On a bright summer day, in the bustling town of Iveleth, a large crowd had gathered around a luxurious clothing store. After a while, two people came out of the store, accompanied by several knights—a young man with black hair dressed like a noble, and a demi-human girl in matching fancy clothes.
"That's him!! The new hero!!" someone suddenly shouted.
The place erupted into chaos as the crowd began screaming. Some tried to get close and talk to Laos, but the knights were clearly there to prevent that. They pushed everyone back until they reached a waiting luxury carriage. Laos and Maris waved to the surrounding crowd as they climbed in.
"Welcome, Sir Laos. It's an honor to have you ride with me. I'm Egelton, a representative from the palace, and I'm here to escort you in the finest way."
"Nice to meet you," Laos replied shyly.
The carriage set off, struggling to move through the dense crowd. It was clear that Laos' fame had grown far beyond what he imagined. And maybe... it had started to become annoying. Crowds like this would stop him from doing the simplest things—like shopping or just wandering around town.
"Apparently, people came from other duchies just to see you. That's really unexpected."
"Cool."
"And also, Laos, you should prepare yourself to meet the king. There are quite a few things he wants to talk about—like your escape from the palace," Egelton said with a strange look.
Ugh, I knew someone was going to bring that up. Can't they just forget about it already? Yes, I ran away—so what? Ughhh, now I have to explain why I did it. That's going to be really hard. But I don't care... not as long as I'm considered a hero now. Just look at all these people. I'm seriously famous. I never imagined my life would change like this.
"Yeah, yeah, I know," I said while looking out the window at one of the people waving at me.
In front of me, Maris was also staring at the crowd. But unlike me, her smile was stunning. She was unbelievably beautiful. That smile brought me a bit of joy. This is awesome. I can't wait to show myself to those fuckers. They're all going to lose it. Laos the NPC is now a hero?! Hell yeah!!
But I need to prepare myself to speak. I already know I'm going to get super embarrassed. So what do I do to avoid that? If I get nervous and stutter, that's going to be insane—I'll look like a fool instead of a hero. God, I need a way to speak fluently. This is going to be so hard.
After a while, we left Iveleth and took the familiar road toward Yavan. But then, we reached a turnoff leading to the capital. Laos, you're about to reach a place where only the greats of the kingdom are allowed. This is amazing, you mother fucker—from a game-addicted teenager to a dragon-slaying hero. That's awesome! I'm absolute for real!
◆ ◆ ◆
Clouds floated gently through the sky, the sun shone brightly, the blue sky was stunning, and wyverns flew through it with the kingdom's flags tied to their legs. The area was loud, especially near the palace's exit. Behind the vast garden walls, a huge crowd of people had gathered—of all races and appearances—shouting and cheering while some launched fireworks.
Then the garden gate opened, and a luxurious carriage moved forward, surrounded by knights. Far from the garden stood a colossal palace, a giant structure that looked like it had been built by magic. The carriage followed a long path lined with small shrubs, leading to a staircase at the end. At the top stood three people and several knights.
The first, standing in the center, was tall with a striking black beard and a crown that gleamed even from afar. To his right stood a blonde woman in an elegant dress, and to the left, an old man with a monocle over his left eye and a blue cloak. The carriage stopped, and Laos and his wife Maris, also dressed in luxurious attire, stepped out and ascended the stairs with noble poise alongside the knights.
Oh God, my heart's going to explode. That's the king... Am I shaking? I think I'm going to faint. I can't. I just can't take another step. In that moment, a warm hand grabbed mine. It was Maris, as if to say, "You're a hero. Why are you nervous?" She's right. But... there's no but, you filthy fucker. You're here to make an impression—an impression as a hero.
"Long live the new hero, Laos! The White Swordmaster!" the king shouted.
And then the crowd outside the palace exploded into cheers, screaming my name. It was madness. It only made me more nervous. Maris and I climbed the stairs alone. I found it hard to look at the three standing before us, but whenever I glanced at them, I saw wide smiles. Were they really happy to see me?
"Welcome, welcome," the king said, reaching out to shake my hand.
Wait, shouldn't I bow or something? Whatever. I shook his hand and gave him a wide grin too. Then he stepped past me and looked toward the zombie-like crowd gathered outside the garden gate. And shouted: "Today, I declare that the Kingdom of Yarum has achieved a tremendous milestone in the world of adventure. And it seems our kingdom doesn't stop at victories in war. Today, I announce that the strongest dragon has been slain by one of our heroes, and that the Dark Eye and his associate Avilat have been captured!"
What? They captured the Dark Eye? Who the hell is that?
"Now then—let the celebration begin!!!" the king shouted, even louder this time.
With that, he turned and entered the palace, followed by the blonde woman and the old man. So I followed them too. And... oh... my... god… the inside of the palace was way more impressive than the outside. It was so detailed that I'd get lost trying to describe it. Directly ahead of me was a massive throne, majestic and imposing, as if it radiated an aura of its own.
Away from the throne stood several teenagers—it was them. They were all there. Linda, Malin, Stephanie—all of them. They looked at me with smiles, some even in shock. But beyond those fuckers, there was someone I absolutely did not expect to see. Blonde. Gorgeous. Stunning. She stood there, her long golden hair mesmerizing, her boobs prominent, wearing one of her elegant dresses. What the fuck is Tiana doing here?!
"Hail the hero," the king repeated.
Suddenly, everyone began to applaud—even Tiana and the fucking heroes. After that, I stood directly in front of the throne and knelt. Well, I don't really get these things, but every time a protagonist in an isekai story meets a king, they kneel, right? Okay, what's he going to do now?
"First of all, thank you for defeating the sleeping dragon. In recognition of your victory, I will grant you one of the kingdom's titles."
A new title?! Damn, I'm collecting so many of those. A knight stepped forward, holding a rectangular box. When he opened it, a magnificent sword was revealed. The king took it and stood before me while I was kneeling. Then, just like in medieval times, he laid the blade on my left shoulder, then the right, and finally declared: "I, Adalos IV, grant you the title The Fallen Hero, a title that symbolizes perseverance and the struggle to achieve dreams once denied—or, as many call it, the one who climbed from the abyss and reached paradise."
"I'm honored, Your Majesty," I said—though it seemed he couldn't hear me over the noisy applause.
"And now, you may request anything, and we shall grant it."
"Your Majesty, may we speak about my wishes—and any topic you'd like to discuss—in private?"
"Ah... of course… Everyone, leave!" the king suddenly shouted.
Just like that, everyone withdrew. Even Tiana. The hall that had just been crowded became empty again. It was just me, Maris, the king, his wife, and that old man. Alright, let's see how this conversation goes—I had prepared a lot of answers on the way here.
"So, what is your wish, Fallen Hero?"
"Forgive my boldness, but for a while now I've been wanting to buy a house, where my wife and I could live comfortably—away from the noise of the taverns."
"I understand. And that's not bold at all. You've accomplished something great, and it's only right that you're rewarded. Let's see… would you accept a palace here in the capital?"
A... a palace? Isn't that a bit much? I only wanted a modest home in Iveleth, but a palace?! At that moment, I felt an elbow bump my arm—it was Maris, and it seemed like she really wanted me to say yes. Okay, what's with you? It's not like I was going to refuse. Also, living in a palace in the capital sounds way better than staying in Iveleth where the place is packed with people who know me.
"That would be wonderful, Your Majesty. Of course I accept."
"Then it shall be yours—a palace in the capital. Is there anything else?"
"Uhh… no, no. I only wanted a place to live. Now we can discuss other matters."
"Good… Then allow me to ask the first question. Laos, why did you run away from my daughter's palace?"
"Well, to be honest, living in the princess' palace was never a bad thing. But I had a strong desire to go out and explore, to accomplish many things—like gaining strength and more. Staying in the palace wouldn't help me achieve any of that. And since going out was forbidden, I decided to escape. I'm sorry for that, Your Majesty."
"No need to apologize. I just wanted to understand the reason. But as you may know, your escape caused a few problems for us. For example, Gaziel's disappearance. Do you know what happened to him? The servants said they last saw him heading out to catch you."
"Yes… when he caught us, we got into a fierce fight. After a while, two girls appeared—one short, one tall—they looked alike and had red hair. They defeated Gaziel easily and took him with them."
"What? Are you sure? Wasn't he a well-built man with muscles?" the king asked in disbelief.
"I'm sure."
"Those two girls… they're spies from Deryal. They're the same ones who ambushed my daughter," the queen said.
"Yes…" the old man muttered.
"By the way, since the Sea Spirit chose you, that means you possess a legendary class. So why did the goddess send you as a servant?" the old man asked.
"Honestly, I don't know either. But it seems my class isn't just an ordinary one."
Alright, things went smoothly. I'm still a bit nervous, but it's nowhere near what I felt before. This is amazing. And nothing bad happened. I'm going to get a palace—hell yeah! This is seriously awesome. Now, I'll start a new life, get a merchant license, and continue hunting monsters and selling their loot. I'm so fucking happy!!
"Well then, Laos, now let's talk about the most important matter," the king said with a serious expression. The most important matter?
"Yes?"
"Laos, we'd like your help in our war against Deryal."
ACT II: Guilds & Dragons - END