Ray

  “One million years ago, back when the sands of time were still fresh, our planet—Travia—flourished. With both peace, and prosperity. The bountiful profuse lands were inhabited by one of three humanoid species: the elves (known as ‘Aeri’ in the ancient tongue), dwarves (known as ‘Rourn’), and the beastfolk (known as the ‘Lirana’).

  Elves, recognised by their gracefulness, populated the lush forests of the north. They thrived in the thick woods and lived a nomadic lifestyle. Rugged dwarves resided deep underground. Their tunnels were rumoured to have reached every corner of the world. Although most of these bygone tunnels have collapsed, I am sure you have heard the common colloquial term for these underground systems—‘Labyrinths’. And finally, there were the beastfolk. They mingled among both elves and dwarves, and also established their own communities. For example, the Cat-people were known to live within the elven communities and many became mages—the elven specialty. Mole-people lived amongst the dwarves, and were known to help with the construction of their tunnels. And other sub-species of the beastfolk such as the Bird-people built homes within trees of the south.

  Honestly, I personally believe that categorising all sub-species into a single species—‘beastfolk’—is rather crude. The beastfolk truly were an exotic race.

  However, half a millennia ago, this prosperity and innocence was shattered. You see, gods had descended upon our land. One good, one bad. One holy, one sinful. One saviour, one destructor. In the ancient tongue, the two were known as ‘Gahd’ and ‘Seytonn’ respectively.

  Now, we know the two as ‘God’ and ‘Satan’.

  Unfortunately for us, there are no written records telling of the origin or purpose of these two gods. Only an oral story, although I too, am sure that a verbal story is sure to have changed over time. There are many variations, but from the most common one, this much can be inferred:

  One day, without incident, these two gods suddenly descended to our world. Both were tattered and weakened from some sort of divine battle. A young elf saw the two fall down from the heavens, and took them to his local village, where they were treated.

  During the recovery process, God told the elves many fantastical tales. Eventually, he decided to repay the elves' hospitality with knowledge. Knowledge from the heavens. Knowledge—and secrets—about magic. God told the elves how to draw upon the ambient mana within the atmosphere, and how to convert that mana into the miraculous miracle known as magic. God taught the elven village how to use magic without an accompanying skill.

  It was clear that the realm the two gods came from was not lorded by the system.

  However, Satan was greedy, and wanted to hoard all the knowledge to himself.

  Eventually, the greed consumed him, and when God was away, he massacred the entire village.

  God was furious.

  And thus, The Great War began.

  It is said that Satan created seven minions on that day—each one representing one of his unholy sins. His first minion—Pride. Accompanied by Wrath, Lust, Greed, Gluttony, Sloth and Envy.

  As the gods clashed, the amount of minions owned by Satan only began to increase. In response, God created his own children as well. The spawn of both gods sprawled across the entire world, and many battles were fought.

  One century later. The evil god, Satan, is defeated. But God also dies in the process. However, even though both gods were deceased, their scourge and children respectively still remained. The war had heavily impacted the native humanoids. Beastfolk—extinct. Elves—their whole population living in a forest. Dwarves—retreating to the eastern caves. Nowadays, elves still live in the northern forests. Although the secrets of magic God had taught have been forgotten to time, the entire race still studies and pursues magical skills within the Java Forest.

  Dwarves, however, have abandoned their bygone homes—that is, the ‘Labyrinth’—and are now widely known as excellent artisans and blacksmiths. However, the dwarves were not only hit hard by the Great War, but also by the following minor wars, cleanup, and finally, the Human-Demon war.

  And here stand two dominant species: Humans (known as 'Hareian'), and Demons (known as 'Muumuu').

  Even now, there is major conflict amongst the two races.

  However, no major conflict has arisen for more than 1,000 years. After the Human-Demon war; one that lasted decades, Mistress ‘Kutona’ Sloth and the late ‘Hero King’ Lamm formed a treatise. Neither side shall start a war.”

  King Briaher takes a moment to catch his breath—albeit in a graceful manner nonetheless—before continuing his speech. “But, since then, tensions have once again formed. Everyone from the warring generation has died. People have forgotten to fear. The Demon Lord reigning over the borderlands, Lord Wrath, has already begun to mobilise an army. Luckily for us, there has been a sudden stop in the transportation of soldiers, allegedly. We do not know why the Demon Lords have stopped sending soldiers to the borders, but many of our spies have predicted some sort of issue within the demonic ranks. Namely, an unidentified figure has been attacking and raiding some of the demons' secret military outposts. Something about the vigilante using daggers and [Dark Magic].

  None of our spies have managed to discern anything regarding the matter, but at least this will buy time for us to prepare. Fear not, we have now successfully summoned a great [Hero] from the otherworld; Ray Tanaka!”

  The king raises his left hand. This action is accompanied by an uproar of cheers. The usually tranquil palace gushes with excited roaring and whistling. After a moment's worth of celebration, King Braiher calmly raises his hand, and the cheering fades away accordingly. “We, along with the four other kingdoms that govern humanity, are preparing an army. We already have elite soldiers with years of experience. However, ‘more’ is always a welcome term. Anyone interested in applying for the army, please remain after this speech! We have four [Heroes] in total, each one with enough potential to stand side to side with the famous Court Mages after training! In two years time, we will march forwards and eliminate the demeanoring threat—horrid scourge of Satan—for once and for all!”

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  Once again, many a hurrah sound within the palace.

  Ten minutes later, elated chatter still buzzes around.

  Only half an hour later does the crowd begin to thin out. Although, ‘thin’ would be a proportionate term. 500 or so excited young men still stay in the hall, most likely wishing to join the royal army. Honestly, I would expect more people here. Usually, getting into the royal army is an achievement deemed almost impossible for common folk; apart from skill, social standing also comes into play during the selection process. However, king Braiher is now allowing anyone in with open hands as long as they pass a physical examination.

  Although I do suspect a lot more people will be signing up soon, as the king has only started his enlisting campaign. These young men will be trained for two years, before going down into the battlefield.

  I idly watch the young men get weighed and measured, before deciding to head out.

  It had been a week since I was summoned into this world. During that time, I had learned much about this world, its current political precedent, and my role as a [Hero]. I have already gone to the Class Church, underwent a sporadic classing ceremony, and gained access to a rare class—[Magislade]. It is essentially a combination of the [Mage] and [Swordsman] class.

  And within this week, I have come to learn that I am… nothing short of an absolute monster. In this world, strength is evaluated by the Adventurer’s Guild’s ranking system.

  The Adventurer’s Guild, a major—albeit nonpolitical—powerhouse containing many powerfully adept individuals has a system to precisely determine measured power through the assessment of rank, level, achievements and affinities.

  Apparently, as of now (with gear), I am a high Diamond badge, second only to the rumoured Mithril badge. Add in a few proficient skills, and I scrape to low Mithril. And the number of Mithril badges can be counted on the palm.

  What would I be, if not an absolute monster?

  However, there are also other monsters out there just like me. And today, I am fated to encounter them. A meeting with three other [Heroes] is scheduled later this afternoon at a tea shop owned by one of the king's loyal retainers.

  Other people, from Earth. Just like me.

  Incidentally, it seems that the fifth major country—Guntii—has failed the summoning spell. Apparently, a misfired spell leads the summoned individual to end up somewhere random, meaning that there is another Earthling out there somewhere, lost and bemused.

  I yearn to help such an individual. Yet, I, admittedly, am incapable of such a thing. The world is such a vast place, after all. Which is why I will help those I can instead. In these two years, I will train profusely and prepare for the second Human-Demon war.

  If temporary suffering and genocide can lead to a permanently prosperous future, I will gladly accept that trade-off.

  As I saunter outside the royal palace, I take notice of the orange and red leaves fluttering down from the trees as they graciously land on the smooth, marble walkway.

  They dance around like little spirits, wisping around to form subtle shapes and patterns.

  It is predicted that it will begin snowing in a month or so.

  Finally time. I stroll towards the rendezvous point in a lax manner without much urgency.

  Eventually, I found a store matching the description that Kequak had given me; a small tea shop squeezed between two larger stores. And I must say, from just viewing the outside, I suspect the interior to be absolutely lovely.

  However, a prompt sign hangs on the door.

  CLOSED.

  I narrow my eyes, suspectful. Inside the tea shop, I can make out the smudged, dim silhouette of a person. Curious, I knock on the door.

  The person inside begins to move, and after a brief moment, the door swings open, and an elderly woman greets me. The owner of the shop, perhaps?

  As I proceed to enter, the woman blocks my path, hastily bowing. “I am terribly sorry sir, but The Elk has been reserved today as per request of an established figure,” she says while shuffling her feet. She huffs. “One of my mage friends has told me that only four people I do not recognise are allowed to enter. Each of them, one of those mighty [Heroes]! –”

  She pauses and begins to scrutinise me while glimpsing at her notebook.

  “Hmm… black wavy hair, tall, young man, sharp look… Ah! You must be Ray Tanaka! So sorry, my mistake! This way please!”

  The woman takes a single step back, before outstretching her hand and prompting for me to enter. She leads me inside the establishment. Articulate paintings cover the walls, and in my peripheral vision, I notice some writing neatly scribbled on the windows.

  Today's special: Duramine cookies topped with Pokrey sauce– 20 copper

  Chef's recommendation: Milked tea with black tapioca– 5 copper

  Favourite dish: Red Widow leaves in boiled Sumarti Tea—3 copper

  I look around. The store itself is, well…, frankly, pretty small. Six tables are geometrically sprawled across the shop, each table made out of some smooth, sanded oak. On the corners of the tables, I make out some intricate etchings resembling some foreign fairy tale. Chairs, made in a similar fashion, are neatly lined up in accordance with the tables.

  And one large, orange light conjuring illuminates the entire room. Seated on one of the tables are three figures. A big burly man with minor scars on his forearms and an outgrown buzz cut, a slender woman with black… no, darkly shaded purple hair that covers her ears, and a young boy no older than thirteen who literally radiates with positivity and excitement.

  While the woman awkwardly sits in an uncomfortable silence and shuffles on her seat, the burly man has his arms crossed together and stares at the ground with a stern expression…

  …Except anyone can easily see past his fa?ade; he also nervously squirms in his seat.

  One would think that the room would be stilled with silence. However, an inexcusably loud slurp cuts the thread of tension with ease.

  “Oh damn, I didn’t know they had milk tea! Milk tea! Seriously, this tea store is like those fine dining restaurants! “Milked tea with black tapioca” they said! This is boba tea! Man, I miss this drink!”

  Amidst his monologue, the young boy looks up and takes notice of me. He opens his mouth to say something, but quickly closes it and hurriedly chews on the tapioca pearls before swallowing with an exaggerated, almost practiced gulp.

  He jolts up from his seat and poses in a strange manner—perhaps an act of goodwill? “Whoa, you look super cool! Are you the fourth [Hero]?!” he briskly comments.

  I simply nod in response. “Yes,” I say, as I hold out my hand. “My name’s Ray—Ray Tanaka. I was born and raised in Japan, although my… father had American heritage. Third year in Fujikawa high."

  Perhaps my introduction was a bit rushed.

  Luckily for me, the young boy seems to pay no heed, and accepts the handshake. “Uhh, since you already introduced yourself, I suppose we should do the same?” asks the young boy as he looks back at the other two for confirmation.

  For a tense moment, another wash of awkwardness envelopes the room, but the gruff man quickly clears his throat before starting. “Frankly, I think it would be rude if we kept quiet and failed to introduce ourselves. Now, shall we start?”