Chapter 2: Meanwhile in Toyashi Land

Toyashi, however, didn't get to be peacefully transported like Mizaki, and what I meant by that was that his magic summoning circle was in the sky.

"Yawwwwn." Toyashi opened his mouth to yawn a big gulp of air but quickly returned to his sleep.

Despite falling from several thousand feet, he was still sleeping like a baby, so quaint and transcendent. The wind acted like his bed and pillow, so soft and fluffy.

I hated to break it to him, so I wouldn't. Isekai protagonists were basically invincible anyway.

It wasn't long before his sleep was rudely interrupted by him smacking his head against a corner of a random table left out in the open. The table didn't stand a chance.

However, Toyashi's head was completely intact with no visible wound. I told you isekai protagonists these days were on pure cocaine when it came to being indestructible. Sometimes.

"AAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!" He screamed out in pain, much to the panic of a mob family who was nearby. The same family that had set up the table for their picnic. They rushed to the site to find their table completely destroyed and some random kid holding his head in pure agony.

The family worried about the random kid screaming his lungs out and rushed to his side to check on him, but the mother was running straight for the table to check its health.

"Hey kid! Are you alright?" The father asked, his face full of concern.

"Hey table! Are you alright?" The mother also asked, her face full of concern for the amount of money she'd spent on this nice, fancy table that was now less of a table and more expensive firewood.

"You look like you're in pain!" The father said, casting his healing magic on Toyashi.

"You look like you're in pain!" The mother sobbed, desperately using healing magic on her pile of premium kindling.

Slowly but surely, Toyashi's agony subsided. He lowered his arms, still dazed and confused.

"Thank goodness, you're alright." The father breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Toyashi recovered.

"Thank goodness, you're alright." The mother hugged her table that was somehow fixed by the healing magic. It was a miracle! Who knew furniture insurance worked like that? I got to learn some of that magic for myself.

The daughter was just standing there confused the whole time, questioning her family's priorities.

"Ughhhh..." Toyashi slowly opened his eyes.

Still thinking he was inside his bedroom, Toyashi reacted just like you'd think he would when he saw strangers "inside" his home.

"AAAAAHHHH!! WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE?!" He screamed, clearly ready to battle.

"We should ask you the same question..." the father stopped mid-sentence to take a close look at Toyashi.

"Ohh! It's just young, mischievous <insert name here>." The father breathed a sigh of relief again. He clearly knew Toyashi, yet why did he say Toyashi's name was <insert name here>?

 What kind of nickname was that? And why did these strangers know him? He wonders

Toyashi took some time to compose himself. These people clearly meant him no harm. He then took a wide look at his surroundings: an unexplainable floating tower in the distance, dragons flying around, and people with knife ears dancing uphill. Was he in a dream? Toyashi wondered. It was clearly not a dream after all. 

Dreams don't hurt, right? 

And yet he had just experienced one of the worst pains in his life.

Dreams didn't usually involve this much head trauma, right?

Also, had those people just used magic? Could he be in some sort of fantasy world? He wondered to himself while the family looked at him with concern.

"Should we...?" The mother asked.

"No, no. Give him a minute. He must still be confused by the pain." The father responded.

"Woooahhh! Pretty butterfly!" The daughter had already moved on to more important matters.

Finally, Toyashi came to the conclusion: he must be in another world. He must have been transported here while he slept. But what fantasy world had he been transported to? And how did those people know him?

Toyashi was deep in thought.

Meanwhile, the family had already resumed their picnic, displaying a ton of food beside Toyashi like he wasn't there. Talk about dedication to mealtime.

"Lily, could you pass me the butter?" The father stretched out his hand.

"Sure, dad." The daughter passed the butter.

"Hmmmmmm..." Toyashi was still thinking.

He took another look at his surroundings. There he saw a gigantic crooked tree over the mountain, an unmistakable shape and texture.

He knew that tree. He'd designed that tree. It was also where he had hidden his visual glitch and where, by linking to it, he had fixed his spaghetti code error. Somehow. He didn't know how. It just worked.

He must be in his own game, Pandrago Oricle. His game. His baby.

The realization filled him with excitement and joy, but hold on a minute. Weren't these isekai stories usually for multiplayer games? Why had it targeted his single-player game?

But that didn't matter anymore. He needed to confirm his suspicion.

"Hey!!!" Turning to the family, he yelled.

"Aiihhiiii!" The daughter dropped the ketchup.

"What is it, <insert name here>?" The father questioned.

Leaving the questionable name choice aside, Toyashi asked him one simple question that would confirm everything for him: "Are we in Kythara?"

"Of course we are in Kythara! What kind of question is that?! Did you hit your head too hard, <insert name here>?"

Bingo.

He was in Pandrago Oricle, the world he had created, the world he loved.

"YAYYY!!!" Toyashi was so overcome with joy that he just had to shout and jump. He was in double joy mode when he realized that he was also the protagonist.

He said a simple word of thanks to the family before asking for their names.

"Kid... We are literally your neighbors. Are you sure you don't have amnesia?" The father asked in confusion.

"Ohh noo! Please don't have amnesia, <insert name here>! Family budgets don't cover magical doctors." The mother cried out in pain as if Toyashi had just stabbed her wallet with something sharp.

Why did they still refer to him as <insert name here>? That was when Toyashi remembered that the game asked for the player's input for a name, with "Mark" as the default.

The weird "<insert name here>" thing must have been a glitch. It must have happened when the game turned into reality.

He could pick any name he wanted. This was his chance to name himself something cool like DestroyerXXX or Hunter of Damnation. Toyashi pondered before settling on...

"Sorry, I, Grimvault, have such bad memories. Can you repeat your names again?"

Nailed it. He had done it. He had chosen something cool.

"That's fine, Grimvault. I'm Bowan, this is my wife Scarla, and our daughter Lily. Don't you forget it again, young man!"

"I won't!!" Toyashi bowed.

And with that, Toyashi ran off with the intent to enjoy his world to the fullest. He couldn't wait to meet his childhood friend and begin his grand adventure.

The family watched him disappear into the distance.

"Should we be worried?" Scarla asked.

"Nah," Bowan replied, taking a bite of his sandwich.