Having reached my limit, I turned in my resignation to the company. Then, while I was considering where I should go next, I found myself I walk within a forest.
…. That"s strange
I left the company building a while ago.
I bought mineral water, chocolate and rice b.a.l.l.s at the convenience stores. I had it right in hand as I walked to the station… … I was here before I realise it.
[…. No matter where I look, it seems I"m in the middle of a forest.]
There isn"t a single building around here, but there is a tall tree that stretches high above my head.
The ground is a bit moist. I wore light walking shoes in order to escape the moment after handing in my resignation letter. They"re still nice, but since they"re leather, it"s pretty difficult to walk.
But… really, where is this place?
I don"t believe it, but I"m not hallucinating. I smell the gra.s.s and grab the ground. I feel moist soil with my hand. A long time has pa.s.sed since I last tried fiddling with the ground properly. Such a real hallucination, there"s no way this is one.
[What should I do?]
Immediately after quitting my job, why is this happening?
The man who ran away is left in the mountain….. , I guess such hidden rule doesn"t exist.
[Anyway, I"ll ask for directions from nearby people.]
[I"m sorry!]
Suddenly, a voice comes out.
[I"m sorry, I"m sorry! I"m really sorry.]
When I look back, there is a person behind me.
Or should I say, floating in front of my eyes.
That person was bowing her head deeply towards me.
[I intended to transfer a dead young soul with apt.i.tude, but you are still alive, right?]
[…What?]
I"m not sure to what this person is talking about, but she doesn"t look like a human.
She has wings growing from her back and is floating in front of me.
With blond hair, she wears a glittering robe and is groaning with an, “ah-ha” feeling.
[Is there no doubt you are still alive!?]
[…. Who?]
[Please tell me!]
[I"m alive…… probably?]
When she is asking me seriously, somehow I"m worried about it.
I think that I am alive. My memory is not cut off and there are no injuries.
[What"s your name and age?]
[Kiryuu Shōshin, 28 year old. Is this about Arasa?]
[…Ahh]
The girl holds her head and shouts.
[I did it!]
[Could it be that it"s you who summoned me to this world?]
[Yes, indeed]
She answered while nodding her head vigorously.
[It is me who is responsible for summoning you to this world. I am really sorry about that]
……Summon?
[I was called onto this world, is that how it is?]
[Yes. I am one of the G.o.ddesses responsible for coordinating this world. I am Rukia]
The girl with wings once again bows her head towards me.
[Nice to meet you, Kiryuu Shōshin desu]
I"m a member of society, so I also bow my head.
[I"ve made a terrible mistake this time and caused you inconvenience. I"m deeply sorry about that, please forgive me]
[By summoning, you mean this is a different world?]
[Yes, this world is a bit different from your world. The level of civilization of this world is a bit lower compared to yours]
[…. So why did you summoned me?]
[No, no, I wasn"t actually trying to summon you]
[But why I"m here then?]
[That"s why I said, it"s my mistake and I deeply apologize for what I"ve done]
[Please stop bowing and give me a thorough explanation. Other than that, please tell me how to return to my world if it"s possible]
Up until now, my workload was too much. I reached my limit, handed in my resignation letter, and quit the company for good.
The reason I quit my job was because of the harsh working condition. It was overtime after overtime. Whenever I finished my a.s.signment, another task would be given to me.
My boss would scold me for not being efficient enough and would then demanded more. My work never seemed to end and I was forced to work overtime every day.
I don"t hate working, but I hated that endless flow of work. There was no end to it. That"s why after half a year, I lost the drive for my job and handed in my resignation letter.
But I didn"t think much about it afterwards.
[So you want to return to your world, right?]
[Yes, please]
[I cannot do it]
The G.o.ddess said that while bowing her head towards me.
There"s a moment I thought I misheard what she said.
[I cannot do that. The Absolute G.o.d will close down the transfer gate in a short while. We will be discovered by him if we continue to stay like this. I have already left a detailed letter explaning this incident with your equipment. Please refer to it if you have any questions.]
Then the figure of that girl starts to ascend into the sky.
[Please wait!]
I stopped the girl.
Other than that I was called by mistake, I did not receive any explanation.
[At least explain the ability! Shouldn"t the people who get summoned receive some kind of great ability?]
I"ve heard of such stories.
People cannot be left without an ability or a skill in different worlds.
[I am unable to grant any skills to you]
My head blanks after hearing what the girl said.
[There is nothing I can give to you with my ability.]
[Are you kidding……?]
I look around.
No matter where I check, it was forest everywhere.
I don"t know what kind of world this is, but I"m almost sure I"m in a different world. I do not know if demons exist here, but even if they don"t exist, the situation I"m in now is quite dangerous. I don"t where the villages are and I"m short in both of food and water. In the first place, I"m done for if any wild animals appear in front out me.
[No]
The G.o.ddess Rukia shakes her head, like reading through my mind.
She was already in the sky high above me.
it feels like I"m looking at a doll.
[You can live in this world. Because…. you..]
[That"s impossible?! How can I do that?]
I did not get a response from her.
The figure of the G.o.ddess climbed high and disappeared
I was left alone in the forest.
[…..It would be good…….if everything was a dream or hallucination…]
I sat down firmly at the base of a tree.
What should I do?
I have been treated as an unnecessary thing in this world too.
In my original world, the faction in the company that I worked for was so terrible that I was made to do an endless job every day.
I was recruited in the middle of the year, there were no co-workers or bosses who would be my friend, and I was treated as one grade lower. I"ve been doing my best trying to handle it everyday, but … I was already at my limit.
[I"m being treated as something that is not needed in this world too……]
I wonder.
Is this my fate? I don"t need such fate.
I looked into the convenience store bag, it contains mineral water, chocolate, and rice b.a.l.l.s.
Beside the bag is something unfamiliar. It"s a sword given to me by the G.o.ddess.
The G.o.ddess did say she would give me some equipment, I guess that"s the equipment she was talking about. I"ve never used a sword, but will it become a blunt weapon?
A letter is together with the sword.
So I start to read it… umm…
[I"m sorry to trouble you this time]
Indeed you did.
[Originally, this summon should have called the, "soul of the dying teen".
The world is currently in a state where the demons run rampant, the emperor who draws from blood of the Dragon is losing power, and the world is disturbed like the hemp.
It was the Absolute G.o.d"s plan to call a soul with talent and give him a skill.
I also joined it as a G.o.ddess.
Then, why did you got caught?
I am very sorry
I sincerely apologize to you
As an apology, I"ve returned your spirit and strength back to your prime. It is around the midway through your teenage years. That should help you to survive in this world.
In addition, those with an official summoner who make achievements are given the option of returning to thir original world with their abilities.
Therefore, your chance to get the privilege is by curing this distorted world.
If you are still alive by that time, I will take the responsibility and return you to your original world.
However, I will be punished if it"s discovered by the G.o.d of Absolute, therefore it"s impossible to do presently.
This letter also has a trick
There is a blank s.p.a.ce on the letter. I will be able to answer any question you write on it. However, the condition is if that question is about yourself, then it can only be used once. I will also not able to answer questions related to other countries or their summoners.
This is an apology from me who can"t give you any skill.
Please survive.
Kiryuuou Shoumsama (Katakana)
From the G.o.ddess, Lucia.]
That G.o.ddess really gave me an unreasonable task.
She also made a mistake in my name.
Even though I just told her a while ago, it"s Kiryuu Shouma. (Hiragana)
[…..That explanation was not enough.]
It seems to be about this world. There are demons and I can only understand that there is an emperor drawing blood from a dragon.
The direction of the village is written at the end of the letter. It seems to be determined from the position of the sun.
Even though I"m deep inside a forest, but I can still determine my directions from where the sunlight points in from.
The village is towards the direction from which the sun sets… I wonder about that.
Looking closely, there is a narrow road on the ground. It looks like a path made from people walking on it.
According to the explanation of the G.o.ddess-sama, I should follow this path.
Since there are roads here, I think there"s a village nearby. I hope it"s not that far….
My physical strength really have been returned to my teenage years. Otherwise, it would have been a disaster for me.
Recently, I have been busy with my work and I have not walked properly.
The ground is soft and it"s very difficult to walk. I need to be careful not to twists my ankle or it"ll be over for me.
…..Honestly…do I have to live here from now onwards…..?
I lifted the sword off the ground
It is surprisingly heavy. The length is less than 1 meter. It"s a long sword.
It is hard to handle, but I would be defenceless against any wild animals or demons I run into without it. It may be heavy, but having it makes a big difference.
Let"s put that thinking aside for now. What I should be thinking about is getting to the village.
Or else I"ll fall into despair.
After being summoned by the G.o.ddess, I have been given neither a skill nor a legendary weapon.
……But, is that really the case?
Normally, in this kind of situation, I would be given some kind of tremendously strong skill or ability.
[I"ll give it a try.]
…..Any sort image will do.
I"m trying to draw something out from within my mind.
I take a deep breath……
…I did it
I didn"t feel any discomfort. Since it"s like a part of my body, I can draw it out easily.
This is the skill that I possess with me.
[The King"s Vessel]
A skill that shows the magnitude of the king.
I can accept various things.
Also, “Because the King needs to hear the words of the people”, I also have the ability to translate words.
[….Isn"t this just a storage skill and translation skill?]
I cannot use it for protection, but it"s still useful in many ways.
For the time being, I put the convenience store bag and the sword into the storage.
This skill, is it possible to store living things…?
If I can just enter the storage at night and come out in the morning……. I guess that"s impossible for me to do. It would be great if I could, but the merit of this skill is that I can move around my hands.
Did the G.o.ddess prepare this skill for me?
She must have been trying to hide me from the Absolute G.o.d.
…She"s a kind person even if I"ve been involved in this summoning issue.
…..I"m still angry about that.
I"m not familiar with this world… but if I think deeply, isn"t this the same as with my original world?
I didn"t quit because I stumbled upon problems at work.
I quit because I reached my limit working for that company. In the end, I can"t do anything other than looking for a new job.
[… In this world… My strength and mental power are in my teens. I also have a mysterious skill. Great.]
I try to be positive and look forward.
I don"t need to think useless stuff. I must utilize my skill and survive in this world.
….Other than that, I hope I can find a companion in this world.
The G.o.ddess said there are other ""young souls"" who have also incarnated into this world.
Furthermore, there are also people who would cooperate with that incarnated person.
If I know the circ.u.mstances of those summoned, I may be able to support them. People who are officially summoned will have amazing capabilities. If I become a friend, the possibility of surviving also increases.
However, since I do not know what kind of person they are, I must proceed with caution.
…. I shouldn"t think so far ahead.
I am currently in the middle of the forest.
I need to walk forward and follow this path. It should lead me to the nearby village. Once there, I should be able to gather information about this world.
…. It is troublesome though.
It would have been better to have some kind of immortality skill. Living in this world would have been much more relaxing for me.
Thus, I begin to walk down the beast path.
After walking for a while—
[Monsters?!]
I discover strange shadows within a gap in the forest and stop.
I hide among the trees, but the other side doesn"t move at all.
There is no reaction when I try to approach closer. It doesn"t even move when I touch it. What"s this?
[…Isn"t this a …. Statue?]
I was really surprised
Please don"t surprise me like this. If a monster or demon approaches me now, I would be killed if they surprise me with a fast attack.
[But why is there a dragon statue in the middle of the forest?]
Behind the tree was a statue of a dragon made out of stone.
It is about 1 meter tall. It has wings on it so it is a western dragon. An open mouth faces the path I"m standing on, giving the impression that it is roaring. Is this statue some kind of protecting charm?
[So…. Dragons exist in this world?]
I was informed that there are monsters though.
Suddenly, I look up to the sky and see a living being spreading its wings and flying around. It"s not a bird, but it"s too far away for me to determine what kind of creature it is. Still, with that huge size, I"m positive it"s not a bird. It"s stretching its leg and flying.
I get the feeling that it"s is a dragon.
I have to escape now. I"ll be dead instantly if it discovers me in the middle of the forest.
Anyway, so dragons exist in this world…
Furthermore, this world seems to worship dragons.
"Dragon exists in this world", I should probably write a memo like this using my skill.
It was a cool and wonderful statue though. I would have liked to look at the statue for a little bit longer….
I guess I shouldn"t be doing that now. Yup.
The fact that there"s a statue here means that I"m close to the village. It should be around here.
[…I hope it"s just a little bit further]
I don"t want to stay in this place. There is nowhere to attack from and no place to hide.
If I were to meet a demons in such a situation…
[…Who are you?]
There was a voice.
After that, I heard a sound
From the forest, a monster with black skin appears.
I"m done for……
Chapter 2