Lion The Great Cleric: Volume 1 (Light Novel)

1. Auflage 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7183-6202-4
Verlag: J-Novel Club
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 250 Seiten

Reihe: The Great Cleric

One moment, a certain salaryman is on cloud nine, that promotion finally within his grasp, and the next, he's keeled over pain, and that was all she wrote. Luckily for him, fate had a bit more to say. A world of magic, monsters, and other such life-shortening entities await his newly reincarnated self for a second shot at life. With nothing but his past-life experiences and sharp business skills to guide him in the foreign lands of Galdardia, he takes up the name Luciel and vows that his (next) demise will be from naught but old age. And what better way to avoid a(nother) gruesome death, than by taking up a nice, cushy job as a healer? But getting by in another world doesn't come easy, or cheap. It'll take a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to hone the skills he needs to make his way. But make it he will...or die (again) trying!

Autoren/Hrsg.

Lion, Broccoli

Weitere Mitwirkende

Sime

Jackson, Matthew

Leseproben

Prologue

Beyond the towering buildings stretched the vast blue sky. When was the last time I’d taken the time to stop and just look up like this? No sooner had those thoughts crossed my mind than searing heat shot through the left side of my chest. I pushed against it with a trembling hand, but the pain did not fade. The warmth of my body proved that I yet lived. However, time did not flinch and my vision started to dim. The world around me faded.

But I had no intention of accepting this reality.

Someone in the past once taught me the words that now rang in my head.

“My goal...is right there... I’m so...close... I’m not about to let a little...bad luck...make me throw in the towel!” I shouted. The burning in my chest began to dissipate.

“I’m not dying...not here... Not until...I get that promotion...”

My sight was still clouded, but surely the pain disappearing meant I would make it. The sky remained an unfocused blur, but that was fine. I was sure of it. It was dire times like these when you needed to smile and push through. That was how I’d made it through life thus far, and that was how I’d keep going now.

I steeled myself and rose up. At that very same moment, my consciousness left me.

When my awareness returned, I found myself in an immaculate white room. Amidst my confusion, a single word surfaced in the back of my mind.

Many of the light novels I’d often read as a student bore a striking resemblance to my current situation. Any normal person would fail to make the connection, but I couldn’t stop the otaku-ness I’d sealed away after becoming an adult from seeping out. Still, reincarnation would mean I was dead. It sure didn’t feel like it, though. In an attempt to find answers, I thought back on the day’s events.

I was in charge of office solutions for a modestly sized company, or, to put it another way, a businessman primarily dealing in office automation equipment. The sweat and tears I’d poured into my job since my late twenties were finally starting to bear fruit right as I entered into my thirties.

“Man, you’ve been on a roll lately. One more push and the target’s met, then that ‘assistant’ chain’s off your ankles. I’ll be honest, I didn’t think you’d make it. All you do is help out the grunts with their own numbers,” the chief director called out to me.

“Oh, hello, director. Actually, I’ve just struck a new deal with a client. I hope I can look forward to drinks if I get that promotion,” I replied.

“You know my wallet’s on a leash and you’re still gonna squeeze me dry, huh? Ahh, whatever. Get going.”

“Yes, sir.”

The director’s wife was an intense woman, but we were once coworkers, so any time he went drinking he’d always call me up.

I waited for the elevator, beaming brighter than the sun. As long as the delivery on this contract happened within the month, my promotion was secure. And this one was big for two reasons.

The first was because I would be able to reach the level of a certain someone. Though our departments differed, there was a colleague I was chasing after. Ever since joining the company, my goal had been to catch up to and surpass this person.

The second reason was that I could then confess my feelings to the woman who had held me up when I lost sight of that. Our friendship spurred me on. Her smile kept me going when I had lost my ambition, so I decided I would tell her how I felt if I should make it up the ladder.

And I had finally made it. I was so close to my goal.

“About the delivery, sir, it should be here next Wednesday. Thank you again for working with us.”

“Likewise. Oh, before you go, you’ll be here the day of the delivery, right?” the president asked, our long acquaintance clear from his friendly demeanor. We went way back to my newbie days and I owed him a lot.

“Of course,” I answered with a smile and a nod. My promotion was thanks to him, after all, so naturally I would be there.

“All right, then could you get in touch with me before you come next week?”

“Will do. You’ll hear from me next Wednesday.”

“Thanks. I’ll see you then.”

Our conversation over with, I left his office.

“Yes! That’s this month’s quota! That promotion’s as good as mine!” I whispered excitedly to myself.

Finally, with my personal target met, it was within my grasp. I was on my way from assistant manager to full-on manager and I knew just the person to share that happiness with. If you’d told me to skip down the corridor, I would’ve obliged right then and there, no questions asked, regardless of the curious eyes around me. Unlike the descending elevator, my mood stayed high as the sky. When I got off, halfway to the exit I noticed my shoelaces had come loose.

“These things just won’t cooperate,” I mumbled as I leaned over to retie them.

Despite that wish of mine, I started off towards my next negotiation and left the building. Then it happened. A dry rattled my eardrums.

“Whoa!”

Whether by reflex or out of shock, my knees gave out and I crumpled to the ground.

“What, am I that much of a scaredy-cat?” I groaned, forcing a smile. A sharp heat pierced the left side of my chest. “Come on, I don’t even smoke. My heart can handle a little jump scare, can’t it?”

My chest ached, but more importantly, I was in public. I had to keep up appearances at least a little bit, so I needed to get away from there.

“Man, my pants have got to be ruined now,” I muttered. I tried to stand, but my legs refused to work. “Did I slip a disk? It doesn’t feel like I did, at least.”

The sound of my own breathing filled my ears to an unusual degree. I looked around.

“Someone call an ambulance!” I heard a voice scream.

Finally, my situation became clear to me. Along with this revelation came a growing chill in my body.

“I’ve worked hard to move up in the world. I’m not dying in a place like this!” I roused my spirit and looked up. Beyond the towering buildings stretched the vast blue sky.

My chest burned, the world dimmed, yet I had no intention of accepting this reality.

“People grow by creating and surpassing their aspirations. Isn’t that right, sir? I’m going to live. I’m going to live and keep rising higher!”

The churning heat in my body suddenly turned cold and the pain vanished.

“I sure acted tough, but so much for not dying. I dead, right?” I said to myself. “I just woke up in this white room, so...I’m dead, aren’t I?” Each time I repeated it, I felt my heart grow heavier.

I couldn’t just sit around feeling sorry for myself, though. I set about taking stock of the situation. The first thing I noticed was my clothing. In place of my suit, I had on some stiff, unfamiliar outfit from a bygone era. My gunshot wound, too, was gone. Various thoughts flooded my mind, but I rejected each one in search of other possibilities. The gears in my head kept turning in spite of my mental disarray. Where was I? What was this place? Who put these clothes on me? Answers soon came in the form of a disembodied voice, echoing inside my head.

“Could you just return me to my original world instead?” I asked.

“Then...where am I being reincarnated to?” I prayed it would be somewhere safe.

“Can I assume it’s the same kind of world?” I probed. If its civilization was on a similar level to that of Earth, chances were there could be somewhere as safe as Japan, or maybe even safer. Reality, however, was never fair and the voice’s answer came as no surprise.

Magic and beasts? That would make it downright fantastical. “That’s certainly a common setting in Japan. You see it in novels, anime, and games, so I’ve been familiar with the concept of such worlds for a while,” I thought aloud. “I even wanted to see one for myself when I was younger, but I’m getting up there in years now. I’m not sure I would enjoy an adventure at my age.”

the voice threatened in a monotonous, inorganic tone.

“I’m very sorry. Please continue.” I lowered my head in apology.

Very much surprised that God (assuming that was who he was) would intimidate me like that, I shifted my...