The hallway had no end, Kei had been walking through it for so long that he no longer remembered where he started.
The walls on both sides continuously twisted, sometimes bulging like a chest, sometimes shrinking into a narrow gap just enough for a person to squeeze through.
Kei didn’t know where he was going.
Footsteps sounded from all directions. Sometimes it sounds like the sound of soldiers’ iron boots. Sometimes it sounds like claws scratching on stone.
Kei didn’t bother turning around to look behind him. There was nothing behind him, only a distorted space opening its mouth as if it wanted to swallow everything.
Kei’s hand trembled. Light blue rays of light crept through the fingers and then extinguished.
His magic power is exhausted.
Even if he was a legendary magician of SSS rank who had defeated the demon king, protecting himself and moving inside this space tunnel for several days in a row still drained all of his magic power.
Especially when he hadn’t even recovered a bit of his magic power yet
"Just... some more steps..."
Kei’s own voice echoed, distorted and unfamiliar.
He continued walking, but the moment his feet touched down in space, the ground beneath Kei’s feet disappeared.
Kei fell straight down.
The wind whipped at his face, the smell of metal, damp earth and a strong stench mixed together rushed into Kei’s nose.
He tried to chant the spell, but only a hoarse sound came out of his throat, no more magical power could be summoned by Kei. His body slammed down onto a pile of soft stuff.
Plastic bags burst underneath. A metal box rolled over Kei’s shoulder, making a sharp clanking sound.
He lay still, his dark eyes looking up at the gray sky above, cold raindrops hitting his pale face.
There were no more twisted space corridors, no more footsteps and the clanging echoes of armor in my ears.
There were only buildings so tall that it made the neck hurt, glowing objects running on the unfamiliar gray road, and a shrill siren somewhere over the sound of falling rain.
Kei raised his hand to cover her eyes.
"Where... is this?"
"You asked me?"
An old voice rang out next to him, causing Kei to sit up from the pile of trash in surprise.
An old woman was standing in front of a pile of trash, holding a worn red umbrella. She looked at him from head to toe, neither screaming nor running away.
She just calmly frowned.
"Since when do people throw away even the people who live here?"
Kei looked at her.
In her hand was a small paper bag with bread and a few eggs inside. The smell of food made his stomach ache. Kei now remembered that it had been a long time since he had anything in his stomach.
The old lady realized that.
"Are you hungry?"
She smiled and asked.
Kei was silent.
"There’s no need to be afraid. If you’re a bad guy, I’ll call the police."
"Police?"
"Okay, can you stand up?"
Kei tried to prop himself up. His legs immediately buckled. The old woman quickly gave him an umbrella to lean on, then grabbed his wrist with her thin but strong hand.
A weak stream of magic power unconsciously overflowed and gently pushed her hand away.
The old lady stopped, Kei also noticed. He immediately withdrew his hand, his eyes became alert and stared at her.
But she just looked at him for a moment and said:
"You’re freezing. Let’s go to my house first, it’s not far from here."
Her house is located in a small alley, not far from the landfill. It’s old, cramped, and smells of Chinese medicine, but to Kei, it’s not a bad place at all.
She gave him a set of clean clothes, put a bowl of hot porridge on the table and sat opposite him.
Kei ate very slowly at first. After that, he almost swallowed the entire bowl.
"Eat slowly, no one will take it from you."
That simple statement made Kei’s hand stop.
No one takes it from you.
It had been a long time since anyone had spoken to him like that, in such a gentle way, to his loved ones, the people he had lost so long ago.
The old lady didn’t ask right away, waiting until Kei put the bowl down before pouring him a cup of warm water.
"What’s your name?"
"Yes. It’s Kei."
"Kei... Where is your last name?"
The old lady curiously tilted her head to look at Kei and asked.
Kei looked down at the water in the cup.
"I do not have it."
"What about your house? Where are your parents?"
She continued to ask calmly.
"I don’t have a home anymore."
Kei tightened his grip on the glass of water, a flash of red fire and a scream flashed through his head. He closed his eyes then quickly opened them calmly.
"My parents are also dead."
The old lady did not ask further.
Outside the window, neon lights pop up in the rain. On the large screen in the opposite building, an image of a group of hunters standing in front of the Dungeon gate appeared. Below are lines that Kei cannot read.
The old lady saw him staring intently at the images on TV, she smiled and asked:
"Have you never seen television?"
Kei pursed his lips, then he pointed towards the people who were either shooting fire, or waving their hands to create thunder from their hands in the TV to destroy monsters and asked:
"Grandma, who are those people?"
"We usually call those people hunters. They enter the Dungeon to fight monsters and make money. This city and we can continue to live safely thanks to them."
Kei looked at the glowing gate on the screen. The familiar feeling made the little magic power in his body tremble slightly.
Dungeon.
In his world, such gates also appeared. But this place has really strange items and giant buildings. Another world, where magic is unknown if it is the strange energy used by those hunters, and humans seem to have learned to live with monsters.
"Where do you come from?" the old lady asked.
Kei looked at her.
"I don’t need you to answer if you don’t want to."
Kei was silent for a long time.
Then he told this strange old lady many things.
Tells about a world with magic. About the team of hero Daniel. About the saint Luna and the archer Aliya. About the war with the demon king Anoa.
About the space corridor that swallowed him after a battle with the demon king and being betrayed by his friends who had fought with him for many years.
The old lady listened from beginning to end, occasionally only saying "um", perhaps this was the understanding and listening of an old person.
When Kei finished, she didn’t say he was crazy, but just put more food in his bowl.
"So you got lost?"
"Maybe so."
Kei replied.
"Then stay here, until you find your way back."
Kei raised her head and stared at the old lady.
"Aren’t you afraid of me? I told you I’m a magician from another world?"
"I have lived to this age. An exhausted child is much scarier than a magician from another world."
"I’m not a child."
"Yes. Then adults, please eat more porridge."
The old lady giggled and scooped me two more large spoons of porridge.
For the first time in many days, Kei didn’t know how to respond to this old lady’s enthusiasm and warmth.
In the following days, the old lady taught Kei everything one by one. How to use the phone, how to take the train, how to use the currency of this world. And also how to bow to neighbors and not stare at advertising screens on the street.
Kei absorbed it so quickly that the old lady was both surprised and amused.
It’s just a joke that he can’t learn, a beautiful person like that seems to have lost her smile.
One morning, she placed a small card in front of him.
"What is this?" Kei asked.
"That’s your new identity."
Kei looked at the paper with his photo. A full name is neatly printed below: Kim Kei.
"You let me take your last name?"
"Should I just let you use that strange name Kei? In the future you still have to work, rent a house, buy things. In this world, if you want to live like a normal person, you need to have an identity."
Kei touched his fingertip to the words Kim Kei.
Kim Kei...
A name that did not belong to the old world, but was also the first thing in the new world that was given to him without any conditions, just with the love of an old woman he met for the first time.
"Thank you."
Mrs. Kim turned away, pretending to be busy pouring tea.
"If you know how to be grateful, remember to help me clean the house and sell things in the future."
"Yes."
Kei nodded obediently.
Outside the door, a car horn sounded loudly. On the big screen in the building at the opposite intersection was broadcasting news about the explosion of gates, a black Dungeon gate was opening up in the air right in the heart of the city.
Kei looked at it for a long time.
In this place, he had no teammates, no identity, and didn’t know if he could still return.
But now he has a small house, a new name and someone will ask if he has eaten enough.
Kei grabbed the card tightly, holding it carefully in the palm of his hand.
He didn’t know what this world would bring, he only knew, from today, magician Kei would continue to live under the name Kim Kei.