Chapter 1

"Huh?"

I had come to the town library to read.

I, Shou Tarou, am a second-year university student. I am aware that I am somewhat of a geek compared to others.

Since encountering various games, anime, and otaku culture, I have been more serious about them than my studies.

My parents, who had given up on me, quickly enrolled my younger brother in a famous cram school to secure his future.

My brother, whom they had cherished so much, became delinquent due to the stress of exams, dyeing his hair blonde and spouting curses at home. For a while, our home became dark.

And then, the savior appeared—it was me!

I casually approached my brother, who was always scowling, and recommended a famous dating simulation game.

"What!? Cut it out!"

"Come on, just try it out, even if you think I'm lying."

I knew the real reason why my brother had become a delinquent.

While I was raised being freely given the things I liked, my brother had to study.

Hearing that I, a specialist in games, had recommended a game, my brother later said he became interested.

In the end, the world gained another otaku.

Now, my brother's room is filled with merchandise from the dating simulation game I recommended.

Ironically, after finding mental release from exam fatigue, my brother passed the entrance exam for a famous high school and is currently excelling.

Thanks to my great efforts, my parents have become even more indulgent with me, and I am enjoying my free university life.

Incidentally, the one considered the failure in the Iwata family is me.

Now, let's get back to the story. That day, I had come to the town library to read.

My parents give me a monthly allowance of 10,000 yen, which quickly runs out when I share erotic games, erotic books, light novels, and manga with my friends.

I work part-time to add about 50,000 yen to my allowance, but this also runs out quickly during summer and winter, and other local festivals.

For the sake of my freeloading brother, my parents provide a place to stay only during event periods and near festivals.

But, they don't invest that much in my life. Providing for my tuition, food, and shelter is enough.

So, to save money, I read standing in secondhand bookstores or at the library when I'm short on cash.

If I have free time, I could play online games, but they can waste endless amounts of time if you get too into them.

I am the type who enjoys a broad range of shallow knowledge.

I am more interested in how to earn money in the game than in reaching the level cap. Even now, the character I created is selling rare items in the online game.

As a result, I, in real life, am at a loss for what to do with my free time.

So.

The incident happened after that.

I was browsing the section with old fantasy books.

After all, the history of fantasy is as old as human history. Even the Bible can be considered a fantasy novel if you push it.

"Book of the Four Holy Weapons?"

A book that looked old, with a title that was barely readable, fell from the shelf.

Probably, the person who had taken it before had carelessly put it back and left.

Well, this must be some kind of fate.

I sat in a chair and opened the Book of the Four Holy Weapons to read.

Flip... Flip...

The story starts with the world's background.

In summary, a prophecy of the end of the world was made in a certain other world.

The end of the world would come from multiple waves of calamity that would eventually destroy the world.

To escape the calamity, people summoned heroes from another world to seek help.

...Hmm. It's a cliché, but maybe there were no issues with such an old-fashioned book.

The four summoned heroes each possessed a weapon: a sword, a spear, a bow, and a shield.

Well, a shield is technically not a weapon but armor, I thought with a wry smile as I continued reading.

The heroes set out on a journey to grow stronger, hone themselves, and prepare for the waves of calamity.

"Yawn..."

Danger, I'm getting sleepy.

It's too cliché and boring. There are no cute heroines because it's old.

At most, there's a princess, but with four heroes, it suddenly feels like a harem, which is annoying.

The princess flirts with all the heroes, which is frustrating. Just pick one.

Like the sword-wielding hero who is a great performer, or the spear-wielding hero who cares for his companions.

The bow-wielding hero is like Robin Hood, fighting against the evil king...

Oh? The story shifts to the shield-wielding hero—

"Huh?"

I couldn't help but exclaim as I turned the page.

The pages after the one describing the shield-wielding hero were completely blank.

No matter how many times I checked, they were blank, and there was nothing more.

"What the...?"

After muttering that, my consciousness slowly faded away...

I never dreamed that this would lead me to another world.

Thank you for reading the beginning.