Hell Mode: Volume 1, page 31
Krena continued making her way into the house and quickly found Mash in the nursery. Their eyes met.
“K-Krena...?”
“Why are you not coming, Mash? Does your tummy hurt?”
In Krena’s mind, having a stomachache was apparently the only valid reason for not playing knight. Her question invoked a wry smile from Pelomas, who otherwise remained quiet.
“N-No I don’t... But because Allen is gone...”
Even now, Mash seemed on the verge of tears. Unlike Myulla, who was still too young, Mash had gotten very attached to Allen.
“Take up your weapon!” Krena ordered in her knight voice, pointing at the spear-like stick propped up in the corner of the room.
“Huh?”
“Allen wants you to be strong, right?”
“He...does?”
“Yep! He told you to protect Myulla!”
Krena had been there when Allen bid Mash farewell. She knew full well what it was that he had wanted to entrust his younger brother with.
Mash stared at his weapon as he thought back to what Allen had said.
“So, let’s get strong! Take up your weapon!” Krena said one more time.
Mash wiped his tears away with his sleeve and stood up. “Okay!”
From that day onwards, the play knight sessions took place at Mash’s house. The time that had stopped due to Allen’s departure was starting to move once again.
The Legend of Sword Lord Dverg ~Childhood~
Allen’s birth country had a hero known to all as Dverg the Sword Lord. This story is an episode from a few decades ago, back when Dverg, who had been born a serf, was still a child.
“Mother, you’re supposed to take it easy. Don’t get up.”
“I’m so sorry for always leaving you to do everything.”
“Don’t worry about it. Just rest.”
This dilapidated shack was occupied by Dverg and his mother alone. His father had been attacked by monsters and had died several years ago. After that, his mother had pushed herself too hard while raising him on her own and had become bedridden. Now, Dverg was working to support the both of them in spite of his young age.
A serf’s day started early. Dverg would get up at the crack of dawn and head out to the fields. At the time of this story, no one—including himself—knew about him being a Sword Lord. Unlike the age Allen was born into, back during this time, the Appraisal Ceremony was not widely available for everyone.
It was true that Dverg worked in the fields, but his job was more that of an assistant. In the first place, the fields that he worked were neither his nor his mother’s, but their neighbor’s. When his mother had fallen ill, the village chief had confiscated her lands, determining it impossible for a single child to do everything involved with maintaining farmland. Serfs did not own the land they tended, so there was no way for Dverg or his mother to protest the village chief’s decision. Currently, Dverg had a deal with his neighbor who would reward his labor with food.
Dverg was in the middle of a task when a voice suddenly bellowed at him. “Hey! There are weeds here too!”
It was a boy his own age, the son of the man who Dverg was working for. This boy would come over to mess with Dverg every once in a while.
“Okay,” Dverg replied simply before going over to weed the indicated area. He refused to make eye contact and remained silent.
Just as the boy, who was irked at Dverg’s lack of a response, was about to escalate things, his father showed up and said, “Don’t bother him when he’s working. Take care of your own tasks.”
The boy backed off reluctantly with the reprimand. After watching him leave, the man turned toward Dverg and said, “Forget the weeding. I have an errand for you to run.” He handed over a basket, rather large for a child, and told him to exchange the wheat inside for molmo fruits.
All Dverg said was “Yes, sir” before he then turned to head toward the village marketplace, cutting through the fields using the raised footpaths.
Along the way, he bumped into a young girl his age.
“Oh hey, it’s Dverg! Are you on an errand?”
This girl’s name was Clasys. She was the same person who would eventually go on to become Clasys the Saintess. As it happened, Dverg the Sword Lord and Clasys the Saintess had come from the same village.
“Clasys.” That was all Dverg said before walking past her, not bothering to answer her question.
“Huh? What was that? Wait a moment!” Clasys circled around to stand in Dverg’s way.
“What?”
“Where’re you go— Oh, the marketplace, right? In that case, I’m coming with you.”
Dverg walked on, as if wordlessly saying, “Do whatever you want.” Clasys took it as unspoken acceptance and walked beside him with light steps. When they arrived at the marketplace, they parted for a while, with Clasys heading off as Dverg made a beeline for the greengrocer.
“Please exchange all this wheat for molmo.”
The greengrocer shot the shabbily dressed boy a glance before wordlessly proceeding with the trade. When the grocer was finished, Dverg shouldered the basket again and turned around to head back. To his surprise, however, he found Clasys right in front of him, apparently already done with her own shopping.
“Well, let’s go!” Clasys said cheerfully, whirling around to face the road. Unfortunately, she happened to bump into a rough-looking man who had been walking by with a swagger.
“Ah!” she cried as she was sent flying from the collision.
“The fuck? Look where you’re goin’, brat.”
Dverg’s eyes narrowed at the sight of a full-grown man—who was likely one of the hoodlums in the village, based on his getup—hurling abuse at a little girl who was not even ten years old after making her fall down. Before he could do anything else, Dverg wordlessly walked up and positioned himself in between the two, his basket still on his back.
“Huh? The fuck you lookin’ at, kid?!”
The hoodlum flew into a rage from Dverg’s silent glare. He drew the wooden sword on his waist and swung it right at Dverg’s face. A dull smack rang out, drawing the attention of everyone in the marketplace. However, no one stepped up to intervene.
Seeing how Dverg had not backed up even one step from the blow and was still glaring prompted the hoodlum to swing his wooden sword again, this time using all his strength.
At the same moment, Clasys got up and jumped between the two, screaming, “Please stop it!” She kept her eyes tightly closed, waiting for the blow to fall. However, it never did.
“Th-The fuck are you doin’?!”
When Clasys opened her eyes, she saw Dverg holding the hoodlum’s sword with a single hand. The man tried to pull his weapon free, but Dverg remained so firm it was as if he had planted roots into the ground. Just as the man gave it another tug, his face entirely red, Dverg let go, causing him to stumble many steps backwards and fall hard on his rear.
The hoodlum quickly got up and ran away, his face burning from the shame of losing in a bit of tug-of-war to a child in view of so many eyes.
“Are you okay, Dverg?” Clasys asked as she put her hand over Dverg’s cheek. “Heal.”
“Hm? Mm, thank you.” Although he hadn’t even been hurt in the first place, Dverg still thanked Clasys for the healing. He had actually overcome multiple Trials of the Gods already and was much more powerful than any run-of-the-mill hoodlum.
The two youngsters walked off the way they had come, paying no mind to the stares from everyone in the marketplace.
“You’ve gotten better at using Healing Magic.”
“Aww, thanks. Everyone at the church is really good at teaching. I’m working hard so I can heal your mother one day.”
“Thank you.”
“Thank you too.”
Dverg walked a little slower, matching his stride with Clasys’s.
The story of how these two defeated a red dragon and shocked the entire kingdom was still a ways off in the future.
Table of Contents
Cover
Prologue
Chapter 1: I Reincarnated as a Serf
Chapter 2: First Summon
Chapter 3: Krena and Playing Knight
Chapter 4: The Appraisal Ceremony
Chapter 5: Krena vs. Vice-Captain of the Knights
Chapter 6: Incident
Chapter 7: Allen’s Resolve
Chapter 8: Hunting Albaherons
Chapter 9: Dogora, Son of the Weapons Merchant
Chapter 10: Great Boar Hunting
Chapter 11: Rank E Summons
Chapter 12: The Feudal Lord’s Visit
Chapter 13: Setting Off
Side Story: Lakeside
Afterword
Color Illustrations
Bonus Short Stories
About J-Novel Club
Copyright
Sign up for our mailing list at J-Novel Club to hear about new releases!
Newsletter
And you can read the latest chapters (like Vol. 2 of this series!) by becoming a J-Novel Club Member:
J-Novel Club Membership
Copyright
Hell Mode ~ The Hardcore Gamer Dominates in Another World with Garbage Balancing ~ Volume 1
by Hamuo
Translated by Taishi
Edited by Seanna Hundt
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2020 Hamuo
Illustrations © 2020 Mo
Cover illustration by Mo
All rights reserved.
Original Japanese edition published in 2018 by Earth Star Entertainment
This English edition is published by arrangement with Earth Star Entertainment, Tokyo
English translation © 2021 J-Novel Club LLC
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property.
J-Novel Club LLC
j-novel.club
The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.
Ebook edition 1.0: October 2021
Premium E-Book
Hamuo, Hell Mode: Volume 1
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“K-Krena...?”
“Why are you not coming, Mash? Does your tummy hurt?”
In Krena’s mind, having a stomachache was apparently the only valid reason for not playing knight. Her question invoked a wry smile from Pelomas, who otherwise remained quiet.
“N-No I don’t... But because Allen is gone...”
Even now, Mash seemed on the verge of tears. Unlike Myulla, who was still too young, Mash had gotten very attached to Allen.
“Take up your weapon!” Krena ordered in her knight voice, pointing at the spear-like stick propped up in the corner of the room.
“Huh?”
“Allen wants you to be strong, right?”
“He...does?”
“Yep! He told you to protect Myulla!”
Krena had been there when Allen bid Mash farewell. She knew full well what it was that he had wanted to entrust his younger brother with.
Mash stared at his weapon as he thought back to what Allen had said.
“So, let’s get strong! Take up your weapon!” Krena said one more time.
Mash wiped his tears away with his sleeve and stood up. “Okay!”
From that day onwards, the play knight sessions took place at Mash’s house. The time that had stopped due to Allen’s departure was starting to move once again.
The Legend of Sword Lord Dverg ~Childhood~
Allen’s birth country had a hero known to all as Dverg the Sword Lord. This story is an episode from a few decades ago, back when Dverg, who had been born a serf, was still a child.
“Mother, you’re supposed to take it easy. Don’t get up.”
“I’m so sorry for always leaving you to do everything.”
“Don’t worry about it. Just rest.”
This dilapidated shack was occupied by Dverg and his mother alone. His father had been attacked by monsters and had died several years ago. After that, his mother had pushed herself too hard while raising him on her own and had become bedridden. Now, Dverg was working to support the both of them in spite of his young age.
A serf’s day started early. Dverg would get up at the crack of dawn and head out to the fields. At the time of this story, no one—including himself—knew about him being a Sword Lord. Unlike the age Allen was born into, back during this time, the Appraisal Ceremony was not widely available for everyone.
It was true that Dverg worked in the fields, but his job was more that of an assistant. In the first place, the fields that he worked were neither his nor his mother’s, but their neighbor’s. When his mother had fallen ill, the village chief had confiscated her lands, determining it impossible for a single child to do everything involved with maintaining farmland. Serfs did not own the land they tended, so there was no way for Dverg or his mother to protest the village chief’s decision. Currently, Dverg had a deal with his neighbor who would reward his labor with food.
Dverg was in the middle of a task when a voice suddenly bellowed at him. “Hey! There are weeds here too!”
It was a boy his own age, the son of the man who Dverg was working for. This boy would come over to mess with Dverg every once in a while.
“Okay,” Dverg replied simply before going over to weed the indicated area. He refused to make eye contact and remained silent.
Just as the boy, who was irked at Dverg’s lack of a response, was about to escalate things, his father showed up and said, “Don’t bother him when he’s working. Take care of your own tasks.”
The boy backed off reluctantly with the reprimand. After watching him leave, the man turned toward Dverg and said, “Forget the weeding. I have an errand for you to run.” He handed over a basket, rather large for a child, and told him to exchange the wheat inside for molmo fruits.
All Dverg said was “Yes, sir” before he then turned to head toward the village marketplace, cutting through the fields using the raised footpaths.
Along the way, he bumped into a young girl his age.
“Oh hey, it’s Dverg! Are you on an errand?”
This girl’s name was Clasys. She was the same person who would eventually go on to become Clasys the Saintess. As it happened, Dverg the Sword Lord and Clasys the Saintess had come from the same village.
“Clasys.” That was all Dverg said before walking past her, not bothering to answer her question.
“Huh? What was that? Wait a moment!” Clasys circled around to stand in Dverg’s way.
“What?”
“Where’re you go— Oh, the marketplace, right? In that case, I’m coming with you.”
Dverg walked on, as if wordlessly saying, “Do whatever you want.” Clasys took it as unspoken acceptance and walked beside him with light steps. When they arrived at the marketplace, they parted for a while, with Clasys heading off as Dverg made a beeline for the greengrocer.
“Please exchange all this wheat for molmo.”
The greengrocer shot the shabbily dressed boy a glance before wordlessly proceeding with the trade. When the grocer was finished, Dverg shouldered the basket again and turned around to head back. To his surprise, however, he found Clasys right in front of him, apparently already done with her own shopping.
“Well, let’s go!” Clasys said cheerfully, whirling around to face the road. Unfortunately, she happened to bump into a rough-looking man who had been walking by with a swagger.
“Ah!” she cried as she was sent flying from the collision.
“The fuck? Look where you’re goin’, brat.”
Dverg’s eyes narrowed at the sight of a full-grown man—who was likely one of the hoodlums in the village, based on his getup—hurling abuse at a little girl who was not even ten years old after making her fall down. Before he could do anything else, Dverg wordlessly walked up and positioned himself in between the two, his basket still on his back.
“Huh? The fuck you lookin’ at, kid?!”
The hoodlum flew into a rage from Dverg’s silent glare. He drew the wooden sword on his waist and swung it right at Dverg’s face. A dull smack rang out, drawing the attention of everyone in the marketplace. However, no one stepped up to intervene.
Seeing how Dverg had not backed up even one step from the blow and was still glaring prompted the hoodlum to swing his wooden sword again, this time using all his strength.
At the same moment, Clasys got up and jumped between the two, screaming, “Please stop it!” She kept her eyes tightly closed, waiting for the blow to fall. However, it never did.
“Th-The fuck are you doin’?!”
When Clasys opened her eyes, she saw Dverg holding the hoodlum’s sword with a single hand. The man tried to pull his weapon free, but Dverg remained so firm it was as if he had planted roots into the ground. Just as the man gave it another tug, his face entirely red, Dverg let go, causing him to stumble many steps backwards and fall hard on his rear.
The hoodlum quickly got up and ran away, his face burning from the shame of losing in a bit of tug-of-war to a child in view of so many eyes.
“Are you okay, Dverg?” Clasys asked as she put her hand over Dverg’s cheek. “Heal.”
“Hm? Mm, thank you.” Although he hadn’t even been hurt in the first place, Dverg still thanked Clasys for the healing. He had actually overcome multiple Trials of the Gods already and was much more powerful than any run-of-the-mill hoodlum.
The two youngsters walked off the way they had come, paying no mind to the stares from everyone in the marketplace.
“You’ve gotten better at using Healing Magic.”
“Aww, thanks. Everyone at the church is really good at teaching. I’m working hard so I can heal your mother one day.”
“Thank you.”
“Thank you too.”
Dverg walked a little slower, matching his stride with Clasys’s.
The story of how these two defeated a red dragon and shocked the entire kingdom was still a ways off in the future.
Table of Contents
Cover
Prologue
Chapter 1: I Reincarnated as a Serf
Chapter 2: First Summon
Chapter 3: Krena and Playing Knight
Chapter 4: The Appraisal Ceremony
Chapter 5: Krena vs. Vice-Captain of the Knights
Chapter 6: Incident
Chapter 7: Allen’s Resolve
Chapter 8: Hunting Albaherons
Chapter 9: Dogora, Son of the Weapons Merchant
Chapter 10: Great Boar Hunting
Chapter 11: Rank E Summons
Chapter 12: The Feudal Lord’s Visit
Chapter 13: Setting Off
Side Story: Lakeside
Afterword
Color Illustrations
Bonus Short Stories
About J-Novel Club
Copyright
Sign up for our mailing list at J-Novel Club to hear about new releases!
Newsletter
And you can read the latest chapters (like Vol. 2 of this series!) by becoming a J-Novel Club Member:
J-Novel Club Membership
Copyright
Hell Mode ~ The Hardcore Gamer Dominates in Another World with Garbage Balancing ~ Volume 1
by Hamuo
Translated by Taishi
Edited by Seanna Hundt
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2020 Hamuo
Illustrations © 2020 Mo
Cover illustration by Mo
All rights reserved.
Original Japanese edition published in 2018 by Earth Star Entertainment
This English edition is published by arrangement with Earth Star Entertainment, Tokyo
English translation © 2021 J-Novel Club LLC
All rights reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without the permission of the publisher is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property.
J-Novel Club LLC
j-novel.club
The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are not owned by the publisher.
Ebook edition 1.0: October 2021
Premium E-Book
Hamuo, Hell Mode: Volume 1
