"Where the fuck am I?" John cursed under his breath, blinking as his eyes adjusted to his new surroundings.
He distinctly remembered stepping off the city bus, his foot hitting the concrete pavement just seconds ago. But instead of his familiar neighborhood street, he was now standing inside a vast, opulent hall that looked straight out of a medieval cathedral.
He wasn’t alone. Surrounding him were about forty high schoolers dressed in matching Japanese uniforms. They were jabbering in fast, panicked Japanese—a language John couldn’t understand a word of, though their frantic gestures made their confusion clear enough.
John stood out like a sore thumb. While the teenagers wore sleek navy blazers, he wore a plain black t-shirt, worn light blue denim jeans, and beaten-up sneakers. Slung over his shoulder was a black duffel bag holding his personal documents and credentials. His goal for the day had been simple: drop off his application packet for the U.S. Army Special Forces. Ever since high school, inspired by thousands of hours in tactical shooters like Call of Duty, Battlefield, and PUBG, he had trained his body for one purpose—joining the military.
"Oh, welcome, brave heroes from another world!"
An ethereal, melodious voice echoed through the grand, gilded hall. High above the floor, floating on a throne of polished white marble and gold leaf, sat a woman of impossible beauty. She had flowing silver hair, golden eyes that shone like stars, and a pristine white divine robe radiating pure holiness.
This was the Goddess Viona, ruler of the realm. Dozens of high priests and knights in pristine silver armor kneeled in absolute devotion around her throne.
"I am the Goddess Viona," she announced, her smile sweet and radiant, yet carrying an underlying chill. "You have been summoned to the world of Astraea. A terrible threat looms over our lands—the Demon Lord has awakened. I require you, my chosen heroes, to slay him for the sake of world peace."
As Viona spoke, her divine magic washed over the hall. John suddenly felt a strange warmth in his ears, and the frantic Japanese chatter around him instantly mapped into clear, fluent English inside his head.
"A real goddess?!"
"So it really is an isekai!"
"Look at how beautiful she is..."
While the high schoolers gasped and whispered in awe, John stayed near the back, adjusting his duffel bag. Playing tactical shooters had taught him one cardinal rule: always assess your environment first. He scanned the exits, noted the positions of the armored guards, and calculated line-of-sight angles. Something about the goddess’s sickly sweet tone rubbed him entirely the wrong way.
"Now, my heroes," Goddess Viona said, raising a graceful hand. "To unlock your true potential, I shall perform the Divine Appraisal. Step forward one by one."
A floating orb of light descended before the throne. The first student stepped forward and placed his hand on it. The orb flashed brilliant gold, projecting glowing runes into the air.
[Name: Kenji Sato]
[Job: Holy Sword Master]
[Rank: S-Rank]
"Splendid! An S-rank hero!" Viona clapped her hands softly, her eyes glittering with delight. "Truly a gift from the heavens!"
One by one, the Japanese students stepped forward. Each result drew cheers from the priests and smiles from the goddess.
[Rank: A-Rank - Archmage]
[Rank: S-Rank - High Priestess]
[Rank: B-Rank - Shadow Assassin]
Every single student scored B-rank or higher—walking disasters by this world’s standards.
Eventually, John was the last one standing in his plain t-shirt and jeans, looking completely out of place.
"And lastly... you," Viona said, her voice dipping slightly in tone as she looked at the strangely dressed foreigner.
John walked up without a word, tossed his duffel bag over his shoulder, and pressed his hand against the floating orb.
The light flickered, turned a muddy, stagnant grey, and sputtered out like a dying candle.
[Name: John Smith]
[Job: None]
[Rank: E-Rank]
Dead silence fell over the cathedral.
The goddess’s sweet, warm smile vanished instantly, replaced by an expression of cold, utter disgust. Sneers and whispers erupted among his summoned peers.
"E-rank? Is that even possible?"
"He doesn’t even have a job..."
"He’s a foreigner, too."
"How disappointing," Viona sneered, her voice dropping all pretense of divinity and turning sharp and venomous. "An E-rank defect... a parasite that managed to latch onto my holy summoning ritual. You are completely worthless to me."
"Excuse me, lady?" John’s eyes narrowed. "Watch how you talk to people."
"Insolent insect!" Viona snapped, glaring down at him like scum beneath her boot. "In this world, the weak have no right to exist. To ensure you do not tarnish the reputation of my brave heroes, you shall be disposed of immediately!"
"Wait, what?!"
"Consider it a mercy, E-rank trash," she sneered, her divine aura twisting into something cruel. "I am sending you straight to the Abyssian Dungeon—a bottomless meat grinder teeming with the most bloodthirsty monsters in Astraea. S-rank beasts roam its depths. No human has ever survived it."
"You’re out of your damn mind," John spat, stepping backward as the guards closed in. "Why not just send me back to my world?!"
"That can be arranged, but the only way to do that is to defeat the Demon Lord," Viona said coolly.
"Then why the hell don’t you let me try, or at least leave me out of your stupid death trap?!" John demanded.
Before Viona could reply, a sharp, arrogant voice cut through the hall.
"Oi, shut the hell up already, you useless foreigner! You’re wasting everyone’s time!"
It was Kenji Sato. The newly minted S-rank Holy Sword Master stepped forward, resting a hand on the hilt of a glowing golden longsword at his waist. He looked down his nose at John, his expression twisted in utter disdain.
"Yeah, get him out of here!" another male student sneered, crossing his arms. "Look at him—he’s just some filthy gaijin in trashy casual clothes. He doesn’t belong with us."
"It’s embarrassing that he was summoned alongside us," a girl with Archmage stats added, twirling a lock of hair around her finger. "An E-rank defect? He’s dead weight. If he stays, he’ll just drag down our team. Good riddance."
"The goddess is right, he’s just a parasite," another student chimed in, laughing mockingly. "Hey, foreigner! Do us all a favor and die quietly down there, will you? Don’t ruin our fantasy adventure!"
John’s eyes hardened into cold blue ice as he stared back at the crowd. Back home in a real fight, not a single one of these privileged high schoolers would last ten seconds against him. Was this really how they acted the moment they got a little power? High on cheated fantasy stats and divine praise, they were showing their true colors—cruel, arrogant, and drunk on cheap authority.
"You bunch of arrogant little bastards," John spat, glaring directly at Kenji. "You think having some glowing numbers above your head makes you god’s gift to earth? You’re just kids playing dress-up."
Kenji’s face flushed red with anger, his hand tightening on his sword hilt. "What did you say, loser?! I am an S-rank Holy Sword Master! I am the hero of this world! You’re just a trash-tier E-rank!"
"Enough," Viona ordered, raising her hand. "I have no desire to listen to the barking of a stray dog any longer."
"Banish the trash!" Kenji shouted, smirking as he raised a hand in a mocking wave. "Bye-bye, foreigner! Have fun being monster chow!"
Goddess Viona snapped her fingers.
A dark, pitch-black magic circle flared beneath John’s feet. Before he could react, violent crimson lightning surged from the floor, wrapping around his legs and body like heavy iron chains. The space around him warped, snapping light and sound into a blinding vortex.
S-rank Holy Sword Master? Goddess Viona? John gritted his teeth, holding tightly to his duffel bag as the world dissolved around him. All of you... every single one of you...
I’m going to tear this dungeon apart. And when I walk out of here, I’m coming for all your heads.
With a sudden, violent crack, the cathedral vanished, and John was swallowed whole by the pitch-black void.