Chapter 30: Meeting with the King… Again

After my clone verified that everyone on the ship was fine I dispelled it and we went with a group of villagers to "recover the heroes and their parties". I just wanted to let my shield absorb one of the Soul Eater corpses, all of the other monsters from this wave melted into some shadowy substance that only gave me one shield, it had shadow resistance.

While the heroes and their parties were unconscious, none of them were seriously injured. We basically just had the villagers drag them back so they could recover.

I went to cut up one of the Soul Eaters and found that a normal knife passes through without doing anything. I tried again while passing mana through the blade and it cut the corpse fine. I guess even dead it's immune to non-magic items, which is weird since it's lying on the ground. I only got one shield from it; the defense was close to that of the chimera shield, but the effects were more interesting. It also gave a new skill, [Second Shield], which seems to be an extra cast of [Air Strike Shield]. Blake also ate some of the Soul Eater; she said she liked the live one better because of how it wriggled in her belly. I swear, she's been acting more childish ever since we met that Mel girl.

We spent the next day healing the wounded, providing aid for the villagers, and helping to rebuild. The following morning the knights from the capitol finally showed up. I wonder if they knew where the wave was because of the way the sky changes color, or maybe the direction of the sound it makes at the start. Unfortunately the leader of the knights was the arrogant guy that set Lute on fire. He immediately started to yell at me, as soon as he realized I was there, about how I brought the volunteers with me and scolded the soldiers for volunteering. Then the villagers started scolding him for being an idiot and preferring that they died in the wave than let anyone help the Shield Hero protect them. But as soon as her heard that the other heroes were defeated and still unconscious all of his focus went to them, at least until I started to walk away.

"Wait, Shield."

"Is there something more you have to say? If you're just going to yell at me again, forget it."

"Your presence is requested at the castle."

"Really? Last time I saw the king I made it quite clear that he would have to pay if he requested my presence again. Is he really willing to do so?"

"You will come with us."

"Oh, are you trying to order me now? That will not end well for you." Seb and Talia reached for their blades. Bit then the lead volunteer soldier intervened.

"Please Shield Hero, I know how you feel, but please go with the captain." The young soldier bowed deeply.

"Fine, we still have something to do in the capitol anyways." We were going to have to head back there for Talia's new katana that Erhard was making as well as the wagon, and they should be done when we get there.

Blake was disappointed, but it seemed that two of her carts had been broken in the fighting so we only had one left, which was falling apart by the time we got close to the capitol. It was only after we left that I realized that I hadn't gotten the chance to talk to that old lady about what she meant when she talked about energy. It had been morning when we left and we got to the capitol around noon the next day. The knights escorted us straight to the castle.

"It's Mel's house." Blake pointed at the castle.

""What?"" Seb, Talia, and I all asked at the same time.

"This is where she had me bring her off so she could meet with her dad," Blake explained. Mel lives in the castle… Is she actually royalty? Or maybe her father is a high ranking noble that just works in the castle, so she knew she had to come here to talk to him. This is going to take some more investigating.

As we walked through the castle, I created a clone to look around the areas I had yet to see. Of course the knights didn't notice it, though Talia and Blake looked a bit confused when I did it.

"We'd like for your companions to wait in the other room." (arrogant captain)

"Don't want the king to be outnumbered when meeting with someone who can already do things far beyond his ability?"

"We have a great deal of information we need to learn from you."

"You've been asking us the same questions for the past day; you aren't likely to get any better answers that what I have already told you." What I told them boiled down to, 'I'm an assassin from another world, I have powers you can't comprehend, deal with it.'

Talia, Seb and Blake waited in a side room while I went to the audience chamber. Of course I snuck another clone in with them to make sure no one tried anything.

"It is incredible to think it, but I am told that you were able to fight back the wave, Shield. Personally I don't believe a word of it." (king)

"You really don't know how to show gratitude do you? I might remind you that I will be expecting compensation for being asked here again after what happened previously."

Hmmm? Mel is with a shadow that looks like the queen?

"Insolence! I have a question for you, not that I can trust your words."

"Unlike you I haven't lied once since coming to this world. There is no reason not to trust my words, let alone doubt them before they are even said."

I could see he was getting pissed. I realize that he isn't necessarily a bad guy, but the way he keeps annoying and insulting me makes it refreshing to see him like this. "You dare accuse me of lies."

"You knew all along that the state religion demonized me, yet pretended that people didn't want to join my party due to a few rumors. Rumors which you helped spread, I might add." He looked surprised. "I could hear what that guy whispered in your ear that day, might want to be a bit more subtle about it. Then there is the matter of that farce where you convicted me of rape when all the evidence clearly pointed to your own daughter as the true criminal. You would have to be blind not to recognize the truth."

"Enough of this! Shield. I hear that you have discovered an incredible strength, that you have powers that are unbecoming of the Shield Hero. If you do, then it is your obligation to share it. Speak now. Not that I believe you."

"I have said this several times to you already. You do not get to give me orders. You aren't even the true ruler of this country and you certainly do not rule me. I have no obligation to the fools that abducted me, and I already told that arrogant knight captain, I am the most skilled assassin in at least six worlds. Since I have yet to find someone better than me in this one, you might as well make it seven. It should come as no surprise that I can handle such monsters with ease. Now, how is it that you plan on compensating me for my wasted time here?"

So Mel's real name is Melty, and she's a princess. I wonder if I can use that to give the king a scare.

"You bastard. You have the insolence to spout such nonsense then try to demand to be paid for it. I know, I'll have those slaves of yours pay for your crimes."

"As if I would allow that. Putting aside the fact that I have not committed any crimes, anyone who so much as tries to raise a hand against them shall lose that hand." I threw a knife which went between his finders and embedded itself in the throne, causing several gasps of disbelief. "And if you try to order their execution, it will be your head that rolls." The next two knives went to either side of his head. "Remember, I am a man capable of normally entering any room in this castle and ending your life, then walking out before anyone even knows that I was here. I am done with this. I suppose I can consider that generous reward from having escorting Melty home to have covered the price of this visit." I gave him a knowing smile at the end as I watched the color drain from his face at the mention of his daughter that, as far as he knew, I shouldn't have had any knowledge of.

I turned and left letting my presence disappear as I walked. It took him a few moments to recover from his shock before shouting, "Accursed Shield!" The knights then tried to block the door but didn't notice me walk past them several seconds prior.

As I walked down the stairs leading to the audience chamber, I passed the shadow disguised as the queen who was followed by Melty and my clone, which was still hiding its presence.

POV: Clone 1

It is nice having assassin skills. I can easily listen behind closed doors to find out if anyone is in the room before opening it. Though even if there were someone, they would likely just thing the wind blew it open. There are a lot of rooms to check though, and I don't really know where to look. Do I try to find Mel and observe her situation? Would she even be here if it turns out that her father is just a noble that works in the castle? Could she actually be the king's daughter? Where would she be if that is the case? I was considering these things when I heard a voice.

"How do you think father's conversation with the Shield Hero is going?" It was Mel's voice.

I went over to the room I heard it come from and found that the door was already open a crack. I looked in and saw her sitting with a woman that had almost the same appearance of the queen I saw a portrait of back on the day of the trial, maybe a little older, but not much. She looked a bit young to have a daughter as old as Malty, but this world could have special skincare treatments using magic plants or whatnot. The strange thing is that her presence felt like one of the shadows. I suppose that isn't the only strange thing. If the queen was really here then I would have met with her rather than the king, or perhaps the two of them together. Either way, it suggests that that is not the real queen, maybe a body double to prevent assassinations or to maintain appearances while she is away. And Mel said her father was meeting with me, does she mean the king?

"It is difficult to zay with certainty, but I believe it will end poorly. I am told that each time they meet they grow more hostile towards each other. And when the king last met with the Shield Hero, he zaid that he would require payment if he were to be call on again. That was after the king told him to never return."

"Why is it that they can't get along? The fate of the world is at stake." Mel seemed genuinely concerned and there would be no reason for them to put on an act since they don't know I'm here anyways.

"I am zorry Princess Melty, but zometimes people care more about their personal feelings than the good of others."

Did she just say Princess Melty? Unless there are three, that would make Mel the second princess, which means she is first in line for the crown. She wasn't trying as hard to hide her identity as Malty was when we first met. Maybe she just doesn't like being treated special just because she is royalty.

The queen/shadow turned her head. "It would zeem that the meeting has ended, and in an even worse manner than expected." Yeah, death threats and throwing knives isn't normally how you want a meeting to go. I lowered my presence a bit more as they stood up and left the room.

"Worse how?" They headed in the direction of the audience chamber.

"It zeems that, at the end, the Shield Hero made mention of you by name and the king thinks it to be a threat."

"The Shield Hero knew my name? But I've never even met him."

"Actually you did travel with him for zome time on your return to the capitol."

"What? Are you telling me that the Phantom Saint was really the Shield Hero?"

"That zeems to be the case."

Melty fell into a deep thought as they continued and we passed my main body at the stairs. The shadow seemed to notice something was off, but didn't do anything. She then waited outside the audience chamber while Melty took a moment to compose herself before entering, followed by myself of course. It seems that they managed to remove the knives from the throne, but the holes remain.

"Melty, my dear, what can I do for you?" That might well be the happiest I've seen the king.

"I've been told that you and the Shield Hero had a conversation just now, is that right father?" The king was only able to stammer in response. "And I was also told that the conversation ended in a very hostile manner." I could see the grimace of having disappointed his daughter, but I doubt that thought even crossed his mind when he spoke to me. "Father, if you remain at odds with the Shield Hero we may lose our only hope of fighting the waves, which would threaten the safety of our entire country. Please try to reconcile with him."

"Reconcile with that swine!?" The king was enraged by the very idea of it. I had to hold back my anger at being called a swine by that fool. He calmed down a bit after seeing that his outburst managed to scare Melty. "Don't worry my dear; I'm not angry at you."

"I just don't understand father, why do you hate the Shield Hero so much?"

"It's just that, if he and his demi-humans do as they please I'll lose my family again." The king seemed to be remembering something painful. I wonder if it has to do with why he fought in the war with Siltvelt. The book I read talked about his strategies and victories in the war, but I didn't see anything about what happened to him before.

"Father I…"

"Your defiance is an affront." And in walks the main source of my problems "With the queen away, the king's word is final, and not even we princesses can go against it." Malty walked up and leaned against the throne next to the king's. Then she started talking down to Melty about how their father is doing what he knows is best for the country, and acting like Melty was spoiled. Can this woman get any more conceited towards someone ahead of her in the line for succession?

Just as I was considering following her later for some therapeutic revenge, Melty replied. "I appreciate your concern and am grateful, but you see big sister, this is really none of your business." That is the best face I've seen on Malty since Talia slapped her after the duel. "Just like our mother and father, I just want what is best for our subjects and country, you understand. So you see, it is my job as crown princess to see that everything is put right." It would seem that Seb was right about her being groomed for the throne. It takes some serious skill to speak so politely while countering an annoyance like Malty and putting her in her place. I'm impressed.

"Melty, you little…" I wonder what Motoyasu would have thought if he heard Malty say that.

"I'll take my leave now father." Melty walked out of the room, leaving Malty angry and the king at a loss for words. It was quite a satisfying sight, but I was still a bit curious about Melty so I followed her, keeping my presence as hidden as possible to avoid the shadow's senses.

POV: Clone 2

We were lead to a room just off the path from the front entrance to the audience chamber. Once there the knights basically started interrogating my party about what I do to get stronger. They started to get angry when my Seb and Talia told them that I was strong to begin with and that my training methods made them stronger. The knights were smart enough not to get physical, but their insults nearly lead to one being sent to either the hospital or the grave. Talia did restrain herself at the last second, but only because she could see me shaking my head.

Once my main body was done with the king, I walked over to the door and revealed my presence. "Time to go." The knights were all shocked by my "sudden" appearance, while Seb was only mildly surprised.

"How did you get in here?" (arrogant knight captain)

"I came through the door normally. I will now leave through the door normally." I opened the door and walked through, followed by Talia, Blake, and Seb.

We were walking across the bridge from the castle to the city when Talia started to ask, "Umm… what about…"

"We'll meet up later."

"Understood."

Seb looked at me curiously then noticed that I didn't have the shield and realized that I was a clone. He started to chuckle.

"What's so funny?" (Blake)

"It's nothing; I just noticed something that the two of you could probably tell all along. I really must improve my perception abilities." Seb lamented his insufficient skills. It's not really his fault, even among the Haulia, not many can keep track of me when I am trying to hide. Talia is a natural and Blake… I still chalk her up to imprinting.

AN: Yup, I included an anime only scene. Also, things are going to get a bit complicated with multiple clones all doing things simultaneously, but it will all make sense in the end.