Chapter 7:

Unit

No Hero: Chronicles of a Nameless Misfit


Days went by without even realizing it and I finally got enough money to pay the license to finally work as a mercenary. 9 days had passed since I was reincarnated and it seemed a distant memory. Every morning I woke up at the same time, pulled my cart around the city loading Roxy’s orders. She decided one day to give me a small pouch of Karses and let me choose what ingredients to buy.

All the sweat from carrying heavy weights around had boosted my stamina and I could now complete the full trip in half the time it took me the first day. I could also feel my muscles and abdomen strengthen as I continued to work. Before the sunset, I had free time that I used to read the books Clara lent me, and try to exercise with my sword a bit.

“Sword Combat - Volume 1” was a beginner book as the title anticipated, there were a lot of pictures showing how to position oneself and have the correct stances. When I found out that the book recommended a set of exercises to do alongside I decided to add them to my routine. I tried to spar with some other mercenaries, some even drunk, but I always found myself with my butt on the ground in a matter of seconds. I had the basics down, all I needed was field experience. Even if Roxy never asked me again to be a waiter, I decided to help with orders and got to talk with mercenaries from the Guild, writing down everything that I deemed important in the process. I got some tips and tricks to defeat various species of monsters that roamed in the forests around the city and discovered that Killer Bunny’s fur was worth decent money.

My notebook was filled halfway through now. I also added hand-drawn maps of various districts of Lyria and other points of interest in the villages and forests around. By reading “Maps and Charts” I finally got the information that Aurora forgot to give me. The continent I had reincarnated into was called “Berulea” and the language that was spoken was called the “Traditional Berulean” since it also existed a dialect used by other races. The Kingdom where Lyria was located, was called “Kingdom of Drak” and was the smallest territory on the continent. Artoria was the capital and where the King resided, while Lyria was the second biggest city major focus point of the trading route of the Kingdom.

The northern border was shared with the “Forsaken Lands”, a huge peninsula devastated by a centuries-old war and was now dishabituated. The other three borders were shared with the neighboring “Golden Pantheon Theocracy”, a land ruled by the religion of this dimension’s Pantheon.

On the other side of the Theocracy, the “Neutral Lands of Teria” were the last place where humans resided. Teria was ruled by the democracy established between Humans and the Higher races. Elves, Dwarves, Nymphs, and others lived together in harmony.

Outside Teria, the Highers races that deemed the Humans inferior established the “United Kingdoms of Eslan” which was the biggest force on Berulea. The last territory that was mentioned in the book had little information and was called “Western Empire”. Many archipelagos and islands surrounded Berulea.

The “Bestiary” had a collection of anatomical drawings of various monsters, describing habits and attacks of every species. The book also contained a chapter for extinct monsters and creatures such as Chaos Dragons, flying fish, and a four-legged predecessor of Feather Drakes.

The other books revolved around understanding magic and how to identify types of spells from the shape of the magic circle, giving also ways to counter them. The elements Roxy taught me about were explained more in detail along with the concept and theory behind the casting of spells. Most of the words were difficult to understand but I still got the general flow of information. I was jotting down some notes about the topic when Roxy interrupted me.

“I see those books were useful” she took a stool and sat next to me “Now that you have your license you can put your study into practice”

“I already checked the job on the Quest Board but there’s nothing for a beginner like me”

The Quest Board was a wooden bulletin board on the wall next to the counter. Parchments describing various jobs were hanged and there was always a flow of mercenaries checking them out. Each job had a small description and the requisites for taking it, rank, and number of people. The higher the rank and number of people demanded the harder the job. I was at the bottom of the food chain there since my rank was Iron.

The hierarchy was Iron - Bronze - Silver - Gold - Platinum - Diamond - Mithril - Orichalcum - Drakon. Each was represented by a different metal while the last one referred to the material extracted from dragon bones. The pearl on the mercenaries’ Brooches was colored based on their ranks.

“I can put you into a Unit you know? I was already thinking about doing so. You can’t just be my porter forever”

“I don’t think anyone would want a rookie in their Unit”

If I ever wanted to join a Unit I’d just slow them down. My only solution was to find rookies like me or take on easy jobs until I ranked up.

“I’ll figure something out” Roxy said before leaving.

“I am positive you will do great out there Rei” Chevy cheered me on while cleaning the floor.

It was strange, she was the only demi-human I ever saw in Lyria. Being a city this big it was impossible she’d be the only one right? I closed my book deciding I had better things to do. I packed all the other volumes together and headed towards Lyria’s Archive. Roxy explained to me that the previous King, to battle the ignorance that was spreading in the Kingdom, ordered to collect every book and to create various Archives through Drak to facilitate access to culture.

I wanted to hand back the books and also meet Clara again. Despite being a mercenary she also worked as Mistress of the Archive. I went straight to her office as soon as I entered the building and knocked on the door. I could now read the inscription in front of me. “Clara Hart”

“Come in” her voice seeped through

I entered the room and laid the package on her desk. She was in the same outfit as the first time I saw her, reading a different book. The room was filled with a sweet aroma coming from a lit incense on the window.

“Oh my”

She lifted her eyes from the book and took her glasses off, her green eyes were captivating. I strangely felt pulled towards her but resisted and sat on the chair in front of me.

“You were quick to bring these back! Have you read them already or you just wanted to see me again, honey?” she winked. Her hat lowered slightly covering one of her eyes.

Both actually. But I couldn’t say that. The will to be back here just appeared unannounced in my mind and heart. Did I have a huge crush on her? I shook my head to keep that thought away.

“I came wondering if I could borrow more” I handed her a list I had written this morning.

Our hands touched and my mind blew. This was unnatural and awkward, I had to stop.

“Sword Combat - Volume 2 and 3', 'Advanced Bestiary' and 'How to manipulate mana: A guide for dummies” she read the list giggling “Yes, we do have these. They should be ready for tomorrow”

“Great” I got up, I still had my daily training to do

“Wait there a minute honey” Clara grabbed my hand “I have a request for you?”

What could she possibly need? My heart was racing and I could feel my ears getting hotter.

“A customer of mine asked me to take on a job but my Unit is busy at the moment and a lady like me cannot do dirty work like this” she put a hand on her chest deviating my attention “Will you be so kind as to do this for me? We are more than friends aren’t we?”

“I’m just Iron...I don’t think I…” she pulled me to her and trapped me in a hug. I could feel her heartbeat

“Pretty please?” her voice was suddenly sweeter.

“S-Sure, I’ll see what I can do”

“Perfect!” she let me go.

Clara took a parchment out of her dress and handed it to me. I opened it and began reading. “Goblin Hunt - Defeat the Goblin tribe stationed outside Corola Village, Unit: 3 or more, Rank: Iron and up, Reward: 20 Karses per Goblin”

“Thanks, Honey! I’m in your debt”

Clara got back to her book and left me standing in the middle of the room in silence, wondering what led me to that. I rolled the parchment and went back to the Full Moon.

“Ah, you’re back” Roxy greeted me as soon as I crossed the entrance “I solved your problem! You are now part of a Unit”

“Sweet, I just got a job perfect for me from Clara” I handed Roxy the paper.

“Is this the ninth this month?” she sighed “Do you know what Clara's title is here?”

“No, should I?”

“She’s the ‘Man-eater’, you don’t know how many quests and jobs she handed over to others if she didn’t want to do them anymore”

“Ah”

I had been tricked, backstabbed, and quite possibly bamboozled, my trust in pretty ladies had just been crushed.

“Still” Roxy continued “This is just right for you”

“You were talking about me joining a Unit before, which one?”

“I’ll introduce you to them” she showed me a group sitting at a table, drinking “I believe you already know one of them”

Lua waved at me as I got there. Her smile was pure and sweet, different from that manipulating Clara.

“I’m Rei. Thanks for letting me join”

“No need, you’re the Rookie everyone is talking about. We couldn’t let this chance go to waste. I’m Brad, this Unit’s Vanguard”

The man who talked had a big iron axe strapped to the back. He was pretty muscular too, even more than Larce. Vanguard was the role given to the one that fought in the front lines, his job was to take the majority of the hits and focus the monster's attention on him.

“This is Gray, our Support, and Lua here is our Healer”

A boy shorter than me was playing with a knife in his hands. Support roles were the hit and run of the group dealing damage once the Vanguard had caught the attention. Other supporters I talked to, used magic to strengthen allies but Gray didn’t seem to be able to use magic.

“We’re both Springer” continued Brad “While Lua is the only Laufer of the Unit. With you, we can be the Springer Trio aha”

“It seems you’re getting along well” Roxy tossed the parchment to the Vanguard “This is your job, please don't let Rei die he’s my property”

“Yessir” Brad and Gray responded in unison

“Glad to be working with you” Lua said as the Unit stood up.

“Let’s move” Brad took the armor that was resting on the wall and wore it “We can talk about strategies when we’re there”

They seemed pretty organized, they were all Bronze, one rank higher than mine. If the organization and power of a Unit increased with the Rank, I would have liked to see how a higher Unit worked. I had to climb the ranks in order to gain more money anyway.

On the way out of the Full Moon I bumped shoulders with another mercenary, he was wearing a full set of armor and an iron helmet was covering his face. We stared at each other in silence for a second. His Brooch had the shape of a chest plate and his pearl was silver.

“I’m sorry” I said

The man didn’t say anything and kept walking towards the Quest Board. Only a sword hung from its hip, no other equipment.

“That’s ‘Living Armor” Gray explained “Nobody knows his name and no one has seen what lies under his armor. He’s one of the wonders of the Full Moon and the only mercenary in the town to take jobs solo and return alive”

“Is he that good? He’s Silver right” I asked

“Yeah, there’s a saying that he slew a mountain Orc by himself”

Mountain Orcs were 3 meters tall and had the strength of 10 men. They were feared for their desire to kill anything that moves and their skin as hard as rocks. To single-handedly slaughter, a beast like that one had to be hella strong. I might have asked him to spar with me once I got back.

We jumped on a cart that was already waiting for us, pulled by two Feather Dragons, and headed towards Corola village. Checking the map I had drawn in my notebook I noticed it was on the other side of the wheat fields I passed by on my first day. It would have been pleasant to experience that view once again.

“Did you draw that yourself?” Lua asked

“Yeah, it’s easier to bring along than an entire book” I showed her the maps I copied.

“This might come in handy” Brad took a peek “We can use this for strategy”

He then explained that based on intel the Goblin’s Tribe was staying in a forest bordering the village and the villagers there had found the exact location. By using my map we decided to lure some Goblins to us on the first day and after having cleaned up the place from sentinels we would have raided the place the day after. Gray proposed to let me the Goblins we lured since I had to learn and Brad accepted the idea. Lua stayed silent the whole trip from that point on.

We arrived in front of the forest and were greeted by villagers explaining the situation better. One of the fences had been destroyed and many animals were stolen during the night. In that area, it was popular to breed Bovurs, creatures the size of a grown man that looked like a fusion between a cow and a crocodile. Their milk was sweeter than sugar and their meat could be harvested without killing them, by cutting their tail since it grew back in half a year.

“I would day for some Bovur’s meat right now”

“Stop it, Gray, we just got here” Brad slapped Gray “We’ll set up camp here and then head into the forest”

I started helping the Unit build the tent inside one of the ravaged enclosures, one of the Bovurs came to me while I was trying to pin a nail to the ground and rubbed on me while making a strange hissing sound. With his weight, he pushed me to the ground and started licking my face.

“He likes you” Lua started rubbing the Bovurs belly “If it wasn’t for their size I would have kept one as a pet”

“It’s a bit heavy”

I pushed the big lizard dog away and continued building the tent, Brad and Gray were out scouting the area. They were sorry that the tent had just enough space for the three of them and I had to sleep in a sleeping bag outside. The Bovurs would have kept me company.

“Goblins are not monsters you can underestimate” Lua turned serious “Do your best but if things start to get serious just switch with Brad ok?”

“I’ll keep that in mind...thanks”

With Lua’s help, we finally built the tent and placed the other necessities inside. Since it was almost noon I decided to take a break and ate something while looking at the forest.

“We got one, we got one” Gray came out of the bushes screaming “Rei take your sword out”

Brad followed him moments after being chased by a monster. We switched places and I put myself in front of the creature to make him change targets. It was a thin humanoid figure, the top of its head wasn’t higher than my chest. Its skin was as red as blood and its face was hidden behind a wooden mask. Armor made from scrap metal covered his chest and legs and in its tiny clawed hands had a rusted handmade cleaver. The Goblin screamed at me and stomped its feet on the ground.

“You can do it Rei” Brad cheered behind me

Following what I had read in the book and what the other mercenaries told me, I took the basic offensive stance waiting for the Goblin to attack. The monster moved, he was even faster than the criminal I fought with before. It closed the distance between us and raised its cleaver to strike.

My legs couldn’t move, a feeling just as the one I felt when facing the Killer Bunny blocked my muscles. I regained my composure just in time to parry with my sword. The Goblin was strong for its size, and quick too, I had to adapt better. It was way different from sparring with other people. I took my stance again and waited for the next attack.

I noticed the Goblin’s foot raising and understood it was going to make the same move again. I preemptively lowered myself and dashed. As the Goblin moved he was already in the reach of my blade. I slashed in front of me and was surprised to see the goblin jump and avoid my sword. It grabbed my head and climbed up my back only to smack me a couple of times in the face with its red hands. I grabbed the cloth he was wearing and launched him against a tree. I managed to stun it.

Not to waste any opportunity I dashed again forward and decided to go for an uppercut this time. The blade brushed off the Goblins' savage armor chipping and breaking it in two pieces. Some of the sparks flew in the monster’s eyes waking him up. It began to flail its weapon around hoping to hit me somehow. Having my sword raised already I cut the Goblin halfway through its chest and my sword got stuck.

The Goblin started screaming from pain as green blood poured on my sword and spit on my face. Placing a foot on the Goblin I forcefully broke my sword free and put the monster out of his misery cutting its head off with a clean hit. In its last moments, it swung its cleaver towards me and slashed my forearm.

I fell on my butt on the ground as I watched the lifeless body of the Goblin stopping its movements. I looked at my arm bleeding, the cut was deeper than the wound I had on my leg after the rabbit had bitten me. My blood was getting mixed with the green one of the Goblin. My head was fuzzy, my heart was beating and I was in a complete panic attack. I had killed for the first time, something that lived and breathed just like me. I was scared, scared for my life in a way I had never considered. I couldn’t even look at the cleaver at my feet. I was on the verge of fainting. I felt arms catching me before I hit the ground and Lua’s face appeared over me.

“I thought we agreed to bring him one of the sentinels, not one of the damn warriors!” Lua shouted at the two behind her.

“He survived tho” Gray took the cleaver out of the Goblins' hands.

“We were ready to intervene if things got serious” Brad added “It was the Rookie’s welcoming party”

“You have to thank the Gods that he has good reflexes. The first hit would have killed a normal person”

Lua placed her hand on my arm while the other was on her staff, a healing spell healed my arm completely, I saw the cut closing itself slowly. My mind also got better and was clear again.

“Come on Lua, it was just a tiny Goblin” Gray was now playing with the Goblins weapon juggling it in his hands “If he had problems with this one he will just hold us back in the future”

“That’s why you were supposed to bring a damn Sentinel” she got angry all of a sudden.

“Ok, ok we let ourselves get taken over by the excitement of having a new member in the Unit” Brad got closer and helped me get up “Everything good bud?”

“Yeah, more or less” the green blood dried on my blade “I’m gonna wash this off quickly”

I walked to a nearby stream and dipped a cloth in the water to wipe the blood away. In the book I read, it said that letting blood dry on the blade could speed up the rusting process of the metal and recommended keeping the sword in check from time to time. As I was done cleaning I used my hands as a cup and splashed my face with ice-cold water. My arms were still shaking. It wasn’t a new sight for me. I slapped my cheeks thinking that I couldn’t waste the time of the Unit with my problems and had to get back.

“Do you feel like going in for another round?” Gray asked, he was definitely enjoying that moment.

“We can stop for today if you need time” Lua asked, checking if my arm had healed properly.

“I’m fine guys. Let’s just get this done” I wiped the remaining blood from my face and sheathed my sword “I’ll get better the more I fight”

“I like your spirit Rei” Brad was now smiling “The Sentinels are not as fierce as this one but they are still quick as hell”

“I think I got the hang of it” during the fight with the Gobin Warrior I managed to predict its movements somehow.

“I like you more and more, Rookie” said Brad as he entered the bushes.

I resolved myself to not get scared again and fight with all I had. I had companions now that would have helped me if I were to be in a bad situation. I slowly stretched and followed my Unit in the forest. 


Hey! Ecspo here. Hope you liked this chapter!

Since this is my first serious work and also my first work in English I would very much appreciate any tips, critiques, comments of any kind. Tell me if the chapters are too long, short, or whatever, it would mean a lot to me.