"Thank you for coming, brave heroes! You are the last hope of this world ruled by the Demon King!"

The king, shaped like a typical overweight person, grandly welcomed the summoned heroes. The rows of royal guards raised their swords dramatically before kneeling in respect.

"Wow!! This really is another world!"

A young boy, still with traces of childhood, exclaimed with sparkling eyes.

"I can't believe it. I was afflicted by illness and could barely walk..."

A delicate-looking and handsome young man gazed at himself in surprise.

"Wait, no way, is this really reality!? It's not a dream!?"

A petite girl looked around with a joyful expression.

"Hahaha, indeed! The brave heroes have been summoned to this land, recognized for their noble courage by the goddess Miena!"

The overweight king spread his arms wide as he spoke. "As a reward, I promise you a luxurious life in my kingdom!"

"---I don't want it!"

A man's voice suddenly echoed through the spacious hall. All eyes turned to the source of the voice. Silence fell. The tense atmosphere made the air heavy.

"...Well, who are you?"

"I'm Duran."

"Oh, that's right. Brave Duran, it seems you have some complaints. Please, don't hesitate to speak your mind."

The overweight king asked with a bitter expression.

"I have no complaints. Just don't get in my way from now on."

Duran said this with a tone devoid of any respect and turned to leave. However, a young hero, displeased with Duran's attitude, stopped him.

"Hey, what's wrong with you all of a sudden? That's disrespectful to the king!"

Other heroes chimed in.

"Yeah, who do you think you are? Just because you were chosen, you think you can act like that?"

"Everyone, please calm down. Let's get along, okay?"

Three heroes banded together to try to soothe Duran. They didn't know the reason behind Duran's harsh attitude. Duran had realized something. Just about ten seconds after being summoned here. That everything the king said was a lie---

Before being transported, Duran had received an invitation—likely the same for the other heroes. It was a conditional offer to become a hero in this "other world" in exchange for having any wish granted by magical power. Upon accepting, Duran was immediately transported and gained a unique skill based on his personality and talents.

Unique skills refer to "special superpowers." Unique skills are special powers possessed only by the transported heroes, and they hold potential and strength that cannot be compared to any magical skill.

"Gamer." That is Duran's unique skill. Having acquired this unique skill, Duran was able to decipher the "system" and discern the truth behind the king's words before anyone else.

The purpose of this kingdom was to brainwash the heroes using mind control magic and drugs. They aimed to amplify the naive sense of justice of the transported individuals, creating war machines that would fight eternally without seeking any reward.

The reason dreamy young people were summoned here was likely for that purpose. It was a scheme to exploit their innocent hearts without doubts.

Choosing handsome and beautiful young people was probably to avoid violent individuals who wouldn't listen to reason. They assumed that a reasonably good-looking young person would have received proper education.

'Those useless fools'

This kingdom had its own circumstances for engaging in such acts. However, 80% of it was driven by selfish desires, and even including the remaining 20%, it was still content that seemed irrelevant to Duran.

Duran had no intention of exposing the grim truth hidden in this story.

Because he had his own objectives.

To achieve that, he planned to avoid troublesome matters as much as possible.

"I have no intention of serving this kingdom. But, well, rest assured. As long as you don't get in my way, I won't get in yours either. And, let's see... if I feel like it, I might help with this Demon King subjugation thing."

With that, Duran elegantly left the palace.