Happy valentines day everyone!
To celebrate, I have decided to post my first fanfic.
Just a few points that I want to make before beginning.
1. This story does not follow the canon source so expect some big differences for both the storyline and characters.
2. This story's main pair is Satoru and Nabe.
3. I hope you enjoy ^^
Disclaimer: I only own my story and any OC that may appear. Everything else belongs to the original author of Overlord.
Chapter 1: Humble Beginnings
Wealth, status, power.
These are some of the most important things that one needed to have in order to live a comfortable life in the Re-Estize kingdom. It was not a stretch to say that the difference between the rich and the poor was astronomical and it was something they could do nothing about especially since titles and professions were hereditary.
Any jobs with a respectable nature were locked behind the same bloodline wall. And this applied to even those with exceptional talent. Despite entering the kingdom hosted 'Grand Tournament' to acquire the king's trust and became his personal bodyguard, Gazef Stronoff (renowned as the best swordsman of the Kingdom) was still unable to be knighted even after his championship victory.
Why?
Well it was because the man was of common birth.
To put it simply, a person's future was more or less sealed by the time they left their mother's womb, and the chance of progressing higher on the food chain was almost non-existent.
In a place where the scales were tipped so heavily in favor of the nobles, it came with no surprise that discrimination came hand in hand and the treatment of the lower working class was extremely poor. For instance, if one were to work for a noble as a servant, they would literally be treated like a dog. The workload would be outrageous and the pay would be minimal; perhaps just the bare minimum to purchase necessary essentials.
The saddest part is, even these that had such a pointless and future less job could be considered lucky next to those that have been literally left to rot in the slums. These were the places where those without anything next to their name resided. If they were lucky, they might be able to find a meal or two from a generous soul. Otherwise, they may very well die from hunger the next day and none would be the wiser.
However, with the Kingdom's ongoing war with the empire, the supply of food has gradually been on the decline as well. But then again, with an army that consisted of mainly militia, the negative results were hardly a surprise.
Life outside the city's capital was just as bad as outside with many frontier villages suffering from monster attacks due to their inability to hire adventurers. Naturally they would not have to if the Kingdom was capable of deploying soldiers for protection. Furthermore, the nobles who rule much of the Kingdom are generally apathetic to the well-being of their territories and did little to nothing when it came to maintaining public order on the roads.
All in all, the situation was grim and it didn't take a genius to figure out that the Kingdom was in dire need of major changes if they wanted to repair their sinking ship.
Yet, the split between the nobles and the royal factions prevented any form of salvation. To be fair, everyone in the capital knew that this dispute was really the root of the problem; the ever growing civil unrest made it all the more apparent with people whispering their distaste at the upper class whenever they had the chance. Naturally none dared to voice their opinions directly to them because it would earn them earn them a spot six feet under.
This was precisely why adventurers were such a popular profession for those that had the talent but not the status. Not only would one be able to earn some sort of living through this method, but more importantly, they would be able to maintain their dignity as a human being. Unfortunately, even this was not something that everyone could fall back on.
Because trying to hunt even the weakest of monsters would be considered suicide for those that lacked the capabilities.
So what happens to those that don't have anything?
The only option of course was to grovel on their feet and suffer sadly in silence.
And suffer in silence he did.
"Oi Oi Oi, where did the dog wonder off to? Get over here!"
Suzuki Satoru, a young man of 18 years, was currently pulling weeds as he was instructed earlier when he jumped at the voice before quickly scurrying to his noble employers.
"Yes, I'm here Alexei-sama."
"That took way too long, you piece of junk. Perhaps we should lower your pay today by half for that."
The haughty voice belonged to none other than Alexei, the oldest son and heir to the Chase noble family; Satoru's current employers.
As to how exactly this arrangement came to be?
After being forcibly banished from his small frontier village many years ago, Satoru was of course left with very limited resources at hand. Figuring that he lacked the ability to go far, the young boy at the time decided to travel towards the capital of Re-Estize kingdom. Despite lacking any talents and skills, Satoru hoped that there would be plenty of opportunities in a place where the population was high.
But reality always answered his prayers in as cruel a fashion as possible by first lifting his hopes high before letting him free fall back to Earth.
To put a long story short, Satoru had been unable to find anything that remotely matched his expectations. Left in the middle of town without a copper to his name, the young boy had no choice but to submit to the terrible working conditions as a miscellaneous servant for a noble family.
Miscellaneous servant was really just a fancy way saying slave without the ownership attached to the title. Unlike maids and butlers which carried a certain level of authority and were treated decently by the family, servants had nothing. Rather they were simply there to handle the family's every whim and desire, which often entailed heavy physical labor or tedious chores handed down to him by the maids.
In fact, in all the 4 years that Satoru had served under the Chase family, not once had he ever even been allowed inside the mansion. When he had dared to ask, Alexei had simply replied only humans were allowed inside and not dogs.
Yet no matter how badly he was treated in public, not a single passerby or city guard ever attempted to help, instead preferring to turn a blind eye on the matter. After all, who would want to get on the bad side of one of the most influential and powerful families in the capital?
And so we arrive at the present Satoru, a young man who possessed features that were far too disheveled and unhealthy for someone in his growing ages. He couldn't even remember the last time he had smiled.
"You're too kind big bro. Instead of paying half, you should skip his pay for the week." Hayes, Alexei's younger brother, exclaimed with a sadistic grin. "We can just find a new toy if this one dies from hunger."
"No please don't, Hayes-sama." Satoru immediately prostrated himself on the floor. There was simply no way he would be able to survive a week without income regardless of how meager it is.
"Then fetch like the dog you are. And be quick about it, otherwise you'll lose it."
Alexei dropped a copper coin at his feet, watching as Satoru immediately scrambled to retrieve it. This wasn't the first time this happened nor the second for that matter. This was almost a weekly occurrence as though the Chase brothers severely lacked any other form of entertainment.
"Oi Oi Oi! Now you got dust all over my boots, piece of trash!"
"Sorry Hayes-sama. I..."
But the boy was cut off when he felt the crushing weight of a metal boot against the back of his head.
"Stay still while I wipe my armor clean, dog."
Several minutes passed and finally the knight was done but rather than lifting his feet away, Hayes instead added pressure causing Satoru to fall face first onto the fall.
"Look at him struggle."
"Hahahaa, what's the matter? We can't have someone so weak as a servant! If you don't get up, we will have no choice but to help you strengthen your endurance."
Against someone who not only ate and slept well but also retrieved physical training, there was no way someone so frail and nutrition deprived could bear the weight. Therefore he could only grit his teeth and bear it with all his might.
"Brother, it's almost time for our shift."
Judging by both their current attire that consisted of dazzling plate armor, it was very likely that the pair were on their way to perform their duties as Palace guards.
"Tchhh." Reaching into his pockets for another spare copper, Alexei threw it onto the pavement below. "Get out of my sight now filth."
Without even bothering to get the dirt out of his hair, the poor man immediately sprinted to where the coin should have landed, afraid that someone else might snatch it. In all his haste however, he forgot to pay heed to the ongoing traffic and instead bumped rather hard into someone.
But rather than being pushed back by his momentum, the individual managed to prevent both Satoru and them self from falling; catching his outstretched hands with lightning quick reflexes before helping him regain his center of gravity.
"I'm very sorry, please accept me apology for not watching where I was going."
"..."
Mentally preparing for a harsh lecture from some rich citizen in the Kingdom, Satoru prostrated himself for the second time today. But he was met with only silence.
Confused, Satoru lifted his eyes only to meet the gaze of an individual that took his breath away.
There standing directly before him was a beautiful young girl who looked to be in her late teens.
Whether it be her flawless pale skin, dark black hair that swayed ever so slightly in the morning breeze or those alluring onyx eyes that seemed to pierce the very soul of whoever it laid it's gaze upon, everything about her was gorgeous to say the least, as though the very fabrication of an ideal woman had been created and breathed to life by the divines.
Such an individual was sure to turn heads wherever she went, as evident by the amount of attention the pair currently received.
Contrary to Satoru's expectation however, not a hint of anger was evident on her calm and collected features. In fact, Satoru could have sworn that he detected just the slightest hint of surprise. The cause of course, alluded him completely.
"Uhmmm..." To be honest, he wasn't really sure what else to do but apologize again. "...Sorry again about..."
But his words were cut off when he felt a strong kick connect against his side, sending him flying towards the side of the street.
Before his vision grew dim, he could see Alexei walking up to the girl in question, no doubt after hitting him away to steal the spotlight.
"Ngghhh..." The young man groaned wearily as he slowly rose from his slumber before instantly regretting it for a strong burst of pain could be felt from his stomach. "Ouch!"
"Be quiet you maggot."
There sitting quietly by a desk not far from him was a snow-white skinned young girl with silky smooth hair tied back in a ponytail. Even the darkness of the night was unable to hide her radiant beauty as she sipped away daintly at a cup of steaming tea. Although still a bit dazed, it didn't take long for him to recognize the elegant individual.
"You...You're the girl from earlier today? Why...Why am I here?"
Under any other normal circumstance, Satoru would have automatically opened with an apology as he was likely to be the one who had caused some sort of trouble. Yet, more important matters dominated his mind and he found himself desperately seeking confirmation on the most recent memories he could recall, currently finding it difficult to discern between fact and ficion.
With the last signs of drowsiness clearing from his head, Satoru could feel an onslaught of questions taking it's place.
Did I really just pass out in the middle of a shift? What punishment are the Chase family going to give me? Did I get fired? Where am I?
Satoru gave his room a quick survey, hoping to find some tell-tale signs that might offer a clue or two. Unfortunately, it did little to answer his growing concern, having nothing that distinguished it from any other cheap inn.
"You're here because you fainted in the middle of the street and no one was willing to do anything about it." Giving him a quick indifferent glance, the mysterious female finally decided to speak up.
"I see, erm... thank you very much for your help." Knowing that he was currently being the living embodiment of burden, Satoru slid out of bed slowly, grunting in pain whenever his abdomen muscles did work. "Sorry for being a nuisance, what can I do to return the favor?"
It only took him a second to realize that he had more than one physical problem, because his feet gave way as soon as he put weight on them. Satoru would have face-planted into the hard wooden floor had it not been for her lightning quick reflexes. Catching him mid fall, the beautiful adventurer helped the injured man back into a comfortable resting position in bed, her gentle actions directly contrasted to the annoyed glare she gave him right after.
"Slug, do you not know what pain means? Stay still and rest." She commanded before resuming her post at his bedside.
"But...But..." The black-haired man started, struggling to keep his words from slurring as a fresh wave of fatigue washed over him. "I couldn't possibly impose any longer..."
"The night is late, we may chat once the morning arrives." Twisting in her seat to face the desk, she picked up the unfinished book that lay atop before engrossing herself in it's contents, signalling the end of the conversation.
And the next couple of hours passed rather uneventfully, filled with nothing but the sounds of flipping pages and broken snoring.
Several hours passed and she was fairly certain that he was fast asleep, then and only then did Nabe allow herself to take a closer look at the boy.
Although his features were soft and gentle, perhaps due to a pleasant visit to the land of dreams, there wasn't really anything special about him that she could detect. In fact, if one were to judge purely from a superficial view, he was below average in terms of appearance. Short, skinny and lacking in muscles.
Recalling the earlier event today, Nabe instinctively looked at her hands, reminding her of the physical contact that two had made when he bumped into her like a maniac.
Nabe still knew so little about this world and her current condition...caused her a myriad of problems since her arrival.
Could this young man really be the solution to her problems?
And if so, did that mean that she would need to travel together with a human? A human male no less?!
Nabe clutched her head and groaned in mortification at the thought. This was going to be a long night...
Authors notes - So how was chapter 1? :D
Thanks for reading everyone and hope to see you all in the next !