"Great, finally an actual meal after... I don't even know how long it's been since the wave."
Conrad scratched his chin thoughtfully for a few seconds before responding, "If my memory serves me correctly, please keep in mind I'm not the sharpest when it comes to memorization. The way around... I think it was yesterday in the afternoon. It's really fuzzy, as my memory has been rather hazy, especially these last few days."
Was it really yesterday when everything went down? Now, trying to think about it, I don't fully remember myself... maybe I took a few too many blows to the head. I mean, I have the headache to complement it, so I wouldn't be surprised.
"I guess that would mean our last meal was before we started to plan for the wave," I stated as I continued to eat.
Conrad nodded his head slightly in agreement, "I would assume so, though it definitely doesn't feel like that, does it?" He chuckled lightly.
I rubbed the back of my head and gave a small sigh, "Yeah, I guess so. You can probably tell, but I'm pretty tired and beat up, the latter from the wave boss and... some other stuff."
"Is that so?" Conrad straightened his back before looking me in the eyes, "Is this about that... what was his name...?"
As he turned to see my eyes, I looked back down into my food. Something about the look he gave me seemed like he was upset, not sure at me, but he also seemed to share a feeling of at least contempt.
"Lew, I think. I don't, nor want to care, but yes, it did involve him," I huffed as I prodded at the bits of meat in the water with the spoon.
"Judging from your previous encounter with him and your current attitude, it was not exactly friendly," Conrad inquired.
I gave Conrad a look that portrayed that he was stating the obvious. He gave me an odd look back, but he seemed to have a moment of realization before giving an audible, "Ah."
I gave a small shrug, "Well, whatever. Just know that guy and the people he hangs around are assholes, and from the looks of it, the rest of the town seems to have a similar attitude."
He leaned back and crossed his arms before speaking, "I see. It is probably due to your, uh... peculiar situation. I mean, I had a similar initial reaction, but considering the circumstances and what you have done, I decided against doing... whatever they are probably doing to you. Plus, with my previous experience working with unfamiliar people, it was not exactly new or foreign to me. For the newer generations, though... with the amount of propaganda spewed by the church, I can understand why they are doing what they are doing."
Now, thinking about it, I never really delved into the details and history of this world that much. I guess because I was just focusing on trying to level up and then wanting to study. There is probably some complex medieval political thing happening on the world stage. I guess wanting to learn more now won't hurt in the long term.
"I see... I never really got much context on the church, but I do know that this supposed church praises the Mythic Heroes and that they are super strong. Though I guess for their Legendary counterparts, they don't give a damn," I sighed.
Conrad looked into the distance for a moment. I turned to see what he was looking at, but there was nothing other than a couple of mountains in the distance.
"Uh, Conrad-"
"Oh, sorry, I was just recalling some things. Sure, I can explain some other things about the church if you want," Conrad affirmed.
"All good. So first of all, I need to know where exactly I can find these supposed Mythic Heroes. Since if we are all heroes, we should be able to see eye to eye on the gravity of the situation they are in," I said.
Conrad again began to lose his focus as he looked down into his hands and began to fidget with them. A quick glance at his eyes seemed to show him thinking of something, unlike before, it seemed to be more wild in nature, if that is a way to explain it.
I snapped my fingers to get his attention, which succeeded as he turned to face me once more.
"Ah, sorry again, what did you ask?" Conrad sheepishly chuckled as he scratched the back of his head.
He really seems like he has something on his mind regarding the Mythic Heroes. It might be related to how he immediately prostrated before me when he saw my Legendary weapon and mistook it for a Mythic one. Maybe he had a bad experience, who knows?
"Where can I find these Mythic Heroes?" I echoed.
He rubbed his chin for a few seconds, thinking most likely, before responding, "I'm not exactly sure, to be completely frank with you. The Mythic Heroes are not bound by whatever nation they inhabit and instead are usually roaming around doing heroic quests of the like. Usually, there are rumors of their arrival to a town or a city, but considering how we have been on the run, I am completely unaware of their current location."
"So heroic quests are a thing in this world... interesting," I mumbled curiously.
Too bad the only heroic quest I've had so far is surviving Faith whenever I try to wake her up to eat in the mornings. So far, however, these Mythic Heroes do not sound inherently bad. I'm pretty sure that as long as I explain my situation, they will surely help. Well, I hope at least, after all, this world seems to have a vendetta against my very existence.
"Do you know the general area where they operate, at least?" I queried.
"Sadly, I do not. Considering their already fast travel speed to be able to face threats, they could be anywhere within a day or so," Conrad stated.
"A few days?!" I exclaimed, almost spitting out my food.
Conrad waved his hand to dismiss my statement before responding, "Well, it is also known, at least to me, that some of the epics about the Mythic heroes are greatly exaggerated."
"I remember you mentioned something about dragons and how the Mythic Greatshield user easily blocked it, is that not true then?" I questioned.
Conrad shook his head, "No, that was true. There were multiple eyewitnesses to the event, and that was before he became the Mythic Greatshield. Though that was a long while ago... he might not even be the user anymore," Conrad stated.
"Wait—what do you mean he is not the user anymore?" I asked bewilderedly.
"Oh, you didn't—" He stopped for a second before continuing, "Actually, sorry, I forget sometimes that you are not a local of this... dimension. But like I was saying, Mythic Heroes, if deemed too old or if their duty has been completed, can relinquish their weapons to pass them on to the next generation."
"So it's possible to change or even stop using their hero weapon?" I questioned him.
So these Mythic Heroes can change their weapons or, in this case, relinquish them at will? Now this is confusing because I'm very sure I cannot un-equip my weapon. Though it never hurts to try right now. I put the wooden spoon down then handled my Ore Viper Core revolver with my right hand and tried to pull it off with my left hand... only for it to attach to my left. Repeating the process with my other hand brings a mirrored result.
"Alex? Are you trying to remove your weapon?" Conrad asked with a perplexed look.
I continued for another two times, to no avail before giving up.
"Possibly, though I was just testing it out. Although earlier, with my encounter with Tidus, I already knew the weapon was forcibly attached to me," I blankly stated.
Even if I could remove my weapon, it's not like I would want to anyway. It's the only weapon I actually know how to use. Plus, I prefer to use the physics and gravity-defying gun rather than using a heavy sword and carrying that around. Though I guess technically I am the Ranged Weapons hero, but I can basically assume I'm a Gun Hero with all the weapon forms I have.
Conrad gave me an odd look but he just shrugged it off before continuing, "I guess that, unlike them, you cannot remove your weapon. Though I'm just stating the obvious now."
I gave a quick nod of agreement as I began to gorge down on the remaining food as it was beginning to cool. I already drank most of the water throughout our conversation, so there was little left, though I still had some stored from earlier in my inventory... or storage, I'll just call it inventory.
"Say, I have a question if you wouldn't mind answering," Conrad asked.
"Sure, what is it?" I said as I finished up whatever was left of the food I was eating.
"How exactly was your life before you came here, that is? I know that many of the Mythic Heroes have extensive backgrounds and careers before they became Heroes. I wonder if the same applies to you, though I do have some doubts due to your lack of training with the... gun you have," Conrad questioned.
What am I supposed to say? That I was just a normal person, with nothing notable other than good grades most of the time and a knack for history? I have no extensive or comprehensive history, maybe other than being Co-Captain of the football team, but it's not like that won us any World Cups.
"I mean... Not really, per se," I mumbled sheepishly, "I guess if being an above-average midfielder in football, or soccer, whatever you prefer to call it, and maybe getting pretty good grades in school. Nothing that notable that warrants my hero status, to be honest, unless it looks for good video game players, then maybe."
Conrad gave me a dumbfounded look as he stared at me, and then he spoke up, "I'm sorry, Alex, but I have no idea what you said. I don't understand what you mean by this... Soccer? Football? Midfield? Grades? This is all foreign to me, I am very sorry."
...Shit, I sometimes forget I'm in another world somehow. He has no idea what soccer, football, or anything I am saying means. Sometimes I will admit I am an idiot, but hey, what can you do with a massive headache, huh?
"Sorry, Conrad, I forgot we are in another world. Soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world where I am from, although it is more commonly called football by the majority of people. Midfield is a position that a player of that game can take," I explained.
"Interesting, so I assume that in this position, you are supposed to be near the middle... of the field?" Conrad questioned.
Well, he got that part right, well mostly.
"Yes… and no. A midfielder's job is to intercept the ball, and while you generally position yourself in the middle of the field of play, depending on the variation and team composition, you can either prioritize dropping back to defense or pushing up to where the strikers and forwards are," I elaborated further.
"Ah, I think I understand. So you're supposed to move the ball up and down a vertical field of sorts and are supposed to reach… what?" Conrad inquired.
I forgot I can't use football lingo with him. I think he misunderstood dropping down and pushing up as climbing or something else.
"Correction, sorry I should not have used football lingo. When I say push up and drop down, I mean moving forward or backward down the field, respectively. The goal is to pass and dribble the ball past the defenders, then score a goal by shooting the ball into the goalkeeper's net," I explained.
He seemed puzzled at first, but it seemed to click in his head as he spoke up once more, "I see, so you do have some experience with firing and shooting your gun, though I assume you probably don't kill in this... Football, you are meant to avoid them?"
I gave a deep sigh before rephrasing myself, "I mean, whenever I say shooting, I mean that I kick a ball into a net at the opposing team's side of the field. Sorry, I'm just so used to saying these terms that they have practically become a third language to me. Also, no, we don't kill people, that would just be wrong."
"It's alright, I mean there are tons of things that are probably foreign to you that I know about. Considering how confused you already seem to be, I should probably not disclose what it is. But I think I understand a little. Maybe one of these days you could show me how to play this Football," Conrad grinned softly.
I gave a sly smirk, "Just so you know I won't go easy on you. I had to learn the hard way how to play."
"As expected of the Great Gun Hero, Alex," Conrad joked.
"Hey! I thought we already established that you call me Alex. Also, I'm the Ranged Weapons Hero, not the Gun Hero," I chuckled.
Conrad gave a small laugh before responding, "Gun Hero seems better than Ranged Weapons Hero, and it's not like I'm entirely wrong, as all of your weapon forms seem to only be guns. Though they may be foreign in design and projectile use, they use basically the same principle."
"At this point, I might as well call myself the Kinetic Force Launcher Hero," I smiled.
"Well, that would be more accurate, I suppose, though it's the opposite of what I wanted. Actually, before I forget, Alex, I was waiting for you to notice, but I guess you have not. You should really clean off any of the remains of the beetles you have on your clothing," Conrad stated.
"Why?" I quickly did a check on my body to see that most of the gunk was off me.
If I could guess, I would say that the remains probably got rubbed off on the blanket that I was using. I mean it was pretty thick, so maybe that's why I did not notice it. Though now that means I probably have to clean it since the smell probably got worse. Good thing that when I woke up my smelling was still booting up.
"The smell it gives off is pretty bad. It got worse, especially later in the morning a while ago. Not sure why it took this long, but you seem to be mostly fine as you seem to have only smaller bits on you," Conrad explained.
"Well, my blanket is probably ruined, though maybe someone has some soap somewhere I can use," I shrugged.
"I just rinsed it with water, and it slid off. The smell stayed but to a much lesser extent. If you want soap, you can probably ask Kazen, as I have no idea if they even have any baths or showers still operational, so I just used a water flask," Conrad commented.
"Well, I can do it later probably. Speaking of flasks, I should probably get a healing potion or see a cleric. Since while I can tolerate the pain and the headache, I would prefer not to have one," I said as I got up from my seat slowly to not get a cramp in one of my legs.
Conrad also got up from his seat before adding on, "I mean, I'm not sure about the headache, but they can definitely get you healed up for the bruises you have. Especially considering how you are around half HP, you seem to be rather good at tolerating pain."
"I think getting slide tackled and stiff-armed a plenitude of times can probably make you endure some stuff," I sighed as I dusted off any of the beetle remains still on me and began to walk out into the remains of the street.
Conrad followed closely behind. He seemed to be a bit on edge, but I might just be imagining it, to be honest.
"So, Conrad, do you have any idea where I can find a cleric?" I questioned him.
"No idea, which is why we should probably go talk to Kazen about it," Conrad answered.
"Fair point, though after my um, encounter, I kind of just wandered away in a fit," I sheepishly chuckled as I rubbed the back of my head.
"All good, it's behind us now, so there is no need to dwell on it. Follow me; I roughly remember what direction it is in," Conrad acknowledged me as he began walking to the left.
I followed close behind him, hopefully, I wouldn't be bothered as, while Kazen did not have his axe on his person, he was still rather tall. Well, most of the people here seem to be taller, but he is even taller. That and also with my earlier encounter, either people will be afraid or emboldened to try to mess with me.
We walked for a good bit, passing the people who have become slightly more lively as they all seemed to congregate into larger groups and chatter among themselves. Though I will say I got a few glances and stink eyes, luckily, nobody acted on it, not that I wouldn't have defended myself if they did do anything. I have learned a few moves from Ramos after all.
Eventually, we arrived back at the tent that Kazen set up, though he was now outside of it instead of inside. He, along with a couple of people, some in suits of armor, stood around what I assume is his desk. He also seemed to have some more items on the said desk, probably paperweights to hold down the papers from any rogue gusts of wind making everything fly away.
As me and Conrad approached, the people standing around the table parted to make room for us to join in the huddle. Kazen noticed we arrived and looked up as I set my hands on the table. He looked more disheveled than before; he clearly had not slept yet, commendable considering the situation, but it was most definitely affecting him to some degree as he was visibly shaking slightly.
"Ah, Hero Alex and Sir Conard, I'm glad you could join us, great timing as well. It turns out that the situation that has been brought up will be upon us sooner than I have anticipated," he stated.
"I see, so will you just be telling us now what's going on or?" I puzzled.
"Yes, though I did send out another messenger to go out and confirm the findings of the second. Hopefully, it's just a miscalculation of their estimated time of arrival, because instead of tomorrow, we would only have less than an hour," Conrad solemnly sighed.
"Their arrival? Who's arrival? What's coming?" I wondered.
"Well, according to my last two messengers, we have a cohort of soldiers incoming to our location," Kazen said.
A cohort? I feel like I have heard that word before… not sure from where maybe Roman. I do know it's military-related, however, so I can assume it is a military force of sorts. If only I decided to pick up that Roman military that Khai recommended to me.
"Are they friendly?" I asked Kazen.
There was a brief silence as Kazen did not respond. He rubbed his right eye and then turned to face me.
"Yes, and no. The force is from… the Imperium," Conrad said ominously with a pause.
… The Imperium? From the sound of it, they don't sound like help, though Kazen did say yes and no, so this does confuse me. I can assume it's probably some political stuff or something related to that.
"I'm sorry, but, I'm not exactly from here per se… would you mind explaining how this will affect us?" I sheepishly asked Kazen.
"That's surprising; I'm pretty sure that everyone in the whole world knows about the Imperium. Though I suppose considering your circumstances with your um, gun, that there is a probable reason—" Kazen then paused to give a short cough, "Ahem, sorry I'm getting sidetracked. To simplify it, the Imperium will be helping us, but due to their special status in the collective, they are immune from most laws."
I see, so they get immunity of sorts, like ambassadors or diplomats if they go to other nations. Though it's never fully respected at times, but either way, most of the time, the country of origin would just revoke the immunity if they commit a crime.
"And this is bad… how…? Sorry, I don't really understand the whole political scene, I feel like it distracts me from my heroing," I remarked.
A blatant lie as I spent a good chunk of my free time researching modern-day events. Too bad the internet does not exist in this world. Nor any chargers, but hopefully I can figure that out with time, but one thing at a time.
I could feel the glare of someone at the table basically stopping me as I talked. A quick glance around, and I could see Tidus near opposite of me shooting daggers at me, but I ignored it for now.
"Well it's not that they have immunity as much as it is about who exactly is coming to supposedly help us," Conrad sighed gloomily, "The General and his men are approaching."
The General? Sounds like that is … a general? I swear Kazen must be a master at making this as ominous as possible and not getting straight to the point. It's starting to get a little annoying… but I don't blame him, the sleep is probably just catching up to him.
"Who is this General person? I assume some bad news then if you are not giving an outright answer yet," I guessed.
"The General is one of the most notorious of the legionaries that works, not even works but is more of contracted by the Imperium. He and his men work for the strongest people, and as that is the Imperium for now," one of the men under Kazen spoke up.
"That just sounds like they are private military contractors, what's wrong with fighting for a little money?" I said in a confused tone.
Another one of Kazen's men spoke up, "It's not that one should not work for one's money, it's that whenever they do that, they gain local law immunity. And the General's Legion that he presides over is infamous for taking advantage of that."
"Let me guess, he just goes around and steals food with his men whenever possible? That or pillaging the countryside? But even if he did do all of that, why would he do all of that and get away with it? He seems like a walking landmine if anything," I scoffed.
"Well maybe…," I turned to see the source of the voice to see it was Tidus speaking, "Maybe it was because… the criminal Alex—"
"Tidus, we talked about this—" Kazen interjected.
"Shut it, Kazen! Ever since Alex and his crew of delinquents came along, there have been nothing but wild incidents happening in the area. That, on top of him having a powerful artifact, of a heretical weapon at that makes it even more suspicious! Why don't you just think of the possibility that maybe…," he looked around at everyone standing around the table before glaring back at me, "Have you ever stopped to consider the possibility that Alex is deceiving you, that maybe… he might be an agent of the enemy!"
There was a longer silence, Tidus continued to glare at me, only to be returned by me. I could feel the tension slowly rise as he already was out to me; I was surprised he survived at all, but I guess I just missed him earlier. What have I done to him personally? Nothing, maybe I did rob a couple of stores, but it was a life or death situation, what else am I supposed to—
"Kazen! Kazen! The General is here!" A voice cried out from a distance away.
"I thought he was still at least half an hour out?!" Kazen yelled back.
The person who cried out was the same one who came out to retrieve me when Kazen called me over yesterday. He stumbled, but he eventually got up to us panting, "He was seen just exiting the forest a distance away; if you wish to meet him, then I recommend coming out now."
Kazen scratched his head roughly for a few moments before responding, "Go back out and tell the General to please wait before entering town because I wish to meet him before he does so. Someone get me some water!" He cried out.
Conrad lobbed over a flask of water, which Kazen sloppily caught and poured on himself. He then slapped his face a couple of times, probably to wake himself and make himself as presentable as possible.
"I'll go alone," He then turned to Tidus and singled him out, "And you keep your mouth shut! Now someone give me my armor!"
"We should make ourselves hidden; I doubt the General would be thrilled to see us," Conrad suggested.
"I may trust Kazen, but I still want to see what goes down. After all, I don't want to be badly represented," I mumbled.
Conrad gave a sigh, "Listen, Alex, if anything we should round up Faith and Nickoli, then leave. Staying here will only cause more problems if anything."
I turned to the side to see Kazen running to the edge of the town in his armor, obviously hastily put on but much better than just his underclothing. Actually, that now reminds me, I need to grab my blanket that I left in the tent.
"I'll grab my blanket. It may be dirty, but it's the only thing that can really warm me up, as the bag with your items is still at the camp," I stated as I jogged over to the tent.
I took a deep breath before entering and ran over to the blanket. I quickly absorbed it, as there was no desk blocking my way and needing me to go around, and I ran out once more. Taking a few moments to catch my breath, I walked back over to Conrad.
"Alright, you got your stuff?" Conrad asked.
"Yeah, I did, but we should really get Faith and Nickoli. Just in case, you know, I don't need us getting split up now, do we?" I chuckled half-heartedly.
"Right, stay here near the tent. I remember seeing them near the edge of town trying to barter for food. Give me a moment," Conrad said as he shot up and ran away.
I waited a few moments for him to run past the crowd that was beginning to migrate over to see what the commotion was about. There are probably already some rumors of the General arriving, but I guess this just confirms it. Some seem panicked, others seem calm, and I don't know where to stand on it.
"I slowly got up and walked over a little behind where the crowd was beginning to pour out past the town boundaries, or what remained of it at least. As the gate was still destroyed and many of the walls were broken or had massive holes in them. I carefully got on some of the remaining to get a higher elevation to see what was happening; luckily the area around the town is just a flat field.
I could see what looked like a multitude of men all emerging from the forest. At the front, two figures could be seen, one taller than the other, the taller one leading. Was he the General? He was armored and had an orange color. I couldn't make out if he was an animal person or a beast-like person due to the distance though.
I could not fully make out, but he was clearly armed with a pretty large weapon sticking out from his back. I would need to get closer to see what it was. Kazen, on the other hand, was running in his suit of armor until he came closer to who I assume to be the General and took a knee. The persons stopped along with their men, rather organized and obedient for a supposedly aggressive group.
I definitely could not make out an itch of what they were saying, but they clearly were talking, as I could make out the movement of their mouths. Kazen got up as they continued to talk. I felt the movement of people behind me as more came to take a look at what was happening.
Looking closer, I could see hints of purple and black splotched on the armors of a couple of the members of the cohort in front of me. There was also a banner with what looked like to be a shield with a sword, though it was rather rough and abstract. There was also what looked like to be writing, but considering how I can't read the language of this world, there is not much I can discern.
Turning back to who I thought was the general, I could see Kazen making various hand movements, almost as if he was pleading. I wish I could get closer, but like Conrad said that would just jeopardize the whole conversation they are having, though it ended as soon as it started as Kazen began to run back.
He seemed panicked as his run was rather reckless, seemingly almost flailing his arms. I could not tell if this was due to the sleep deprivation, but I knew it was something serious if even Kazen was starting to crack.
As he approached the men under him came forward to receive him, though judging from the looks they had, they expected the worse. I decided to move a little behind them to hear what he had to say; luckily they formed a ring of sorts which was able to conceal me.
"I have some bad and good news. The general is coming to help us with relief efforts. The bad news is he wants payment, and not even a fair price for it; it is highly inflated," Kazen said out of breath.
"If he is only here to make a quick buck and not help, then just send him on his way," I insisted.
"Issue with that, he said that the food he brought would turn bad by the return trip. He says he wants payment now, as he bought the food. Or else he will get the payment in other forms," Kazen said, now regaining his breath and posture.
"I assume these other forms of payment include robbing us of whatever we have, right?" Conrad suddenly said as he emerged from the crowd.
"Yes, that and also probably enslaving a couple of Demi-beasts, considering how Klut town is desegregated and how the crown overlooks disappearances of Demi-beasts. I would not be surprised with him taking a large number of them here," Kazen sighed.
Desegregated? Wait, what? Demi-Beasts? Is there some sort of racial divide between the different species of people here? Though considering I was probably being yelled slurs by the Lizard men that one time, I would not be surprised.
I whispered to Conrad, "Where is Faith and Nickoli?"
"They are both near the tent; I found them right where they were last time with little progress in their bartering efforts," he quietly chuckled.
"Though there is one thing we can maybe do to prevent this, however, the General is known to be extremely arrogant and honor-based. If someone here can challenge and beat him in a duel, we can maybe get him to leave," Kazen stated.
So he is one of those then… though considering the reputation he has, I can assume that the General has enough power to back up his authority over his men. I can assume that a normal soldier versus him would be practically suicide. Which is probably why right after Kazen said that most of his men looked nervous and backed away a little.
"As much as I want to protect this town, as you can probably tell, I'm definitely not in a shape to fight. I would solemnly ask each of you if you could please volunteer, even if it may seem suicidal, you all should have some want to protect the town, right?" Kazen asked his grouped-up men.
"Most continued to fidget and prance, not answering the question verbally but physically. Even Tidus was looking rather timid at the thought of it.
"If nobody does, then I am willing to go forward and do so-"
"I will do it," Conrad proclaimed.
"Wait, what?" I said, pretty dumbfounded.
"Sir Conrad, I will warn you now, if you do lose, he will only amplify his revenge upon the Demi-Beasts," Kazen explained.
Conrad stepped back a little, almost retracting his statement but he continued, "If no other man is willing to stand and fight, then I will do my duty as an Ex-Soldier, to protect the innocents, even if many are ungrateful."
Conrad… He knows that he will most likely die… but… But… maybe… if I step forward, maybe if I challenge him to a duel it will result in him being so surprised by my weapon that he will run away. That or the opposite happening and him just outright killing me on the spot. A gamble… but at least it will give us a chance.
"Kazen, I want to go, I believe that with my Legendary Weapon, I should be able to make him run away possibly," I proclaimed.
Kazen gave me a glance and sighed before responding, "Hero Alex, you have done so much already, you should just run with your comrades back into the forest."
"True, but we are already low on food, I doubt that we would be peaceful, however, as now with word out it really is a matter of time, either we stop him from entering the town, or I become a national fugitive probably," I elaborated.
"Right…, you actually have a point," Kazen said as he rubbed his head.
Me running now will just delay the time needed for the nation as a whole to know about my existence. I can probably assume that even if it is a supposed heretical weapon, that they would want to get their hands on it. Running away won't solve anything, and my month just running around in the forest of this world proves it.
"Alex, are you sure you want to do this?" Kazen asked with concern.
Am I sure? Maybe. Do I want to? Definitely not, but it's not like continuing down the path that I am going down will lead to more progress. Either I can stay here, and by myself some time as he goes to his superiors, or let him immediately chase us down right after he arrives if we leave.
"No, but it's not like I have any other choice," I said with a grin.
"I will go inform the General that one of us wishes to challenge him," Kazen said as he ran back to where the General was standing patiently.
"Alex, what if he kills you? Losing a hero helps no one, even if they don't know it-"
"Helps me with all the commotion Alex is starting," Tidus badgered.
Conrad gave a glare to Tidus as turned to face him.
"How about you learn how to shut your mouth?" Conrad spat.
"Sorry old-timer, I don't listen to retired veterans pushing their expiration date," Tidus snickered.
Kazen then called out as he returned suddenly, "He says to come out ready to fight; he wants it to be quick!"
I detached my weapon from my side and gripped it with my right hand. I gave a quick nod to Kazen and tapped Conrad on the side, which he then paused and turned to me as he gave a worried nod.
As I was beginning to walk out into the open I could tell I was slightly trembling, not sure if it was due to fear or due to the horrible diet I had been on. Maybe it's due to the aching that I have been feeling over my whole body or a combination of all three? Who knows?
I checked my health to see it has recovered to around three-fourths of the way. I forgot I was supposed to see a cleric, damn it. Whatever, hopefully just making a scary front will be enough to deter this supposed General. I looked forward and as I got closer I saw that his men and his advisor have backed up a good amount. The General himself began to walk forward calmly, not sure if this was due to his confidence or something else.
As I continued to walk more ideas popped into the back of my head that I could have better prepared. Maybe I could have got a buffing spell on me to help, or maybe I could have gone for another round of food as it did not fully satisfy my hunger.
The General's walk turned into a jog as he now revealed his weapon… a giant trident. Now closer I could also make out he was a giant cat, looks like a tiger or lion, though probably the former due to the more orange color. Either way, he began to almost fully run at me as the distance between us closed.
I had my weapon to my side slightly, semi-shifting it behind my body, but now that he was clearly ready to fight I took aim and fired. The recoil was pretty atrocious as I felt it reverberate across my body, making my aim take a turn for the worse. I seemed to have caught the General off guard as the first two shots surprisingly hit him, but suddenly he dashed to the side.
Almost out of an anime it seemed like he glided on air to travel such a distance, but following that he lunged forward, trident forward. I had enough time to luckily push myself to the left and dodge, however, the General slowed down rapidly and turned for a second strike that I had not anticipated with the hilt of the trident.
Since I could not block I took the opportunity to switch to my Saber-Tooth Tiger Double Barrel Shotgun. My leg took the brunt of the hit as I was knocked off balance with the sudden hit to the calf. He tried to follow up with a swing with the prongs of the trident, however, I quickly turned and aimed the shotgun straight at him and fired.
The sudden hit made him back up and recuperate. Which also brought me time to get back up and fix my posture.
"You are no ordinary soldier, not even a soldier at that, nor a Demi-Beast," he stated.
"Well, you have that right," I said half-heartily.
He moved forward once more, not going for a quick kill but still closing the distance rapidly. I aimed forward once more and fired, however, he was able to avoid the main blast by quickly moving to the side of the cone of fire. However, as he dodged, I shot out the rope from the weapon which tied itself to him and his trident.
"What the-"
"Think fast!" I suddenly said as, in his bout of confusion, I closed in and delivered two solid blasts of shotgun pellets into his chest.
He staggered from this, and I took the opportunity to follow up with my new skill.
"Splitting Shot!"
My weapon glowed for a moment, which I took as an indication of the activation of the skill, and I fired. However, it did not seem to have any new effect as the bullets all connected with him with a similar effect than a normal shot.
By the time the projectiles hit him, he had ripped up the rope immobilizing him slightly, and he moved forward once more. This time with much more speed, I think he is no longer holding back as the look on his face was one of anger.
If he kept up the speed he was going at then I would have no chance to dodge. I followed with another skill.
"Crystal Shot!"
A luminescent crystal suddenly materialized at the end of the barrel of the weapon form, and I shot it forward. The crystal had no effect as it did land and deal damage, but he continued on. I should have really upgraded my skills before fighting this guy. No point looking back now, however.
"Wire Bind X!"
Wire suddenly shot up from the ground and wrapped around the General, immobilizing him. As I looked at his immobilized figure, I could see that the bullets that I shot except for the crystal did not even penetrate the layer of armor he had on. There goes my plan of postponing him with the paralyzing poison bullets.
"How the- How the hell did you get a Mythic Weapon?!" He stammered in a rage as he attempted to break free of the wires.
"It's a Legendary, not Mythic, and this is not over!" I yelled as I fired another volley of shotgun pellets at him.
He seemed to calm down slightly, however, as he did not attempt to wiggle out; maybe he gave up…? I continued to fire; there was no chance in hell I was going to let him get off scot-free.
"Lords of the stars, lend me thy fire and forge me the power to incinerate my foes! Beta Flame Aura!"
Suddenly, the wires wrapped around him seemed to burn up as they all fell to the ground, freeing him. Looks like he cast a higher-tier spell, as he used beta and not delta. Either way, this shit took a turn for the worse as he rushed forward once more. I could not do much as I attempted to block the thrust of the trident by turning my shotgun to my side and trying to block it.
It worked to an extent as the blow was redirected straight up; however, as he did that, he turned the trident flat and slammed it down on my head as I could not move my shotgun up to block. I fell on the ground on my butt as the impact reverberated and knocked the wind out of me simultaneously.
As I turned up to see him not about to impale me from above, I used my arms which I used to catch myself to spring forward and I attempted to slide tackle him with whatever strength I had left. Which surprisingly worked as he got knocked off balance at my sudden burst. I then stabbed the fangs on the weapon form into his leg, which luckily did impale him.
I followed up with two more blasts to the leg; however, he did not falter like last time, and he punched my chest, slamming me down flat on the ground and knocking the wind out of me once more. It felt like I just got hit by a sledgehammer, as my head was reverberating from the blow, I looked up to see him punch me again and again. I flailed and attempted to protect myself with my arms and hands, but it continued again… And again…
End of Chapter 19
[Other World Index]
[Saber Tooth Tiger Fangs]
Saber Tooth Tiger Fangs are well known for their ability to easily puncture through objects, which includes organic and inorganic material as well. This therefore makes sharpened Saber Tooth Tiger Fans a prized possession for soldiers using rifles, as adding them to the bottom of the end of the barrel makes a deadly bayonet.
Authors Notes:
Hello everyone! Sorry for the late upload, I was pretty caught up with the planning of this chapter, and also some laziness on my part led to it being delayed. I made it a bit longer however to hopefully make up for that, however, so I hope you enjoyed it. Alex has now been knocked unconscious by General Coalnobai, what will he do with him now? Find out next time in Locked and Loaded in another world.
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General Coalnobai's Transcript:
"By the Gods, this fellow was stronger than I expected.""Indeed he was General."
"Well clearly not enough to defeat me… though I will say that he seems to have a Mythic Weapon… one that is Hertical in nature"
"What do you propose we do with him?"
"While normally, I would probably consider taking the weapon, I don't want to be confused for a heretic by wielding such a weapon."
"Are you suggesting we take him back to the capital and let a higher authority handle it?"
"... Yeah! Exactly that!"
"Do we even have any cages to imprison him back in one piece-"
"Probably in the back, and if not we need to make one, looks like we have an actual important thing on our hands."
"It would seem so…"
"Maybe this will be my big break!"
"We will see General Coalnobai… we will see…"
Date Recorded: [Expunged]