"Talking"

"Thinking"

[Status Magic or other reference to a system or power]

Chloe joined in. Sophia and Chloe kept laughing until Liviccic entered, having returned for the day. He saw Sophia and a bound shadow laughing it up. He saw a tied up Fitts with his head hung low.

"I leave for two hours..." Liviccic complained to himself.

...

"So, you are the knight, Fitts? Or should I say former knight?" Liviccic said as he moved to a chair to join them.

"Please just give me a moment to explain, I-"

"They already know, apparently." Chloe said.

"...Then why did she attack and abduct me?" Fitts asked in annoyance.

"Cuz I asked her to." Chloe said with a smile.

"...I hate you." Fitts said with a sigh.

"I had to deal with the same crap before, too. Good luck, buddy." Liviccic thought.

"So, why did you come here? You realize this is the worst possible place for you, right?" Liviccic asked.

"I do. I came here to hopefully deliver information about the church. "

"Like what?" Liviccic asked doubtfully.

"Like their numbers, members, behind the scene brokers, general battle strategy, individual weaknesses, and their secret weapon." Chloe said smugly.

Liviccic paused before nodding to Sophia. She removed all the webbing from both of them with a movement of her finger.

"We need to talk quickly, the other three heroes are nearly here. They are currently working with the church. From what it sounds like, it's not out of maliciousness, but stupidity."

Chloe then proceeded to tell Liviccic everything. He knew or guessed most of it, but there were some details that were very helpful, especially about the fake holy weapon.

That hadn't concluded their discussion, but a guest arrived. Silvius walked in without the outer or inner guards stopping him. He took a look at Fitts and the shadow, former bindings at their feet. He and all the higher-ups now knew that Fitts was innocent. He seemed happy to know his new lord was hard at work, even in his fleeting free time.

"Sorry to disturb you, but the three other heroes have just arrived. Princess Malty is with them and demands an audience."

"...Then she will get one. I just received updated information I need to inform all of you on later. Under no circumstance are any of those guests to step foot in my home. Some lesser lord can offer her their roof." Liviccic proclaimed.

"Understood, my lord." Silvius responded

"Has the kraken been moved?" Liviccic asked.

"Yes. It'll be out of their sight." Silvius informed him.

"Sophia, do you mind helping these two in whatever they need?" Liviccic asked.

"Sure, be safe." Sophia said

...

With Naofumi and the party

...

Leon had to touch down to rest and Naofumi removed things from his [Inventory] to make food. He was thankful that nothing was lost along with the cart. That said, the whole party was anywhere from upset to utterly devastated. Raphtalia and the kids were nearly in a state of mourning for their home. Melty, her shadow, and Ake were also upset, but less so. Eclair had obvious thoughts that Naofumi thought needed to be addressed.

"...Looks like it'll rain soon. We need to gather up all the firewood we can now and do any hunting as well." Naofumi announced.

The kids usually liked hunting, but their hearts weren't in it. Surprisingly, Melty's shadow offered to hunt. Ake went to go get firewood again.

While they were gone, Naofumi went to the family.

"Listen... I don't know what to say. We lost..., but it's not over." Naofumi wanted to give far greater words of encouragement than that, but found it hard to build up any spirit.

The family saw his attempt at comfort and they embraced each other. Naofumi was so frustrated. To actually twist the only good thing he had into something evil was so wrong and hurtful. To try and kill his kids seemed about the most evil thing he had ever considered. To destroy their cart seemed so needlessly bitter and cruel. He was keeping up a neutral expression, but he was the one who wanted to cry the most.

So he did. He cried in their arms and they did too. They were on the run and the very idea of their family was in danger, they were scared for one another and desperate to stay together. Melty went over to comfort them, but knew better than to intrude on this moment.

Eclair had seen enough. The revelation that Monti was a wave monster was certainly shocking, but placed in context, there was no concern to have. She saw him fussing over the death of an enemy and here he was hugging and crying alongside a cardinal hero. She thought the same as her father, that a person was the sum of their actions. In that regard, she could find little fault in Monti. She quietly decided to get over it and move pass the thought.

The family held each other for nearly 20 minutes. They were collectively devastated and hurt.

A real family was there for the best and worst of times. Now just so happened to be the worst.

...

Briarhaven, market district.

...

Liviccic went through the gates accompanied by Silvius and three other knights. He wore his battle attire, opting to not be too polite. Upon seeing him the three heroes all had the same idea.

"Stereotypical evil necromancer!"

They all gave each other a look, they all knew they agreed.

"Greetings, Princess Malty and of course you too cardinal heroes."

"Greetings to you as well Liviccic, we were hoping to speak to the acting lord. We need lodging and supplies. We are hunting the shield devil. He has my sister and is trying to spirit her away."

"Lying bitch." Liviccic thought.

"Oh my, 'shield devil'? I wasn't aware you followed the teachings of the three heroes church... Lodging and basic supplies can be provided for you of course."

The three heroes exchanged glances at his comment.

"Oh, I'm not. It's just that having kidnapped my sister, rude thoughts escape even my lips." Malty said.

"Of course. Well, I am acting lord. I have several lesser lords who want nothing more than to brown nose royalty, so your stay will be comfortable." Liviccic said, deciding to be less formal.

"Oh? What of your manor? Is it not that largest here?" Nothing ever satisfies Malty.

"Largest? Yes. Most comfortable? Not a chance. If you knew my father, then you knew he believed rest was for the dead."

"You don't really look like you agree with that." Motoyasu said, pointing to his bones.

"I follow a lot of my father's teachings, but no, that isn't one of them. That said, none of the beds have been updated, it's on the list though." Liviccic was trying to be polite, they needed to stop.

"Well that is a shame, but I'd still prefer your manor." Malty wouldn't stop pushing.

Silvius stepped forward, "Unfortunately, you cannot. Lord Blackcrown has made it clear that no one is allowed to rest until the man who killed his father is found. The culprit is a former knight named Fitts. Until such time that he is caught, he doesn't wish to witness laziness."

"Well that is quite rude, I believe-"

Malty went to speak, but Liviccic was done.

"I find demanding my home while not doing your job, rude. It has been months. It was a single man. Yet the combined manpower of the crown and the church can't find him? That's bullshit. The truth is that you simply don't care. If you royalty won't do your job in offering justice, then I see no reason to play nice either. I offered you more a moment ago than the crown had offered me in two months, take it or buy a night in an inn."

Motoyasu got a little mad at his words.

"Listen kid, I know your old man dying must be upsetting, but that is no way to talk to-"

Silvius cut him off, "That is no way to talk to the lord of Briarhaven. Address him with respect or find lodging outside our walls."

"Um, you do know that we are cardinal heroes, right?" Itsuki asked, as if Silvius was stupid.

"And why should I care?" Silvius asked.

The three heroes were getting frustrated.

"You should start showing some gratitude. It's us clearing the waves, is it not?" Ren asked.

"Forgive me if my information is out of date, but was it not the shield hero who did the vast majority of the work last wave? And the one before that, wasn't it the shield hero that saved that village... Lute is its name. So what exactly do you wish me to be grateful for?" Silvius said, unimpressed.

"Careful now, you are walking too close to the line." Malty warned.

"You are the ones on that line and you're about to cross it. I owe nothing to any of you, yet I offer good food and great housing as is expected of a lord's courtesy. You then demand my home and belittle me. Tell me Princess, if the roles were reversed, what would you do?" Liviccic asked.

Malty realized she was about to cause problems. She didn't care about that too much, but she needed to keep the church happy and the church wants Briarhaven...

"I would accept a humble apology, but allow no further slights..." Malty eventually said.

"...Apology accepted. These two will show you around town, the best stores and the like. When you are ready, they will escort you past the inner wall. I know it's inconvenient, but it's for security purposes."

Actually, the escorts around the city and to enter and exit was to keep an eye on them.

Liviccic left with Silvius and another knight. The three heroes and their parties watched him leave, except for Rino, who bowed. Once he was gone, the three heroes spoke, forgetting the two knights were there.

"So, a creepy necromancer who is openly hostile to the heroes and the princess?" Motoyasu asked rhetorically.

"I know right? You can see it from a mile away." Itsuki complained.

"No need to complain. Knowing who the villain is just makes things easier." Ren determined.

The knights looked at the three heroes, but said nothing.

...

On the roads of Melromarc

...

Kurtis and his party were traveling by rented filolials, they were traveling very fast.

"Yo, captain... Are you sure we can handle something like this?" Severin questioned.

"Seriously, m'nose tells me there'be trouble." Cassian warned.

"If anyone wants to sit this out or go their own way, they can, but you heard them. They say the savior kidnapped Princess Melty. Even though lord Blackcrown said she helped organize the wave party. It's bullshit and we all know it. He would never do what I almost did. They are going to try and kill him or at least his family." Kurtis said.

"I understand your feelings, but we are talking about nearly all the greater lords. Those people are all monsters. Just ask Sigrid and Mia about lord Veit. The man literally punches blades away in battle! And lord Langiva killed 100 demi-human soldiers in a single battle. We are in completely different worlds! We aren't even level 30!" Beatrix was practically yelling at Kurtis to not go.

"I will not be a coward again!" Kurtis yelled out.

The party fell quiet.

"You guys don't need me..., but I need this. I've been given an opportunity to save the family I tried destroying. I won't get another chance..."

Godiva, Sigrid and Mia hadn't spoken out against the idea as the others did.

"Then let's go already." Godiva said encouragingly.

Godiva was stronger than she had any right to be, with an abundance of natural talent and strength she barely used. She'd fare evenly against the other nine party members combined in a death match. To her, she'd not met an enemy to fear. So she was simply going to follow Kurtis regardless.

"...I want to go as well. I am no longer his slave. I want him to see that before he dies." Mia said in a low, confident voice.

"And where Mia goes, I go. Count me in." Sigrid said.

One by one, the rest agreed to follow Kurtis the whole way. None of them wanted to be shown up by a childlike Mia.

"Good. Then we are heading for Briarhaven. Lord Blackcrown is likely still partied with the savior. We can use him to know where to help."

"Right!" They collectively answered.

...

With Naofumi and the party

...

The family's spirit was far from lifted, but they tried to hold their spirits up when able. Leon could not carry so many people in the rain. He didn't say as much, as he'd never admit it, but Naofumi never asked. Teal and Naofumi made large umbrellas out of oversized leaves. They had been hiking for a while, but no one complained.

Melty definitely wanted to, though. She hadn't done much physical activity of this intensity. Hiking in the hills in the rain for hours was so far beyond what Melty was capable of doing. However, she thought it'd be rude to ask for any sort of break or help. Her father caused them so much trouble and now she has too.

Naofumi watched as Melty struggled along, slowly becoming further away. It'd be easy to wallow in his own problems, but he had to appreciate Melty's problems as well. She was also running from killers. She could not wake up in the morning. Naofumi experienced this once before, right after he was summoned her, scared he and Raphtalia would pass away in their sleep. He barely handled it himself as a 20 year old man, so how was she handling it as a 10 year old girl? He then remembered Raphtalia handled it as a 10 year old girl.

"She handled it by not being alone."

Naofumi stopped and walked back to Melty.

"Sorry, I'll speed up. I'll-" Melty was apologizing.

Naofumi unceremoniously picked Melty up and kept walking. A small smile formed on the party's faces. The situation was bad, but they moved forward. Because they weren't alone.

They walked throughout the whole downpour and it wasn't easy. Melty forced Naofumi to let her walk after her legs had rested up. Eclair saw Ake was waning himself, but he'd get no such sympathy. At the end of the harsh rain, the sun came out strongly and they decided to rest.

"I have some cold sandwiches in my [Inventory]. We aren't going to find means for a fire right now." Naofumi offered.

"That's fine, even your sandwiches are great and the sun is strong enough that we don't need a fire." Raphtalia said.

It was odd. Everything was wet, they had less than ideal food, and they were all so miserable before, but now they seemed better in some small way.

"This is kinda nice..." Raphtalia said with some hesitation.

"I agree. The smell of rain in the woods is among nature's greatest gifts." Came a voice that Naofumi didn't recognize.

Naofumi's [Minimap] did detect the newcomer, but none of its mastery bonus effect considered them a threat or enemy. Naofumi was a little on edge, but relied on his shield information.

The family and Ake took a defensive stance. Naofumi, Melty and Eclair did not.

"Who are you?"

"Naofumi, this is lord Van Reichnott! The person I told you about! What luck."

"We've had no luck at all lately. How did you know we were here?" Naofumi asked.

"I didn't. As I said, I just came to smell the rain." Van said plainly.

"A lord walking into a forest unguarded to smell the rain?" Teal said with doubt.

"Yes, exactly." Van said, smiling.

The family turned to Filo. She paused a moment, then gave a thumbs up. The family relaxed at that.

"You all look quite rough, come." Van offered with a motion to follow him.

They all followed without complaint.

...

Van Reichnott's manor

...

They were offered means to dry off and offered food and board. Naofumi accepted, but tapped Monti on the shoulder and gave him a look. It was a look of mild worry, telling him to watch out for his siblings. The kids opted to lie down. Eclair even cut Ake some slack and let the boy rest as well. Once it was just Naofumi. Raphtalia, Eclair, and Van, they moved to the dining area and sat down. Melty joined as well, but she looked like she needed sleep too.

The whole time they took traveling here and even as they moved room to room, Van spoke in a soft and cheerful tone. The man seemed like the nicest of people, but Naofumi couldn't help but feel something was off. It was like deja vu...

"It's good to see you are in such good health, savior. My home is open to you for as long as you'd like." Van said softly.

"So I have met you? But I remember the nobles I met and you weren't one of them." Naofumi was uncertain.

"Oh, I came to you as a normal customer." Van clarified.

"..."

Realization set in. Naofumi remembered the man. When Naofumi first gained his skills to make accessories, he had made a few to sell alongside his medicine. This man had bought all three of the accessories he had at the time and one of them had a rather useless effect.

"Oh. I remember you now..." Naofumi admitted.

"That is good to hear. That I made any impact is a delight to know." Van said, genuinely.

"...Well, whatever. We need to discuss the issue at hand." Naofumi dismissed the man.

"Yes, yes. Sorry to have kept us held up. How long will you be staying?" Van asked.

"Just today. The other three heroes nearly killed my kids. I need somewhere to take Melty. After that, we have to leave this country as fast as possible." Naofumi announced.

Naofumi went from firmly wanting to leave, back to being unsure from Melty's constant efforts and a want to spare her losing her father, but things were different once again. With the near death of three of his kids, the repeated attempts to steal his other kid and knowing Monti has a target painted on him, it was too much. No amount of pleading would change his mind at this point. It was a matter of life and death for those he cared about.

Melty had known that this was coming and it saddened her to no end, but at the same time, she couldn't justify saying a single word to Naofumi anymore. He was a good person who had helped many, he saved her life as well. He didn't deserve the loss of his family and none of them had done anything that'd convince her otherwise.

While she struggled to do so, if she looked at things objectively... Her father deserved whatever fate his own actions brought and Naofumi's family is owed far too much.

She sat there, fidgeting in her chair, trying not to cry.

Eclair was far less emotional at the words. She hadn't given up on convincing Naofumi to stay, it just changed the context. What she needed to do was secure the family's safety. If she could do that, then Naofumi would stay. That was more easily said than done. Surely after the coup is taken care of, Melromarc could offer Naofumi all sorts of things, but until that time, it couldn't offer much of anything.

"...Well, that is a shame. I'm sorry we could not keep you... I'll provide you with whatever I can."

"We don't know what our plan is at the moment, so we are unsure of what kind of supplies we may need." Raphtalia said.

"Then you merely need to contact Briarhaven, yes?" Eclair prompted.

"Yeah, now's a good time... You, join my party for a moment." Naofumi said to Van.

He did so, but was unsure why. The next moment, Naofumi called Liviccic, keeping the kids and Ake out of the call so they could sleep.

"It's me." Naofumi started.

"Finally! I have all kinds of information for you." Liviccic all but shouted.

"Let's go in order, did the heroes show up as we guessed?"

"Yes. They and the princess showed up and they all seem far more stupid and arrogant than I imagined. You described them well. I've barred them from my manor. More importantly, we have two guests over that would like to talk to you. Can you move a sub-party member to a normal party member?"

Naofumi saw the two others partied with Liviccic and Sophia, one was named 'Fitts'. He tried a couple things, but eventually was able to drag and drop Fitts into his normal party.

"Can you hear me?" Naofumi asked aloud.

"Shield hero! That really is your voice." Fitts said in amazement.

"I'm glad you're still alive. What did you need to discuss?" Naofumi asked.

"Everything. The person with me is a shadow that used to work for the church. She has all kinds of information about them."

"Tell me everything." Naofumi said, adding the shadow to his main party.

"Firstly, things that affect you. You were not to be summoned here, to Melromarc. Each major nation was to summon one hero and Siltvelt demanded to be the one to summon the shield hero. The pope convinced the king to summon all four despite this. Telling him that giving Siltvelt their god would galvanize them, among other things. He used the king's hate of Siltvelt to control him." Chloe informed.

Eclair was hoping to spare Naofumi that information, but trying to stop him from hearing it would be seen as a betrayal, so she did nothing. Naofumi was mad, but for all his anger, he knew that had he not been summoned here, he'd have none of his family. He took it in stride.

"Secondly, the church has been working with Princess Malty. She accused you of those crimes to purposefully hurt your public image and make things hard on you. Doing this favor for the church, since they see you as their devil..." Chloe informed.

Naofumi was pissed, but between the pope manipulating the king and now this deal, it seemed the church might have always been a bigger enemy than he had considered. He had a question though.

"What did she get out of the deal?" Naofumi asked.

"The church promised her that they would kill Princess Melty, so that she would be queen one day." Chloe said.

Naofumi's blood was boiling, but he knew Melty had every right to be more upset at that than himself. He turned to Melty and was surprised by her expression.

She was of course shocked, but not exactly surprised. Her face was one of disappointment, as if she always knew this was a possibility. All the same, Raphtalia placed a hand on Melty's shoulder.

"I... I always had a feeling. A feeling that Malty would take it this far..., but it still hurts to know." Melty whispered.

Naofumi needed more info, he could not allow this opportunity for information to escape him.

"So the plan was to bolster the church's standing by making their claims seem more legitimate, while Malty gained the crown?" Raphtalia asked.

"Yes and no. That was what Princess Malty thought, but she is wrong. The plan was to have all four heroes summoned here to keep the queen busy and hopefully have her assassinated by a third party that blamed it on her. While that happened, they would gather the greater lords and plan a coup against the crown. Right now, Malty thinks the plan is to seat her on the throne, but she is to be eliminated as well. The only people who are to benefit are the church and the greater lords that sided with them." Chloe clarified.

"..."

They knew of the coup already, but more confirmation was good to have.

"How do they plan to do that?" Eclair asked.

"The plan was to rally behind 'stopping the shield devil' using further lies by Malty to give justification for the church and greater lords to track down and kill the shield hero, but in reality it was to be an excuse. One designed to gather the sum of their forces in such a way that no one would know to move against them. They were then going to stop you at the border, kill you, then slowly make their way back to the capital. They would 'cleanse' those that supported you in any way, such as the merchant's guild, the villages of Lute and Lerno, and any demi-human they found..." Chloe said.

Naofumi and Raphtalia froze.

This was beyond horrible. Whole towns? Racial cleansing? The destruction of every person who dared to speak well of them...

Now Naofumi was conflicted again. His family came first, but how can they abandon that many people. The few people that treated them well. Naofumi and Raphtalia were shaking in anger now.

"I can't endanger my family..., but I have to... What can I do?" Naofumi was lost.

"From what I've been told by Liviccic here, the queen knows and has been gathering forces. I'm sure she will give them a good fight... Where are you?" Chloe asked randomly.

Van informed her of where they were.

"Then my first suggestion is to kill lord Idol Rabier. He is in the very next province and is the last greater lord that will be joining them, since he governs so close to the border. All of you versus a single great lord and hopefully catching him off guard? He'd be easy to kill. Without him, his forces won't join and that increases the queen's chances of victory." Chloe suggested.

Raphtalia's tail and hair stood on end when she heard that.

"Raphtalia?" Naofumi felt something was wrong.

"Is she not okay with a preemptive attack?" Naofumi thought.

Raphtalia turned to Naofumi with eyes full of determination. Those eyes were Raphtalia's most beautiful feature in Naofumi's opinion. They looked as though they saw something far away. Something that hadn't come to be yet. Eyes looking to tomorrow.

"Naofumi-sama... That man, he's that man." She said, voice full of confidence.

"That? ...The one she wants to kill. The one person that Raphtalia doesn't consider a person. The one person that she hated enough that her naturally loving nature could not convince her otherwise..."

"Then no discussion needed. We will rest, resupply, and leave as soon as we can tomorrow. We'll assassinate this 'greater lord'." Naofumi announced.

"That was quick? Why the instant decision?" Sophia asked.

"It's personal... Anything else?" Naofumi asked.

"I have all kinds of information, but I guess the only thing that affects you is the fake holy weapon." Chloe said.

Eclair and Raphtalia both flinched at that.

"But that... that has been lost for ages. The holy replica..." Melty knew of the item.

"It was never lost. The tool is flawed. It isn't a proper holy weapon, as it doesn't provide someone with hero status. Meaning you'd have to use Mp instead of Sp to use its skills, but I've been told there are other problems with it as well. The result is a weapon that'd take more mana than a party of class upgraded adventurers just to use a single skill." Chloe informed.

Naofumi and Raphtalia knew about this because of Monti, his huge inefficiency in magic was due to this.

"So, the church said it was lost and has been placing mana into it constantly over a very long time. I don't think it'd be an exaggeration to say that if the pope were to wield that, that he'd be stronger than the other three heroes combined." Chloe concluded

"I assume all the greater lords are class upgraded too." Naofumi said aloud.

"Yes, except for the recent ones, whose parents were assassinated." Liviccic answered.

"The pope, five class upgraded war veteran greater lords, the three other heroes, and an army?" Naofumi said, exhausted.

"Other notable fighters include Lord Wagner's son, Eadwig Wagner, who is also class upgraded, Princess Malty, Lady Grimwald has 40 special fighters under her command all over level 35, A number of high quality mercenaries, and of course the five archbishops that will likely accompany the pope, all of which either have class upgraded or are close... Maybe more, my information isn't up to date."

Hearing the sheer numbers, it was more than a little disheartening.

"What of lord Langiva's daughter? Is she not also class upgraded and considered a great fighter?" Liviccic asked curiously.

"She is, but her father told her to not join the coup. He gave her strict orders to focus on gaining levels until she is a higher level than he is." Chloe answered.

"Small mercies." Liviccic said bitterly.

"I will be leaving soon." Fitts said.

"You mean 'we'." Chloe corrected him.

"Where are you going, Sir Fitts?" Eclair asked, making an effort to continue referring to him as a knight.

"This is all to happen at the border, right? The Siltvelt border? I will be setting up as many traps as I can. Every little bit helps."

"I'll also have to play a role... I need to get ready for battle and play nice with the church until it's time to strike." Liviccic said.

"Then we will contact everyone after we take care of Idol, okay?" Naofumi asked.

They all agreed.

Things were worse than they could ever have considered, but they had a plan and allies. They were far from helpless.

Naofumi was trying to determine what to do, though. If the plan went south and they needed to save themselves, where would they go?

Raphtalia was quietly thinking. Naofumi finally pulled himself from his thoughts and saw Raphtalia. He gently grabbed her hand and guided her to their guest bed. As they laid in bed, unbelievably tired, Raphtalia found it hard to sleep for the first time since she was bought by Naofumi. She was going to face a demon of her past. One she hoped never to see again.

But she wasn't the same person that she was back then and she was far from alone. She also knew that he likely was torturing some other demi-humans now.

She quietly resolved to save them. After that, sleep came a little easier.

.

[Author's Notes]

Fitts and Liviccic meet.

The family is in a bad spot emotionally after what happened.

The three stooges use game logic to conclude that Liviccic is a villain

Kurtis and co. are also on their way to help.

Naofumi still acting nice to Melty

Van appears

Melty's resolve to keep Naofumi in Melromarc is all but gone.

The full truth is revealed to Naofumi.

They plan to assassinate Idol, Raphtalia's former master.

Next chapter probably wont come that quickly, gotta visit my parents for a few days.

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