Author's note: Moving This And A Few Other Fanfics I Got Over Here After I Rewrite Them Of Course. This Story As A Few Chapters I Don't Gotta Do Much Too So I Have 8 Chapters Semi Finished. So Maybe 8 Weeks Worth Idk. I'll Still Upload It Here Though. Also I Have Like 6 Other Fanfics On The Way In Addition To 3 Other Stories. Another Story Of The Lumea Mortii Series And Two Povesti Moarte Stories
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To Hajime and quite possibly most people in first world countries found the word Monday distasteful and depressing; honestly, a lot of people were likely sighing at the long week that laid ahead of them, Hajime included. However in Hajimes case his despair was multiplied by the fact that school wasn't just a pain in the normal sense but because it was a verbal hell. One he wasn't ever excited to return to at the start of each week.
Hajime opened the door to his classroom and barely managed to make his sleep deprived body move to his seat before looking up as the door slid open once more, allowing a messy dark haired tanned student standing about 5'6, or 167 centimeters tall teen to step through; a small hand held book in his hand which his gaze was always fixated towards. His name was Sato Aio; he was a transfer student of mixed descent with a Japanese father and a Hispanic mother. Aside from himself he was what could be considered an outcast; however, unlike Hajime, Sato was perfectly capable of defending himself and was an athlete who was procent in track and other similar sports.
Hajime's attention however was moved elsewhere when he heard questions from a few familiar and distasteful voices. "Sup, Gross Otaku? Stay up all night playing video games again? I bet you were playing porn games the whole time, right?"
"Wow, what a creep! What kind of disgusting pervert stays up all night playing porn games?" Another in from the group of voices called out causing the rest of the boys all laughed as if they found that statement somehow hilarious. The student who'd first called out to Hajime was Daisuke Hiama, the ringleader of Hajime's tormentors. Daisuke never seemed to tire of teasing Hajime as he went up to him on a daily basis. The ones who were laughing wickedly next to him were Yoshiki Saito, Reiki Kondo, and Shinji Nakano. It was those four who'd always made Hajime's life miserable.
As Hiama stated earlier, Hajime was indeed an otaku, but he wasn't particularly ugly or obnoxious, so the moniker "gross otaku" hardly did him justice. His hair was cropped short and kept tidy, plus it wasn't as if he had a communication problem of any sort either. Sure, he wasn't the most talkative guy around, but he had no problem responding to people who talked to him. He was a quiet person overall, but not to the point where it could be considered gloomy. He just happened to have an interest in a very specific set of media, namely manga, novels, video games, and movies.
While it was true that public opinion of otakus hadn't been very positive as of late, being an otaku usually earned you a few looks, not that kind of targeted bullying. So why did all the male students hate Hajime so much? The answer was simple. "Good morning, Nagumo-kun. You barely made it on time today too. I think you should at least make an effort to come earlier," one of the girls smiled softly as she walked up to Hajime.
She was one of the few people in the whole school who treated him kindly, and also the reason everyone hated him: Kaori Sharasaki, one of the most popular girls in school and beautiful enough to be considered a goddess by many. She had sleek black hair that went all the way down to her waist, and large alluring eyes filled with kindness. Her small nose sat perfectly upon her face, and her pink lips were the epitome of perfection. She always seemed to have a smile on her face, and her knack for looking after others combined with her strong sense of responsibility made her one of the most respected students at Hajime's school. Moreover, she was tolerant and understanding to a fault, to the point where no one had ever even seen her look unhappy before. And for whatever reason, Kaori had taken an interest in Hajime.
Most people assumed Hajime was a terrible student because he always slept in class due to his frequent all-nighters. In truth, he had pretty average grades, and since Kaori was always looking after other students, they believed that was the reason she talked to him. Had her overtures convinced Hajime to become a better student, or had he naturally been a better looking guy, the other kids might not have minded Kaori's interest in him as much. As it was, though, he was sadly as average looking as one could get, and his favorite motto was 'Hobbies over real life'. So, obviously, his attitude towards school had shown no signs of improvement either. The other average looking male students of his class couldn't stand the fact that Hajime was so close to Kaori. (Why him and not us?) they thought.
Meanwhile, the other girls simply thought he was being rude to Kaori. They were unhappy that he wasn't even attempting to reform his habits. "Good morning, Sharasaki-san," Hajime's face stiffened up as he felt the bloodthirsty glares of his fellow classmates, and he awkwardly returned Kaori's greeting. In contrast, Kaori smiled happily as she looked at him.'Why do you always look at me like that?' Hajime despaired as he felt the gazes of his classmates burn into him. Hajime was honestly bewildered.
He didn't understand why the most beautiful girl in school cared about a guy like him. To him, it seemed like there had to have been something more than just her natural disposition to help others. Of course, he wasn't so conceited as to believe she might possibly have any romantic interest in him. Hajime was well aware of the fact that he'd given up a great deal of things to live a life fully devoted to his hobbies. He knew his appearance, grades, and athletic ability were all utterly average. There were a whole host of guys better than him who were far more suited to be her partner, even just among her acquaintances. Which was why he found her behavior so puzzling.
'Honestly, I just wish you'd realize you're the reason everyone hates me right now!' Hajime screamed inside his head. However, he didn't give voice to his thoughts. He knew that some of his classmates would no doubt drag him out behind the gym once classes were over if he ever dared to do so. The moment Hajime finished his conversation with Kaori, three new people walked up to them. They'd been watching the two of them like vultures waiting for him to finish talking. Among this new group was, of course, one of the better guys who'd been mentioned previously.
"Good morning, Nagumo-kun. Must be rough staying up that late every day. Looking after him again, Kaori? You're really too nice for your own good. Seriously, talking to a failure like him is a total waste of time," The only person who'd greeted Hajime out of the three was Shizuku Yagashi, Kaori's best friend.
"Isn't Hajime the son of a game designer and his mother a manga artist? Also forgive me if I'm mistaken, but I recall Hajime working half time in both of their workplaces. Honestly, out of everyone here I think he's one of the few people who already has their future secure." Sato stated in a disinterested tone I turned to face him, seeing he's still reading his book, sketching in it while resting his head on one of his hands.
"Out of everyone in this classroom, I can count on one hand who is currently prepared for employment after we graduate, and out of those few I consider Hajime to be among them." He said dismissively as he waved his pencil in my direction, an action that caused me to pale as the entire room shifted their gaze towards me for one reason or another.
"Ah, yeah right, as if this failure can do anything!" Daisuke said in an arrogant and almost dismissive manner.
Sato rolled his eyes before he continued, "Hajimes father worked on Atlas online a few years back; a video game mind you that has taken the western side of the world by storm and has sold millions of copies. The same game that won a best sellers award in New York Last year. Congratulations by the way." he finished with a smile "Plus I believe his mother works on the stellar moon, which is also very popular world wide. If anything he's taking things very seriously as he's simply following his parents footsteps."
Hajime tensed while that information could be considered public knowledge. 'I never told anyone about that and he just knew based on what he drew. I guess it makes sense though considering how popular my mothers works are in the art community so I guess it's possible he recognized my last name and did some research', Hajime thought with a grimace, shifting slightly as everyone continued to look in his direction with differing emotions and expressions.
However, whatever mood Sato created with his words made Hajime secretly grateful towards the teen as it shut down any further conversions revolving around him.
Although, it made Hajime wonder... Why did Sato stick up for him in the first place?
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Entering the classroom felt like stepping into the lion's den. Daisuke Hiama and his cronies were already hounding Hajime, their cruel words cutting through the air like knives. And to make matters worse, Kouki Amanogawa and his sycophantic followers chimed in, eager to join the harassment. I couldn't understand why they couldn't leave well enough alone.
Why couldn't they see that I just wanted to avoid drama and focus on my own interests? But alas, it seemed that was too much to ask for in this hostile environment. Thankfully, after refusing to engage with their taunts, they largely ignored me. Yet, despite the temporary reprieve, I couldn't shake the feeling that today would be another challenging day. "Nanto iu itami~" I muttered to myself, resigning myself to the inevitable discomfort.
However my ignorance of the situation ceased when the conversation seemed to worsen. I simply couldn't stand it any more so I finally spoke in a slightly irritated but almost disinterested manner, "Isn't Hajime the son of a game designer and his mother a manga artist? Also forgive me if I'm mistaken, but I recall Hajime working half time in both of their workplaces. Honestly, out of everyone here I think he's one of the few people who already has their future secure.
"Out of everyone in this classroom, I can count on one hand who is currently prepared for employment after we graduate, and out of those few I consider Hajime to be among them." I said dismissively as I waved my pencil in Hajime's direction, an action that caused him to pale while wide eyed as the entire room shifted their gaze towards his direction.
"Ah, yeah right, as if this failure can do anything!" Daisuke said in an arrogant and almost dismissive manner.
Rolling my eyes before I continued "Hajimes father worked on Atlas online a few years back a video game mind you that has taken the western side of the world by storm and has sold millions of copies. The same game that won a best sellers award in New York Last year. Congratulations by the way." I finished with a smile. "Plus, I believe his mother works on the stellar moon which is also very popular world wide. If anything he is taking things very seriously as he is simply following his parents footsteps."
I finished in the same disinterested tone; an action which finally seemed to stop the harassment as the guys walked back to their seats with a click of their tongue and the girls with a simple huff. I simply sighed like always do. Today was going to be a pain...
Time passed. Before the bell signaling the start of classes finally rang, the teacher, Ms. Aiko, walked into the classroom. Ms. Aiko began the morning announcements, seemingly too used to the turbulent atmosphere present within the classroom to care. Then, as always, Hajime drifted off to Dreamland as class began. I simply opened my phone and changed the song I was listening to before staring ahead uninterested in whatever we were learning today.
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Hours passed until it became lunch time. Several students left to go buy lunch while other students opened their backpacks to grab their prepared lunches while speaking with each other, a scene that continued relatively the same for half an hour before all the other students who previously left began to make their way back to the class and into their seats.
Just as Ms. Aiko walked into the room and Aio was finishing his lunch before the class started once again, he suddenly froze. There was a lightly glowing silver circle engraved with several geometric patterns in front of Hajime and Kuki's feet. Aio looked around rapidly, his gaze shifting across the classroom as the pattern seemed to spread across the floor, walls and even ceiling. Aio instantly stood up; an action that gained everyone's attention before their attention wandered towards the circle which suddenly began to glow brighter while the light coming from outside the classroom seemed to instantly dim.
Finally, everyone stopped acting like deer in headlights and started screaming. Ms. Aiko finally seemed to snap out of whatever trance the circle put her in before yelling "Everyone, get out of the classroom!"
"What the hell is that!?" someone in the back questioned as more and more students began to look around, seeing these strange light patterns cover the floors until someone else spoke. "It's on the fucking ceiling too!?" Yeah, no, fuck this. Aio thought before he began to pack his things and make his way towards the door.
"WHAT'S GOING ON?"
"AAAAHHHH!"
"LET'S GET OUT!"
"OPEN THE WINDOWS!"
"THEY AREN'T OPENING!"
"AIO, OPEN THE FRONT DOOR!"
Shit was the last coherent thought that came to him before it all went white. At the same time, the magic circle flared up in a brilliant explosion of light. After a few seconds, or maybe a few minutes, he had no idea, the light finally began to fade, and color returned to the classroom. However, the room was now deserted. Some chairs were knocked over, half-eaten lunch boxes were sitting on desks, and chopsticks and plastic bottles were scattered across the room. The classroom had everything still left in it, except the people. It was labeled the mass high school disappearance incident, which caused quite a stir across the world, but that's neither here nor there.
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Aio woke up with a gasp; his eyes had yet to adjust to the world around him. He was blinded by the colors and could only see faint outlines everywhere. However, once they adjusted, his body stiffened. He was in an unfamiliar place surrounded by his classmates and teacher who appeared to be passed out on the floor as well, but that wasn't the end of it as they seemed to be on some sort of alter and surrounding this altar was several men and 2 women who all wore white priestly gowns and revealed smiles on their faces; bandanas covering their eyes and white biretta on there heads.
'Where am I? Where is this?' Aio thought to himself, his eyes scanning the world around him in what outwardly appeared a calm manner while internally he was panicking. 'Was that actually a summoning circle? How could something like that be? Am I in a church? Why are there so many priests? What world am I in? Is it like the fanfictions I've read about people being transmigrated into their favorite anime? Or is it like the novels where they are transmigrated into new worlds? Do I have powers of my own? WAIT no wait forget about that last one for now. Am I going to be used as a weapon? What are the reasons for our summoning?' More and more thoughts of panic began to swirl around his head and his breathing became more ragged until he heard a groan beneath him; shifting his legs he saw the face of Shizuku Yaegashi.
He quickly stood up before moving a few other students off of her before shaking her "Yaegashi-san, Yaegashi-san, wake up!" she groaned once more before opening one eye.
"Sato-San? What are you doing in my-" she suddenly sat up right before looking around. It seemed like the previous events seemed to only now regester inside her head as she looked around panic clear on her features.
When she finally looked down she noticed both Kouki Amanogawa and Ryutarou Sakagami,both of which she immediately began to attempt to wake up; however, as Aio was going to try to help her, he stopped.
"The Heroes Are Awake! The heroes have awoken. Dear heroes, you must help us! Heroes, Heroes!" Their voices rang out and the sudden noise and shaking woke up several of the students, including their Sensei.
All of whom seemed to be in the midst of a panic attack, so Aio took a calming breath before he screamed out, "QUIET DOWN!" an action which startled both his classmates and the priests. An action which caused everyone to look at him, not used to the attention of large groups of people he stiffened before releasing a long shaky breath.
'Treat this like a game... yeah, a game; roleplay like you do in vr, that's not so hard. They aren't real people, treat them like NPCs, they aren't people', he quickly told himself. "There's no use panicking, that only makes things worse so quiet down everyone. You're only making the situation more insufferial." He said, narrowing his eyes at the class before he turned his gaze back towards the priests.
"I can only assume you need something from us, so could you explain to us what that would be?" He asked stiffly.
One of the priestess stepped forward. "I'm afraid we can't tell you much." She said sadly, causing Aio's gaze to become downcast. She immediately panicked, waving her arms around. "It's not that we can't tell you or anything! It's just we don't know all the details so we'll take you to the head priest that way! You can get all your questions answered, I assure you!" she said quickly, trying not to anger the hero who was clearly the leader by the way he was talking.
Aio nodded. "If you could please lead the way," he said softly. The priestess only nodded before she and the rest of the clergy began to lead them away from the room down a hallway. Aio and his class looked around, observing the knights stationed by the doors of certain rooms and the paintings present. "Are these paintings of important political figures or are they the previous generations of the monarchy?"
The priestess turned to look at the painting in question before looking at the others and then back towards Aio, her face filled with confusion for a moment before her mouth partly opened as if just understanding something. "Ah no, the paintings here are from previous knights of the round, that one in particular being Sir Colin Tarness of the Tarness family and a previous paladin to this church before his end." She answered curtly.
Aio furrowed his brow before asking another question, "So we weren't summoned in the castle, but instead the church?"
The priestess seemed a little confused on how to answer that question before answering with a question of her own. "Would you have wanted to be summoned there?" She said with a slight head tilt.
"I have no preferences on location. It was simply curiosity, nothing more." Aio answered rather quickly, wanting to get moving again as the priestess had stopped moving to address Aio's questions, an action which allowed most of the students to look around with awe at the painting and decor of the room. The only ones seemingly on guard about this whole thing were himself, Hajime, and Aiko, a fact that greatly disappointed him with how idiotic his classmates were and their willingness to trust others with "magic" while they currently possessed none.
'So we are probably in a medieval fantasy world right now... That information could work well in our favor depending on how things go, but I'll save that for a worse case scenario,' Aio thought to himself as they began to walk once more.
Some time later they made their way to a room that looked a lot like a church. There were seats at another altar in the middle of the room, glass tinted windows with a figure Aio could only assume was their god. A single man was kneeling in front of the altar, praying to the statue of the figure behind it.
"Father, we have summoned the heroes and brought them here as you requested." The priestess said with a bow.
Still in his praying position the man kneeling spoke "Thank you lydia, please see them to the hall so their needs can be met. I'll join you shortly after my prayer." The priestess bowed again before she began to lead Aio and his classmates out the small church room and into what looked like a mess hall that was down the hall from the small private chapel room the priest was praying to his god in.
When he got there, Aio only had one thought on his mind.
'This is going to be a long day...'