AN: Update took a little longer than planned but I'm back on track. I wanted to make the chapter a little less hectic than the first one before publishing. I'm not sure when the next update is gonna come, though I have the chapter mostly ready to go.
"Rafu."
Something… petted my cheek gently, as if it was a feather touching me.
I opened my eyes.
Where am I…? What's happening…?
After inspecting what patted me, I found out that it was Raph-chan.
Oh no, I just remembered yesterday, she was -! And everyone was -! But I'm in bed. Did I manage to fall asleep after all that happened?
Now… Is everything normal, or is everything still absolutely horrible?
Please be back to normal, please be back to normal, I closed my eyes as I prayed to the heavens. Then I opened them again and looked around.
But before I managed to scan the room for the other Raph-chan, which was presumably the Shield Hero, a voice echoed from outside the house.
"Raphtalia! I'm back. Are you home?"
I can't believe my ears! It sounded like… Naofumi-sama…? I… think. I recognize the way he speaks, even though the voice felt different… But it's probably just muffled through the door.
It must've been just a bad dream yesterday, I thought as I was already on my way to quickly open the door.
But my eyes widened upon revealing the person outside.
This is… This isn't…
"Ah, so you are home. Good, I was a bit worried, did you fall asleep?"
"I…" I was speechlessly staring at the person.
They... looked like Naofumi-sama… somewhat?
"What's wrong?" They stared at me.
"Naofumi…sama…?"
"Yeah…?" They raised their eyebrow.
So it's really him!?
"What happened to you?" I asked as my tail, once again, bristled all up.
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
This makes no sense, no matter how you look at it. My Naofumi-sama turned into a woman! And he thinks it's perfectly normal, apparently!
I'm only staring at him, unable to form words.
At first I thought it could be someone else after all, but there was a certain indicator telling me otherwise. This is most definitely the Legendary Shield, attached to the person's arm. The clothes also seemed familiar, although a little altered.
His black and spiky hair is much longer now and pinned up to a ponytail. The bright green eyes, with the past trouble still shown in them, are also one of his unique features that give him away.
It is Naofumi-sama. Somehow, he turned into a woman.
I thought yesterday was only a bad dream! I'm pretty sure I just woke up from it. Then why does Naofumi-sama look different again?
"Raphtalia…?" He came up closer to me to check on me and proceeded to place her hand on my forehead.
The hand was definitely smaller than it used to be! And the voice sounds feminine…
"Are you okay?"
"I... N-Yes."
I should probably just observe. Yes, observe! Maybe Raph-chan is playing tricks on me! I know she can manipulate dreams and probably see them too, so maybe she's playing with me now, somehow making Naofumi-sama look different to me some more!
I don't feel any traces of magic, but she could be concealing it. She is very skilled in that field, after all. Sometimes more than I'm willing to admit.
I'll find out if anyone else sees him like this.
"Um, alright. You've been working hard today, why don't you lay back down and rest up a little?" He suggested.
"A-ah, I'm alright, Naofumi-sama…" I responded and glared at Raph-chan, but she only tilted her head.
"Rafu?"
I narrowed my eyes and didn't say anything. Maybe it's not her doing, but… I'll keep my eyes on you, Raph-chan!
"Rafu, rafu," her tail poofed up a little.
Okay, fine… I'll trust you this once. For now anyway.
"Raphtalia?"
"Naofumi-sama, do you need any help with cooking?" I asked.
"Oh. I'm good, thanks. It'll be something fast this time since I returned a little late. Feel free to come outside to eat whenever you're rested," he told me and started preparing today's lunch.
He brought in some vegetables which he started chopping. I watched his every move closely, and as suspected, everything about him seems… normal.
Except for the fact that he's a woman.
And also… He looks… kind of very good, even like this.
I mean! I need to find out what happened and whether anyone else sees him like this too or only me!
"I'll go prepare the tables," I informed him and left the house in a hurry.
The weather is very mild and warm, so I stopped outside to take a deep breath. I closed my eyes and then opened them again upon exhaling.
Okay, Raphtalia, focus. There's no way that Naofumi-sama has always been a woman. He definitely looks different than before. So it's either a magic spell cast on me or him. I tried to uncover and break the possible spell before, but nothing happened. In that case, I suppose I'll find out only by observing.
I nodded to myself and proceeded to help clean the wooden tables and prepare everything we need for lunch, as per usual. Other villagers soon joined me, but they didn't seem to be curious or concerned. Maybe they haven't met Naofumi-sama after the change yet.
Once the Shield Hero left the house, everyone gathered in line to get their food rations from him.
They look… completely unfazed. Their faces display the usual joy from the food, and nobody seems to be shocked or questioning Naofumi-sama's appearance at all.
That would mean… Oh no. Am I really the only one under the spell?
But maybe… Maybe something happened, and everyone does see him as a woman, but pay no attention to it? It doesn't make much sense, but I need to confirm, first.
I took a deep breath again and also grabbed a fork to eat as I sat at the table. I checked over the meal served to me. Without a second thought, it unmistakably looks like something Naofumi-sama would make.
The smell was dazzling and sweet, and the taste… It was delicious! It's definitely a meal prepared by Naofumi-sama. No intruder would be able to pull something like this. At least of that I'm sure.
Alright, so now I know that the person in question really is Naofumi-sama. Finally we're getting somewhere.
I cleaned my dishes after I finished eating and then headed outside again. Now I need to hide and listen to what the children have to say about him.
This is not stalking, by the way. Definitely not stalking!
But they all talk normally, and nobody gives off a sign of treating the Shield Hero any different than usual. Nothing out of the ordinary. I perked my ears some more. I need to know what they're saying…
None of them use any pronouns while talking about him! They all just use nicknames!
Alright, time to get a little closer.
I sneaked around our house and peeked from behind the wall. Everyone talks over each other. I can't understand well what any of them are saying…!
"Onee-chan, what are you dooooing?"
Oh no, Filo is here!
I immediately turned around to face the girl. She's staring at me all surprised. Then she glanced towards where I was looking until now, before she stared back at me and tilted her head.
"Are you spying on Maaaster?"
"N-no! Of course not… I'm playing… hide and seek! And I just lost, hahaha…" I laughed, but Filo narrowed her eyes. Not even she would believe that…
"Can Filo plaaaay too?" She asked eventually. Her attention shifted fast! I'm very lucky!
Wait.
Oh no…
"Onee-chan, can Filo plaaay? Please, pleaaase~" She smiled at me innocently.
"Weeell…"
And so I had to spend a good while playing hide and seek with Filo, and meanwhile, Naofumi-sama was done with cleaning the dishes and proceeded to go around the village for a regular checkup.
I went to meet him right after we wrapped up our game with Filo, but I'm worried that it's probably already too late. The others are already gone doing their own stuff now.
But of course I couldn't say no to that face… Also I felt bad for lying to her. Filo is noisy and childish at times, but she doesn't deserve being tricked. Though, this time I wouldn't tell her about my concerns. The girl was only complicating everything yesterday!
Well, actually… She was right the whole time, but that's besides the point. The situation is different now! And I'm gonna find out about it without directly asking. Just to be sure that nobody's playing with me.
"Raphtalia-san, there you are," someone suddenly spoke to me, so I turned around.
Oh? Both the Bow and Sword Heroes are standing there, right behind me.
"Yes? What do you two need?" I blinked in surprise. They rarely approach me on their own to talk to me. I cautiously perked my ears.
They exchanged a little worried looks and then nodded.
"You see, Naofumi-san told us that you looked a little tired, so we're supposed to keep an eye out on you," Itsuki-san explained.
They're supposed to supervise me? Why? And why those two?
"Naofumi and the others have to take care of monster outbreaks and said that you need to rest. We're supposed to stop you if you tried to leave. And to use force if needed," Ren-san explained.
"Naofumi-san didn't say anything about force, but yes. Please rest up a little," Itsuki-san had a nervous smile on his face as he spoke.
Those two seemed to be very uncomfortable about this whole situation.
Needless to say, I am too.
"Huh? But I'm okay, I'll go with Naofumi-sama-" I was about to complain, but then, the man in question suddenly made a pass, staring at us with a suspicious expression on his face. Mainly glancing at me.
I blinked as a gust of wind made his long hair flutter in the air as he continued quickly walking further from us.
He was wearing different clothes from usual now. And… It really suits him!
"I - uh, um… s-skirt-" I tripped over my own words from the surprise.
"Huh…?" The Bow Hero tilted his head.
"Did you just say skirt?" The Sword Hero blinked and stared at me.
"Y-yes… It's a… very nice skirt…" I forced up a smile, but I was sweating coldly.
They exchanged looks again and then frowned at me.
"Yep, you're definitely going home to rest," they decided in union.
"Wait-!"
But before I could protest any further, the two Heroes dragged me back in the house. It's not like I couldn't take them both on, I just didn't feel like using force unless necessary, especially against allies, so I let them bring me inside.
I lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling.
Naofumi-sama is a woman.
I hid my face with both of my hands.
Naofumi-sama is a woman. Naofumi-sama is a woman.
Naofumi-sama was Raph-chan, and that was worse!
Yosh, this is still something I can work with. It's not the end of the world… It's still Naofumi-sama, even if he looks a little different today.
And with him being like this, maybe I can….
M-maybe -
"Raphtalia-san, are you okay…? Your face is getting red-"
"Uh!"
That's because I just thought of something inappropriate and now I'm ashamed!
"She's running a fever, maybe we should call for Naofumi after all," the Sword Hero suggested.
"N-no! Anything but that!"
If he sees me like this, he's gonna start questioning me! And if I don't find out whether he's actually a woman or not, it's gonna turn out very awkward between us!
I'm not usually a shy and or easily embarrassed person, but this situation is a little too much, even for me!
"Yes, she's definitely sick," Itsuki-san nodded and both of them glanced back at me.
"Raphtalia. We'll bring Naofumi in."
"No! Don't you see? I'm completely fine!"
If he finds out that I imagined kissing him and… and maybe… maybe getting together and doing what pairs usually do, despite him being a woman, he might think I wouldn't like him as a man anymore! But maybe… maybe he's only a woman? But he was a man before! I'm not crazy!
"Sure, 'fine'… you're always very calm and collected, this is an unusual behavior for you. And you're getting hot as well. We need to get you treated as soon as possible. Naofumi wouldn't be happy to find you like this."
"I'm calm as one can be!" Besides, I'm not the one who's hot here, Naofumi-sama looked very good as a woman too and it's making me mildly concerned.
Speaking of which, guess who just entered the room!
I hid my face within my hands again.
"I see. Raphtalia doesn't seem to be feeling well. Thanks for staying with her, I'll take it from here. Wyndia said she could use some more help with the monsters, maybe you could go and check in there, Ren," Naofumi-sama suggested.
The Sword Hero turned stressed really fast.
"Uh… The monsters don't like me much," he admitted worriedly.
"This is a rare chance to improve your relationship, Ren. I'd go there to help if I was you," Itsuki-san encouraged him. But maybe it sounded more like a threat.
"Sure… I'll do the right thing," the Sword Hero gulped and instantly left the room.
"I'll keep an eye out on him," Itsuki-san waved at us and left as well.
So now it's only me and the Shield Hero here… Alone. Oh nooo… Exactly what I didn't want right now…
But this is nothing compared to what's about to happen next.
"I'll look at you in just a second, Raphtalia. It's a little hot here, don't you think?"
Naofumi-sama watched the door close, then sighed and started opening his shirt! There is another layer underneath it, but even then… for a slight moment, I caught a glimpse of his… womanly side, before I closed my eyes shut.
"Uwww!"
"Raphtalia, you're behaving really strange. What's wrong? You never saw me change my shirt or what?" He was talking to me, but he was also half naked!
Don't get me wrong. I've seen women in my life. We had bathed naked together in the hot springs on multiple occasions and I had no issues with that, but… this is Naofumi-sama! And it feels really inappropriate to see him… like this! It feels like I shouldn't be observing any of this!
I turned my head away.
That's right. I shouldn't be taking advantage of the situation. I shouldn't be staring at him.
"Raphtalia."
Suddenly, Naofumi-sama's face appeared in front of mine. He's slightly frowning, but he also looks a little worried.
"What's wrong? At least let me check on you," he mumbled.
After a bit of hesitation, I gulped and nodded. Then I lay freely down on the bed. Once he's done looking and finds out I'm fine, he'll stop being worried. Everything will be fine then. Yosh, just stay calm and let him do his thing, and then...
I was wrong!
"Raphtalia. Your stress level is too high. Your heart is about to explode."
"W-what are you saying, I'm alright!"
"You need to calm down. I'm not sure what's happening to you, since it doesn't seem to be an illness. You seem to be stressed and or upset, so can you tell me what happened? You're making me worried, you know," he said as he was staring at me from up close. He's supported on all four on the bed, directly above me.
His beautiful face is too close to my face.
"I-I'll do some exercise and I'll be fine…!"
"Hmmm…" he kept staring for a while and then sat down, further from me, while exhaling. "Alright," he mumbled eventually.
He definitely acts different! He'd never do this to me as a man!
But then again, maybe he would. He wasn't holding me down or anything similar, he wasn't forceful in any way… When I was sick while everything was normal, he'd inspect me and give me medicine or advice. I suppose this is normal after all… I don't know.
I need to think about it a little more. What would make it obvious that he's a man or a woman? Something he'd only do as a man or a woman… but there aren't really many things like that. If you actually swapped Naofumi-sama at this point for a female counterpart, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference.
He had issues with that woman, but that's long over… there are no accusations anymore, and I don't wish there would ever be more.
If he only changed to a woman later, how would I ever be able to tell that he was a man in the past…?
I just need to know if he's actually a woman now.
Something he'd only do as a woman…
Only woman…
Hmm…
I got it!
"Hot springs!" I exclaimed.
"... What?" Naofumi-sama looked at me with a little concerned expression on his face.
"Let's go to the hot springs again! I-I'm a little stressed, yes, so I think it would help me… and I think you deserve it too after your hard work, Naofumi-sama," I suggested carefully.
"Hot springs, huh… I guess it's not that bad of an idea. But who will stand in for us in the village?"
"It should be okay if it's only for one evening, shouldn't it? You can have the other Heroes look after the village during that time. I'm sure they can manage, it's not like we don't go out training often anyway."
"I suppose it's alright. If you really need it that much, I'll make it work for you. Alright, we'll go to the private hot springs later today," he smiled a little at me.
It was such a nice smile…
But wait! Did he say private hot springs?
"P-private? Normal bath is also okay-"
"Oh, no way. We'll go to the private part so that you can relax. Don't worry about it."
"But private hot springs are more expensive…"
"Not that much. Don't worry, I'll do it for you."
"Uh… Alright…"
I don't think this will help me find out about anything if we don't go to the separated baths… but I suppose bathing with Naofumi-sama in private wouldn't be that bad, even on its own.
Wait.
Just a moment.
Bathing. With only a towel. With Naofumi-sama.
Aaaaaaargh!
My face immediately blushed as I hid it in my hands once again.
I just agreed on not looking at him while in this form and now we'll bathe together! What have I doooone!?
That was very tiring. And I made everything so much worse. I can't believe it…
In the end, I probably won't be able to find out anything.
I'll try to take a nap and maybe… just maybe everything will be back to normal after I wake up.
Maybe it's a fever dream. Maybe everything's fine in reality.
Maybe.
One can only hope…
…
AN2: Doodle of Femfumi & Raphtalia can be found in the Ao3 chapter. (It is the one I used as a cover here.)
AN3: We finally got a trailer and a poster for Shield Hero season 2, with actually new stuff in it! In case you haven't seen it yet, go check SH Reddit, Twitter, or Discord. It's really worth watching. Also, the same people will be in charge of closing and opening for s2 as for s1. Yay! (No, this is not a joke. Actually go and watch the trailer in case you haven't yet.)
