One day the entire city was ablaze. People stood beyond the police tape and wondered what kind of mockery this was. Past the tape a terrifying monster loomed over the rooftops, and they asked one another how many other monsters this one had devoured to become so enormous.
The creature writhed and roared, trying to break free from its restraints, and then opened its mouth even wider. The roar shattered windows in the nearby buildings. People clutched their heads to block out the nightmare. Where were the guilds now? One mother screamed for help — her daughter was still inside the building. The police shouted at everyone to leave, saying that it was very dangerous here and that they had it under control.
Then Akutagawa used his magic and charged straight at the monster.
He struck the creature several times and kept fighting. A moment later the monster destroyed his arm and sent it flying, and he decided to act, and found himself right in front of the monster's mouth. The monster was surprised, and closed its mouth. Akutagawa's arm began to regenerate. He struck the monster with incredible force, and in that way he deceived the creature. A moment later he cut it into several small pieces.
Attack magic, healing, and support magic. The strongest fighter, who has mastered all forms of this. A hero out of fairy tales, revered by everyone. He, Akutagawa.
One day, in an ordinary peaceful city, a mother standing on a bridge screamed for someone to help her, because her daughter was about to fall.
Akutagawa began to laugh and shouted that he was already there. He was wearing a long red cloak, and he climbed straight over the edge of the bridge. The woman shouted for help, because her daughter was behind the pervert. He laughed and told her not to be afraid — he was wearing only his underwear. A moment later he had the girl up in his arms, and she cried, looking into his eyes.
He told her that she was safe now. A princess.
Akutagawa was in his second year of high school. The girl looked at him in amazement, then grabbed her mother's leg and would not let go. At that moment the menacing boy, Guda, called out to Akutagawa and shouted that they had agreed he would only run around in his underwear. And the girl standing nearby asked who had given him permission to get dressed. Monkeys don't wear clothes, after all.
Akutagawa burst out laughing and said that it wasn't clothing, it was the physical embodiment of a sword. A knight rescuing a princess should look appropriate. The girl looked at him in bewilderment, and Toida was angry at his words too. Guda asked, "Have you lost your mind?" He grabbed Akutagawa by the cloak and dragged him toward himself, asking what he thought he was saying. "Speak Japanese, you idiot."
At that moment the police burst in and shouted at them to stop this. Such small fry shouldn't be fighting in the street — and outside the street, either. It was unacceptable. Guda asked, "What?" He showed the badge on his jacket and shouted that it denoted a high-level rank. When the police realized this they were dumbfounded, and said, "That's it, then. He's a student who's almost earned a place in a guild. He shouldn't overdo it, though. The act of defence has its limits and its limitations."
Guda replied, "Yes. I realize." He shouldn't fight. "Now we're just playing baseball," he said, grabbing Akutagawa by the hair and telling him to catch the blow. A magic ball appeared in his hand, and he swung it to destroy his opponent.
About sixty years ago, dungeons began appearing in seven hundred and eighty-two locations across the planet. Hordes of monsters burst forth from them, and there were no adequate weapons of resistance. A catastrophe ensued, claiming about sixty per cent of the population of that time, but through either divine power or human intelligence, people survived the crisis. Rankers were born from the first day of the dungeons' appearance — people wielding special powers. They became humanity's main weapon in the war against the monsters and the dungeons.
In an instant new laws were born, and the skills of each such person were designated by ranks, from E to C. They took part in everyday affairs. Lower-ranked individuals couldn't compete with the strong, and tyranny and social inequality were born. The strong humiliated and mocked those they excelled. And ultimately, in less than a lifetime, the injustice became even greater.
And here he was now, among people who condemned him. The mother of the girl who had escaped dragged her along, telling her that they needed to leave, but the girl stood rooted to the spot, watching. Akutagawa was in danger, and then his friend Guda Igarashi also decided to attack Akutagawa.
Igarashi used the storm skill and charged. Akutagawa tried to resist, but he hit the fence and fell to the ground. Toida laughed at him, and charged too, hitting him in the back. She said he couldn't fly, couldn't shoot, couldn't fight, couldn't defend himself. He was just a man with no skills. He was no different from a pathetic aunt.
"Right," Igarashi said. He said she was overly happy about it, as if she were a pervert. She blushed and replied that he was no different from her.
And Akutagawa realized his eyes were swollen shut and he couldn't see. At that moment Guda swung at him and shouted at the others to hold Akutagawa tighter. But Akutagawa remembered that the girl might still be nearby, and if she was here, then—
Before he could fully process the thought, Guda stopped, and Akutagawa asked about baseball again. He was happy to catch all the balls. Although, since they could only play with magic and not use their bodies, they should go outside and kick a ball instead.
At that moment Guda hit him hard in the stomach, and he coughed up blood. Guda called him vile names and shouted that he was no different from a school punching bag. Let him absorb and endure everything he was experiencing.
Akutagawa shook in pain and thought about how a hero couldn't be pathetic — and then he suddenly smiled. And Guda shouted at him that he was a piece of garbage, and swung at him again.