I should probably put this here right now: The upload rate for this story is going to be haphazard for the time being. In the past, I burnt myself out trying to pump out chapters for stories as fast as I could, which led to me losing my motivation to write for a long time after. This time, I'm going to be taking it much slower and, as a result, will probably mean decent waiting time on the next chapter.
With that being said, enjoy!
Naofumi had been woken up by the maid that had been assigned to him and, even though she gave him some weird vibes, he felt amazing. Today's the day I set out with a party of my own! I'm sure this'll be loads of fun and everyone will…
His thoughts turned to Chazon and his upbeat mood was replaced with a slightly worried one. Of the four heroes, he was the only one lacking self-esteem and was convinced that he would be the weakest one despite having a good weapon type. I really wish the whole 'legendary heroes can't level up together' thing wasn't true. Hopefully he'll get party members that'll help him boost his self-confidence.
While he turned a corner while following his assigned maid, who has a bad habit of interjecting "I daresay" into her sentences, he heard her express surprise. He quickly saw why when he beheld Chazon for the first time since last night. "Oh what the hell, man. You look like crap!"
Chazon looked like he didn't sleep a wink last night. He had dark circles under his eyes and looked extremely tired, yet there was a certain amount of alertness to them. Almost as if he didn't want to fall asleep. "I'll be fine, Naofumi. Sadly, if nobody is there talking with me, my mind tends to wander places I don't want it to be. I might be able to sleep tonight, though." That did little to convince Naofumi, but he let it go for now.
When they got to the dining hall, both of the younger heroes showed concern for Chazon, though he was able to convince them that he was a mixture of too excited and nervous to be doing this. In his mind, it was a half-truth since he genuinely wondered what adventuring would be like.
Naofumi still had his happy-go-lucky attitude from last night, something which gave Chazon a small amount of relief. While the spear hero was worried that he might get taken advantage of, he envied how gung-ho the shield hero was to start adventuring despite the initial impression that he drew the short straw.
Ren was still plenty condescending, though he did regard Chazon with more respect after the talk regarding class roles. That didn't stop him from thinking of this world as a game similar to his favorite VRMMO, though Chazon had to let the jury out on that since he had no idea how it would work. Besides Naofumi, Ren was the one who seemed to get along with Chazon the most and vice versa.
He had no idea on how to feel about Itsuki despite getting to know him better during breakfast. The best Chazon could come up with is that he has a strong sense of justice, but tends to get rather full of himself. This wound up making the spear hero compare him to an "egotistical Robin Hood" and left it at that. Like the other two, he also believed that this was just a game.
Am I being too pessimistic when I don't want to consider this a game? Last I checked; we could still feel pain, we still need to eat, drink, sleep, and go to the bathroom, and none of these "NPCs" act like one. The amount of programming it would take to make every NPC this unique outside of cutscenes would be absurd.
After breakfast was done and Chazon was able to get rid of his sleep-deprived look thanks to some rather bitter potions, they were led back to the audience chamber, where many nobles watched overhead and a row of people stood in front of the king. So these are the adventurers that will be joining our parties?
Chazon scanned the group as he approached, but didn't feel much of anything towards any of them. All except for the red-headed woman that was a bit to the right; she definitely looked gorgeous, but Chazon figured someone like her would stay far away from the front lines.
And, if he had to confess to himself and to the others mentally, he absolutely hated red-headed girls. In his world, there wasn't a single red-head that he interacted with that either a: gave him a good first impression by being full of themselves, or b: led him or any of his friends on only to stab them in the back when it suited them the most.
One particular example infuriated him the most. When his older brother chose to believe his two-faced fiance over his biological family, he turned their back to them practically at her request. Heck, he even gave himself a new go-to online name after the fact that was most likely her suggestion. What was it… wasn't it some dumb name like Moyatsu?
The red-head winked at him flirtatiously as Chazon approached, but all he did was give her a flat look. Whether or not she noticed it was up in the air. Maybe I shouldn't be a hard ass about my dislike for red-heads. It's a completely new world, perhaps they aren't bad here.
It was hard to go against feelings that have long since built up in you from past experiences.
"These are the adventurers that have volunteered to join you heroes on your quest for strength. May they serve as pillars for you to lean against. To our future Champions, it is finally time to begin your journey!"
The adventurers started walking towards the heroes, presumably to pick the hero they wanted to party with. What Chazon found very odd is that he got four girls wanting to join him, including the red-head that winked at him earlier. As flattered as I should feel, there's no way…
"Wait, what is this?!" Chazon looked over and realized that nobody had chosen to party with Naofumi, even though Ren and Itsuki had more than enough party members.
"Well, this is rather unexpected…" The tone used by the king sounded… more bored rather than surprised, which immediately set off a red flag in Chazon's mind. "So the rumors are true, then?"
Chazon decided to speak up for Naofumi. "What rumors? I haven't heard about anything during breakfast."
The advisor stepped forward. "That's because they are rumors from around town. Rumors that say the shield hero is ignorant about the world."
"That's abnormally specific for a rumor that started only this morning, last night at the earliest. What about-"
Chazon was cut off by the king raising his hand. "According to our legends, the heroes come to our land with all of the knowledge necessary to traverse it. It's apparent that none of the adventurers here feel the shield hero doesn't meet that criteria."
Chazon looked down in mild frustration. That's a whole load of bullshit if I've ever heard it. None of us have any idea what to expect in this world, never mind this land.
Naofumi had started looking to the other heroes for party members. But Ren and Itsuki blew him off, so he turned to Chazon. The spear hero let out a pained sigh before giving the girls that wanted to join him a pleading look. Outside of the red-head, who seemed to be in thought, The girls looked away nervously. So even you guys… are you even here by choice, if that's the case?!
Chazon looked back at Naofumi with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry. I'm not one to force people into doing what I or others want."
Naofumi had finally deflated. Chazon tried his best for me so I can't be mad at him at all, but I need someone to help me level or I'll never be the person he believes me to be-
"Sir spear hero?" Everyone looked at the red-head as she approached. "Would you permit me to join the shield hero's party?"
Chazon was immediately torn. On one hand, here was someone ACTUALLY willing to join Naofumi and help him get stronger. But on the other, everything in his gut was screaming at him to not let the two be alone JUST because she's a red-head. Urrrrgh… I need to let go of my past experiences. I need to…
Opening his eyes, Chazon gave her a grateful nod. "I'm counting on you, then." All she did was nod sweetly as she took her place behind Naofumi.
When it became clear that nobody else would join Naofumi, the king was at least willing to compensate him by giving him more funds for this month than the rest of the heroes. Naofumi had to recruit more members on his own, but at least he wasn't up the creek without a boat.
After receiving their funds, which amounted to about 600 silver coins for Chazon, the heroes were let loose to make preparations for adventuring. Chazon wished Naofumi luck with his only party member, who was named Myne, before heading to some of the equipment shops in the town.
However, during a trek through a more desolate alleyway, Chazon decided to rip one particular band-aid off while it was on his mind and stopped. "Girls, before we go any further, I need to ask you a very important question."
The girls looked nervously at each other before the blond smiled nervously. "Y-you can ask us anything, Sir spear hero, even if it's… um… about particular things you need or want."
The implications of what she said flew right over Chazon's head as he let out a sigh. "I'm going to be extremely blunt here; did any of you actually want to join me?"
If it weren't for the nearby bustling streets, the silence would have been deafening. All three girls stood there with stunned looks before becoming more nervous under his questioning gaze. He decided to try enticing the truth out of them the only way he knows how. "I'm not going to be mad or disappointed if you're just honest with me. I simply hate it when people beat around the bush."
There was a long pause before the girl with the mage hat let out a dejected sigh. "Forgive us, Sir spear hero. None of us wanted to be adventurers in the first place, but the king wanted young girls like us to join them as potential… motivation for you guys."
I. Fucking. Called it…
Chazon let out a small laugh. "I figured as much. There's no way a group of cute girls would willingly party up with an ugly sob like me right out of the gate. Plus, there was nervousness in your eyes when I looked at you for anyone to join the shield hero's party."
"S-Sir spear hero, you are not ugly!" The pink-haired one out-bursted. "I've met some very ugly men in my life and you're nowhere near ugly enough to be considered one of them!"
That did make Chazon feel a bit better as he laughed with a bit more jolly. "I don't know the standard for 'good looks' in this world, so I was making a guess, but thank you for your words." His face turned serious again. "That doesn't change the fact that none of you actually want to be here. As such, I'll give you girls a choice. You can still stay with me and we can work together to face the waves as a team, or you can leave and go live life how you want."
The blond girl looked a bit panicked. "Sir spear hero, are you certain? If all three of us leave you-"
"I'll be fine with it." He gives the trio a reassuring smile. "Like I said earlier, I don't like forcing people to do what they don't want to do. And you girls look like you'd rather do something else with your life than risk it fighting the waves, which is completely fine by me."
There was more silence before the mage bowed respectfully. "Then… permit us to at least give you information on Castle Town and it's shops before we part company. It's the least we can do for the kindness you showed us in letting us decide."
What followed was Chazon getting an information dump about the town he was in, including information on all of the shops, blacksmiths, taverns, and inns. Thankfully, his memory was sufficient to remember most of it once the trio was done. The pink-haired girl stopped before leaving the alleyway and gave him a sweet smile. "Thank you kindly, Sir spear hero. We may not fight with you on the field of battle, but know that you have our earnest prayers being sent your way."
Chazon bowed to her. "You honor me, m'lady. I will do my best." She giggled before exiting on the street. At least you girls didn't have to babysit the most useless hero of the bunch. I spared you that much.
Chazon spent the next few hours finding all of the shops and faculties he needed to know. One thing that he reminded himself of was one of the most important things in Monster Hunter: preparing for the expedition ahead.
I need to get potions and rations for extended periods outside of town. I won't always have the luxury of a warm bed and hot meal at the end of the day. An idea formed in his head as he thought of what he needed. Maybe I should invest in camping gear and practice 'roughing' it for a while. That way, I'll be used to it for the inevitable long trips I'll have to make since there are no cars in this world.
Chazon also spent some time getting used to his inventory system after he bought some HP potions. The old man running the shop was helpful in teaching him how it worked and how to use it. There were apparently two different inventories: one for things like potions that had limited space, the other for various materials that he'll collect while out of town. Thank god for unlimited material space. I have a hard time knowing what to keep and what to get rid of or sell.
After finding a general store and buying camping gear as well as some rations, he made his way to the blacksmith, giddy about visiting one for the first time in his life.
"Welcome... oh? Getting two Cardinal Heroes in one day! My shop really is popular!" The blacksmith was a balding man with a brown beard and a scar under his left eye. "Never mind that, though. My name is Erhard, pleased to make your acquaintance!" he held out his hand.
"Chazon. A pleasure to meet you." He took his hand expecting a firm shake, but was unbalanced by how enthusiastic the shake was, much to Erhard's amusement.
"Chazon? Nice to see you again so soon!" Naofumi was standing in the shop waiting for Myne to choose a sword for use in battle. He had already changed into some rather fancy chainmail. "Where are your party members?"
"They're, er, making their own preparations. "Chazon outright lied to Naofumi for the first time. He didn't want to worry the shield hero about having a party member when he didn't. "Anyways, are you getting some armor?"
"Yeah. I tried to grab a sword for my own, but apparently, we're not allowed to wield anything besides our assigned weapon." Naofumi looked at the swords with a disappointed grimace.
"Wait, you're joking, right?" Chazon decided to try picking up a sword himself, only to get shocked and the weapon repelled from his hand. "You're actually serious…"
Legendary weapon rule violation:
A hero may not hold, with intent to fight, any weapon other than their assigned legendary weapon.
"That's a load of bullshit if I've ever heard it." Chazon stated in blatant irritation. "These things could become dead-weights to us if they don't improve with our levels."
Erhard sighed. "I'm sure you'll cross that bridge when you come to it. In the meantime, why don't you browse my armor? I'm sure you'll find something that suits you!" He said with plenty of gusto.
"We should probably leave so that Sir spear hero can make his choice without interruption." Myne walked over, apparently deciding not to get a new sword today.
"Huh? O-oh, yes!"
Naofumi exited the blacksmith after saying goodbye to Chazon and Erhard, but the spear hero caught him before he went too far, though Myne kept walking ahead unaware that Naofumi was held up. "Just between you and me, but I'm not going to be returning to town once my preparations are done."
That caught Naofumi off guard. "What are you doing then? Surely you need to return to town to rest and eat?"
"I'm aware I can, but I want to get used to camping out in the wild, since I get the feeling we'll be doing that a lot." Chazon checked to make sure nobody was eavesdropping on them. "Can I ask that you not tell anyone I'm doing so? I'd rather not get harassed while I'm trying to adjust to things."
Naofumi gave Chazon a hesitant nod. "Alright then, but you come back to town at the first sign of it being too dangerous. I don't want you or your party members to get attacked while you are camping out at night."
"Hero's honor," Chazon said before sharing a laugh with Naofumi and sending him off. After watching him go, the spear hero re-entered the blacksmith. "Sorry about that, Erhard. What have you got for me?"
"Thought you'd never ask, kiddo!" Erhard said in a jovial tone, but he suddenly adopted a serious look. "Before we do though, I need to ask: how familiar are you with your weapon?"
The question caught Chazon off guard as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. "Honestly, not at all. The world that I come from has no real need for this weapon anymore outside of certain activities."
"Then before we pick out your armor, let's get you some teaching and practice with that thing first." Erhard shows Chazon a way out back, presumably to a testing or training yard.
"I haven't purchased anything yet, so why are you-"
"I get the feeling you'll be a returning customer, so I'd feel much more confident in that assessment if I was certain you knew how to use that spear properly. Legendary weapon or no, it's just a fancy stick in the hands of an amateur."
He certainly doesn't mince words, does he? Chazon shook his head in amusement as he let himself get guided out back.
In the yard, there were a few wooden training dummies and a small archery range for testing bows. Erhard motioned towards one. "Before we begin, I want you to give this dummy a few good attacks. That way, I can judge properly on how much basic training you'll need."
"Basic?" Chazon looked at Erhard questioningly. "Are we talking just basic attacks that anyone can do?"
"Correct. If you need it then I can teach you that much, but more intermediate and advanced forms of spear combat are better learned from someone who's studied the way of the spear. But enough talk, let's see how you do."
Chazon shrugged as he properly took the spear in hand like the Dragoon does in Final Fantasy 14. Erhard quickly told him that his stance was too stiff and rigid; while spear users do have more range on their melee strikes than most other weapons, they still live and die by how fluid their actions are.
After modifying the stance, Chazon started attacking the dummy. He started off with a few basic thrusts, even throwing in a few somewhat downward thrusts by adjusting his grip quickly, which Erhard confirmed to be the basics of the basic spear combat.
What surprised the Blacksmith was when Chazon started working and weaving some slashes in between his thrust attacks. Despite being known for stabbing attacks, most beginners forget that the blade of most spears can still be used to cut like a sword.
After a bit, Erhard shook his head. "Are you sure you're an amateur, kid? I'd say you're closer to an intermediate user by my limited understanding."
"I… I'm pretty sure I never used one before." Even Chazon didn't know how to explain it. Once his posture was corrected, all of the stabs and slashes he made felt… natural, like he's been doing them his whole life. What's going on? Is there something about this world that's making me apt at spear combat?
The answer to his question appeared when he received a notification on his status screen:
Heart of the Spear (Passive Effect)
Users of the legendary spear will automatically know and learn spear-work techniques and combos. Will also draw from the user's memories for attacks.
That feels like cheating; I'd hate to meet someone who shed blood, sweat, and tears mastering this weapon, only to learn that I had the more intermediate techniques down pat as soon as I entered this world. It did explain why he was able to do the Full Thrust combo from Final Fantasy 14 almost perfectly if the effect also worked from his memory.
Erhard let out a sigh. "If I had to guess, that spear of yours is what's allowing you to be super fluid with your attacks and techniques." Chazon flinched at being found out so quickly before nodding. "Figures. I'm glad I didn't study the spear in full, else I would feel very insulted right now." He claps his hands together with a grin on his face. "Thankfully, that allows us to get to the good part faster!"
Chazon gave him an odd look as he put his spear on his back. "I missed what this "good part" is; I don't think it was already mentioned, actually."
"I did mention it to you. It's the part where you purchase armor from me!" Erhard let out a hearty laugh as Chazon facepalms in amusement. "That being said, this might take a bit to get you fitted to what you want, so let's get started."
Chazon got a crash course on all the types of armor that was available, especially at Erhard's store. The chainmail was the weakest in terms of defence, but didn't hamper movement at all; leather armor was a bit more restrictive in exchange for a LOT more defense; and above that was at least three tiers of plate armor: light, medium, and heavy.
Due to his agility and attack being equal, Chazon entertained the idea of using chainmail, but quickly reminded himself that he's currently flying solo. There's also the fact that while the best defense was avoiding attacks altogether, he didn't want to push his luck; the legendary spear may have given him good spear techniques, but dodging and movement during battle was a whole other beast.
"If I may be honest, I'd prefer something on the more defensive side, but not something that would completely eliminate my agility." Chazon decided on that ultimatum after some contemplation.
Erhard nodded. "Staying on the safe side is always a good bet. I got a set of both medium and light plate armor that'll get you started, even within your budget." Chazon nodded at that; he's saving going for heavy armor as a last resort if he can't find a party member willing to tank for him. "So now we come to the fifty gold question: light or medium plate?"
Chazon thought about it for a bit longer before nodding. "I'll take my chances with the medium plate. It might hamper my movement, but I'd rather have the defences to take a few more hits since I'm flying solo right now- ah... that slipped out, didn't it?"
Erhard looked shocked at what he heard. "Kid, you are by yourself right now? What about the party members you mentioned to shield bro?"
"Cat's out of the bag now. I'll tell you, but only if you can keep a secret." Erhard nodded and moved in closer to listen. "To tell you the truth, none of them wanted to be adventurers in the first place, so I let them go live their lives how they want. I want party members willing to fight the waves and they weren't, though thankfully it wasn't out of spite for me that they didn't. I admit, I wouldn't have been surprised if it was out of spite; I'm not exactly the best hero."
Erhard could already tell two things: one was that Chazon's heart was a bit too big for his own good. Two was that he could tell the kid's self-esteem had been suffering even before coming to this world as the spear hero. However, what's done is done so he simply sighed. "If that is your wish. Just promise me you won't live to regret it... or die from it in this case. I'll even give you a good discount for your armor."
"No promises, but thank you for your concern and the discount. So about my armor…"
After getting outfitted and paying 185 silver for the medium plate armor, Chazon looked more akin to a standard soldier rather than a hero. He was fine with it; no need to be flashy since going for looks might be a big mistake. He shudders when he remembers his duster coat getting caught on a bush during the one time he was running from a bear back in Canada. It almost got him killed, all because he wanted to look cool.
Shaking the memory from his head, he checked his stats. Sure enough, his agility was lowered, but his defenses were given a good boost. I'm fine with this. I was never really speedy in my world anyways.
After having a civilized meal for what he presumes to be the last time for a few days and putting his remaining 400 silvers in his inventory, he headed towards the gates leading outside of town. All the while, he was plagued by increasing whispers of self-doubt in his mind; by the time he reached the gate, he was uncertain if taking the plunge now would actually allow him to make a difference.
I know I promised Naofumi that I'd do my best as well, but… can I do it? Can I actually be the hero this world needs? I still feel like anyone else would have been a better choice than me.
He ultimately convinced himself that if he didn't go, he'd be an even bigger dead-weight to Naofumi and the other heroes. With that in mind, he stepped outside the gate; at this point the only thing nagging at him was the anticipation.
As he traveled along the road, he noted that it was mostly farmer's fields rather than wilderness. Guess the monsters around here have to be pretty pathetic if the average farmer can work out here.
Said pathetic monsters soon showed themselves. Chazon's status magic identified them as Orange Balloons, complete with a red icon showing their locations. "You guys certainly look like a creature I know from a game I played all too much!"
They attacked him, only to quickly die by a single strike each from his spear. He winced, not at the fact that he was killing living things, but at the loud popping sounds. Chazon noted the orange scraps left behind and figured it was the first example of monster materials. He quickly stored them in his material inventory before moving on.
He noted the monster diversity after the first "battle" was done. There were not only orange balloons, but yellow and red ones as well, though they all only gave one exp. There were also bird-like monsters called PikyuPikyu, rabbit monsters called Usapil, and strange egg creatures.
He was able to deal with them all even though the organic monsters took more hits to kill. He did blanch a bit at blood being drawn, but reminded himself of the times he went hunting in the wilderness with his dad and all of the wild life he had shot. That made killing and carving the organic monsters for materials and meat more bearable for him, though he gagged at some of the smells.
By the time the sun had started setting, he had already leveled up to 3. The vast majority of the monsters he encountered were the balloons and they gave next to nothing. He did stumble across some mushroom enemies called Roux Mushes, but they weren't overly high leveled either. I'm guessing the other heroes had better luck with what they fought.
As he searched for a spot to set up camp, his mind turned to Naofumi and he quickly prayed for his safety and well-being. That moment of distraction was all a Usapil needed to chomp on an unarmored part of his leg and draw blood. "OW. MOTHERFUCKER!" was all it heard before getting skewered.
Chazon hissed in pain as he looked at his wound closely before downing one of his lower quality HP potions. It was bitter, but he persevered through the taste before looking down to see the wound had closed. "I need to be more careful… that was just a weak monster, yet it could hurt badly and still draw blood so easily."
I also need to be mindful of my unarmored spots. It is so easy to think that the defense of my armor will apply to all of my body; it won't.
This isn't a game.
Letting out a sigh, he found his clearing that was a good distance away from Castle town and any of the farmer's fields and set up his camp, complete with a monster repellent that lasts throughout the night until morning. He decided to try cooking the Usapil meat just to see how it tastes.
He couldn't tell what it tasted like. He was normally a big meat eater, but this might be one meat that he'll have to force himself to get used to. It was a mixture of bland and slightly overdone, due to him not wanting to risk treating the meat like steak from a cow.
After eating his fill, Chazon double checked his inventory and debated on what he should do. Perhaps I should put monster hunting to the side and focus on gathering materials. My status magic can identify plants usable in potions and whatnot. If I'm not going to be selling monster materials much, then I need to learn how to make potions myself or at least gather selling fodder that I'm more willing to let go; my funds won't last forever if I just hoard everything.
Leaving that for tomorrow, Chazon retired for an early morning, silently praying that Naofumi won't be too disappointed with him when he finds out he let his party members go. Little did he know, Naofumi was set to receive the rudest wake-up call imaginable.
Just as a heads up, the idea for a passive that helps someone from modern society easily use a legendary weapon came from the story "Rise of the Bow Hero" by Godreal, so credit for that idea goes to him (and you should check his story out, as its further along than mine and got some great ideas).