The four stared at each other in the room; the tension was high. Simon, who had a frail, weak body, glared at them. He was angry, of course. He'd only been in this world for four days, starving, while his friends were already living in a luxurious house. On top of that, he'd been mistaken for a random slave who'd rampaged after losing a gamble. Who wouldn't be angry?
"Four days… four days ago, I was just gaming with you guys, then I was transported to an unknown world," Simon muttered. "I panicked so hard. I didn't know what to do; I had no courage to move, so I decided to just starve in the streets and hope for the best."
"Why? Why is my luck so bad?" Simon looked up with a grieving face.
"Uh… well, this might cheer you up," Josh said, trying to lift Simon's spirits. "Try thinking of the word 'status.'"
"How the hell could thinking—oh!" A blue screen appeared in front of Simon.
[Name: Simon Zegler]
Sex: Male
Rank: S
Strength: 20/100
Stamina: 59/100
Agility: 35/100
Intelligence: 60/100
Luck: 7/100
Mana: 60/100
[Occupation: 1st Stage Swordsman]
Simon's eyes widened; his mouth gaped open. The only bad aspect was his luck, but that was easily outweighed by his other stats.
"Kukuku! I forgive you guys!" he declared.
"That fast?" the trio said simultaneously.
"Mhm… Do you know what my rank is? …It's S-rank!" Simon barked.
The trio's mouths opened in disbelief. How could this be?
"What!? A miracle has been granted upon us!" the chained man shouted.
Silence followed. The four looked at him silently, awkwardly.
"Why's he still here?" Sol asked.
"Yeah, let's set him free, I guess," Josh said.
"Wait, no! I haven't repaid you young masters yet for saving me!" The man groveled on the ground.
"We don't need any payment; you can go now!" Felix retorted.
"No! Because from now on, I will serve you young masters as a way of giving thanks for saving me!" The man touched his chest.
"Haah... Alright, go talk to the butler if he has some work to give you, and discipline yourself. No more gambling," Felix stated.
The slave's eyes widened; he was so happy that he broke the chains from his hands by sheer force. The four's jaws dropped.
"You could have—" Sol covered Josh's mouth.
"You're now going to be our loyal subject. Be sure to learn from the butler," Sol said, smiling. They couldn't let go of this man; he must be strong, though he looked a bit dumb.
"Yes!" the slave replied enthusiastically.
The slave left the room. Felix explained everything that had happened to Simon. He'd thought this was the world of the game they played, but it wasn't what he'd expected.
"Also, this guy has a fiancée now," Josh informed Simon while eating.
"What!?" Simon exclaimed.
"Yeah, I couldn't believe it at first, but it seemed like he was really telling the truth. He even blushed and all that," Sol added.
Felix remained silent, blushing.
"You're telling me that you arrived here three weeks ago, got a girlfriend, and found these other two before me? Who arrived here before them?!" Simon barked, stuffing food in his mouth. He'd been starving for three days.
"It's also this kingdom's princess that he's engaged to," Josh added.
"Felix, fuck off. I don't want to see your fucking face anymore," Simon muttered.
"Speaking of faces, we haven't really seen this 'fiancée' of yours, Felix. Why don't you introduce her to us? Who knows, maybe you're… you know… lying?" Sol said.
"Me? Oh, please. You'll be drooling when you see her…" Felix bragged, his chest puffing up.
Suddenly, Josh stood up; the glass tilted over, spilling water.
"Let's go now!" he barked.
"Tomorrow! It's getting late already," Felix said.
The four finished eating, went to their separate rooms, and slept.
The next day, the four left for the castle to meet the king, introduce Simon (who had the highest rank among them), and meet the princess, of course. The three wouldn't believe what Felix said until they saw it with their own eyes.
"Well then, we'll leave the house to you, old man, and Ragnar," Josh said to the butler and the slave (apparently named Ragnar). It seemed like the old butler was the only one doing the housework, so it was good that they let the slave work there.
They arrived at the castle. Simon was stunned by its grandiose appearance.
"A piece of advice, Simon: don't ever doubt the king, even if he looks like he's about to die any second," Sol said as they went through the gates.
"Hey, I'm not like you, man," Simon retorted. Sol clenched his fist in irritation.
They opened the big door. "We have arrived, Your Majesty," Felix bowed, as did the others.
"Oh? Is your squad complete now? Good, good!" the king said.
"Yes, let me introduce the last man of our group: Simon Zegler. Although I hate to say this, he's an S-rank swordsman… somehow," Felix said, his tone lowering.
"Oh! Kahaha! Our kingdom has been truly blessed! If I had known, I would have disintegrated that slave district just to save you. I apologize," the king said.
"No need, sir. I wasn't really there anyway; they found me in the streets, haha," Simon replied kindly.
Look at how nice he's acting, the trio thought.
"Is that so? Then I'm glad they found you," the king said.
"Yes."
"Now that you're complete, you know what's next, right? Of course, I won't force you," the old king declared.
The four looked at each other, then back at the king. We don't know what to do anyway, so this might be better.
"We'll work under you!" The four knelt.
"Good! Good! Now, we will start your training tomorrow. Be sure to prepare yourselves; it is not easy," the king said.
"We already expected that, haha," Felix said.
"Hoho, then I'm sure there'll be no problem… You're free to go now; you can explore the city if you want!"
"Uh, Your Majesty? If I may, can we meet with the princess?" Felix said, blushing.
"Do you really miss her that much, Felix?" the king said jokingly.
"Pfft," the other three covered their mouths.
"Didn't know you were so desperate," Josh added.
The king laughed. "Haha! It's good that you all have such good friendships… Alright, I permit you."