stood up. "Alpha is sending a chopper but it is ten minutes out. We need to hold the fort for another ten minutes. Take charge from the front of the squad and lead them through the cover of the trees. I will cover our retreat. ETA is ten minutes, go!"


    Sergeant John gave him a nod in acknowledgment of his orders and moved forward to take charge of the squad. Their retreat continued for a few more minutes until they reached their destination, the extraction point.


    When they reached the extraction point the chopper was not there as Alpha had said. Now all they could do was to take cover behind trees, some big rocks, and ditches. They holed themselves in a position to brace for the upcoming enemies. They had to be very careful at this stage of retreat. They were stuck in one position, were dead tired, many of them were injured including Shepherd and they were running out of ammo.


    The only thing they could do now was waiting for Alpha and the reinforcements. Then began the longest ten minutes of their lives. Where each minute felt like an hour.


    *************


    "How are the preparations going on? Will everything be ready in time?"


    Asked the King when he entered the throne room. People were running around doing work as fast as possible. They had been on a tight schedule and everything needed to be perfect for this to work.


    "Yes, my King everything is ready. The runes have been drawn according to the records and the mana stones have also been prepared. A few final adjustments are taking place and we should be able to begin in a few minutes." The old man reported to his king as he bowed down before him.


    The king entered the throne room and surveyed the people working nonstop. Just in front of his throne, in a small area, some type of symbols had been drawn on the floor. In the symbols drawn on the floor in a circular pattern, eight cubes had been placed. They were all glowing in different colors.


    The king took his seat on the throne and tried to relax. He was trying to calm himself down and tried to believe that everything will be alright in the end. Just then a man came up to him, bowed, and spoke in a soft voice.


    "Your majesty, all the preparations have been completed and checked again for any possible mistakes. With your permission, we can now begin."


    The king whilst sitting on his throne heaved a sigh and looked at all the people present there today. His officials were all standing by his side in two neat lines on both his sides. They were just as anxious as the king was. They did not know what the result of this would be.


    He then looked to his right, where his queen was sitting. A beautiful woman sitting by his side, his love, his partner. She wore a gentle smile on her face and gently nodded at him. She was trying to encourage her husband for what was to come.


    He then shifted his gaze to his left side, where his children were also standing by his side. His son and daughter, waiting for him to make his decision and begin.


    "Every preparation that was needed has been prepared. Everything that was required, that requirement has been met. Now that we are ready, let us summon our last hope, The Hero!"


    The king drew a heavy sigh as he stood up from his throne. He looked straight ahead at the place where everything had been prepared and the ceremony was meant to take place. He started thinking to himself, what he was about to do.


    ''I cannot believe that it has come to this that to save my people and the kingdom I have to rely on someone I don''t know at all. Someone who might try to save us or just join hands with our enemy and destroy us all.''


    All he could possibly do now was to hope for the best and be prepared for the worst. And the worst was yet to come.

 2. Summoning

    The Battle between both sides had gotten pretty heated. Bullets were flying left and right without the distinction of friend or foe. Both sides were doing their best to subdue the other side. As both sides were fighting for their lives.


    From an overview, it might have looked like that the fight had reached a stalemate to others but with the passage of time, it was becoming apparent who was winning and who was losing. The terrorists were more in numbers than the soldiers. They had a lot of supplies and ammunition which was helping them tip the scales in their favor.


    Shepherd couldn''t help but feel anxious at the moment. They were losing the fight, men, by men and bullet by bullet, as time passed. They had fewer men than their enemies. Soldiers had been injured, tired, and were out of the fight for good.


    The injured were being given first aid treatment but it was clearly not enough. These men were beyond simple bandages and first aid, they needed to be taken to a proper hospital and fast. Even the remaining men that were able to fight and were fighting, were now on their last legs. Their ammo was about to run out as they were running low.


    ''Is this ditch going to be our grave? Am I going to die here without knowing just who it was that betrayed us? If only I could get my hands on that bastard then there will be hell to pay. As long as I can avenge my soldiers I will die happy.''


    Shepherd was fighting with an injured arm, shoulder, and a few cuts and bruises which might have halted his performance. But the anger and adrenaline that was boosting through his veins had made him numb to his pain right now. Which helped him fight even with an injured arm and shoulder.


    The constant noise of bullets firing, grenades exploding near them, and moans of the injured dying men had become a constant on the battlefield. It was like these sounds were being played in a loop, over and over. The sound of nature in the forest had completely faded away in this noise.


    The enemy had gotten quite close to them and had encircled them. They were pinning them down and had them surrounded on all sides. The ammo was almost over. Shepherd had only one magazine left. Now it was only a matter of time before they would be killed in action.


    Then suddenly the rhythm of the sound changed as a new sound entered the fray. The whirring chopper blades could be heard from a long distance. At first, they could not hear it as the constant noise had made their ears ring nonstop.


    They thought that their ears were maybe ringing again. They were filled with joy when the chopper finally appeared in their sights. A single shot came from the chopper and hit an insurgent that had gotten awfully close to them. Shepherd''s comms produced a static as a smile appeared on his face.


    "Help is here boys! Shepherd, round your men up It''s time to go home."


    "You are a sight for sore eyes Alpha. You kept us waiting long enough now get down here and let''s get out of here." Shepherd yelled into his comms in delight. Help was here now he could take his men home safe and sound.


    Shepherd was not the only one feeling happy at the moment. As the chopper got near them the wind from the blades produced felt like a blow of cold air from an AC, which helped lower the temperature of the area. The cold wind from the chopper felt like ice on the heated-up skin of the soldiers, as they felt invigorated.


    They were filled with delight as morale was rising up like the sound of the chopper was getting closer and louder. They soon got up on their feet and pushed themselves beyond their limit. This was the last push and now they would be finally able to go home. They needed to give it their best effort.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    As the chopper got near them they could see Alpha that had personally come to save them. He was standing at the door of the chopper with a machine gun in his hand providing cover fire for their retreat.


    Shepherd ordered John to lead the evacuation and he would watch their back. John and James started helping the injured in the chopper first, followed by the rest of the squad.


    A single insurgent was lying a few feet away from the ongoing evacuation. He was injured and could not move that well. He was seeing these people that had come out of nowhere and had killed so many of his friends.


    He was furious that they would be able to leave here without paying back for his friend''s blood. These men were about to leave and he was not having it. He wanted them to pay for what they had done even though it was them who lay a trap for them. But in his eyes he was right and these soldiers were in the wrong.


    ''We planned everything to a tee. You were supposed to die at our hands today but you want to escape after killing so many of our men. Well, think again.''


    He mustered all his courage and with his one working hand picked up his gun and aimed at the few remaining soldiers. They were about to leave and he could not really take proper aim. He just held his gun in their direction and fired.


    All the soldiers had been evacuated and only John, James, and Shepherd had been left. James got up the chopper and was waiting for them. John got up the chopper but when he turned around to face Shepherd all he saw was a splash of blood in front of his face as a bullet hit Shepherd''s temple.


    Shepherd was hit out of nowhere and went down almost immediately. The last sight he saw was Alpha and John running towards him shouting his name and then darkness took over him as he took his last breath on that ominous day.


    ***************


    The king stood up from his throne and walked towards the place his subordinates had set up for him. This was an area in his throne room that had been set up for the summoning. This place was big enough to attempt summoning and was closed enough to be hidden from prying eyes. Now it was time to summon their Hero.


    There were different types of symbols drawn on the floor right next to where the king stood. There were many different types of figures drawn on the floor, every symbol different from the other. On the edges of the symbols, there were eight stones placed on the floor.


    These stones were of different shapes and were glowing in different colors. These stones were placed over the murals drawn on the floor and on the edges, making a circular design with the stones.


    The king took off his knife from his waist and slit his finger making blood overflow. Then he went to each of the stones on the floor and with his blood started drawing symbols on them. These symbols were somewhat similar to the symbols on the floor. He started on one end and went to the other side drawing on each of the stones placed there, as he went around the circle.


    These were mana stones of the highest quality. These stones were enriched with mana and were brought here to be used in the ceremony. The summoning magic required a lot of mana and from each element, which the king did not have.


    So to make up for that insufficiency these mana stones were being used. The king drew symbols with blood on them to bind them to him and use this mana to perform the summoning magic.


    After binding the mana stones to himself he began chanting the spell to summon the hero. The people that were present in this ceremony were watching the whole ordeal with great interest. They were witnessing ancient magic being cast for the first time. The magic that they would never live to see being used again in their lifetime.


    As the king was chanting the mana stones started glowing brighter than they were before. The different colored lights in the stones soon turned from a glow to flickering until they stopped flashing and were lit up brightly.


    Slowly the ground started to shake under their feet. The night sky darkened as the moon hid behind thick thunderous clouds. The sky rumbled with thunder and flashes of lightning could be seen.


    The temperature of the room decreased and the air got chilly making them shudder in cold. The stones started to darken as the symbols on the floor began to fill up with light. The king was sweating his ears off but he did not stop chanting. They had expected something like this to happen after all they were casting ancient magic.


    The lights were getting brighter and brighter by the second until one big blinding flash occurred making them unable to see when a body appeared out of nowhere on the ground. In the middle of the drawings, a body lay of a soldier, martyred in a mission trying to help his men.

 3. Summoned Hero

    Shepherd was fading in and out of consciousness. His body felt like it was floating in a sea, underwater in a dark and desolate place. Sinking to the bottom of the ocean slowly. Although it felt like he was floating in cold water his whole body was burning up.


    It was like his body was on fire and was burning from the inside out, while from the outside it felt like it was freezing his skin was being pricked with a thousand needles.


    Shepherd wanted to move his body, open his eyes and see what was happening to him but he couldn''t. No matter how much he tried to. He wanted to scream his way out of this dark place and escape this suffocation. He wanted to know what was happening to him? Was he not dead? Was he in a coma?


    Shepherd was feeling trapped and was being bombarded with these hot and cold prickling sensations when suddenly his situation changed. His body temperature lowered considerably.


    Now it was at a more normal temperature. The pain from the prickling of the cold stopped and peace took hold of his body. It was like his bindings were removed and he was finally freed when he quickly opened his eyes.


    He opened his eyes to see an unfamiliar ceiling. He had not seen this place before. He was lying in the middle of nowhere staring at the ceiling. He picked himself off the floor and saw that he was in a building of some sort.


    There were people standing next to him and were staring at him. He had a lot of questions that he needed answered, He got up from the floor and stood on his two feet. A simple motion he thought not possible anymore.


    Why was he there? He should be in the middle of a jungle with his soldiers. Before that, he should be dead. He could still clearly remember when he was shot as his whole body went limp and he fell down.


    In a hurry to see himself and make sense of his situation he got up and saw a mirror near him. He went straight to it ignoring the people standing next to him. In his reflection he checked himself.


    His face was the same just as before but it was clean. It was not the face of someone who had been in the midst of a battle but rather someone who had just taken a shower. There was not even a speck of dust or blood, which should have been.


    He checked his forehead for the bullet wound and was shocked. There was no bullet hole in his temple much less a wound. Like his face, it was clean and untouched. He checked his left shoulder and his arm which had been hit.


    His reaction was the same as before because neither his shoulder nor his arm had any open or closed wounds.


    Somehow he was okay and alive. He was not dead when he should have died and was here in an unknown location. He turned around to see where he was and what was the current situation.


    Right now he was in a building that looked like an old castle. The roof and the walls were made of big blocks of stone like one of the old victorian era castles. The roof of the castle was supported by sets of five pillars in an orderly fashion which ran from end to end in the long hall.


    The place where he had woken up had some strange drawings on the floor with stones. He had no idea what was going on or where he was. His questions were answered in a few moments when he started drawing conclusions.


    In front of him, there were some people looking at him in an attentive manner. There was a 40 something years old man kneeling on the ground with blood coming out of his mouth and nose. He was breathing hard, gasping for air. It looked like he was injured and needed attending to.Stolen novel; please report.


    Which explained a woman of a similar age attending to him. She was supporting him from completely collapsing on the floor. The woman was beautiful as was the man but there was a peculiar thing about both of them, something strange and that was their clothing. It looked ancient but glamorous. Something you would see on a tv show where they would be depicting the king and queens of the old.


    In front of the couple, there were about ten people dressed like guards. They had spears in their hands, drawn towards Shepherd''s direction. With their back toward the king and queen, protecting them.


    From All this information, old castle, people dressed as king and queen, and several guards, Shepherd concluded that he might be on a set of a drama. These must be actors in the middle of shooting.


    While Shepherd was looking at these people trying to figure out his situation. He was brought out of his trance by their sudden shouting.


    "All Hail The Hero"


    "All Hail The Hero"


    "All Hail The Hero"


    "All Hail The King"


    "All Hail The Eldia Kingdom".


    Now Shepherd was sure that he was in the middle of shooting. He wanted to find out where he was and assess his situation. He walked towards them and started asking them questions.


    "Please stop the shooting. I need you to answer a few questions. Where am I right now? Which country or continent? Where is your Director? I need to speak to someone that is in charge?"


    When the people heard the hero speak they all realized that they had been staring at him just as he had been staring at them. They had yet to introduce themselves. The king stood up with support from his queen. He cleaned his mouth and nose of blood and walked forward breaking the encirclement of his guards and introduced himself.


    "Greetings our Hero! I humbly welcome you to our world of Eldinoir! And to my kingdom of Eldia. I am Albert Winsdor, the reigning King of this kingdom of Eldia. May I know your name?"


    Shepherd was confused with what the man was saying to him.


    ''Eldia? Eldinoir? Hero? What? What are they talking about? Do they think I am one of their cast members and are continuing with their acting?'' He had to stop them and ask them questions he again interjected.


    "As I said before please stop acting. I know you are filming a drama or a movie but I am not one of your actors. I need to speak with someone in charge. I am Colonel Shepherd Price...."


    While trying to introduce himself Shepherd stopped talking immediately. He stopped because when he put his hand in his armor to retrieve some sort of identification he was once again astonished to find out he was wearing different clothes.


    Although he had seen himself in a mirror before, at the time he was shocked to find out that he was still alive he did not notice. Right now he was wearing a standard military uniform, which was clean and whole. Which should have been dirty with sweat, dirt, and blood and torn in many places.


    Right now he did not have his primary weapon, his assault rifle, or his secondary weapon. He did not even have his knife. The only thing on his body right now was his military-issued dog tags hanging around his neck.


    Shepherd had stopped talking and was checking his clothes and was looking through his pockets trying to find something. Seeing the hero so flustered and rummaging through his pockets frantically, an old man stepped forward and spoke his mind.


    "Sir Shepherd was it? Am I pronouncing it right?" Shepherd looked at the man talking to him. He was an old man around mid or late-fifties. He was smiling at him.


    "Yes, that is right."


    "My name is Ryu Kanata. I serve as the Prime Minister of this Kingdom under the guidance of our wise king."


    "I can see that you are confused and are having a hard time grasping the situation. We are also just as flustered as you are but we know a bit more about this situation than you do. I do not know what this ''Medieveal'' or ''Director'' that you speak of means but if you were to give us a chance we would like to explain everything we can.


    Shepherd heard and understood what the old man was trying to say. These guys obviously knew more than him but for some reason, they were still continuing with the whole king and queen act. He was still suspicious of them and the old man picked it up on his face and gave another blow while the metal was hot.


    "You don''t have to worry there will be no hostility from our side and we will help you understand how you came here. As you can see our king has been injured while using the magic spell that brought you here."


    "Let us take a moment and sit down and then we can try and understand each other better. What do you say?"


    Shepherd had no other choice but to accept their invitation. He wanted to know what happened to him and the man was right. So far there had not been any hostility. All he could do now was comply and try to understand what happened to him.


    "Fine then, tend to your king and then you will answer my questions."


    "Lead the way."


    ''Wait! Did he just say magic?''

 4. Introduction

    Shepherd accepted his situation and agreed to talk with them and make sense of everything. Shepherd was then led towards an empty room. He was told to wait there for a moment while they attended to the king. He was told that the king had been harmed and needed attending to.


    The room that Shepherd was told to wait in looked like an office of some kind. On one end of the room beside the window, there was a large wooden mahogany table. It was littered with papers. There was a well-decorated chair at the helm of the table. Which made it look like it belonged to someone important. As he was in the castle of a king he thought that this might either be the office of the king or of his prime minister.


    Just next to the table there was a set of four sofas placed next to each other. Two sofas on one side and two on the other with another small mahogany wooden table between them. This was most likely a place of discussion. Which would soon be used by them.


    Shepherd did not sit down but was observing the room and how it was decorated. Now he knew that this might not be a shooting set. Because what shooting set is made so detailed as this one. Where the walls are actually made of stone and have such expensive furniture. The clothes are just out of this world. Even the armor worn by the guards looked real enough.


    Shepherd while observing his surrounding found a few flaws in the design. He was someone that had done a few missions as a personnel bodyguard. He had provided protection to some of the great minds of his world. According to him the main desk and chair should not be placed right next to the window.


    ¡®The chair is placed in clear view of the window. If this is the office of either the king or of his prime minister then it designed very poorly. A sniper could take out the king in one shot as it provides a clean line of sight. He would drop dead before the guards have any idea of what happened. Maybe the windows are made up of Ballistic Glass.¡¯


    The blinds of the windows were closed right now. Shepherd wanted to check if there was Ballistic glass or not. He also did not know what the time was. There was not a single clock in this room. Even on the way, he had seen a single clock. It was not surprising if this was a shooting set, based on medieval times. He walked over to the window to draw the blinds and see if it was night or day at the moment. He stopped before his hand could touch the blinds. The doors to the office opened and the king arrived with his entourage.


    "Sorry to keep you waiting, sir Shepherd. Casting that magic took more out of me than I expected. But I can walk on my own for now so I guess it''s not that bad." Albert took a seat on the sofa and directed Shepherd to sit opposite him.


    Shepherd took a seat but was confused, to say the least. ''Magic? He said it again. These guys are really messing with me now. Crying about magic and whatnot. Let''s just hear them out and get out of here quickly.''


    "Before we begin I would say that introductions are in order. Let me begin, As I said before I am Albert Winsdor, The King of Eldia kingdom. This here on my right is my partner, my wife, the queen Elena Winsdor." Albert introduced his wife.


    Elena gently gave Shepherd a bow while sitting and greeted him. "It is a pleasure to meet you, sir Shepherd." Shepherd also did a light bow back as to greet her, but still suspicious of them as they were still sticking to their act. Albert then continued to introduce the others present in the room.


    "These are my children, Prince Lance and Princess Liliana." Liliana got up from the sofa and faced him. She pulled the sides of her long skirt up a little, a huge grin on her face, and bowed.


    "It''s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Hero."


    ¡®Hero?¡¯If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    Shepherd with a gentle smile greeted her with the same enthusiasm that the girl had shown him. While he was smiling at the moment, he was getting more and more impatient at the situation and their bullshit. Lance, on the other hand, looked him up and down once at him and with a scoff turned his face away from him. He did not bother to greet him. Shepherd was not in the mood for his cocky attitude right now and just ignored him.


    Albert waited for a moment for Lance to say something but he didn''t so he moved on while staring daggers at Lance.


    "You met him in the hall earlier, this is Ryu Kanata, my Prime Minister." The old man also greeted him with a smile and gave a slight bow. The only one left in the room was a burly muscular man.


    Albert introduced this man as Yamamoto Daiki, the general of the royal army. Daiki did not bow to him but rather gave him a salute. Daiki was a prideful man and was not going to bow to a commoner whom he did not know. Their salute was a little different from Earth''s military, as he put one hand by his side and the other on his chest with a slight nod.


    Shepherd had not seen this salute before but being a soldier who had done a salute his whole life and had seen countless people salute him recognized this as a genuine salute of a soldier. It might have been the intense situation that he was in or might it be the unfamiliar place.


    He had been out of his comfort zone, not knowing where he was or what had happened to him. But when he saw someone salute him, his instincts as a soldier awoke, and without even thinking his body moved first and he stood up and performed a salute. Even Shepherd was surprised as to why did he suddenly perform a salute but quickly sat down with the tip of his ears a little red.


    Albert and Daiki were surprised to see Shepherd imitate his salute with some difference. Then they put two and two together that he might be a soldier too.


    "That was a little different from us but that was definitely a salute, wasn''t it? Is it from your world? Are you a soldier too?"


    ''Again with this nonsense? your world? is this a different one then?''


    Everyone had introduced themselves and no matter how pissed he was at the situation right now, he had to endure. Find out what they know and understand his situation. Now it was his turn to introduce himself.


    "My name is Colonel Shepherd Price. United Nations Joint Security Operations, Company Commander of Task Force 141." Shepherd Introduced himself and his rank to them. He thought that after hearing how high his rank was they would stop bullshitting him and answer his questions.


    "I do not understand half of what you just said but you are a commander, right? Then you must be like Daiki, a General." Shepherd was dumbfounded that they were still going on with their act. Were they not afraid of him or did they not care about his status as a military commander.


    "We have done the common courtesy and introduced ourselves. Now let¡¯s start from the top. The reason that you are here right now is that you were summoned by me to this world of Eldinoir. I used ancient magic to summon you..." Shepherd had enough of this now and cut him off before he could go any further.


    "I have had enough of your bullshit Albert. I do not mind your act of pretending to be a king. This might be an act or something that you all believe in wholeheartedly but there is no need to pull me into your fantasy. There is no such thing as magic, if there is something even remotely associated with magic then it is only a sleight of hand. I gave you a chance to come clean but you are still stuck in that fantasy. I have had enough of you people." Shepherd stood up wanting to leave the place.


    They were all stunned by his outburst. Why was he saying that there is no magic? Magic is an everyday occurrence and is used by everyone. It is as true as there are a sun and moon in the sky. No one can deny its existence as it is the truth of life. So why is this stranger rejecting it? Before Albert could say something or try to stop him. Shepherd was stopped by Lance.


    "How dare you talk to my father like that you filthy commoner. He is a King. It is already a grace on his part to let a bug like you sit here with us, in our presence and you dare mock him? You want to die!!"


    Lance had grabbed Shepherd by his collar and was shouting at him. Albert was furious at his son for treating their guest this way. Albert got up to stop his son and before Albert had even said anything or done something, Lance had started shouting. Shepherd had grabbed Lance by his wrists while his hands were on his collar. He had secured his hands properly and was twisting them by applying pressure at just the right place.


    "Stop fucking with me kid, you people have been lying to me the moment I stepped in this place. Magic? Another World? Oh, you poor sods, living in your little fantasy. I don''t care for your antics right now. I don¡¯t know where I am or who you people are. I am worried for those I left behind and I don¡¯t have the time or the patience to deal with a brat like you. Now let go of my collar before I break your wrists, or can your magic stop me before I break them?"

 5. Discussion

    Lance let go of Shepherd''s collar almost instantly when Shepherd gripped his wrists. But he was still shouting from pain because Shepherd had still not let go of his hands. Shepherd was seething at the moment. So many things had gone wrong and so many things were going wrong. He had completely lost control of the situation.


    He had not been in control before when they were betrayed. When they were being chased through the woods like dogs. When his men were gravely injured and many fell in battle. When he was shot and fell in battle. When he woke up in this strange place and did not know where he was, surrounded by these unfamiliar people. And certainly not now when they were bullshitting him with another world and magic nonsense. Shepherd had enough and he had just been given a reason to vent his frustration.


    Albert was already standing and Elena also stood up from her seat worried about her son and embarrassed by what he had done. Liliana was shaking and tears had welled up in her eyes when she heard her brother screaming.


    "Please let him go, Shepherd. I know what he said and did was wrong but let him go. This is not the time." Albert asked him to stop. Shepherd did not really listen, he was still angry and did not register his request. Elena and Liliana also asked him to stop and let go of Lance.


    ¡°Let go his hands, Shepherd. No matter the reason you are trying to break a Prince¡¯s hands and I cannot possibly allow you to do something like that. Please calm down.¡± Daiki grabbed Shepherd''s hands and tried to stop him. He was ready to intervene and stop him by force but the only reason that he had hesitated to do so was that Albert had asked him not to.


    Shepherd finally let up and calmed down. He stared at Lance for a second and then let go of his hands. He pushed him back causing him to fall but Daiki caught him before he could hit the ground.


    ¡®What am I trying to do? Just because I am angry at my situation, my helplessness, I am trying to hurt a kid? I really do need to calm down.¡¯


    Lance had been freed from Shepherd¡¯s grip. But he was still not done. His arrogance would not allow him to let Shepherd go after he had hurt him. A commoner had tried to hurt a royal, a prince like him. He escaped from Daiki¡¯s embrace and started barking back at him.


    "You filthy commoner! You dare put your hands on me? a prince? I will have your head on a pike. Arrest him Daiki! Arrest this filthy animal right now!. I want this bastard to hang by his neck!"


    Lance was shouting at Shepherd non-stop. He had forgotten who he was, where he was, and who he was with. He was standing with his father, the King, and instead of listening to him, he had continued to threaten his guest. His ongoing rant was stopped when Albert¡¯s hand, colored his cheek red.


    "Shut up Lance! You want to arrest my guest! Hang him? You dare! Your father, the king is standing next to you and you want to execute my guest? In my presence?" Albert was now furious at him. Before he had only been rude to Shepherd but now he had crossed a line. He knew how arrogant his son had become but he had never expected that in his pride he would put his hands on the hero.


    "But father he was disrespecting you. Disrespecting me. We are royalty and this commoner needs to respect us. He needs to learn his place." Lance quipped back to try and defend his actions but Albert was having none of it.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!


    "Shut up and get out of here! I do not want to see your face for the rest of the night. Get out of here now!"


    ''Why is father taking this commoner''s side? He is the one who is disrespecting us. Father has become too weak. The nobles are right when they say that father has become a coward. Just you wait, my time will come.''


    Lance wanted to say something back to his father but seeing his father fuming, he stopped. He did not want to get slapped again. He had been waiting for his chance to appear to overthrow his father and it had just been presented to him. Now he needed to be patient. But a child who grew up in protection has a false sense of pride, a brat like that did not have that patience. He scowled at Shepherd one last time and then left the room.


    "I am sorry for what happened. I will apologize in my son''s place. He has become this arrogant because I spoiled him. These are the results of my unfiltered love for him. Listening to his every whim." Daiki did not like to see his king apologize to someone lower than him in stature. He wanted to stop him rather he tried to stop him but Albert apologized anyway.


    "Please sit down Shepherd, I have just realized my mistake in my explanation and the misunderstanding caused by it. I will explain to you why I am calling this another world and what is magic." Albert begged Shepherd to sit down and give him another chance to explain.


    Shepherd wanted to leave the place at the exact moment because he could not believe these people and their absurd claims of magic. But he could see how sincere Albert was. He could see his determination and although it was absurd, the talk of magic, but it did not look or feel like Albert was lying to him. So reluctantly he gave a nod sat back down. Then they all proceeded to sit down and the discussion continued.


    Albert was quiet for a while and was thinking hard. He had finally understood the reason for Shepherd¡¯s outburst before. Why he was so angry at the mention of magic. The only conclusion that Albert could reach or did reach was that maybe Shepherd¡¯s world never had magic, to begin with.


    "Shepherd, you say that magic is fake right? That it is just a sleight of hand meant to fool people or in this case you? You believe that we are trying to deceive you somehow? Am I right so far?" Albert asked Shepherd to try to unravel the misunderstanding.


    "Yes, there is no such thing as magic or another world. That is why I know that you have been lying to me since the moment we met. Just tell me the truth, no matter what it is I will accept it and I will leave." Albert finally understood what the problem was and addressed it.


    "From what I can gather the reason you do not believe me is because your world did not have any magic right? But something close to it. Maybe some form of imitation. Because you call it sleight of hand makes me believe that people in your world tried or try to emulate magic but in the end, it is always fake. Fake enough somehow that no one believes in it.¡± Albert asked Shepherd and waited for a second, for him to confirm his theory. Shepherd replied with a single nod.


    ¡°I am afraid that for this conversation to go any further first of all I would have to help you believe that magic is real in this world. Not the cheap imitation that you think it is. And secondly, proof that this world is not the one where you were born and raised but another world. If I can establish to you the existence of magic then would you be willing to at least try and believe me?"


    Shepherd was a little confused with Albert¡¯s suggestion. How could he prove something that does not exist in the first place? Is he going to use some mechanism to conjure fire out of nowhere? Was he really that confident that he could prove it? Or maybe, just maybe, the chances were pretty slim but maybe they were right. Shepherd wanted to see just how would they try to fool him so he agreed to his proposal.


    "Yes, If you say it is real then prove it. If magic is really real then I would certainly have to believe you."


    Albert then smiled and answered him. ¡°It would quite easy for me to prove the existence of magic to you but the question is, would you be able to believe it even after I show you?"

 6. Magic

    Albert revealed his right hand to Shepherd. It was wrapped around in a white cloth with red stains all over it. He removed the cloth that was acting as a bandage and showed them his hand. His fingers had been cut several times. They were roughly cut with several wounds on them in a criss-cross pattern. These cuts were made during the ceremony by Albert himself. Since the ceremony, they had only stopped bleeding and had not yet healed.


    "I had to cut my fingers to draw blood for the ceremony, to bind the mana stones to my magic, but that is a discussion for another time. You wouldn¡¯t believe me even if I told you. As you can see my fingers are wounded and have not yet healed as not a long time has passed. And the time that has elapsed is not enough for them to heal naturally." Shepherd observed with keen interest. His fingers had been indeed cut and had only just stopped bleeding.


    Albert then held his hand in front of his wife and asked her. "If you would dear." Elena smiled and put her hand over her husband''s and chanted. "Heal"


    Elena¡¯s hand started to glow a white color from her palms. A shining light escaped from Elena''s hand and touched Albert''s. The glow was absorbed by the wounds on Albert¡¯s fingers and then the magic happened.


    The cut on his fingers then visibly started to heal. This sight was unbelievable because the wounds did not disappear in an instant like you would think magic worked. Instead, the wound gave a slight red glow and started to close itself. It looked like the wound was being healed on a molecular level.


    Little by little the cut muscles were repairing themselves closed like a string weaving through cloth mending the torn cloth. After the wound was healed the skin also grew over the wound until it completely covered it. There was not even a scar left behind on the skin that would explain that there used to be a wound here.


    Shepherd could not believe what was happening right now. How did the wound heal and then close on itself? Albert was holding his healed hand in front of Shepherd with a slight smirk on his face. Shepherd with astonishment grabbed Albert''s hand ran his fingers on his hand.


    ''I cannot believe what just happened. Is this real? How did they do this? His hands are fully healed and I can''t find any irregularity. How do I explain something like this? If this is a trick then this must be one hell of a trick.'' Shepherd was thinking what should he do? Does he have to believe in something like this? Even if he wants to how can he believe this? Is magic real?


    Now there was only one thing left to do and that was to check it himself.


    Shepherd started biting his fingers on his left hand until they were a bleeding mess. He could have just bit once but he wanted to be sure that there was no trick involved. He wounded his handed just like Albert¡¯s but more roughly. His hand had straight cuts caused by a knife but Shepherd had bite marks. He held his hand in front of Elena and asked her to heal his hand as well.


    "You did not have to do that Shepherd but I guess you wouldn¡¯t have believed it if did not happen to you. Go on Elena heal his hand." Elena nodded and like before chanted. "Heal"


    The process repeated itself to a tee. Light escaped from her palms and touched his hand. The jagged cuts made by biting started to heal themselves like before. The torn skin came together and bound its cells to each other healing his fingers completely. when the process was done not even a scar was left.


    While his wounds were healing the only thing Shepherd felt from them was a warm sensation on his wounds as they were closing. He had never felt anything like this before. He was staring at his healed hand and was shuddering. His eyes were wide open and his face drained of its natural color. One hand in front of his shocked face and the other hand rigorously checking it.


    For a few moments, Shepherd did not speak and kept staring at his hands. No matter how many times he would check he could neither find a fault with his hand nor be able to explain how his hand healed. Shepherd was then jerked out of his trance and further surprised when Albert spoke.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    "I can guess from your expression that your world really did not have magic. To be honest I was a little skeptical before but not anymore. You really are in shock after seeing your hand get healed. But I suppose to help you believe I should strike while the iron is hot."


    Albert looked towards the others in the room and they all stood up in a line in front of Shepherd. Shepherd was unaware of what they were trying to do but was again scared out of his mind when all their hands started to glow.


    All of their hands glowed like Elena, the only difference this time was that their glow was of different colors. Then the different glows light was replaced with a fist full of different elements.


    Albert¡¯s hand after producing a red glow now held a ball of fire. It was like his hand was on fire. It was a small flame at the moment but fire nonetheless. The strange thing was that Albert was showing no signs of pain that one would show if their hand was being burned with fire. instead, he was fine and now had the biggest smirk while seeing Shepherd''s expression. His face, even paler than before.


    Elena like before her hand was glowing a sparkly white but that was it. Her hand only had this glow to it nothing else. Liliana''s hand produced a blue glow of light and now held in her palm a small ball of water. This ball of water was maintaining its circular shape and was not dripping on the floor even a little. It was like she was holding a glass of water but the glass was invisible.


    Ryu and Daiki had the same brownish glow to their hands. Now in their palms, they held small balls of mud. One was bigger than the other but it was definitely a ball of mud.


    Shepherd could not believe what was happening right now. He slouched back on the couch in defeat. There was no way that he could be able to explain what he saw right now. This was his defeat and he had to admit it.


    ''How did they do that? Is there any way I can explain or justify what I am seeing? Is there a trick to it? Even if there is a trick to these balls of elements in their hand and I can explain them, then what about my hand. It was injured and it did heal. There is no law of physics that can contain this phenomenon completely and there is no denying it. Am I really in another world?''


    They all sat back down but what was interesting was that the fire in Albert¡¯s hand and the light in Elena¡¯s hand disappeared into thin air. But the mud balls and water did not. They put the balls on the table as if to prove to him that they were real and had been created out of nothing. Liliana on the other hand grabbed a glass nearby the side table and poured the water into it.


    "Well, I believe that you do not have magic on your world from your shocked expressions but the question is do you believe us now? That magic is real?" Albert asked to confirm if this prove was enough.


    Shepherd was dazed for a while but then with a deep bow apologized to them.


    "You were right, There is magic in this world. It has to be magic otherwise I have really gone mad. I cannot explain what just happened so yes I will admit my mistake and apologize. Forgive me for calling you a liar."


    "It¡¯s fine, Shepherd. I can understand your situation a little bit. I can imagine if I was told that there is no magic after having used it all my life and then revealed that the whole concept of magic that had been thought to me since birth is nothing but a cheap gimmick. Trust me I would be devastated as well. Now that I have proved the existence of magic, I guess you will believe that this is another world too? "


    Shepherd had to believe in magic. If he could believe in magic then what was so hard about believing that this was another world.


    "Yes, I do believe it rather I have to."


    "Let me ask this Shepherd, did your world had a sun or moon?" Albert inquired from Shepherd. He wanted to find a point where he might provide another prove and clear all suspicions in his heart at once.


    "Yes, we did have a sun and a moon. wait! You don¡¯t have them here? Is there no sun or a moon here? If not then how does this world function? Has magic taken the place of the Sun?" Shepherd was curious as to why was he asking him about the sun and moon. Did they have something else instead of it? But how would they know the words sun and moon if they do not have them?


    "A sun and A moon huh. It''s nighttime right now and the moon would be in full wane tonight. Why don''t you take a look at the beautiful night sky of our world? See if you can find a difference or if it is the same as yours?" Again Albert was smiling as he pointed to the still covered window.


    Shepherd got up on his feet but could not muster any strength. His whole life and beliefs had been turned over his head in a few minutes. He could not fathom the changes that were happening to his life right now.


    He stood in front of the window and reluctantly pulled the curtains. What was revealed to Shepherd was a beautiful night sky. Twinkling stars making the sky seem just as beautiful as the sky on earth giving him a sense of familiarity. but this homely feeling that he got from looking at the sky was soon shattered when he noticed the moon.


    ¡®Two Moons?¡¯