I GOT SUMMONED IN A PEACEFUL WORLD

The scene was painfully ordinary. The only slight deviation from my usual loner commute from university was the group of two boys and two girls walking ahead of me, their uniforms a blast from my high school past. They were a picture of vibrant social energy, a stark contrast to my elite, solitary existence. The girls were pretty enough to be class beauties, and the perfect one-to-one ratio made my cynical heart whisper, "Gods." Honestly, they could all just spontaneously combust.

It was all mundanely predictable. Right up until the moment we all stopped at a crosswalk, waiting for the light to change.

A magic circle, intricate and glowing with an impossible light, flared to life on the pavement beneath our feet.

The world didn't so much transform as it glitched. The urban scenery flickered like a corrupted video file, the asphalt beneath my feet became cool, rough-hewn stone, and the harsh midday sun was replaced by the dim, dancing glow of torchlight. My brain stuttered, trying to process the sensory overload.

[We bid you welcome, O Heroes!]

A voice, clear and melodious as a bell, cut through my confusion. My eyes snapped towards the source. A woman stood before us, a vision in a pristine white dress, her golden hair cascading around shoulders and her blue eyes piercing. She was addressing the three high school students in front of me—the two girls and one of the boys.

Wait. One of the boys?

I was still the odd one out, even in a summoning.

The golden-haired woman’s enchanting smile faltered. Her speech died in her throat. A profound silence descended, so heavy it felt like time itself had frozen. The robed figures flanking her shifted uncomfortably.

[U-Umm, Milady? Is it just me, or am I seeing four people here?] one of them whispered, voice trembling.

[What a coincidence, Luna. I see the same thing,] the beauty replied, her brow furrowing in a look of pure, unadulterated consternation.

My mind, meanwhile, was a browser with too many tabs open, desperately trying to find the script for this situation. The three students glanced back at me, their expressions a mirror of my own bewildered panic.

[W-What do we do?! This is a summoning error, isn't it?! Three of them got caught in the ritual!]

[M-Most probably, yes... What should we do, Milady?]

[Even if you ask me that, we can't just fix this with a 'We blundered. Tehee~,'] she muttered, tapping a finger against her lips. [We'll have to explain the situation first... Ah, but before that, we need to determine who the true Hero is...]

[Tehee... Milady, acting like that at your age is just...]

[Why are you calmly roasting me at a time like this?!]

My initial sense of mortal dread was rapidly being replaced by a profound sense of absurdity. This was less "divine prophecy" and more "office workplace blunder." The two girls were staring, shell-shocked. The other boy, however, had a terrifyingly focused glint in his eyes and was subtly pumping his fist. Who does that?

But their words finally clicked in my otaku brain. Hero. Summoning. Caught up in it.

Oh. Oh.

This wasn't just weird; this was a genre.

[Ahem. Once again, I bid you—] the golden-haired woman began, trying to regain control of the situation.

[Sorry, I'm kind of thinking right now, could you please be quiet for a moment?] I interrupted, my eyes losing focus as I dove into my mental archive of light novels.

[Ah, yes. My apologies,]

She actually listened. My mind raced. Isekai. Summoning. The variables flooded in: the righteous Demon King-slaying epic, the subversion where the summoners are the villains, the trope where the accidental tag-along gets a cheat skill...

[....U-Ummm...]

...Which one was this? The key was information. I needed to understand the rules of this world, the summoners' true intentions, the—

[....Err, excuse me...]

—the system. Was there a status screen? Magic? Had my otaku knowledge just become my greatest asset, or was I about to be executed as an unnecessary variable? The thought was a bucket of ice water.

[....If it's alright, I'd like to proceed with the conversation soon.... is that okay?] the woman—Milady—asked, her voice a delicate blend of patience and fraying nerves.

My awareness snapped back to the stone chamber, the torches, the confused students, and the very flustered, very powerful-looking woman I had just shushed. I felt the blood drain from my face.

[I-I'm sorry! I have this habit where I just... zone out!] I stammered, bowing my head slightly. It's a terrible flaw; my focus is so intense it creates a blind spot to everything else. A dangerous trait in what was potentially a life-or-death situation.

Milady gave a graceful, if slightly strained, smile. [It is quite alright. Now, let us begin properly. I am Lillianna, Third Princess of the Kingdom of Elrad. To you, O Heroes, we offer our deepest gratitude for answering our call in this, our hour of greatest need. The Demon King's forces gather, and fate has chosen you to be our saviors.]

She gestured to the three students, who straightened up, a mix of fear and burgeoning excitement on their faces. Then, her gaze, along with everyone else's, landed squarely on me.

[And you, sir...] Princess Lillianna's smile became brittle. [There seems to have been a slight... miscalculation in the ritual. Your presence here is an anomaly.]

One of the robed advisors, a severe-looking woman I guessed was Luna, leaned in and whispered, her voice cold and clear, meant for the Princess but audible in the tense silence.

[The ritual was designed for three, keyed to the spiritual signatures we had traced. He is an outsider. A contaminant.]

Lillianna nodded slowly, her blue eyes studying me not with welcome, but with analytical caution. [Precisely. So, I must ask you the most important question of your life.]

She took a step forward, the air growing heavy.

[Who are you? And more importantly... what are you?]