Dex and Rey walked into the guild hall with a yawn, dragging their feet before dropping into their seats next to Eliza and Eddy. Not long after, Tet strolled into the room, taking his usual spot at the head of the table.
"Alright, welcome back," he said, clapping his hands lightly. "How's everyone feeling?"
"Not bad," the group answered in unison.
"Good, good." Tet's gaze swept over them, a glint of amusement in his eyes. "Alright, I see some of you have leveled up and improved your skills… and two of you even learned actual styles."
Dex leaned back in his chair with a shrug. "Yeah, I'm not sure why we did, when we're probably just gonna stick to the tried-and-true method of: swing weapon, kill enemy."
Tet let out a long, sarcastic sigh. "Truly, I have picked the most wonderful and courageous heroes." He rubbed his temples dramatically before continuing, "Anyway, let's cut to the chase and send you all on your way to your latest missions. Rey and Dex—I'm leaving your world a surprise. Eddy and Eliza—you two are going to One Piece. I sort of eliminated some of the Straw Hat pirates' milestones, and I need you two to play the villain role and help them grow stronger. Don't kill anyone, just give them a good thrashing and have fun with it."
Eddy smirked and cracked his knuckles. "No problem, boss."
Eliza frowned, lowering her eyes. "But… I don't want to be a bad guy."
"It's just for this mission, Eliza," Tet reassured, raising a hand. "Next time I need someone to play the villain, I'll make Dex and Rey do it."
"Hey!" Dex shot back, narrowing his eyes.
Rey rolled hers. "Oh, chill out, Dex. And don't tell me you'd have a problem playing the bad guy—you look like a supervillain in the right light."
Dex let out a dry laugh. "Wow, thanks, Rey. That makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside."
"At least you finally got enough sun to not look like a fucking vampire," Rey teased with a smirk.
"Easy with that kind of talk," Tet cut in, wagging a finger. "One of my pantheon members is a former vampire princess turned goddess."
He turned his attention back to the other two. "Anyway, Eddy and Eliza—you're free to head out. Dex and Rey, you two should change into your characters now. There won't be time once you arrive."
"Got it." Dex stood, activated his character draw, and was engulfed in a blinding light. When the glow faded, Dex was gone—replaced by a girl around fourteen years old with jaw-length black hair and brown eyes. She wore a red female military academy uniform with a yellow butterfly pin on the chest, long blue knee-length socks, and black leather boots accented with gold. A pair of black fingerless leather gloves completed the look.
Rey blinked, her jaw dropping slightly. "You look like Rinwell from Tales of Arise… but that's not Rinwell's clothes. That looks like a military academy uniform." She slowly turned her gaze toward Tet. "Oh, you didn't."
"Oh, but I did," Tet replied with a smug grin.
Rey swallowed hard and reluctantly drew her own character. When the light faded, Rey was gone. In her place stood a beautiful young woman with long pink hair tied in a ponytail, sharp blue eyes, and a red military academy uniform. White stockings hugged her legs, ending in sleek heels, and a black garter on her left thigh carried a line of bullets.
Rey—now Shionne—groaned. "And I'm Shionne. Damn it, Tet, are you really making us go to school? Does the Legend of Heroes world even need help? I'm pretty sure everything works out for them."
Tet shrugged casually. "Kind of. But there are a few villains I want to see get smacked around. Having you two there will improve their chances. And one more thing—I'm not making you do everything in one go. After the events of the first game are finished, you can take a break from that world."
Tet leaned back with a grin and waved his hand. "Off you go. Have fun."
"Yeah, yeah," they muttered in unison as they stepped through the door into a blinding light.
When the radiance finally receded, the two of them found themselves on a moving train. A soft chime sounded—ding dong—followed by an announcement: Next stop, Trista Station. Please prepare for departure.
Rinwell blinked in surprise before groaning. "Oh great… we really are in Trails. I loved this world when it was just a game, but now? I'm worried about a lot of things."
Shionne slumped back in her seat, a tired sigh escaping her lips. "Yeah. And we have to go back to school. This is literally a recurring nightmare of mine."
Rinwell turned to her, tilting her head in confusion. "Wait, I thought you were a teenager?"
"I'm seventeen," Shionne admitted, brushing a strand of her pink hair behind her ear. "But I dropped out to pursue my pro gamer career… and now I'm going back." Her tone was half bitter, half resigned.
Rinwell tried to lighten the mood with a small smile. "Well, at least it's a military school, so it'll be different. I hope. But we should focus on our stats first."
"Yeah, good point." Shionne straightened up. "Let's get our heads right."
Dex—now Rinwell—pulled up her status sheet and read aloud:
---
Name: Rinwell (Dexter)
Race: Dahnan
Health: 700
Mana: 800
Level: 4
Strength: 25
Perception: 26
Endurance: 15
Charisma: 24
Intelligence: 29
Agility: 23
Luck: 30
Perks: S.T.A.R.S, Good Samaritan, Undead Slayer
Skills: Kenjutsu – Intermediate, Ji Gen Ryu – Intermediate, Archery – Intermediate, Throwing – Intermediate, Kickboxing – Intermediate, Cooking – Master, Arte Charge (Locked), Arte Steal (Locked), Spell Weaving (Locked), Combo (Locked)
Abilities: Enhanced Strength, Novice Destruction Magic, Novice Alteration Magic, Dahnan Astral Artes
Characters: Saki, Mako
Familiarity: 000%
---
Name: Shionne (Regina)
Race: Renan
Health: 700
Mana: 600
Level: 4
Strength: 24
Perception: 28
Endurance: 22
Charisma: 30
Intelligence: 32
Agility: 28
Luck: 22
Perks: Undead Slayer
Skills: Firearms, Krav Maga – Intermediate, Throwing – Intermediate, Kickboxing – Intermediate, Marksmanship – Intermediate, Sniping – Intermediate, Combo (Locked),Cooking-Master
Abilities: Enhanced Strength, Novice Destruction Magic, Novice Conjuration Magic, Renan Astral Artes, Healing Artes (Locked)
Characters: Lei, Megumi
Familiarity: 000%
---
Rinwell lowered the stat sheet with a shrug. "Okay, not bad. Plenty of room for us to grow, obviously… but hey, that's half the fun."
Shionne smirked faintly. "I'm just glad Shionne's double-portion consumption didn't carried over as part of my skills. Not to mention… the Thorns."
Rinwell chuckled. "Let's see if we've got any new stuff in our inventory." She focused, scanning through her items. "Okay, I've got Rinwell's first grimoire—Secret of the Stars—and… an orbal staff that looks like the Lyrium Staff from Dragon Age: Inquisition. I guess it's supposed to be my cover weapon, since technically I can't show off any magic until later."
Shionne perked up as she checked her own inventory. "I have Shionne's rifle—Noble Rose—an infinite ammo pouch, and… an infinite bomb pouch. Wow. Okay."
Rinwell raised a brow. "Makes sense. Your rifle and bombs aren't native to this world, so you'd need a way to get ammo. Your only other choice would've been to use an orbal rifle."
Shionne turned the sleek, red-and-white weapon over in her hands, a nostalgic gleam in her eyes. "Yeah, not happening. I always loved this rifle when I played the game. Sure, some of the later weapons are cool, but this one's my favorite."
"I know what you mean," Rinwell agreed with a smile. "I've played plenty of games where I liked the basic weapon's design more. Alright, let's check out missions."
They opened the mission tab, reading the text together.
---
Main Mission: Make it to the end of the school year and defend the academy.
Reward: +1 Level and one free weapon from the shop.
Sub Mission 1: Defeat Sara Valestein in a spar.
Reward: You will receive a master craftsman for your home base.
---
Rinwell blinked in disbelief. "Wait, like… a person? We'll get a person as a reward? I don't know how to feel about that."
Shionne shook her head quickly. "Let's worry about that later. We don't even know if we'll beat Sara. She's ungodly strong, even this early."
"Yeah, you're right…" Rinwell muttered reluctantly.
---
Sub Mission 2: Beat C once.
Reward: 1 Legend of Heroes character draw each.
Sub Mission 3: Avoid Angelica's perverted antics towards you for a year.
Reward: 1 weapon from Nioh, Dark Souls, or Dragon Age.
---
Rinwell groaned and slapped her forehead. "So the third sub mission is impossible, right?"
"Don't think like that," Shionne said firmly, adjusting her rifle strap. "We can do it."
"Sure we can," Rinwell muttered sarcastically, strapping Aya's infinite kunai pouch to her thigh.
Shionne raised a brow. "What's that?"
"An infinite kunai pouch," Rinwell explained flatly.
Shionne's eyes lit up. "Sweet. So we've got plenty of options." She gave a resolute nod, determination shining in her gaze. "Alright, Rinwell—we can do this. Let's survive a school in a fantasy world."
Rinwell slumped in her seat with a groan. "I wish I could be excited about that…"