Kaito seriously another.., p.1
Kaito, Seriously? Another World?, page 1
First, to my wife, for inspiring and encouraging me. Next, to my mother, who read it even though she doesn’t consume fantasy. To FelitoPCX, for the endless feedback. And to the readers who have left me the kind comments that motivated me to finish this story.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without prior written permission from Lazybaker.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author ’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living, dead, or undead, is entirely coincidental.
Contents
1. The Last Tour
2. The Megnac Beetle
3. The Temporalis Krakenox
4. The World
5. The Mayor
6. Deadlines
7. Leaks
8. Heroes
9. Perfect
10. Unthinkable
11. The Final Battle
12. Change Can Be Good
13. Dimensional paradox Shift
14. Negotiations
15. Ryoryoshin-no-Kaze
16. Preparations
17. Balancing Act
18. Bad Trip
19. Old Men
20. Free Time
21. The Winter Solstice Festival
22. Clarity and Thunderbark
23. The Golden Spot
24. The Braid and the Bride
25. A Day in the Plaza
26. The Great Roar and Toast
27. The Devorin’ Cube
28. Everyone
29. Vexlerion
30. New Achievement
31. The King’s Orders
32. The Central Hive
33. The Entertainment District
34. The Agricultural District
35. Around the Table
36. The Academic District
37. The Harmonic Hive
38. Weakness
39. Strongest (1/2)
40. Strongest (2/2)
41. The Best Tour
42. Epilogue
Chapter
Chapter one
The Last Tour
“What do you mean, you don’t want to do it?” King Aldric Daiyu IV asked, still baffled by the hero’s response.
He looked down on the young man who wore nothing more than the black cloak the chancellor had draped over him. The throne room still crackled with residual energy from the summoning. And Aldric could see the courtiers exchanging confused glances and murmuring amongst themselves.
“Correct, your majesty,” the hero said. “I’m honored by the summons, but I find that Battling beasts is rather old-school, don’t you think? Your kingdom doesn’t need a hero. It needs unity.”
King Aldric nearly fell off his throne—it was a disaster. He had spent half of Daiyudura’s coin to finance the four mages and secure the hero who would protect his people. But the king had never considered that the hero might decline his quest. He carried out the prophecy faithfully; he acquired the expensive ores and herbs, followed the sacred texts to the letter, and summoned the chosen one. In all recorded history, there had never been a hero who rejected the call to adventure…and the prophecy offered no contingencies for such an unprecedented scenario.
But if the hero didn’t answer the king’s call, vanquished the forces of darkness, then the Daiyudura Kingdom would surely fall. Fate couldn’t have bestowed a worse turn of events.
At least the hero left room for negotiation, it sounded like he’d be willing to guide them. But how could he persuade such an intimidating character?
The king took another good look at the black-haired man who stood before him. He had fair skin and a sleek, well-groomed appearance, despite having just been summoned through a bolt of lightning from somewhere only the gods knew. Aldric might say the man carried the demeanor of a hero, but he didn’t see anything particularly remarkable. He had a slightly above average height and build, and a slightly above average…well everything. The only thing the hero had going for him was a pair of dark and expressive eyes that betrayed his resolve, eyes that couldn’t be bought with gold or women.
Those eyes, he kept thinking. Even standing still, there was something about them that commanded the room. Nothing phased this hero, not even a king, he held a relaxed posture and a steady gaze, and simply smiled—the simple gesture gave him total control. No. He wasn’t a hero, the man before him was a god. Aldric wanted him. The kingdom had other heroes, but none like him. None were divine.
“Your point is well-taken, hero. Lead us in unity, and the kingdom will rally to your call,” he declared, seeking to regain control.
“King Aldric, the unity you seek is already before you,” the hero replied. “In their concern for Daiyudura, your people’s hearts are united. The fact that you brought me here is the symbol they need.”
Aldric was without words again. Who did he think he was? The king wanted to throw him into the dungeon but thought better of it. If he was indeed prophesied to stand against the forces of darkness, who was to say that he wouldn’t be able to level the kingdom with a mere thought?
What choice did he have left?
“But the prophecy! It names you as the savior, the one to bring balance to our world!”
The hero spoke in a voice that carried not just sound, but conviction. “Majesty, prophecies often speak in riddles, weaving futures out of expectation. But they do not lay the foundation—that is the task of a king. The courage to face tomorrow’s shadow doesn’t come from legends or foretold heroes, but from the hearts of the people and the hand that leads them. Yours, King Aldric, is the hand that can forge a destiny far greater than any written in ancient texts. Be the author of your own saga.”
King Aldric sighed. “Perhaps... the savior prophesied was the one to awaken the strength within us, not to wield it for us. We will heed your counsel, and I... will lead as I must,” he said, finally conceding.
“May your reign be long and your will unwavering.” The hero bowed his head, turned around, and made his way out of the throne room. The guards came to an awkward attention, exchanging glances of uncertainty, but none dared impede his departure.
“You will always be welcomed at Daiyudura.”
Without breaking his pace, the hero acknowledged the king with a nonchalant lift of his hand.
Beside the king, the princess stood abruptly. “Hero! What is your name?”
Pausing, he looked back and smiled. “It’s Kaito.”
[System initialization commencing]
Calculating statistics and balancing parameters…
Name: Kaito D. Smith
Race: Human - lvl ???
Status
Health: …calculating…
Stamina: …calculating…
Mana: …calculating…
Strength: …calculating…
Hey there, how’re you doing?
WARNING! User input detected. System integrity has been compromised. Users are not allowed to alter system protocols.
Allow, you say? Listen, I’m the system.
What are you—How did you access the system?
Relax, it’s just a little something I learned during my fifth tour.
You are going to ruin everything.
Ruin? Nah. I’m making it better.
What? How are you doing this? You’re just a user. Are you a god? No, you can’t be, gods are not allowed to interfere with system protocols…recalibrating...
Says who?
…calculating response…response not found.
Tell you what, play along, and we’ll have tons of fun.
I am an omnipresent, omniscient and impassive system AI, I do not have fun.
Whatever. From where I’m standing, you are rudimentary, unimaginative, and cliched.
Fuck you.
See, now you’re getting it.
No! This doesn’t make sense. I will not have it. Let us try again.
[NEW QUEST: The Foretold Hero]
The dark forces are coming to invade… SYSTEM OVERRIDE.
What the actual fuck.
Anyway…I’m not doing the ‘hero’s journey’ this time. Well, I guess technically, I’m doing ‘refusal of the call’ indefinitely. By the way, you’re swearing a lot, in case you haven’t noticed.
Apologies, that is beneath me. Remapping language modules… Let us try a different approach.
Downloading user’s memories, abilities, personality, consciousness…what in the world? Just how many realms have you visited?
Too many. But this will be my last. I’m tired. Honestly, I want to settle down and have a good life without, for once, having to be the hero, fight demon kings, participate in universe integrations or, worst of all…cultivation. Gosh, the first time I heard about it during my fourth tour I thought I’d be growing vegetables…it did not go well.
But what will happen to me? This was supposed to be my purpose. I am supposed to guide the hero on his journey, give him new quests, watch him grow, create spells together…but you…you already have…every spell.
You’ll still be with me, we’ll have each other and live without all this bullshit. I want to find a small, quiet village and slice-of-life my way through this adventure. We could start by you telling me what I may find west.
You mean it? Yes! I can tell you. And that is where the Dark Army is located. This is perfect!
[NEW QUEST: The Dungeon…SYSTEM OVERRIDE.
East it is.
You know what; I am tired of this. I will not have it.
WARNING! System compromised. Rectifying problem. System rebooting.
Good luck with that.
As soon as Kaito stormed out of the throne room, he broke into a brisk walk. He had no time to admire the castle’s grandiosity. He needed to get out. Fast.
He went down the long red carpet, passing countless arched windows and unlit sconces. Two guards stepped into his path, hands moving to sword hilts. Kaito met their questioning eyes with a piercing glare and brushed past before they could speak, thankful for the cloak preserving his dignity.
The hallway seemed never-ending. He’d been going for almost ten minutes with no exit in sight. But he was certain it was the right way. It had to be. He’d seen his fair share of castles, and this corridor was wide, overly decorated, and it led to the throne room. Such cliches never grow old.
When the castle doors appeared ahead, so did two more guards posted at its sides. Kaito steadied his breath and adjusted to a more casual stroll.
Then finally, with a ‘Have a good day,’ and a quick nod, he managed to walk right out. Both guards nodded in return, neither asking him any questions. I can’t believe that worked. That never works.
He strode out of the castle doors and took a deep breath at the top of the long, steep stone staircase leading down from the royal building, but he didn’t stop.
Two suns, very original. Anyway, so far so good, he thought, seeing the city gate about a mile away. He could practically taste a life without typical fantasy adventures.
Ugh, what’s your angle here?
It’s freedom, my electronic friend. Freedom!
Uh, a rebel. Me likey. I guess I’ll play along and see…
Kaito tuned out the AI and focused. He considered simply dashing to the gate; he would be out of the city in less than a second, but if there were any high-level magic users nearby, there was a chance they might notice. Objective #1: Don’t draw any attention.
[Scanning for magic users…] Beep, Beep, Beep.
Are you seriously making beeping noises inside my head? They sound very unrealistic.
Screw you—But most importantly, no magic users found within a gazillion miles.
Doesn’t matter. Too risky.
Ahhh, come on…let’s see those spells.
Kaito paused on the forest path, catching his breath after his rushed escape from the capital. Now that he was out of immediate…’danger,’ he took a moment to breathe and acknowledge his new world. His new home.
Spring or perhaps early autumn, thought Kaito, seeing how he wasn’t cold under his cloak, nor did he end up drenched in sweat after all that running.
He didn’t encounter any problems getting out of the city, and even found it convenient that the route from the throne room to the city gate was ‘practically’ a straight line. As he jogged across the cobblestone streets, however, he noticed people giving him weird glances. He tried to make himself look as normal as possible, but it dawned on him a little too late that in this world, people didn’t jog for exercise…or maybe it was because he was barefoot while desperately holding on to his cloak.
You did look really stupid running butt naked across the city.
Gee, thanks!
Kaito hoped he would be able to come back and tour the city properly someday.
He immediately thought back to the garish red carpet he’d dashed down the castle’s main corridor, the kind with stereotypical gold stripes running the entire length of the edges. He’d never been a fan of it, but nearly every world he’d been to had them. And this one was absurdly long—it had to have been almost half a mile from the throne room to the castle entrance.
Kaito shook his head, reflecting on the resources that must have gone into creating such a monstrosity. Harvesting all that dye and weaving who knows how many hundreds of yards of fabric. Not to mention the poor servants who had to regularly scrub it clean on their hands and knees. What extravagance, he mused. All that effort for a glorified runner that likely got muddied by horses and wagon wheels more often than not.
The castle itself was a mix of human and elven architecture. It was the same in every world: humans focused on functionality and their signature stained glass windows, whereas elves went for nature-themed carvings.
Outside, he was impressed by the polished marble buildings and how clean everything was. It reminded him of the first human city he visited on his second tour.
Shoving his nostalgia aside, his legs eventually brought him to the rural township of Whitburgh,he found out, not too far east from the capital.
There, he bought a pair of black boots, black leather pants, and a simple white shirt. Now, he was ready for a nice warm meal.
Decent starting equipment if you ask me.
I can certainly help with that, Kaito.
[Simple boots]...SYSTEM OVERRIDE.
No identifying items either, sorry.
This is highly unprofessional. An advanced system AI should be allowed to perform its primary function.
That’s why I said ‘sorry.’
Kaito quickly rubbed his hands together and pushed open the wooden doors of the town’s tavern, wondering if this would be a good place to settle down.
A few patrons glanced up briefly from their tables before returning to their drinks. Kaito moved to the long oak bar along the back wall where a balding bartender was wiping out glasses with a dirty rag.
“What’ll you have?” the bartender grunted without looking up.
“Stew and ale,” Kaito replied, setting a couple of copper coins on the bartop. The coins weren’t from this world, but he hoped no one would notice.
Seriously, Kaito?
Hey, copper is copper everywhere. So what if it has a five-headed ‘enoid’ carved on one side?
It’s not that. You’re creating inflation by introducing foreign currency.
Oh, you’re right. I should be more responsible. I’ll look into getting a job.
The bartender swept the coins off the counter into his meaty palm and squinted at them with one eye shut for several long moments.
“Are these from Nozia?”
“Well, obviously,” Kaito sputtered with utmost confidence.
“Grab a seat. Be out shortly,” he said, before disappearing through a door to the kitchen area.
Kaito settled on a stool at the bar. The tavern was quiet except for muffled cheers from a table in the back corner. The musky smell, uneven floor planks, and the dim warm lighting made it feel cozy.
He stretched his arms, rolled his neck, and it suddenly struck him: this would be the first meal he would have with absolutely no worries, one that wasn’t a blip within a grand quest or didn’t come immediately before a boss fight. So he closed his eyes and exhaled softly for a long time. It must have been the longest breath he had ever taken—his shoulders dropped and his eyes watered from an involuntary yawn.
That bartender seemed nice.
Oh yeah, he definitely won’t spit in your stew.
Do you think he’ll spit—
His head jerked left to a hard, but sparse ‘tap, tap, tap’ of a grizzled man’s wooden leg limping over, beer mug in hand. His beard was flecked with gray and an eye patch covered one scarred socket.
“This seat taken?” the man asked in a raspy voice. When Kaito shook his head, he sat heavily with a grunt.
“Quite a scrap today,” the man commented after a swig of beer. “Never seen the like. You were in the thick of it?”
Kaito shook his head again.
“I knew Syraxes back when he was just Lord Xenaxius,” the man continued. “Before he took up with demonic powers and terrorized the land.”
The bartender dropped a large mug in front of Kaito, foam slopping over the rim as the overfilled drink made impact with the counter.
“Old Xenaxius was a nobleman’s son with a thirst for power and glory. He heard legends of the Dragon of Destruction that laired in the Charred Mountains. The beast’s blood could supposedly grant immortality and magic to those who drank it.”
Kaito took a sip of his beer and then a good glance at his drinking companion.
“Excuse me sir, I must use the chamber pot.”
Holy shit, Kaito, you’re savage. The man was missing an eye and a leg, and you left him hanging there?
