"Hmm... my head... cough... cough... my throat... what the hell happened?" Atlas woke up lying on a bed, but his throat burned intensely when he tried to speak, making him tremble from the excruciating pain that spread throughout his body.
With his throat in that dire condition, Atlas remained silent and began to look around.
'Where the hell am I?... I'm so confused... How did I get here?'
Atlas felt his body wrapped in soft, warm sheets, and it was such a pleasant sensation that the pain subsided slightly.
With his sense of touch operative again, the young man realized that his hands were firmly holding something very hard, so he turned his gaze downward.
His faithful companion, Astra, was still there, resolutely embedded in his hands.
'Fortunately, I have not lost you, dear friend..." Atlas sighed relievedly and then loosened his grip.
The young man was perplexed because he could not understand where he was and how he had ended up there.
The room could not provide answers, so Atlas got out of bed with the intention of observing the world that lurked beyond the window.
The sun was already high in the sky, and not even the clouds were present.
It looked like a beautiful day.
Lowering his gaze, the young man noticed the towering stone walls and the giant flag that the wind was frantically shaking.
Looking more carefully, Atlas discovered that on the flag was an image of a chalice in the shape of a beautiful dragon's horn.
It was easy to recognize such a whimsical flag. In fact, Atlas immediately knew where it was: 'How is this possible? How did I get to the city of the Inflamed Chalice?'
It was truly inexplicable. Who had brought the young man back?
The young man was even more confused and wanted answers.
Yet, just when Atlas wanted to leave the room, he heard footsteps approaching the room.
*Tok Tok*
"Atlas... I'm coming in!"
A woman's mature voice came from the other side of the door, and the door swung open without giving him time to answer.
The middle-aged woman did not expect an answer because she was convinced that the young man was still unconscious, so she went straight in without waiting, as she had been doing for the past few days.
But when the door opened, and the woman saw the young man standing before her, she gasped in surprise: "AH! Praise be to the Supreme... you are awake!"
Unlike her exaggerated expression, Atlas merely nodded very calmly.
"Mmm... you look better... my husband will surely be pleased." The woman sighed, relieved.
It was difficult and painful for Atlas to speak, but he made an effort anyway: "Who are you?"
"Oh!? How careless of me. After all, we've never met. I'm Elisabeth, the wife of the one you call old Beard."
"Uncle Beard?"
"Hmm... that's right. My husband brought you to our house about a week ago. Initially, we wanted to contact someone, but we let you rest in the guest room since we didn't know anything about you. Sigh... my silly husband was so worried about you... I'll go call him right away."
Elisabeth briefly explained what had happened and left the room without giving the young man time to respond.
'Geez... I have to find a way to reward Uncle Beard for the trouble...'
Atlas was surprised that so much time had passed, but he was more amazed by the couple's generosity. After all, he rarely received so much care from people other than his loved ones.
Left alone, Atlas sat on the bed and found the courage to do what he had been putting off for a long time.
In the last few minutes, memories of that fateful day had slowly resurfaced. Everything Nihilir had said was marked in his mind, and he couldn't wait to find out what his new body could do.
The gifts were very intriguing, but there was something much more important to the young man, so important that his weak body could not stop shaking with happiness.
Ever since he woke up, he could feel that his body was different, which was a great feeling.
Indeed, inside his veins flowed not mere blood but blood filled with primordial power, the Chaos Energy. As a result, his whole body emitted a power he had never felt before.
'Incredible... so this is what all beings in the universe feel... The feeling given by the Chaos Energy flowing through one's body is sensational...'
Even his organs had changed. His lungs were much more robust, and his heart thumped mightily in his chest.
The pain that day had been indescribable, but it had been worth it if this was the result.
In the ensuing minutes, Atlas lost himself in the feeling until the sound of footsteps, followed by hearty laughter, rang out again.
"Hahaha... Young man, you're finally awake! Geez... I thought I had to bury you along with my ancestors..."
Uncle Beard entered the room like a wild bull and warmly embraced Atlas, wrapping his arms around his frail body.
Taken aback by his behavior, Atlas looked at him in shock, wondering: 'What the fuck ... When did we become so... close?'
A few seconds passed, and finally, the grip loosened. Uncle Beard looked briefly at the young man and then sat back with a satisfied expression: "So... how are you? You slept for a week. What on earth did you do to wear yourself out so much?"
Still slightly confused, Atlas looked strangely at the man for a bit longer and only then spoke, omitting most of the story: "I'm fine, thank you. But honestly, I don't remember much. I was traveling north when something hit me hard on the head..."
"Hmm..." Uncle Beard looked pityingly at the young man. Furthermore, his eyes kept falling on Atlas's butt.
Alarmed by the strange look and thinking back to the pair's peculiar attitude, Atlas recoiled slightly and growled: "Hey... Don't get any ideas, I WARN YOU!"
Puzzled by the young man's words, Uncle Beard was dumbfounded for a moment, but then realizing the misunderstanding, he opened his eyes wide in anger: "Shit... you saw my wife. According to you, why would I do such a thing!"