Observatory

Morning light filtered through the mansion's crystal windows as Itsuki woke up on his simple bed setup. The gaming computer hummed quietly in the corner, and he could hear Maria bustling around somewhere in the vast, mostly empty halls.

He stretched and made his way toward the sound, finding her in what passed for the kitchen area, though it was as sparsely furnished as everywhere else.

"Good morning, Master Amakaze!" Maria chirped, turning to face him with a bright smile that immediately shifted to a pout. "Though I suppose you don't care since you probably want to skip breakfast too!"

She crossed her arms and turned away dramatically. "Maria worked so hard preparing a lovely meal, but Master will probably just ignore it like always. Hmph!"

Itsuki scratched his head sheepishly. "Actually, I was hoping you could take me to the observatory room. Or the map room, if there is one."

"Oh!" Maria's mood instantly brightened, then immediately soured again. "So Master only needs Maria when he wants something! Not when poor Maria makes delicious food!" She stuck her tongue out at him. "Fine! But you have to promise to eat lunch with me later!"

"Alright, alright," Itsuki said, unable to suppress a smile at her antics. "I promise."

"Really?" Her eyes sparkled with sudden joy before she tried to look stern again. "You better not be lying! Maria will be very angry if Master breaks his promise!"

She led him through the empty corridors of the mansion, her mood shifting between excitement and mock indignation as they walked. The observatory was located in the highest spire of the floating manor, accessible through a spiraling staircase that Maria climbed with practiced ease.

"Here we are!" she announced, throwing open the ornate doors. "Master's super fancy observatory that he's never used!"

The room was stunning. Floor to ceiling windows offered a panoramic view of the sky realm, while in the center sat a massive holographic map table that flickered to life as they entered. Star charts, navigation routes, and territorial markers began populating the three dimensional display.

"Will Master need anything else?" Maria asked, though her tone suggested she was still a bit miffed about the skipped meals. "Or should Maria go back to cooking food that nobody eats?"

"Just give me a few minutes to check something," Itsuki said, approaching the holographic display.

The map system activated fully as he got closer, displaying a three dimensional representation of the surrounding area. Floating islands, cloud formations, and navigation markers filled the space above the table. Since the world was procedurally generated, it was almost infinite, but if he could find some familiar landmarks, he'd be able to figure out at least his general location.

Let's see... I should be somewhere near the Central Spires where I logged off last time.

But as he studied the display, confusion crept in. This wasn't where he'd logged off. The terrain patterns, the island formations, even the atmospheric conditions were completely different from what he remembered.

That's... odd. Maybe the spawning system glitched when I was brought here?

He zoomed out further, expanding the map's view to encompass a larger area. His confusion turned to concern, then to something approaching panic.

The map was entirely different.

Nothing looked familiar. Not the island clusters, not the floating cities, not even the basic geographical layout. The shape of continents, the positioning of major landmarks, the flow patterns of the sky currents. Everything was wrong.

"What the hell?" he muttered, frantically manipulating the display to search for anything recognizable.

Is this really the world of Astral Caliber? The mechanics were the same, the interface felt familiar, his abilities worked exactly as they should. But he didn't recognize the shape of anything, couldn't identify where he was, couldn't even find reference points he knew should exist.

Maria noticed his distress and moved closer. "Master? Is everything alright?"

Itsuki stared at the alien geography spread out before him. Everything was pretty much the same, but...

He turned away from the map, mind racing. I need to prepare. I don't know where I am. I should eat her meal before I set off. I might be traveling for a while.

"Maria," he said quietly, "can we eat breakfast together?"

Maria's expression immediately brightened, her earlier pout forgotten. "Really? Master will eat with Maria?" She clapped her hands together. "I'll prepare the best breakfast ever! Don't you dare change your mind!"

She practically skipped out of the observatory, leaving Itsuki alone with the alien geography displayed before him. He stared at the holographic map for a few more minutes, trying to make sense of what he was seeing, but nothing clicked into place.

I'll figure this out later. For now, I need information.

◇◇◇

The dining room Maria led him to was another vast, mostly empty space, but she'd managed to transform one corner into something cozy. A small table materialized with elegant place settings, and the aroma filling the air made Itsuki realize just how hungry he actually was.

"Master, Master! Look what Maria made!" She gestured proudly at the spread before them.

The breakfast was magnificent. Beautiful eggs benedict with perfectly poached eggs sitting atop golden English muffins, the hollandaise sauce gleaming like liquid sunlight. Strips of bacon that looked more like crystallized amber, crackling with energy and releasing an aroma that was somehow both familiar and otherworldly. Golden toast that appeared to have been crafted from some kind of stellar grain, each slice shimmering with a faint luminescence.

"This looks incredible," Itsuki said, and meant it.

Maria beamed with pride. "Maria worked so hard to make everything perfect for Master!"

As Itsuki took his first bite, flavors exploded across his palate. The eggs benedict was silky and rich, with a subtle taste of vanilla and something indefinably magical. The bacon had a smoky, sweet flavor with hints of caramel and starfruit. The toast was warm and nutty, with a texture that seemed to dissolve into pure energy as he chewed.

"This is amazing, Maria," he said, genuinely impressed. "You're an incredible cook."

Maria's face lit up like a sunrise. "Really? Really really? Master likes Maria's cooking?" She clapped her hands together, bouncing slightly in her chair. "Maria is so happy! Master never eats with me, but now he's eating and he likes it and Maria is just so so so happy!"

They ate in comfortable conversation, with Maria chattering about various cooking techniques while Itsuki found himself actually relaxing for the first time since his arrival. The food seemed to restore not just his physical energy, but something deeper as well.

She really did put a lot of effort into this, he thought, watching Maria's animated gestures as she explained how she'd prepared the toast. I should eat with her more often.

After they finished, Maria insisted on clearing the dishes herself, practically glowing with satisfaction. "Master ate everything! Every single bite! Maria is the happiest maid in all the realms!"

"Thank you for breakfast," Itsuki said. "But now I need to gather some information about this world. I'm going to need to visit a guild."

Maria's expression shifted to concern. "Master is leaving already? But he just got home!"

"Just for a while," Itsuki assured her. "I need to figure out where we are."

He pulled up his map interface again, scanning for the nearest guild location. There it was, marked with the familiar crossed swords icon about a day's flight away if he took the mansion with him.

It'll take about a day to get there flying the mansion, so I'll dematerialize it back into the pocket space for now and fly there myself. It'll only take me about an hour if I max out the speed of my wings.

"Maria, I'm going to store the mansion for now. I'll call you back out when I return."

"Okay, Master!" Maria saluted playfully. "But you better come back soon! And don't you dare eat anywhere else!"

Itsuki activated the housing system, and the mansion began to shimmer and fade. Maria waved enthusiastically as she and the entire structure dissolved back into the Manor Token, leaving Itsuki floating alone among the clouds.

He stretched his astral wings, feeling their power resonate through his transformed body. Time to find some answers.

◇◇◇

The guild hall was exactly as he remembered it should be, a massive floating structure of white stone and blue crystal that served as a hub for adventurers and information brokers. As Itsuki approached the landing platform, he noticed other figures coming and going, their various armors and weapons marking them as fighters of different levels and specializations.

Everything looks normal, he thought, touching down on the crystal platform. But then again, so did everything else until I looked at the map.

He made his way through the entrance, past familiar looking quest boards and training areas, toward the information desk. The guild receptionist, a cheerful woman with silver hair and pointed ears, looked up as he approached.

"Welcome to the Skyward Guild! How can we help you today?" she said with practiced enthusiasm.

Before Itsuki could respond, her expression changed to one of surprise, then recognition, then something approaching awe.

"Oh my," she breathed, her eyes widening as she stared at something above his head. "Amakaze the Monochrome Knight."

Itsuki blinked in confusion, then looked up. There, floating above his head in ethereal silver lettering, was his title from the second anniversary event. MONOCHROME KNIGHT flickered briefly before disappearing again.

What? The title's equipped? He'd earned that designation for achieving the most eliminations in the server wide PVP event two years ago, but he hadn't had it active when he was transported here. Why is it showing up now?

"It's an honor to meet you, sir," the receptionist continued, her professional demeanor now mixed with genuine respect. "Your performance in the Steel Sky Tournament is still talked about in adventuring circles. What brings the legendary Monochrome Knight to our humble branch?"

"Actually," she added before he could respond, "would you like to accept your daily quest commissions? We have several suitable for someone of your caliber."

I've never missed daily commissions once, so no reason to miss them now, Itsuki thought. Daily missions provided valuable rewards that could only be claimed once per day. For a max level player like himself, this usually involved taking down major disruptions to the realm's stability.

"What's available?" he asked.

The receptionist consulted her records. "We have a Jeweled Wyvern terrorizing the Crimson Valley trade routes. It's been disrupting merchant caravans for weeks."

A trivial task, Itsuki mused. Jeweled Wyverns were one of the biggest walls that new to mid game players struggled with, but he'd learned the trick years ago. The key was to layer multiple elemental traps underneath the creature while it slept, then engage it in combat. The dragon would wake up and activate all the traps simultaneously, creating a massive explosion that would stun it and crack its armored hide.

"I'll take it," he said.

"Excellent! The wyvern has been spotted in the Eastern Gorge. It typically roosts during daylight hours."

Itsuki recovered quickly, slipping into the persona that had served him well in competitive situations. "I also need information about the current state of the world. Recent changes to geography, new territories, that sort of thing."

"Of course!" The receptionist immediately began pulling out maps and documents. "There have been quite a few Realm Shifts recently. The Continental Drift Events have been more frequent this cycle, and several new island chains have emerged from the Deep Sky."

Realm Shifts? Continental Drift Events? None of this terminology was familiar from what he remembered, but it would explain the completely different geography.

"How often do these... Realm Shifts occur?" he asked carefully.

"Oh, they've been happening for centuries," she replied matter of factly. "Though the Great Reformation about fifty years ago was the largest on record. Completely rearranged the Central Territories and opened up vast new regions for exploration."

Itsuki studied the maps she spread out before him. The landmasses were indeed completely different from what he remembered, but the style, the naming conventions, the general aesthetic all screamed Astral Caliber. This was definitely the same world, just... transformed.

Fifty years ago, he thought. But the game was only released three years ago. Unless...

The possibility hit him like a lightning bolt. Maybe this is how it always was. Maybe what I played was just a simplified version of this real world.

He spent the next hour poring over historical records, geographical surveys, and territorial maps. Every piece of information confirmed his growing suspicion. This world was real, vast, and ancient. The game had apparently captured only a fraction of this place.

The receptionist had been incredibly helpful, clearly eager to assist someone with his legendary reputation. She'd provided detailed information about current political situations, major trade routes, and notable adventuring opportunities in the region.

"Is there anything else the Monochrome Knight requires?" she asked as he prepared to leave.

"Are there any other legendary fighters active in this area? Anyone with a reputation similar to mine?"

Her expression grew thoughtful. "Well, there are rumors of the Crimson Tempest operating in the Eastern Reaches, and some say the Void Walker has been seen in the Shattered Isles. But verified sightings of true legends like yourself are quite rare these days."

Other players, Itsuki realized. If I'm here, there might be others who made the same transition.

As he left the guild hall, Itsuki's mind raced with the implications of what he'd learned. This world was real, vast, and ancient. The game had apparently captured only a fraction of this place.

The question now, he thought as he launched himself toward the Eastern Gorge, is what do I do with this knowledge? But first, let's deal with this wyvern.

The flight to Crimson Valley took about twenty minutes. As he approached the Eastern Gorge, he could see the massive creature coiled around a rocky outcropping, its jeweled scales glinting in the afternoon sun. The beast was easily forty feet long, with crystalline formations growing from its spine that pulsed with internal light.

Perfect. Still asleep.

Itsuki descended silently, landing on a cliff face opposite the wyvern's roost. He began the delicate process of setting his traps, weaving together fire, ice, and lightning elements into invisible snares positioned directly beneath the sleeping dragon. Each trap required precise placement and timing to ensure they would all trigger simultaneously.

One... two... three layers should be enough.

With the traps in place, Itsuki drew his blade and launched a small projectile at the wyvern's head. The creature's eyes snapped open, glowing like molten gold. It reared up with a thunderous roar, spreading its wings wide.

And immediately triggered every single trap.

The explosion was spectacular. Fire, ice, and lightning erupted simultaneously beneath the wyvern, the conflicting elements creating a chaotic maelstrom of energy that engulfed the entire creature. The beast shrieked as its jeweled armor cracked and its wings folded inward from the shock.

Itsuki was already moving. He dove through the dissipating energy, his blade aimed directly at the crystal core embedded in the wyvern's chest. The creature, stunned and disoriented, couldn't react fast enough to defend itself.

His sword pierced the crystal with a sound like breaking glass. Light erupted from the wound as the wyvern's life force scattered to the winds. The massive body collapsed onto the rocky ledge, already beginning to dissolve into motes of light that would reform somewhere else in the world.

Just like I remembered, Itsuki thought, landing gracefully on the now empty ledge. Some things never change.