Joshey's eyes snapped open. Sunlight hit him hard. He was gripping the wooden handle of a rake, dirt pressed beneath his fingernails. His body moved on instinct, pulling soil across a narrow patch of farmland.
He blinked rapidly, staring at his arms. They weren't his. The skin was pale — so pale the veins beneath were faintly visible. His fingers were longer, thinner, calloused in different places.
"No, no, no," he muttered, stumbling toward a small puddle at the edge of the farmland. He dropped to his knees, leaning over it.
The reflection staring back was not the man from Lagos. Gone was his dark skin, his close-cut hair, his familiar face. Instead, pale yellow eyes glowed faintly in the rippling water. White strands of hair framed a stranger's face.
Joshey reeled back, clutching at his chest. "This… isn't me."
The hut loomed behind him, crude and unfamiliar. Chickens scurried across the yard, goats bleated nearby. His chest tightened. This wasn't Nigeria. The soil, the air, the faces of the people he glimpsed in the distance—all of it was wrong.
"Where… where am I?" he shouted.
The voice came again, soft but firm inside his mind. *"Mine."*
Joshey froze. "Yours? Then shouldn't you be panicking? Someone just hijacked your body!"
*"Panicking won't solve anything,"* Elias replied, his tone calm, almost weary. *"We'll figure out the rest."*
"You're still breathing, aren't you? That's already something."
Joshey's hands trembled. "Little things? This is not a little thing! I died. I shot myself. I was in Lagos, and now I'm here, in your body."
He tried to explain Lagos, Nigeria, Africa. Elias had never heard of them. *"This is Caligurn,"* he stated. *"A continent."*
Joshey felt the blood drain from his face. The truth pressed in. This wasn't another country. This wasn't Earth.
"…I'm on a different planet," he whispered.
He staggered inside the hut, his chest tight. His voice cracked as he spoke out loud. "This doesn't make sense. I was in Lagos. My life. My work. My home. Then—then I…" He stopped. His hands trembled.
Elias's voice filled the silence. *"Then you what?"*
Joshey sank into a wooden chair, burying his face in his pale hands. "I ended it. Put the gun to my head and pulled the trigger."
A pause. Then a measured reply. *"Why?"*
Joshey laughed bitterly. "Life is such a bore. And now I feel like a stranger in the body of a kid."
A long silence. Then Elias's voice, quiet but sharp: *"More than you think. This is my body you're standing in, remember? Do you really think I gave it up willingly?"*
Joshey froze, breath catching. He hadn't thought about that.
"So… what are you then? Dead? A ghost?"
*"Alive. And not. I'm still here, watching. You've taken my place, but my voice remains. That's my curse."*
Joshey pressed his palms into the table. "So I died… and woke up in someone else's prison."
Elias's tone softened. *"A world where mana shapes life."*
Joshey leaned back. He lifted one pale hand, staring at the veins. He felt… something. A warmth, subtle and strange, thrumming through him like a second heartbeat.
"What… is that?" he whispered.
*"That is mana. The energy that sustains this world."*
Joshey raised his hand higher. Something inside tugged, sharp and immediate—and then, to his shock, the air around his fingers shimmered. A flicker of red-gold light sparked in his palm. It swelled violently, heat bursting outward in a sudden wave. The ceiling above him cracked and splintered with a sharp boom, straw and wood scattering as a section of the roof tore open.
Joshey staggered back, staring wide-eyed at the flames that had danced in his hand. "What the hell—?!"
The fire blinked out, leaving only the smell of scorched straw and the ruined roof.
Elias's voice, for the first time, faltered. *"…That shouldn't be possible."*
"I just—made fire. Out of nothing."
*"You wielded mana. Effortlessly. That shouldn't be possible. Not for you. Not for anyone who just arrived."*
"What do you mean?"
Elias hesitated, his tone dropping with bitterness. *"I know Pyro Mana. I studied it. But when it came to control… I failed. Every attempt burned too hot, or fizzled out. Years of practice, and I remained at the mercy of my own flames."* He paused. *"And you, who just entered this body… you shaped it without even knowing how."*
"So… I can do what you couldn't."
*"More than that. You bypassed years of failure in a single breath."*
The words hung heavy. Joshey clenched his hand. He could already do things its original owner never could.
"Elias… why couldn't you wield mana like this?"
A long pause. *"My body… it's a complete mess. The mana veins inside me are crooked, broken. When I draw in energy, it slips out of rhythm. Years of drills, incantations—and every attempt ended the same. Burnt hands. Failed sparks. Laughter behind my back."*
Joshey's chest tightened. *"...I'm sorry. That sounds—awful."*
He stared at the ragged hole in the ceiling. "Great… first day in another world and I've already redecorated."
Elias's voice came through, tight with panic. *"Redecorated? You blew the roof off! I wasn't even done paying for this house! If anyone sees this, they'll think I can't pay my debts! You know what happens then? Chains. Slavery."*
Joshey froze. "…You're kidding."
*"Does it sound like I'm kidding?!"*
"Alright, alright. I get it. Then we'll find a way to pay. Work, trade—whatever. Problem solved, yeah?"
Elias sighed heavily. *"...You're not wrong. But you don't understand—walking around with my face, not knowing who owes me what… you'll trip up immediately."*
"So what do you suggest?"
*"...I'll have to trust you."*
"Trust me with what?"
*"With my memories,"* Elias said firmly. *"Six years of my life. That way, you'll be able to walk and talk like me."*
"Wait, you can just… dump memories into me? That sounds dangerous."
*"It is,"* Elias admitted. *"But it's more dangerous to do nothing."*
Joshey chuckled weakly. "Figures. My first day and I'm already getting homework."
Before he could say more, a sudden rush slammed into his mind. Heat, sound, color—faces he didn't know, streets he hadn't walked, debts he had never owed. Nights of failure with fire, burns across pale arms, laughter in the background.
Joshey staggered, gripping his head. "H-Hey—! This feels like cramming for six years of exams in one second!"
*"Endure it. If you can't handle this, you won't survive even a day as me."*
Joshey's knees buckled. His vision blurred. He collapsed onto the floorboards with a heavy thud, the world fading to black.
The last thing he heard was Elias's voice, softer now, almost gentle: *"Now you get a broader understanding of who we are."*
***
The world was dark. When he finally stirred, the haze hadn't cleared before a voice pierced through.
"ELIAS!!"
A woman dropped to her knees beside him, her black hair sweeping across his face as she shook him. "Elias! Wake up! Please—don't you dare leave me here after that explosion!"
Joshey groaned, eyes fluttering open. Recognition, not his own, surfaced from the flood of memories. "…Sylvaine?"
Relief washed over her face. "Thank the stars… you're alive."
Joshey pushed himself up, wavering. "Yeah… sorry about the scare. Guess I overdid it."
Sylvaine frowned. "What happened? I heard the blast, and then I find you like this—" her gaze flicked upward to the hole in the roof, "—and that."
Joshey hesitated, then raised his hand. "I… controlled fire. Mana."
Sylvaine stared, utterly still. "No. That's impossible. Elias, you've never managed more than a spark in three years of training."
Joshey smiled faintly. "I know. But this time… it was different." He lifted his palm again. A small flame sparked to life, steady and controlled.
Her eyes widened, shimmering with disbelief. "You… really did it." A shaky laugh slipped out. "I'm… I'm so proud of you, Elias."
Joshey let the flame flicker out. He glanced up at the destroyed roof. "But… yeah. About that. Pretty sure the guild lord's not going to find this as exciting as you did."
Sylvaine crossed her arms. "You think? That roof is going to cost more than you've earned in months. How are you going to fix it?"
Joshey scratched his head, awkward. "Easy. Borrow me a ton of money."
Sylvaine blinked. "…Excuse me?"
Inside, Elias exploded. *"YOU ABSOLUTE FOOL! Don't you dare! She's rich, yes, but I've refused for years—because I refuse to be a burden!"*
Joshey frowned inwardly. "Well, newsflash—we've got a hole in the ceiling."
Sylvaine tilted her head. "…Borrow money? From me? Elias, you've always refused. And now suddenly you—"
Joshey raised his hands. "Look, I just… realized pride doesn't fix holes. I need help. I'm asking you, just this once."
Sylvaine studied him for a long moment. Slowly, she exhaled, shaking her head with a small smile. "You… really have changed." Her expression grew serious. "How much?"
Without hesitation, Joshey said, "Three million florins."
The smile on Sylvaine's face froze. Her eyes narrowed. "…Three million? The house you just damaged is only worth three hundred. Why would you need ten thousand times that amount?"
Joshey waved his hand casually. "Because I don't just want to patch a roof. I need to start a legitimate business. If I invest right, in one year, I can pay you back the full amount."
"One year," Sylvaine repeated, staring.
"One year."
Inside, Elias screamed. *"Three million?! Are you insane?! I struggled to make ends meet with vegetables!"* But his curiosity was piqued. *"...I'll watch. Let's see what you're hiding."*
Sylvaine's eyes lingered on Joshey, searching. She was no ordinary elf—she was the Mana Codex, the strongest of the Elven Court. She noticed something different in his mana, an unfamiliar rhythm.
She didn't press. Instead, she smiled faintly. "You speak like a man with a plan. Fine. We'll do this properly."
"You'll lend me the money?"
"I'll lend you the money," Sylvaine confirmed. "But we'll sign an agreement through the Guild. You're bound by oath and law. No excuses."
"Perfect," Joshey said.
Elias groaned. *"Perfect? You're tying yourself to the Guild in debt!"*
Ignoring him, Joshey allowed Sylvaine to pull him up. "First, we'll stop by the diner. You look half-dead. Food, then the Guild."
Joshey blinked. "Wait, you work at a diner?"
Sylvaine smirked. "What, you thought the strongest mage of the Elven Court just sits around all day? Even I need to pay bills."
Joshey laughed despite himself. "Fair point."
And so, with the sun dipping low, Sylvaine guided him toward the village. To the diner first, then the Guild—where Joshey, armed with Elias's memories and his own reckless ambition, would tie himself to three million florins of borrowed coin.
Unbeknownst to him, both Elias and Sylvaine were already watching closely—one from within, one from without. Both waiting to see just who he truly was.