Cross Worlds: The Tale Of Two Boys Who Swapped Worlds 6 A Taste Of Japanese Martial Arts

King Ayumu groaned.

He knew his wife has a tendency to exaggerate her magic, but this…this was unexpected. He stood in the courtyard where his wife's wrath had been unleashed and gaped in shock. The entire place was destroyed; the trees were all bent horribly from whatever force she had used, most of the flowers were missing because they had been washed away by her gruesome water magic.

"I'm taking this out of her pay-check." He grumbled to himself. He then looked at the Queen, who was reprimanding the two Princes while she healed Tachibana's injury with her water magic.

Akira and Seiya looked like wounded puppies, while Tachibana seemed indifferent. But the King wondered to himself, just what did the boys do to incur their mother's wrath? He knew Tachibana couldn't be at fault since he came here just yesterday and almost half of the time he was unconscious in a hospital bed. He was only released earlier today.

So, the culprits had to be Seiya and Akira. He trotted over to the group, and by now Queen Azusa had finished with Tachibana.

On the other hand, Tachibana was not about this life.

After being knocked unconscious by slamming into Akira's water wall, he was healed by the Queen's water magic and was now as good as new. Luckily he had no broken bones as that would probably spell the end of Akira and Seiya.

The silverette made a mental note to stay away from the two Princes. So far, there were three ways in which he could die in this world ―poisoned by Mana, starvation due to the different tasting food, and finally, the aggressiveness of the two Princes who were essentially his new older brothers.

He wanted to go back home, back to his peaceful life in j.a.pan where he practiced martial arts. He wanted to go back to reading his manga and light novels, and watch anime with Mochizuki. Upon remembering that, Tachibana realized something.

"I was supposed to go to Akiba with Mocchi!" he groaned out aloud, causing everyone to look at him. "Now I can't!"

"What's Akiba?" Queen Azusa asked.

"It's Akihabara! The city of manga, anime, cosplay and beautiful maids and awesome video games!" he answered with a perk. His new family looked at him with confusion.

"Well, if you want to go to Akihabara you could always go with a couple bodyguards." King Ayumu said with nonchalance. "But what's anime, manga and video games?" he asked.

"And cosplay?" Queen Azusa added.

Tachibana let out a scream of horror and gripped his hair in distress. Hearing that one sentence told him that he was currently in a world devoid of those beautiful pastimes!

"I can't…" Tachibana said, seeming to be wheezing. "I can't…!" he then walked up to the King and grabbed him by his collar. "Send me back home, now! I can't live in this place without manga and anime! What am I supposed to read and watch!? How am I supposed to live!?" Tears started to stream out of the teen's eyes in torrents.

The King's face darkened before he let out a sigh. "If it were that simple we would have s.h.i.+pped you off by now." He answered. "But knowing my son, it would pose a problem."

"How so?"

"Well, if it were just a one-way thing, I would have just copied Yuri's magic circle and drop you through it. But if you leave, we need Yuri back here. And that's where the problem lies. For a teleportation to work for an "arrival" and "departure", we'd need two magic circles ―one in this world and another in Earth since we'd need both of you to cross over. And for that to happen, my son has to draw up the other one."

"And judging by when we spoke, I doubt he's going to do it." Akira said. "You're stuck here for the time being, bro."

"No way!" Tachibana gasped. "Can't you force him to do it?"

"My baby can be quite selfish, and it's worse now since he isn't a Prince." Queen Azusa sighed.

"But can't you just send me back to my world? That way, he has to return to his because two "Tachibana Yuri" can't exist."

The Royal family erupted in laughter.

"You're so naïve that it's cute." King Ayumu started after he came out of his laughing fit. "There are many scenarios that can happen if I should do that, but they all have the same outcome ―Earth's Yuri won't be happy at the end of it all."

"What do you mean?"

"Let's say, I open up a magic circle to Earth at this very moment and you go through." The King started. "My son will either kill you and burn your body into nothing with his Lightning and a.s.sume your ident.i.ty; or open up another magic circle and forcibly throw you back here. He could even threaten to murder your family and friends and destroy your country if you don't leave Earth, or ―"

"I get it, I get it." Tachibana said, cutting the King off. "Your son is an a.s.shole."

"Don't be so surprised. I told you that he's a s.h.i.+tty son of a b.i.t.c.h sometimes." Akira said, folding his arms. "So, for the time being, you're stuck here."

"But, how am I going to survive? Isn't it dangerous just by being a Prince?"

The King sighed again. "Don't worry about that; the entire Military and Police Force are ready to mobilize should anything happen to you. But, I'll make sure that you'll be able to defend yourself, even against the Youma. I'll be your personal teacher."

Before Tachibana could inquire what a Youma was, he caught the look on Seiya and Akira's faces and felt like he was going to be in for h.e.l.l once again. However, Tachibana quickly calmed himself down, he knows j.a.panese Martial Arts, there shouldn't be anything to be afraid of…well, apart from the fact that everyone can use magic.

"Well then, enough chit-chat." The King smiled as he clapped his hands together. "Let's go test your fighting capabilities, shall we?" King Ayumu held onto Tachibana's shoulder and within a blink, lightning surrounded them. Not knowing what was happening, Tachibana clung onto the King for dear life, not wanting to face the trauma like before; he silently prayed that the King was not like those two hooligans.

Soon, the yellow light engulfed them completely, and Tachibana suddenly felt weightless. It was almost as though he was floating but he was still clinging onto the King. But after a while, he felt the force of gravity yet again, and the light disappeared.

"You don't need to hold onto me so tightly." King Ayumu chuckled. "You wouldn't have fallen."

"I have to take precautions." Tachibana replied in a shaky voice. "I was almost killed today."

"Yeah, well, my boys are quite the rough-housers when they're playing. Sorry about that."

"I see." Tachibana nodded. Putting the conversation aside, Tachibana looked around and saw that they were in a large plain room with the ceiling almost as high as the sky. Looking behind him, Tachibana saw that there was one blue door and a flat metal surface beside it on the wall. Tachibana felt knots in his stomach.

"Is this a training room or something?" he asked.

The King perked. "Right you are! Do you have training rooms in your world?"

"Uh no," Tachibana replied. "Training rooms like this are seen a lot in fiction."

"I see." The King nodded. But after, his face took on a more serious expression. "How well can you fight? Can you defend yourself in times of danger against another person?"

"Yes, I can defend myself. I'm in the top cla.s.s of Martial Arts." Tachibana said. He couldn't say that he was a black belt because then he'd have to explain what a black belt was.

"Martial Arts?" The King asked. But he quickly shrugged it off and addressed the other part of what Tachibana said. "Good, so for today, we'll be a.s.sessing your abilities. Your opponents will be Seiya and Akira." Tachibana gaped. "Think of it as taking revenge for earlier today."

"But they can use magic, how will I ―?"

The King shook his head. "They won't be using magic. It'll be unfair to you if they did."

"Okay!" Tachibana chirped. He really needed to exact his revenge. How can Seiya and Akira call themselves older brothers if they nearly killed him off earlier on? Tachibana was sure to show them the power of a Human, and engrave it in their heads that they shouldn't take his life so lightly.

Oh yes, Tachibana thought. This was going to be fun.

…

…

A sleek black car drove into the parking lot and a tall young man emerged from the driver's side. His beautiful silver hair was slicked back, showing the world his angular face and narrow shaped green eyes. The man was dressed semi-casually, a red blazer over a blue b.u.t.ton-down s.h.i.+rt which was tucked into dark jeans and white sneakers.

He strutted into the park, eyes scanning the area for the one who he was looking for. Continuing on the beautifully paved path, he spotted the tall male sitting on a bench to the far left of a fountain. He was dressed formally, a costume vest over a coloured dress s.h.i.+rt which he tucked into his dark pants. He played with his slightly curled dark hair, seeming to be fidgeting.

"No one followed you, I presume?" the dark haired man asked glancing at his watch.

The silverette snorted as he sat down. "As if." His green eyes darkened. "As you can see, the plan failed due to an unforeseen appearance of Kohaku and Mamoru. Add to that, Akira was quick to act."

"Hmm." The man hummed. "That's pretty unfortunate. If they weren't there, then the Third Prince would have been in our hands." He then folded his arms. "If this persists, then we'd have to use force."

"You can't Hideyos.h.i.+. Have you forgotten how monstrous the King is? Using force will only make things worse. And we won't get Yuri." The silverette said with a cold tone. However, that cold expression turned into a bright summer's day. "I have a plan that's sure to work."

"Really? You aren't planning on using another modified creature to capture him, right?" Hideyos.h.i.+ asked.

"Of course not." He replied with an air of pride. "I'm thinking of doing things a little bit more subtle."

Hideyos.h.i.+'s eyebrows rose. "How so?"

The silverette smirked as he pulled out an envelope from his spatial ring.

…

…

Tachibana was at a distance from Akira and Seiya who wielded a pair of golden whip and a beautiful recurved bow respectively. Numerous times Tachibana had tried to close in on them, but with Seiya's ranged attacks and Akira's mid-range slashes, he couldn't.

However, he picked up on a pattern, so to speak. Seiya attacks first with his blunt arrows, and then Akira would use his whips to further hinder Tachibana's movements. As long as he could get around Seiya's attacks, then he'd be able to take down Akira first.

With his mind made up, Tachibana went on the offense.

He made steady yet calculating movements forward, which prompted Seiya to fire off his arrows. Watching these arrows carefully, Tachibana dodged with great agility, shocking the two Princes.

With this oncoming threat, Akira prepared for the counter, and what he did next, totally took Tachibana by surprise. His whips disappeared into his spatial ring but out came a spear; its blue l.u.s.tre sparkled beautifully. The shaft was short, looking at it; Tachibana estimated its length to be from the floor up to Akira's waist. Closer to the triangular head, there were four thick protrusions, two on each side.

Akira then dashed forwards to Tachibana all the while Seiya was providing cover, limiting Tachibana's movements. While this situation was not what he expected, Tachibana was somewhat relieved. He had managed to draw Akira from Seiya's side.

Akira swiped the weapon in a graceful arc, but Tachibana arched backwards to avoid it. However, in that instant, Tachibana saw the head and the protrusions sink into the shaft, effectively turning the weapon into a staff. Akira swiftly pushed the weapon towards him, jabbing Tachibana in the stomach.

It hurt, but thankfully, Akira had used restraint.

But Tachibana was a quick thinker. He grabbed onto the shaft with both hands and swung himself up, making a roundhouse kick which landed squarely in the Second Prince's left cheek.

His grip loosened on his spear-turned-staff, and he staggered a bit. Seeing this as an opportunity, Tachibana dashed off towards Seiya, hoping to close the distance between them and Seiya. But, he stopped suddenly.

If Akira can use both the whip and spear weapons, wouldn't Seiya be able to use dual weapons as well? The eldest son was an Archer, so Tachibana thought that naturally, his secondary weapon would probably be a close ranged one.

Seiya lowered his bow and watched Tachibana with a.n.a.lytical eyes. Seeing how the silver haired teen from Earth suddenly stopped, he figured that Tachibana may have realized that he could use more than one weapon.

By this time, Akira had regained his senses. While Tachibana's kick was not as powerful as the Third Prince's, it still had some force in it.

"Not bad Yuri." He said as he poised the spear at Tachibana. "But you know, my little bro would have broken my jaw with a kick like that." He let out a chuckle. "Thank G.o.d you're of a different specie."

"Shut up and kick his a.s.s!" Seiya shouted. He had placed his bow and arrows back into his spatial ring. "There's no need for me to back you up, right?"

"Right you are, Sei."

And with that, Akira lunged at Tachibana once more, and the boy felt that this was unfair. They had weapons, he had his bare hands. Did the Royal Family hate him or something?

But quickly, Tachibana discarded those thoughts and focused on the issue at hand. Akira made a thrust at Tachibana with the spear-turned-staff, but the thrust was a distraction. As soon as Tachibana dodged it, Akira did a leg sweep knocking Tachibana to the ground. He then punched at Tachibana, and luckily he rolled away in time. Akira's fist collided with the floor leaving Tachibana frightened.

Tiles were sent flying while some jutted upwards, creating a mini-crater.

Tachibana s.h.i.+vered. If that had caught him, he would have been done for. Akira dashed off once again, Tachibana springing into action. Akira made a kick at Tachibana's ribs, but he quickly dodged it by jumping backwards in two galloping steps. But Akira was quick and fierce, sending punches towards Tachibana, the silverette from Earth having to be on the defence.

Arching into a crab-back, Tachibana brought up his foot, trying to attack Akira at the chin. The older male moved quickly, but knowing that this would have happened, Tachibana had an alternate. Getting up into a handstand, Tachibana spun on his hands kicking out his feet as well.

Once again, Akira got kicked into his face, but this time it was twice. Unwilling to let his new brother be able to counter, Tachibana sprung into action. He reached onto his feet, and dashed forwards. Extending his right arm almost seeming like a jab, Tachibana slammed the back of his clenched fist into Akira's nose completely disorienting the young man. This was the Uraken-Uchi or the Back Fist Strike.

With Akira staggering further away and grabbing onto his bleeding nose, Tachibana saw this as an opportunity to take him down. Going into a side-stance, Tachibana then came up onto his front ball of his left foot, lifting his heel towards his target. He then made a half rotation with his swinging leg, lifting his knee at an angle. Twisting his hip and having his s.h.i.+n parallel to the ground, Tachibana then jumped, doing the tornado roundhouse kick which landed squarely in Akira's head, sending the Second Prince cras.h.i.+ng to the floor face-first.

"Jesus Christ!" Seiya shouted as he rushed to his younger brother's aid. The force and impact of the kick reverberated throughout the room and even the King and Queen had to rush down to see what became of Akira.

But, that attack was a double-edged sword. Tachibana's foot was burning and pounding and he wondered what the h.e.l.l Akira was made out of. Back on Earth, he's used that kick many times before and it never had this effect. Recalling the force Seiya and Akira used to throw him earlier today and the punch which left a crater in the floor, Tachibana surmised that the 'Ningen' were probably stronger than Humans physically.

Unable to bear the pain, Tachibana sat down and almost tore his shoes off.

What he saw next, left him bewildered.

His foot was swollen and red. King Ayumu saw his condition but before he could say anything, Akira got up with a groan.

"You b.a.s.t.a.r.d," he said, looking in the direction of Tachibana. The side of his head was bleeding. "That was a d.a.m.n good kick, teach it to me."

Tachibana let out a breath of relief. He swore that Akira would have attempted to drown him.

"s.h.i.+t, what did you do to me?" Akira groaned out as he held his head. He felt woozy, dizzy and like his head was on fire. There was also a ringing in his ear, but he deduced that it was from the kick. But never before had Akira experienced something like this. To regain in his senses properly, he used his water magic to heal himself. In both his hands were water which glowed a bright light. With one hand, he ma.s.saged his head, while with the other he repaired his nose. Feeling the sensation, he screamed out,

"You little s.h.i.+t! You broke my nose!"

"It's wasn't my fault! Your father told me to get revenge and that's what I did!" Tachibana countered, hoping to divert the blame elsewhere.

"Papa! How could you? Revenge!? I protected him from Seiya!"

Seiya let out a gasp. "Accept it! None of this would have happened if you had just carried him in the first place!"

"What?!" Akira roared. "This wouldn't have happened if you didn't throw him at me!"

The King cleared his throat to stop his boys' bickering. "Just shut up. If you don't want to have any broken bones, next time you f.u.c.king walk." He said coolly, even though he was still p.i.s.sed. "Your brother is not a ragdoll or a punching bag."

"But Dad!", "But Papa!" Seiya and Akira whined at the same time.

The Queen ignored all three and went to fix Tachibana's foot.

But due to the shouting, Akira was making himself worse. Seeing his brother in this state, Seiya helped Akira onto his back. Meanwhile, King Ayumu could only look on with astonishment. It was a shocker, since he knew that Tachibana's world didn't have magic.

The King s.h.i.+vered as his gaze fell on Tachibana. If this was the power of Martial Arts, then he wouldn't want to imagine what other crazy methods of fighting that came from Earth. Barehanded, and yet, he was able to take down Akira who had weapon.

How frightening.

But then his mind wandered to what Akira demanded earlier from Tachibana. As if having magic and two weapons isn't enough, Akira actually wanted to learn that move. Looking back, with Akira's element, that move may come in handy when he least expects it.

"Dad!" Seiya's voice took him out of his thoughts. "I'm bringing Akki to his room."

"Alright, go on ahead." King Ayumu said.

"Yuri…" Akira slurred, sounding drunk. "…remember you have to teach me. If you try to hide I'll kill you." He spat.

Tachibana paled. "As if I can hide in this world."

"There, all done." Queen Azusa perked. She removed her hand from Tachibana's foot and he felt as good as new. More like, he felt like he could kick a mountain and split it.

"Thanks, Mom!" he chirped as he bounced up onto his feet.

"Good," she smiled as she ruffled his hair. She turned to her husband and said, "I'll be heading off to the Lab, take care."

"Hmm, yeah," King Ayumu nodded.

The Queen left the room, and as such, only Tachibana and the King remained. Silence befell the two and for a moment, it had gotten awkward. Tachibana knew that the King had wanted to ask him something, but Tachibana couldn't tell whether it was about Martial Arts or another thing entirely.

"Alright, let's go." King Ayumu said suddenly.

"Eh?" But before Tachibana could inquire, the King bent down and took him up like a newborn. This feeling was extremely uncomfortable. Seiya did it to him earlier, and now the King. Was the real Prince treated like this? Tachibana snorted inwardly. He supposed not. After hearing their description of that a.s.shole, there's no way he'd be babied this much.

Coming back to his senses, Tachibana noticed that once again yellow Lightning was crackling around the King's body. Latching onto the man like a leech, Tachibana braced himself.

King Ayumu chuckled at this, and wondered what kind of background this Yuri Tachibana had. Even though the King hadn't met him for long, he could tell that Earth's Yuri was different. He wasn't a loose cannon like his son, as a matter of fact, he seemed to be the total opposite.

The yellow Lightning engulfed the two and Tachibana felt the same feeling from before. But he wondered about how these people used teleportation. In the hospital when he and Akira moved from one floor to the next, he didn't feel this way, as a matter of fact, they didn't use any element.

But now, they were travelling via Lightning. It was cool in Tachibana's eyes, and to be experiencing something that would be seen in anime was almost like a dream. But there was one thing that he wanted to do after the King was done with him.

Play volleyball.

He had already missed the feeling of the ball underneath his fingertips. While he hasn't played for his school, he and Mochizuki would often time play with each at the latter's house. Ah yes, as soon as this was over, he's going to play some volleyball with whomever he could find.

The light disappeared and Tachibana found that they were in a room. Looking at the layout of the room, Tachibana deduced that this was a study. In the middle of the room there was a table with six chairs around it, and on either side of the table, there were four bookshelves, all laden with books.

"Have a seat," the King said.

"Thanks." Tachibana replied as he took a seat across from the King.

"I had noticed that your face looked troubled, so is there something that you'd like to ask me?"

"You noticed? That's just like my Papa." Tachibana chuckled. "He's always been able to pick up the slightest changes."

King Ayumu actually smiled in relief. This was the first time that he's heard about Earth's Ayumu. At least they had something in common.

"I'd like to know what a Youma is." Tachibana then said. "And why would the Armies and Police force mobilize just for me."

The King nodded. "Youma are grotesque creatures that attack this world. Their shapes and sizes vary, but they're instinctual creatures incapable of intelligence. Every single country on this planet has that issue since days of antiquity. Where do they come from? We don't know. What we can surmise is that they come from another world."

"I see. So, I'd come across those creatures eventually, right?"

"You're quick." King Ayumu smirked. He saw Tachibana s.h.i.+vered. Seeing that simple reaction, the King realized that Tachibana's world doesn't have such things. "You just s.h.i.+vered, so I a.s.sume that your world has no Youma?"

"No, we don't. As a matter of fact, we don't have anything attacking us." Tachibana replied. "The only 'thing' that we should be wary of are other countries. Humans have a long history of fighting each other over…anything really."

"So your biggest threat is your fellow Humans?"

"Yeah." Tachibana's gaze wandered. He felt a bit stifled since the man before him was a King. Although he was basically his son (just from another world), it still felt a bit strange talking to the King with informal speech. "But if these Youma are monsters, how will I defend myself against them? Magic? Weapons?"

"I'll teach you how to use the Spear, so you won't have to worry. In terms of magic, I don't know if you can use magic." He said. "I mean, your world has no Mana, so I don't think your body is const.i.tuted for it."

Tachibana felt heartbroken. He was in a world full of magic and he couldn't use it. He was greatly betrayed by manga, light novels and anime! He let out a pained whimper.

"Aren't I the main character?! Shouldn't I have been given the ability to use all types of magic!?" he wailed. "This is unfair! I feel so betrayed!"

The King, seeing this reaction, didn't know what to do. He wondered about what the boy was going on about being a main character and getting betrayed.

Humans are strange. He ended up thinking.

"But don't worry, you'll still be able to use magic but not of your own accord."

"Not of my own accord? What do you mean?"

"We're currently creating a device which allows you to cast Lightning & Thunder magic like my son. The spells that he uses will be engraved in it, but you'll have to learn their names since this device will be voice activated."

Tachibana nodded his understanding. "So, to use these spells, the Mana in my body will be used, right?"

The King beamed. "You really are quick!"

Even Tachibana himself was stunned at this. He wasn't a dunce, but he's realized that he's been processing things a little bit faster and wondered if he was just a bit more focused since this was a scary new environment.

"I guess," was all Tachibana could utter out. His expression changed when he asked, "So, tell me about the Armies and Police force."

"It's simple, in the Royal Family, each child is given a position of absolute authority. It's been this way since…" the King trailed off, unable to think of an estimate. "…just say it's been this way since the sixth King."

"Okay, and what are these positions?"

"I was getting to that, how impatient are you?" The King laughed. "Let's use our current family as an example. My three sons, including you, will inherit these position ―King, Prime Minister and Commander of the Defence Force which includes the National Police."

Tachibana's jaw dropped. No wonder the Third Prince doesn't want to come back! This kind of responsibility is frightening. If he ends up getting stuck here, he'd be in charge of the country's Armies and Police? What the h.e.l.l?!

"Isn't that a bit too much? If your son doesn't come back, then I'll be in charge of the Armies. I don't think I can do that."

"You know, there are a.s.sistants and advisors and other aids you know." The King said in a matter-of-factly. "The gist is, you'll be able to utilize the Armies in any way you want. Not even Seiya could tell you what to do because he won't have any authority. But, the Generals report directly to you, so it isn't like you'll be doing everything yourself."

"You need to get your son back. I'm not suited for this."

"That's ―" King Ayumu broke off as his spatial ring glowed and he heard a ringtone. He took out his phone, and checked the message. His face turned ashen as he read it, and immediately wheeled out. "I'm sorry Yuri! Stay here and read all you want! I have to go!"

Before Tachibana could even open his mouth, the King was already gone through the door.

…

…

"Takahiko! It's me, Azusa!" The Queen said as she knocked on the white door.

"Come in!" a male's voice shouted from the other side of the door. The Queen slid the door open and entered. Inside the room had a shelf to the left which had numerous test tubes, petri dishes, conical flasks and various chemicals. In front of the shelf was a large white table which had some doc.u.ments lying about.

A tall male sat on one of the stools that surrounded the table which a pensive look on his face. He had beautiful black hair and bright purple eyes and was of a slim build. He donned a white lab-coat, over a grey tee and denim jeans. He was Takahiko Mochizuki.

"So, what have you found out?" Queen Azusa said as she sat.

"The other-world Yuri is fundamentally weaker than we are biologically." Takahiko started. "If we use him as a basis, we could say that the people from his world are weaker compared to us."

"Is that so?" The Queen asked. "Not too long ago, he managed to break Akira's nose."

"Really?"

"Yeah, if I wasn't there and Ayu had told me, I would think he's lying." She smiled. But her face took on a much more serious expression. "Continue,"

"His genetic structure is the same as ours, albeit with a few differences due to his world not having Mana. But there is something that you should be prepared for."

"What's that?"

"When Ayane told me that Mana was killing him, I took some blood samples, when he was asleep of course, and infused Mana into Yuri's cells and watched them. What I discovered was a shocker." Takahiko's face wore an indescribable expression. "Mana is altering his body on a cellular level, probably even at the atomic level.

"The first time I examined Yuri's cells, I hadn't injected Mana into them. I noticed that they were aging and multiplying faster. However, I examined them not too long ago and found that their aging process was slowed and is still being slowed."

"So…what are you saying?"

"Well, if Yuri never came to this world, he'd start shrivelling at age sixty or earlier, which implies that the people of his world age faster than we do. But, according to what I've found out, given enough time, I suspect that he'd be as strong as us or even by extent, be able to use magic since currently, he can't as his body is not const.i.tuted for it."

"So…we live longer than people from Earth? How come?"

"Using the data from Kakiharkun, and corroborating it with Yuri's, I can say with confidence that Mana is what makes our lifespan the length it is." He answered. "However, that's not all. Our cognitive functions are because of Mana circulating in our brains as well. When Kakihara had arrived here, he was only using twenty percent of his brain power.

"However, as time goes by, he's able to use the same amount of brain power as we do. Which is why I'd like to test Yuri as well. Because if this is true, then, he'll eventually, his brain will start processing things as fast as us."

The Queen gasped. "This is a serious matter, let's say we've found a way to send him back at this moment, will Mana stop affecting him?"

The scientist shook his head. "The process has already started, there's no stopping it."

"But there's no threat to his life, right?"

Takahiko laughed. "Nope! He's as healthy as a dragon!" his face then changed. "However, I'm not sure what the effects are due to the Mana changing him. Maybe, he'll undergo the changes and not realize, or he may experience pain…"

Hearing the experience pain part, she remembered what King Ayumu told her when she came back. During his interrogation, Tachibana had suddenly collapsed and was coughing up blood and bleeding from his eyes, not to mention having body spasms. And this was just the aftermath of having too much Mana in his system. She couldn't bear to imagine the horror that will happen due to his body being changed.

Seeing the distressed look on the Queen's face, Takahiko quickly said, "There's nothing to worry about. After the side-effects pa.s.s, then he'll be back to normal!"

"Like Kakihara, right?"

"Hopefully, after all, Kakihara and Yuri aren't from the same world. I don't know how he'll be affected, really."

The Queen was flabbergasted. This was something she'd never expect. Quickly, she took out her phone from her spatial ring and told her AI to send a message to her husband, "Tell him to get his twisted a.s.s to Takahiko's Lab right now." She had instructed.