[ "HERO" System integration successful ]

Wait, what?

The almost inorganic voice resounded within my head while I was peacefully walking down a path to the town. It was currently sunny at this time of day, it was probably about 10:00 a.m. if this world had the same way of tracking time as the Earth.

[ Rechecking Functions... ]

It resounded once again. I was really confused as to how and why I was hearing this "message". But I started to notice that it was sort of downloading something, probably into me. I originally thought that this world wouldn't have too much of an RPG game set up or anything similar but I guess my hunch was turned down.

[ Checking Completed ]

Some sort of 'ding' or bell sound went off as the disembodied voice finished with its message. Then, some sort of window of text appeared right in front of me. It said,

-----

Greetings, New Hero!

You must be absolutely confused at this moment that this message was shown to you. Do not worry, this world is very much lacking in technology, somewhat complex ones actually. In truth, you could compare this world to an era in your world commonly known as the medieval. But it is still completely different. That aside, as one of the few people I have reincarnated into this world, you have a mission. It is to find and defeat the ones who will be deemed to be the ones to destroy this world. Whether they are the Demon Kings or someone completely different, it is your duty to protect this world from total destruction.

On an added note, to the <Hero of Eclipse>, and the <Hero of Illumination>, there was a problem in giving back your past life's memories due to still unknown causes. Right now, only fragments will be able to be recalled. It might take us a long time to fix this problem. Approximately 5 to 9 years from now, you'd have all of your past memories returned to you. Sorry for the inconvenience.

-God of Creation, Xylfos

-----

Ah… As expected. But isn't this a bit too late? Oh forget it, at least I got the message…

Though I already had the gist of what was happening, the second paragraph of the message intrigued me. Since a majority of my memories were "erased", I sort of had the obligation to expect that I was either the Hero of Eclipse, or Illumination. But which am I supposed to be?

[ You have been given the title, <Hero of Eclipse> ]

And with that, my question was answered. This gives me a weird feeling, having everything seem like it's going in accordance to what I think. And just because of that, it feels a lot more like things won't go my way in the future.

[ Reminder, <Eclipse> skill tree has been unlocked. Voice out the word "Status" and your status will appear without help from an <Appraisal ring> ]

I guess asking for the ring was unnecessary… and oh, a skill tree. I'll take a look at that later.

And so, I continued to near the entrance to the town. The wall surrounding the town seemed to be as tall as about 6 meters with the entrance being an open arch about 5 meters wide.

The guards standing at both ends of the entrance saw me then called out, "Hey, you! The kid wearing a cloak!"

He startled me, making me jump a little. I quickened my pace and walked up to the guard that called me. "What is it?" I asked.

"You're not from here, right?" He asked me.

"Yes, why do you ask?" I replied in the most normal and unsuspicious way that I possibly can.

"Me and my pal over there saw you being carried by Sir Markus out of the dungeon. He said to let you pass without a fee."

"Ahh, I understand."

Guh! I feel like I'm being bribed… No, that's not it. He's just giving me hospitality.

After that short moment, I walked into the town. Seeing all the stores and houses that looked as if they were literally taken from Earth's medieval times with the fantasy elements mixed in.

Walking at a pace slower than I usually would, I surveyed the surroundings. The many voices of the townsfolk fusing with the noises from their shoes hitting the streets and the wheels from carriages, it was a generally lively place.

From what I could see, there were many races such as humans, a fair bit of demi-humans, elves, and etc. I don't have enough information yet but I believe that this town here is mostly filled with normal humans since the number of animal ears I see perking up from the crowd were not a large amount.

So, I continued my walk, hoping to quickly find the sort of establishment I have an interest in. To be specific, I'm trying to find the adventurers' guild. From the dozens or probably even hundreds of novels that I've read from Earth, I had a lot of prior knowledge of being reincarnated/transported into a fantasy world(even though Earth already had magic at the time).

After a few minutes of walking around town, I finally found my destination. The building looked like what you'd expect, like something out of a history picture book, or maybe even something out of a fantasy novel of Gods and their Familia.

I then walked in nonchalantly and took in the sights within the building. Unlike the exterior of the building, the inside was clean, somewhat. Though I'm not saying the outside's dirty, the inside just looks like it shines a bit more.

The place was filled to the brim with adventurers! With most of them sitting down in front of tables to count and appreciate the loot they got and to chat and discuss with others. And at the end of the room stood the reception, the place where you could (probably)exchange the crystals and ask for missions/quests and other things.

Ah… now that I really look around, they're mostly looking at me…

The people that composed the adventurers in here were mostly adults. Well of course they were, since being an adventurer means you're willing to put your life in danger to be rewarded with money. No normal kid would be allowed to work as one. Well, I'm not normal am I?

"Miss, is this where you exchange crystals for money?" I walked up to one of the receptionists then asked like everything was as usual. I don't really think this'll work out as I think it would but it's better to try.

She then looked at me with a bit of confusion in her eyes, then replied. "Ah, yes sir but you need an adventurer's license before I could exchange them for you."

"I see…" I took a finger to scratch my chin a little while thinking

That's to be expected. You can't be sure if a person stole the crystals or not if they don't have a license, especially if it's a kid. Maybe I couldn't try asking…

Then, before I could speak, as unruly as a number of adventurers are, one finally took his chance to get up and approach me thinking I would be easy prey for being a kid.

"Hey kid, lemme help you with that." One somewhat burly man approached and called out. He looked normal, just your stereotypical adventurer, who steals from other adventurers weaker than him. Y'know, the usual one to be humiliated by a protagonist for being an idiot. But I'd rather not humiliate him. I already beat an abnormal boss in a dungeon which is probably being talked about by a number of people already. I don't wanna get any more attention.

Plus… With this amount of people in the room, I might get too much attention if I just single handedly humiliate an adult. Wait, can I even overpower him as I am right now?

[ Permission to execute [Auto Appraisal] of the HERO System is currently pending ]

The inorganic female voice resounded within my head like earlier. It seems tempting to accept, but if the so called system will automatically appraise the things around me, won't I just be omnipotent? And I know that my brain won't be able to handle the amount of information it's going to receive. Buuuut…

Accept.

I gave the permission not because I think I would be able to handle the amount of information, but because I had thought of the system having a countermeasure to this sort of thing if the one given this system would not be someone with infinite mental capacity. Not by giving the person infinite mental capacity, but by…

[ Please specify the conditions of this skill… ]

Yup, I knew it.

The creator of this system wouldn't be a lazy prick. He/She would have to be smart about making this. And now, I have to be smart on how to set its appraisals.

Appraise objects/entities within sight that have focus within my mind.

[ It has been set. You will also be able to reset this skill whenever you may need to ]

"Oi, kid, are you deaf or something?" The man spoke in irritation that I didn't answer the first time.

So impatient! Don't you know that assessing your situation is a must in being an adventurer?

"I can obviously hear you." I bluntly replied. Though it wasn't what I would really like to reply to him. Since I don't really want a fight.

[ Appraisal Successful ]

-----

Name: (random forgettable name)

Class: [Axewielder(Thief)]

Title: None

Level: [1]

HP: 300/300

MP: 30/30

Str:(D)50

Agi:(E)39

Def:(D)45

Vit:(D)45

Int:(E)38

System Description:

A normal, generic, and almost insignificant adventurer. Is a thief which mainly targets weak-looking adventurers. There are currently no one who aims to rat him out to the authorities of the guild.

-----

Ah… I didn't expect him to be the strongest here… oh well, all the more reason to not get involved.

"Thanks, but I can do this myself." I spoke as politely as I can in this situation. Hopefully, he can just give up now.

He seemed irritated with my response, though I ignored him and continued talking with the receptionist. He soon went back to his group. I have a bad feeling about this…

"Ma'am, can I apply for a license right now?" I asked. I have to get the money to live in this world as fast as I possibly can, since I am currently penniless.

She seemed unsurprised and worried by my statement. I guess young people asking to acquire an adventurer's license is a bit of the usual thing here. About that worry in her eyes, I could easily tell that a large amount of children have lost their lives doing this job.

"Y-yes, actually you can. If you wish, you could have a test right now." She said with a tone befitting here role as a receptionist, but there seemed to be hints of anxiety seeping through. I can't do anything about it and just ignored it.

I nodded, indicating that I want to do the test right now. She let out a sigh before speaking again. "Please follow me"

She then walked out of her station and continued walking to the door likely leading to the offices and the testing/training grounds that I saw behind the building. It was an open space in which I heard yells and the clashing of wood before I entered the building.

After walking past the backdoor leading to the testing grounds, the receptionist called out. "Garius! Heldic! It's time again!"

There weren't that many people in here. Only about a dozen of people were here. And of all of them, only three didn't look. They were either totally focused in their training or just uninterested.

Two men walked towards us. From what I can see, one's a swordsman and the other's a mage. The swordsman was wearing armor and had a sword akin to a two-handed longsword, specifically a bastard sword, while the mage wore a hooded cloak and had a staff which seemed to be made mostly of wood with a few gems which I would guess to be magic stones stuck into it likely as a catalyst.

"Chloe, again?" The swordsman spoke, his question being expected due to the likely history of young people applying for a license.

The receptionist, named Chloe, then replied to the man. "Garius, it's just how things are."

The mage scratched his head and shortly glared at me before sighing. "Alright then, let's get this over with."

"Heldic, that's why you won't get a girlfriend ever, y'know?" Chloe stated as if to tease him.

"How did that get into the conversation?!" Heldic blushed and seemed frustrated, likely at the thought that he actually might not get a partner in life.

"Heldic, don't lose hope, I'm sure you'll find someone...someday…" Garius tried to encourage him, but it only seemed to make things worse.

"Dude, that does not help. It just rubs it in more." Heldic replied, looking dejected.

They seem to be very close friends. Actually, just by listening to how they talk to each other, I can tell that they have a lot of history.

Then after their short chat, Chloe finally went back to the original topic. "Right, this kid here wants to get a license of his own, can I trust you two to gauge his physical and magical prowess?"

"Alright!"

"Okaaayyy..."

Heldic then received an ear twist after his dragged out answer. She oddly gives off the air of a tsundere, well, I think I'm the only one noticing that. But it's probably because I'm just thinking it in my head.

"After the test, I'll have you fill out a form if you pass, until then, good luck on the test. Also, what should we call you?" Chloe said to me.

"Call me Kazuki, no last name given." I told them the truth, though I do know I have a last name, it's just that I haven't remembered what it is. The only thing I remember is the first letter, letter I. If my memories are actually going to fully be restored at this pace, I'm pretty sure it'll take 8-9 years at least.

The three seemed to be unperturbed by my introduction. It's likely that either <Throwaways> were so frequent or orphans are actually the norm here. I hope it's the former and not the latter.

"Okay, first, you'll be tested by Garius first for your physical prowess." Chloe then instructed me to stand at a fair distance from where Garius was. The test was a battle. Though I had a bit of a question before we fought.

"What about my status? Do you not need to know about that?"

"About your status, we'll check later. A person's power isn't gauged only through one's status. The way they use it will also determine whether one is powerful or not."

So that's how it is… but before we begin…

[ Appraisal Successful ]

-----

Name: Garius Gano Rudo

Class: [Swordsman]

Title: <Power of Three>

Level: [2]

HP: 2460/2560

MP: 100/100

Str:(F)360

Agi:(G)250

Def:(F)327

Vit:(F)320

Int:(H)215

System Description:

A man deemed to be worthy of a title between a trio in which there is Power, Wisdom, and Courage. Though weak compared to those who have reached the upper echelons of the adventuring world(those who are Level 6-10), he is still considered strong by the people.

-----

Cold sweat dripped down from my forehead. Seeing a status this high was a first for me. He's already level two, but his stats are considerably higher than mine, a level one. It's likely that the leveling system isn't like others.

But I shouldn't think about that in this situation. What I need to think about is….

How the hell can I win against him then?!?

As I shivered momentarily, the system spoke once again. I wanted to ignore it, but what the voice said intrigued me. It might help me.

[ Message from God of Creation, Xylfos. A message containing [Hero's Advantage] ]