Chapter 1: Subaru Natsuki: I Came to Another World to Have Fun! (Patreon)

"Ugh, seriously, sales are THIS high? He clearly has the strength but just keeps swallowing the abuse and letting people walk all over him — ugh, I can't take it anymore. Who on earth is reading this garbage? This is straight-up title fraud! The more I read, the angrier I get. Damn it!"

Inside the convenience store, Subaru Natsuki slammed shut the manga volume in his hands — The Shield Hero's Path of Endless Triumph — fuming.

In this manga, the protagonist gets summoned as one of the Four Cardinal Heroes to save another world, only to spend the entire story getting slandered and humiliated. The sheer amount of pointless suffering and idiocy was so much that even Subaru couldn't stand to keep reading.

He agreed that a hero being a good person was the right call, but if you're getting bullied to that extent, shouldn't you just turn around and wreck everyone already?

After all, if you've got more than enough power to handle a crisis and your so-called teammates just keep holding you back and piling on the pressure, you might as well seize the throne yourself and take control of the whole situation!

Having read the manga for free without buying it, Subaru fumed away, unable to stop himself from imagining just how satisfying Shield Hero would be if it were drawn the way he wanted.

No, he really couldn't let this go!

Subaru had already decided he'd go post a comment calling out the author the moment he got home. Just then, his eyes caught something — a batch of notebooks placed right next to the manga section, apparently tied in with a Shield Hero collaboration.

[The Big Dreams Notebook: Write down your grand ambitions for life alongside the Shield Hero!]

Grand ambitions, my ass. "Grand" is getting pushed around day after day even after saving countless lives and winning countless battles for another world — shouldn't his status be sky-high by now instead of getting bullied like this?

Bought it!

Subaru dropped a small fortune on the spot without hesitation. Sure, he'd been skipping school lately and holed up at home as a shut-in, but his allowance from his parents hadn't dried up.

He wasn't buying this notebook to prove how amazing Shield Hero was or anything like that — he just needed to vent the frustration building up inside him.

After checking out, Subaru sat right down at the counter and flipped the notebook open. The very first page was a preface:

[Based on your own abilities and character, speak freely and write down your true, heroic ambitions to compose a bold and magnificent new chapter of your life! This notebook will craft a plan tailored to your goals and help its bearer achieve the perfect life!]

Whoa, talk about dramatic. So over-the-top and edgy — anyone would think this wasn't just an ordinary notebook.

Subaru pursed his lips. Well, whatever. He might only want to laze around and coast through life right now, but why not project himself into Shield Hero's miserable existence for a bit and write down goals way more satisfying than his?

[Playing the fool and hiding your strength is way too much of a hassle. I'm going to become the master of the world — I refuse to be insulted and humiliated for no reason!]

[I want everyone to know how amazing I am, ridiculously amazing, and I want to actually become stronger — more reliable, someone truly powerful that anyone can depend on!]

[I'm going to overthrow that useless, backstabbing emperor who can't tell right from wrong and does nothing but abuse his power all day, and become the ruler of this other world myself — no, if possible, become the king of the entire world!]

[I want the world to be at peace, I want tons and tons of people to be happy — but my contributions absolutely cannot be forgotten. I deserve gratitude that matches everything I've given. I refuse to be treated like an ungrateful wolf!]

[I want to be with every good girl who likes me, and every good girl I like, without leaving a single one out — marry all the good girls and live happily ever after!]

Phew.

Having poured his heart out in one continuous stream, Subaru exhaled, humming with satisfaction and nodding contentedly.

Well, that last one made him feel pretty embarrassed — a harem, seriously... ahem.

Sure, every guy fantasizes about that stuff at some point, but if anyone else found out, it'd be way too mortifying!

Ah, whatever, it wasn't really his own goal anyway — it was just what he wished Shield Hero would change about itself. After all, in that manga, so many girls liked the protagonist, yet he kept pushing every single one of them away like some kind of impotent loser. It drove Subaru up the wall watching that.

Sure, he himself lacked the guts and had never really considered building his own harem, but the idea of giving a manga character a harem? Yeah, he definitely had that idea, and a big one at that.

He tucked the notebook into the bag with his other purchases. Having vented his frustration, Subaru's expression lightened up considerably, and he stepped out of the convenience store humming a little tune.

Clack—

"...Eh?"

Was the outside of the convenience store supposed to look like this?

Unfamiliar buildings, unfamiliar demihumans, unfamiliar Western medieval knights in full armor, and even a massive lizard.

"No, no no no... this has to be an illusion, right?"

Subaru rubbed his eyes with trembling hands, and looked again, but the same scenery remained right where it was. The bustling noise all around him never stopped either, and none of it sounded anything like a language from Earth — yet somehow, inexplicably, he could understand every word.

"So does that mean... could this be... that thing? A summons to another world?!"

Subaru stood there dumbstruck. Was this some kind of joke? He still had the cooking oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar his mom asked him to buy in his shopping bag — couldn't they at least let him drop those off at home first before yanking him into another world?

On reflex, Subaru spun around and dashed into the alley behind him, praying that this exact same path would lead him straight back to the convenience store he'd just left.

But the alley only led deeper into more alleys.

And there, three thugs were whistling at him, closing in with obvious ill intent for a robbery.

"Man, easy marks have been getting scarcer lately. I was just wondering what to do about that."

"If you know what's good for you, hand over your cash quietly and save yourself a beating."

"Those clothes don't look bad either. Let's strip those off him and sell them too."

The men eyeing him with contempt and mockery looked to be around twenty years old, three of them total, their inner rottenness written plainly across their faces.

Before Subaru could even get the word "crap" out of his mouth, a ding sounded by his ear, followed by the fluttering rustle of the notebook flipping open on its own, and lines of text began appearing before his eyes.

[Goals established.]

[One: Become the master of the world, free from all humiliation, ruling over everything and bringing peace and beauty to the world!]

[Two: Grow stronger, become unstoppable, unrivaled and undefeated across the world!]

[Three: Without resorting to coercion, build a super harem full of good girls, all mutually willing!]

[Stage One deployed.]

[A king shall not be insulted, a king shall never stand alone — a king must have power and subordinates. Show off your might as the master of the world, bearer, and subdue these three clowns who dare to challenge your right to be king in one fell swoop, as your first step toward standing atop the world!]