Raimõn Sentra, stood frozen in disbelief, trying to make sense of the absurdity unfolding around him. One moment, he was preparing to order an ice-cold coffee to fight off the summer, while finishing his energy drink. Then the next he gets swalloed by a blinding light coming from a magical circle that perfectly matched his desperate attempt toescape—a pointless effort from his part.
But now!?
Now, he was in a cavernous, dimly lit chamber reeking of sulfur and incense, surrounded by shadowy figures with glowing eyes.
The floor beneath him wasn’t the warm tiles of the pâtisserie anymore. No, it was jagged obsidian, humming faintly with an eerie, magical vibration. The sensation was unsettling, like standing in a fog of static electricity.
“Oh my! In the great name of the beloved Demon Lord! It worked!” exclaimed one of the creatures—a short, hunched figure with glowing crimson eyes. Its jubilant cry echoed off the cavern walls. “The Hero Summoning Ritual worked!”
“Hold on,” Rai stammered, his voice tinged with panic. “Demon Lord and… Hero?” He blinked rapidly, trying to shake the feeling of dread bubbling inside him.
“Six is a lucky number, yes!” another chimed in. This one was tall, clad in a flowing black cloak, and its voice carried a sinister glee. “Five failures, one success—we’ve done it! We’ve summoned a Hero!”
Rai instinctively stepped back, bumping into an obsidian pillar. Multiple pilons like this one were placed strategically around him, clearly designed to support the giant room they were in.
His heart raced as realization began to creep in—or maybe it was the caffeine, finally kicking in and waking him up. Either way, he wasn’t liking where this was going. “What’s gonna happen to me?” he asked, his voice shaking.
Before either demon could answer, a third voice cut in. This one was higher-pitched and overly enthusiastic, belonging to a wiry demon with twitching, bat-like wings. “Don’t worry! You’re goody-good-good! You help us with you’ power! Safety guaranteed… for now…”
A breath of relief escaped him, a reaction towards the words of the demon, but he couldn’t shake the ominous way he spoke them. Not the entire sentence, but the last part only.
Either way, he didn’t really have much of a choice in the matter. The reality of his situation was simple: he was no longer in Jassy, his hometown.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
This wasn’t entirely uncharted territory for him either. He’d had more than his fair share of strange encounters in recent months—like that time he narrowly avoided being abducted by aliens. Not to mention, as a self-proclaimed light novels nerd, he was no stranger to the concept of ‘another world.’
“Well, at least I won’t be fumbling blindly,” he muttered, half-joking to himself.
With his well-being momentarily guaranteed, Rai decided to test something out.
"Holy shit, she won't believe this!" He chuckled under his breath.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, the familiar weight of it a small comfort amidst the unfamiliarity of his surroundings. His fingers moved swiftly, and without breaking eye contact with the glowing, otherworldly gazes around him, he unlocked the phone and navigated to his contacts app.
His thumb hovered over the name “Laura.” With a steady exhale, he tapped it, dialing the number as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Come on, babe…” he muttered under his breath. But the ringing stopped, and voicemail picked up. He sighed, leaving a quick, annoyed text before shoving the phone back in his pocket.
“Figures... At least there’s, uh… signal? Good to know!”
“During some of our failed rituals,” a fourth demon spoke up, stepping forward with an air of authority. This one was slightly more imposing, with dark, curled horns and a robe that shimmered like oil in firelight. “We came to the conclusion that a Holy Hero working for demons doesn’t make sense. And a Holy Hero fighting another Holy Hero makes even less sense.”
Rai raised an eyebrow, but did not interurpt the speech.
“So,” the demon continued, a wicked grin spreading across its sharp features, “we’ve picked a new title for you!” It gestured dramatically, as though unveiling a masterpiece. “The Dark Hero, of the Demon Kingdom!”
The other demons erupted into cheers, clapping and chittering excitedly.
“Dark Hero, huh?” he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Wow. Cool. Very edgy. So, I’m guessing capes and brooding are mandatory?”
The demons, not catching the sarcasm, nodded enthusiastically.
“Of course!” the fourth demon declared, utterly pleased with itself. “You’ll strike fear into the hearts of our enemies, a symbol of our rebellion against the oppressiveness of the light!”
“Awesome,” Rai muttered, running a hand through his hair. “So, I’m a dark brooding anti-hero working for demons now. This is great… What’s the next stop?”
The reply to his question was unexpected, not coming from the demons but from within his mind, a voice, congratulated The Dark Hero with sass.
“Sentra Raimõn you have completed an achievement!"
「Wild mobility!」
「Get attacked by EVERY method of transportation known to mankind, including but not limited at: roller skates, UFOs, and … summoning circles!」"
The voice continued, however it was unamused this time.
“Sentra Raimõn has acquired a title!"
「The Dark Hero!」
「The first individual to be summoned by the Kingdom of Demons in order to become their Hero!」
“Feel free to equip the title whenever you like,” it finished, its tone dripping with indifference as it marked the second achievement.