Chapter 2  : Hero Introduction

"Oooh..."

A voice full of admiration brought me back to my senses.

As I settled down, what filled my view was a bunch of men wearing robes, looking in my direction with dumbfounded expressions.

"What?"

Following the robed men's line of sight, I found three others who also seemed to have trouble grasping the situation.

I inclined my head as I thought: What on earth happened?

A while ago I was in the neighborhood library... where was I now?

I restlessly checked my surroundings, and all that I found were brick walls in every direction.

So this place was made out of bricks? I didn't recall seeing anything like this place before. It certainly couldn't be the library.

Below me, there was an altar and various geometric patterns that were painted with fluorescent paint.

They resembled what magic circles or alchemic formulas may look like in a fantasy setting. It was that sort of vibe which they gave off.

And on top of the altar stood the four of us.

That's the gist of it... but, why do I have a shield attached to me?

The shield fit perfectly and was strangely light. Not knowing why it was stuck to me, I tried to remove the shield by slamming it against the floor with all my might, but it refused to dislodge from my arm.

"Where is this place?"

The guy with the sword gave into his anxiety and asked one of the robed men.

"Ooh, Please brave heroes! Please somehow save this world!"

""""WHAT!?"""""

All of us said unanimously.

"What did you mean by that?"

What was with this cliché line? I felt as though I may have read it in a web novel before.

"To put it simply, due to various circumstances, we were able to summon you brave Heroes through an ancient spell."[1]

"Summoned."

Mhmm. That's the word. The chance of a shocking revelation for this situation was oddly high. But for now, we'll keep listening to their story to see what it has to offer.

"This world is currently facing a global state of crisis. Brave Ones, please lend us your might."

The robed man bowed deeply to us while saying so.

"Well... This is a bit sudden--"

"What a pain."

"Is that so?"

"Can I just go back to my old world? I already heard this kind of story before."

While I was engrossed with their story, the other three interrupted me midway.

Wait?

Did they just immediately give an answer to this desperate guy who's bowing so low as if giving the ground a mooch?

They jumped the gun after only hearing the intro of this story.

The other three were all glaring intensely at me now while I was pondering in silence.

... I gave them a half smile. The tension in the room was rising to a delicate level as time passed.

Aren't you jerks actually happy?

Well isn't this a cherished, world-leaping dream come true here...

Your attitudes are pretty cliché, huh? But dudes, this is the part where you need to hear them out.[2]

"Aren't you people guilty over summoning us without our consent?"

The guy with the sword, who looked like a high school student, pointed his sword at the robed men.

"For instance, we won't just fight for world peace and then return to our old world empty handed, right?"

The guy with the bow scowled at the robed men's direction.

"You guys don't seem to take much consideration into our own plans, do you? Depending on what you have to offer, we might end up becoming this world's enemy instead, got it?"

So that's what was up. They were demanding tribute after confirming their social standings.

These guys are quite macho, I felt like I've lost in a very meaningful department.[3]

"Well first, I'd like you all to have an audience with the king. We can discuss your reward then."

The representative of the robed men opened the heavy looking door to guide us through.

"...Guess it can't be helped."

"Right."

"Duh, the guy we'll be meeting changes, but I bet the story's still the same."

The macho bunch arrived at their own conclusions before following. I hastily trailed behind them.

We left the dark room and passed through a corridor made out of stone.

...I wonder why? Was it due to my limited vocabulary that the atmosphere here could only be described as 'delicious'?

Our breathes were taken away as we took a peek at the scene outside of the window.

Spanning off into the horizon, a town much like one from Medieval Europe could be seen.

All too mesmerized by the townscape laid before us, we walked down the corridor and reached the audience chamber in no time flat.

"Hou[4], are these fellows the Ancient Heroes?"

On the throne in the audience chamber sat a prideful grandpa who began evaluating us when we arrived.

For some reason, I didn’t get a good impression of him...

I personally do not fancy the act of licking other person's boots.[5]

"I am the king of this country, Aultcray. The thirty-second ruler of Melromarc. Brave ones, please raise your heads."

I wasn't even looking down! Damn, I felt like punching this bastard, but I'll refrain from doing so for now.

He speaks as if he was superior, but I guess it couldn't be helped since he was a king and all.

"Now then, let me explain our situation. This country, and moreover, this whole world is facing its demise."

To summarize the king's story.

Currently, there is a prophesy predicting the world’s end. This world will be assaulted by waves of calamity which will one day turn everything to ruin. To save the world, these waves must be repelled before they can be dispersed.

This era marks the prophesied year.

There exists a giant, ancient hourglass which continues to drip down ceaselessly. It has the ability to forecast when the waves will arrive and it began its warning a month ago. According to the legends, each wave will come in roughly one month intervals.

Initially, the residents of this country were not too concerned over the prophecy. However, as prophesized, when the hourglass had completed its first turn, a wave of disaster occurred.

A dimension crack appeared in this country, Melromarc, where hideous and brutal demons crept out in large quantities.

Other adventurers and knights barely managed to repel them. However, the next incoming wave would be even more powerful.

It seemed like the worst case scenario was about to occur.

At this rate, the disaster won't be repelled.

That was the basic outline of their situation.

By the way, it looked like our legendary armaments had the ability to translate languages for us.

"I understand your dilemma. But who gave you the right to summon us into doing manual labor for free?"

"That is one hell of a convenient story."

"... Even if that is the case, and this isn't me being selfish or anything, but if this world is going into ruin then let it be destroyed. This matter doesn't even concern us."

The person in front of me laughed loudly. Aren't you also secretly jumping for joy inside that heart of yours, dude?

Well, I guess I'll take advantage of this situation too.

"Certainly, we have no obligation to help you. In the end it'll just be fruitless labor for us. And once peace comes, you guys will just go 'sayonara'[6] as if nothing happened. So to prevent such a sad outcome from occurring, I'd like to hear some form of insurance from you. Surely you have something to present us, right?"

"Fumu..."[7]

The king sent his vassal a glance.

"Of course, we planned on rewarding the Brave Ones fully for their efforts."

Including me, the Heroes made a guts pose[8] with a clenched fist.

Jackpot! First phase of negotiations complete.

"I had already made arrangements to aid your cause with money. And surely, since the Brave Heroes will be protecting our world, I have already prepared a fitting place for you Brave Ones to rest."

"Eh~ ... Those are all well and good promises then."

"Don't think that we can be tamed with only this much though. You'll have to continue giving your cooperation if you don't want us to turn rogue."

"... That's right."

"Righto~"

What was wrong with these guys? Always looking down on people.

The immediate threat right now was us becoming the kingdom's enemy.

Well, we need to stay on top of things or else all our efforts will be in vain, with nothing but empty pockets to show for it.

"Well then, Heroes. Let us hear each of your names."

Hold on a sec. Wasn't this just like the book, the "Four Heavenly Weapon's Manual," that I read awhile ago?

We have the sword, spear, bow, and shield.

Coincidentally, we were also called Heroes. So doesn't that mean we got sucked inside the book's world?

The Sword Hero stepped forward and began his self introduction.

"My name is Amaki Ren. Age 16, a high schooler."

Hero of the Sword, Amaki Ren. First impressions: a bishounen[9] high school student would best describe him.

He seemed to have taken great care of his facial features. Although he was a bit short, only about 165cm.

If this guy cross-dressed, no one would ever doubt that he was a girl. A perfect trap[10]. His short-cut hair was a light brown color.

Long, slated eyes and white skin, he somehow gave off a cool vibe.

He looked like a slender swordsman.

"Okay, next up will be yours truly. My name's Kitamura Motoyasu. 21 this year, a university student."

Hero of the Spear, Kitamura Motoyasu. First impressions: he looked like the carefree type yet gave off the vibe of a real man.

I've lost. His face was too refined even for a handsome guy. At least one or two girlfriends, that was his image as an experienced playboy.

He was sporting a ponytail: a hairstyle that didn't match a male, yet somehow it didn't look out of place for him.

He had a caring older brother kind of feel.

"It's my turn next. My name is Kawasumi Itsuki. 17 right now, another high school student."

Hero of the Bow, Kawasumi Itsuki. First impressions: a timid boy who enjoyed piano lessons.

He seemed to lead a fleeting life yet also possessed a reliable, tenacious strength. His aura was quite vague and mysterious.

A few curly hair strands made him look like he had a wavy perm hairstyle.

He gave off the feeling of a docile younger brother.

Everyone looked Japanese. It was quite surprising with the whole foreign setting.

Whoops, it was my turn already.

"And lastly, I'm Iwatani Naofumi. Age 20, university student."

The king casually looked past me.

A weird feeling shot through my spine.

"Fumu. Ren, Motoyasu, and Itsuki, huh?"

"My liege, you forgot about me."

"Oh sorry, Naofumi-dono."[11]

Seriously, this old man had some short-term memory issues. That was just... Somehow, I was feeling out of place here; please don't forget about me at least.

"Now then, everyone please confirm your own status. As a matter of fact, I would like you all to visually check for yourselves."

"Eh?"

Just what is this 'Status'!?

"Etto[12], how do I go about seeing this?"

Itsuki timidly asked for the king's guidance.

Well duh, you don't just go around throwing the word 'Status' without a proper explanation!

"The hell, man. You guys didn't even notice that much after coming to this world?"

Ren was utterly shocked by his colleagues' ignorance.

How should I know! It was like, what exactly was there for me to notice, your face?

"Well whatever, do you see that icon in the corner of your vision?"

"Eh?"

When he said that, I noticed a weird, dim icon along the edge of my vision.

"Focus your mind on it and you'll see."

Pikon~ And as it light lit up silently, a browser with bigger icons similar to a PC's popped into my view.

Iwatani Naofumi

Occupation: Hero of the Shield Level 1

Equipment: Small Shield (Legendary Armament), Parallel World's Clothes

Skill: None

Magic: None

There was a bunch of other data but let's omit that part.

So this was the 'Status'.

But what the hell was this! It was strangely like a game.

"Level 1 huh... this doesn't look very reassuring."

"Right, I don't even know if it's possible to fight like this."

"That's exactly what I meant."

"Tools like these don't exist in the Brave Ones' world? This Status magic can be used by everyone in this world, helping to improve ourselves."

"Is that so?"

Your real body's prowess was represented by numerical values and could be naturally raised through these numbers. This was quite surprising.

"So then, what should we do now? Our current values seem rather troubling."

"Fumu. From now on, you Brave Heroes will need to venture forth so that you may hone and strengthen both yourselves as well as your legendary armaments."

"Strengthen? Does that mean that our starting equipment isn't strong enough?"

"Yes, the legendary weapon of each summoned Hero has their own special method of enchantment. By doing so they can become very powerful."

"Legend this, legend that. It's fine not to change weapons as long as it can function properly as a weapon, no?"

Motoyasu whirled his spear around while commenting.

That was indeed correct. But mine was a shield. It wasn't even a weapon and was something that needed to be upgraded regularly.

"That doesn't matter right now, so we can leave it for later. More importantly, what we need is to improve our own abilities, right?"

This was a moefic[13] situation where Heroes from parallel worlds were summoned.

Like a springtime of youth where one's reckless emotions swelled up from deep inside.

The number one dream filled with exciting adventures that will never cease.

Focusing on their weapons was usually the case for everyone that was involved in such a situation.

"So are we going to form a party with the four of us?"

"Brave Heroes, please hold for a moment."

"Huh?"

Even though we were advised to set out right away.

"Each of you Brave Heroes will need to recruit your own companions and begin your adventures separately."

"And the reason for that is?"

"Yes. According to legend, it's said that the legendary armaments will reject one another should you Brave Heroes band together, interfering with the growth of both the owners and the weapons."

"I don't really get it, but if we act together, we can't increase our power?"

Huh? Wasn't it suppose to be something along the lines of: 'If we group the legendary weapons together, they will help each other?'

Everyone shared a glance with one another.

Attention. If those who possess the legendary weapons worked together on a united front, a repulsing reaction will occur. Therefore, let us move individually as much as possible.

"That really does seem to be the case..."

Just what was up with this game-ish explanation?

It seemed like I have entered a completely game-like world.

The instructions for this weapon were conveniently lined up for me and were described in great detail. However, I don't have the time to read everything right now.

"Between improving ourselves and recruiting comrades. I wonder which should be done first?"

"Allow me to prepare your comrades. At any rate, the sun is already beginning to set. Brave Ones, please take your time and rest for the day. You may depart for your journey tomorrow. During that time I shall make arrangements and scout for talented individuals who can accompany you on your destiny."

"Thank you very much."

"Thank you."[Note: Said in English in original text]

After saying our thanks, we rest in the rooms that were prepared by the king for the day