I do not own Rising of the Shield Hero

First, I need to apologize for missing my weekend deadline. Longer explanation at the end of the chapter. The next update will be the weekend on June than the upcoming weekend. Once again, apologize to anyone looking forward to my story.

I want to once again give my biggest thanks to Comrade Broseph for help rewrite this chapter, thank you very much for co-writing this chapter with me and sorry you had to crunch to morning! Also thanks to Fluffball13 for reading my first draft to make sure I stay on the right direction.

Also, Author's Note at the end for people who want to see me blabber more.


Any halfway decent liar knows that adding truth to the lies you weave makes them more convincing. But a true master of deception knows that the best way to manipulate someone is to tell the absolute truth.

The art to the craft lies in only telling the truth that benefits you, allowing the target of the deception naturally fill in the blanks and come to a wrong conclusion by themselves.

Mein keeps her head low while following Naofumi's lead towards the plains outside the city walls. Despite the tumultuous events of the morning, they were currently heading out of the city to do some monster slaying. She was honestly a little surprised, having thought that Naofumi would want to spend the entire day recovering from what to him must have been a horrible ordeal. However the young man seems to have discovered some sort resolve within himself. He insisted that they had no time to waste and the faster he became stronger the better.

Well, Mein certainly wasn't going to complain about her chosen Hero's newly found spirit. It wouldn't do if he was so crushed by what happened that he'd become unmotivated. And while it's certainly good that he wasn't, his trials and tribulations had only just begun. It's going to be up to her to ensure that his resolve does not abandon him.

Noticing Naofumi's sideways glance at her she pretends to still shake a little in her step, doing her best to cower at his side as they move. Her body language is set to express uncertainty and fear. Even if inside she wants to do nothing more than smirk. After all, what better motivation could she give her newly acquired pawn than motivation to protect his only companion, the only one who didn't abandon him in his hour of need?

The die had been cast and now with her future queenship on the line, Mein resolves to be nothing less than the most convincing damsel in distress for her chosen knight in shining armor. She once again represses her smirk. The so called 'Demon of the Shield' doesn't stand a chance at resisting her. Naofumi's seduction was going to take days at most and then she'll have him eating right out of her hand.

Although, Mein supposes that it wouldn't do to get overconfident now. She is not out of the woodwork yet. Right now she needs to find a way to give crucial information to Naofumi, without ousting herself as one of the conspirators that were behind his near-conviction. Information his life depends on. Information that may compromise her own standing with him. If he takes it the wrong way there is no going back.

Just as well that the die had been cast already, isn't it?

Chapter 5: Woe is the Shield Hero

Once they'd left the city of Melromarc Castle sufficiently far behind, Mein looks around the open fields to make sure that no one is close enough to listen in on them. They seem to be in the clear, aside from some farmers that are strewn about the countryside here and there, closest of them being way outside of hearing range. There is still always a chance that one of them is a disguised shadow in possession of an arcane listening device. But then again, a shadow could just as well be standing right in front of her at this very moment and she'd be none the wiser. Curse her low level…

She's just going to have to risk it. She takes Naofumi by his hand and pulls a bit to stop him from moving. He looks at her questioningly.

"Are you okay, Mein?" Naofumi dropped the 'Miss' in her name. A good sign that the young man is starting to see her as a close ally, rather than merely an acquaintance.

"You look shaken. Maybe today you should take it easy? I don't want to force you to fight right after... that." The Shield Hero Naofumi runs a hand through his messy hair. His eyes wander around the plain, like he is trying to find some kind of cheat sheet to help him out of an awkward moment.

Cute. He is clearly more concerned about her wellbeing rather than his own. But that can be both a good thing or a bad thing, depending on if he is forcing himself to act chivalrous or actually being sincere.

Oh, Mein certainly appreciates the gesture when she is the object of concern. And after yesterday she doesn't think that her Naofumi shares the Spear Hero's stipulations about women not fighting…

...She hopes. The Spear Hero did get pretty close to her Naofumi earlier… What if the blonde's idiocy was infectious and could be transmitted through mere proximity?

What a truly horrifying thought.

On that note, she should really start weaving her tale before Naofumi becomes too concerned.

"I'm sorry to have to concern you, Master Naofumi. Especially after that... sordid affair back in the castle. But I'm scared." She does her best to seem even more pitiful and makes certain to address Naofumi with the title of Master, so as to better to emphasize that she is in his care.

"From the trial? Don't worry, Mein. I'm fine, see? You saved me." The young man cheerfully flexes his arm and beats on his chest. His smile begins to fade when Mein's expression doesn't lighten up. "Maybe you are scared of the king? He does look suspicious, but we'll be careful. Amagi is going to help watch over our backs... probably. We also convinced Kawasumi... maybe. And Kitamura... well, he'll listen to you. We'll be fine, we have to be..."

Naofumi's voice slowly trails off near the end. He sounds more like he is trying to convince himself rather than her. Time to give him something to think about, and push him towards the direction she needs him to go.

Theatrically, Mein lets out a long and deep breath before starting her narrative. "Thank you for trying, Master Naofumi. But I'm scared because I... didn't tell you the truth. You see, there's a reason why you almost became a criminal. And it's not the one you heard in the throne room." The undercover princess looks to the side after the last sentence.

"…I see. Please tell me what you know, Mein." Any remnants of levity in his voice are gone without a trace. He does not seem surprised however. Interesting. It's good that she decided to have this conversation as soon as possible then, otherwise he might have jumped to some unfortunate conclusions. Especially if they were the correct ones.

"I will do my best, Master Naofumi. What do you know of our world?"

"The summoners told us about the Waves of Catastrophe. That these Waves are some sort of regularly occurring natural disaster in your world and whenever they come, they bring with them swarms of rampaging demonic monsters. They said that according to your legends whenever the Waves start four heroes are summoned to fight them off. I didn't get much else from them." Naofumi thoughtfully holds his chin in his hand, he closes his eyes and twists his brow together.

"I also read a book back in my world, right before ending up here. Something about heroes with different weapons... but I really can't remember much…" He pauses again for several seconds. "It's almost strange actually. The harder I try to remember anything that I've read the more it slips my mind. Like some sort of dream…" He looks troubled at the admission. "I do remember that the book was entirely blank when it came to the Shield Hero."

So he knows nothing then. Good. This means she can feed him easily accessible and commonplace knowledge in return for more of his trust.

"I'll try to start from the beginning, Master Naofumi. You see, aside from humans, there is another… group… that exists on this world. They look somewhat human-like, however they also posses grotesque animal features. Some of them are practically indistinguishable from beasts at first glance. They are called demi-humans or beastmen. By nature they are much more warlike than people. They have constantly been a scourge on the human kingdoms, since before even recorder history..."

Mein takes a dramatic pause. She is paying careful attention to Naofumi's reaction to what she says. Her words need to be chosen with great care, lest she accidentally puts her foot in her mouth. She knows little about what sort of society the young man came from after all.

The young man in question is so far looking thoughtful but seemingly accepting of her words.

"This is starting to sound like humans and Orcs from Warcraft... Next you'll tell me they arrived to this world through a dark portal and brought the Waves with them." The Shield Hero begins to mumble something under his breath. He scratches his head again when he sees Mein's bewildered stare. "…Oh you've got to be kidding me."

"…While our records of the ancient times have long since been lost, the beastmen do indeed have a lot in common with the demons that spill from the Waves. Aside from their inherent bloodlust, their bodies are much more attuned to their level. Their young can mature in a span of weeks by simply being in a party with their kin. This is an attribute shared by monsters and demons brought by the Waves."

Mein licks her lips nervously as she recounts what has been her country's propaganda since before she was born. To be fair, none of it was strictly speaking wrong to the best of her knowledge. It simply went out of its way to use the truth in order to paint their enemies in the most unfavorable light.

"The ability to gain living energy from slaying your foes… It was not always an intrinsic part of life. Humans are said to have been granted it by the grace of God, when our world was first threatened by the Waves of Catastrophe. But the demons and monsters, whose existence revolves entirely around draining life essence… They are said to be purely the product of the Devil's work."

Naofumi is listening with rapt attention. Mein takes another dramatic pause as she draws in a deep breath, before continuing her explanation.

"As Master Naofumi said, for as long as we remember, four Cardinal Heroes that are summoned from outside of our world had always saved us in our time of need. By the very nature of their existence all four always worked to combat the Waves… But that did not mean they were always in agreement when it came to other matters. Once the Waves were beaten back it was common for the Heroes to fall into conflict among themselves. And while the three Heroes bearing weapons always sided with various human kingdoms, it was not so when it came to the Shield Heroes of the past. Without a single exception, the Heroes of the Shield always took the side of the beasts and waged war on the kingdoms of man. On several occasions even coming close to wiping humanity out completely. Due to this the beastmen have taken to worshiping every Shield Hero as the walking avatar of their dark God." She lets her somber words hang in the air, as Naofumi stares at her open-mouthed.

"Our world mostly worships the four Legendary Heroes collectively as our saviors from the Waves of Catastrophe... But because of the divide in the allegiances of the Heroes of the past, the human kingdoms see every Shield Hero as someone that is eventually going to end up our enemy. Some even take it so far as to call the Shield Hero a demon in disguise, one that is always sent by the Waves to saw dissent among the true Heroes and weaken the world."

Somehow Naofumi's eyes open even wider, while his jaw does its best to hit the ground. The young man from another world stays perfectly still for an entire minute after Mein finished speaking, before he shouts loudly. "It all make sense now!"

After his proclamation Naofumi turns and starts to pace in a circle. His breath becomes hoarse like he is about to pass out. "That's why nobody wanted to be my companion! Why that king was so quick to convict me! This is... this is seriously messed up! Why do they think I'll be their enemy just because the other Shield Heroes didn't take their side! Have they thought that maybe it's because they had this assumption about those Shield Heroes and kept antagonizing them!?"

Mein gives the young Hero a moment to catch himself. Naofumi eventually manages to bring his breathing back to an even pace. He looks up at Mein with a mixture of emotions in his eyes that are too numerous to recount. "That's why you were in Kitamura's party at first, isn't it? You thought that I was an enemy of humans."

"Yes. I'm sorry I wasn't honest with you, Master Naofumi. I am merely a new adventurer from the backwater town of Samphor… and I was also scared of the Shield Hero. The Church of the Three Heroes taught us that the false Hero of the Shield is a demon in disguise." Mein is keeping her eyes away from Naofumi's face and staring intently at the ground. As she talks she sheds more of her crocodile tears. "But when I saw Master Naofumi's desperate look after no one would join him... I knew that I couldn't leave you alone. And later that day you showed me that everyone was wrong about you! You were kind and thoughtful and clever, and- and nothing like everyone said you'd be! I'm ashamed of myself for judging you harshly, Master Naofumi! I know you aren't a demon! Please forgive me for ever doubting you!"

As Mein says this she begins to sob, her hands balled into fists by her sides. After a while she feels Naofumi's hands on her shoulders and looks up at him with tear filled eyes.

"No. You have nothing to be forgiven for, Mein. You went out of your way to give someone you were taught to hate a chance. And when everyone was turning on me and all you had to do was say what they wanted to hear, you instead weren't afraid to stand up to your own king! You chose to believe in me when it would have been so much easier to condemn me. Kitamura was right, I really AM lucky to have you."

The undercover princess forces her incessant creeping grin away from her face. She loves when a scheme runs its course without a hitch.

Now it's time to strike the iron while it's still hot.

"…Even so Master Naofumi, I still have a lot to make up for. For starters, please let me explain how the party system works." At seeing his confused look she hurries on to elaborate before he can interject anything. "While we are formally in one party, when it concerns Legendary Heroes it's not quite that simple. Heroes have a much more expanded system, one that allows them to interact with the world through their levels and abilities much more extensively than everyone else. Part of it allows them to invite other people to pool and share all of their claimed exp together."

Mein nervously places one foot behind another and looks back at the ground.

"It takes you a while to defeat even a single monster, so you don't gain much experience even if the total amount of exp for each of your kills is amplified by the Shield. I on the other hand am able to slay them at a far greater rate, but lack any sort of exp amplification without your Shield or any other Legendary weapon boosting the amount of life essence I absorb. So if you use your Shield's system to make me a party member, it would really speed up the process of gaining levels for the both of us."

Mein pretends to start sobbing again "I didn't mention anything about this earlier because I didn't yet know what kind of man Master Naofumi was… I thought that I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if I gave ammunition to someone that would end up fighting humanity. Please forgive me..!"

A finger is suddenly pressed to her lips. The intimate gesture stuns her and as she lifts her eyes she can see Naofumi looking at her with a small comforting smile on his face. She can't help but think that some of the rosy tint to her cheeks must be entirely natural right now.

"It's alright. If I was taught to hate someone all my life I'd be careful around them too. I am glad that you told me this now Mein. The fact that you didn't share the details of how a Hero's party works earlier, when you didn't know me that well yet, just means you are a very responsible person." His smile deepens and involuntarily so does Mein's blush.

"Besides, better late than never, right?"

Nailed it.


It's hours later and after a single level gained by each of them, that they find themselves back in the city in order to restock for supplies.

Mein can't help but feel a buzzing sense of childish glee at finally having reached level 4 after all of these years. Even if she spent those years convincing herself that levels don't matter for someone of her standing. And even if she was still ridiculously weak for a member of royalty… it's still a good feeling, that of knowing you just improved yourself after staying stagnant for so long.

Not that she thought that she particularly needed improving in anything outside of fighting skill. So she supposed that the best way to think about it would be… that she was covering her one remaining area of weakness and soon she would have none left!

When put that way she was pretty much perfect, wasn't she?

Naofumi for his part grew in power even more considerably than her. All from simply reaching level 2. Although it's not that surprising she supposed, given that he essentially doubled his level. At this point he no longer struggled to deal with the weaker variant of the balloon monsters that plagued the fields of Melromarc, being able to dispose of them by simple squeezing them hard enough. In fact he claimed that he no longer even felt the orange ones at all when they bit him, as if they were just not there. She supposed that as the Shield Hero his defense rating must really get an obscene boost with each level.

Anyway, even though it's barely a couple of hours past noon both Mein and Naofumi are feeling the need for a short break. Not to mention that neither of them had breakfast that day and they were too lost in thought to buy any food to carry when they left town earlier. Add to that the fact that manual labor didn't endear itself to Mein in any way, since the last time she tried it all the way back yesterday…

Yeah, she definitely needed a break. No way in hell was she working full days like this for several months, potentially even years, all in a row!

She should really insist on getting mounts for herself and Naofumi once they decide to venture out further. Maybe even a couple of slaves that could do the busywork like cooking and setting up campsites for them?

On that note she wouldn't mind a beastman slave with an ability to fight. A single magic seal would ensure they were no threat to their master, so it wouldn't be the same as actually letting another person join their party. Another blade working for them would go a long way to help with monster-farming, as her Naofumi amusingly called it.

Though slaves and mounts would have to be the exception. It was too dangerous to allow anyone else close to them, given the general attitude people of Melromarc had for the Shield Hero. And even if some adventurers they met would genuinely want to help them, Mein would not stand for a third wheel butting in where it didn't belong. Earlier today she certainly did her best to make it clear to HER Naofumi, that he was to under no circumstances invite anyone else to their party…

All things considered Mein thinks that her talk with Naofumi couldn't have gone any better. As was indicative of their newly raised levels they finally partied up through the Shield's system. Although it was not without first spending a considerable amount of time trying to decipher how that particular function of the Shield even worked. It really would have saved both a lot of time and effort if either knew that apparently the Shield had some sort of help manual installed all along. Mein was barely holding herself back from pulling her own hair out of frustration when that tidbit was accidentally discovered.

After that was done with, she managed to convince Naofumi to not let on to anyone about what she revealed to him that day. She explained that it could mean a lot of trouble for her if the people of the kingdom found out that she was spilling such dangerous 'secrets' to who they thought to be their enemy. It only took a couple more minutes of tearful begging and Naofumi was swearing up and down that he'd not tell a soul without asking Mein's approval first.

She hoped not. She wasn't joking when she told him that many of the faithful would be perfectly willing to go so far as to lace his drink with poison when he was at a bar, or sell him faulty healing potions in the hope that he'd bleed out from a wound when adventuring. And if word got out that she was helping the 'Demon' those dangers would extend to her as well. Mein had her silver needle artifact with her just in case of such events, but those weren't known to be foolproof against some of the higher level magical poisons. Not to mention it wouldn't be able to detect if a potion or a piece of gear was of low quality or had some sort of detrimental side effect.

They'd need to be careful about where they shopped from now on.

She pulls her leather hood down over her face a bit more. Of course the equipment sold to them by the Demon Blacksmith From Hell had to have been good. In a way it was good to know that at least someone wouldn't sabotage them out of a misguided sense of duty to the faith. Mein figures that she would probably end up revisiting his shop when looking for upgrades to her and Naofumi's current gear. At least until they skipped town.

They were only safe to stay at the capital now because the other Cardinal Heroes were here. She doubted that either her father, or for that matter the Pope, would make another blatant move that would risk alienating every single Hero from Melromarc. Not after the framing of the Shield Hero failed the first time and all the Heroes had their guard up. But after they would have to split up in order to keep leveling? All bets are off.

For now she could still play everything off as simply being Naofumi's handler, rather than a true ally, even if the deception wouldn't be able to last long. But convincing her father that she was still in on the plan to destroy the Shield Hero would buy time. Time in which her and Naofumi could grow powerful enough that none aside from the other Heroes would be a true threat to them.

Suddenly Mein feels someone jostle her with their shoulder and she is knocked back into Naofumi, prompting him to catch her and give her a worried look. Seriously, what is it with people making her trip these last few days? She can't possibly be THAT clumsy. Even if the skill of moving through crowds effectively is one she never had the need to develop, being the first princess and all…

When they turn in the direction the man that bumped into her went, they can see him shoot them a dirty look over his shoulder and spit on the ground.

A provocateur? Unlikely. If he wanted to cause a scene he'd have stuck around. Probably just someone that held deep religious views in regards to how the Shield Hero should be treated…

Well, he'd not be the first such individual that they encountered even in the few minutes her and Naofumi had been in the market square. However the fact that SHE was the target of the man's ire also indicates that there must be some rumors spreading about the Shield Hero's companion already. Not that she should have expected anything less really.

…It's still a great indignity and it was much beneath her to even think about getting used to such treatment from filthy commoners. But as with that fat sow from the Bow Hero's party, revenge would have to wait for now.

She feels Naofumi's grip on her shoulder tighten and she can practically hear his teeth grinding as he stares at the back of man that pushed her. He actually looks somewhat threatening in that moment.

Mein didn't expect to discover this side of her Naofumi. But she can admit that it certainly has its own appeal. Oh, she planned for Naofumi to become protective of her and get attached. She just didn't expect the sudden ferocity with which he seemed to look out for her. It's like the clueless boy suddenly disappeared into thin air and was replaced by a dangerous but also dashing rogue.

She puts her hand on top of his own.

"Let's finish what we came here for. It's best to get our provisions and leave quickly." After restocking and getting some food they did intend to head back and earn some more exp before the day was over. At least while there was still some light left.

Mein lifts her hooded face up towards the sky, where the sun was barely past its zenith. Just looking at its position high in the sky made Mein's body ache with phantom pain all over…

While she understood and approved of the rationale behind getting stronger, Mein still couldn't help but internally wince at how physically exhausting this all was. She felt like one big bruise. How was she supposed to seduce her Naofumi like this? She didn't think that she'd be able to move or even think properly at all come the night…


Mein and Naofumi stop their adventuring for the day as the last ray of sunlight disappears over the horizon. Neither quite managed to fully level up again that day, which took some wind out of their sails, but they still made significant progress. At this rate they would both have a level somewhere in the 30s once the next Wave started in a month or so. If they kept up the pace that is, which Mein isn't certain she can manage for much longer… She thinks that they can probably afford to slow down slightly and aim for the 20s instead.

The undercover princess immediately feels the shift in the atmosphere when they enter the city. The air itself seems to be almost unbearable and not only because the sewers were overflowing again.

Whereas before it was only some individuals among the crowd of thousands, now practically all pedestrians they come across turn their faces away at their passing. At the sight of her and the Shield Hero muted whisperers are spreading all around, too quiet to make out in detail but still obvious in regard to who the subjects of said whispers are.

"They are looking at us funny. Keep your eyes open, Mein." The Shield Hero Naofumi whispers into her ear as he meets the threatening gaze of some thuggish man dressed in rags, that is standing in a nearby alley. He is following them with his eyes as they move, while one of the equally unsavory looking individuals standing next to him is saying something to his comrade while pointing at them.

"I will, Master Naofumi. But please be extra careful yourself." Mein replies as she looks down at Naofumi's surprisingly bulky frame that is silhouetted underneath his green cloak.

Not that the young man somehow managed to gain several pounds of weight in one afternoon…

"Don't worry, I have my concealed weapons. They'll get a big surprise if they try anything!" Naofumi's mouth twists into a mischievously impish smile. A low rumbling growl can be heard coming from underneath his cloak and an orange balloon pokes out its head for a second, before the young man roughly shoves it back down.

…Yes, Naofumi convinced Mein into allowing him to do his trick of carrying around several small monsters attached to him, to use as projectiles if the need arises.

While she argued that they were probably safe from the royal guards for now, she couldn't help but agree with him when he claimed that he would need something to fight with if a misguided fanatic came at him. And looking around herself now, Mein sees that it may not have been a bad precaution to take after all.

There may even be other hidden dangers lurking in the city aside from followers of the faith and her father's men.

Thinking back to Marquis Noches' words from the morning, about there potentially being agents of Siltvelt or Shiltfreeden in the city… Was it a simple excuse to get the king out of hot water, or is there a real threat to watch out for from that direction? It wouldn't be unheard of for subversive activities to occur between countries in such a turbulent time as this. Mein would not be surprised if her mother currently has some of her top shadows stationed in other kingdoms.

As for the other three geopolitical superpowers and their potential in infiltrating Melromarc...

The Raven Order of Siltvelt, and the Shiv of the People from Shiltfreeden, the Unspeakable of Faubley… They can all can give her mother's shadows a run for their money. Not to mention that simply hiring local mercenaries and informers is also not off the table for anyone.

The men that were observing them quietly disappear into an alleyway without causing any trouble. Mein releases the breath that she was holding. It's always better to avoid unnecessary conflict. Even if they end up winning, just the fact that the Shield Hero participated in some sort of altercation was bound to be used against them. Especially if it was discovered that he was smuggling monsters into the city…

With those thoughts occupying her mind Mein almost doesn't notice when they finally arrive at Deidric's inn - the same place they stayed in last night. Once they enter Mein can immediately tell that the tone of the restaurant is much more somber than the previous night, with adventurers and patrons keeping mostly to themselves. The other three Heroes are sitting around a large banquet sized table along with their respective parties and from the looks of it the dark atmosphere didn't pass them buy. The only one who doesn't seem to have a storm cloud hovering over him is the blond Spear Hero.

"Hey, HEY! Mein and Iwatani! Come join us!" The easily excited Spear Hero waves his hand at them in invitation.

"Sorry Kitamura, but we're kinda tired right now. We'll probably join you guys later." Naofumi gives a polite nod to the Spear Hero even as he denies the request.

Mein doubts that Naofumi is being sincere about possibly coming to join the others later. She remembers how awkward he was about socializing with his fellow Heroes even yesterday. After everything that's happened she expects that the young man would hardly be in the mood for partying through the night.

The Spear Hero isn't letting the matter go that easily however. He jumps up from his seat and trots towards them.

"Come on, Iwatani. You had all day to talk with your angelic companion. Share her with us!" The Spear Hero gives a knowing smile to her Naofumi, while he slides between them. He presumptuously flings his arms around both of their shoulders and starts to guide them to the big table. They barely take one step before the blond pretty-boy jumps up into the air with a loud scream, his Spear carelessly tossed aside.

"ARGH! MY HAND!"

The other patrons of the inn all look at the scene with dumbfounded expressions. They watch as the Spear Hero struggles, flails and fumbles around trying to save himself from the ferocious assault of a small orange balloon.

After several seconds it starts to become apparent that the surprised Hero is not winning the battle any time soon. His Legendary Weapon is lying discarded and forgotten under a near table, while the blond fool himself is quickly being reduced to a whimpering wreck as the tiny monster keeps singlehandedly gnawing away at his arm - the Spear Hero's entire fist having fit perfectly into its jagged maw.

Mein notes that while it's probably the single most pathetic display she has ever seen she still can't look away. In some way it's not unlike a cart-crash that's being replayed in slow motion on a recording orb. Naofumi seems to be frozen in place as well right beside her, hand outstretched as if some part of him wants to intervene but doesn't know how.

When the Spear Hero gives up the last of the fight left in him and it seems as if his short-lived legend is about to come to a premature end, the Bow Hero becomes the first to recover from the stupor that everyone around seems to have succumbed to. He quickly releases an arrow from his bow and pops the balloon biting the blond disgrace to the name of the Legendary Heroes, saving the clown from being devoured alive by a level 1 pest.

In the ensuing silence everyone can hear the crying coming from where the Spear Hero collapsed on the ground during his struggle. Eventually, his blond pony-tailed head pokes back over the edge of a nearby table and he directs his tearful eyes towards the Bow Hero sitting on the other side.

"Itsuki… you… YOU SAVED MY LIFE! THANK YOU! THANK YOU SO MUCH! I AM ETERNALLY IN YOUR DEBT! The foolish man-child attempts to lunge at his proclaimed savior in order to embrace him but is stopped by the Bow Hero's companions.

The Bow Hero's face looks like it's stuck somewhere between resignation and disgust.

"Just to think, that this is the first time I saved someone… And it's Kitamura of all people…" The poor boy looks like he might be sick. If Mein has to guess this isn't what he had in mind when he talked of his dream.

"Great shot Master Itsuki!" The Bow Hero's companions awkwardly fall into the routine of showering their chosen Hero with praise. "As expected from a Legendary Hero!"

The Bow Hero for his part doesn't pay much heed to the praise coming his way. He simply looks exasperated. He looks over his table as he hangs his Legendary Weapon back over his shoulder. The Sword Hero rolls his eyes but manages to refrain from inserting a derisive comment. Instead he directs his attention to the Spear wielder.

"Kitamura, seriously. You're such a child." The youngest of the legendary Heroes doesn't seem to understand the irony of what he is saying as he berates the eldest. Thought to be fair, for how little it's worth the Hero of the Sword does seem to be a much more mature individual than the Spear-buffoon.

The latter is still struggling in the grip of the big armored companion of the Bow Hero. Eventually when the clown seems to somewhat come to his senses the knight from the Bow Hero's party releases his hold on him and the Spear Hero falls back to the ground with a dull thud. Immediately the Spear's own companions rush to his side and start inquiring as to his wellbeing, one even offering to use healing magic.

Mein covers her face with one of her hands. Seriously, the balloon didn't even draw any blood. This is beyond sad to watch.

Held up by his companions, the Legendary Clown Hero is led back to the Heroes table and sits back down in his chair. He immediately turns to look at Naofumi, eyes shooting daggers.

"What the hell, man! Why did you keep a monster under your cloak!?" He seems to have found a target to direct his ire at, as he blows on his bitten hand.

The accusation finally seems to jolt her Naofumi out of his shock induced stupor. He bashfully rubs the back of his head and moves to take a seat at the Heroes table next to the Spear Hero - the latter quickly scooting away from him on his chair as far as possible.

"Sorry. I can't be too careful after what happened today. So I kept those balloons on me for insurance." Naofumi opens his cloak, revealing several more balloons latched onto his body like they were some swarm composed of Melromarc's most determined hungry babies.

"Using monsters and your inhumanly high defense to get around the weapon violation rule. Clever." The Sword Hero raises one eyebrow as he says this. He gives the much older Shield Hero a nod of approval.

"I suppose that it's certainly… resourceful." The Bow Hero mumbles thoughtfully.

"You could have warned me first." The Spear Hero turns away with a gloomy expression. "Uncool, man. Way uncool."

"I already said I was sorry, but it's a necessity for me until I get stronger! Besides, it's not entirely my fault. You shouldn't be so clingy." Naofumi says in an exasperated voice as he argues with the Spear Hero. They've been going back and forth like this for around ten minutes now.

"Yeah, but still! That thing almost got me! Like, what if I was killed by that terrible monster!?" As the Spear Hero proclaims this he visibly shudders. His female companions immediately lean into him and start uttering words of comfort.

The opportunists sure don't miss any chance to endear themselves to their Hero of choice. Mein can admire that. Even if the Hero they chose leaves much to be desired.

"And what if I was crippled by that thing? This world is pretty much doomed if I can't fight with my Spear." Mein can't help but roll her eyes at this. It would literally take an orange balloon days to gnaw off someone's limb. The fact that the clown with the Spear screamed like a little girl when he was bitten and failed to do anything was just testament to his minuscule threshold for pain tolerance. Even she would have had no trouble dealing with an orange balloon if it bit her!

…Mein consciously tries to not think of the fact that the tiny spherical creatures scared the living hell out of her at first. She was over it now! Besides, by this point she must be something of an expert in dealing with balloons, after having spent two days hunting them with Naofumi. She could probably take on a dozen of them all at once, without any help!

"So yeah, actually I think I am owed some serious reparations here! Such as… Hmmm… How about lending me your lovely companion for a day?" Mein feels her eye twitch. The Spear Clown just grins at her and gives her a wink. Did the idiot mistake her frustrated tick as her winking at him!? "I suppose that I'll have to trade you one of mine for Miss Mein, so that you aren't completely useless…"

The Spear Hero wants to say something more, but he's interrupted when the Sword Hero sitting on his other side slams a mug onto the table.

"Shut up already, Kitamura! Iwatani apologized. Just let it go!" The dark haired boy shouts in exasperation. "Your bitching is seriously starting to give me a headache! As if we didn't have enough on our plate already…"

The Bow Hero nods his head at the Sword Hero's words.

The Spear Clown hangs his head dejectedly. The fire goes out of him after being chastised by his much younger comrade. He picks up his Spear and starts slowly moving it in a circle, its tip pointed towards the ground, while his eyes fill up with tears again.

"So that's how it is…" He speaks in quiet and somber tone. "Summoned to another world against my will. Abandoned by all of my so allies. Left behind by a cute girl in favor of someone else and falsely accused when I am the real victim…"

The Spear wielding drama queen picks up a clay mug standing in front of him and slowly moves it up to his mouth. He seems to stare into it, lost to the outside world. After several seconds he suddenly chugs down the contents in one go and slams it back down on the table. He somehow looks even more depressed now.

"…Even the once delicious food and drink have lost their taste. This world, it's completely drained of flavor now…" Mein can feel her eye starting to twitch again.

After a second the Bow Hero angrily stands up and snatches the mug away from where the Spear Clown left it. He takes a nearby water pitcher and refills it, letting out a frustrated sigh.

"That's because it was water! And it wasn't even yours!" The boy with the Bow is seething as he sits back down at his place. "I honestly can't tell if you are just that immature or actually mentally impaired. Either way, if you keep acting like this then I can't see you as anything but a detriment to me saving this world."

Mein doesn't think that she ever heard the Bow Hero openly insult someone like that before, even when he was riding his justice-high. She can admit to being somewhat surprised by it.

She isn't the only one either. Even Naofumi raises an eyebrow at the Bow Hero, obviously noticing the difference in the other's behavior pattern.

The rest don't seem too surprised however. The Bow Hero's companions don't give much of a reaction at all. They must have been witness to what put the usually polite Hero in such a foul mood. The Sword Hero just covers his face with his hands and shakes his head, while his companions are seemingly doing the best to stay so still that they become invisible. The girls from the Spear Hero's party have given up on comforting their Hero and are just sitting awkwardly at his side, while the Spear Hero himself is lost to the world, having completely devolved into a broken wreck, staring off into nowhere with a depressed look on his pretty-boy features.

After a while of awkward silence it's Naofumi that finally breaks it.

"So… What happened, Kawasumi? You seem unusually irritated." That's certainly one way of putting it.

The Bow Hero doesn't even look up at being addressed and only grinds his teeth angrily, while staring down at the table. In his stead it's the Sword wielder that speaks to answer Naofumi's question.

"You didn't know? There's a bad rumor around the city. Everyone thinks you raped your companion and threatened her into silence. Some say you used an ability of your Shield to force her to obey you. Others say you made her your slave. Kawasumi almost had a breakdown and turned some adventurers into pincushions when he heard them badmouthing you." The Sword Hero nods in the direction of the self proclaimed ally of justice as he says this.

"Well, they shouldn't perpetuate lies! Iwatani was proven innocent! It's unjust to keep painting him as a criminal." The Bow Hero lets out a huge huff of air from his lungs. "I'm going to practice my next unlocked skill on whoever started that damn rumor."

"You'll have to catch them first. Could be the foreign spy already skipped town, if that spymaster was telling the truth." The Sword Hero also lets out an exasperated sigh. He squeezes his eyes shut and rubs his temple.

Mein quickly exchanges a glance with Naofumi. He closes his eyes and shakes his head.

"Aren't you angry, Iwatani!? They are badmouthing you!" The Bow Hero finally looks up from the table and at Naofumi. It's hard to tell if he's mad at the person that started the rumor, or Naofumi for making all the Heroes look bad.

Naofumi slumps a little into his seat and turns back to look at Itsuki with a tired expression. "Anger can't solve anything. If I can't catch the one responsible, I'll just have to be a better Hero and let my actions speak for me."

"He's right, you know." The Sword Hero gives the Bow Hero a gentle push on the shoulder. "Let's just forget it for now and relax. Try to plan out our next moves."

"…I'm still turning them into a pincushion if I catch them. Justice must be served." Itsuki gives the Sword Hero a dirty look. He turns back to the sulking Spear Hero. "Get over yourself and stop moping, Kitamura."

The blond pretty-boy ignores him, continuing to draw circles on the wooden floor while mumbling something under his breath. It's hard to tell if he heard the younger Hero or not.

Naofumi shakes his head at the Spear Hero's antics. He turns to Mein with a tired smile. "You want to give it a try, Mein?"

"My pleasure, Master Naofumi." Mein returns his smile and heads to the other side of the table. She walks to the still mumbling Spear Hero's side, kneels besides him and places a hand on his shoulder. "Sir Spear Hero, Sir Bow Hero isn't mad at you. Do you want to join us and have a little chat about your day before turning in?"

"Yes! Of course, Mein!" The change in the Spear Hero's mood is near instantaneous. "What did I miss, guys?" That's one hell of a sudden transformation. Mein supposes that it just goes to show her irresistible charm.

"Not much. Just talking about how today could have gone better... or worse." Naofumi says as he lets out a bitter smile.

"How can anything be worse?" The Bow Hero grumbles under his breath.

"Oh, I don't know. If Mein wasn't brave enough to say the truth... I could have ended up a convicted criminal with no money, no companions, and all of you despising me." Naofumi shrugs his shoulders.

"Please don't say something so horrible, Iwatani." The Sword Hero pinches the bridge of his nose. "I'm going to head out further away tomorrow. My level is high enough to wander away from the city now and that I can't gain exp effectively if I stay here."

"Leaving the city does sound good. At least I wouldn't have to listen to the foolish gossip." The Bow Hero joins him. "We can meet again before the next Wave, maybe exchange information again. And switch our directions to gather different materials."

"Ahhh... we are splitting up already? I didn't even get a chance to know Mein yet!" The Spear Hero's comment makes his party members give out a collective groan. The Shield Hero gives him an intense glare before shaking his head.

"Speaking of materials... I found something interesting today." Naofumi says as he switches his small shield up with a different shield. It has a round yellow centerpiece and a roughly transparent outer rim, with a dirty cloud-like substance inside. "I got this [Spoiled Yolk Shield] from an eggy's yolk I absorbed today."

"Eggy yolk, you say? I didn't try it after absorbing the egg shell." The Bow Hero raises his eyebrow at that revelation. "I thought you only get one unlock from one type of monster."

"There's more. Mein killed an eggy without smashing its shell and this is the Shield I unlocked with its fresh yolk." Naofumi's shield switches again. It looks almost like the exact same shield, the only difference is the outer rim is much clearer, instead of the thick fog of the Spoil Yolk Shield. Mein can now see clear through the outer rim of it. "This is [Fresh Yolk Shield]. It gives me a passive skill of [Cooking +1]. The Spoiled version gives me an active skill of [Bad Odor]. It emits stink to repel monsters."

The other Heroes exchange thoughtful glances with each other.

"Even the state of the material would change what Shield is unlocked? Interesting. We should try to experiment some more ourselves." The Sword Hero says, his tone mildly impressed.

"Yeah, I also did some potion crafting after unlocking a medicine compound skill with the mushroom shield. And the potions all unlocked new shields too." Naofumi pulls some vials out of his cloak and leaves them on the table. "Here are some healing potions I made."

"Wait, when you say mushroom shield, did you unlock it through the material dropped by a mush?" The Sword Hero suddenly sits straight up in his seat, a serious stare replaces his usual bored look.

"Yes, is there something wrong?" Naofumi is taken aback a little at the intensity of the question.

"The mushroom sword gives me minor poison damage." The Sword Hero's brow twists together. He grabs one of the vials and moves it close to his Sword. His hand stops moments before the Legendary Sword absorbs the potion. "May I? I'll pay you back."

"Go ahead, and don't worry about paying me for this potion. You already helped me when you defended me this morning." The Shield Hero simply waves his hand towards the Sword Hero. He looks at the Bow and Spear Heroes and gives them an inviting look while pointing at the remaining potions on the table. "Go on. Help yourselves."

Naofumi should demand payment every chance he gets, especially when it's offered . He is being rather naive with this move of charity… Or is he intentionally trying to make the other Heroes dependent on him?

Mein's eyes dart back and forth between the conversing Heroes. She files each exchange into her brain for later use.

"Thank you." The Sword Hero gives an appreciated half-bow. He presses the potion into his Sword and let it be absorbed. A second later the Sword changes shape to a crude looking glass blade with a reddish tint. "Hmm... [Small Medicine Sword]. It gives a minor life steal bonus."

"Hey, me too!" The Spear Hero is giving his new spear a twirl in his hand. A nearby waitress and the Spear Hero's party have to quickly duck out of the way.

"My bow has a bleeding damage effect." The Bow Hero gives the string of his new bow a flick. "What effect does your shield have, Iwatani?"

"It improves the effect of the medicines I craft. And the effect of potions I use."

Both the Sword and Bow Heroes go quiet. The Spear Hero seems to repress a slight wince.

"It makes sense, in a way. My Sword and Kitamura's Spear are both held in our hands, so they steal life from monsters and transfer it into us. Kawasumi's Bow attacks with released arrows, so it causes a bleeding effect on the enemy. Iwatani can't attack, so his skill is more support and craft based." The Sword Hero steeples his fingers in front of his face as he talks.

"Iwatani drew the short straw again it seems. That's an entirely useless skill in battle. I thought it'd be something like passive life regen." The Bow Hero sounds at least a little sympathetic.

"I don't mind. Even if I can't fight, I can help out in other ways if I unlock more craft skills. Rather than raiding, I always liked to do crafting to support my guild when I played MMORPGs anyway." Naofumi shrugs his shoulders while wearing a soft smile.

Mein can't understand what Naofumi is talking about due to the unfamiliar terms he used, but he looks happy enough from his reminiscent smile.

"True. A dedicated crafter to play support can be very helpful, even if they can't fight. Iwatani can help supply us, while we do the heavy lifting in combat to end the Waves." The Sword Hero nods his head again. He seems to realize something and turns to look Naofumi in the eyes. "If you don't mind, of course."

"Like I said, I don't mind-" Naofumi is about to repeat himself for emphasis when he's interrupted by the Spear Hero's loud cheer.

"COOL! Naofumi is like Owlman from Justice League. He doesn't have superpowers so he don't fight big baddies, but he's super rich and super smart, so he makes plans and builds things for the other superheroes!"

"...You mean Batman, right?" Naofumi says after a few seconds of everyone shooting the Spear Hero a blank look.

"No, Batman is his evil double ganger from some other Earth or something. Like... Chrisom Syndicate, or something...? An evil Justice League?"

"I think you meant doppelganger... but in my world, Batman is the hero from Justice League, and Owlman is the evil doppelganger from the Crime Syndicate of America on Earth 3." Both heroes blink their eyes at each other. Then they simultaneously turn their heads sharply to expectantly look at the other two Heroes.

"...I don't know what you two are talking about. No Justice League from my world's comic books." The Sword Hero holds both his arms up in defeat with a sigh. "But both Owlman and Batman sound like Nighthawk of Squadron Supreme from my world. He's the super smart billionaire with no actual superpowers."

Everyone turns their gazes to the one remaining Hero.

"Super Hero comics died out after Espers start popping out left and right in my world. You know, real people with REAL superpowers." Itsuki simply shrugs his shoulders as he says this.

The other three Heroes all seem to be genuinely shocked by what they just heard. After a moment the Spear Hero stands up and points a finger at the Bow Hero.

"…You mean to tell me that you knew real superheroes in your world?" He both sounds and looks utterly flabbergasted. Mein doesn't really understand what the deal is. Weren't they all Heroes in their respective worlds anyway? Or is she missing the significance of the 'super' part of superhero? Are those something like their world's version of Legendary Heroes?

"Yes. One of them actually saved my life when I was a child…" The Bow Hero seems to get a little lost in his memories as he talks, eyes becoming unfocused. "For a while it made me think that perhaps my world wasn't too dissimilar to the worlds depicted in those old comic books from before… Superheroes always beating back the villain and saving the day. Getting out unscathed at the end of it all. But turns out that in reality it's not always like that. Justice simply wasn't ever possible in my world. Even with real superpowers…" He trails off while looking increasingly melancholy.

Silence returns to the Heroes table. Not for long however. The Spear Hero hurries to break it when it becomes obvious that the Bow Hero isn't going to add anything to what he said.

"That's…How…" The blond shakes his head as if to clear it. "Well, at least now we know which one of us is the Isekai protagonist of the series, right guys?" He flashes a cheeky grin to everyone else.

Another term Mein doesn't understand, but it works to elicit slight chuckles out of both the Sword Hero and Naofumi.

The Bow Hero just raises a questioning eyebrow at the Spear Hero.

"What do you mean by that? Aren't we all technically Isekai protagonists?" The justice obsessed boy questions.

"In a way, but that's not what I meant… I meant your backstory! None of the rest of us have such cool and totally Shonen backstories! And our home worlds are totally bland normal ones." At this the Spear Hero looks to both Naofumi and the Sword Hero for confirmation, both giving a non-committal shrug in return. "But you totally fit the bill! Out of all of us this is your chance to live the dream most of all! If we are all characters in a light novel then you would totally be the protagonist!"

"You really think so? To be honest, your worlds sound way more fun to me." As the Bow Hero speaks Mein notices that he now has a slightly bemused smile tugging at his mouth that he seemingly can't quiet repress. "And besides, wouldn't the main character need to be as bland as possible, so that the reader could insert themselves into him all the easier? Having something that makes you stand out goes contrary to that."

"Yeah, I suppose you are right. Guess that makes Amagi the lead character doesn't it?" The Spear Hero concludes with a hum, to the visible outrage of the Sword Hero that hurries to object.

"Why the hell do you assume that I have the most blank personality here?" The Sword Hero furrows his brow as he shoots a supposedly threatening look at the Spear wielder, but to Mein it seems as if he is being defensive more out of reflex than anything else.

"Oh? So you are saying that I am wrong ~Kirito-kun?" The Spear Hero mockingly stretches the syllables in the unfamiliar name as he says it, almost singing it out. Naofumi and the Bow Hero are both starting to grin now.

"Look who is talking, you shallow skirt chaser! And anyway, what about Iwatani?" The Sword Hero grumbles out, although Mein can see some notes of genuine bemusement in his tone underneath the mock anger.

"Sorry, but I can't be the protagonist. No one would read a story where the main character only has a piece of armor instead of a weapon. Besides, isn't the main character in those sorts of novels always supposed to be the sort of guy that goes for all the girls at once and somehow ends up with a harem in the end?" Naofumi gives a pointed look towards the Spear Hero. "And we already have a little pervert like that here, don't we?"

At this the latter huffs in indignation and stands up with one of his feet on the chair he was using, taking an exaggerated pose while closing his eyes, as if he is about to recite poetry.

"I'll have you know that I am not a little pervert!" He takes a dramatic pause. "I am a BIG one!" The blond opens one eye and makes some sort of strange gesture with his hands, while wiggling his fingers suggestively.

The four heroes stay quiet for a while before they burst into a hearty laugh together, even the otherwise quiet and standoffish Sword Hero.

The heroes and their party members dig into their dinner while having some casual conversations. Once in a while they break into laughter for a particular funny joke, or at another one of the Spear Hero's antics.

Watching a grown man trying to eat noodle with his nose one of the funniest things Mein had the displeasure of witnessing, even if it's crude and unsavory. It does make her wonder how the Spear Hero managed to live as long as he had. Though looking at how his female companions buzz around him it simply may be due to one, or more to the point, several very competent nannies fussing over his every move.

Well... she definitely made the right decision to not join his party! The guy barely seems qualified to weed the castle gardens, nevermind ruling the country besides her. Although to be fair, the commoners would probably love him.

Mein belatedly realizes the irony of her situation. The two heroes who she managed to find something about back in the Listening Room are the ones she dropped from the start. She really should have stayed in her room to read over her books rather than exposing herself to that raving knight.

"Well, it's late. I'm going to get rooms for me and Mein. Two rooms?" Naofumi says as he pushes his empty plate away.

"Please don't trouble yourself, Master Naofumi. I will get us accommodations for tonight." Mein hurriedly places her hand on Naofumi's shoulder and stands up from the table. She needs to ensure that tonight they only have one room between them after all - preferably with a single bed. It would make it significantly easier to complete her seduction of Naofumi. After all, the sooner that's done the better.

"A word with you, adventurer Mein?" Someone's voice shakes Mein out of her muse. She turns around to see one of the Bow Hero's companions stood up from where he was sitting and followed her. He is a very big burly man wearing a knight's heavy armor with a very thin mustache above his mouth.

"Is there something wrong, Mald?" The Bow Hero looks towards the man in heavy armor.

"No need to worry yourself, Master Itsuki. I merely wish to give a few tips to my fellow adventurer. She is much less experienced than me after all and yet she is all alone in the Shield Hero's party." The older man bows his head slightly down at his Hero's inquiry.

"That's good. Please make sure of Miss Mein's and Iwatani's safety."

"I will." The companion of the Bow Hero gives Mein another glance.

"Me too!" Suddenly Mein can see that one of the Spear Hero's companions jumped up to her feet. It's that drunkard girl from yesterday. Crepe, was it? At least she looks like she is sober right now.

"I- I mean that I need to give some advice to my fellow adventurer too. As her elder it is my responsibility! So please allow me to excuse myself Master Kitamura!" The girl sputters out nervously, when she feels the questioning looks of everyone else on her.

"But, didn't you say that you were also new to adventuring yourself?" The Spear Hero points out while scratching the back of his head and with a confused look on his face.

"Well yes, but… um, I am still older than her?" Crepe awkwardly fumbles for an excuse to talk to the first princess away from the attention of the Heroes. The Spear Hero doesn't look any less confused at this explanation, but ends up shrugging and going back to trying to drink ale through one nostril while eating through the other, with surprising success, much to the great amusement of any onlookers.

The undercover princess is followed by the two heroic companions as she makes her way to the bar-stand to talk to the innkeeper. They wait politely while she arranges for a single room for herself and Naofumi. Once that is done and the innkeeper took the silver, as well as her hint to leave for a minute or two, they can finally get to business.

"You didn't stick to his majesty's plan, princess. You could've at least sent some sort of warning, so his majesty didn't end up looking so foolish in front of the court." The burly armored man - Mald as the Bow Hero called him - immediately changes his posture from polite to looming and aggravated when they are left alone.

Mein narrows her eyes at the knight. He dares to take that sort of tone with her simply because he is one of father's eyes and ears amongst the Heroes?

"Situation changed. I had to adapt." Mein sniffs her nose hard at the weasel like man.

"And um, in what way did the situation change exactly, your highness?" Crepe buts in, before the weasel can say something for which could have his tongue removed.

"You both heard Marquis Noches speak this morning. Our enemies had their agents infiltrate the very heart of our kingdom. This was brought to my attention prior to the trial of the Shield Hero and I had to act on this new information." At this Mald raises a skeptical eyebrow, while Crepe inquisitively cocks her head to the side.

"Your highness, lord Noches was clearly improvising in the moment in order to clear at least some of the mess that came about from YOUR actions." The weasel isn't buying it. Mein will have to expand the scope of her lie it seems... With some generous application of truth.

"As you are no doubt aware, her majesty is now abroad negotiating on the kingdom's behalf." So far so true. "Defending the rightful possession of the Cardinal Heroes by Melromarc." She'd have no choice but to do so. "A key part of her negotiating power would stem from how our kingdom is perceived when it comes to the treatment of the Legendary Heroes." Also true. "My mother wishes me to delay the framing of the Shield Hero until a more opportune time." True if you consider that time to be never. "There are other powers at play here that you are not privy to. They are observing every move that the Heroes make and reporting it to their masters." Probably true. "What would the rest of the world think of Melromarc if the information of the Shield Hero's framing were to leak at this crucial moment in her majesty's negotiations?" Nothing they wouldn't be thinking already, but she wasn't about to bring up that irrelevant detail. "Acting against the Shield Hero now would be too premature. We must wait for the groundwork to be laid on the international stage first." Groundwork that wasn't actually being laid by anyone, but nonetheless.

Crepe blinks several times as if trying to process what she just heard.

Mald lets out a doubtful hum and crosses his arms in front of his chest. The weasel in armor gives the first princess another long stare. He finally blinks first and avoids her gaze.

"Very well. Make sure you don't betray the cause."

Idiot.


Having returned to the Heroes table Mein approaches Naofumi who almost seems to be dozing off in place. She puts her hand on his shoulder gently to stir him. He opens his eyes and looks at her with his adorable smile.

"Finished talking already? And you got us rooms?" He asks her as he yawns into the back of his hand.

"Yes. And I thought that all things considered, it would be best for us to share a single room tonight…" Mein gives Naofumi a meaningful look. He seems flustered for a moment but then seems to remember their talk earlier in the day about how they were now going to be in ever-present danger. And while Mein wasn't lying about that, the actual extent of the danger was certainly exaggerated by her, to emphasize the need for them to constantly be by each other's side. All part of her setup in seducing the young man.

"Yeah, good thinking. Let's get going then." Naofumi stands up and she quickly takes him by the arm before he can even notice and object to the intimate gesture.

"Iwatani, you dog~!" The Spear Hero gives a knowing smile to the Shield Hero. He begins to make wolf whistles while slapping the surface of their table.

"Shut up, Kitamura. It's not like that."

Oh but it is. The irony of the situation is that for once the Spear fool has the correct idea.

When the Spear wielder doesn't let up in his antics Naofumi rolls his eyes and points his middle finger up at him. Mein wonders if that gesture has some hidden meaning she's not aware of. Maybe the middle finger is supposed to represent The Spear Hero's... virility? For only having female companions? The gesture is a bit phallic looking...

With that her and Naofumi leave the others behind and climb up to the second floor, still walking arm in arm as they ascend the spiraling staircase. They walk to the end of the hallway and open the door with the appropriate number. Immediately Mein pulls Naofumi inside. The door shuts behind them.

A large heart shaped King Sized bed greets their sight.

"...Isn't that a lover's bed?" Naofumi numbly asks her as he is faced with the reality of he situation. "...Wait, this is a lover's suite isn't it? ...Oh."

Mein turns her head to look him in the face. The man from another world has a deep blush covering his cheeks and extending onto his neck. The color is almost as deep a shade as her hair. He pulls a hand towards his mouth, trying to hide his embarrassment by clearing his throat. The poor man begins coughing uncontrollably instead.

It sounds like he is chocking on his spit. Mein moves closer till her body almost touches his side. She runs a hand down the young man's back to help him breathe. "Don't try to speak, Master Naofumi. Take a deep breath first."

The Shield Hero gives her a series of fierce nods. After a half a minute of taking deep breaths interjected with light coughing, he manages to collect himself. "Thank you, Mein. You take the bed, I'll sleep on the floor. I'm used to it."

Mein blinks her eyes. What.

…Did he just? And… Wait… WHAT DOES HE MEAN HE IS USED TO SLEEPING ON THE FLOOR!?

What kind of life did the young man live before his summoning!?

…Now that she thinks about it, didn't she already conclude that he must have had some inferiority complex stemming from his issues in his own world? What was his family life like? Could he have been abused? Is that why he was so reluctant to start socializing with anyone?

It sounds almost like the story of a romance novel she once read along with Katarina and Bertia. The heroine is constantly abused by her stepmother after the death of her father, but was then saved through magical means and went on to become royalty.

…Now that Mein thinks about it, the story certainly has some other direct parallels to the events unfolding in her life. A prophesy? Could her poor innocent Naofumi be a parallel to that heroine?

"Mein? Are you alright?" It seems as if she had fallen a little too deep into her musings and forgot about where she was and what she was planning to do.

"Master Naofumi, you said that you are used to sleeping on the floor? Could it be that… Master Naofumi was abused by his evil step-parents?"

"What!? No! I'm not Cinderella!" The Shield Hero's eyes go wide as he shouts the denial and he quickly waves both hands in front of him. He is looking at her with an even more embarrassed smile, one that seems to be stretched long and thin around his mouth.

She knew it! And as if that were not enough he somehow realized the name of the story his life is a parallel to!

"Oh, Master Naofumi… I am so, so sorry. You will never have to put up with something so horrible ever again while I am with you…" Those monsters! How dare they mistreat such a sweet and innocent boy like that!? No wonder he grew up reclusive.

The fact that Mein was only that morning considering the possibility of framing said sweet and innocent boy for rape, was conveniently ignored.

"No! Sleeping on the floor is common where I'm from. We have these things called futons... think of one as a home-used sleeping bag."

"Oh." Mein's mouth goes round shaped.

So he wasn't a poor broken boy abused by his evil step parents then?

…She supposes that's a good thing. But for some reason Mein can't help but feel a little disappointed though. Perhaps a part of her really wanted to have a Cinderella to save in the young man in front of her? She tries to put a smile on her face regardless.

"So long as Master Naofumi wasn't abused at home. It's good to have loving parents. Some of my fondest memories are with my parents growing up."

At least they were when it came to her father. Even now he dotes on her very much. But her mother... She wonders if mother ever saw her as anything more than a bargaining chip. It's not a view that's uncommon in the upper echelons of society, but it still makes her feel cold.

There is that one time when her mother almost cracked out a genuine smile when the first princess mastered Faust Fireball with little effort. Her mother even gifted her a monster egg for a job well done afterwords…

But knowing how that story ended, those memories were more bitter than they were sweet.

"Yeah, yeah. My parents love me. That's good." Naofumi's strained smile morphs into a more lost expression.

Why does he look lost? Is he growing homesick again? How sentimental. Not exactly an optimal trait to have for someone who is destined to rule Melromarc at her side.

But she supposes that if her Naofumi is sentimental, that means he won't throw away someone whom he owes deep gratitude to. Mein fights back another smirk that's about to creep up her face. She smiles mischievously at Naofumi instead. "The bed is large enough for the both of us, Master Naofumi. Perhaps we can share the bed?"

"What!? No! I can't do something like that!"

Ah yes, her favorite kind of customers indeed. She'll take great joy in taking him for herself. The ever lurking smirk is threatening to burst out on her face again and she forces it down. No, instead she adopts a put upon expression and forces her lips to tremble as if she is about to cry again.

"Am I really so repulsive that Master Naofumi doesn't want to even consider spending the night with me? I suppose that I understand… I am merely a commoner, not a lady of the court. But I thought... maybe even someone like me can stay by Master Naofumi's side forever. I guess I should have known better... a great Hero like Master Naofumi couldn't care for a simple country girl like me..."

"No! That's not it, Mein! You are very beautiful, brave and kind. Anyone man would be incredibly lucky to spend his life with a girl like you. But..." The blush is back full force on Naofumi's face. "Your name has already been tainted by that rumor. I can't do something to hurt you even more. Not after you saved me."

Mein slowly moves up to Naofumi, until they mere inches apart. She can feel his hoarse and ragged breathe on her face and can tall that her own cheeks must be looking flustered right now.

"The rumors already paint me as a girl who lost her purity." Naofumi's face is all but glowing by now. She presses her body into the sweating young man, feeling the curves of his musculature through the fabric of his cloak. "Staying closer with Master Naofumi can't hurt it any more. So please, Master Naofumi. Let us..." Wait a second, those are some seriously big curves in all the wrong places.

*CHUMP!*

The incognito princess looks down at her hand. The orange balloon that is biting down on it looks back at her.

"YYYEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH~!"

The scream of agony bursts out of her mouth so suddenly that she does not even immediately realize it's her that screaming. Out of sheer shock Mein jumps up and sideways, covering what has to be at least half the length of the considerably sized room in one record breaking leap.

"Damn it! I forgot to pop the last one!" Naofumi quickly runs after Mein to try and pry the balloon off his only companion.

It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts! Oh good God it hurts so much! Please get this thing off! Oh God!

She shakes her arm, but the damn thing is only taking it as an incentive to bite down even harder!

On sheer reflex she tries to run and put distance between herself and the threat that attached itself to her, with what in hindsight is a predictable result. In her panic her face impacts a nearby wall with a dull thud and Mein is momentarily concussed. When she comes too she is lying down on the floor with the terrible, TERRIBLE demonic beast still eating her alive.

This is the end. That's the only thought that crosses Malty S Melromarc's mind in her final departing moment, that this is how the first princess of Melromarc dies, swallowed alive by a creature of nightmare.

It's in that moment that Naofumi kneels down by her side and carefully grasping the orange balloon with both hands applies pressure, causing it to release its hold after a couple of seconds. The balloon gives an annoyed growl and latches itself onto Naofumi as the closest new target.

In the silence of the bedroom the only noise are the quiet sobs coming from the fallen princess. The first genuine ones in a long time. Eventually they too quiet down into nothing.

Footsteps could be heard from outside of the room. Several people running on the staircase and through the corridor. The door bursts open with a load bang against the wall.

"STOP RIGHT THERE, CRIMINAL SCUM! YOU HAVE... Oh..." The Spear Hero whom had just burst out of the hallway with a loud cry, ready to finish what he almost started back in the morning's trial, trails off as he takes in the scene. His jaw slowly falls open as do those of the Sword and Bow Heroes standing right behind him.

"I so didn't need this." The Bow Hero lets out a loud groan before he knocks another arrow, firing it into the orange balloon gnawing at Naofumi's shoulder. It pops with an the most anti-climactic sound that a foul beast of such dangerous caliber could possibly be unworthy of.

For what has to be the dozenth time that day, the Sword Hero simply buries his face in his hands and breathes out a tired sigh.

"See, I told you two it's way uncool to keep monsters around." Motoyasu points his finger at Naofumi. "But did you listen to big bro Motoyasu? Noooo~"

"Motoyasu, shut up." The remaining three Heroes spoke in perfect unison.


Needless to say, after that incident more awful rumors popped up, regarding the Shield Hero and his female companion… and their apparent attempts at using monsters to diversify their love life.


Author's Note:

Once again, apologies for my late update and skipping this coming weekend's update again.

I think I have stated in my note before I write mostly to amuse myself first, so sometimes I don't take the overall tonal consistency into it when I do one chapter. This chapter is a prime example, where the original's borderline crack comedy take influenced by the 70s manga like Doraemon I grow up with, particularly when the heroes talk with each other steps too much on the toe of an otherwise more serious story.

So Comrade Broseph had to essentially do a full re-write for it to get it consistent with the rest of the story. Unfortunately he had some emergency coming up so he didn't have enough time over the weekend and have to crunch into morning to have this chapter ready. Sorry you had to do that!

I don't think I give enough credit to him about how much he improved the original of my story. If I'm giving this story a score, I'd give his version twice the score I'd give for my own version. So once again, big thanks to you!

That's also the main reason I want to postpone the update of the next chapter. So that way he has two weeks instead of one when a re-write is needed because I got inconsistent with the tone once again. Hopefully that way, once June hit everything can be smooth sailing (which I probably just jinxed now)...