Chapter 12: HUMBLE.

"Would you like to get stuck in a fantasy world?" I asked myself as I found myself at the mercy of a dragon, its massive face looming over me, growling with clear intent.

I sighed. "But how did I end up here in the first place?
Rewind a little.

Just before I ended up in my current predicament, I had been traveling through the multiverse, searching for more Time Cogs. 

Even with the Cosmic Hexahedron as my guide, navigating the multiverse was never predictable. However, I had discovered a way to traverse it by identifying patterns—repeating motifs that connected different realities.

This time, though, something pulled me in against my will. And the next thing I knew, I was standing in a dimly lit stone chamber.

"It worked! Sir Dion! I summoned a familiar!" a young, excited voice called out.

"Oh? Really?" a deeper voice responded, sounding intrigued but skeptical.

I turned to see a white-haired girl with piercing blue eyes standing proudly, wearing a robe and an oversized hat that was slightly tilted to one side. She had a smug grin plastered on her face.

"Summoning The Space-Time Voyager, huh? Not a bad flex."

"I suggest you make a pact with him," her mentor—Sir Dion, apparently—advised her. He was an older man, probably in his late 40s, with short black hair graying at the edges. He wore a deep blue cloak, signaling his status as an experienced mage.

The girl strutted toward me, arms crossed. "My name is Cierry, your master!"

Cierry?

Wait a damn minute—Cierry?!
This wasn’t the Cierry I knew. This was my first time encountering an alternate version of someone from my own universe.

She continued speaking, but all I could understand was Cierry. The rest was complete gibberish.

"English! Do you speak English?!" I shouted.

She responded by holding up a book and flipping through its pages.

"Do you wish to extract the knowledge in the text?" a robotic voice echoed in my mind.

"Yes, please."

Within seconds, the language became clear.

"Now we can talk properly," I said, eyeing her. "Cierry."

She smirked. "You learned so fast! As expected from my familiar!"

"Familiar?! TF you talking about? You're just a 14-year-old kid!" I roared.

"There’s no age requirement for summoning magic," Sir Dion calmly interjected.

I groaned. "Why do I have to get summoned to this fantasy world?"

Cierry ignored my question and beamed. "So, my familiar, what is your name? Your master is asking you!"

Instead of answering, I casually pulled out my chili fries from my pocket and started munching. "Arth. I’m a Space-Time Voyager. Also, I’m not your familiar. First of all, I’m not a slave. Second, I’m the strongest dude here."

Cierry frowned. "You wanna duel me?!"
She immediately pulled out her wand. "Even if I have to use force, I will assert my dominance over you!"

“I graduated early from my witch academy,” she boasted. “Top student.”

I sighed. "You really should humble yourself, Cierry."

“Oh? And what makes you think you can teach me a lesson?”

Before I could answer, her mentor cleared his throat.

“Before you two start fighting, may I speak with you for a moment, young man?”

“Sure.”

As Cierry prepared for battle, her mentor pulled me aside.

“There’s a reason you’re here,” he said. “Cierry is powerful, but she’s also arrogant. She pushes herself too hard, believing she has to prove something to everyone. She needs to learn humility.”

I sighed. “It’s natural for a kid to be prideful sometimes, but unchecked arrogance leads to downfall.”

“I don’t mind if you put her in her place,” he said. “Just don’t hurt her too much.”

“Not physically,” I reassured him. “But I’ll make sure she learns a valuable lesson.”
With that, I turned back to Cierry, who stood eagerly in her battle stance.

Cierry and I stood on opposite sides of an open courtyard. Sir Dion cleared his throat.

"Let the duel begin!"

Cierry wasted no time, tearing chunks of the ground from beneath her feet and launching them at me.

To her, it must have seemed like she was overwhelming me, but the truth?
I was stopping time and dodging every single attack with ease.

She gritted her teeth. "I'm not done yet!"
This time, she launched razor-sharp projectiles.

To stroke her ego a little, I let one graze my face, leaving a thin cut.

"You're good, Cierry," I said, cracking my neck. "But I haven’t even shown you my magic yet."

Her frustration grew as she charged an even stronger blast. Before it could hit me, I vanished.

"You’re just playing with me, aren’t you?!" she yelled, spinning wildly to locate me.

She spotted a clone I had created and blasted it to oblivion.

"Can you still keep up?" I taunted, my eyes glowing as I activated a memory projection spell.

She gasped as images of her past played out—her completely destroying her classmates in her academy’s final trials.

"I heard how you defeated everyone and became the top student at such a young age," I said. "Show me what you got."
Her anger erupted. She gathered all her magic, unleashing a devastating blast capable of obliterating a mountain.

I contained it in a sphere with ease, then made it disappear.

"That's cheating!" she cried.

I shrugged. "There’s no cheating in magic. As long as you have imagination, anything is possible."

With a snap of my fingers, I summoned multiple portals, unleashing an overwhelming rain of weapons.

"Now, this is cheating" I replied as I used the same spell that Sera used against me when I fought her.

She blocked most of them with a shield, but a massive sword was barreling toward her. At the last second, she split it in half with a spell.

When the dust settled, she was panting heavily, shaken.

For the first time, she had felt powerless.
"Why did you stop?" she whispered, her voice trembling.

I smiled. "Because I saw it in your eyes—you finally understand how your classmates felt when they fought you."

She dropped to her knees, tears streaming down her face. "I spent seven months pushing myself to become a full-fledged witch like the one I used to read about as a child, but…"

I walked over and hugged her. "I know you have big dreams. But you're still young, Cierry. You have time."

She punched my chest repeatedly, sniffling.

"Don’t lose hope," I reassured her.

 "Failure isn’t the end. It means you’re learning."

She wiped her eyes. "Don’t try to be smart with me!"

A Few Months Later....

Cierry finally completed her training.
Sir Dion proudly handed her a brooch. "I dub thee the Ivory Witch."

Cierry and I stared at him, unimpressed.
"Ivory? Really?" I deadpanned.

"Can’t you pick something cooler, like Frostveil?" Cierry huffed.

Sir Dion shrugged. "It’s because of your white hair."

We both looked at him with deadpan expressions.

Ignoring the awkward moment, I grinned at Cierry. "Congrats, Cierry. After all the hard work, you finally made it!"

She grinned back. "Thanks, Arth!"

"You should show this to your parents," Sir Dion suggested.

"Are you leaving?" Cierry asked.

He sighed. "My job is done here." With that, he dispelled his home and took off on his broom.

I turned to Cierry. "Cierry Coppenheimer."

She blinked. "Coppenheimer?"

"Wait… You’re not a Coppenheimer?"

"No?"

I frowned. "Weird. I have a friend named Cierry Coppenheimer. You remind me of her."

She chuckled. "Maybe I’ll meet her one day."

"You will. I guarantee it."

As she flew off on her broom, I opened a portal, smiling.

"I guess the fantasy world isn’t so bad after all."

Then I heard the dragon’s growl again.
I turned slowly.

"…Hi."

It roared.

"Oh, come on!"

"This is why I'm coming back to my universe! No more multiverse hopping for a while!" I whined as it began chasing me.

Chapter 12: HUMBLE.