Inciting Incident, First

It was cold, but not freezing. And comfy enough. Then Takuto had to open his eyes when Chia struck him with a parchment scroll. SMACK!

“Morning, GG,” said Takuto, as he turned on his smartphone.

“Don’t wake me up unless I need to grind. I need a good sleep.” And thus, GG shut down the phone by herself.

Dang it.

And what do you mean by “a good sleep”? You are a fucking AI!

The guild officers came in. The confident, excited adventurers burst in as Takuto finished mopping the super-wide floor. Alone.

I swear I’m going to quit this job.

As he noticed Laurel’s party came in, he threw his cleaning supplies like he didn’t need them. He found that everyone bought a bag attached to their belt. The embroidery didn’t look tacky like a medieval bag found in a museum. Laurel’s bag was simply black with red drawstrings. Lopopo’s bag had a wooden color, and she even had a second, bigger one that resembled a high school shoulder bag. Who knew what she put inside, but certainly something alive.

Soave, on the other hand, wore a full white plate armor instead of his white linen garment. He still looked like a male idol rather than a fighter, though.

As they made eye contact with Takuto, Lopopo broadened her smile, running and spreading her arms. Of course, he wouldn’t refuse a warm hug from a cute, hyperactive woman like her. Not just for her small boobs. Really.

So he spread his arms and smiled. But then Lopopo just went past him and embraced Chia behind him. “HIIII, Chia!” And she rubbed her cheek against the guild receptionist’s. “Boobs bounce!” And for some reason, she bounced her boobs against Chia, with a stupid look on her face.

I swear, this dumb elf pissed me off sometimes.

Unlike his expectation, Soave hugged him instead. “Nice to see you, friend,” Soave said. And Laurel just covered her mouth as she grinned.

Shivering, Takuto unconsciously pushed away Soave as if Soave were an insect. And so, Soave became tearful. “…Why?”

I’m not into yaoi.

“Don’t mind it. I just don’t hug anybody,” Takuto said, comforting Soave as he put his hand on Soave’s shoulder.

“Here…” For unknown reasons, Chia approached Takuto and gave him a shoulder bag and a red, modern safety helmet. “We need a dedicated janitor like you. Make sure to come back and eat the food inside. I’m sure a man with a dragon dick like you can survive.”

Have you seen my dick, Chia? Have you??

“I told you to bang her. She is sexually frustrated,” GG commented as she was active again. “Shut up, GG.” She did not touch my hand or anything. Is that a sign of sexual frustration? No, I guess.

“This damn meet and greet thing is too slow-paced. Can we just fast-forward?” GG complained.

“I don’t think The SkyWorld is solely about actions and touching stories. It’s also for these idle moments. That’s why we have a lot of dancing emotes to use.” And maybe the writer just needs a lot of words.

Chia tilted her head and asked, “Who are you talking with…?”

“A bug. Anyway, thanks, Chia.”

As Takuto wore the helmet and the bag he got, he and his party walked toward the nearest teleportation circle that wasn’t crowded. Yet.

That’s right. The Adventurer Guild was spacious, not only for accommodating most of the adventurers across the Wildenmore Kingdom, but also for providing teleportation circles and so on, unlike the local guilds. So they could go to any SkyIsland they desired to explore, which was very convenient.

“What food do you bring, guys?” Takuto inquired, as his party waited in line for the teleportation circle.

“Hmmm,” holding her chin with her hand, Laurel answered, “I just bring enough leather bottles. We can dismantle the monsters and eat them anyway. But not every dungeon has water sources, and the monsters sometimes don’t need to drink either. They drink human blood—”

“I, I bring snacks!” Lopopo jumped, blocking Takuto and waving around a suspicious-looking plant. The plant resembled an aging carrot with a literal sad face.

“Isn’t that mandrake?” GG asked, “Doesn’t it cause hallucinations and drowsiness? Why are you eating it right now?”

“Nyam, nyam. I don’t know what you are talking about.” As Lopopo ate the plant and elongated it, the sad face became a screaming face. “This is called Rakerake in my tribe. It gives you the feeling that you aren’t thirsty. Do you want some?”

Takuto and GG shook their head at the same time when Lopopo put her hand inside her bag. She revealed that her bag was full of Rakerakes with a terrified face. Aren’t they still alive??

And Soave didn’t say anything for a while. He just rubbed the back of his head and laughed. “I just bring cooking utensils to help everyone have delicious food.”

A bottom. He is a bottom.

The teleportation circle looked like a big magic circle. It had Latin numerals and the symbols of the Sun and the Moon, carved and arranged neatly inside the circle. Takuto saw two mages wearing white hood cloaks standing around the circle’s edge. The mages took turns asking which SkyIsland or dungeon the adventurers wanted to go to. And then they activated the magic circle by kneeling and channeling their Mana into it.

“Looks like those mages have a bunch of Mana, GG.”

“Yeah. Unlike you.”

The last one is unnecessary, GG.

The adventurers would likely be transported to a nearby Adventurer Guild’s outpost. Takuto remembered that the outpost was usually built right before the entrance to a dungeon or an Event Venue. And the guild also assigned a certified porter with a two-wheeled cart to each party. The porter might follow the party inside a dungeon if the dungeon was deep enough. Or just wait in the outpost with a mage who would transport back or call for rescue.

There are also dungeon cleaners, but they aren’t assigned to any party. It’s no wonder Chia asked me those questions.

“Tentacle Dragon Event Venue, please,” Laurel informed the mage who approached her. “Sure, Ma’am.” And the mage walked back to the circle and kneeled.

“How did you know stuff if you had never been here, Takuto?”

“That’s a trade secret, Miss Assassin.”

“Oh, my, still tight-lipped, I see. And here’s your gun and some ammunition. Show off, Takuto Higashi.”

As the circle was lit up, Takuto pondered what he was doing. He just had an ordinary life a day ago, but then he was suddenly transported to the world of The SkyWorld. Still mourning, he just wanted to keep GG alive. And with the chargers found at the Event Venue, he could get back his so-so life.

He did not have a strong desire to try magic or be a man at the top. And he actually wasn’t sure he could even learn a Skill Taint. Physical skills were probable because they were like real-life skills, but suited for the game. However, he didn’t have the motivation to master them either.

All he needed now was getting his party’s good side and starting a new, slow life.

“So you just want to goon.”

“Shut up, GG.”

As Takuto blinked, the light became blinding, and now he was right at the front of a cave entrance in a volcanic mountain, somewhere in a SkyIsland.