"So you really don't know how you ended up here?" Kazuma asked, his gaze fixed on the now limp-looking Shou.
"Yes?" Shou replied skeptically, still unsure. "The only thing I remember was some goddess telling me, 'you'll understand soon', and then—boom—I ended up here."
Aqua's ears perked up. "Wait, what?! You didn't even get a starter power?!"
"Was I supposed to get a special starter power?" Shoun tilted his head in confusion.
"Of course!" Aqua puffed out her chest proudly. "That's what every goddess does when transporting a hero! It's literally my job!"
Kazuma stared at her with a deadpan expression. "Yeah… and look how well that turned out."
He turned back to Shoun "So, have you decided where you want to go from here?"
"Well," Shou scratched his cheek. "I don't really have any plans yet. I mean, I just got here."
Aqua clapped her hands together excitedly. "Hey! You could join our party!"
Kazuma's eye twitched violently. "Oi! Who said you get to decide that? You're the one who got us into this mess in the first place!" he snapped, grabbing Aqua in a headlock.
Aqua flailed. "It's because I'm a goddess, and you should treat me as one! Besides, Shoun could be useful in our quest to defeat the Devil King!"
Kazuma glared at Shoun "Yeah? And are you actually useful?"
Shoun straightened up, determination gleaming in his eyes. "I don't have any abilities I know of yet—but I'm sure I can help you in your adventure!"
He struck a dramatic JoJo-style pose, finger pointing toward the sky.
Kazuma just stared. Then sighed, shoulders slumping. "Great… another useless one," he muttered, crouching beside a tree and hugging his sword like it was his emotional support plushie.
Aqua beamed and extended a hand. "Then it's settled! Welcome to the party!"
Shoun smiled and reached out to shake her hand. "Thank you! I'll be in your care!"
Kazuma groaned quietly in the background. "Why does the universe hate me…"
Shoun woke up, blinking as the morning light crept into the corner of his room—
if you could even call it that.
"Kazumaaa... stop moving around..." Aqua mumbled in her sleep—
then promptly kicked Kazuma square in the face.
Their "room" was nothing more than a stable, hay scattered everywhere, with a thin white cloth serving as their so-called bed.
Shoun swallowed his complaints. He was squished to the very edge, clinging to what little space he had left.
Meanwhile, a certain goddess had developed an incredible talent for kicking faces in her sleep.
Kazuma jolted awake, snapping. "Why are you complaining about me moving when you're the one flailing around like a maniac?!"
He turned toward Shoun, eyes twitching. "And you! Why do you snore so loud? At least cover your mouth or something!"
"Ah—uh—I don't know what you're talking about," Shoun said quickly, turning away and whistling innocently.
Aqua groaned, rolling over. "Keep it down... I'm trying to dream of paradise..."
Trying to change the subject, Shoun suddenly stood up. "Oh right! Isn't today the day I get my Adventurer Card? We should hurry—the early bird gets the worm, right?"
Kazuma sighed smiling "Yeah, yeah... the early bird also gets eaten by frogs if it's with us."
A few moments later, the trio walked down the bustling streets of Axel.
The city was alive as always—merchants shouting prices, adventurers boasting about their "epic" kills, and a drunk guy having a heated argument with a chicken. Just another morning.
They finally arrived at the guild. Aqua pushed open the doors with a grin.
"Hmph! Behold! The newly powerful Archpriest, Aqua-sama, has arrived!"
Whispers rippled through the room.
> "Aren't those the two who almost got eaten by frogs?"
"Yeah… brave but stupid."
"Hey, can you suck my toe?"
Kazuma's eyebrow twitched dangerously. "Don't embarrass us, you useless goddess!"
Bonk!
He smacked her on the head, leaving a comically large bump.
"OWWWW! Kazuma you barbarian!" Aqua whined, holding her head dramatically as Kazuma dragged her toward the registration desk.
Shoun just followed behind, thinking, This is my party now… huh. ' But I'm more concerned on what the last guy said.. '
They approached the registration counter. Luna, the kind receptionist, smiled brightly. "Welcome! Are you registering as an adventurer?"
"Y-Yes, ma'am!" Shoun said, hands trembling with excitement.
He pressed his palm against the crystal orb. The sphere glowed
Finally after a grueling minute which felt like an hour the light spear made by the orb stopped in it's track.
Revealing a brand new card as Luna handed it to shoun — Everyone leaned in close to look.
Name: Shoun
Class: Unknown (Temporarily Unassigned)
Strength: 87
Agility: 92
Vitality: 89
Magic Power (MP): 312
Intelligence: 298
Luck: 54
Skills:
Gate of Babylon (Active skill) —A golden dimensional vault that stores and summons weapons. Manifesting as shimmering portals. Each summon consumes mana depending on speed, power, and weapon size. > Weapons: Chains of heaven (enkidu)
Ego and pride (Active skill) — For 1 hour, The user is given a protective shield against corruption and influence and Rise of Stats/power exponentially. ( Cool down: 7 days )
Golden Rule (Active Skill) – For 10 minutes, wealth and luck massively increase + Increases mana regeneration 2x (Cooldown: 24 hours.)
Independent Action (Passive) – A skill that gives him a degree of self-sustainability. ( Excluding mana depletion. )
Luna's eyes widened seeing over his adventurer card. The golden light from the newly made adventure card still shimmered against it, reflecting faintly off his face.
" T- Those are quite remarkable stats. Mister shoun! " she said, scanning the card again to make sure she wasn't seeing things.
Shoun scratched the back of his head, slightly embarrassed. "Is that so? I didn't really expect anything special."
Luna's lips curved into a bright smile. "Your stats are above average across the board — but your mana and intelligence are exceptional! These numbers are usually seen in high-ranking mages!"
Aqua immediately leaned over the counter, pressing her cheek beside Shoun's card. " Hah! See? He's blessed! It's all thanks to me guiding him to this world! "
Kazuma deadpanned. "You literally tripped into a frog yesterday… and you just met him—what do you mean by blessed?!"
His voice echoed across the guild, earning a few curious glances from nearby adventurers.
"Anyway…" Kazuma cleared his throat, trying to act composed. "What the hell is a Gate of Babylon? Some kind of luxury furniture or something?"
At that, everyone leaned in—tables creaked, mugs stopped midair. The adventurers' curiosity was piqued.
Shoun scratched the back of his head. "Uh… it says I can summon and store weapons through some kind of golden portal? I'm… not really sure myself."
Aqua gasped, eyes sparkling. "That sounds awesome! Come on, show us! Everyone, clear the way! The mighty Shoun is about to show off his godly power!"
Kazuma facepalmed. "Oh no… not this again…"
The crowd backed up, forming a loose circle around Shoun. He took a deep breath, sweat running down his temple.
"Alright…" he muttered under his breath. "Here goes nothing."
He thrust out his hand dramatically.
"Gate of Babylon!"
In an instant, the air shimmered.
A golden ripple formed behind him—like sunlight reflecting on liquid gold. The guild fell silent as a strange humming filled the room.
Then—
WHOOSH!
A chain, tipped with ornate golden markings, shot out from the portal like a bullet. It wrapped around a nearby mug, shattering it into a foamy explosion before snapping back into the golden void.
The entire guild froze.
Then Aqua's jaw dropped. "W-What the hell was that?! That's so cool! Do it again!"
Dust and some others covered in beer foam, twitched. "Cool?! He just declared war on tableware!"
The guild burst into laughter—some cheering, others ducking for cover as Shoun awkwardly held his hand up, smiling nervously. "Uh… sorry about the cup."
"Well then, why don't we celebrate it by finishing our quest!" Kazuma said proudly, pulling out a crumpled quest paper from his sleeve like it was a winning lottery ticket.
"And you—" he jabbed a finger at Shoun "—can finally experiment with your new abilities! What do you say, huh?!" He leaned closer, grinning maniacally.
Shoun and Aqua both froze. Their faces drained of color.
"No way!" they shouted in unison.
"I'm not fighting those frogs again—I hate them!" Shoun yelled, shaking his head.
"Me too! Their sticky, slimy saliva might get in my hair again!" Aqua added, dramatically clutching her blue locks.
Kazuma's face darkened, a vein popping on his forehead. Silence.
Then, without warning, he grabbed both of them by their collars.
"KAZUMA, PLEASE!" Shoun cried, kicking the air.
"Yes, I agree! Have mercy on a goddess's hair!" Aqua wailed, flailing helplessly.
The two of them were dragged across the guild floor, leaving faint streaks in the dust.
Their screams echoed through the guild's doors as they vanished outside.
"KAZUMAAAAA!!"
The adventurers inside sipped their drinks quietly.
"…Same party as always," one muttered.
"Yup," another nodded, "chaotic as hell."
From the side, a quiet yet kind-looking ruffian lifted his gaze, a faint glint of pride in his eyes.
"Quite the interesting bunch of clichés," he murmured, watching the trio's chaos spill out the door. "Maybe they'll really defeat the Devil King… just like they claim."
He took another slow sip of his beer, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
"…How great it is to be young."