A/N: (Note/Disclaimer) All recognizable characters belong to their respective owners. Such as Neopeople for Dungeon Fighter Online(Also known as Dungeon & Fighter) and Aneko Yusga for The Rising Of The Shield Hero
Note 2:
("Human/Speech")
("Thoughts")
(Attacks/Weapon names)
(Other/Foreign/ Speech & Text/Book/Scroll)
(Actions/POV)
(Titles/Flashback/Time/Dates/Place)
(Narration & Everything else)
('Demonic Speech')
("Demonic Thoughts")
Hero And Fighter Chapter 23
Road To A Village
6/18/0000: 1000
Third Person: Omni
Naofumi looked at the bottles of herbicide that he created, he was in the back of the carriage with one in his hand. In his other hand was the egg incubator that he got from the slaver. Eclair was observing Raphtalia who was driving the carriage.
"Master, the plants here are amazing," Filo said from outside the carriage. He quickly stepped to the front of it after placing the bottle of weed killer back into the crate. Large vines were littered across the roads and hills around them.
"I can see why they would need herbicide." He was already planning on bringing a smaller amount of it, but when the accessory merchant told him about a large order of herbicide by the village, he decided to come over with far more than he had previously planned.
"Something ahead," Raphtalia pointed out the place they were driving to. Naofumi looked over to where she pointed. Log walls with vines also growing over them. He checked his phone after confirming it was there, looking to meet up with the girls who were posing as senior adventures… though in a way, they were.
"Milord, you have arrived." Though the carriage was still moving at a swift pace, Senka suddenly appeared within the moving transport. Naofumi nodded at the cloaked woman who did not even disturb the crates of herbicide.
"Yes, how is the situation?" He asked while sitting down to face her.
"When we arrived at the village, it was already overgrown with plants, they had already sent for Adventueres so us arriving so quickly was a surprise for them. We just said that we were traveling adventures not affiliated with the guild."
"They had already tried various methods, of which I will let the village chief explain, to quell the vine growth, none of them worked. This is their last resort. The situation has caused issues, such as monsters from the plant."
"What are their characteristics?" Naofumi asked with a serious tone.
"Varied, some can spit acid, others poison." She said in a swift and clear manner. Naofumi nodded, they needed to get the carriage to the village, so Filo, who was the fastest, would not be available.
"Here, use these to get rid of the ones around the encampment," Naofumi said while giving her several bottles of the herbicide, already making sure to give her an invoice on the amount being used.
"At once milord." She said with a nod before disappearing into a fog of darkness that she created. Naofumi nodded at the other two riding the carriage, giving them a few bottles of herbicide in case anything were to go wrong.
"Be ready." Was all Naofumi ordered.
_(THE RISING OF THE SHIELD HERO)_
"Thank you very much." The village chief said after understanding that Naofumi was the merchant they were hoping for.
"The fort was just about to fall to the vines." The elder man said as Naofumi looked over at the walls, none of them had reached over it just yet, but it was only a matter of time till they did so.
"Already tried burning them?" Raphtalia asked him with a hand to her chin.
"We have tried everything we could think of. We even summoned adventurers and the situation remains grave." The village leader explained to them why they were going after this option.
"The village was already overrun, and worse, they had turned into monsters and started to attack us." The villagers saw the vines finally reach over the walls.
"Turned into monsters huh…" Naofumi remarked while looking above the leader he was talking to, seeing some vines that grew over the log walls of the fort that the villagers were taking refuge in. He would have to talk with Motoyasu extensively.
"Some adventurers tried to go out and level, but some wandering adventurers just dragged them back, bruised and battered from the monsters. Their leader treated them and they are still unconscious in that tent." He gestured to a tent in the far off corner of the enclosed area.
"Though some escaped their watch and are still fighting." Naofumi thought for a few moments, they should not be dead just yet.
"Filo! Scout the village and bring back any adventurers." Naofumi swiftly commanded, he could probably get some good money off of them if the need arose. Naofumi already knew Senka's team had already scouted it, but it would be good for a second set of eyes on it.
"Okay. I whigd bag." Naofumi almost facepalmed, she was eating the fruits off the vines, wasn't she? The bird swiftly ran out of the gates and to the village proper to recheck the village.
"Alright then, we have 15 crates of herbicide. Each crate is 30 bottles." Naofumi said while motioning for Eclair and Raphtalia to help him unload the plant killer. He actually kept about two crates for himself, it would be good for an emergency fight against the plants later.
"Thank you Saint Of The Heavenly Fowl." One of the villagers said with an expression of reverence. The others just looked at the villager who spoke with a weird expression, did that title not spread down south?
"Plant monsters were all over the place, the same type that Senka-onee-san spoke about." Naofumi already started thinking, they must not make contact with them physically.
"Why would these guys go when they are so weak? They must be idiots." Filo said while shrugging her wings. She unceremoniously dropped the men onto the ground, not even giving them a second look.
"You didn't have to say the second part out loud." Raphitalia decided to start lecturing the bird, causing Naofumi to smile at the antics.
"Huh?" Filo responded.
"Don't "Huh" me."
"Ugh…"
"Don't "Ugh" me either."
"Tch." The conversation went like this for several minutes, while they were doing so the villagers were talking about the bird. Mainly about how Filo could talk.
"That has to be the Heavenly Fowl…" And Naofumi got confirmation that yes, his reputation has actually traveled this far.
"Then he actually is the saint." One of the villagers remembered how another of their own thanked Naofumi. All he could think about is whether or not Melina or Senka decided to spread around the title or it just spread here naturally.
"Are you the saint who travels by a carriage drawn by the heavenly fowl?" The elder villager asked him in an excited manner. Naofumi was just sitting on a wood box when he asked.
"Still don't know why they decided on that title…" Naofumi remarked self deprecatingly. Well, it's not like it is a bad reputation to work on, and besides, they would probably mistrust a hero from what Motoyasu had done to the village. The queen's shadows were probably spreading it around, and maybe even rumors of the Saint Of The Heavenly Fowl and the Shield Hero being the same person.
"Could you please heal our sick using your powers?" The villager asked him in a pleading tone. Naofumi just motioned for him to lead the way with a sigh.
"Some of you are sick?" Raphtalia asked in order to get some more information. The man nods at the question, confirming it for her before leading the two into a tent for the sick.
"As you can see, the plants are devouring their bodies." Inside various cots, many prone bodies were laid with plants growing right out of them, a parasitic plant it would seem.
"Regular potions might not work… but it is a plant, so maybe the Herbicide?" Naofumi already knew that the herbicide was safe to ingest and not really toxic to humans, despite killing a wide range of plant life. Naofumi handed the egg to Eclair for her to look after for now.
"Here try drinking." Naofumi had a popup about Potion Enhance being used. He only had the lad drink about a quarter of the bottle before he splashed it across the body, the plantlife quickly withered.
"It worked, for me, it is about a quarter inside and three quarters outside," Naofumi mumbled as he examined the kid that he cured.
"Bring over the rest of the patients." Senka did a very good job of keeping them stable, no one was at death's door thankfully. He noticed the girls who he sent to the village first were all inside the medical tent, good, they took his orders not to engage in anything dangerous seriously.
_(DUNGEON FIGHTER ONLINE)_
"Glad that went well," Raphtalia said as they walked to their carriage, Filo was sitting beside it taking a nap.
"I really don't want to get stuck in this mess, but my duties are tilling me I will…" Naofumi remarked, he already felt it was too late. He had already made sure to text the photos of the sick child and the overgrowth of the plant they brought to both Motoyasu and Elena.
"Our Saviour Of The Heavenly Fowl! Please save our village!" the men were kneeling behind them when they had turned. They practically begged the Hero of the village.
"Let's sit down and discuss," Naofumi said with a sigh, he would also be getting money for this as well. If that accessory merchant was here, he would immediately prattle on about Nafoumi having the merchant's spirit.
"Our village was ravaged by famine when the Spear Hero visited. When he heard our plight, he went into the ruins nearby and brought a seed that had been sealed there." The man explained to the incognito hero. Well, Naofumi knew that Motoyasu's heart was in the right place… he just didn't think it through.
"At first we were overjoyed when the plant grew quickly and bore fruit. However…" Another of the men with the village chief trailed off.
"It grew too much and took over the village." Raphitatlia finished for them. Well, it would seem they had a warning about this even before Motoyasu came.
"Indeed. When we were looking through our options, we happened upon a legend passed down the village. A long time ago, an alchemist who'd set up shop in this area created a seed, but said he sealed it away for some reason."
"The legend also said that plants had overtaken the region for a while." Naofumi always understood folktales, not just in the context of being literal, but metaphorical as well. They often warned of danger. Like vampires being repulsed by garlic could have been an analog for mosquitoes being repelled by garlic.
"There is a reason why legends are passed down… Did none of you heed the warnings of your ancestors and were suspicious of the seed?" Naofumi asked with a sigh as the villagers he was talking to had ashamed faces on their faces.
"Sides, you all should have had him wait for a few days to see if the seed was really so bad. You shouldn't have just assumed that it was safe just because a hero gave it to you, he is still a human after all." Naofumi said with a sigh.
"I'll pay for the treatment and the monster extermination in advance! Please save our village!" The village chief offered a bag of coins, probably all they had left in the village.
"Alright then," Naofumi said while taking the bag of coins, walking to the gates of the shelter while changing his shield, shocking the villagers that happened to be watching them leave.
"That shield… could it be...?" Some of them mumbled as they watched both the wandering adventurers and the newly revealed hero party walk out of the safety of this place.
_(THE RISING OF THE SHIELD HERO)_
Town Outskirts
6/18/0000: 1300
"Don't get touched by those." Naofumi immediately said when they were ambushed by some plants, ones he recognized during the treatment of the villagers.
At the moment, he had Senka providing support in the rearguard, a bow in hand, though it would not do much for the parasitic plants there were currently facing. Rino was also working as a rearguard, knowing a bit more about spells than the rest of the group… or at least spells that can be used for offense.
"Right," Raphtalia said, she was with himself and Eclair with Melina being in middle guard. Though Melina would sometimes switch with Rino, having the green-haired woman go to the front lines while she went to the back lines. Though the rearguard is the least populated, with Senka also working as a scout and disappearing from the back of the formation from time to time.
"Fast Guard." Naofumi used the spell that he had recently learned, buffing his party members in their defense. Though he would rather be safer than sorry with any attacks.
Senka was able to quickly assassinate the plants by pouring herbicide at their bases, though it was not before the group had to fight them for a brief amount of time. They proceeded for a bit longer. Naofumi was already wishing that the egg that they bright with them had hatched on the way over to the village.
"The pollen is poisonous," Senka said when they finally saw one of the more dangerous monsters they would be dealing with, a vaguely humanoid shape with a flower for a head, it was letting purple pollen fall from the flower, an ironic color to Naofumi.
"The second is immobile, but will throw out acid." Senka was supplying them information from the observations she had made, though it was before all the areas were covered with vines and plant life. It would be what Filo and Senka were talking about, the acid plant and the poison plant. It was practically a pitcher plant, one of the carnivorous plants in his own world.
"And that is the main tree." She pointed directly at the large tree far behind the other two, it looked old and wizened, red fruits far above in the canopy. In the junction, before it starts to branch off, a gigantic flower was blooming.
"Alright then, time to plan," Naofumi said, they would be fighting on a rather large scale, so it would be best to lay some stuff out before they start fighting these three monsters.
"Raphtalia and Filo will focus on the large tree," Naofumi said after deliberation, from what he expected from fighting a giant plant, it would use the vines as quick attacks on its foe. That, and the possibility of the other monsters aggroing on them was an issue that only mobility could help with.
"The rest of us will be dealing with the two lesser monsters, me as the main tank, and using my skills to help the pair. Eclair and Rino to deal the damage without getting hit. And Senka will be providing an eye on the situation.
"Melina, could you strike one of the vines and see if you get a chaser?" Naofumi asked her, she quickly did so, slashing at one of the vines out of sight of the monsters, gaining an orb of energy in the process.
"Alright then, Melina, strike as many times at vines as possible, do not get close to the plant man and the pitcher plant. You can slash at vines going after our main pair." Naofumi nodded in satisfaction at the basic layout that would happen.
"Everyone go," Naofumi said, having everyone rush out to start on their roles. Naofumi had to focus on multiple fronts, though Senka would be helping quite a bit.
"Right then." Melina jumped on her spear and started flying, intermittently hopping off and doing slashes at the vines to gather up her combo and chasers.
Raphtalia mounted Filo and used her mobility to quickly get to the tree monster, though the two lesser being decided to try and interfere, to no avail as Naofumi brought their attention to him.
Eclair slashed some vines that were trying to attack him from behind, turning them into good firewood. Rino was also doing the same, though not to the ability that Eclair had done so. Senka was easily evading attacks from the pitcher, though still kept an eye on the situation around her.
"Air Strike Shield," Naofumi said while having a platform for Filo to jump off of, the vines had cleared the way to try and make her fall. Melina who had built up a large collection of chasers was using them intermittently, frying any of them that tried to come too close.
"Shield Prison," Naofumi used his other skill to protect the two from a wave of attacks, allowing Melina more time to finish that particular set of vines. It was wearing on the two girls as they forced themselves not to breathe in order to not be poisoned. He himself was able to breathe fine due to poison resistance from the shield.
"Milord!" Senka yelled as an attack got through due to the sluggish reaction time of the girls at their dropping performance. Naofumi was able to block the attack before having the two besides him to retreat in order to get some fresh air.
"We need to kill this flower head…" Naofumi mumbled as he blocked another spray of acid from the pitcher plant, allowing the Chimara Viper Shield to attack it in return, very much like the Two-Headed Dog Shield's bite counter.
Word Count: ~2900 Words
Date Completed: 12/31/2020
Note: And it is a cliffhanger. Though I do hope you all enjoyed the chapter. After the 1st of January and the new year, I will be switching back to my usual active posting, one every two days.
Review Cove:
FFN
Arraia: Perfect and update soon please
Dragon dad naofumi?
Response: I have been posting 1 chapter a day for the past month… honestly I have no idea how to update sooner than this. And as for the dragon… well you will see it soon.
AO3:
Robbie2413: Eh, your update schedule is fine maybe a little too fast to my likening. I did spot some errors in it so maybe do it every 2-3 days instead of basically every day it seems like. Take a day to spellcheck then publish it. Or later I guess you could go back and edit your chapters I think that is a thing.
Response: I usually post every two days instead of every day, but it was December, and I decided to have it as a gift to my readers to post daily. I usually leave chapters as posted inorder to remind me to actually check my work, and I usually do a spell check before uploading, though I do miss things from time to time.