Chapter 8:

Prepare to move out!

I am a God, But I Accidentally Summoned Myself into My Own World as a Human Being!


GRAYSON

“So, your name is Shaun. Nice to meet you!"

I reached out my hand. The priest shook it nervously.

“It’s an honor to meet with the Kingdom of Sol’s pride!”

“Yes, yes. There’s no need to be so tense, you know.”

Shaun smiled then fixed his gaze out the window after our brief introduction.
We are currently standing outside of Al’s room in the corridors. The priest stood there awkwardly, his posture shifting from time to time as he worried about what to contribute to our conversation next. Iris, meanwhile, left to change into her maid uniform.

“Al chose you to accompany him? You seem capable enough.” I attempted to relieve the priest from the awkwardness in the corridor.

“Chosen? What do you mean?”

Ah, right. I forgot to tell Al that he can recruit someone from the Adventurer’s Guild or anywhere else in the city. We are about to go on a journey, after all. But maybe he already knew.

“That’s kind of like him to leave out the details. We’re moving out soon to slay the Demon Lord. Simple as that!”

“Eh-? Oh, oh, right. I had a feeling we were going to do that so soon…” The priest chortled then grinned awkwardly, his eyes widened and looking at the side.

The priest is not entirely clueless after all, I mused. That is good. Despite knowing that we’d be leaving the safety of the kingdom, he still decided to come along.

Al then slid past one of his room's double doors. He walked right up to us, adjusting his collar. “Preparation complete. Let us now meet the king.”

“Al, wait."

Al raised his brow at me, "Yes?"

"Before anything, let’s check the Royal Treasury first. His Majesty is currently in a short meeting with someone else. I assume it will end by the time we finish our business in the treasury.”

Al silently nodded. I stepped right up in front of the two, leading the way to the castle's treasury.



AELIUS

“King Leon and his royal knights sure are quite generous, handing out your prized weapons easily.”

I examined the treasury. Unlike the name, this place does not hold jewelry, gold and whatnot. Lined along the walls instead are weapons that were once wielded by past heroes and kings of the Kingdom of Sol.

“We’re not crazy that we’d send our hero to deal with humanity’s greatest threat empty-handed.” Head Knight Grayson smirked as he lead us around. Shaun ogled the weapons in awe.

Swords. Daggers. From staple weapons to some odd-looking types. One such oddity is a pair of slim rectangular, L-shaped boxes which seem to be made from sheet metal. I picked up the pair, observing their exterior.

The obsidian black contraptions have intricately engraved designs on it. Memories of how it was created flooded into my mind; I recalled how the owner had to learn forging techniques from dwarves in the other continents. She was adamant on using a weapon based on their world.

The next heroes after her did the same thing, increasing the collective firepower of this world.

Simple to use, just aim and press the trigger. Like a crossbow, but deadlier, faster, and stronger. Unfortunately, it currently lacks ammunition. I placed the weapons down.

“Ah, those things. No one has been able to get them to work since the owner left it here.”

Head Knight Grayson held one up, holding the longer end.

“You are holding it the wrong way.”

“Hm?" The Head Knight innocently hummed. "By the way, what kind of weapon are you looking for?”

I did not answer his query. Though, I do already have one in mind. I went deeper into the room.

“Can I also take one?”

Shaun peeped at the Head Knight. He stood by a staff, a simple wooden shaft with a glowing rock placed on top attached by metal. Except the wood itself wasn't simple, and the rock attached to it was actually a fallen meteorite.

“Yes, you can. The party members of the hero must be well equipped after all.”

“I’ll make sure to keep it safe!”

The priest carefully grabbed the staff. The staff radiated an emerald green color, revealing engraved runes on the shaft.

 

The Staff of Hachiro, beacon of life.
It turns any single target support spell into an AoE over time without decreasing the original spell’s potency.


“Why doesn’t the king equip his soldiers with these weapons?

“His Majesty does, in emergency situations.”

I squinted at the two's conversation.

“Shaun, think about it. Each item here can be considered a threat to the kingdom. It would be hard to keep every handler in control- especially when they get a taste of power.”

Plus, there’s only a handful of weapons here. 

Shaun surveyed the staff. He tightened his grip. “I understand.”

I roamed a couple more steps then stopped

Looks like I’ve found it. A grimoire was placed at the side of the room, atop a pedestal.

“Did you find what you were looking for?” Head Knight Grayson walked over to me. 

I grasped the grimoire. Platinum plates line the hard-bound cover. It is an otherwise normal book. I start infusing mana into the cover.

“A book? There’s plenty of options here, and you didn’t even choose a weapon?”

The grimoire slowly levitated from my hands. It positioned itself just above my right shoulder.

“It is not just any book, Mr. Head Knight. It is my book.”

“Huh? It’s been in the Royal Treasury for decades. You don’t even look like you’re past twenty.”

There was no mistaking it. Amaris and I made it for our first hero a century ago or two. It recycles the mana spent on spells in the surrounding area and stores it in its pages. The user can then unleash the same spell without cost. The output is halved though.

“If you just believe that I’m your Go-“

Shaun waved at me. Right. I stopped myself. I almost forgot that I need to stop trying to convince anyone I am their god, Aelius.

“It is a book of fine quality. Moreover, I would like to keep my hands free during combat.”

“Fair enough. Let’s move on to the armors section.”

“You are not going to choose one yourself, Mr. Head Knight?”

Head Knight Grayson touched his weapon. His hands firm yet also gentle on the hilt.

“This sword is good enough for me.”

We departed from the treasury and moved on to the castle's armory. Various armors were held up in stands; lined in order starting from the lightest of armor to the heaviest. Shaun and I decided on an armor from the light ones.

Armors once worn by heroes can not be accessed as its status do not adjust to anyone other than of its original wearer. It has also certain restrictions preventing anyone else to wear them.

“'It's a shame we cannot use the armors made by the past heroes. I would have worn one myself.”

Head Knight Grayson sighed as he surveyed around the lighter versions of the heavy armors.

“You’re not going to wear full plate armor?" I wondered out loud.

“I've decided that I want to be able to move faster this time," the Head Knight replied. 

"Alright, is everyone finished? I think His Majesty's previous meeting has ended. We should now head our way and meet him. ”


---


We walked towards the throne room. Iris was waiting for us, wearing her usual maid uniform. Head Knight Grayson proceeded to chat with one of the knights at the entrance.

“Mast- I mean, Aelius. You look good.”

“Thank you, Iris.”

She smiled. No traces of shyness. I presumed she was warming up to me.

“Alright, everyone. Let’s go inside.” The Head Knight ushered our party.

Shaun straightened his robes for the umpteenth time. “I never thought I’d get to see the king in person.”

The knights unlocked the entrance in concert, and revealed a crimson carpet path towards the throne lying across the end of the gigantic room.

“We meet again, hero.” 

King Leon stood up from his throne. Compared to the room where we first met, the throne room was indeed several times bigger. A huge crimson carpet decorated with gold at the hem lined the middle of the room, immense stained glass windows designed the top of the walls, and crystal gold chandeliers reflected the afternoon light across the ceiling.

“I should assume this is everyone, then?”

Despite the huge space, there was only a handful of us inside this time. Counting the members of our party and the king, there were five of us. Which leaves us with the unknown group of three standing attendance at the side. 

“Having more people increases the risk of the details of our operation leaking out," a thick female voice boomed around the walls of the throne room. She appeared from behind us.
"It’s nice to meet you hero. My name is Valerie, captain of the Sixth Ray.”

She stepped up towards me, her back straightened and her chin held high. Another towering figure like Mr. Head Knight here.

“My name is Aelius. It is nice to meet you too, Captain Valerie.”

We shook hands. Her hand wrapped around mine firmly, proud and resolute. Right after, she immediately went over to Head Knight Grayson's side.

“Captain Valerie will escort your party to the edge of our territorial borders. There you will meet up with the hero party sent by the Kingdom of Luna.”  

The king then pointed towards the group at the side. “These three will join your party. Based on Head Knight Grayson’s reports, we have chosen people with the appropriate roles to balance out your party composition.” 

He continued, gesturing at the three, “You may introduce yourselves.”

A woman wearing full silver-colored armor- is everyone wearing full plated armor these days?- introduced herself first.

“It is an honor to meet you, hero... Aelius." The woman almost hesitated to utter the all familiar name. "I’ve been briefed on this mission. I will do my best alongside Head Knight Grayson as front liners for our party.”

The woman's brown hair was tied into a bun. She held her headgear in her left hand.

“Name’s Mercedes. My weapon is a spear and shield. The two behind me are Nadia and Aidan.” 

Another female voice started. “Hey, don’t just go introducing us! Aidan and I wanted to do it ourselves!”

The blonde twins looked like they were younger than us. The girl had a katana on her waist and the boy held a modified crossbow.

The girl, who seems to be Nadia, ran up close and stared at my face. Too close.

“You don’t look that handsome. My brother definitely looks better than you, hehe!”

“That’s not a compliment, sis.”

The boy also approached me. I can only assume he is Aidan.
Also, I shall remember such a remark. I admit, this body’s face can’t compare to my real one. But hey, it is not bad either!

-Wait, I can’t let these two get on my nerves. I glowered at the two.

“I'm kidding! Just trying to lighten the mood! Nice to meet ya!” Nadia grinned. She then darted towards Shaun. Was that all she had to say?

“It is my turn now. Please don’t mind my sister. My name is Aidan. We’ll be in your care, and yours with ours too.”

Aidan is quite polite compared to his rather energetic twin. He continued inspecting his crossbow as he walked back.


---


A few moments passed as our now seven-member party introduced themselves to each other and made small talk. The king does not seem to mind that he has become part of the background now.

Head Knight Grayson stepped up in front of everyone.

“Everyone, now that we’re all best friends, let us discuss the plan.”

Captain Valerie brought over a map of Nevia and the nearby continents. There are five continents; Nivea continent,  where we currently are right now, and there are the other three: Miele, Chablis, and Epheron. The last one of the five is the demon’s continent. Unnamed and uncharted, only hero parties have ever entered, with a few suffering casualties. The continents were arranged in an arc, with the demon continent and the Nevia continent on opposite ends.

“Currently, the war with the demons has us on the losing end. Every day the demons take a few steps closer to arriving at the gates of Sol.” Head Knight Grayson hovered his index finger at the western part of the Nivea continent. Multiple red triangles indicated the known positions of the forward demon bases.

“The huge circle behind the bases is a huge portal where the demons appear en masse. We planned on destroying it but the forces there are just too overwhelming.”

Captain Valerie continued drawing red triangles closer and closer to Sol, with the triangles blocking the pathway from Nivea to Miele.

“The average demon soldier is normally no match for our soldiers, but this is a battle of attrition. They don’t seem to have a limit to how many monsters they can throw at us, in fact they are only getting more numerous every day. It’s a miracle they haven’t arrived at the capital sooner.”

Huge thanks to my level restriction device for that. Not a soul knows about that though, as I have intentionally placed it in their highest tower during the kingdom’s founding, then erased any mortal knowledge about it. No one has thought about it and no one can hold their attention on it for long. I was the only one who maintained it with my omnipotence. As such, not a soul questions why it is there, or what its purpose was as part of the castle..

Captain Valerie and Head Knight Grayson both drew two lines, each coming from Sol and the Kingdom of Luna. The Kingdom of Luna is a place located north of Sol. The captains drew the lines west towards the demon camps. 

Captain Valerie spoke, “Our ally, the Kingdom of Luna has agreed to dispatch their hero party and a portion of their army to the territorial borders. We’re following the same protocol.”

Both captains divided their lines. Each paired up, two arrows from Sol and Luna pointing at the demon camps and two arrows going north to Miele.

“At the borders, my division will then pair up with the army of Luna and we’ll head straight for the demon army. Your party will head north with our ally’s hero party, while we attempt to hold back the demons blocking your path.”

Head Knight Grayson continued the northward line in an arc. To Miele, then Chablis, then across the sea to Epheron, and finally the demon continent. 

“From here on, we’re on our own. We have concluded that a small party of the alliance’s greatest warriors is more efficient than sending full armies across four continents.”

Captain Valerie sat down. The last light of the setting sun bathed the room in shades of red. 

“If we do manage to push all the way to the demon portal and overtake it, we’ll be able to assist you in raiding the Demon Lord’s castle. Hence pray for our success.”

That would be an ideal scenario, but it's highly unlikely. There are just too many demons. 

Head Knight Grayson glanced at the king. He then shifted his focus on us, his form intimidating under the fading light. “We set out right away. For His Majesty! For the alliance of Sol and Luna! For humanity!”

“For His Majesty! For the alliance of Sol and Luna! For humanity!” The group echoed. The room goes dark as the first moonlight pierced the windows.

We all bowed before the King after the conclusion of our meeting. This is most likely the last time we will all gather like this.

Re:Creator
icon-reaction-1
Cali Maki
icon-reaction-1