I Got Fired as a Hero Today - Vol.1 Chapter 2: Arata, Goes to the Library

“Umm, excuse me, is something the matter?”

Princess Sophia spoke to Arata, who was doing nothing.

“I’m not feeling well, so please leave me alone.”

That’s a lie. He just doesn’t want to be here.

“Well, that’s tough. Chloe!”

“Hah!”

A woman in armor came. Like Princess Sophia, she was also a beautiful woman with blonde hair.

“Please let this person rest.”

“Haa! Please, right this way.”

She invites Arata and heads towards the exit.

“Are you sure you’re okay, even though we finally came to another world?”

The high school boy spoke to Arata, but Arata just glanced at him and left.

“Who the heck is that?”

They’re suspicious of Arata’s curt attitude.

Kotoko was looking at Arata with an expressionless gaze.

◆◆◆

“Is there a library or something?”

Arata asked the woman whom the princess called Chloe. Arata liked the library and thought he could pass the time there.

“If it’s the Royal Library, we have it. Would you like to go?”

“Please, I’m counting on you…”

Outside the cathedral, as expected, it was a European-style town. Chloe and Arata walked side by side on the cobblestone path, finishing a brief self-introduction.

Chloe is the knight commander and is said to be one of the best swordswomen in the country.

Since Arata was in the kendo club when he was a student, he became interested in that story.

Since graduating from high school and starting a job at a local factory, he hadn’t held a shinai even once.

“Are you skilled in swordsmanship, Arata-sama?”

“Arata is fine, Chloe-san. I used to do it a bit back in the day.”

“Then, please call me Chloe too.”

Chloe and Arata were both twenty years old. It’s amazing to be a knight commander at such a young age.

“I got promoted because my swordsman skill is maxed out at level 10.”

In this world, skills also have levels.

Since experience points are also used for skills, he struggles with whether to prioritize leveling up himself or leveling up his skills.

It’s a hero’s perk, but it seems that one of the four elemental affinities—earth, water, fire, wind, light, or darkness—can be chosen, and as you level up, the power of that element increases.

Furthermore, since the hero-specific skills can be obtained at level 20 or higher, the queen promptly leveled everyone up.

By the way, Arata hasn’t done anything.

Because he didn’t have the motivation.

They arrived at the library.

“Well then, I’ll take my leave.”

“Thank you.”

“No, please come back to the chapel once you’ve calmed down. Please.”

“Chloe, if you could also stop using honorifics.”

“No, to the hero, such a thing…”

He didn’t care about heroes or anything like that.

“We’re the same age.”

“I see… I understand. No, I get it.”

As befits a royal library, the large building was packed with books.

He thought he wouldn’t be able to read anything since it’s another world, but he could.

Even though it’s not in Japanese, he understands the meaning.

He randomly selects a few books about world history, magic, and skills, and sits down at the desk.

He was reading, but the words were just sliding through his vision without registering at all.

Because he can’t help but remember the events at the coffee shop.

The fact that he was summoned to another world was shocking enough, but it was even more painful to be the one who was broken up with by Kotoko.

Since he was summoned as a hero, it seems that he will be embarking on an adventure with them from now on.

It was honestly tough.

He will see Kotoko and Atsushi together.

“I don’t want to go.”

However, he doubted whether they would listen to his request if he said he didn’t want to go.

The opponent is the country. His own fate seems like it could go either way.

It sounds nice to call someone a hero, but isn’t it just a weapon convenient for this country?

In the first place, it was a summoning to another world that had nothing to do with his own will.

It’s like being forcibly abducted.

In this world, what kind of existence is he? What can he do with the abilities of a hero, which are probably cheats? Or can he not do anything? He needed to know. Saying he has no motivation won’t get him anywhere.

“Status Open.”

Arata chanted. Then, a digital display spread out before him.

Arata ・ Hero ・ Level 1

Appropriate ・ Earth, Fire, Water, Wind, Light, Darkness

Experience Points ・ 2,500,000

Skills That Can Be Acquired ・ Swordsman ・ Cooking ・ Reading

He recalls the conversation with Chloe earlier.

The hero said that one could only have an affinity for one attribute, but Arata had an affinity for all attributes.

There were already skills that could be acquired.

Was the swordsman doing kendo?

Maybe it’s because he was living alone and cooking for himself.

Is it because he likes books that he enjoys reading?

Everyone was using it like a smartphone, so it should be fine to use it intuitively.

He tapped on the experience points and tried tapping on the skills.

Then the experience points were transferred to the skill and acquired.

If he transfers more experience points, he will level up.

Acquired skills ・ Swordsman Level 10 ・ Cooking Level 10 ・ Reading Level 10

He tried setting everything to Max. Skills max out at level 10. Since the experience points are high, he doesn’t think there’s a need to level up gradually.

Since this is a library where he can try things out, it’s [Reading]. He picked up a book with “The Basics of Skills” written on the cover, and when he read it, he found he could read quickly. He could read it just by flipping through the pages.

He could read it, but it didn’t all get stored in his memory.

There was nothing that could surpass Arata’s memory.

So, it means it’s not omnipotent.

However, the status screen displayed the word [Books].

When he tapped it, the entire book “The Basics of Skills” that he had just read was there.

He can flip through the pages and read it like a smartphone app.

Once he reads it even once, he’ll be able to read it anytime, anywhere.

“Can the status screen be used like a smartphone? That’s convenient.”

He’s feeling motivated.

Arata was engrossed, flipping through every book in the library one after another.