Chapter 16
I don't own Rising of the Shield Hero
Or Destiny the game
Story start
They had originally intended to leave Drakes village sometime after dropping off Wyndia there, in the end however they stayed the night at the house the villagers built for Drake, a simple two story house with just enough rooms after everyone if they doubled up. The next morning they woke up with breakfast already made, a simple filolial porridge for everyone to enjoy (non-filolial for Filo) and some toast. While everyone was digging in a stranger who Naofumi didn't recognize walked in. He looked to be in his late teens and was wearing cargo pants, a simple cloak around his shoulders and no shirt showing his lightly toned chest.
As soon as he entered much to Naofumi's surprise Filo stopped eating and started glaring at the stranger, who quickly noticed.
"What are you looking at pipsqueak?"
"I'm not a pipsqueak! My name's Filo!" she huffed
"Sure thing pipsqueak." dismissed the stranger
"Hmph!"
"That's enough Razor don't antagonize Filo on purpose. And can you at least wear a shirt to the dinner table?" asked Drake
"Sure, whatever you say dad." said the stranger with an eye roll "Anyway I'm just letting you know I'll be gone for most of the day, see ya."
After he left Drake signed "All those battles and I never thought raising a angsty teenager would be my most difficult fight, let me take on a group of hive knights barehanded any day."
"Who is he and since when did you have a son?" asked Naofumi
"That's right, you haven't met him in that form. Remember that riding dragon I had?" asked Drake
"Wait, that's him? Is he a Dragon King like Filo is a Filolial Queen?" asked Raphtalia curious
"Dragons dont have kings or queens due to their isolated nature." answered Wyndia "They do however have lords or ladies, while the more powerful individuals are known as emperors or emperess...Gaelion was a Dragon Emperor, one of only a few. How many forms does Razor have? My father had two but transformation was never his strong suit."
"Razor has his flying dragon form, his human form and I strongly suspect he can still transform into his original riding dragon form but chooses not to use it. Tell me, what do plan on doing now?" asked Drake
"Both Raphatlia and Filo have reached level 40 and are ready for their class upgrade while Reigo isn't that far off so we're going to the Dragons Hourglass to get them and double-check how many days we have until the wave. I figure we should have around a week until it hits." answered Naofumi "Unfortunately, Sastomi thinks the church or the king will do something to stop us from getting the upgrades."
"A week does sound about right, but why would they stop you, what would they have to gain in the long run?" speculated Drake
"If I had to guess they're unhappy of how strong I've gotten. They want to either view me as a barbaric thug that they want to get rid of or at most see me as an inconvenience that gets in the way. If they do stop us from getting the upgrades they'll probably wait until we're so far behind the other Cardinal Heroes that we'll never catch up and only then allow us to receive the upgrade. While I don't need to go to the Hourglass to be able to go above level 40, I get most of my experience from my party and if anyone who joins me is only able to reach level 40 then it limits what monsters we can face. We would have to work twice as hard to keep up, work that only I would benefit from. While I could try to find people who already have their upgrades, that comes with it's own problems such as fighting cohesion. It's not just about having strength, they need to able fight with us as a unit. That's not even considering whether we can trust them to have our backs when things get tough. I know I can lay my life in the hands of any of my party and they wouldn't let me down...I don't think I could say the same for a stranger." said Naofumi
"Naofumi." said Raphatlia breathlessly, moved by his words
"Well said Naofumi. If they do stop your party from getting their class upgrades come and see me, I might be able to do something." reassured Drake
"Thank you, anyway we should get going." said Naofumi
"Wait sir shield hero!" said Wyndia suddenly before rushing upstairs, when she came back she was carrying two of the gemstone fragments that she recovered from Gaelion "These are fragments of Gaelion's heartstone, I want you and sir Drake to have them."
"Are you sure? I can only imagine how important they are to you." asked Naofumi
"Its fine, I'll still have the main part. Besides this will help you both and I know it is what my father would have wanted." replied Wyndia
"In that case thank you." said Drake
"If you give them to Filo and Razor to eat they should increase there growth rate and help them to become more powerful. Alternatively, you could also use them for your armour or weapons, either way you make your choice with care once used it will not be so easy to get them back." said Sastomi
"I'll have to have a think about it, for now we'll head to the capital and try to get our class upgrades, swig pass Erhards for equipment and then depending on how much time we have, use the rest getting ready for the next wave." said Naofumi
"That reminds me, some people came here looking to join your party. I believe there were two knights and two mages, they said, and I've confirmed it; that you saved their family during the last wave. You should run into at least one of them in the capital." informed Drake
"Thanks for telling me that. I can't imagine I'd trust a stranger, I'll probably run away from them until they give up." joked Naofumi "But I think it's time we got going, we have a lot to do today."
"Good luck." said Drake, giving Naofumi firm (and almost painful) hand shake "Also, if you ever feel like visiting without anyone knowing there is an empty store room in the back that you can use, I'll show you it now."
"Thank you, I'll take you up on that." answered Naofumi
Since Lute was such a short distance from the capital already, instead of teleporting Naofumi decided to travel there by cart, he knew he wouldn't be able to hid his teleportation ability forever but the longer he kept that ace hidden up his sleeve the better in case he had to use it as an emergency escape. Though anyone he might have to escape from, could already know about that ability of the Cardinal Weapons. In that case he just hoped that they'd assumed he didn't know about it yet and that once again they'd manage to hinder the shield hero by hiding important information from him.
When they got to the gates they made it in without issue, whether it was because of his merchant pass or because he was or wasn't recognised as the shield hero didn't matter. After they got inside they decided to split up to get more done, Naofumi would take Filo and Raphatalia to try and get their class upgrades while Sastomi would take Reigo and Rishia left to sell some of their excess medicine and herbs before stocking up on some supplies and then meeting them back at Erhards shop later.
The made it to the church easily enough, even if they weren't exactly familiar with the cities layout as the church stood proud over the nearest buildings. As we walked in it didn't take us long to be noticed, the not so quite whispers of the nuns echoed in the churches hall. Ignoring them we made our way to the hourglass where an stern-faced nun waited for them who reminded him of a sterner version of Professor McGonagall from Harry Potter, the kind of person who would glare at you if you so much as sneezed out of turn.
"What brings you here Shield Hero? Are you here to check on the status of the next wave? Surely you kept track of time and know it's not due for a week?" said the nun in a I can be polite and insult you at the same time kind of voice
"No, actually I'm here to get my teammates their class upgrades." said Naofumi, which seemed to surprise her
Quickly schooling her expression the nun addressed them
"Unfortunately it seems we can not help. The King has recently issued a decree that forbids us from giving class upgrades to your party members."
"How about we just say that I wasn't here and you didn't know who they were with?" asked Naofumi
"I'm sorry but it doesn't work like that and I must ask you to leave." said the nun. Sounding anything but sorry much to anger of Raphatalia if the glare was anything to go by
"Thats fine by us...but first I want to ask you a question, your not going anywhere outside the city are you?"
"No why?" asked the nun confused, both with the acceptance of not getting the class upgrade and the question
Turning around and walking away Naofumi answered her. "Because if you were you'd be more concerned about there being someone strong enough to protect you rather than some asshat's decree. Because it's funny how people like you don't value life until it's your own on the chopping block."
Sometime latter
"So they wouldn't give you class upgrades huh kid?" asked Erhard after they all gathered in his shop and he explained what had happened
"That's right." confirmed Naofumi
"Well as bad as it is your armour and gear are good enough to get you through this wave...however if you still haven't gotten them by the next one, well you'll be okay but everyone else aside from Sastomi will be stuck at 40 during the fifth wave which is not a place you want to be."
"I know and Drake says he might be able to help us on that front, if not Sastomi says her people could help but it won't be for a couple of weeks which will cost us time and levels. Both of which we need. But I'm hoping you might be able to level the playing field just in case." said Naofumi
"How? Most of the gear you have now is far superior than most adventures even see let alone get a hold of?" asked Erhard
"Well for starters we have a fragment of a dragons heart stone. I'd like you to put a sliver inside Reigo's baton and chest piece. I also need you to make a better version of Raphatlia's current armour and something to increase Filo's damage."
"Actually I'm at the point where I could start carving runes into everyone's gear to improve it. But I'd like to practice on Raphtalia's old gear if she's getting new armour?" questioned Reigo
"You could have trouble with that, not much can affect this metal you have, you'd end up spending a lot on replacing tools if you want to carve something into it. However, if I use the metal I take out of the baton for the stone to make some kind of quill then that could work. As for Filo I could make some griffin claws for her, they're a common request for anyone that has either a fighting filolial or dragon that a they ride into combat. Also, now that the young lady is fully grown I can design better armour, I'm thinking similar to her current armour but with better materials and more layers to dampen any blows. I'll also and shoulder and arm guards with greater emphasis on her dominant sword arm." thought Erhard out loud
"Sounds good, how much time to you need?" asked Naofumi
"Leave the baton here for tonight and come back tomorrow. As for Reigo's armour I'd appreciate it if you leave it with me for a few days, I know I prioritised you guys last time but if I keep doing that I'll lose customers. Also how long do you need to carve in those runes your talking about?" asked Erhard
"I suppose I could get a single piece done in a night if I have to, it's slow work and if I mess up the equipment is worthless." answered Reigo
"We also need better gear for Rishia." added Sastomi "At the moment she's just wearing discarded armour from her previous party. It doesn't have bad stats but it neither fits her properly or suits her, thus making her seem clumsier than she would normally be."
"W-well I prefer a battle qipao or combat dress so something that provides protection while not limiting my movement would be good. I-if that's okay." Said Rishia nervously
"So arm, leg guards with a light breastplate to go along with it. Shouldn't be a problem." reasoned Erhard
"Add some throwing knives to that list as well as a rope dart, Rishia has told me that she's had some skill with it but is a few years out of practice." said Sastomi, much to Rishia's embarrassment
"Anything else?" asked Erhard
"Maybe later, I'm hoping to find a good melee weapon that will suit her. At the moment I'm thinking either a rapier a light jian or possibly just a short sword or a karambit." finished Sastomi
"In that case give me five days for the armour, that would give you at least a day and night to put the runes one while still allowing you to have some rest just before the wave." suggested Erhard "As for the extra throwing knives that should be easy enough and I do believe I have a rope dart around here somewhere, the usual story of someone ordering a weapon that looks cool only to realise they have no idea how to use it, I think the guy was even a centimetre from taking his own ear off. Now it should be...ahh here it is!" said Erhard after rummaging through a cupboard "Now unlike the last guy who ignored me I really suggest wrapping the dart in leather until your proficient or you risk losing an eyeball. Now is there anything else!"
"No, I think we're done." saidNaofumi and soon the party left the store after Sastomi picked up some throwing daggers to replace the ones she had lost and extra for Rishia.
When they had gotten outside however..."Sir Shield Hero! Sir Shield Hero!" called out a voice
Turning around everyone saw an extremely young looking knight who couldn't have been older than 16 running towards them.
"Yes?" asked Naofumi
"Please let me and my compatriots join your party to fight the waves!"
"And why do you want to join my party?" asked Naofumi while already guessing that this was one of the knights Drake had been talking about, 'though due to his age maybe he was just a squire? I should probably familiarise myself with the military set up a bit more, at the moment I can only really tell if someone is a royal guard/knight or not.'
Gaining a determined look the knight answered "Because of you our family members are safe, if you hadn't been there I'm sure they would have all perished."
"...and you think I should let you join my party why?" asked Naofumi much to the surprise of the knight
"Because we're willing to..."
"Not good enough." interrupted Naofumi "if it was before my first wave things would be different but as you see here I have a fully capable party, a party that I won't be putting at risk just because a group of people feel like paying a debt. What if I let you join my party only to find out in the midst of battle you can't pull your weight? That would mean that instead of worrying about themselves everyone will be constantly looking over there shoulder to make sure your okay, it's okay to check on each other on the midst of battle but it's totally different if you have to be constantly backing them up or saving them from serious injury or death. So no you won't be joining my party. However, however." repeated Naofumi "if you can fight against Raphtslia and Riego and prove yourself against them I'll let you join under them as a sub-party. But if you fail you'll have to wait until later to try again, fail three times to prove yourselves and you can look elsewhere for a party, still want to continue?"
"Y-yes."
"In that case grab the rest of you and meet us outside the city walls, do you know where most of the summoned heroes trained on their first day?" asked Naofumi
"I do." said the young knight
"Good meet us there then." said Naofumi "Now sorry but I just remembered that I left something in the store so..."
"Of course Sir Shield Hero." said the knight before running off.
"Hold on what did you forget? And why are you having them join under me and Reigo if they succeed?" asked Raphatlia
"And why only three chances?" asked Reigo
"Because I figure that it would help the both of you level up faster, till now everyone's been feeding me exp and I don't want to become too greedy because the party leader gets more of the shared exp then everyone else. Also, if our party does get bigger it will open up the strategies we can make such as flanking. Me and Filo could take their attention, Raphtalia and the knights from the side while Reigo and the mages attack from a distance. While this happens Sastomi and Rishia would provide reinforcements and support to whoever needs it. But that example needs us to work together in four groups while still acting in unison, hence why the knights will be a sub party under Raphatlia and the mages under Reigo." said Naofumi as they reenter the shop "Also, I needed them to take joining our party seriously while making sure that they wouldn't constantly chase us around asking for a rematch and the old 'three strikes and your out' came to mind."
"Three strikes? What does hitting someone have to do with this?" asked Rishia confused
"What no, it's game. I'll explain later but it means if you fail to hit a small ball three times in a row you have to walk away." explained Naofumi
"Ahh..." breathed Rishia "...I still don't get it."
"Please explain later." interrupted Erhard "Why are you back so soon, did you forget to order something?"
"No, we just needed to be out of sight for a bit." answered Naofumi before turning to Sastomi "I'll take Filo and Raphatlia to Drake quickly, can you hang out here in the mean time?"
"What are you talking about kid? See Drake? He ain't here and as far as I know he's still in the village Lute." said Erhard
Instead of answering Naofumi asked his own question
"We're friends right old man? And can count on you not to go telling my secrets?"
"I thought I told you before not to call me an old man, I'm not that old. Also, what secret are we talking about her?" asked Erhard
"This one." said Naofumi before vanishing along with Filo and Raphtalia
"What the?! Were did he go?" asked Erhard
"He instantly transported to Sir Drake's village, it's how he's been able to get so many transporting jobs done. I trust you'll keep silent about this?" asked/warned Sastomi
"As long as he doesn't use it to weasel out of paying me then everything will be fine." assured Erhard
Lute village, Drake's residence inside storage room
"Okay let's find Drake." said Naofumi to Filo and Raphatlia
Exiting the store room they quickly found Rino reading a spellbook on the living room couch. Noticing them she looks up.
"I'm guessing from the fact that your here you weren't able to get your class upgrade?" she asked
"No, we weren't." answered Naofumi
"Wait here, Drake asked me to hang around the house just in case this happened. Wait here while I grabb him, it shouldn't take long and do feel free to make yourself at home."
It took roughly fifteen minutes for Rino to return with Drake
"Good to see you again so soon, I wish it were under better circumstances." greeted Drake
"Same but what can you do? The king and the church are dicks. Anyway, you said you might be able to help?" asked Naofumi
"Before we get into that Drake has something he wants to ask you." interrupted Lily, appearing out of thin air "Right Drake?"
"...I have no idea what your talking about." answered Drake subborndly
"Fine then I'll ask him, Naofumi Drake wanted to know if..." started Lily
"Naofumi, I was wondering." said Drake, rubbing the back of his head "Does Sastomi...does Sastomi."
'Holy shit he's nervous!' realised Naofumi
"Does Sastomi have a significant other." finished Lily "What? You were taking too long, you can charge straight into the Hellmouth no problem but you can't even ask if someones single? And let's not forget that you had a perfect opportunity to get closer to her last night and you didn't take it. What the hell is wrong with you?"
"Sir Drake does have a problem talking to women when it comes to romance." agreed Rino
"Enough! Naofumi I have idea, when my party received their class upgrades it felt similar to an ability titans use called emplowerment." said Drake
"Empowerment?" asked Naofumi
"Yes, we titans are not like warlocks or hunters with their flashy moved. We fight as one! Empowerent is like a shield wall of old in ancient times, everyone protects and strengthens those next to them! They recover faster, can hit harder and more often." said Drake proudly
"Our hope is that if Drake pushes enough light into Filo and Raphtalia they'll be able to level up." explained Lily.
"It is like a wall and we shall breakthrough it together!" exclaimed Drake as white energy flowed from him into Filo and Raphatlia
As more and more energy flowed into Filo and Raphatlia their status started to flicker, going from 40 to 41 and back again.
"Keep going I think it's working!" encouraged Naofumi
"Ahhhhhhhhh!" cried Drake as a wave of energy knocked everyone off their feet and shook the house
The first thing Naofumi did after getting to his feet was to check Filo and Raphatlia's status, both were shown as level 41
"Sir Drake are you okay...sir Drake?!" asked Rino worriedly as Drake struggled to his feet, quickly aided by Rino
"I...I need to rest now." said Drake tiredly before he left, aided by Rino
"Is he going to be okay?" asked Naofumi to Lily
"He should be fine, he'll just need to rest a bit that's all." reassured Lily
"Well when he's feeling better let him know that it worked and...as far as I know Sastomi is single but I could be wrong." said Naofumi
"I'll let him know, now I think it's time you got back to the rest of your party." suggested Lily distractedly
After they had left Lily voiced her thoughts out loud with obvious confusion in her voice "Why did that take so much energy? My calculations weren't anywhere near as high."
Picture Razor as a teenagers version of Veldora's human form from that time I reincarnated as a slime