I studied the man before me. On the surface, Daniel Walker didn't look like much. Pale-skinned, of average height, with short black hair and blue eyes. He wore a tailored gray suit that highlighted his physique. While he wasn't as buff as Logan, he had more muscle than me. Nor was he handsome. In fact, some would call him ugly. However, his sharp and striking features left quite the impression.
What set Guildmaster Walker apart was his towering presence. If he were a mountain, then Logan and I would be mere molehills in comparison. The world seemed to bend to the Guildmaster's will even though he just stood there, doing nothing. No one would mistake him for a regular human, even though his surface appearance seemed like nothing special.
This was all because Guildmaster Walker was one of the few Ex-rank hunters in the world. A Seventh Ranked Awakened like Teacher, though he was a wizard rather than a martial artist.
The Guildmaster had reached a higher state of being and achieved immortality. When he made a move, it affected entire nations. What impressed me most of all was that he achieved it within the span of two decades. Unlike Teacher, Guildmaster Walker was a native of Earth and one of the first hunters.
He was also why the Vanguard Guild was one of the most powerful hunter guilds on Earth, with influence that extended all over the globe. In many ways, Guildmaster Walker was the Vanguard Guild. Without him, it wouldn't have reached its current position.
Guildmaster Walker was also the reason why the Vanguard Guild had so many S-ranked hunters. Only someone like him could wrangle our particular band of chuckle fucks.
As far as I knew, Guildmaster Walker was the only Seventh Ranked Awakened who operated in public. The rest remained hidden, moving in the shadows. They only revealed themselves when necessary, or to fulfill their own inscrutable goals.
"Well?" Guildmaster Walker said, raising an eyebrow at us. "I asked you both a question."
Logan and I stood there, feeling like a pair of children being scolded by the school principal. It didn't help that I was dressed in a simple hospital gown.
"I asked Logan to take me to see Alysha, Guildmaster," I said, taking the blame.
Guildmaster Walker gave me his full attention. It hit me like an almost physical weight. Needless to say, this heightened both my nervousness and embarrassment.
"You wanted to wander about, looking like that?" he asked. "I refuse to believe that. If it were anyone else, yes. You? Not a chance."
I flinched.
"It's my fault, Guildmaster," Logan said. "I'm the one who wanted to go out and find Alysha with Brandon."
Guildmaster Walker turned his attention to Logan. My teammate swallowed. While Logan towered over the Guildmaster when it came to physical height, that meant nothing.
"I see," Guildmaster Walker said. "And why did you carry Brandon around while he was half-naked?"
"I thought it would be funny."
Guildmaster Walker sighed.
"Next time you feel the urge to embarrass Brandon, take a moment to think it through first. There is a time and place for everything. It's all fun and games, until someone takes a picture and posts it online. You're free to roughhouse and play around as much as you want, as long as you don't tarnish the guild's name in the process. Is that understood?"
Logan and I nodded.
"Yes, Guildmaster," we said in unison.
"Good," Guildmaster Walker said with a nod. "Now leave, Logan. I need to speak with Brandon alone."
Logan nodded and gave me a lingering look, before he left the room. Once he was gone, Guildmaster Walker examined me.
"You look like you're ready to collapse," he said.
I gave him a strained smile.
"That's because I am."
It took everything I had to remain standing, and I was nearing the end of my stamina. The only reason why I hadn't collapsed yet was because I didn't want to embarrass myself further in front of the Guildmaster.
"Let's put you back to bed."
Guildmaster Walker waved his hand. The ground beneath me moved and shifted, forming a hand. That hand picked me up and carried me to the bed, before placing me down. The Guildmaster spoke no incantations and formed no mudras, yet the world still moved according to his will.
"Thank you."
Guildmaster Walker nodded, before he grabbed a seat and placed it next to my bed, before sitting down. I took a moment to get comfortable.
"I'm sorry for visiting so late," he said. "I would've arrived when I first heard you were awake, but some pests decided to annoy me."
I shook my head.
"It's fine," I said. "I know how busy you are."
Guildmaster Walker snorted.
"That excuses nothing," he said. "At least, not when it comes to one of my finest hunters." He studied me with a critical eye. "How do you feel?"
"Terrible, but I'm on the mend."
Guildmaster Walker nodded, before he looked at my chest.
"I see that you've acquired a new friend," he said.
I blinked at him in surprise. He could sense Aurora? Then again, I didn't know why I was surprised, considering his level.
"Yes," I said. "A lot has changed since we fought that Demon Lord and I fell into a coma."
Guildmaster Walker nodded.
"Tell me all about it."
So I did. Like with my teammates, I told the Guildmaster everything. Well, all the important parts at least. My transmigration back to Lumina, finding about the First Timeline, the invasion by the Infernal Lands, and so on. The entire time, Guildmaster Walker wore an inscrutable expression on his face.
"Fascinating," he said when I finished. "I never knew something like that was possible. You're quite the unique existence, Brandon."
Aurora poked her head out of my chest.
"His name is Gabriel," she said, before retreating back.
Guildmaster Walker's eyes lit up with amusement.
"I see you've also found yourself an interesting familiar," he said. "Still, she makes a good point. Do you prefer to be called Gabriel or Brandon?"
I opened my mouth to answer, but closed it a moment later.
"I want to say it doesn't matter, but it does," I said. "At this point, I'm more Gabriel than Brandon. I don't see that changing any time soon, if at all."
Guildmaster Walker nodded.
"Then Gabriel it is," he said. "Now, I came here to check up on you. I already talked with your doctor, so you don't have to worry about that part. I'm more concerned about your plans for the future. What are you going to do from here on out? I already have a rough idea, but I want to hear it from you."
I took a moment before responding.
"I want to return to Lumina," I said. "I know I sound ungrateful, especially after everything you and my teammates have done for me, but Lumina is my home. However, I don't want to abandon my life and my loved ones here on Earth. I want to have it all, as greedy as that makes me."
"Nothing wrong with that," Guildmaster Walker said. "A young man such as yourself should be ambitious." He paused. "Though it will be difficult. You searched for a way to return to Lumina for years, but found nothing. Even though you may be able to travel there as a soul, that doesn't mean physical transmigration is possible, at least for you. It's clear that there is something going on with your home realm."
I frowned and nodded.
"I think I know the reason why," I said. "Or at least part of it."
This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Guildmaster Walker raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? Do tell."
I proceeded to tell him about my encounter with Blood Demon, back in Icefall City. According to Blood Demon, it was almost impossible to leave Lumina after entering it. He implied that this was why he was working with the demon worshipers.
"I don't know if that's the cause," I said. "But I think it's related somehow."
"You may be right," Guildmaster Walker said. "It's an interesting mystery, one I intend to unravel."
I blinked at him.
"You're going to help me?"
The Guildmaster nodded.
"I couldn't ask that of you," I said. "Not for my selfishness."
Guildmaster Walker snorted.
"I'm doing this for myself," he said. "Not you. I'm thinking of stepping down as guildmaster. The Vanguard Guild is strong enough that it no longer needs me. It's time for me to leave Earth and travel the cosmos." He shrugged. "Why not head to Lumina first, a land of magic and wizards? Kill two birds with one stone."
Right. Just because Guildmaster Walker had reached the apex here on Earth didn't mean he planned on stopping there. There was plenty to see and do in the wider cosmos. Why limit himself to a single realm? Perhaps he would find the means to each Eighth Rank, or even Ninth Rank. If he was lucky, perhaps he'd even achieve divinity.
"Still," I said. "I appreciate your help, Guildmaster. It means a lot to me."
Guildmaster Walker smirked.
"No need to thank me," he said. "If I travel to Lumina, perhaps I'd find a way to get one over that teacher of yours."
Teacher and Guildmaster Walker knew one another, but they didn't get along. In fact, they treated each other like rivals. However, since Teacher was the older and more experienced of the two, she held the advantage. Whenever they clashed, either with words or otherwise, she came out on top more often than not.
"Well, you're a bit late there," I said. "Teacher already made it to Lumina." I gestured to myself. "I met her before I ended up back here."
In fact, perhaps she could tell me how she reached Lumina. Even if I couldn't use that method myself, I could still reference it. I was surprised I hadn't thought of this earlier.
Guildmaster Walker studied me for several moments.
"Gabriel, that's not possible," he said, a serious expression on his face. "I met your teacher just last week. She's still here on Earth."
I stared at him, stunned.
"That can't be!" I said. "I met Teacher. I know I did. The way she spoke and fought… There's no way she was an impostor."
Guildmaster Walker leaned forward.
"Are you sure about that?" he asked. "You were fighting succubi after all."
A chill ran down my spine. If Guildmaster Walker was right, and Teacher was still on Earth, then who was the woman I met back in Eastwatch?
After my conversation with Guildmaster Walker, I devoted myself to my recovery. Why? Two reasons. The first was that when I returned to Lumina, I wanted this body to be in tip top shape. That way, when I came back to Earth in the future, I wouldn't have to go through all this again.
Well, that was the plan. Whether or not it would work remained to be seen.
The second reason was that I wanted to visit Teacher and see her for myself. I wanted to confirm with my own eyes that Teacher was here on Earth and not on Lumina. While I trusted Guildmaster Walker's words, I needed to see this through myself.
However, I couldn't visit Teacher in my current state. She lived in a dangerous area filled with monsters, criminals, and other threats. To even reach her, I needed at least the strength of a Third Star martial artist.
When the Gates first appeared and flooded with monsters, in an event known as the Calamity, millions of people lost their lives. Entire cities became ruined, empty husks of themselves. Over time, all kinds of beings ended up hiding out in these ruined cities, including Teacher. The one she lived in was the Portland Wasteland, formerly the city of Portland, Oregon.
So, I spent the next several weeks recovering my strength. It was a painful, grueling, and often embarrassing experience. More than once, I felt like an invalid, unable to even walk without aid. That smarted the most.
My teammates cheered me on the entire time. Their support proved crucial and invaluable. Without them, I think I would've gone a little crazy.
During all this, I asked Aurora to visit Lumina to let everyone there know that I was fine. I also asked her to warn them about the woman who may or may not have been Teacher. There was something strange going on. Until I figured out what, it was better to be cautious.
My familiar grumbled and complained, but acquiesced when I promised to give her a whole day's worth of pets and cuddles after she returned.
Aside from my recovery, I spent the rest of my time with my teammates. Most of the time, we worked together to figure out a way to send my soul back to Lumina. Alysha proved the most helpful in this regard, but Francis offered some interesting insights. True to his word, Guildmaster Walker helped out as well.
Aside from that, we just hung out. We never did anything big or special, but that wasn't necessary. All we cared about was spending time with one another, either as a group or individually.
This included spending time with Himiko. Things were a little awkward between us at first, but we grew comfortable with each other once more. She didn't bring up her feelings for me, and neither did I. We would have to address that at some point, for the sake of our friendship. However, by mutual unspoken agreement, we decided to save that conversation for later.
Recovery proved frustrating. I wanted to return to my former strength as soon as possible. However, I kept my impatience in check and focused on achieving little goals. First I wanted to stand for at least an hour without outside help. Then I wanted to walk around my hospital room. After that, I wanted to jog and so on.
During all this, a change came over me. It was so slow and gradual that no one noticed it at first. Francis was the first to bring it up.
"Is it just me, or is your hair turning lighter?" he asked.
When I checked myself out in the mirror, I realized that he was right. As Brandon Norwood, I had brown hair, brown eyes, and a plain appearance. However, thanks to Francis' I realized that my hair now looked a little blond.
After studying my hair for a little while, I shrugged it off and continued with my days. I found it strange, but not that big of a deal. My hair became a little lighter, so what?
However, things didn't end there. My hair continued to grow lighter. Not only that, but my features started to change as well. No one knew what was going on. Not the doctors, not my teammates, not even Guildmaster Walker.
This worried me at first. However, after a while I realized what was going on, though I didn't know how or why it was happening. When I figured this out, I stopped seeing my teammates and forbade them from visiting me for a while. I wanted to surprise them with the final result.
This, of course, worried them. It took a lot to convince them to go along with it. I even ended up asking Guildmaster Walker for aid. He agreed with my theory, since it was the most likely explanation for my change, though he kept watch over me just in case.
And so, several weeks passed by in the blink of an eye.
After several weeks of effort, I recovered to the point where I could leave Hunter's Rest for brief periods of time. I couldn't stay out for long, but I could leave for a weekend visit.
Of course, I wasn't back to my full strength, not by a long-shot. It would take more than a few weeks to accomplish that. Rather, my strength was somewhere between Fourth Star and Fifth. However, that was more than enough to go see Teacher.
This also coincided with the end of my physical transformation. When I looked at myself in the mirror, I couldn't believe it. I didn't know the reason behind this change, but I was glad for it. However, I was worried about my team's reactions.
To celebrate reaching this milestone in my recovery, my team decided to visit our favorite restaurant before I headed out to see Teacher.
It was early morning. I stood in the bathroom of my hospital room, examining my reflection one last time. I wore a casual outfit consisting of blue jeans, a white t-shirt, and a gray hoodie.
'I don't know why you're so nervous,' Aurora said, speaking to me through our bond. 'Everything is going to be fine.'
'What makes you think I'm nervous?' I asked, searching for any mistakes and fixing them.
Aurora snorted.
'I can feel your emotions, remember?' she said. 'It'll be fine. No need to tie yourself into a knot over this.'
Over the past several weeks, when she wasn't visiting Lumina, Aurora grew to know and like my teammates. She liked Logan in particular. Aside from me, he was the one who flattered her the most.
'You're right,' I said, looking away from the mirror. 'Everything will be fine. I'm still the same person, even if I look different now.'
Maybe if I said that to myself enough times, I'd believe it.
I left my room and headed towards the lobby, our designated meeting spot. On the way there, I attracted a lot of attention. Hospital staff and patients stared at me, women in particular. They whispered to each other, wondering who I was. The staff who worked with me on a regular basis knew my identity. Everyone else remained in the dark.
Several people looked like they wanted to snap pictures or record videos. However, that was against hospital policy. I wouldn't have to worry about that sort of thing while I stayed at Hunter's Rest. It would be a different story altogether once I left.
Thankfully, I radiated an aura of "Leave me alone", so no one came up and made a pass at me.
A quiet murmur followed me as I arrived at the lobby and looked for my teammates. The place was a little crowded. However, despite that, it didn't take me long to find them. Like me, they attracted a lot of attention. Unlike me, this wasn't because of their looks. Rather, it was because we were rather famous. On Earth, hunters were celebrities in their own right, with all the benefits and downsides that came along with it.
My teammates, used to the spotlight, ignored all the attention. They stood near the entrance, waiting for me. I headed right for them.
"Look, he's walking towards the Lucky 77!" somewhat said in a hushed tone. "Do you think he knows them?"
"Maybe he's dating one of them."
"Which one? Himiko or Alysha?"
"I don't know. He looks like a bottom. I'd guess Logan."
My left eye twitched when I heard that, but I ignored it and continued towards my team.
"Can we help you?" Francis asked when I reached them, his tone cold.
The rest of my team regarded me with a mixture of wariness and annoyance. I resisted the urge to laugh. So, they didn't recognize me after all. Not that I blamed them. My current appearance was a departure from how Brandon Norwood used to look.
"Well hello to you too, sunshine," I said, grinning at Francis.
My voice had changed alongside my appearance, but it remained similar enough that my teammates had no trouble recognizing it. They all stared at me, wide-eyed. I'll admit, their reactions filled me with immense satisfaction. This was why I asked them to stay away for a while, just for this moment.
I didn't know how or why, but somehow this body ended up taking on Gabriel Sturm's appearance. It was slow and gradual, which was why I hadn't noticed it at first. However, I realized it when I noticed that my brown eyes were turning silvery-blue.
Of course, a part of me felt nervous that my teammates wouldn't like my new/old look. What if they started treating me like a stranger? That question gnawed on me from the back of my mind.
"Brandon?!" Himiko asked.
I nodded.
"Not bad, right?" I asked, spreading my arms out wide.
"What… How…" Francis said, sputtering.
"I'll explain everything in the car," I said, gesturing to the area around us. "We're attracting too much attention."
My teammates looked around and realized that I was right. They regained their composure, shelving their questions for later. The five of us headed to a nearby parking garage and got into a black SUV, before driving off.