"How's it goin' dude?"

Some of you may not get the reference.

"Hello" - Words

'Hello' - Thoughts

Hello - Emphasis

Hello - Abilities/Magic spells/Demonic Speech

As always, feel free to review!

"So you're saying you're here to kill me." Naofumi said with crossed arms and raised eyebrows. L'arc nodded, expression much more serious than usual.

"That's right. As far as we're aware, the only way to keep our world alive is for the other worlds to die. We came through one of the Wave rifts to kill the Four Cardinal Heroes, or at least enough of them to make this world fall. When we showed up and heard that the Shield Hero was a demon who raped and enslaved people, I thought my job would be easy." The redhead ran a hand through his hair with a sigh. "I didn't expect you to actually be a decent person and for all of that to be a lie. You really got handed the short end of the stick, huh?"

Naofumi rolled his eyes. "You have absolutely no idea. So, what do we do from here? You're not still planning to kill me, are you?" Raphtalia and Filo flinched as the mens' gazes sharpened momentarily, but they softened just as quickly.

"No, at least not now. Above everything else, my kingdom and my world take priority. If we can find a way to keep both of our worlds alive without tearing each other apart, I'll take it. But if we fail to find a reasonable way to do it..." he trailed off as the mood darkened. "I'll be left with no other choice."

L'arc's carefree attitude returned as he smiled. "Besides, I think a one on one fight between us would be a hell of a lot of fun, don't you think kiddo?" Raphtalia and Therese both let out a sigh of relief.

Naofumi chuckled. "Maybe, but we'll have to wait and see. Once we save both of our worlds and have some peace and quiet, then we can think about duking it out."

"Ha! I'll hold you to that!" the redhead said with a quick bark of laughter. "I can't help but get excited when I fight against someone skilled, you know? There's so much more strategy to it than beating a monster and it gets my blood all fired up!"

The Shield Hero shrugged. "I've only had a few fights like that, so you know better than I do." He turned toward the rest of the group. "What do you guys think we should do? We obviously have to stop the Wave from destroying this place, but what next? How could we stop the Waves themselves?"

Raphtalia put a hand on her chin in thought. "If I remember right, the Four Cardinal Heroes are summoned from another world to help stop the Waves of Calamity. The stories never really tell us how they were supposed to do that, though. They just sort of fought them off, and they obviously never succeeded or we wouldn't be having this problem right now."

"So we're trying to do the impossible..." Therese said softly with sad eyes. "I really don't want to fight all of you, but to think we alone could stop the Waves when nobody could do it before? It seems a little hard to believe." Filo pumped a fist into the air with a bright smile.

"We can always ask the queen or Bird Guy for help!" she exclaimed. Her bright mood was a beacon of light in the room of doubtful expressions. Therese tilted her head to the side.

"Bird guy?" she asked, looking to Raphtalia for clarification. The raccoon chuckled awkwardly.

"He's one of the demi-human councilmen of Siltvelt, and he's a Shusaku. They're basically people with wings that can fly."

Therese and L'arc both 'ooooh'ed in response and intrigue. They didn't have demi-humans like that in their world, so such things were completely new to them. Raphtalia sighed. "Though I'm not sure how much help they'll be in this instance, they're probably our best bet for figuring out whether this is even possible."

L'arc leaned backward with his arm across the back of his chair, a carefree smile on his face. "I don't like the idea of bringing this world's leaders into this. If they figure out that our alternative is to kill you and the other heroes, they might freak out!" he said with a boisterous laugh that made the others sweatdrop.

"You're way too calm about saying that..." Naofumi deadpanned, crossing his arms. "...but I think Raphtalia is right. On our own we may never figure out how to save both of our worlds, but the queen or the council may know something that could point us in the right direction."

Therese turned to her companion. "Well? What do you think is best, L'arc?"

The redhead hummed in thought, tipping his chair backward and letting it sit on its back legs with his feet on the table. "Hmm. I still don't think telling them is a good idea. Besides, if our court mages couldn't find another way, how would these people have anything that could help?"

"My mother knows a lot more than you think!" came the voice of a dark-blue haired girl who stood at the entrance to the room. Naofumi scowled.

"Don't they teach you princesses any manners? Get lost, and forget everything you heard." he said, Raphtalia moving to stand in his path if he got aggressive.

Melty maintained her composure, shutting the door behind her and entering. "If you must know, both my sister and I were taught to behave in a cordial fashion no matter the circumstances."

The Shield Hero scoffed and glared down at her from his standing position. "Tch. Your sister probably failed that class miserably but got passed by your waste bucket of a father for being 'daddy's little princess'." he used a high-pitched tone and air quotes to emphasize the title mockingly. "And you're over here snooping around like a rogue. So much for behaving in a cordial fashion."

The princess's composure faltered and her face burned with indignity. "I-I'll have you know that I was given high marks by my instructors in all of my classes! This is an exception!"

"Oh but it's okay if you make an exception for yourself, gotcha." Naofumi rolled his eyes angrily and grumbled. "Nobles..."

Filo ran up to the girl with a smile. "So you're a princess? Your hair is so pretty!" she exclaimed, completely derailing the conversation.

Whether that was intentional or not was only known by Filo herself.

Melty stuttered a reply at the sudden change in atmosphere. "U-um, thank you..." she said in confusion. "And yes, I met your group earlier this week. I'm Melty Q Melromarc, second princess and heir to the throne." She did a curtsy as she finished her introduction, and Filo's face beamed with a smile.

"I'm Filo!"

The older adults were stunned into silence by the odd introduction, Therese and L'arc going so far as to shrug at one another. The princess glanced at the blonde girl's back in interest. "Filo, how do you have wings?" she asked. "Aren't you human?"

"Nope!" A puff of smoke and she became a full-sized filolial. Melty's eyes shined and her look of amazement made Naofumi raise an eyebrow. "You're a filolial!? But how!? And you're so big and fluffy too!" the girl couldn't contain her excitement. Filo cocked her head to the side.

"Hmm..." she thought with one wing to her beak. "I dunno!" The simple reply didn't deter the bluenette in the slightest.

"D-do you mind if I touch your feathers?" Melty asked hesitantly, her desire not masked at all.

"Sure!"

As the two girls interacted, the adults were busy resuming their own conversation. Therese stood from her seat. "So barring the...interruption," she said after searching for the right term, "do you all agree that we should ask the queen of this country to aid us?"

Naofumi and Raphtalia nodded at each other, and the raccoon's tail swished back and forth. "I don't see why we shouldn't try. What do you think, Master Naofumi?" she asked her master with a smile. He groaned and ran a hand through his hair.

"As much as I hate relying on her, you're right. Without any kind of clue we're basically flying blind. It's almost creepy how much she knows, so she may have something." he said, looking away. Raphtalia smiled at him proudly from beside him.

L'arc hummed in thought before standing up with a relaxed smile. "Well that settles it then. We'll talk to queenie, hopefully figure something out, and I won't have to kill you guys! Sounds like a good plan to me!" he exclaimed with a laugh, as the others sweatdropped. Naofumi on the other hand, scoffed.

"As if you could take me down so easily."

"Wanna bet, kiddo?"

The two women sighed in exasperation as the men squared off with words. Filo and Melty had completely ignored the remainder of the conversation in favor of getting to know each other a bit better.

Sho had been silent the entire time while standing in the corner of the room, observing. His eyes narrowed whenever they landed on the redheaded prince, but he held his tongue. The Chief needed to know about this new development, but for now he would merely watch and learn as much as he could.

This was the son of the man who nearly wiped out the Ghorbash clan, and his family was a threat to every orc in existence. Were it not for his alliance with Naofumi and the demi-humans of Siltvelt, Sho would have ambushed the scythe wielder as soon as the man's guard was down.

He couldn't afford to be careless, though.

'Breathe. Wait, watch, learn. No threat for now, but this alliance...held together with sticks and words. Observe for weaknesses, just in case.'

The group, minus Melty and Filo, met with the queen shortly after. The filolial girl had dragged the princess away from the rest of them, claiming that they were going out to have fun. Naofumi was against leaving Filo alone with someone he didn't trust, but Raphtalia overruled his decision by putting on a too-sweet smile and blatantly ignoring his grumblings as she told the girls to have a good time. Eventually, the man gave up and let them do what they wanted.

Therese barely stifled her giggles at the scene that was not at all unlike a married couple.

Mirellia either had an unusually free schedule or was extremely willing to rearrange her plans on such short notice. Either way, Naofumi couldn't help but be suspicious of the woman who immediately accepted his request and had a room already picked out for their meeting.

Being led once more by the queen's Shadow, Naofumi and co. sat down around a table with the purple haired monarch. Therese was enthralled by the woman's jewelry adorning her clothing, while L'arc was as relaxed as ever. Raphtalia, who had never met the queen in person, was appalled both by the woman's beauty and her mature attitude.

Sho preferred to stand and observe, taking a more neutral stance with crossed arms. He could feel the Shadow not far from him watching his every move, but he trusted his reflexes in the unlikely event he would need to avoid a sneak attack. Knowing more about these humans could greatly benefit the clan, and he needed to know more about his potential ally (or enemy) before making his move.

After a brief explanation of the situation, with Naofumi specifically leaving out the part about L'arc and Therese coming to kill the Cardinal Heroes, the queen was shockingly calm. "So you're saying you're not sure how to save both of our worlds from complete destruction?" she asked, hands clasped together on the table.

The prince waved his hand dismissively. "Pretty much. We found a way to go back and forth using the Waves and that's how we ended up here. From what our historians have translated from ancient texts back home, the way to save the world is to continue defeating the Waves until all of the other worlds fail."

"So it's basically a massive free-for-all with the last one standing being the winner." Naofumi said softly. "As far as we know, you're the only ones who have come to this world so far. But that might not always be the case."

Raphtalia nodded at him. "If you found a way to move between worlds, then others could do the same. We need to be careful or someone may show up from another world and cause trouble."

The queen nodded. "You're absolutely right. If we can negotiate some kind of alliance between worlds or even kingdoms, it could benefit us both greatly."

Therese looked down at her fidgeting hands with a sad expression. "But what if there isn't another way to save our worlds? We don't really want any of them to end, but we want ours to survive as well."

Naofumi smiled at her from across the table. "I don't think anyone wants to die, so we're going to put a stop to the Waves, permanently. We just need some kind of clue to go off of, but we have no idea where to start. We were hoping you'd have an idea."

They looked at Mirellia, who thought for several moments before sighing. "As much as I'd like to assist you, I don't have any information that would be of any real help. The Cardinal Heroes of the past never left behind much of anything, aside from a few loose ends and some border disputes."

"Loose ends?" Raphtalia asked with a flick of her ears. "What are you referring to?"

The queen waved her hand around lazily. "Oh just a few demons, an angry dragon, and a tortoise that's several times the size of Melromarc. All of which were sealed rather than killed. We have to keep the seals under constant surveillance to ensure they're not broken."

L'arc raised an eyebrow as he cleaned out his ear using his pinky finger. "So you're telling me these heroes of the past didn't really fix any of these problems? They just swept 'em under the rug and called it a day?" he asked.

"That's correct, but...what are you getting at?" Mirellia asked, interested.

"Why were they sealed instead of killed? If they were dangerous, it'd make more sense to just kill 'em rather than seal 'em away." The redhead's question made the queen narrow her eyes.

"The demons were all capable of possessing a person and taking control of them completely. Every time the person died, the demon would be freed to take another victim. So we sealed both the demons and their hosts together to prevent the chaos from getting worse." The people present all nodded at the explanation, but their expressions were grim.

"People getting possessed by demons..." Raphtalia murmured, glancing at her master out of the corner of her eyes. He was gently tracing the scar on his face in thought, but was broken from it as she gently laid a hand on his leg in comfort. The two shared a smile.

"That sounds awful..." Therese said softly. "But what about the tortoise or the dragon?"

Mirellia shook her head. "They couldn't possess anyone as far as we knew, but any attempts at stopping them were met with failure. Simply put, they were far too powerful for entire kingdoms to take down even with the Cardinal Heroes on their side. Sealing them away was the only option, and we're not even sure how they managed to do it in the first place."

Naofumi was deep in thought for several seconds before he spoke. "Well I guess that's our only clue to go on. It isn't much, but anything related to the heroes of the past could be our only hint." he turned to Raphtalia who smiled and nodded at him with her tail swishing behind her.

"I think it's worth a try, but we need to be careful. If we unseal these things, it could be a disaster."

Therese and L'arc shared a look and a conversation without words, before they returned their gazes to the rest of the group. "We don't have any legends or crazy rumors like that, so at the very least we can take a look at it and see if it gets us anywhere. Chances are we'll find absolutely nothing." the bluenette said, expression relaxing by the second as a rough plan was formed.

L'arc held his head up with his hands, elbows on the table. "Once the Wave here is over, we'll head back to our world and see if there's anything more we can find. We're not abandoning you guys, but it would be great if you have something for us to work with when we come back."

The queen nodded at him before pulling out her fan and hiding her face behind it slightly. "And how will you know where to find us when you return?"

L'arc chuckled. "Well I could always meet back up at your kingdom and you'll send someone to grab the kiddo and his friends. Sound good to you?" he asked, far too lax for a noble talking about important business.

"That is acceptable. My Shadows are very effective and efficient trackers, so they should be able to locate Lord Naofumi's group with ease..." she gave a slightly pointed look toward the man in question. "Assuming he gives me any sort of notice when he decides to leave."

"Don't count on it. I doubt I'll be staying in Melromarc very often." Naofumi said while crossing his arms. The queen sighed but gave up on trying to persuade him further.

"Very well. I'll have one of my Shadows tailing you pretty much wherever you go outside of my country, then." she said with a smug tone as Naofumi's mood worsened and he scowled a bit. However, he didn't complain about it since there could be a benefit to having a way to contact her if need be.

They quickly departed and went back to training for the next two days before the Wave. The time flew by and what was supposed to be a relaxing trip to an island resort would soon become a deadly battle for survival. As Naofumi and his party mentally prepared themselves, they met at the docks as they were told by the queen.

The armada of warships was already nearby, awaiting the final half hour before the Wave struck. The air was filled with tension as the mob of nondescript adventurers finished their final preparations for the upcoming battle. They were a surprisingly cohesive group in the end, taking the news of a Wave more calmly than most people would in their position. This made planning for who would go on which ship much easier for Mirellia, and although she never mentioned it she appreciated their cooperation and lack of panic.

"Master Naofumi, how do you feel?" Raphtalia asked, walking up beside him as he gazed upon the fleet of ships in the ocean. He sighed.

"About as good as I'll ever be. It feels like we just went through this, probably because we did only a week ago." A flash of a smile before it fell from his face. "The Waves are getting deadlier every time. We need to figure out what we can do, or we're going to lose a lot more people."

"No-foomi." Sho said, garnering their attention. He beat a fist against his chest in a salute. "Happy to fight by your side. Make you proud." The hero nodded and gave the same salute back.

"Likewise. We'll make it through this no matter what."

"Master, how are we supposed to fight while on a boat? There's not enough space for us to move around." Filo asked, shaking her head to fluff her feathers.

Naofumi fully turned toward his group, leaning back against the railing. "Chances are, Ren and the others will be focused on taking down the big guys. Our job is to defend our ship as much as possible, and assist the others if we get a chance. Besides, the creatures will probably come to us, so we won't need to fight in the water."

He jokingly pulled out the Penguin Plush with a smirk that made Raphtalia pale slightly. "And if worst comes to worst, we still have these to breathe underwater."

The raccoon's eye twitched before she huffed. "Master Naofumi, I am never under any circumstances wearing that thing ever again."

"And why not!? It's useful!"

"It looks so...so childish!"

He took a closer look at it before shrugging. "You never cared much about what you were wearing before. Why the sudden change?" He asked, knowingly. If it weren't for the man's smirk, Raphtalia's face would have burned in embarrassment.

However, it still burned in frustration.

"My tastes have simply matured a bit more, that's all." she said with finality, crossing her arms. Her pout subsided as she looked around. "Where are the other three heroes? Weren't they supposed to meet us here?"

Naofumi looked around as well, but saw nobody. The Cardinal Heroes and their party members would be warped to their respective boats when the Wave starts, but everyone else needed to board their vessels beforehand. "Hmm. Now that you mention it, I haven't seen any of them. L'arc and Therese should be commanding a ship of their own, so they're already out there."

He looked to the corner of his vision at the timer which read 00:12:04 and was counting down. "They don't really have to be here when the Wave starts since they'll be warped anyway, but if they're not prepared it won't go well for us."

"That won't be necessary." came the voice of the one-armed swordsman walking down the dock. He now had two party members with him: a short and thin woman with braided purple hair wielding a bow and arrows, as well as a larger man covered from head to toe in heavy armor and wielding a metal hammer and a shield.

Naofumi turned to them with a smile. "Good to see you made it on time, Ren. And it seems like you've found a few new allies as well."

The Sword Hero nodded, hand on the hilt of his sword at his hip. "Yeah. These are Armalis and Jugo, two adventurers who were here for the EXP event. They said they're willing to team up with me for the Wave at least, and we'll see what happens afterward."

Raphtalia sighed in relief. "I'm glad you won't be fighting alone, at least. The Waves are dangerous enough, and we all need someone to watch our backs once the fighting begins."

Armalis, the ranger, gave a lazy salute and a smile. "Or I can just cover everyone's backs at the same time! Easy peasy. Perks of using a bow." she said haughtily as she idly spun an arrow between her fingers. Sho said nothing, but in his own mind the challenge had been issued. Whether the human girl knew about it or not, he would be keeping track of kills when he could.

Ren gave the slightest hint of a smile. "I was lucky to meet them, to be honest. Though..." he trailed off as his eyes wandered to the ocean and he turned green. As he hunched over, the man held his hand over his mouth.

"You okay, Broody? You don't look so good." Filo noted. Her tendency to give people nicknames before truly getting to know them was concerning for Raphtalia, but the raccoon allowed it since it gave her a bit of personality.

The hero had his back rubbed by the armored man beside him. In a tone muffled by his full helmet, he spoke. "Apparently, Ren gets horrible seasickness." Jugo said with a sigh.

"He can't swim, either!" Armalis exclaimed with a laugh. "Can you believe that? A hero who can't even stand the sight of the ocean? Crazy, right?" Naofumi failed to stifle his chuckles, hiding behind his shield out of sympathy. Raphtalia looked at him with concern.

"You...can't swim?" she asked, and Ren managed to shake his head. "You looked fine on our way here, though..."

After gluing his eyes shut for a few seconds, Ren's stomach felt less queasy and he managed to stand on his own. With a few deep breaths, he responded. "I...had a fair bit to drink that night. Alcohol tends to calm my stomach, for some reason."

"Why not drink a bit, then?" Naofumi offered with a shrug. "I actually have some right here-"

"Master Naofumi!" Raphtalia interrupted, slapping his shoulder with a grimace. "What did I tell you about becoming an alcoholic!?"

"It's not even for me!" he whined. Summoning a bottle of liquor from his inventory, Naofumi quickly forced it into the Sword Hero's hands. "Just take it! Drink however much you need and keep the rest for the trip back!"

"I can't believe you just had that on-hand, Master Naofumi!"

"Give it a rest, Raphtalia! I promise that was the only one I had, and it was for emergencies!"

"...Emergencies?" she asked through grit teeth. "What kind of 'emergencies'!?"

"Like this one!" he exclaimed with a roll of his eyes that annoyed the Tanuki even further. He turned to see Ren being force-fed liquor by Armalis who wore a gleeful smirk. "So where the hell are Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dumbass?"

Filo cocked her head to the side. "Master, what's a Tweedle?"

Ren and Naofumi shared a look and both ignored her question as the one-armed man responded. "They should be here any minute now. I saw them on our way here."

The timer was down to the last five minutes before the two remaining heroes arrived. Itsuki still had three companions, and Motoyasu had two. Ren turned to them as they approached. "You're almost late." he said simply.

Once again, the absence of Malty Melromarc was made evident by the lack of clinging and fawning over the man. Naofumi wasn't sure whether to smile or not.

"We had some last minute preparations to finish." Itsuki said, gripping his bow in his hand. "Just don't get in my way once the fighting starts. We all know how that went last time." Most of his party members were indifferent, but one of them, a green haired girl with her hair tied into pigtails, looked nervous enough to pass out.

Motoyasu rolled his eyes. "Yeah right. You're the one who got in my way. If you hadn't missed that woman and almost hit me, I would have taken down a huge chunk of her HP!"

"You probably couldn't have done more than a couple hundred points of damage with stats like yours, Motoyasu." the blond archer shot back, angering the taller man.

"That's bullshit and you know it! My STR stat is almost the same as Ren's, and his is the highest out of all of us!"

Naofumi groaned before mumbling under his breath. "Do we seriously have to deal with this shit?.." Raphtalia gave a sad smile.

"Please just bear with it for now...Once this is over we probably won't have to see them again for quite some time."

"Not if the queen has it her way..."

Ren cleared his throat. "Enough bickering, you two. Are you ready this time? This Wave will probably be just as hard if not worse than the last one." His sharp gaze landed on the Spear Hero. "And we all know what we lost because we weren't taking it seriously."

The blond man scoffed. "As if you're one to talk, Ren! You barely show any emotion at all; I can't tell if you care or not!"

Naofumi smirked and turned away. "You couldn't see someone lying straight to your face, so I'm not surprised that you can't tell." he grumbled under his breath, staring back out to the ocean.

"What was that, you traitor!? I don't want to hear anything from you about lying!" the Spear wielder said, brandishing his weapon and getting into a fighting stance. "Once this Wave is over, I challenge you to a one on one duel! If I win, you go back to prison for the rest of your life where you belong!"

The Shield Hero chuckled darkly, letting out a small piece of his demonic aura that made everyone else shiver. His voice held a double tone that felt threatening. "You'll fail, just like how that bitch failed to have me killed like she wanted. But, you're more than welcome to try. See where that gets you."

Motoyasu saw red, and he lunged at Naofumi who slapped the spear aside with his shield before embedding his fist in the man's gut and causing him to hunch over in pain. "Lord Motoyasu!" one of his companions ran up to check on him. Wincing, the Spear hero glared at the black haired man. "What is your deal!? You rape Myne, break out of jail, and you spit on her memory like some kind of monster!"

Ren was done listening to this.

With a few quick steps, the one-armed man whipped out his sword and held it at Motoyasu's throat. The man's eyes widened as he gazed down the length of the weapon and into the swordsman's cold eyes. "Your entire point is flawed, Motoyasu. I'm certain that Naofumi didn't do anything to Princess Malty. She lied to you."

"But that's impossible! She would never have done something like that!"

"How are you so sure?" Ren's glare sharpened further, making the blond man wince.

"Because...she just wouldn't..!"

"That's not very convincing." Ren pulled the sword away from the man's neck, allowing him to stand. "You told us that everyone else is just an NPC and it doesn't matter what happens to them, but you make an exception for the princess. Why?"

Naofumi snorted with a scowl, looking away and crossing his arms. "I'll tell you why. The guy only has one brain and it's in his pants."

Motoyasu's face burned in anger. "Now you listen here, Naofumi! It doesn't matter if they're NPCs or not, you can't go around treating women like that! Rape and slavery are very serious crimes back in our world, and you can't be allowed to get away with things like that! This isn't some power fantasy where you get revenge for being ignored in our world!"

The oppressive aura coming from Naofumi tripled in intensity, forcing some of the weaker members to their knees. "I listened, so now it's your turn." he summoned the Dark Wolf Greatblade and gently stabbed it into the wood of the docks. "You're so focused on getting women to like you that you have no idea when they're taking advantage of you. You may be dressed in white armor, but you're no knight saving them from the 'Shield Demon'. You're blind and you're an imbecile."

Even Ren was surprised at the massive blade that Naofumi possessed, and the relative ease with which he moved it around. "If you want to hate me for something I didn't do, then fine. Malty Melromarc was a liar and an absolute disgrace of a human being, and I think she got off easy by dying by someone else's hand than mine."

The demonic aura subsided and Naofumi's scarstopped burning red. "Open your eyes and see that lives really are at stake here, innocent lives. Surely you've realized that, even if these people really were NPCs, their lives have value and meaning. You can't tell me that their deaths would mean absolutely nothing to you, because the princess's death has obviously hurt you."

Ren stepped in. "He's right, Motoyasu. Regardless of everything else, the people here should matter to us. We're not here as heroes just to have a fancy title, we're here to save these people." Itsuki flinched at that, clenching his fist around his bow but said nothing.

The timer ran down its final seconds, but before they were teleported away, Naofumi added one last thing. "I don't hate you Motoyasu, but you make it so damn hard to like you."

And with that, the timer hit zero and the sky darkened into a red shade. A bright light encompassed everyone present before they reappeared on their boats along with a mass of crew members. Naofumi and his party would be commanding their own ship along with a small fleet of three other boats, but they all deferred to the queen's command.

Looking around, monsters immediately poured from the cracks in the sky. Sharks and water snakes fell into the depths of the ocean before immediately assaulting the boats. Within seconds the waters were infested with monsters. Naofumi swiped his hand toward the crew members who stood in shock. "Here we go! Everyone get ready!"

The soldiers quickly began dumping barrels into the ocean which floated some distance away. One by one the barrels exploded, creating water geysers from their blasts. Bodies of sharks and other aquatic creatures floated to the surface, dead. Naofumi turned to the soldiers in awe. "What was in those barrels?" he asked.

As the soldier heaved another barrel into the water, he wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. "They're filled with Lucor fruit, which is highly flammable!" the man yelled. Naofumi nodded, drawing his sword and looking at his three companions.

"Alright you guys, our job is to keep the monsters away from the ships however we can. Once the boss shows up, some of us will go after it. If we're lucky, Ren and the others will back us up." Some oversized crows and bats fell through the Wave rifts before swarming at every ship in sight. "Let's go!"

"Yeah!" Raphtalia and Filo responded. Sho grabbed a small handful of arrows, knocking them one at a time and launching them toward the oncoming horde. They screeched as the arrows tore through their wings and they plummeted into the sea where some of the sharks diverted course to feast on their crippled allies.

A few more barrels exploded in the water, and more bodies were visible between the waves. Naofumi dodged the talons of a swooping crow before cleaving it in half with a single swing of his sword. His eyes widened.

'I didn't even put much force behind that swing and it took that thing down in a single hit. Just how much stronger are we?' he thought to himself, bringing up his shield and knocking a bat away. It spasmed from the blow, twitching as it lay on the deck. Naofumi quickly ended its life with a stab of his blade.

"Master Naofumi, look out there!" he turned his head to see Raphtalia pointing toward the horizon. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Sho take down three crows in quick succession with a smirk on his face.

Beneath the waves, a dark shadow could be seen moving quickly toward the fleet. Sweat dripped from his brow as he shouted to the crew. "There's something big down there! Brace yourselves!"

Moments later, the ship rocked dangerously and the muffled sound of splintering wood could be heard as the shadow collided with the ship. The few crew members unlucky enough to have nothing to hold onto were tossed to the deck, and the even less fortunate ones too close to the edge were thrown overboard.

A deep humming could be heard before a massive beam of light shot from the sea, piercing a nearby ship and causing a massive explosion. Shielding his eyes with his arm at the brightness, Naofumi's eyes widened. He turned to Filo, who was busy flying through the air while attacking anything that got too close.

"Filo! That's our cue! Let's get down there and draw its attention away from everyone else!" he yelled. A watersnake lunged at him from the edge of the deck, but was impaled by two arrows directly in the skull.

"Go!" Sho yelled, not wasting a second and resuming his slaughter of the beasts. Naofumi nodded, running toward Filo and jumping onto her back.

"Get us underwater! When we get its attention, get it to chase us and jump as high into the air as you can! None of us can fight it while it's underwater!"

"Got it!"

With a single leap, Filo jumped into the water toward the unknown monstrosity. Naofumi shielded himself with Aura, a skill that he had found sitting literally in the center of town at a small shrine to the Cardinal Heroes. A simple translation was all it took to learn the spell, and Naofumi was surprised at the diverse number of effects it had from defensive boosts to underwater breathing.

The water was surprisingly clear despite the lack of sunlight, revealing the underwater assailant to be some kind of whale with a large horn on its head. Steeling his nerves, Naofumi used an ability that hadn't seen much use. "Hate Reaction!" he cried. A red aura surrounded the creature and it quickly turned a large head to glare in his direction. With a roar muffled by the water, it diverted course to charge directly at him.

It swam much faster than he was prepared for, but Filo reacted quickly enough to start swimming in the opposite direction. The horn on its head was nearly the length of a boat, and its body stretched another boat's length from head to tail. This, coupled with its high speed and long ranged attacks, very clearly made it the boss of the wave.

The queen's boat was marked on the underside for Filo and Naofumi to see, and the filolial swam toward it to give the other heroes a better position to attack from. WIth one more powerful flap of her wings, Filo burst forth from the water and into the air. Only an instant later, a massive splash followed and the beast was revealed for all to see.

Down on the boat, the other heroes attacked. "Meteor Arrow!"

"Meteor Thrust!"

"Meteor Slash!"

The attacks flew toward the whale with destructive power, but didn't even phase the monster as it crashed back into the ocean. The waves from the impact caused the boats to tip dangerously far to the side, and one even fell over into the ocean before sinking.

"Dammit, we didn't even scratch it!" Ren cried, holding himself tightly against the mast of the boat.

"But that's impossible! Those are our strongest skills!"Motoyasu yelled back, spinning his spear and knocking a bat to the ground before stabbing it in the body.

"We had to have done something! We'll try again! Aim for the eyes! It has to have a weak point!" Itsuki shouted as he prepped more arrows.

Naofumi and Filo were still soaring in the air while the boss was stalking them below the water. "Damn, they couldn't do any real damage?" Naofumi said to himself. "There's got to be something else we can do!" He took a deep breath before shouting. "Hate Reaction!"

Another burst of red surrounded the creature, and the hum of energy building at its horn told Naofumi that they would need to dodge. Filo could sense it as well, and after a moment of tense waiting a beam of energy shot into the sky toward them. They nimbly evaded, allowing the laser to pierce the clouds above them.

"Haaaah!"

A battle cry came from below as the beast surfaced, and L'arc could be seen dragging his scythe down the length of the boss's head. Blood spewed from the wound and it roared in pain before diving deep into the water.

"Air Strike Shield!"

A green shield appeared between the man and a nearby boat, and he barely managed to leap from the monster's back in time and onto the shield. With another jump he landed safely on the boat, looking into the sky with a two-finger salute.

"Appreciate it, kiddo!" he shouted.

A few seconds later the boat he was on splintered in half as the boss crashed through it. Both ends of the ship tilted upwards and the crew screamed as they were forced closer and closer to the water.

Filo swooped down before snagging the redheaded prince in her claws and flying to the next available ship. Panting slightly, L'arc chuckled. "Thanks for the lift! You really saved my bacon there!"

Naofumi would have laughed if the situation weren't so serious. "Just keep doing what you did and we'll take this thing down!" They landed on the queen's boat and Filo released L'arc from her grasp. He shook himself off and stretched for a moment.

"Naofumi!" Ren yelled, running up to him. "Throw me that big sword of yours!"

The Shield Hero raised an eyebrow. "Why!?"

"Just do it! I have an idea!"

"Arrgh, fine!" Naofumi did as he was told, summoning the Dark Wolf Greatblade and throwing it to his fellow hero who caught it using his one hand. Electricity burst forth from where his hand touched the handle and Ren winced. The shocks increased in intensity and the black haired man roared.

Suddenly, the sparks turned into flames which licked the wood of the boat's deck. Although he was in horrible pain, Ren continued screaming and held fast to the massive sword. The flames tripled in size and heat, changing from their usual orange to a bright blue, then to a hot white color that forced everyone to shield their eyes lest they be blinded.

Naofumi knew exactly what the man was doing, and he grit his teeth at the brutal reminder of how painful it can be. 'He's trying to use a weapon other than his Sword! But why? Wouldn't it be better if he just-' His mind grinded to a halt.

"Ren! Hold your sword in your mouth and copy it!" he shouted. Without a second hand to hold both swords at the same time, Ren was suddenly incapable of using Weapon Copy. That is, unless he used a rather...unique method.

"What!?" the Sword Hero managed to grind out through grit teeth.

"Just do it!"

Ren stabbed the massive blade into the deck, where it burned the wood around itself. Reaching to his hip, he pulled out the Legendary Sword and grasped the hilt with his teeth. Once again he grabbed the Greatblade's hilt, but this time it did not shock him. Instead, the flames swirled around the weapon like an aura. Closing his eyes, Ren took a deep breath and suddenly the blade in his mouth was a direct copy of the Dark Wolf Greatblade. Despite its incredibly high weight, he held it like it was weightless.

The weapon in his hand crumbled to dust, and the Hero used his now-free hand to grasp the hilt of his new weapon. He was panting slightly from the exertion and residual pain, but his adrenaline along with the liquor he had drank earlier were numbing the stings. "*huff* Thanks! I'll pay you back somehow!" he yelled.

"You'd better! That sword was rare!" Naofumi shouted back, but his face held a small smirk. Their attention was grabbed as a nearby ship was pierced by the boss's laser beam and a hole ripped through the entire rear end of the vessel. "We have to do something about that thing! L'arc, Ren, can you two get any damage in from here if we get it out of the water?"

The prince shook his head. "No can do, kiddo! Long ranged attacks are Therese's specialty, and she's on another boat!"

Ren nodded. "I have a few attacks that might do some serious damage with a sword like this. Its stats are absolutely insane!" His face was serious, however. "But I'll need to be really close for any of them to be useful. Can you hold it out of the water somehow? All I need is a few seconds."

Naofumi hopped back on Filo. "We can think something up. Just be ready to go and even more ready to get off!"

The swordsman hefted his Greatblade over his shoulder using his one arm. "Got it. Good luck!"

"Right! Let's go, Filo!"

"Alright!" the bird replied, leaping back into the water.

The whale's wound on its back oozed blood into the water, darkening the ocean and making it difficult to see. Still, the creature's massive size made it relatively easy to pinpoint its whereabouts. 'One more time! That's all we need!' Naofumi thought. "Hate Reaction!"

The boss was even quicker to speed in their direction, likely angered by its inability to take down a single nuisance. Jaws wide, it rushed at them.

"Now!" Naofumi yelled, and Filo leapt into the air once more. The whale's jaws snapped shut in midair meters behind them, and the hero turned around before sheathing his sword. 'Time for something a little crazy! I have just enough time!'

"Titanic Strength!" Naofumi cried, engulfing himself in a bright red aura. "Alright Filo, let's keep this guy in the air!"

"Right!"

"As source of thy power, I order thee: Decipher the laws of nature and blow my target away! Greater Tornado!" they chanted in unison. A ring of wind raged beneath the boss before extending upward, enveloping it in a massive cyclone. Empowered by both spellcasters and Naofumi's additional attack power from his Titanic Strength, it was enough to slow the beast's descent back to the ocean. It flailed and thrashed against the winds, but was unable to break free.

From their place in the sky, the two could see L'arc jump through the windstorm and onto the whale's back. He swung his scythe in wide arcs, cleaving through its flesh with ease. Ren was still standing on the boat, but his sword was covered in raging white energy and his body was sparking with white flames. In an instant, he leapt off of the deck and toward the boss.

"Eat this! Heaven Splitter!"

With a quadruple front flip to build momentum, the swordsman brought his weapon down onto the whale's body. Upon impact, the beast's thrashing immediately halted as a flaming stream of energy erupted from the man's blade and cut right through completely. The force from both the blow and the cyclone kicked up massive waves in the ocean, capsizing multiple boats and damaging others. The wind roared in Naofumi's ears, and the air itself thrummed with power.

After a few moments, the windstorm died down and the whale's body fell into the water before separating into two pieces down the center. Red-dyed water began spreading from its body with disgusting squirting sounds from the massive wound. However, the Wave wasn't over.

Naofumi and Filo landed back on the boat beside the others and he turned toward Ren in surprise. "What in the world was that, Ren? I didn't know you had an attack like that!"

The man, who was drenched in water and blood, was laying down on the deck shivering and terrified. "I-I used some of the d-dragon's power, but it makes everything so c-c-cold!" Ren said, huddling in on himself for warmth. "A-and I didn't have a plan to get back to the boat afterward! I thought I was going to drown!" Although the alcohol had temporarily negated his sea sickness, it obviously didn't extend to improving his lack of swimming skills.

L'arc shook his head to rid the water from his hair. "You're lucky I was there to drag you back, eh?" he said with a smile. "Must be hard to swim with a sword that big and only one arm, haha!" he laughed, heaving his scythe onto his shoulder. Ren merely glared at him half-heartedly with more shivering. Jugo came and dropped a blanket over him in silence, which the hero clutched tightly to himself.

Naofumi sweatdropped. "For a hero, that's so...undignified." he said, before looking upward. "The Wave isn't finished yet, so we should be on our guard."

"Nah, we'll be fine..." L'arc said casually, before a figure dropped from the sky onto the deck. "...Probably." he added.

The woman was dressed in a black kimono with long black hair and a ghostly white skin tone. If it weren't for her piercing red eyes, Naofumi would have thought she belonged in a traditional Japanese setting. "L'arc, what do you think you're doing?" she asked, coldly.

"That's her!" Motoyasu stepped forward unsteadily, face looking pale. "She's the one who took down Myne and the others!" His anger was starting to override his own sea sickness, and he roared before charging and stabbing at her. His attack was effortlessly batted aside by the metal fan in her hand, and she used her other hand to push on his chest. Despite the lack of force she put into it, the attack sent the man flying backward into the mast of the ship with a loud crash.

"Be silent, fool. The adults are talking." she said before turning back to the redheaded prince. "Now then, care to explain your plan?"

Naofumi was on his guard, and Ren managed to stand to his feet shakily. L'arc cracked his neck using his hand, and he let out a relieved sigh. *Pop* "Ahh, that felt good. How's it goin' Glass? You're a bit out of the loop, but basically we're helping each other now."

The woman now known as Glass glared at him. "This world is doomed, L'arc. These heroes are all failures and will not survive the Waves as long as we will. There is no benefit to us in aiding them."

The redhead clicked his tongue. "Now now Glass, don't be so rude to someone you've never met! Naofumi here is a hell of a fighter, and Ren helped take out the boss here! You saw it with your own eyes!" He angled his head over his shoulder to look at Motoyasu, who was being helped to his feet by Itsuki. He sweatdropped. "Can't say much about those two, though..."

"Defeating a monster like that is child's play, L'arc. You wouldn't even need half of your strength to take it down with ease."

Naofumi looked at the prince in surprise. "You were just playing around with it the whole time!?" he asked, gritting his teeth in frustration. "Peoples' lives were on the line, L'arc!"

The scythe-wielder gave an unapologetic smile and a shrug. "Hey, I had to judge whether you were worth helping somehow. If you guys couldn't take something like that down on your own, this world would fall to the Waves too quickly for us to even find a way to save the others."

Although he understood the man's reasoning, Naofumi groaned and facepalmed. "Jeez...At least be a little remorseful for it..." he said. L'arc merely laughed at him and patted him on the back.

"Aww, c'mon kiddo! You guys did great! Nothing to worry about!"

Glass stepped forward until she stood a few meters in front of them. From this distance her ghostly pale skin was even more pronounced. "Don't be foolish. Even if they could take down a monster as weak as that, it would only make them more dangerous to our cause. What you're doing is treason, Prince Berg."

He chuckled. "Don't be like that, Glass! You know as well as I do that there's no guarantee the heroes of any other worlds are weak too. We can't be naive enough to believe that we'll outlast them all, so we're looking for another solution."

Naofumi was still gripping his sword loosely, but he was prepared to fight if necessary. "We're trying to stop the Waves from happening without any of our worlds being killed off. If it sounds ridiculous and impossible, then good." he smirked as Glass's expression became mildly intrigued. "For whatever reason, beating the odds is a talent of mine."

She scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "Bravado is just arrogance if you can't back it up."

The hero took a step forward. "Want to put that to the test, then? I already know that you guys will leave once the Wave is over, so now's your chance." he said, gripping his sword tighter. L'arc stepped between them while waving his hands.

"No no, don't do that!" he exclaimed, getting close to Naofumi and whispering. "She's crazy when it comes to fighting strong people, even more than me! Besides, I called first dibs on fighting you!"

The black haired woman deadpanned. "I can clearly hear you..." she said. Naofumi sweatdropped as he nudged the taller man away.

"Listen, I get it. We all just want to survive, but going after each other's throat isn't helping any of us. If we work together, there's at least a slim chance that we'll succeed." he said. "I'm just here to save as many people as I can and be powerful enough to keep them safe. From the Waves, from corruption, and if I have to, from all of you."

The woman cracked a thin smile. "Well you certainly have the tongue of a hero, but we'll see if you follow through on that. Stronger men than you have tried to do the same thing and failed." She closed her eyes with a quiet sigh. "But if the prince believes you can be trusted, I have no reason to object to his judgment. However..." her eyes reopened and fixed themselves on the Spear and Bow heroes.

"These two are liabilities. As such, I will be eliminating them."

Ren stood beside Naofumi, blocking her path to the others. "I won't let you kill them. You already defeated us once and it cost us all dearly, but I will not allow myself to fail my allies again."

"Even without one of your arms, you believe you're capable of protecting your world?" Glass asked, drawing her fans. "Surely you haven't changed much in the past week."

"I've learned a lot, actually. Naofumi taught me that there's way more to this than I had believed, and he opened my eyes to reality." Ren said, looking down for a moment before raising his head to lock eyes with Glass. "I'd sacrifice my other arm if it meant keeping someone I care about safe."

Her gaze hardened. "If you have truly become as wise as you try to sound, you would step aside so I can cut these weights off of your back."

Ren stood firm, drawing his weapon and holding it out in front of him. "No. I won't back down, whether you're an ally or not. They may be blind like I was before, but they don't deserve to die. Isn't that right, Naofumi?" he asked, turning to see the Shield hero averting his gaze with arms crossed.

"Honestly? I don't care much about the two of them personally." he admitted to no one's surprise. "Motoyasu especially. If it wouldn't put the world's future at risk, I'd let you beat him senseless without a second thought. But because it would, I'll have to stand in your way." he said, switching to his Stone Titan Shield.

"She's the one who killed Myne, though! We can't be allies with her! Never!" the Spear hero announced. "You guys must be crazy if you think we could team up with her!"

Itsuki drew an arrow and knocked in on his bow. "Move aside, you two! Murderers like her need to be punished! She isn't even sorry for what she did!" The green haired companion from earlier was huddled on the corner of the deck, making a whimpering noise that sounded like 'fueeeh'.

Naofumi turned toward the woman. "So, what's it gonna be?" he asked. Glass closed her eyes and expanded the fans in her hands, gathering energy for a moment. With a bright flash, her eyes shot open.

"Zero Stance Rondo: Reverse Four Seasons!" she cried, swiping her fans repeatedly and causing thin shockwaves of energy to slice through the air toward them.

"Shield Prison!"

With a cry, Naofumi covered himself and the other Cardinal Heroes in a ball of green metal plates. The impacts from Glass's attack shook the barrier, but it held. After a few seconds they stopped, and he released the ability.

"So you can defend against my attack? Interesting, but let's see you defend against this one." the black haired woman said, closing her fans until they looked more akin to daggers. They glowed a bright white color as they gathered power, and she dashed toward them with blinding speed.

"Rupture Stance Rondo: Tortoise shell Cracker!"

Naofumi barely had time to lift his shield before her fan struck, and he was pushed back slightly from the force. He grit his teeth as his feet dug into the wood of the deck.

"Haaaaah!" came the yell of Ren, who spun around Naofumi and swung his blade downward toward their opponent. With a graceful parry, Glass used her second fan to knock his weapon into the deck where it splintered the wood. She then released her attack on Naofumi before spinning and kicking the one-armed swordsman away.

"I've got you now!"

Itsuki released multiple arrows in quick succession, all of which were either dodged or blocked by the woman's fans. With a growl, he charged up a more powerful attack. "Urgh, Meteor Shot!"

He fired the arrow that flew faster than most could see, but with practiced precision Glass struck at a key spot on Naofumi's shield arm. The hit to his pressure point forced his arm to move in such a way that his shield was now in the path of the arrow, and it deflected off the metal before flying high into the air. With sweat dripping down his brow, Naofumi ducked down low.

"Now!" he yelled.

"This is for Myne!" Motoyasu screamed. "Meteor Thrust!" The Spear user barely avoided impaling his fellow hero with his attack, skinning a few hairs off of the man's head. However, Glass was ill-prepared to react to the unusual strategy. Motoyasu's spear grazed the edge of her kimono as she evaded, slicing a clean slit on the side of one breast. She used his lack of balance to kick his feet from underneath him, causing the blonde man to fall flat on his face.

As she held one fan like a knife to impale his back, she was hit with a sudden blast of wind from Naofumi that knocked her back enough to give the man space to stand.

For a few moments they faced off, some panting harder than others. Glass looked barely winded, while Motoyasu and Ren were exhausted. The combination of fighting against a Wave and a more intelligent and complex opponent was taking its toll on them. Naofumi held his sword in a reverse grip, using the hilt to crack his neck to the side.

"You wanna keep going? The Wave only has another few minutes at most, and I'd like to have a plan before you guys go back." he said. Glass held his gaze before Naofumi heard the sound of rustling clothing to the side. He turned his shield to block the attack, and his eyes widened as L'arc's smirking expression greeted him.

"What do you think you're doing!?" he cried, forcing the redhead back before deflecting a flourish of the man's scythe. L'arc spun the weapon in erratic ways akin to a baton, but the blade reflecting whatever light it could made it much more dangerous in comparison.

L'arc laughed. "Ha! You think I'd pass up a chance to go head to head with you, after all of this? Even if you're the Shield Hero, you've gotta be decent enough with that sword of yours! Show me what you've got, kiddo!" With a grunt, the man forced his opponent's shield away long enough to swipe at his exposed chest with his spear. However, it locked with Naofumi's own sword at the bottom of the blade, halting the two weapons in a blade lock.

Naofumi growled. "We don't have time for this! Stop this!"

The two exchanged a heated glare before pushing off of each other to create space. L'arc immediately rushed in with alarming speed. Naofumi, rather than blocking the attack, allowed it to soar over his head as he crouched down. With strength he wasn't fully aware of, he grabbed the redhead's arm and spun before throwing him into the deck of the ship. L'arc coughed up spit as his impact splintered the wood, cutting into his back.

Before Naofumi could get a better hold on his opponent, L'arc tugged on his arm, knocking the Shield Hero off balance. Taking advantage of the man's surprise, the prince swiped the man's leg out from beneath him. Their positions were immediately flipped, with L'arc holding the blade of his scythe against Naofumi's neck.

"Had enough, kiddo? You fight pretty well for-"

Naofumi grit his teeth. "Rope Shield!" Before L'arc could react, the man's shield transformed into a bundle of ropes which wound itself around his legs. He was mid-swing to slice the rope in half when a blade swiped at his throat, narrowly missing and causing him to back up slightly. This gave the Shield Hero enough space to stand, panting.

Naofumi held his sword out toward his opponent, who merely smirked at him. L'arc shouldered his weapon. "Now that's what I call a battle! Strategy, deception, and the unknown of just what the other person's abilities are just make it so much more exciting!"

"So, you finished having your fun or what?" the black haired man asked. The Scythe Hero shrugged.

"Well I would have been down for a longer fight, but it was fun enough for now." Naofumi lowered his weapon before looking at Glass.

"What about you?" he asked.

The woman shook her head. "I have no reason to murder you in cold blood. You have enough potential to maybe survive for quite some time. The one-armed one as well, to a lesser extent. If the prince believes you truly can find another way, I will not prevent it."

L'arc pointed a thumb back at her. "Yeah, what she said. Anyway, I'll be digging deeper into any ancient history to see if there's any clues we've missed on our end. If you can take a look at that," he emphasized, giving the man a knowing look, "hopefully we can find something that'll help us. We'll try to meet back up during one of the next few Waves and compare notes, but until then make sure you stay alive!"

His relaxed demeanor annoyed Ren and confused both Motoyasu and Itsuki. Naofumi rolled his eyes with a smile. "Just don't go getting yourself killed, boy." he said snarkily. The redhead snorted.

"Don't go giving me a nickname like that when I'm older than you, kiddo!"

The Shield hero chuckled. "Sure, whatever you say old man. Don't hurt your back."

L'arc and Naofumi bumped fists with matching smirks. "It's a challenge then! I can't wait!" he exclaimed, looking toward the sky which began changing color slightly. "Well that looks like our cue to leave. Gotta get back for dinner, you know? C'mon Glassy."

"Don't call me that."

He and Glass slowly began floating into the air, and from one boat away Therese could be seen doing the same. The fan wielder looked down at them with what appeared to be curiosity. "Your name is Naofumi, yes?"

Naofumi nodded. "Iwatani Naofumi."

She nodded in response. "I look forward to seeing your strength once again. Do not disappoint me." With that last statement, they vanished in a flash of light along with the red sky. The naturally blue skies returned, but it was eerily quiet until the roar of applause and cheers from the various crews broke the silence.

In any other situation Naofumi would have laughed to himself. "As if I don't have enough people I'm trying not to disappoint..." he mumbled. Only Ren heard it, and he snorted with a small smile on his face.

"Master Naofumi! Are you alright!?" came the voice of Raphtalia from the side. She had evidently been given a ride from the other boat by Filo, and she hopped off of the filolial's back before running to him.

He chuckled as she patted him down, searching for injuries. "I'm fine, Raph! Seriously, cut that out!" He stiffened slightly as she hugged him tightly, burying her head into his chest. He laid his arms around her gently. "Hey...I'm fine, see?"

She shook her head. "Just let me have this...please." she said, breathlessly. "It doesn't matter how many times we go through a Wave, I still get so scared that I'll lose you. I just want to enjoy the fact that you're still here."

Naofumi blushed slightly, looking to the side to see his companions and the other heroes. All three of the Cardinal Heroes were busy hanging over the edge of the railing with seasickness, being assisted by their companions. Filo and Sho now stood side by side, one looking at the two's embrace with her head tilted to the side and the other pointedly avoiding eye contact.

"C'mon, you're making a scene." he murmured. An exaggerated groan was her only response as she let go of him and stepped back with crossed arms and a pout.

"We'll see if I care about your well-being again, Naofumi."

"Oh you will." he responded without wasting an instant. The raccoon's tail stiffened in indignation and she growled, dark blush adorning her face.

"Grrr..." Suddenly, her anger dissipated and she slumped. "I hate that you're right."

He laughed at her only to be chased around the boat by a very annoyed and very well-armed Raphtalia.

Not long after they reached the shore, the queen called an emergency meeting with the four Cardinal Heroes in order to plan ahead. Naofumi and his party had just enough time to wash themselves so that they didn't reek of blood and sweat, but it wasn't long enough to truly relax. Naofumi didn't want to go to the meeting, but Raphtalia told him that she had a surprise waiting for him that he'd only get if he went. Although he worried about exactly what the surprise was, he was naturally curious and couldn't resist.

Now he sat in the same conference room with the other heroes and Mirellia, who was now dressed in very regal-looking armor befitting a monarch. Her expression was far more serious now than ever, and her usual fan to hide her face was nowhere to be seen. "First, I would like to thank the four of you for your assistance today. If it weren't for your efforts, it was likely that very few if any of us would survive." she said.

"It's all in a day's work." Itsuki said, holding his hands behind his head. Naofumi and Ren gave him disappointed looks.

"You didn't even do anything. If it weren't for Ren, we probably wouldn't have killed that thing." Naofumi said, rolling his eyes. The blond boy glared back at him.

"And what did you do besides take the aggro away from everyone else the whole time, huh? That's what you're supposed to do as a shielder!"

Ren shook his head. "He may have done what was expected of him, but Naofumi did very well at it. If it weren't for him keeping the boss's attention, a lot more people may have died."

The Bow hero growled in frustration but held his tongue. The others were intrigued at the lack of opinions from Motoyasu, who was sitting in his seat with a despondent expression. Mirellia raised an eyebrow at him. "Lord Motoyasu, is there something you'd like to add?" she asked.

He didn't respond.

Ren waved his hand in front of the man's face. "Hey, Motoyasu? You there?"

The blond continued to stare blankly at the table. Naofumi even mustered the slightest bit of concern for the man's mental health. Suddenly, Motoyasu looked at his hands as if they had betrayed him.

"But how?...How did my attacks do nothing? Again?" he mumbled. The others looked at him with concern as he muttered to himself. "Even with all of my stats and levels, I couldn't do a single thing to it. And her..." his eyes regained some of their fire along with his anger. "She came back and you became allies with her!?" he shouted to Naofumi, who recoiled slightly at the sudden change of tone.

Motoyasu slammed a hand on the table before pointing an accusing finger at Naofumi. "She's our enemy, Naofumi! She killed almost all of our party members including Myne! I know that you two didn't get along-"

"We didn't." Naofumi interrupted with a glare, clenching his fists under the table.

"-but that doesn't mean it's okay to team up with her murderer, right? Tell me I'm right, you guys! Please!?" he asked the other two heroes. Ren closed his eyes and kept his head down, while Itsuki was deep in thought.

After several moments of silence, the Spear Hero's expression fell. "...You guys can't be serious...You're really taking his side on this?"

Naofumi's scar burned, but he settled for clenching his fists tight enough to nearly draw blood. Ren shook his head. "We talked about this before, Motoyasu. The princess wasn't exactly a good person."

"That's not true! She was always good to me!" the blond man exclaimed. "But those people attacked us! They can't possibly be on our side! I might not get all of this about worlds destroying each other or whatever but if they're here to stop us from saving this one, they're our enemies!"

Mirellia shook her head. "Thinking like that may be why we have never successfully stopped the Waves from happening. I think it's time that we try something different, as outlandish as the idea may be."

"But you all said it yourself! The only way to stop the destruction of the world is to fight the Waves!"

Naofumi growled. "Just shut up for a second and listen!" His anger only served to make the Spear Hero's mood worse. "We're doing this whether you're with us or not, so make your damn choice so I know whether you'll be of any help at all!"

Motoyasu's eyes burned with fury. "Myne didn't die just for us to team up with her killer! If you're planning on helping them, you'll end up destroying this world! I won't be a part of that!" With a huff, Motoyasu knocked over his chair while standing up and stormed out the door. Ren and Mirellia sighed.

Itsuki stood as well. "As much as I understand where you guys are coming from, this doesn't seem like the best idea. I can't stand beside a murderer like that in good conscience. If they were our allies, they wouldn't have come and attacked us. I'm sorry, but I'm with Motoyasu on this one."

As the boy left, Naofumi sighed. "At least his reason was better than Motoyasu's..."

The queen hummed in agreement. "Indeed. Since it seems we will not have their support, it will be up to the two of you to do what you can." She turned to Naofumi. "Even if you are officially aligned with Siltvelt, which I cannot fault you for, I would like to at least clear your name in Melromarc."

Naofumi rolled his eyes. "And how would I do that? The one person I supposedly 'raped' is dead, so there's no way to get her to tell the truth."

Mirellia's brow momentarily furrowed at the mention of her dead daughter, but she regained her composure quickly. "My husband is also at fault for how you were treated, and I could put him on trial for it." she said with a smirk. "Melromarc is a matriarchy, after all."

He scoffed. "As happy as I'd be to put that piece of trash in his place, you're just flexing your power as queen. The people would accept what you say as the law and be done with it. There's nothing for me to truly gain."

"Actually, that's not true." she said, earning his attention. "The Three Heroes Church gained popularity after the last war, and I was unfortunately unable to dismantle it before it became more popular. My power as queen does have its limits. However, clearing your name also puts the tenants of the Three Heroes Church at risk, since it specifically claims that the Shield Hero is a devil who opposes humanity."

Ren chuckled. "I knew it sounded stupid even when I thought Naofumi actually had done something terrible. It seems silly that an entire religion would oppose one of the heroes that their country bothered to summon. If King Aultcray wanted to, he could have just not summoned you."

Mirellia sighed, brushing an errant lock of purple hair from her face. "He was, according to his words, 'so desperate to protect our kingdom that he was willing to rely on the Shield Demon to do it'. If I hadn't been busy cleaning up his mess, I could have actually used his mistakes to my advantage."

Naofumi groaned. "Ugh. Enough with the politics and scheming, I'm honestly tired of it."

"Very well then." the queen said. "Simply come to the trial. If you choose to exile him or humiliate him yourself, so be it. He deserves judgment for his actions, and he is not so foolish as to deny the verdict when I have evidence against him."

The Shield Hero ran a hand through his hair. "I guess I can be bothered to show up..."

"Wonderful! I'll arrange for the trial immediately upon our return. I hope that you'll tolerate staying in the castle that night, but if you feel that you belong elsewhere I will not hold you by force."

"Fine. I'll see what happens."

Ren raised an eyebrow. "By the way, how exactly are your stats as high as they are, Naofumi? I'm higher level than you, and your stats are mostly higher than mine."

Naofumi blinked. "Uhh, I don't really know. I just did what I thought was right and ended up with a lot of passive bonuses. Those add up after you have fifty to a hundred of them, even if they're tiny."

"Fifty to a hundred!?" Ren exclaimed, eyes wide. "I only have like thirty swords total, and I've only used eight of them for more than a short time!"

The queen leaned back in her chair, observing the two heroes make progress. Naofumi cocked his head to the side. "What do you mean, 'use them for more than a short time'? You get bonuses based on how many variants you have unlocked, not how long you use them."

"Actually that's exactly how my sword works." Ren said, pulling the weapon out and laying it on the table for all to see. "Each sword variant has a level that increases based on how long it's used, and that increases its power and bonuses. I prioritized the strongest swords I had because they gave the largest bonuses."

Naofumi shook his head. "That's completely different from how my shield works. I just get higher bonuses naturally over time, or as I level up. The help guide hasn't been useful for that, so I'm not certain. But if your sword gets stronger by using it, does it take longer to level up every time you do it?"

At Ren's nod, he continued. "Then wouldn't it make sense to level up the lower quality weapons too? Those bonuses may not be as big but like I said earlier, they add up quickly."

The Sword Hero nodded. "I wondered about that, but thought that having one or two strong weapons would outweigh the benefits of the smaller ones given my short time frame to raise their levels. Now that we have a little more time, I'll probably expand my arsenal."

Naofumi nodded. "I literally did everything I could to get as many shields as possible, and some of their bonuses are ridiculously high. Separating monster parts then feeding them to the weapon seems to unlock more than just a chunk of flesh or whatever."

Mirellia smiled at the two heroes sharing information. 'Perhaps this world truly can be saved, if they're actually willing to put aside their differences.'

"Anyway, it's getting late and I'm exhausted so I'll be heading out. Unless there's anything else?" Naofumi asked with a yawn. Mirellia shook her head.

"I think this was productive, despite the Spear and Bow Heros' lack of assistance. Can I expect you to join us in Melromarc after we reach the mainland, Lord Naofumi?"

He sighed. "I'll probably want to let the Siltvelt Councilmen know about it, but sure. I might as well."

"Splendid!" The queen smiled. "I will arrange for our nicest carriage to transport us to the capital. If you have any other amenities you wish to have upon our arrival, please let me know so I can arrange for them as well."

Naofumi put a hand to his chin in thought for several seconds before smirking at her. "I can think of one thing, actually..."

He returned to the inn shortly after, but was suspicious when he was told his room had been changed. Walking up the stairs to the third floor, Naofumi opened the door to see Raphtalia in nothing but her undergarments sprawled out on the bed reading a book. His face burned a bright red as he quickly averted his eyes. However, the sound of him opening the door alerted her to his presence.

"Oh Naofumi, you're back!" she exclaimed, smiling up at him as she laid on her stomach with the book on the bed in front of her. "That took a bit longer than I expected. How did it go?" she asked. The hero kept his gaze fixed on a wall behind her so as to not overload his brain.

"I-it went well enough...I guess..." he stammered. "Wh-why are you dressed like...that? And why did our room number change?"

Raphtalia's tail swished back and forth behind her as she smiled at him. "Filo wanted to stay with Melty to play for longer, so I figured the two of us could get another room. I'm sure you're tired, so you wouldn't want them keeping you awake."

He looked at the room and coughed into his hand, blush darkening. "Uhh...You know there's only one bed in here, right?"

"Yes." she replied with her eyebrows raised in a 'are you stupid?' look.

"And you're barely even dressed!"

She closed the book before gently setting it on the nightstand beside her. "Naofumi, come here for a moment." she beckoned with her finger. He was reluctant, but the earnest look on her face made him agree with her request. As he sat down on the bed, his bod was ramrod straight and he did everything he could to keep his eyes forward.

This became significantly more difficult as she wrapped her arms around him from behind. His face felt like it was melting.

"Let me help you get this off." she said, loosening the straps that held his chestplate on as well as his gauntlets and greaves. He silently allowed her to assist him in removing his armor, which was beginning to look significantly more worn than it used to. After he had placed them into his inventory, she gently laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Go ahead and get changed." she instructed. Her strange tone was not lost on Naofumi, but he wondered what she was playing at. The hero changed into his sleeping pants, but as he was about to put on his shirt it was snatched by his companion.

"You won't be needing this." she said, crumpling it up before tossing it to the side. His eyes widened as she gripped his wrist and pulled him onto the bed with her. It was only now that he finally had an idea of what was happening that Naofumi could see just how red Raphtalia's face was.

The raccoon's tail flicked erratically in excitement as she pulled him to lay down beside her. "Um, Raphtalia?" he asked.

"Y-yes?"

"What...exactly are you doing?"

She didn't respond, instead choosing to wrap her arms around him tightly. Her tail draped over his leg and wrapped around as well. "I-I just wanted to make you feel good, Mas-Naofumi." she corrected herself in her slight panic.

He wrapped his arms around her thinner frame shakily. Although he refused to admit it to anyone, he enjoyed the feeling of her body pressed against his own. "Wh-what do you m-mean?" he stuttered. "I-I mean this feels, uhh, good...but...you know..." he trailed off, unsure of how to say what he meant.

She gently pushed her master until he was laying on his back, and she crawled on top of him with her arms beside his head. His eyes were wide as saucers, and both of their faces sported blushes. Raphtalia calmed her pounding heart as she gathered her courage and gulped.

"I'm not afraid anymore." she said breathlessly.

Before he could ask her what she meant, she quickly lowered herself until their lips met in a chaste kiss. Naofumi's mind grinded to a halt, but he made no move to resist.

It was a new sensation to him, to be kissed by a woman, much less a woman that he himself had strong feelings for. It was awkward and probably not as refined as it should have been, but it felt amazing all the same. His tense shoulders slowly relaxed as he gently pressed his lips against her own. If the way the raccoon's body pressed harder against his, Naofumi could assume her mind was having its own fireworks show as well.

She cupped his face with her hands as she deepened the kiss, turning her head slightly to allow for more contact. Raphtalia barely noticed when the man's hands snaked around her waist until they pulled her closer to him.

Her world was on fire, and she loved every moment of it.

It was nearly five minutes before the two pulled their faces apart, panting heavily. Raphtalia was straddling her master's waist and had her hands placed on his bare chest, feeling the muscles that were so hidden from the rest of the world. The fact that his face was equally as flushed as hers only made her more satisfied.

Then it all came crashing down as the reality of what she just did hit her full force.

"Oh gods!" her blush multiplied in intensity as she hid her face behind her hands, rolling off of him and turning away. "I-I'm so sorry! I took things way too far!" she complained, voice muffled by her hands.

Naofumi was still recovering from the exchange himself, but he was on high alert now that something was wrong. "Raphtalia? Hey, what's wrong?"

She shook her head, still facing away from him. "I shouldn't have done that! That was so selfish of me! Just because I knew I wouldn't get pregnant, I thought it was okay!? I'm ashamed of myself!" she whined, tail curled between her legs in anguish.

Naofumi gently shook her shoulder. "Raph, hey, it's alright." he coaxed her to calm down, but she continued sobbing. After a few more attempts, he sighed and laid down beside her, wrapping his arms around her tightly.

"I-I...liked it, Raphtalia...I liked doing that w-with you..." he stuttered, blush returning. "Why do you think it was selfish?"

She curled in tighter on herself. "Because I've wanted to do that for months!" she exclaimed, prying his arms off of herself before turning and cupping his face in her hands. Through teary eyes she spoke. "I-I wasn't sure at first, back when I was little and just a slave girl..." The two of them both frowned at the memory of how they were forced to meet, but then she smiled. "But then I came to realize how much I loved being with you. You're kind, smart, strong, and you've been there for me when I really needed it most."

His eyes were wide and his heart pounded in his chest as the woman's face was inches from his own. "Raphtalia...are you saying what I think you're saying?..."

She nodded, blinking away more tears. "Yes. Naofumi..." she trailed off, kissing him once more on the lips before pulling away with the most beautiful smile he had ever seen.

"I love you."