Recourse of the Hated Hero

The Dream that Changed It All

Disclaimer: I don't own Tate no Yuusha no Nariagari.

"Why?" A poor and pitiful doomed man mellowed in his pain from his broken body, broken heart, broken mind and broken soul. He was on a battlefield that was littered with dead bodies, stinking up the air. But he ignored all that for the sight that was in front of him and he couldn't possibly take his eyes off.

Out of the clouds which covered the land and the bodies in darkness, came a leak of moonlight that seemed to have shined on the kneeling man and the three dead bodies he was looking at.

He was a roughly 20 year old young man with black hair and fairly sharp features. He has a rather slim build and a permanent scowl on his face as a result of his mistreatment and cynical outlook on the world. The armor he wears is composed of a black undershirt, green shorts, legwarmers made with cotton along with the gloves and collar, and a silver chest protector over some leather garments. All of it was smeared and covered with blood, either red or black from humans or monsters respectably.

On the ground in front of him were three woman, each with a different appearance and age. The first one was a being that seemed to be a Tanuki demi-human, as shown to have fluffy dog like ears, and averagely sized bushy tail. Her hair was a light yellow-brown and her eyes were as red as autumn leaves. She gives of the appearance of a teenager or young adult that wears clothing much for fitting for a warrior which consists of a hide breastplate, skirt, lace up boots and a pair of gloves.

The second one was more like a little girl that wore a very simple blue outfit that fit her small stature perfectly. She also had untamed and unkempt, wild blonde hair and blue eyes that gave her the impression of a free-going forest girl. But what stood out were the angel-like wings that sprouted from her backside.

Finally, the third woman was between a young girl and an adult woman. She was wearing something of a royal dress, lady-like and fancy. She had blue hair that was kept in a lady-like fashion with white braids. She also had blue eyes.

All of these fine ladies were limp and covered in blood and wounds, like they perished in a gruesome battle. Perhaps that is why this young man kept staring at them with soulless eyes. "Raphtalia, Firo, Melty…why didn't you stay out of danger?" He called every single one by name at a time. "I told you that this was more dangerous than the other waves and I needed to fight it alone. I told you that no one wanted me anymore, I should have died. Why didn't you let me!? WHY!?"
"You…are right…Shield Demon…" Now that was a voice that finally got this man to turn away for once in who knows how long. He saw a repulsive man barley standing with all his bloody wounds. He was a tall man, easily the tallest of all the men visible under the moonlight. He had unkempt blonde hair and amber eyes. And his armor is almost like that of the first young man.

"Can you at least call me by my name if you are going to die, Kitamura Motoyasu? It's Iwatani Naofumi." The first young man, now named Naofumi, said with exhaustion and pain still fresh in his voice.

"After how you let them die, no way." The blonde man, now named Motoyasu, retorted. "Why did Amaki Ren and Kawasumi Itsuki have to die because of your little slip up!?" He pointed to two other bodies in either of his arms. One of them was a lot younger than any of them and had raven hair. His eye color was forgotten and his armor had been nothing but shreds covered in blood as well. The other had blonde hair that can be mistaken for a hay color.

"Because I was going to take care of this Wave until you guys came to mess everything up for the umpteenth time. Trying to look like I was doing it all wrong and look who is about to kick the bucket!" Naofumi seemed to have been exposed to this harsh kind of criticism before. "You always tried to find a way to sleep with a woman and get me treated like a bad guy again! Why can't you be a little more grateful!?"

"To the most pathetic out of the Four Saint Heroes? Never!" Motoyasu protested. "It had been decided by the fates that I deserved to be the most powerful and important of the heroes! Ladies love me and they hate you! A liar and a traitor!"

"It is hard to betray when you already have been. There is barely anything to abandon when everything you had left you high and dry." Naofumi retorted in a sudden clam tone.

"Heh. No one will ever accept someone like you. Why don't you just drop and die at last!?" Motoyasu shouted. But then he closed his mouth and widen his eyes, blood sound sprouted out like a water leak from a broken pipe. "Hrrgh! …no…" Motoyasu muttered before dropping the two bodies of the Four Saint Heroes while his own finally feel like a forgone sack of rotten potatoes.

Now there was nothing left but Naofumi, nothing. There was nothing for him to go to or return to. Nothing to ever possess in what is left of his life. There was nothing for him to do, but scream. And he did, Naofumi of the Four Saint Heroes screamed. He screamed like he tried to shatter the heavens and rock the earth. And it was the only thing he ever did until he lost the only thing left, his voice.

How did all this happen? What could have happened to the most Hated Hero who was doomed to such a life from the start? All the answers were forgotten in history to all but one. The one that is never seen and yet is always around the block and for one doomed hero, it has decided to see how history will change from all this in one certain setting.

XXXXX

"Arrgh!" Naofumi yelled when he erupted awoken from what could be described as some kind of horrible nightmare. One that felt so real since he never even met that woman he was crying over, the girl who can turn into a giant chicken or the princess who was thrown away from her royal family. Naofumi only met the king, the other heroes and the only woman who teamed up with him. "Is she really going to betray me?"

Naofumi turned to see something that made his heart cringed and contract. The bed next to his was empty. But that wasn't the only thing wrong with this room. His supplies, his gear, and all his money is gone!

"She is going to betray me! She is with that idiotic jerk Motoyasu!" Naofumi yelled out in realization that everything he had to experience in that nightmare is something like a foresight. It was going to actually happen! "NO! If it did then I never would've woken up so early in the morning! I am going to make sure that all that will never happen to all of them." Naofumi didn't care if he was waking everyone in the kingdom, he was just too enraged.

The first thing he did was to quietly sneak out of his room and find the room belonging to Motoyasu, there he will find his only 'teammate', the spoiled and manipulative princess that lied her way into Naofumi's under guard in order to frame him. And Naofumi didn't have to search for long, the room was right next door to his; what a way to try and rub salt in the soon-to-be wounds.

Entering it, through the unlocked room, Naofumi saw what he was both hoping to find and praying not to be there. In the same bed, that self-righteous slave the words of slaves was snoozing the night away with the princess in his arms looking really content. 'Bitch. Lousy, stupid bastard.' Naofumi wished to have heat vision in order to burn a hole through their heads.

But he put all those thoughts aside for something that only Naofumi will do in a situation like this. Naofumi ignored the sleeping couple and the young lady in the spare bed for the gear, money and supplies stolen from him. But since no one noticed him, what is to stop Naofumi from stealing it all. 'Not bad for the first step. Now I will love to see how Motoyasu and that bitch will like it when they get robbed. And now the next step…' Naofumi thought with an evil smile and hands dangling over the 'couple' in bed peacefully sleeping, for now.

XXXXX

An hour later, the stage was set,

Naofumi had outfitted a new set of armor to go with his permeant attached shield to his right arm. He was now wearing some of Motoyasu's armor on his shoulders, his entire two legs, his torso and his forearms. On his belt were all the recovery items, bags full of money, and daggers as the only weapons he had carry around for some reason. And above all that was a cloak and hood to cover the entire outfit.

"That should cover it for now. I now need to get all this over with and get out of this rotten kingdom, I am bringing to feel sick already." Naofumi said softly until he left the inn where the Heroes were granted free room and board for one single night on order of the king. It was tempting to stay for free but Naofumi was a much better person than that. "Not in there, or anywhere in this stinky town I am going to stay."

Naofumi finally found the short and twisted looking slave owner that approached him after he was successfully framed for rape in his nightmare. Where Naofumi was only allowed to roam free because if he died, the rest of the heroes will die next. With his only 'partner' out of the question, Naofumi needed a new 'companion'.

The rules stated that is not of a hero to buy and own a slave but Naofumi felt like a pirate, an outlaw that doesn't follow the rules. That is why Naofumi had located the tent with all the slaves inside. "Ah, the Hero of the Shield. What brings you to my humble little establishment? I was under the impression you heroes are against my line of trade." The Slave Trader stated with his ugly smile, "Nice outfit by the way."

"Whatever." Naofumi put that all aside. "I am here because so last minute orders from the king instructed me to leave for the far outskirts of his kingdom. The letter said something about uneasiness in the cities located on the borders of our kingdom. The rest of the Four Saint Heroes are needed here." It was a good thing that Naofumi was a very clever college student before waking up in this medieval style world. He was able to think of a white lie and a cover story as to why he was leaving the town.

"Orders from the king huh? May I see proof of it?" The slave trader had this feeling that there was more to this than what Naofumi is telling him.

"Sorry but what don't know is that orders from the king in those letters are easily stolen. And if they are, then our missions will be in jeopardy. That is why we are instructed to memorize our orders and burn them." Naofumi backed up his story by taking out some paper ash from his pocket. It was a wonder that they didn't cause the rest of her outfit to catch aflame.

"Oh very well." The slave trader bought the story anyways and turned to show Naofumi around once again, not noticing the triumph smirk on the latter's face. "Well here they are, every single subject currently in my possession." The slave trader revealed where he kept the unsold slaves in their cages. But Naofumi had one thing in mind. "IS there something you want in particular?"

"Yes. Do you have a slave who resembles a human girl the best? I have a thing for such slaves." Naofumi said, covering the fact that he was acting on what happened during his dream. The slave trader scathed his chin and then signaled for Naofumi to follow him to one of the cages.

Naofumi smiled to see a very familiar figure. A young girl that was wearing the usual, minimal clothing for a slave complete with chains on her ankles; to keep her from running away too far to be retrieved. "This is the one I am talking about. I will take her." Naofumi said without a second thought, it was exactly like in his dream.

The slave trader then branded her with the symbol that will be Naofumi's mark, proving that she belonged to him. "Her name is Raphtalia, ten years of age. A Tanuki-human hybrid. An orphan. Found her washed up on a shoreline during my travels. She may not seem much but she is tough little brat. She haven't even cried under my discipline." The slave trader revealed the all the detail that he could give.

"Whatever. She is mine and whatever discipline she will receive it will be mine. It will make whatever type of discipline you do seem like child's play. I have no need for a weak slave of her age." Naofumi retorted and then faced Raphtalia. He felt like looking at his wife once again.

That's right, Naofumi remembered everything from his nightmare and there, Raphtalia was one of his wives. And as such, Naofumi felt all the love for her right on the spot even though this is the first time that the actual Raphtalia met him. That fact could break any man's heart but Naofumi wasn't like any man.

"So your name is Raphtalia right?" Naofumi then took it by every step in his dream. The slave girl nodded in the way only a whipped puppy could. Naofumi than took his new slave outside for a little privacy; and the only place was outside the town and in the wilderness. "Now listen up. You belong to me and while you can play, eat, sleep and whatever as you wish, you ultimately do what I tell you to do. Understand?"

"Y-yes master." Raphtalia whimpered and maintained her position as the submissive slave to Naofumi.

"But as my slave, you are more than that. You are my sword since I am merely the shield. I can't wield any blade bigger than a child's wooden sword so all I have are daggers." Raphtalia nodded, "They are just dandy but I need a way of using a sword in battle. You are going to be it." Raphtalia didn't say a word, fearing that she might upset Naofumi if she does. "You are going to be an extension of myself. You are going my sword, my third arm, third leg and my second set of eyes. Understand all of that?"

"E-every word Master." Raphtalia said and Naofumi smiled.

"Very good slave. Now my first command is for you to join me as we train outside the town until the sun rises over the horizon." Naofumi had a plan and he needed to improve his powers in order to complete it.

"A-all n-night…Master? B-but w-why…?" Raphtalia asked in her shy tone and recoiled to brace against any scolding and punishment but none came. She turned to Naofumi in curiosity.

"Yes Raphtalia, all night." Naofumi was smiling! "Evil never sleeps and neither should we so that monsters can never get in while the rest of the idiots back inside are out like lights. We are not going to be welcomed tomorrow morning anyways. Let's make the best of it until we need to leave." Raphtalia was still confused but nodded.

XXXXX

And just like that, the next morning came. And Naofumi was still outside the gates with Raphtalia and they looked worse to wear given that they missed an entire night's worth of sleep. What they were doing instead were toughing themselves out by fighting monsters within a mile's reach nonstop. From Slimes and chomping monsters to full pledge creatures of the undead.

All of it was torture but did show some good results as well. Raphtalia, who used to be too weak to hold up a sword right was finally able to dispatch ten monsters in a row and in a single swipe. Her body was also more mature, slightly muscular and looked healthier. Naofumi never wanted a slave that needed to fight on an empty stomach; he wasn't that type of cruel or unfair.

As for Naofumi himself. He gained various types of shields as he gained more experience points. It turned out that when Raphtalia became his slave, the two were actually sharing their experience points, thus doubling the growth for both of them. As for the results, Naofumi had gotten a huge boost in stats until he was slightly above average. He was amazed by the very rare monster drops which included daggers, money, supplies, food ingredients and items simply to sell. His level increased past the average 10 and slightly over 20.

As for his new shields, that was how he had a greater power than any of the other Heroes because their great treasures are all offensive while Naofumi's powers are more than that. He can now imprison his target, summon ropes, absorb blasts and reflect any and all attacks, share essence with plants, connect with animals and another. A power that Naofumi will definitely use but hope to never again.

"Come on Raphtalia." Naofumi said after his slave finally took a break, enjoy a little nap and some breakfast. "It is time to start getting ready to see the rest of the land and on the run while we are at it." Naofumi said while an evil and cunning smirk on his face, hidden from the clueless Raphtalia who nodded regardless.

End of Chapter 1.

*Wow! Another idea that has been going through my head ever since I started reading the actual series is going to be typed on paper! I can't believe that this happened. I hope it is still good! Have a nice day!*