《Eternia Saga》 Sunset What does one need to achieve greatness? Talent? Skill? Perseverance? Faith? None of them. Sacrifice is the mother of greatness. The greater the sacrifice, the greater the achievement. But the real question remains - How far are you willing to go to get what you want? ¡ª- (Liberia - inside the basement of the Grand Palace) "Mom, where are we being taken to?", said a little girl. "Don''t worry, child. It will all be okay. Trust me, darling." A crowd of civilians were being led into a dark enclosure with blindfolds on by the "Knights of the Capital". "Put these blindfolds on and get a move on.", said a Knight in a harsh and authoritative voice. "Please tell us something! Please tell us what is about to happen!" One glare from the Knight was enough to silence her. She knew what would happen if she rebelled. She had no option to follow their orders, at least for the sake of her child. As they were shoved into the enclosure, they were finding it difficult to breathe due to the sheer amount of people present within such a small place. The only bit of light available in the basement was from the huge Mana Crystal situated in the centre of the enclosure, thanks to which an elevated stage was faintly visible at the far end of the basement onto which the civilians weren''t allowed, not like they could see it anyways. People from all age groups could be found, right from the tender age of 10 all the way up until 90. At last after the yelling of the knights had stopped, the people could hear the entry to the basement being shut. Not a single person dared to speak. However, silence breeds fear and after a certain point fear breeds impatience. "Please tell us why we have been brought here! Please, we have done nothing wrong! Please let us go!", shouted the mother. As if an unknown weight was lifted off of their shoulders, no one could stay quiet any longer. "Please let us go!" "Please have mercy!" "Oh lord, please show mercy!" Madness ensued. All of a sudden, as if it were rehearsed all of the people stopped shouting as soon as they heard HIS footsteps, as if their very lives depended on it. The little kid instinctively grabbed onto her mothers dress as tightly as she could and hid her face in it. How did they all know it was HIM? They could simply feel it in their bones. The sound of the heavy footsteps ceased at the centre of the stage and with a sombre voice HE spoke, "It is with great pleasure that I am having to announce that all of you have been tasked with the greatest duty in all of mankind. All of your sacrifices will be remembered for generations to come, for it is because of you that Liberia will be saved from certain doom. Thank you for everything. My dear subjects, I hereby ask that you perish. " Deathly silence followed. One by one, everyone started crying tears of blood and fell to the ground like flies. What was once an enclosure filled to the brim with civilians, now only contained dead bodies. The essence of their being, their souls, slowly started detaching itself from their body and started encircling the huge room with a fearsome velocity. They all came together in a glowing vortex and winds akin to a storm had now been created. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. The mana crystal started glowing more violently as if reacting to the vortex of the souls and a tipping point was finally reached. The entire world was beginning to change. A beam of light struck the Free Land of Liberia. The hero had been summoned successfully. ¡ª- (Somewhere on Earth) A sickly figure could be seen atop the edge of the roof of a tall building. "Finally. I can end this misery. Thank you for not hating me, mom. Sorry I couldn''t be the son you wanted me to be." He jumps off the building and had left everything behind him now.The only thing left for him now was death. . . . Until he got transported to another world. A bright flash of life blinded him as he was about to land onto the ground and before he knew it, he was in the Land of Freedom - Liberia, still alive and kicking. "Wh- What?!?" He frantically looks around him. He feels the grass under him. It''s all real. He wasn''t dreaming. Or maybe this is exactly the kind of stuff you find in dreams? So he closed his eyes and tried to sleep it off. Suddenly, the sirens from the Castle of Liberia blew so loud that perhaps the entire continent could hear them. All of the knights in the castle rush onto the streets of Liberia in order to find our hero. Their roars can be heard from far away as if a horde of monsters was approaching us. Snapping back to reality. NO. "TH- THIS DOESN''T FEEL LIKE A DREAM?!! Where am I!?? I was supposed to die?!" "AH- I have finally gone crazy. Hmm¡­ a fitting end to such a despicable being. I never even took any drugs. Being a good lad has it''s own demerits after all. I should have gone out more and talked to girls instead of -" Amidst all the noise and him being lost in self-loathing, he could not sense that someone had actually crept up to him from behind. "Are you alright?" said the masked man, gently putting his hands on the shoulders of this self-deprecating junk. Scared to death by the sudden nature of everything, he leapt into the air and landed on his face. "HEY WHAT GIVES?! Couldn''t you at least call out to me? And why are you wearing a mask and-" He catches a glimpse of the woman behind this masked man. She was also wearing a mask but something about her was different compared to him. She gave off an overwhelmingly murderous aura compared to the Masked Man despite not visibly showing any such intent and this made him very scared. "AHH SHE WILL KILL ME! Please save me MM. PLEASE!" "Who is MM?" "Masked Man. You." "..." "Since when are you out here, sir?" As if he wanted to be asked this particular question since forever, with newfound joy he responded, "THATS IT! I jumped off of a building and all of a sudden i''m here? Am I hallucinating? Am I crazy? Are you even real?" As if he understood everything, MM immediately puts both of his hands firmly on the guys'' shoulders and with a serious voice he asks,"What is your name?" "Huh¡­Its Arwin Glazar." "Listen carefully, Arwin. I am only going to say it once. So listen carefully" "What the hell are you saying? Maybe you should first help me understand what the hell is happening? Why are those sirens wailing since I arrived here? What are those thuds?" MM delivers a firm slap to Arwin''s left cheek and says, "When I ask you to listen, all you need to do is listen. One more word and I will break your hands. If you understand, NOD." Taken aback, he nods. "You have to remember all of the 5 points which I am about to tell you. NOT ONE of them can be forgotten. Forget everything else for now and ONLY remember these 5 points. Nod if you understand" Again Arwin nods. " 1. YOU ARE NOT CRAZY. You have been transported to a different world. You are a hero that THEY summoned. 2. You will meet a lot of people from here on who will try their best to make you believe that they are on your side. BE SCEPTICAL OF EVERYTHING AND DON''T TRUST ANYONE (besides me ofc) and NEVER SHOW YOUR FULL POWERS. 3. As soon as you wake up, ask them to leave you alone so that you have some time to think and gather your thoughts. 4. As soon as you are able to move freely, make your way to ''Magus''. I will contact you there and clear all of your remaining doubts. 5. Final and the most important point: DON''T TELL ANYONE ABOUT ME OR ELSE YOU WILL BE KILLED INSTANTLY. " "...." "Nod if you understand." Arwin frantically nodded but it seemed like his brain was overheating. The thuds grow closer and it now feels like the Knights are just around the corner. Realizing this, MM says, "I have to leave now. Make sure you survive." "What? How can I remember so many things? Who are-?" "Never lose faith in yourself. All the best." "Hey wait -" MM delivers a swift strike to the neck and Arwin loses consciousness. MM and the mysterious woman who was along with him disappear as quickly and mysteriously as they appeared. What they did just now, could have for the better or for the worse, altered the fate of humanity. All they could do now was hope. ¡ª- (Royal Palace of Liberia: Holy Chambers) Arwin grunts as if he is in tremendous pain and as he slowly opens his eyes- "Ah! The hero has awakened!" said a husky voice from beside him. "Wha- Ow¡­my head.." Before he could make sense of anything, the sweetest voice entered Arwin''s ears- "I''m so glad you are awake! How are you feeling now, MY hero?" said the beautiful blonde lady who was holding Arwin''s hand. In a starstruck voice, Arwin whispered "Pretty...". Pretty ¡°Pretty¡­¡± Realizing that he actually said it out aloud and it wasn''t just in his head, Arwin started blushing heavily. She was sitting at the edge of the bed, right beside where Arwin was sleeping. Golden hair, clear blue eyes that could pierce through your heart with a single gaze, plump red lips, and a slender yet beautiful figure. Calling her beautiful was an understatement and she had a calm demeanor that further amplified her allure. Like a predator ready to pounce on a defenseless prey, she smiled as if she knew that she already had him wrapped around her finger. That smile was enough to force Arwin to bury his face in the silky white blanket in which he was sleeping. Suddenly the words of MM echoed in his mind: ''DON''T TRUST ANYONE''. Before she could say anything Arwin pulled himself together and hurriedly said, ¡°Where am I?!? Who are you?¡± As if he just realized that there were things other than Iris in this world, he looked around the room. It was a huge bedroom with a very high ceiling, big enough to make a man feel small and lonely. A lavish chandelier hung from the ceiling which fits right in with the golden color of the entire room. There was a large window near the bed but all you could see through it at that moment was the darkness of the night. There was a door at the opposite end of the room from where the window was. A maid was standing in front of the door which was currently closed. The bed was large enough to fit 5 people, yet Iris was sitting right beside Arwin, who was placed near the edge of the bed. It all seemed calculated, but he had no way of knowing that. In a soothing voice, the girl responded, ¡°Forgive me for startling you, my hero. My name is Iris Buckingham. I am a member of the Royal Palace of Liberia. You are currently resting in that very palace.¡± ¡°Iris Buckingham... UH- I mean why am I here all of a sudden?¡± Standing behind Iris was a huge man clad in silver armor. He looked like he was in his 40s and wore an indifferent look that was almost menacing. It seemed like he had been in several dangerous situations before. ¡°This man behind me is Ivan Bardem. He is my personal bodyguard. Please don¡¯t pay him any heed. He gives off a menacing aura, but he is actually a very kind person.¡± Kind? Him? ¡°You were found lying unconscious on the grasslands in the outskirts of the city capital and then the Royal Knights found you and brought you here.¡± ¡°But WHY am I here...?¡± ¡°I know that this must be a huge shock to you, but I implore you to bear with me as I explain everything.¡± Iris held Arwin''s hands thinking that it would calm him, but it only further amplified his stress. Arwin blushed and all he could focus on now were her eyes and her lips. ¡°You, my dear hero, have been summoned to this world in order to help Liberia defeat the evil country of Ceartus. It has been 100 years since the last hero was summoned and we now finally have you alongside us.¡± Unable to make sense of what she was saying, Arwin snapped back to reality and decided to move on to what he considered to be a far more important thing to clear up. This was all he wanted to know since he suddenly found himself in Liberia. With a serious look in his eyes, Arwin asks, ¡°Why me?¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°It is but the will of the stars. The heavens themselves wished for you to be here, on our side, talking to me right now. They deemed you worthy of being the light that leads us to victory. That is all there is to it, my hero. ¡± ¡°Will of the Gods, huh?¡± ¡°Indeed, my lo- My hero.¡± My love? You mean to say I have a chance?!? Huh?? No way. I must be tripping. Acting as if she never slipped up, she now says, ¡°My hero, His Highness King Augustus, and Her Majesty Queen Victoria were here until just a little while ago but seeing as you weren''t gaining consciousness they had to get back to their duties. They have all been awaiting you with bated breath. It would be wonderful if you would allow me to take you to them.¡± OF COURSE. A king and queen must exist since this is a palace. I really don''t want to meet them! ¡®3. As soon as you wake up, ask them to leave you alone so that you have some time to think and gather your thoughts.¡¯ ¡°Ms. Iris, is it alright if I stay by myself for a brief moment? I would really appreciate it if you could allow me to catch my breath and get a hold of my thoughts.¡± Iris smiles but it doesn¡¯t seem like she wants to give Arwin any chance to settle down. However, at the last moment, she decided against it because being too aggressive can prove to have the opposite effect on him. She really needed him to feel like he could confide in her. Why? Well because¡­ ¡°Naturally. I¡¯m sorry for not being considerate enough of your situation, my hero. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me. I will be waiting right outside the door. Please ask the maid to call me. Once you feel better, of course.¡± ¡®Waiting right outside the room¡¯, in other words, ¡®don¡¯t take too long¡¯, huh? Well, whatever. I really need some time right now, no matter how little. ¡°Of course not! Thank you for being so considerate, Ms. Iris.¡± She gave a pleased smile, that exuberated an almost child-like innocence and quietly left the room. Ivan Bardem followed right behind her without a word. I¡¯m finally alone. I don¡¯t have time to think about anything right now. I don¡¯t understand why MM asked me to be so skeptical of everything. Besides the ogre (Ivan), Iris seemed very friendly. ¡®You will meet a lot of people from here on who will try their best to make you believe that they are on your side.¡¯ GAHHHH DAMN IT. Maybe Iris is good? We never know, right? God¡­ I hope she is a good person and moreover, WHY AM I TRUSTING MM SO MUCH? Everything is so¡­overwhelming but for some reason, I feel good. I don¡¯t quite know why but it doesn¡¯t matter right now. It is probably a good idea to recollect everything that MM said- ¡® YOU ARE NOT CRAZY. You will meet a lot of people from here on who will try their best to make you believe that they are on your side. Be skeptical of everyone (besides me ofc) Ask them to leave you alone so that you have some time to think and gather your thoughts. Make your way to ¡®Magus¡¯. I will contact you there. DON''T TELL ANYONE ABOUT ME OR ELSE YOU WILL DIE ¡® I feel like I am forgetting a few details but whatever. I really hope that I am not crazy. (Please be real Iris) Arwin takes a deep breath and prepares himself for the big meeting. Alright. Do your worst, Arwin. ¡°Excuse me. I am ready.¡± First impressions Turning to the maid who was standing in front of the door, I said, "I am ready.¡± She had been wearing a faint smile this entire time and I could not sense even a hint of tiredness from her. Her black hair was tied up in a bun and she wore the classic black dress and white apron, which looked like they were fresh off of the shelves of a store. Royal maids are the real deal. ¡°That is lovely to hear, Lord hero. I will relay the message to lady Iris instantly and she will be here to check on you in no time.¡± ¡°Ye- Yeah. Thanks.¡± Within a few minutes, Iris arrived. She looked as amazing as ever- ¡°I hope you feel a little better now, my hero.¡± ¡°Yes, I am feeling a little better now. Thank you for your concern.¡± ¡°Huhu. Let¡¯s go meet the king and queen, shall we?¡± We exited the room, and it was a straight walk down the corridor of the palace. One consistent thing I observed about this place was that the ceiling was always so high up due to which the palace had a perpetually hollow feel to it. The walls were all gold plated, same as in the room where I was sleeping. Several paintings were hanging on the wall and sensing my curiosity, Iris spoke. ¡°These paintings here portray the great rulers of the past who helped make Liberia into what it is today. I can tell you more about our history tomorrow and also show you around the palace, only if you would like it, of course.¡± A date?!? Hell yeah. ¡°I shall take you up on that offer then, Iris.¡± She suddenly stopped walking for some reason, and I could see her cheeks turning red. Right before I could burn it into my memory, she replied ¡°No problem, my hero." and started walking at a faster pace. Why the strong reaction? Because I didn¡¯t use any honorifics and called her simply using her name? I¡¯m blessed. Now we could now see a large door ahead of us and as we moved closer to it, the door opened up. ¡°We are here, my hero. Please go on ahead of me. I will be right behind you.¡± ¡°O- Okay.¡± My heart was starting to beat faster, and beads of sweat started dripping down my forehead. I really hope Iris doesn¡¯t see my nervousness. Will she dislike me? No, I have bigger things to worry about right now! I take a deep breath and walk in. The king¡¯s court was as royal as it could get. In the ceiling was a massive chandelier, unlike anything I had ever seen before. It was big enough to light up the entire hall and this hall was massive. The room I was in cannot even begin to compare to it. It had an even more extravagant feel about it, as if that bedroom didn''t seem rich enough. At the very end of the room, directly opposite to the door through which I walked in, stood two chairs atop an elevated platform. I could see a faint outline of a man and a woman, who I think can really only be the King and Queen, sitting on those chairs. There was something about them that immediately made you feel that they were important. There was a straight path from the door to the king and between the king¡¯s place and the door were a host of seats on either side of the walking space. They probably held events of some sort where a lot of people were involved. A red carpet was laid out from the door to the seats. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. As we got closer, I could see the king and queen along with a few other people that were standing near them, below the elevation. I really expected to find a horde of people here because this palace is just so massive, however this is a welcome surprise. I feel a little less nervous now. The king wore a serious face and seemed like he was deep in thought when we arrived. He looked old, like a man in his 50s but had a very strong build which was evident from the broadness of his shoulders. He had a brown complexion with thick silver eyebrows. He wore a silk robe that was white in color, and it meshed very well with silver hair which was long enough to reach his shoulders. His short and well-kept beard enhanced his already sharp jawline and made it look even better. Suddenly the king leapt up from his seat and expressed his joy. ¡°FINALLY! There you are, O¡¯ hero of Liberia. I hope that you are feeling better now.¡± ¡°Ye- Yes, your majesty. I feel better now thanks to your kindness. Lady Iris helped me settle down.¡± ¡°That is wonderful! I would like to take this moment to thank you for all of your help, dear Iris.¡± With a slight bow of the head, Iris replied, ¡°I don¡¯t deserve such praise, your highness.¡± As if remembering something very important, he said ¡°Oh my! How impolite of me! I forgot to introduce myself as I was so happy to see you. You must be really confused! Well then!¡± The King swiftly cleared his throat and put his hand behind his back. ¡°I am Augustus Holstien. The king of Liberia. I am pleased to have you on our side, Lord hero.¡± Right after that, the queen started talking. ¡°And I am Marilyn Holstein. The first of my name and the Queen of Liberia. It pleases me to no end to finally lay eyes on you, Lord Hero.¡± Unlike the king, she had a more relaxed and self-assured look on her face when we first arrived. Her luscious black hair complemented her beautiful face and added more weight to her soothing voice. She looked relatively young as there were no visible wrinkles on her face. Her delicate hands were filled with jewelry of all kinds which made her pale skin stand out even more. The shape of her body was slightly visible through the creases in her green gown which only added to her appeal. I felt like I had to introduce myself as well, so I hurriedly tried to introduce myself without wasting any time, but I felt very nervous. ¡°I am Ar-Arwin Glazar. It is an h- honour to meet you.¡± The stammering proved costly because I felt like the people who were present beside the king twisted their faces. It made me feel like they were disappointed with the way I spoke, but it might just have been my imagination. From here on I had to be more careful in the way I spoke. ¡°Lord Arwin! Yes. It does have a nice ring to it indeed! We know you must have a lot of questions, so we shall try our best to clear them all one by one. Before we go on, I would like to talk about why exactly you were summoned, if that¡¯s acceptable to Lord Arwin?¡± ¡°Yes, please. I would have asked that question anyways.¡± ¡°Hahahaha. Very well. Then let me begin. Ahem.¡± This is it. ¡°First of all, let me tell you about where you are right now and what the situation of the world currently is. You are presently in the Royal Palace of the Free land of Liberia. We pride ourselves on our inclusivity and freedom of our citizens to live how they please. As a matter of fact, we are the only country to not practice slavery because we truly disdain such practices.¡± Slavery exists in this world huh. ¡°That is really noble of you. So, there are other countries besides Liberia?¡± ¡°Yes, indeed. There are many countries, so naming them all right now would be a daunting task. However, I can tell you about the various races that exist and where they predominantly reside. Us humans primarily reside here in Liberia and in the country of Ceartus. Elves reside in the thickly forested region called Katharos and you can rarely find them outside of their land. The beings that hail from the demon race reside in the hellish lands of Eredyk. Then the dragonfolk reside in the Land of the Mountains, Raizan. The Seafolk can be found all throughout the vast ocean, but their most prominent colonies are located to the east of Liberia.¡± ¡°There are dragons in this world!? Along with demons, seafolk and elves too?!? I want to meet them!¡± ¡°Yes, Lord hero. I hope you get to meet the mystical dragons and the elves one day. We have quite the tight bond with the seafolk, so I imagine that you will be meeting them soon enough. They are wonderful beings. However, I am not so sure about meeting the demons.¡± ¡°So they the enemies.¡± The king''s face turned dark. ¡°That is correct, lord hero. The demons of Eredyk have recently joined forces with those brutes of Ceartus and are waging a war against us. This is the very reason we have summoned you. With you on our side, we stand a chance at defeating those goons in battle.¡± Huh¡­? Let¡¯s dial back juuuuust a bit! Did I hear that right? ¡°I have to fight... in a war..?¡± The fire that burns within ¡°I have to fight in a war¡­?¡± An image of me being ripped to shreds suddenly comes into my mind and I shudder. I didn¡¯t sign up for any of this! I was brought here without being consulted first and now I have to fight for THEM in THEIR war? As I was still processing this, I suddenly heard murmurs from the people that were standing beside the king. I could feel their piercing gazes without even looking at them and it just made me feel a lot more nervous. ¡®Does he not want to fight?¡¯ ¡®Can he even fight?¡¯ ¡®He looks like a coward.¡¯ Since I can''t hear them, I can only imagine what must be going on in their heads. All of a sudden I feel like the weight of the entire world is on my shoulders and I struggle to breathe. The king must¡¯ve recognized this, so he spoke in a calm voice. ¡°I get that this must be frightening to hear all of a sudden because trust me when I tell you, that it is the same for all of us present in this hall at this moment. The thought of us or our children and dear ones dying as a consequence of this war is not something we even want to imagine. ¡° ¡°However, there are some things in life that we cannot run from and regrettably, this is precisely that sort of a situation. Luckily, we know just the way to deal with this. ¡° ¡°All of this has come to pass because of the devils at Ceartus. They betrayed our ancestors and staged a coup. As a result of which, they seized a piece of the land which rightfully belongs to Liberia. Ceartus is the region of devils, yes even though they are humans, they are no different than the worst of those devils. They do nothing but look down on everyone and mercilessly slaughter everyone they hate.¡± For the first time since we began talking, I felt scared seeing the King¡¯s face. The only way in which one could define his emotion would be - rage. ¡°We have lost countless people of this beautiful country to their meaningless slaughter, and I truly wish that this upcoming war can put an end to this misery once and for all. It is imperative that they be taken down so that the smiles return to the land and that the blood which we shed in this upcoming war, is the last of it.¡± He slowly walked towards me and with every step he took, his image in my mind grew larger. He stopped when he was standing right in front of me. The king¡¯s face now changed from a twisted, violent expression to a more mellow and hopeful one. He gently put his hands on my shoulders and spoke again. ¡°I feel terrible asking you to fight in this war. I truly do, son. You are just about as old as my kids, but we are left with no choice. This war has gone on for far too long and far too much blood has already been shed. For as long as I can remember, I have always felt hopeless about the prospects of ending this war. However, the moment I looked at you with my own two eyes, that lost hope seems to have found its way back into my soul. I truly believe that you have everything that is needed to make it happen! I can feel it in my chest!¡± Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. "I-" I don¡¯t want to pretend like I am a strong person or as if I can have any lasting impact in this war. This is too far above my punching grade. However¡­just maybe. Call me gullible but hearing him speak like that makes me feel like I can truly make a difference in their lives and ease their suffering even just a little bit. Deep inside my heart, there is some part of me that wants to rebel. Rebel against my evaluation of my own abilities. Rebel against the life that I led until now. I never thought a day would come where I would experience it but here it is. I could finally see it. A way in which I would be needed by the people around me. I don¡¯t have any words to respond with when I am hit with emotions as pure as this. I am by no means a hero. I am useless. More useless than anyone else to ever do it before me but¡­ I don¡¯t know if this is the right thing to feel¡­ but even if it only lasts for a little while¡­I want to feel¡­ needed. Feeling a little worried over my silence, the king asked yet again. ¡°Will you lend us your aid, Hero Arwin?¡± Hero Arwin. ¡°I- I have never fought before. I d- don¡¯t know how I can be useful on the battlefield. However, i- if you still want me to be a part of your force, then I would be h- honored to work alongside you.¡± Everyone''s faces lit up in a flash. The people in the back looked at each other and shared their happiness as if they weren¡¯t just badmouthing me. ¡°Splendid. That is just what we all wanted to hear! Glad to have you on our side, Hero Arwin. Oh, also please don¡¯t worry about your battle-readiness. We will start by discovering and then working on your mana class and traits starting tomorrow. Please prepare yourself for some tough love.¡± ¡°Mana classes¡­traits..?¡± ¡°Indeed. Those are the attributes that separates a hero from the rest of us. Do not worry about them right now. We shall go over it in detail starting tomorrow. We don¡¯t want your head to be overloaded with information when it¡¯s this late at night.¡± ¡°Uh¡­yeah. Thanks. That is very thoughtful of you.¡± The queen spoke in a delighted voice, ¡°Ah this is the best day of our lives! Forget the demons, I¡¯m sure that even their hero is no match for our Hero Arwin!¡± Hmm?! ¡°Their hero?¡± Surprised by me being surprised, the queen replied, ¡°Did we not mention that those dregs of Ceartus have summoned a hero of their own?¡± NO YOU DIDN¡¯T. The king continued, ¡°Yes. Indeed, they have befriended the demons form Eredyk and also summoned a hero of their own.¡± So, there is someone else from Earth? That makes me feel really good, but I MUST NOT show it on my face because he is with the enemy! ¡°Another person like me¡­I wonder what type of a man he is..¡± In a displeased voice, the king said, ¡°He is said to be a ruthless man that is feared by friends and foe alike. Only 7 days after being summoned, he subjugated a notorious demon queen and made her his ally.¡° ¡°He is strong, huh? But he sounds like a bad dude..¡± ¡°Indeed. He is the biggest thorn on our side. We must eliminate him using any means possible. He has evaded all of our attempts at ending him thus far. That hideous hero¡¯s name is¡­¡± ¡ª- (Outside the Castle of Ceartus) A masked man slowly walks towards the castle along with a woman tagging along behind him. She can also be seen wearing a mask that is identical to the one which the man is wearing. They both have dark green cloaks on. As they near the castle, they take their masks off and quickly hide it somewhere inside their clothes. They are greeted by a multitude of knights who are guarding the entrance of the Castle, and they silently make their way inside while acknowledging them. ¡°Good night, Hero.¡± ¡°Thanks for your efforts as always, Lord Hero.¡± As soon as they enter the castle, they are greeted by a woman who seemed as if she was awaiting their arrival. ¡°Welcome back, Hero Sirius. Lady Luna. I hope you both had a pleasant walk around the city.¡± Luna gives her a slight nod. With a polite smile, Sirius says, ¡°Yeah. It was great, Helen. What¡¯s up?¡± ¡°Forgive me for the haste, Lord Hero. However, his highness, King Edward wanted a word with you. It seems that the matter is of utmost importance.¡± As if they both immediately understood why they were being summoned, they gave her a nod. ¡°Of course. Lead the way.¡± Forebodings The lighting inside the castle was low. Following Helen, they made their way through the main entrance and slipped inside one of the many doors adjoining the central hall. The only source of light through the corridor were the torches that were hung on either side of the path. Soon they found themselves at the end of the corridor which led into a single room. ¡°They are all waiting inside.¡± Helen gave a deep bow and left. Sirius opened the wooden door and entered the room. It was a square room that was not large by any means but it was enough to fit around 15 people inside it. There were 4 people waiting for him inside, other than him and Luna. It was empty besides the one wooden table situated in the middle of the room around which the four people were sitting. On the table stood a lantern which was responsible for lighting up the entire room and two empty chairs were present near it. The faces of those four people could not be seen clearly and as a result their faces or expressions weren¡¯t easy to make out. Their enormous shadows that were cast onto the wall gave the room a menacing feel. There was one small window at the top of the wall facing westwards through which the moonlight filtered in. ¡°Ah! Hero Sirius. We have been waiting for you.¡±, said King Edward who was sitting at the far end of the table. Suddenly a man who was sitting at the front of the table interjected, ¡°You don¡¯t have to go hide around the city just to fuck, ya know?¡± With a sarcastic smile Sirius replied, ¡°Sorry, Axel. We would have come back sooner if we knew you missed us so much.¡± The only people present in this small meeting were the King of Ceartus- Edward Rector, his wife and Queen of Ceartus- Victoria Rector, their Chief advisor- Adam Snowville and the head of the army, Axel Griffin. An irritated look appeared on Axel''s face but before he could retort, Sirius turned to the king and continued- ¡°You could have sent a word if it was urgent, your highness.¡± ¡°It is alright, Hero Sirius. We didn¡¯t discuss anything vital yet. Have a seat, you two.¡± said the queen who sat beside the king. ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± Sirius and Luna take the two available seats at the end of the table and after they settle down, the King clears his throat and starts speaking. ¡°It seems that their hero has been summoned. It¡¯s time. Finally we can set our plan into motion. I assume that all the necessary arrangements have been made, Axel?¡± With a self-assured smile, Axel replied- ¡°Yes milord. We are ready.¡± ¡°Great job. The time has finally come, my brethren. We have waited a long time for this and we now stand a chance to emerge victorious. We have to act as soon as possible and eliminate the Hero of Liberia before he gets accustomed to his powers.¡± King turns to Sirius and asks- ¡°Sirius, my dear friend, are you ready?¡± Dear friend¡­? Sirius deliberates over the plan for a moment and replies- ¡°This plan can eliminate the hero if it all goes well. However, if things go south, then we could just as easily have an enraged hero to defeat. One that is hellbent on killing us all. Are you sure we should not find an alternative?¡± This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. The man who was silent up until now, Adam Snowville said in a detached voice- ¡°It¡¯s a risk which we have to take. Right now, the hero must be overwhelmed by the sudden changes to his world. His mana control and trait mastery will be at its worst. This is the time to strike and strike hard.¡± Displeased with the answer, Axel continued- ¡°If their hero goes into a delirium and is hellbent on killing us, then it makes our job even easier.¡± From the faint lighting that shone on his face, what can only be thought of as a devious smile slowly grew wider on his face. ¡°It¡¯s easier to get angry monsters to do what you want them to do. They become predictable, just like cornered prey. It¡¯s one of the sweetest feelings in the world.¡± Things were moving way faster than Sirius had first anticipated. He was aware of the plan that was being discussed but he had no idea about just how prepared Axel was for this situation. Doubt. Was asking him to make his way to ¡®Magus¡¯ a mistake? Ignoring Axel, Sirius gave a slight nod to Snowville. ¡°Hmm. It does make sense, Mr. Snowville. Let¡¯s do it then.¡± The king clapped his hands together. In a jubilant tone he said- ¡°Splendid. The moment we find an opportunity, we should be able to put HIM to use. Axel, Sirius and Luna, you will only get a moment''s worth of time to strike. Make it count.¡± The king raised his right hand up above his head and tightly clenched his fist. With a determined look in his eyes, he brought his fist down onto the table with fearsome velocity. THUD! ¡°Together we will kill their hero for sure!¡± --- (Liberia - Royal court) Fed up with talking about Sirius, King Augustus said- ¡°Anyways. Enough about that wretched hero of theirs. Let¡¯s take things one at a time, shall we? You shall begin training starting tomorrow. So please, rest well. We need you in your best condition come morning.¡± ¡°I will try my best to not disappoint you!¡± ¡°That is the spirit. Please remember that you can always ask us for anything that you want. So, go back to your room now and sleep easy!¡± ¡°Thank you for your kindness! I hope that all of you have a good night''s sleep as well.¡± From behind Arwin, Iris said- ¡°Shall we make our way back to your room, Lord hero?¡± Ah, my Iris. Your voice never gets old. ¡°Yes! Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Right this way, Lord Hero.¡± Iris bowed her head to everyone that were present in that hall and Arwin did the same after watching her do it. They exited the room and the door closed behind them. Iris led the way as they walked through the same hallway using which they entered the Royal Court. After a brief moment, Iris was the first to break the silence. ¡°How do you feel, my Hero?¡± ¡°It was nerve-wracking! I was very scared in the beginning, but I felt more at ease as time went on and we got to know each other properly! The king is a good man! Same with the Queen and the others, of course!¡± After a brief pause, Iris replied- ¡°Hmm. They truly are kind people. I¡¯m sure you will get along well with everyone.¡± ¡°Yeah! Hope so!¡± They eventually reached his room. Iris turned to Arwin and said, ¡°Here we are, My hero. I shall come pick you up first thing in the morning. Rest well.¡± ¡°Yeah. You seem tired too. You need to rest as much as me, you know? Sleep tight!¡± As if she wasn¡¯t expecting it, she contemplated it for a moment. A smile that was different from the one she was wearing could be seen surfacing across her face. ¡°Sweet dreams, my hero.¡± ¡°Yeah! Let¡¯s meet in the morning then.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± Arwin enters the room and heads straight to bed. He noticed that a change of clothes was kept at the edge of the bed, so he changed into them. The clothes were cream colored and made of the thinnest material. They felt so light on the skin that one would instantly think that they weren¡¯t wearing anything at all. As he tries to sleep, thoughts of all kinds surface in his mind. He thinks to himself about everything that happened today. From being ready to end his life altogether and even jumping off of that building, to then suddenly being transported to Liberia. Him meeting MM and his words of advice. Then he remembered about MM asking him to meet him in some place called ¡®MAGUS¡¯. It seems like that will have to wait. There are just so many things occurring so suddenly that I don¡¯t have any time to think and plan. I will try to think for a way to get there once I learn more things about this world! Him meeting Iris and how beautiful she was. How sweet her voice was and how plump her lips- Then the meeting with the king, queen and the others in the King''s court. How nervous he felt and then how he felt the urge to do something with his life for the first time in a matter of minutes. How he felt like rebelling against his uselessness. They all seem like good people. I wonder if MM had a bad experience with them? His warnings didn¡¯t seem necessary. Perhaps he just wanted me to be careful... Anyways. There are many things that I have to do tomorrow. They were talking about some classes and traits or whatever. I won¡¯t have to take any tests, would I? Gah!! I hope I don¡¯t embarrass myself in front of Iris.. A creepy smile came over his face. ¡°I¡¯m glad that I got sucked into this world¡­¡± Behind the curtains (Liberia - Royal court) ¡°Let us meet in the morning!¡± ¡°Indeed, my hero.¡± Iris shuts the door behind Arwin. ¡°Now then.¡± She turns around and starts walking back to the King¡¯s court at a steady pace. Suddenly, a maid comes up to her and says- ¡°His highness and the others are awaiting your presence in the banquet hall, Lady Iris.¡± Iris pauses for a moment then replies ¡°Thank you, Greta. That will be all. You can return to your post now. Let me know first if anything comes up regarding the hero. Take care.¡± ¡°Yes, mam. You take care as well.¡± She lets out a sigh and turns around to start making her way to the banquet hall. The banquet hall was situated at the entrance of the Royal Palace, in the opposite direction to King''s court. That was where the nobles had liquor served to them and engaged in conversation with other nobles. On the way to the banquet hall, Iris mulled over some things that stood out to her. There were a few surprising moments. He didn¡¯t feel surprised when I referred to him as ¡®hero¡¯, though he visibly blushed when I called him, ¡°My hero¡±. She gave a faint smile. There certainly are discrepancies that can be found when compared to the records maintained by our ancestors. Those reports outline how the heroes in the past had reacted to certain situations or certain words. It is said that they all gave energetic reactions to being referred to as a ''Hero'', yet my Arwin gave showed no such surprise. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Is there any chance he might have known about his summoning before? I don''t see how. He doesn¡¯t seem like the scheming kind either. The fact that he was so surprised when he heard about him having to fight in the war, betrays the line of thought that he may be a schemer (since he would have hidden his emotions better if he was a schemer). So, there is a very high chance that it may simply be a part of his nature. Yet, I can¡¯t say that for certain.\ Anyways, it seems that there certainly are things that I need to look into. Zipping through the lonely hallways, Iris made her way to the banquet hall. She took a deep breath before entering the hall, rehearsed her smile and made sure her hair and dress didn¡¯t look untidy. Everyone that was present in the King¡¯s court were also present here. They were all busy drinking. Partly to celebrate the hero''s arrival and partly out of stress. A woman who was amongst the people standing beside the king, was pouring liquor into the King¡¯s glass. She noticed Iris¡¯s presence and spoke to her in a friendly yet calculated voice. ¡°Ah Iris! Are you here with your report?¡± ¡°Yes, mother.¡± The king who was flirting with drunkenness spoke, ¡°So! What do you make of our darling hero?¡± Iris gave a slight bow and replied,¡± I didn¡¯t find anything unnatural about him, your highness. He seems to be a kind man who tends to be anxious at certain moments, probably out of low self-esteem. An example of was the way in which he spoke at the Court.¡± The king wasn¡¯t pleased and gave a dissatisfied look. Realizing this, Iris continued, ¡°On the topic of ¡°How can we manipulate him¡±, he seems to be an emotional person. So, using his feelings of kindness and his indecisiveness to direct him towards the direction that we want, would be the best approach. Naturally, I¡¯ll try to find out more about him from here on as well, your highness.¡± Warren Chryson, the treasurer of Liberia, under the influence of alcohol seemed to have lost control over his tongue. He had been raving on about the greatness of his family and how beautiful his various mansions were for the past few minutes. Noticing that the conversation was about the hero, he said- ¡°Hmph, he seemed like a wimp to me. Saw how surprised he got when we talked about war? Bwahaahaha¡± ¡°Indeed. However, it is also necessary to understand that he just got transported into the world and didn¡¯t have any idea about what was happening around him. War and death are a scary prospect for anyone. Thus, I would like to hope that there is scope for him to get to grips with war and give us his best.¡± ¡°Yes, what a kind and understanding person you are. Keep us posted on everything related to the hero. That will be all. You are dismissed.¡± King turned towards Iris to give his formal order. ¡°Keep working on him, Iris. Dismissed.¡± ¡°Of course, your highness. Thank you for providing me with this opportunity - ¡± The intensity of the laughter around the hall increased manyfold. Iris¡¯s words drowned in the echo of their indifference. She simply smiled. Then she eyed her mother who subtly indicated to her that must quietly leave the room. Although they didn¡¯t care, she bowed her head to everyone one last time and left the room.