Reviews:
SentinalSlice: Yeah, I'm going to miss writing about Elina but it was for the sake of the story. And uhhhhh, oops. I forgot about that, yeah he should've levelled up but he didn't because of... reasons?
Shadow55: Thanks man! I'm glad you enjoyed it.
SomeCallMeDrunk: Yeah, Chapter 20 was kind of the climax for the story (at least for now), so I had to make it real big. Motoyasu acts the way he does for specific reasons that I will divulge in later chapters, but the base reason is he didn't know about the church's plans to nuke it and with Malty's reassurance he was convinced that the attack was targeting Naofumi almost exclusively. Also the legendary replica is a really unique idea! I never thought of using it like that, but I don't think Naofumi would want to absorb, much less use the weapon that killed someone he considered family. Thank you for reviewing my story all this time, man. I really appreciate it :)
drmcgraw186: I remember back when I introduced her as a party member, another reviewer hated her, and I responded by saying I'd make you like her. I think I did pretty well :)
D3lph0xL0v3r: Motoyasu will definitely be undergoing major character growth over the next chapter or two, so he will definitely be more tolerable and less of a complete dumbass.
Guest: Another reviewer on AO3 welcomed Elina to the donut hole club alongside Kakyoin, Bucciarati and Abbacchio, and honestly that made me laugh really hard.
RedBurningDragon: Fahrenheit and Wireframe are two entirely different stands. I already explained why in last chapter's notes but here's the TL:DR; the curse series affects how a hero acts by fundamentally changing a piece of their personality, or by changing their soul to reflect a different person since its changing their personality, and since stands are a reflection of your soul, then the curse series should bring out an entirely new stand based on the altered soul of the hero.
xavex: Yeah, since Naofumi was much kinder in my fic than in canon, I needed a way for him to unlock the wrath shield in a believable way, and I think the death of a closely held person is more than justifiable.
Guest: Balmus should've been torn apart more but I was on a time crunch. I think his current death is pretty good and a fairly decent display of Fahrenheit's ability so it's alright in my eyes right now.
calderoneric758: Elina won't give Naofumi anything directly, but he will receive a fragment of her signature war axe that will be utilized in his armor.
gaming is served: Can't have a story without them.
Dragolord09: You're absolutely right. Motoyasu has that effect on people.
JtBlack Hawk3198: I did know that fun fact, and don't worry Raphtalia will stay around for a long while. I like her character too much so she gets to stay.
Azure Star Dragon: I'm assuming you're talking about Atla, and I don't know much about the Hakuko other than stuff other fics told me, which might be different from canon (like I've stated previously) so I don't know what's gonna happen with all that post season one stuff. I'll get there when I get there.
PsycoDragonKiller: When you get here, know that I like the needle reference too.
TeraBaapBDSK: This is not harem, and it won't ever be that. I'm not interested in writing romance past the most basic of crap and even then I'm not even very good at it, so there won't be any of that here.
A Shield's Stand
Chapter 21: The Culmination of Our Efforts (Part Two)
Don't forget! I have a stand fight extravaganze planned for 50k views or 400 favs and I'm still taking requests for any stand battles you wanna see Naofumi fight!
I've already got a few good ones but I'm always willing to write more stand battles :)
The boat pulled up to the dropoff point, an old looking chapel, and came to a stop. Mista stood and threw some rope around an anchor on the dock. Most of them wouldn't show it, but many of them were relieved that this mission would finally be over. They were forced to fight so many terrifying enemies and nearly died time and time again just to get Trish to this point. It was true that this was how life in the mafia was, but that didn't mean they had to enjoy it.
Bruno and Trish emerged from the turtle, Bruno carrying the laptop and disc file Giorno and Mista had fought another member of La Squadra, Giacco, for earlier that day. He slid the disc in and the file loaded up a video, playing the instructions to the group.
"This is a message to the capo, Bruno Bucciarati and his gang," a distorted voice spoke to them, "At the time of this recording I am unaware of who remains in your group, if any have died at all, so I will address these instructions to any who listen. Trish and one bodyguard are to enter the chapel and are to be directed towards the roof, where the bodyguard will leave her and depart. I will attend to her myself without being seen and you will have completed your mission. The rest of your gang are to remain inside the boat. No one else is permitted on land. If these instructions are not followed within fifteen minutes of this recording being retrieved, I will know the information has been breached and I will leave without a trace."
The instructions were clear, concise, and laid a path straight to their instructed dropoff point. As expected of the presumed boss of Passione.
"So the boss is at the top of that tower right now…" Narancia led off, staring at the belltower in wonder.
"Those are some pretty detailed instructions. He seems extremely cautious," Fugo spoke next, eyeing the tower as well, "But I guess you couldn't be a mafia boss otherwise."
"Anyway, this means our mission ends here," Abbachio added in, "We all made it out alive, so I guess all's well that ends well…"
"Yeah, just barely though. Let's live it up in Venice for a few days before we go home," Mista's optimistic tone lightened the mood considerably. "I hear the food's good there."
The chatter of the others was drowned out by Naofumi, who could only look at the tower with dread. They were dropping off Trish here. After this, it was likely they would never see her again. He looked away. He had come to see Trish as a friend, but for the sake of her safety, he would be willing to part with her.
"Hey, you bastards!" Bruno's voice threw Naofumi from his thoughts, "Don't let your guard down! The mission's not over yet!"
Bruno gave orders to his crew, Narancia watching his stand's scanner, Mista keeping watch of the docks on the other side, and the rest just waiting warily. Trish tensed.
Giorno stood quickly and spoke directly to Bruno, "Bucciarati, I volunteer to be her bodyguard in the tower." He looked directly into Bucciarati, "I'll take her to the top of the belltower."
Bruno knew what that determined glare meant. Ever since his defeat by Giorno's hands, he had known of Giorno's ultimate goal of removing the boss of Passione and instating himself at the top to end the drug trade. Giorno wanted to see the boss for himself right now, and if possible, end his life.
Before Bucciarati could respond, Abbacchio grabbed Giorno by the shoulder, pulling him into his own heated stare, "Who the hell do you think you are? Bucciarati's the capo, so of course he's going to be the one to take her, you dumbass! The boss didn't specify anyone because he didn't know who was still alive!"
Giorno glanced over at Bucciarati, his stare expectant. Behind Bucciarati, Trish tensed further, her hands beginning to shake and her nails digging into her palms.
"Of course. I'll go-"
"I'm going."
The group looked over towards Naofumi, who eyed Bucciarati's widened eyes with his own pair of steely determined bolts. It was rare for Naofumi to demand something of Bucciarati, past trying to get him to ease up on the rest, so for him to outright demand that he be the one to make this final trip to the boss instead of their capo? It was surprising, to say the least.
"Naofumi, as the capo, I have to be the one to-" Bucciarati tried once more to state his intent.
"I'm. Going."
Bucciarati stared down the other man. This was not a very fortunate situation for Bucciarati and Giorno's true intentions, but with Naofumi devotion… Bruno could entrust him with this final leg.
Abbacchio tried to scold Naofumi but was cut off by Bucciarati, "Very well," he said simply. "I'll entrust her safety with you. Naofumi nodded in return, taking a gentle hold of Trish's hand and leading her off the boat. The two walked inside the chapel, Bruno and Giorno sharing an uncertain look.
Naofumi and Trish walked silently through the empty room, the unoccupied pews passing by them as they neared the end of the hall where a beautifully sculpted stained glass painting lay in the wall. Naofumi and Trish walked to the left as the boss had directed and entered a small waiting room, the elevator doors wide open. Giving a small glance around, Naofumi turned to Trish, taking her hands in his once more and closing the distance between them.
"Trish…" he whispered, "Do you want to wait here for a bit? Try and calm yourself down?"
Her delicate hands gripped his harder than any woman of her stature had any right to as she began to shake. "Calm down? You want me to calm down? I've been targeted by men I don't know with powers I can't understand, a power I have too somehow, and I'm being taken to a father I've never known or loved…" Trish began to nervously break down, "What's going to happen to me?"
Naofumi led her to the chair and sat her down, sitting down gently next to her. He laid his hand softly on her opposite shoulder and pulled her closer for an embrace. "To be completely honest, I don't fully know. You'll probably be taken somewhere else, outside the country and have to change your identity to stay safe, but… your father can make that happen. He holds that kind of power."
Trish's eyes widened. She could start over? She would be safe?
"I don't want you to go."
Trish's head snapped towards the man holding her.
"I don't want you to go. I don't know how you feel about us, but I think of you as one of my friends. I don't enjoy it when I have to say goodbye to a friend for the final time, but if it's for your safety… I can put up with it, this time." Naofumi smiled earnestly towards her.
While it didn't completely soother her fears, it certainly helped. Naofumi stood from the chair and offered his hand to her, Trish didn't hesitate to take it as he led them into the open elevator. There were only two buttons, one for the first floor and another for roof access. Pressing the roof button, Naofumi shuffled back to Trish's side, their hands still entwined.
The hum of the elevator was the only sound in the silence, so Naofumi decided to fill it with some fond memories, "Hey Trish, do you remember when Mista tried to hit on you and you whacked him with a clothes hanger?"
Trish didn't respond, silently staring at Naofumi, who slowly began to sweatdrop more and more, before she finally made some noise.
'pfft,' a small puff of air escaped her lips, before she began to laugh at the memory, Naofumi joined in the chorus.
"And then-and then the hanger got stuck on his head and-and he couldn't get it off?!" Trish sputtered out as she laughed. The followup only made the two laugh harder.
"He had to get Fugo to pull it off!" Naofumi wheezed out. Outside, Mista let out a sneeze that almost knocked him off the boat.
The two continued to laugh as the elevator continued its trek. Slowly, the two came down from their laughing fit, the air in the elevator much more peaceful than before.
"Haha ha… I'll really miss this. Do me a fav-ok… Trish?" Naofumi noticed her laughter had suddenly cut out. Her grip had also slackened his hand. The peaceful air in the elevator was gone, in its place was absolute dread and fear. A dripping sound reached his ears, nervous sweat forming along his body. He looked down at his feet, a puddle of crimson blood forming at his shoes. Trailing up, he came to see Trish's severed hand, no body for it to connect to.
He nearly dropped it in shock, "Trish? Trish!" Naofumi shouted in distress. He looked around the elevator, finding a hole in the roof. "The boss… he… he wanted us to escort Trish he so he could kill her himself?!" Naofumi collapsed into the corner of the elevator, gasping for air. Was all of it for nothing? All of the battles they had fought so hard for, all the people they had killed to protect her, was it all meaningless? But why? Why would the boss want to kill his own daughter? He knew firsthand that a child's parents could be neglectful, and he had heard more than enough stories of parents abusing their children, but cold blooded murder? He couldn't accept that any parent would be willing to kill their child so carelessly.
Naofumi shook his head, he couldn't afford to think like this. Not when he could still save her.
He grit his teeth, gripping the handlebar with stand enhanced strength, denting the metal with his hand, "Like hell he will! I'll save her and take her as far from this life as I can! To hell with Passione and to hell with the boss!" Thoughts of the gang, his family flashed through his mind. Was he really willing to leave all of them behind?
'Without a doubt. I'm sorry, but I can't let my family die.'
Collecting himself hastily, he phased through the floor of the elevator and fell back down the shaft. He landed harshly on the floor, phasing through the next set of doors and searching the waiting room.
'There!'
Beside the chair he and Trish had sat in, where he had ensured that her father would protect her, would make sure she was safe from this hellish life, was a small drip of blood and an open cabinet. Pulling the doors open fully revealed a hole in the floor leading straight to the chapel's basement. Naofumi dropped down, phasing through the floor to erase the sound of his landing. He charged down the remaining stairs and phased through the next set of walls, carefully watching his surroundings for any hint of the boss.
The basement was seemingly empty, nothing inside the vast expanse of space other than several lavishly decorated granite pillars. Deducing that he was ahead of the boss, he sidled over to the closest pillar, Wireframe carrying him up to the top of the structure, waiting for the boss to show his damned face.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
The sound of shoes hitting the floor rang out in the empty room. He tensed his body, Wireframe materializing next to him, ready for a fight.
…
'Why did he stop?'
"Naofumi Iwatani, come down from the pillar and leave this place without looking back. If you do, I will let you leave this place alive."
The boss's voice may as well have been a cannon, the voice booming as the sound repeated time and time again in Naofumi's head, a frigid wave of fear of cold seeping into his body.
'How…? How did he know?'
Steeling himself, Naofumi slowly inched his way out from the pillar, daring to steal a glance at his soon to be opponent… only to see nothing but Trish's still body at the base of the stairs. His eyes widened, his body broke out into a cold sweat as he could only gawk straight ahead as he felt the most overwhelming presence in his life to his immediate right.
"How disappointing."
"Wireframe!"
The stand rocketed out, snatching its user's wrist and phasing both stand and user from the barrage of punches that he just narrowly succeeded in avoiding. Naofumi looked desperately through the wreckage that once was the pillar, searching for any hint of the boss's stand, but he saw nothing.
Naofumi landed, breathing erratically as he darted towards Trish's body. Surprisingly, he reached her without incident and scooped her into his arms. Wireframe took the severed hand and phased it back on to the rest of her forearm. It wasn't actually healing the injury, Wireframe couldn't do anything like Gold Experience and if Trish woke up right now, it would probably hurt like hell, but it stopped the bleeding for now.
Naofumi darted his eyes around. The boss could teleport seemingly anywhere without any delay and had known where he had been hiding when he'd given no indication of his presence. Naofumi had no clue what the hell the boss's stand was, but it was obvious he stood little chance against it physically.
A flash of red appeared behind another pillar, Naofumi darting in the opposite direction. He didn't need to fight the boss, he just needed to escape with Trish. Then he could fuck off to somewhere across the entire world where no one would find them and he could protect her.
He neared the stairs, passing by the final pillar. He caught another flash of red just before it could catch him, Wireframe phasing him and Trish through the blows the boss's stand rained down on them.
The boss's voice rang out through the room again, "Of course, I had forgotten how troublesome your stand could be. Truly, it may be the one stand I am incapable of defeating in a battle. Though it seems as though the truth is on my side, you will not escape from this hall."
The central pillar fell to pieces and a massive piece was launched towards them. Naofumu ducked under it, avoiding a sudden death but the stone continued to sail, crashing into the stairs and collapsing them entirely.
"Shit!" Naofumi cursed, he could just phase through the pillar, but there was no guarantee the room behind it was in any standing fashion. He doubted Wireframe would be able to carry both him and Trish long enough for them to find their way out of this place. If they unphased while stuck in the stone, their lives were as good as over.
Silence reigned over the basement, the only audible sound being Trish's light breathing, but even a sound as faint as that pounded in his ears. Without warning, the boss's stand appeared behind the nearest pillar and charged in. Naofumi sent out Wireframe levelling blow after blow at the stand, any blows that missed collided with the pillar, dust flying up from the power behind the blows. Naofumi refused to stop, he needed to press forward, for the sake of Trish's future!
Naofumi felt the pillar give way under Wireframe's blows, the dust beginning to clear and he felt Wireframe's fist collide with flesh for the first time. Naofumi's erratic breathing stopped entirely as he saw that he had not hit the boss, but rather had hit a copy of himself, both Naofumi's staring at the other in total shock. The first Naofumi began to fade away, leaving the now shellshocked second Naofumi to watch in utter horror as Wireframe's blow continued out and threw him from his feet.
Naofumi rolled on the floor, trying to right himself and climb to his feet. The overwhelming pressure appeared again, standing directly behind and over him as he crouched on the floor of the cathedral basement.
"What you just saw was your inescapable fate, Naofumi Iwatani. You are a truly dangerous opponent, but I believe this has gone on long enough. The truth waits for no one."
Bruno scowled at the damn cathedral that Naofumi and Trish had entered more than thirty minutes ago. The boss said there was a time limit of fifteen minutes. Could he have kept them longer for a reunion? Bruno didn't know what was going on, be he sure as hell knew he didn't like the feeling he was getting.
In the back of the boat, the others were fooling around with the few snacks and other supplies they had opted to bring with them. Fugo had just asked Giorno for a bottle of water when suddenly Fugo already had it and had drunk a quarter of it. Giorno blinked in surprise. He looked down at his hands before noticing a track of dirty paw prints from a pair of cats that had apparently climbed on him and crossed the dock completely to get to some food on the end of the dock.
"Bucciarati… something's wrong," Giorno called.
Bruno took a moment to respond, "I noticed it too. Something is very wrong, but we can't betray the boss's orders." Truthfully, all he wanted to do was charge into the cathedral, pull Naofumi and Trish from the tower, and rip into Naofumi for taking so damn long.
It happened again, suddenly he was holding a bag of chips, about to pass them over to Mista. He dropped them in a panic, the bag of chips vanishing again as it appeared in Narancia's hand, the bag already half eaten.
"What… What the hell is going on?!" Mista cried out.
"We have to get Naofumi and Trish out of there!" Giorno said as he climbed to his feet and made to get off the boat. Whatever was happening was undoubtedly the work of a stand, and the only people in the immediate area was the gang in the boat, Naofumi and Trish, and the boss of Passione. Since none of them had whatever bizarre ability this was, Giorno could only guess it was the boss's stand, and the only reason the stand would be active, was a fight.
"Giorno! Stay on the damn… boat?" Bruno commanded as he suddenly found himself halfway to the doors of the cathedral, his arms wrapped tightly around Giorno to stop him from charging any further.
He quickly let go of Giorno, the rest of the gang staring in utter disbelief at the two that had somehow completely teleported onto land. Suddenly, a loud crash was heard from inside the cathedral, the group staring in shock, before spurring into action.
"Giorno, Mista, let's go! Narancia, keep an eye on the carbon dioxide radar and tell me what the hell is going on. Abbacchio, Fugo, stay here. Your stands aren't fit for this!" Bruno ordered as Mista scrambled to follow the other two.
Barging through the door of the cathedral, Bruno saw that the right side door had completely come off its hinges, rubble and debris clogging the entryway to the basement. Sticky Fingers and Gold Experience immediately leapt into action, Bruno zipping away or through pieces of rubble while Giorno morphed them into life, clearing the path incredibly quickly.
"Shit! Get the hell away from her, you fucker!" Naofumi's voice cried out from the other side of the wreckage.
Sticky Fingers pummeled its way through the final parts of the wreckage, the zipper splitting the last stone cleanly in half. Entering the basement, the three gangsters saw an incredibly injured Naofumi sheltering Trish from an unknown stand. Mista opened fire, the mystery stand taking notice of the three and deflecting the bullets. It scoffed in annoyance before retreating back to its user. Naofumi struggled to his feet, his beaten and bloodied body failing to respond to him. Bruno rushed to him, catching him as he stumbled forward.
"Naofumi, what the hell happened?" Bruno asked incredulously.
"He… he tried to kill his own daughter," Naofumi wheezed out, "I couldn't stand by and let it happen."
'The boss tried to…' Bruno narrowed his eyes, a scowl settling firmly on his face, 'Unforgivable.'
"Mista, help Naofumi and Trish escape, me and Giorno will cover your retreat."
Mista nodded as he helped Naofumi and Trish trudge away from the battleground.
Raphtalia opened the door, peering inside for what had to be the hundredth time today. Seeing nothing had changed at all, she closed the door and returned to her own room, three doors down. It'd only been three days since the Shield Hero's Siege as it had come to be known, and it'd only been three days since… since Elina died. And that was a lot to take in. Most of their friends and their allies have been giving them considerable space, since it was far from a secret that the party was considered to be among the closest of families.
And it was true. They were a family, and right now they were all in shatters.
Rifana angrily lashed out at anyone who tried to talk to her, other members of the family included, which was causing a lot of issues with servants in the castle. She was constantly getting into brawls and scuffles with knights, and the maids were much too afraid of the raging weasel demi-human to cater her. Raphtalia had tried to speak to her, maybe try and help her with the grieving process, but Rifana just stormed out without saying a word. Raphtalia hoped she would be willing to talk to her soon. She was lonely enough as is.
Silver, bless her naive soul, was trying so very hard to keep some sort of semblance of happiness in the family for the time being. Trying to get into crazy antics with Rifana like she usually did, which hasn't worked once yet, telling Raphtalia all about her day and letting the demi-human spoil her like a mother would, and staying beside Naofumi at all other times, refusing to leave her Daddy's side for anything. Not even food could coax her out of the room. Raphtalia enjoyed seeing Silver start to come into her own character, but she hoped the next time the silver haired bird girl did, it would be under far better circumstances. Or it could be a horrific attempt to delude herself in believing nothing has changed, that Elina would waltz right through the front door of the castle at any minute. Raphtalia didn't want to think about it too much.
Raphtalia herself? She was… struggling to adjust. With the state Naofumi was in and the total chaos that rained down on Castle Town following the Shield Hero's Siege, she couldn't allow herself time to grieve, not yet. There was simply too much to do. It hurt, so much. She got into fights with the unbearable oaf of a woman nearly every day, hurling meaningless insults back and forth, and once they even got into a brawl that left the both of them out of commission for a day until they could get a healer. Though the scolding from Naofumi was more than enough to ensure nothing like that happened again.
Naofumi was in the worst state of all of them. Walking away from the battleground, he just… shut down. He walked into the castle, followed the maid assigned to him to his room and hasn't left it since. He doesn't cry, he doesn't rage, he doesn't sleep. They have to feed and bathe him, all while the man who had been a source of endless joy and optimism for the entire family didn't even blink. Sometimes she thought he stopped breathing, rushing to check for a heartbeat and breathing out in relief that there was the regular thump of his heart. Elina meant a lot to all of them, but to Naofumi, she was a sort of anchor. She tied him to himself, making sure he never had to handle too much at any one time. She knew about the horrible sight he had experienced in Lerno. Elina had told her, but wanted him to come to her first, but with how he was now, Raphtalia doubted anything would come to fruition.
God, they were all a mess.
Raphtalia finally registered the feeling of a soft cloth wrapping around her shoulders. Pulling herself from her thoughts, she saw that she was covered in a soft and fuzzy blanket and she was crying. A lot. She turned around and came face to face with the Queen of Melromarc, Mirellia Melromarc. The elegant ruler was kneeling beside her, a hand resting lightly on her shoulder, a soft tired smile on her lips.
And like that, her dam broke.
Tears cascaded down her face, Raphtalia wailing as she buried her head into the blanket that covered her. Emotions flowed through her, draining the grieving girl of any energy. Fear that she would lose another family member, anger towards the piece of garbage who had killed Elina, disgust with herself for being so pitifully weak, and finally, pure unfiltered regret. Regret that in every interaction she'd had with Elina, she'd thrown insult after insult at the hulking woman, fought with her, treated her so horribly that she had no right to call herself a part of the family. In her final moments, Elina had died saving her. Had she been stronger, been paying more attention, don't anything than just stand there like a damn fool, Elina wouldn't have had to save her. To throw her life away for someone like Raphtalia.
Slowly, the tears began to slow down, the waterfall becoming rivers, then streams before only a few tears continued to leak from her watery eyes. Raphtalia looked the Queen in the eyes, not really caring for her appearance at the moment. She was just so tired.
"I appreciate the blanket. Thank you," Raphtalia politely commented.
"I was just doing what most people would do," the Queen responded.
Flashes of her life the last few years flew past her, "It certainly doesn't seem like something most people would do," she bit out with more venom than she had intended.
To her credit, the Queen had the decency to grimace at her words, "I… am not fully aware of your situation, but I am more than informed on your hardships when traveling with the Shield Hero." She put it delicately, it wouldn't do to just say she was spying on the group the whole time, "I know it means little when I speak it, but I am truly sorry for everything you had to go through."
"It's fine." Raphtalia was done talking about it. The Queen listened.
The Queen stood, offering her hands to Raphtalia, who took them after a moment's contemplation and hesitation. "It's a wonderful day outside, it might do you some good to get some fresh air, no?"
Raphtalia didn't want to go outside on her porch. All she could see was repairs on the town, the town they had fought in and the town they had lost Elina in. Even so, she obliged the Queen's unspoken request. The two women stood on the porch, overlooking the town in silence. Raphtalia questioned her resolve. Why had they fought so hard for them? They had never treated them like people, just like filth on the street. What did fighting for them, get her? Pain. More pain than she thought she could experience. She had already experienced close deaths before. She lost both her parents in a single day, she thought nothing would ever reach the level of pain she felt then, but life loved to exceed her expectations like it was nothing.
"I originally wanted to discuss this with the Shield Hero, but… with that state he's currently in, I don't believe that will be a feasible option," the Queen's voice drew her attention.
"His name is Naofumi," Raphtalia cut at the Queen, "Do not refer to him as a mere tool."
The Queen didn't react, deciding instead to move on with the conversation, "Since Naofumi is currently… indisposed, I wanted to discuss with you what I plan to happen to those who have made your lives so difficult."
Raphtalia's ears perked up, her tail bristling but her face gave no indication of her emotion. "Who exactly are you talking about?"
"My husband and daughter alongside the Spear and Bow Heroes. They all have crimes they need to answer for." The Queen spoke resolutely.
"What about the church?" Raphtalia asked.
"They have already been removed from power, and most of them have been given their sentences. Many have been sentenced to execution, but most have been given life long imprisonment or other punishments suitable for their crimes."
"...I see." It wasn't exactly what Raphtalia had hoped to hear, but it was good enough.
"Anyway, I must thank you and the rest of your party for going to the lengths you did to sway Aultcray to fight with you. Had he continued to support the church to the end, I would be forced to sentence him to death." Her fists clenched tightly, but her face did not betray the false calm she portrayed.
Raphtalia's eyes widened, "But that would mean… your daughter will-"
"Be sentenced to her death by my own judgement, yes." Raphtalia could see the Queen's fists shaking ever so slightly on the railing. "I had wanted to discuss with you whether it was enough of a punishment for the person who had taken so much from you all."
Raphtalia couldn't believe it, the Queen was deferring to her. "I-I… I don't think I'm the right person to make this decision. I can't be the one to make this choice."
The Queen sighed, "You have until the execution to make your choice, Raphtalia, the Sword of the Shield." With those final words, the Queen left the porch, exiting the room and closing the door behind her with a soft click.
Raphtalia entered her room and laid on her bed. She didn't want any of this. She wanted to go back to before the siege, before the kidnapping, before the wave. She wanted Elina back. She couldn't be the one to choose, only Naofumi had that right.
The day of the trial came far too soon for Raphtalia's liking. Ren and Riza met her at her room and went with her to collect the rest of her party. Rifana quickly followed with the promise that, yes, the people who allowed Elina's death would be punished. Silver was with Naofumi at the time so it was fairly simple to grab the both of them. To their collective relief, Riza and Silver kept themselves from getting into a fight, but Naofumi was still unresponsive, staring off into nothing as he walked alongside them.
Ren hated this. He hated this so much. Seeing all his friends and the one man he considered a big brother going through so much pain and being completely unable to do a single damn thing about it. All he could do was be a shoulder for them to cry on and he hated it. But, even if it was all he could do, he would be damned if he wouldn't do it. He would do anything for Naofumi if he just asked him. He wondered if this is how Naofumi felt all the way back when he was mourning his childhood friend, Riza.
Opening the doors to the throne room, Ren could see that the Queen had fully reinstated herself as the leading power of the kingdom, the only other people in the room being Melty, her personal squadron of knights, and a few select nobles. Ren gave a brief smile at the sight of Reichnott, the two had met once or twice in the castle halls in the past few days and Ren learned all about Reichnott and Naofumi's meeting. He was a good man. Reichnott smiled back but that quickly vanished at seeing the poor state Naofumi was in.
Taking their place at the side of the room, they waited for their criminals to arrive. The door opened five minutes later, Malty, Aultcray, Itsuki, and Motoyasu being escorted inside, each with varying degrees of resistance. Aultcray entered with dignity and walked alone, not a single knight trying to restrain him. Itsuki entered with his head down, failing to meet anyone's eyes. Like Aultcray, he didn't need knights to restrain him. Motoyasu seemed to be back to his old self, mostly, but he was putting up one hell of a struggle with the knights and Malty seemed to be doing much the same, crying out about who she was and how she'd kill every one of them if they failed to release her. They were brought to the center of the room and placed in their respective stands.
"Mama! What's going on?" Malty cried out in indignation and fear.
"Yeah, why the hell are we tied up and Naofumi isn't?" Motoyasu shot up as well only to quickly quiet down as Ren, Riza, Raphtalia, Rifana, and even Silver gave him the single most dangerous death glare ever recorded in human history.
Malty continued to cry out, her pleading and blabbering grating on everyone's nerves until the Queen shouted, "Silence!" That shut her up. "You four have been brought before me for your crimes against the kingdom and the world as a whole." She deliberately ignored Malty and Motoyasu's shouts of shock, "King Aultcray XXXII, you have been accused of second degree murder and endangering the world with your haphazard summoning of all four heroes. Malty Melromarc, you have been accused of high treason, first degree murder, attempted murder, attempted assasination, false rape allegations, unjust enslavement, second degree murder, slander, arson, and endangering the world through your collaborations with the church and attempted murder of several of the cardinal heroes of legend. Motoyasu Kitamura, you have been accused of high treason, third degree murder, and attempted murder. Itsuki Kawasumi, you been accused of first degree murder, second degree murder, arson, and propety destruction."
Ren blinked. It wasn't surprising at all but… that was a lot of charges.
"Mama, I didn't do any of those things, I swear!" Malty lied fruitlessly like the petulant child she was.
Queen Mirellia eyed down her daughter with a frigid glare, "If you speak the truth, then you should have no issue repeating your words under a slave seal."
The dreaded ink and brush was brought into the room by a servant, Mirellia taking up the brush and painting the same mark Raphtalia and Rifana had been tortured by for so many months. Malty cried out in protest and pain as the mark burned itself into her skin.
"Now that the mark has been applied, you must answer truthfully. If you do not, the seal will activate, burning you and marking you as a liar." She took a step back, "Now let the questioning begin."
What followed was the most one sided interrogation Ren had seen. Every question tackled one of Malty's many, many crimes. Her enslavement of Motoyasu's former party members, her unruly activities and blatant overstepping of royal authority, her collaborations with the church, her attempted assassination of her own sister, and finally her false rape allegation against his own brother in all but blood.
And for each question, she lied, and for every answer, she was burned. Aultcray could not look as his daughter was shocked and burned for her horrid acts. As much as he may love her, her actions went much too far. Motoyasu wanted to throw up. Everything Malty had told him was a lie. Every single thing he knew about her was a lie, a carefully crafted persona she used to manipulate him. She knew about the church's plans all along. And she probably knew about…
"Malty," Motoyasu asked between one of her questions, "you… you knew what the miracle seed would do to Lerno… didn't you?"
"Sir Motoyasu," Malty panted in pain, "I-I swear I didn't-" she was cut off as her seal activated once more and she screamed in pain.
He took a step back, his face pale. "Why?" He all but whispered.
"The church made me-" another shock, "It wasn't my idea-" another shock, "It wasn't my intention to-" another shock. She paused, taking a moment to fester in her pain and hatred. "Because I wanted to," she growled out. "I am the first princess of Melromarc and they were nothing but disgusting peasants so why shouldn't I use them for my own pleasure."
The seal didn't activate.
Motoyasu collapsed, his legs unable to support his own weight. He said nothing as he cradled his head and stared blankly off into the void. No one moved to help the misled man.
The trial moved to Aultcray, who accepted his charges with his dignity intact, accepting his fate. Motoyasu, being a cardinal hero could not receive any punishments that severely hindered his growth as a warrior, though he did receive severe restrictions on party member eligibility and questing, among other things. Itsuki, like Motoyasu, couldn't be punished greatly, but he gave his heartfelt apology to all those watching, swearing he would do all that he could to atone for his previous actions. He also gave them a warning of the curse series weapons, how they warp the user to heighten their heinous thoughts and actions. Rifana, Silver, and Raphtalia spared a quick glance towards Naofumi at his warning, the unresponsive man doing nothing in response.
"King Aultcray Melromarc XXXII, for your crimes, you will be removed from power. Any authority you previously held is now null and void. Should any other crimes be committed by your hand, you will be exiled from the country," Queen Mirellia decreed.
"Of course, my Queen," Aultcray bowed his head to his wife.
"Princess Malty Melromarc, for your crimes, you are being sentenced to death. Your execution will take place today, for all those gathered here to see."
"W-what?! No, mama, please! Don't kill me mama!" Malty begged futilly as she was dragged out of the room.
Raphtalia looked away from the pitiful sight of the first princess. She had known her fate for more than a day, but it wasn't her decision to make.
Rifana didn't know what to feel. On one hand, her anger at the woman for destroying their family was cheering for her death, but on the other, what would killing her really accomplish? All it would do is destroy another family, just she had destroyed hers.
Silver was saddened. There was so much going on that it was a little confusing to try and keep track of, but she understood what had just been said. Wouldn't Malty dying make Melty sad? Wouldn't it make the old man King and the nice Queen sad too? So why are they killing her? Silver knew she was a bad person, but this didn't make a lot of sense to her.
Melty was crying, her hands over her mouth in shock as she darted her gaze towards her mother who seemed to be holding back any display of emotion.
Not one person protested the sentence given. Malty Melromarc would die today.
The roar of the crowd flooded Naofumi's ears, drowning out the thunderous roar of his inner thoughts and giving him respite for the first time in days. He blinked in confusion as he took in the sight around him. They were inside the arena he had fought Ren in all that time ago, only now he was standing in the elite spectator seats reserved solely for important nobles and the like, the rest of his living family beside him. Looking over to the royalty seating he saw a random woman, elegantly dressed and with the same color hair as Melty.
'So that's the Queen? I wonder when she got here,' he idly thought.
He couldn't make out what she was saying, the roar of the crowd and his own thoughts making anything else unintelligible to his ears. Looking away from the apparent Queen he turned his gaze towards the arena, and with the flash of that red hair and emerald eyes, his rage came roaring back.
He stepped forward, surprising the rest of his family as this was his first conscious movement in three days. He ignored their worried questions and continued forward down the steps. They asked where he was going. He didn't answer.
As he walked, he drew the attention of the people he passed, the crowd slowly quieting as he made his way. Naofumi reached the barrier of the arena and jumped down, the stone floor cracking under his haphazard landing. The Queen made her offer, her own life to save her daughter's but it went unheard.
Malty begged and cried to the Shield Hero for any glint of mercy, but the man just stared at her, his eyes tired and lacking any of their usual light. He crouched down, placing his hand delicately on her cheek, making her hope for a brief moment that she would be spared. That hand wasted no time gripping her red hair and wrenching her head straight down into his rising knee, the crunch of her nose as it all but shattered in the blow ringing out across the silent stadium.
He brought her head up to look at him once more, her tears renewed. "You want me to save you?" She nods fervently, "Why should I? You have tortured me and my family ever since I was summoned here and you've been the cause of countless deaths solely because you found it amusing. What value does your life have that theirs didn't?"
She sputtered out every excuse in the book, ignoring the pain as her seal continued to burn her chest.
The Queen shouted to the hero that held her daughter's life in her hands, "Shield Hero! Please, consider my offer, I beg of you!"
Naofumi only spared her a quick glance, "Your daughter will only continue greater suffering if she is allowed to live. She has killed hundreds and will continue to do so, directly or indirectly. The slave seal will not stop her."
He turned his wrathful gaze to the red haired harlot, his visage that of an enraged demon.
"You are the kind of person I despise most. The one who doesn't care about others. The one who only finds joy in others suffering. For that, your life means nothing to me."
The Queen took his answer and gave the order with a shaky finality. The executioner nodded. He raised the axe and cut the rope, the guillotine's blade falling as Malty screamed in total terror as the blade grew closer to her neck.
SHWING
Naofumi held her head in his hand by the hair, tossing the item to the side as if it was nothing more than garbage. The crowd cheered, celebrating the death of the kingdom's greatest embarrassment.
Though none of that mattered to Naofumi as he walked off through the arena's doors and back into the castle grounds.
Notes:
Well, that was certainly a twist. It never made sense to me why malty got to live in canon. She was an awful person who practically tortured others for the fun of it. Hell, I'm sure in canon some people died in Lerno because of her actions. Even after she was sentenced she still somehow got and tried to use poison to kill Naofumi and his party, she's seriously a major danger to the country and the world, why was she allowed to live? Will Malty's death alter the rest of canon considerably? Probably, yeah, but thats season two anime shit that I'll deal with then. For the rest of season one, I should be fine. Sorry Melty, but your sister is one of the worst people to exist in anime.
Part 5 King Crimson fight was between Naofumi and Diavolo, but Bruno still gets fatally wounded, so the rest of canon is largely unchanged, but I will make on final change to Part 5 canon before I continue forward with that plotline. Also I think that matchup is really interesting. Would King Crimson's Time Skip ignore Wireframe's Opacity? There's a whole lotta questions that gotta be asked and I think it's really interesting :)
Anyway, when I finish season one, I'll have to put the story on hold until I can watch season two or whatever since I don't read the manga. But until then I have the otherworlder fight and the stand special like I promised.
- RandomA99