You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

Page 212

"Look, you can fly in the sky, use powerful magic without chanting, have physical abilities that are clearly different from ordinary people, and possess a divine sword that looks completely out of place in this world, as well as a space gadget as convenient as Doraemon's... Did you get multiple bonuses?"

"No, just like you, I only have one bonus item."

Iori didn't try to hide anything, and said in a relaxed tone, "The reason for this is that this isn't my first time traveling through time. I had similar experiences before coming to this 'Grangbahamar'. These abilities... are like a commemorative gift."

"Can it still be like this?"

Yosuke's expression changed. He wasn't envious of Iori anymore; instead, he was somewhat afraid: "Does this mean we can't go back to Earth? Even if we leave 'Granbahamar,' can we only go to other worlds?"

You can tell he really misses his hometown...

Admittedly, he lived a mediocre and unproductive life in Japan, which might be seen as a negative example by others, but he still wanted to go back.

If it were someone else, they would definitely be thinking about how to start a new life in another world and live a carefree life using their cheating abilities.

Yosuke, however, was different. Despite his ordinary life, he had no complaints about it, and even its imperfections were irreplaceable. As for the other world, no matter how wonderful it was, there was nothing about it that he would miss.

—At least not yet.

Swords and magic, dungeon exploration, adventurers, artifacts, heroes... all these things that could excite a chuunibyou (a person with delusions of grandeur) boy to the point of having a heart attack, are nothing compared to Sega in his eyes!

Now that Iori knows him quite well, she comforted him, saying, "My situation is a little different from yours. You were actively pulled here by the god of another world, while I accidentally fell here... It's the same in the other worlds. I always encounter these strange things."

As for whether you can go home... I tend to think you can.

"W-Is that okay?" Yosuke was excited for a moment but quickly calmed down. "What made your judgment? We should have about the same amount of information."

"Because you don't understand Chinese, you're different from me and can't talk to the gods."

When I received the bonus item, I heard the god of another world say that they have conditions for selecting transferees, and they generally target those who 'died in an accident.'

"Well!"

Yosuke became visibly nervous, and his body involuntarily straightened up.

In fact, he had been avoiding one question, which was his experience before he traveled through time... The last memory he had was of his body suddenly losing its balance, feeling like he had become a baseball being hit, and that feeling of almost flying was his last experience before he lost consciousness.

If nothing unexpected happens, he was most likely hit by a car.

So how did he appear in "Glangbahamar" unharmed?

Was he healed by a god during his time travel? Or is he already dead in the original world, and he is just a clone or replica here, like the setting in that recently popular manga (Gantz, which started serialization in 2000).

He had doubts about this, fearing that he was already dead in the original world, and that even if he could travel back, he wouldn't be able to return to his past life.

What Iori just said made him feel a pang in his heart, and his mood instantly plummeted.

However, the weather quickly cleared up from cloudy to sunny.

"Your situation is a little special."

Iori smiled reassuringly and said, "The god of the other world said that you are in a 'vegetative state' in Japan, which means that your original physical body still exists. Only your soul came to 'Grangbahamar', which preserves the possibility of returning your soul to Japan, but the specific method is unknown."

But I think the gods of this other world wouldn't have brought us here for no reason; perhaps they have some unknown mission waiting for us… maybe it's closely related to our journey home.”

"call!"

Yosuke slumped over dejectedly, head hanging low: "The method is unclear..."

"Cheer up, you're only seventeen. Young people should smile more."

Iori patted him on the shoulder: "Don't worry, there's an old Chinese saying, 'Things will work themselves out,' there'll be a way."

"Um... thank you, it's so good to have you with me during times like this."

Yosuke looked up and smiled. "I'm already very lucky to have a friend by my side in another world. Don't worry, continuing to be depressed won't solve anything. I'm already... By the way, according to what you just said, I only brought my soul here. So what about this body?"

"Creating a physical body wouldn't be a difficult thing for a god, would it?"

"Hmm!" Yosuke crossed his arms, his expression subtle. "Now that you mention it... something feels off. Could there be something strange inside me?"

"I don't think that goddess seems to have such a perverse sense of humor..."

Iori stroked her chin: "When I treated your injuries before, I also checked you out and didn't find anything abnormal."

"That's good... Come to think of it, I might actually be quite lucky to have met you during the darkest time of my life." Yosuke scratched his head.

"That's not a pure coincidence."

Iori casually remarked, "I learned about you from the goddess, and then I came here specifically to find you. Although, even without my help, you would have already escaped from the cage."

"..."

"What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Iori-kun...you're such a good person!"

Yosuke covered his mouth, tears streaming down his face. Seemingly introverted and melancholic, yet actually deeply emotional, he lost himself in the moment and hugged Iori tightly.

"He's as cool as a hero character in an RPG!"

"Stop!"

Since Iori was sitting on the ground and it wasn't easy for her to dodge, she raised her foot and used it to push Yosuke's shoulder, forcibly kicking him back.

"I have no interest in hugging and cuddling with a grown man!"

“But, but!”

"Don't use 'buts'. Put your extra emotions into something productive, like playing video games."

As she spoke, Iori took out a Sega Saturn console from her personal space and tossed it lightly into Yosuke's arms: "Didn't you love Sega the most? This time you're right, aren't you?"

"Saturn! Saturn... I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

Just two days ago, Yosuke was still thinking about Sega, but after seeing what it was, he jumped up as if avoiding a snake or scorpion and performed a standard dogeza (a traditional Japanese prostration) to the console on the ground.

"Sega... Do I... do I really have the right... the right to touch Sega?"

"This isn't just an 'interest,' it's even surpassed 'passion,' it's completely sublimated into 'faith,' hasn't it?"

Iori was slightly speechless, but he was good at dealing with people who were too naive: "Stop bowing. Don't you think it's very disrespectful to the host?"

"Excuse me?" Yosuke looked up.

"Sega is a large national corporation with at least a thousand employees, right? The number of technical developers is probably in the hundreds. Is a game company like that, with everyone working day and night to develop games, just to be worshipped on a pedestal?"

"Seriously? The goal is to make it accessible to more people, to make you fans genuinely love it… Yosuke, if you're too afraid to even touch it, isn't this console just pathetic?"

"That's true!"

"Moreover, this is another world, and your Saturn is practically a 'globally limited edition,' making you the only player—this is a 'Sega' that exists just for you!"

"Ohhhhhh!"

The man's hair moved without wind, and after realizing how precious the main unit in front of him was, he almost transformed into a super-human!

"Thank you, Suzumiya-san!"

"You've got the wrong person!"

"No matter what, I have to thank you. I can finally reunite with Sega!"

Yosuke is a very adaptable person. Once he calmed down, he immediately understood and eagerly unpacked the package, taking out the main unit and various accessories. Judging from his eagerness, like a virgin, he was probably going to start playing right away.

--However!

Just as he took out the handle, held it with both hands, and unconsciously rubbed it back and forth a couple of times, his expression became dazed.

As his fingertips pressed different keys, Yosuke suddenly calmed down, revealing a deep struggle and regret, as well as a very obvious...guilt?

Iori raised an eyebrow: "What's wrong? Why are you making that face?"

It's almost like a light novel protagonist having to choose between a 36D blonde, blue-eyed rich girl and a withdrawn, sharp-tongued tomboy childhood friend.

"..."

Yang Jie was speechless!

Putting the embarrassing situation aside for the time being, Iori and her companion returned to the city after completing their exploration of the dungeon. They went to the Adventurers' Guild to turn in their quest and also put their loot up for sale at the counter. Because there were so many items, it took more than an hour just to have the appraiser count them one by one.

"Phew...it's finally over."

The girl with braided hair and a monocle closed her eyes and stretched languidly, her face flushed with youthful energy.

She rechecked the list and handed it to Iori: "According to the union's regulations, we can authenticate these items free of charge and sell them through the union's channels, guaranteeing that the price will not be lower than the market price, but we will need to charge a certain handling fee, is that alright?"

“Okay.” This wasn’t the first time Iori had made this kind of deal, so she readily agreed.

“But we may be leaving the city soon, so we hope to receive all the payments within ten days.”

"Ten days... There are quite a few high-level items here. Although they are very valuable, they are not easy to sell. It will take time to sell them."

In that case, I recommend you don't choose to affiliate with anyone, but instead sell your items directly to the Adventurers' Guild. It's simple, convenient, and you'll get the money quickly.

The young appraiser said earnestly, "But the price will be about 20% lower than the market price. Can you accept that?"

“No problem.” Iori nodded in agreement.

Twenty percent may seem like a lot, but the Adventurers' Guild takes on greater risks than selling through affiliation, and they need to settle payments quickly. Compared to the practices of many merchant guilds, the guild is already quite generous; it could even be considered a welfare benefit for adventurers.

"I'll keep the documents safe... Phew!"

The appraiser girl put away the yellowed contract, her bright eyes falling on Yosuke standing to the side.

"Mr. Wolff and Mr. Iori are doing missions together almost every day. Are you two from the same hometown?"

"I guess so, but we haven't known each other for very long," Yosuke answered honestly.

"But the two of you seem to be old friends." The girl chuckled softly, her gaze towards Yosuke particularly gentle. "Mr. Wolf, you'll be promoted to a B-rank adventurer after this mission, won't you? I've never seen such an amazing speed of advancement before... But, after all, you're such a powerful mage, it's normal for you to be able to create miracles."

"Well, it's nothing." Yosuke nodded casually, not intending to continue the conversation, and the atmosphere became a little awkward.

Meanwhile, Iori quietly walked into the hall, found a table, and sat down, watching the situation with amusement.

Wolf Gombrad—this is Yosuke's alias. He seems reluctant to reveal his real name to the people of this world, so he chose a game name instead.

The appraiser girl was someone Yosuke encountered a few days ago when he went out shopping. He asked her for help and used magic to rescue her from the kidnappers.

The girl clearly had feelings for Yosuke, but the game addict himself was completely unaware.

After all, being mistaken for a beastman as soon as he arrived in this world, Yosuke probably has a very low opinion of his own looks... subconsciously he wouldn't believe that anyone would like him.

Iori was quite interested in this, but he didn't interfere with their interaction; he simply watched and enjoyed it from an outsider's perspective.

"...Does Wolf like to eat bread?"

Sensing Yosuke's impatience, the young appraiser quickly revealed her true intention: "There's a highly-regarded white bakery in town. Tomorrow is the summer harvest festival, and I heard they'll be launching limited-edition new products for the holiday... I just happened to receive a voucher for two from a friend... but both of my friends are busy. Mr. Wolf, are you free tomorrow?"

Wow, women in this world are quite proactive!

Iori raised an eyebrow and looked at Yosuke with a blessing in her eyes:

See, good things happen in other worlds too, right? Now you can find a partner and live a fulfilling life as long as you ask! Good luck!

Speaking of which, since the world of "Uncle from Another World" is like this, then Yosuke, the transferee, is very likely the protagonist of the original work, so it's normal for him to have some romantic luck.

"available."

"That--"

"Sorry, I'm a rice lover, I don't like bread."

"..."

"And I'm ready to fight Saturn to the bitter end."

"Blood...bloody battle?"

"Yes, a battle that is destined to be very difficult awaits me."

Yosuke said calmly, "But then again, it's a bit of a waste to serve only two people... Iori, are you free tomorrow?"

"..."

Iori shook her head expressionlessly, rejecting the proposal, and then the doubt in her eyes lessened:

It's safe to say that this person is definitely not the protagonist of "Uncle in Another World"!

Side Story: One Day Seventeen Years Later