Alex never slept that deep before. The tension which suffocated his body had gone now, replaced by serene sensation. His body felt so light as if he could float away at any moment.

In the middle of that blissful state, he reminisced his past before he found himself in Nousant Kingdom. He was just a thirty-something years old nobody, with dead-end job and stuck doing things he was not fond of. His wife left him for his boss who always yelled at him, making him questioned his life. As he was lost in thought, a truck hit the old motorcycle he was riding and before he knew it, he was already surrounded by medieval-looking people.

“Man, it would be nice if those things happen again, even if it’s just a dream…” mumbled Alex.

It seemed Alex was able to conduct lucid dream, because when he opened his eyes, he saw exactly the scenery which he wanted to watch. The great hall of Nousant Kingdom, King Romeus on his throne, accompanied by his daughter Princess Remina. It was so real that Alex couldn’t utter even a word.

“Hero of Destiny, welcome to Nousant Kingdom!” welcomed a melodious voice out of nowhere. Alex recognized that voice anywhere. It belonged to Helene, the Royal Saintess who summoned him.

Alex quickly turned his face toward that voice, and Helene was as cute as ever. Her petite frame and slim figure made Alex remember once again that she was his very first crush upon arriving in this world. Alex couldn’t help but to run to Helene and embraced him tightly but softly.

“Uh, Sir, I appreciate the warm response you gave me, but don’t you think it’s a little bit too soon for this kind of hospitality?” flustered Helene who was too polite to turn down this sexual harassment.

“Err, yeah, you are right, of course!” responded Alex quite embarrassed while letting go of Helene. “But this is normal in my previous world!”

Luckily, Alex could escape that awkward situation thanks to his quick thinking. After a look around, he finally realized that Sureya just sent him back to the past. He still wondered why Sureya did this, instead of reviving him to take back his stolen kingdom.

“Sir Hero, I am sure that you must be very confused right now. But rest assured that I, Helene, will guide you around,” said Helene who could read the baffled look on Alex’s face. “Let me introduce you to the ruler of Nousant Kingdom, King Romeus.”

“On behalf of Nousant people, allow me to welcome you, Hero! May we have the honour of knowing your name?” asked King Romeus.

“People often call me Alex, so let’s go with that,” replied Alex nonchalantly.

“I know you must be tired after the summoning, so let’s make this short, Alex,” said King Romeus. “Our kingdom has been terrorized for a long time by the Demon Lord, and according to prophecy, only an outsider can bring him down. That’s why we need your help.”

Alex couldn’t care less with the King’s babbling. His eyes were fixated to his future wife, Princess Remina. And just like their first encounter, Remina turned his face away from Alex’s passionate gaze. She was not that impressed.

“But of course, we won’t just stand by idly. As supports, the kingdom has assorted the best in their field of expertise to accompany you,” continued the King. “Guards, let them enter!”

Alex looked at the hall door and what he saw almost made his heart burst into fire.

“Rasheed, you’re alive!” rushed Alex to a tall brown young man and proceeded to hug him. “Gremio, you too! And even you, Salieri!”

The three of them just look at each other, equally bewildered. How come this stranger treated them like old friends?

“My, I have no idea that you guys were acquaintances with the Hero,” interrupted a foxy mature woman who just entered the hall.

“Pandora!” shouted Alex uncontrollably, while embracing her dynamite body. Her death hit Alex the hardest, simply due to the fact that they had spent a lot of nights together with no strings attached. Her departure left a humongous hole in his heart. Pandora didn’t seem reluctant that much. She even seemed like she enjoyed it.

“I don’t care what kind of strange customs you have in your world, but here, that kind of offensive behaviour is only redeemable by death,” threatened an elf who pointed her arrow to Alex’s face. “Helene, where did you find this creepy pervert anyway?”

“Stella, cut me some slack, will you? Turn down your bow, I can’t hug you like that,” Alex attempted to persuade the archer. He knew already that behind the tough persona Stella’s putting on, she actually was very fragile. Often, she cried in Alex’s embrace after a difficult battle which resulted in casualty of innocent civilians.

“Very strange,” finally Remina opened her mouth. “It’s your first time here, yet you act buddy-buddy with our residents. Who are you really?”

Alex gasped. Certainly, what he did was over the top. Judging from any point of view, people can’t help but to look at him with suspecting eyes.

“Ah, I beg your pardon! It’s just that I was too excited. You see, I used to have lots of dreams about you guys!” Alex defended himself. Once more, his sharp wit saved him. “I can’t help feeling this weird nostalgia.”

“This must be fate!” Helene jumped out of joy. “You see, Your Majesty, even the Hero himself saw the prophecy!”

“Then so be it,” concluded the King. “Hereby I order you, Alex, together with them, to slay the Demon Lord and bring peace to this land!”

Alex recalled the last time he blindfully agreed to King Romeus’ request, he suffered a lot of casualties and collateral damage. But this time, it would be different.

“With all due respect, I must beg to differ,” declined Alex politely. “You see, there are only 7 of us, and you expect us to overpower the Demon Lord? Did you consider his minions and officers, too? At this rate, we would be wiped out even before we could face the final boss! Did you intend to name our party Suicide Squad?”

King Romeus was astonished. As the absolute monarch, his words were law. Nobody dared to defy him, so this was a whole new experience for him.

“And one more thing, I am pretty sure that you have a lot of people under your command. Instead of letting their potential go to waste, what do you think if the kingdom trains the citizens who are skilled in martial arts and magic?” proposed Alex. “If we make this as national mission, then the public will be united under the same cause, which will be advantageous for the morale in general!”

Defying him is one thing, but to receive a lecture about governing his kingdom by some random greenhorn finally ignited King Romeus’ rage.

“Enough about your blabbering nonsense! From the moment you stepped in here, nothing but mumbo jumbo coming from your piehole!” shouted King Romeus, unable to tolerate Alex any further. “You’re out of your mind if you think I would sponsor your ridiculous plan!”

“Helene, I ordered you to summon a hero, not a crass clown!” King Romeus turned his displeasure to the saintess.

“Your Majesty, please grace us with your patience,” Helene attempted to calm the king down. “After all, he came from a different world. Certainly, his way of thinking needs time to adapt to this world’s customs. Please give him some chance.”

King Romeus glared at Alex like a lion about to pounce his prey.

“Hmph, consider yourself lucky that Helene was on your side! You may leave from my sight for now, and by the time I see you again, I would expect nothing less than your obedience,” decreed the king.

Alex was still eager to give the king some pieces of his mind, but Helene quickly smothered him. With assistance from Gremio and Rasheed, our hero was finally evacuated from the hall.