A hero lived without rest. That was what Princess Eryliana told me upon my first day of training. I was to live for the people, as a symbol of hope for the soldiers who were now battling against the ever encroaching threat of the demon army. Although from what I’ve heard, it seemed more like a swarm of monstrous creatures set to devour Orbiterra and offered what remained to their liege, the Demon King.

  To be honest, this whole thing about me leading the charge with other heroes against a world-level threat sounded very out of reach, especially to me, who’ve been bedridden for my whole life. Sure, I’ve read a lot of those japanese manga and those heroic adventure stories were my favourite, however, to be actually living the life, as I was entrusted with the fate of every single living person in this world … The heart-wrenching anxiety of what would happen if I fail continued to seep in from the day I learnt of my duty.

  This new healthy life of mine was granted thanks to the denizens of Orbiterra, so it should only be fair that I would give something to them in return. With that being said …

  “Uh, I don’t know about this, Princess.”

  “Raise your posture a bit more. The grand ball is happening in four days and we need to get you the most lavish suit money could offer.”

  Back pushed to the brink, waist tightened into oblivion as I was fitted into a corset by two maids savagely pulling the ropes. I knew corsets were a thing for women in the late medieval era, but not for men! Was it really necessary to achieve a perfect waistline when the price to pay was to have my bowels lifted up to my diaphragm?

  “Princess, isn’t this already enough? I don’t think this thing can be—pulled anymore!”

  “No, no, no. I asked for white, gold, and aquamarine. Not white, yellow, and navy. Are you deaf or are you too idiotic to be able to remember a simple request?” Eryliana chastised the now apologetic fabric merchant, ignoring my pleas entirely. “And Bertrand,” she turned toward the Second Butler of the castle. “Have gotten a reply from Dublia & Co. in regards to our tailoring request?”

  “After a few rounds of negotiations, we’ve managed to have your highness’ name be put up on the waiting list,” he answered, candidly. “so long as we send in the fabric and the measurements today.”

  “Then we have to hurry up. Chop, chop, everyone!”

  Apart from a few brutal words, the Princess continued to manage the hectic situation with great calm. Never showing even a hint of stress or anxiety as she gave order after order toward her loyal subordinates, which unfortunately included me as I somehow managed to have my waist be smaller by three centimeters in diameter. Maybe it was due to the system that I felt no pain nor had any troubles breathing, but it did not, however, take away the utter discomfort of this damned overly tight corset.

  And after another grueling hour of fitting, we proceeded with the next item in the itinerary. The white halls of Castle Spinette bloomed in an odyssey of sculpted entwining roses, climbing their way upwards, fighting each other in order to become the glorious sun grasped by the silver hands of Ilhair, the God of the Sky. And outside were a view of the kites of the city racing across the morning sky, followed by a couple of hot air balloons watching over the citizens below.

  “I thought only royalty were allowed to fly balloons,” I said.

  “Before yes, but I’ve since gotten permission from His Majesty to have it be purchasable by both nobles and the military,” the princess answered. “We are one step closer to conquering the skies. Soon it shall no longer be the territory of the dragons alone, and we may yet meet the Skyfaring Father himself.”

  “Fighting dragons … that’s quite the ambition,” I gulped, knowing well about the lengths the princess would put him through in order to get stronger. I could only wish for myself to gain allies, maybe the other heroes, when vanquishing one, as I highly doubt the [Priest] class could solo kill a full adult fire-breathing dragon. Or whatever kind of giant lizard for that matter.

  “And we’re here.”

  The doors swung and we stepped into a high-ceiling room of ivory gold, with chandeliers hanging from one end to the next, and a marble floor glazed to the point where it reflected us and every single piece of furniture inside.

  “This place could fill around a hundred people,” my eyes marveled at the ballroom’s wonders.

  “This is only the second ballroom, for practice purposes.”

  “Just for practicing?!” my jaw dropped.

  “The main ballroom is only open when events are held. It is to preserve the purity of the air, so that once our dancing is to be watched by the Skyfarer’s eyes, as our feet then move more nimble in order to present HIM the most grandest of performances.”

  “So, Ilhair the God of the Sky is also the God of Dance and Theatrics?”

  “Every deity has multiple facets which supplements their inherent aspect. Just as you, Dmitri, are more than simply a brave yet desperate-looking hero.”

  “Hey, who are you calling desperate!” I pouted, as the princess approached me with her hand, hoping for me to take it.

  “Well, shall we dance, good sir,” her expression was sly and bold, clearly enjoying toying around me and my utterly flushed face. Good thing Eryliana didn’t have super-hearing, otherwise she’d instantly hear the rapid beating of my heart, reaching dangerous levels upon me taking her hand to dance.

  That being said, I never learnt how to dance, being bedridden for my entire life and all. Upon the princess taking the lead, I would always find myself stumbling and carefully watching my feet in fear of stepping on them, as we moved from one end of the ballroom to the other in a waltz-like manner. Except different from a waltz was that every tenth movement, we were to let go and clap our hands before quickly returning into motion. For certain, I either mistook the timing or missed the clap entirely.

  I expected some kind of jab or a look of disappointment, yet Princess Eryliana continued to be patient and even went ahead to show me pointers after every few moves or so. Hours turned to days and days turned to a week, and finally I was able to take the lead. My feet and timing may not be as elegant nor perfect as I’d hoped for, but it was a satisfactory grade, so the princess told.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  “Whatever you do, always focus on your partner’s eyes. You still have the tendency to look down.”

  “I doubt I could look into anyone’s eyes but yours,” and right after I said that I immediately covered my mouth and looked away in embarrassment. There was no way I just tried to smoothly flirt with the princess. There was no way! And as the princess approached me closer, I found myself unable to handle her gaze, laying my eyes further down until only her smile was within my field of vision, and within that vision were the exposed part of her chest. The cleavage which looked so cleanly round and squishy sizzled my thoughts on a pan as though a fresh meal was currently in front of me, one which I dared not to lay hands upon.

  Soon though, she backed away and asked for another dance session. I wasn’t sure why she did not say anything. If anything, the closer I looked at her smile, the more it appeared withdrawn like she was simply trying to be polite. Now that I thought about it, I’ve never gotten to know the princess on a personal level. Although the same could be said on her end toward me. The two of us had since been hero and princess, nothing more or less, which kind of frustrated me.

  Perhaps … What if I were to intrude just a little? Would Eryliana be alright with it? Or would that only complicate our relationship, maybe causing a friction which was never there?

  “You seem to have a lot on your mind,” she said, while the two of us continued practicing. “It’s been a whole month since you first came here. Quite an achievement if I say so myself. I understand that being suddenly transported into a different world takes time to get used to, with all the new food, new traditions, new ways of life as well as the dozens of etiquette plays, which I fear you may be in need of for another night course session.”

  “Please, spare me,” I still couldn’t remember how to use each of the five different-sized forks, spoons, and knives on the dining table. “If anything I’m glad to have a great teacher. But surely, you have other things that are way more important to do than

  “You know, royal duties like managing the castle, meeting delegates and those diplomatic stuffs,” I barely knew anything about what a princess would do. Most of the stories I’ve read only glazed at the fact. That or the princess would join the hero’s party and travel alongside him, but Princess Eryliana didn’t seem to be the combat type. My [Appraisal C] skill only revealed her name and class.

  “There’s nothing to be worried about, Dmitri,” she spoke both calmly and clearly. “While my duty as a [Royal] presiding over the Kalmia Church has me be involved in every facet of your training as Pylfur’s hero, my duties as First Princess of the Pylfur Kingdom is more lax. In actuality, it was due to the king’s permission that I am able to stand with you today rather than one of my cousins.”

  “Cousins? I thought the prince’s were your brothers.”

  “Pyfur’s line of succession can be a tad complicated. For starters, the king is not my father. I am an only child and my father was his first cousin. The same goes for the fathers of the second prince, third prince, and fourth prince, which made me also as Pylfur’s only princess. Each [Royal] of Pylfur are permitted to birth only one heir unless they are twins or triplets, in which case special measures are to be placed.”

  “Hold on, you’re saying as if a [Royal] is like a special breed of humans meant to be controlled.”

  “Because we are. I’ve never fully explained what the classes are, have I?” she asked, to which I nodded. “As you know, the classes of Orbiterra have meaning, when upon birth you are able to easily pick up a certain set of skills more so than others. A [Swordsman] is able to wield any blade-type weapon far more easily than a bow, which an [Archer] would have no problems with. They can, but it just isn’t as effective.”

  “But I was able to learn the [Swordsmanship] and [Spearmanship] skills quite easily.”

  “Patience, Dmitri. I’ll get to that soon,” she pressed her finger on my mouth before clapping and we returned to our dance. “Continuing on, the basic class is divided into two types. The warrior-type, which delves into physical combat, and sorcerer-type, which delves into the spell-casting and borrowing power from another source. Classes that in the warrior archetype are [Swordsman], [Spearman], [Archer], [Fighter], and [Defender], while the sorcerer archetype are [Mage] and [Priest]. From there, you can evolve your class into a higher level from basic to intermediate to advanced to expert level and finally to mythical level. You ought to train yourself to that final level if you want to have any hopes to defeat the demon king.”

  “It sounds like a long journey.”

  “It is. That’s why there are only so few in recorded history who’ve reached mythical-level, of which only one, the [Archaic Smith] of Kalizar, still lives. The rest were, unfortunately, defeated by the demon king during the Grand Siege five decades ago. Only their descendants, their apprentices, and their unsung heroic tales remain present to this day.”

  So, even the most powerful of people—real heroes of this world could not defeat the dreaded demon king. Their lives once devoted to the protection of Orbiterra turned out to not be enough. What certainty of victory would I or my future three colleagues have then?

  The dance slowly came to a stop, as the princess now stood before me with a reassuring look. “It’s alright, Dmitri. As one who bears the [Hero] title, your journey is guaranteed to bring victory.”

  “How can you be so sure?” I asked, anxious and worried about the future, my hands instinctively reached for Eryliana's. I quickly put it back. She didn’t seem to have noticed, instead she continued to look at him with both pride and joy, as well as pure unadulterated certainty, which only made me question it even more.

  “[Hero] is a special title,” she started explaining. “and from what I’ve observed, it appears those who are in possession of it are able to acquire any skills they so wished at a faster rate than most. Of course, your pre-determined class would still be at the advantage, so think of it as a permanent buff which allows you to be both a specialist and a jack-of-all trades. In addition to that, well I’ve only heard from historical records, but only a [Hero] is able to vanquish a demon king. You see, the demon king currently threatening our civilization is the fourth. The former three have all been defeated by past otherworldly heroes dating back to 7000 years.”

  That far back, huh … I wondered how they were feeling, those past heroes suddenly brought into another world all to defeat a calamity that would stop at nothing until life was erased from the surface of Orbiterra. Wait, were demons even considered as ‘life’ though? Maybe it would be more accurate to call the demon king as a conqueror pledged to put humanity into extinction. The pressure placed on them … had it always been the same throughout the years until now?

  “Ouch!”

  The princess suddenly flicked my forehead, snapping me back to reality.

  “Try not to think too much about it,” she said. “All you have to do now is focus on the task at hand. Shall we dance again?”

  “Sure,” I grabbed her hand. “Oh, but what about the [Royal] class? Also, I once saw this guy in the halls who has the [Judge] class. Neither of them seem to be combat-oriented.”

  “Other than the basic classes, there are also unique classes, those two included. Some go by the same principle as the basic class, where you attain higher level classes as you progress, while others, like [Royal], are fixed with no predecessor or successor-class in existence. I am to be of [Royal] class until the day I die, but there’s nothing to be sad about that. Having a unique class meant that I have unique skills unattainable by any other.”

  “Like what?”

  Out of the blue, the princess pulled me to her close. My breath stopped, my heart raced as my eyes lay fixated on hers which reflected an eternal blue sky. There was only an inch between our noses and an inch between my chest and hers.

  “Try not to pry too much,” she whispered into my ear, as we started dancing again.

  My mind remained filled with thoughts while we danced, yet the longer we continued, more of those thoughts became dissolved by the rhythm and movement we were performing. It was as if the only thing that mattered on the dance floor was the dancer and their partner.

  Also, what she said was most likely right. As curious as I am about the princess, some cards better remain hidden until the right time.