Rowan slowly came to, his mind still hazy, and opened his eyes in confusion.
He slowly looked around and realized he was inside a luxurious cathedral.
The cathedral was magnificent beyond compare. Its domed ceiling was made of enormous stained-glass panels, and light streamed down from above, bathing the interior in colors that seemed almost holy. The towering walls were covered in exquisitely crafted reliefs depicting countless epic scenes, including saints and various kinds of angels.
The cathedral's interior could only be described as vast. Its pews could seat thousands of worshippers and believers. But the most conspicuous feature was a colossal humanoid statue, dozens of meters tall, standing at the very center of the space and directly facing Rowan.
It wore golden armor, held a flaming straight sword in its right hand, and wore an enormous clawed gauntlet on its left. Its gaze was resolute, its presence awe-inspiring.
"...Let me think. Wasn't I supposed to be in a safe house in Three Portland?"
"...Where the hell is this?"
He furrowed his brow.
Rowan was twenty-two years old, and he was a transmigrator.
As one of countless transmigrators, he had clearly been less fortunate than those who came before him and his fellow travelers. He had ended up in a world teeming with anomalies and fraught with extreme danger—the Foundation Universe.
Still, after nervously confirming that he hadn't dropped dead on arrival from all the forbidden information in his mind, Rowan had figured that since he was already here, he might as well explore the anomalous world beyond the Veil. He'd mingled and enthusiastically interacted with all kinds of monsters and anomalous organizations.
By his reckoning, it had been five years since he'd transmigrated.
The experience and knowledge he'd gained over those five years had made him remarkably strong-minded. Even after ending up in such an anomalous situation, he quickly calmed down.
"Whoosh—"
Rowan focused his thoughts and concentrated, calling upon the power he knew best.
A power that could twist reality at will.
It was his greatest asset in this chaotic world he'd found himself in after transmigrating.
Rowan was a Reality Warper!
As the name suggested, this anomalous entity could alter and twist reality through perception and willpower, achieving something akin to making wishes come true within a limited area.
Even in the Foundation Universe, a world filled with extraordinary beings, such an anomalous entity was exceedingly rare and dangerous. Once discovered, it would likely either spend the rest of its life in a Foundation containment chamber or be killed outright by a GOC task force. There were few other possible outcomes.
Someone like Rowan, who had roamed freely for years without anything going wrong, was an exceptionally rare case.
"Oh, so I'm dreaming."
But this was definitely no ordinary dream. Rowan could clearly sense the power constructing it, and it was deeply anomalous.
Even as a Reality Warper, he was astonished to discover that he couldn't affect the dream at all. Whether he tried to tear it apart with his ability or conjure weapons out of thin air to defend himself, every attempt failed. It was as if this dream were even more stable than reality!
"Rowan, you've come..."
A voice rang out, its echoes overlapping, as though countless people were singing hymns in unison.
Who?
Rowan slowly turned around and saw the cathedral's enormous doors, large enough for a landship to pass through, slowly swing open. A figure walked in.
The person before Rowan was a handsome young man with wheat-colored skin, long black hair falling to his waist, and a golden laurel wreath on his head.
The young man was barefoot and wore a plain white robe in a style reminiscent of ancient Rome, tied at the waist with a length of grass rope. He had no other adornments; his appearance could only be described as simple.
Despite his exceedingly plain attire, his entire being radiated a pure, holy presence that was intoxicating. Even looking away felt like sacrilege.
"Forgive me. I am but a mortal, with mortal eyes and little knowledge."
Rowan bowed his head and saluted. "May I ask which deity stands before me?"
Ever since seeing the cathedral, Rowan had quickly searched his memories, but found nothing. None of the anomalous religious organizations he knew of—the Church of the Broken God, the Cult of Flesh, the Fifth Church, and the like—matched this cathedral or the young man who had appeared.
The young man came to stand before Rowan, his gaze calm and unruffled.
"...First of all, I'm not a god. I'm just an ordinary human from Terra. There's no need to be so respectful. You can simply call me Neos."
Come on, man.
The corner of Rowan's eye twitched.
Did you know that the intensity of the Akiva Radiation emanating from you—the Foundation term for what could be understood as the Power of Faith—was practically blinding me? And now you're telling me you're not a god?
Rowan had never heard of Akiva Radiation at this level. He felt that even if the faith of every human on Earth were combined, it would be a mere drop in the ocean compared to what this entity calling himself Neos possessed!
With the Power of Faith bolstering him on such a scale, surely every miracle recorded in human myths and legends would be easy for him to accomplish.
And now this entity was personally denying his own divinity and saying he wasn't a god?
What kind of new joke was this?
"But something's strange. Why does that name sound so familiar to me?"
Rowan frowned and took another look at the young man's attire.
"Come to think of it, his outfit gives me a sense of déjà vu, too. It's like I've seen it somewhere before..."
Just then, Neos seemed to notice something. A golden gleam flashed in his pupils.
Rowan froze.
"What was I just thinking about?"
He cursed himself for getting distracted at a time like this, then refocused and pushed aside the thought he'd almost grasped.
"So, did you bring me into this dream for some important reason?"
Rowan got straight to the point. "I may be a Reality Warper, but my ability is only Level Two. My Hume level, the range I can affect, and my power output are all very limited. If I'm caught off guard, even a single sniper round could kill me."
"I don't know who you are, but judging by the dream you've created, I must be nothing special to you. If there's something even you can't accomplish, then I probably can't help either."
"You've underestimated your potential, Rowan."
The young man calling himself Neos spoke calmly. "Aside from being a Reality Warper, you have another anomalous phenomenon within you. It's your greatest asset, and it has helped you grow to where you are today. That is precisely what I'm after."
Before you continue