The light. It was always the damn light. Flashy, blinding, overly dramatic—he’d seen it more times than he cared to count.
Yuuji sighed as the glowing magic circle enveloped him, sparkles and holy chants echoing around. He didn’t even bother to look surprised anymore. His hands hung limply by his side, his expression flat. “Oh boy, here we go again…”
The light grew brighter, and Yuuji could already imagine the grand hall, the lavish throne, the overly dramatic king who’d tell him some nonsense about “saving our world, oh great hero!”
They always did that. Every. Single. Time.
But this time, something felt off. Instead of a grand hall, Yuuji felt himself plummeting. Air rushed past his face, his hair a wild mess as he was unceremoniously dropped—no, flung—into the middle of a dense forest.
He crashed into the bushes with a thud. Leaves flew everywhere. A squirrel watched him for a moment, then scurried off as if this was just another Tuesday.
Yuuji groaned, peeling himself off the ground. “You’ve got to be kidding me…”
He looked around. No grand hall. No throne. No melodramatic king. Just trees. Lots and lots of trees.
“Wait, did they… screw up the summoning?” Yuuji blinked, realization dawning. “HAHAHAHA!” He laughed like a man who’d just won the lottery. “Oh, this is rich. They failed? After all that build-up?!”
He doubled over, clutching his sides. Tears formed in the corners of his eyes. “Serves them right. I was getting real tired of saving worlds, you know?”
Yuuji sat down on a tree stump, his expression turning serious. “I’ve saved so many worlds, defeated so many demon lords, listened to so many kings weeping like babies. Do you know how many speeches I’ve heard about ‘hope’ and ‘courage’? I could recite them by heart at this point!”
He leaned back, staring up at the sky through the leaves. “And every single time, I get thrown to another world. No rest, no reward, just ‘Congrats! Now do it all over again!’”
Yuuji crossed his arms, his face twisted in irritation. “Screw that. I’m done. I am done being a hero. They can save themselves this time. I don’t care if the Demon Queen’s doing the Macarena on top of their castle—I’m out.”
A breeze rustled the leaves. It was strangely peaceful.
A grin spread across Yuuji’s face. “Yeah… this is nice. Maybe I’ll just live here. In the forest. Alone. Away from kings, monsters, prophecies, and destiny. They’re gonna freak out when they realize I’m not showing up. Heh.”
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MEANWHILE, IN THE ROYAL CASTLE…
The grand hall was filled with nobles, all waiting anxiously for the legendary hero to appear. The magic circle in the center glowed faintly, then fizzled out like a dying sparkler.
An awkward silence followed.
The King cleared his throat, his mustache twitching nervously. “…Did it work?”
The head priest was pale, flipping through his ancient grimoire, sweat dripping down his forehead. “I-I don’t understand… The ritual was flawless. The hero should be here…”
A nervous murmur spread through the nobles.
The King’s face turned pale. “Are you saying… the hero isn’t coming?”
The head priest stammered, “I-I… maybe there was a slight… miscalculation?”
“Miscalculation?” The King’s voice rose. “You mean to tell me that the hero we desperately need to save us from the Demon Queen is just… missing?”
The nobles started panicking, whispering amongst themselves. One even fainted dramatically, clutching his chest.
The King’s eye twitched. “Well?! Where is he?! Did he end up somewhere else?!”
The head priest looked like he was about to pass out. “I… I don’t know. The summoning should have brought him right here… Unless…”
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The King grabbed him by the collar. “Unless what?”
The head priest gulped. “Unless… the hero… refused the call?”
The room went dead silent.
“…Refused?” The King’s voice was barely a whisper. “What kind of hero would refuse to save the world?”
The head priest’s lips trembled. “A-A hero who… doesn’t want to be a hero?”
The King dropped him, stumbling back to his throne, his face pale. “We’re doomed… The Demon Queen is preparing to invade, and our hero… is missing…”
A royal messenger burst into the room, panting. “Y-Your Majesty! Urgent news!”
The King’s head snapped up. “Did you find the hero?!”
The messenger hesitated, clearly dreading his next words. “…No. But… the Demon Queen… she… she’s laughing. Hysterically. Apparently, she heard that the hero is missing and… she said she’s moving up her invasion to tomorrow afternoon because… um…”
The King’s face darkened. “Because…?”
The messenger’s voice wavered, “…Because we ‘lost our cheat character.’”
The grand hall was silent once again. The King fainted.
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MEANWHILE, IN THE DEMON QUEEN’S CASTLE…
The throne room was way too flashy. Like seriously, who needed this much red carpet? It stretched all the way from the entrance to this ridiculous throne made of shiny black rock. Obsidian? Really? Somebody was overcompensating.
Velvet curtains framed these huge windows showing off some stormy landscape, complete with lightning flashing every few seconds. Almost like it was on a timer. Was she paying mages just to keep the ambiance dramatic? …Yeah, probably.
And there she was. The Demon Queen, lounging on her throne like she was modeling for a fashion magazine. Long silver hair flowing down her back like she’d just walked out of a shampoo commercial. Red eyes gleaming with that classic “I’m so evil” look. Two horns curled out from her head, just to complete the demon queen aesthetic.
Her “armor” was… yeah, that was definitely breaking some laws of physics. Low-cut corset, thigh-high boots, and a cape that billowed dramatically even though there was no wind inside. She was just showing off at this point.
Her generals stood before her, all looking at the floor like it was the most interesting thing in the world. Yeah, no one was brave enough to look up for, uh, reasons. One of them coughed awkwardly. “U-uh, Your Majesty… the hero… is um… missing.”
The Demon Queen’s eyes went wide for a second, then she burst out laughing. Like full-on, dramatic anime villain laugh. “HAHAHAHA! Missing? The so-called legendary hero… chickened out?!”
She leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand, one eyebrow raised with a smug grin. “Are you telling me… that the hero ran away before even facing me?”
Her voice dripped with sarcasm, red eyes gleaming. “What a coward. Did he finally realize he stood no chance against me? The invincible Demon Queen Lorein, conqueror of realms and breaker of spirits?” She struck a pose, cape flowing behind her even though there was literally no wind. Lightning flashed at that exact moment, cause of course it did.
One of her generals cleared his throat. “Uh… M-Maybe the summoning just… failed?”
Lorein’s eyes narrowed, a dangerous glint flashing. “You dare suggest that the legendary hero didn’t run away in fear at the thought of facing me?”
The guy dropped to his knees, shaking. “N-No, of course not! He’s definitely a coward!”
Lorein’s smirk returned as she stood up, moving with that over-the-top anime elegance. She started walking down the steps of her throne, hips swaying dramatically. Was she practicing this in the mirror or something? Her cape continued to flow behind her, because why not.
She stopped in front of the massive window, looking out at her army gathering below. “It’s almost disappointing,” she said with a fake pout. “I was looking forward to breaking him… But if he’s too much of a coward to show up, I’ll just have to conquer this world without him.”
Her crimson eyes sparkled with excitement, voice full of confidence. “Tomorrow, I march on the human kingdom. Without their hero, they’ll be helpless. Victory is mine.”
She threw her head back and laughed. Long, loud, and way too dramatic, echoing through the castle as thunder boomed outside. “To think the so-called ‘legendary hero’ is just a spineless coward… What a joke.”
The generals all nodded like bobbleheads, no one daring to mention the obvious. Yeah, no one was dumb enough to suggest the summoning just failed. They valued their lives, thanks.
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BACK IN THE FOREST…
Yuuji sneezed. “Weird. Did someone just badmouth me?”
He stretched out under the shade of a big tree, arms behind his head. “Eh, not my problem.”
With that, he closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep. Hero-ing was overrated anyway.
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End of Chapter 1.