S.A.O Project Alicization - OC/Male Reader Insert

Project Alicization ----- Chapter Two

July 372 HE, Underworld Human Realm
-----------------------------

Standing atop a rock nearby was a figure with hands on hips and chest puffed out. Eugeo grimaced and muttered, "H-hi, Alice. You're early today."

"I'm not early, I'm exactly on time," the figure snapped in a huff, the long hair on either side of her head throwing off dazzling blond light in the meager dapple that reached through the leaves. The girl leaped nimbly off the rock, her bright blue skirt and white apron flapping in the breeze. She held a large woven basket in her right hand.

The girl's name was Alice Zuberg, and she was the village elder's daughter. She was the same age as Eugeo and Kirito.

Custom in Rulid-in the entire northern territory, in fact-stated that all children in the spring of their tenth year were given a Calling and entered into an apprenticeship for that job. Alice was the sole exception, as she attended school at the church. She was receiving private instruction from Sister Azalia to capitalize on her gift for the sacred arts, which was the most noteworthy of any child in the village, far surpassing Kirito and Eugeo, the only one even slightly comparable would be Shi, but he doesn't have too much experience or even will to learn sacred arts, thus he falls a bit behind.

But Rulid was not a bountiful enough place to allow an eleven-year-old girl to sit around and study all day, even if she was the elder's daughter and had a preternatural gift. Every able-bodied resident needed to work together to combat the Mischief of the Dark God Vecta-drought and flood, pestilence, and anything else that threatened the life of crops or livestock-or there wouldn't be enough to survive the winter.

Eugeo's father, Orick, raised a barley field on cleared forestland to the south of the village that had been in the family for generations. He made a show of being delighted when his third son, Eugeo, was chosen to be a Gigas Cedar carver, but inwardly, he was disappointed. They'd be paid his earnings as a carver from the village treasury, of course, but that didn't make it any easier to replace that extra set of hands to work in the field.

The eldest son of each family typically received the same Calling as his father, with the daughters and further sons of farming families usually following suit. The child of the general store took on the general store, the sons of the men-at-arms grew up to guard the village, and the village elder's child became the new elder. Rulid followed these traditions for centuries after its founding. The adults claimed that this preserved the village and was thanks to the blessings of Stacia, but Eugeo couldn't help but feel something unsatisfying with the explanation.

He couldn't tell if the adults really wanted to grow the village or if they wanted things to stay exactly the same. If they really wanted more farmland, why didn't they just go to the trouble of moving past the accursed tree to the lands farther to the south? But even the village elder, purportedly the wisest of anyone, saw no need to change any of their ancient traditions.

The thing with Rulid is that due to its... 'Lack of wealth', usually the only calling given were the likes of farmer, baker or even miner, but when extraordinary aptitude for a certain skill that isn't completely useless is shown in a kid, he will perhaps be given a calling matching that aptitude. That is why instead of being given something odd, Shi was given the calling of 'Sacred Swordsman'; a rare calling involving the sacred arts and swords.

Back to Rulid, no matter how much time passed, the village was chronically poor, which meant that Alice could study only in the morning, after which she would tend to the livestock and clean the house. Her first task after school was bringing lunch to Eugeo and Kirito.

Alice leaped off the tall rock, basket slung over her arm. Her deep-blue eyes glared at Shi, Eugeo and Kirito, locked in mortal combat on the ground. Eugeo hastily sat up and shook his head before those lips could issue another bolt of lightning.