CHAPTER 4 - Reencounter
(Pov - Daniel.)
My grandma… Is she really my grandma?
My grandma… She was the only family I had. My mother died when I was born, and my father was murdered when I was only five years old. It was just her and me.
My grandma worked cleaning houses to pay for my education, and I studied hard to make her proud. I didn't want her efforts to go to waste.
She always told me to be a good boy, that good boys are always rewarded in life, and she was right. God gave me a new chance at life in this world, and if this woman is really my grandma, coming to this world also gave me the chance to be with her again.
She died of a heart attack, and I was left alone. Now that I supposedly have her in front of me, I don't know what to do.
Is she really my grandma? I feel like she is, but she looks so different.
I don't want to get my hopes up, but I'm more than sure she's my grandma.
My heart isn't lying to me; she's my grandma… My dear grandma…
"Grandma… A-are you really you?" I said, scared that this might just be a cruel joke.
I approach her with slow steps, as my body is overwhelmed with so many different emotions right now that I can barely move.
Happiness, sadness, fear, confusion… So many emotions flood my being having her in front of me.
Please, God, let it really be her.
"D-do you recognize me? A-are you my grandma, miss? Please, be honest with me, I beg you."
"D-Dani? Yes, you're my Dani!"
Dani, that's what my grandma called me. I-it's her… This young woman is my grandma!!
I recognize that big smile on her face; it's my grandma! It's definitely my grandma!
"Grandma!"
Without wasting another moment, I hugged her tightly, something I thought I'd only do in my dreams.
I hugged my grandma again. I have her with me again… I have a family again.
I missed her so much… She's the only person I love. The only truly important person to me. Friends are temporary and can betray me, like Sonia did when she broke my heart, but I can always trust my grandma.
The light has returned to my dark life.
Thank you, God! Thank you, King! I know you're probably useless, King, but thanks to the spells you gave me, I got to see my grandma again!
M-my grandma is hugging me again… I'm with my grandma again… I'm with her again.
Tears flood my eyes, and my vision is completely blurry.
Grandma… Granny… I have my grandma with me again.
"I thought I'd never see you again, Grandma!"
"I missed you so much, Dani!"
I have so many questions about her new appearance, but I want to stay like this longer, hugging.
Grandma… Ugh… My mind is going blank; I just want to enjoy this moment for a bit longer, but I know I need to figure out why my grandma looks so young. Maybe the spell went wrong, and she's getting younger. If that happens, my grandma's new life is in danger.
I don't want to lose her twice.
"I missed you so much, Grandma! But why are you so young?! I didn't recognize you when I saw you!"
"Young?" she said, confused.
Hasn't she noticed her change?
She lets go of me and looks at her hands. She gets startled seeing them, confirming she really didn't know she was young now.
I guess the spell really did change her appearance. Why? Was it a side effect, or did the spell go wrong?
Magic is dangerous, so anything is possible.
"W-what happened to me?! Why do I look like this?!"
My grandma looks so young. I hope the youth effect doesn't wear off. If she stays young, I'll have her by my side for many, many years, and that'll give me even more motivation to defeat the demon that will destroy this world.
If I defeat it, I'll be able to live the rest of my life with my grandma.
And if I die during the fight, at least I'll die knowing I spent the rest of my life by my grandma's side, my only family.
"I-I don't understand anything."
"Wow, wow. You look beautiful, Grandma."
"Your family's blood is really special, huh? Is everyone this beautiful? I'm jealous," Sara said.
I guess so. I'm identical to my father, and my father was my grandma's son. My grandma passed her beauty to my father, and I inherited all of my father's looks.
Appearance doesn't matter to me at all, but right now it does. The younger my grandma is, the more years she'll be with me.
I take a picture of her with my phone to show her.
"Look, it's you."
I show her the photo, and my grandma looks at the screen, scared and completely confused about what's happening.
Yeah, I understand how you feel, Grandma. I'm scared about this situation too. I hope your youth is a good thing, but I'm afraid it might actually be bad.
"Y-yes, that's me when I was young. Why do I look like this?"
Don't look at me; I don't know anything. The spell said it was for resurrecting the dead; it didn't say anything about appearance.
But I guess it's a good thing the spell gave you a younger appearance, Grandma. You'll live for much longer!
"I-I don't understand anything."
"Grandma, I know you're scared, but don't worry; everything will be fine. Trust me, please. Everything will work out."
"D-did you bring me back? How?"
"Well, I brought you back to life, but it's more complicated than you think. In short, we're in another world."
"Another world?!"
"Another world?" Sara said.
Arghhh! I forgot they were here! Perfect memory, you failed me again…! Ugh, I can't blame you for my stupidity.
"Well, another place. I think saying another world was an exaggeration. Grandma, we're in another country, far from our home."
I hope Sara buys this lie.
My grandma looks at my teammates.
"Who are they?! Why am I alive?!"
Y-yeah, I figured. I knew this could happen. My grandma is pretty fearful, but she always acted brave around me. But I guess now the fear overwhelmed her, and I don't blame her. Who wouldn't be scared in this situation?
My grandma is too nervous and scared; I need to calm her down.
"Don't be afraid, Grandma; the people here are nice… I think…"
Sara's a bit racist and looks down on the poor; I don't know the others well enough yet.
But I think they're good people… Well, at least I can say they're not villains.
"Wow, wow… I have a lot to explain to you, but in secret."
God, she's my grandma, my family. Plus, she's from my world. I can tell her my situation.
I turn to my teammates.
"Sorry, girls, but this is very private. It's a family matter."
"No worries, Daniel!" Alex said.
"I need to go to my sister to tell her about your great achievement!" Liz said.
That's right; her sister knows more about this than she does. I need to ask her personally about this spell.
But first, I'll calm my grandma down; I'm scared she might have a heart attack.
Liz runs off, and I take my grandma's right hand.
"Come, I'll explain everything outside the village. Don't panic, Grandma; it's bad for your heart. Breathe and relax, don't be scared; as long as I'm by your side, nothing bad will happen to you."
And if anyone dares to hurt you, I'll kill them. I won't forgive those who put you in danger.
"W-what's going on, Dani?"
"Just wait, Grandma."
My grandma and I leave the house. She got scared when we stepped outside because we're in a village with a peculiar smell and a very medieval vibe; it doesn't look like a modern place like the city we lived in.
It was obvious she'd be scared; neither she nor I are used to this environment.
Being revived, seeing your grandson again, being young again, and being in an unfamiliar place… Grandma, please hold on; I don't want your heart to fail again; I haven't learned any healing spells yet.
This world is wild and dangerous, but I have more than enough power to protect you from its dangers.
"What is this place, Dani?!"
"Act normal; I'll explain outside the village. Don't worry, everything will be fine."
My grandma nodded, but she squeezes my hand; she's still very scared.
"Come with me."
My grandma and I start walking through the village, and she seems truly terrified; she's trembling with fear. I thought her fear couldn't get worse, but it's worsening, and I can see why.
Prostitutes, men fighting for some reason, adventurers dragging monsters through the streets… This wild environment would scare anyone from our world.
This place scares me a bit too, but considering no adventurer here was able to defeat the Black Demon or the dog man, my fear is fading little by little. If they couldn't defeat them, they definitely couldn't defeat me. I highly doubt any adventurer would dare challenge me. Sandro is the only exception, but I'll deal with him later.
"Listen, you two, stop fighting right now! Make peace this instant!" I shouted at the men who were fighting, as they were scaring my grandma.
"Y-yes! Sorry!" both said, hugging each other.
Shouting was a bit much, but I don't have time to go over and politely ask them to stop fighting.
"Don't worry, everyone here is good people… I think they are… And those women, I understand, work there by choice; we need to respect their decision."
Good people…? I guess they are… I hope so.
"I don't understand anything, Dani."
"I'll explain everything; just be patient."
Please, Grandma's heart, hold on. Everything will be fine. I promise.
•
•
We left the village and went as far as possible to avoid being overheard. I don't want to risk being found out.
We stop under the shade of a tree, and I sigh.
Alright… I've calmed down a bit; my heart's beating more normally now.
What I feel seeing my grandma in front of me again is simply indescribable. Happiness, fear, nervousness, confusion… But what I'm sure of is that right now, what I feel most is happiness.
All my depression, my sadness, my pain… All the negativity I felt is fading from my body.
I saw my grandma again. My dear grandma is with me again. This is what I truly dreamed of, seeing her again. And not only did I see her, but I have her by my side again.
Thank you so much for letting me be happy again, God; I'll always be grateful to you.
"It's safe here; I'll tell you everything… Ugh… Wow, wow… It's hard to explain, but… Ugh… Wait, please, Grandma, I need to do something first."
My grandma is important to me, but I can't disobey God. He forbade me from telling anyone about my mission; I need to ask his permission first.
I pull out my phone and check my calls. God is the only one who's called me, so I should have his call in the history.
Hmm… This simple number must be him.
"This number must be his."
"Whose?"
"God's," I said without hesitation, as I can't lie to my grandma.
I call, and he answers immediately. Wow, wow. Is he spying on me?
"I know what's going on; you're allowed to tell your grandma everything, but only her."
Yes, he's spying on me. It doesn't bother me; it's God.
"Thank you! I'm so grateful!"
"And, Daniel, don't revive any more people from another world; I allowed it this time because it's your grandma. You caused a mess in the soul registry."
"S-sorry. And thank you so much, God! I'm so grateful!"
"And I'll give your grandma two types of magic so she can protect herself. That world is very dangerous. Goodbye, and good luck."
Two types of magic?! My grandma will have magic?! T-that's so weird, but it's also great news! My grandma will be able to defend herself in emergencies! Her chances of survival just went up! Though I don't plan to take her on guild missions. I don't want to put her in danger.
God hangs up, and a white glow surrounds my grandma. Awesome! I wonder what kind of magic she'll have.
But, obviously, my grandma got scared again, as anyone would if their body started glowing out of nowhere.
"Huh?! W-w-what is this, D-Dani?!" she said, scared and nervous.
"Don't worry, Grandma; it's nothing bad."
The glow fades… Perfect, no changes in her.
God didn't warn me about her appearance, so I don't think being young is bad anymore. But just in case, I'll ask Liz's sister about this situation. Better safe than sorry.
"Wow, wow. How do you feel, Grandma? Are you dizzy?"
My grandma grabbed my right hand with both of hers and looked into my eyes, full of fear and very confused, as she doesn't know what happened to her.
"Tell me what's going on, Dani, please!" she said, scared and desperate.
I patted her head to calm her down.
"Grandma, take a deep breath and stop worrying," I said, smiling.
First, I'll calm her down, as the information she's about to hear will be even more shocking.
"Grandma, I'm your Dani, your favorite grandson, though I'm the only one you have. Trust me, there's no need to be scared."
"Dani… Dani, where am I? What are we doing here? I'm supposed to be dead. Why am I alive again? Why am I so young? I'm scared."
"Grandma, please, just breathe and relax. Don't be afraid, please… Listen. God sent me to this world to save it."
Hearing the word "God," my grandma's eyes widened, and her fear lessened, but her confusion grew.
Yes, Grandma, I know, it's hard to believe what I'm saying.
"G-God?"
"Yes, this world is World 1, the world of magic and adventurers. Our world was World 15, the world of technology. That's why this place is so different from our home; we're in a completely different world from ours."
"W-World 1? Dani, what are we doing here? Why would God send you to this place? Why you?"
… I have to tell her the truth.
I can't lie to my grandma. I'll always tell her the truth; I won't hide anything from her.
The truth might make her feel bad or even make her angry with me, but I have to tell her why I was chosen for this mission.
"… Listen, when you died, I was left alone and sold everything valuable I had to pay for your funeral. I did it because I wanted you to have a tomb worthy of the great person you were, Grandma. I know you'll say it was stupid of me, but I don't regret it. You deserved a nice tomb… I tried to move forward on my own, but I didn't achieve anything. I couldn't find a job. Without money, I couldn't survive… I was alone, hungry, depressed… I didn't want to live…"
"Dani… What did you do?" she said with a sad tone.
You know me perfectly, Grandma. Even without me saying it, you know exactly what I'm trying to say.
I sigh and look into her eyes… I have a sad expression on my face, and my tears confirm my mood… I'm disappointed in myself.
"I'm sorry, Grandma; I really tried, but I couldn't take it anymore."
"Dani, you…?"
"I tried to kill myself."
"Kill yourself?!"
My grandma started shaking me, her eyes filling with tears.
I'm sorry, Grandma, please forgive me. But it wasn't your fault; I just… I just didn't want to live anymore.
"Why did you do something so stupid, Dani?!"
"I know, I'm weak-minded; I couldn't handle my situation anymore and tried to kill myself. But… I'm sorry, I really couldn't take it… I was alone, sad… I didn't know what to do with my life… Plus, Sonia, the girl I loved, was sleeping with another guy while she was with me."
"W-what? Sonia? Your girlfriend?"
"Yeah, my ex-girlfriend now… Cris told me, and then I… Well… I couldn't handle the pain, the sadness, the hunger… I couldn't handle living anymore. I went home and tried to hang myself. Please forgive me, Grandma… I'm sorry."
I lower my head so my grandma doesn't see me cry.
"Dani… I…"
"But now I have a mission."
I don't want my grandma to keep crying. I want her to see that my life has improved a lot. I have new friends, magic, I can earn a ton of money easily, I helped the poor… I have a new life that I've been enjoying a lot, and there's still so much for me to discover.
I'm happy again, and now that I have her with me, I'm so much happier.
I lift my head and smile brightly at my grandma.
"When I was about to kill myself, God appeared before me and gave me a purpose in life. He sent me to this world, gave me the power to use magic, and asked me to defeat the demons in this world. A very powerful demon will appear in three or four years and destroy the world. If this world disappears, the others will too. My mission is to stop that demon from succeeding. My mission is to save this world, Grandma!"
My grandma hugged me tightly.
"Incredible, Dani! I'm so proud of you! Even God knows what a great person you are!"
"Thank you, Grandma."
God, thank you for choosing me. I won't let you down. I'll save this world, even if it costs me my life.
If I die, at least I want my grandma to keep living. Now that she's young, she has a lot of life ahead of her.
I'm destined to die, and it's a fate I've already accepted.
"That happened yesterday… A lot of interesting things have happened to me since I arrived in this world, but today was incredible."
I hug her tighter.
"I learned a resurrection spell and brought you back… Though I don't know why you're so young. I guess it's a side effect of the spell."
"Thank you… Though I wish I could've said goodbye to your father."
"Huh?"
I stop hugging her and step back, confused. Did she really say what I heard?
"To my father?! My father, father, father?! In paradise?! Does paradise really exist?! How's my father?! Did you tell him about me?!"
"When I died, I appeared in a big house; your father and my parents were there. We hugged and talked. It was a nice reunion. Then, a woman with wings, a real angel, came into the house and told me that the dead are given the chance to reincarnate whenever they want."
They're given the chance to reincarnate anytime? So when I die, can I live for hundreds of years with my parents and grandma? Wow, wow. My fear of death is fading. It won't be so bad to die for this world if I can be with my family in paradise.
But my mother wasn't with my father? Did they separate in paradise? It's a possibility.
"And my mother wasn't with my father? Did she say anything about me? What did she ask?"
My grandma looked into my eyes for a few seconds and then looked down.
What's wrong? Why does she look so worried? Did my mother reincarnate and not wait for me…? W-well, I can't blame her; waiting must be hard for her. I can't judge her. S-she must've had her reasons.
"She reincarnated, right? What did my father say? Did they fight or something?"
"Dani… I'm sorry. She… She did very bad things when she was alive and became a demon."
…
…
…
"Ugh… This…"
"Dani, I know it's hard to believe, but…"
"My mother… Ugh… My mother…"
"Dani, listen to me."
"My mother…"
Y-yeah, I heard perfectly… My mother… A demon… She's a demon… Demon…
Ugh… Yeah… A demon… Wow, wow.
"Wow, wow. Wow, wow. Wow, wow… A demon… Wow, wow."
"Dani, please, snap out of it."
"A demon… A demon…"
My grandma would never lie to me; she's telling the truth.
"Wow, wow. Wow, wow… A demon?! My mother is a demon?!"
"I'm sorry, but it's the truth. Your father told me, and an angel confirmed it."
"M-my mother… a demon?"
Why? What bad things did she do when she was alive?
My mother… I… I don't know what to think about this.
Mother, why were you like that?
"My mother…"
"Dani, it's best not to think about it anymore; it's not worth it."
"Yeah… Yeah, you're right… I can't change the situation… And what did you do when you got to paradise?"
Mother, I love you, but I won't think about you for now. It hurts that you became a demon, and I don't want the pain to ruin my reunion with my grandma, the woman who raised me like a son.
"Dani…"
My grandma… wiped my tears? Am I crying? Yeah, I'm crying.
My mother is a demon… I'll never meet her… I always dreamed of meeting her, but I have to say goodbye to that dream.
"Don't worry, Grandma; I'll be fine. Please, keep telling me about what you did in paradise."
"Yeah… After talking about everything I needed to with my parents, they said goodbye to me and decided to reincarnate."
I guess they stayed in paradise just to say goodbye to their daughter. What great parents.
Paradise sounds like such a lovely place.
"And my father?"
"Your father and I decided to wait until you died to reincarnate… Well, until a circle appeared under my feet and brought me to this world."
I-I'm sorry, Dad; I'm sorry for taking my grandma without your permission. I know she's your mother, but I also consider her my mother. I'm sorry for being selfish, but I'm keeping her. Wait a few more years, please.
"My father must be sad there alone. God forbade me from resurrecting more people from another world, so I can't bring him back."
I put my hands together to pray.
"God, tell my father to forgive me for what I did; it was a selfish act, but I don't regret it. Tell him…"
Tell him to wait for me a couple of years, please.
"Thank you."
I hope God delivers my message.
"My father is alone now. I hope he doesn't get desperate and decide to reincarnate."
"He's not alone; we could leave our house; there were many houses around us, we were never alone… It was like a big city."
Wow. Wow, wow. There's a real afterlife, huh? Wow… Death doesn't sound so bad anymore.
"Sounds like a great place."
"It was. It's really lovely, and the people were nice."
I guess my grandma was very comfortable there.
… I'm selfish. I brought her back to life without thinking that she was happy in paradise, with my father.
I'm selfish, but what's done is done; there's no turning back.
"Grandma, forgive me; I brought you back to life without thinking that you were happy and comfortable with my father. Please forgive me; I only thought of myself and…"
"Dani…"
My grandma caressed my cheeks with her soft hands.
"I'm happy to be with you again, Dani. There's nothing to forgive. Thank you for bringing me back and giving me the chance to be with you again."
Grandma… You're always so gentle with me.
"Thank you, Grandma."
"Besides, being here let me see a side of you I've never seen. A Dani who commands respect. Fufu. With those men's reaction, I realized they're afraid of you. I'd be worried, but knowing you, I'm more than sure you'd never abuse the power God gave you."
"Thanks… Wow, wow. Well, do you want to stay with me, or do you want to go back? This world is dangerous, and maybe there's a way to undo the spell. Don't you want to go back to my father?"
I'd love for her to stay with me, but that decision isn't mine to make; it's only for my grandma to decide. She has to choose what to do with her life.
"I'll stay with you; this place looks interesting; I always wanted to travel and live adventures around the world. Besides, I'd love to see you grow and become a full man, Dani."
My grandma always wanted to travel the world? Don't worry, Grandma; I'll make sure you fulfill your dream in this world! It won't be the same as fulfilling it in our original world, but a trip is a trip.
"Though these adventures are dangerous, and we could die. But don't worry, Grandma; I'm very powerful, I'll protect you."
"You have a very important mission; if God entrusted you with it, you have to do it. Don't let my presence distract you from your main goal. Do your best, Dani."
"I will!" I said, smiling.
With her by my side, that's all I need to keep going.
Thanks to you, Grandma, my life has become colorful and happier. Thank you for being with me.
"There's still a lot to tell you. You see…"