Shujinkou Janai! Prologue

Prologue + Chapter 1

I've updated Chapter 1 to this post, click here to read :D

---

When I came back to my senses, I found myself standing in a dungeon with a sword and a shield.

「…Huh?」

I couldn’t help but do a double-take at the sword in my hand.

It was a double-edged Western sword commonly seen in video games; it was a shiny, polished blade that could virtually reflect my image like a mirror and it had a lion ornament at the hilt which was very cool.

It’s cool and all, but… that’s not the main point here.

「Eh? What’s this? Eh?」

I’m just your average salaryman. I don’t remember having anything to do with dangerous items like swords and shields at any point in my life.

And this place where I’m standing right now…

At first glance, it looked like a cave that formed naturally from a hollowed-out¹ rock surface, but upon taking a closer look, there were strange murals painted on key points of the wall and a mysterious light source provided just enough light to explore the area.

No, even with that, I couldn’t just convince myself that this is some unexplored archaeological site. There was a decisive thing that completely ruled that idea out—I could see a large treasure chest with the lid open at the end of the passage.

「Isn’t this just exactly like a dungeon in a video game?!」

My sudden outcry echoed pointlessly through the cave.

I don’t get this.

I really don’t understand what any of this was at all.

(Wait! Wait a minute! I’m pretty sure that yesterday…)

It was just like any other day.

As per routine, I did my work and left the office as usual, and then…

Oh yeah.

When I was waiting for the traffic light on my way to the train station, I found an interesting article while I was killing time on my phone.

「——An in-depth analysis of the classic RPG 〈B&B²〉 that’s been buried in time——」

When I was a student, I was really into an RPG called『Brave&Blade』or B&B for short.

It was quite a tragic game. Although it was a big project that the company invested a great fortune in, putting the future of the company at stake, it never took flight and fell flat due to various reasons. 

Drawn in by the nostalgia factor, I clicked into the link without a second thought.

『Five things you need to know to get the most out of「B&B」』

『A profound multi-scenario, multi-ending game that has been re-evaluated over time!』

『Weave your own history with the History Junction System!』

『Real-time sword-fighting battles where instincts and wits collide!』

『How to save your favourite characters from a Fatal Event?』

『A hell for replay challenges³?! A substantial amount of additional elements and changes.』

The link opened to a web page that filled my entire screen with bright dancing words.

Just the titles alone were enough to wash over me with a wave of nostalgia.

The page also attached an illustration of two of the most popular characters in the game〈Prince of Light, Ain〉and〈Solitary Adventurer, Lex〉ready in position for an intense clash; I couldn’t help but smile at the sight of that. However, just then, from the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a girl in a sailor uniform who was also waiting for the traffic light suddenly move and I hurriedly put my phone away…

—The bright, blinding white light from the headlights of a car.

—A girl in uniform frozen in the middle of a pedestrian crossing.

—「Look out!」Someone screamed.

「Yeah… that’s right…」

Why did I forget?

I wonder if it’s because I felt uplifted from seeing something I had missed.

I did something uncharacteristic of me and jumped out onto the road to help that girl…

—And so, I was killed in a fatal car accident.

The moment the girl was pushed out of the way, I felt the world before my eyes being blown away in an instant.

Before I knew it, my body was lying on the ground.

Thoughts of things that couldn’t be helped, that I wouldn’t be able to do anything about flashed across my mind, stuff like it’s dark; I wonder if the girl was saved; if only I could play B&B again…

　

　

　

And then, this…

In a pitch-black world, a flame was lit…

《Your wish… I’ve heard it.》

Far… I heard a voice coming from the far distance—

「—Gyaaa Gyaa!!」

A very real squawk came from behind me, snapping me back to reality as if cold water had been poured on me.

「W-What is it! What’s it this time…」

I cautiously turned around to the sound and when I realised what it was, I turned to stone.

A green-skinned dwarf that was clearly not a human emerged from the depths of the cave.

「…G-Gob… lin」

My legs turned to jelly.

Goblins were the weakest monsters in most games and their purpose was to serve as prey for players.

I had never thought of them as scary and even actively sought them out for the experience they gave.

(lilies: goblin slayer and wtv hentai is offended)

However…

The thing I thought only existed in games was now looking at me with its dirty teeth bared; a crude club in one hand as its murky yellow eyes glowed with a vile light.

I was completely shaken by this overwhelming presence.

「U-Uwa…」

I was so nervous I could barely breathe as my breath got caught. 

Both the sword and shield I held in either hand suddenly felt like dead weight.

I thought to myself that I had to make a break for it but my legs wouldn’t move.

「Gii」

That goblin laughed as if to mock me.

Then— With a swing of the club in its right hand, the goblin lunged at me with a speed that did not match its body. 

「Uwaaaaah!」

As the goblin’s grotesque face closed in, convinced of its victory, it raised its weapon, ready to take a big swing at me.

I’m not kidding when I say the words「I’m dead」surfaced in my mind.

However…

What actually happened was quite the opposite.

「Gy…ah?」

The moment it felt like the goblin had entered within range of my blade, my body moved instinctively—not moving backwards to retreat but instead charging forward.

　

My body moved as if it was faithfully reproducing movements it had been trained to do for many years.

I took a step to the side to dodge the club swinging down at me and with my right hand I drew my sword and cut off the goblin's head.

「—Eh?」

The body of the tiny goblin lost all momentum and fell to the ground.

Meanwhile, the club which had lost its owner bounced off the ground and rolled to the side.

I couldn’t process what had just happened; I could only stand there, stunned.

　

「Did… Did I do that?」

Naturally, I had no idea how to wield a sword.

For me to be capable of something like that… Even I couldn’t…

However, the strange occurrences did not simply end there.

The body of the fallen goblin glowed, and its flesh broke down into tiny particles.

「Wha—!?」

The particles dancing in the air flew at my left hand as if being sucked in.

A few seconds later, silence returned to the dungeon as if there were no goblins around, to begin with.

「W-What on earth is this? It’s just like a game…」 

Then it hit me the instant those words left my lips.

「Game…? Brave&Blade…?」

In that game, I’m sure there was a setting where the magic of a defeated monster is sucked into the left hand of the character who defeats it which is then converted into experience.

(No way.)

But when I thought about it, the appearance of the goblin and the design of the sword I wielded, it all gave me a strange sense of familiarity.

If I connected it to the scenes I saw in the game, Brave&Blade…

I hurriedly raised the sword in my right hand to double-check. Staring at the blade that was so polished it could double up as a mirror, my eyes rounded in surprise at the reflection—「my」reflection—that I saw.

「No way, you’ve got to be kidding me…」

I was shocked because the face reflected on the blade should’ve been「mine」but it was one that looked nothing like「me」.

It was the face that belonged to the〈Solitary Adventurer〉on the illustration I saw right before my death.

It was the face of〈Lex Torren〉, a character from the game〈Brave&Blade〉.

Chapter 1 Looking for the Hero

「Eh? No, no, no, what the hell?」

I mutter to no one in particular, as I face the unfamiliar man in the blade.

I died and now I exist as the game character「Lex」in a place I’ve never seen before.

This means… it’s that right?

Did I reincarnate into the game world because that was the thing I thought about right before I died? 

No, no, no, how could it be something as dumb as that?

Besides…

Taking a hundred steps back, if something which only happened in anime or light novels like reincarnating in a different world happened to me…

(Why is it Lex of all people!!)

I screamed in my heart.

—Lex Torren.

A highly popular character with many fans—mainly female players—due to his strong presence in the early events.

Popular amongst female fans of the game, he would often be referred to as the「Ikemen⁴ of the Shadows」alongside Ain, the prince of light titled by them as「Ikemen of the light」.

I want to say, it’s not like I don’t get what they mean.

This gruff demeanour and stern expression.

This slender body and dark hair.

If one asked if he was a person of light or darkness, it would be darkness; no questions asked.

If one asked if he was positive or gloomy, it would definitely be gloomy⁵.

Although Lex would often be mentioned because of that, from a game standpoint, he wasn’t very important a character.

He’s just a secondary character that if you don’t choose a specific start, he won’t even appear as a member of the group.

Ability-wise, he starts off at an impressive level 50.

That was by far the highest of all the characters you'll find in the early stages of the game.

At around level 60 or so, one could already challenge and defeat the final boss, so I’d say level 50 is about late to final range.

He’s a well-balanced, all-rounder character that has not only mastered the way of the sword, but also magic as well as rogue skills⁶ and elementary alchemy.

He played an active role in the early stages of the game due to his high level and versatility but…

That’s all there is to that and he has no future at all!

He’s overwhelmingly weak compared to other characters at level 50 and the character itself also has low potential.

In other words, he’s just a common「relief type character⁷」that appears in the early game.

In the beginning, he’s like those old paladins unparalleled in their skill with the silver spear but eventually becomes less and less useful as the rest of the team levels up. 

I knew that I shouldn’t mess with my game brain⁸ any further in times of emergency like this but I just wanted to say… Couldn’t I at least be reincarnated as a hero with more potential like〈Prince of Light, Ain〉who was also in the illustration I saw before I died?!

(lillies: hello iffyness my old friend)

(N-No, this is not the time to say that!)

Before I can figure out the situation, the most important thing now is my personal safety.

I might have dealt with the goblin with the power of「Lex」but let’s not forget that we’re just a small citizen born and raised in the peaceful country of Japan. 

I don't want to spend too much time in a place like this where demons roam.

(Judging from the story of the game and the monster I’ve encountered, this should be the〈Cave of Trials〉, the first dungeon of the starting city.)

If I calm down for a bit and recognise that this is the world of B&B, I can very clearly see that this is a place I’m familiar with.

I can remember my way around here to some extent so I should be able to get out.

First things first, I should escape to a nearby city and then think about what I’m going to do in the future… Nearby city?

「Ah…」

That sound couldn’t help but slip out of my mouth.

Even without a mirror, I could tell that I lost all colour on my face.

The city nearest to the Cave of Trials was a large city〈Ash〉, the hometown of「Lex」.

It was a city no doubt, but it might be a very bad idea to run there.

Because I’m the only one who knows…

If this really is the game world, then that city will soon be…

「—decimated in a monster attack!」

　※　※　※

【Start Select】

Origin (1)

《City boy who aspires to be an adventurer》

Difficulty: Easy

Initial Class: Young Leo

Initial Companions: Changes according to your choice

Affiliation: Adventurer's Guild

Restriction: None in particular

B&B is a game where you can choose from one of several origins and start the game in different locations and situations.

During the first part of the game, you'll start with a quest based on the origin you've chosen, and after the tutorial, you'll be free to continue your adventure.

Among them《City boy who aspires to be an adventurer》where Lex appears at the centre stage is one of the least difficult of the seven『Brave&Blade』origins along with《Apprentice Knight of the Empire》.

The tutorial is incorporated into the early storyline that is both easy to understand and to follow along, making it the most standard recommended route for beginners.

However, while the difficulty is said to be low, that’s only when relative when compared to the routes of《Orphan of the slums who was betrayed》,《Child⁹ sacrificed to the darkness》, and《Child of an aristocrat that was kidnapped by a monster》. The flow of the scenario itself is quite hard!

The story of《City boy who aspires to be an adventurer》begins with the Hero forming an impromptu party with three other boys and girls of the same age. 

(lilies: before someone comes at me saying it should be three 🍑 no 🍆, let me remind you that this is the webnovel while the manga follows the light novel so there might be some differences)

The party heads to the Cave of Trials which is the first step to success for new adventurers. There, they learn how to pick locks, disable traps¹⁰, and learn to fight as they make their way to the deepest part of the cave.

Then, touching the ominous inscriptions on the wall of the deepest part of the cave would safely end their first adventure and put them on the starting line as adventurers.

However, as the「Hero」with the〈Chosen One〉status, when he touched the inscriptions, the seal is broken and the demon sealed in the depths of the cave is resurrected.

With the help of 〈Lex Torren〉a veteran adventurer who had happened to come to investigate, the party managed to escape death but the unsealed demon left them with an ominous prophecy at the end.

「Even if you try to defeat me, it’s too late, the drums signalling our God’s resurrection have already sounded. Go back to your city.」  

Before the protagonists who ran out of the cave in a flurry were billows of smoke and screams coming from their home, magic flying through the air as the ground became tainted with the colour of blood. 

　※　※　※

「—You’ve got to be kidding me!」

Now I know why「Lex」was in the dungeon.

We must be at the start of the game, just before the〈Sealed Demon〉event which「Lex」has to save the「Hero」from.

(If I had run away to the city without thinking…)

In the game, the main bulk of the monsters that attacked the city were level 40〈Gargoyles〉and level 55〈Flying Devils〉.

After the event where the city was attacked, Ash City was transformed into the monster-occupied〈Monster City Ash〉. The player could even find level 60 late-game monsters in that city.

Even for Lex who started off with a level of 50 is no match for it.

(If that’s the case, should I… run away to another city?)

I might survive if I do that.

However, in that case, Ash City will certainly be destroyed by the monsters and the「Hero」who did not receive Lex’s help will be killed by the Sealed Demon.

「Dammit! We’re screwed anyway!」

Even if I put aside the whole moral issue, if the「Hero」, an important character in the world of B&B dies here, the world may very well be headed for destruction.

If that’s the case, then there’s only one thing I can do…

—And that is to「stop the『Hero』before he triggers the event」!

I’ve been to the Cave of Trials many times before so I could more or less remember the routes albeit rather vaguely.

If I move at full speed now, I should be able to catch up to the「Hero」before they arrive at the deepest part of the cave where the〈Sealed Room〉was located.

If I do that, the story might be broken but I don’t care.

I’m sorry but I’m just your average salaryman.

Stuff like fighting isn’t even in my area of expertise; don’t even mention saving the world.

Oh yeah.

When I stop the「Hero」from undoing the seal, it might be a good idea to teach him some game knowledge and have him save the world.

When I think about it like that, I can feel my pessimism being uplifted.

(Anyway, we need to find the「Hero」first…)

That’s a landmark: the opened treasure chest I was greeted with when I awakened in the dungeon.

　

That was a big hint.

(Fortunately, there’s only one treasure chest in this dungeon which means that my current location is at the three-way junction just by the entrance. As such, I can see the shortcut to the〈Winged Dragon Path〉, so the closest route to the goal is… this way!)  

Once I decided on the path to take, there’s no time to lose.

Relying on the hazy memories in my head, I ran deeper into the cave.

　※　※　※

「This is bad…」

Along the way, I didn’t get caught in any traps nor was I met with any monster attacks which I was worried about.

In B&B, once a demon has been defeated, it doesn’t respawn until the next day.

In other words, there is no doubt that I am following the path that the Hero Party took.

(It seems that they advanced faster than I expected.)

Perhaps it’s because my class was changed from a salaryman that lacked exercise to Lex, a seasoned adventurer, my physical abilities have greatly improved!

Although I was travelling through the dungeon at a speed that's not only comparable to the game but even faster than it was in the game, I can’t seem to find the Hero’s Party.

This dungeon basically serves as a tutorial for the game so there’s little risk of death but there were still a fair amount of hidden doors and riddles that took time to solve.

I thought I'd be able to catch up in no time since I know how the game goes…

(If they’re not in the next room, all that’s left is the deepest part of the cave… the Sealed Room.) 

I tried to push my anxiousness to the back of my mind as I dashed into the room—it was still empty.

「Damn it!」

I cursed in spite of myself. I could see traces of a battle in the room.

Someone was definitely fighting in here a while ago.

(They’re too fast! Or could it be that the outcome of an「Event」could not be changed by human will!?)

I kicked the floor with all my might as if to shake off the ominous possibility that appeared in my mind.

Passing through the winding passageway at a speed that was unimaginable back in Japan, I arrived at a wide, open space.

(There they are!)

In the large room whose walls were covered in horrifying murals all around, I saw a group of boys and girls standing at the end.

And at the far end of the room, two of the boys were reaching for the seal.

「—Stooooop!!」

I shouted at the top of my lungs.

But my warning came too late.

Though surprised by my sudden outcry, their hands had already touched the seal.

The door through which the ancient demon was sealed.

The seal touched by the Chosen One is…

The seal is…

「…Huh?」

…Nothing really happened.

「W-Why…?」

There was no answer to my question.

All there was was a deafening awkward silence that filled the room and a piercing glare from the youngsters as if to stab a hole right through me.

---

1. i'm not too sure about this… i guess you can google how caves form for yourself^↩

2. In the raws, it should be transliterated to BraBla but that's kinda… so I decided to copy D&D hahah^↩

3. Basically means playing through a game again with added challenges like doing a speedrun for eg, or playing without a certain weapon, or getting all the achievements, etc. If there's an actual term for this do let me know :>^↩

4. The term ikemen is a portmanteau neologism derived from the Japanese words ikeru or iketeru and menzu. Ikeru and iketeru mean "cool", "good" and "exciting", while menzu is the Japanization of "men". This term has been used to reference good looking men featured in Japanese pop culture. from wiki^↩

5. The word used here is "陽" (yang) and "陰" (yin), so in a way light or dark again. I'm a little confused by it as well but I didn't translate as yin and yang because yin is usually used in reference to women and idk it just didn't feel like it would match the context ^↩

6. Written as "盗賊技能" You can go to this website and ctrl/cmd f "Rogue Classes" Because we're quite early in the story, I'm not too sure which one it is exactly and if it's really Bandit skills^↩

7. Written as "救済キャラ" ^↩

8. Game brain is a term coined by Akio Mori referring to the human brains affected by the long term effect of playing video games.^↩

9. Written as "御子" ^↩

10. The raws is "ギミック" which is gimmick but that doesn't really fit?^↩

This is from the same author of This World Is a Game, but Only I Know It :> I'm not great with tags and stuff so I most prolly won't be putting this on novel updates. Anyone can just go for it if you want to haha (basically am laze >_>)… anyways, since this is just a teaser, if you've read the other work from Usber and you like it, I highly recommend you give this one a shot by like idk MTLing on syosetu ahahah I think there's also a manga drawn by the same artist for A Wish to Grab Happiness 

Please feedback to me in the comments below if you find any typos or terrible grammar, etc that you think I should change. Or maybe you think my interpretation is completely off lol Help me help you have a better reading experience ahahah what a tongue twister XD

Thank yous!! (˶‾᷄ ⁻̫ ‾᷅˵)

You can support me by sending some love in the comments or through the button below


peace lilies~