CH 3

"Ugh..."

"Ooh, you're awake, Hero-sama."

"Yeah, shit, that woman hit me so hard."

It was a heavy straight, not unlike a woman.

"I'm sorry, we should have been more efficient in guiding you."

"That's good. So, what am I supposed to do now?"

I looked at him and saw that he had already dressed me. A white, short-sleeved shirt and pants that looked like a pair of pants. No, it's just a pair of pants.

The clothes were a bit cheap, but I guess they could only dress me in simple clothes since I was unconscious.

"The first thing I want Hero-sama to do is to have an audience with His Majesty the King. I will explain the situation to you."

"I understand."

Well, this is the world. I've read a lot of web novels like that, so I know what's going to happen.

You know, the one where you have to defeat the Demon Lord.

Or, there is no demon king, but he is going to be summoned, and the summoned heroes are going to be used well to invade other countries.

In any case, I guess I should listen to the king of this country first.

"This way, then. The other heroes have already had an audience with His Majesty."

"What?"

Damn it, I thought you were supposed to wait for me before you got an audience. If there's a leak, I'm at a disadvantage.

That woman, I'll repay this.

"You will make sure that I know what the king has to say."

"Of course. You can rest assured that everything will be taken care of."

From the looks of it, these guys don't seem to be the first to summon a hero.

It seems like they do it every year.

However, if that's the case, they won't appreciate the bravery.

I'm not sure how much money I'll get for this.

"Hmm, Oh you have come."

I was led into a large hall where I found the king and queen surrounded by their chief advisors, and five heroes.

That's a lot of heroes there.

I'm not good at attracting attention from a lot of people. It makes me nervous.

Even so, I kept my composure and walked forward, lining up next to the five heroes.

"I am Albert-Grand Vernia, King of Vernia. I am the king of this country, Vernia."

An old man with white hair down to his beard said his name in a clear voice.

"Well met, Heroes."

Well, how should I respond? The other five were standing and not kneeling, and they didn't seem to be too fussy about their manners.

After all, they are is a hero who saves the world. It's not surprising that they are equal to the king.

The first thing to do here is to be strong. If you get scolded, just humble yourself. I'm sure they won't just dismiss you out of hand for being rude.

"My name is Aki... no, it's Alec.

It's a different world, let's use my real name here. The only time I use it in games.

"Eeh? You're Japanese, aren't you?"

The person who hit me asks me. I don't have to tell her honestly. These five guys are probably my rivals.

"Who knows..."

I'll play it off.

"Eeh?"

I'm pretty sure this woman is Japanese. However, her hair is brown, almost red, and she may have dyed it. Her eyes are also quite red.

"Fufu, well, you might be from another world, so that's fine."

A young man with slightly thin blond hair and blue eyes says with a smile. Tsk, he's a good-looking guy.

"My name is Erwin Crouton. You can call me El or Elvin, whatever you like. I'm a university student in England. Nice to meet you."

He was speaking fluent Japanese, but it must have been translated into the language of another world.

He asked me to shake his hand, so I did.

I don't intend to get along with him, though.

But it's not good to make enemies out of the blue.

"My name is Shiraishi Serina. I'm a sophomore at Sakurafu Academy. Nice to meet you."

The girl who hit me shrugged her shoulders and greeted me with a light sigh, but I'm the one who wants to sigh.

You're a little girl in high school, and you're talking to me like You're older than me.

Young parents these days are not well educated. It's because her name is "kira-kira" (sparkling name).

She didn't want to shake my hand. I don't either.

"I'm Keiji Takayama. You can call me Keiji!"

A short boy of about junior high school age smiled and asked for a handshake. He's at an age when this kind of adventure seems to be the most fun, but he also looks like he's about to make a mistake. I wondered if this was a world he could survive in.

I shook his hand.

"My name is Hiroshi Kojima, and I'm a surgeon."

A doctor. I think it's unusual for someone like him to be summoned. He may be able to help you if you are injured. He seems a little nervous, but I'll try to be sociable.

But as a communicative person, all I can do is nod. I'm in my thirties.

"I'm Shinya Sakazaki. I'd like you to call me Shin. Hehe."

The ugly guy, who seemed to be in a tie with me for second place in this group, demanded a nickname that wouldn't suit you. Oh well, it's just like the name says.

I don't think he's very smart, he looks like he's in vocational school or a freelancer. Still young. A bob head, pigtailed.

"Now that you've met, let's go over it again for Alec. I'll explain it again for Alec's sake. This is the Kingdom of Vernia. It's a small country in the middle of the continent. The reason why I summoned you, my brave friend, is to help me defeat the Demon Lord, who will eventually return."

Hmm, so the Demon Lord hasn't resurrected yet. Then I guess we have time to spare.

"You will have the power. However, it won't be right away, and you'll have to become stronger by defeating monsters. Are we done here? Oh, about the magic."

"No, I understand magic. You can omit it. Can I use it?"

"You'll have to try it to find out. Some heroes can use magic, some can't."

"Mm...I see."

I thought a heroes could use it unconditionally.

"Alec, look at this. This is magic."

Erwin held up his right hand to the ceiling, and a small fireball flew out from it and hit the ceiling.

The spot where it hit turned a little black.

Hmm, it's a bit dull, but it's fireball magic.

I hope I can use it.

Has Erwin already mastered the fire magic?

"Rest assured."

The use of the spell caused the Kingsguard to brace themselves in alarm, but the King controlled them with one hand.

He doesn't seem to be in a hurry, and the guards here are probably stronger than us.

"So let's continue the story. In this world, monsters, or demons, lurk outside castles and cities. Especially in the dungeons, there are many strong monsters, so you need to be careful. However, by defeating them, the heroes will quickly grow and become more powerful. Therefore, it is best to equip yourself for the dungeon that best suits your abilities. Monsters will attack you when they see you, so you should be able to tell right away."

It's usually almost the same as these otherworldly RPGs. In addition to the fact that heroes can change jobs in temples, there are no other matters that need special attention. But if you violate the laws of this country, you will be thrown in jail, and there are also bandits who target the heroes, so it does not seem to be a very privileged existence.

It's no wonder, the heroes are summoned once every few years based on the advice of a priest, and there are about two dozen heroes in this country alone.

It's a good thing that I can take it easy, because I don't think I'll be tasked with anything in particular.

"So, if there are no other questions, I will give you the weapons you want and the money for your preparations."

Weapons. There were swords, staffs, bows, etc. already brought into the hall, but which should I use? Well, I can change them later, but for now, I think I'll go with the short swords that are easy to use.

I chose the shortsword, Shiraishi and Keiji choose the longsword, Shin choose the bow and arrow, Kojima choose knife, and Erwin choose the staff.

"Next was money."

I looked inside, expecting to see a bag full of coins, but they were all copper coins.

"Oh, wow, money. I wonder how much this is."

The only one who was excited was Keiji.

Kojima and Shin were clearly frowning, but these two, hmm, they have skills.

"That's a hundred gold, which is ten days' worth of living expenses in your book."

"Eh!? That's all?"

"I wish I could give you more, but our finances are tight. We have our hands full protecting the kingdom from monsters and neighboring countries.

The king may say that, but at any rate, they can support us at least a little more. It's stingy.

"Oh...I see. Okay! Then I'll kill all the monsters! After all, I'm a Hero!"

"Fufu, Keiji is very dependable. As I said earlier, if you defeat the monsters, you can get a good amount of money from magic stones. You should join the adventurer's guild and earn some money."

"All right, King! It's The Adventurer's Guild, right!?"

"Hmm. I'll be expecting a lot of action from you guys. You can go back."

As I walked away from the hall, I turned around and noticed the expression on the king's face as he smirked.

"Alright, go to the Adventurer's Guild!'"

Keiji dashes off cheerfully. Well, it's good to be motivated.

"Are you guys really going to be adventurers?"

Kojima said as we exited the throne room.

"Yes. It's kind of a funny thing that happened, but it looks like we need to earn some money."

Shiraishi is very adaptable. If you're a high school girl, I think it's okay to say that you want to cry and go home.

"You might be able to make a living as a doctor, Kojima-sensei, without defeating another monster, but I think you should join the adventurer's guild. For something."

Shin said with an amiable smile.

"No, but... maybe I should look into a way to get home."

Well, you can do whatever you want. Kojima seemed somewhat tired. He was probably just in shock.

"I'll help you find the way back. You'll help me too, right?"

Shiraishi said, looking at us.

"Of course.

Erwin nodded with a smile.

"Yeah, yeah."

Shin nodded lightly, though.

"I refuse."

"Eeh? Why?"

I have no intention of going back to my former world, and from the way I talked to that bespectacled god, there's no way to go back. But if I tell them this, they might start to panic.

Let me give you another reason.

"There are monsters out there, and we don't have a lot of money. The first thing we need to do is find a way to live in this world. I won't interfere with that, so if you want to look into it, go ahead and do so. However, if you have trouble making a living, that's your own responsibility."

Since it is a group of heroes, I don't want them to rely on me as a friend, so I shun them as such.

"Well, we're supposed to help each other out in times of trouble, but you're uncooperative."

"I don't think people who play around and don't do what they're supposed to do and then drag us down to lend them money are cooperative."

"*annoyed*."

"Well, well, well, Alec has a point. Well, first things first, let's go to the adventurer's guild. I don't know how I got into this mess, but good grief. ......"

I don't want Kojima, who seems to have a lot of use as a surgeon, to get stuck too soon. When I have more time on my side, I'll help Kojima and use him as insurance for my life.

I left the castle and headed for the adventurer's guild that the soldier had told me about.

When I entered the large building, I found a bunch of ugly men with scars all over their faces.

Ugh, I'm afraid of getting tangled up.

"Oh, look, there's a new guy."

"What's with those guys and their dangerous gear? They're not even wearing leather armor."

I'd like to be provided with leather armor, too, at least.

"Oooi, guys! They're going to have a reception here!"

A buoyant Keiji called out to us, but we couldn't help but stand out.

"Hey, kid, this isn't a place for kids to come and play. Go home and suck your mommy's titties."

Sure enough, there was a guy making fun of us.

"What? I'm not that young, and I'm a Hero!"

Wow, what a nasty flag.

The adventurers, who had been quiet for a moment, burst into laughter.

"Ha, ha, ha!, You heard him, he's a hero."

"Oh, by the way, I heard, that they would summon them again this year."

"I don't know what the king would do with a bunch of useless people like that."

"'What's so funny? Heroes are strong!"

"Well, then, my boy, let's see if you can match me."

A bearded man with a large axe stands in front of Keiji.

"Alright."

Keiji drew his sword.