Listen.
I know you watch so many hero movie and epic battle, where the main character is such an appealing human being with a strong will of fight. Most of these stories gave you the scenario where in the end, the main character was able to defeat their nemesis.
Isn't this right?
Did you ever imagine to be a hero?
How is it?
Beautiful isn't it?
No guys... It is NOT cool being a hero, especially if you just a normal guy with zero epic FANTASY idea in your own world , but suddenly was summoned into someone's world and expect you to defeat this superhuman like aliens.
What?
You find me weird now?
Don't worry lads, even I still am feeling odd about it.
Okay look, my point is I am going to let you guys know that being a hero is not fully an epic fantasy world according to your head.
Most of you probably will say, who is this guy writing a nonsense idea about his delusional story?
Alright, alright, calm down, calm down, people, and let me drop some wisdom on you. My name's Zach Hammurabi, and, yes, before you ask, I do know how to spell it — no, it's not a typo, and no, I'm not related to that ancient lawgiver guy. Hammurabi—as in the ancient king of Mesopotamia. Yeah, it's a whole thing. I'm just here in Indonesia, studying for my third year at university, trying to get a degree in something totally useful like marketing. So far, I've mostly learned how to navigate through spreadsheets, avoid group projects, and figure out what my professor is saying when his accent switches into way higher gears than I can handle.
And then… voilà. I get summoned. No joke. Some girl named Tanya — yeah, Tanya, if you're thinking she's like some mystical hero-girl, you're not wrong — summons me like I'm some kind of knight in shining armor. Do I look like I can wield a sword? Yes. Do I have any epic magic skills? Absolutely not.
I can barely make instant noodles without burning myself, that I consider it as a magic judging by how nonsense I am sometimes.
And guess what? This isn't even my Earth! This is some parallel dimension where everything looks kind of... the same... but… not familiar at the same time. You know that weird feeling when you walk into a room and you know you've been there, but everything's been swapped out with a bunch of strange neon-colored plants and animals you can't name? Yeah, that's my new life. Except the plants seem to have opinions about my existence. They're probably plotting to eat me.
What do you say? Interesting right?
Yeah, I'm a hero now — probably because their gods did not find any suitable hero on this Earth. So they made the greatest crossover for them by summoning the hero on the other Earth... what a way to solve the problem.
Such a Devine Comedy...
Anyway I'm stuck here, trying to figure out how to be a hero in a world where my only superpower seems to be 'accidentally getting into trouble.' Good luck to me, right?
Oh Yeah... Speaking of Summoning.
So, there I was, sitting in my favorite coffee shop in Margonda, you know, living my best third-year university life, sipping on an overpriced iced latte, scrolling through memes about other people's problems. Margonda is like a small district in Depok City, where most of the students nearby University hang out with their friends.
I'm just vibing, thinking about my mixed martial arts training, when suddenly, the air starts to feel... weird. I mean, I'm no wizard, but something's off.
And then it happens.
One second, I'm enjoying my coffee, and the next WHAM, the room literally starts to glow. I'm not talking about, like, some soft romantic lighting, no. I'm talking full-on glowing, like someone turned on an industrial-sized highlighter in the middle of the room. I freeze. The walls? Melting. The floor? Spinning. And then—you'll never guess—a portal opens up right in the middle of the café. A giant magical swirl of black that looks like someone spilled a bunch of ink into a dark matter.
People are just sitting there, by the way, like this is a totally normal Tuesday. One guy is still scrolling through Instagram, another lady's tapping away on her phone like it's a normal workday. But me? I'm just sitting there, latte in hand, eyes wide open. Did I mention I was wearing a t-shirt with a words kimochi? Because I was. And this is the part where things get real weird.
Out of the swirling portal emerges... Tanya.
And I know what you're thinking. "Ooh, mystical, powerful sorceress!" Right? Wrong. Tanya, I Sh** you not, is wearing a sweater vest. Not even a magical robe, a sweater vest. She's holding a glowing crystal like she's about to give it to a wizard for a quest, but instead of looking like the "chosen one," she looks like someone who accidentally stumbled into a Battle Royale game.
She sees me, grins like she's just won the lottery, and shouts, "You're here! You've been summoned to save us all, our hero!"
Hero... yeah, that's me now. A Hero . With the Kimochi t-shirt.
I blink at her, trying to piece together what's happening. "Uh… I remembered I was in the coffee shop... Like, drinking my latte."
Tanya's all like, "Yes, exactly! You're the chosen hero! You're gonna save our world from the evil forces!"
And, okay, listen, I'm no hero. I didn't sign up for this. My biggest accomplishment recently was making it through an entire semester without accidentally blowing up the water pump at the top of my room. I'm pretty sure I'm not hero material.
I look around. The café's still there. The guy with the Instagram's still scrolling. "So, wait. You are the one who opened the portal from my regular life into... a coffee shop dimension?"
Tanya gives me a thumbs-up. "Yeah! I kind of messed up the summoning ritual, but hey, you're here now!"
I stare at her, processing. "Hold up. You're telling me that all the mystical energy, the dark matter portal, the vortex of doom—and this is what I get? A coffee shop? In my third year of university? Are you sure you didn't just get the 'Summon a Hero' ritual off Wish.com?"
Tanya looks at me like I'm insulting her life's work. "What? No! This is a legitimate summoning spell!"
I gesture to myself—Kimochi t-shirt, flip-flops, iced coffee in hand—and raise an eyebrow. "Yeah, sure. Legitimate. I look like I'm about to save the world while battling a gym leader in the middle of finals week."
She ignores my sarcasm. "Listen, it's fine! The world is in danger, and you're the one who's gonna stop it!"
I sip my iced latte, keeping an eye on the guy still tapping away on his phone. "Danger, huh? Like... how dangerous are we talking? Because I'm just here for a chill afternoon and not really prepared for a 'saving the world' gig, okay?"
Tanya, getting even more excited, waves her hand dramatically. "It's really bad! There's an evil dragon and dark magic and all sorts of terrible things!"
"Dragons?" I'm not convinced. "Like, actual dragons? Because, honestly, I've been swamped with assignments. I'm just trying to survive a group project, and you want me to fight a dragon? How do you even fight a dragon? With a latte?"
Tanya pauses, staring at me. "You're right, they've got sharp edges and—"
I cut her off. "Wait, no, I'm kidding. This is way too much for me. Can't we just go grab dinner first? Because if I'm gonna save this world, I at least want some sushi first."
Tanya looks at me like I've just asked to go for a coffee break during the apocalypse. "But… you're the hero."
I sigh, adjusting my Kimochi t-shirt. "Yeah, well, heroes gotta eat too. How am I supposed to fight dark magic with a growling stomach?"
She stares at me for a long second, clearly trying to figure out if I'm serious. "Okay, fine. But only if you promise to fight the dragon after sushi. And—no Wi-Fi on the journey, okay?"
"Deal!" I say, grinning. "No Wi-Fi? Perfect. Time to enjoy the offline life… after this whole 'saving the world' thing. We'll make it quick, right?"
She nods eagerly. "It'll be totally quick."
I stare at her, then at the glowing portal, and then at the guy still sipping his coffee in the background. "If this ends up being some elaborate prank, I swear I'm suing you for emotional distress."
Tanya just smiles. "Trust me, this is gonna be the best adventure ever."
Well, if this is what "summoned to save the world" looks like, I'm definitely questioning my life choices right now. But hey, I'm in it now. Let's just hope the dragon likes sushi.