Replies to my Reviews
SwordOfTheGods: Haki isn't necessarily born from combat experience, it's willpower and aptitude. Naofumi unlocked Observation Haki due to aptitude as it's stated in canon that the Legendary Shield chooses a wielder who is naturally emphatic and trusting in nature. As for Conqueror's Haki, Naofumi does have the aptitude to lead others and that Haki is already incredibly sporadic in choosing when to manifest.
Talented musicians played a calming, beautiful tune on their stringed instruments as servers went about bringing dishes and drinks to all the various guests. All sorts of high-class nobles talked amongst themselves or tried to speak to the Cardinal Heroes or their parties.
The celebration was in full swing. The king had chosen a multi-floored room for it, with him, his advisors, and some of the highest nobles in the kingdom on the top side. Down below, the Cardinal Heroes hung around at their various tables amongst the nobles.
As for Naofumi Iwatani, he sat alone on a side table as he sampled the various dishes. He didn't have much of an appetite after what had happened earlier in the day, but he didn't know when next he'd get to sample great castle-prepared food like this.
Of course, unlike the other Heroes, not a single noble approached him.
"It's unbelievable how the addition of the Cardinal Heroes turned back the Wave so easily." A nobleman said graciously.
"We owe everything to our Heroes." A sweet-looking old noble lady agreed.
"It wasn't just them. I did my part as a royal knight, and stood my ground against a giant monster." The mustached Royal Knight Commander boasted in his group.
"Really?" Raphtalia who was passing by at the moment, stopped to stare at him in disbelief. "I don't remember you even drawing your sword once."
"What? I don't-" The commander started to say indignantly, only to shriek and flinch backwards as the Raccoon Demi-Human instantly blitzed into his personal space, knocking him down to his butt without even touching him.
"I think you may have had a bit too much to drink already if that was enough to knock you down." Raphtalia giggled as she turned about, practically skipping back to Naofumi with a happy swish of her tail. "The food here is heavenly, Naofumi-sama."
"I know." Naofumi replied. "I've already stored many dishes in my {Shield Storage}. The fact that it stops time on every stored item has never been as useful as it is now."
"Careful, Naofumi-sama." Raphtalia said dryly, with a hint of humor in her voice. "You might get fat if you continue eating like that."
"You're eating as much as I am." Naofumi pointed out, not even trying to defend himself.
"I-I-I'm a rapidly growing female. M-My body needs the... the... You called them calories, right?" Raphtalia refuted. "What's your excuse?"
Naofumi smiled at her sass. To think there had been a time when she was extremely hesitant in just speaking to him.
"Are you laughing at me in your mind, Naofumi-sama?" Raphtalia asked.
"No, I'm not."
"Yes, you are!"
"You're not a telepath, Raphtalia."
"I don't know what a telepath is, but you have very expressive eyes, Naofumi-sama!"
Despite the oppressive feeling he'd been getting so far at this banquet, Naofumi was really enjoying the nice little bubble of peace he was having with his companion.
"Naofumi."
A glove hit the ground on Naofumi's left. Naofumi looked down at the glove, and then up at Motoyasu Kitamura's face.
"Duel me." Motoyasu said in a deadly calm voice, with Myne smirking from behind him.
The bubble popped.
Chapter 07: The Difference between What's Fair and What's Deserved
All chatter around them stopped, and everyone stared at the two of them.
Naofumi started to ask in a confused voice. "What are you talking about-"
"I've heard that you made Raphtalia-chan your slave." Motoyasu continued in that deadly calm voice, interrupting Naofumi. "And that she obeys your every command."
He stated it as if it were a fact, not a rumor.
Naofumi blinked in confusion. "Well, yeah. I mean, I haven't really tried to make a secret out of that."
"Are you serious?!" Motoyasu said a little more angrily. "You can't seriously be saying that it's alright to enslave others!"
"Well his Majesty over there clearly thinks otherwise..." Naofumi pointed right at Aultcray at that moment. "'cause he's the one who made it legal! In fact, I'm willing to bet all of my money that at least half of every noble here has a Demi-Human slave back at their homes!"
At Naofumi's declaration, Ren Amaki noticed at least threequarters of the whole crowd awkwardly looking away, easily confirming the Shield Hero's claim.
"Naofumi, we're heroes from Japan!" Motoyasu's face twisted into a scowl, showing no surprise and implying that he already knew. "You can't seriously believe that it's okay to behave like that!"
Slamming his fist onto the table, Naofumi jumped to his feet. "ARE YOU SAYING THAT I'M OKAY WITH THAT?!"
Motoyasu and a few others recoiled from the sudden rage that had overcome the Shield Hero.
"Listen up, Motoyasu." Naofumi walked right up to the Spear Hero and pressed his index finger against his chestplate. "How do you think slaves fare in this kingdom? Let me tell you. It's not bad. It's not terrible. It's sickening. This isn't like a fantasy tale or some hentai where they're somehow pretty and dolled up despite wearing nothing but a literal rag in the worst of conditions. When I met Raphtalia, she was so sick and injured both the slave trader and an apothecary owner I took her to easily diagnosed she would've died in less than a week if I hadn't gotten her at the time."
Naofumi breathed deeply and took a step back. "Melromarc is a horrible place for Demi-Humans. The last time I saw a Demi-Human other than Raphtalia was yesterday in the capital. He was just a little kid who got whipped by his owner for not carrying a heavy crate fast enough on the spot. And when he naturally fell over and dropped the crate, he got whipped even harder! And you know the cruel thing? It is illegal for me to interfere with that! The only way I could help him was put away the crate myself and heal him on the spot! A guy like you who's just been throwing himself at girls has zero right to come over and start claiming bullshit when I've never mistreated Raphtalia!"
"He's right, Spear Hero-sama." Raphtalia spoke up, standing by Naofumi's side. "When Naofumi-sama purchased me, he put all of his efforts into curing my sickness and healing my wounds before he even considered giving me a sword to fight for him. In my time as a slave, I've endured three separate masters, with Naofumi-sama being the kindest and greatest of them all."
"Am I seriously supposed to believe those lies?" Motoyasu scoffed. "Myne-chan told me how slave crests work! You're not allowed to say anything that'll go against what he want you to say right now!"
'What the fuck?!' Naofumi's jaw dropped.
'What is wrong with him?!' Raphtalia's jaw dropped as well.
"Motoyasu... are you an idiot?" Ren spoke up as he approached them. "Slave crests do not work like that. What you're describing is flat out hypnosis."
"But why else would Raphtalia-chan serve someone like this bastard?!" Motoyasu slammed his spear into the ground, releasing some electrical sparks.
"Did you not listen to the words Raphtalia just said?" Ren chided.
"Whatever." Naofumi shrugged. "There's no need to deal with selfish assholes like him. If he really wanted to save a slave, he'd get some into his Party instead of deliberately going after Raphtalia just because she caught... his fancy..."
Naofumi frowned at something before looking back at Motoyasu. "Hold on a minute. I know for a fact that I don't act or treat Raphtalia like a standard slave owner, as you definitely didn't figure that out the last time we met. Who told you that Raphtalia was a slave?"
He risked a glance at Ren who subtly shook his head. Well, that made sense, seeing as Ren was the only other Hero who knew Raphtalia in her 'younger days' but had still said nothing, judging by Motoyasu's behavior back at the church.
"Myne-chan did." Motoyasu thumbed back at Myne, who became flatfooted at being the center of attention.
"Myne?" Naofumi frowned as he looked at her. No matter what he did, why was she always having it out for him? Had the imposter traumatized her that much with his rape attempt? "How did you know that Raphtalia was a slave? I make a point of avoiding you."
"Th-That doesn't matter!" Myne refuted. "What does matter is that Motoyasu-sama is doing that Demi-Human a favor by freeing her!"
"You're the princess of this country!" Naofumi rebutted. "There's no way you of all people wouldn't know just how much danger Raphtalia would be in if she got freed in this kingdom's capital of all places!"
"Then, I'll just get her into my Party!" Motoyasu declared, which was most likely his intent from the start. "She'll be safe with me."
"That goes exactly against what you just said earlier!" Raphtalia rebutted. "There's no point in freeing me just to take me for yourself!"
"She's right." Itsuki Kawasumi spoke up, finally joining his fellow Heroes in the conversation. "Motoyasu, you yourself just said that no Hero could keep a slave in our Parties. If Naofumi is right about slavery being legal here, there's no way you'd be able to keep her safe from Melromarc's laws unless you enslaved her yourself."
Motoyasu gritted his teeth, caught flatfooted himself.
Naofumi breathed a little easier. They might be able to get out of this-
"If that is how it is, how about you let me handle her care, Spear Hero-sama?"
Not noticing Raphtalia's flinch, Naofumi turned and noticed the approaching king, who had a fat nobleman at his side. "The hell are you?"
"Watch your tone, Shield!" Aultcray snapped. "You are addressing my dear friend, Idol Rabier!"
This time, there was no ignoring the sound of crushed metal as Raphtalia crushed the goblet which was unfortunate to still be in her hand. "Rabier..."
"Do I know you from somewhere?" Possessing a revolting appearance, Idol Rabier was an overweight, middle-aged noble with an unkempt mop of frilled, strawberry-blonde hair and a minimal mustache in the same color shaped like two small "leaves" over his upper lip. He was dressed in elegant clothing of black, golden, and purple hues, with some white frills to match his noble status, a dark purple cape, olive-yellow pants, black riding boots, and had a cynical smile on his plump face. "Well, no matter."
Rabier stepped forward and placed a chubby hand on Motoyasu's shoulder. "If I may, Spear Hero-sama, why don't you hand the Demi-Human over to me instead after your victory? I promise to take good care of her."
Whether it was either out of instinctual disgust for the sheer 'slimy' factor Rabier was exuding, his annoyance of not getting to keep Raphtalia himself or possibly a miraculous bit of common sense rising from within, Motoyasu made a pained face and hesitated to answer.
"I have a counter proposal." Raphtalia stated. "I'll fight in Naofumi-sama's stead."
"What do you think you're saying, you damned Demi-Human?!" Myne snarled venomously. "Do you seriously believe that a mere raccoon like you has a chance against Motoyasu-sama?!"
The sound of cruel laughter from the nobles filled the air.
"The Shield Hero's demi-human... vs the Spear Hero?"
"She'll never win."
"Who does she think she is?"
"Raphtalia..." Naofumi placed a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong?"
"Naofumi-sama, do you remember the state I was in when you bought me?" Raphtalia hissed through gritted teeth. "He was the one responsible for that."
Naofumi's mind blanked, flashbacking to the horrible state Raphtalia had been in.
All of a sudden, everybody found themselves paralyzed as Naofumi's rage permeated the air, excluding experienced combatants.
The face Naofumi currently spotted was that of Wrath Incarnate, his emerald pupils shrunken into pinpricks as the jewel on his Shield flashed an ominous red. Within a certain range, every single vessel containing water started to vibrate, surprising everybody when they flashboiled and expanded into steamy froth.
How he managed to keep a leash on his Conqueror's Haki in his current state was a miracle.
"Naofumi!" Ren shouted, bringing him back a bit. "What's wrong?!"
"I will not fight the Spear Hero." In an instant, Raphtalia disappeared in a blur, appearing right before Rabier, her eyes filled with menace. "I will fight you instead, Rabier. If I win, nobody is allowed to harass either of us about Naofumi-sama's ownership of me like complete hypocrites ever again!"
"And if you lose, you shall become my slave while the Shield Hero gets thrown in the dungeons!" Rabier stated loudly, a wild excitement in his eyes. "If he is to level up, we can capture monsters and just toss them in with him!"
"""WHAT?!""" All the Heroes except Naofumi exclaimed, with Motoyasu himself staring in shock. "You're joking, right?!"
Naofumi himself said nothing, glaring at Rabier before looking at Raphtalia. "Can you win?"
Her fist briefly blackening with Haki, Raphtalia bared her teeth. "I will win!"
"Fine, then." Naofumi nodded as a show of complete faith in Raphtalia. "Go ahead and cut him up as much as you please."
"In that case, I hereby authorize this duel!" Aultcray declared loudly, causing loud mutters to permeate the air. "Prepare the arena!"
"Yes, your Majesty!" A few nearby knights saluted.
Everyone began clearing out of the room, heading towards the arena in the middle of the Castle Gardens.
Raphtalia stood in an almost pitch dark cellar. To the side of her was a stockpile of various weapons, which was fortunate as she hadn't been allowed to retrieve her original one. After surveying them, Raphtalia picked up a single edged sword that looked like one of the ones that she'd seen when Naofumi let her watch some 'films' with his {Phone Shield}.
'Rifana... Keel... Even now, I'm not sure whether Keel is still alive.' Raphtalia held up the blade to her face, looking at it's sharp edge with her narrowed eyes. 'However, I can get revenge for our sakes!'
The two of them stood in the dark unlit room together, with Naofumi helping to make sure that her Boulder Bear hide armor and gloves were on properly.
"Raphtalia, are you really sure about this?" Naofumi paused, warming Raphtalia's heart a bit as he gently grabbed her hand in his. "I don't mind you fighting that fat bastard yourself, but do you really want me to do that?"
"Yes." Raphtalia replied firmly. "I want Rabier to know exactly who he's fighting. The Spear Hero is also under the delusion that I looked as well as I currently do when you bought me. Let them all see... the 'ugliness'."
Naofumi stared in shock before his eyes softened as he dragged her into a tight hug. "You're not ugly. You've never been ugly."
He pulled back and looked her in the eye. "Win this, so that we can laugh loud and high as we can while strutting out of the castle."
"The duel between Lord Idol Rabier and the Shield Hero's demi-human will now begin!"
A voice announced outside to the crowd, dragging Raphtalia out of her thoughts. She lightly slapped her cheeks to focus. 'Watch over me, Naofumi-sama!'
"The duel will end only when one of the combatants is either pinned or admits that they have been defeated!"
After a moment, the doors in front of her opened, revealing an empty hallway. She walked out through them towards the field of the duel arena, breathing in and out calmly.
Up above, the nobles cheered for Rabier, who came out of the wall opposite of her at the same time. Raphtalia saw that on her left was Aultcray with several of his knights around him. On his right was an older man on a similar throne. He was dressed like those Church people, except his robes looked more elegant, and he had what looked like a Pope hat on his head. Several priests sat around him.
All around them in the stands were the various nobles who'd come to watch the duel. Down below by the left wall was Princess Malty, who been allowed down there for whatever reason.
Even after all Naofumi trusted her with, Raphtalia still couldn't understand why the woman tried so hard to particularly torment him. Despite his creepiness and lack of social tact, at least the Spear Hero had his heart in the right place.
Hopefully.
"This duel will take place in the presence of the King of Melromarc, and the Pope. And it is thus legitimate, and official!"
Up above, the Four Heroes sat next to each other in one of the back rows, all of them calmly watching the two heroes down below.
*tap*
*tap*
*tap*
*tap*
*tap*
*tap*
*tap*
Well, most of them.
"Naofumi, please stop." Itsuki weakly asked as Naofumi kept his arms crossed while heavily tapping his boot. His nervousness wasn't helped by the fact that Naofumi hadn't stopped glaring murderously at Rabier.
"If he's really the one who put Raphtalia in that state you showed me..." Ren spoke up, thankfully stopping the tapping as he took Naofumi's attention. "Why did he ever sell her off in the first place? Why didn't he... finish her off or something?"
Naofumi frowned further. "I don't know. Mentally speaking, Raphtalia was... broken. She kept having nightmares, she flinched whenever someone raised up a hand to her head for whatever reason and she always strove to either be as ignorable and obedient as possible in order to keep me pleased. As disgusting as it is to entertain that thought, I think... he might gotten bored with her."
Thankfully, Raphtalia's nightmares were now much rarer in frequency, mostly due to having Naofumi as a reassuring bedmate was always there for her.
"C-Come on, Naofumi." Motoyasu stuttered from his place. "You're just exaggerating things now."
Naofumi's anger made a swift return. "You better be thankful that Ren and Itsuki are between us, you ponytailed bastard."
"Motoyasu, shut up." Ren ordered. "If he tries to get at you, I'll do my best to stay out of his way."
Raphtalia and Rabier stopped in front of each other. Both beasts in their own right. One was a literal one in the guise of a human possessing raccoon features, and the other was a total human who used religion as an excuse to vent his depraved desires on her kind.
"Your anger against me is quite vexing, considering I've never met you before." Rabier stated as he brandished his whip. "I'll ask you again. Who are you?"
Staring at the whip which had been used to torture her and her friends many times, Raphtalia turned Naofumi as she hefted her sword. "Naofumi-sama."
Grimacing at her call, Naofumi pulled up his {Phone Shield} and projected the picture of Raphtalia in her cage to everyone present.
Having seen it before (along with similar cases now that he knew better and had gone looking), Ren managed to keep his dinner down. The same couldn't be said for Itsuki, who immediately puked at the sight. Beside him, Motoyasu wasn't retching as well, but his eyes were stuck on the image, wide with horror at what he saw.
While Aultcray himself winced at the sight but didn't look away, Malty and the Pope's expressions didn't flicker in the slightest.
All around the arena, Raphtalia ignored the shrieks and sounds of outraged disgust, keeping her gaze on Rabier's nonplussed expression. "Do you remember me now? That is the state you left me in after you got bored and sold me off."
Rabier then had the effrontery to get an irritated expression. "I don't know how the Shield is doing that, but do you have the slightest idea how little that narrows it down?"
*SLAM!*
""WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN BY THAT?!"" Naofumi and Motoyasu slammed their fists onto the ledge and yelled as one towards Rabier.
"How many Demi-Human slaves have you put in that state, you bastard?!" Naofumi roared.
Rabier gained a disgusted scowl at being addressed by the Shield Hero. "What kind of question does the Shield Devil dare to ask me? Does anyone in the world count how many loaves of bread they've eaten in their lives?"
Motoyasu balked in horror, slumping back in his seat.
Naofumi however, got even angrier. "Just who the hell do you think you are?!"
The atmosphere screamed and warped as a great pressure fell over the entire area, cracking the nearby structures and knocking most of the nobles unconscious. Five seconds later, other than some knights, the only ones still conscious were the Four Heroes along with their Parties, Aultcray and the Pope.
Barring the last two, they were all still terribly shaken, as if they had barely escaped a close encounter with Death.
As for Raphtalia and Rabier(who was very shaken himself), the former was just as unaffected as the King and the Pope, still glaring at each other as Naofumi's Rage had easily washed over her without harm.
"...I guess I can't be too surprised if you don't remember me." Raphtalia sighed in disappointment, her scowl lessening slightly. "You tortured so many people other than just us. Now that's over with... I'll just put my best effort into killing you."
Raphtalia's sword bled black with Haki as she clenched her muscles, her Killing Intent almost tangible as the ground around her cracked from how much pressure she was exuding. Taking a step forward, Raphtalia's form blurred towards Rabier and slashed.
There was a furious whiplash of sharpened shockwaves that ripped through the entire arena, with Rabier somehow sensing the danger and managing to dodge.
Growling at her, Rabier whipped at her, hoping to score a hit as Raphtalia kept displaying her high AGI, faultlessly dodging every swipe at her. Eventually he got the idea to attack the ground instead, causing her to leap high into the air.
"You're wide open!" Rabier's whip latched around Raphtalia's waist before slamming her into the ground, kicking up a dust plume from how hard she hit it.
"Hahahaha! That's what you get, you filthy raccoon!" Rabier tried to pull on his whip but halted when he felt undue resistance. When the dust cleared, it revealed Raphtalia on her knees and bleeding from her head, but having a very strong grip on the whip holding her.
'Now you can't dodge again.' Yanking hard on the whip, Raphtalia reeled in Rabier at high power, causing him to fly towards her clenched fist. 'I can still recall that time you punched Keel in his stomach hard enough to make him spit blood in perfect clarity.'
Naofumi's smile almost hurt as he witnessed Raphtalia sink her fist into the fat bastard's stomach hard enough to fold his body over her arm. Puking out blood, Rabier's body shot away like a wine bottle cork, nearly reaching the edge of the arena as he finally rolled to a stop.
"Yeah!" Naofumi cheered as he stomped a boot on the ledge. "That's the spirit, Raphtalia! Make sure to break at least ten separate bones in him while you're at it!"
"Yes, Naofumi-sama!" Raphtalia peppily replied as she approached the downed man, scraping her sword along the ground. She didn't know why but in many of the 'movies' Naofumi showed her, people who approached their opponents like that became terrifying from their perspective. Judging by Rabier's panicked motions as he tried to crawl away from her, it worked very well. 'As expected of Naofumi-sama's world! Their movies are so informative!'
Suddenly, Raphtalia was hit with the strongest urge to jump away and remembering Naofumi's teachings about Observation Haki, she instantly dodged backwards, gasping at the blast of wind that would've hit her had she not dodged. The force of it still ripped her sword away from her hand though, sending it flying until it sunk into a pillar too high for her to reach.
"What the fuck, Myne?!" Naofumi yelled at the smirking redhead, her hand still outstretched and glowing pink from the spell she'd just cast. Unheeding of Ren's calls, he leapt over the ledge and slammed down near her. "Why did you attack Raphtalia?!"
"You must be mistaken, Shield Hero." Myne flipped her hair. "I did no such thing-"
"Don't lie to me!"
Myne shook in place as Naofumi's glare seemed to physically strike her. "G-Get away from me!"
Naofumi glared at her, wondering why she would act this way when she was so nice at the star-
"And where's the heroine, anyway? I don't think it's this princess. She seems kinda... bitchy."
"Oh my god..." Naofumi gasped in realization as he stared at My- no, Malty S. Melromarc. Even as archaic as that book's drawings were, he could now easily see the resemblance. "All this time... you were the bitch character?!"
Seriously, the resemblance was scarily accurate. How had he missed it?! In the book, she'd been the only one other than the Four Heroes to get a picture!
"Ha!" Rabier quickly recovered, lashing his whip at Raphtalia who only used the barest of motions to dodge. "No matter how much you dodge, you're useless without your swor-"
"[Erst Holy!]"
Rabier gawked as his whip was suddenly slashed to bits by three floating blades of light, which flew about briefly before coming to a hovering spot beside Raphtalia as Rabier fell back on his ass.
"M-Magic?! You know magic?!" Rabier scrambled backwards in an undeniably cowardly manner.
Dismissing the spell, Raphtalia didn't say anything as she hauled him back to his feet, before sending Rabier flying into a wall from her kick.
"Shut up. A monster like you should know better than to complain after everything you've done!" Raphtalia snarled as she advanced on Rabier like a wild beast. "We tried so hard to survive! To live! But you bastards were never okay with that!"
Spinning swiftly, Raphtalia's heel collided with Rabier's face at incredible speed, smashing it inwards and causing blood to leak from his definitely broken nose.
Rabier groaned as he stumbled, but he didn't have time to try and clutch his throbbing face as Raphtalia's next kick sent him airborne.
"I can't claim anything for those I don't know! But that was Rifana and Keel, who you personally tortured right before me!" Raphtalia yelled as Rabier reached his peak and started to drop back to the ground. "And this is for me!"
Snapping upwards, Raphtalia's leg was Hardened with Armament Haki that shimmered from how fast and hard she made her heel meet Rabier's waist.
*CRACK!*
The loud crack that followed was loud enough to be heard throughout the entire castle, as well as rouse many of the unconscious spectators to witness Rabier's spine folded over Raphtalia's boot.
"That's the coolest finisher I think I've ever seen." Naofumi muttered breathlessly. Judging by the way Raphtalia's ears twitched and the small blush that dusted her cheeks, he was definitely heard.
Beside him, Malty gritted her teeth at the undisputable victory. Even if she specialized more in the burning of flesh than the breaking of bones, Malty knew that unless Rabier got some healing magic very soon, he wouldn't be going anywhere with his own legs. Ever.
Wait a minute...
"That's illegal interference!"
Raphtalia looked to the side as Naofumi himself stared at Malty with his jaw dropped.
With a nasty smirk, Malty pointed a manicured finger right between Naofumi's eyes. "The Shield Hero has interfered by casting a support spell on his demi-human to boost her physical strength! She has lost this duel!"
'...what?' Motoyasu thought.
'...what?' Ren thought.
'...what?' Itsuki thought.
'...what?' Naofumi thought in shock, as he and Raphtalia looked at each other.
"What? But, Myne-" Motoyasu finally tried to say something. Naofumi couldn't have known a spell like that. Even he didn't know a spell like that!
{Emerald Online} definitely didn't have a spell like that!
"It's obvious from the start, Motoyasu-sama!" Malty said, her scornful arrogance lacing her words. "There's no way that a mere demi-human could have that kind of power!"
"That's such bullshit!" Naofumi finally found his words. "I don't know any magic like that! Raphtalia is as strong as you all saw! Besides," Naofumi pointed at the sword still embedded high up in the pillar, "you interfered first!"
"Naofumi is right." Itsuki stated, approaching with Ren and Motoyasu. Behind them, the king and some knights followed along. "In a duel that had very little to do with you in any way, you went and interfered, clearly hoping to blow away more than just Raphtalia-san's sword."
Ren shook his head, sickened at Malty's undue involvement. This had clearly been a very personal battle for Raphtalia, with even Naofumi allowing her to fight it despite being the one initially challenged.
Raphtalia had proved herself through pure strength and determination in that duel. Yet here she was, spitting on that image out of what?
Just because?
What kind of malicious A.I. was she?
'This conspiracy plot's getting more and more senseless.' "I can't believe royalty would interfere with a sacred duel." Ren said, his gaze looking condescendingly at the princess. Malty looked off to the side, unable to meet the Sword Hero's piercing gaze. He knew she'd realized that she wouldn't be getting away with this. "Guess it wasn't so sacred to you after all if it meant getting what you wanted in the end... which I honestly can't figure out."
"Myne-chan..." Motoyasu gently approached her, raising his hands pleadingly. "Please explain why you did that. I trust in you but this doesn't make sense."
Naofumi frowned before ignoring them all as he headed for Raphtalia, falsely polite as he bumped shoulders with Aultcray. "Excuse me."
King Aultcray clenched his fists and grit his teeth. There was the malice he'd fully expected of the blasted Shield. No longer would he pretend with his false niceness.
"Raphtalia." Naofumi reached Raphtalia and extended his hand. "Let's go."
Raphtalia stared down at the moaning form of Rabier as he kept moaning, even as two healers approached and started to work. "Is it wrong... if I want to kill him? To stab him with my sword again and again and again and again?"
"Not if it'll give you closure." Naofumi replied. "Back in my homeland, he'd definitely get life imprisonment at the minimum. And if I could get away with it, I'd kill him myself if it would help you."
Within earshot, Itsuki kept his clenched hand away from his bow. He didn't believe that he had as much restraint as Naofumi did. As much as he wanted to dispense justice, Raphtalia truly had the most right to Rabier's life as one of his victims.
Raphtalia shook before burying her face into Naofumi's shoulder, sobbing heavily. "I'm such a horrible person, wishing someone such a cruel death."
"Back home, we call that 'being human'. Nothing wrong about that." Naofumi stroked her hair gently before directing his gaze to their spectators.
"All of you... Just go away and never bother us again." The Shield Hero said to them heavily, directing his glare at the knights, then at Aultcray and Malty, and his words ended when he glared up at the Pope and his followers. "If any of you still want to harass us over something so stupid, I will gladly become the Devil your religion keeps falsely describing me as!"
The meaning was clear.
This was essentially a declaration of protection for Raphtalia and anybody else he would place under his protection.
And like a Shield, anyone who wanted to go after them... would have to go through him first.
[𝔅𝔩𝔢𝔰𝔰𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔖𝔢𝔯𝔦𝔢𝔰 𝔘𝔫𝔩𝔬𝔠𝔨𝔢𝔡.]
[ℜ𝔢𝔮𝔲𝔦𝔯𝔢𝔪𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔰 𝔬𝔣 𝔇𝔦𝔩𝔩𝔦𝔤𝔢𝔫𝔠𝔢 ℌ𝔞𝔳𝔢 𝔅𝔢𝔢𝔫 𝔐𝔢𝔱.]
"...come, my daughter." Aultcray departed, leaving with the knights. "There is nothing more to be done here."
The three other Cardinal Heroes stood off to the side, having kept watch as their fellow Hero slowly sank to his knees and sat down on the floor there, comforting Raphtalia as she fell asleep in his arms.
Motoyasu clutched his spear tightly. "Urgh, this isn't right."
"Are you seriously saying that?" Itsuki asked incredulously.
"Don't get me wrong. I know that Rabier bastard had it coming." Motoyasu gripped his hair in frustration. "But that doesn't change the fact that it's wrong for a Hero to own a slave! Myne-chan must have interfered for Raphtalia-chan's sake! Do you know what she told me about the slave crests?!"
"I'm not so sure about that." Ren said calmly, causing both Motoyasu and Itsuki to look at him.
"You too? But, but don't you think it's wrong?!" Motoyasu asked. "Naofumi can't have a slave!"
"Of course, it's wrong." Ren calmly locked eyes with Motoyasu. "But nothing changes the fact that Raphtalia feels the most comfortable with Naofumi. He was right about slave owners usually being abusive, as Rabier clearly proved. But..."
The three all turned to look at them again. Raphtalia was still being held in Naofumi's embrace. She had tears leaking from her eyes, but she was no longer sobbing. She looked so tired and emotionally drained, already asleep in Naofumi's lap as he gently rubbed her head.
"I don't care what anybody says about slave crests." Ren declared as he turned about and started to leave. "No abused person would look so at peace with their supposed abuser like that."
While Itsuki smiled a little bit, Motoyasu appeared to be conflicted. "But… but he…"
The foundations for his thoughts of Naofumi had already taken a severe beating and were now shaking on the verge of collapse.
'Did… Was Myne lying to me earlier about Naofumi abusing Raphtalia?' It seemed impossible for one of his closest companions to lie to him, but a real abuser had showed up, with Raphtalia herself acting appropriately before breaking down in the embrace of her 'abuser'. "Was... Was I wrong?"
Motoyasu was in such a stunted mental state that he allowed himself to be patiently led out by the Bow Hero.
As the two were finally alone, a figure silently approached them, moving slowly enough that Naofumi recognized her before she reached them. "Ninja Girl..."
The Shadow nodded as she gently laid a blanket over Raphtalia and knelt before him. "Shield Hero-sama. Were you honest about your declaration to protect your ally?"
Naofumi blinked. "Yeah."
"Even if the entirety of Melromarc was to become your enemy?"
Naofumi chuckled. "I was already this kingdom's enemy thanks to your religion. I won't stop trying to save you all from the Waves. But if you guys come after me..."
Naofumi trailed off, but his meaning was understood as the Shadow stood up.
"As a Shadow, it is my job to silence threats to the kingdom as a whole." Before Naofumi could blink, there was a blade suddenly pressed against his throat. "Even if you are one of the Cardinal Heroes, how can I be convinced not to kill you right here and now?"
Somehow, Naofumi felt calm even with the blade pressing against his throat. Idly noting how much it resembled the famous 'wrist blade' from Assassin's Creed, Naofumi gave his reply, unknowing of the gem in his Shield glowing sky blue instead of the usual sharp green. "That's not my problem yet. I got summoned here to stop the Waves. If it ever comes to a point where I can't deal with the Waves of Calamity because Melromarc keeps getting in my way... then you can try and kill me as I go against them. I won't let it be easy for you though."
Ninja Girl was silent... until she gave a nod of approval and pulled her blade away. "Then keep doing as you will, I daresay, for I shall do the same."
With that, Ninja Girl bowed to the Shield Hero before leaping several feet onto the roof and then vanished out of sight.
"So cool..." Naofumi whistled... before gasping. "I forgot to invite her into my Party! Goddamnit!"
And with that, Naofumi sighed in disappointment as he tugged Raphtalia a little closer. He wouldn't let go of her for the rest of the night
Idol Rabier grumbled to himself as he stumbled into his room, hopelessly drunk off his ass and directed in by a maid of the castle.
To think he had lost to a damned demi-human of all things!
The shame!
"Do you need anything else, Rabier-sama?" The maid asked as she laid him down on the soft bed.
"Just... leave me be..." Idol slurred as he stretched out on his bed, feebly trying to remove his clothes. Why was it so stuffy in here? "Wait. Help me undress."
The maid froze before returning to his side, her fingers deftly unbuttoning the garments. Even after she did so, Idol still found it hard to breathe.
"What's..." Idol rasped as he collapsed back onto the bed, his breaths getting shorter. 'I can't breathe...?!'
"It seems that the poison is finally running it's course, I daresay." The maid spoke, her previously nervous tone turning more subdued and refined. "Still..."
Idol choked as the 'maid' jumped and heavily landed on Idol's stomach, using the chance of him exhaling to shove a filled wine jar against his mouth, drowning him in more alcohol.
"Report on Lord Idol Rabier: After the shame of losing his match, Rabier retired to his room after a night of heavy drinking. Unfortunately, he overindulged himself as he went to sleep, with his organs suffering a near fatal failure while drowning from too much drink."
"Who... Who are... you...?!" Idol choked out, trying to breathe even harder as his lungs took less and less precious air with each inhale. "What did... you do... to me...?!"
"'Who are you?' I do not know why that must be answered to a dying man, I daresay." The maid sighed heavily, causing an illusion over her to fall away and reveal cold red eyes and a pair of weasel ears amidst shoulder-length sandy hair. "If you weren't able to recognize Raphtalia-chan, there's no point in giving you my name. After all... You obviously wouldn't remember the Weasel Demi-Human you tortured along with her, I daresay."
And with that said, the 'maid' slammed her palm heavily onto his chest, breaking his ribs and shaking his lungs. Pain erupted from the impact, causing Idol to flail about, unable to scream or breathe as his throat swelled and clogged up.
Finally, the darkness claimed Idol.
Permanently.
"Are you satisfied?"
"Indeed, I daresay." Ninja Gir- Rifana answered as she donned her uniform again, her subordinate Shadows wrapping up Rabier's body. "Be sure that in his carriage ride home, Lord Rabier appears to have been attacked by bandits, being too drunk to properly defend himself. I must return to Mirelia-sama to give our Queen my deepest gratitude for this mission. His assassination may have been ordered, but his humiliating defeat at the hands of Raphtal- I mean, the Shield Hero's companion was a welcome bonus opportunity I was glad to have witnessed."
"Understood. We are the ones that have lurked in the darkness to serve the light."
Rifana donned her mask. "We are the ones who will dabble in evil to protect the good."
The shadows in the room deepened and pooled underneath their feet.
"We are the ones for which everything is permitted should morality and law fail."
"We are neither above the system nor below it. We are Beyond and Separate."
By now, their voices were no longer separate, being one voice spoken from the mouths of many.
"We are the Shadows of Melromarc."
Two seconds later, the room was empty.
KingVessel: Hi, Rabier! Bye, Rabier! Nobody's gonna miss you. Hey there, Rifana! Glad to see you alive and killing off assholes like the badass assassin you are. Please review!
