Different Background

by Libra Kpop

Rewrite: What if Naofumi was given a different background? One much less noble and heroic. What is the world to do when the only one who is heroic is the active criminal?

1. Chapter 1

A Criminal Hero

AN: If you do not know this is a rewrite of my story. I am essentially giving Naofumi a new backstory, which changes how events play out in the story. A fair warning that this story is based off of the anime, and not the light novels.

I was incredibly bored. It was all Kiko's fault really. She had wanted to elevate the status of the Sato Clan, and what better way to do that than to pull off several high-risk heists. I as given the most difficult task of stealing a 17-million-dollar diamond from a museum. I maned the task just fine, but now the clan needed to lay low while the heat died down. At least Kiko seemed happy about the Sato Clan finally getting the respect we deserved.

Since I was unable to go to the surface world, I was stuck in our lair in the catacombs of Tokyo City. I could technically train my skills, but I was feeling a little lazy today. Hence, why I am now in the library looking at the books we had in stock. Good books were hard to come by, since no one really read for fun. But if one took the time, they would find a few gems here or there. I didn't have that patience though.

I grabbed a random book off the shelf, and returned to my room. The book looks rather old, but it would do. I made it back to my room, and laid in my bed. I opened the book and began reading.The introduction ran similar to any fantasy book I've ever read. It is set in a made-up land that is being overrun by 'Waves of Catastrophe.' It doesn't go into too much detail about waves, just that they are deadly and only through the combination of all four cardinal heroes' effort would the waves be defeated.

Then the story transitioned into the introduction of the characters. Weirdly enough the first character introduced wasn't a cardinal hero, but rather a character known solely as the 'Princess.' I found her character intriguing because here was this 'Princess' in the middle of a world breaking event, but she still has enough selfishness to go out of her way to sabotage the cardinal heroes. As a part of the underground, I am no saint, but I have a strict moral code, and her character is one that I cannot stand. Manipulative and greed are not terrible attributes to have, but when it is for the sole purpose of one's own selfish desires, this is where I have a problem.

The first cardinal hero is the Sword Hero. The character can essentially be boiled down to strength. The Sword Hero is known for heroic deed using their strength to accomplish whatever task is given to them. However, it is noted that the Sword Hero lacks a sense of direction, meaning that this strength can theoretically be pointed wherever. Say that the 'Princess' ever managed to gain the Sword Heroes' trust, then she would use their might to seed more chaos than the waves ever could.

The Spear Hero is said to have great people skills, and are able to make friends easily. The detracting factor here would be their immense trust in those that they consider friends. The same problem with the Sword Hero applies here as well, only a bit worse. While the Sword Hero is strong, there could be a way to convince them that what their doing is wrong, but with the Spear Hero this isn't the case. If the Princess gains, their trust it will be nearly impossible to speak any common sense into them.

The Bow Hero is one with an incredible sense of justice, however their justice is centered around their personal view of justice. This would make them unreliable to make good decisions. Because what they consider unjust others might not, which puts them in direct opposition of the Bow Hero. The basis of the story seems to be that these characters need to overcome their own personal flaws and work together in order to defeat the waves, while also dealing with nefarious characters with their own agendas.

I flip the page to get to the last cardinal hero, the Shield Hero, but find it oddly blank. I skip a couple more pages, but found them to be blank as well. This was rather disappointing, as I was enjoying the beginning so far. Suddenly the book starts to glow, which causes me to try and drop it. The key word being try, I couldn't let go of the book, as the glow only increased in intensity, until it engulfed the entirety of the room. When I could finally open my eyes, it took a moment for them to adjust to the rather dark atmosphere.

As soon as I registered that I was in an unknown location, my training overtook me, and I rose to my feet quickly my back against the wall. A quick scan of the room showed that the architecture was ancient, not unlike that of a castle. There were several men in robes, befitting that of a cult. They looked exhausted and on their last leg, so I considered them a non-threat.

Apart from the cultist, as I labeled them, there were three other boys in the room. One was a black-haired boy of average height. He was rather attractive, but his face seemed cold. He was wearing a schoolboy uniform, so he was at least 15 but no older than 18. In his arm was a sword with a blue gem in the guard. An exact copy of the Legendary Sword.

The boy next to him is much shorter than the rest of us. He has ash hair, and his face held an innocence, I haven't seen in a long time. He as well was wearing a school uniform, making him around the same age as the first boy. Gripped in his hand was a bow with a yellow gem in the grip.

The last boy was much older than the other two, definitely twenty or older. He looked a bit like a foreigner with his blond hair and some Caucasian features. But there was still some strong Japanese genealogy in him, so perhaps a mixed child. He carried with him a spear with a red gem near the base of the blade.

I looked to my arm to confirm that I indeed held a shield with a green gem. It was obvious that these were the legendary weapons, which makes us the cardinal heroes. It was odd that the cardinal heroes were us. I mean if this world, I am assuming that I am in the world the book described, then wouldn't they have wanted to summon the best fighters they could. Half of us weren't of age yet. Since there are no women, this cuts out half of the pool of available fighters. I know several women with far deadlier skills than myself, and yet they weren't summoned. Did it have to do with the summoning source, I think as I eye the book. They may have only had four portals, and we were the poor saps to be at the wrong place in the wrong time.

My thinking was interrupted by the lead cultist saying, "The summoning was a success." "Oh, four hero saints of old! Please save our world!" He did a short bow that looked to take more energy out of him than he let on. "Oh, great heroes please save our world!" He pleaded again, this time the other cultists joined in.

"What do you mean by that?" The black-haired boy asks.

"Well, it is a bit of a long story, but we summoned your Four Cardinal Heroes to save us from the Waves using an ancient ritual!" That pretty much confirmed my theory. The only problem was doing they have a way to send us back? The book brought me here, but it looked like a regular book again, so probably cannot go home that way. "Our world is on the cusp of destruction. We beg of you to please save us!"

"I refuse." The swordsman said.

"Likewise." The bow wielder agreed. I agreed but did not voice my opinion. I am a thief; I had no real interest in fighting monsters that could potentially get me killed. Plus, there was a whole slew of other problems besides the wave that I would have to deal with.

"We can go back to our world, right? We will talk about this after we confirm that." Asked the spearman.

"And if you send us home as soon as peace is restored then we would have worked for nothing." The bowman said.

"How willing are you to accommodate us? Depending on your answer we might become your enemy instead?"

The old man seems thrown for a loop. I mean did he really expect for us to be summoned here and be a 100% compliant from the get-go. This isn't anime, this was real life. He does manage to reply though, "First you will have to meet with the King of Melromarc. Then rewards can be discussed."

"Fine I guess"

"I suppose we could consider the offer."

"It is not like our demands are going to change no matter who we talk to." He gestures for us to follow him out of the room. The other three are quick to do so, but I keep my distance.

They lead us up a winding staircase, where there is a window. I debate jumping out, and finding the information that I need. But that would make me a target, the King, whoever he is, is expecting four cardinal heroes, and when they arrive with only three everyone will be on alert. I was confident in my abilities to stay hidden, but there were two really big problems. The first being the shield, which instantly makes me recognizable. I could conceal it in some way, but the other problem would be magic. Based on the cultist words, we were summoned by a ritual which confirms the existence of magic. There could be a tracking spell that could me easily that I have no clue about.

For now, it is best to stay with the group. The cultists led us through a series of doors before we reach the final door which opens into a large room. The room has one wall made entirely of windows and there are two lines of pillars that support a balcony. Probably so the nobility can watch what happens in the throne room without disrupting it. There is a red carpet trimmed with gold thread leading all the way up to a pair of thrones. There is an old man sitting in one. He is the perfect picture of a gilded king. Showered in gold and jewels but seems to be of little substance. I note the empty throne to his left. Must be for the Queen.

But this begs the note of where is she. Surely if the four cardinal heroes have been summoned, she would be here to greet them along with the King. I don't see anyone else besides what looks to be an advisor of sorts, so the Princess is missing as well. Probably scheming somewhere in a dark corner. "Heroes of the Sword, Bow, Spear, and Shield welcome. I am King Aultcray Melromarc XXXII. I welcome you to Melromarc. If you would please give your names?" He gestured first to the swordsman.

"Ren Amaki, sixteen years old, high schooler." I was right. I suppose since we are in a different world it would make more sense to give our first name first.

Next to go is the bowman, "Itsuki Kawasumi, seventeen years old, high schooler." I was surprised that he was actually older than Amaki, seeing how innocent he looks.

"I guess I am next. Motoyasu Kitamura, twenty years old, college student."

I remain silent not interested to divulge information about me this time, but it seems a non-issue because the King moves on. "I see Ren, Itsuki, and Motoyasu huh?" I suppose that this world addresses people by their first name. Something that I probably will have to get used too. Itsuki, gosh that feels weird, who points out that I wasn't introduced. "Ahh yes, my mistake, sorry. If you would, Shield Hero introduce yourself."

I nod, "Naofumi Iwatani, 21." I couldn't exactly tell them that I was a master thief that belonged to an underground criminal organization. They would throw me in jail and toss the key.

The King waited a bit for a bit before moving on. "Well with introductions underway, let us get to the crux of the problem. My country, Melromarc, and the entirety of the world is headed towards destruction!" He states bleakly. If the whole world is in peril, then why have all of us been summoned here? Even if the other nations didn't have enough magical power to properly summon one of us, I can't imagine other nations not sending a representative. Perhaps Melromarc summoned us all illegally. It would answer the question of where the Queen is, as I doubt the other nations would take having their hero's taken away from them lightly. The plot thickens. The King then goes on a long-winded explanation of what the 'Waves' are and how they are affecting the world.

While most of the information is not new, it at least cleared up what Waves are, and how they are dangerous. Rather than it being an entity or enemy it seems to be a hoard problem. At certain intervals hoards of monsters from some other dimension attack. The waves cannot be ended until the boss monster is killed. So, the boss monster controls the hoard kind of like a queen bee controls the colony.

The King explains how the first wave had already passed and, in their arrogance, they did not summon the cardinal heroes. Many lives were lost that day. Which is why we are summoned today, to rectify that mistake. "Well, we get the gist of it. But surely you didn't summon us to save you for free."

"Yes of course. After each subsequent wave, you all will be rewarded handsomely." Money is a nice compensation, but will it be usable in our world. Since this world looks similar to a fantasy world, it wouldn't surprise me if they used currency like coins. At least coins have more value than a piece of paper. I can sell a coin for the metal, but not valueless paper.

Motoyasu doesn't look too concerned, "well as long as we have your word."

"We will work as long as you do not turn on us. But don't think for a second you can tame us." I whole heartedly agreed, I am looking out for myself. And from what I know at this moment, I believe that I cannot trust anyone in this room to have my best interest at heart.

"Yes, we will not have you looking down on us."

"Then we have come to an agreement. The next thing you should do is check your statuses." For the first time since being here I am clearly lost. Statuses? Like game statuses? But I've barely ever plaid games. After looking at Itsuki and Motoyasu's faces they are just as confused as I am.

"What's wrong, this should have been the first thing you done." Ren scolds. He then proceeds to tell of us the plus symbol at the corner of our vision. Sure, enough it is there. I focus on the plus and out pops up a screen.

Welcome Shield Hero to the Status Page. Please ask for assistance whenever needed. The words the disappeared leaving behind my stats.

Name: Naofumi Iwatani

Age: 21

Occupation: Shield Hero/ Master Theif

Title: No Title Is Equipped

Level: 1

Stats:

Attack: 1

Magic Attack: 23

Vitality: 6000

Defense: 60

Magic Defense: 50

Agility: 15

Currency: 0 Copper, 0 Silver, 0 Gold

Armor: Otherworldly Clothes

Weapon: Legendary Shield.

As the Shield Hero I assumed that my defense stats would be up there. My attack stance was troubling, but there had to be ways around it. What was really annoying was my agility stat. It was rather low. Being fast and agile is key to being a good thief, and not getting caught. I would have to work on that. I was curious about the new system, but I would much rather explore this when I am alone."Level 1, that is concerning." Was it so shocking? Was he expecting to come in and be level 100 from the beginning?

"This would make fighting difficult. I guess there is nothing to do besides grind." Itsuki adds.

"How is this possible?" I ask. I understand that magic is a thing, but this seems to be rather complex.

"Status magic. Everyone has it. It allows for one to keep track of their progress and skills." That doesn't really explain how status magic came to be or why someone decided that this magic was necessary for everyone to have. "Now you all will go out into the world. Develop and upgrade your weapon."

"Couldn't we wield other weapons until these are a suitable level." How does he expect to level the weapon up if he doesn't use it?

"I suppose we will figure that out as it goes. We need to train." He says firmly.

"Perhaps we should go to town. Upgrade our gear and find leads."

"Yeah. We will need to party up." Motoyasu says.

This gets a reaction from the King. "Unfortunately, heroes while the weapons are indeed legendary, when they are in the same area it hinders development. Thus, you will each party and adventure alone." Having party members would have been a boon considering my low attack stat, but trust will be an issue. Working with others in my clan was a non-issue as we all had each other's best interest in mind. But who is to say that any potential party member I have won't betray me when things go south? What I really need right now is information. I know next to nothing about this, world and that will hinder my ability to integrate where I need to. "The sun is about to set. So, rest up, and we will gather the best adventurers for you to party with tomorrow." He then motioned for some maids to guide us to our quarters.

We each had our own room, and there were plates with food in each. My room was quaint. There was a nightstand, a bookshelf, a bed, and a small bath. I threw the four heroes' book on the bed. I grabbed a random book off the shelf, but was disappointed to see that I couldn't understand the words. I put the book back on the shelf. This sucks because my best resource would be inaccessible to me. I would have to rely on word of mouth, but that was unreliable. The faster I can get out of here the better. I can't learn about the world from the nobility. I ate my food quickly. The food was weird to say the least. The textures and flavors were not something I would say I was familiar with. Soon after there was a knock at the door. I opened it to see Itsuki, "Hey we are all gathering in Ren's room if you want to join." He says with a slight smile.

"Thank you, but I need some time to myself right now." Itsuki does not seem offended and just nods before going on his way. I decided on a quick bath. Then I washed my clothes and let them dry. I suppose the best course of action would be to learn about the Shield. Learning to wield it properly would help me out in the long run.

Let us start with the Status menu, I need to understand how every aspect works. First up is occupation.

Help: Occupation: Shield Hero/ Master Thief. An occupation denotes what your roles is and has added bonuses. Shield Hero Bonus: Increase to both Magical Defense and Defense stats. Master Thief Bonus: Looking at an object will tell you how much it is worth.

A grin spreads across my face in an instant. An ability that would allow me to streamline my heists. I could instantly tell what was worth my time or not. I needed to test it out. I looked at the porcelain tub, and thought about how much it would cost. I wasn't sure how, but all of a sudden, I just knew that the tub cost 120 gold. This was going to be a game changer. I had to refocus myself, as my mind started to drift into daydreams of stealing expensive things. What is a title?

Help: Title: No Title Equipped: A title is a category separate from your occupation that provides bonuses. An example of a title might include "Peddler" or "Demon Shield."

Okay, so I guess I have to do something noteworthy to gain a title. Now explain how leveling works.

Help: Level: Level denotes your strength, those of higher levels tend to denote a higher strength. However, it is not impossible for someone of a lower level to beat someone of a higher level. Starting at level 1 each level requires a set amount of experience from kills to advance to the next level with each subsequent level requiring more and more levels. There are level caps at level 40 and 80 respectively. To pass these level caps one needs a Class Upgrade, however as you are the Shield Hero, you can bypass these Class Upgrade, but get one if you so wish.

So, much like a video game. I never really played them before, so it will be interesting to experience it. What is a Class Upgrade?

Help: Class Upgrade: Class Upgrades allow individuals to bypass level caps. When time for a class upgrade comes go to a Dragon Hourglass to acquire it. Each individual has a preset Class Upgrade they can take, and additional ones will open up based on the choice they made for their first-Class Upgrade. Class Upgrade also comes with a stat increase, with the first one having an increase of 50% and the second one having an increase of 100%.

I don't see why someone wouldn't get a class upgrade. 50% stat increase sounds like a big deal. But what is a Dragon Hourglass?

Help: Dragon Hourglass: Most formally known as the Red Hourglass of the Dragon Era. Unknown how they came to be they are found all around the world. They have several key functions. The first being they denote the time at which a Wave will occur. Down to the exact second as soon as all the sand in one reaches the bottom a Wave will occur. The second function is their location. They are located in places where Waves will occur. The last function is to activate Class Upgrade process. The Dragon Hourglass in Melromarc is currently located in the Three Hero Church.

I would need to make my way to one sometime soon. I need to know when a wave is going to happen, it wouldn't do to be caught unaware. While I wanted to look up the Three Hero Church, I felt that might lead me down a rabbit hole in where I will only see part of the picture. I need a better picture of how the world works as a whole. Learning to read would be a priority. So, I guess the next things are stats.

Help: Stats: Attack: The attack stat denotes how much damage one can do. Magic Attack: The Magic Attack stat denotes how much damage their magic can do. It also denotes the mana pool size by multiplying the stat by a factor of 100. Your mana pool is currently 2300. Vitality: The Vitality stat denotes your health pool and how much damage you can take before you die. Defense: The Defense stat denotes how much protection you have from an Attack stat on a 1:1 ratio. An attack that does two damage against an enemy with a defense of one means the target takes one point of damage. Magic Defense: The Magic Defense stat protects you from a Magic Attack stat. Agility: The Agility Stat denotes how fast one can move. Note that armor can affect how one moves.

I suppose I am in quite the predicament. Having the highest defense and magical defense is the route that I should go right, but that would require heavy armor, which would make me slower. I want to be faster, so light armor would be the way to go. If I am faster, I do not have to worry about my defense, because no one could hit me. But if my defense is not high enough, and I get hurt enough, my focus on speed could be a hinderance. This is rather frustrating; I suppose I will have to figure it out later. Magic looked essential. Not only could I do actual damage with magic, but I might be able to supplement my other skills as well. Okay let's go with something a little more interesting, money.

Help: Currency: This world uses three currencies, copper, silver, and gold. 100 coppers equal one silver, and 100 silvers equals one gold. Most adventures will get paid in silvers as it is an easier currency to exchange and more prolific than gold.

Thankfully I was right about the coin currency. Coins would actually be easier to steal, which is going to be really helpful, as I start out. Next Armor.

Help: Armor: Armor is anything you are wearing on your person. This includes clothes, shoes, and jewelry. Different armor styles provide different bonuses both physical and magical. There is no set limit to how much you can wear. If you want to have five rings per finger you may, however this might affect your fighting style.

This is a great solution! I mean I could wear really heavy armor and max out my defenses and just wear rings and necklaces, to increase my agility, so that I am still really fast. Or I could do the opposite, going for max speed, and then wearing rings to make up for my stifled defense. Since my attack is so low, I doubt I will be physically attacking anything anyway, so I don't have to worry about it getting in the way. There is so many accessories such as necklaces, earrings, rings, anklets, headbands, and bracelets, so the possibilities are rather endless. I can see myself getting a lot of jewelry to improve my stats. I grin at the prospect. Next is Weapon.

Help: Weapon: Legendary Shield: Active: You have the Legendary Shield equipped. This shield allows for one to absorb loot and materials to create new shields that have added bonuses and skills. There is no limit to what can be absorbed. These new shields can be transformed back and forth interchangeably. In addition, if finds a weapon similar to the one they are using, i.e other shields, they can use the weapon copy system to acquire the stats and properties of that shield. Wearing a shield for a long period of time will allow you mastery over it. Mastery will allow you to use any special skills or properties without having to switch to that shield. These are the active abilities of the shield; would you like to see the passive abilities?

Yes.

Help: Weapon: Legendary Shield: Passive: Bypasses: This shield makes you immune to Class Up restrictions and makes you impervious to slavery seals and other control curses. Restrictions: Restrictions include not gaining experience when in the presence of other legendary weapons. In addition, one cannot wield any weapon that is not the same as their legendary weapon, i.e shields. Wave summon: This shield will teleport you to the site of an active Wave. Tech Skill: If one has a recipe and the items needed for said recipe in their inventory than the shield can create said item. Translate: Able to translate all auditory stimulation into one's primary language.

This section was an eyeopener. With the bypass section, I learned that slavery is well and alive here, which is concerning. In addition, there are seals and curses which might be an interesting avenue to go down, if I have the time to learn. The Tech skill is very convenient, but it also makes it sound like my shield has an inventory. If that is the case that would be a blessing. I could store things in the shield and no one would ever know. Crafting will probably be very important to me as I will have very little else to contribute with my poor attack stat. I don't have a lot of knowledge with making poisons, but I was familiar with the basics. Plus, it seems that as long as I have the materials the shield will make it for me. I was hoping to maybe get a hold of a dagger or throwing knife, something to augment my abilities. At least the last one cleared up why I couldn't read the books.

However, I had a thought, the shield said it could absorb anything regardless of material, so let's try this. I took a random book off the shelf and held it to the green gem. It disappeared instantly, and a notification appeared in my status screen.

Book Shield Unlocked:

Equip Bonus: Magic Power Up (small).

Skill Unlocked: HUD Space

HUD Space: Allows you to read any books you have store in it.

Well, I suppose that solves the problem of not being able to read, so I quickly absorbed all of the books in my room. I would take the time to read them later. The book shield also gave me the added bonus of concealing my identity as the book looked rather ordinary. I absorbed the four-hero book as well, so that I didn't have to carry it around. I thought it would just go into my HUD, but I actually got a new shield from it.

Foresight Shield:

+4 Magic Defense + 4 Defense

I was hoping to get a little more than that from such an important book, but I wasn't going to argue with free stat points. I switched back to the Book Shield, might as well master it. I investigated my HUD a bit to find 50 books with in. Thankfully they were all translated into Japanese.

I found a feature that let me organize the books based on context. I would spend the next five hours thoroughly reading, my curiosities were sated. I had finished a good chunk of the books. I learned about the state of the world namely the other countries, which included countries with demi-humans and beastman. To find out that there are others out they're not strictly human is weird, but not to be unexpected. The fact that they are often enslaved makes sense. Human's fear what is different, and they are different.

Anyways there seems to be seven countries. Faubrey is a powerhouse that has been influenced by past heroes and is the most technically advanced. Their faith is split between the Four Saint Religion and the Seven-Star hero Faith. Both are freely practiced. The Monarchy seems to have a monopoly on heroic blood, as many different heroes have married into the royal family. The government is a Patriarchy mixed with an Oligarchy. There is a lot of political upheaval with everyone vying for the top, but for the most part the country has remained stable. Harems and reverse harems are commonly practiced there. Not to my taste, but who am I to judge.

Next is Melromarc, which is another powerhouse mostly due to the actions of the Matriarchy line. In fact, crimes against women are a grave sin, yay for feminism. They have a human supremacy belief and often enslave demi-humans. They are home to the Church of the Three Heroes. They revere the Spear, Sword, and the Bow Hero. They absolutely despise the Shield Hero because in the past the Shield Hero has sided with the demi-humans over humans. This means that I am in a world of trouble, as already there is prejudice surrounding me. Especially since the Dragon Hourglass is located in the middle of their church.

After that is Siltvelt. Siltvelt is a sanctuary for demi-humans and beastman however there seems to be a blood superiority problem. Where some demi-humans and beastman that are better than others. They are ruled by four factions the Hakuko, the Shusaku, the Genmu, and the Aotatsu. However, the Hakuko were severely crippled during the war between them and Melromarc. Siltvelt follow a sect of the Four Saint Religion, which focuses solely on the Shield Heroes. The Shusaku are Shield Hero radicals, which isn't a safe thing, while the Genmu are neutral. While the Aotatsu seem to favor the Dragon faith instead. You could say that Siltvelt mirrors Melromarc near perfectly.

Next is Shieldfreeden. It is a country made directly due to conflict over blood supremacy in Siltvelt. Those who felt they were not being treated fairly decided to break off from Siltvelt and create their own country. The main Faith is like Siltvelt a sect of the Four Saint Religion solely focused on the Shield Hero; however, the ruling class seems to favor the Dragon Faith. The government is a republic. Shieldfreeden lives up to its name of being free as religious and political tolerance is prevalent there. I would have much preferred to be summoned in that country.

The next country is Zeltoble. It was a country established by merchants and has a very vast and versatile economy. Everything in the country moves because of money. As such it is ruled by an Oligarchy. The country has been plagued by constant warfare due to money struggles. Unlike most countries which have armies Zeltoble has assassins. The place sounded like perfect place for me.

Moving on is Q'ten Lo. Q'ten Lo like Faubrey is a mixture of a Patriarchy and an Oligarchy. Unlike other countries they do not believe in any religion besides the bloodline of the Heavenly Emperor. They are very secluded hardly ever interacting with the other countries.

Lastly is Seaetto Territory. It is a small chuck of land that is near the sea of Melromarc. It was gifted to a lord years back who was very wise and noble. He was favorable to demi-humans. He was lord of several small villages and was in talks of establishing his own nation. The talks seemed to be going well as the Queen was very fond of him. However, he died during the first wave and subsequently all of the villages he was lord over were ravaged. I was skeptical because towns that were hit hard during the first wave still had some survivors or even surviving architecture. What is most likely is that humans destroyed the villages and enslaved all the demi-humans. With no one to inherit the land, the territory was given back to the monarchy.

From there on I read about the religions. The Four Saint Religion is straight forward. They worship the Four Cardinal Heroes because they repel the waves. It is the Three Heroes Church and the Shield Faith that are concerning. What I want to know is why? Why does the Three Heroes Church have so much power? Why would the Queen allow this? From what I read she seems a very capable women, who is not easily fooled. My guess is her husband is making some poor decisions in her absence. Next is the Dragon Faith, a faith solely surrounding dragons, which is pretty cool. I suppose if there is a faith for them Dragons are not all bad here.

I also had access to other books such as rudimentary skill books in crafting, compounding, accessory making, and forging. They did not teach me any skills, but I feel like they would be great reference points for when I do. I had a demi-human/ beastman bestiary, which showed the various different species that took at least an hour to completely divulge. One thought is that demi-humans and beastman are awesome. Both have animalistic traits along with their human traits, its just that demi-humans are more human, while beastman are more animal. I thought it was quite the boon to have animalistic features.

After that I did some more fiddling with the status screen and found more functions. There is indeed an inventory, to access the inventory, I had to let the shield absorb it without the intention of creating shields. It seemed simple enough. I found a page on status effects and how they affected you, definitely useful. There is even a log of everything I do. For example, at 1:06 I read Forging.

I decided to turn in for the night. I had a lot that I needed to accomplish. I moved things around the room, so that no one would be able to get in without me knowing beforehand. Since my clothes were dry, I put them back on. My usual sleeping habit of sleeping on my stomach became an issue with the addition of the shield. However, I realized that I could move the position of the shield, so long as it was still maintained contact with my body. I moved it to my back, and then fell into a light slumber.

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Next Day

I woke up six hours later. I made sure that the set up I had created yesterday, wasn't disturbed. It wasn't. I quickly stripped and washed myself again. I put my clothes back on, and exited the room. I moved the shield position back to my arm. It was a bit early, so I did a bit of exploring, making sure to avoid people as I could. I didn't have the time to delve into things, but I started to create a mental map of where everything was, in case I wanted to visit again.

When circling back to my room, I ran into a maid, who said she was there to bring me to breakfast. I submitted, and followed after her. Ren and Itsuki were both there, but Motoyasu was not. "Good morning, did you sleep well?"

"Yes, the beds here are very nice? How about you? Did your isolation help you with your problems?" Itsuki asked.

I nodded sitting in a seat offered to me. I looked at the food set in front of me. It is possible that someone messed with my food. I mean the followers of the Three Hero Church already don't like me. I think the only thing keeping me safe for now is my proximity to the other heroes. It would tip them off if something were to happen to me, so they would be least likely to help. "Yes, I mostly spent last night going over my interface and reading up on this place."

Ren pitched in, "We discovered last night that we are all from different versions of Japan and that each of us had a version of this story in the medium of a videogame."

I took this information before agreeing. "If they could summon us from a different world, then it is not too far off to assume they could summon us from different realities. And I didn't know anything about this place before I got here, but I made sure to do my best to inform myself."

"Have you put much thought into how you will go about fighting in the waves?"

"I believe my primary weapon will have to be magic, as that particular stat is higher than my physical attack. As I cannot wield a regular weapon. I am hoping that I can find some accessories to augment that."

"Yes, we discovered that as well" Itsuki added.

"For now, I will have to rely on my party members for damage. However, my stats make me pretty sturdy if anything should go wrong

"That seems to be the path forward."

Motoyasu walks in with his escort. "What are we talking about guys?"

"We were discussing Naofumi's plan to fight the Waves."

"Good luck from my experience the Shield class has sucked." Ren and Itsuki both agree.

"Actually, I have found that even though the Shied Hero has no real attacking power they have never been the first hero to die." I say to defend myself.

"What do you mean? There have been other Heroes?" Itsuki asks.

"Yes, when a hero dies the Waves become increasingly difficult until the last hero dies. Then a new generation of heroes can be summoned. The Shield Hero has never been the first hero to die."

"If they can just summon new heroes after we die then what is the point of us even fighting the Waves?" Motoyasu said.

Deciding that it would best serve me to have my fellow heroes at the best they can be, I share my knowledge. "Well, we could run and hide, but the Waves happen everywhere. There would be nowhere to run. Second with each subsequent generation of Heroes they have outlast more and more Waves. The generation before us survived eight Waves before the Sword Hero was killed. They have left behind records and tools for us to do better than them. So, I suspect that it will be far easier for us to defeat the waves than our predecessors." Glad my history knowledge seems to be coming in handy. It seems while the other three heroes have a vast knowledge of present Melromarc they have no idea of how it became to be or the overarching history rather tidbits that were relevant to their games.

"Oh well that's cool. I guess we will just have to be the generation that ends the Waves for good." Motoyasu comments. The rest of breakfast passes in relative silence. I wrap up some food for me to eat later. I test out my inventory, and am glad to see the food disappear into the shield. A quick look at my status shows me that it is in my inventory. I five back into my books. Infront of us is 13 adventures waiting to be distributed. So that means three adventures with one getting four. However, with my knowledge of the prejudice against the Shield Hero in this country it is more likely that I will get zero if any.

"Good morning, Heroes! As promised, I have taken the liberty of finding the finest adventurers for you all." He gestures to the line of adventures. Since they excluded demi-human or beastman this can't be a true statement. "However, you don't get to choose who you party with. They will choose who they will follow!" Saying it in exclamation doesn't make it an intelligent idea.

This is literally the worst idea. So many things can go wrong. Someone could get no one, which is what will probably happen. What if all the mages decided to fight with one hero? This would make the parties unequally balanced. What if there are severe character imbalances that cause problems down the road? If we are risking our lives, we should be able to choose who we do it with? Do I voice any of these opinions, no because they will likely get shot down by the King?

Anyway, within a span of three seconds every adventurer is behind us. I look behind me and surprise, surprise there is no one behind me. Ren has five, and Itsuki and Motoyasu both have four. "Well, I will admit that I did not foresee this outcome." Liar. "However there have been rumors that the Shield Hero has no prior knowledge of the world. I can't very well force them to follow someone who doesn't know our ways." I don't push the issue.

"This is fine. I will go about this adventure myself."

"Well then since no one wishes to party with the Shield Hero he will be given additional funds does this seem fair?" At least that wasn't so bad. Although money wouldn't be a problem for me, not really.

"This seems fair."

"I am alright with it."

"Okay then the Shield Hero will be provided with 900 silvers (AN: I changed the amount) while the rest of you will receive 500." With that he motioned for maids to deposit the money to us. The coins felt heavy in my hand. I looked at my interface to see if the currency changed but saw that the interface did not acknowledge that I had money. Perhaps I need to have my shield absorb it?

"Sir Shield Hero, if it isn't much trouble, I would like to join your party?" A tall red-haired woman said stepping out of Motoyasu's line. She seemed innocent enough but my honed senses told me that she was dangerous. Living in the underground made one particularly good judge of character.

"Are you sure?" Motoyasu asked looking sad to see her leave.

"For what reason?" I questioned staying on the err of caution. Her face displayed a bit of hurt at the question. But I didn't let it persuade me.

"Hey don't be mean to her. She is trying to help you." Motoyasu scolded.

"I just don't think it is right for you to go alone." She said confidently.

"You like everyone else choose to party with someone else." I say addressing her. "Even before we turned around it was evident to you that no one was in my party. If you truly wanted to join my party because you didn't want me to be alone, you would have done so when you noticed that I had no one. So, thank you but no thank you." My tone left no room for argument. I had already decided to go alone, I didn't need someone who could be a danger to me as an ally.

The women meekly stepped back in line. Motoyasu and the King looked angry with my treatment of the women but did not act on it. "Well now that everything is over best of luck to you all." With that I turned on the ball of my heel. I waved goodbye to the other Heroes before returning to my room requiring privacy. I grabbed the leather sack of coins. I fished one out and placed it on the gem. The gem consumed it in no time.

Peddler's Shield

Current Capacity: 0/1000 Copper 1/1000 Silver 0/1000 Gold

This would prevent anyone from stealing my money and keep others from reclaiming money I stole. I looked at the leather sack and thought why not. I placed the sack on the gem, and it was sucked in.

Leather Shield

Equip Bonus: Tanning (small)

Rope Shield

Equip bonus: Rope

Skill Unlocked: Air Strike Shield

Air Strike Shield: Creates a magical shield in the air to block oncoming attacks. Has a cool down of ten minutes.

Wow, who knew that this would happen. "Air Strike Shield!" A green shield materialized and almost instantly vanished. I suppose the quantity of material consumed affects the effect. I used the special effect Rope. A rope shot out from the shield and wrapped around one of the pillows on the bed. I am sure I can find some use for that. By unlocking more shields, I got access to the skill tree. The skill tree allows me to keep track of all my shields. Their stats, bonuses, effects, and masteries are all listed. I discovered that mastery does not take long, or at least the mastery of the Book Shield didn't, so I equipped the Rope Shield to master it. Since I am left to my own devices, now would be the time to explore the castle for anything good.

I slipped out, and entered the other residential rooms. The only things of use I found were more books. I realized that I could read some of them. I recognized the titles as things that I have read or have in my HUD. Interesting, so I know anything I can't read is something new. I grinned as I stripped half of the shelf of their books. The next room only a quarter, and in the last room I only found a few books.

Leaving the residential area, I made my way to what I assumed was a cartographer room. It is important to know where I was going at all times. I needed to absorb as many maps as possible.

Cartographer Shield

Skill Unlocked: World Map

World Map: This map allows you to see the map of what you have absorbed and where you are on the map.

This would be the next shield to master. Bringing up World Map showed me a map of Melromarc but then zoomed in on the castle, but I could only see the castle. The map showed I was in the map room and across the hall was armory. This would be useful, as I could adequately plan my movement. I wonder if it will show other people. I zoomed out a bit, but didn't find any evidence of another person on the map despite being in a castle full of people. I grabbed more maps and examined the contents. I absorbed one for each country including Seaetto Territory. Then I focused more on Melromarc. Any map that had a significant difference from any of the rest was absorbed. So, I now had the layout of the city and significant towns and dungeons across Melromarc. Unfortunately, there weren't any world maps. With nothing left of value in the room, I moved on.

That aught to be enough. If needed I could come back for more. I then went to the armory. I studied each armor set. All of them were worth at least 100 gold, but I didn't want to draw too much attention to myself. I walked over to an armor set that there were four other copies of, and set the gem on it. The armor immediately disappeared into the shield. I smiled, this took a bit of the fun out of stealing, but the practicality of it couldn't be ignored.

I made quick work of absorbing anything I saw was worth the trouble. There were far more leather and hide armors, so I took more of those than the full metal sets. There were probably about 1000 swords here, so I took five of each style. Before I finished, I found the shield section. There were unfortunately only four shields, so I couldn't take them, but I could copy them.

Great Shield

+8 Defense

Skill Unlocked: Grow

Grow: Allows the user to grow their shield to cover more area. Has a cool down of one minute.

Swift Defense

+2 Defense +6 Agility

Skill Unlocked: Guard

Guard: Allows user to appear before a party member in an instant. Has a cool down of five minutes.

Magic Defy

+12 Magical Defense

Skill Unlocked: Magic Rebound

Magic Rebound: Allows user to rebound a magic attack. Has a cool down of one day.

Cleric's Justice

+20 Vitality

Skill Unlocked: Salvation

Salvation: Heal anyone for 1% of users Vitality. Has a cool down of one hour.

These shields were a great basis for starting my adventure. While three of them relied on me having a party member or use on party members they were very useful. And Magical Rebound sounded almost broken. Because it did not state a limit to the magic attack that could be rebound. I suppose the attack can't exceed my magical defense or else it would fail.

I make my exit being cautious of anyone here. I enter the library and see that there are twelve bookshelves. I pick one at random, and find that all of them are in Japanese, so this one is a bust. The next one holds similar results. They were mostly historical and skill related books, which I absorbed already. The next shelf has none that I can read, so I quickly absorb the fifty books that I are on the shelf. The next shelf only has four I can't read. I continue on down the shelves and relieve them of the books. However, I notice nearly half the library is gone, which might be suspicious. After fiddling with the HUD Space, I found that I could download everything in it. So, I quickly downloaded everything and then started the process of returning all of the books, both in the library and in the residential area.

I looked over the map, to see if there was anything of interest. There was a treasury, but I thought better than to hit it up. It would obviously be heavily guarded, both magically and physically. I didn't have enough skills to be confident in getting away cleanly. Stealing from the armory was only as easy as it was because the place didn't have any obvious security.

With nothing else keeping me here, I decide it is best to get a move on. The less chance I spend here the better. The guards were suspicious that I was still here, but didn't stop me from leaving. Once out of the castle, I had a couple of courses I could take. First, I could sit down and read more of my books, this option gave me more knowledge of the world, and thus made moving about it far easier. The second would be to explore the city, and see if I can't find something nice. The last option was to leave the capitol all together, but that just sounded like asking for trouble.

I looked at my maps, to see if there was a nice place, where I could sit down and read. There were several inns, but I didn't want to pay money just to be there for reading. I saw the guild on the map, and decided that was my best option. Don't Isekai's usually register at guilds before they go off adventuring. Plus, if I registered, they would probably let me relax there for a couple hours.

The walk to the guild takes five minutes. Inside is a large group of adventurers strung out at random tables across the room. There is a bar that severs both food and drink. There is a second level that has several rooms some open and some closed. There is a wall with requests strewn across it. Finally, there is a long table with clerks. I approach one a male with average looks and brown hair. "Good evening are you here to sign up as an adventurer?"

"Can you tell me the benefits of being one?"

"Certainly." He hands me a pamphlet, that I instantly absorb. He doesn't even bat an eye. "Being an Adventurer allows you certain liberties that you can't get by just going it alone. For one once you are registered you can take requests from the wall over there. Complete the request and bring proof and we will pay you handsomely. We also provide contacts to other guilds such as the Merchants guild and the Smith Guild. These connections can prove to be quite valuable.

We also protect our own. If a job goes bad, we will accept the blame on your behalf. But if it becomes a habit, it will be your job on the line. You will also get an adventurer title which can act as a second identity that is legal to use. This way you can separate your adventurer life and your personal life. An example of this is assassination jobs. You might not want to sign off on completing said mission with your personal identity as it will be a mark against you. However, your adventurer identity will face no repercussions because it was a job. Lastly if you have a group of at least 40 individuals you can create your own Guild." He hands me another pamphlet that is absorbed. "Would you like me to tell you about Guilds?"

"Sure."

"Great. Creating a Guild comes with a multitude of benefits. The first being the right to own a guild hall. The Hall can be located anywhere that is not already private property and can expand as far as you have coin. Don't worry if you only have enough to buy a small plot of land, you can expand easily. Guildmates will also be given a mark of your own design. This mark adds features to your interface. One being a chat feature, you can chat from anywhere and anywhere. This is a private link that can only be used by individuals bearing the same guild mark. The second is location sharing. If you have a mapping skill, then you can see your guildmates on the map no matter where they are. Legally you cannot be persecuted against for anyone in your guild that means demi-humans and beastman. In addition, your guildhall is private property anyone found on your property illegally can be dealt with to your liking. So, would you like to become an adventurer?"

"Well, you drive a hard bargain, but sure."

"Awesome. Just fill out this form, and then come back to me. Don't worry this form has a translation spell that will translate its contents to a language you are familiar with." He smiled and handed me a pen and paper.

I sauntered over to an empty table. The form was fairly simple. It asked basic background questions, such as height, blood type, and physical features. Then it asked about my occupation and titles. Next was my adventurer's name I chose Softpaw, a nickname that Kiko gave me. There were a bunch of bylaws that you had to agree to, of which I read carefully. Not finding anything condemning I returned to the clerk. He handed me a specialty knife with an extreme piercing stat and told me to slice my thumb and stamp the box with blood. I did so, and a second later the wound healed.

"Congrats Softpaw you are an adventurer now. Feel free to look at the requests or head upstairs to start establishing connections with fellow guilds." He smiled, and I returned it.

I walked upstairs to a semi empty room, and sat in an unoccupied chair. This room seemed fairly quiet, and no one was interacting, so the likelihood of someone interrupting me was slim. I opened my HUD and got to reading. It takes nearly six hours to complete everything. It helps that a lot of the books are less than fifty pages.

Three of the shelves was completely dedicated to magic, both the application and how it is used in the world. There were no spells and if they were, they were just used as examples. There are three categories of magic Ritual, Ceremonial, and Way of the Dragon Vein.

Ritual magic is the most common use. It involves an incantation that is personal to each person to mold the mana. Then there are four levels of spells First, Zweite, Drifa, and Liberation. Each level adds more power to a spell than the one before but costs more mana. First is fairly common, with Zweite being the next. Drifa spells on the other hand can only be used by expert practitioners. And there was very limited information on Liberation level spells only that they could be used by Heroes alone. In addition to the incantation and spell level one adds an adjective to achieve the desired effect. For example, saying all before your spell indicates that the spell should hit multiple targets.

Ceremonial magic can either be Ritual or Way of the Dragon Vein, but the difference is that there are multiple castors to achieve the same effect. And Way of the Dragon Vein isn't really known other than it is the type of magic that monsters use.

Then there are Magic affinities, which are self-explanatory. Usually if one has an affinity for one type of magic, they can still learn others it is just that their affinity magic will come easier to them. However, if one has two or more affinities then they are usually stuck using those two affinities. Examples include Support, Illusion, Earth, and Fire to name a few. And there is magical weakness such as fire magic being weak to water magic. I was hoping that I would have an affinity for effect magic. Effect magic allow one to cause status effects to their opponents or lift them from their allies. Effects range from poison, sleep, paralyze, curse, and so on. Not only would it help me fight monsters but its also gave me access to some attacks as well.

Then there are enchantments which can be placed on weapons, jewelry, and armor to grant extra bonuses. Usually this is done by embedding said things with ore or gems. Apparently already having a groove for the ore in place helps the enchantment process.

There are even magical items such as magic threads or even observational balls that can capture video and play it in real time. I need both. With the thread I can make a cloak to help hide my features and protect me from magical attacks.

Magic wises the last thing I learned was seals. Apparently sealing is quite complex, but once you learn it, it opens doors. Most people use seals to lock things away, but some seals bind, and others can enhance. It all depends on the intent.

Other than magic I learned more about basic skills such as carpentry, reading, and writing. While I won't say that I will be able to read their language any time soon I could now do some letter/ word association.

There were skill books such as The Way of the Merchant which depicted how merchants worked. Other such books taught me about farming, mining, and other professions. How they worked individually and how they contributed to the economy and local way of life.

Two shelves were about monsters. I found weaknesses, strength, and their general hunting areas. This was especially helpful, and I made sure to pay extra attention. Another shelf was dedicated to armor and the different types of effects that they can provide. Two shelves on weapons. I was going to skip over these books, but I believed that I might want to know about potential weapons for my future party members. The last shelf was dedicated to fauna and medicinal potions. Very useful indeed. Through out that time I had masted all of my shields but the four from the armory. Since they had abilities, they would take longer than a couple hours to master.

I still had plenty of day left, so I decided to head to the Three Heroes Church. I needed to visit, while I still had a great public image. That was the only way I could get access to the Dragon Hourglass. Instead of using my map, I just walked around, trying to familiarize myself with the city layout. I also took the chance to observe the people. A good thief has a great understanding of the people they are stealing from. There were several nobles walking around, with only a single guard or two. Their pocket money was tied rather loosely to their waste. It was almost no effort to swipe a few coins every now and then as they passed me by. By the time I made it to the church I was 100 silvers richer.

I pause outside the doors. I understand fully that I am entering the lion's den, and any number of things can go wrong. I am banking on the idea that the Three Heroes Church still want to viewed as a righteous authority. But they might take one look at me, and decide to take care of their problem before it becomes a bigger one. The sister that greets me seems pleasant, but it seems fake to me. I ask for the direction of the Hourglass, and she points at a narrow staircase. I follow her direction, and find myself in front of a priest. "Shield Hero what do I owe the pleasure of your company this fine afternoon."

"Good afternoon, I am here to see the Dragon Hourglass."

"Ah well that is rather responsible of you. None of the other heroes have visited the Dragon Hourglass until the day of their first wave. Let me not be in the way then." He stepped aside and I stepped up. The instant that I was near the Dragon Hourglass a timer appeared on my interface. It showed that I had a little over a month until the first wave. I looked at the Dragon Hourglass, I wonder what shield I would get for absorbing the sand. The bottom had a little latch. I lifted it and out fell a singular grain of sand. My shield immediately absorbed it.

Dragon Hourglass Sand Shield

Skill unlocked: Portal Shield

Portal Shield: Allows anyone standing in the dome of influence to teleport to set destination. Current Destination tags: 2

Would you like to set one?

I thought yes and could instantly feel a pull to this area. It was like a little reminder in the back of my mind that I could come back whenever I wanted. I moved the mark around so that it was up in the rafters, in case I had to come here undercover. Luckily only I could see where I put the markers.

"I have never seen someone knowingly absorb the sand. Most times we have to offer it. You sure are knowledgeable in this."

I shake my head. "Not really, I just know that my shield can absorb materials, there is no limit to what it can absorb, so why not the sand."

The Pope let out a hearty laugh, "you have quite the mind don't you. My name is Pope

Balmus. It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Naofumi Iwatani." I shake his hand, he probably already knows my name, so it is no harm in telling him. "Say you wouldn't happen to sell holy water. I read that it is quite effective in purging curses and can be used as a healing agent."

"We do, how can we be of service?"

"How much is your cheapest bottle?"

"Our cheapest bottle is two coppers. It however is only good for curing minor curses."

"That is fine. I would like 101 bottles." I produce two silver coins in my hand. Pope Balmus pockets the silvers, before motioning for a sister to gather the bottles and my change. Five minutes later two sisters come and hand me four crates full of the low-quality holy water. She hands me the 98 coppers, and I let the shield absorb it. I grab all four of them using my strength to carry all of them. I bid them a farewell and make my exit. I only go down a block before settling next to a building. I grab a bottle of the holy water and let the shield absorb it bottle and all.

Glass Recipe acquired

Holy Water Shield

Skill Unlocked: Holy Gush

Holy Gush: Produce copious amounts of Holy water (Poor).

I smirked. My theory was proven right. Holy water is a strong restorative, and if I absorbed some, I might be able to produce it on my own. I proceeded to absorb all the holy water. The glass bottles just got stored in my inventory. After five holy waters the quality of Holy Gush improved to common. After ten the quality was uncommon. After twenty more the quality was rare. After thirty more the quality was epic. The last forty the quality was legendary. Yes! Never doubt the power of compounding. Nice holy water for me. If ever I need to cure a curse, or have a party that needs healed quickly, I can use Holy Gush. Worse comes to worse, I could sell it to make a nice bit of coin. I wonder if holy water is conductive. I would assume that it acts just like pure water and therefore not be conductive. I would have to test it.

It is only 3:30. I study the map to spot potential places to visit. There is an apothecary that will be useful. A magic shop that I should definitely see. A smithy that sells weapons and armor. Perhaps they can sell me armor or shields. There is also a shop that sold poisons, that I should go too as well.

Making my exit I headed in the direction of the Apothecary. A short ten minutes later and I entered the shop, of which I managed to snag 50 more silver pieces, and two coppers because I liked nice round numbers. I absorbed my prize, and entered the Apothecary. It was decently sized with an acute organization. All herbs were to the left and seemed to be alphabetically ordered. To the back were bottles, of what I assumed to be potions. To the left were shelves of books and tools. The man behind the counter waved his acknowledgement, but he was dealing with a customer.

I perused the herbs section, but I didn't know what anything was or what it did. I tried using the knowledge I had on medicinal herbs, but there were not any apt descriptions of the herbs rather their function and potential uses. The opposite shelf held the same results. While I could just grab books at random, I rather not be committed for stealing so obviously. This not being able to read was getting annoying real fast. At least I have read half of the books on the shelves. Thankfully my frustration had garnered the attention of the clerk, "what seems to be the problem my boy?"

I turn to him, a bit embarrassed. "Well while I can understand you just fine, I am not able to read, so I don't know what is in here." I rub the back of my neck feeling like a child.

"Hmm can't read can you, well there is a simple spell around that. Have you heard of the appraisal skill?" I nod, and nearly smack my face for missing such a simple solution. If I could see monetary values of things, then there could be a spell out there to see other things. "The appraisal skill will allow you to see descriptions of items in your interface. It is not a substitute for reading, but it will at least help you understand some of the world around you." He said with a smile. "Yes, it is fairly easy. Most people can learn the skill after seeing someone do it. The skill is mostly intent based and has no cooldown, so it is very practical." He then grabbed a book off the shelf. Luckily, I couldn't read the title, so this would actually be beneficial. He gazed at the book intently and the book glowed faintly.

Appraisal Skill Acquired.

Appraisal: Allows you to see the stats and properties of anything ranging from items, herbs, and monsters. The more this skill is used the more information one can gather.

I nod confirmation that I had acquired the skill and the clerk went back to his counter to organize some potions. I walked over to the herbs section. What I thought was entirely herbs turned out to be monster drops as well. Some monster drops could be used to create potions. While I had money to spare, I wanted to be frugal with what I spent. I didn't want to buy the really expensive items no matter how tempting it was. I decided on the three mush parts, regular, green, and blue. Plus, some leaves that had medicinal properties. All together it only added to twenty-five coppers. The clerk gave me my change, and I absorbed it.

I was going to get more, but I wanted to see what shields I could get from the material I got. It might help narrow my purchases. I absorbed the material and got four new notifications.

Leaf Shield

Equip Bonus: Absorption Bonus

Mush Shield

Equip Bonus: Plant Appraisal

Blue Mush Shield

Equip Bonus: Simple Recipe

Green Mush Shield

Equip Bonus: Apprentice Compounding

Awesome, so now I could start making potions with my shield. The leaf shield will increase the quality of the ingredients, which will make for better potions. So even if I only pick low level ingredients, I can make moderate potions. Now onto books, using the appraisal system and was able to get a summary of each book. Which I was thankful for, some of them were not necessary as I already had something similar in my HUD. I don't want to pay for a book that has the same information as ones I have already read. I decided on getting just a book on compounding. This one was more in-depth and was more teaching. The one before only talked about what compounding was and its effects on the world, whereas this one will teach me how to compound and give me some simple recipes. At least I knew the price of the book, with there being a number next to the book, along with the word for silver. The monetary value for the book was actually a bit higher than what it was being sold for, so I was getting a nice deal.

Next was compounding equipment. I selected the apprentice set, it came with a mortar and pestle, a thin scalpel, and a stirring stick. Technically my shield can make any compound I need, but I want this set-in case I want to teach any future party members how to compound. I brought my purchases to the table and scoured the potions on the wall. I spotted a cheap healing potion, along with a minor antidote. The price was a little on the high end of thirty silvers, but that is fine. I want to spend less than 100 silver for now. I know armor will cost more than that, but armor is not my priority. I don't plan on leaving the city for a couple of days anyway.

After waving goodbye, I take a moment to collect myself against the side of his shop. Here goes nothing. I place the healing potion on the gem and watched it disappear. The poison potion was next, then the book, and finally the compounding set. The book was immediately uploaded to my HUD, and the compounding set was sitting in my inventory as was the glass bottles from the potion/ poison. Those two gained me two new shields.

Small Medicine Shield

Equip Bonus: Medicine Efficiency Up (Medium)

Small Antidote Shield

Equip Bonus: Poison Resistance (Small)

Not too shabby, especially the Medicine shield. Medium efficiency up with just one cheap potion. However, it does not specify if it increases the quality of only potions I make, or can I increase the quality of potions I buy. I guess I will have to wait and see. Either way I'm not complaining. I head to the magic shop, which is conveniently next door. The clerk this time is an old lady, but something about her eyes tells me she can burn you to a crisp with one syllable. "Good evening young traveler, welcome to the shop of Mystics and Magic. What can I do for you today?"

"Hi, I am new to magic, I guess the first thing to do would be to find out my magical affinities. Is there a way to do that here?"

"Yes, there is come over to the crystal ball." She beckoned me to a crystal ball to the corner of her counter. "Now crystal balls function varies, but their most primitive function is allowing one to see their magical affinities. Just place your hand on the ball and wait. It might take a few seconds."

I placed my hand on the cool surface. "If you do not mind me asking what other functions do crystal balls serve?"

"A splendid question. One function is as a teaching tool. You can charge a crystal ball with a spell. Someone can then absorb that spell and instantly learn how to use it. However, it is only good for one spell a month, as it takes massive amounts of magic to keep a spell stable in a stationary object. For those seeking to learn the ways of mysticism I suggest a grimoire. They are a bit slower to learn but offer a larger variety of spells. Plus, they are self-updating, so the more magic you know the more you can learn. The other function they serve as projections. They can record things and project them in real time or at a later date."

Magic started swirling in the crystal ball but haven't taken a definite shape or color. "They sound useful. How much is one?"

"I sell them based on their uses. For magical affinities I charge 75 copper per customer. For the magical spell I charge two gold. But I am afraid that the King ordered all of them for the Cardinal Heroes use." I doubt I will see any of those then. "As for the project crystal, they are fairly common, as almost everyone in the city has one or knows someone who has one. I sell them for 10 silvers each."

"Cool, I will not purchase any now, but in the future, I might buy some projection crystals." With the conversation over the magic finally seemed to stabilize. It looked like a giant blob of green and yellow to me, but apparently that meant something to her.

"Ah fascinating, I have heard of people having an affinity for one or the other, but it is very rare to have an affinity for both. You my good sir, have an affinity for alteration and effect magic. Unfortunately, this means that other branches are closed off to you."

"That's fantastic, I wanted an affinity for effect magics anyway." I say with enthusiasm. "But if you don't mind me asking, what is alteration magic?"

"Alteration magic is a bit rare, at its core it allows one to change the properties of things. For example, you can use a spell to give yourself a higher defense by taking on the properties of iron, or change the landscape by changing the properties of the earth. This branch has a lot of versatility as well as utility. However, it isn't as strong as an elemental magic, as they usually have much more punch."

"No, it sounds perfect, I can just see it, I use alteration to trap my target, which would make placing an effect on them much easier."

"I am glad that you have a mind for this. Magic can be a rather powerful asset, however many lack the imagination to use it to its full capacity." Wait here for a moment." She went into a back room. I took the time to look around. There were many magical weapons ranging from wands to gems. Apparently, any medium can work, so long as you have a magical connection to it. And magical connections are apparently not hard to establish. I could probably establish one with a rock I found on the side of the road, however this doesn't mean that the rock would able to handle magic running through it. The women came out with two volumes and placed them on the counter. "These are two of my more composite grimoires for these branches. They have all the spells for a beginner grimoire and more. Normally I would sell these for 50 silver a piece, but I will give you a deal. Two for the price of one!" She shouted excitedly.

"While the discount is greatly appreciated, any reason for it?"

"Yes, I must help out a budding mage that is as passionate about magic as I am." I appreciated the help, but something told me she wasn't just doing this because I was passionate about magic.

"That sounds reasonable. Well then, I am ready to pay. I believe the total comes to 50 silvers and 75 coppers." The clerk nodded. I waved goodbye and she told me to come again. I look at my currency, I only have 817 of the original 900 silvers given to me. But with the extra 150 that brings me to 967, so yay for me. I don't know what I want in terms of armor yet, so it is not like it really matters. And it isn't like I need weapons. But it would be best to make contact with the person who would be gearing my party up.

I put the grimoires in my HUD, and make way. Said smithy is stuffy with large amounts of weapons and armor of varying sizes all lying around the room. My eye immediately zooms in on the shields in the far-right wall. There has to be at least ten of them on the wall. What I wouldn't do to get my hands on them. But if I did, I would probably have to pay for them. I am sure that I could get away with copying them without him noticing, but that would sour a potentially beneficial relationship. "Good evening customer, is there anything that I can do for you today?" An older male came out from a back room. Despite being on the older side he was clearly still in shape and could probably go toe to toe with any adventurer still in their prime.

"Hello Sir, my name is Naofumi Iwatani, also known as the Shield Hero."

"Ah Shield Hero, what can I do for you." He gestures to his shop. "If you need a blade, look no further. I sell the sharpest blades in the kingdom. If you're looking for armor, well I supply the royal knights, so it has to say something about my quality."

"Ah that is very good clerks' man."

"Call me Erhard."

"Okay. I am not exactly looking for something right now. I just wanted to establish contact with you. I have yet to find anyone for my party, but when I do, I will be using this shop as our main source of weapons and armor."

"Oh well I guess to happy future investments." He puts his hand out.

"To happy future investments." I say shaking his hands.

"Well, if there is not anything you would like to buy, what about learn. I can teach you some of the basics of armor and weaponry?"

"I read some books about the different affects of armor and different types of weapons. But it wouldn't hurt to get a more in-depth analysis."

Erhard let out a hearty laugh. "That's the spirit. Well first things first when it comes to physical attacks there are three main categories: Blunt, Slash, and Piercing. Blunt damage is done by weapons made to bludgeon rather then cut. Examples are this hammer" He points to a comedically large hammer on a rack, "or the mace" this time pointing to several maces around the same area of the hammer. "Blunt damage is one of the most standard type of damage. Its attack has a 1:1 ratio with defense. However, your armor does play a part in this ratio. If you are wearing heavy armor, then blunt damage actually does damage in a 2:1 ratio. This is because while heavy armor is thick and offers a large amount of protection, they are easily moldable if a large enough force is applied. If someone were to dent your heavy armor, it would make it very easy to break it on the next strike. On the other hand, blunt damage does neutral damage against medium armor. Medium armor such as chainmail, offers no protection from blunt damage, but it has no weakness, as most adventures in medium armor rely on movement to diffuse force. So, the ratio is 1:1. However light armor, such as leather is different. Light armor is often very padded, and this padding helps absorb the shocks of blunt damage. This puts blunt damage as a weakness only doing damage at a 1:2 ratio. Do you understand?"

"Yeah. I do thanks. The books explained why blunt damage was best suited for heavy armor, but never why. And it didn't even explain how other types of armor effected it."

"Yeah, books will do that. You will find that books while reliable for information are very one dimensional. They are made for the general populace in mind, and no one wants to read a thousand pages on all the different aspects of things. Most adventures want to know type advantages and then they start swinging. My advice is to read with an open mind, and then confirm with an expert. Now shall I keep going?"

"Yes please."

"Okay now slashing damage can be done with most weapons with a blade, the most common being a sword or a scythe. Slashing damage is best on light armor, as it can cut right through the defensive padding with a ratio of 2:1. Slashing does neutral damage to medium armor, more often than not it becomes a battle of attrition than anything else, the ratio is 1:1. Slashing damage is weak to heavy armor, as it is too weak to cut through thick armor, the ratio is 1:2.

The next type of damage is piercing such weapons are the bow and throwing daggers. They are weak to light armor. This is because piercing damage looks for areas that are the least protected to do damage. However light armor is light and cheap enough to do a full set, and the padding is usually enough to stop the momentum of thrown or shot weapons. And that is what really does the damage, the momentum. Like light armor, heavy armor is also great against piercing damage for the same reason. The ratio is 1:2 for both. Unlike the previous two however piercing damage is great for medium armor, as usually that armor has chinks, that anyone worth their salt can aim for. The ratio is 2:1."

"It seems like piercing damage is terrible, why would someone want to use it?"

"Ah well that is because piercing damage has a special property of ignoring percentages of defense. Take this dagger for example, the piercing damage can ignore 5% of defense. So even if piercing damage is not so great against light armor or heavy armor, if one does manage to land a hit, they would probably do more damage than with slashing or blunt damage."

"I guess I should watch out for piercing damage then. My defense and magical defense stat are pretty high, which is what will keep me safe, but if something with piercing damage can ignore parts of my defense, I won't last long."

The books did not mention that piercing could ignore defense. That was the thesis to my entire strategy. Use my ridiculous defense to keep me and my party members safe, while they dished out damage. But if one luck shot can ignore enough of my defense, I could very well die or be critically injured enough that someone else would. What are some countermeasures? Well piercing damage only ignores a percentage of defense, right? So theoretically if my defense is high enough even if the damage let's say ignores 50% of my defense, I would still be protected enough to tank it. While this option sounded good, it would not be viable in the short term. Along the same vain raising my vitality stat to be able to tank anything is also a no go.

Perhaps magic can help, I know that I have an affinity for effect and alteration magic. I doubt there is a spell in effect magic that could protect me. But perhaps alteration could work. The old mage said that it worked by changing somethings properties, perhaps I could change the properties of my armor to protect me against piercing damage. If worst comes to worst, I would just have to use it to stop the attack in its wake.

If worse comes to heel, and I am critically injured, I do have Vitality. 1% of my vitality is only 602 health, but that is enough to keep someone alive. Holy Gush was an option as well, but that was just as likely to heal my enemies as it did my allies. Plus, the shields I copied gave me stat bonuses. I will have to master the shields for the bonuses to be permanent though. It sucks that I have to strike this balance of mastering shields with utility uses and mastering shields that give me better stats.

So, I guess that is my game plan, learn magic to keep me alive, and absorb whatever I can to raise my stats. I dislike that this plan hinges on the fate of my ability to learn magic quickly and my ability to absorb shields that provide me with stats. But until further options become available to me, that is all I can do.

"Kid! KID!" I snap out of my concentration. Erhard was close to my face waving his hands in front of my vision. "There you are kid. I got a little concerned when you zoned out for a good two minutes. What had you thinking so hard?"

"I was revising my game plan. I was going to use my high defense and magical defense stat to survive, however this did not take into account piercing damage. I ran through a couple of different options before finally settling onto the only one that made sense for the time being."

"Which is?"

"Well magic and my absorbing ability." I show him the shield that has been blocked from view by the counter.

"I suppose that makes sense. The legend says that if a Shield Hero lives long enough their defense stats can become monstrous."

"It is what I am aiming for."

"Great, well I am glad to see you have a game plan. If you want, I can help you refine it?" I thought about it for a second. Erhard has more knowledge about this world than I do, and could probably help me fine out the finer details.

"I have an affinity for effect and alteration magic. I think that this is the best set of affinities to have, since I cannot dish out damage myself. Effect magic could not only chip away at my opponent's health but probably stall them long enough for my future party members to take them out. Alteration will be helpful in changing the battle field in my favor. I also plan to hit the poison shop after this. If I can't hurt something my poison will. The shield also gives me some abilities that would be useful for stalling or defending. That is the basis, once I have more capitol or know how, I will use jewelry to help augment my stats."

"Do you mind if I get a demonstration?"

"Sure, Air Strike Shield." A pale green shield appeared before fading away in the next second.

"Was that supposed to do something?"

"Yes, that particular skill allows me to create a floating shield. I got it from absorbing rope, but it was not a large amount, probably just a couple of centimeters. Which is why I theorize that the skill is so weak."

"Oh, so the more you absorb the stronger your skills get?"

"I believe so, I have an ability called Holy Gush, which lets me create large quantities of Holy Water. At first the quality of the Holy Water was poor, but the more holy water I absorbed the higher the quality. Right now, the quality is legendary, which I believe can cure most curses."

"Damn, sounds like a useful ability. Mind if we test the theory. I have a few meters of rope in the back that I am not using."

"Sure, but we will have to wait ten minutes for the cool down."

Erhard headed to the back, "that's fine." A couple of seconds later he came out with a spool of rope. I grabbed one end from him and guided it to the glowing gem. Immediately it began to suck all the rope in until it was completely gone. "So other than the skills that you get from absorption, why do you think this is going to help you out?"

"Because of this." I bring out the greater shield. "The shield has a weapon copy system. By holding a shield, I can copy it, so that I may use it. This shield grants me a +8-defense stat boost. It isn't permanent, but I once I master it then I should be able to keep the stat bonuses without having the shield active."

"Damn those lousy cardinal heroes!"

"What happened."

"I'll tell you what happened, they were all here earlier rubbing their grubby money stealing hands all over my merchandise. I thought they were just testing out which weapons would fit best for them, but it is more likely that they were copying weapons and then not paying for them. If I ever see them again, I will charge them with a bill so high, their ancestors will not be able to crawl out from under their debt." It was a little refreshing to see this side of Erhard.

"Hmm it is rather distasteful that they would abuse the system like that. It is one of the reasons that I did not want to copy your shields, Erhard. Because I couldn't afford them." A simple lie, but what he didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

"Thanks Shield-bro, but how did you get this shield?"

"I got this shield along with three others from the castle armory."

"Isn't that just like what the other cardinal heroes did to me?" He asks with a stern looking face.

"Normally I would agree, however I think of it as more of compensation. The King should do everything he can to supply us cardinal heroes. He loses nothing by me copying these shields, especially because no one was using them. There was more dust in that armory than I care to admit."

"But that argument could be used by the other cardinal heroes. That it is my duty to supply them with free weapons."

"Not at all, you are not the King, you are a businessman and citizen. It is not your responsibility to help us. You lose out on money when they copy from you, but the King loses nothing."

"I can accept that explanation."

"You wouldn't have any unused materials that I can buy off you? I am willing to spend at the minimum 167 silver."

"With that kind of money, I think I could sell you quite a bit of materials." He walks into the back, and makes several trips placing ore onto the table. "This is iron, lead, copper, silver, and gold ore. They cost around 100 silver all together. They should help you out quite nicely." I place the money on the counter and let my shield do its thing.

Iron Ore Shield

Equip Bonus: Metalworking 2

Copper Ore Shield

Equip Bonus: Metalworking 1

Lead Ore Shield

+1 Defense

Silver Ore Shield

Equip Bonus: Damage from Demonic Monsters reduced by 2%

Gold Ore Shield

+6 Defense +2 Magic Defense

Equip Bonus: Jewelry working 1

The shields were not as great as I was expecting. The stats were always nice as was the skills, but I was kind of hoping for more. If rope could give me Air Strike Shield, then these shields could have given me a skill or two. Oh well, not the worst purchase. When Erhard notices my lack of enthusiasm, I explain it.

I mean it is only day one, but I need to get as strong as possible in as little time as possible. Erhard just hummed. "Anyway, we still have three minutes left, I had a question about your first statement. You said there were three main categories of damage. Does that mean that there are more?"

"Yes, although it is only one. It is what we can mixed damage. This damage is a mixture of either all three or two of the three. An example would be a giant battle axe. The blade clearly does slash damage, but with the strength required to swing said weapon, blunt damage is also applied. There are not many weapons out there that do mixed damage, most falling into one category or another. But the few that do are infamous for they are hard to calculate. Nothing messes up a battle strategy like mixed damage. But you should be safe from it, for these weapons tend to be very obvious in their function."

"Hmm interesting it might be beneficial to have one of my future party members use such a weapon. Alas that would require me to find someone willing to party with me."

"Oh, have some problems with that. You seem very charismatic and could easily persuade a couple of adventurers to follow you."

"The problem seems to be a clear prejudice against the Shield Hero. With the Three Heroes Church being the predominate religion in Melromarc, others either outright dismiss me, or refuse to work with me. Despite the King gathering enough people to aid us equally, I still ended up with no one in my party. I doubt I will have much luck just convincing people to work with me, which means I will have to pay them to do so. Which is a problem because once the money runs out, so does their loyalty. I am starting to think that my best option would be demi-humans/ beastman, however most demi-humans/ beastman are slaves. I would rather avoid it if I can, but the odds are I will have to take that route."

"Yes, I see the dilemma here, well there is nothing saying you couldn't buy one and then release them." I grimace at the prospect. "I know not the most ethical of choices, but if you have very limited options, then you might have to commit a necessary evil."

"Why is slavery even a thing, no other country has slavery except Zeltoble and that is more criminal based than anything else."

"It didn't used to be like this either, rather a new development. It connects back to the war between Siltvelt and Melromarc. A lot of lives were lost on both sides, and the hatred for one another only grew as the war continued. When the war ended in Melromarc's victory there were a lot of prisoners of war to deal with. Since a majority of the war heroes rose in power either becoming nobles or Lords, they held a fair bit of power. Some argued for death, while other for releasement. The hatred of the new war heroes was too great, and they used their collective power to strong arm the Queen into making slavery legal. While I am sure that she could have said no, Melromarc was still in recovery and would not survive a civil war if things escalated."

"So, she chose the lesser of the two evils, still seems irresponsible to enslave people, especially when they are not your citizens. I'm sure that Siltvelt had to release all of their prisoners of war. But I am not the Queen, I have never had to make these decisions, so I cannot argue on what I would have done."

"The Queen makes questionable decisions sometimes, but no one can argue that she doesn't love her people."

"Mmm, yes, from what I read that is the sense I got as well." I check the timer on the cool down, three seconds left. I turn to face an empty part of the room and call out Air Strike Shield. This time the shield did not immediately fizzle out. Erhard and I did some tests. The shield seemed sturdy enough and was able to stand up to a hard strike from a hammer, a slash from a sword, and a stab from a dagger. However, the weapons were basic, so only experience will tell if it holds out on a stronger attack. It was solid enough that both of us could cling to it, which made me think of some brilliant applications for this shield.

The shield however only lasted around two minutes before it dissipated. I wasn't sure if this was the time limit, or if I just haven't absorbed enough rope yet, but I suppose I only really need it to last as long as it takes to stop an attack. Erhard and I talk for a couple more minutes before I bid my leave. The time tells me that it is 6:23, perhaps food is next before visiting the poison shop. My stomach lets me know that it agrees. Well, I guess it has been eight hours since breakfast, and I missed lunch. I make my way to the closest restaurant. It is pretty popular, with a nice array of people. It doesn't take me long to get seated. The menu is pretty basic, which is understandable. Despite being in the capital, there must be food shortages because the farms are being destroyed by the waves.

I order enough food to settle my stomach and open my HUD. I start doing some light reading. Just something to pass the time, while I get my fill. Once I am done, I pay the two silvers for my meal, and head on out. The poison shop is a bit out of the way, probably so they can do a bit more business out of the publics eye.

The shop is set up almost the same as the apothecary. They have plants and monster parts that can be used to make poisons, actual poisons, and then books. I spend a total of 65 silver in the poison shop, leaving me with a nice round 800 silver. I unlocked several shields as well.

Venomous Stinger Shield

+3 Attack

Equip Bonus: Poisons you make are 5% more effective. Poison resistance (Small)

Skill: Scorpion

Scorpion: Summons a small scorpion that can be controlled.

Venomous Barb Shield

+5 Attack

Equip Bonus: Poisons are 5% more effective. Poison resistance (Small)

Skill: Pin Needle

Pin Needle: Causes Barbs to shoot out at the target.

Venomous Fang Shield

+10 Attack

Equip bonus: Poisons are 10% more effective. Poison resistance (Large)

Skill: Snake Bite

Snake Bite: A small snake bites an opponent delivering a random poison in your inventory.

Venomous Mucus Shield

+ 6 Attack

Equip Bonus: Poisons are 10% more effective. Poison resistance (Small)

Skill Unlocked: Gunk Shot

Gunk Shot: Shoots a ball of poisonous mucus at a target.

Poison Plant Shield

Equip Bonus: Poisons made are 20% more effective. Poison resistance (Medium)

Poison Potion Shield

Equip Bonus: Poisons are 50% more effective. Poison resistance (Large)

Honestly, I couldn't be more ecstatic. Not only did I get four new skills, my attack skill was raised by 24 points. Plus, my bonuses stack. If I master all of these shields, then my poisons will be 100% more effective than they already were. Not that I know how to make any yet. And my resistance to poison has got to be pretty high. They seem to overlap, and it doesn't give me a definitive number, but I should be able to resist most poisons.

The poisons that I bought were far different from the ones from my world. It seems that there are poisons that can target specific stats. I bought one to bring down defense, one for magic defense, and finally a poison that does 20 damage per second for five seconds. There were more available, but these three seem simple enough to make that I could replicate them.

The books gave me all manners of recipes, and then showed me different was I could apply the poisons, such as in gaseous form. Since I already have the compounding set, I didn't need to buy another one. This shopping trip definitely gave me more to work with, but I am doubtful that I will get another lucky break. So, my original plan still stays the same.

Accomplishing everything that I set out to do, I retire to a nearby inn, to get some reading in. It would probably be best that I read my grimoires, or at least the introduction of them, in order to get a sense for magic. The hope is that I will get to the point where I can use a beginner spell, but I am not confident that it will happen. I eat dinner as I read, and when the night becomes late, I retire to a room, making sure that it is secure.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Next Day

I wake around 10 and stretch. I found that I had mastered several shields including the Portal Shield, which gave me three points of teleportation. I feel my bones pop, as the tension is released. I need to clean up, thankfully I paid the extra silver to get a room with utilities. 15 minutes later and I am freshly clean. Just in time to hear a loud banging at the door. Well, who could that be? The answer are some angry looking guards, "May I help you?"

"You are ordered to be brought to the Castle at once!"

"Oh, what for?" I ask leaning against the door frame.

"That is not for you to know. If you don't come with us now, we will take you by force?"

"Are you detaining me?"

"I SAID COME WITH US NOW!" The screaming guard makes an attempt to grab me, but I move out of range.

"If you will not tell me then keep your hands to yourself." I push pass all of them. The seem startled by my cold tone. "Well, are you coming." They immediately snap back and form a four-person barrier around me. As we head downstairs, the people seem lively. Everyone is looking at me and pointing. Many backs up in fear, but I keep cool. Since I don't know what I am being brought in for, I can only assume that I am being accused of something. I suppose they could have caught me stealing the stuff from the armory, but I doubt it. The only way they could have caught me was magic, and if that was the case, then they would have caught me yesterday. But from the looks on everyone's faces, everyone already knows what I did, or am being accused of. This smells like the Three Heroes Church. What better way to get at me, than by ruining my reputation? Then they could do anything they wanted to me, without so much as a blink from anyone else.

The walk to the castle is filled with more hysterics. Some people even attempt to throw things at me. But the guards are doing their job of protecting me surprisingly enough. We make it to the castle, where more guards surround me. The amount of security around is quite daunting. Physically I know that I could escape if needed, but if they put up a magical barrier, then I am screwed. I don't like how this is being orchestrated. The giant doors to the throne room are opened. The King is sitting on his throne looking irate. Ren, Itsuki, and Motoyasu are to his right, with what looks to be Myne shying behind Motoyasu. Interesting. Motoyasu has an intense glare. Itsuki looks disturbed. Ren maintains his nonchalant attitude, but it is clear he is unhappy.

The King lets the knights disperse, and the spread out with lances pointed at me. "Well, you summoned me." I say starting this dance before he sets the cadence.

"YOU MONSTER! From the moment of your summoning, I could tell that you would only bring agony to my country!"

"Oh, so you admit your prejudice against me, glad to know I was right." I reply. This only seems to make the King angrier. "But you still haven't told me why you summoned me to the castle."

"Your lack of concern for your own actions is rather appalling?" Itsuki spoke.

"I might show concern if someone would let me know what I am being accused of."

"Stop acting innocent you piece of trash! You know what you did!" Motoyasu yelled.

"SILENCE. You wish to know very well. Malty I know this must be difficult, but can you repeat your tale for us." He asks softly. Malty? As in Princess Malty S Melromarc? Ah now this is starting to make sense. She is the manipulative 'Princess' from the story.

"T-th-the Shield H-ero c-c-came into my room late at night. H-he w-was ve-ry dr-runk. He s-aid "the night is still young." A-aand t-t-then he. H-he." She released a cry and hugged Motoyasu closely. Motoyasu rubbed soothing circles into her hands while glairing daggers at me.

"That's enough Malty, I know that was difficult." He looked at me sternly. "How dare you do this to my daughter."

"So, I am being accused of rape, am I? Well, let me be the first to proclaim my innocence." My voice is calm without an ounce of hesitation. I may be a criminal, but rape isn't something I would do.

Ren looked away dismissing my very existence, "getting ahead of yourself thinking you're better than others just because you're a hero."

"I knew you were different from us, but I didn't think it was to this extent."

"He is no hero; he is a damn villain!" Motoyasu yelled.

"Enough, Naofumi Iwatani, you have been charged with rape. Normally the punishment would be death, however with your status as a Cardinal Hero, we cannot have you killed, so your punishment will be that everyone will know of your evil deeds?"

"So, you have already convicted me? Based on what. I hope you are not foolish enough to convict people based on one person's testimony alone. Or are you abusing your power because the supposed "victim" is your daughter."

"You want proof you monster. I will show you proof. Bring in the evidence!" There was a quick scuffle as an attendant brought out a ripped bustier. "This was found in your room, therefore proving your guilt."

"I find that evidence to be very circumstantial at best."

"How dare you!" Motoyasu yelled, but I cut him off with my raised hand.

"There are three reasons why this evidence is circumstantial. For one there is no proof that the bustier is even Malty's. It could be anyone's. Second there is no proof if it is Malty's that I was the one to do the damage. Lastly you finding it in my room is not enough, for all we know it could have been planted there by someone else hoping to frame me."

"SILENCE! We know you did it, there is no use fighting. I herby convict you of the crime." He says with authority.

"Wow, some "king" you are." I say with every ounce of sarcasm I can muster. "You didn't even ask for my testimony. I see that this is the kind of place where the nobility does whatever they want and damn the rest."

"I am the King; my word is law!" He says red in the face.

"Actually, it isn't. The monarchy is matriarchal, which means the Queens word is law. However, she is MIA, I am assuming due to you having summoned all four cardinal heroes to Melromarc without the express permission of the other countries. But fine, I understand that this country is so corrupt that no one will ever truly believe me." I take the four heroes book out of my HUD space.

I toss the book to Ren, "I would have a look at that book there. It was the book that brought me to this world. In it I'm sure that you will find an interesting character named the 'Princess.'" Ren quickly reads the Princess passage, and shows it to Itsuki, who then finally shows it to Motoyasu.

"This book is a load of crap, Malty is nothing like this, and it doesn't excuse your actions." Motoyasu argues while throwing the book at my feet.

I calmly bend down and pick the book up. I dust it off before I place it back in my HUD space. "I don't really give a rat's ass what you think Motoyasu. I just wanted you all to know the true character of the person you are all throwing your lot behind." Malty and the King were seething with anger. "Besides it doesn't really matter, he cannot punish me, not really. If he kills me, the waves will become increasingly more difficult for everyone, until you all eventually die. In which case the summoning process will begin anew. And if he imprisons me, then I will be too under leveled by the time the first Wave comes, and thus perish."

"You are right, I cannot directly punish you. But all will know what you did today!" He says gloating.

"They already do, so even if I manage to clear my name, they probably will never believe me. Besides I hardly care about what they think of me. As far as I see it, I have no allegiance to this place. This isn't my home; I wasn't raised here. I have no real reason to fight for them other than I don't want to die. So, anyone who has a problem with me can go fuck themselves." The time for diplomacy was gone. My name was already tarnished, so there was really no holding back.

"Go get out of my sight!" The King yells. I turn on my heel, and flip him off as I exit the room. A guard tries to grab me in defense of his King, but I easily slip from his grasp. While the situation was not the most ideal one, I was determined to make the best of it. The accusation of raping the Princess, would leave me disliked by the general populace, and maybe even the underbelly of the country. This would mean, that I would need to use a disguise to hide who I was. However, the best thing about this, was it released me from my heroic image. As a cardinal hero, I would have had to maintain this heroic image placed onto me. But with it tarnished I can basically do as I please because everyone already hates me already. The King has no idea what he just released into his country.

AN: Hi all, so for those who are confused in the original story this was two separate chapters. But since I changed Naofumi's backstory, many scenes had to be deleted. I thought that the chapter was now too short, so I combined the two. However, it seems that people think that this was too much. So, I split it up again. Sorry for the confusion.