"Uncle Luke? What the hell are you doing here?" Daniel demanded, pointing at the glowing figure. "And why did you come out of me? Do you realize how gross—"
"Zip it, nephew," the projection cut him off, waving a hand as if brushing away Daniel's words. "Don't make it sound weird. I didn't 'come out of you.' Do you even hear what you're saying? It sounds like a dozen misunderstandings waiting to happen."
Luke casually picked at his ear, completely unfazed by Daniel's outrage, as if appearing out of his nephew's chest in a glowing blue form was perfectly normal.
"So, my dear nephew, I'm sure you have a lot of questions. And yes, I already know what you want to ask."
He pointed a thumb at himself. "And to clear the biggest one—I'm the one who dropped you into this world. And I'm the one who gave you your system."
"What?" Daniel's voice shot up. "Then why didn't you make it at least a little easier? Do you know it took a whole month before the system even activated? Do you know how hard my life was during that month?"
"I did make it easy for you, you little brat. Do you have any idea what happened to me after I disappeared from Earth?"
Daniel blinked at him. "Uh… you became a god?"
It was the only explanation his brain could cough up. Because honestly, what else could justify his uncle casually doing impossible things? His mind wasn't built for alternatives at this point.
Luke glared at him, completely deadpan.
"No. I didn't become a god. I became homeless. A beggar."
He jabbed a finger at Daniel for emphasis.
"You, at least, spawned with valuables. I arrived with nothing except my pajamas. For seven days I slept in alleys and searched through garbage bins for food."
Daniel's anger evaporated instantly. "Whoa…"
Compared to that, his own first month really hadn't been that bad. Now that he thought about it… his uncle might have had it far worse.
"Okay then," Daniel said, rubbing his forehead. "My other question—what actually happened after you disappeared from Earth?"
Luke sighed as if the answer would take hours. "Honestly, explaining everything that happened to me could fill a very long book. So let's keep it short. The summary is: I got dragged into a multiverse conflict with beings who can casually destroy entire universes."
Daniel froze. "What the hell? Old man, are you out of your mind? Why are you saying that like it's a normal Sunday errand?"
Luke waved him off with a lazy flick of his hand. "Relax. Your uncle is a big shot now. No need to panic over small details like universe-destroying monsters."
"Small details?" Daniel's voice cracked.
"Besides," Luke continued, pointing at him, "you have a system. With time, you'll reach that level too. So stop stressing."
Daniel stared at him, speechless again. His head started to ache. Too much information. Too ridiculous. Too fast.
He had just killed the Scorpion King, and somehow that wasn't the most absurd part of his day anymore.
"So you created this system, right?" Daniel asked, narrowing his eyes as a new idea formed in his head.
If his uncle made it, then surely he could squeeze some benefits out of him. That was what uncles were for, after all.
"Yes," Luke replied simply.
Daniel didn't waste a second. "Then make me powerful. Boost me. Break the limits. Go on—do it."
"Nope," Luke said immediately, already seeing the greedy spark in Daniel's eyes.
"What do you mean nope? Didn't you just say you're the one who created it? How can you say you can't?"
Luke gave him a long stare. "Daniel… you used to be intelligent. What happened? Did you lose brain cells while I was gone?"
Daniel frowned. "Just explain."
Luke crossed his arms. "It's in the name. Omniverse Recovery System."
Daniel blinked. "…Is that supposed to mean something?"
"It means," Luke said with exaggerated patience, "the system is designed to help you recover fragments scattered across the Omniverse. It won't make you overpowered just because you asked. Recovery system. Not instant cheat mode."
Daniel rubbed his temples. "Fine, then what are these fragments? And why are they scattered everywhere? Couldn't you just hand them over to me directly?"
"Nope," Luke replied without hesitation. "I don't even know where they all are. That's the entire point of the system. Its job is to search different worlds, locate the fragments, and pass the power-ups to you."
Daniel sighed. "Alright. Then tell me—what exactly are these fragments?"
Luke dropped his arms and finally answered seriously. "They're fragments of the powers of my enemies. The ones I killed."
"Because of some… unforeseen circumstances, their abilities didn't vanish with them. They broke apart and scattered across the Multiverse."
Daniel stared at him. "…Your enemies' powers. Fragments. Everywhere. Great."
"They're not overwhelmingly strong on their own," Luke continued, brushing off Daniel's sarcasm. "But once they're all recovered and combined, they can turn into something extremely powerful."
He lifted a finger in warning. "But there's something you need to watch out for. These fragments are like hot buns fresh out of the oven—rare, tempting, and everyone wants a piece."
"Some very powerful people in the world can sense them, and they'll try to take them before you do."
Daniel touched his chin, the comment striking a familiar memory.
Two years ago… that black hand.
A mysterious hand who appeared out of nowhere and fought for Imhotep's soul fragment with desperation.
"And there's one more thing," Luke said, nodding toward the black mist still lingering around the chamber. "Someone is already trying to take this fragment."
"Who?"
Luke pointed directly at the swirling darkness. His expression turned grim.
"Anubis. The God of Death and Mummification."
*****
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