Prologue

Close to the Spirit Swamps lies a bandit-camp. The bandits have practically gone into hiding thanks to the bad reputation of the swamps. No one sane will look for them here. In fact, even some of the bandits were skeptical when their boss decided to put up their camp here, but in the end, as long as they don’t get too close to that treacherous landscape, they will be safe.

It’s evening, and after successfully raiding a caravan the other day, the bandits are satisfied with their loot. Since the Crusaders have finished off many monsters around the trade routes, it’s a thriving banditry-business. Traders won’t pay as much for bodyguards as before because monsters are more of a concern than raiders. It also helps that these particular bandits are a large group. Several species work together and whenever they become too notorious, they just move on. Usually, the monster-infested Wildlands are a dangerous place for bandits, but thanks to the Crusaders and their current hideout, they’re living quite a comfortable life.

The bandits are also enjoying the rain-less day. It’ll soon be Deepdrops for sure, and that month will bring many storms. However, the hardest time is the winter afterward. Yet they have provisions, they have built huts, and everything is on schedule.

Now they all surround the cooks who give out their supper. Chef Evily is eating with her officers, enjoying how lucky they are for the timely arrival of the Crusaders, which makes it so easy to fill their bellies.

“Boss!” One of the guards is coming, Evily wonders what this is about. “We have an intruder.”

“An intruder? What kind of intruder?”

“It’s a human girl.”

“A girl?” Evily may be a human woman, but she knows that most human women and girls aren’t cut to travel this far away from the trade routes on their own. “Interesting.” This means that the girl isn’t normal, most likely one of the few who were capable of breaking the limits of the average person, the area when sex doesn’t matter anymore. “Did she said who she is?”

“No, but we captured her. I think.”

“You think? Bring her to me. Messan, ten people, please.” Evily’s officer gathers people for more protection.

Her guards bring a black-haired girl with a strange, exotic-looking complexion. It looks almost Southerner, but her eyes are odd as well. They look too narrow at first glance, but the more Evily inspects them, the less she can explain what exactly is wrong with them.

Despite being captured and having her too long knife taken away, the girl looks calm. “You are the boss, I presume?”

Evily doesn’t like the way the girl talks. She also reeks like decay, another thing that alarms the bandit-leader: “Silence, just answer my questions. Why are you here? Looking for benevolent people? Well, this is the wrong place for that.”

“I’m just a messenger. My name is Momokawa Kyou.” Even her name sounds strange: “I’m a hero. My party and I are just out of the Spirit Swamps and we like you to share intelligence and some food and water with us. Maybe some riches as well, if you would be so kind.”

A hero? Evily heard of heroes though she never met one. They are supposed to be powerful despite their age. They are supposed to face dangers way greater than a normal person can even imagine. She claims to have survived the Spirit Swamps? Well, this sure sounds like a story... more specific, like a scam, but something about that girl makes her rethink this...

No, she is the boss of this camp. She can’t let herself being lured into this. “A nice story, girl. Can you prove it somehow?”

“I have this frog.” She takes a barbed frog out of her belt pouch, it’s inside a thick glass jar with breathing holes. This certainly looks like a frog Evily have never seen before, but she doesn’t know much about amphibians. “This one is from the Spirit Swamps,” the girl proclaims.

“You don’t say.” The girl’s story becomes more and more believable, though logically speaking, she doesn’t do much. However, she has that self-control, that confidence... “Anything else?” Evily is the boss of the biggest bandit group around here. She is strong, she has several skills, she won’t be intimidated by a mere girl!

“Have you heard, Ken? She wants something else.” To whom is she speaking?

Suddenly, an arrow flies by Evily, she feels how it cuts the air next to her cheek only to pierce the roast meat on her wooden bowl which is still on the table. She looks at where the arrow is coming from and sees nothing. “How did you do that?”

“I didn’t do anything. I’m just here to give you a chance to show us hospitality before we decide to treat you like the bandits you are. Among my companions is a [Ranger], just for your information.”

This... this biiiiiiiiiiitch! Evily feels laughed at by this girl with her calm demeanor! Evily is a bandit boss, she is better than that skank! Why does she look so smug in the first place? She may have an ally out there with a bow, but a ranger!? This is ridiculous! “Now listen to me, bitch! I will just take you hostage and then I will kill you and your companions and take your stuff!”

“...you shouldn’t have said that.” Suddenly, several screams rise.

Someone from the camp-border runs to Evily: “Boss, a hooded one! A hooded one! He just took out four of us!”

A hood... no, this can’t be.

This isn’t a defeat, however; she just needs to take the girl and then! Yes, confidently, Evily tries to grab the girl, but her hands somehow phase through her. Is she a ghost!? She is blurring! “[Sleeping Breath]!” Somehow the girl turns around while having Evily’s arm in her chest and a bluish mist is hitting some of the guards. Wait, she is there a second time, just a few steps away! How can that be!? “[Sleep]!” The man with her big knife falls asleep while the others who were hit by that mist look drowsy. “I had warned you.” The girl runs away after picking up her weapon...

Another bandit comes: “Boss! There is a girl at the armory!”

“A girl? Why are you telling me this.”

“She is too strong, she also deflects our missiles against our people! She already got twenty of us.”

“Twenty!? And she does what?”

“In eight seconds.”

“WHAT!?” In fact, Evily can hear sounds, it’s like they are attacked from multiple sides. “TO ARMS!” She yells, as most of her bandits aren’t sure what to do. “We will-” She can’t continue, as she notices that she is in a strange shadow... above her, there is water. It’s magic!

Then the center of the camp is flushed, Evily feels like being hit by a wagon. Nonetheless, she is strong, she can dismiss this as feedback. Her officers are also wonky on their legs, though this spell has knocked out some of her underlings.

Evily can still fight and she won’t back down! However, she comes to regret not just accepting the black-haired girl’s offer...

―○●○―

A few days prior.

Masahiko and his friends are back in Esse, the capital of Feuerberg. They’re climbing up the hill to the castle, but there are several strange fellows in this city. People who hoist the banner of a claw clutching a sword. “Who do you think they are?”

“Mercenaries, maybe?” Akiyama Eri, Masahiko’s childhood friend, comments. Her classes are [Student], [Geomancer], [Trader], and [Exorcist]. She’s also a smart and kind girl who has her trademark ponytail.

“...think so as well.” Kita Katsuo is a bit on the shorter and leaner side, though he also has the build of an athlete. He is the [Student], [Sharpshooter], [Leatherworker], and [Fletcher] of the group, and a former member of the kyudo-club. He sometimes looks darker and meaner than he actually is.

“I don’t think so... they’re acting way too important for that.” Kurosawa Teruko is a bit vertically challenged, but she is also a [Student], [Knight], [Deepstalker], and [Cook]. She lifts as much as the others, and she is a bit rough at the edges despite how frail she may appear.

“Yeah, they’re too well-equipped to be run-off the mill mercenaries at least. Maybe foreign knights?” Yamauchi Daichi is a large person, not only height-wise, but he has a broad build and muscles to support it. He’s the most sturdy one of the party, having the [Student], [Knight], [Grappler], and [Forgemaster]-classes. He is easy to distinguish with his shaved head, as he used to be part of the Judo-club and followed it through.

Would there only be a handful, Masahiko wouldn’t have bothered, but seeing how many are here, it makes him second-guess it. “Maybe they’re some forces of Feuerberg we haven’t heard about.” Another possibility, but they have no flag showing the emblem of the kingdom, the burning mountain. “We can ask them later. I’d rather report to the king first.” The leader of the party, Inoue Masahiko, is what people would call handsome, though he doesn’t think much of it. The classes of his choice are [Student], [Vanguard], and [Champion], he still has an open slot to fill with something useful.

A group of riders on horses comes by, but the horses are different from the ones Masahiko knows from his world. As he and his friends are heroes, all of them were summoned from another world. In this case, the world he would call Earth in lack of better knowledge, from a nation called Japan. While the horses of this world look familiar, they have claws instead of hooves, which makes them look a bit exotic. However, about every animal Masahiko knows from his world is a tad different here.

Masahiko goes to the side of the street to let the riders through, his friends follow his example. The ones atop the horses are more of the strange warriors, the one leading looks important. It’s a man in his late twenties or early thirties, it’s still difficult for Masahiko to guess the age of people of this world. The man has wild brown hair and a strong beard with only the lip parts left out.

His eyes meet Masahiko’s and he suddenly stops his horse. “You...” For some reason, he looks angry. “No... not you... not any of you...”

“Excuse me, sir, but what do you want to say?” Masahiko doesn’t like the way he looked at them, so he stares back and puts a bit of force behind his words.

“Boy, where are you from?”

“I’m from Japan. Why do you want to know?”

“Japan... never heard of it... where is it?”

“In another world. I’m Inoue Masahiko, a hero.”

“A... a hero...” The commander looks like something just dawned on him. “A hero, I see. Of course!”

This is strange. Eri steps forward to speak: “Excuse me, sir, but could it be that you already met one of us?” Great idea, Eri! You may be onto something! This would explain that strange situation! “Could it be a girl named Momokawa Kyou?”

For a split-second, this guy’s face looks scary, before it smooths to a more neutral expression. “I met a girl who was called Kyou, not Momokawa, however.”

His words cause Masahiko’s heart to jump, as he and his friends are looking for her! They lost every lead and now there is a slight possibility! Yet Masahiko tries to think of the best way to inquire about her without being disrespectful.

However, Daichi is caught in the moment: “Where!?” He’s about to grab the commander, but Masahiko is fast enough to catch his hand. Daichi looks at Masahiko, but realizes what he was about to do, which causes him to look at the ground: “I’m sorry for my behavior, sir.”

“I’m also sorry, sir. She is a dear friend of ours.”

“A dear friend?”

“Yes. We are looking for her. She may be in a bad spot...”

“A bad spot... sounds about right. If you like to know... Reginald, the bounties.”

“Yes, sir.”

Another knight gives him three papers, all of them have hand-drawn pictures on them. The one who got his attention immediately is for a ‘Katsuragi Kyou’, 60,000 Newgold alive only. “This is her! Why... for impeding and escaping the investigations of the Crusaders!?”

“We are the Crusaders, and she is suspected to be in cahoot with a sinner, the ‘man in the red hood’. She and her brother are to be found and brought to the next Crusader-station for further... questioning.”

“Whatever you think she did, she didn’t do it!” Masahiko is furious about having his friend blamed by these unjustified claims!

“Then bring her to us and we will see. I’m no monster. I’m just looking for the profane and keeping humankind safe. She is no sinner, so I don’t want her dead. However, she has attacked one of my men, so a bit of punishment is appropriate.”

60,000 Newgold... this is quite a sum, enough to buy an excellent weapon or a coach. “I don’t believe you.”

“Believe me or not, boy, but you and I are going to be allies against another thread. I’m just doing what is right, so don’t let your personal feelings interfere with our common goal. I’m Captain Archibald Alchenain. Inoue-dono, farewell.”

The Crusaders are moving out, leaving Masahiko and his friends behind. “Sorry, guys,” Masahiko turns to his friends, smiling, “I couldn’t hold it in.”

“I would have bashed him,” Daichi admits.

“...jerk.”

Teruko nods at Katsuo’s comment. “I’m with you, Katsu-kun, a real jerk.”

Eri points at the bounty posters. “Still... look at this... ‘man in the red hood’, 202,000 Newgold, and 50,000 Newgold for urks... Katsuragi Kenta...” Her voice tells how much she dislikes Katsuragi-kun. He always was a rather... special case. They also suspect him of using a magical ring to control Kyou, which also makes Masahiko doubt whether Katsuragi-kun is bad or just misunderstood.

Teruko snatches the bounty with Kyou’s picture. “Where is Goldbrunn? Also, why Katsuragi Kyou?”

“...the jerk said ‘brother’ before...”

Eri looks at Katsuo with narrowed eyes: “...you want to tell me, that they’re traveling as siblings? I mean, look at her. Look at him. Like this... this thing could be her brother.” She really dislikes Katsuragi-kun.

Masahiko is looking at it more calmly. “Maybe the people in this world can’t tell the difference. I mean, if we all acted like a big family, nobody would deny it, right? Nonetheless, let’s go to the castle. We need to report and then we will chase after her. We finally got our clue!”

Following his decision, Masahiko and his friends get to the castle gates. They’re wide open for visitors, as the main-temple of Feuerberg is also build on the courtyard, an architectural choice Masahiko keeps wondering about. One of the gatekeepers addresses them: “Welcome back, Inoue-dono, Akiyama-dono, Kurosawa-dono, Yamauchi-dono, and Kita-dono.”

“Thanks. Could you please send a messenger to the chancellor?” Just going to his doorsteps would be rude, especially as a group of five: “We’ll wait in our chambers until then.”

“No need, Inoue-dono.” A tall man with blonde hair and beard, whose most striking feature is his ember-like eyes, is walking towards them. It’s Heinrich von Stolzherz V, the king of Feuerberg himself.

Of course, the guards lower their head for less than a second to show him respect, but the way the king nods back is also paying respect to them in return.

Behind the king are the chancellor and the queen with some guards and servants. “Your Majesties, your Excellence.” Masahiko bows to all of them and his friends follow suit.

“If you like, you all can join us. We are currently between meetings, but I’m personally interested in hearing your stories from Kraggwas.”

“Dear,” the queen, a dark-blonde beauty with eyes as burning as her husband’s, chimes in, “maybe they are tired from their journey.”

“You’re right, My Love. I apologize for my manners.”

Masahiko looks at his friends. It’s Daichi who says: “Don’t mind that, we want to talk to you as well as fast as possible.” The others nod, Masahiko does so as well.

“I see, Yamauchi-dono. It seems important enough for you.” The king leads them to a blanket with several snacks on top, mostly something similar to sandwiches. It looks like a picnic. “Join us. It may rain soon, but we will make the best out of it.”

Masahiko starts eating, he’s accustomed to the greasy jams and spreads of this world. Even the rather hard bread doesn’t divert too much from having a nice meal. “Your Majesty, we had an encounter with the Crusaders on our way down here.” He talks about their commander and learns that the king just had an audience with him, as well. The king explains that the Crusaders are much alike to free knights, a military powerful enough to fit a larger nation if all of them come together, and that they have decided to aid Feuerberg, though the king is still negotiating the details of the collaboration.

“As a king, my people are of utmost importance. This also includes the soldiers of the lowest rank. I want to respect the Crusader’s autonomy, however, if they just do whatever they deem necessary, it will create disorder within our ranks.”

“I see...” Masahiko is not sure why the king is talking about politics with him, but this is much better than at the beginning when they were just seen as people who weren’t important enough to be involved. It seems like their hard work is paying off. “However...” Masahiko shows the bounties they received.

“I’m aware of that. You want to chase them, right?”

“...yes.”

“I have already sent a team out to retrieve my daughter a while ago. They may not know the exact location, yet they have the Huntsman with them.” Masahiko imagines that said Huntsman is something like an excellent tracker.

“Inoue-dono,” the chancellor continues. “It’s not only that. The Crusaders saw them in Goldbrunn last time and they left it already. The distance is too great. Even if you head directly to Goldbrunn by horse, it will take at least two weeks.” A week in this world is ten days, so around twenty days. “The weather is worsening as the month changes. It may take as much as thrice the time as that, as there are mountains to overcome and landslides to consider.”

They are not talking about not allowing them to go, it’s about that it seems futile. Masahiko knows it. He also realizes that the king, chancellor, and queen already discussed it by themselves before they even knew that Masahiko and his friends were back. Maybe they thought about sending another team with the new information they got.

“We will do so anyway!” Daichi proclaims.

“... we’ll save her.”

“Yes, we will!”

Katsuo and Teruko are also voicing their opinions, Eri shrugs her shoulders, as she’s more level-headed and knows that the king and chancellor are right.

“I can see your resolve, young heroes, but we still need to talk about other things. What I have to tell you will occupy your minds most likely, so please tell me about Kraggwas before we come to that. There was a demon-incursion?” The tone of the king gives Masahiko a bad premonition, but now he and his friends tell about Kraggwas and the demons.

After a while, they really get into it, forgetting their respect as they praise each other’s deed: “And then Katsuo shot, it was crazy! This arrow would puncture stone!” Daichi gestures with his hands, trying to convey how much force that arrow had.

“Teru-chan was like: Don’t underestimate me, scum!”

“Come on, Eri-chan. It wasn’t like that.”

“You really owned her in the end!”

Katsuo is the only one who is not telling anything elaborated, but his smile conveys that he also is proud of himself and the others.

The adults smile while listening to the teens, not interrupting their stories. Just at the end, the king says: “You have done well. You really are heroes and it warms my heart to see you grow that much. I hope you keep working hard.”

“““““Yes!!!”””””

“It pains me to be the bringer of bad news, but at the border to the demon realm, the situation grows fiercer.” His serious tone wipes away the former pleasant atmosphere, and his words make it all worse... The demons have started several raids, especially aimed at the scouts and the provision lines. The destruction and death they brought... including their fallen classmate Tetsukawa Nobuo.

Masahiko bites his lips to not cry out in righteous anger. Nobuo might not have been a friend, but he was a kind guy. Nobuo was the one who lent Masahiko a handkerchief when he dirtied his before by wiping a dog who fell into a river on his way to school.

“That’s why, Masahiko-dono, my wish would be to have your party return to the border. Not only because of your prowess, but because of your heroics. In times of need, people can look up to you.” The words of the king are genuine. He really believes that having Masahiko and his friends there will change something.

However, it conflicts with their goal to rescue Kyou... their dear friend, the one they swore to get back. Still, leaving the people he can reach and help to follow a clue which is at least twenty days old is...

“Let us think about it.” Masahiko can’t think of an answer right now. Of course, Kyou is his friend and he should prioritize her, but if the king has already sent a team... if her whereabouts are that hazy...

In the end, Masahiko ponders with his friends about it on their own. All of them are sitting in the courtyard, on benches and a table made out of wood, and discuss things.

Eri’s opinion is to leave Kyou to the professionals, as it might end up as a wild hare hunt. Daichi wants to help Kyou, but he also admits that he wants to help at the border as well. Katsuo trusts Masahiko’s decision, while Teruko wants to save Kyou as fast as possible.

“You look lost.” The voice of a stranger says. It’s a middle-aged man who wears a hat with a broad brim. He has a short beard and his hair is dark, the same as his eyes. He also has a different skin tone, he looks like a South European. “If you’d like, I’ll leave you alone. I was just about to greet you, seeing that you are heroes and such, but this may be the wrong time. My name is Correo, by the way.”

“I’m Inoue Masahiko. These are Yamauchi Daichi, Kurosawa Teruko, Kita Katsuro, and Akiyama Eri. So you know that we are heroes?”

“Your face tells me everything. I already met some of your fellow heroes, so I know that the land you’re from is most exotic.”

Correo’s clothes are full of dirt. It looks like he just had arrived here after a long journey. “You don’t look like you’re from around here, either.”

“I was born in the South. Most people look like me there.”

“What are you doing here, Correo-san?”

“Curious? I’m a trader for special items, and I’m here because I heard of the hero summoning. I used my connections to establish contact with the royal family so that I can sell my wares to them and heroes, like you. I’m a traveler and have seen faraway places and find rare items.”

So he comes around... Eri was in deep thoughts up to now, but she asks a question: “You said you met some heroes... heroes that looked like us, right?”

“Exactly.”

“Where did you meet them?”

“The last time, beyond Ohlbrücken in the west. I was surprised at first, as I had never seen humans like them before. I was also curious, so we talked for a while. At least the girl talked to me.”

“The girl?”

“Yes, she called herself Momokawa Kyou.”

“!” This information made Masahiko and the others stand up. “You saw Kyou?”

“Yes, it was less than a week ago.” Wait, isn’t it too far away, to- “Ah, you have to know, I also have my ways to go around the lands quickly. Otherwise, I would be so busy traveling that I couldn’t even sell my findings.”

This... “Can you take some people with you?”

“Not that easily... actually... usually, I keep these things in secret, but other than mere trinkets, I also brought news to the king. Maybe things will work out for all of us.”

In times of need, a man appeared out of nowhere who shows the way forward. This certainly sounds like a hero-story.