Vol. 1 Chapter 1

“Hey, mister. What are you doing riding the train at this hour?”

 

“Huh…?”

 

I was suddenly approached and let out a strange sound.

 

I lifted my drooping head and hastily wiped away the drool that was about to fall before raising my face.

 

Sitting across from me on the train were a couple of university students, grinning.

 

Both of them were well-groomed, and their outfits were stylish.

 

They exuded the aura of those on the “sunny” side of life.

 

They had been looking at me with mocking glances, bewildered by why I seemed so confused.

 

“What’s up?”

 

“I’m asking what you’re doing at this hour.”

 

“I’m riding the train until the last one.”

 

Only the two of them and I were on that train car.

 

The sound of the train rumbling through the dark tunnel in the middle of the night filled the surroundings.

 

“What… are you working until this hour?”

 

“Working until this hour?”

 

“You must be working for a black company, right?”

 

…”

 

It was clear that they were making fun of me.

 

They looked down on me, completely considering me a loser for riding the last train on a weekday night in a tired suit.

 

And unfortunately, that was exactly the case.

 

The company I worked for was a small to medium-sized enterprise that felt like a black company through and through.

 

Low wages.

 

Overtime pay rarely given.

 

Bullying bosses.

 

I couldn’t even use my paid leave, and I was often called in on weekends with no warning.

 

Working like a horse for such a company, living a life where I didn’t even know what I was living for, I was undoubtedly a loser in society.

 

The two of them could smell the distinctive atmosphere of losers that I carried, and they were taking advantage of it.

 

And unfortunately, I couldn’t say anything back to them.

 

“How much do you make?”

 

“I made nearly 300,000 yen from my part-time job this month. There’s no way you make less than that, right?”

 

…”

 

Unfortunately, my salary hadn’t reached 300,000 yen by my late twenties.

 

300,000 yen from a part-time job.

 

Impressive.

 

If you can make that much from a part-time job, you’d naturally look down on a salaryman like me.

 

“I’m a fourth-year university student now, and I got an offer from M Corporation.”

 

“Yeah, he’s amazing, right?”

 

…”

 

The man seemed to still feel like he hadn’t asserted his dominance enough, so he said something like that.

 

I see, getting an offer from M Corporation really does require a high level of education.

 

And the credibility of making 300,000 yen from a part-time job.

 

“Your starting salary is probably already higher than mister’s. Isn’t that enviable?”

 

“Hahaha. It’s pitiful to say something like that.”

 

…”

 

What grudge could these two possibly have against me?

 

Did I do something to them?

 

Feeling increasingly angry, I started to stand up, wanting to retort to the two young people who were ignorant of the world.

 

That’s when it happened.

 

“What’s this!?”

 

“Hey, what’s going on!? What is it!?”

 

…”

 

The floor of the car suddenly began to glow.

 

Startled by the sudden event, the two screamed, and I closed my eyes against the brightness.

 

The light grew brighter and brighter, filling the entire car.

 

“We need to get out of here, right!?”

 

“What’s this!? Is someone playing a prank!?”

 

I could hear the sounds of the two panicking and trying to run away.

 

Unable to keep up with my thoughts due to the suddenness of the situation, I could only cower in place.

 

What is this light?

 

Is it a bomb or something?

 

Well, even if I were to die like this, I probably wouldn’t regret it.

 

I haven’t lived a life where I would regret something like that.

 

As I thought that, I suddenly felt a mysterious sensation enveloping my entire body, and I lost consciousness.

 

“I don’t recognize this ceiling…”

 

Unintentionally, those words slipped out.

 

The next time I opened my eyes, I was in a completely unfamiliar place.

 

I sat up and looked around.

 

It was a place that resembled a medieval castle.

 

On the ground, what looked like a circle for some kind of ritual was drawn, and a large number of people in white robes surrounded it.

 

Nearby were the two university students who had been in the same car just a moment ago.

 

“What? Where is this?”

 

“Huh, what’s going on? I really don’t understand…?”

 

As the two looked around in confusion, a woman dressed in a particularly luxurious dress, like a beautiful princess, approached from among the crowd in white robes.

 

“Thank you for answering our summon, brave hero. Please use your power to save this world from disaster.”

 

I had no idea what was going on.