Prologue - New Beginnings

/ Start Note \

Hello there, Lloyd R. Ferrer.

I'm not exactly, uh, active on this site, or in the realm of fanfiction whatsoever. I'm more so one of those people who prefers to write stories and keep them to myself. After all, I write for my own enjoyment, so posting my own fictional ventures seems like a waste of time. HOWEVER; recently I've been getting this melancholic feeling of disappointment and boredom, reading a lot of the recent RotSH fanfictions around.

I'm going to be honest. A lot of them do not tap into the great fictional and imaginative potential that fanfiction is supposed to have, and reading most of them just makes my toes curl in frustration because I see so many opportunities and plot/character ideas wasted in favor of doing something either unimaginative or - in my own opinion - just cringeworthy.

But hey, these people are doing this in their free time, just like me, so instead of continuing to complain to myself, I decided to start my own fanfiction for once and just… do better.

This story will follow Caleb Kooper, or Lieutenant Kooper, a fresh Lieutenant out of Basic Military Officer Qualifications(BMOQ) in the Canadian Army. Only a day before his first deployment, while he is on leave, Caleb comes across the same book that Naofumi had in the original story, which prompts the same entrance into the world of RotSH.

The main problem I have with characters inserted into the RotSH world is that they're often, as I said, imaginative or cringy. You can FEEL that most of the fanfictions were written by teens who are still in the mindset of teens, and as an adult, I hate that. I don't want to feel like I'm reading the fantasies of a misdirected tween, I want to read the insertion of a REALISTIC and REASONABLE adult character into the world so that it can be IMPROVED, not ruined.

Anyways, summary and rant over. Enjoy readers, please feel free to review, tell me what was good, and please, PLEASE tell me what was bad if you found anything. I like improving my work. :)

(P.S: I'm not saying ALL the stories on here are bad, there are quite a few ones that I really like, and I commend the people who work on them.)

/ \

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEep-!

Caleb's hand slapped its way onto the top of his alarm clock, hitting the snooze button first, followed by the off button a moment later once his finger had found it.

Ugh… already?

He looked over to his left to check the glow-in-the-dark analog clock. Sure enough, the time read "4:30 AM." The same time he had long gotten used to waking up around since resigning himself to a life in the military. Despite that, his entire body screamed in protest as he slowly sat himself up in bed, letting the sheets fall to his lap. The early dawn light, poking through the only partially folded blinds, cast a small tint over his lean, but toned and fit body. Caleb stretched his arms behind his back, then got up, grunting and groaning like an old man; or at least, in his opinion, he felt like an old man given how sore he was everywhere.

Kooper made his way to the kitchen, albeit slowly after taking some time to fully wake up while getting dressed. Unlike most mornings, he decided not to go for a run by about 5:00 AM. He wanted to preserve his energy for later. He was given orders to show up to the base in Kingston Ontario in the evening along with the other forces that were being deployed from there. It was his first deployment, a peacekeeping assignment in South America to help reduce civil unrest in Bolivia, after a particularly messy government struggle. Despite his initial morning grogginess, by the time he had his uniform on and had eaten breakfast, he was practically giddy with excitement.

Caleb had all his gear ready within about an hour. After double checking, and then triple checking to make sure he had everything - his provisions, equipment, unloaded rifle, and everything else - he made his way out of his home, into the streets of Vancouver. He lived in a small apartment in the busier section of the city. Despite the noise and the occasional problem with his landlord, he was completely fine with it. The west coast of Canada was his home, even if he knew BC wasn't the best province, and he wouldn't feel right to move to another location unless he was ordered to by the Army.

Gradually, Caleb ambled his way over to a bookstore he had been visiting for the past few weeks while he was on leave. He found he never really had the time to enjoy the entirety of the city while he was there, but Caleb always made time to read every so often. It was a lesson his father always told him to help him get through school: knowledge is power, and reading is always a form of knowledge, even if he usually just indulged in fictional novels and similar.

The store was empty when he entered, which wasn't surprising. It was only 7:00 AM, and the store owner had only just opened up - in fact, the only reason that they opened so promptly was because they knew Kooper would be around by then, given how often he came by. Like any fantasy novel addict, Caleb made a beeline for the fantasy section of the store, his eyes skimming over for anything he didn't recognize, anything he might care about. It was his intent to go home with at least a couple books that he was going to take with him on his deployment, although he didn't know how much he'd get to read while he was there.

Hm… so few new additions to the shelves. I guess in the aftermath of COVID, no one really wants to get to making new books so soon.

His gaze stopped abruptly when he noticed a smaller book shoved in between two other larger ones. He would have skipped by it, but for some reason, the spine had no name or labels. Instead, there was just a single golden engraving in it, some sort of circular symbol with four items inside its design: a sword, a bow, a spear, and a shield.

Weird…

Caleb slipped the book out by one corner, fumbling it around in his hands, trying to see if it had any sort of bar code, title, or even an author or description. The feel of the book was leathery, and it retained an old, musty burgundy color. On the front of it, there was the same dark golden symbol stretched across it, and near the top half was some Japanese lettering that he didn't understand.

I only know a few words in Japanese… I think it says something about "Records," but I don't understand the rest.

Well.. there isn't much I can do with a book in another language. Especially if it has no real world purpose to me.

Caleb moved to set the book back where it was, but he stopped mid-movement. He didn't understand why, but he found himself taking another look at it, opening the front pages and reading the forenotes, even though it was all in Japanese and he could barely understand any of it. He supposed that it was because of the innate curiosity in him, and so he resolved only to waste about a minute of his time on the book.

I don't understand what's going on in this book, but from the formatting of it, it seems less like an actual fantasy novel, and more like… Records of a particular fictional world. Perhaps this is some kind of guide book that is attached to an actual novel series in Japan, something that I wouldn't know about.

Still… he continued to flip through the pages, and he relied on the pictures more than the words at that point to figure out what was going on. If this is a "record," then going by the symbol on the front and these main characters, it seems to be telling a story of those four items. It's all relatively basic. I can tell the personalities of each person just by the art style and what they're using…

He flipped a page, past the section containing the wielder of the spear. He had already looked over the sword and bow section already, so he was fully expecting to see the shield's section now. Instead however, all he came across were blank pages.

Huh… an unfinished book, in a bookstore. Maybe the author died before they could finish…-

He was greeted with a flash of yellow and white light, so sudden that he had to screw his eyes shut and move his head away from the novel. He dropped the book on the ground out of concern for his own safety.

What the fuck?

He was engulfed in a swirl of light and matter, and within an instant, the bookstore around him was swallowed up by a vortex of indistinguishable colors, and he began falling, his uniform dragging and blowing around from the sudden change in velocity. Caleb let out a large grunt of surprise, and he grit his teeth, looking up from where he was falling, then back down.

What the fuck is going on?!

No, cool it Caleb, calm down, you could just be passing out.

He assumed a typical skydiving position despite his guess as to what was happening. He had passed out before, and he could tell almost immediately that this was not it. What he was feeling was completely real, and it terrified him.

Am I going to die like this? Will I land?

A second passed, then another. Before he could control his adrenaline properly, Caleb was met with a flat, cool surface, which he slammed into on his stomach, his hands blocking his face from colliding with the ground. He sat up immediately after the fall, despite his body protesting, and he assumed a cautious, but calm stance, his body shaking slightly from the blood rush.

"Fantastic! The summoning was a success…"

what?

He took stock of his surroundings. He first took note of the group of people directly in front of him, and he shuffled his feet to face them, his hands prepared to take action if needed. Five men, one in the forefront, and they're all dressed… well, like a damn cult. I'm in some sort of basement. Old style, medieval. I'm definitely not home anymore.

not home anywhere. Wait.. that book- how the hell? Is this even, earth?

The same robed man, a blonde in his thirties if Caleb had to guess, took another step forward to speak again. His other robed companions simply stood and watched, murmuring to themselves in some sort of awe. "Brave heroes, won't you please save our world from pure evil?"

Caleb took a moment to formulate a proper response, but before he could do that, his attention was drawn to his left side. He peered over into the dim light, and he took note of three others. They all seemed to be dressed normally, unlike the cult-like robe wearers, and they were almost definitely either teenagers or young adults at best. Each of them had one item each with them. The furthest one, a young blonde boy with a bow. The next, a similarly young boy with dark hair and a one-handed sword. And closest to Caleb, a long-haired blonde male who looked to be around his age, was holding a spear in his hand. They all followed his behavior, standing up slowly and rubbing the soreness out of their bodies. The robed man spoke again, his tone desperate. "Please, oh brave heroes! Our world is in dire need of saving!"

The blonde boy with the bow replied to the robed man before Caleb could even bother to. "What do you mean it's in need of saving?"

"The story behind it all is long and complicated." the robed stranger began. He had his hands outstretched much like some sort of religious saint, and Caleb wasn't sure whether to be compassionate or suspicious. "But suffice it to say that you are the Four Cardinal Heroes, and you were summoned here using an ancient ritual."

Four Cardinal Heroes… a bow, a sword, a spear, and…

For fuck sake, you've gotta be kidding me.

Caleb looked down to his arm. Sure enough, there was a shield. It was small, more in size to a buckler than a shield, and it was so light that he didn't even notice it until then, however it looked as ornate and well crafted as the other three.

Great, fucking wonderful.

Alright, keep your shit together. I didn't sign up for any kind of weird dimension traveling when I joined the Army, but if it taught me anything it's to stay calm when I need to. Gather info, figure out what's going on, and get home. That's my objective.

It was clear to him that, whatever had happened with the book, he had somehow ended up in the world it was based off of. And whether it was fate or by random chance, he was the person who was with the shield, and whoever the other three were, they were likely chosen or randomly picked like he was.

If they're also from earth, at least I have a connection there. I'll need everything I can get right now..

The other three remained silent while the lead figure among the robed men continued explaining the situation, and so Caleb did the same, crossing his arms over his chest, making room for the shield that was there now.

"Our world is in a most fragile state and teeters on the brink of destruction. So we beg you, oh heroes-" the man clasped his hands together and bowed his head, as if begging them. "-please lend us your aid!"

Caleb let out a deep sigh, and just looked down at the ground. There's nowhere else to go. These robed men, whoever they are, apparently put me here. I suppose I'll need to help them if they're going to do anything for me… like get me the hell out of here.

The dark haired boy with the sword took a step forward. To Caleb's surprise, they raised their sword forward, pointing it directly at the strangers. "Forget it."

"I also refuse." the blonde boy with the bow muttered.

The spear wielder nodded in agreement. "You can send us back to our home world, right? Do that and maybe we can talk."

"You brought the four of us here without our consent! Don't you even feel the least bit guilty about it?" the sword boy exclaimed. His voice carried with it the usual teenage angst and arrogance that Caleb only expected, however in such an unusual situation, it was off-putting.

What the hell are these three doing? We're clearly not at an advantage here.

"Not to mention," the bow boy started, "if you throw us out as soon as we restore peace, we'll have done all that work for nothing!"

"How willing are you to accommodate our requests?" the man with the spear chimed in, holding his spear over his shoulder confidently. "Depending on your answer, we may end up as your enemies instead of your allies."

Caleb made a point to take a pace away from the other three that were summoned with him. He didn't like their attitudes so far. Taking initiative is smart of them, but they're acting like they're in control here. They must be bluffing… they can't be this pompous, can they?

"G-good sirs," the robed leader began nervously, "before I say anymore, I'd like you to have an audience with the King of Melromarc. You can negotiate your rewards with him directly, so please…"

Despite the unusual situation, and without any small amount of luck, it seemed like the other three were gaining some sort of advantage by being aggressive immediately. The robed men, from Caleb's view, were more terrified of them than he or the other three were.

Still… it's not right to just, immediately start acting like we own the place. I need to be cautious with those three. They're obviously… not that intelligent.

The boy with the bow let out an audible huff, and with the same aura of arrogance as the others he started making his way outside. The other two followed, along with the robed men. "I suppose we'll consider their offer." he said matter-of-factly.

"Sure." the spear man said back to them, "Doesn't matter who we talk to. Our demands won't change."

I already hate these three. Young pricks. They wouldn't last a day under my command.

Reluctantly, he followed the group, out of the room and into an open courtyard. Surrounding them, as he more or less expected, was a closed off castle courtyard, surrounded by high rising stone walls. The climate was much more humid and warmer than when he was in Vancouver, but not entirely so, and he took a moment to observe his surroundings.

The guards have plate armor, swords and spears. No scale armor by the looks of it. Either that means scale armor hasn't been invented yet, which would put technology pretty far back in this world… no, but that's stupid. I was SUMMONED here, for fuck's sake, I can't make any assumptions about what they're capable of.

As they were crossing the open area, into the main building, he felt the burning gaze of someone watching him. Caleb looked around, and then up, and he caught sight of a feminine figure through a glass window, about four floors above him.

I get that people would be curious to see us, but seeing that gives off some kind of bad intuition in me. But it's probably just me being stupid. Besides, I need to deal with another matter…

Caleb stopped in his tracks, assuming an at-ease position several meters from the wooden double doors leading into the throne room. "Hold it, all of you!" he called out firmly to the other three wielders. The three of them stopped to look back at him, along with the robed priests.

"What is it man?" the spear holder spoke first.

"We're about to come before the presence of a ruler of a nation. This isn't just a small matter." Caleb began. I need to make sure we're all presentable. My military etiquette wouldn't have it any other way, not in this situation.

The three of them immediately showed almost no interest in what he had to say on the matter. The black haired boy stared absently at the ground, and the boy with the bow seemed to simply dismiss Caleb's words with a grain of salt. The man with the spear continued to speak for them. "Yeah, but we're the Four Heroes, surely they'll be understanding-"

"Enough." Caleb butted in. His instinct for quiet leadership had kicked in by then, and he was out of patience with the others and their brash, arrogant attitudes. "Listen closely, all of you. Whether you like it or not, we're strangers in a foreign land. We can't just go around acting like we own the place. This is a man of high stature we're about to face. Now dust off your clothes and march in there, silently. Don't show off, just walk, go where instructed. Bow when you face the king, and speak only once you're spoken to. Do you understand?"

The two younger boys acknowledged his now stern, commanding presence with a polite nod, and they did as instructed to at least a respectable extent, looking down at themselves to make sure they were still neat in appearance and fixing their postures. The long haired blonde with the spear scoffed, but then smiled. "Heh. Whatever you say boss!" he replied exuberantly, "I guess we should make a good first impression."

Caleb nodded curtly, and then took the lead between them into the throne room, pushing away at both doors. "Good. On me, all of you."

He led them inside confidently, but slowly, taking in the illustrious and rich nature of the throne room itself. Ribboned and robed tapestry lined the walls, floor, and even the roof of the large room which was shaped like some form of great hall, and all around, in front of the pillars, were armed guards. Around the general area were a plethora of formally-dressed civilians gathered together in small, tight-knit groups, all of whom were likely nobles of the court, if he had to guess. He didn't bother marching into the room to the same degree that he would normally need to stand on during a ceremony for example, however Caleb did make it a point to walk smartly, his shoulders straight, his chest out, his face up, making it clear that he was well disciplined. He stopped in the middle of the carpeted area. About twenty paces ahead, the king sat on his throne, alongside an empty throne, obviously intended for the queen, whoever that may be. Caleb made a right turn, giving room for the other three to stand alongside him, and as soon as he was positioned, he took a knee, placing a hand on the ground to support himself as he bowed silently to the king.

The king himself was of broad and tall stature, although he was clearly cracked of age, a man in his late fifties or sixties by Caleb's estimate. Despite the king's apparent age, his voice still commanded an appropriate tone of respect for the throne he was sitting on.

"So, you young men are the Four Cardinal Heroes of ancient legend..?" the King of Melromarc began. "This is the land of Melromarc, and I am her king; Aultcray Melromarc the XXXII. Welcome, brave Heroes. Please identify yourselves."

As opposed to the cautious nature that Caleb continued to use, the other three stood from their knelt positions as soon as they were addressed. Caleb followed slowly after, and the boy with the sword went first. He took a step forward, and raised his sword into both hands, almost clumsily.

"Ren Amaki. I'm a highschool student and I'm sixteen years old."

The blonde haired man with the spear went next, stepping up with his spear still slung over his left shoulder. "I'm Motoyasu Kitamura, college student, twenty-one."

The smaller blonde boy with the boy sheepishly brought his bow to his chest in a similar fashion to Ren and introduced himself as well: "I suppose I'm up next.. Itsuki Kawasumi, still in highschool, and I'm seventeen."

Ren, Motoyasu, Itsuki… all Asian names in nature. And they all do look of Asian descent. So why am I the odd one out?

"Good…" the king declared in his chair, unmoving. "Ren, Motoyasu, and Itsuki."

Huh… Caleb thought to himself. He decided to remain quiet and remain in a stern, attentive posture despite being ignored completely. The king may just be going senile and forgot me… but still, it feels like more than that, especially considering that I'm standing right here.

whatever, now isn't the time to be thinking about my own fortune. Prepare for the worst and expect it. I need to get out of this reality and back into mine, ASAP.

"Now then," the king spoke up again. Caleb turned his attention from his thoughts to listen. "I suppose I need to explain why we brought you here."

All four of them listened as Aultcray explained in detail the events of the current world they were in. How the Waves of Calamity had appeared, the Dragon Hourglasses, how they had managed to survive the First Wave, and every bit in between. Caleb had partially tuned out Aultcray after hearing the majority of it, in favor of mulling over the information and formulating a plan.

Of course we were summoned here for a stupid reason. Against such a force… what the hell are four of us, mortals, going to do against endless hordes of… monsters, or whatever he called them? Are we really supposed to use these ornate weapons? They look more like decorations than anything.

God dammit… what I wouldn't do for just a little modern firepower right now.. Whether I help these people or not, it'd help me feel less vulnerable at least.

But I'm not that fortunate. And so far, these three weaklings beside me seem like they're too difficult to get into shape. I'll need to improvise, and a lot. I can probably get the materials I need to throw together at least a few modern items that'll be useful… I'll also need to gather more intel on the Waves. I need to understand how to deal with them.

"... but now, we have no time to lose!"

Caleb finally listened in again on Aultcray's voice, just as he was finished his long briefing on the situation. Before he had time to think about it further, Ren slipped his blade down to point at the ground, letting the tip clang against the concrete underneath the carpet. "Okay, I think we get the gist of it." the dark haired boy said, stone cold. "Anyway, I'm sure you didn't bring us here thinking we'd save you for free."

A man with a naturally scowling face, standing next to Aultcray, spoke in the king's place this time. "Of course not; once you repel all the Waves, I can assure you we shall reward you most handsomely."

"Yeah?" Motoyasu exclaimed in his usual bastardly tone. "Well, it would seem we have no choice but to take you at your word."

"So long as you don't renege, we'll work with you. But don't think for a moment that you can tame us."

"Exactly! We won't put up with you looking down on us."

Good fucking god, these idiots make me nauseous…

Caleb was considering confronting the other three on their complete arrogance and disregard for any respect towards others, but before he even could, the king had spoken up again, this time on a completely different subject:

"If I can trust that we have reached an agreeable arrangement, I would ask you brave Heroes to now check your statuses."

Statuses? Like… what, a video game?

Was I seriously pulled into a video game world? Is this what it's fucking come to?

Well, if video game logic is anything to go by… summoning my status should be as simple as willing it-

A translucent menu slid into view directly in front of him. He took a step back, his hands moving from behind him, but he narrowed his eyes and steeled himself as he began reading the menu that was before him. It looked to him like the other "Heroes" were doing the same.

NAME:

Caleb Kooper, nineteen years old

CLASS:

Legendary Shield Hero

EQUIPMENT:

Small Shield (Legendary Weapon)

SKILLS:

Absorption

Magic Resistance: Low

Physical Endurance: Medium

ITEMS:

Otherworldly Military Uniform

Otherworldly Identification

Otherworldly Currency ($150 CAD)

STATS:

LVL - 1

HP - 150

MP - 70

SP - 42

ATK - 1

MAG - 20

DEF - 61

MDEF - 46

AGI - 26

END - 47

The other three continued to discuss the situation and their statuses with one another, along with Aultcray and his advisor. Caleb on the other hand, simply took in the information all on his own, ignoring them completely.

This is all reminiscent of a typical RPG game, or Dungeons and Dragons.

I figured that since I'm a "Shield" class I'd have low damage, but even this is concerningly low… I have no idea the implications of this. I wonder if I can use any other weapons to boost that.

An alert popped up in front of his vision promptly informing him that, as a wielder of a Legendary Weapon, he was not allowed to use any other type of weapon.

Fuck… that probably includes any modern technology that I jerry rig while I'm here as well.

I'm not out of options yet though… I need to get going. Time is ticking, and I don't know how long I have until that next Wave comes.

For the first time since stepping into that room, Caleb took a step forward and stood at attention, eyeing Aultcray to get his attention before talking.

"Sir… permission to be dismissed. I must get going immediately."

Aultcray paused in his throne for a moment. The man looked surprised, and so did the others in the room. "But, sir Shield Hero, I have prepared for you four to spend the night in the castle quarters. You may begin your journey tomorrow with the others once we have prepared adventurers to join you all."

"With all due respect sir, I don't like to waste time. There's no point in me staying here." Caleb exclaimed matter of factly. If the Lieutenant didn't know any better, he could have sworn that he saw a slight scowl move across the king's face. Whether he imagined it or not, it was replaced by a dull smile only a moment later.

Something's definitely going on. I'll need to worry about it later.

"Fine, Shield Hero. Then we shall arrange to have your funds given to you immediately so you may be on your way."

Aultcray waved his hand over to his advisor, and in silence his advisor moved to bring Caleb a small leather bag, or a purse, as he was sure they called it. Inside, he could feel the weight of their world's currency inside it as the bag was placed into his hand. He let the bag slip into a side pocket of his uniform pants, and with a single nod to the room, he turned on his heels and made his way outside.

This world is likely a dangerous place. But I can't afford to delay… I need to learn to live in it, whether I like it or not. Just until I can find a way back home.

Fuck this world and it's conflicts. I live to serve my country on earth, not this "Melromarc" or any other region here.

His trek into the surrounding city around the castle was peaceful. The locals eyed him excessively, but he assumed that was just because he was the Shield Hero, and he simply ignored them, making his way along the interwoven streets of the mediterranean style capital, keeping his eyes out for any locations of note. After some exploration, and about an hour of precious time taken up, Caleb had taken note of several places he had seen and kept in mind. Firstly, was a blacksmith shop. While he wasn't planning on wearing any medieval armor which he wasn't accustomed to, Caleb knew that a blacksmith was usually someone who had many practical skills and could probably help him with more than just that. Two other stores he had remembered were a market store where he could buy survival equipment as well as any maps and navigation tools he would need, and the last one was a chemist store.

I guess I'm lucky I chose Combat Engineering as my MOS after Basic. Turns out, learning to improvise on a regular basis is probably going to be useful even in this world.

He made his way to each store respectively during the majority of the early afternoon. His first stop was the blacksmith shop. Upon entering, he was greeted by a massive hulk of a man with a shaved head and a respectable beard. He looked the part of any fantastical medieval blacksmith, and even in the shop itself, the man was wearing his apron.

"Welcome to my shop, traveler!" the man exclaimed in an exuberant, but strikingly deep voice. "Name's Erhart! What can I get you?"

"Do you take custom orders?" Caleb asked slowly, approaching the counter. Erhart frowned, looking him up and down. "Hey…" the blacksmith muttered curiously, "So you're the Shield Hero, huh? It's great to see one of the Heroes visiting my shop."

"Yeah, well, you were close by and the equipment you have on display looks reliable." Caleb replied smoothly. Erhart chuckled, his frown being replaced with a warm smile, and he placed his hands on his hips. "So what about this custom order?"

Caleb crossed his own arms over his shoulders and began describing what he had in mind. "I want about a dozen cylinders, about six inches in length each, bored out completely. Make them out of sheet metal or thick aluminum, preferably. Make them with caps on one end so I can remove them, sort of similar to a water container. They should be able to fit in my hand well enough."

Erhart moved under the counter and reappeared while Caleb was talking with a notepad and a pencil, jotting down the details of the order. "Will that be it, Shield Hero?" the blacksmith asked politely.

"Not quite. I'm going to need smaller metal or aluminum tubes, in the same amount, but smaller. Make them with the same sort of cap on one end. They should be around an inch in diameter and only two inches long. I'll also need copper wiring, lots of it, as thin as you can make it, let's say about thirty feet worth for now. I also need copper sticks. Just make them a millimeter or so thick, and a few inches long. Give me two dozen of them."

Erhart was still busy jotting down everything that he was listing, and while the blacksmith was doing that, Caleb swapped another glance at some of the items around the store. His eyes settled briefly on a particularly polished set of armor to his right.

Armor… a vital piece of kit I'm going to need, but I don't want to lug around some knight's armor and tire myself out all day.

"Also, I have two more things to request. I want you to make me a circular sheet bowl of metal with holes bored through it, much like a strainer. Each hole should be no more than a millimeter thick. Finally, I'd like a chest piece made for me, but out of some sort of material like strong cloth and cotton padding. I want it to be double layered with pouches in the front, back, and sides to fit a third layer of whatever material I choose in between it all."

I can't expect him to make a plate carrier exactly like a modern day one… but with that description it should work.

Erhart frowned at him. It was obvious that the blacksmith wasn't used to getting such specifically odd orders from one person, but regardless the large man simply nodded silently and put the notepad down once he was done.

"If that's all you'll need, Shield Hero, I'd say that'll come out to about… two hundred silver, given the labor time and the amount you requested. Everything should be ready by, tomorrow afternoon I'd say."

"Perfect." Caleb exclaimed. He fished out of his pocket his coin bag and set aside the full two hundred silver for the blacksmith, and he left the shop immediately, only waving his hand briefly goodbye.

His other trips to the two other shops were brief. At the market shop, Caleb picked up several useful items for a total price of forty silver: A sizable black backpack with plenty of pouches and space, a sleeping mat and blanket, a flint and steel fire starter, a compass, a canteen, a small pot, a map of Melromarc as well as a world map of the entire continent, and two sets of rope, one wide enough for general use, and the other set thin enough to be used for string or kindling. He had also bought a general utility knife, which he planned to use only as a tool.

On his next stop to the chemist shop, he provided an equally long list to the store owner there as he had Erhart with his custom orders there. He requested a dozen cylindrical glass bottles with slightly smaller diameters than the small metal tubes he had requested Erhart to make. Along with that, Caleb asked for Nitric Acid, a bar of soap, salt, natural-grown fibers, sand powder, oil, Phosphorus, and Palmitic Acid. The store owner also reacted strangely to the items listed by him, but regardless, they still brought everything to Caleb, and he was charged sixty silver for all of it.

As soon as he had everything he needed, Caleb headed out of the city, into the fields and forestry surrounding it. The sun was beginning to lower itself along the horizon, marking the beginning of the evening, and the temperature cooled slightly with it. The Lieutenant wasted no time, trekking silently across the open plains until he found a quiet area along the closest treeline where he could set up a temporary camp. He first scouted the area around him within several hundred meters to make sure there was nothing too dangerous around him before he began collecting brush and pieces of wood for kindling and firewood. Within only about ten minutes, he had a fire going, and he left it temporarily to set up several small animal traps in the hopes of catching a hare or similar.

The sun began to set soon enough. Despite how little he had physically strained himself that day, Caleb felt utterly exhausted, and he made quick work setting up his bedroll and blanket for the night, securing himself between two large tree roots in the crook of the tree, just out of light of his fire. He took a swig from his water canteen.

I still don't know what to make of all this shit…

Summoned? Into another world? And according to my stats, I can probably barely even defend myself on my own…

Bullshit. I'll still find a way.

With that last thought, he let himself drift off into a light sleep for the first night in the new world.

/ End Note \

I do more or less feel like some parts of this first chapter were a bit rushed. Particularly two sections, the part with Aultcray and the large exposition dump, as well as the ending just now. My justification for the part with Aultcray in it is simple, and that is because I believe most people have already heard it several times and can't be bothered to read it again, and it was also because I was excited to get Kooper out into the world of RotSH quickly.

The second rushed part is more difficult to justify, but I believe that's simply because I don't have all the components yet for Caleb to continue his plans. He's a very meticulous character with his actions, if it wasn't already obvious. Him simply setting up camp and waiting for the rest of his equipment to be made by Erhart is necessary. Trust me, in the next chapter, all the materials and shit he's gathering will start coming together and it'll all make sense.

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