Chapter 3: Another World (Orario)
The words "another world" hung heavily in the air. Tsuna stared at Hestia, completely dumbfounded.
"A-Another world... What are you even talking about...!?"
But Tsuna wasn't the only one shocked. Bell looked equally blindsided by the revelation.
"It's perfectly natural that you don't believe me," Hestia said calmly. "But we have undeniable proof."
She reached across the table and picked up the geography textbook.
"The proof is right here in this book."
"That's the book from earlier..." Bell murmured. He recalled the bizarre, alien cityscapes and impossible towers pictured within its pages.
"I'm sorry for digging through your belongings, but we needed to figure out who you were. And looking through this book made it abundantly clear that you aren't from around here."
"Eh...? How does a textbook prove I'm from another world...?"
To Tsuna, it was just a standard, boring geography textbook. It made zero sense.
"First of all, neither Bell nor I can read a single character written in this book."
"W-Well, isn't that normal...? Different countries have different languages..."
With a name like "Tsunayoshi," he was obviously Japanese. Hestia and Bell sounded like foreign names. Even if they could speak Japanese, reading and writing it was an entirely different hurdle. To Tsuna, this wasn't strange at all.
"Based on your phrasing, it seems that in your world, language changes depending on the country."
"Yeah, of course it does... Actually, not just the writing, but the spoken languages are completely different too..."
"In our world, communication is fundamentally unified. We use a single, universal language and writing system known as Koine. What I'm speaking to you right now is Koine. There are isolated groups that still use their own unique dialects, but the vast majority of the global population uses Koine exclusively."
"Eh...!?"
Tsuna was floored. The concept of an entire planet sharing a single unified language was completely incomprehensible to him.
"Second, there's these pictures."
Hestia pointed to an aerial photograph of Tokyo's sprawling metropolis.
"These images are far too precise. It's as if someone literally ripped a piece of reality and glued it to the page. I've certainly never seen a painting this vivid."
"Wait... are you saying you don't know what a photograph is...?"
"A pho-to-graph?" x2
"Yeah... It's a technology used to record people and places... It's not something drawn by hand, it's captured using a machine called a camera..."
"...!?" x2
T-They really don't know...
Bell and Hestia stared at the textbook, their expressions screaming that such a concept was utterly impossible. Looking at their genuine bewilderment, Tsuna realized they truly had no concept of photography.
"A-Anyway, let's move on," Hestia coughed, recovering her composure. "The third piece of evidence. I assume the country pictured here is your homeland?"
"Yeah... it is..."
"We possess absolutely nothing close to this level of advanced architectural technology in our world. It's safe to say we operate on entirely different levels of civilization."
"But it's not like every single country in my world has buildings like this..."
"Fair enough. But the fourth piece of evidence is the absolute clincher."
Hestia flipped through the textbook, showing Tsuna various pages.
"This book uses the technology you call a 'photograph.' It clearly shows various countries, as well as the people who live in them. But there is a massive discrepancy."
"A discrepancy?"
"There are no other races pictured anywhere in this book."
"Huh...!?"
"This world is populated by numerous different races. Elves, Dwarves, Pallums, Beast-People... the list goes on. Under our classification, you would be categorized as a Human."
"Elves and Dwarves...!? But those are just mythical creatures from fantasy games...!"
"I see. So even if they are just fantasy to you, you at least know what they are. In that case, do you want to see for yourself? Do you want to see if they actually exist?"
"Eh...!?"
Hestia stood up and turned to Bell. "Bell-kun, I'm going to take him out for a bit. Watch the house for me."
"Eh? But..."
"Don't worry, we'll be right back. Besides, you have to dive into the Dungeon again tomorrow, right? You need to rest your body while you can."
"U-Understood..."
Dungeon?
The unfamiliar RPG terminology only deepened Tsuna's overwhelming confusion.
.....
Tsuna followed Hestia out of the ruined church.
"...!?"
The moment he stepped outside, Tsuna froze solid, his jaw practically dropping to the cobblestone floor. His eyes darted around frantically. The streets were paved with stone, the architecture looked like something straight out of medieval Europe, and looming dead center in the city was an impossibly massive, heaven-piercing tower. Everything was completely alien. It genuinely felt like he had been sucked into a fantasy video game.
"This is Orario. It's the most prosperous city in the entire world."
"Orario..."
"Come on, let's take a walk."
Still reeling from the shock, Tsuna numbly followed Hestia through the winding streets.
"I-It's real...!"
After ten minutes of walking, they arrived at a bustling marketplace lined with merchant stalls. And right there, walking casually among the crowds, were people with long pointed ears, short stout men with massive beards, and people with actual animal ears and tails. Elves, Dwarves, and beastmen were haggling, laughing, and living their lives completely naturally. Nobody batted an eye. It cemented the reality of Hestia's words.
I've never seen any of this stuff...
The food being roasted on skewers, the bizarre magical items on display—it was all completely foreign.
The money is different too...
He watched a customer hand over several unfamiliar coins and paper bills to a stall owner.
And the writing...
He looked up at the wooden signs hanging above the shops. The characters painted on them were elegant and jagged, bearing zero resemblance to Japanese, English, or any alphabet he knew.
And that huge building...
He tilted his head back, staring at the monolithic tower in the center of the city.
I really am in another world...
It was a structure so unimaginably massive that it could be seen from anywhere in the city. A building of that scale would undeniably be a famous world heritage site back on Earth. The fact that he had never even heard of it was the final, crushing proof.
"Well? Do you believe me now? Do you understand that you're in another world?"
"Yeah..."
Tsuna's voice was barely a whisper, his expression plunging into profound despair. He had no friends here. No family. And absolutely no idea how to get back to Namimori. The harsh reality of his situation crashed down on him.
"Alright, let's head back to the church for now."
"Okay..."
Wanting to talk things over calmly, Hestia guided the deeply depressed boy back through the marketplace, retracing their steps toward home.
"You don't need to worry so much. Leave it to me."
"Eh...?"
Sensing Tsuna's crushing anxiety on the walk back, Hestia offered him a warm, reassuring smile.
"I told you, didn't I? Extending a helping hand to lost children is simply what a God does. I'll take responsibility for you and make sure you have a place here until we find a way to get you home."
"B-But..."
"Of course, it won't be a free ride! I deeply sympathize with your situation, but I'm going to need you to work. As you can see, our Familia isn't exactly swimming in Valis right now."
"T-Thank you so much!"