*knock knock* Guess who? That's right it's me and I'm back, after nearly a month and a half, with the next chapter of this story.
You are probably curious as to why I'm back now of all times? Well, I did say I would come back once my job situation and schedule were sorted. But that still hasn't materialised and so I said to myself last week 'f it' and started writing again, and found that I hadn't lost my edge or enthusiasm in the slightest. In fact, given how this is nearly 12k words in length and I did it in a week…how did I accomplish nearly 2k words a day? In short, the Light Novels. That's right, I have volumes 8 and 9 of the Shield Hero Light Novels in my possession and it's actually been a great help to reference both that and the anime…really allows me to expand more on details and events rather than just relying on what we see in the anime.
Speaking of anime…what's everyone watching this season? I've got a watchlist of 5 shows currently in this Fall Season. First of all, Chainsaw Man…MORE THAN LIVING UP TO THE HYPE! And let me tell you, I think I may have a crush on Makima…yes, Power is as good a girl if not better, but something about Makima just captivates me...ahem, but yes really enjoying that so far. I'm also watching the 2nd cour of Spy x Family as three other debuting shows: The Eminence of Shadow, Beast Tamer and Reincarnated as a Sword. And gotta say, loving all of them so far.
I've also got a major announcement to come after this chapter so make sure you read to the end!
With all that out of the way, here's the next chapter of Adventures of a True Shield Hero and the introduction of everyone's favourite Hunting Hero, Kizuna. As always, I do not own Rising of the Shield Hero or any of its characters, locations, events or anything else related to the anime/manga/Light Novels. The only thing I own is my OC, Fergus Ward.
For Billy.
Chapter 10 – The Hunting Hero
For what felt like the longest time, everything was black. I couldn't move, not even an inch. Everything in my body felt like it had completely shut down. For all that time I just…was.
"-us! Sir Fergus!" All of a sudden, a voice broke through the darkness surrounding me. Even though I couldn't recognise it at first, my brain processed that it was the voice of someone I knew and that I should be listening to it.
"Sir Fergus! Wake up! You have to wake up!" The voice kept saying in tones of obvious pleading and desperation, and as it spoke, I suddenly felt something, or a pair of somethings, start pushing and kneading into my sides. And as soon as I felt this, the other senses in my body started coming to, along with my limbs. And my ears were able to hear more sounds than just the voice as they picked up the sounds of a slow *drip* *drip *drip*, like small drops of water coming out of a tap.
"Ugh…" I groaned as I slowly started to get my bearings and open my eyes, only for half of my vision to come back to me with the other half still in complete darkness. "Oh yeah, have to get used to the fact that I only have one eye these days…" I grimaced as I continued to come to.
"Oh, Sir Fergus! You're awake! I'm so glad!" Spoke a familiar voice from my left, and as I rolled my head in the direction of the voice, I saw Rishia sitting next to me, her legs splayed out underneath her and an expression of worry etched with slight relief on her face.
"Rishia…are you…ugh…are you okay? How long have you been awake?" I groaned slightly as I began to shift myself off my back and into a sitting position similar to hers, and as I did so, I became acutely aware of how soft the area beneath me was, and as I looked down, I discovered that I was sitting on a small bed of straw.
"N-Not much longer than you Sir Fergus," she replied, the worry visibly ebbing from her slightly as she watched me sit up. "When I woke up, I was lying next to you in this room. And I've been trying to shake you awake ever since." She then gave me a warm smile. "And I'm okay, t-thank you. How about you? How is your eye? A-and are you…?"
I put up a hand to stop her stammering as I smiled back at her. "I'm fine Rishia, just needed a few seconds to get my bearings. And my eye is fine, apart from it not being there anymore but it's just something I'll have to get used to…" As I spoke, I looked around with my one remaining eye and frowned slightly at what I was seeing. "Hang on a moment…just where in the heck are we?"
The room where Rishia and I currently were felt…slightly familiar, but at the same time it didn't. It was a small, dark room with stone walls on two sides and iron-grated barriers on the other. Another pile of damp straw was bunched up in a large mass off to one side, and in the corner opposite it was a crude bed that looked very uncomfortable to lie in.
"This looks like a jail cell…" I murmured, the reason why it felt a little familiar now very apparent since Raphtalia and I had willingly spent a night in a room very much like this one in the Melromarc castle dungeons before my first duel with Motoyasu which felt like a lifetime ago now after everything that had gone on since then.
Wait…Raphtalia…where was she? As I did another quick scan of the room I saw no sign of her, nor of Filo or Keel. Something was very, very wrong here. We'd all jumped through that portal that Ost had created at the same time, so we should all have stayed together at the very least, even if we'd ended up somewhere unrecognisable and completely foreign to use. "Rishia…have you seen Raphtalia and the others at all?" I asked slowly, daring to hope against hope that they'd merely just popped out of here to ascertain our whereabouts and weren't, as I feared, in another location entirely.
Rishia's expression upon seeing my own that was so desperate for hope instantly went downcast, confirming the fears that had sprung up inside me upon not seeing the others with us. "I-I'm so sorry Sir Fergus…" she replied. "But I haven't seen Lady Raphtalia, Filo or Keel ever since I w-woke up. The only other person here was y-you."
"Haven't seen Raphtalia…haven't seen…haven't seen…" Rishia's words played back over and over in my head as I sat back, forcing myself to accept the reality of the situation, painful as it was. This was the first time, ever since I'd purchased her from Beloukas all that time ago, that I was somewhere where Raphtalia wasn't. It just…it felt so wrong. Raphtalia being at my side had just felt…so natural ever since we'd come together, even more so as our bond went from master and slave to friendship, close friendship and then eventually boyfriend and girlfriend and reaching a point where I couldn't have conceived any idea or event that would have parted Raphtalia from my side for any length of time. And as for Filo and Keel...I felt nearly the same way about Filo as I did about Raphtalia, except for the slightly longer time I'd known Raphtalia and the more paternal feelings I had for Filo instead of the emotional and physical connection I had with Raphtalia. As for Keel, she'd become a good friend of mine and I'd gotten used to her company over the time I knew her, so it also felt slightly wrong not having her around.
"S-Sir Fergus? A-are you alright?" Rishia stammered nervously, breaking me out of my stupor as I let out a resigned sigh.
"Sorry Rishia, I didn't mean to worry you…it's just…not having Raphtalia, Filo or Keel around just feels…really strange…the wrong kind of strange…and I was just struggling to come to terms with it," I replied as I gave her head a reassuring pat. Even though I was separated from the others who were near and dear to my heart, at least I was still with a friend and someone who I could count on.
"I-it's okay Sir Fergus, and once again I-I'm sorry," she stammered back, smiling slightly in reassurance after my head pat. "B-But have you checked your S-Status Menu? T-technically Lady Raphtalia and Filo are still bonded to you through their crests…m-maybe there's something there that can help us find them?"
"What's she…oh yeah, the slave crests! I'd completely forgotten about them!" "Great idea Rishia, they'd almost slipped my mind!" I exclaimed as I brought up my Shield, only to discover that instead of the Spirit Tortoise Heart Shield that I'd had equipped before jumping through the portal, I now bore a small ordinary rectangular-looking shield that was completely black apart from the small green gemstone in its centre. Before I could fully get my head around it, a small tooltip appeared in my Status Menu with the following text: 'Beginner's Small Shield. Abilities locked. Equipped bonus: +3 to defence'
"What is this? Did it unlock when we landed in this new world?" I wondered as I tried to change to one of my other Shields, only for an icon to pop into my field of view that read the following: 'Change conditions not met.' "That's odd…why can't I use that one? Let's try another…" I tried summoning out the Leaf Shield, the
Two-Headed Black Dog Shield and the Rope Shield one after the other, only to be met with the same text. "Something's not right…let's bring up my list of Shields…" But after doing so and looking through the list, I saw, much to my alarm, that nearly all of them were greyed out.
"S-sir Fergus…what's wrong?" Rishia asked, noticing my sudden discomfort.
"All the Shields I've unlocked…I can't use any of them except for this one that I've never seen before. Must be something to do with being in another world," I replied.
"U-um, that's not all that's happened S-Sir Fergus," Rishia stammered, and as I looked over, I saw her looking at something with widened eyes, and judging by the way she was looking slightly downward she was going through her Status Menu. "I-I've just checked my status, and it says that I'm only level 1 now…"
"What the-?!" Rishia had been level 68 before we leapt through the portal. How was she only level 1 right now? "Wait a moment…I have a bad feeling about this…" I then brought up my own Status Menu to check what level I was, only to be met with a confirmation of my fears: 'Fergus Ward. Job Class: Other World Shield-Hero Level 1. Equipment: Beginner's Small Shield (Legendary Weapon)' Another quick scroll through the rest of my settings and party functions revealed something just as bad: Raphtalia, Filo and Keel's names were all gone from the list of my party members, only mine and Rishia's remained, and the previous slave and monster controlling spells that had come with some of my Shields and Raphtalia and Filo's slave crests had gone as well.
In the back of my mind, I swore I could hear the demented sound of Kyo's laughter as the depths of our sticky situation were laid bare: We were in a strange new world, had been reset at level 1, all of my Shields and no doubt Rishia's spells had vanished, and most alarmingly and worryingly of all, my girlfriend and the other members of my party were nowhere to be found with no means of tracking them.
Our trip to the other world to get vengeance on that bastard couldn't have gotten off to a much worse start.
~AoaTSH~
After taking a few moments to gather our thoughts about the dire situation we were in, Rishia and I devised a strategy for what we would do next, with the first and most obvious stage being to find a way out of the jail cell we were currently in. After that, we'd do our best to figure out where we were and then decide where to go next, and after that...well, we didn't really have much to go on in terms of what would happen next, but if possible Rishia and I would try to level up as best we could just in case we ran into any trouble, and from there we had two…no wait three…primary goals to aim for: the first was to locate Raphtalia, Filo and Keel and link back up with them. Then, if at all possible, we'd search for L'Arc, Therese and Glass and team up with them once more in order to better succeed in our third goal: getting back at that bastard Kyo, recovering the souls he'd taken and getting revenge for Ost.
The first stage of our plan went off much more easily than we anticipated. As I prepared to try and pry the cell door ajar, it swung itself open from the faintest touch on my end. "At least something went right for us for the first time…" I thought to myself as Rishia and I slipped out of the jail cell before taking a quick peek at our surroundings, where we discovered that the room next door to our cell was actually quite well furnished for a jail cell, complete with a bed, sofa and a bag which appeared to be full of food. It was almost as if someone had occupied the cell and made it into their home.
It gave me a tiny bit of hope that maybe, just maybe, this was where Raphtalia and the others had been. But there was no one there when we peered in, and we didn't have the luxury of waiting for someone to show up, so we made our way through what turned out to be a winding labyrinth of corridors and passages, thankfully all on a single pathway, until we came to what appeared to be a dead end at first glance. However, upon closer inspection, we discovered a strange door that seemed out of place with the stonework surrounding it. It was built beneath an odd arch and was currently glowing with a colourful, rainbow-like light that swirled in strange patterns across its surface.
"W-what is that?" Rishia asked with a mix of worry, confusion and awe.
"I'm not sure if I'm being completely honest, but it appears to be our way out of here, so we should probably just go straight through," I responded as I walked straight towards it. With an alarmed squeak, Rishia dashed forward and grabbed my hand, causing us to pass through the doorway together. And when we got through, my good eye widened and Rishia let out an awed gasp at what awaited us.
We were now standing on a beach covered in pure white sand, in stark contrast to the damp and gloomy prison we'd just left behind. A bright yellow sun shone down on us from above in the middle of a clear blue sky, while waves rolled up from a large body of water that stretched as far as the eye could see. Finally, a quick glance behind confirmed that the doorway we'd just passed through was still there, albeit sticking out like a sore thumb.
In short, we'd stumbled upon an absolute paradise which, if we weren't on a time limit and in such dire straits, I would've stopped to admire for a while. But, at the very least, we knew where we could return to at the end of the day if we hadn't made enough progress. For the time being, I turned away from the ocean and looked in the opposite direction, spotting a grassy field and a thicket that seemed to stretch as far as the eye could see. So, in the absence of any other clear indicators of where to go next, that's where we headed.
And not long after we started wandering through the fields, we encountered our first monster in this new world. And instead of it being one of the usual suspects like a slime, imp or maybe even a balloon, it was a box.
No, I'm actually being serious. The creature that had turned towards us as we'd approached and which was now advancing on us with what seemed like an angry expression was a white, square-shaped…cardboard box. Even the damn flavour text read it as 'Box. Level 1'. Before I could even begin to process the strangeness of what I was seeing, the box bared its teeth, or whatever it had that passed for teeth and leapt at me. I quickly made to snatch it out of the air but it shot past my hand and latched onto my arm. But instead of pain, I felt…nothing.
"Huh, that's weird…why do I not…OH…well that's good at least." As the box dangled uselessly off of my arm, I did a quick scroll through my status menu to find that, even though all my Shields and most of my skills were gone, the permanent stat boosts I'd gotten from them were still in effect, so even though I was at Level 1, I was far more powerful than my level implied. And even though most of my abilities and skills were hidden behind level requirements, it looked as though I'd be able to reacquire them simply by levelling instead of having to go through the whole process of unlocking the needed Shield and boosting it up again.
Considering everything that had been going against us so far, that was greatly reassuring. Now, I just needed to get those levels. Which meant killing monsters like this Box. And since right now I didn't have any skills that could damage it…
"Okay Rishia, I've got its attention. I'll hold onto it and you stab it, alright?"
"R-right! Here I come!" With a short cry, she thrust her rapier forward and pierced the Box, causing it to let out a crushed sound as it folded up flat before large X's appeared where its eyes had been. One split-second later it stopped moving entirely, and as it fell to the ground a pop-up appeared above it that told us we'd received 15 EXP points from it.
It was a start at the very least, and the EXP we managed to gain from it was far more than what the balloons back in our world had given me right at the start of my adventure when I was all alone and had to resort to punching them until they burst. Thankfully this time around I'd have Rishia around to dole out the damage, which combined with the increased EXP would probably mean we'd start gaining levels pretty rapidly.
More for curiosity's sake than anything else, I bent down and used my Shield to absorb the Box's remains like I normally did. And just like in our world, I instantly got a pop-up saying I'd unlocked a new Shield, the Beginner's Small White Shield that also provided another small boost to my defence stat. Not much, but right now every little helped.
"Judging by how easily we handled that particular monster, I think we may be able to level up quite quickly if they are all like that one," I said to Rishia as I got back to my feet. "And since we've both lost access to most of our abilities for the moment, we should probably handle any monsters in the same manner: I'll get their attention, and once they are occupied you use your rapier to finish them off. Sound good?"
"O-okay Sir Fergus, I'll do my best!" Rishia replied with squeaky determination, causing me to rub her hair affectionately before the two of us set off through the field once more.
~AoaTSH~
For the next few hours, we proceeded to do exactly what I'd told Rishia we should do as we proceeded to wander around the large fields and towards the borders of the thicket searching for monsters, and upon discovering each I'd go in and grab its attention by one means or another, which was more difficult than usual since I had none of my taunt skills back yet. And once I'd done so, Rishia would sweep in from the side and pierce, slash or stab the monster until it perished.
Yes, it was simple. And yes, it was tediously mundane. But it was literally all we were capable of doing for the time being until we could figure out where to go next. And so far, we hadn't encountered any change of scenery apart from the field, the rows of thicket and the beach behind us. And yet it was working as with every monster that we killed, our experience points kept piling up and soon enough we were both starting to rack up the levels, meaning that within the space of a few hours I'd managed to reach level 9 and get back some of my old Shields and the abilities for them, including Air Strike Shield and Shield Prison. As for Rishia, since she was doing all of the damage for us her experience gain was going a lot faster, she'd managed to get to level 16 and relearn some of her more basic magic spells from each school, including Thunder Bolt, Fire Blast, Aqua Shot and, most helpful of them all, Heal.
As for the monsters we were encountering, they were pretty much the expected monsters you'd come across in the first few starting areas of an RPG, such as rabbits, voles and other small creatures along with one or two stranger monsters such as the box we'd encountered earlier and slimes.
I was also able to absorb not only the monsters were we defeating but also any foliage or other materials that we came across during our stretch through the fields, and in so doing I was able to unlock other forms of Shields that I'd had back in the old world. For example, what would have been the Leaf Shield was instead the Tree Leaf Shield which still gave the same boost to plant-gathering and analysis its counterpart had. And what materials or monster drops I couldn't absorb I instead broke down and stored in my Inventory System which thankfully was still functioning normally.
But even with all the endurance we'd gained through our months (or weeks in Rishia's case) of grinding and being out in the wilderness back in the old world, exhaustion was bound to creep in sooner or later. And it was Rishia herself who brought it up after we'd managed to defeat a pair of strange rabbit-like monsters
"Huff…huff…S-Sir Fergus…if it's not too much to ask…could we please stop for a bit? I'm starting to get tired…" She spoke up as I finished absorbing and breaking down the fur and other drops we'd gotten from the rabbits, and as I looked over in her direction, I saw that was panting slightly as she came up next to me, her steps also a bit laboured due to exhaustion.
As much as a small part of my brain wanted us to press on, to find Raphtalia and the others as quickly as possible, I knew she was right. Even though we still had quite the grind to go and despite our still perilous situation, it wouldn't serve us any good if we drove ourselves to exhaustion in the process. And honestly? I was starting to feel a little winded myself so a rest sounded ideal.
"Good idea…let's find a shady area and take some time to rest," I agreed as we pressed a little further onward, and our persistence paid off as we found a small clump of trees containing wavy branches and thick leaves and proceeded to situate ourselves under them, with Rishia lying flat on her back beneath one of them whilst I contented myself with sitting upright with my back pressed against another one, and for a while we both just sat there, taking deep, calming breaths and dwelling in our own personal thoughts as we waited for our full strength to recover. But in the midst of my worrying over how the others were doing and where to go next, I suddenly became hyper-aware of two things going on inside my body right now.
One: I was starting to get hungry if the small rumblings in both mine and Rishia's stomachs were any indication. And two: My lips and throat were starting to feel parched, indicating my body's need for water. And neither Rishia nor I had a canteen or flask on us right now to drink from. So now we had even more urgent priorities besides our level grind: find food and water before we starved to death or died of thirst.
"New plan Rishia," I spoke up upon my realisation. "As soon as we're rested, we go find a source of water and something we can eat. I don't care if what we find is fruit, nuts or anything like that. If it's edible, we eat it. Sound good?"
Rishia nodded frantically in agreement and was just about to speak up when all of a sudden one of her ears pricked up. "S-Sir Fergus, I think…yes, I can hear the sound of water running not too far away! We should go look for it!" She squeaked excitedly. And as I strained my ears, I suddenly heard it as well: the faint sound of bubbling water nearby that was a sure sign of a lake or river in our near vicinity.
"Why didn't I think of that before? After all, we're very close to the ocean so obviously there'll be a body of water leading into it…" I cursed inwardly as I got to my feet. "Better late than never I suppose…" "Good idea, let's go see what it is and get ourselves refreshed," I said. Having been the first to pick up on the sound, Rishia led us over in the direction it was coming from, and sure enough, after a short walk we came across a riverbank that was located near a bridge of fallen trees that led to the other side and into a more forested area. With almost-synchronised noises of relief, we both knelt down by the water and proceeded to scoop some in our hands before drinking.
And joy of joys, it tasted fine. No hint of salt, chlorine or anything else that could affect its taste, just pure nourishing water. And for the next minute or so, nothing could be heard except the sounds of our hands splashing into the water as they scooped up the water, and the slurps emanating from our mouths as we drank it. In fact, we were so focused on a drink that we almost failed to notice a new arrival on the scene until it let out a strange bark announcing its presence causing us to look up and take notice of it.
It was a very peculiar creature, one that I didn't recognise whatsoever. It had slimy dark green skin and, as it clumsily stood on what appeared to be webbed feet, seemed to be around five feet tall. It also possessed webbed hands, a clump of grey hair on its head that also contained small, stumpy horns, and what appeared to be a dark black carapace on its back. On top of all that, the smell it gave off positively reeked of rotten fish. As it started padding towards us, a leering and hungry expression on its face, a tooltip popped up next to it that designated this creature as a kappa.
"Kappa? Aren't those fish-like creatures that exist in Japanese mythology? Wait…SHIT!" My thoughts were cut off as two things happened simultaneously. First, I noticed that the kappa was level 18, two levels higher than Rishia and thus would be much stronger than anything we'd faced so far. And second, it suddenly leapt forward at an alarmingly fast speed, its fingers arced in a clawing motion aimed at Rishia who let out a squeak of alarm as he tried to get her hands on her rapier to counter.
"Damnit, she won't make it in time!" I did the first thing that came to mind. "Air Strike Shield!" I roared, causing the familiar ethereal barrier to pop up between the kappa and Rishia, shattering beneath its blow but allowing Rishia to dash over in my direction. I quickly placed myself in between her and the monster as it turned to face me. Letting out another bark, the kappa proceeded to send out a high-pressure blast of water which I once again used Air Strike Shield to block. And just like before, my barrier shattered before the kappa's powerful attack. With an angry snarl, the kappa made as though to attack us with it again, but before it could I decided to get up in its face and give it something else to think about.
"Gwah!" The kappa barked angrily once more, lashing out with both of its claws this time. I took one of the blows on my Shield and the other on the bracer of my left arm as they crossed over. "Gotcha!" I cheered internally as I braced my crossed limbs and pushed back against the kappa as it tried to break through what passed for my defences. And even at this early stage, I could feel that the kappa would overpower me quickly, so we had to make this opportunity count.
"Rishia, now!" I yelled.
"R-right! Here I come!" With a determined cry, she dashed out from behind me and stabbed at the kappa's exposed side. However, it hardly seemed to do more than mildly irritate the creature if its expression was anything to go by.
"Shit, this thing's tough! Guess I need to give Rishia a boost!" "Fast Aura!" I yelled, causing a bright green aura to momentarily surround Rishia as it gave her a temporary boost to all of her stats, at the cost of a large chunk of what mana I had. "Keep going! Give it everything you got!"
"I-I'm trying, but it's too tough! None of my attacks are getting through!" She shouted back as she pierced, poked and stabbed at every part of the kappa she could reach, and yet all of her attacks were either ineffective or merely glancing off of the kappa's belly. If anything, all it did was enrage the kappa as with a sudden burst of strength it proceeded to finally push me back before lashing out with another claw strike which hit its mark as it cut into the part of my shoulder that was unprotected by my armour and drawing my blood.
"AGH!" I growled as I stumbled back, my other hand reaching up to clasp my shoulder instinctively. This situation was getting increasingly dire. If we couldn't kill or even damage this thing, there was only one thing we could do to get out of this alive. "Rishia! You need to make a break for it! Get back to the beach whilst I hold it off! I'll be right behind you!"
"N-no! I won't leave you, S-Sir Fergus!" She protested.
"Damnit Rishia, just do it! I can buy you some time but you need to go, NOW!" I snapped back, only for my heart to sink as I suddenly heard a second bark followed by the sounds of splashing water which could only mean one thing. And sure enough, a second kappa was currently breaking the surface of the water a short ways down the river from where I was currently battling its friend. And as this new arrival broke into a run towards us, the first one reared its claw back again for a strike.
"Damnit…it can't end like this…" I thought despairingly as I moved my Shield towards the first kappa's claw whilst at the same time preparing to cast an Air Strike Shield between Rishia and the second kappa, for all the good it would do. But then…
*SWISH* *SNAP* All of a sudden, the kappa that had been charging at Rishia suddenly stopped in its tracks. A split second later, its head suddenly flew off from its neck and landed near Rishia's feet, causing the green-haired girl to let out a horrifying shriek as she fell squarely on her bottom.
"How the-?" "Gwah?" Both I and the kappa I'd been fighting looked over at the decapitated monster in shock. But before either of us could process exactly what'd happened…
"Blood Flower Strike!" A clear, unfamiliar voice rang out along with an arcing flash of light that hammered into the kappa's back, causing it to collapse into a bloody pile at my feet.
"That sounded like a skill…" I realised as I quickly ran over to Rishia. "Are you okay?" I asked, reaching an arm out and pulling her to her feet.
"I-I think so, t-thank you, Sir Fergus," she replied before placing her hand over my bleeding shoulder. "Heal!" She commanded, sending out a small burst of green magic that repaired the damage to it caused by the kappa and stopped the bleeding. "W-what was that which saved us?" She asked.
"I've no idea…I've never heard of a skill like-" My reply to her was cut off as the same voice called out to us.
"Hey! Are you two okay?" As we looked up, Rishia and I got our first glimpse of the person behind the voice who was waving to us from the other side of the riverbank.
Her height was the first thing I noticed about her. She couldn't have been taller than five feet, and her youthful expression and tone suggested she was 14 or 15 years old. Yet, as she jogged towards the makeshift bridge to cross, it was clear that she carried herself in a confident and dignified manner that suggested she was older than I had first assumed. She had long brown hair tied in two pigtails on either side of her head, dark brown eyes that were looking at us with a mixture of curiosity and concern, and bright white skin. She was dressed in a black and aquamarine kimono with several frills, a ruffled skirt, and a blue pinned bow at her neck underneath what appeared to be a black blazer, the sleeves and back of which were billowing behind her in the breeze as she approached us. And what appeared to be a pole hung on the left side of her waist completed the look, but upon closer inspection, I realised it was actually a fishing rod.
Based on her appearance, she looked very much like a typical young girl from Japan back in my original world
"We're fine, thanks for the assistance!" I replied as I turned to greet the new arrival, and once Rishia had healed my shoulder she proceeded to do the same, bowing rapidly in thanks.
"T-thank you so much for saving us!" The green-haired magic caster squeaked.
"I'm just glad I made it here in time," the girl replied as she waved off Rishia's thanks. "I've been watching out for you ever since you both fell out of the sky a few hours ago. Once I spotted your arrival, I got over here as quickly as I could."
"Fell out of the sky? She must mean the point at which we arrived in this world…" "Well, whatever your reasons, we appreciate you saving us all the same. If you hadn't shown up, we'd have probably ended up as kappa chow. With that out of the way, please allow us to introduce ourselves. My name is Fergus Ward, and this is my friend and companion Rishia Ivyred," I said, indicating Rishia as I too offered a polite bow to our rescuer whose expression shifted a little on hearing my name.
"I-It's very nice to meet you," Rishia stammered awkwardly.
"Jeez, can you stop with the bowing already? You acting as if I'm royalty when all I did was save your lives," the girl replied, an expression of exasperation mixed with slight teasing on her face as she dipped herself into a brief, yet polite, curtsy. "And it's nice to meet you, Fergus and Rishia. My name is Kizuna Kazayama, and I'm one of the four holy Heroes. The Hunting Hero, to be exact."
"Kizuna…that's another Japanese name, just like the other three…wait a sec-" "Hold up…you're a Hero as well?" I questioned, as the only other holy Heroes I knew of were the other three from my world, the Sword, Spear and Bow Heroes respectively
"Sure am-wait, what do you mean by 'as well?'" She replied, looking confused.
"What I mean is that I'm also one of the four Heroes. The Shield-Hero to be exact." I told her, holding up my Shield as I spoke.
"Hold up…a Shield-Hero? Never heard of one before…are you sure you are one of the four holy Heroes?" She asked.
"Absolutely positive, and just like you've never heard of the Shield-Hero, I've never heard of a Hunting Hero before but I think I know the reason why," I started to explain, holding up a hand to stall any protests she was about to make. "You said I got here from falling out of the sky, correct?" She nodded. "That's because the two of us, along with some others, came here from another world, and back in my world the other three Heroes are the Sword Hero, the Spear Hero and the Bow Hero…"
"…which means you're one of the Holy Heroes from that world…now it makes sense! No wonder I hadn't heard of you before now!" Kizuna finished, clapping her hands in relief before frowning slightly again. "And just one more quick thing...Fergus-I can call you Fergus, right?"
"Of course. What is it?" I asked, wondering what she was trying to get at.
"You said you came here from another world, right? But I'm assuming you were summoned to that world from…what're the words I'm looking for…oh right, got it! Your name sounds like you originally come from a Western country back in your original world. Am I making sense?"
"The way she said it and what's she implying…she must have been summoned to this world like me and the others were to our world…which means she's also from a version of Earth!" "You're making complete sense. I'm from the United Kingdom back in the world I was summoned from. And judging by your name, I guess you were originally summoned from Japan?"
"Right in one, although it doesn't make sense how we're understanding each other if we're, as I suspect, speaking different languages…" she trailed off, tapping her chin in thought before shaking her head, her pigtails dancing around in the air as she did so. "Never mind that for now…however you got to be here or wherever you came from, you landed in one of the worst spots possible I'm afraid."
"What do you mean by that?" I asked.
"Don't be fooled by how nice this place looks. The truth is, it's a never-ending labyrinth which is impossible to get out of. Trust me, I've been trying ever since I was thrown in here," Kizuna explained as inspected the two kappa corpses. "Hmm…that's weird. I killed these monsters, but I didn't get any experience from them."
"That might be because I'm here. Don't you know about the restriction on experience points when two Heroes are in close proximity?" I asked.
"Wait…that's how it works? Interesting…I'd never heard of it until now…" she mused.
"Never heard of it? But…surely you met the other Heroes of your world when you were first summoned, right?"
"Nope, never met them. Don't even know who they are honestly," she admitted, a hint of a haunted look in her eyes. "The truth is…you two are the first people I've spoken to in years."
"Hold on a sec…did she say…?" "You mean you've been by yourself all this time?" I asked hesitantly. If what she was saying was true then damn…to be alone for that length of time? I don't think I'd have been able to cope. But somehow, she'd been able to, despite all the loneliness. That alone was worthy of respect and sympathy and spoke a great deal about her character, even though I'd only just gotten to know her.
"Yeah, ever since I was thrown in here. It's probably been a few years since but I've lost track. After a while the whole process of counting the days got-UUMPH!" Her melancholic words were cut off as I pulled her into a sudden, warm hug.
I'm not sure why I thought it was a good idea to give this almost-complete stranger a hug out of nowhere, but I couldn't stop myself. Every instinct in me told me to go over and do it, to give her some comfort and reassurance after all this time alone, and in the end, I just gave in and did it. Her arms dropped to her sides for a few moments as she completely froze, no doubt unsure how to react to this unexpected physical contact.
"Sorry…but just hearing how you've been on your own all this time and all the loneliness you've had to endure…it really made me just want to come over and give you some manner of reassurance, to let you know you don't have to be alone any more…" I murmured as I prepared to let go, only to find that she'd suddenly wrapped her arms around my waist and was holding onto me just as tightly.
"No, don't apologise…" she whispered back as she squeezed herself against me a little tighter. "No one's hugged me like this in years so sorry if I was slightly panicked at first. Truth is…this feels really nice. Thank you." With one final squeeze, she released the hug and smiled at me gratefully.
"No need for thanks, I just wanted you to know that you've got the two of us for company now and we don't plan on going anywhere," I replied, ruffling her hair slightly and causing her to giggle.
"Okay okay, enough with all the mushy stuff," she said eventually after getting over her giggles. "So then…what do you want to do with these things?" She indicated the two dead kappas.
"I was going to absorb some of their body parts and turn the rest of it into materials to break down…unless you want some of the drops yourself?"
"Nope, I got all the drops I needed from them a long time ago so everything in there is all yours."
With a nod of thanks, I proceeded to absorb one of the kappas into my Shield, unlocking a new one in the process. However, it was hidden behind a level restriction which meant I couldn't use it yet. As for the materials and drops that came from it and its fellow, they were nothing special but I stored them anyway in case they had their uses later.
"U-um, Sir Fergus…Miss Kizuna…" Rishia suddenly spoke up, and as I looked over, I saw her twirling her fingers awkwardly. "If you two couldn't get the experience from the kappa then…shouldn't it have come over to me instead?"
"Oh…right…well if you two form a party with me, the experience I got from slaying those monsters should go to you instead," Kizuna explained. "If whichever one of you is the leader invites me to your party, that should do the trick."
"On it." I did a few quick swipes and pushes through my Status Menu, inwardly thankful that the party formation and invitation mechanic still functioned in the same way, and sure enough, as Kizuna's name appeared and level appeared underneath Rishia's, the aforementioned experience points naturally went to Rishia with the amount she gained enough to push her up to level 18.
"Right then, now that that's out of the way, we ought to sit down and chat. I want to hear about what you brought you here, and I'm sure you'll want to hear my story too. Fortunately, I have a place not far from here where we can do that safely." With those words, Kizuna started walking back the way Rishia and I had originally come from, and after exchanging a quick glance with Rishia who nodded enthusiastically, we followed on behind.
"Oh, by the way Fergus," Kizuna spoke up as we began to walk, and as I looked down at her I saw that she was looking curiously at the material covering my left eye. "Forgive me if this is the wrong time but…why do you have that bit of cloth over your eye?"
"Not at all Kizuna," I reassured her as I moved my hand towards it. "And as for why I'm wearing it? Well, this should answer that for you." I proceeded to gently lift the piece of Ost's tress that she'd given to me before she died away from my eye to allow Kizuna to look. And upon seeing nothing there, she almost recoiled from horror.
"Just…how on earth did that happen?" She asked almost fearfully as I let the cloth fall back onto my eye.
"That's part of the story as to how we got here, so you'll be able to hear all about it as we chat," I replied.
"Deal. And once we get to my place, we'll see what we can do about crafting something more permanent and fitting. As much as that thing you're wearing is doing the job, it's probably better that you have something with less thickness that won't get in your way as much."
I considered her words but quickly saw her point, as I didn't have to be wearing the fragment of Ost's dress in order to keep it. "I'd appreciate that thanks," I replied with a smile as we continued walking.
~AoaTSH~
Kizuna led us both back to the beach we'd appeared at after leaving the jail cell, and after a bit of walk, she showed us to a small beach house that sat far enough away from the sea to avoid being washed away by incoming tides. There wasn't much there, just a few necessities and luxuries that Kizuna had found or assembled over the time she'd spent in this place, such as a bed, a table to eat at, and a couple of chairs. As we walked in, Kizuna told us to relax and make ourselves at home while she went back out to get us some food, which we did. But as I removed my Armor of the Resolved Hero, which had gotten incredibly battered and beaten up during our fight against the Spirit Tortoise, I noticed that taking it off hadn't affected any of my stats by much, and upon closer inspection of the state of it, all I got was symbols and gibberish that I couldn't make any sense of it.
The only logical conclusion I could gather from that was that crossing worlds had made it completely ineffective. Still, I'd rather keep a hold of it than discard it entirely after all the effort Erhard put into making it. And judging by Rishia's exclamation of dismay, the same had happened with her breastplate. We'd just have to make do with what we could until we found a way to get something else sorted.
Shortly afterwards, Kizuna returned with armfuls of food and ingredients which looked incredibly appetizing, and after putting them down on the table she handed me a very tiny bundle of material. As I uncreased it, I was majorly touched to see that Kizuna had kept to her word and put together a more permanent eye patch for me. It was nothing special, made out of black thread and fabric, but it fit very snugly over my eye and round my head without feeling at all tight and allowed me to remove the piece of Ost's dress I'd been using and put that back in my inventory. After I'd thanked Kizuna, she and I proceeded to put together a large feast between the three of us using the ingredients she'd come back with, which had included several different types of meat, fish and vegetables along with some rice, herbs and seasonings. By using a few hastily put-together fires as well as the pots and pans that Kizuna had crafted for herself along with some water from the nearby sea (which Kizuna assured us was safe to drink and use), we soon had several plates and dishes ready full of piping hot food. And just in time too as mine and Rishia's stomachs were now constantly growling from hunger.
We then proceeded to partake in this hearty meal, which Kizuna proclaimed was some of the best food she'd eaten ever since she got here and wondered how I'd gotten so good at cooking. So I told her about how I'd had plenty of time and opportunity to do so during my adventures and that I considered myself quite proficient in the art. For her part, Rishia was quite content to just plough into her food and leave the talking to us, letting out satisfied sounds that indicated the food was much to her liking as well.
Once we'd all had our fill and cleaned up, Kizuna showed us to the living area around her bed and indicated for us to take the two seats whilst she proceeded hope on the bed, and as we all sat down she leant forward, an eager and almost predatory expression on her face. "Now that we've all had our fill, I think we have a few tales to share between us, don't we? Let's start with you Fergus…tell me about your story so far and how you came to be here."
"I think I can do that. Strap yourself in because this is quite the tale." I then proceeded to tell her the long story from when I was first summoned into the new world, going into as much detail as I could remember about the other three heroes, the initial few days and everything leading up to my being framed and declared persona non grata by the people of Melromarc and the other Heroes. I then spoke about meeting Raphtalia and the others, the whole business with the Waves (which Kizuna confessed she'd only heard about through legends having never been able to take part in one herself due to her imprisonment here), the end battle with the Pope and my exoneration, a brief summary of our time on Cal Mira followed by the founding of New Rurorona and ending with our war against the Spirit Tortoise. When I was done, Rishia gave a brief overview of her own adventure.
Kizuna didn't say much during our stories, only asking a question or two for clarification, one of which was regarding the Spirit Tortoise. "What sort of creature are we talking about? It sounds huge compared to your average monster."
"It was one of what are known as the Guardian Beasts, four massive creatures that were created to collect the souls of people killed during the Waves and use them to create a barrier to protect our world from the Waves," I explained.
"Oh right, we've got those in our world as well, including the Black Turtle and the White Tiger and who serve pretty much the same purpose. But going back to what you were saying…you mentioned someone was trying to take control of it?"
"Oh yeah, an absolute nutter by the name of Kyo," I replied, my expression darkening at my memories of the smug prick. "We had to fight against him to stop the Tortoise's rampage which is how I came to lose my eye, courtesy of his boot. After we stopped him, he fled through a portal back to his world. We were able to give chase thanks to our friend Ost, who was the physical manifestation of the Tortoise and who gave us the means to travel between worlds before she died but…well, you can see how that ended up: The two of stuck here, separated from our friends."
"Hmmm…methinks your being here was a trap that he came up with…" she mused, before remembering something. "Wait…earlier you told me you had help from other people besides your party. Mind if I ask who they were?"
Bit of a random thing of her to ask, but since the people concerned were from the same world it was highly likely she knew of them. "Oh right…well two of them were Vassal Heroes like that bastard Kyo. This might be an odd thing to ask but…do you know who L'Arc and Glass are?"
Kizuna's eyes widened and she scooted forward, her eyes and expression desperate. "Seems I was right that she knows them…" "You've met Glass and L'Arc?! How are they?! Are they okay?"
"You know them too?" I asked
"Do I know them?! Glass is my best friend and the one who gave me this haori!" She exclaimed, indicating her dress. "Please Fergus, I'm begging you! Tell me what you know about them!"
In response to her query, I quickly summarised all of my encounters with Glass and L'Arc, going into some detail about my first fight with Glass, meeting up with L'Arc and Therese on Cal Mira, the fight against all three after the Wave and meeting them again inside the Spirit Tortoise.
"Well, that settles it…if L'Arc and Glass trusted you enough to fight alongside them, then that's good enough for me! And if even Glass thinks this Kyo guy is a piece of work, then he really must be one…no bones about it," She exclaimed once I was done before grinning. "You said Therese was with them too...how are she and L'Arc doing?"
"You obviously know more than me but they were pretty much inseparable the times I saw them, so I'd say pretty well," I responded with a knowing smirk as Rishia giggled next to me. "Well, that's everything that's happened to us. Now I believe it's your time for your story, Kizuna."
"I guess I can do that. It might not be as epic as yours but still, let me tell you my story…" She then began to explain how she'd ended up here after signing up to play a unique game on a VRMMO system with her sisters, but instead of playing the game, she'd been transported to this world, and after only a brief explanation of what was going on in this new world, she'd begun her adventures with the overarching goal of stopping an entity known as the Dragon Emperor. During some of her adventures, she'd met Glass, L'Arc, and Therese and, with their assistance, solved the mystery of a ghost ship that then crashed and separated her from them, after which she'd been captured and thrown into the Infinite Labyrinth, and from that time onward she'd struggled through every day in here levelling up and searching for a way out with no success until today when she'd spotted us falling out of the sky and came over to help us.
"…and from there, well…you know the rest." She eventually finished.
"I-I'm so sorry you've spent all this time in here on your own, it must have been horrible for you," Rishia spoke up. "I know I wouldn't have been able to cope if I'd been trapped here as long as you have."
"Thank you Rishia…in truth, I've spent so much time in here that I've often wondered if I might be trapped here until I died," she said with a grateful smile at the magic caster. "But, with you two here, and after having heard your story and what you intend to do…who knows? Maybe my luck might turn around and we might actually be able to get out of here, find your friends and the others and then stick it to that scumbag Kyo. After all, judging by how he was able to trap you guys in here, I get the sneaky suspicion my imprisonment here was his doing as well…and if that's the case, I want to get back at him for all the time I've spent here and keeping me away from my friends." She then offered a hand out to me before continuing. "In case that wasn't clear enough…I'm offering you my assistance, both in getting out of here and whatever follows afterwards if we manage it. Sound good?"
I didn't need much convincing since I had no doubts about her trustworthiness, especially with how open she'd been about her story. And if she was friends with L'Arc, that was an added bonus. But this wasn't just my decision. "What do you think, Rishia?" You willing to have her join up with us?"
"A-Absolutely, she's been really kind to us, plus she saved our lives with those kappas! I think she deserves our trust after that!"
"Well then, I think that's settled," I reached forward and shook Kizuna's hand with my own. "We'd be delighted to have you join us, Kizuna. Consider us allies for the foreseeable fortune."
"Great! I'll be sure not to do anything to betray your trust and faith in me!" The short girl replied with a beaming smile. "Then, as my first recommendation as your friend and companion, I suggest we take it easy for the rest of the day and get a good night's rest, and then tomorrow I'll take you over to one of the edges of the labyrinth where we might be able to find a way out. Sound good?"
That didn't elicit an argument from either me or Rishia, so we spent the rest of the day chatting and getting to know our new friend and her abilities. We discovered, among other things, that Kizuna was 18 years old, roughly the same age as Rishia, and that she'd come from a Japan that was just as modern as the world I'd left. And as for her Holy weapon, it turned out she had a restriction on it that meant she couldn't hurt or fight other people, only monsters, and she demonstrated this to us by attacking me with the full force of her weapon. And even though it was a hefty wack against my cheek, I didn't feel any amount of pain whatsoever and thus confirming her point. That meant if we ran into any human enemies on our travels, it'd be up to myself and Rishia to deal with them since she couldn't.
As the evening wore on into night, she also helped us put together some leather breastplates and other armour pieces that would serve as temporary protection until we got out of the Labyrinth and back into her world proper where we'd be able to get something more permanent. Once that was dealt with, we quickly set up two temporary beds made out of straw that we gathered from the prison area we'd first ended up in before calling it a night. And even though I slept relatively well despite the makeshift accommodations, it didn't feel completely right since I didn't have Raphtalia curled up in my arms as she always was every night back in our world.
One more motive for us to get out of this place and find our friends, on top of the several we had already.
~AoaTSH~
After a good night's rest and a hearty breakfast, the three of us stocked up on food, provisions and anything else we thought we might need and headed back into the forest where Kizuna had originally found us. As we travelled, several monsters of similar or higher levels to the kappa we'd fought yesterday tried to attack us, but since Kizuna was massively overpowered she was able to easily defeat them in one or two blows each, with the resulting experience from said monsters going to Rishia and causing her to level up extremely quickly.
Which begged the question, how was I going to be able to level up as long as we were travelling together? When I voiced my worries out loud, Kizuna assured me that, should we make it back out to her world, she knew of one or two ways we could do it which put my mind at ease. After all, if we were going to be taking the fight to Kyo, we needed to back to or even higher than the levels we were at in our own world.
We found a similar archway to the one Rishia and I had passed through from the prison area to the island after about an hour or two of walking, but this one led somewhere different. Instead of a jail cell, there was a large corridor with numerous statues on either side that were unmistakably replicas of structures and carvings found in ancient Egyptian ruins in the real world. Even though Kizuna and I were familiar with these, I couldn't help but be impressed by their majesty and the level of detail in each statue. And as for Rishia? Being the massive bookworm and lore buff that she was, she couldn't help but be excited and overwhelmed by what she was seeing, studying each statue and carving we passed with a wide smile on her face.
"After many years of exploring every nook and cranny of the Infinite Labyrinth, I've concluded that where we are heading is the most likely place to find an exit," Kizuna explained as we walked along the corridor towards another archway at its end. "I'm pretty sure I've cleared out all of the monsters from this area a long time ago, so we shouldn't encounter anything once we get there."
"If you don't mind my asking…if you're so sure you found it, why haven't you tried getting through it?" I asked.
"That's exactly why I brought you here so that you can see the problem for yourself," she replied, taking no offence to my words as we passed through the next archway, and as we did so our surroundings changed entirely. Gone was the almost museum-like setting filled with Ancient Egyptian carvings and statues, and instead, we found ourselves in a medium-sized room that reminded me very much of the inside of a church, complete with brown pews, an altar and stained-glass windows. And at the far end, there was a large hole in the wall that looked as though it had been blasted through and which was currently covered by what appeared to be make-shift wooden panels.
"Here we are…now just give me a second to get these off…" With a grunt of effort, Kizuna ripped away the wooden panels to reveal, much to my and Rishia's astonishment, a large, glowing white passageway similar to the first archway all the way back in the jail cell. "Well, this is it…" the Hunting Hero spoke up as she tossed the wooden panels down to the ground before turning back to us. "I'm almost certain this is the far edge of the Infinite Labyrinth, and that this gate is another inter-dimensional pathway similar to the one you found back on the island." She then indicated the aforementioned passageway. "Go ahead and try to get through it if you want, but I'm pretty sure you won't."
And she turned out to be right. The instant I tried to reach my hand through the passageway, it stopped as though being blocked by a physical surface. And despite my best efforts, there was no way to budge or try to force my way through. And almost as in confirmation of that fact, the same pop-up I'd gotten from trying to access Kyo's portal back in the Spirit Tortoise resurfaced in my Status Menu: 'Forbidden Action: The Four Cardinal Heroes cannot travel to another world. Exception handling failed.'
"You're right, there's no way of getting through it, and I've also gotten the same message about how the Heroes aren't able to pass through that I've had before," I said out loud. "And if I'm guessing correctly…whoever designed and built this place had to have known that this was the other side of one of the walls, which means that the most likely explanation is that this was designed intentionally to keep this exit hidden. But what they didn't anticipate, or think possible, was the walls cracking from age or being blown open from the inside…"
"That's exactly what I was thinking…glad to see we're thinking along the same lines," Kizuna piped up.
"B-but if that was the case…then what does that mean for us? Is there a way for us to get through?" Rishia asked nervously.
"Not in the conventional sense of trying to simply walk through it, nor do we have Ost this time to forcibly open the way for us which means we'll have to try thinking outside of the box. In other words, try to figure out a method of opening the way that isn't bound by real-world logic or possibilities…" I mused as I wracked my brain to think of something…anything…that wasn't bound by the rules and logic of our…wait a minute…could it really be that simple. "Hold on…Kizuna, you mentioned that you first came to your world by playing a video game, right?"
"I did indeed. But how does that help us?"
"Well in that case, since you passed into this world through a video game, what if we applied the rules and logic of a video game to this quandary we're facing? It might sound strange but at this point, I'm not ruling out any far-fetched or insane ideas…"
"Well, it's as good a place a start as any, I guess. So…how do you want to approach this?" As we spoke, Rishia, bless her heart, just looked even more and more lost.
"Hmm…." I pondered before hitting on a brainwave. "What's the general term to describe an item, location or in-game mechanic that isn't functioning the way it's intended to?"
"You mean…like a bug?"
"Exactly…so if we treat this like a bug we find in a video game, what would you suggest our next course of action be in order to get around it?"
"Well…I'd suppose I'd find a way to exploit or get around the bug so that we could pass through, but I'm still not sure how that's going to help us…"
"You're on the right track…but since this is real instead of a video game, we have to find a real-life exploit to get around it…" I pondered some more as I examined the wall around us, before turning my head and examining the rest of the church-like room we were in. "If we could break or destroy this room, we could potentially break or render the bug useless in the process and be able to pass through…but how would we…" My remaining eye widened as I remembered something I'd espied in my Inventory System when placing mine and Rishia's armour in there. "In fact, I may have just the thing to do it, but since my level is still really low, I'm going to need your help Kizuna."
"Of course, but what did you have in…" She trailed off as she espied what I pulled out of my Inventory system: one of the Bio-Plant seeds that I'd picked up back in my world after saving a village from a swarm of mutating plants. "A seed? But how is that going to help? I mean, we could wait for it to grow large enough but that would take a long time…"
"…unless we had the means to alter its properties and accelerate its growth." Her eyes widened at my words before her expression changed into a grin. "I don't currently have the level or skill to do that though. I'm really hoping you do though-" My words were cut off as she reached over and grabbed the seed, her expression now one of determination.
"I have just the right skill for the job. Give me a few minutes and I'll have it ready for you."
Returning her grin with one of my own, and with Rishia watching on with a mix of confusion and curiosity, I quickly set to work on creating my best impression of a hole in the floor next to the rift for the seed to grow in whilst Kizuna took the seed and, with the aid of her Holy weapon, spent the same amount of time analysing and altering the properties of the seed. Once she was done, she brought it over to the hole I'd created.
"I've altered it to just the right levels that should cause it to grow rapidly once it lands in the hole," she explained as she passed the seed back to me. Even in my hand, I could feel it pulsing away as if it were begging to be released and allowed to grow. "I hope you are right about this Fergus because I'm more than ready to be leaving this place."
"Well, we won't know until we try. I suggest you two get ready. Once it starts growing, we're going to have to leg it out of here or get crushed." I took a deep breath and prepared myself before tossing the seed into the hole I'd created, where upon landing it immediately started to writhe and burst outward. "MOVE!" I roared, grabbing both Rishia and Kizuna's hands and pulling them out of the room and back through the archway just in the nick of time. As I looked back, I saw that the bio-plant was out of control, completely swallowing up the church with its rapidly growing stem and vines until the room began to burst at the seams, struggling to contain the massive amount of mass growing inside of it until, finally, with a massive *CRASH*, the plant broke through the walls and ceiling, causing everything in the area except the bio-plant itself to vanish into the white void. And as that was happening, I felt a massive tug from the void, as if I was being drawn towards it.
"This is it! We're being pulled through! You two ready?" I shouted, grabbing their hands
"I-I'm ready, Sir Fergus!" Rishia squeaked
"I've been waiting for this moment for years! I'm more than ready!" Kizuna replied determinedly.
"Wait for it…wait for it…GO!" I dragged them both into the massive hole, narrowly avoiding a passing vine that swung towards us. Another, much larger one whipped in front of us, but instead of avoiding it, I used it as a springboard to propel the three of us through the hole, and the scenery changed instantly as we passed through. The archway and the church were gone, and in their place was a dark blue sky full of stars.
And then a split-second later, I realised my momentum was no longer propelling us forward and instead we were…oh crap, WE WERE FALLING! As I turned my gaze to look down, I saw a Japanese-styled building on what looked like well-kept grounds. But I didn't have time to admire it as Rishia's sudden scream alerted me to the much bigger issue at hand: It was drawing ever closer the more we continued to fall!
"AIR STRIKE SHEILD!" The now familiar ethereal Shield formed below us as a makeshift landing pad which we all collapsed onto.
"Hold onto me you two!" Kizuna yelled as she swung her fishing rod over her head and cast the lure down towards the shrine where it hooked onto the roof. And as Rishia and I grabbed onto her, I heard the high-pitched whirring sound that meant the reel had activated and was locked in place. "Okay Fergus, you can drop the Shield!"
"Are you sure?!"
"I'm positive! It will hold!"
Without a moment's hesitation, I cancelled the Air Strike Shield, and as it vanished the three of us started falling again with Rishia screaming bloody murder once more. But as the ground rushed up at us, I suddenly felt a strong jerk rip its way through my whole body, and as I looked up, I saw that Kizuna's reel had done its job. We were currently dangling off of the side of the building only a few meters off of the ground.
"Phew! Made it!" Kizuna exclaimed happily.
"Wahhhhhhhhhh…!" Rishia's scream trailed off as we all dropped off of the line and onto the ground before taking a look at our surroundings. The building we'd landed outside of did indeed resemble a shrine you'd find in modern-day Japan, with a pathway leading out from it, walls surrounding it on three sounds and grounds and gardens that looked incredibly well-kept. I heard a shrivelling noise from behind and, looking back, I saw the remains of the bio-plant had followed us out and were still trying to grow. Thinking fast, I pulled out some of the weed killer I'd kept on hand for just such an occasion and doused it all over the plant, causing it to wither and die thanks to a combination of the weed killer and its very weak immune system.
"Are we all okay?" I asked out loud once I was done. Rishia didn't respond, her body still recovering from the shock, terror and adrenaline of the past few minutes so I went over and pulled her up to her feet.
"Feeeeh!" She exhaled as she stood up. "P-please can we never do something like that ever again, Sir Fergus?"
"I'll try but I make no promises," I grinned. "How about you Kizuna?" But as I turned in her direction, I saw that she was standing completely still, her arms by her side as her eyes darted all over the place as she took in all of her surroundings. "Kizuna? Are you-?"
"I'M OUTSIDE!" She yelled exuberantly as she started leaping about all over the place in excitement. "Oh yeah, she's fine…" I mused as Rishia and I watched her give in to her excitement with matching smiles on our faces. I doubt we could even begin to imagine how much relief was pouring through the small girl after the years she'd spent trapped in that labyrinth. "I'M OUT! I'M OUT! I'M FINALLY OUT! I DON'T HAVE TO BE ALONE ANYMORE!" She then hurtled over and smashed into the two of us with a bone-crunching hug. "THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOUUUUUU! YOU TWO ARE THE BEST!"
Both Rishia and myself couldn't help but chuckle in return as we returned the hug since we were both more than delighted for our new friend.
"Stage One: Get out of the Infinite Labyrinth – COMPLETE" I couldn't help but think triumphantly to myself, clenching one of my fists behind Kizuna's back as the hug continued.
WOWZERS! That was a load of fun to write and I really hope you all enjoyed reading it. It feels so good to be back!
Now then, two things I feel I should touch on before I make my announcement. The first being that I am very much diverting from the anime and following the Light Novel route of Raphtalia NOT being present with Fergus, Rishia and Kizuna. It just made so much sense to keep them apart and have their tearful and joyful reunion later down the line. And speaking of Kizuna, since Fergus is a lot friendlier and more trusting than Naofumi was at this time he warms up to her much more easily, paving the way for them to already have a great relationship so early on.
Okay, now that that's all out of the way, time for my announcement. First of all, due to the news I am about to break, I have to start with some bad news: Isekai Quintet Season 2 is going to be taking a further step back in my priorities list. Make no mistake, I DO INTEND to get to it one day, but with what I am about to announce as well as the upcoming season 3 of Shield Hero, those will take immediate priority. So for those who might be waiting for that, you're gonna be waiting a long while longer I'm afraid.
Okay, here we go…once this story is complete (which will hopefully be in the first month or two of 2023), I am excited to announce that I will be doing a collab story! In the past month or two, I have been exchanging messages with another user about a fictional series we are both incredibly passionate about, and in those messages, we have made SO many plans, details and such for a potential collaboration story that by now I am so hyped about! I can't wait to get started on it when it comes around! I'm not going to reveal any details on what the series is, that will wait until this story is done so I can make an official announcement regarding a title, start date and such, but what I will do is leave small crumbs of extracts to start building up potential hype at the very end of each author's note.
So, after that exciting announcement, what now? Well, I'm going to break for a few days and then get cracking on chapter 11 on either Wednesday or Thursday, where we start exploring Kizuna's world! Until then, I am theoneandonlyedster signing out for now and I will see you then!
~AoaTSH~
He sat back in his chair as for the first time today he allowed himself to feel happy instead of sad. If his face could make expressions, it'd be one of delight, and if he could smile, it would be one of happiness as he looked at the two standing nearby. "I am glad you are both here," he told them.
"Are you kidding? After everything you've done for us, why wouldn't we be here?" One of them exclaimed, smiling broadly
"Indeed. It's only right for us to be here after all the times and good memories we've shared," the other figure stated.
