"This is so fucking good!"

Rachel cut a large portion of her steak and jammed it into her mouth. Naofumi watched while moving his steak across the plate with a fork. How could she have an appetite after what happened hours ago?

They were in a restaurant on the rich side of town. When they stepped in, the customers and even some of the waiters stared at them like they were some kind of creatures. Even after they cleaned themselves up, they still stood out.

Not that he was hungry at the moment. Earlier in the day, they had arrived back in Castle Town. Naofumi thought that would be the end of it. Just say his thanks to the Captain and leave. But no. Nothing was that simple.

Being that the bandits were wanted criminals and he and Rachel had encountered them, they were told to give a witness report. That alone took an hour. Rachel was there to speed things up. It was also where she learned his name. She won't be calling him Shield Hero, at least.

During the interrogation of the bandits, one of them broke and said that they were going to force Naofumi to join them via slave crest. To them, he was a powerful asset to have. The same for Rachel as she could make medicine for them. What they underestimated was the Captain showing up to save them.

By the time they left, the sun was beginning to set, coloring the sky in reds and oranges.

That was when Rachel had pulled him along to the restaurant.

"We deserve this after the shit we've been through." Those were her words as they entered the rich part of the city. Had this been a mission and he'd completed it, a feast sounds like a good reward. Now, he only wanted to go to bed.

"Hey." Rachel's voice pulled him back into the present. "What's up? You better eat that steak. I spend good money on that."

Now she sounds like an older sister telling her younger brother to behave. She was right. She paid for their meal. The least he could do was eat.

He sliced a good portion of the steak and ate it. The flavor was there but subdued. After the situation with Malty, food didn't have much of a taste. Probably because he was too busy being angry at the world to enjoy the nice things.

"There you go," Rachel said, wiping the corner of her mouth with a napkin. "Just enjoy it."

If only it were that easy. He could enjoy this steak now only to have something bad happen to him tomorrow. Why enjoy something nice when something bad could happen? He knew he was being pessimistic. The Old Man told him so. How else was he supposed to survive in a world where most of the people hate him?

Well, most of them. Old Man and Rachel were the exceptions. Maybe even the Captain, being that he didn't treat him like dirt.

There was still the King, Malty, and the other heroes he still had to look out for. There was no telling when they'll pull something from their sleeves.

Only, they weren't here. It was just him and Rachel. He cut up another slice, dipping it in the sauce provided to them and ate it. The flavor was starting to become stronger.

"That was good." Rachel pushed away her empty plate and patted her belly. "Nothing says a job well done like eating steak." She reached for her glass of wine and drank some of it.

In his world, Naofumi was old enough to drink alcohol but never partake into it. The times he did drink wine he discovered he liked sweet wine, nothing too strong. This was red wine. Fuck it. He sipped it. It burned slightly but went down easy.

"Maybe I'll get some dessert." Rachel said. She signaled a waiter and asked for a slice of strawberry cake. When the cake came, Rachel dug into it without hesitation.

Naofumi wished he had her enthusiasm about food. Or just any enthusiasm. That all went away after Malty's betrayal.

When he finished his steak and some of the wine, he pushed the plate forward.

Across the table, Rachel watched Naofumi. He's been quiet ever since they got back from speaking with the Captain. He didn't even object to her pulling him along to the restaurant. He'd been nothing but a gloomy brat.

A gloomy brat who has the world against him. After their first encounter, she'd thought of him as just some stupid brat who thinks he can get what he wants by acting mean. She'd been dealing with assholes like that and she fought back. Whether it be extorting the rich or in Naofumi's case, attacking anyone who wants to harm her, she'll give it her all.

But now, she sees what Naofumi for who he is, just some lost kid. She didn't know a lot about the summoning of the Cardinal Heroes. She knew the previous ones were killed in a wave, hence why Naofumi and the others were summoned.

That in itself was what bothered her. Why take someone from their home and force them to fight? Clearly, Naofumi never saw a day of fighting. At least not like this. His world was a complete mystery to her. Maybe that's why she took an interest in him.

"So," she rested her arms on the table. "Any idea on what you're gonna do? You still have a world to protect, don't you?"

In response, Naofumi looked to the side. "I'll do what I can."

"And that is?"

"Whatever I can."

That wasn't much of an answer. He wouldn't make it out there, even with his shield.

… There was one thing that she could do.

"You're still looking for a party member, right?" She can't believe she was doing this.

"Yeah?" Rachel didn't miss the cautionary tone in his voice. He was still suspicious.

"Does that offer still stand?"

Naofumi thought he heard wrong. Just yesterday, she kicked him in the crotch and popped one of his balloon monsters. And now she wants to join him?

"What the catch." This was too simple. Why would she join him after he threatened to blackmail her?

"Well," Rachel leaned back on her chair. "I do travel a lot, aiding the sick and such. I have to get ingredients from different parts of the kingdom and I get a lot of money. Plus, there's the extortion that I do. I could easily make 10 gold coins in a day compared to some who work for weeks just to get one. And, I do have tonics that can help you if you get sick. Not a bad deal if I do say so myself."

It was a good deal alright. Too good.

By all means, he should be happy someone was willing to join them. Rachel being an apothecary does help a lot if they need to get healed. Her knowledge of medicine and plants is a valuable asset. That, and she has a weapon and can use fire magic.

It does beat the idea of getting a slave. He had to remember that she volunteered to join him.

He was placing his trust in her. If she so much as betrays that, he'll leave her behind. Until then…

"Fine. You can join me."

"Great!" Rachel stood from her chair, left a few copper coins on the table for the waiter, and pulled Naofumi along. "Let's go back to Traverse Inn. I can get us a room with two beds."

Naofumi didn't have any idea what he was getting himself into. This woman is unpredictable, is foul-mouthed, and scams people into giving her more money. She was no here.

Then again, he wasn't either.

She couldn't sleep.

Rachel tossed and turned in her bed, trying to find a comfy position to sleep on. But nothing worked. Giving up, Rachel stood and walked over to the desk the room had provided for them. Behind her, Naofumi was asleep on the other bed. She could hear his soft breathing in the silence.

She carefully and slowly pulled back the chair and sat down. Below her, her satchel sat against one of the table's legs. She pulled out her mortar and pestle, some herbs and a bottle of honey.

This had been a tradition of hers when she couldn't sleep. Make enough medicine until she got really tired and go back to sleep. It worked a lot, so it should work now.

She grounded the herbs and poured in the honey, mixing the two until the substance was ready. She took out an empty vial and poured in the honey.

She repeated the process until four vials were full. Putting away her supplies, she shifted a few things in her satchel until she came across her apothecary manual.

It was standard for an apothecary to carry a medical journal detailing every known sickness known to man. She had every disease memorized though she did go through it just to be safe.

Taking it out, she flipped through the pages until she found what she was looking for.

It was a drawing of a dragon. It wasn't colored, but she remembered the stories she has heard describing the colors. Some exaggerated but she could understand why. Vibrant colors of blue, purple, gold, and orange. Vibrant wings that could easily blow you back with one flap.

The Peacock Dragon.

When Naofumi had asked her why she wanted to join, she left this part out. It wasn't she didn't trust him with it, she herself wasn't sure if she could even fight the dragon.

If she could get a handful of its scales…

It was a dream that was close yet far away.

Shutting the book, she put it back in her satchel and climbed back into bed. The image of the dragon was in her mind as she drifted off to sleep.

A shield transforms.

An ax cleaves.

A dagger cuts deep.

An arrow pierces through.

A tome expels magic.

A sword slices.

A staff summons the dead.

A greatsword swings.

Together, they will save the world.

New Party Member!

Name: Rachel Addlehart.

LV: 28

Race: Human

Age: 22

Class: None

Occupation: Apothecary

Author's Notes: Thank you all so much for reading Kingdom! I can't thank you all from the bottom of my heart!

KirusunaSOA: To answer your question, no he is not the captain that lead the soldiers during the first wave. He will make an appearance but the captain is the beastmaster. And his armor is different than the others

Victor John Foxfire: Rachel is human. And this is an AU story which means some things will change from the original canon. Such as the inclusion of beastmasters. And rest assured, I take in every criticism to heart. I know not everyone will like my story and that is fine. Any response positive or negative I take into consideration.