"Sorry about this, Rino, but I lied. We aren't exactly leaving first thing in the morning." Chazon awkwardly rubbed the back of his head outside the front door of Rino's house. It was the day the officially formed party of two would return to Castle Town to make final preparations for the wave, but it got offset briefly by something.

Rino tilted her head in confusion. "How come? Didn't you say we needed to make the most of our time?"

"I did and I still stand by that. However, I want to double check the seeds that we gave to the village yesterday to see if they are growing alright. Once I've done that, we'll leave immediately." Chazon wanted to make sure that the village's famine was officially over, or else he would be leaving things unfinished. That was one of his pet peeves; leaving certain things like projects or assignments unfinished and just leaving it as is.

"Okay. I'll wait for you by the carriage, Chazon-kun!" Chazon waved to the red-headed girl… his party member as he ran towards the fields. She had a smile on her face; she could barely contain her excitement over being able to adventure with a Cardinal Hero.

Sure enough, the seeds all sprouted into the hardy bushes that produced bushels of fruit; the true heralds to the end of Lerno Village's famine. I know I triple-checked those seeds with Rino, but I hope they don't somehow mutate into monsters even after my modifications. I'll never forgive myself if they lead to ruin after all.

"Chazon-sama, I'm grateful to catch you before you left for the capital." Glenn approached with a smile on his face and glee in his eyes. "I know I already said this plenty of times yesterday, but I thank you for giving us what we need to keep going forward."

"I'll consider it a proper reward if you guys can recover and become a bustling town once again." Chazon smiled; he wished he could have seen this place at its peak, but he figured that it would become something greater now.

"A hero, through and through. Regardless, it would honor me if you could accept this token of our gratitude." Glenn produces a rather hefty sack of coins from his pockets and puts it in Chazon's hands. "May these funds serve you well in your preparations."

Hang on… THERE'S 800 SILVER IN HERE WHAT IN THE- Chazon shook his head. "I can't accept this much! You guys still need money to recover and expand!"

"We can easily rebuild our coffers on the fruit bushes you have provided us. In fact, we may already have a surplus!" Glenn motioned to the side and Chazon staggered at how many bushels of the aptly named "BioFruit" they already had. "These plants regrow their fruit in a matter of hours and are tasty and healthy to boot! We can very easily restart our trading side with these."

Wow… a miracle indeed. Hopefully those things don't wreak havoc on the soil, or they're gonna have a hard time planting anything else for variety. With a sigh, Chazon accepts the entire fortune and puts it away. "I'll trust that you know what you're doing. If you do need money, don't hesitate to ask, though. I'm always willing to invest in the future."

"I'll keep your offer in mind, Chazon-sama. I've already given another parting gift to you, though it's with the carriage at the moment. I wish you safe travels." Chazon nods at that before dashing off, not wanting to keep Rino waiting any longer. Glenn waited until the spear hero was out of earshot before saying, "besides… I don't want to keep you lovebirds apart any longer." He chuckles at his own joke before heading back home to write some letters.

Chazon felt his ears burn, which greatly confused him.

When he arrived at the carriage, he saw what the additional parting gift was. "Good lord, just how many fruits did you guys harvest?! I know I modified those plants for growth speed, but this is just getting silly now!"

Rino giggled as she hefted the bushel of BioFruit onto the carriage. "Silly or no, it's amazing to see everyone so full of life now." Chazon remembered how a lot of people looked when he first arrived and nodded. "Besides, the initial round of meat that I heard you brought in was enough to kick-start everyone's hope again. It just made your success even more well-received."

The short-term can matter as much as the long-term… I think I had a similar thought process when I first got here and that was what helped feed not just people's stomachs but also their hope.

The carriage driver finished his own preparations. "Ready to go whenever, Chazon-sama!"

"Then let's go. Back to Castle Town to prepare for the wave!"

For all his enthusiasm at that announcement, the carriage ride back was just as dull as the carriage ride to Lerno, which made him feel exceedingly awkward. Rino stated that she was used to it and that it was just a matter of finding ways to entertain yourself during the trip.

Monsters still attacked the Carriage, but this time Chazon had someone to help him with defending. They decided to take turns defending just so that both of them got a chance to stretch their arms and legs in between random conversations. Rino adored the side of Chazon that loved filolials; seeing him act like a little kid around the driver's filolial in general made her heart flutter.

Rino thought of something as she put the side of her fist into the palm of her other hand. "Out of curiosity, Chazon-kun, what kind of religion do you believe in?"

"What brought this up? Does Lerno village have a religion or something?" Chazon was genuinely confused; he never pegged Rino as a religious person… or one to talk about it.

"Not really. I'm just genuinely curious is all." Rino hoped she didn't hit a complete sour-spot with this particular topic.

Leaning back, Chazon folded his arms in thought. "I don't like religion, but I can understand why some people are religious. My main issue is with people who have this 'holier than thou' attitude just because they're in a religion and you aren't… and god forbid if you're part of a different one."

"Even if there's an entire religion centered around worshipping you?" Rino wasn't religious either and had met some… rather overzealous believers of a certain faith.

"I beg your pardon?"

The driver looked backwards in shock at Chazon. "You mean you didn't know, Chazon-sama? The state religion of Melomarc is The Church of the Three Heroes."

Chazon immediately noted something. "Three heroes? But there's four of us!"

Rino put her hand on her chin. "That always struck me as odd as well. I don't know which hero was excluded either."

"Three guesses as to who was excluded… and the first two don't count." Chazon said with a hint of bitterness. This world really is out to make his life hell, isn't it? Shaking his head, Chazon decided to end that particular conversation by saying, "Regardless, I'm not a religious person nor do I ever plan on being one."

Rino tried to think of the most innocent topic she could. "W-what kind of creatures do you like?"

"Now here's a topic I can get behind!" Chazon said with aplomb and a wide smile. "My current soft spot is for filolials… as I'm sure you can tell."

That made the red-head sigh in relief; not everything she said was going to be a sore-spot. My optimism can only do so much for me sadly, but at least I made Chazon-kun happy again.

The rest of the trip was filled with the two party members getting to know each other more between monster attacks. Rino had started growing even more attached to the Spear Hero because of that.

By the time the duo reached Castle Town, Rino had reached level 15 from 14 while Chazon was still level 17. He found the exp distribution modifier in his status magic and made sure to give a higher allocation of exp to Rino so that she could catch up in levels.

The first order of business was, of all things, a bath. Chazon knew he reeked to high heaven, but let Rino go first as it was unfitting for a cute girl to have an unpleasant odor. After they were both fresher smelling, he suggested going to Erhard's blacksmith for equipment upgrades.

On the way, a knight stopped the two. "Sir Spear Hero, his majesty requests that you report to him on what you've been doing. He seems pretty insistent on a debriefing."

That made Chazon a bit nervous. He didn't show up to Naofumi's "trial", so he figured the king probably had a few words on that. Rino touched his hand and he felt a bit better. "I might be a little bit in reporting, but I'll be back. In the meantime, follow the directions I'm about to give you and explain to the owner what's going on; we know each other and he'll know you're a friend."

Rino nodded after she was given directions, hoping that Chazon wasn't in trouble. "Good luck!"

I'll need it…

After some time, he managed to reach the castle and was escorted inside to the king. Aultcray let out a low hum when he beheld the Spear Hero as he bowed. "Chazon-dono, you have permission to speak. What have you been doing these past few weeks?"

Chazon did his best to summarize what he's done so far, including the incident with the Cyclops Mauler, Lerno Village, and how he was able to end a famine after clearing the Alchemist's Cave. Hopefully that's all he wants to know…

The king regarded it all with not much interest, but frowned when he said,"I must ask an important question. Where were you when my daughter was raped? I was told the guard looked everywhere for you, but you never turned up."

Well fuck.

"I was merely camping out in the wilderness, your majesty. I had realized that certain… conveniences that are in my old world would not be present here, so I decided to acclimate myself as early as possible. I apologize for not being present." Chazon prayed that it was enough for the king. The only thing he had left out at this point was his party status; namely his newest addition.

Aultcray leaned back into his chair, frowning slightly less. "I suppose it explains why you weren't found, nor can I overly fault you for what you did. If it helps you prepare for the waves, then I'll overlook it this time." Aultcray remembered his initial reason for summoning the spear hero other than the debrief. "Tell me, Chazon-dono, have you resonated with the Dragon Hourglass yet?"

That caught the Spear Hero off guard. "No I haven't, your majesty. Should I do so?"

"It is highly recommended. Not only will you know how much longer until the wave hits, but it will ensure you and your party members are teleported to the location where it will hit. If I recall correctly, you still have 7 days, but it'd be best if you could actively see the timer. It is located in The Church of the Three Heroes."

"I'll be sure to do so, your majesty. Thank you for your counsel." Chazon got up to leave, thankful that it was over, but not looking forward to entering a church.

"Oh, and another thing." Aultcray glared down at Chazon. "I'm sure you are already aware, but I must say this regardless: I would recommend against associating yourself with that Shield Demon. He is a criminal of the vilest kind and, if I had a choice, would have executed him where he stood. I'd rather not let his taint corrupt you."

Chazon simply nodded blandly at that before leaving. Not on your life you daft codger…

Malty spied on the retreating spear hero from afar with a frown on her face. He doesn't look any worse for wear… what's going on?

After exiting the castle, he figured it would be best to get the hourglass out of the way first; he never liked going to a church in his world for any reason and that hasn't changed. When he arrived, he was escorted by a nun to the Dragon Hourglass. "All you need to do is have your legendary weapon attune to the hourglass and you'll be registered for the wave."

It's not a game… it's not a game… this is as far from a game as you could possibly get.

Chazon raised his spear to the hourglass and a red beam of light shot out of the jewel towards it. It resulted in his status magic updating and giving him a countdown to the wave, right down to the last second. He could feel the stares of reverence from all of the priests and nuns in the church, which made him feel on edge. I feel more like a trophy than a person in this place…

"Ah, yes. Sir Spear Hero, we would like for you to take this sand from the hourglass. I'm certain that it will unlock something that will help you on your travels." The nun offered a vial of sand to Chazon and he took it hesitantly. "We pray for your success in the defense against the waves."

I'll be brutally honest, you guys are the last ones I want praying for me…

Pouring the sand into his spear's jewel as he made his way out, he received a notification on his status magic:

Dragon Era Halberd

Special effect: 'Skyward Dimensional Thrust' (Level 50 required)

I'll look at the tool-tip for this skill later.

After quickly taking his leave, he made his way towards Erhard's place where he was greeted by the jolly blacksmith himself. "Long time no see, kid! You're looking strong as ever!"

Rino smiled as she quickly walked up to him. "Welcome back, Chazon-kun. Are you… alright?"

"I'm fine. The king just wanted a debrief, although he also wanted to know where I was the day of the "trial" for Naofumi. I think he bought my story, though not before telling me that I shouldn't associate myself with him. Senile old fool…" Hearing that made Rino sad that the higher powers are trying to force the two friends apart.

Erhard rubbed his head with an awkward smile. "This little lady here has been loitering in my store for quite some time. Is she your party member?"

Chazon snapped to attention. "Ah, that's correct. This is Rino of Lerno Village. She was of immense help during my time there and expressed a desire to join my party." Rino bows to Erhard politely. "Rino, this is Erhard the blacksmith. His armor has saved my life in the past, so I can vouch for his skills… and his ability to shake you down for money."

"Hey! You could have left that second part out!" Erhard grumbled while the duo laughed. "Anyways, I doubt you two are here for banter. What are you looking for?"

Chazon hummed a bit. "For one, new armor for Rino as her current ensemble is very outdated; that's our priority. If we can, I'll get her a properly forged weapon as well."

"C-Chazon-kun, what about yourself?!"

Chazon pats Rino on the shoulder. "I'm more worried about you at the moment. Besides, this magic iron armor has been working wonderfully for me. Though I'll concede, if it fits within the budget, I'll get new armor for myself as well."

Erhard smiled at that. "Now we're talking. What kind of armor are you thinking for the little lady?"

"She's definitely a speedster, so anything light-plate or lighter will work, though I think I'm going to keep away from the chainmail still…" Chazon decided to never buy chainmail armor ever out of respect for Naofumi. "What do you figure, Rino?"

Rino tapped the side of her cheek a few times in thought. "I honestly don't know. I went with leather armor for my first set because I figured it offered enough protection while still allowing free movement for the most part."

"Light-plate armor doesn't limit your movement anymore than leather armor does, little lady. The only difference is how much it weighs for the increase in defense." Erhard thought for a moment before saying. "Tell you what, I'll set you up with magic iron light-plate armor and you can test it out. If you like it, then I'll extend a deal to you if you can get the materials for it. Sounds good?"

"Y-yes sir!"

Chazon remembered something. "Erhard, how much do you know about using dual blades? I've had Rino using a set ever since her initial weapon broke, but she doesn't quite have the training for it, as natural as she feels with them."

Erhard let out a sigh at that. "Sorry kid, but that's one weapon class I've never used. Dual Blade users are few and far between, so you're going to have to create your own style. On the plus side, I can make you dual blades if you need it!" Chazon rolled his eyes in amusement at that last sentence.

"Actually… would it be possible to reforge or strengthen these ones?" Rino took off her Dual Dire Wolf Blades and presented them.

Erhard unsheathed one and looked at it. "A bone blade...rather sharp for one too in spite of the wear on it. Sadly, I cannot strengthen them, but I can use them in the forging of a new pair of blades."

"Rino, how come you wanted him to use those?" Chazon was genuinely confused. To him, it was literally a random drop with no special significance behind it.

Rino had thought otherwise. "Because this is the weapon you gave to me when I had nothing else, Chazon-kun. It holds special meaning to me because of that; it represents the trust you gave me when you told me about your story. Above all else… it's the first gift you gave me and I want to keep it with me as long as possible." Chazon recoiled a bit at that, feeling bad about not realizing her own feelings.

Erhard raised an eyebrow at that. "Sounds like you two have been through a lot in a short amount of time. I'll inquire about it later; I'll need to get to work on turning this set into something new, so come back tomorrow morning. In the meantime the magic iron light-plate armor is over in that corner, so try it out."

After getting Rino changed and making sure Erhard got the 200 silvers for it, Chazon decided against going outside of town for the time being until her new weapon was completed. "Was there anything in particular you wanted to check out?"

Rino thought for a moment before widening her eyes. "What about the magic shop? Even if I'm not going to be learning any magic soon, I'd like to know my affinities."

"I'm curious about that as well, even though I see no useful magic from me regardless. Thanks again, low magic stat…" That got a giggle out of Rino as they set off.

The magic shop was pretty easy to find; the teal coloring stood out from the white houses surrounding it. When they entered, they were greeted by a rather elderly witch. "Welcome! I'll be with you in just a moment!"

Chazon looked around the shop, unable to discern what most of the items are. I wonder if magic attack items exist in this world… nope stop, not a game!

"Sorry for the wait. How can I help you- oh! It's an honor to meet you, sir Spear Hero!"

Chazon bows. "The pleasure is all mine, m'lady. Unfortunately, we've only come to discern what our magic affinities are; neither of us are in a position to learn magic for now."

That got a chuckle out of her. "That is quite alright. You wouldn't be the first ones who were simply curious about your affinities. My name is Mahoya and I'll be your guide today. Who's up first?" Chazon gave Rino a light push, telling her to go first as she approached and followed the witch's instructions. After a bit, her eyes widened. "Affinity for both light and healing magic! This is a rare and valuable combination!"

Rino was surprised. "How valuable?"

"You could become the pope of a religion with your affinities. Combining healing and light magic gives access to purity magic; most known for its ability to remove curses. You wouldn't need holy water once you've learned the required spells."

Rino really is something special, huh? Chazon chuckled at that. "Look at that. You might become a magic user yet. Just a matter of making sure your stats follow suit."

Rino beamed at him with those words, but suddenly looked bashful."I-I don't think I'd make a good religious figurehead, though…"

"Come now, sir Spear Hero. You're up next!" Chazon followed Mahoya's instructions as well until she let out a surprised gasp. "Affinities for dark and healing magic! I've never seen this combination before!"

Despite having a never-seen combination, Chazon wanted to scream. God damn it! Is this world so cruel it HAD to make me part healer?! When healing in Final Fantasy 14 was stressful enough even without actual death, now I have THIS?! He lets out a shaky breath, trying not to let his thoughts show. "S-so… how special is it?"

"I'll be honest, I don't know. Healing affinities have always been a few-and-far affinity; seeing both of you having one while in the same party is a rare sight. Even then, dark and healing affinities, while possible to have happened in the past, has never been recorded so the combination effects have never been properly documented."

So not only am I stuck with a healing affinity that I can't use properly, but my affinity combo may as well be useless in the grand scheme of things. Good thing Rino has me covered in that regard.

"Oh! Sir Spear Hero!" Everyone looks at the back of the shop and Chazon recognizes the mage girl that was forced to join him on his second day in this world. "I'm glad you're alright!"

"You know my granddaughter?"

Chazon smiled at Mahoya. "Kind of. She was forced to join a hero back when we were first summoned. I gave her the choice to leave after we were out of the castle."

"Ah, I never properly introduced myself. My name is Merlay." She bows to the duo.

"You can call me Chazon and my partner here is Rino." Rino bows, though blushed a bit at being called his partner.

"So you were able to get a party member after all. Thank goodness… I was genuinely starting to regret leaving you alone." Merlay closed her eyes before she thought of something. "Are you here to learn magic? I can help you as compensation for never joining your party."

The witch merely smiled. She remembered when her granddaughter regretted leaving the spear hero when she did, but felt it would insult his kindness if she changed her mind. Mahoya knew this and decided not to charge an affinity identification fee; she wanted to help Merlay feel better and accept that she made the right choice.

Chazon let out a sad sigh. "You can teach Rino but… I can't read, so learning from a grimoire is out of the question for me."

"Nonsense! I can help you read one!" Merlay had a determined look not unlike Rino's as she brought out a book.

"Alright, if you are determined. Just as an FYI, my magic stat is garbage so I'll just learn a basic dark spell for now."

Thanks to Merlay's guidance, Chazon was able to learn how to cast magic at all as well as the Faust Shadow Bolt spell and a base incantation for it, though it was modified into "As Spear Hero, the source of thy power, I command thee. Decipher the laws of nature and strike my target with a bolt of shadows". Rino learned Faust Heal and Faust Light Bolt on her end.

Merlay mentioned that she needed to be in Lute Village for a time before taking her leave. After leaving the magic shop, Chazon decided to bite the bullet and start selling some of his materials for extra silver before turning in for the night; he couldn't rely on handouts forever.

Rino managed to get her new dual blades from Erhard early in the morning. It had the exact same shape and equip bonus, but it was a lot stronger and resistant to wear while also somehow being a bit lighter than before. Erhard let Rino have the blades for free as thanks for the experience with working a bone blade into a metal one.

The blacksmith gave them the idea of quickly heading to the mines in Lute Village to mine some ore, specifically an ore called "Light Metal" that had some useful properties. Since it was only a day to get there on foot, Chazon figured that a day to get there, a day to mine, a day to get back and turn in the materials, and Erhard will have enough time to turn the light metal into equipment for the duo before the wave.

Thanks to the movement speed bonus provided by Rino's Dual Dire Wolf Sabers and Chazon's Scavenger Mouse Pike, they got to Lute before sunset, even with constant interruptions from monsters and practicing their magic, though it did reaffirm to Chazon that he was better off just using his spear. Rino leveled up to 16 while Chazon managed to hit 18 before retiring to the inn for the night.

When they got up and finished their preparations, they delved into the mines while promising the townsfolk to thin the monster population for civilians to enter again. Chazon decided to mine a little bit of everything for spear unlocks and future Smelting opportunities on the way down.

In the deeper levels, they fought against mole-like monsters called Diggoles, though they were only level 10 at a minimum. Their claws unlocked a spear that gave a good amount of mining proficiency to Chazon's Pickaxe Spear while Rino noted that one had consumed some ore; they were metal eaters. Chazon made sure to simply shove any new corpses made into his spear for dismantling as to not leave behind a trail of rotting corpses for the villagers to find later.

After reaching deep enough, they found a cave rich with light metal nodes. Rino looked around, mesmerized. "This is the second time we've found a cave this pretty, right?"

"Yup, though I think the last one was prettier since the blue looks a lot more serene. That's not why we're here though." Rino nodded and stood guard as Chazon started mining a few nodes.

When he started mining a second node, his Pickaxe Spear hit something funny. "Wait what? Was this supposed to be here?"

"What is it, Chazon-kun?" Rino saw the ore that Chazon had in his hand; it not only looked a lot prettier than the other ores he mined, but it had a slightly different structure and color to it. "Is that still light metal?"

"No… I think my luck just turned because this is apparently a rare variant of light metal called Ultralight Metal!" Chazon thanked the Diggoles for giving him enough mining proficiency to get that particular ore.

That made Rino squee in joy. "That's amazing! Are you going to let Erhard use it when he forges us new equipment?"

"Depends on how many I find. I'm going to have my spear absorb at least one for a new form and I'll save one for Naofumi, since I don't know if he has mined ultralight metal himself. Any others will be donated to Erhard for smithing." Chazon stored the ore for now, incredibly thankful for his find.

By the time the duo were done in the mines and exited, they had mined a lot of light metal ore, as well as 3 more ultralight metal ores. Chazon sacrificed one of each to his spear.

Light Metal Spear

Equip bonus: ATK bonus (low), MDEF bonus (low), 'Chaos Spear'

Ultralight Metal Lance

Equip bonus: ATK bonus (medium), MDEF bonus (medium), AGI bonus (low)

Special effect: Attack speed bonus (medium), Movement speed bonus (medium), Slashing penalty (extreme)

Godda go fast with the Ultralight Metal Lance, apparently. I even got a new skill from the normal variant; it makes sense that locking skills behind rare materials wouldn't make much sense unless it's a powerful skill like Spear Drive.

As the two party members unwinded for the night, Chazon heard about how Naofumi and Raphtalia managed to take out a boss monster that was lurking in the mines a few weeks ago. Hearing such stories and the fact that the villagers had begun to have faith in the Shield Hero warmed his heart. Some villagers had rudely asked what the Spear Hero had been doing since he was summoned, only to apologize when they heard from Rino that he helped a village suffering from famine.

The next day saw Chazon and Rino returning to Castle Town in record time thanks to the Ultralight Metal Lance's movement speed bonus. Chazon had given Rino another piggy-back ride and she thoroughly enjoyed it the entire way. When they got back, Erhard was surprised to see them back so soon. "You heroes sure work fast."

"I am speed. That is all I'm going to say." Chazon said as blandly as possible, which caused Rino to giggle behind him.

"Right… well let's see what you brought in."

"Before we do so… have you heard of ultralight metal?" Chazon leaned over the counter, having already secretly procured one such ore from his inventory.

Erhard widened his eyes at that. "Kid, that's a rare variant of light metal said to only occur in the purest of light metal nodes. It is also said that it not only provides a lot more defense, but the weight of equipment forged with it is supposed to weigh next to nothing." He looked puzzled now. "Why are you bringing it up, though? I doubt Lute Village has nodes pure enough to produce ultralight metal ore."

Chazon snickered at those words. "Never underestimate what a hero can dig up, my good friend." He puts the ore in his hand on the counter finally.

Erhard took one long look at it before looking very shocked. "Kid… is that…"

"Ultralight metal ore, yes."

Erhard had the pleasure of working with most of the metals found throughout the world, save for rare and mystical metals like Adamantium, Titanium, Orichalium, and plenty of rare variants of more common ores. Ultralight metal was one such metal, so seeing an ultralight metal ore placed on his counter in his store sent the blacksmith's emotions through the roof. "Kid… are you serious? You actually… found some?!"

"Well I'm serious about letting you work this into armor for Rino, if that's what you mean." Rino simply smiled at Chazon; the two had argued over who should get the ultralight metal armor and Chazon was firm in believing that Rino needed it more than him. A good part of her was very happy that he cared deeply enough about her to sacrifice rare materials for her protection, but a small part of her wished he would take better care of himself.

Erhard's face slowly gave way to the biggest grin he has ever made. "Alright, I'll make sure you don't regret trusting this thing with me! I'll make the best set of ultralight armor the world has ever seen for the little lady! You've gotten normal light metal as well right?"

Chazon scoffed at that. "That's what we went to Lute for in the first place. You said you had an idea for custom medium-plate armor made from light metal, Mauler fur, and the Golem drops that I gave you."

"Damn straight, kid. I just need 10 pieces of light metal total to get started on everything."

Chazon decided to see if he couldn't barter a bit with Erhard. "How about I just give you most of my haul to you to offset the costs of your armor? I can still pay some monetary compensation if you need it, but I expect some lenient prices until you've paid for the light metal I gave you."

Erhard laughed loudly at that. "You drive a hard bargain, but I see no reason to decline your terms. I can't work my craft without materials and the stuff you'll give me will keep me in business even if you don't give me much right now."

"Then we have a deal." Chazon had 58 pieces of light metal ore in his inventory, so he gave 40 of them to Erhard alongside 200 silver, much to the blacksmith's delight. "How long will it take for you to finish our orders?"

"The plan hasn't changed; drop by tomorrow and they should be ready! This whole thing has gotten me fired up!"

After the duo left Erhard's place, Rino giggled into her hand. "He certainly is passionate."

"I can't blame him. The closest parallel I can draw is an artist stumbling upon a vista nobody has ever seen before and he has his art tools on him to capture it in a painting." Chazon laughed a bit. "Though I can't lie about the fact that I'm anxious to see how everything will turn out. How about we head to the adventurer's guild and see if we can fulfill some requests… shoot I forgot I can't read."

"Don't worry, I can read for you. After the wave is over, want me to teach you Melromarc's script?" Rino never had to teach anyone before, but she was determined to help Chazon in any way possible.

"Sounds good. Let's see if we can solve some troubles before the wave hits."

Erhard did not disappoint with the new armor. Rino's Ultralight Armor set made her look like a well-protected ranger with her chest plate, arm plates, and leg plates. Chazon nodded at her new appearance. Though Erhard really did do a good job of outlining her breasts the way he- CHAZON! Again, do NOT lewd your party member like that! I know you're a guy and guys are into- I'm just gonna quit while I'm behind…

Chazon's armor is made from Mauler fur, Golem stone, Golem core fragments, and light metal, giving him the appearance of a furry Tron knight with orange lights. "Do I really look okay to you guys? I feel like adding the Golem core fragments were a bit much…"

Rino clasped her hands together in glee. "You look amazing, Chazon-kun!"

Erhard nodded at that. "You look like a true hero in that get-up. Besides, the Golem core fragments were necessary to make sure the Golem stone doesn't weigh you down too much. "

"I'll trust your judgement on that." Chazon was still a bit uncertain, but he let it slide. He was always pretty bad at making armor sets that looked half-way decent in his games at home. At the very least, his new armor gave him one hell of a defensive boost.

The door opened with someone saying, "Quite the racket in here, old man."

That voice!

Chazon turned around with a grin on his face and saw Naofumi at the doorway. Naofumi nodded at his friend. "Glad to see you haven't thrown your life away yet, Chazon."

"Ouch, cold! Then again, the last time we saw each other, I did almost do that, so I can't blame you." Naofumi snorted in amusement at that. "Anyways, it's good to see you again before the wave!"

"Naofumi-sama, is that Chazon-sama I hear?" An older girl's voice piped up behind Naofumi as she stepped out from behind him.

Chazon's voice died in his throat as he beheld the brown-haired girl. "Wait… wait is that you, Raphtalia?!"

Raphtalia giggles as she bows to him. "It's good to see you again, Chazon-sama. I'm glad you're doing wonderful."

Chazon looked at Naofumi. "What the heck have you been feeding her, Naofumi. She looks like a teenager now!"

"Really? She still looks the same to me." He replied blandly, causing Chazon to facepalm alongside Erhard.

"U-um… are you the Shield Hero?" Rino piped up nervously.

Naofumi looked at her and started glaring, causing her to shrink a bit. Chazon sighed at that. "This is Rino, my party member from the village of Lerno. Rino, this is Naofumi the shield hero, and Raphtalia." Raphtalia felt like she heard that name before, but bowed to Rino. Naofumi was about to start speaking when Chazon held up a hand. "I know what you're going to say and I want to talk to you about that. Erhard, can we head out back for a more private discussion?"

Erhard nodded. "Of course, though you aren't taking the ladies with you?" Rino and Raphtalia look at each other in confusion.

Chazon chuckled at that as he beckoned Naofumi to follow him. "I'm sure the girls don't need us stuffy men to become acquainted." The two heroes leave the room as Erhard decides to organize his materials in his storeroom.

Once they reach out back, Naofumi growled at Chazon. "You have a red-head in your party?! Have you already-"

"Forgotten what happened? No." Naofumi wasn't expecting a blunt answer. "Before I can properly explain things, I need you to help me test something. Make and maintain your best poker face and look me square in the eye."

Naofumi had plenty of practice making a stony face with little emotion behind it, so he did as he was asked. Chazon noted confusion behind his eyes. "Now look at my finger to the side." He did so and Chazon couldn't read his emotions anymore. "Now back at my eyes." They locked and while some confusion was still present, there was irritation now despite nothing showing on his face. "You started out confused but now you're only somewhat confused, but mostly irritated at me doing this, aren't you?"

That broke Naofumi's poker face as he looked surprised. "How? Can you see how I'm feeling just by looking into my eyes?"

"Not just you. I can read the emotions of anyone I lock eyes with, courtesy of my passive unlocked at level 12, Soul of the Spear."

Noufumi connected the dots and eased his posture. "Is that why you let that red-head… Rino into your party, because she didn't show anything that might lead to her betraying you?"

Chazon nodded. "I'll confess, I didn't trust her at all in the beginning because she had red-hair, just like you didn't as well. But after a run in with particularly devious monsters that made her show her feelings, as well as finally locking eyes with her, I knew I could actually trust her."

Naofumi was about to call Chazon out for not using that ability on Bitch, but quickly stomped that thought out. Not only was he not aware of it until he got it, but even if he knew, it would have been impossible for him to reach level 12 within the timeframe given. It'd be unfair to say he could've used it; I told myself that the only thing he's responsible for was not being there.

"All I ask is that you don't tell anyone else I have this ability. People could get some… unpleasant ideas if they knew." Chazon let out a quick gasp. "Right, there are a bunch of materials that I got during my time in Lerno. Some of them unlock potent weaponry, so I'll give them to you now. By the way, I heard you were in the mines of Lute. Did you happen to find anything that stood out to you?"

"Why do you ask? I can tell you've been there already, so I doubt you're inquiring about the light metal found there."

Chazon smirked as he brought out two pieces of a certain ore, which surprised Naofumi. "Let's just say my luck was amazing enough to net me four pieces of ultralight metal ore; a rare variant of light metal. I'll give one to you so that you can make something out of it and one for your shield."

Naofumi gaped at the ore he was being given. "How? Was I not deep enough for this?"

"Erhard said that Lute's mines didn't contain nodes pure enough, though I'm guessing that applies only to normal miners. There were monsters in the mines that gave me more mining proficiency and I'm guessing that's why I managed to find them." Naofumi nodded, accepting his explanation. "I can also help you afford any custom armor you might want to make with the second one I give you."

After that conversation, Naofumi fed everything Chazon gave him and gained access all of the shields, which had the potential to raise his stats exponentially. As Naofumi gave Chazon any materials he hadn't gotten, he remembered something he needed to say to the spear hero. "Can… I tell you something?"

"Fire away, I'm always willing to lend an ear." Chazon smiled warmly at his fellow hero.

"I've… realized something during my time with Raphtalia. After we parted company, she always held you in high regard whenever you were brought up; that your kindness and compassion were genuine to her and how thankful she is to have met you, even if it was brief. That made me think deeper into things and… well…" Naofumi let out a sigh, his face softening. "I guess what I'm trying to say is… I trust you, Chazon. That's… all I can really say." I'm still no good with these kinds of things...

It warmed Chazon's heart to hear that as he extended a fist. "And I trust you, Naofumi. Let's get through this wave and all others together." Naofumi huffed in amusement as he bumped his fist against Chazon's. "Though I'll confess, that daft codger of a king tried to tell me that I shouldn't associate with you. The nerve…" Chazon let out a scoff at that.

Naofumi let out a loud snort at that. "Nice name. I've just been calling him Trash this entire time."

"Trash is also a fitting name, but I like to be creative." Chazon crossed his arms in contemplation. "Though I will give him credit for telling me to attune to the Dragon Hourglass to tell when the wave hits."

"Wait, we have to do that?!" That was the first Naofumi had heard of it.

Chazon nodded. "When you're done here, head to the church you can see from the town square. Once you've attuned, you'll see a timer, as well as have your party be warped to where the wave is set to start." Naofumi nodded at that as the two headed back inside.

After the two heroes and Erhard left the room, Rino looked at Raphtalia. "S-so, you're the shield hero's party member?"

Raphtalia nodded. "Well… to be more accurate, his slave."

That shocked Rino as she gave Raphtalia a concerned look. "Are you doing alright? I know you look healthy with no signs of abuse but…"

"I understand your concern, but Naofumi-sama has treated me kindly the entire time he has owned me. He's rough around the edges, but he really is kind in his own way."

Raphtalia was surprised when Rino's face changed to one of relief. "I'm sorry... Chazon-kun told me that the Shield Hero really was a good person and I trust him, but I guess I just wanted direct confirmation from his companion. You care for him, don't you?"

Raphtalia smiled as she closed her eyes and started telling Rino about what she went through. She told Rino of how she met Naofumi and their adventures up until that point. How he managed to convince her to fight her trauma by stating that she could save other kids from the pain she went through in the first wave. How kind he was, even though he had closed off his heart to the world.

It took a couple of seconds before Rino realized something. "You're… from the Seaetto Region, right?" Raphtalia nodded and Rino closed her eyes in turn. "My mother was there and she… died trying to fend off the boss of the first wave. I had heard from her fellow adventurers that she saved many people beforehand… and that she died a hero."

Raphtalia widened her eyes as she remembered something. After her parents sacrificed themselves to save her, she was rescued… by a blond-haired adventurer.

"Are you alright? You're safe now."

"M-my parents… they… they…"

"They knew what they were doing, child. They chose to sacrifice themselves so that you might see a brighter future for their sake as well."

"T-they told me… to always keep smiling…"

"It may be painful to do so, and I'll never tell you to not grieve for their loss. But you cannot grieve forever, for they would not want that. Instead, pay your respects then look towards the future as they wanted you to."

...

"I-I'll try! I'll make my parents proud!"

"Heh… you remind me of my daughter, Rino. I'm sure if you two were the same age, you would have been good friends."

Raphtalia looked at Rino in realization, a warm smile on her face. "It was your mother… who saved me that day, who told me the true meaning behind my parent's wish."

Rino widened her eyes at that before she put a hand over her heart with a soft smile. "I'm glad someone my mother saved is doing well now. I'm sure Naofumi-sama will continue to treat you well, Raphtalia-chan."

"What about you, Rino-chan? How did you meet Chazon-sama?"

Rino inhaled a shaky breath before recounting everything that went on the past few weeks. How she tried to find help for her village, but nobody would party with her. That she tried to go to a dangerous location by herself out of desperation. How she met Chazon and the experiences they had in the cave.

Rino smiled and put a hand on her heart. "It might not be to the same degree as your situation, but Chazon-kun… he let me in when nobody else would. And when he let go of his reservations and truly trusted me… I was so incredibly happy. I felt like I could finally make my mother proud."

They both realized it; Rino's mother was the reason why they were there now. Raphtalia was saved by her and, while the journey into Naofumi's ownership was heart-breaking, Naofumi purchased her and turned her life around. Rino was inspired by her mother to become an adventurer, but had her own heartaches until Chazon let her in.

Both of them were saved by their respective heroes… and the bond they felt with each other at that exact moment told them what they already knew.

They really were going to be good friends, like Rino's mother had said.

By the time the two heroes had come in from their own chat, the two girls were talking about a myriad of subjects. Chazon and Naofumi looked at each other and simply shook their heads. "Girls, am I right?"

"Yeah."