A little later, the group was outside the rift, back at the car, with Dora taking a piggyback ride to Lilith as an apology while Hope and Cid, still unconscious, were in the car."The rift will be closed in about 30 minutes, I've called the guild and they will send some officers just to stand guard. We can finally rest... Good job everyone."Kraim bowed to the group. Marie turned to Eryl, looking worried.“Will Barron be okay?”"Don't worry, his life is not in danger. I'll make sure to take him to some people to see if they can do anything about his leg.""I see... Sorry, if my defense had been better this wouldn't have happened."Freya placed a comforting hand on her shoulder."Why are you apologizing? We are emissaries and these kinds of events are part of our world... Besides, I was the one who brought him into this. It was my fault."They lowered their heads for a moment, after which, she turned to Dora."Don't think this has anything to do with you either. Ultimately, it was my d
Night had fallen and the vehicle was transporting Cid and Freya to a nearby town, Eryl at the wheel. Freya, a little irritated, looked at one and groaned."Hmph, in the end, I lowered myself in front of him again... It's getting really annoying, this guy has no consideration."“On the contrary, my Lady, this is surprisingly the right order of things.”Freya glanced indifferently at the woman behind the wheel."So he piqued your interest? But regardless, no matter how great a person's potential, you have to have some knowledge of the world and the hierarchy, if you want to last long."She crossed her arms and looked at the passing landscape."He's not bad, but he's still far below too many people I know."“Hmhm, you don’t know how right you are, my lady and that’s why I’m telling you: it’s completely normal and even expected that you would move heaven and earth to get his services."The vehicle passed through a tunnel, and the lights of the moonlight disappeared but in this light darkn
The sun was high in the sky, illuminating the sinister sight of several Minotaur bodies scattered across a meadow. Next to a huge rock, Shining Sword, Dora, Zuri, Hope, and Mercy were facing a Centaur armed with a spear. "Mercy, blind!" "Got it, Stardust!" She brought her hands together and formed a triangle with her fingers, black stars appeared around her and converged towards her hands and then she fired a black ray directly at the centaur's head. The creature shrieked and backed away, back against the rock that jutted out slightly. "Zuri, head, defense!" "Hm~hm." She threw a black vial near the centaur and with her strange magic wand, fired a black arrow which exploded on contact with the vial and mixed into a purplish substance that poured onto the head and chest of the monster. "Dps, Leg, Chest! Lilith, get ready!" "Alright!" Everyone except the former party leader and his best friend screamed. Hope, Liliana, Morgiana, Leon, and Erick rushed toward the beast and stabbe
In the men's bath, a singular scene took place. A frail, puny, and seemingly small boy stood in front of the water, a towel tied around his hip, Hope stammered."G-Gersey?" "H-Hi, Mr. Hope." "What are you doing here?! You're supposed to be in the mansion!" Hope stood up, as if he had seen a ghost and wanted to confirm the identity of the young boy, the latter shyly hid his body and tried to make his way toward Dora, until he met his gaze. "... Um... H-Hi, Mr. Dora..." "... Do I know you?" Gersey flinched and lowered his arms, looking to the side. "N-no...I guess..." He sat down next to Hope, dejected. The latter looked at Dora, with the intention of making him change his behavior but he was too used to his temperament to know that it would be useless. For their part, the girls were surprised by Freya's unexpected return, it had been several weeks since her departure and no one thought she would return. She took a quick glance at each of them and smiled. "I see you haven't slac
The sun had risen, a new day in the best of all possible worlds, where some people's nightmares were revealed and others' suffering deepened.After breakfast, the group prepared to return to their routine, this time including Freya and Gersey, but something unexpected took place. In the inn's living room, they were gathered for an announcement from Marie. Intrigued, everyone sat in their chairs while the young girl, with a dark look, took a letter out of her pocket. "So... I requested this meeting because something happened. Something that may affect all of us." "What? The army finally decided to intern Sana?" Lilith giggled nonchalantly, to everyone's sighs and groans of boredom, but Dora, next to her, patted her head. "Come on, it's not every day that Marie gives a speech, let's honor her by listening to her. You also have an announcement to make, don't you?" Lilith flinched a little and crossed her arms, looking just a little worried. Marie sighed for a moment and continued her
"Grandma, what is a hero?"It was one of my favorite subjects since I could read and recognize images. A hero is a person with superpowers who fights evil and saves the weak. When I was little I was fascinated by these stories, the superhero comes when you need him most, saves the day, and seduces the girls, well may not be the last part, but he was still meant to be loved by everyone. "One day I will be a hero too!" What a thing to say when you're so young, but in this world miracles can happen. I was 12 when I did my appraisal, inspectors from all over the kingdom were traveling through towns to appraise future potential, in the face of the increasing number of rifts, and it was probably the happiest day of my life. "You are from the Hero branch." Dreams come true, I wanted it so much, I helped people so much, to live in the name of heroes, and finally, I was one. Hero is also the strongest class, I trained a lot alone or with other kids and never got beaten. The world is in da
“The healer is the most important role in a party.”It's a teaching I received in the orphanage where I grew up. When I was 14, the director of the orphanage explained to us that the rift situation was getting worse. I never really understood what it was, boys often use that term when playing heroes and monsters, so I just thought it was a childish game, but if the director is talking about that then should that be important?They called people in black suits, I've been here long enough to know it wasn't moms and dads coming to take us to better places, no one cares about us after all, we get old and then we leave, it has always been like that.They came with strange crystal balls to search for something in us, I just wanted to do it before lunch, there's usually not enough food for everyone so you have to hurry, but this day was very strange for me.People in suits would ask us to put our hands on the crystal balls and then usually say something like fingers or nothing, but when my t
I don't remember who I was or where I came from, I know I'm not from there because my parents were discussing crossing a border. I saw snowy fields, white, cold, and endless lands, but what I remember most was the anguished faces of my parents.I know today that they were worried, I didn't understand why, but I suppose they were right since they were killed.We were in a car going at high speed when I heard a deafening noise.The car hit a group of bushes and several people approached us. My mother came to pick me up and hugged me warmly, telling me that I had to survive.My father hugged us, then took something out of his bag and rushed towards them, my mother focused her magic to create a bird that grabbed me and took me away.My last memory was the roar of gunfire. The bird carried me for a few minutes before disintegrating further into the forest.I got up and walked around a lot crying, I don't remember why I cried, I'm more intrigued by why I kept walking.I don't remember what
(A few weeks ago)In the royal castle, the Queen sat on the edges of her fountain. Charming ladies, wearing chitons, sat around her, some singing captivating melodies and others with harps, playing light music, a true heaven on earth.The Queen took a glass of grape juice served to her by one of the young ladies and drank a few sips, when further away, the wind blew, followed by the appearance of a servant with elf ears."Queen Gloria, I'm back."She curtseyed to the queen who handed her her glass, smiling."Well, I felt bad for letting one of my precious nymphs perform such a shameful task.""Do not worry, my Queen, it is my pleasure to be a weapon for the kingdom.""Hm, come, join us."She took a few steps forward, and one of the ladies opened her hands and blew towards her, spreading a pink wind that covered the servant and illuminated her clothes.The spark faded gradually, revealing the outfits replaced by an angelic white chiton.The servant slowly walked towards her but suddenl
"Hello everyone, I hope you've been well during these past months, for those who got chosen as knights of course. For the others like me, it has been a wonderful 2 months, going to studies learning new things, with the same people, having to see the empty seats of our classmates who got chosen... Even some E-rank have beautiful noble ladies... There were boys but maybe there are ulterior motives..."“HM-HM!!!” Thomas coughed."Oh, yeah, let's get back to today's topic. I am Maxim, but for the ladies, Max, or Sir Max, or Sir M... Sounds like maso... And today we are reunited for the 3rd meeting of the student council, after the break. Allow me to introduce you to some special guests."Maxim took a few steps stopped in front of Iris's table and curtsied."From the very first time, this year, we have the blessing of enthroning our wonderful princesses, the Queen in our heart, the symbol of grace and beauty, Lady Freya... and Cid, the unworthy."Cid groaned in his seat while Freya ignored
The train, carrying Dora's group, towards the capital passed through a sleeping landscape. Cabins equipped with beds served as dormitories and were divided between the girls and Dora and Hope.Dora turned around in his bed, seeing the images of Mary and Lilith leaving, again and again.He clutched his chest, troubled by this burning sensation that hadn't existed in him years before.Regret? Sadness? Melancholy? He couldn't give it a name and decided to walk to clear his mind.He disappeared from his bed and reappeared in another car, but as he used his power, he held his hand.Our power shouldn't be wasted on this.He opened his eyes, looking at his reflection in the glasses as if he had just seen a monster.He was breathing heavily and his hands were shaking."What is happening?""!!!... Mid... Midget...?""What are you doing? You don't need to speak out loud, do you want someone to hear you?... What's bothering you so much?"He calmed down a bit, looking at his fingers, even though
Leon was lying on his back, looking at the blue sky, he wasn't thinking about anything in particular, or even feeling.Little by little, everything turned white, everything around him disappeared and when he blinked, he was in his hometown, in his little house next to his grandmother.She was about to read him a book about the hero, but as soon as she opened the book, he felt uneasy."Being a hero isn't so great after all."A hero must fight to the end, isn't that too tiring? Maybe a normal life as a shopkeeper would be better? Especially when we have the blessing of the emissaries. You can work better and you don't have the burden of always getting stronger. You're not competing against nature's tricksters like avatars...He didn't feel anything, but he smiled, he was happy.He raised his hand and whispered."... just... just... you wait... andma... I'll... I'll take care of... the shop... don't... don't... do not worry..."The hand hit the ground, and his fighting spirit disappeared.
Leon's eyes twitched frantically and his poor self fell back, perhaps in an attempt to wake up from a nightmare, as the monster before him looked at him curiously, its yellow eyes reflecting the soul of a soon-to-be broken hero."Wh-What... What...""Hm?... Curious, it's too early for you to be afraid of us. Take a breath and calm down."Leon took a step back, feeling a shiver across his back."How do you plan to reach us if you keep walking away? You wanted to play the hero, so we're just giving you a suitable opponent. Let's play."He took a step forward and spread his arms."Hello, Hero. We are the monster with the yellow eyes, and our name is... G####"A powerful wave of energy emanated from his body, spreading across the plain.Leon felt his body burning and freezing to the extreme, several times in the blink of a second and instinctively dropped his sword... Or so he thought."....?"He tried to move his body, to move backward, but nothing happened. He realized he could no longe
The sun was high in the sky, as was the tension in the air as a hero prepared to face a monster on a plain. Everyone was gathered in a corner, and several meters in front of them, the 2 founders of Shining Sword were facing each other. Kraim stood in the middle and was about to give the signal."Very well... So this is a battle to determine the future of the Shining Sword team. If the gray-haired snake wins, Shining Sword will be dismantled, the false hero will retire, and many dreams will be crushed... If only someone with just a little compassion, a little love, and a human heart, would certainly have mercy... But who am I kidding?""Indeed." Dora nodded indifferently. Kraim sighed and glanced at Leon with annoyance."Well... I'm not a hype man, but it really is suicide. The rules are the same as a traditional mock battle, you use everything in your power, and kill if you want to live a life in prison... Well, even there, the law is fine for royal knights, so... Begin when I'm far
The night was cool and the breeze brought a sweet, and spicy scent to Dora's nose as he sat alone on a plain. He had his arms crossed and kept his eyes closed."You're awfully quiet tonight, little toy."A familiar voice woke him from his torpor."I'm just thinking.""Are you sure? I should be able to read your thoughts, so what is this silent thought?"He opened his eyes and looked at the starry night."My heart and brain are bothering me."" What's wrong? Do you regret parting with your friends?He remained silent for a few seconds and sighed."I don't know, I've never felt like this before... We have to go our own way but... I wouldn't mind if it lasted longer."The silence was deafening, broken only by Dora's breathing.Suddenly, he felt the presence of someone or something behind him. A chill ran down his spine as a shadowy figure materialized and sat beside him.Midgard was next to him, in her normal form, that of a young adult with tired eyes and unkempt hair."... Oh, I forgot
I don't remember who I was or where I came from, I know I'm not from there because my parents were discussing crossing a border. I saw snowy fields, white, cold, and endless lands, but what I remember most was the anguished faces of my parents.I know today that they were worried, I didn't understand why, but I suppose they were right since they were killed.We were in a car going at high speed when I heard a deafening noise.The car hit a group of bushes and several people approached us. My mother came to pick me up and hugged me warmly, telling me that I had to survive.My father hugged us, then took something out of his bag and rushed towards them, my mother focused her magic to create a bird that grabbed me and took me away.My last memory was the roar of gunfire. The bird carried me for a few minutes before disintegrating further into the forest.I got up and walked around a lot crying, I don't remember why I cried, I'm more intrigued by why I kept walking.I don't remember what
“The healer is the most important role in a party.”It's a teaching I received in the orphanage where I grew up. When I was 14, the director of the orphanage explained to us that the rift situation was getting worse. I never really understood what it was, boys often use that term when playing heroes and monsters, so I just thought it was a childish game, but if the director is talking about that then should that be important?They called people in black suits, I've been here long enough to know it wasn't moms and dads coming to take us to better places, no one cares about us after all, we get old and then we leave, it has always been like that.They came with strange crystal balls to search for something in us, I just wanted to do it before lunch, there's usually not enough food for everyone so you have to hurry, but this day was very strange for me.People in suits would ask us to put our hands on the crystal balls and then usually say something like fingers or nothing, but when my t