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Jason, an ordinary individual who has dabbled in kung fu, is also, without a doubt, a dimensional traveler. However, he discovered that there is no difference between this world and his original one. All countries, architecture, and culture are nearly identical.
The only change is that his identity has shifted, and he has become a very ordinary foreign student in an island country. Just when Jason believed he had merely experienced a false dimensional travel, he saw Iwatani Naofumi in college and felt like he had stumbled upon something significant at that moment. This could very well be the world of "The Rising of the Shield Hero."
Within half a month, Jason visited all the libraries around the university but failed to find the book that could allow him to travel again.
"Is that person just resembling Iwatani Naofumi? Or is it only he who can discover that book?"
Jason did not want his journey through dimensions to be pointless, so he approached Iwatani Naofumi with goodwill (and underlying malicious intent) as his last hope. Seeing that Iwatani Naofumi is an otaku who enjoys video games and animation, Jason quickly made friends with him. The two spent about three months playing games together, watching anime, and occasionally working part-time jobs. To others, they appeared almost inseparable as good friends.
The days passed peacefully until one day, something changed. Jason and Iwatani Naofumi walked into the library, ready to ward off boredom. They wandered the library for about 10 minutes until Iwatani Naofumi approached a bookshelf dedicated to early fantasy literature. Jason naturally followed, not wanting to miss any opportunity. In the past three months, Iwatani Naofumi had become accustomed to Jason constant companionship and felt no discomfort as he looked for books that suited his interests.
Reaching the middle of the bookshelf, a book suddenly fell to the ground at Iwatani Naofumi's feet. The book appeared very old, and the title was barely legible.
"The Book of the Four Holy Weapons? Did the last person put this back hastily, causing it to fall?"
After scanning his surroundings, Iwatani Naofumi bent down to pick up the book. Being idle, he decided to open it out of curiosity.
"Hey~~~ Can you let me read this book first? It looks quite interesting."
Jason tried his best to suppress his excitement. He had searched this library before but never saw this book, indicating a high probability that this was the same book Iwatani Naofumi used to travel in the original story.
"I'll give it to you after I finish reading it. Anyway, it's not very thick, so I should finish quickly. Meanwhile, you can find something else to read... I just suddenly feel very connected to this book, sorry."
Iwatani Naofumi frowned slightly but did not surrender the book to Jason. Even though he thought about letting Jason read it first, a vague voice in his mind warned him against it, leading him to refuse.
"If you finish reading it, you might dimensionally travel!"
Jason was anxious, contemplating how to acquire the book.
Grab it? If Iwatani Naofumi resisted, it would undoubtedly cause chaos. After all, this was a library, and any disturbance would attract attention.
Use trickery? Judging by Iwatani Naofumi's firm demeanor, surrendering the book seemed unlikely.
"What should I do?" he pondered as Iwatani Naofumi opened the book to its first page, and Jason's anxiety grew.
"Ding! Please choose."
"1: Kiss Iwatani Naofumi hard, seize the book while he's shocked, and double your charm reward."
"2: Kick Iwatani Naofumi's bottom forcefully, and double your agility reward."
"3: Knock out Iwatani Naofumi with a stick, and triple your comprehensive physical fitness reward."
Jason suddenly heard a voice in his head. Having read modern internet literature, he understood this was a cheat system. In his desperation to escape his mundane life and obtain the reward, Jason chose option 3 without hesitation. Instantly, a baseball bat appeared in his hand.
"Brother, don't blame me. Anyway, after you traveled through, you were always angry and doubting your life. Leave that painful life to me!"
In his mind, Jason justified his actions and gripped the bat tightly, swiftly striking the back of Iwatani Naofumi's head.
Bang.
Iwatani Naofumi fell to the ground, unconscious. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine someone would strike him over a mere book.
Confident the blow wasn't fatal, Jason ignored Naofumi and seized the book before fleeing.
"Ding! Your comprehensive physical fitness reward is tripled."
He disregarded the system's notification, feeling his body become lighter and filled with newfound strength, allowing him to run faster.
Soon, Jason exited the library, found a secluded spot, and casually sat down.
"Is this what tripled physical fitness feels like? Despite running for so long, I don't feel tired at all," Jason mused, opening the book.
The story within described a different world destined to face successive waves of disasters threatening its annihilation. To prevent this fate, the inhabitants summoned heroes from other worlds, praying for their assistance.
In essence, it's a tale of a hero saving the world. Unusually, four heroes are summoned, each wielding a different weapon: sword, spear, bow, and shield. However, there is no cute heroine; the princess, unlike typical heroic tales, moves among the four heroes, exuding charm but also subtly entangling each of them.
Jason skimmed the book's contents, turning to the last page, which was blank. What was supposed to detail the Shield Hero's adventures was missing.
At that moment, he felt his body beginning to tremble, his awareness blurring. Just before losing consciousness completely, a slow smile formed on Jason's lips.
"Finally, I can travel properly."