Chapter 5: The Captive
As the morning sun filtered through the curtains and landed on Josh's face, he slowly stirred from his sleep.
Groggily surveying his surroundings, he soon relaxed. It looked like he was back in the land of Muya. This was his room. He wasn't exactly sure how long he'd been away in Valoran—or whether the whole thing had been just a dream—but the magical legacy embedded in his mind told him it was all real.
"Looks like I actually pulled it off. Got myself back."
Josh let out a breath of relief. Honestly, that had been way too close. If his spell had taken even a second longer, he wouldn't have had the chance to cast it—Garen would have cleaved him in half before he could even blink. He'd have no way to explain his death.
Stretching his limbs, Josh noticed something odd. His bedsheets looked exactly the same as they had the night before. If he'd really been gone long, the maids should've come in and tidied up by now. Everything being exactly as he left it suggested something bizarre.
"Did time here... not move at all while I was away?" he muttered to himself, puzzled.
If that was the case, then he might just be the most terrifying genius this world had ever seen. Imagine: one second he's just average, and the next he jumps into another world, trains for years, and returns with unimaginable power—instantaneous leveling up that would leave everyone stunned.
"Forget it. No point thinking too much about it. I'll just ask someone. Still, if I ever piss off someone at level nine, I might need to spend centuries in another world before I can fight back. That's assuming I even live that long."
He shook his head, pushing away the thoughts. Even if he could offend someone that powerful, escaping would be a different matter. No one would give him a chance to chant or cast before they vaporized him. He'd be lucky to survive a glance.
"That Garen guy... still terrifying. His skill, his technique—genuinely impressive. If he was already in his late stages of power... I wouldn't have had a chance at all."
Josh frowned. "I wonder what happened to him? Did I kill him? Or maybe the Void Gate just threw him into the endless void?"
He rubbed his chin. If Garen had been lost in the void, then that was perfect. Josh didn't care that the guy was a champion from a game. As far as he was concerned, if someone was hostile, they were an enemy—end of story. And if an enemy suffered, that only made Josh happier.
Still, this trip hadn't been a waste. His magic had already been on the verge of breaking into Tier 3, but he'd lacked the right elemental affinity. Valoran not only gave him clarity on his magical nature but even granted him a magical inheritance. Best of all, the elemental forces he'd absorbed had forcefully expanded his mana spring into a mana river.
With proper training, Josh was confident he'd break into Tier 3, maybe even Tier 4. He had a massive amount of mana now—though he could only control a small portion of it for now. The rest... would take time to master.
With a deep breath, Josh decided to leave his room and grab something to eat. He hadn't eaten in a day, and he was also curious how long he'd really been gone.
"This trip really paid off," he muttered with a smile—then froze.
Just around the edge of his bed, lying on the floor, was a giant sword. And not just any sword—he knew this one. It was unmistakably Garen's greatsword, the very one that had almost chopped him in two.
Josh's eye twitched. A bad feeling began to settle in his gut.
Following the sword's direction, he saw a figure lying on the floor on the other side of his large bed. No need to look closely—he already knew who it was.
"That can't be right. I thought I left him behind… or that the magical collision between my spell and his attack would've killed him. Or maybe he got flung into the Void."
Josh rubbed his temples, thoroughly annoyed. "So he actually followed me through the gate? Are you serious? Even if I wanted to send him back, I couldn't. That Void Gate was totally random."
"…Should I just open another one and banish him?"
The idea was tempting. Josh didn't know if the gate had a cooldown, but he figured it was worth a shot.
Creeping toward the unconscious Garen, Josh began to gather mana. Strangely, his energy had already recovered. He'd been completely drained after their battle, yet here he was—his magic reservoir nearly full again, though his mental strength still lagged.
"Did I somehow pick up a Tear of the Goddess?" he mused.
Not likely. He just chalked it up to having a high mana regeneration trait. Still, looking at Garen's battered form stirred something in him. Their final clash—his Void Gate versus Garen's massive sword—had ended in an explosion. If Josh hadn't instinctively used a Void Shield spell at the last moment, he'd have been just as mangled as Garen.
"Void Gate and Void Summon... these names make no sense. I'm just gonna rename them. 'Void Shield' and 'Void Portal' sounds way better."
While Josh muttered, the silver magic orb in his hand grew brighter. Just as he was about to drop it on Garen's body, a jolt of instinctive panic hit—Garen suddenly snapped awake and grabbed Josh's wrist.
"…"
Josh froze. Damn, that was some serious survival instinct.
Still, despite his impressive reaction, Garen looked terrible. His usually firm and commanding face was pale and twisted in pain. His armor was blown open at the chest, blood still trickling out. And though he had managed to grab Josh's wrist with seemingly full force, Josh could feel that he was barely holding on.
"Guess this is the difference between a mage and a warrior," Josh mused. "A mage can always pop a Zhonyas. A warrior? Not so lucky."
Garen clearly hadn't expected such a huge explosion from their collision. And considering how dangerous Void magic was in general, that reaction made sense. Even touching a Void spell could be fatal if you weren't ready.
"I'm lucky I dumped all my spare mana into that Void Shield at the last second," Josh thought, stepping back.
Looking down at Garen, now practically dead on his feet, Josh dismissed the spell in his hand. They were enemies, sure—but killing Garen now would be a waste. He might return to Valoran someday, and having Garen alive could be useful.
"This is my world now," Josh smirked. "You're not pulling any one-man justice shows here."
With a flick of his wrist, he pulled free from Garen's weakened grip. The silver orb dissolved in his hand. After straightening his clothes, Josh called in his maid, setting off a flurry of activity. Soon enough, knights arrived—an entire squad—alerted by the commotion.
And that's how Garen Crownguard, firstborn of the Crownguard family and decorated war hero, ended up a prisoner of Josh. Though the priests kept an eye on him, he was still thrown into a cell like a common criminal.