Reunion

James was enjoying a hearty lunch at a restaurant. After six months of backbreaking work at the forge, this day off felt like a small blessing. With a restful night's sleep, he was no longer as stressed, and his adrenaline levels had returned to normal, allowing him to contemplate the risk he had taken in that encounter.

There were many things to consider. Firstly, James had revealed information about Elysium that seemed inaccessible to the people of that world. In the almost 80 pages he had reviewed, he had found around 150 runes, half of which were false and the other half contained erroneous data. Some even seemed intentionally incorrect.

While this somehow benefited James, as he had earned $10,000 dollars in just one night for a small consultation, it put his life at risk. However, as he reflected on it, the idea of selling other knowledge at a similar price no longer seemed as appealing as it did initially. After all, his desire was not to stay on Earth but to be in Elysium, even if he didn't have a specific mission to fulfill there.

At that moment, James caught sight of his ex-wife and daughter walking down the street with suitcases. Sadness was evident on both of their faces. James was momentarily stunned, his gaze fixed on them. Emma noticed his stare and, upon realizing that someone was staring at her, recognized him. There was a brief moment when their gazes met, but it was interrupted by the girl complaining of hunger, her appetite aroused upon seeing the restaurant.

Seeing the little girl in such a state, James gestured for them to enter the restaurant. Emma hesitated for a moment but eventually agreed and went inside with her daughter, sitting on the opposite side of James. A brief silence fell over the table until a waitress approached them.

"Would you like to order anything else, sir?" the young waitress asked cheerfully.

"Yes, a children's menu, and she'll want..." James gave Emma time to peruse the menu.

"James, I don't have money to..." Emma began to respond, but before she could finish, James interrupted her.

"Don't worry, just order," he said kindly.

Emma quickly scanned the menu and chose something simple and affordable.

"Understood. And for you, sir, would you like anything else?" the waitress asked.

"A glass of wine... actually, a soft drink," James was about to order alcohol, but upon seeing Emma's expression, he changed his mind.

As the waitress walked away, James observed the suitcases for a few moments and finally asked, "Emma, what happened?"

Emma didn't seem willing to discuss it, so she responded concisely, "Let's just say it didn't work out. We had been struggling for a while, but I finally decided to move out."

"To where?" James asked.

"I'm not sure yet," Emma replied, revealing that she didn't have a place to stay.

Silence once again filled the table until the dishes arrived. James let them eat in peace, and as they finished their lunch, he gathered the courage to speak.

"I can give you $5,000 dollars to find a place of your own to rent," he said, gazing out the window.

"James, we're not in a position to get involved with suspicious money," Emma responded reproachfully.

"It's clean money, Emma. Accept it. It will be difficult for me to earn that amount again through legitimate means," James said, clenching his fists and looking down.

"Of course, she would think I stole it. To her, that's all I am," James thought inwardly.

Emma, on her part, didn't fully trust James. Despite wanting to believe him, he had already disappointed her multiple times, making it hard for her to trust blindly.

"And what do you want in return?" Emma asked, still with a hostile attitude.

"Nothing, it's just for you and the girl," James weakly replied.

Something seemed to bother Emma, who quickly responded, "Now you care about your daughter," raising her voice slightly. Silence took hold of the place, and all eyes turned toward their table as murmurs filled the air. James felt a slight annoyance as he was trying to help and, for some reason, was being punished for it. Anger began to build up inside him, and he was about to slam the table and shout in response, but this time he managed to take a deep breath and count to five.

This gesture didn't go unnoticed by Emma, who relaxed her fists and leaned back. "I'm sorry, James, that wasn't my intention," she said with a remorseful tone.

"It's okay, I understand your reasons," James responded with genuine sadness in his voice. He called the waitress and asked for the bill.

After paying for everyone, he looked at Emma and said, "I'm staying at a nearby hotel. If you're willing to accept my help, come with me. I promise there won't be any tricks."

Emma found herself in clear conflict, unsure of what to do, but she wanted to trust James. She knew him well and knew that he had never harmed them, except during their arguments. His biggest issue had been alcoholism, but it seemed like he hadn't been drinking for a while. Emma decided to follow him and see if this help was real. After all, even though she had some money, it wasn't enough to cover all the expenses of renting a property, and her vehicle needed repairs. "God knows you can't get around this country without your vehicle," Emma thought.

The exchange was brief. They both silently arrived at James' room. Emma refused to enter and simply waited by the door. Quickly, James filled a bag with the money and handed it over.

Emma received the bag, visibly shocked, and began to count its contents. Her surprise grew even more when she found the promised amount. She placed the money in a suitcase and gave James one last guilty look. "Thank you," she said and left.

James closed the door and collapsed onto the bed. Emotions surged through his body: anger, frustration, sadness, and loneliness. He was aware that his life was filled with mistakes and that he had hurt those he loved the most. However, this time he wanted to do it right. He wanted to show them that he could change, that he could be a support for his daughter and for Emma.

In that moment, a renewed determination took hold of him. He was determined to make amends for his mistakes, to fight for his family, and to become someone Emma and his daughter could trust. Although the road wouldn't be easy, James was willing to give it his all to rebuild the broken bonds and find redemption.

Though he still desired to return to Elysium, or rather, he had to return since he didn't want to be visited again by that strange white-skinned girl, the ring allowed him to travel between worlds and apparently would force him to return periodically. Despite having limited information, James decided he would simply go as planned.

Finally, he felt slightly good about himself and sensed some progress. He decided to allocate $3,000 dollars for the remaining month, including gym expenses, as he needed to train his body as much as possible. He had noticed that his physical condition upon returning was better than when he had left, even though he couldn't exert the same strength. Still, there seemed to be some correlation between both worlds, so it was worth a try.

In addition to the gym, he added daily hours of reading and meditation. Although he couldn't feel the mana, he knew that meditation had brought him great benefits, so it never hurt.

After twenty days of following the monotonous routine, James was surprised by his own persistence. It was at that moment when he received an unexpected visit at the door of his cheap motel room.

When he opened the door, he was surprised to see the imposing figure of Jasmine's bodyguard.

"Scum, I have a message from Miss," said the burly man.

"Good morning to you too, gorilla. What do you want?" James replied unfriendly.

"Miss is very pleased with the information you sold. She says if you have more, don't hesitate to contact her through this device," the gorilla informed him, handing over a fairly modern cellphone.

James took it in surprise and checked the contacts. To his amazement, he found one registered as Jasmine <3. "Alright, understood. I'll contact them when the time comes," James said, stunned by the situation.

"One more thing, if you give this information to anyone else, I'll pay you a more personal visit," threatened the gorilla, cracking his fingers with a killer smile.

"Friendly as always, it seems you haven't learned your lesson. Just follow your orders like a good gorilla and get lost," James said, slamming the door in his face.

Although the bodyguard was eager to break his legs, he knew his orders were clear, and he couldn't harm him for the moment. After fulfilling them, he left.

"If I could make progress in some area, I could earn more money without having to work on this side," James reflected.

He simply continued with the routine he had set for himself. What James needed at that moment was to maintain the change he had started, stop making excuses, and train himself both physically and mentally. Eventually, he would also require spiritual growth.

When the month was over, James headed to the same place where he had transported himself the first time and repeated the process.

He entered the empty space.

Nothingness began to flood his mind. He felt a sense of weightlessness, falling and continuing to fall. Before his eyes, there was nothing, just absence, a blackness that seemed to swallow the space and himself.

Contemplating the abyss, James began to feel.

"Remember, James," resonated in his mind without coming from any specific place.

He felt his mind explode, an abyssal pressure suffocating him, as if the abyss were watching him.

"Creating realms, our noblest secrets" he heard in a faint whisper, followed by a deranged scream that seemed to come from ten thousand people.

When James opened his eyes, he found himself in his room at Strom's workshop. His chest was pounding heavily, and he felt a great pressure, as if a concrete block was on top of him.

Several hours passed before he could calm down, calm his mind, and shake off the feeling of being watched. Finally, he lay down and took a nap. At dawn, he got up to greet his master.

"Well, if it isn't my student who decided to return," said Strom.

"I'm deeply sorry, master. It wasn't my intention to be away for six months. I was simply forced to return to my world. It seems I have to be there for a month for every six months in this place," James apologized, feeling truly disappointed in himself for letting down his master.

"What are you talking about, lad? It hasn't been more than a week," Strom said with a puzzled expression.

"Uh," James muttered, equally confused.

"And that face, lad. If we keep staring like this all day, we won't finish this month's orders. You know I hate breaking contracts," Strom said, heading to the dining area to have his usual breakfast before starting work.

James quickly followed him and couldn't help but ask, "Are you serious, master? It hasn't really been more than a week?"

"Of course, lad. I have no reason to lie to you. Although your absence has affected me, now that you're back, we can catch up with the orders," Strom replied sincerely.

James didn't understand anything. Time simply seemed to act differently in this world. It was truly unpredictable, making it difficult to make plans. "Anyway, we'll have to adapt along the way," James finally thought. All of this was beyond his grasp, so there was no point in bothering to think about it.

Both of them continued with their work. At this point, James already had some skill in forging. He had quickly learned about forging and blacksmithing topics.

Although James was genuinely surprised by his abilities, he knew they had to do with this world. It seemed to enhance all his faculties, both physical and mental. In his meditations on Earth, James had realized that it had something to do with mana. Earth practically had no mana, only a faint thread, while this world was flooded with it.

At this point, James began preparing for his first class upgrade. He would go from the beginner class that everyone started with to a basic class, where he would unlock his first skill. For this change, he needed 15 levels, and although he was already close to achieving it, he had tried to slightly slow down his progress to better prepare himself. For that reason, he had started studying more complex runes, approaching the final stages of the basic level. Unfortunately, he still couldn't work with those runes as his mana quantity and control were still lacking.

James was contemplating some options when his master visited him with some very favorable news.