*
I ease my body and take a deep breath, suppressing my desire to lop his head off. Thinking about it rationally, this might be another world entirely so their sovereignty remain unchallenged. I give my best smile and greeting, glossing over all of my thoughts.
"Hello, I am the summoned hero. Right now I'm only level 1, but I'll get stronger in the future." (Lastia)
The class system is very simple, it might be decided at birth and it determines how many stat points you get per level. Compared to the royal guard who get 30, I get 70 and I'll likely out pace their stats by level 25, instead of having to reach 50 like they do. Despite the lack of a screen showing what skills I possess, I can still activate analysis or the unnamed skill by will. The 'feeling' of being able to activate tells me the skill exists, and that's enough. It felt like entering this world likely manipulated the composition of my body, acclimatising it to the system.
" Rejoice, hero. You will embark immediately, gain experience on the way, and defeat the demon king. Now, set forth!" (King)
He put on an act and yammered on his own, all but outright kicking me out of the castle. One of the guard stands up and turns around, knocking into my shoulder as he trod towards the throne room's exit. These people aren't doing these out of ignorance, they know exactly where they sit in this world. Am I going through the experiences of my previous life? If I wasn't from the future, if I wasn't Lastia, I would truly had been intimidated and hammered into a position of subservience.
The desire to save humanity, they are counting on such an ambiguous will to push me and urge me to turn a blind eye to the intimidation tactics. I really want to spit on the pristine carpet, I practically got kidnapped here and now I'm forced to fight a threat for another humanity that isn't my own. At least that was the background setting, the hero is summoned from another world, right? Well, I'm a heroine for one thing, anything else and I, Lastia couldn't verify.
I picked up my feet and trudged with the guards as they began pushing my back. Soon enough, I was shoved out of the gates before having it shut in my face. My legs stumbled as I attempt to regain my footing. The wind picks up under my waist, a sense of weightlessness picks me up by the foot before I bent my knees and converged my surface area as I landed. I rolled over once before laying on my back. Rather, isn't this too much?
"Haa~" (Lastia)
Picking myself back up, I exhaled deeply. Looking into the distance, the sky has gone dark and the setting sun paints a gentle wheat gold over the roofs of houses. I still haven't used my attack skill, even if it's dangerous in the dark, I'll show them. I'll show everyone that I'm not someone who can be intimidated or pushed around. I pushed my sore body forward, trudging towards the city gates.
It took a while to walk, the city was decently large and there's no such thing as public transport here. Even citizens of the capital need to gather firewood and dispose the waste bucket. The standards here are brutal compared to modern times, the stench of faeces in the streets is even overpowering in some areas. They were starting to sting my eyes, at least the noise from the city has largely died down. By the time I reached the city gate, it had been well into the night.
"Halt! State your purpose!" (Gate guard?)
"I... I am the hero. I need to go out and get experience!" (Lastia)
"... The hero? Fat chance! The hero is dead! What do you get out of pretending to be him! You're not even hiding your voice!" (Gate guard?)
He rambles on in a loud voice, his cheeks grew tense and his throat used to its full extent. A heat rises up his head, even in the dark I could see his furrowed brows and his eyes full of hostility.
" I need experience... I need to get stronger and fast, to defeat the demon lord. You don't have to believe me, you just have to let me go out. You can forget about me and pretend I didn't exist.
As the new hero, there's no trace of my existence in this world. If I disappear, no one would know. " (Lastia)
He seemed to have cooled down from my resolute words, as if he was drenched over the head. The veins on his temple stop bulging as he caught his breath, examining me from head to toe. Not a mage, but a hero. Stats are low too, he noted. His chest heaved gently before he banged the foot of his spear on the ground. The sound almost startled me.
"... We don't need brats like you playing hero, us gate guards are strong enough even if the demon lord comes knockin on our doors.
So please go home, your parents are probably worried about you. Don't make them any more worried." (Gate guard?)
Despite facing a stranger, he remained resolute in his duty to protect the citizens. He didn't attack me in the dark, despite the higher likelihood of me being a criminal.
"... Not convinced? Trust me, I have a daughter like you. Always boisterous and full of life. Go home! Before you regret it! " (Gate guard?)
"... I really am from another world. Skill activation, " (Lastia)
I shaped a dark substance overflowing from my pores into a pair of gauntlets, the gauntlets are thin and they remained invisible under the moon light, as if my arms had been swallowed by the dark. I ready my fist and stepped into a stance. I'm sorry, I'll have to knock you out. Unlike that king, you seemed responsible until the very end. He seemed entirely unconvinced, even if my gauntlets look ominous and exists as an unheard or magic, he laid his spear onto the wall and stepped closer.
Sometimes it takes a beating to teach a lesson. I didn't know at the time, but it was something the both of us thought.
"I'll teach you the name of Mr. Jack Patricious. Once you feel pain you'll back off." (Mr. Jack)