Some Gifts for the Shield Hero
Chapter Two – Bigot Filled Beginnings
"Oh fuck me. I'm the Shield Hero."
In retrospect, not Naofumi's smartest choice of words. Behind him, the others summoned alongside him were too busy to be amazed to notice what their fellow hero said. Naofumi took a moment to glance at the glowing geometric patterns beneath him, the altar nearby was glowing softly as well. "Desk guy was right. I did get summoned." The world still looked like reality, sans for an easily missed marker at the edge of his vision. "Huh."
The leader in robes continued his approach, still keeping his hands in prayer. "While I'm certain you are all very taken aback by your circumstances, time runs short of all of us." Naofumi's eyes narrowed as he recognized the tactic; strike while they are off guard. Something more likely to make those who you are appealing to more pliable.
"Within our country of Melromarc, " the lead priest continued, "vicious demons in large numbers have crawled out from a materialized dimensional crack, and are exposing everyone to great danger! Our country's knights and adventurers barely managed to eliminate the first wave of demons, but the hourglass is already indicating the next wave of calamities will soon be upon us."
Perhaps it was the ring boosting his wisdom, but Naofumi already had several questions forming, some of them pulled from what he had read in the book before being tugged along twice over. "What hourglass? How did they summon us? Can we go back? And why the fuck was I picked for this?!" He gave a solid tug to the shield attached to him. "And how do I take this shield off?"
The robe wearing crowd was getting more excited, more than one running out of the room. No doubt to carry some message or another. Naofumi was busy keeping an eye on the crowd, the thumb of his right hand idly stroking one of his newly gained rings. "Perhaps... it might be safer letting others do the talking." The current shield hero hadn't forgotten how his book counterpart had been given grief, and judging by the sly sneers he was spotting, he expected to deal with similar troubles.
The other three heroes reacted in a more expected manner, shouting their disbelief in near unison, "What?!"
"To put it simply, due to various circumstances, we were able to summon you brave Heroes through an ancient spell."
"Summoned?" the spear carrier questioned.
The head priest bowed low enough that it was a surprise he didn't tip over, "This world is currently facing a global state of crisis. Brave Ones, please lend us your might."
Naofumi could see the newest sword hero was a little suspicious, "Is that so?"
The Spear Hero was decadently flippant, "Can I just go back to my old world?" He asked, "I already heard this kind of story before."
Naofumi frowned. Either the new spear hero had done this before, or he was a jackass of the lowest caliber. The Bow Hero was silent, perhaps he too was taking a wait and see approach to this.
"Aren't you people guilty over summoning us without our consent?" the sword holder questioned arrogantly, "We won't just fight for world peace and then return to our old world empty handed, right?" The Bow hero started scowling at the robed men."You guys don't seem to take much consideration into our own plans, do you?" The Sword Hero continued, "Depending on what you have to offer, we might end up becoming this world's enemy instead, got it?"
Naofumi scowl deepened. "He learns that he's going to become a mythical hero and he wants payment?" The thought left a bitter taste in the Shield Hero's mouth, "That is just... greedy."
The robed men and the leading priest seemed a little troubled by the Sword Hero's demands. "Well first, I'd like you all to have an audience with the king. We can discuss your reward then." A pair of knights behind the crowd opened a heavy wooden door, before stepping aside to let the four of us through.
"Right." The Spear guy was on his feet and already moving for the door.
"The guy we'll be meeting changes, but I bet the story's still the same." Sword guy complained, but followed.
The Bow carrier still didn't say anything, but followed nonetheless.
As Naofumi walked past, he could hear the lead priest mutter, "...Guess it can't be helped."
It didn't help the Shield Hero's growing sense of unease.
000000
The corridor outside the summoning chamber was long and decorated, with multiple windows letting in a welcome flow of sunshine. Past the thick glass, a medieval looking town stretched out to the horizon. "Definitely a capital city, at least it is pretty to look at." Naofumi thought, too used to the towering buildings and cramped skyline of Japan's clustered cities. "Maybe it won't be so bad here."
The next room was far more decorated. Tapestries, artistic pillars, fluffy rugs, and golden candle holders. A room for luxury or nobility. "Judging by the throne in the room, more likely a smaller audience chamber."
An older man with a long beard and longer hair entered from a side door, he wore flowing robes with jewels sewn into the cloth and a heavy cloak over his shoulders. A golden circlet rested around his head, the window-light in the room reflecting off of the palm-sized ruby in its center. He gave one glance to the four heroes before turning to someone and asking, "Oh, are these fellows the Ancient Heroes?"
It didn't leave that great of an impression.
The newcomer took a seat in the throne, trying to look important. "I am the king of this country, Aultcray. The thirty-second ruler of Melromarc. Brave ones, please raise your heads." the King said pompously.
Naofumi felt a growing need to punch him, and wondered if the others felt the same way.
"Now then, let me explain our situation. This country, and moreover, this whole world is facing its demise." the longer the king spoke, the more it showed how much he liked the sound of his own voice. "Currently, there is a prophesy predicting the world's end. This world will be assaulted by waves of calamity which will one day turn everything to ruin. To save the world, these waves must be repelled before they can be dispersed."
"Oh god dammit." Naofumi cursed in his mind, "He's just repeating what we've already been told!"
"This era marks the prophesied year." The King continued, either ignoring or uncaring of the growing annoyance on the heroes' faces. "There exists a giant, ancient hourglass which continues to drip down ceaselessly. It has the ability to forecast when the waves will arrive and it began its warning a month ago. According to the legends, each wave will come in roughly one month intervals. Initially, the residents of this country were not too concerned over the prophecy. However, as prophesied, when the hourglass had completed its first turn, a wave of disaster occurred."
When the king stopped talking he could finally see the heroes were less enraptured than he would have liked.
Just like before the one with the sword was as sharp and subtle as his weapon, "I understand your dilemma. But who gave you the right to summon us into doing manual labor for free?"
"It is one hell of a convenient story." Spear guy added.
Even the bow hero chose to speak. "... Even if that is the case, and this isn't me being selfish or anything, but if this world is going into ruin then let it be destroyed. This matter doesn't even concern us."
Naofumi really wanted to point out how all three of them were kind of being selfish dicks, but that would mean drawing attention to himself.
"We have no obligation to help you." The sword Hero pointed out, "In the end it'll just be fruitless labor for us. And once peace comes, you guys will just go 'sayonara' as if nothing happened. So to prevent such a sad outcome from occurring, I'd like to hear some form of insurance from you. Surely you have something to present us, right?"
His greed was so obvious Naofumi wasn't sure he would need the wisdom ring to spot it.
The king sent his vassal a glance."Of course, we planned on rewarding the Brave Ones fully for their efforts. I had already made arrangements to aid your cause with money. And surely, since the Brave Heroes will be protecting our world, I have already prepared a fitting place for you Brave Ones to rest."
Naofumi blinked. "Really?"
Spear guy was smiling like an idiot, "Those are all well and good promises then."
The Sword Hero was smirking, but still trying not to look bought. "Don't think that we can be tamed with only this much though. You'll have to continue giving your cooperation if you don't want us to turn rogue."
"... That's right." The Bow Hero added.
"Are you three nothing but treasure seeking jackasses?!" Out of the four of them, the Shield Hero was the only one who seemed capable of acting like a decent person. The book should have prepared him for this, but reading and experiencing are always two different things. "They weren't this bad in the books were they?!"
The king stood, dramatically outstretching his arms. "Well then, Heroes. Let us hear each of your names."
"Uggh, this is definitely going like the book." then the thought struck Naofumi, "Oh shit. That means I'm gonna get accused of rape!"
The arrogant sword hero stepped forward, "My name is Amaki Ren. Age sixteen, a high school student." At a glance, the Sword hero looked like a brown-hair brown-eyed pretty boy stereotype. All he needed to be was a little taller.
The Spear stepped forward, cocky and confidant, "Next up will be yours truly. My name's Kitamura Motoyasu. Twenty-one this year, a university student." Blond hair in a ponytail, and the feel of a playboy.
Naofumi was getting annoyed with the number of pretty boys.
The Bow Hero stepped forward next, and presented himself with a small polite bow. "It's my turn next. My name is Kawasumi Itsuki. Seventeen right now, another high school student." Again, another blond haired pretty boy.
Naofumi was now annoyed and feeling self conscious about his looks. No, he wasn't jealous.
The Shield Hero didn't step forward, nor did he bow. "I'm Iwatani Naofumi. Twenty years old. I'm also a university student."
The King ignored the introduction. Naofumi recognized the snub for what it was. "Crap. I am going to get royally fucked after all."
"Hmm. So your names are Ren, Motoyasu, and Itsuki, yes?" The king's subtlety could be replaced by a world war two sturmtiger with a silencer and still be just as effective.
Naofumi didn't bother correcting him.
"Now then, everyone please confirm your own status." the king requested, "As a matter of fact, I would like you all to visually check for yourselves. "
Motoyasu panicked, "What, how?" they asked.
Itsuki looked at the king and timidly asked for guidance. "How do I check my status?"
Ren was more than a little shocked, "What the hell guys. You guys didn't even notice that much after coming to this world?"
Motoyasu was more than a little chaffed by the question, "How should I know!" he blustered, "What was there for me to notice? Your face?"
Ren cradled his face in his hand, "Whatever, just look. Do you see an icon in the corner of your vision?"
Itsuki was as verbose as ever. "Oh."
"Focus your mind on it and you'll see." Ren instructed.
All of them focused, and before their eyes, the little marker expanded into a screen displaying a summary of information.
[Iwatani Naofumi]
Occupation: Hero of the Shield
Level: 1
Equipment: Small Shield (legendary Armament), Parallel World's Clothes, Ring of Virtuous Good (Epic Accessory), Ring of Universal Energy Immunity (Epic Accessory), Ring of Weaponbreaking (Epic Accessory), Ring of Rapid Healing (Epic Accessory), Ring of Regeneration (Legendary Accessory), Ring of Freedom of Movement (Legendary Accessory), Ring of Sustenance (Legendary Accessory), Ring of Force Shield (Legendary Accessory), Ring of Telekinesis (Legendary Accessory), Ring of Epic Wisdom (Epic Accessory)
Skills: None
Magic: None
The Screen had other details, personal information, even a chart showing the distribution of stats. The Chart showed that both defense and magical power were touching the edge of the chart. No surprise, the attack stat was absolutely abysmal. "How am I supposed to fight if my attack is so low? Am I just supposed to be a support character?" Naofumi dismissed the status, a lump of unease growing in his gut.
"Level 1 huh... this doesn't look very reassuring." Ren's ego and mouth had to be tied together somehow.
"Right, I don't even know if it's possible to fight like this." Motoyasu quipped.
"That's exactly what I thought." Itsuki added.
The king noticed the amazed looks the heroes gave the status screen. "Tools like these don't exist in the Brave Ones' world? This Status magic can be used by everyone in this world, helping to improve ourselves."
Ren tried to play it off, adding to his jackass points. "Is that so? So then, what should we do now? Our current values seem rather troubling."
"From now on, you Brave Heroes will need to venture forth so that you may hone and strengthen both yourselves as well as your legendary armaments."
"Strengthen? Does that mean that our starting equipment isn't strong enough?"
"Yes, the legendary weapon of each summoned Hero has their own special method of enchantment. By doing so they can become very powerful."
"Legend this, legend that." Motoyasu whirled his spear around like a cheerleader spinning a baton. "It's fine not to change weapons as long as it can function properly as a weapon, right?"
Naofumi was getting tired of the less than subtle snubs. It was already tempting to see if he could make any of them eat his shield if it would shut them up.
"That doesn't matter right now, so we can leave it for later. More importantly, what we need is to improve our own abilities, right?" Itsuki questioned. "So are we going to form a party with the four of us?"
"The idea does have some merit..." Naofumi thought, however The king just had to cut in.
"Brave Heroes, please hold for a moment."
"Oh, what now..." Right now Naofumi wanted nothing more than to find some place to kick back and just relax. With all the stress getting piled on, he could feel his temper getting closer to the surface.
"Each of you Brave Heroes will need to recruit your own companions and begin your adventures separately." The king stated.
Naofumi couldn't hold his tongue, "And the reason for that is?"
"According to legend, it's said that the legendary weapons will reject each other should you Brave Heroes band together. The magics of the armaments interfere with the growth of both the owners and the weapons."
"I don't get it," Itsuki replied, "so if we act together we can't increase our power?"
Naofumi's boosted wits were rapidly growing suspicious. "Whatever or whoever made the weapons… What's their game? Why make them grow stronger but interfere? Why do they have all these game mechanics? This feels more like something is trying to force us to move in a specific way."
The Heroes shared an uneasy glance.
Then the screens reappeared, this time showing a message rather than the status screen.
Attention:
If those who possess the legendary weapons worked together on a united front, a repulsing reaction will occur. Therefore, let us move individually as much as possible.
Naofumi's eyes widened. "Us? What does it mean 'Us'? Is this Shield aware?" The message was dismissed like the status, but the feeling of unease it created was harder to banish. "Someone is playing a game with me as one of the pieces."
The King walked before the Heroes, all smiles and cheer. "Between improving ourselves and recruiting comrades. I wonder which should be done first?" He clapped a hand on Ren and Motoyasu's shoulders, smiling at Itsuki, "Allow me to prepare your comrades. At any rate, the sun is already beginning to set. Brave Ones, please take your time and rest for the day. You may depart for your journey tomorrow. During that time I shall make arrangements and scout for talented individuals who can accompany you on your destiny."
The three liked heroes were just as cheerful, thinking how much fun they were going to have. "Thank you very much."
Still ignored and rather thankful his head wasn't stuck up his own ass, Naofumi gave a polite "Thank you." before allowing himself to be led to the rooms prepared by the king.
With each step, Naofumi's mind raced against a clock counting down to his doom. "My teammates are greedy, arrogant jackasses. The King has a grudge against me for some reason. I'm stuck in another world. There is a very high chance I'm gonna get accused of rape. There is a horde of monsters that is going to invade soon." The Shield Hero glanced at the slip of paper, still crushed in his hand. "and all I have to save me is ten rings that do I-don't-know-what, and a Shield."
Naofumi stopped in the middle of a hallway, the men escorting pretended to not notice.
"I really am fucked aren't I?"
