Flaming Start (2)

“Alright, state your name and business,” the guard said.

After waiting in the line outside the gate for what felt like half an hour, it was finally my turn. Although I had a feeling I wasn’t getting in easily…

I still had yet to see any mode of transportation, it’s possible they just don’t have that here. This seemed to be a gate just for people to enter, the entrance here was too small for a cart or anything like that. Maybe there was a different entrance somewhere else around the wall, not that it helped me.

The guards definitely weren’t human, or demi-human. They were a slime-like creature about three feet in size. The slime was a light purplish color and their bodies were composed of three general sections.

In the middle was a round section and under that was two circular feet of a darker purple color. On top of the body was the head, which was colored the same shade of purple as the body.

They had glowing red eyes and discernible mouths. Each one wore a dark purple helmet with a pink insignia on the front, and out of the back of the helmets a large spike poked out.

They somehow held spears in their sides, or rather in their sides I guess…

Despite their small stature, something about them seemed dangerous. I wasn’t too worried but there was no way I was letting my guard down around these… guards.

“Oliver Sean, and I’m just an unfortunate tourist.”

“Show us your credentials.”

That’s no good. But it’s not like I wasn’t paying attention to all the people who were in front of me.

I clumsily reached into my pockets before ‘checking’ all over as a panicked look gradually grew on my face.

“I-I don’t have my credentials…” I said, speaking as though it was more to myself while making sure they could hear me. “It must’ve been in my bag when I got robbed…”

I then turned to the guards with a weak smile.

“I-I seem to have lost my credentials…”

“How? What happened?”

I knew that wouldn’t be enough to convince them. Good thing I planned ahead.

“I was out in the pink lava fields when I suddenly got ambushed and robbed. I thought I was gonna die out there…” I said. “The robbers took everything I had on me save for the clothes on my back, and then when I woke up I didn’t know where I was. Eventually I managed to find my way to the road and followed it to the capital. And now here we are…”

The best lie is one that emphasizes the truth.

I really didn’t know where I was when I woke up, I was out in the pink lava fields, I thought I was gonna die out there, and I did eventually manage to find the capital.

The rest helped weave my story into something more believable than, “I was just summoned here from another world”. I neither want nor need people thinking I’m a crazy lunatic with delusions of grandeur.

“You don’t look like you just got robbed.”

The one apparent flaw in my story.

The best way to keep people from asking the right questions, was to bait them with the wrong ones.

“After I woke up and made my way back to the road, someone found me about to pass out from the heat and gave me an ice elixir. His name was Darren Clobbertongue. He saved my life…”

More than once I might add.

The guards now looked like they believed me. Good. They both had a look of pity

“I-is there any way you could let me in?” I asked. “I’m not sure I could survive out there much longer without any equipment…”

“We’re supposed to be tighter with gate security because of the war that’s going on, but…”

A war? Could that be the reason I was summoned here? Someone needed help with their war, so they used magic or whatever to summon a hero from another world?

I can’t tell if that’s good or bad. Ending a war could take anywhere between a few months to several years.

But when the war ends I get to go back home… right?

I’m getting off track. My getting isekai’d might have nothing to do with this war.

“Could you maybe help me out?” I said feebly. “It’s been a long day…”

“Sure kid,” one of the guards said.

“Thanks, you’re a lifesaver…”

“Hope you get that all sorted out.”

“I’m gonna try…”

I then walked through the gates and into the capital.

Once inside I realized that the temperature had changed. It was much cooler now. Of course it was still hot, but more like a pleasantly hot day rather than the scorching heat of outside.

I looked at the walls and saw huge, glowing light-bluish symbols that looked like snowflakes placed about fifty, sixtyish yards apart.

I looked out into the street and saw carts being pulled by large animals I didn’t recognize. Makes sense. But then I saw…

“A car?”

Not just one, multiple cars were on the streets. There were even traffic lights and everything. I also noticed that the buildings looked mostly like modern day stuff.

“I thought this was a regular fantasy world, but looks like this place has modern day technology…”

Wait, if there’s modern day technology then shouldn’t there be an internet? If so, maybe I can find out what’s going on.

Since magic is a thing here then there would be information about it on the internet. So if I search up magic in relation to summoning people from other worlds, I could also theoretically find out how to do the opposite and send me back.

Assuming I can read whatever language they have here.

It’s standard for someone who’s isekai’d to be able to fluently speak the common language of the world they were summoned into, but being able to read that language too wasn’t always the case.

Although, as I was in a city it didn’t take long to figure out that this world’s written language used a completely different alphabet from my own.

But the characters also transformed before my eyes, translating everything I saw into English so I could read it.

Good.

Now I just have to find something like a library.

They have those in this world right?

…

“I definitely took a wrong turn somewhere…”

After searching around for a library for about thirty minutes I was completely lost. Not that I knew where I was in the first place seeing as this had been my first time coming to this city, let alone this world.

I was now in an area that could only be called: the slums.

You know, the run-down area of a city where all the dirty poor people who had given up on their dreams live.

I should probably be nicer… I might end up sleeping on these streets if I can’t find a way to get some money fast, or at least find someone willing to take me in and become my generic mentor figure.

With that in mind, I might have to ditch the library quest for now and focus on finding some way to live in this world for the time being.

Oh well…

I turned around and started heading back in the direction that I came from. I’ll probably have a better chance of getting help out in the city proper anyway.

As I passed between two old buildings, I heard a sudden cry.

“S-stop it! Get away from me!”

I turned to see what was happening. In the shadows of the alleyway there were two people.

One was a man with a sturdy build. He was holding a knife up to the other person. A girl who looked to be around my age.

This doesn’t have anything to do with me, and I’m kinda in a hurry right now. I don’t have the time to stop and help her.

But…

No. I don’t have a reason. If I take the time to do this I’ll just be wasting my precious time. And that’s no good at all.

He’ll probably just take her money and leave. She’s not in any real danger, which might not be the case for me if I decide to step in. Plus I may very well be an anime protagonist now, but that doesn’t mean I actually know how to fight.

Sorry, but I gotta look out for myself first and-

“Brother! Please help me!”

I don’t even remember what happened in that moment if I’m being honest. It’s probably just because in that moment, she reminded me of my little sister.

She couldn’t actually be Lucy though. She was older, her voice was different, her hair and eyes were a different color.

She was probably calling out in vain to her actual brother, she hadn’t even seen me so there was no way she could have been referring to me.

But still-

Some overwhelming protective instinct deep inside me took control and made me do this, right? I can’t think of any other reason.

That had to be it. It just didn’t make sense otherwise.

Why else would I be risking my life for some person I don’t know?

Although perhaps this isn’t the best time to dwell on that.

In a moment I had unintentionally activated Accelerate, grabbed her, and zoomed us to the other side of the alley. Currently I stood between her and the assailant.

Now that I was closer, I got a good look at the girl.

She had long silver hair and big eyes of the same color. She wore a simple pink dress that didn’t scream for attention, but was still out of place in this environment. She had pale skin that looked soft to the touch and a delicate build.

I’d say the correct way to describe her would be astonishingly cute rather than extremely beautiful. Although, I guess it wouldn’t exactly be wrong to say-

Wait, what am I doing? Why am I spending such a long time explaining what she looked like when the other guy was barely given a single sentence?

Wait. I know what this means…

He’s just some random thug, but she might be an actual character! Meaning…

This was my chance!

I mean, why else would a girl around my age be in a dress in the slums when I accidentally came here and just happened to find her in trouble?

If I saved her then she would have to repay me right? There’s probably no way around it. And she looks like she might be rich, or at the very least she definitely doesn’t come from a poor family, so I could find a place to stay too!

That had to be why I decided to risk my neck…

“Hey! Don’t ignore me when I’m talking to you!”

Apparently the thug had been trying to get my attention, but I was so busy figuring out why I had intervened that I hadn’t heard him. Hopefully he didn’t say anything important.

Wait, why would he have said anything important?

“Listen you little stain-”

What, is that supposed to be a curse word in this world?

“-You need to get out of here and mind your own decaying business!-”

Another curse I guess.

“Do you know who that is?”

“No,” I answered.

“That right there is the second coming of the great demon kaiju! Her existence threatens to plunge our entire world in darkness!”

What did he just say?

“That?”

“Huh?” the thug grunted. Apparently he hadn’t even realized what he had done to piss me off.

“She is a person who was crying out to her brother for help!”

Gosh. I sound so stupid right now I wanna puke. But I want to break this guy’s stupid face even more. Having the audacity to refer to a person as no more than an object.

It makes me sick.

Whoever her brother was, he wasn’t here to protect her from this living scum bucket. So in his stead I guess I’ll do it. I just hope someone does the same for my little sister…

I’m getting emotional, now’s not the time for this. I need to calm down.

“If you don’t get out of here now, I’ll kill you too!” the thug yelled.

So, this wasn’t just a robbery?

“I’d like to see you try.”

“You don’t want that kid, I’m the Liquid Assassin,” he said as though that was supposed to mean something to me.

So he was hired to kill this girl, is that it? And liquid, maybe he had a liquid related power. Something with water, lava, or… nothing else comes to mind right now…

But more importantly, I had a power. And this seemed like a good time to test out it’s combat capabilities. I’ve been wondering what it’s like to punch someone at super speed.

I activated Accelerate and dashed towards him, ramming my right fist into his gut at full force.

“Wow, you’re fast kid, I almost didn’t catch that.”

My arm had gone completely through him, coming out on the other side. It felt like punching into water.

So he can turn his body into liquid.

I then felt the water-like substance harden around my arm. It was stuck.

“Say goodbye kid,” He said as he raised his knife, pointing it at me.

I just got myself into some deep shit, didn’t I?