"There, there, Hajime-sama. It's okay if you couldn't use magic the first time. Not everyone can get it right immediately." Lara patted Hajime on the head who was sitting in front of his room's table.
She got another spoonful of pork curry and said, "Say 'Ah'!"
"Oh? A-Ah..." Hajime opened his mouth just enough to take a bite.
"I was worried you couldn't eat your breakfast earlier. I was even thinking of running around town to look for you, but then 'that' happened, so it's excusable. We're still glad you came back in one piece though!"
"...Yeah."
The door to his room shot open as Kerai stood there with sweat on her forehead. Despite looking like she's on a rush, her outfit was still as neat as it was last night.
"Lara-senpai! How's Hajime-sama?!"
"He's fine. Currently, he's taking his late breakfast, and I already changed his clothes. You would never imagine how tattered his clothes were."
Kerai widened her eyes as she looked back at the basket near the closet, seeing a shirt and coat full of holes and claw marks.
"...Hajime-sama doesn't have a scratch on him, right?"
"From what I've seen, no. He's perfectly fine...aside from his mood right now. He seems almost lethargic." Lara frowned.
"Hajime-sama..." Kerai went up to Hajime and put her hand on his left shoulder.
Hajime looked up at her, seeing the worry in her eyes. He didn't know if it was because she's his personal maid or if emotions were involved, but she clearly tried to comfort him.
"It's okay, Kerai. I'm just...tired. I just want to eat breakfast then rest afterwards." Hajime said as he grabbed the spoon from Lara and ate the curry himself.
"Hajime-sama, what happened while you were out there?"
"...Ask Lara."
"Lara-senpai, did he say anything about what happened at the gates?"
"When I saw him and accompanied him towards here, he seemed very tired so I let him rest on my lap. There, he said something about how he's a 'fake Chosen One' because 'he was too weak'. Later on, he revealed to not only have inadequate fighting skills but he couldn't even do magic."
"...I see." Kerai said, holding back from even clenching her fists. If she could, she would vent out her anger towards the demons that invaded Wiesenland, but now was not the time.
"Hajime-sama, I know what you must be feeling. It hurts to be weak and feel powerless against the world, but you must know that the ritual used to summon the 'Chosen One' could only summon one and one person only. No matter how much we rewind time, you will be the only one who can be summoned here, and no one else. It is a special title bestowed to only one person."
Hajime was about to take another bite of the pork curry, but stopped after hearing that. The part that got his attention was how the "Chosen One" ritual would only target one specific person in the whole world.
"...Only me? Are you sure about that?"
"Yes. If you were to die now, the ritual could never summon anybody else ever again. No matter how many times it will be tried, it will result in failure."
"I see..."
If that's the case, maybe I'll talk with Yagoo after this. I need some information about the ritual's description.
Hajime finished his curry and walked briskly towards Yagoo's room, while Lara took care of washing his dish downstairs. Meanwhile, Kerai took care of incinerating the torn clothes.
Just before he was going to open the door, he heard a slam inside the room. He almost attempted to rush inside in case it was a thief or somebody else that wanted to attack Yagoo, but then he heard this,
"Tanigo-sama, are you ignoring our request-peko?!"
P-Pekora? Hajime thought, baffled. Why is she here?
"I'm not ignoring your request. I'm simply saying that you all are having an unsound judgment. Hajime IS the true Chosen One. Are you saying he's incompetent?"
"Yes! He was just a normal civilian in the other world, and we dragged him out into the harsh world outside! Are you saying we should jeopardize him?! He almost died, for God's sake!" Flare said.
"He will suffer more if you don't guide him through all the way. He hasn't awoken his full potential yet. Do you expect him to be the hero everyone wants him to be when he himself has yet to discover the whole world? Not even babies learn to walk from crawling in an instant."
"That's not the point! Our point is that demons have started to attack! He almost died out there if it wasn't for Noel! We need to investigate what Kuphra has been doing lately, now! Hajime-sama-...No, Hajime-san needs to get away from all the danger! This must all be a mistake!"
Hajime's heart sank like an anchor in the sea, dull to any noise to his surroundings. He couldn't believe it. The hope that kept his motivation going even when he was dejected earlier has now gone away. If they said he wasn't gonna survive against the world outside — and they were more experienced than him — he had to take it as truth.
...I'm done. Hajime thought as he ran away from the door, crying with the same dull noise his heart had.
Meanwhile, Kerai was done with the torn clothes earlier and sat on Hajime's bed, checking her pocket watch and wondered how long his talks with Yagoo would take, until she heard loud footsteps along the corridor. Curiosity got the best of her and she opened the door, only able to see a glance of short black hair as the figure ran down the stairs.
"...Hajime-sama?" Kerai mumbled as she went out and closed the door, scuttling along the corridor to look down at the first floor.
She got a glance of the figure once again running outside, but despite it being a second glance, she already picked up that it was Hajime.
As she ran down the stairs, she could hear the footsteps in the distance as Hajime ran down from the castle.
"What is he up to right now?" Kerai continued running after him.
She still had him in her sights even when he finally got to the streets, but when she got down herself and followed his path, she couldn't find where he exactly went, and the fact that there was a lot of noise in the surroundings didn't help at all. In this case, she could only smell his scent and follow it. It may be mixed among everybody else's scents, but she could tell which belonged to Hajime.
As for him, he made his way towards the Peaceful Green Forest and stopped at the location he last trained in. Panting, he rested his head against a tree and clenched his fists.
"Fuck. Fuck! FUCK IT!" Hajime said as he punched and kicked the tree continuously, not caring for how much he's bruising his hands and feet.
"I COULDN'T DO MY MOM'S PROMISE, I COULDN'T STOP DAD AND HELP HIM CALM DOWN, I COULDN'T FULFILL MY ROLE AS A 'CHOSEN ONE', I COULDN'T USE MAGIC, I COULDN'T EVEN PROTECT ANY ONE OF THE SOLDIERS BACK THERE! FUCK!" Hajime punched the tree one more time, cracking it and flinging a small chunk of the tree away, in exchange for his bloodied and bruised hand.
"...I'm weak...I'm useless...I just wanted to serve one purpose in life. Just one, no matter how small it was." Hajime wept with the last of his strength available as he slowly knelt down.
At that time, Kerai finally got to the Peaceful Green Forest — where Hajime's scent led to. She hid behind a tree, looking at Hajime who looked absolutely defeated. She almost wanted to leave him alone so that he could have some alone time.
"...Hajime-sama." Kerai approached him.
She knelt down beside him and wrapped her arms around Hajime, but as soon as her hands touched each other, he pushed her away, making her fall backwards.
"Why are you doing this, Kerai?! Comforting me is just making me lick my wounds! What's the point if I can't do anything?!" Hajime shouted.
"I was summoned against my will just to win a losing battle! I worked hard back in my world for God's sake, and in the end, it all got thrown out the window! Just having this title on me is damn embarrassing when I can't even fight better than those soldiers! I just wish I stayed dead back then!-"
Hajime got hugged by Kerai once more, but this time, she held him even tighter. He wanted to push her away, but she stroked his head gently, calming him down. "Hajime-sama, you're not just gonna stay as a weak person, are you? Will you really be swayed by others' opinions? This...this doesn't suit you at all, Hajime-sama."
Hajime looked up to Kerai, seeing her frown for the first time since he had been reincarnated. "Don't say things like wishing you stayed dead. Life is a precious thing, and everybody has the potential to do something great. You're far from 'embarrassing'."
"...I got it, Kerai." Hajime said, grabbing her shoulders and pushing her away gently.
"But that's enough. I don't want you to be bothered anymore about it. It's about time I finally got to live a normal life as a civilian. That's good enough for me." Hajime smiled despite the frown and clenched his fists.
"Maybe I'll work for an eatery or something, be an assistant blacksmith, just anything but fighting for the world. It doesn't seem like I could fit the role anymore. Besides, those five were strong. Stronger than I'll ever be." Hajime added.
As Hajime said that and started walking back to the town, he saw Lara running towards them from afar. It was strange to see his other personal maid ditch her duties in the castle, but he waited for her to come in case she was gonna ask the same question as Kerai.
"Hajime-sama, I'm glad you're okay." She said, not panting one bit.
"Yeah...if you were worried where I was, don't worry. I was planning to go back to the castle anyway-"
"That's not what I just came here for."
"H-Huh?"
Now that I think about it, why is Flare's short sword on her?
"Lara-senpai, why are you here? Didn't I say that I would take care of Hajime-sama while you talk with HoloFive?" Kerai asked.
"That's what I came here to tell you about! They've been kidnapped!"
"...What?" Hajime asked.
He couldn't believe it. How could those five who not only stuck together like glue, but were also strong enough to fight against those demons from earlier, get kidnapped? It didn't make sense. Judging from their abilities, there was no way they could have easily been captured.
"H-How?! You were there with them!" Kerai said.
"Oh, Kerai-chan. Trust me, I would've saved them if I could, but a demon girl came in and made a portal to come in and escape quickly. And think what it's like inside my shoes! Those five were practically hostages, and then a shopkeeper became the sixth! I needed to be careful where I aimed my knives!"
"Wait wait wait, I'm not following you, Lara. What exactly happened?" Hajime asked.
"Well...let me start back from when you were back in the castle."
**HoloWorld: Alternative!**
Back after Hajime ran away, Yagoo and HoloFantasy kept going with their talks — the talk that Flare mentioned earlier at the gates.
"That's not the point! Our point is that demons have started to attack our walls! He almost died out there if it wasn't for Noel! We need to investigate what Kuphra has been doing lately, now! Hajime-sama-...No, Hajime-san needs to get away from all the danger! This must all be a mistake!" Flare said.
"Are you doubting my 'Foreseeing' ability? As far as I'm concerned, a month from now, nothing major has happened yet. Rest assured, Hajime has all the time in the world to train to a decent level. Besides, if Hajime is not with you all, you wouldn't stand a chance against Kuphra."
"B-But..."
"Trust me. I would know better than anybody else. The ritual even stated in the spellbook that there is only one Chosen One, and one only. At the very least, buy him a sword and some armor. He'll be needing it. I'll pay back the expenses once you're done."
"...We understand." Flare said, looking down.
"That concludes our talk. Watch your back too, 'cause you may never know what might pop up."
Flare thought that what Yagoo said just now was a bit strange, but they ignored it since the talk was over. They had to do what was asked of them. The five proceeded to close the door and walk along the hallway.
"Hey, are we really just gonna do that to Hajime-san-peko? What if training him will be pointless?"
"That's what I fear too. I mean...the ritual may have worked, but it's just so strange how he couldn't survive that long back when we fought those demons at the gate. Not to mention, he couldn't use magic." Marine said.
"Regardless, we need to put our trust in Tanigo-sama. Let's just buy what he told us and find Hajime-san." Flare looked back at the others.
Just as they were about to go down the stairs, they noticed Lara coming inside from the door to the castle.
"Oh? Hello!" Lara waved at the five.
"Lara-san? What did you do outside?"
"Kerai-chan seemed to chase after Hajime-sama outside, so I came back here to continue my duties. Oh, Kerai-chan also told me to ask you all for a moment if you know what happened to him."
"H-Hajime-san ran outside?" Flare asked.
"Yeah. Wait, did you not happen to see him running in the hallway earlier? He said he wished to talk with Tanigo-sama, but then Kerai-chan noticed him running away and outside..."
Flare kept silent, and so did the five. She deduced that Hajime must've eavesdropped on their conversation. The guilt started to build up inside, and even though they just wanted to protect Hajime, they may have crushed his self-esteem from that.
"...I think we're at fault." Flare said.
"Hmm? Why?"
"Well, not that it matters right now anyway. We're gonna go out to buy some armor and a sword for Hajime-san."
"Hmm...may I follow you and inquire what happened at least?"
"Y-You do know you're gonna be neglecting your duties because of it." Flare remarked.
"Well, it's almost 12 anyway, so once Kerai-chan comes back with Hajime, I can now take off my outfit and enjoy the rest of my day! Come on! I wanna know what happened with Hajime-sama as his personal maid!
As the six walked down the castle's stairs and into the town, the five explained what happened during the talks between them and Yagoo.
"Oh my...To be honest, I can see what you mean. I mean, that's why Tanigo-sama trained us for battle to not only protect the castle but also to protect the Hololive members we are assigned to. Though...you should know something." Lara said.
"Hmm?" Flare looked at her.
"Hajime-sama...was really down when he came back from the gates. Even if you think it's hopeless, or that he may be a false Chosen One, at least give him comfort or train him for a while longer. I get that we need to protect him in order to keep him safe, and you may even plan on letting him train with someone else for the meantime while you five do quests and work together to fight against Kuphra, but I put my whole trust in Tanigo-sama, and Hajime-sama has not disappointed me yet."
"...I know. That's why I plan to apologize on behalf of everybody and explain everything to him afterwards." Flare said.
"Don't shoulder everything-peko! We'll apologize too!"
"That's more like it!" Lara put her hands together as she hummed while they went inside a blacksmith shop.
"Welcome! Oh, the Holofive! What may I get for ya?" The shopkeeper asked.
"Do you have a light sword and leather armor?" Flare asked.
"Oh? Yes, we do, but...why that?"
"We plan to buy it for Hajime-san."
"Hajime?"
"You know...the recently summoned Chosen One?"
"Ah, that mess of a hero? Honestly, in my opinion, he's not worth investing much from the looks of things. He's more or less useless."
The six clenched their fists from the sound of this.
Huh? I said that Hajime-san should've stayed as a normal civilian and shouldn't train, at least for now. Yet, hearing that made my blood boil. Is that what we sounded like in his ears? Flare thought.
Okay-peko. I know I said that training him was 'pointless', but to outright call him useless deserves a punch to the face-peko.
"Well, I don't know your circumstances though, so I'll get it for ya-"
The shopkeeper stopped dead in his tracks when Lara swiftly pressured her knives against his neck — both behind and in front. One more step in any direction and his neck would be gone.
"You better take back what you just said about Hajime-sama, mister. Unless you want a taste of what it's like to eat your own creations?" Lara smiled as she pressed the blade more into his neck, making him gulp.
"...I-I get it...I'm sorry I said those things." He said as Lara let him go.
"Good!" She swiftly put her knives back inside her outfit as the shopkeeper made his way to the storage room.
"L-Lara-san...I mean, he did say those things and even I wanted to punch his face for saying that, but you didn't have to threaten him." Marine said.
"At least you five wanted to protect him. He, on the other hand, said that like Hajime-sama was filthy garbage." Lara glared at the door the blacksmith went into. If there's one thing I hate in this world, it's scum who look down on those who work hard for their goals.
"Well well well, as long as we get the items needed, it's gonna be fine." Marine said.
"...Good morning!~"
Everybody looked behind them to see Eva baring her claws out and smiling with that smug face of hers.
"We told you to leave our lands!" Flare said, getting her short sword ready while the others took their stance too.
"Do any of you happen to know her name?" Lara asked.
"She's Eva, a demon under the command of Kuphra!" Rushia said.
"You're not causing chaos here again! Take this!" Marine said as she prepared a slash to the right.
"Sleep Paralysis!" Eva said as she put her hand out.
"Aegis!" Lara shouted as she ducked and prepared a knife to throw towards Eva.
The five instantly went limp and fell to the ground, unconscious. Once that happened, Lara sent two knives flying towards Eva's face, one towards the body, and then grabbed two more knives to throw to her knees.
Eva successfully blocked all the knives except the ones on her knees, making her wince slightly.
"Shockwave!" Eva pointed her palm towards Lara, sending a powerful force that blasted the counter of the shop.
Lara dodged to her right and threw another knife towards Eva before she deflected it upwards and then grabbed the knives on her knees and threw one of them at Lara while healing in the process.
"W-What's going on in my shop?!" The shopkeeper opened the door and saw the chaos that unfolded.
"Oh? A normal civilian? A perfect opportunity! Think fast, human!" Eva said as she threw the other knife towards the shopkeeper, making him yelp.
Lara grunted as she threw another knife towards the knife coming at him.
"You're fast. Welp, I got what I came looking for. Bye bye!~" Eva said as she brought the five into the portal she made before Lara could land another knife on her.
"No! She got away!" Lara groaned.
"Well, shopkeeper, we'll pay for the damages soon! Excuse me for a while as I get the Holofive back!" She instantly switched her tone of voice to her usual kind and relaxed demeanor as she got all her knives and Flare's short sword, and ran outside.
"...My beautiful shop..." The shopkeeper sobbed.
**HoloWorld: Alternative!**
"...And that's essentially what happened!" Lara clapped her hands together, ending the flashback.
"I'm surprised you still sound so calm and happy despite that near-death situation." Hajime stared blankly.
"Have you gotten at least a trace?" Kerai asked.
"Not that I'm aware of. She used a portal, not her wings."
"...Who's gonna save them then? I can't do anything, and they could be at the other side of the world for all we know. If I were to face her with any weapon, I would die immediately." Hajime gritted his teeth and held his left wrist.
"Unfortunately, even though me and Kerai-chan are battle maids, I know that demon girl wouldn't go down without a fight. She was tough. I don't even possess any offensive spells, and Kerai-chan can only cast spells on herself. We need somebody who can cast offensive spells on that Eva girl!"
"Then, how about we test your abilities, Hajime-sama? You may have an affinity for fire, at least." Kerai asked.
"B-But I couldn't manifest mana, and they said I may not have one-"
"We'll offer our hand! We need to do this quickly, before we're too late!" Lara said.
With Hajime reluctantly agreeing to it, the three sat down at the open area of the forest and the two sat across Hajime. Kerai asked Hajime about his physical fighting skills first before the magic part and he stated the same thing as before when HoloFantasy asked him.
"Well, have you tried using magic, or at least know the steps?"
"Yes! I even tried 'Fire Ball' and 'Self-Enhancement'!" Hajime said.
"Can we see you cast one of these spells?"
Hajime nodded, closed his eyes, and followed the steps one by one without rushing it.
"Fire Ball!" Hajime chanted.
"Hmm...nothing happened." Not to mention, no mana was emanating from him. "What were you taught?" Lara asked.
"From what Flare said, I visualized mana like blood flowing throughout my body, then when I wanted to cast a spell, she said I should imagine it going somewhere, so I imagined it flowing to the direction of where I wanted it to go. In this case, it was my right hand."
"Oh? Flowing to the direction? You don't possibly mean that it's like a river going in one direction instead of an accumulation of mana?"
"...Eh?"
Hajime recalled what Flare said, and he remembered the words, "it all depends on where you concentrate the mana towards".
"OH!! THAT'S WHERE I WENT WRONG!" Hajime realized.
"Yes! It shouldn't be flowing to a direction, but rather, accumulating towards one location! I bet you misinterpreted what she said if you weren't able to do it initially. If you wanted to make a ball of fire, imagine the mana taking the shape of a ball!"
"I see...then, give me a moment...Fire Ball!"
The sensation was different this time — hot and heavy. Hajime felt his right hand becoming warm, emanating heat to his environment and giving an orange-yellow glow. No doubt, it was a true ball of fire. Lara, Kerai, and Hajime beamed at the sight of it.
"I-I did it! I finally did it! I CAN USE MAGIC NOW! WOOHOO!" Hajime said, throwing the fireball to the distance. It immediately exploded upon landing on the grass.
"Congratulations, Hajime-sama! Not only could you use magic, but you were also able to cast fire spells!" Lara clapped.
"Amazing, Hajime-sama!" Kerai also clapped.
"Yeah...Oh? Wait, if that's how I cast 'Fire Ball', how does 'Self-Enhancement' work then?"
"Do you mean the spell that increases your physical capabilities? Based on what you understood prior to this, you may have thought of it flowing throughout your body rather than 'accumulating' it throughout your whole body." Lara said.
"Hmm..."
Hajime closed his eyes, and thought of it gathering up over itself around his body until it became like a huge snowball, then he chanted, "Self-Enhancement!"
And there, he truly felt like he could punch through not just a tree, but a full castle wall. This was the strength he wished he had earlier against the demons near the gate.
Hajime went towards a tree with a punch that didn't muster up a lot of strength. When he did, the tree almost fell from how big the crack was, and it was a bigger crack than he could ever make with his normal "strongest punch".
"I-I did it...I seriously did it! I-I guess I...I am the Chosen One after all!" Hajime laughed in ecstasy.
That was the real truth. He was weak because he chose to be weak. He gave himself the illusion that he couldn't go against the world. He didn't bother actually learning the proper steps, wondering if he did something wrong. All he needed was just a bit more guidance and he could've easily defeated those demons earlier. He could've even sparred and won against HoloFantasy if he could've casted "Self-Enhancement".
"Way to go, Hajime-sama!" Lara said.
"Yeah." Hajime soon felt Self-Enhancement fading away as he thought of not using it anymore. "Although I may have learned magic...what about the Hololivers? Like I said earlier, for all we know, they could be at the other side of the world."
"That's where I volunteer myself, Hajime-sama." Kerai said, taking off her headdress.
"Oh? C-Cat ears?"
"Yes. I'm part of the beastmen, specifically the Felines. If my ears are not enough, then this may convince you." Kerai said, opening her mouth and baring her fangs.
Woah...beastmen exist in this world as well.
"Before Eva could get away, Flare-chan's short sword was left behind! You know what to do, Kerai-chan!"
"I-Is there anything I can help with?" Hajime asked.
"You will take care of the rest, Hajime-sama! Please, I may not be able to give orders to the one I'm serving, but I beg you to let me help find them! I recommend you conserve your mana to fight to your fullest potential!" Kerai said.
Hajime stood there, wondering if the two spells he knew were enough to defeat Eva, but if they were able to help him, he knew he had everything he needed.
"I understand. Please find them as soon as possible!"