Ch. 01 - Returning Home

“Hey! I defeated the Demon Lord...”

His voice echoed throughout the cave just as he was coming out with a triumphant look on his face. He rested the long sword on his shoulder as blood dripped on the ground from its tip. His eyes had sparks in them, brimming with life and a sense of accomplishment.

People with shields and swords surrounded the cave. A woman with blonde hair and blue eyes walked to the front with a bright smile. Her voice came out soft, which tickled the ears of those who heard her. “Congratulations...”

“Yeah, enough of that. Send me home already. That was the deal!”

A burly man walked in front of the woman and raised his sword. “Imbecile. You are always so damn rude. How dare you talk to the princess like that...”

The princess put her slender hand on her general’s shoulder. “Lower your weapon. This young man saved our home. He’s right. A deal is a deal.”

The burly man clenched his fists after sheathing his sword. His eyes shot daggers at the young hero, who ignored him. No matter how frustrated he felt, he didn’t dare talk back to the princess. He simply lowered his head and swallowed his rage.

She sighed in relief and looked back as two rows of people with blue robes came at the front. With a staff at hand, they formed a circle around the young man and chanted. Strange markings formed on the ground, and blinding light poured out.

In the blink of an eye, the young hero disappeared.

That same night, he opened his eyes to a familiar room. Drowsy as he was, he got up and looked around once again. He rubbed his eyes two or three times before a smile formed on his face. “I’m finally back...”

As if the tensions washed off his shoulders, he fell back and instantly slept. He didn’t wake until they shoved him out of sleep two days later. The voice came out loud enough to wake him, but ever gentle, almost regretful. “You slept through the weekend. Get up, take a shower and come down for breakfast or you’ll be late for school.”

The nostalgic voice pulled his heartstrings. He opened his teary eyes and stared at the woman who sat beside him. “Mom!”

Her smile revealed two rows of white teeth accompanied by a warm smile. “Good morning, sleepyhead.”

Without thinking, he sprung out of bed and hugged her ever so tightly.

“Knock it off. What’s gotten into you?”

He found himself in an uncomfortable situation. The young man gradually pulled back and scratched the back of his head. He let out an awkward laugh. “Haha... Sorry about that. I-I must’ve seen a nightmare or something...”

His mother walked out of the room at a steady pace. She reached the door and turned around. Her bright, yet somehow mischievous smile brought an unparalleled radiation into the entire room. “You may have grown up, but you still need mommy. That makes me happy.”

He blushed at her words and covered his face under the sheets. Even though his voice came out muffled, it was still audible. “W-What are you saying? Shut up!”

She walked away as she laughed. Visibly, she enjoyed that interaction with her son.

After he took a shower and had breakfast, the young man got on his bicycle and rode to school. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It even brought tears to his eyes, since things were like he remembered them. In the other world, he spent nearly a year away from friends and loved ones.

It didn’t take long to reach his school. It wasn’t very far from home, but the location needed a considerable amount of stamina. Atop a hill, it hovered over the town with pride. As a building, the structure had a few years in, despite that, not an old thing.

The students poured in before the bell rang. Jin had a smile painted on his face. He kept looking around as if it was his first time walking on school grounds. “I can’t believe how much I missed this place...”

With that same smile, he walked into the classroom. It’s a fact that he creeped out most of his classmates, but it didn’t seem to bother him. He enjoyed it. His heart fluttered like a little kid’s who went to the playground.

He sat at his desk in the back, by the window. Even though he would usually stare outside, this time, he focused and listened to the lectures. He attended school like a different person, something his classmates noticed.

They didn’t approach him or ask him about his sudden change. For one, he never associated with any of them, and there’s also the fact that no matter how little attention he paid in class, he always got top grades. It didn’t sit well with some students. Some envied him to the point of despising him.

The day at school ended. Next were his club activities in the diamond. As a prodigy batter, the coaches and faculty kept him close. They tended to his needs and encouraged him.

Before he got summoned to another world, he bathed his ego in the attention. He became arrogant and selfish. The harshness and loss that followed afterwards until he defeated the Demon Lord taught him lessons he carried over. He became more attentive and understanding of his surroundings and classmates.

His lack of communication skills became clearer in the locker rooms. Since he avoided his teammates the years before, opening and holding a conversation with them felt awkward. He pondered whether he should talk to them. He glanced at them from time to time. At some point, he worked up the courage to approach them.

Screams coming from the school yard interrupted him. The entire team ran outside to see what’s happening. The sight repelled them to the point some even puked. Students and teachers alike tried to run away as other students held and ate them alive.

Jin saw a bunch running away from the yard, and undead following right behind them. The students were faster, but because of their panic, they were tripping all over the place. Without sparing a second thought, Jin grabbed a bat and went after them.

After spending a year in another world fighting demons and the Demon Lord, Jin accumulated all that experience, and his body moved on its own. He caught up with the fallen students and helped them up.

Behind him came a growl that caught him off guard while helping a student stand. Without hesitation, he swung his bat and brought the undead down. More of them came from the gates of the school and cut them off. Jin then directed the frightened students towards the gym. “This way!”

While the students ran at the front, Jin remained a few steps back to keep the undead under control. He swung his bat relentlessly, knocking them left and right. The frightened students rushed towards the gym with every ounce of strength they could muster, while Jin lagged.

Terrified, his team members closed the doors after the last student entered, leaving Jin outside to fend for himself. Although bitterness overwhelmed him, he still tried to stay alive and fought his way through. He reached the gym, but they wouldn’t open the doors. “Hey, com’on guys, let me in…!”

More of them kept swarming around Jin, and he became more frantic. He shouted and banged on the gym’s metallic door. “Open the door, damn it!”

It took mere seconds for the undead to overwhelm Jin. He kept shouting and cursing his teammates as the undead ate him alive.