“Countdown.
Three…
two…
one…” The moment the number dropped from one to zero, Shinki felt his consciousness blur.
In the next instant, his body flickered like scattered snowflakes and vanished.
He disappeared from that world.
And arrived in another.
…
The moon shone brightly in a sky sparsely dotted with stars.
Akeno looked toward her mother.
“Mom, Shinki-kun…
he really won’t be in danger, right?” The boy had left so abruptly that she hadn’t even been given the chance to properly say goodbye.
More importantly, she didn’t want him to disappear from her sight at all.
Back when they were still at the shrine, Akeno’s feelings for Shinki had only been a budding affection.
Now, however, it had become complete dependence.
Girls her age were often like that.
“Liar.
What a big liar.” “You promised we’d stay together forever.” Hearing her daughter’s muttering, Shuri gently stroked Akeno’s hair.
“Shinki-kun will definitely come back.” “Really?” “Really.” Akeno’s mood eased slightly.
What she failed to notice, however, was the trace of loneliness that flashed through her mother’s eyes.
Shinki-kun has left.
Just like you, I feel lonely too.
The breeze whispered softly through the night.
Only Rias remained genuinely cheerful, delighted at having obtained the first member of her peerage.
With entirely different thoughts occupying their minds, the three women continued their journey toward Kuoh Town.
…
Sunlight pierced through thin clouds, illuminating the snow-white earth and reflecting silver rays.
Filtered through layers of leaves overhead, the light fell upon him in gently swaying patches.
Birdsong echoed in his ears.
Fresh air filled his lungs.
Shinki suddenly opened his eyes.
A green leaf drifted down and landed lightly on the tip of his nose.
Sitting up immediately, he shook off the lingering haze in his mind and surveyed his surroundings.
No danger.
It seemed the system’s transportation function wasn’t cruel enough to dump him somewhere ridiculous.
Like the middle of the ocean.
The mouth of an active volcano.
Or a certain suspiciously magical clubhouse full of men.
Well, if it were the third option, Shinki would rather be stranded at sea.
He stood up and glanced at the sky hidden behind the canopy.
“Let’s check the system first.” Muttering to himself, he opened the system interface.
Mission Name: First Encounter Trial Mission Objective: Eliminate 100 Low-Class Devils or monsters of equivalent strength.
Reward: Elite-Grade Weapon Draw Opportunity.
Penalty for Failure: None.
However, this mission was now categorized as a Side Mission.
And beneath it was a brand-new task.
Mission Name: Beater Mission Objective: Reach Level 5 within five months.
Reward: Final reward will be issued after evaluation.
Penalty for Failure: None.
Description: Ever played a game?
Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A—clear it in one life!
Looking at the mission description, Shinki fell into thought.
Reach Level 5?
What kind of mission was that?
Did that mean this world was related to games?
Mario?
Contra?
Jackal?
Or perhaps some questionable adult game— Cough.
The last one was obviously impossible.
As for the first three, just because they were old Famicom games didn’t mean they were harmless.
The Mario world had mushrooms that made people grow giant, invincibility stars, and Bowser himself.
Contra was packed full of aliens.
And Jackal?
It looked simple, but in reality, it was equivalent to throwing him alone into a battlefield more intense than World War II and telling him to survive.
Yeah, right.
“No way.” “If the first world was High School DxD, then there’s a pretty high chance this one is another anime world.” Sword Art Online was obviously out of the question.
The level cap in SAO was one hundred.
Taking five months to reach Level 5 would make him worse than an elementary school student.
“Then it’s probably Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon, isn’t it?” Shinki quickly found a likely answer.
“If it really is that world, then neither mission should be too difficult.” The setting of Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?—commonly known as DanMachi—was actually quite straightforward.
In ancient times, there existed a great dungeon capable of spawning endless monsters.
Humanity was caught completely off guard and nearly overwhelmed.
After regrouping, mankind launched a counterattack.
Led by legendary Heroes, they reclaimed their homeland and eventually reached the cavern that served as the source of the monsters.
Then the gods descended.
Just like in ancient myths, genuine divine beings appeared in the lower world.
After spending countless ages in Heaven and growing bored, the gods discovered entertainment in the colorful mortal realm.
And so they granted humanity their Falna.
The Falna was a divine blessing—a contract through which mortals could grow stronger.
Around the entrance to the Dungeon, a city was built.
The Labyrinth City, Orario.
Adventurers from all over the world gathered there.
Competing.
Exploring.
Meeting one another.
Shinki remembered this series vividly.
He was a perfectly healthy young man.
As such, there was one particular petite goddess he could never forget.