Bobby Grant POV:

I’ve never been a smart person. Some people go their whole lives without realizing they are stupid but I had the good luck to realize it early on in my life. After all, someone smart wouldn’t take the shit I took early in my life without figuring a way out.

My old man was a piece of shit and drove away my mam. Then I was the only one around for him to berate and beat when he was drunk. Fuck what I wouldn’t have given to put him in the dirt. Never ended up having the balls to do it though.

Anyways, I figured out I was stupid early. Why? Because most of my beatings had the excuse of my grades. Lots of people would think ‘hey, why don’t you just study?’ Well I did, I studied my ass off, but it didn’t help. Learning new things was hard and my brain leaked information like a bucket with a hole in it. When I realized that trying to be a good student wasn’t going to help me any, I decided to find another way to get out of my personal hell. If I can’t get away from the beating by being smart, I’ll just have to be stronger than my old man. Took me 4 miserable years alone with the bastard to think of that one…

It’s funny how supportive my old man was of my newfound drive to kick his ass. When I told him I wanted to start joining sports teams he was gung-ho about it. I ended up with a sport for every season, with tai-jutsu classes year round that my old man paid for. It was here I found what I was good at. My brain might not be good, but I could move my body like a genius.

Everything came so naturally when I moved around. My hands moved exactly how I wanted them too, I could feel every muscle tense and knew after some practice exactly what muscles I needed to work on for every activity. For the first time in my life I was, just a little bit, happy.

I spent years like that. There were other people like my old man who just wanted to use or abuse me so I became an asshole to keep them away. You would be amazed how well it works. Just yell all the time, act even dumber than you really are, and blow up at set intervals and you can coast through life without anyone bothering you. I’m an asshole and I’m proud of it.

Amazing the stupid things that happen in life though. I figured when I graduated I’d get a job and move out, but I got a chance I never thought I would. A scholarship. My dumb ass got a scholarship! I’m not ashamed to say I cried a little, college always seemed so distant from me, and now I had an opportunity to do something with my life besides just escaping. My old man even threw me a party when he found out. I’d never seen him act proud of me before.

So I went to college. You would think that was the first big step in the right direction but you would be forgetting something very important.

Am. Stupid.

This was so much more apparent around people who were actually smart. So I ended up back where I started, surviving by the skin of my teeth. I studied every day just so I could get pity pass grades, I did all the extra credit, and I worked my ass off on the football team so the coach was reluctant to let me go. I made my own place.

And then the fucking air shattered and I lost everthing I built instantly.

I knew this wasn’t a prank but all of these slack jawed nerds around me weren’t fucking doing anything. So I got abrasive and started yelling, which always worked for me before.

Then Altru showed up. I still didn’t know what was going on but I was gonna give this fucker a piece of my mind. But before I even began…

When I asked about it later, it seems like almost no one saw Shanks move, like he had just teleported in front of me, but I saw. My eyes, like the rest of my body, have always been good.

Shanks took a casual step at me that let him jump more than 7 feet instantly. I saw the giant of a man shoot for me like a bullet and felt death coming. If he didn’t slow down I was going to be paste. Then he did something even more impossible than that insanely fast step; he stopped, instantly. I might not have the best brain but Newton's laws exist, and it looked like he defied them. He instantly crossed the distance to me, dead stopped, and casually lifted me up with a movement that he could have killed me with, but just lifted me off the ground. The control was beautiful. After he set me on the ground, apparently everyone else saw me frozen in fear, which was somewhat true, but mostly I was just awestruck. That was a movement a human couldn’t make. If that was something I could learn…

No one could ever hurt me again.

Oddly enough I found something I wanted in this new world almost instantly. I wanted to be able to move like that, have control like that. What was left back home anyways? Me failing college and a shitty old fuck I hated? I might be able to become something strong here, something more than I could have been back home. I got lost in my thoughts as we were forced to move through the supposed castle.

Shit happened, Tony got shot and the freak just shrugged it off like it was nothing. Again I was amazed as I watched Shanks move to kill the asshole with the gun who I didn’t know the name of. But, weirdly, the asshole died before Shanks even got there. A thin line of light passed by his neck and his head just fell off. I’m a little more used to blood from fighting and sports injuries but that was… that was a lot.

Before we even had time to recover we moved again, and then I was thrown on stage. I would have gotten more angry than I did, except for what they were saying about powers. Could I do what Shanks did, would that be possible? While my head was muddled my “page” popped up.

Oh I am so fucked.

Rage Knight makes me stronger with strong emotions? I fake those, I’m never more than peeved and my strength comes from emotions? And I can’t use magic? I don’t play a lot of games or anything like that but fuck magic sure sounds like it’d be usefull. Guess I’m going to have to rely on Growth Up. Same in this world as the last, I’m gonna have to work my ass off to get what I want.

More people came and went. Lots of people with natural talent I couldn’t match, but that’s fine. If theres one thing I’m good at it’s training and practice, and none of these entitled fucks have probably ever had to work more than their nogins. Then came May.

I quickly figured out where the little line of light came from that took off the gun-boy's head. I’m not gonna fuck with that one she seems a little off her rocker.

And finally there was Tony. Fuckin Tony. He was always a bit of an odd-ball that one. We didn’t meet often but he was alway pleasant to me even when I wasn’t being pleasant back. I doubt he remembers but he stopped a fight between me and some dick-weeds around my Junior year. I don’t know who he was defending but either way he diffused the whole situation. I may not know him well but he isn’t a threat to anybody and he sits high on my list of “not necessary to be an asshole to” list.

Well, long story short Tony was way more fucked than me with his “page”. Somehow he made a goddess hate him? Fuck Tony you’ve been here less than a day! I haven’t even really pissed anyone off yet.

Tony looked lost while everyone started to yell at him. I’ve never seen him so out of it. While people cried “heretic!” and “demon!” he just looked like his eyes were glazing over as he started to nervously laugh. That laugh turned into a fit, one I’d had myself after a pretty intense beating so I understood. That feeling of helplessness that you can’t do anything about but just laugh.

Altru shouted into the chaos unfolding.

“Silence!”

The room instantly quieted.

“Take the supposed heretic to the shrine, the saint of summoning will determine his guilt.”

Knights in white armor appeared out of thin air and started to haul Tony off.

“If you kill Tony I’ll kill you all.”

I turned my head slowly to look at May. I was definitely right this woman is off her rocker, she’s practically growling at a prince. Shanks, who was behind Altru by this point physically flinched. Apparently I’ll still need to be afraid of gods even if I reach Shanks’ level. Good to know.

“You will do no such thing. If you harm any personnel of the empire while Tony is being tried he and you will be executed. You might have the protection of the god of light, but this entire castle is defended by the god of summoning. Don’t let your newfound power go to your head.”

Altru spoke evenly, he was obviously strained by the whole situation but he stood tall despite it. He didn’t even give a second glance to May as he waved the white armored knights away with Tony held up between them.

We didn’t see him again for a long time after that…