The first thing Asher discovered when he left the room he’d been summoned to was that wizards seemed to have the same sense of style in this world as they did in books back home. Rather than any fancy carpets or expensive artwork, as far as he could tell the entire tower seemed to be nothing more than hewn stone and lit torches. There wasn’t an ounce of personality anywhere, and frankly, Asher felt sorry for his undead kidnapper more than anything as he roamed around in search of an exit.

  Seriously, all the magical power required to grab people from other worlds, and they couldn’t raid a furniture store or anything?

  The first few doors he tried all revealed summoning rooms identical to the one he’d been trapped in, though these were empty. Asher was thankful for that at least, as he was in no hurry to find himself face to face with one of the so-called ‘eldritch abominations’ Mr. Bones had been trying to summon all along.

  Further down the hall he discovered a few dusty storerooms, but he didn’t recognize any of the plants or vials of liquids stored within. He was tempted to grab a few at random but decided against it. With his luck he’d no doubt grab a potion of self-immolation or something similar.

  After that there was a kitchen that looked like it hadn’t been used in decades, a bathroom that was in a similar state of disrepair, and a bedroom containing a bed that had a thick blanket of dust sitting on top of the actual blanket.

  I don’t think Mr. Bones has used any of these rooms for some time…

  Coming to the end of the hall, Asher still hadn’t discovered any open windows or conveniently labeled fire escapes, but he did find a staircase leading both up and down. Having no idea if he was underground or in a regular building, Asher picked a direction at random and began trudging upwards. The lack of windows was giving him a basement vibe after all, and if that was the case, his best bet was to head toward the surface.

  The next floor was almost entirely storerooms, these ones holding a few things Asher felt more comfortable taking for himself. One quick shopping spree later and he was the proud new owner of a semi-comfortable backpack filled with a couple rolls of bandages, a few dented copper coins, a box of crude looking matches, some blocky objects that were either extremely old hardtack or misshapen bricks, and a dagger that was only slightly rusted. Despite never having stabbed anything before, Asher felt a little bit safer with the weapon in hand as he continued upward.

  Stepping out onto the third floor, Asher had to pause and stare in wonder at the sight before him. Unlike the thin, damp corridors of the floors below, the third floor was one massive open room filled with shelves of books stretching nearly three stories high. The sheer size and quantity of books that filled the room put any public library he’d ever visited to shame, and he could only imagine the number of lifetimes it would take to read every tome stored within the large room. There was no dripping water to be heard on this floor, and Asher had no idea how Mr. Bones had done it, but the temperature and humidity were drastically different as well, no doubt in an effort to preserve the books as best as possible.

  Wandering between the rows of books, Asher glanced at a few of the titles, unsurprised to find that he wasn’t able to read any of them. In fact, what was stranger was the fact that the undead wizard that summoned him had spoken to him in perfect English somehow. While wondering how such a thing was possible, a shimmering light caught his eyes.

  Lying on the ground in the dead center of the room was a glassy sphere about the size of his fist that was filled with swirling, ever changing lights and colors like a lava lamp on steroids. It took Asher almost a solid ten seconds to realize he’d been standing there, staring at the shifting colors in his sleep-addled state as if he’d been under a spell before he managed to shake it off. Unlike the glowing red rune that had held him prisoner, the sphere was filled primarily with darker, cool colors like blues and purples that seemed to relax him just by looking at them.

  The sphere looked extremely valuable, but Asher wasn’t exactly going to stop looting the wizard’s tower now, so he grabbed it without a second thought. To his surprise, a new line of text appeared in his vision.

  Element: Knowledge - The Knowledge element provides its users with abilities that assist with learning and understanding. Tackle the secrets of the world and let no stone lay unturned under your searching gaze.

  Would you like to absorb the Element: Knowledge?

  Huh. Why is this just lying out here on the ground for anyone to trip over?

  Asher stared at the glimmering sphere, turning it this way and that as he inspected its flawless surface. He had no idea if the Knowledge element was good or bad, but seeing as his Spatial element was the only reason he was free of his cage at the moment, more elements probably couldn’t hurt.

  Mentally accepting the prompt, he flinched at the loud crack that rang out as a jagged line suddenly appeared on the surface of the orb. Before he could do anything, the entire thing shattered in his hands, and the colorful maelstrom trapped within erupted forth, shooting directly into his chest.

  Gasping, Asher frantically checked his chest for any sort of wound or magical acid marks, but his body felt fine. The new text that popped up even revealed that the assimilation had been a success, and he gleefully read the description for his newest ability.

  Identify (passive) - Lvl 1 - Learn the truth of all you see.

  “These descriptions could really use some work.” Shaking his head, Asher dismissed the notification and tried pulling out the dagger he’d found. The moment his eyes landed on it, he somehow just knew a little bit more about it than he had before, like a thought in his head that didn’t occur to him until just now.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  [Iron Dagger] - Poor quality, Rusted

  That’s it? I pretty much figured that one out on my own! Not exactly unlocking the secrets of the universe. Sighing, Asher sheathed his dagger and tried to remain optimistic. Maybe the ability would grow more useful in time. Unlike Astral Dip, Identify seemed to be passive, meaning everything he looked at now triggered it. Hopefully that also meant it would level up faster, assuming this world followed the same rules as any of the video games he used to love playing back when he had actual free time.

  Looking around the library once more, Asher blinked as he suddenly realized he could now magically read whatever language most of them were written in. He had to admit, the topics were certainly more interesting than any library he’d visited back on Earth.

  Beginner Summoning: Your First Demon and You.

  Philibert the Wise’s Guide to the Twelve Realms (Yes, Twelve!).

  So You Want to Rule the Underworld? Are You Sure?

  Reaching out to take a look at 100 Tricks Every Summoner Needs to Know,

  he nearly jumped out of his skin when a deep voice rang out behind him.

  “Hey you!”

  Turning around, Asher found himself face to face with some sort of demon carrying a stack of books under one arm. Standing nearly eight feet tall and packed with muscle that would make a linebacker jealous, the red-skinned creature stared at Asher, pointing a clawed finger directly at him. The monster had large, curved horns growing out of the top of its head and a heavyset brass key dangling from a thick chain on its neck.

  [Lesser Demon] - Bound

  “Who are you, and what are you doing in the master’s tower?” The demon demanded, its voice crackling and spitting like coals being raked over an open flame.

  “Ah, I’m a friend of the master!” Asher said quickly, unconsciously taking a hesitant step back from the frowning demon. While certainly creepy, the talking corpse hadn’t actually scared Asher all that much. He’d spent the last few years handling dead bodies after all. But a hulking demon built out of pure muscle that towered over him and looked like it could pop Asher’s head like a grape without even trying?

  Now that was something he wasn’t prepared for.

  “The master doesn't have any friends,” the demon said, his black eyes squinting as he took a large step toward Asher’s trembling frame. “And you’re definitely not one of the council members.”

  Asher hesitated, trying to come up with a more convincing lie before the demon decided to use him as a Bowflex machine. Unfortunately, he’d never been much of a smooth talker. Before the demon could decide what to do with him, Asher turned and bolted back toward the stairwell, ignoring the shouts of protest from the demon as it chased after him.

  Maybe I should have stayed in the invisible cage after all, Asher thought as he ran, darting back into the stairwell and sprinting up the stairs. It was only after he’d started climbing that he realized the demon had confirmed they were in some sort of tower, and he should have gone down toward the ground floor instead of up if he wanted to escape. Mentally smacking himself for the mistake, he continued running up, already hearing the lumbering demon chasing him up the stairs from below. He’d just have to try hiding from the demon and doubling back down once it had passed him.

  An excellent plan, if he did say so himself.

  Other than the fact that every door he tried while sprinting up the stairwell was locked.

  “Come on, come on!” He hissed, yanking on yet another locked door before continuing up even higher in the tower. His new Identify ability actually told him that the doors were locked at a single glance, but he couldn’t help but desperately try every single one anyways. The sounds of the demon rushing up after him were never far behind, and he knew it was only a matter of time before it caught up. It seemed he was a little bit faster than the demon, but he’d already been exhausted before being forced to sprint up nearly ten flights of stairs, and at this point his legs were burning as he tried to maintain his lead. And then, just as he began worrying he’d never find an unlocked door, he encountered a less than pleasant surprise.

  He ran out of stairwell.

  Staring at the strange, final door that the steps led up to, he took in the information his new skill provided as he gasped for breath. Unlike all the prior doors lining the stairwell, which were made of simple wood, this one looked like it belonged in the front of a bank vault. It was entirely metal, and covered in countless strange, glowing runes to boot.

  [Steel Door] - Masterwork Quality, Heavily Enchanted

  Well I’m not kicking that one down. Trying to slow down his breathing, Asher pulled out his rusty dagger with shaking hands and put his back to the impressive door. His only hope was somehow managing to slip into the astral realm and darting past the demon while the skill was active. Although after tiring himself out running up so many flights of stairs, he wasn’t confident in his ability to run all the way back down to where he’d started after the skill ended.

  Granted, it was try or die, so he’d certainly do his best.

  Closing his eyes, Asher listened to the angry shouts quickly closing in on his position as the demon covered the last few flights of stairs. To think he was probably going to die less than an hour after being dragged into this strange new world. Something seemed to snap inside him at the realization that he had only a few seconds to live, and Asher grinned, tightening his grip on the dagger. He might die, but like hell he’d go down without a fight.

  Finally, the demon reached the top of the stairs, finding Asher leaning against the steel door with his dagger in hand. If he hadn’t already thought the door was important, the demon’s blood curdling scream and the way it threw itself directly at him with reckless abandon when he saw Asher touching the door certainly convinced him.

  The moment the demon launched itself in an attempt to crush Asher against the door with its hulking frame, Asher sucked in a deep breath and slipped into the astral realm. But when he tried to twist to the side and avoid the surprised demon, his already exhausted legs locked up and refused to do what he wanted. Instead, he found himself tumbling backwards, somehow falling through the solid steel door and crashing into the pitch black room beyond.

  The last thing he saw was the look of surprise on the demon’s face change to one of sheer horror before everything went black.