You have to work to survive.
Especially if you're a resident of a poor village.
That's why, in the morning, the inn was empty save for the guests and the owner.
The first-floor hall was desolate.
Two beautiful women sat at a table, their faces etched with worry.
"Sigh, how did it come to this..."
A blonde beauty with a warm, gentle air sighed.
Her name was Ophelia, and her eyes were like emeralds.
She was one of the saint candidates of the church that worshipped the one true god, Iries, and a woman with a vast, kind heart.
"I know, right? Why is he suddenly acting like this?"
The woman shaking her head in disbelief was Eri.
With her distinctive black twin-tails, she was both a brilliant mage and the second daughter of a ducal family in the Prona Kingdom.
She couldn't understand the hero's changed attitude. Cloud was a man with diligence etched into his very bones. He was the one who stayed up the latest to train and the one who woke up the earliest.
But for the past few days, he'd been complaining that it was a bother, that he just wanted to sleep, and refused to get out of bed.
Thanks to him, the party had been stuck in the village for days.
Click, clack.
The sound of footsteps on the stairs made Ophelia and Eri turn their heads. Their flicker of hope vanished when they saw a woman descending alone.
"No luck?"
The woman, who had short, dark blue hair and matching eyes, nodded with an apologetic look.
"If he's not even listening to you, then it's really hopeless..."
Eri's shoulders slumped.
The woman who had gone up to wake Cloud was none other than his childhood friend.
Cloud usually listened well to what his childhood friend, Neria, had to say.
But now he was ignoring even her and staying holed up in bed?
That meant he was dead set on it.
"What's his problem, really?"
"...Could it be that the Hero has found out?"
"No way. You both know how dense Cloud is, right?"
"Eri, there are no absolutes in this world."
"That's true, but..."
Eri fell silent.
Next month, a society gala would be held in the Imperial Capital.
There, the three women planned to switch to another hero's party.
If the Hero had found out about that... his current behavior would make sense.
"...It's not like anything changes even if he knows."
"That may be so, but..."
"Then it's fine. Let's just leave him be. Cloud would want that, too."
"Understood..."
"..."
The three women felt a sliver of guilt.
But their decision to leave the party would not change.
Because Cloud was an incompetent hero.
A month had already passed since I possessed this weak body. For the first few days, the so-called heroines were a nuisance, but then they left me alone for some reason, so I thought they'd given up...
"Sir Hero. We must leave today."
The saint candidate who apparently enjoys exhibitionism spoke to me. Wow, look at that plunging neckline and the side slit. And what about those huge breasts and that ass? It's really starting to sink in that I'm in an erotic game.
Hahaha.
Fuck, how is that a saint candidate?
She's a succubus.
I ignored her as usual and chewed on my bread. She sighed as if she'd expected it.
"If we don't leave today, we'll be late for the Imperial society gala... If you refuse to go, Sir Hero, we'll have no choice but to go by ourselves."
"Imperial society gala?"
Ah, that event?
The Imperial society gala is held in the capital of the Empire, the center of the continent, and is famous for being a gathering where all sorts of celebrities meet and mingle.
Naturally, that includes the other heroes.
If Cloud goes there, he gets looked down on and persecuted for being a commoner with pathetic skills.
In other words, it's a frustrating event.
But right now, that's not what's important to me.
'The food in the Imperial Capital should at least be decent, right?'
I'm sick of bread and bland soup.
I don't even want to look at the stew that reeks of chicken.
This damn other world.
It's a different world from my old one, but the food is just as tasteless.
Still, in the Empire, which is called the center of the continent, the culinary standards should be a bit better.
For a society gala, they'd probably be generous with the spices, too.
It would be a hundred, a thousand times better than this bland soup.
"Yes, Sir Hero. If we don't depart immediately..."
"Let's go."
"The time... pardon?"
Ophelia's eyes went wide, as if she hadn't expected my answer. I paid her no mind and got dressed.
"I said, let's go. To the Empire."
I gathered the rest of my things and walked past the stunned Ophelia, heading down the stairs.
The tsundere and the size-queen childhood friend, who were sitting at a table on the first floor, looked at me with surprised expressions.
"Cloud? Did you come down to eat? No, I'm sure the innkeeper already brought your meal up."
The size-queen childhood friend, Neria, glanced back and forth between me and the stairs in confusion.
"You said we have to go to the Imperial society gala. Let's go."
The two of them stared at me blankly, just like Ophelia. What is it? First time seeing a shut-in leave his room?
Even shut-ins go out to buy a hamburger, you know.
Don't look down on me.
I left them and walked out of the inn. The two of them, along with Ophelia, hurriedly followed me out.
"What's this? You were cooped up in your room for a month, so I thought you'd refuse... What made you change your mind?"
Eri said with a cocky attitude, crossing her arms in that way tsunderes do.
Surprisingly, it wasn't cute at all.
"Why do you need to know? Anyway, where's the carriage?"
"You think a rural village like this would have a carriage?"
"So we're walking?"
"No, you don't have to worry about that. They said this village at least has horses. We can rent some and ride them."
Neria shook her head reassuringly.
"Really? Then let's go there. Lead the way."
"...Alright."
Neria turned with a bitter expression and started walking. As I followed her, someone poked me in the side. I turned to see Eri glaring at me, looking displeased.
"What's with your tone? You could try speaking a little more kindly, you know."
Naturally, I ignored her.
Expecting kindness from someone you've kidnapped. What a shameless bunch.
When I ignored her, Eri stared at my face for a while before finally sighing, as if she'd exhausted herself, and looked away.
We walked in silence for some time and arrived at the stables.
"Well now, Sir Hero and company, what brings you here?"
The stable master spotted us and approached with a smile.
"We'd like to rent some horses. We'll only be riding them until the next city, and we'll return them there."
"The next city... that's not too far. How many will you be renting?"
"Three, please."
Three?
Ah, I guess one of us can't ride a horse. It's probably Eri or Ophelia. It's not unheard of for a mage or a nun to be unable to ride.
Of course, in the world I was dragged from, that would be impossible, but this place is peaceful.
I decided to be magnanimous and looked over the horses in the stable.
'This white one seems to be in the best condition.'
Not that it matters much. The horses in a backwater village like this are all probably about the same.
Still, better is better.
I put one foot in the stirrup and swung myself onto the horse in one smooth motion.
Hee-hee-hing!
The horse neighed, agitated by the unfamiliar rider, and reared up on its hind legs.
"Whoa, whoa."
I stroked its mane to calm it down.
Just like that, the horse became as docile as if it had never been agitated. I patted it and waited for the others to mount their horses.
But no matter how long I waited, the three of them showed no sign of getting on.
"What are you doing? Not getting on?"
"Um... Cloud, if you sit there, I can't ride."
Neria said, scratching her cheek with an awkward smile.
"...You're a knight and you can't ride a horse?"
A knight who can't ride a horse?
This world is driving me insane.
"What nonsense are you talking about? You're the one who can't ride, Cloud. You need to get on behind so Neria can steer."
What? Wait. What kind of bullshit is that?
"...Eri, Ophelia, do you two know how to ride?"
"Of course."
"Yes, I do... Why do you ask, Sir Hero?"
Both of them acted like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
Uh... so what they're saying is...
The original Cloud didn't know how to ride a horse, so he always rode behind Neria?
Faced with this unimaginable reality, I slapped my forehead.
The Hero can't ride a horse?
The Hero?
What kind of small-dicked, blond-tanned-thug nonsense is this?
"I can ride now."
"...What?"
"I said, I know how to ride a horse now."
"What are you talking about?"
I lightly tapped the horse's flank. It began to walk forward slowly.
"...What?!"
"Huh...?"
"...This is...?"
All I did was ride a horse, but the three heroines were utterly shocked. I showed them some equestrian tricks that only a seasoned expert could perform.
In response,
"What in the world..."
Neria's face was stiff with astonishment.
"I can't believe it..."
Eri just kept muttering that she couldn't believe it.
"Oh, my god..."
Ophelia covered her mouth with her hands and dropped to her knees.
All I could do in this absurd situation was laugh.
Haha, Cloud, you son of a bitch. You were a complete fuck-up, weren't you?