Chapter 2

Hajime had said that, but he knew that he needed to increase his combat prowess.

Therefore, he told the girls to hunt one wolf each while he hunted one separately. Any protests Kaori may have had before the fall died out in the face of the need to survive. Shizuku thought the same, but wondered how they were going to hunt two wolves, especially with Kaori only being proficient in defence and support.

Hajime was worse off, as a Synergist, but he disregarded that in light of his plan- as an otaku, he would know how to apply any plan effectively, and know how to analyze any attack he might receive before it hit him, it was in his nature to analyze everything that was given to know of it, especially to predict the plot of an anime, manga, novel or game.

They separated, with Kaori being told to collaborate with Shizuku for now. Hajime's plan was simple- use himself as bait to lead the wolf into a pitfall trap, then either suffocate it, or stab it with a drill-like spear. The plan worked flawlessly, and Hajime had a wolf to eat. He dragged it out, and started rendering it in their hideout. When he was finished, Kaori and Shizuku had come in with two wolves.

Kaori had created two powerful barriers to separate the wolves and defeated one with a spell she had wanted to try for a long time- Binding Chains- by strangulation. Shizuku had defeated the other with her sword, that was infused with mana to sharpen its edge, with a slice to the neck, beheading it.

Hajime got to work, rendering the two wolves in less time than before, due to experience. After that was done, he had Shizuku slice the wolf's meat into easy-to-eat strips, and Kaori was to cook the meat with Fireball. Then, they took the meat that they had cooked, and started devouring it. None of them had realized just how starved they had been, so they were happy to even eat the meat, even though it tasted metallic and gross.

Once they were finished eating, all three of them had one vial's worth of Ambrosia each, as a countermeasure to any effects that eating monster meat may have on them- Hajime had remembered that monster meat had adverse effects when eaten by humans.

Unfortunately, his memory had been hazy, and he was unable to recall that it actually was deadly to humans. As a result, pain assaulted all three of them, and was continuous in nature, but their wills, forged out of agony, despair, hatred and desire, allowed them to hold on.

The special magic in a monster normally would've killed a human, due to incompatibility that led to corrosion of the body. However, the Ambrosia managed to stave off and recover any and all of the damage that they received, leading to a phenomenon called overcompensating, which made the bodies of all three adapt to monster meat.

In doing so, the mana they possessed changed, allowing them to do something that normal humans would never be capable of- they gained one, or in Hajime's case, two, new jobs each. Physically, they lost their black or brown hair, which changed to a snow-white color, while their eyes changed color to a deep crimson, and their muscles and bones matured and improved, giving the girls a toned body, while Hajime gained a ripped body, which remained lean, as his old body was. Their bodies now screamed power.

When they finished changing, the first thing they did was to check their status plates.

On seeing it their expressions matched, each of them were wide-eyed, with jaws open and shaking hands. When they regained their speech, Hajime proceeded to shout "WHAT IN TARNATION!?", slipping into the Kansai dialect in his shock. The girls were no better in silence, having seen the changes:-

Hajime Nagumo

Job: Synergist, Magic Combatant, Gunner

Skills: Direct Mana Manipulation- All Element Affinity- Lightning Field- Lightning Bolt- High-Speed Mana recovery- Iron Stomach- Firearm Understanding- Swordsmanship

Kaori Shirasaki

Job: Priestess, Heavy Knight

Skills: Close-Quarters Combat Proficiency- Direct Mana Manipulation- Physical Resistance- Iron Stomach- Lightning Field- Lightning Bolt

Shizuku Yaegashi

Job: Swordswoman, Assassin

Skills: Direct Mana Maipulation- Assassination Techniques- Presence Manipulation- Shadow Dance

Shizuku couldn't begin to comprehend how she got the Assassin job, and Kaori understood that the Heavy Knight job allowed her to increase her strength, but Hajime's two new jobs would've bewildered the inhabitants of Tortus. His jobs were never heard of before in the entire world.

Of course, when he calmed down, he realized that both jobs are just as powerful, if not more than Kouki's Hero job, for the simple reason that Firearm Understanding, when in conjunction with Transmute allowed him to create modern-day guns from Earth. Also, his jobs allowed him to master weapons in addition to magic affinity.

Of course, all this was possible because of his determination and the girls' devotion to him- even when newly realized, the girls' feelings were powerful, and bolstered by their determination to follow and help Hajime in the Pits of Hell.

Following that was a scene which would forever remain in Hajime's memories, for the absurdity of the situation was such that it was unforgettable.

The girls, having looked at each other and nodded, jumped on Hajime, with Shizuku nestling her face on his chest and Kaori kissing him. The action was unexpected, especially when you consider that both Kaori and Shizuku were popular enough to get with anyone, even Kouki, who was just unusually handsome, and was prepared to fight for the majority even against the (g)odds {1}.

When Kaori separated her lips from Hajime's own, she was bashful and unusually happy, even by her standards. This was baffling to Hajime, as even with her interest in him, she was being too close.

"Hajime-kun, I'm sorry that I couldn't keep my promise, but there are some things I want to tell you. I couldn't believe it at first myself, but it is true regardless of whether you choose to believe me or not. I love you, Hajime-kun, and probably will only love you for as long as I live. You stole my heart when I first saw you, and you remember well enough what I mean.

"Even then, I thought of you as strong, but now, I think that you are even stronger, despite how badly the class betrayed you. Such people can just rot in hell for all I care. You. That's why I jumped in. To be by your side, and to keep my word. I'll say it again- I love you, and I will do everything in my power to make you ours."

Hajime was dumbfounded, but for the simple reason that she had confessed to him, of all people. He had thought that she might've been Kouki's girlfriend in secret. His jealousy was quite easily seen, as it was. But here was concrete proof that she was NOT interested in Kouki at all. Still, the unexpected question he had was-

" 'Ours'? "

It was here that Shizuku spoke up, her face red from embarrassment, but with resolve in her voice.

"She meant me, Hajime. I can't believe it, but I would seem that I fell for you as well. This was from constant interaction with you and seeing you as you were. I knew that you had incredible strength of heart, but never in my life thought that you would be someone I could imagine spending my life with.

"Of course, I feel horrible that I'm in love with the same person as my best friend, but we talked it over and decided that we both wanted to be yours and yours alone. We'll be happy to receive an answer later, but that doesn't mean that we could hold our own feelings in. Just know that it's you for us."

This just shocked Hajime even further, because he hadn't expected many people to fall for little Hajime Nagumo, paragon of the ostracized. Nevertheless, he knew what he had to say here.

"Thanks for telling me that I could give my answer later. I never expected anyone to fall in love with me, let alone either of you, so I just threw the concept out of my head. Honestly, I'll need time to consider my own feelings, but I will give both of you an answer. This I promise. Does this mean that if I reject you, you will leave my side as allies, though?"

""NO! NEVER!" They shouted in unison while glowering at him.

And so the Monsters of the Abyss became a pseudo-threesome. Hajime wondered about the feelings welling up inside him when the question he had just asked came up in his mind. And about the relief he felt at their vehement rejection of the possibility

Shaking his head, he thought of testing their strength. They decided to move on to fight the wolves again, to do so.

The result: Hajime was now a terrifying monster, with the other two coming close in relative strength.

Hajime's Magic Combatant job allowed him to punch wolves while casting long-distance magic spells at the same time, while also allowing him to enhance his attacks with magic, especially because he manipulated mana directly, and because of his newly gained affinity, he didn't even need to chant anything, just use the spell with an image in mind. He managed to get 12 wolves in the time it took Shizuku to get 3 wolves as a result.

Shizuku manipulated her presence to kill 6 wolves without breaking a sweat and letting them know about her.

Kaori…. truly became a terrifying opponent with her new physical abilities-she strangled a wolf, then kicked 5 wolves in succession to complete her assignment- kill 6 wolves

And then, it was decided that Hajime had reliable allies. Hajime felt his determination strengthen as he saw the girls hunt with determined expressions. And swore to protect the two of them for as long as he could.

1 – A reference to a Chinese xuanhuan called Against the Gods, and a dig at Amanogawa, who fought for the majority, not even knowing that the majority were led around the (k)nose by the God he revered.

About the Statuses- Simply put, I felt the need to change things about it. For the original stats, either read the ln or go to the Arifureta fandom website (arifureta. fandom. com) and check out the characters. I will list the changes here. For Kaori and Shizuku, just raise the numbers a bit (around 150 points per stat) and add the new job and skills. For Hajime, add 50 points to his stats and add the skills that aren't already there.

Next chapter will feature nothing more than the Heroes and their conflicts.

Ciao!