Chapter 6: Welcoming. (Part 1)

Alicia:

It's been two weeks since we arrived in this world. I'm not sure how adjusted we've become but compared to my previous life, I like this one more. No debt collectors knocking at my door, no nasty men flicking their eyes at me but most importantly my brother is actually happy. He always used to play games and read books, something I'd berate him for till recently and now he's in this world it feels like he actually belongs here. I'm still scolding him and telling him to get his act together but now it feels like a joke. I can tell he's strong now. He doesn't need me watching over him like I used too but as his older sister, even if it was just by a few minutes, I'll continue to do my job. Besides this world is dangerous. No matter how strong we've become, they keep telling us we haven't reached our true potential. Seriously though, yesterday I punched something so hard it turned to dust. Just how strong do we need to become to survive? No, Dave said we're already plenty strong to survive normal life. It's too bad we're not here for normal life, we're here to be Heroes.

Thinking about Heroes, I don't particularly feel like one. I know I can be violent and impulsive but that's how we survived. She who strikes first wins. If anyone was a Hero I'd say it would be Carl or Dave. Carl just has a naturally caring personality and Dave well… he's got something about him. As much as I'd say my brother is trying, he's more in it for the fun. Sayuri is definitely focused about becoming stronger and we've been getting along nicely but I feel she still just wants to go home. Though sometimes I am surprised about her personality. It's not bad or anything, I'm just surprised she can be more impulsive than me and quite loud. The other day Dave played a joke on us that went a little too far and resulted in our dining table exploding. He really got an earful. I think all of us were surprised and eventually Carl had to calm her down.

It's been fun so far and this world is nice, though we haven't seen much. I guess all I can do is go with the flow and hope for the best.

Gary:

It's been two weeks since we got here and out of everything I've experienced so far, I'd have to say one thing. Magic is freaking awesome. My sis and the others don't really get the enjoyment of it. Sure they can cast spells and stuff but it's the complicated stuff that's really fun. It's like solving a puzzle that will result in a fiery explosion. If anything it's like solving electrical circuits, we're just given more components and everything is pretty much done in our heads. Still, compared to Master Heafest and Dave I feel like I'm eons away. Then again, they did say that a normal person would have taken years to reach my level.

A normal person huh? Apparently I'm a Hero in this world. I've read plenty of books and played games with that kind of theme so I know my job in general. I wonder if there's going to be a surprise twist, like the Demon Lord is the good guy or there is no Demon Lord. It doesn't feel like that though. The people here are earnestly trying to defend their lands from the demons but then again, good and evil is all a matter of perspective.

I'm not a Heroic person. If I see someone being hurt, I'd turn a blind eye. Deep down I know I'm a coward. If I tried to save every person I saw I'd be dead by now. I'm not like Carl or Dave who go out of their way to help strangers. Don't get the wrong idea though, I'd still help someone I knew and now that I've become so much more powerful, I guess I could help a few more people along the way.

My main goal no matter what else is to keep my sister safe. She's strong and she's always looked out for me. So this time I'll look out for her and considering that we're going to be charging at the Demon Lord, I have a long way to go to realise that goal.

Carl:

Two weeks…. I wonder if I'm strong. Master Heafest, Dave and the Knight Captain all say I'm doing great and I feel myself becoming physically stronger but does that constitute real strength? When we first came here I told Dave that I'd never been in a fight before. I've been in plenty of mock fights now, whether it's been between the others or the knights, however those aren't real fights with your life on the line. We've killed plenty of monsters but we always had a safety net. In fact if Dave hadn't told us earlier that monsters aren't real creatures I'm not sure if I could kill one. So that begs the question, could I kill something more human? Animals I think I'd be fine. Demons? How human are they? If at the end of the day the Demon Lord begged for his life and I faltered only for him to kill one of us, I'd never live that down. Dave was the one who said that to me. The other day I asked if he had killed anyone and without batting an eye he said yes. Honestly I was shocked. Dave's one of the nicest people I know but even he had killed. When I asked for more detail he just sighed and said, 'it was me and my sister or him'. If Dave wasn't here I'm pretty sure I'd get someone important to me killed.

Alicia and Gary are fine I think. They're pretty active and from our conversations apparently they lived in a bad neighbourhood. When it comes down to it they'll do what they need to survive. Sayuri… she's usually pretty quiet but after the incident the other night, I think she'll be fine. Out of all of us she has the most determination to return home. She's settled down some but we can all still tell that she's been training on the side as well. Honestly I wouldn't be as strong if I didn't feel the need to compete with her.

On that note, how much do I actually want to go home? My parents probably miss me but this world also needs my help. I don't ever want to regret not helping someone again. So to that, I'll continue to do my best.

Sayuri:

Home… I haven't been home for two weeks. Every day I'm worried about my brother and mother. Are they eating well? Do they have enough money to live? No matter how hard I worry I can't do anything! Two weeks have gone by so fast and we're still not any closer to returning. Kill the Demon Lord and we get to go home. No matter how much we train, it's never enough. I cleaved a steel pillar in half yesterday. Just how powerful is the Demon Lord? I'm confident that if I was attacked by a tank I'd win. Then again, if Dave was attacked by a platoon of tanks I think he'd win. He's human like us as well.

Thankfully I'm not as stressed as I used to be. Alicia is a really nice girl. I've never talked with foreigners before, ah no, except Dave, here we're all foreigners. I've never talked with people outside of Japan before and I've only seen a few people who look Asian since we came but their pretty much the same as home. I wonder if I'd still be crying in my room if Dave hadn't talked to me on our first night here. Also to my embarrassment I even yelled at him for pulling that joke on us the other night. It was his fault though, who places a spell to make a melon explode but instead blows up a table and just says 'oops'.

Still, he and Alicia have been the most helpful to me. The night before the kitchen incident they even took me aside and told me to not be so worried about home. To be exact Dave's words were 'If you don't enjoy it then there's no point.' They were pretty crass words and I was going to yell at him but Alicia explained it better. Worrying isn't going to help anyone, so there isn't much point to.

Gary's a real kid but he helps lighten my mood. I think he's some kind of otaku. When he asked me about anime and manga, he was disappointed when I said I wasn't a zealous fan. His expression was funny. Carl is kind and worries about us all in a good way. I kind of think that Alicia and Dave should talk to him as well. As a fellow swordsman though, I feel like I need to be just as strong as him. He's good. Using a katana and a longsword are very different styles but I like to think we have a friendly rivalry.

Dave… he always has our back. In a pinch he'll be there just in time. Even when we're fighting against monsters and he's reading a book on the side lines, if one of us slip or make a mistake, he blocks the blow. We still get hit a lot but I think if he wanted to he could stop any attacks form hitting us. I guess it's to build up our tolerance to pain, something I'm still not used to. Well, all we can do is keep fighting and someday defeat the Demon Lord. Sorry mum, sorry little brother, I might be awhile but know that your sister and daughter is in pretty good company.

Davarious First Born Light Of The Autumn Wind:

Two weeks… I'm getting bored. Since we arrived back at the palace all the Heroes have been doing is train. For them it's exciting because they're actually learning something but I just sit and read. There's nothing they can really teach me. When I decided to play Hero I thought it would be more adventurous. We'd travel the land hunting monsters and taking out bandits or something. Well eventually we would but right now I'm just bored. In fact the other night I decided to play a prank on the Heroes. I bought a melon and placed it on the dining table but as a surprise I thought of making it explode. It wasn't my fault that I put in too much mana…. Okay so it was my fault and I got a real grilling from Sayuri. Nobody's yelled at me like that other than my parents and grandpa. I did feel guilty though, it seems that out of everyone Sayuri was the one who wanted to eat it the most. Maybe it reminded her of home… I should probably get her a new one that's not so explodey.

"Ahhhhh!" and crash! Alice flew past me and smashed into a pile off boxes. Splinters of wood flew everywhere but deflected before they reached me. To her credit she got back up pretty quickly and rushed back into the fight.

As it was now the two week point the Heroes were going under another test. This time they were fighting Knight Captain Rafhound. It was going to be their first real loss. Four against one and they still hadn't been able to touch him. In terms of power they were getting close to the same level but experience wise Captain Rafhound was leagues ahead. The Heroes all had an innate battle sense that were becoming remarkably better, it's just at the moment it wasn't enough.

I watched as the Heroes were beginning to falter. Their positioning had become bad. Sayuri was too far back as she tried to protect Gary. Alicia was ahead of them but Carl was in the way for her to charge. And just like that the Knight Captain disarmed Carl and picked him from the ground. With a powerful toss Carl was sent cruising through the air towards Alicia. If it had been anything else Alicia could have batted it away but instead she braced herself to catch him. The result, they were both lifted off the ground. Next was Sayuri who managed to gasp before she was picked up as well and finally Gary who got the tail end of it as they all crumpled into a single pile.

"Not bad," Captain Rafhound said sternly. "You almost had me a few times."

"We didn't even touch you," Alicia complained as they untangled from each other.

"You were close though. If I, one of the strongest knight in Elsbeth, lost to two week old Heroes, it would be shameful. Heroes you may be, but you're still young."

"Tch, if you're this strong, couldn't you go kill the Demon Lord?" Gary said with a huff.

The Captain laughed, "The Demon Lord and I are like the difference between heaven and earth."

"Just how strong is he?" Sayuri asked gently, "You've never actually told us."

"Well…." The young Captain was at a loss at what to say, "As Heroes you have the potential to be about as strong as he is."

"But how strong is that?" Sayrui continued to insist.

He sighed, "It was before my time but it was said that the Demon Lord could destroy towns at a whim, regardless of who guarded it. The Heroes were the exception."

"Entire towns?" Carl was shocked as were the others. Hmm thinking about it, he was right. I could blow up entire towns if I wanted to but the amount of mana would be enormous. For effort to reward as a ratio it would very one sided. Besides it took a lot longer to build a town than to destroy one.

"It's not that much actually," I said to calm them down. "Master Heafest can do the same even with resistance and the Heroes could as well. Magic is something that continues to grow in both destruction and salvation."

Their expressions turned a little better but they were still wary.

"It's a tale from long ago anyway," Captain Rafhound waved it off, "As humans we're not going to just let that happen."

"Right!" Carl revived his attitude.

"That aside I'm still annoyed that we lost to you," Alicia pouted. "If it we're all five of us we could have won." She sent a glare my way. "Why does Dave never participate? I know he's strong but even he needs practice as well."

I eyed her with a twitch, don't just throw me under the wagon like that!

"I agree!" Sayuri nodded, "Let's have a rematch with Dave included."

"No if Davios were to join I would certainly lose," the Captain replied seriously.

"Then how about Dave fights you by himself," Gary suggested with a more than slightly evil smile.

"Hey now, even Dave has his limits," Carl tried to pacify them. I thanked Carl in my mind, I'm sorry about that time I switched your shoes.

The Knight Captain however seriously contemplated it, "That wouldn't be so bad. How about it Davios, want to give it a go?"

"Well I'm not so sure about-," there was a flash and suddenly the Knight Captain vanished. My instincts lit up. From behind, two meters up, angle 25 degrees, force output is dangerous, counter with shock wave to prevent movement then finish with stone spears firing from above. I stopped myself before I did it and instead put of a barrier and jumped back in time as it smashed apart.

"Impressive. Master Heafest was right to say you were talented." The Knight Captain smiled, "I had my own impressions of course since your first day but it seems you've also had quite a lot of experience."

I gave a dry laugh, "Living on the border does that."

"So shall we continue?"

"If we really went at it wouldn't it be bad inside the palace?"

"Then set up a reality plane. Don't pretend you can't."

Hmm if I did then Heafest or anyone else wouldn't be able to spy on us. I had also been itching to relive my boredom, that aside Captain Rafhound had also peaked my interest.

"You're on," I looked at the Heroes "Sorry but this is going to be private." And with those words I clicked my fingers and the sky turned red as the clouds shifted black. The only ones here were now the Knight Captain and I.

"To think you actually did it so easily…." He drew his sword, a thick longsword that boarded being a greatsword.

"Well I did say that I was a magician before." It would be a bother if I revealed too much strength. For this I'd limit myself to high ranked magic but nothing that would be considered master class.

The Knight Captain vanished again. Flash step. A staple move of all the fighter types. An easy enough move to use but extremely hard to master. To the untrained eye it looked like teleportation, really it was a movement technique on the principles of burst mana control and because it used mana, I could trace it. The Captain appeared in the air to my left and I released a shock wave at him. He reacted quickly and stabbed the ground to stop him from flying away. Without a missing beat he twisted and went to kick me instead. Lacking the power needed my barrier blocked it, leaving the two of us smiling at each other.

"Rend!" he drew his sword from the earth towards me. A blade of light approached me as bits of dirt were flung up. I clicked my fingers and the light burst apart. Let's see how his defence is. I aimed my fingers towards him and clicked. He dodged away as the air he had been standing in burst. It should have been bigger but it seemed he had quite the resistance to magic activated close by him.

"Scatter!" his sword passed through my barrier and it shattered. I pulled back in surprise. That had been a high rank barrier, even Alicia would have trouble with it. He struck at me again but this time I manipulated the wind and caused him to miss. A cloud appeared at my feet and I rode it backwards but his advance was just as fast. Each strike barely missed me. That sword was becoming a bother. I clapped my hands and chains sprang from the ground encasing his sword. He tried to resist but I clicked my fingers and the burst of air forced him to let go.

"How's that?" I smiled victoriously. He didn't flinch,

"Burst of the guided skies." His fist went straight at me. My attempts to divert it using the air failed. Instead it collided with my chest, or at least my emergency barrier. I was sent flying from my cloud and smashed into the walls of the palace causing it to crack. The large stone blocks fell apart.

"Hey, that could have been really dangerous," I said.

"Says you. That barrier is ridiculously strong."

I smiled wryly, I hadn't intended for him to get that close to me. This was getting interesting. I'd allow myself to slip into some of my better magic. I began to hover back to the centre of the courtyard.

"No longer holding back?" he asked eyeing me. Being able to hover wasn't uncommon for a magician but it took quite a lot of mana for it to be usually worth it.

"We'll see." I sent a wave of power out from me and the ground around the Captain broke apart as it was compressed. He however remained standing, although with a grimace.

"Even gravity control," he smiled. "You really are a cut above the other Heroes."

"For now at least," I smiled back.

"You're right, but right now it's just you and me."

"Bring it."

He lifted his arms and pounded the ground. The earth exploded around us. I hovered around and dodged the debris. A sudden large chunk was kicked towards me but I blasted it apart. From behind it the Captain appeared and punched towards me. I deflected the blow and sent him away. He skidded but landed next to his sword. Clever prick.

"Burst raid!" he swung it with both hands. I threw up a stronger than usual barrier. One on the same level that I had used against Heafest. It was an immense display as the palace wall was blown apart but due to my barrier the small space behind me survived.

"Are you sure that fighting a warbeast was you're hardest fight?" This kind of power was no joke. I changed my mind, the Heroes still had a long way catch up. I should really stop underestimating Elsbeth's finest.

"Well that was a long time ago," the Captain replied easily.

"Shall we continue?" I raised my hand to the sky but he held up his to stop us.

"No it's your win."

"But I haven't even landed a clean blow on you yet?" I said disappointed.

"I have responsibilities outside of this fight. If I used all my energy on you, there'd be none left to protect the palace," he laughed, "Besides I'm already ragged and getting tired. You look like you just came from a refreshing bath."

Ah crap, I forgot about fatigue. "Well…."

"Besides this was just to confirm my thoughts."

"Hmmm?"

"Thank you for dealing with the fanatics from the Klerical Kingdom."

"What are you talking about…?" I looked away.

"Don't even try it. I talked with that maid and her sister. You put on some kind of illusion as a disguise and moped them all up in one go."

"…. They were going to be a pain later on. Besides I wanted to go outside."

"So it was you after all," he laughed again heartily. "Don't worry I won't tell anyone."

"Thank you."

"I'm just glad you're on our side."

"…."

"Anyway let's stop this. I need to check up on things and seeing the courtyard look like this irks me." It certainly was a mess….

I clapped my hands and everything went back to normal. The skies returned to a nice a blue and the Heroes appeared on the edges of the courtyard.

"Hey don't just leave like that!" Gary complained. "At least let us watch."

"How did it go?" Carl asked as we ignored Gary.

I looked at the Knight Captain and sighed, "I lost."

The Captain raised his eyebrows but went with it, "It was very close. You lot will have to try hard to catch up."

"Ah that's too bad," Sayuri sighed.

"What did you expect?" I laughed. "Now let's get something to eat I'm starving."