''DADDY! Wake up!''
A little girl's scream woke him up. The last thing he remembered was falling asleep in the inn.
Archer looked around and found himself in a house back on Earth, his surroundings instantly recognizable as a typical British living room.
When he came to, he surveyed the room. The familiar sight of commonplace items confirmed his unexpected return to his home planet.
A large TV on the wall, sofas opposite it, and a coffee table in the center of the room. There were pictures of a family of three.
He looked closer and recognized that he was from Earth, standing next to Alexa in front of a church, but they both looked older.
He spotted another picture of her holding a baby with fluffy navy blue hair and big violet eyes.
'What the fuck is going on? Are the gods teasing me?' Archer thought to himself.
That's when he looked at the little girl standing before him with a beaming smile on her face.
The little girl was four years old with navy blue hair tied in a ponytail. She had a beautiful heart-shaped face with bright violet eyes.
Her smile revealed two small dimples on her chubby cheeks. Archer noticed this little girl was a mix of him and Alexa.
When he came to this conclusion, it soured his mood even more than it already was until the girl spoke again. ''Daddy, mama said we could visit the park, so please get ready!''
She looked at him with adorable puppy dog eyes, and he couldn't refuse her when she looked at him like that.
As Archer stood up, the scene underwent a sudden shift. Now, he walked down the road with Alexa and the little girl.
However, when he turned to Alexa in response to her talking, he was met with a disturbing sight: blood pouring out of her mouth.
His heart sank with dread, and panic seized him as he rushed towards her. Yet, as soon as he reached her, the scene shifted again.
In the blink of an eye, the surroundings transformed again, and Archer now found himself in a chilling scenario.
The scene shifted to Noah, wearing a wild smile, stabbing him while rambling on with an unsettling monologue. 'Mine, Mine, Mine, Mine, Mine, Mine.''
Archer woke up covered in sweat and panicking, looking around the small room he fell asleep in.
Realizing it was just a dream, he angrily spoke to himself. ''Fucking dreaming again, why is this happening?''
He got out of bed before stretching and heard his bones popping, which made him feel better. After that, he cast Cleanse on himself to feel fresh.
That's when he pulled out his clothes and put them on after cleaning them. He then grabbed the dirty dishes from last night while heading downstairs.
The lingering effects of the dream weighed on Archer more than he initially realized. Thoughts of the hunt occupied his mind as he approached the counter.
To his surprise, an older woman stood behind it instead of the man from the night before.
"You here for breakfast, boy?" she inquired, her tone carrying a mix of familiarity and curiosity as she took the dishes he had.
Archer's only reaction was a silent stare followed by a nod as he processed the older woman's question.
Yet, as he stood there, a sudden shout pierced his mind. "DADDY!"
The familiar call annoyed him and caused him to get angry. Without a word, he walked out of the inn and approached the guild to take a quest.
His thoughts were haunted by the echoing voice of the little girl from the dream, her calls continuing to resonate in his mind as he navigated the city streets.
'DADDY.'
'DADDY.'
'DADDY.'
''FUCK OFF!!''
Archer screamed out, ignoring all the shocked looks he was getting, he continued walking.
He reached the guild in ten minutes. When he entered, he headed straight to the counter to get his coins from last night.
Seeing a large queue, he waited behind a group of adventurers as they waited. That's when his stomach rumbled. 'I'll just eat the hearts of the beasts I hunt when I'm done here.'
Half an hour later, he was ready to speak to the woman. Rather than looking at him, she looked at some paperwork. ''Hello, how can I help you?''
Archer looked at the woman. ''Vaella said I could collect my coins this morning.''
Her eyes widened as she looked up from her paperwork to look at him. She put the papers down and introduced herself. ''I'm Lucia. It's nice to meet you, Archer. Vaella told me about you last night after you guys left.''
He nodded along before changing the subject. ''Can I have my coins? I want to take a quest.''
She nodded before getting up from her seat and entering a room behind her while telling him to wait a minute.
Five minutes later, she returned with a coin pouch, which she gave to Archer and handed him the coins.
''Here is your payment of eight gold coins. Vaella said some bodies were in perfect condition, so you earned extra.''
He was happy with his earnings. ''Thank you, I'm going to take a quest now.''
Archer walked up to the quest board, looking for an E-ranked quest. He found one shortly after.
[Wolf hunt]
[Cull the forest wolf population because they are running amok outside our town]
[Oxfair town, three days East of Vassia city]
[Two gold]
He liked this quest, so he started talking to himself. ''I'll take this one. The wolves give me one hundred and fifty experience per kill, so it's worth it for now.''
Archer took the paper to the same receptionist and told her he wanted to take this quest.
The woman looked at him with a concerned look. ''Are you sure you want to take this? It's dangerous.''
He smiled at her warning. ''It's fine. I need to train anyway. They will be ideal partners for me. Anyway, can you tell me where I can buy spellbooks?''
Lucia shook her head, not understanding his reason, but gave him the answer. ''Exit the guild, turn left, and you'll find an alchemist shop about a ten-minute walk from here. When you get there, take a right, and you'll see the shop.''
''Thank you. Now, could the guild deliver a letter for me, please?'' He asked.
She nodded and asked if he needed paper and a pen. Archer took the stuff and wrote a quick letter to Ella, telling her he would visit her in a week or two.
He will sneak onto the balcony connected to her room, lately. He has been thinking about the half-elf maid a lot lately.
Once Archer finished the letter, he handed it to Lucia before walking out. He followed the woman's directions.
Fifteen minutes later, he found the alchemist store, and across from that was a shop called Witch Way Out spell books. 'What a funny name.'
As Archer approached the store, he stepped inside, immediately taking note of its pristine condition.
The interior was impeccably clean, and numerous bookshelves lined the walls, creating an atmosphere of order and intellectual richness.
Archer started looking for any spells he liked. Walking up to the shelf, he starts reading the names of the books. 'Sunbeam, Wind Push, Fire Missile, High Healing, Water Bullet'
After thinking, he chose a Fire Missile and looked at the other shelves. ''What is a handsome little boy like you doing in a shop like this?''
Startled by the unexpected voice, Archer jumped, swiftly turning around to find an old woman standing in a doorway beside the shelf he had been perusing.
"Just looking for spells," he explained, trying to shake off the initial surprise.
Turning back to look at the remaining books. 'Eldritch Blast, Plasma Shot, and Wind Arrow.'
The old woman watched as he browsed through her spell book collection. That's when Archer asked her a question. ''Are spell books reusable?''
She looked at him like he was an idiot. ''Of course, they are written to be passed on to the younger generation by previous mages from Vassia city and the surrounding areas, and of course, they are bought and sold across the Empire.''
She took a breath for a second before speaking again. ''I'm Gallaka, owner of Witch Way Out. How can I help you?''
Archer nodded. ''Archer, how much for these three books?''
He picked Plasma Shot, Eldritch Blast, and Fire Missile, placing them on the counter.
Gallaka walked over to the counter and looked at the books before speaking. ''Three gold for Eldritch Blast and Plasma Shot, and two for Fire Missile, so eight gold coins altogether.''
Archer took out the eight gold coins and gave them to her, then picked up the books and started reading them on the spot.
One hour later, he placed the last book down and checked the notifications he had just received.
[Eldritch Blast Learned]
[Plasma Shot Learned]
[Fire Missile Learned]
Archer got excited, seeing that he had learned all three attack spells in an hour. But he forgot where he was as he started laughing. ''Hahahahaha.''
Gallaka watched him and then spoke up with concern in her voice. ''Why are you laughing? You seem crazy, boy.''
He looked at her with narrowed eyes, but she snapped. ''Don't look at me like that. You're the one laughing at nothing.''
Ignoring her previous statement, he asked if she wanted to buy the books. ''Want to buy them back for five gold?''
She cocked her eyebrows and smiled before agreeing. ''I will, young man, take your gold back.''
Gallaka slid five gold coins back to him as she pocketed the rest.
''See you later.'' He left the store to start his quest.