Chapter 2, Truth of Character

Authors Notes-

First off, wow, I did not expect this story to get so many followers after only three days. I have no doubt that it has gotten even higher by the time your reading this.

Secondly- RickJA, you and I sir are on the same wavelength as I wrote up to chapter three before posting the first one. You will see what I mean as the story continues.

But otherwise, thank you, God bless, and enjoy the story.


"Greetings heroes!" The king said loudly. We had gotten up not too long ago and eaten breakfast. After that, we had headed to the Throne room to receive our party members and financing. I zoned out again and didn't pay attention to the formality's

"Future Heroes, you may enter." The doors behind us opened and walked in some twelve people. "These people have been gathered from around to land and have chosen who they shall follow." The people walked closer to us and began gravitating towards who they would pick.

"Now, select the hero you shall attend!" I watched them choose and wasn't surprised by the results. Ren had five people, Itsuki had three, and Motoyasu had four. For some reason, Motoyasu's members were all women, a fact that is appearing more obscure to me now that I'm actually watching it in person.

Motoyasu leaned over to me and said, "Damn, I guess you were right about the members."

"Told you."

"Well," The King started, "Even I could not have predicted this." A man standing to the side walked up and began whispering in his ear. His fancy clothes suggested he was some sort of advisor. "I see, it would appear that a rumor has been spread that the Shield Hero knows nothing of our world."

I looked over at the others. They looked at me and nodded. "Guess you were right about this too." Itsuki said.

"Well, what do you have to say Shield Hero?" The King asked.

"Well, I gotta ask who started that rumor because it's blatantly false." The King raised an eyebrow at this. Nobody else noticed but I was looking for some sort of reaction. 'So he was listening. I only guessed on the chatter of the show but it appears to have held true.'

"Secondly, I would like to request additional funds for gear or to hire my own party members in the city. I have no qualms working alone, and I can find a means of fighting, even if all I have is the shield, but to do so I will need a bit more in the ways of money."

The King stroked his beard as if in thought, debating if he should allow it or not. "Very well, I will provide you an additional two hundred silvers to acquire your own followers. But I cannot guarantee it to be easy."

"Not a problem, I thrive in difficult situations."

"Excuse me, if it's alright, I would like to volunteer to accompany the Shield Hero." 'And there it is.'

Looking to find the voice I saw a pale skinned girl with heavy red hair. She wore a simple white shirt with leather armor and a blue skirt. At her hip were a sword and some potions.

'Malty Malromark. So far on track. Let's see if we can't change that.'

"You sure? You seemed rather contempt being in Motoyasu's group only a second ago."

"I'm quite sure. I see now you are a good choice as a hero to follow. My heart simply bled at seeing you all alone."

'Yeah, you're not fooling anyone… I hope.'

Turning to Motoyasu, "You good with this?"

'Help me out here man.'

"Well I was hoping she would stay with me, but I guess I could be cool with it."

'No, no no. You are not cool with this. You are very jealous and want me to be forever alone.'

"Alright, thanks man."

'You will be the death of me.'

We received our money and left for the woods. I decided to go into the city beforehand in order to get some armor. With the addition of Myne to my party, I managed to get a few more coins from the king, a change that worked in my favor. Now I had about nine hundred silver to work with.

I was about to head down the walkway into the city but saw the other three. We wished each other good luck and moved down into the city. The story moved forward as it had originally. Myne began guiding me to an armor shop she said had good items for sale.

We were walking down the street when she spoke up again. "This is the place sir Hero."

'Please drop the sir Hero.'

"Thanks, Myne." Walking in, I was greeted with a quaint shop. Weapon and armor racks lined the sides of the walls and before me was a counter with an older man behind it. He was a simple shirt and his smithing apron. All his hair was on his face in a short spiky beard and a pair of leather gloves adorned his hands. He had a few scars across his head which I never figured out how he got but better not ask for now.

"Welcome. Are you a first-time customer?"

"Yes, sir. Mind if I ask your name?" I said walking up to his desk.

"Well aren't we polite. Names Erhard. What are you looking for?"

"Hoping to get some armor for myself."

"Not any for your companion?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, I would like to know why as well." Myne spoke up.

"We may have been given extra but we still need to recruit others at some point. Besides you already have armor. It's not the most protective, but it'll work for now until we can get ourselves some more. I, on the other hand, don't have my armor."

"Not gonna get a weapon?"

"Can't. The shield doesn't allow me to."

'Please don't ask how I already know that. Still a pain though. I'll need to make one for offense but I can't let her know. Can't show my cards too early.'

"But sir hero. If we spend more on armor now, we'll be able to procure more money easier."

'Hehe, that ain't working here.'

"Maybe, but we won't be going anywhere that'll require anything more than leather. It's best we save it for now and go with what we have for the smaller monsters than using the money we got from there to get better gear and jump to the larger ones."

She looked ready to retort but didn't. Either she gave up or didn't want to give herself up until she had what she wanted.

'Either way, it plays right into my hand so I can't complain.'

"Well, what kind of armor you looking for?"

"Some leather and chainmail would be good. Something that can work well for protection. Also gonna need a pair of pants and some boots."

Looking over the counter, Erhard could see neither my shoes nor shorts were good for combat. My shorts would probably be ripped seeing as the material wasn't built for combat purposes. My shoes were more like sandals as they'd fall apart as well under this kind of stress as well. Not to mention they were at risk of falling off when I was running.

He nodded and went into the back of his shop. A few minutes passed out and he brought out a brown leather jacket, black pants, and a pair of leather boots. He handed them to me and went into one of the changing rooms to put them on. When I walked back out, I was wearing the jacket, boots, and pants Erhard handed me. I still had my backpack with me and had and it strapped over my jacket.

'I'm gonna be so happy when I get something else for armor. This thing actual an eyesore.'

I purchased a few more utility items. A utility knife, work gloves, canvas, and rope that he had laying around. I absorbed the rope into my shield and was happy to see myself obtain the rope shield. Unfortunately, I had not met the level requirements for the Air Strike Shield and wasn't able to use it yet. I looked through some of the shields he had when Myne wasn't looking and copied them for myself. Out the ones I saw, I picked that a tower shield, spiked shield, and dueling shield.

The tower shield was simple, being black iron plates, a rather 'early game' magic alloy, layered and fused with each other with a solid rim. It was large and came above my shoulders. The spiked shield was round, covering my whole forearm and then some, with a large spike at the front of it. The metal was smooth and flat, unlike the tower shields jagged design. The dueling shield was the strangest of them. It was similar to the tower shield, being plates stacked and welded on top of each other but with prongs at the front and back. It was wielded with both hands on a bar behind it as opposed to being strapped to my arm. It lacked the smooth trim in place for sharp edges.

'This is gonna be fun. But I wonder. Is black iron a special alloy or is it iron infused with magic? And if so, can it be turned into steel?'

I pushed those thoughts back for later as I knew I could get my answers later. I looked over to Myne and got her attention. She seemed sower as she was still wearing her leather armor.

"Hey Myne, go ahead and start heading over to the fields. I'll catch up, I just need to finish up paying." She looked like she was about to protest but decided to anyway. As she walked out I immediately brought Erhards close to me. "Listen, I don't have much time, but I need you to hold on to this." I handed him two bags of silvers. The first was his pay, the second was was all my remaining funds.

"This probably doesn't make a whole lot of sense right now, but out of the heroes, I was gifted with knowledge of future events." It sounded better than, 'yah your world was a show I watched for entertainment in my old world. "Tonight, I'll be accused of a crime I didn't commit. I'm trying to prevent that by creating a situation that can't be shifted to appear as I did. This is your pay, plus what I need you to hold onto, since my stuff will be stolen, including this jacket."

He looked like he was about to talk, but I cut him off. "Look, I know that this is very confusing, trust me, I am right there with you, but I have to go. I'll be back later tonight." I left before he could retort. It was probably not the best way, but I'm still figuring this out.

When I walked out, I could just make out Myne heading down the street. I quickly caught up with her and we walked to fields where we would be hunting. When I caught up to her, she asked what else I had to do. I brought up my spike shield, surprising her. She asked how I had gotten it and I told her that there were ways I could obtain shields outside of monster drops. I lied that Erhard being a blacksmith could unlock shields for my use.

When we got to the fields, proceed to try and stab a balloon with the spike on my shield. My original plan was to only get enough to bring me to level two, but upon discovering just how bouncy the damn things were, I realized that wouldn't be something I'd have to pretend to do.

It was only after I had killed the first few that I managed to get the hang of it. When I really started picking up kills was when a whole pack came out and charged me. I ran at them with my spiked shield, wiping out as many as I could.

"Um… Sir Shield Hero…"

I continued to bat them around, taking out as many as I could.

"Sir Shield Hero…!"

Letting out a war cry, I charged a group of red balloons that had joined together and hit all three of them, creating a show of red confetti. I laughed at how well this situation was starting to play out in my favor.

"Sir Shield Hero!" I stopped laughing and looked at Myne confused. "Does that not hurt?"

I blinked and looked down on myself. All on me were the remnants of the pack, biting down trying to hurt me.

But all I felt was some poking from their teeth, not even some added weight.

'Oh yeah, forgot how weak these things were.' I began pulling them off and popping them one by one. By the end of the experience, I had succeeded in becoming level two.

As we were heading back, we took a path that ended up near the forest. As we walked I saw some boars huddling around something. I told Myne to keep on going forward while I tested out how well I could handle larger enemy's.

The hogs were rather big, coming up to just above my knee, and brandishing large, yellow tusk.

I began moving towards the pack before breaking out into a dead sprint at the pack. The pig I was aiming for turned to face me but was met with a spike to the head. The other three quickly turned to face me. I swung my shield in a wide arc and managed to catch a second in the neck. I was too slow to take my shield out and however, and the third charged my leg, knocking me onto my knees.

The boar turned around but I kicked it in the face before it could try anything. The fourth, finally joining, charged. I rolled out of the way. I stood up and changed to my dueling shield. When the pigs charged, I swung my shield in a wide arc and left a deep cut down its whole left side and continued right, hooking the other with a barb at the end.

The first pig fell over dead while the other remained stuck on my shield. I forced my shield forward and pushed the boar off onto its side. Before it could get up, I brought the shield down, impaling its side. It squealed and squirmed for a bit but ultimately fell dead.

'Note to self, dueling shields are awesome.'

I looked back to where they were crowding around. I saw a small pack of wolves and one other dead boar. The wolves numbered about four total. In the center where a few lumps that were still moving.

Quickly moving over, I found three pups still moving. They were bruised and one was bleeding. Looking around, I saw some leaves that looked familiar. Grabbing them and feeding them into my shield, I was gifted with the plant shield. I equipped the shield. It was a large, green leaf, and picked up a few more leaves. The quality of the leaves was enhanced and I put them into my pockets.

Bringing up my list, I brought up the list of ingredients needed for potions that I was given as well. Looking through, I could see that the leafs made the primary part of the potion. All I would need was something to put the liquid.

Moving back over to the wolves, I brought out the tarp in my bag, thankful I had bought it and fashioned a makeshift bag to put the cubs into. I gingerly picked them up and placed them inside. I began moving back down the path, picking up some leaves while I was on the way to make a cup.

I took the leaves and began turning them into the liquid needed for the potion with the help of the compounding shield I received. I began feeding the potion to the cubs and was relieved to see the wounds quickly disappearing.

When I had met back up with Myne, she questioned why I had decided to pick up the wolf cubs. I simply told her I was a dog person and might be able to train the wolves when they grow up. She didn't question any further.

It wasn't long until we found ourselves at an inn. I had placed the wolves in the chair next to me and was giving them parts of the food I had ordered that I knew they could eat. We had ordered a decent meal. It wasn't the cheapest, but it wasn't the most lavish meal. It was still pretty delicious so I wasn't complaining. In front of us was a map that Myne was going over with me. On it was the city and some surrounded villages. I didn't pay attention to much past that as it would still be some time till I ventured past Lute village, a small place not far from the city.

"We were out in the fields over here," she said, pointing to a rather dry area of the map. "Over here is a dungeon that's perfect to leveling up as a starter. We won't get much outside of monster drops, but it'll help us with experience." I nodded at what she was saying. I noted it in the back of my mind since she certainly wasn't going to take me there tomorrow, but I could still use to my advantage.

She looked at me and noticed that I had some bags under my eyes. Truth be told, I hadn't gotten much sleep before coming here, as I had only just finished an engineering project that left myself and the entire class brain dead.

"Shield Hero, you must be tired. Here, have some wine." She said, handing me a glass that was near us.

"No thank you. I've never been a fan of it." I wasn't saying that because I knew what she had planned, I honestly disliked the taste of wine. The alcohol in it always messed with me in ways I didn't like.

She seemed surprised and disappointed.

'Must be too tired with me today to try and convince me.'

I looked down and noticed I had eaten all my food. Before the conversation could continue, I decided to wrap things up early.

"Hey, Myne, I'm gonna head to bed now so we can leave a bit earlier. You good with that?"

I had cut out all the talk of being someone I could rely on and thanking for what she has done for. She nodded with a smile. I smiled back and picked up the bag of wolves before walking up the stairs. When she couldn't see me I took a shaky, deep breath in an attempt to calm myself.

'Time to screw up the timeline.'

Heading to the room, I laid the jacket down on the table. I took my old shoes, jacket, and pants out of my bag. Hesitantly, I put my old shoes and pants on the shelf as well. I put my old jacket on in the place for my chainmail one and slung my backpack over my shoulders. I moved towards the desk and pulled out one of the notebooks in my bag, along with a pencil.

'Have to leave something to make it look less like a setup.'

In all of them were a myriad of scribblings of ideas and designs. The simplest of them was a simple design to print out and use as a stand on my desk. The more complex were concepts I had come up with for a robotic arm and hand. They weren't incredible, given my messy handwriting and those being early designs, but they were fun to do anyway. Out of the four books, two were filled to the brim, one was being worked on, and the last was empty.

Bringing out one I was currently working on, I ripped out the last sheet of paper and began drawing a shield on it. I slipped the note into the jacket and moved the jacket to the shelf.

Feeling like I had left what I needed to, I moved towards the window. Stopping, I looked back at my old clothes and felt some a small tinge of pain. They were some of my only belongings from my old world and leaving them fet like I was separating myself from my home even more. Steeling myself, I opened the window.

'Clothes can be replaced. I'll get more when I return home.'

I stopped where I was at the realization.

'Will I return home?'

Shaking my head, I pushed those thoughts back. Now wasn't the time to think about that. Leaning out the window, I looked around for something sticking out from the building. To my reward, a row of wooden beams jutted from the side of the roof.

Changing to my rope shield, I launched a rope up to one of the pylons. I smiled when I pulled on the rope and felt it was sturdy. Stepping out of the window, I was now standing vertical on the wall, with my back facing the ground and the bag resting on my stomach. I closed the window and began letting out the rope to let myself walk downward. I made sure I was quiet walking down as to not alert any of the other occupants.

When I reached the ground, I changed back to my default shield, letting the rope I used disappear as well. I began making my way to Erhard's shop. When I arrived, I quickly went inside and saw he was at the counter.

His face shifted into a strange mix of surprise, confusion, and expectation.

"Hey, Erhard."

"... Hey Carter… You wanna explain earlier to me?"

'Oh yeah, I did kinda leave him hanging there.'

"Alright man. Look, you remember what I told you earlier right? About me being framed for a crime tonight I didn't commit?"

"Mostly, yes."

"Alright, well the girl that was with me is the one who'll do it. She'll steal all my things, and leave me on my own. There's a lot more I want to tell you, but anything more might mess up the timeline more than I already will." He looked ready to question but closed his mouth before he did. He must've seen the look in my eye. He did it with Naofumi to know he wasn't a rapist, must've worked with me to know I'm telling the truth.

It was then he noticed the bag of dogs under hanging on my shoulder. "I'm a dog person."

He just shrugged, no doubt having heard weirder things today.

"Alright, how can I help."

"I need three things. The first a new set of armor. Preferably more plating and with a cloak. The second in a new shield. Custom made. The last is a metal mask I can use to hide most of my face."

He raised an eyebrow. "You have the money for that? Or was that the money you gave me earlier?"

"The money I gave you earlier."

"I see." He said, pulling out the bag of silvers and placing it onto the counter for me. "Well, wait here, lemme get something that you'll like." He went into the back and pulled out something that I certainly liked.

The armor consisted of leather coverings for my forearms and outer thighs. The smooth, metal chest piece seemed it would fit snugly so it wouldn't move when I was fighting. Its shape was angular and plated. Taking a closer look at the chest piece, I could see the neck piece came up a higher in the front to protect my throat. The cloak he brought out was dark green with a hood that tightened itself to keep from falling off.

"How does this look to you?"

"Looks great. Now for the shield and mask, I have something in mind but I'm not sure how well I can describe it."

"Well, you could come into the back and help me out with both. It's not the first time I've had someone come talking to me about making a shield into something that'll work as more of a weapon. I can work on that while you handle the mask. How high is your smithing?"

Bringing up my stats again to remind myself, I found that my affinity for smithing was above average, being a natural six.

"Natural eight from what I can see. That work for you."

"That's a pretty high natural. You should get the hang right after I teach you basics."

"Alright, sounds good. And thanks man, I really need this help."

"Don't mention it." We headed into the back where we set to work. I first set down stuff on a table by the entrance, along with my jacket. He first taught me the basics of how to forge items. To his credit, I did get the hang of it rather quickly. He set off to work, creating and sculpting the plates and blades needed for the shield. I set to work creating the mask.

We first drew out our designs to best know what we would do and correct anything if we found something that wouldn't work. Erhard, demonstrating his mastery at smithing, pointed out the flaws in mine and to my credit as an engineer, gave him an easier yet stronger internal structure for him to build.

Though as far as help went, his went to me more than mine went to him.

Looking out I could see it past midnight, and we had both made good headway on our respective projects. It was now that cubs had stirred and began howling. Putting down my tools where he had instructed me too, I got up and moved towards the cubs. I began petting the cubs in the hopes of calming them down and keeping them from howling. It was cute to see but distracting to hear when working with metal components.

It was now I realized that I hadn't thought of any names for them. Quickly doing a check, I found the largest one was female, while the two smallest ones were male. I figured that the female must have been older since the males were usually a bit larger. The two brothers weren't the same size either, with one being a bit larger than the other.

"Well, aren't you three just adorable. Now, what am I going to call you three." Looking up at the moon they were howling at, a few names came to mind.

"How about for you, we call you… Luna, and for you two… Phobos and Deimos."

"Those are strange names you got there, kid. Where'd you come up with them?" Erhard asked, taking off his tinted glasses.

"There the names of the three moons of my country. The first is home to the Lunar port for Earth, while the other two are of the Martian colonies." I looked over and saw him entirely confused.

"Mars? Lunar gateway-what are you talking about?"

'...I guess he wouldn't have any idea what I was talking about.'

"Basically, my world never had any magic. So instead, we relied on technology. We advanced so much that your people would think it was magic, or simply impossible. One area we advanced into was space travel and planet colonization. The Lunar gateway is basically the port used by ships when navigating between Earth and Mars or anywhere else for that matter. Mars is the fourth planet in our system by the way. It's not as big as Earth so gravity's a bit funky but it's a pretty cool place. If I remember correctly, not too long ago, one of the Martian factions took over the moons and turned them into military ports."

"Another planet huh." He said looking up at the moon through the window. "Damn, I could only imagine. A new world, new life, seeing something somewhere nobody's ever been. I wonder what it'd be like to take a breath of fresh air there."

"I wouldn't recommend it. Other than humans and drones, Mars and the moon are pretty much desolate. Mars doesn't have a thick atmosphere like Earth so it's been constantly blasted by radiation for past few billion years. Nothing can grow in the soil without it being treated first and the water is frozen solid. With such a thin atmosphere there's really nothing to breathe. Take off the specialized suit needed to survive in either, and your final moments will be quick but utterly torturous. The moon is even worse. Since the gravity's so low, if someone were to take a strong enough jump, you could end up breaking out of the gravity well and end up drifting out into space."

Erhard simply looked at me in disbelief, no doubt surprised at how hostile both environments are.

"Why would someone want to go there!? That sounds like a death sentence kid!"

"Simple, resources. My world is still plentiful with resources, especially after the creation of mantle mining techniques. But there are restrictions. Do too much, and you could affect the whole planet, and not in a good way. Early techniques resulted in the destruction of entire ecosystems that still haven't recovered. Mars, on the other hand, being desolate to start with, has no mining restrictions. For all anyone cares, we could mine the whole planet and nobody would have any real reason outside of the risk bringing that much additional mass near Earth would create."

"The moon, on the other hand, isn't as resource-rich, but it does possess Helium-three, a resource that, while useless to your people, is almost the cornerstone of all our technology." Looking back at him, I could see he was confused. "You remember how I said our technology was incredibly advanced. Well, all of it requires energy or fuel to work. Helium three is the primary component fuel for fusion reactors, our main energy generators. Without energy, our technology would be useless. There are other forms, but they aren't as productive or reliable."

"Oil and coal were the standard for a long time, but some countries like China burned too much and began and made there air sickening to breathe. Clean coal technologies came around and fixed that but our energy needs outgrew how quickly we could pull it out of the ground.

"Other countries swapped to green energy, power generation based on wind, wave, and light, but did so poorly, and when it was still, by all means, unproven technology. They pretty much wrecked there energy grids and spewed out more carbon trying to build all structures and components needed. Even now, it's still unreliable, given how sometimes it'll produce excess and other times not produce anything."

"Nuclear energy was still the safest out of all three, surprisingly, with the fewest number of worker deaths or site failures. Problem is only a few were needed to cause untold damage. Chernobyl, one of these nuclear failures, ended up turning the whole city it was in uninhabitable. People could still venture, but after some time they'd get severe radiation sickness. Only recently has the place been considered safe for humans to live. A second event called Hiroshima leaked radiation into the ocean for almost three decades and destroyed the entire coastal ecosystem near that side of Japan after the water treatment broke and released most of the radiation. Not to mention how easy it is to take uranium, much less plutonium and turn it into a bomb strong enough to wipe an entire city off the face of the Earth."

I looked back and noticed that he was simply staring blankly at me trying to comprehend all that I said.

"Sorry, I guess that was a little much. I tend to go on these long tangents about certain stuff."

"No, it was quite interesting to hear when I could understand what you were saying."

We shared a laugh and before returning to our work.


"And, complete." I said, wiping away no small amount of sweat from my brow. I picked up my mask and was ecstatic with how it turned out. The main-frame was metal that would strap nicely to my face. The inside was done with leather so it was comfortable to wear. The bit over my mouth was solid but extended out to let me breathe without trouble.

Looking out I could see it was now morning. We had pulled an all-nighter constructing both the shield and mask. I showed Erhard the mask I had made and he inspected every detail of it.

"Interesting design. I can't say I've seen anything like it."

"I guess that happens when you come from another world." I said smiling at the approval he had on his face for the object. "Hey, thanks again, man. This is a huge help." I said with weight behind my words.

"Think nothing of it. I see what kind of person you are. You don't deserve to be accused of something you shouldn't. Nobody does." He took the mask behind a tarp he had set up. He had brought the armor and shield behind there are well. His reason was that the shield and armor was "A piece of work that had to be honored in full." He came back out with a smile so big it covered the bags under his eyes.

"Alright Shield Hero, you ready to see it?"

"I've been ready, I'm just been waiting for you to drop the tarp." I said with a smile. I was tired of waiting to see it, though he no doubt noticed how giddy I was to see with.

"And with that I present-" He was cut off the sound of the front door being busted open. We both ran out to the front and saw a group of guards. They immediately pointed their weapons at me.

"Shield Hero, you are under arrest for the accusation of rape!"

"What!" Erhard looked at me surprised to hear it but stepped forward to defend me nonetheless.

'No Erhard, don't do it. You've done your part, let me do mine.'

"Sir, he's been here all night. There's no way he could've done committee" He was cut off by the blunt end of the spear hitting him the stomach.

He fell on his knees, not expecting the blow.

"Bring him as well."

'What!'

"Leave him alone, he hasn't done any-" I was cut off by a strike from the same spearman.

"Take them to the carts."

I look at Erhard apologetically, hoping to convey that I didn't mean for him to get caught up like this. He looked back, seeing the look I had. He gave me one as well, saying he knew I didn't.

They dragged us to the carts and hauled us off to the palace. We were 'escorted' to the Throne room where the King, the other three heroes, a large number of guardsmen, and, behind Motoyasu, was Myne.

"You… DEMON! I knew you would show your true colors!" The King yelled. I was enraged to hear it, but knew it was coming and did my best to reign in anger.

"Your Majesty, I do not know what you are talking about. What am I being brought in here for?" Truth be, I knew what it was, but I had to act the part.

"Myne, my dear. Forgive me, but may you recount your testimony?" The King said to the redhead in question.

She feigned tears behind Motoyasu while acting as if she were incredibly saddened. "Late last night, when we were at the inn, the Shield was drunk. He barged into my room and he… he…"

"There is no need to go any further. He should know now." The King said with disgust.

"Your Majesty, I never did that. I never drank any alcohol last night. I never forced my way into her room."

"Than explain this. Guards! Bring the evidence."

` A guard that was standing to the side stepped forward. He was wearing a mask so I couldn't see his face. "Sir. When we searched the apartment, we found… uh." He stuttered for a second, reaching behind him. "We found this in the Shield heroes room." He held out a pair of women's purple lingerie.

"Sir, I wasn't even at the Inn. I had gone up to my room to sleep, but opted to instead head to the blacksmith to acquire a new shield and supplies we would have needed today! I spent the night there and left some of my belongings in the room!"

"It's true your majesty! I spent that night putting together a new shield for him! He paid handsomely for the construct and even assisted in it himself!"

"And who are you? A demon like him!? A criminal who's sympathetic to the Shield?!"

"No your majesty! I'm blacksmith from the city. The Shield Hero and his companion came into my shop yesterday to buy armor and supplies!" It was now he noticed the jacket on Motoyasu. "Wait, that's the same jacket I sold the Shield Hero yesterday!"

He smiled. "What? This jacket was a present from Myne last night."

"No, he's right. It's mine. I placed a note inside of it so in case it was mixed with others like it, I could tell which was mine. It should be in the inside pocket."

'You dumbass, I told you about that two nights ago! How did you not see it!'

"What note? I found nothing in here that would tell me it was yours!"

'But… How!? I put that note in the-' And there it was.

That look.

That damned look.

Behind Motoyasu was Myne, smiling with her hands beside her face. She pulled down on her right eye and stuck her tongue out. Glancing at Motoyasu, I could see a look of conflicting thoughts going through his head, before ultimately steeling himself.

'He… He saw it… He knows... That… You…!'

'YOU!'

"TRAITOR!" I bellowed. Everyone in the room flinched. Many of the guards stepping back in fear. I shot forward but was caught by a pair of spears blocking my path. I pushed forward, slowly breaking through.

"Draw swords! Subdue the Shield!" Just as I had broken through, I felt something strike the back of my leg. I fell on my knee and was hit by a second blow to my back. Falling on all fours, I tried to ignore the pain. Before I could get back up, my arms were pulled behind me, forcing m face down. I pulled against my captors, who struggled to keep me down, but they ultimately succeeded.

"And what of you 'blacksmith'!? What do you say in your defense!?"

"Your Majesty, I'm telling you, the Shield is-!" He was struck by the blunt end of a sword and restrained in a similar way to me.

"Silence! I will have no more lies in my court!"

"Shield Hero! The crime of rape is severe within this country. Those convicted of attempted action face the death penalty for it!"

"Then why don't you send me already!? Summon another Shield Hero and move on?!"

"As much as it pains me, I cannot. It says that we no knew Heroes may be summoned until the first four have met their end."

'I already knew that but… but…'

I began to slowly chuckle before breaking out into an all-out laugh. "You know I knew this was coming, but holy crap is hearing it even better!"

"What are laughing at!?"

"I'm laughing at you fatass! You want to know the truth. I'll give you the truth. I knew this was coming. I knew this was going to happen. I knew you would set me up. I knew who was a part of this. And I knew who was needed to make it all work." I looked at Myne. "Isn't that right Malty?"

The entire room flinched. "Malty? Her name is Myne!" Yelled Motoyasu.

"No. It isn't." I looked at the king. "You said you want no more lies? Then allow me to clear up a few! Her full name is Malty Melromark, first-born princess to the throne, but decided against in favor for your younger sister Melty on account of big sis being the brat of the family. And you Aultcray. You're a proxy king, married into the royal bloodline by your wife, Queen Mirelia, who'll soon be traveling in order to prevent a war from breaking out on account of you summoning all four of the heroes to Melromark instead of having one hero summoned to each country."

"Using the information I know, I planned, thinking of scenario after scenario in an attempt to prevent this moment or at least end it in my favor. It's why I told the Heroes what would happen. It's why I hoped Motoyasu would keep her as his partner. It's why I never bought the armor Malty requested. It's why I left the Inn right after having dinner from a window in my room in the hopes that the other heroes would know I was in another part of the city, but Malty wouldn't."

"But best of all. I know why you're doing this. After all, daddy's little girl has to have whatever she wants. You were in favor of her as the crown princess but since this country in matrilineal, it was your wife's decision, and she picked Melty over her. At Least that's what it appears to be, but I know the real reason you're doing all this."

I dropped the look of triumph and stared the King right in the eye. "Trust me, man. It doesn't end how you hope it will. Not for you, not for Malty, and certainly not for Melty."

They looked shocked. I had just laid there plans out bear for all to see. But none were as surprised as the king. He looked at me, wide-eyed and conflicted. He rested his hand on his head, looking at the ground, thinking of how to respond.

"I have made my case. I have told you what will happen. Now I ask. What do-"

"SILENCE!" For the second time, everyone in the room flinched. The King stared at me with malice, but I could see a hint of fear in his eyes. "I said I will have no lies! I have heard nothing but from you! I cannot kill you, but that does not mean I can't kill your conspirator."

'My conspira-?oh shit.'

The guard next to Erhard drew his sword. "You shall confess to what you have down or I shall kill the blacksmith." It was now the other heroes spoke up.

"Your Majesty, he's civilian!" Itsuki spoke up.

"Yeah King, don't you think this a bit-"

"Quiet you three! Now confess Demon!"

"I did nothing! I am innocent, and so is he!"

"Lies! Guard, prepare to kill the smith!" The guard lined his weapon with Erhard's neck, preparing to cut his head off.

"King! Think about what you're doing! He's innocent!"

"You continue to!? Kill the smith!" Everyone in the room was now worried. Even Malty appeared to be having second thoughts.

"King, you can't be serious!" Ren yelled.

"Did I waver!? No! Now kill him!" The guard brought his sword up as ready to bring it down. He began to bring down his blade.

"I confess!" The blade stopped mere inches away from Erhard's neck.

"What was that Shield Hero?" The King asked, a deranged smile creeping up on his face.

Grunting with rage "I said 'I confess'. I confess that I forced the blacksmith to lie. I forced him to forge me a shield without payment and threatened his life if he didn't comply."

Erhard looked at me with disbelief. "Kid… You-"

"Quiet. They know now. You don't have to lie anymore."

"I never-"

"I'm sparing your life old man! Now go! You have no reason to be here anymore."

The King waved his hand and the guards dropped Erhard. He got up and looked at me, ready to say something. I didn't look back, too enraged to look up from the floor. He closed his mouth and looked towards the door, running out of the throne room.

"There. You have what you want."

"I do. Now leave. I am sick of your filth in my presence!" The guards released me. I stood up and turned towards the door. I stopped before opening.

"Cowards."

"What was that!?" The King yelled, past the point of reasoning.

"I said," Turning around, my anger resurfacing in full. "Cowards! Each of you three Heros. You knew what I told you. You knew this would happen. And you did nothing! Of course, this won't be your last utter failure."

"What are you talking about!?" Ren shouted, worried by what he was hearing.

"Hehe. Oh, where to start. Outside of the waves, you three cause more deaths than anything else." I was beyond reasonable thinking now. "Ren, you cause a plague that wipes out half a village. Itsuki, you end up taking a district that was going through a famine, and in trying to save them, end up starving them."

"Oh, and how could I forget you two?" I said, looking and the King and Malty. "I'll give two months before your stripped of everything. Of your power, your title, and made an example of to the people." I began turning around to leave, almost forgetting the greatest failure of them all.

"Hey wait!" Motoyasu yelled grabbing my hand.

"And oh, Motoyasu, where to start with you. Shall I start with nearly taxing a town into collapse? Or shall it be when you unleashed a plant monster that almost devours an entire town? Or should it be another one of your many great failures."

"Why you-" He began to thrust his spear forward. I blocked it my shield, now on the left arm, and grabbed him by the throat with my right. Forcing him back and throwing him the ground, I planted my foot on his chest.

"And while we're on the subject, I might as well 'prophesize' a little something else." All humor in my voice had been drained, and all my attention was now focused on Motoyasu. "You will be the weakest of the Heroes. Giving shows of strength but never achieving anything greater." Leaning down and dropping my voice. "I will remember this betrayal. And you will see my wrath for it." I pushed off his chest, leaving him coughing on the ground.

The guards didn't dare step in my way, all of them fearing for their lives. But it wasn't the show that made them afraid. It wasn't the demonstration of strength I possessed. It wasn't the predictions of failure there 'saviors were supposed to be. It wasn't the declaration of revenge that had them scared.

It was that, during my show of rage, my eyes had changed from the soft brown they were, to a dark, sickly green.

None of them left the room in any good health, especially Motoyasu.

And especially Malty.