Chapter two: Great reception
From Daniel's Perspective
The light was so blinding that my eyes shut instinctively—as if the brightness itself was too intense for my body to endure. A strange sensation washed over me, something entirely unfamiliar, unlike anything I'd ever experienced.
(What's happening? My body... it doesn't feel like it used to. Am I dreaming? Or… have I been transported somewhere else?)
I tried to open my eyes slowly, cautiously—but something felt off. There was this odd sensation, like I wasn't in the same place I'd been just moments ago.
Out of the deep darkness, faint lights began to gather at a single point, flickering like tiny stars carving a path through the void. Then, a screen appeared...
One that looked eerily familiar, like the kind you'd see in a video game. It was bordered by a faint, pulsating frame, with words glowing on it as if they were alive.
> "Transferring to the new world..."
A strange voice echoed in my head—not male or female, just a quiet resonance that vibrated through my skull more than it reached my ears.
> [Scanning body...]
[Scanning mind...]
[Assessing adaptability...]
[Placing the Heart of Ornn alongside the host's heart...]
[Uploading world language into host memory...]
Symbols began to swirl across the screen—changing, flickering, vanishing—like they were writing something only to erase it before it could be read. Then, suddenly, they vanished, replaced by a single bright line of text in the center:
> ["Welcome to {Throliem}"]
With the final flash of light, I felt my body being pulled. Not just drawn in—but reshaped, like every particle of me was being rebuilt.
When I finally opened my eyes, I wasn't in my bed. In fact, I wasn't anywhere familiar. I was lying flat on the ground... but not any ground I knew. I looked around.
"The sun hung high overhead, its heat sharp and unforgiving — had to be close to noon."
The place was vast—unnaturally so. A circular arena stretching out farther than I could see.
And surrounding me... was a massive crowd. Maybe a thousand people, maybe more. All different ages—men, women, young, old—every one of them stunned, glancing around, whispering, staring like they'd all just woken from the same collective dream.
Some were holding blades—swords, knives. Others gripped guns and pistols. A few stood empty-handed, armed only with confusion.
I spotted a guy around my age. An older man nearby was staring up at the sky in awe, like he was seeing something for the very first time. Everyone looked completely lost everyone- Except for one asshole.
He was standing right in front of me… hugging the air, kissing it.
Before I could even sit up, people began collapsing—one after another—falling into a deep, effortless sleep.
Something heavy tugged at my eyelids. Drowsiness hit me like a wave, sudden and merciless. I tried to fight it, tried to stand—
But I couldn't.
(No... not...)
And just like that, I blacked out, unable to even lift my head.
---
Daniel awoke to a strange, unpleasant sensation—constant, rhythmic shaking beneath him, like the ground itself was moving.
(What is this?)
He opened his eyes slowly. His head was heavy, his mind clouded. Everything was blurry for a few seconds before the world came into focus.
He realized his hands and feet were bound, and worse, a tight cloth gag covered his mouth, making it impossible to speak or even cry out. His breathing quickened, but he forced himself to stay calm, trying to make sense of his surroundings.
He looked around and saw others—men and women—bound just like him. Some were slumped in the corners of what looked like a large wooden cart, others leaned on each other, either unconscious or too weak to move. Everyone was gagged and tied down, as if they were all prisoners in this dim, enclosed space.
(Where am I? What is this?)
Daniel focused on the vibrations and the low creaking sound beneath him. Then it clicked—the ground wasn't moving. They were inside a large, covered wooden cart, roughly ten feet long and six feet wide, rumbling across uneven terrain. That explained the endless shaking.
Time passed before others began to stir, one by one. Their faces were pale, drawn tight with fear and confusion. Panic set into their eyes as they realized their situation—just as Daniel had a few moments before.
Then, the cart jolted to a stop. A soft wooden thud echoed, followed by the creak of a door opening at the rear.
A man stepped in.
He was massive—broad-shouldered and muscled, exuding raw strength. His clothes were tattered, but every movement he made spoke of confidence and control. His face was hard, carved with lines that warned of violence.
The man gave a sarcastic smile and said in a voice filled with mockery and amusement:
"Looks like everyone's awake… excellent."
At that moment, some of the men inside the cart began trying to free themselves, the faint clinking of chains rising as they moved restlessly in their spots. But their attempts were hopeless against the tight restraints.
The man laughed with a hollow sound, then said in a falsely confident tone:
"Don't be afraid… we won't treat you badly. After all, you're our precious cargo."
He paused for a moment, then added with sharper sarcasm:
"But I have no idea how you'll be treated after you're sold! Hahaha!"
He let out a loud laugh that sent chills down everyone's spine. His last words struck like a cruel blow, confirming what everyone feared—
They had been captured by slavers.
Panic spread through the cart like wildfire. Faces twisted in fear and disgust. Some lowered their heads, others tried to stay composed—but it was useless.
Suddenly, as the man continued laughing, he walked up to one of the prisoners sitting near the door and, without warning, undid all his restraints at once.
The man didn't realize what was happening at first, but instinct took over quickly. He moved his right hand and struck the captor's face with a powerful blow. The sound of the slap echoed loudly, sharp and clear, and everyone heard it.
But what happened next was even stranger.
The man who delivered the hit suddenly recoiled, clutching his right hand and screaming in pain:
"AAAHH… AHH… AAAHHH!"
The muscular man laughed again, this time genuinely, until tears formed in his eyes. He wiped one away and said:
"I expected that from you. You didn't disappoint."
At that moment, another man entered from outside. He looked more disciplined—but he was clearly furious. He shouted at the muscular man:
"Damn you! Didn't I tell you not to damage the goods?!"
The first man replied coolly:
"He attacked me. Got what he deserved."
But the second man had seen enough to understand what really happened. He snapped angrily:
"Whether he attacked you or not—his hand is broken now! That's going to lower his value! His price is coming out of your share!"
He left angrily, muttering incomprehensible words. The muscular man stared after him in frustration, then muttered through clenched teeth:
"Damn scheming bastard…"
Then he turned to the rest of the people in the cart and said loudly, with a clear threat:
"Anyone else tries anything… and I'll kill them on the spot!"
At that moment, Daniel couldn't hold back his silent sarcasm. He chuckled inwardly, thinking,
(What an impressive threat… after all that just happened in front of us?)
As the wagon door creaked open again and people were pulled out one by one, Daniel's eyes instinctively shot upward. The sky was just beginning to brighten — the faint glow of a new dawn stretching across the horizon. (Had it really been a whole day?) The thought came without effort, his mind automatically piecing it together.
He glanced around and quickly took in the scene: a large number of captors stationed outside, divided into organized groups, each one handling prisoners from their assigned wagon. Daniel counted five wagons total, including the one he'd just been dragged from
The captors looked like they belonged to an organized gang—their clothing was similar, their swords and armor were ready, and their expressions showed no mercy.
As for the prisoners being taken out, they were from different backgrounds. Some wore modern clothing that reminded Daniel of his previous world, while others wore outfits clearly belonging to this strange world he found himself in. The contrast was stark—clothing alone made the difference obvious.
(What's going to happen to us now?) Daniel wondered to himself, his heart pounding with sharp anxiety, his mind struggling to grasp the scale of the disaster he had fallen into.