Novel Hero who Relies on Women in Another World

Discussion in 'Community Fictions' started by GUTB, Apr 17, 2021.

  1. GUTB

    GUTB Well-Known Member

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    This is an isekai in which the main character is completely useless and relies on women to live.

    Chapter 1

    *bing!*

    Paul Marks’ phone alerted him of a new text.

    It was Julie. She is leaving work. It was just past 3pm so she should be able to avoid rush-hour traffic and be back in around 20 minutes.

    Paul finished the chapter of the isekai web novel he was reading online with his iPad while seated on the sofa. It was about a Japanese senior high school class which was transported to another world; the theme was “survival”. A harem romance was present as well. Paul liked this kind of isekai; the sense of danger added a sense of emotional investment into the characters and their love affairs.

    When the time came for Julie to come home Paul reluctantly put down the iPad. That was a Rule: when his girlfriend was home, complete attention must be paid to her. He got up and loitered around the front door area next to the kitchen.

    The door lock rattled. Paul stood at attention: quickly patted his head in case there was a stray hair sticking out and put on his usual smile.

    That was the First Rule: always greet her with a smile.

    Julie entered the door. Paul immediately moved forward and seized her in a hug.

    “Hey babe,” he said.

    “I’m home,” she said, also smiling. However, he noted that she didn’t respond physically to his embrace. He’d have to figure out her emotional condition. Paul was very sensitive to physical responses, that was a skill which had been hard-learned.

    He immediately rejected pursing further physical connection. He’d hold off until he could figure out the problem and correct the mood.

    “Was your manager on your case again today?”

    “No, no, she’s been friendly recently,” she responded and moved into the kitchen, dropping her purse onto the table.

    “Anyway, what do you want for dinner?”

    “Ohh, chicken!” He responded enthusiastically. “Your chicken pasta dishes are the best!”

    It was the normal discussion. He hung around the kitchen and watched her taking ingredients out of the freezer to thaw. They chatted. He thought that Julie wasn’t responding normally to him.

    They spent the rest of the day together like that. Paul couldn’t find the right entry point to discuss what’s been bothering her. He couldn’t broach the topic until he felt confident it wouldn’t result in a worsened mood.

    When it was time for bed, he reached out to her but she demurred.

    “Sorry, I’m dead tired I just want to sleep.”

    “Buut I’m horny for Julie…” he fake-whined. That was another Rule: always show desire towards the girl.

    She didn’t giggle or push him or anything like that. Instead she just told him “later, later…” and turned over in bed.

    Paul frowned this time when she wasn’t looking. Girls don’t need to have sex every day, but the reaction was off.

    Next morning they went through their normal working day ritual. Paul got up extra early so that he could use the shower first. The reason for this is because he wanted to always see Julie off while smelling and looking good. That was, of course, a Rule: women were sensitive to this, and he must never cause her to be disgusted with his grooming.

    He had a lot of Rules. He developed them over his 30 years of life to help him live.

    Paul is completely dependent on women to live.

    He didn’t work, didn’t have a car, and his ability to cook amounted to microwaving a burrito. The thought of having to support himself and live alone filled him dread.

    His current relationship with Julie has lasted for close to a year. He had been in many relationships in the past, but he thought that this one would be the keeper. He’d learned a lot over the years, and he was diligently applying those lessons every day. He was committed to making his relationship with Julie work long-term.

    Naturally, the small condo he lived in was Julie’s.

    He didn’t own much. Just some clothes. He had a phone with a plan he paid for with a little bit of money he got from Julie as a sort of allowance. The iPad was also a gift from her.

    While Julie was at work that was his “alone time” when he could just do what he wanted…which wasn’t much of course. He liked reading web novels and playing gacha. He wouldn’t touch Julie’s PC unless it was specifically searching for something she asked for.

    He focused on going through his daily gachas and picked up reading his current web novel where he left off yesterday. He started to think about how to approach the problem with Julie’s mood towards the end of the work day; he was careful only to spare quality time in thinking about it as constantly agonizing would lead to a negative result. That was his experience. He knew that peoples’ emotions were largely chemical interactions in the brain, and over time the chemical state will naturally change. There was no need to rush things or put himself into a destructive spiral.

    With those thoughts he continued his normal life with Julie, keeping an eye out for the problem area. After several days he had become seriously concerned. He didn’t know why Julie wasn’t responding to him normally. They didn’t fight — he’d never, ever allow the mood to deteriorate that much — but things weren’t getting better. One night she called to let him know she’d come home late at night. Normally anyone would think “cheating!” Paul was no exception. However, for him, that would actually be a positive development — if she was cheating, he’d absolutely know it and it would give him a way forward to fix whatever it was she felt he was lacking in. He could deal with that. What worried him most was a festering problem that he couldn’t get a handle on which would in time destroy the relationship. If he knew what was happening he could deal with it.

    One day, Julie texted him from work. She asked him to go shopping for some things. Paul really disliked being asked to go shopping, something which Julie normally took care of. It ate into his “alone time”. He would do it, of course, and never complain even jokingly. He didn’t like it but he knew this was a way in which Julie could be satisfied with the appearance of equality in the relationship. Not volunteering for the chore was the maximum level of push-back he would consider; if asked he would accept immediately while projecting a good attitude.

    Julie sent him text messages about things to pick up. As long as he was told exactly what to get he could at least do light shopping. With his phone he could text her directly and send images of products and she’d pick out what to get. This time turned out to be a pretty long trip. He didn’t appreciate having and hour and a half taken from his personal time, but if doing this occasionally helped solidify the relationship he’d gladly sacrifice.

    On his way back he walked past his usual salon. Price was a little on the high end but the stylist there was good and it was in walking distance of home. He visited the salon every month. He judged his appearance to be a solid 7/10, but that was only because he paid an enormous amount of attention and effort to it. Without that he’d be barely average — actually, below average. He considered this to be the absolutely most critical aspect of his ability to get a girlfriend and build a relationship. He often envied hot guys; he’d have absolute no problems in life if he had their faces and builds. His one and only advantage over other guys in general is that he spent much more effort in presentation. A natural 7/10 guy who didn’t pay attention to maintaining himself could drop to a 6 or a 5.

    Coming up to his floor — he stopped.

    There were two police standing in-front of the door to the unit.

    Paul instantly thought there was a break-in. He immediately thought of his iPad laying on the coffee table. He really loved that iPad, it was the best gift he had ever gotten from a girl.

    “Paul Marks?”

    “Y-yes…”

    “Do you reside at this address?”

    “Yeah, with my girlfriend.”

    “Put the bags down.”

    Paul did as he was told. He couldn’t think straight, this was seriously frightening him. He desperately wished Julie was here.

    “Do you have a key for the door?”

    “Um…yes…”

    Paul hurriedly fished out the key to the condo. The officer put his hand out, and Paul numbly handed it over.

    The cop was looking at Paul straight in the eye. The other cop behind the one Paul was speaking to also came up beside the first one and took up a stance of holding onto his belt with both hands. Paul was intimidated.

    “Paul Marks. You have been barred from entry to the residential unit 336 Armilo Avenue number 202. You may not enter the premises for any reason. Do you understand?”

    Paul just looked at the cop. His mind had blanked out.

    “Do you understand?”

    Paul snapped out of it. He had to call Julie, he couldn’t deal with this situation on his own.

    “Put the phone down!” Paul could only comply.

    “You are are barred from residence and may not enter for any reason. Do you understand?”

    “Y-yes, I understand…” was all he could reply. He understood the words of the police. They were just too ridiculous and unexpected.

    “You may not contact the owner directly, including telephone calls or text messages. You must keep a physical distance of at least 500 meters from the owner of the premises. Do you understand?”

    “…yes…”

    “You may arrange for the removal of any personal property in the residence through an intermediate party such as family or friends. This document will explain your rights and restrictions in detail. If you have any questions, call the number on the bottom.”

    Paul numbly took the pamphlet.

    The cop who had been doing all the talking took on a different tone. “Sir, this isn’t a court order, don’t worry you’re not going to jail or anything. This is just a way some women use to kick out a guy; we see it all the time. If you obey these restrictions I guarantee nothing will happen to you legally.”

    Paul mumbled something. He couldn’t think. All that was on his mind was getting away from the police so he could call Julie. Outside of the building he immediately dialed Julie’s contact. The cop has told him he can’t call her, but he ignored that — that was like telling him not to breathe.

    “This user is unavailable, please leave a voice message.”

    Was she somewhere outside of reception? But, it wasn’t her voice mail message. Paul tried texting her; he used the existing text window so there’s no possibility of somehow using the wrong contact.

    “Are you there?” The text seemed to have went out, but Paul noticed the little received icon didn’t appear. He was at a total loss.

    Paul walked to a small local park where there he knew was a bench and sat down. After some time his brain started working. “First of all, I need to talk to Julie.” But no matter how many times he called or texted there was no response. Paul finally came to the conclusion that he must have been blocked.

    Why? He hadn’t the slightest idea. He knew that there was something wrong with Julie’s mood. They had nothing even remotely like a fight. He would never allow for their mood to deteriorate to the point they would actually fight. No matter how hard he wracked his brain he couldn’t think of anything that would cause such a dramatic shift. Was there something going on behind the scenes which she had covered up from him? Was it really another guy, pushing her buttons? Was she influenced by someone to get rid of me?

    As the hours went by, Paul’s stomach alerted him to his hunger. He was dragged back into the current reality by force. The fact is, he is now homeless. He didn’t even have a car to sleep in. He had a few dollars in his pocket. He didn’t have parents; mom was dead and dad was estranged for years — he had heard that dad re-married and had left the country. He had ex-girlfriends of course…but he didn’t have their contact information anymore. He would never ever keep the contacts of other girls in his phone while he was in a relationship. In fact he had frequently left his phone within easy access by Julie basically inviting her to snoop through it. He would be completely clean, not even the slightest hint of other girls.

    With one exception: his sister Pamela.

    In fact, he had been in a relationship with Pam before hooking up with Julie. It lasted almost 6 months. Being his sister he really wasn’t attracted to her. He’s perfectly normal in that regard. She was 1 year older than him. At the time, he had hoped that Pam would finally be the answer to his long-term problem of finding a woman who could support him for life. He wasn’t attracted to her, but he still did his best to perform. But…she wasn’t comfortable with the arrangement. She ended up getting with another guy; Paul was actually pretty jealous and would have tried hard to take her back but she was clear that she wanted to end it “for both our sakes”.

    He didn’t understand that logic. Whatever that guy could do for her, Paul could do better. He was sure. It wasn’t to be. She let him stay at her place until he could find another girlfriend — Julie. Pam had since become engaged and had moved, but he still had her number.

    He dialed Pam’s contact.

    “Paul?”

    His relief was dizzying. She had answered.

    “Pam, thank God! Do you have a minute??”

    “Um, sure? What’s going on?”

    “I’m…I’m, uh, in a lot of trouble. I was…thrown out of Julie’s place…”

    Silence.

    “Pam?”

    “Are you serious?”

    “I just came home from shopping and some cops were waiting for me. They told me I can’t ever go to her place again. I can’t reach Julie either…”

    More silence. “Okay, I got it. I got it. Look, can you call me back in an hour? I seriously can’t talk about this right now.”

    “An hour?”

    “Yeah, give me an hour. We’ll figure this out, okay?”

    “…okay.”

    He ended the call.

    Paul’s sense of relief was profound. Pam was there. Pam would take care of everything. He thought about it. Even though Pam was currently with another guy, she should still be able to let her own brother stay with them for a while. With his immediate needs taken care of, he could figure out how things could be repaired with Julie.

    Could he possibly take Pam back? Looking back on it, maybe the reason why he lost her to begin with was because he wasn’t sexually aggressive enough. He wasn’t particularly attracted to her, so perhaps that made it so that he wasn’t being passionate enough. Not letting her feel loved enough. This time, he could perform. Could he get Pam to take him to a hotel with the excuse of not getting in the way of her and the other guy? There he could definitely perform. He could show her what he could do for her.

    He thought about various scenarios getting Pam back. He knew deep down he was just running away from facing the fact that Julie dumped him. Once he was safe with Pam he was sure he would think about how he would fold up into Julie’s sofa happily reading on his iPad waiting for her to come back home. He would probably start crying.

    As he continued dreaming up scenarios and strategies for getting back Pam his despair turned to anticipation. He watched the phone’s clock, painfully waiting for the hour the pass. The very moment an hour had passed, Paul immediately called back.

    “This user is unavailable, please leave a voice message.”

    Paul stared blankly into space.

    He tried again.

    “This user is unavailable, please leave a voice message.”

    Paul decided that she must be out of reception. In an elevator or something.

    “This user is unavailable, please leave a voice message.”

    No matter how much he dialed, the response was the same. Texts weren’t answered either. The hour turned into two hours. Then three hours passed.

    In the first time in his life, Paul felt that he was done for. His last lifeline, his sister Pam, has abandoned him.

    All his work building himself into the perfect boyfriend. Developing the Rules. Dieting and exercising. Going to the salon every month without fail. All useless. Worthless. How much of a fool was he? How much of a sucker? He was a complete failure. A man who couldn’t remotely be called one.

    “Julie…”

    He began walking back towards the condo but stopped himself. He couldn’t believe how easily he could deny reality. Now that he could finally think, he realized that Julie had gone through significant effort to arrange for his exile, which means nothing would change if he went back. In fact he might even end up in jail.

    He didn’t know where Pam lived now.

    So now what?

    He had a few dollars left. At least he could go get something to eat.

    Not knowing what to do in the future, Paul could only think of what to do at the moment.

    As he left the park and walked slowly down the street, for the first time in his life he considered suicide. His life was over. Paul wasn’t pessimistic normally but if he looked at it rationally he was done for. He needed someone to support his life, and to that end he had built himself up to be a desirable boyfriend. There was no way he could keep that up as a homeless; his grooming and looks would hit rock bottom. His options to meet women would be severely restricted.

    Paul also considered wether or not he was actually as desirable as he wanted to believe. It’s true that he was successful at meeting and hitting it off with women, and he had entered multiple relationships. Perhaps those early success blinded him to a fundamental flaw in himself. In fact he knew what that flaw was, and occasionally he admitted it to himself: he was flawed as a man. He couldn’t take care of himself, let alone others.

    At this point in his self-reflection, Paul would normally escape reality. He would assure himself that he just needed to be a better boyfriend. If he looked good enough, if he was passionate enough, if he was considerate enough, if he control the mood in the home enough, that he could overcome any other flaw. He would curse not being gifted with superior genetics.

    Paul walked down the street. He felt an acute stab of anxiety in his stomach. Where would he go now? Maybe a police station? Hospital?

    Maybe he should try to get in touch with Julie after all.

    Mentally exhausted and afflicted by anxiety symptoms, Paul looked at his phone while he crossed a street.

    *BANG*!

    A loud metallic crashing sound snapped Paul into reality. He whipped his head around…

    …what he saw didn’t register immediately. A large bus was tipped over precariously on one set of wheels. Behind it was multi-trailer truck lurching to a stop, its trailers splayed out over the road in an unnatural configuration. He could perceive a spray of debris rising from the scene. The next moment it registered. The bus, tipping over, was headed straight for him. He noticed that the driver’s seat of the bus seemed to be empty. Paul thought that was strange.

    Then, Paul Marks thought nothing at all.
     
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  2. Nude_philoshopher

    Nude_philoshopher Well-Known Member

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    Does he change?or does he continue eating ntr shit?
     
  3. GUTB

    GUTB Well-Known Member

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    Darkness.

    Paul couldn’t see anything. Complete darkness. He felt that his eyes were open, but he couldn’t see a thing.

    “Oh right, I died…?”

    Paul remembered being hit by the bus. He didn’t remember any physical sensation.

    Was he lying down? It seemed so. He couldn’t move his body though. Even though he couldn’t feel or see anything, strangely he wasn’t panicking. His thoughts just seemed to swim around aimlessly. What had gone wrong with Julie? Why had Pam cut him off? Paul honestly didn’t know. He thought that he could just keep thinking about it. Certainly he’d be able to figure something out as he always had before.

    “But, I died…”

    Thinking about it anymore was pointless, wasn’t it? Let’s just go to sleep…

    There was a light. Just a pin-prick, but it was brilliant white.

    “Paul Marks,” a feminine voice resounded. It wasn’t loud but it was intensely clear.

    Wait! Could it be…

    “G-goddess?!”

    “That is right,” the woman’s — the goddess’ — voice affirmed.

    “Did I die?”

    “That is right. You body was damaged beyond repair and your soul was released.”

    Paul thought. Wasn’t this an orthodox isekai development?

    “Paul Marks. You were not selected to go to the other world.”

    Oh. Paul supposed it was too much to ask for. Still he got to speak with a goddess.

    “You, who did not achieve anything in his life, with a karmic weight less than even the poor average of your world, would never be considered for the journey.”

    The cold goddess’ voice continued.

    “In truth, no one in your world has enough achievements to be considered. Only those with exceptional karmic weight would be considered. Occasionally a group of individuals with an interconnected karmic mass are considered. Your insignificant destiny had been caught up in the transition of such a group.”

    Paul thought — the bus! A group of people on the bus that crashed into him? It looked like it was tipping over and careening out of control.

    “That is correct. Even though you were not selected and could not be transported to the other world, your soul was still pulled into this place due to proximity only. Your soul’s destiny is completed unrelated to those who were selected; your appearance here is completely by accident.”

    “S-sorry…” Paul didn’t know why he was apologizing. Did he feel somehow at fault for causing some kind of headache for the goddess?

    “You have no further reason to stay in this place. However, I would like to ask one question of you.”

    “S-sure…”

    “Julie Brighton. Pamela Marks.”

    Paul was reminded of his sadness at the mention of his girlfriend and sister.

    “You trusted these two people from the bottom of your heart. Yet, they betrayed your trust and abandoned you. You, who lived his life to be the best partner possible. You, who sacrificed almost all your pleasures to better yourself for the sake of the relationship. You were removed from your home in a cruel and cynical fashion. Your trusted and beloved sister led you into a sense of hope only to abandon you completely, driving you into the depths of despair.”

    This goddess was really rubbing it in Paul thought. But, it was true.

    “Yet, you did not harbor even a fragment of anger or hatred towards these two people. The only negative thoughts you had were directed towards yourself.”

    …huh?

    “Why? Any human would feel betrayed and at least experience negative emotions towards those who had betrayed him. I do not understand. Do you not understand that you were betrayed?”

    Paul was confused. Was he betrayed? Certainly, that’s the only way one would describe it. Thinking about it, the goddess was completely right; wasn’t it normal to feel hatred or anger towards those who betray you? Even though he was thinking about it in terms of betrayal now he didn’t feel any different.

    “It appears you do understand that you were betrayed. Why are you not angry?”

    Paul thought hard.

    “W-well, see, Julie is a woman, right? Women are different from guys. I was working hard to control the mood, you know? Like, even if she was dissatisfied with me, I would never let things come to an argument so it must have been like she was trapped. So, it’s like I forced her into a corner and she had to take drastic action…”

    “Why are you making an excuse for the betrayal? You appear to be trying to shift moral blame onto yourself to excuse her from your feelings of anger.”

    This goddess was perceptive! The fact is, he didn’t really know why he wasn’t angry. The only thing he could think of that he took all the responsibility for what happened in the relationship.

    “Then, your sister, Pamela Marks. She led you on with a sense of hope only to drop you into the depths of despair.”

    Paul could only think of the same excuse he made for Julie.

    “Maybe…it was just that she was trying to move on with her life and she couldn’t figure out how to deal with me. She was with another man. Maybe she was trying her best to protect herself and her own relationship and cutting me off was all she could think of in that sudden situation? I-I can’t really get mad at someone for that, right?”

    Silence.

    Damn, was that the wrong answer?

    “Very well. This is normally not permissible, but I judge that connecting your destiny to the selected ones this time may produce valuable results. The other world is not as comfortable as you believe. Furthermore, your karmic weight is very low, and your capabilities in the other world will reflect that. You will be seriously challenged and you should resolve your will for facing a second death.”

    With these very dangerous words, Paul could feel himself being pulled towards the light. Excitement flooded through his mind, the isekai! He’s really going into an isekai! Maybe his life wasn’t a complete mistake? He had completely forgotten to feel dread at the goddess’ final words.

    The pin-prick of light got continually brighter until the brilliance completely engulfed him. Paul’s life had attained an unexpected continue option.
     
  4. GUTB

    GUTB Well-Known Member

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    Sunlight streaming through thick leaves.

    That’s what Paul saw first. He was lying down looking straight up into tree cover ahead.

    He sat up. He was in what appeared to be in a small clearing in a forest. The trees were thick, the narrowest appeared at first place to be wider than himself. The bark was a reddish brown color, like an exaggerated version you’d find in an oil painting. Similarly, the leaves were broad and appeared to be a mix of vibrant red-brown colors, as if it was fall. The ground did have have a scattering leaves but it didn’t appear that they were seriously falling currently. Possibly it was still early in fall?

    Paul realized he was sitting on a flat, round stone. It appeared to have a series of intricate arcane-looking circular symbols carved on it. It was only a few feet off the ground so he was able to easily get down from it. It actually appeared to be more of a pedestal, large enough to fit him lying down.

    Suddenly he realized something. Paul looked down at himself and patted his face.

    “Fully body transport?!”

    Even his clothes had come with him, and from he could tell they appeared not to be damaged. Wait, didn’t the goddess say my body was damaged beyond repair? Both his body and his clothes seemed to be fine however.

    He patted his pockets. His phone was gone.

    “Damnit that’s right I was holding out at the time, right? Did it go flying?”

    He had his wallet. Inside was some small cash. He didn’t have credit cards. A few pieces of ID. A small folding comb.

    That’s it.

    The key to Julie’s condo was handed over to the police.
    His phone was gone.

    He had absolutely nothing else except his clothes; a light sweater with undershirt. Slacks and a pair of leather shoes. Just minimally presentable for a mid-day shopping trip on his own.

    “I-isn’t this really bad??”

    His only knowledge of survival and bushcraft came from occasional YouTube videos. Could he even figure out how to make a fire? What would he eat? The more he thought about it, the more he realized he couldn’t survive like this. In fact, being homeless in his world seemed much more appealing!

    Also, what the hell? He wasn’t reincarnated, so there was no surrogate family to support him while he learned magic and the common sense of the world. He wasn’t even transmigrated into an existing person who’s memories he could leverage. Full body transport! With nothing!

    “Oh, right! Shouldn’t I at least get a power??”

    Paul tried to meditate on it. He tried looking inward to see if something clicked.

    Nothing.

    He examined his body for marks which could be a hint — nothing.

    There were no voices in his head giving him introductory information.

    Paul looked around the stone pedestal. He traced the carved magic-looking grooves on the top. Nothing happened.

    Damn, this wasn’t looking good. What did the goddess say? Something about my abilities being weak? But then, shouldn’t I at least have an ability?? Was it the sort of thing where it awakened based on some kind of condition? Was it like a passive power?

    In any case, this doesn’t look good.

    Then, Paul remembered the goddess had also mentioned a group of people on the bus who had been sent over too. She seemed to say that he was caught up with their isekai transport. Wouldn’t that mean that, like him, they were also transported full-body? If so, could they be someplace close by?

    Thinking that, Paul walked down a narrow worn-out path that seemed to lead out of the clearing.

    As he walked down the narrow, worn path, he noticed that here and there what looked like white stone bricks peaked out from the ground. Amongst the large trees, he also noticed a few white structures. Approaching one carefully to get a closer look it looked like a pillar which had been broken in half. It had what appeared to be ornamental embellishments on the outer surfaces which weren’t damaged. Touching it he thought it really did feel like stone.

    Could this area be an old ruins which had been overgrown? In any case he hadn’t seen any signs of active civilization.

    Paul sucked in a large breath.

    “HELLOOOOOO!”

    He listened for any response. Was the forest too dense for voices to carry far? All he could hear were chirps and trills from what he hoped were birds and other forest critters.

    After what seemed like a half-hour of walking and occasionally yelling out, he began to worry if there was a chance they had been separated by a large distance.

    *SNAP*

    Paul snapped his head towards the unmistakable sound of a branch breaking. Someone was there!

    “HEYYYYYY! OVER HEEEERE!!”

    Paul moved towards the sound excited to meet up with a fellow isekai traveller. His chances of survival would surge up if he could meet up with someone. If possible a reliable women with a powerful ability! Oh please!!

    Paul did come into contact with someone. It wasn’t a women…or human.

    Short, about 4 feet tall. Vaguely human features, but clearly was not one. Oversized head for its stature. Long, knife-shaped ears. Hairless head covered with bumps. Grey-greenish skin. Large mouth studded with sharp teeth. Round black eyes.

    Paul had consumed enough fantasy genre games, shows and movies to realize immediately what he was looking at was a Goblin.

    “GWEEEYA!” The goblin screeched at Paul. It raised a crude-looking wooden club.
     
  5. GUTB

    GUTB Well-Known Member

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    “AAAAAAAAAH!”

    Paul ran while screaming.

    From the outside it may have seem somewhat comical; Paul, who was much larger than the goblin, was running away from it while screaming hysterically. It was no laughing matter to to Paul however who had literally zero experience with any violence. The closest thing would have been some kink play one of his earlier girlfriends had wanted, and even then Paul was uncomfortable with it.

    Even though Paul, who had much longer legs, was only able to just keep ahead of chasing goblin. Paul was physically fit; he carefully watched his weight, and did basic exercises to control extra calories. That was critical for maintaining his looks. However, it would be wrong to describe him as well-conditioned for physical activity. His efforts were totally focused on weight control — keeping flab off. Paul knew that some amount of extra fat was okay on a guy, but merely okay wasn’t good enough for someone like him without special genetics. What that meant was that his body was not particularly built or conditioned. He wasn’t sedentary but at the same time he was far from athletic.

    In addition, he was saddled with a mental condition. His Rules weren’t just something he thought about, they had been deeply ingrained in his psyche. Subconsciously he was holding himself back even while fleeing in terror. I’m working up a sweat, relax! My shoes are getting dirty, slow down! I’m going to trip and fall and get my clothes dirty, be careful! Such thoughts circulated subconsciously and were actively limiting his performance.

    In spite of his subconscious holding him back, his foot caught a root and he flew into the ground with a shout.

    Paul twisted over on the ground to see the oncoming goblin.

    “Gya-gagaga!” It seemed to chortle at him while raising its club.

    In abject terror Paul couldn’t even move away. Primordial instincts made him raise his arms protect his face, but that’s the only action he could take.

    “GWEEEE!” Paul imagined the goblin screaming while swinging down the club…

    “CURSE OF PAAAAIN!”

    Another voice rang out.

    “GWAAA?!”

    Something struck him. It didn’t hurt. Looking, Paul saw that the goblin had merely dropped the club on him.

    The goblin itself was writhing, apparently in a state of confusion. It hugged itself while spinning around. It seemed to be suffering.

    “REGRET UNTO DEATH! CURSE OF PAAAAIN!”

    “GWAAAAAAAA!”

    The goblin collapsed onto the ground and writhed while screaming.

    Paul looked towards the voice behind him.

    A boy wearing a jersey. About 5.5 feet tall. Black short hair, black eyes. At first glance he appeared to be a teenager. He was holding out his left hand while bracing his left wrist with his right hand, as if shooting something from it.

    Paul had never been so happy to see another guy in his entire life.

    The boy, looking clearly distressed, turned his eyes to Paul.

    “I’ll hold it! Finish it off!!”

    Paul just looked at him. Finish what?

    “Please hurry! I can’t hold it for long!!”

    Oh, he wants me to kill the goblin Paul thought.

    Paul just stared.

    “PLEASE! HURRY!!”

    Paul realized the goblin’s club was right next to him. He grabbed it and got up.

    His body knew how to do it. Even he had at least the instincts. Just raise up the club and drop it on the goblin’s large head using all his strength. It was the easiest, most ancient form of weapon use. An easily-understood moment of violence that even babies understood, genetic knowledge passed down from the earliest humans.

    It was a goblin. A disgusting creature. There was no need to feel pity or hesitate at all.

    With a grunt, Paul swung the club down onto the writing goblin at his feet.

    With a thump the club missed the head and hit its shoulder. It didn’t seem like a very hard blow. The goblin just continued to writhe while screeching.

    Paul raised the club again and swung it down. This time it head the head, and he felt the reverberation of the goblin’s hard skull taking the impact. It seemed to have left a mark.

    “HURRY!!”

    Once again he raised the club.

    “AAAAAH!” With a shout this time he swung the club down with all his strength.

    *CRACK!*

    The goblin fell silent.

    Paul backed a step, two. The club dropped from his grasp. His mind was blank.

    Behind him, the boy who had saved him collapsed to his knees while clutching his left hand.

    “Hnng!” The boy hissed in pain.

    Terror, relief, the shock of the club striking, death. It was suddenly too much. Paul bent over and tried to throw up. His stomach was empty so he just dry heaved.

    Paul had been saved, and somehow survived his first encounter in the other world.
     
  6. GUTB

    GUTB Well-Known Member

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    “Hey, are you okay?” Paul asked the boy who was clutching his left hand to his chest.

    He tentatively moved towards the boy. He noticed that there was some kind of black markings on that left hand.

    “Y-yeah, just a minute…damnit!!”

    Paul hovered around the boy worriedly, but he seemed to get better after a while.

    “H-hey, is it safe here?” Paul asked the boy.

    “Ung…probably not…let’s keep moving.”

    So they began walking.

    “I’m Paul Marks…”

    After a short pause: “Lin. Lin Wang.”

    Chinese right? Paul thought. He noticed that Lin didn’t have an accent.

    Paul glanced at Lin sideways and sized him up. Short. Teenager. Slim. Looks: 5/10. He had clear skin so with some work that could be raised. Paul judged Lin couldn’t compete with him.

    That was completely automatic, Paul in fact didn’t mean any ill will towards his savior. Whenever he met a guy he automatically sized him up like that. Checking competitors in the mating game.

    To cover for his embarrassing thoughts, Paul offered his thanks. “Hey…really, thank you. I would have been goner for sure, you really saved me!”

    “Ah…n-no problem…” Lin mumbled.

    Ouch, Paul thought. This kid was probably hopeless with girls.

    “Say, what was that Curse thing you did to that goblin?”

    “Ah…that was…the power I got…from that voice…”

    “Oh, from the goddess?”

    “That’s…a goddess?” Lin seemed to have a questioning look.

    “In my case she said something about me being weak…haha. I don’t know if I got anything.”

    “Um…for me I got a voice in my head telling me my powers…”

    What the hell, did I really get nothing?

    Paul sensed a hesitation from Lin in the topic, so he switched it. “Did you come over with anyone else? I woke up here alone.”

    “I met up with some classmates…but we got separated…”

    Again, Paul sensed hesitation. Well, that’s okay.

    “So, about that, were you in the bus?”

    “Yeah. Sir, were you on the bus?”

    “Ah, just call me Paul. No, I wasn’t on the bus but I guess it sort of hit me…haha…”

    “…oh.”

    Wow, this kid had zero conversation skills. But that’s fine, Paul could forcefully carry a conversation when needed.

    “That’s a school jersey, right? Was that bus carrying a school field trip or something?”

    “Uh, yeah. Rosehill High Olympics Team. We were coming back from the Olympic Education training center.”

    Olympic?! Teenagers? Olympic Education…? Paul had never heard of high school kids being involved in Olympic sports — not that he was well-informed about the topic. But…Lin, this short kid, Olympic?

    Paul suddenly panicked. Wait…high school students? What he needed were WOMEN to rely on! A relationship with a teenage girl was going to be the OPPOSITE of that!

    “W-were there any teachers with you?”

    “Uh…just miss Danforth. The other teachers stayed behind for the junior class.”

    TARGET LOCKED: Teacher Miss Danforth. No matter what Paul would NOT fail. No matter what this woman would be his savior in this other world!!

    “Uh…Paul?”

    Paul snapped himself back to reality. He chastised himself; he should never openly show his excitement for the mating game like that. He almost turned on Lin and assaulted him with many questions like “is she married?” He mustn’t do that. And, he also realized there were more important things to discuss; before Miss Danforth could save him, he first needed to meet up with her.

    “Ah, nothing. So…do you have idea where we’re supposed to go?”

    “S-sorry…all the voice said was that we had to move forward…I didn’t really understand. The others…didn’t really get it either…”

    Paul furrowed his brow. The discrepancies between what the goddess told him compared to what she told Lin were growing. “Move forward?”

    “Say, Lin…is it just me, or does this area look like a ruins of some sort?”

    “Er, yeah, I though so too…”

    “Could it be we need to go deeper into the ruins? Is there something there for us?”

    “I thought so too…”

    Paul looked at the sky through the tree cover. Wasn’t it getting darker?

    They agreed to settle down for the night…but the problem was security. As they contemplating this problem, Lin suddenly snapped his head up. “Ahh!”

    “The voice!” Lin explained suddenly. “Look for a ruin with a blue light! It’s safe there!”

    Paul didn’t hear anything. But he had no reason to question Lin. They picked up the pace in waning light, and after some time they saw a glowing blue light peaking out between the trees. Approaching it, there appeared to be a large white stone structure which looked like it had been a small building at some point but which had collapsed leaving only a section covered by a roof and three walls. The blue glowing symbol on the wall seemed to illuminate the interior of the ruin and the area of forest around it. Even though it clearly illuminated the area the light wasn’t that bright and didn’t hurt to look at it directly. Nor did it cast shadows, the light seemed to permeate everywhere. The symbol looked like a carving an eye.

    Having found a safe shelter, Paul and Lin stopped for the night.
     
  7. GUTB

    GUTB Well-Known Member

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    Paul was hungry. Adrenalin and physical activity had kept his appetite at bay, but he hadn’t eaten anything at all since coming to this world. Hunger pangs were settling in with a vengeance. The problem was he didn’t have anything to eat, nor did Lin.

    “All our luggage was in the bus’s cargo area and overhead bins. It seems like that only things you were carrying with you were transported,” Lin reported. He wouldn’t be a source food.

    Lin went to explore the shelter area. Paul eyed bright orange fruit-like growths hanging from some trees around the shelter. They looked like something like a cross between a pear and an orange. Picking one, Paul examined the surface which had a texture like an apple. He sniffed it and it smelled sort of like an apple.

    *crunch!*

    Paul took a bite. Mouth feel is like a crisp apple. Taste was mild, little sweetness, some sourness. Good enough. Paul aggressively finished off the fruit thing and bit into another one.

    “Ahh!” Lin had come back. He exclaimed while looking at Paul.

    Paul looked back at him with the fruit in his mouth.

    “W-w-what’re you doing?!”

    “…I, uh, was hungry, so…”

    “It could be poisoned?! How do you know it’s safe to eat those things??”

    Paul stared at him, eyes going wide. That was a great question.

    After causing a small ruckus panicking about food poisoning Paul and Lin settled down. “I don’t feel anything wrong…”

    Lin looked worried, but Paul was sure he was thinking that it would be convenient if Paul could be the guineapig to verify the edibility of the fruit. Paul absolutely didn’t want to take on that role, he simply didn’t think about the chance of danger; he only saw something that looked good to eat, he was hungry, so…that’s as far as his natural chain of thought went.

    Lin had gathered some twigs, snapping some into small kindling. He also peeled some dead bark off some sticks he found on the ground. He put it into a pile with the bark flakes on top. “In case we need a fire tonight,” he said.

    Paul looked on with interest. “You can make a fire with that? What about a lighter?”

    “…you can make it with just some sticks. I learned it at the camp…”

    Paul was seating, holding his stomach, alert for changes in his health. He made an impressed noise. “Wow, Lin, you’re incredible to know how to do all this stuff!”

    Lin looked embarrassed. “I-it’s really no big deal…” he mumbled.

    Paul had nothing to do with the outdoors, let alone camping -- forget survival. He did notice that the temperature in this forest / ruins was mild. Inside the blue-light “safe zone” it seemed like room temperature. If it got cold at night though his light clothes wouldn’t be enough; having a fire would be extremely welcome.

    …although I’ll end up smelling like smoke, no good!

    Paul shook his head to dispel his own ridiculous thoughts in this survival situation.

    As night came on the soft, unnatural diffuse blue light continued to illuminate the area. What the hell was that anyway? Magic spell? A magic artifact? Some form of magi-tech?

    As time went on, Paul also felt more and more relieved that he hadn’t managed to poison himself. He felt fine, and the fruit-like things did seem to satiate his hunger.

    “So, Lin…you mentioned something about the Olympics?”

    “Ah, haha, um no, er -- the Olympic Education camp. There’s a regional Olympics Education center that schools go to. My school -- Rosehill -- goes three times a year. Training with other schools.”

    “You guys do Olympic sports, like…running? Swimming?”

    “Well, yeah…depends on the school. Rosehill has athletics, volleyball, fencing, swimming, and basketball. Um, teams, I mean.”

    “Oh yeah? I never heard about that when I went to school. Which one are you on?”

    “The Fencing team…not participating though. As an advisor. I do paperwork, help with stuff…yeah.”

    “Fencing, isn’t that pretty cool? Why did you go to the fencing team?” Paul naturally carried the conversation.

    “Ah, um…haha kind of embarrassing. My younger sister wanted to join and sort of dragged me in. I can’t fence, so the teachers let me in as an assistant. An advisor.”

    At this point the conversion might naturally move into Paul’s information, but Paul didn’t want to expose that much about himself (incredibly embarrassing) until he’s had a chance to think up of a good story. That’s not just due to embarrassment but also the requirement to improve his chances with Miss Danforth.

    “So, did you…have any sense this would happen? Being sent here?”

    Lin shook his head. “No. I was just sitting in the bus, tired. I was helping with moving everyone’s’ bags. Everyone was just talking about the normal stuff. It seemed…really normal…”

    “Did your…ability just pop into your head?”

    “Um…sort of? After that voice. It seemed to be the same for the others I was with.”

    “I guess everyone got something different, right?”

    “Yeah. Some guys got ‘Knight’, ‘Archer’, ‘Mage’, like that. But, it seemed like everyone had different powers even if they had the same ability.”

    Paul could guess that Lin was probably a ‘Mage’ type. Since he didn’t forget that Lin didn’t seem to want to talk about his own power Paul left it alone.

    “For myself, I heard the voice. But I didn’t recognize any special ability. Wasn’t there anyone in your group who had the same thing?”

    Lin shook his head again. “No, I don’t think so…”

    “Well, don’t worry we’ll definitely make it out of here. This isn’t the end of the line for us!” That was, obviously, simple false bravery. A front, an image. That was something Paul could manage. Surviving and making it to safety, that was something Paul was utterly incapable of handling. He needed to meet with Miss Danforth as soon as possible.

    Yes, Miss Danforth was Paul’s fated partner. That was the image he needed. Hope was on the horizon. No matter what he’d take her. Married? Boyfriend back on Earth? He’s not here, is he? Sorry bro.
     
  8. Saorihirai

    Saorihirai Well-Known Member

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    why.....would you want a useless mc lol. But hey, the grammar is pretty good and the flow isn't too bad
     
    CadmarLegend likes this.
  9. GUTB

    GUTB Well-Known Member

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    “…Paul?”

    After a long night of chatting, the two of them finally managed to fall asleep. Paul while seated resting against a tree trunk and Lin tried to curl up on a soft patch of earth while using his jersey jacket as a kind of pillow. They ended up needing the fire, the temperature in the safe zone seemed to stay at room temperature.

    Lin was asking after Paul after waking up. Paul was currently browsing the ground of the safe zone, picking various flowers and weeds. He was sniffing them. Paul thought about how to answer the natural question Lin must have: what are you doing?

    “Ah…looking for something that might be help…” Paul lied poorly on the spot.

    Well, it wasn’t a lie; he was trying to find something with a scent he could use to mask the smell of sweat and dirt. He had been thinking about trying to approach Miss Danforth, and his grooming was his first worry. There was no water around. If they couldn’t find somewhere to bathe, he’d be in serious trouble. Smelling good was a Rule. He’d have to figure something out about his clothes getting dirty, but at least he could mask the worst smells -- or so he hoped. None of the things he picked so far seemed good for this purpose. Would a strong grassy smell be better than sweat? He’d have to find something.

    He had his comb at least. Without a bath, his natural body oil was good enough to keep his hair in presentable order. This situation must be hell on women with long hair he thought. Lin didn’t seem concerned with this. Paul did understand that his fixation on looks and grooming was abnormal, but that’s he’s lived up until now so he couldn’t help it.

    As for food, the fruits -- Paul started calling them apples -- didn’t seem to have any negative effect. So, going along with the theme of the “safe zone”, the two of them just assumed the “apples” were meant to be safely eaten. Lin was obviously very hungry and finished off three of them. Paul just had one. They also put a few in their pockets. The moisture content was just barely enough to quench thirst at the same time, but Paul still wished there was something to drink.

    “Moving forward…I guess that means we have to keep going down the same direction?”

    “Um…I think…probably…” Lin mumbled.

    “Those were goblins, right? What if we run into more?”

    Lin looked at his hand while rubbing it. “…we can handle it…I think..”

    Paul wasn’t convinced at all. Thinking about it, if Lin has the power to kill that goblin right away he would have done so. He really wanted to ask about Lin’s ability, but for now he respected the kid’s desire to not to talk about it. Paul figured it was okay, he was sure Lin would open up at some point.

    The two left the safe zone and continued to walk down the path leading through the forested ruins.

    Paul wondered what this place was. It seemed like whatever used to be here was something like a temple, castle, or something similar. It seemed to large and disperse to just be a mansion, and the ornamentation on the ruins seemed to suggest something of high importance. It was a fact that it was heavily overgrown with huge red-brown trees.

    Along the way they saw birds flitting out from the branches overhead occasionally. Little critters that looked like a lizard scuttled away from them. The air was still and quiet only broken by trills and chirps.

    “GWEEEE!”

    Both Paul and Lin went still. They definitely heard something. It seemed distant, but both of them knew instinctively that in these woods it could be much closer than expected.

    “P-paul, let’s hide!!”

    They quickly hid behind some large tree trunks. Paul peaked his head out and stared out in the direction of where he heard the sound from. As he concentrated, he could hear more sounds.

    Then he saw it. Shapes moving amongst the trees in the distance. More than one or two. There seemed to be many. The sounds they made didn’t sound human.

    “Goblins?!”

    “Y-yeah…I see them..!!”

    Paul began to panic. “C-could be go back to the safe spot??”

    “M-maybe?!”

    In fact, there was no guarantee that the blue light safe zone would protect them from an army of goblins. But it was the only thing Paul could think of. Lin didn’t seem like he was willing to wade into them either.

    They hurried back down the trail in the opposite direction.

    “GWEYAAA!”

    They didn’t make it far before they heard another distinctive cry coming from ahead of them.

    “They’re circling around us?!”

    “T-this way…!”

    Paul followed Lin off the trail away from both encroaching waves of goblins. The inhuman cries were getting louder and more frequent. They made their way to what looked like a crumbled corner wall of what was once some kind of building. Using it as cover, the two tried to hide behind it while peaking out towards their pursuers.

    Paul was panicking now. They had beaten the one goblin, but now there was a horde of them. All he could think of was running away.

    “I can’t handle all of them…!” Lin wasn’t much more composed, but he was holding out his hand as if to cast a spell as he had done before.

    “Let’s get out of here!!” Paul pleaded.

    Just as he turned to move out of the ruins…

    “GWEEEEE!!”

    A goblin burst out of the thick vegetation ahead of them with a shrill scream. It was charging at them with a crude spear.

    “AAAAAH!!!” Paul screamed.

    “CURSE OF PAIN!!!” Lin shouted out.

    “GWEE-YA?!” The goblin suddenly convulsed and stumbled over.

    Somehow overcoming his terror, Paul launched himself forward intending to run past the goblin as it was incapacitated by Lin’s magic. He bumped into the goblin as he ran past, sending it to the ground.

    Lin ran after him. This time neither of them considered getting into a battle.

    Shouts from the goblins were getting louder still and had become a cacophony behind them. Instructively Paul understood they wouldn’t make it. The goblins would continue to encircle them and run them down.

    But primal terror spurred him forward. All Paul could do was keep moving while his whole world shrunk to the narrow patch of forest ahead of him.

    *SWISH!*

    There was a flutter of fabric. A gold streak flashed past his field of vision.

    Paul was in no mind to consider the phenomena. He kept running.

    *THUD!*

    Something came into his field of vision too fast for him to evade and he impacted it. Paul stumbled back and fell on his behind with a groan.

    Across from him was a person who was similarly knocked down. A person wearing Lin’s school jersey.

    “V-vanessa?!” Lin exclaimed between panting breaths.

    Vanessa, a girl’s name. Paul looked at her again. Definitely a girl. For split second Paul had thought he had somehow run into Lin.

    “GWEEE!”
    “GOYAAA!”
    “GAAA!”

    A chorus of goblin shouts erupted from behind them.

    Lin moved over to the girl, Vanessa, seeming to want to help her get up off the ground.

    “We got to get out of here…!”

    “Lin?” the girl said looking at the boy.

    “H-hurry!”

    “No, wait..!” she said suddenly to Lin’s surprise.

    “It’s okay! It’s okay!” she said as she got up.

    “Ange is here too!”
     
  10. shuyangz82

    shuyangz82 Member

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    wow! your book is high quality! Have you ever considered signing your book?
     
  11. Wujigege

    Wujigege *Christian*SIMP*Comedian

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    Isn't this s better, more ambiguous title?
    Hero who Relies on Harem in Another World

    You might trick BL lovers to read it

     
  12. Hand_Number_37

    Hand_Number_37 Member

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    Haha!! Not only it was funny but the premise seemed to be quite realistic. Great work portraying the character train of thoughts.
     
  13. GUTB

    GUTB Well-Known Member

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    Long golden blonde hair swayed from explosive motion.

    That was Paul’s first impression of the girl called “Ange”.

    *SHING!*

    That noise which seemed like air itself being sliced, reverberating off glittering steel.

    *FISSSS!*

    Next was the sound of searing meat on a grill.

    From either side of the flowing blonde hair flew — two halves of a goblin, separated at the chest, flew in opposite directions. From the wounds white steam spewed out. The goblin’s face looked like it hadn’t comprehended what happened. Its two halves flew several feet before falling to the ground.

    The girl called Ange then seemed to — disappear.

    Paul blinked. She was there, then she wasn’t.

    There was, however, a golden streak which zoomed through the trees.

    “GYAAA!”
    “GREEE!”
    “GLUBRAAA!”

    Unlike the warlike shouts of the goblins from before, these were undeniably screams of pain.

    The cacophony began to die down until it ended with a final scream of pain.

    “What…?” It was all Paul could say.

    “See?!” Vanessa crowed. “Ange is amazing!”

    “I-is that really Ange?” Lin was staring in amazement.

    Then the girl called Ange appear before them.

    Unlike when Paul could only see her back which was covered by her flowing blond hair, he could get a good look at her.

    Wow. That’s what Paul thought at first glance.

    She stood at maybe around 6 feet. Tall. Her figure was covered by the school jersey and sweatpants, but going by her face, neck and hands she was slim. Her face had strong Nordic features with good symmetry. Paul knew this girl would easily get a job as a teen magazine fashion model. The only “negative” mark was the narrow eyes which seemed to convey coolness.

    In her hand she carried a…sword? It looked too narrow to be a sword, but it was obviously what she used to slaughter the goblins.

    She glanced at the three of them — Paul, Venessa and Lin.

    “You guys look okay. I’ll go clear the path ahead. You guys get back on the path and you’ll link up with the others further up.”

    The only indication she noticed the stranger in their group was her gaze staying on Paul for a second too long.

    Then she disappeared into the woods towards the direction of the foot path Paul and Lin had run from.

    “H-hey!” Venessa called after Ange. “Wait up—!”

    “Uhg! Too late I guess…”

    Paul now looked over at the other girl, Venessa.

    Also dressed in a school jersey and sweatpants she seemed to have a little more fat than Ange, but she was by no means obese; rather it was a healthy figure as far as Paul could tell. Shorter, too, maybe around 5’7” or so. She had round, soft features, white skin with a tinge of redness on the cheeks. Brown eyes matching her brown shoulder-length wavy hair. Definitely a pretty girl.

    She was fussing over Lin. “H-hey, are you alright? Your hand…”

    Lin seemed to shrink away from her, cradling his hand as he done before when using his power. “It’s fine, Van…”

    As Venessa continued to hover over Lin, from Paul’s perspective he couldn’t tell if this girl was interested in Lin or if it was just her personality.

    “I can use my power to check it —“

    “It’s FINE!”

    Venessa recoiled and Lin seemed to regret it. Paul wondered why he was so stand-offish not only to Paul but towards his own classmates. Paul was certain there was something going on with him.

    After being rebuffed by Lin the girl seemed to notice Paul, now standing up.

    Her voice dropped in volume and she looked shy. “Um, hello sir…”

    Sir? Did she think he was a teacher?

    Paul automatically adjusted his expression to best deal with a younger girl who was projecting timidity towards him. He smiled softly with both his mouth and his eyes. “Hello. I’m no Sir, I’m Paul,” he replied.

    “My name is Vanessa…my friends call me Van…um…”

    Paul smoothly picked the greeting back up. “Venessa, I’m certainly glad to meet you. Without your help, Lin and I would be goners for sure.”

    “I-I didn’t do anything…it was all Ange…”

    “That girl, Ange? Is she also in your class?”

    “Yes, that’s right!” She sounded relieved. “Her power is amazing! Right, Lin?”

    Paul noted her ability to draw others into a conversation. A mood-setting personality?

    “Y-yeah…anyway we should get going…”

    Paul was thankful for taking charge of the situation and get us moving towards the path.

    “I-is Paul okay…?”

    He replied with a smile and a nod.

    “Paul…um…did you also get a power?”

    “I don’t know,” he answered honestly. “The Goddess told me that I’m weak though, maybe I didn’t get anything?”

    “That…was a Goddess?” Vanessa said as if to herself.

    “What about yourself?”

    “I got the ‘Mother of the Great Wood’ power!’” She declared it proudly. “If it’s a living thing, I can make it better no matter how hurt it is! Even arms and legs grow back!”

    She hopped over to a tree with a broken branch and placed her hand on the part which had been severed. She closed her eyes and took on a look of concentration.

    *CRACK!*
    *POP!*

    A new growth jutted out suddenly from the break with the sound of wood cracking and ripping. A new branch and taken the place of what was lost.

    “See! Just like that!”

    Paul was dutifully amazed.

    “Don’t show it off…dummy…” Lin told her severely.

    “…! You’re the dummy Lin! Don’t go sulking around and hiding your ability!” Venessa shot back.

    So then it wasn’t just Paul, it seemed like Lin was keeping his ability a secret from his friends as well?

    Paul thought about Lin’s ability as they walked quickly through the forested ruins back onto the foot trail. Venessa chatted with Lin who just responded with single word replies.

    As they made it back onto the trail, Paul’s thoughts turned to more immediate concerns — meeting up with Ms. Danforth. As he hyped himself up for his survival play, he heard a voice call out ahead of them.

    “It’s them!” Vanessa announced happily.

    Paul stole himself. Alright, he told himself, let’s do this!