Chapter 1: Another World Transfer. And…
—Class transfer.
Ten years ago, 40 second-year high school students and one teacher from a certain school were suddenly transported to another world.
The so-called “god” who abducted all 41 of them granted them special powers called jobs and skills, and asked them to defeat the Demon King ruling that world.
As a reward, they would be granted anything they desired—and even promised a return to their original world.
The one who objected was a male teacher in his forties.
He likely did it out of concern for his students—but he had just recently gotten married late in life and had a newborn child.
So his objection was only natural.
But defying the god’s decision earned him a bolt of lightning.
He was instantly reduced to a charred corpse.
Only then did the students realize the truth.
This was not a “request.”
It was an order.
And it was not a dream or a prank—it was reality.
After that, they chose their jobs and skills in fear of the god, and set off on their journey to defeat the Demon King.
That was ten years ago.
Since then, at least ten of them have died.
Only five are confirmed to still be alive.
And those five were not even traveling together as comrades on the Demon King quest.
We had simply stopped moving from a certain town for almost five years.
The reason was simple.
We had learned how meaningless death was in this world.
And after that… we could no longer move forward.
“Fuu…”
Having reached a good stopping point, I took a break and prepared some tea.
Then the door to the shop opened.
“Welcome… oh, it’s you, Ayaka.”
The person who entered was a young woman in adventurer gear, about 155 cm tall.
Well, “young” is relative—she’s around 26 or 27.
She had chestnut-colored hair down to her back, a cute face, and slightly large breasts—her own words, not mine.
“Heya, Yu-kun. Business good?”
“About average. I was just making tea. Want some?”
“You’re a generous shop owner. Sure.”
She nodded cheerfully and walked behind the counter, sitting down.
I prepared tea for two.
“Where are Takamiya and Kitaura?”
“They went home already. We made enough for today’s wages, I guess.”
“That’s good.”
After finishing the tea, I sat across from her.
“Do you know what day it is today?”
“Hm? Some kind of festival? Someone’s birthday?”
“Nope. April 28th.”
“Ah…”
April 28th.
The day we were brought into this world.
I remember the next day was the start of Golden Week, so there’s no mistake.
It’s been exactly ten years.
“You actually remember that?”
“There’s no calendar here. I’ve been counting all along… including leap years, you know?”
“Wow… I totally forgot that existed.”
“I hadn’t said it out loud in a long time either… Ten years, huh. What happens to us now?”
“I don’t know. Ten years…”
“Yu-kun, what do you think?”
“You just said you don’t know.”
“…Honestly, I don’t know.”
“You once said you didn’t want to go back, didn’t you?”
“Hm?”
“You said it during the town festival. When we were drinking together.”
“Oh… I did?”
“You did.”
“…Yeah. I don’t want to go back.”
That was something I had always felt, but never said out loud.
“Why not?”
“Go back to what? Ten years missing. I spent my late teens and twenties in some unknown world doing unknown work. If I go back, I’m just a dropout with no education and a ten-year gap. I won’t get a normal job. Worse—I’ll become media fodder. There’s no normal life waiting for me anymore. So living here… isn’t so bad.”
Originally, I chose the Magic User job.
It evolved into an Alchemist, so I followed that path instead.
Using my job and skills, I saved money and opened this atelier.
It’s doing decently well.
“Yu-kun… don’t you want to see your family?”
That was the reason I never said this out loud.
“I do. But I’ve accepted it. I don’t know what became of them, but I just hope they’re living normally.”
“I see… it’s complicated. I want to see my family too, but…”
Defeating the Demon King was impossible.
We were forced on that journey by the god’s command.
At first, we traveled with excitement—three male friends and me.
It felt like a game.
Kill monsters, level up, grow stronger.
It was thrilling.
But failure comes suddenly.
One of us died during a battle.
That broke us.
We stopped moving forward and stayed in this town.
Six months later, Ayaka’s party of four women arrived… and ended up the same way.
So now, six of us have stayed here for five years.
“That’s just my opinion. I haven’t told Minato or Riku.”
Probably.
I might have said it while drunk, though.
“…Yeah. Maybe it’s time we start thinking seriously. We can’t keep living day-to-day as adventurers forever.”
“I’ve been telling you—work for my shop. Call me boss.”
“What is that? You’re just the shop owner.”
“…Well, maybe that’s not such a bad idea. I’m honestly tired too.”
I was already tired a long time ago.
That’s why I opened this shop.
It’s basically my declaration that I’m not leaving this town anymore.
“Living casually together isn’t so bad, right? Coming from a dropout like me… it actually makes things easier.”
Ayaka, Minato, Riku, Takamiya-san, and Kitaura-san… I think none of them have completely given up on defeating the Demon King.
That’s why they’re still working as adventurers, hunting monsters and slowly building their strength.
But they’re playing it safe—only fighting weak monsters.
It’s extremely inefficient.
This is something I can’t really say out loud, but to me… it just looks half-hearted.
Still, I help them where I can.
I sometimes join their adventures, and I even supply them with potions and other medicines.
“Hmm… well, I’m already 26. I’ll be 27 in July. Ten years ago, I thought I’d already be married by now.”
I never really thought that far ahead, but I did imagine I’d probably be working at some company and doing my best.
And yet here I am—in another world.
“You could still get married, you know.”
“Heh… you really do like me, don’t you?”
Hm?
“What makes you say that?”
What’s with that smug smile?
“Because, when you were drunk the other day—”
“Alright, alright~ it’s time for God’s announcement! How are you doing, heroes?”
A voice I hate interrupted Ayaka mid-sentence.
It echoed directly inside my mind.
“Tch.”
“…God, huh.”
The “god” who brought us to this world occasionally speaks to us like this.
And it’s always bad news.
Someone died. Hurry up and defeat the Demon King. We’ve prepared an event.
Stuff like that.
“Just now, one of the heroes has successfully defeated the Demon King.”
…See? Nothing good ever comes from—
Wait. What?
“Huh?”
“…The Demon King… was defeated?”
What the hell is going on…?
“From here, your duties are now complete. Thank you for your cooperation. The name of the hero who defeated the Demon King cannot be disclosed at their request. However, we will fulfill their wish and return all of you to your original world.”
Hold on—wait a second!
“Seriously, just like that?!”
“Huh? Wait, really? W-what do we do?”
What do we do, she says…
“You will now be returned.”
“Oh, and one more thing. This is important: due to the hero’s request, all skills acquired in this world will be carried over to your original world. Thank you for everything. We wish you a good life in your world.”
A good life, my ass!
You kidnapped us, forced us into this world, and let more than ten people die!
“Damn it! We’re really going back?!”
“Yu-kun… your body is glowing!”
Ayaka was glowing too.
Just like before, everything in my vision began to turn white.
Without thinking, I reached out toward her.
She reached back.
Our fingers touched—
And then everything disappeared.