02. To Another World?

I. The Talentless Hero

"Welcome to Iberia Kingdom, O Heroes of the Four Directions!"

Huh, what was that?

It does not make sense. But Ayato could hear that voice clearly, that means his ears still functioning. He tried to took a breath, his lungs filled. Somehow, he still alive.

Slowly, Ayato opened his eyes. The sight of a high stone ceiling filled with intricate carvings filled his view. His eyes also still work perfectly.

Still felt a bit dizzy, Ayato sits. He was on something looks like an altar in the temple, with large columns surrounding that place. That temple was a bit dark, the only light source came from the tall windows near the ceiling. The person who greeted earlier was a middle aged man who was standing on the podium in front of the altar. That man wears a luxurious clothes, Ayato guessed he was some kind of aristocratic or other important person.

Apparently, Ayato is not alone. Beside him, a blond haired girl get up while straightening her long hair that fell over her face. Their gazes met with the same confused expression.

There are also other two men on the altar. One is a young man with smooth blonde hair dressed in a formal dress, and a burly man with brownish red hair. There are four people on the altar.

The man with the luxurious clothes get off the podium. "It is sure an honor to be the first person to greet you all. Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Henry Ferdinand de Iberia, I am the ruler of the Iberia Kingdom on this Sapphire continent."

Ayato was right, that man was a king. Now, when he was fully aware, he tried to remember the sequences of accident that happened to him from the beginning. The speeding truck, the crash, then everything went black. A moment later, he wake up in this strange place.

"Pardon me." The interrupting voice came from the blonde hair man. "First of all, could you please explain what exactly happened to us? I'm sure I was dead during a car accident, but-"

"Oh, certainly, You all must be very confused with everything." The blonde hair man seems annoyed when his words were cut off by king Henry, he continued, "You are the few people who received God's blessing, although you all died in the previous world, you all got a second chance to live in this world. Therefore, we have a demand, would you all consume this second chance to assist this world from the darkness of the Obsidian continent that haunts this world, as a heroes?"

"How do we do that?" The question came from the burly man with brownish red hair.

"Regarding it, later you all will obtain a special weapon to support your mission in this world. Now, could we switch to a more spacious room? Where will you all receive a more detailed explanation of this world as well as the handover of your weapons?"

Ayato vaguely understands the situation. This is another world. He died, then get summoned into this world. Also, about that heroes thing, actually it was a bit cliché, how did a person who just woke up from the dead given the task of protecting one world?

The king brought them out of the temple. The sun was shining, Ayato guessed it was already past noon. A little further to the left of the temple, a majestic palace stood. Iberia Kingdom, that's what Henry said.

They enter the palace, into a large hall with a red carpet in the middle. At the end of the carpet, there was a high podium containing three thrones. Looks like they were in the throne room. Two of the thrones were occupied by a woman and a girl, probably the queen and the princess of this kingdom. The throne in the middle was empty, it must be for the king. There was another man wearing a mage-like robe standing at the edge of the podium.

Henry step up to the podium, chatted briefly with the magician, then turning around again. "Allow me to introduce this person." The king said proudly while pointing at the magician next to him. "The Great Sage of Iberia, Diego Fernandes. The greatest sorcerer from Iberia Kingdom. He will lead the handover of weapons as well as guide you all from now on."

After saying that, Henry turn around and sits on his throne, his role had been replaced by Diego-that sorcerer.

Diego wore a dark red robe. When Ayato looks closely, he could see a badge pinned to the sorcerer's chest, a shield with two crossed wands, with two lions standing on each side. Honestly, Ayato didn't like the look on his arrogant face. But the title he had earlier, 'Great Sage', seemed to be an honorable title.

Diego get off from the podium dan greeted them. "Welcome, almighty heroes. I think I didn't need to introduce myself anymore since you all already heard it from His Majesty. So what if we just get straight to the problem?"

"I'm sure His Majesty has mentioned this before, You were summoned here to protect this world from the darkness of Obsidian continent. As for what Obsidian continent is, I'll explain."

While giving the explanation, Diego walked to the side of the room where there was a long table. Ayato didn't pay attention to the table earlier because it was covered in cloth.

"There are five continents in this world. Apart from this Sapphire continent we are now, there are Ruby, Emerald, Topaz, and Obsidian continents. The first four continents are located close together and are generally stable."

"Then the remote Obsidian continent, often called the land of darkness. The place where monsters was lived. Monsters often come here to attack us, the human race that inhabits the four continents."

Ayato felt that Diego's tone getting more serious when said that. Then, Diego took out his wand and continued, "Their existence means terror to the four continents, we alone were unable to resist the power of those monsters. That's why ...." He pointed his wand to the heroes. "We need your assist, Heroes of the Four Directions."

"Then, to support your power, we will provide special weapons." This time, Diego turned into the long table. With a flick of his wand, the tablecloth opened. "Crafted from the highest quality materials, forged by the best blacksmith, and made especially for heroes!"

On top of the long table, there are four different weapons. A big axe, a spear, a bow, and a sword. Four different weapons for each heroes.