The moment Sopatra regained consciousness, a large truck whizzed past him, billowing his clothes, and it was when he was pulled aside by several concerned pedestrians that he noticed he was dangerously close to being hit by a truck.
Wait... A truck?!
His head snapped towards the direction of the leaving truck, and to his surprise, it was the exact same truck that hit him just before he regained consciousness in Elysia!
He was jolted out of his daze by a middle-aged man,
"You alright, son?"
He nodded in gratitude, "Yes, I am. Thank you."
"Haha, no problem, just make sure to watch the road next time. You must have been scared shitless."
With a nod, he picked up his fallen black briefcase and continued on the familiar path home, the road now both familiar and unfamiliar.
He was genuinely surprised that the Goddess had transferred him to the moment just before he got hit. Time had not moved at all, and he was expecting to wake up in a hospital or be declared a missing person.
But one thing bothered him—where was the Demon Queen? She clearly wasn't transported to the same scene as him, as that would cause quite a commotion. Nevertheless, it was highly likely she was close by.
With a tap of his soles, a wave of Mana expanded circularly around him, though he made sure to suppress it. Ordinary humans weren't sensitive to Mana, but they could feel the aftereffects. He used the skill [Mana Sense] because he was already familiar with Seraphina's Mana Signature, and since the only one beside him in this ordinary world who had powers was the Demon Queen.
The feedback he got was not what he expected. Yes, his [Mana Sense] detected a Mana Signature, but it wasn't Seraphina's; it was a completely unfamiliar Signature, one that was native to this world.
His eyes widened in surprise. So there were supernaturals on Earth too? It was shocking, to say the least.
Driven by curiosity, he decided to approach the unfamiliar Signature. Within a few minutes, the trail led him to a quaint cafe, its warm lights spilling onto the sidewalk. Parked in the driveway was a red, worn-down truck without a brand logo.
It was the truck that sent him to Elysia! This was surely not a coincidence.
Keeping his emotions in check, he entered the cozy cafe. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee filled the air, and soft jazz tunes played in the background. The dimly lit space was adorned with rustic wooden furniture, giving it a comforting ambiance.
He stopped at a table, precisely where the detected Unfamiliar Signature was. It was a man in his early forties, with dirty blonde hair tied in a ponytail and a stubble on his chin. He had the typical "dad bod," and on the table before him was a croissant and a cup of hot chocolate.
In a daze, Sopatra remembered the fateful day he was hit. On that day, today actually, he had been stressed out, listening to calming music with headphones and rushing home with a lot of work undone. It was the moment he crossed the road that the truck's headlights flashed dangerously close. Just before impact, the truck driver gave him a friendly wave.
And it was the same person sitting before him.
Unfazed by Sopatra's arrival, the man gestured to the seat opposite.
"C'mon, have a seat. I'm certain you have a lot of questions."
Placing his briefcase on the floor, he was presented a menu by the truck driver, who called out to the waiter.
"Order whatever you want; it's on me. The name's Smith, by the way."
Sopatra ordered black coffee without looking at the menu.
Cleaning his palm on his shirt, he extended it for a handshake, but Sopatra gazed at him in silence.
Retracting his hand with an awkward cough, he said, "I also know I'm being shameless. I'm certain you resent me for what I did."
Sopatra shook his head, "No, I don't."
"Ah? Then why—"
"Your palm is greasy."
"Oh." Smith nodded in understanding, and at that moment, the waitress came to their table and placed the cup of coffee before Sopatra, who took a long, uninterrupted sip.
Six years without coffee was hell, he thought. It's great to be back.
Smith reclined in his chair, and they continued their conversation in a cozy cafe tucked away from the hustle of the city. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafted through the air as patrons chatted softly at nearby tables.
"As I said before, I'm Smith, and I'm the one who initiated your Isekai."
"Isekai?" Sopatra's brow furrowed at the unfamiliar term.
"You don't know what Isekai means? Do you live under a rock?" Smith recoiled in astonishment.
Sopatra seemed stumped at his question, genuinely confused. "Is it something I'm supposed to know?"
"No, It was just a bit unexpected. Let's just say I was the proxy for your otherworld summoning."
"So you're like the Goddess's liaison on Earth."
Smith chuckled at his reference and said, "That works too."
At this point, he had finished the croissant, and with a serious expression, he licked each finger clean, crossing his arms when he was done.
He started, "As you may have guessed, this world indeed has supernatural beings in existence, except that it's hidden from the eyes of the general public. This global community is called the Underside."
Sopatra leaned forward, motioning for him to continue. A subtle concern about Seraphina lingered in the back of his mind.
Smith gave a toothy grin, "Of course, with the power you wield, I expect you to turn the place upside down."
Sopatra shook his head in denial, "I plan to live an ordinary life; I've left the excitement in Elysia."
But he received a funny look in return.
"If you don't look for trouble, it'll come looking for you. That's the fate of a Hero, Sopatra. So listen, what I'm about to tell you is essential," he drew closer and said "just to be safe," snapping his fingers. Immediately, it was as though their table had become isolated from the rest of the world.
To ordinary senses, it might have been no different, but with his transcendent perception, Sopatra discovered they'd been seamlessly transported to an overlapping dimension.
"First of all, you may have noticed it, but there's no Mana in this world at all, and that's because the Fundamental Laws of Earth are vastly different from that of Elysia. So the moment you expend your Mana, the only form of energy you'll be able to use is your life force, which, in itself, is very dangerous."
Sopatra frowned at this new information. He had never actually thought of using his powers again the moment he left Elysia, so it made no difference to him. Notwithstanding, he kept it to himself and let Smith continue.
Smith misunderstood the reason for his frown and immediately said, "You don't have to worry. Earth also has an alternative you can use; Spiritual Energy."
"Spiritual Energy?" Though he hadn't changed his decision of living an ordinary life, Sopatra couldn't deny that he was intrigued by the existence of something similar in purpose to Mana, yet different in essence.
Smith continued explaining for a while, then suddenly asked, "Aren't you going to ask about the Demon Queen?" Sopatra raised an eyebrow. "I was waiting for you to bring it up instead."
Besides, he didn't think the Demon Queen was in any form of danger. If she was, Smith wouldn't have been as laid back as he was, and he was assured she wouldn't harm any innocent—no, scratch that, she wouldn't attack first.
Then Smith continued his explanation, and Sopatra's perspective was broadened with each word.
According to Smith, the way to access spiritual energy was similar yet different from the Awakening process he went through back in Elysia.
Unlike in Elysia, where an Awakening stone stimulated the formation of the Mana core, the organ meant to access Spiritual Energy already existed in the body: the pineal gland, commonly known as the "third eye." However, in ordinary people, it remained dormant until activated.
Just as Smith was about to delve into awakening the pineal gland, he was interrupted by Sopatra.
"You don't need to tell me how to activate it."
"Oh! As expected of the Hero. You want to start from scratch and don't want a biased perspective."
Sopatra sighed inwardly. It was simply because he knew he would be tempted to try and awaken his "third eye." And doing so would set a lot of things in motion, including possible contact with Earth's supernaturals.
What Smith didn't mention was that awakening the "third eye" was just one way of accessing Spiritual Energy. People who awakened the third eye were the rarest of supernaturals. It was the method with the least danger and the most stable growth. Besides, with the Hero's talent, there was no need for him to go the extra mile when he could simply awaken his third eye.