The week came and went and it was finally the day for his release from the hospital.

  "Do you have everything?" Mel, his nurse asked as she leaned against the doorframe. They had gotten close during his stay there since she was basically his dedicated nurse and both had a lot of time on their hands. During that time, she shared stories about the world and even rumors she had heard about Grey before his "memory loss."

  "Are you sure you don't want to contact someone in your family? Wouldn't they send someone?" Mel had been hired by his family but that was mostly because they couldn't be bothered. Seeing how no one called to check on him, it was safe to say they didn't care about what happened to him but at least had to appear like they cared so they wouldn't end up on the news.

  Grey smiled but shook his head, "No. Think about it, no one came to visit me the entire time I was here and even after they were contacted with my condition, no one came."

  "I'm sorry, are you upset?" her brows furrowed as she stepped forward to see his face.

  "Nah, I'm good. As far as I am concerned they are just strangers. Sure they may be related to me by blood but it's obvious I'm not welcome in that family. So why force it? I don't know them, have no memories of them, so its not a loss for me. I feel pity for the 'me' before the memory loss but as for myself it doesn't bother me."

  "Are you sure? Should I call my boyfriend to come get you?"

  Grey laughed and grabbed her hand. "I promise I'm ok but, seriously, thank you for being concerned for me. I hope that you'll still contact me now that I'm out of here?"

  She laughed and hugged him, "Idiot! Of course! You will have to tell me how it all goes when you start healing! I'm so curious!"

  "Sure, sure. I'll see what I can do."

  "Let me walk you down."

  Mel grabbed one of his bags, it seemed he had been shopping when he had awakened so he had a shit ton of bags to take with him, well it worked it for him as he didn't need to worry about having a change of clothes.

  Once down to the entrance, she helped him into the taxi and hugged him one last time. "Make sure to call me when you get settled at home."

  "Thanks Mel."

  "Where to?" The taxi driver, a short and large man with a scruffy beard called over his shoulder as Grey slid into the back seat.

  "Could you take me the Emerald Crown?"

  "The hotel? Ah, yea, sure. Buckle up."

  Grey settled into the seat and glanced down at his phone.

  0 new messages

  0 new calls

  haaaa... isn't this pretty pathetic? Does he have no friends at all?

  Grey scrolled through his contacts but frowned when there were much more than he realized. How can he have so many contacts and yet not one person has tried to see if he was ok?

  He sighed and turned off his phone, turning his attention to the city passing by.

  Emerald city, it looked similar to something you would see in his world but at the same time, it was completely different. Small things that stood out were things that people in his world would have loved, things made by using by-products of monsters and items that used skills to make life easier was something that could only be found here.

  This magic like energy did not exist in his world. The fact that the city was so intertwined with elements of nature also made being in the city so strange. This was something that could only be found in a book as people in his world weren't all that interested in saving it, including from themselves. Here, they had no choice but to rebuild so they made sure they did things that made surviving easier, and nature was critical in that survival.

  The taxi driver took peeks through the rear-view mirror but was silent during the drive which was fine with Grey, his mood wasn't that great and his mind was all over the place. So when he pulled into the hotel entrance, it took him a moment to realize that he had been called.

  ".....Um...sir? We are here. Sir?"

  "Huh? Ah! yes! Thank you."

  Grey thanked the driver and got out of the car, pulling all his swag with him. The building was quite tall but it was covered in plants and had what looked like streams of waterfalls flow into rivers that connected to large gated gardens of the hotel. It was really stunning but realistically, not something that would have worked in his world. He walked beneath a canopy that blocked the waterfall and stepped inside the hotel lobby.

  The inside was wide open with domed glass ceilings that flooded the entire space in golden light and caused the marble stone floors to sparkle. The space was still filled with plants but the vibe felt as if he had stepped into a massive garden of some palace. It was quite beautiful and well designed. He briefly wondered how such a space could still be here and not damaged but then recalled that this hotel was covered in a barrier. It was something his world didn't have but something that was vital in this world.

  If a situation arose, this very hotel would be able to self sustain itself for a while under it's barrier. Most buildings in this city were built this way. They could act as bunkers and keep those inside safe while the Yang Hunters fought and killed the monsters or cleared the gates.

  He walked further into the lobby and looked around for the reception desk which he spotted towards the back. As he made his way towards the back, soft music was playing in the background and he noticed a woman walk toward him with a smile.

  "Hello, sir. Do you already have a reservation with us?"

  "Yes, I have a reservation. It would be under Grey Acero."

  "Oh! Mr. Acero! Of course, we have been expecting you. This way please."

  Grey nodded and followed the woman, it seemed she was surprised that he had come in from the public entrance and not the VIP one, but what did it matter? He wasn't a VIP anymore.

  She took him through secured double doors and towards a set of elevators and ushered him inside when the doors opened.

  She guided him to one of the penthouse rooms on the 26th floor and opened the double doors to display the room in welcome for him. She went through all the rooms and services that were available to him.

  Grey frowned and had a hard time understanding what was happening.

  "Please be sure to contact me if you need anything at any time. We hope you enjoy your time with us."

  "Excuse me, but I didn't order this room." Grey finally stated before she turned to leave. He had been following her around but this situation was truly ridiculous.

  "Huh? I'm sorry? What do you mean?" She looked concerned and confused. "Is there something wrong with the room?"

  "This is the room that I reserved, if you look here, you can clearly see this isn't the room I booked." Grey pulled up his screen and showed the woman his reservation. She leaned forward and frowned and then pulled her tablet out and searched through her system.

  "It says here that this is the room that we have booked for you. Could you give me one moment to contact our director? It seems they were the last to edit the reservation."

  "Sure." He nodded and stepped away while she tapped her watch and touched her right ear where an earphone was sitting. He couldn't hear what was being said but he could feel her turning to look at him as she spoke. After a few minutes, she smiled and walked over.

  "Mr. Acero, my director is on their way here to handle this situation. I apologize that I couldn't be of help to you."

  "No, no. This is helpful, thank you."

  "Why don't you have a seat and my director will be here in a minute or so."

  Grey nodded, walking over to take a seat on the sofa as the woman walked to the kitchen and made some tea, placing it front of him. Feeling guilty, Grey lifted the cup and took a sip smiling at her before turning his attention to the knock on the door.

  The woman walked over and a tall blonde woman in a sky blue suit walked in and immediately swept him up in a handshake.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  "Mr. Acero, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am Sera Marks, the director here at The Emerald Crown. My manager has told me that you are asking about why your reservation was upgraded to this room?"

  "That is correct. It doesn't make sense to me how that happened when I clearly booked a different room. I am not someone who can afford this room."

  Sera's face cracked for a brief moment before returning to smile as she nodded and answered, "I understand your concern completely, Mr. Acero. It seems your fiancé Mr. Stur contacted us and said to make sure this room was upgraded. He found it unacceptable that we allowed someone of your status to reserve such a room. We are very sorry for our mistake and will make sure there won't be a repeat."

  "Mr. Stur? But that wasn't his decision to make. I have already told you that I am not one who could afford this room so there wasn't a mistake. The mistake is letting someone else other than the person who made the reservation manipulate and change it. Is that even legal? I would like to have my original room and also would like the bill to be given to me. Please return the money that I am sure Mr. Stur has already paid."

  "I am sorry, sir, but I am unable to do that. I was told to say something if you did refuse this room, would you like to hear it?"

  Grey rubbed his face in anger before sighing and waved her on.

  I was told to say, "If you refuse this room, I will come find you."

  "Motherfucker." Grey breathed as he rubbed his temples, his head pounding as his anger surged. He knew he couldn't take his anger out on her, it was that man. THAT MAN. Why isn't he minding his own business?? He gave him an out and now he is messing with him?! Arghhhhhh! He'll kill him. He swore he would kill him.

  "So, I have to take this room?" he nearly growled at her.

  "Yes, sir. Is there a problem with it? Is there something we can fix to make sure it lives up your standards?"

  "No, no. It's fine." He frowned and nodded. "It's fine. Thank you."

  "Wonderful. If you do need anything, please contact me. We will do our best to make sure you enjoy your time while you are with us."

  "Sure. I would like to rest now, thank you for you time."

  "Of course, enjoy your rest."

  The woman smiled a little and turned to leave escorting the other woman out, closing the double doors behind her.

  "That motherfucker." He grabbed his head and wanted to scream.

  "What could he possibly mean by doing this shit? Should I call him? Ugh, I really don't want to, but I also don't want him to keep butting into my shit."

  Grey pulled his phone from his pocket and pulled up Darren's number, he nearly gagged at the name it was under. Better change that shit. After renaming the contact he pressed the call button and listened to it ring.

  A deep and rumbling voice answered after the second ring, as if it had been waiting. Was that fucker smiling?

  --To what occasion do I owe the pleasure of this call?

  "Haaaaaaaaaaa.... "

  --Mm, as much as I enjoy the sound of your voice I don't wish to stay on the phone if you have no business with me.

  "What are you playing at?

  --That should be my line. Why are you calling me?

  "You're not stupid. Why are you interfering with my business? You literally just signed the contract saying you would fuck off, so why aren't you doing that?"

  --I am not interfering with anythi--

  "You ARE! You literally just interfered with my hotel room! Which by the way, how did you even know I had a reservation here? Are you stalking me? And second, why are fucking with my shit?" He practically yelled, unable to hold onto his temper.

  --Wow, what a mouth. I didn't know you cursed so much. That's a bad habit.

  "Sonofa- (takes a breath) You don't even know me, so just cut the crap."

  -- Temper, temper. I'll repeat it. I am not interfering. I am merely doing my part until the engagement is completely dissolved and the announcement has been made. Do you think that you can just snap your fingers and it be over?

  "So you're saying it can't? Even after we signed the contract? What was the purpose then?"

  -- Sigh. Our families and their businesses are all tangled in this engagement. Deals were made and now things must be dealt with. Too much is caught up in your whim so it will take time to process. Until that happens, I can't have the 6 o'clock news run a story about how I am forcing my fiancé to live in some shabby hotel room and blame me for treating him terribly. This may be all new to you, but this is the reality. Now, be a good boy and sit tight. If it helps, you can think of it as compensation for ending the engagement.

  "Huuuuu, yea, super glad I don't have to continue dealing with this shit. Fine. I get it. But you could have at least told me beforehand and you certainly didn't have to be an asshole when explaining the situation. A simple call or even a message would have been sufficient. Instead you went out of your way to be difficult and force me to be defensive. From now on, if you have to do shit like this, just send me a message. If you do this shit again, I'll personally call the news myself and give them a story to talk about. Go ahead, keep fucking around and you'll find out just what I'm capable of."

  Grey pushed the end button and threw his phone away from him on the bed. He didn't know how the original Grey liked that fucker, he already had a headache and he had only spoken to him for a few minutes.

  He was so tired. He threw himself on the bed and closed his eyes. Why did that man have to be so difficult?

  -------

  Darren stared at the black screen of his phone with a smile and then laughed. He could tell Grey was pissed off but he couldn't seem to think of it as such a bad thing. Has he become some sort of pervert that enjoys tormenting people?

  He thought about it and shook his head. No, that wasn't the case. It was because it was this Grey that he felt the need to poke him and his responses were so satisfying that he found himself doing things he normally wouldn't have done. Like, for example, contacting the hotel and upgrading the room and then forcing him to accept it because he knew it would piss him off. He smirked.

  What he said had been true and one of the reasons he didn't think twice about changing the room but that wasn't his main reason. Which.. once he thought about it, was quite confusing but he didn't feel the need to examine those thoughts since they were done now.

  "Did you put the tail on him?"

  "Yes, sir. Sera will monitor his time in the hotel and we have someone that will be his shadow while outside of the hotel."

  "Right. It is better to be cautious."

  His assistant merely nodded and handed the files to Darren before leaving the office again.

  Darren glanced at his phone and smiled again, chuckling to himself as he imagined what kind of face that indifferent one might have been making.

  ----

  Grey rolled over after calming down and sat up. He stared at his notebook and shook his head. It was quite pathetic how much he didn't know about this story. Did he even really read it? He coughed and shook his head.

  Tomorrow he would go to the bank and then he had an appointment with the U.H.H.A for measuring his ability and then get an assignment. They would rank his ability and then assign him to hunters whose compatibility matched his ability frequency. The higher the rate, the easier it was for the Yin healer to purify the Yang Hunter, as their energies would resonate not fight against each other.

  As far as he could remember, which was jack shit, his character was never mentioned so he had no idea what rank he would get. He didn't even know what he would need to do. He sighed and decided he needed to at least try to figure out what being a Yin meant.

  He got into a lotus position that he had seen from many martial arts stories and then closed his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he tried focusing on trying to feel the energy that was supposedly in his body.

  But he felt nothing.

  Sigh. What was he doing?

  He felt a bit like an idiot but sat on the bed and tried to recall anything about how the MC had worked with his power.

  ---

  Reo fell to the ground and clutched his stomach, the heat within him was bursting and he could feel it fill him up until it exploded from his body in a bright light. The energy swirled and moved through his veins until it's burn was clearly felt....

  ....once he acknowledged the feeling, he could feel his control over it. He sighed as the pain that had been burning him from the inside out, suddenly disappeared just as soon as it had come....

  ---

  Grey frowned. He wasn't even in possession of this body when it first awakened so how was he supposed to have felt that heat? But the moment he thought about it a light feeling brushed against his mind.

  He froze.

  Was that it?

  He calmed his racing heart and then got back into the lotus position and focused on his actual body, on the place that felt like it burned. If it had to compare it to something... maybe... acid reflux?

  The burn was near his belly button and he focused on it. Feeling every part of it. But nothing happened.

  He felt frustrated but decided to try one more time.

  Focusing on the energy, the burn, he called "Come on! Move!"

  As if it had been waiting for his command the energy burst forth, it exploded. The burn consumed him, stealing his breath and making it feel as if his entire body would be reduced to ashes and he would surely die. But the moment he screamed, "Stop!", the energy froze and just like the description in the book, he knew now that he could control it. He could feel it. Could move it without effort, like breathing, like he always could.

  But this... this was different. He knew something was not right. No, it was very wrong.

  "No."

  "Nope."

  "Fuck no. No way, this is NOT happening."

  He stood from the bed and then sat down only to stand again.

  "That son of a bitch." His friend, he really would punch his friend. No forget punching him in the face, he would kill that fucker!

  He may not have been a character in the story but having someone not originally from this world possess the body of someone who was... isn't this exactly the recipe for shit to hit the fan? Ahhh... why didn't he think of this? No. No. This was not happening. No, he wouldn't allow it.

  No way in hell is he going to be become the MC of this story. He refused.

  But panic was setting in.

  What the fuck was he supposed to do?

  He had to have his ability tested tomorrow and he was OP. Way too OP. Like never seen in this world OP. No, no, no, no. His mind raced as he was close to having a mental breakdown. At this rate, he would end up being sent to those fuckers and would probably end up having to deal with them in place of the MC. No way in hell! OVER HIS DEAD BODY!

  Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck..

  He took a breath and sat back down on the bed and covered his face with his hands. There had to be something he could do, maybe he could try to fool the test? But he knew, he knew the moment he connected to his power. He was something different. He was an anomaly and he was extremely powerful. The energy had told him. It had told him he was something far more powerful than anyone in this world.

  The fucking energy told him. No, it didn't speak, but it was there in his mind nonetheless. He just knew.

  Haaaa... what was he going to do?

  He couldn't miss the appointment. They would literally come after him and then they would be suspicious on why he skipped his test. Everyone in this world was apparently chipped as soon as they were born, which monitored awakenings. So even if he tried to get away, he wouldn't get far. They would come for him and he would be trapped as he would be seen as a flight risk.

  Ah man, he was so fucked.

  He sighed and tried not to scream. All he could do was wait and see.

  After playing with his ability for a while, he knew he had incredible control over it. But he just didn't know if it was incredible enough that he would be able to fool the testing machine. Haaaa... only one way to find out.

  He collapsed on the bed and tried to relax enough to sleep but even after closing his eyes, it was a restless sleep.