Reviews:
jc-montanorock: I did not know that, but I am glad I accidentally adhered to canon. Accidental mistakes for the win!
SomeCallMeDrunk: Motoyasu in canon, for me at least, is someone who wants to do good, but is such a colossal idiot that they can't help but fuck literally everything up. Even in this fic, he's trying to do the right thing in his mind, even if that right thing is only the right thing for the corrupt and powerful. So the news of what his actions caused will definitely hit him hard. And yeah, Pesci didn't get quite the screentime he did in canon JoJo, but he still did try to man up at the end. He didn't get the chance unfortunately since... y'know... guns.
RedBurningDragon: The Bioplant disaster will have a big impact on the two, and it will be a huge factor in deciding the outcome of the trial once everything starts to settle down.
DeathCrawler: Thanks man :)
flamegod310: Yup, they all suck in canon, except maybe Ren, but he can be pretty infuriating in his own right.
D3lph0xL0v3r: Things will be interesting to say the least.
calderoneric758: Arthur get out of the tank :)
Sentinal Slice: Motoyasu will be told about the result of his actions, it will just be off in the future.
Note:
For the stand battle special I mentioned in the Milemarkers and Stands :) chapter (which is no longer there),
send me either a review or a PM of what stand battle you want Naofumi and Wireframe to be a part of.
It can be any battle from either part three or part four (since I don't read manga).
And yes, part five is being excluded since a lot of the flashbacks in future chapters will at least contain
parts of those battles, so I don't want to spoil anything in them.
That's all from me! Now on with the chapter!
A Shield's Stand
Chapter 18: Two Nobles For the Price of One
"The situation continues to escalate, my queen. What would you have us do?" The woman, garbed in tight fitting and concealing black clothes and a mask asked another woman, dressed in a brilliant lavender dress and a tight fitting corset.
The apparent queen lightly raised her hand to her temple in thought. After a few moments, she spoke to the other woman, "Do not interfere. I see now that we should have interfered from the very start, far more than we had. To involve ourselves directly now would only sow mistrust between myself and the man who has the capabilities to save us all. His plans are well made and if executed flawlessly, will end the strife without bloodshed. A perfect outcome for us."
"...and if he fails, my queen?" The black garbed woman asked, only an ounce of uncertainty lacing her voice.
"Then the world will fall to the waves."
The morning sunlight was harsh, but after the day they just had, it was welcomed with open arms as it signified a new day, nearly guaranteed to be better than the one they just had. Hopefully that thought didn't jinx it. Elina and Naofumi were the first ones up, having stayed up the whole night on watch, and went about cleaning up the campsite, Silver waking up from Naofumi's movements. Raphtalia and Rifana woke up together, and with everyone rested for the day (as much as they could be at least), the group set out, continuing their task of diverting the Melromarcian royal knights and the church forces.
The day progressed much like the first three days of their plan had, nothing too exciting, mostly just avoiding knight patrols and occasionally causing a commotion to keep their attention on them. Their map of Melromarc proved once again infallible in its usefulness, the clear depictions of Melromarc's most important trade routes and roads giving the group more than enough information.
It also gave a small amount of information on the noble's that owned the lands throughout the country. Nothing more than their names, but that was enough to shake the foundations of Raphtalia and Rifana.
That name was Rabier.
It was no secret to Elina, Naofumi, or Silver that prior to their inclusion into Naofumi's party, the two were slaves, and horribly mistreated ones at that. It was clear that even with all the support and love they were given daily, they were still deeply affected by whatever events led them to that dingy cage Naofumi saved them from.
For all her strength and will, there were those nights where Raphtalia would sob silently to herself, or where Rifana would freeze up in complete fear, clenching her arms hard enough to cut off circulation.
So when it was mentioned they were currently in Rabier territory, the events that would follow were already set in motion.
"Rabier is…" Raphtalia mumbled to herself, her voice lacking any of her characteristic strength.
"Rabier is the name of the bastard who tortured us for the sake of his own damn pleasure," Rifana spat without a lack of heat or venom. The man was irredeemable in her eyes. Torturing any demi-humans he owned, listening to them scream and cry from pain or despair, and glistening with joy in response. Any person who took joy in the suffering of others was one better off dead in her eyes.
Silver ran up to the two and wrapped them in a frighteningly strong hug for a girl her size, she buried her face into their legs, no doubt trying to hide her own set of frustrated tears.
Naofumi gave a soft smile at the sight before it faded out, his features creasing as he asked his next question, "Were there any others?" 'Any survivors?' was left unasked.
Rifana nodded her head. Raphtalia didn't answer, but she said more than she needed to.
"We're heading to Rabier's mansion," he said with finality, "Let's move."
Standing at the base of the walls of Rabier's mansion, Naofumi was once again reminded that the people he was against were ridiculously wealthy and powerful. The mansion (read castle) was stationed at the top of a cliff, leaving the only entrance through the front gate which was regularly patrolled by guards that switched out every fifteen or so minutes to ensure a thorough inspection of the premises were undertaken.
Simply put, the mansion was a nigh-impregnable fortress to everyone without a significant army. Well… everyone except Naofumi, who was easily able to bypass every single one of those defences thanks to Wireframe's ability. After making sure Raphtalia was alright with returning to the very same place she had been tortured for months, the two of them breached the castle silently, Raphtalia guiding them to the hidden torture chamber within the central plaza.
Immediately upon entering, a putrid smell assaulted their noses, Naofumi immediately throwing his hands over his nose in a poor attempt to block out some of the horrid scent. Raphtalia took no such measures, instead taking a deep breath and meeting it with a determined gaze. She was the first to walk down the halls. She came to the first demi-human, locked behind bars and in chains and wordlessly sliced the restraints to scrap metal. She offered a smile to the man who looked up at her with tears in his eyes, the scraps of hope he'd thrown away returning.
She continued down the hall, releasing every single slave from their chains, even meeting with one of her old friends from before the waves. Most of the released slaves were hesitant to trust Naofumi at first, and he understood their reasonings, though their hesitation vanished the moment he revealed he was the Shield Hero to them all. So, at least they would comply for the time being.
Once they were all free, Naofumi ferried them down one by one to where Rifana, Silver, and Elina were waiting. There were twelve demi-humans in total; two men, four women, and six children. Naofumi repressed his rage towards the man who would torture these people, who tortured his family in the past. His rage could be released later, right now, they needed to get them to the next noble's territory.
Elina had been quick to tell them that they couldn't afford to travel with injured and very likely diseased freed slaves, especially with their responsibilities in the plan to take into consideration. However, that being said, the noble beside Rabier was a kind man, one who accepted demi-humans and treated them as equals. There was a good chance he would be willing to take in a few more and bring them back to good health.
With few other options, the party decided that was the best (and only) course of action. Of the twelve demi-humans they rescued, only five could walk by themselves. Silver carried three on her back in her transformed state, Elina carried another on her shoulders, Raphtalia and Rifana both supported one each as they tried to walk and Naofumi carried one of the weakened children, avidly trying to ignore how little they weighed.
When this was all over, he would have to talk to a lot of people.
The extraction went as smoothly as it could. There were no alarms raised as they fled from the mansion's walls and by the time they had been raised, the party of five and twelve freed slaves were already on the other side of the forest bordering the mansion's village. Which left the only task to drop off the twelve at the Reichnott territory, which would evidently prove to be much more difficult. They really should have expected this. Knights were swarming Reichnott's demi human village (much to the displeasure of the residents), probably because they wanted to make sure Naofumi didn't make contact with any potential allies.
It was a sound idea on the knight's part, but they seem to forget how stealthy his party could be. To many others, effectively sneaking around a group of well trained royal knights would be difficult. To Naofumi and his party, it would be child's play.
The village was surrounded by a dense forest, giving the party enough cover to travel safely through, though they did have to keep watch for any knights that were actually watching rather than harassing the residents (and if a couple rocks hit those knight's helmets when they weren't looking, who could say who was to blame?). With patience, speed, and a little bit of help from an otherworldly spirit that allowed for travel through solid surfaces, the group made it to Reichnott's home without any interruptions.
Naofumi turned to Elina, "Alright, what's the plan Elina?"
Elina sputtered indignantly, "The hell are you asking me for, Shieldy? Why would I know what to do?"
"Well you did suggest we come here," Rifana added her two cents, which Elina met with a quick and low heated glare.
Elina rubbed her temples, taking care to not disturb her passenger. Why were her party members such a hassle sometimes? Seriously, sometimes it was like they couldn't think of a single original idea. Her and Shieldy would have to fix that at some point. Elina huffed, carefully moved the demi-human from her shoulders, laying the man against a tree, and just walked brazenly to the front door of Reichnott's manor, pounding aggressively on the door.
Naturally, this scared the ever-living hell out of the other four since Elina was just risking the entire plan without a second thought. They shout-whispered to Elina to try and get her to come back, but the large woman just ignored them. Eventually a maid answered the door, ready to tell off another group of knights for trying to harass her lord, but stared with caution at the new scarred woman who stood at the door.
"Oi, you guys like Demi-humans, right?" Elina curtly asked.
The maid narrowed her eyes dangerously, "And what if we do?" Elina didn't miss how her hands subtly shifted into her uniform, likely preparing a weapon.
"Can you take a couple more?" Elina asked, her tone unchanging.
"...what?"
Ignoring the maid's state of confusion, Elina turned to where the rest were hidden in the foliage, waving her hand over. "C'mon you four, let's get these twelve something to eat and some medical attention."
The maid's eyes shot open when four other people (two demi-humans, a large filolial, and a scarred shield wielding human) waltzed right out into plain sight, twelve demi-humans accompanying them. Seeing the state of seven of them, the maid forwent any further discussion, ushering them all into the manor.
The maids were one hell of a team. The five that worked in the Reichnott manor wasted absolutely no time in setting up the seven weak demi-humans in their spare lodgings and immediately getting them some light foods to eat. The other five were served shortly after the rest were properly taken care of.
With that, their goal was completed, and rather easily at that. They raided a highly guarded fortress, freed tortured slaves, escaped and brought them to safety, all without anyone knowing. If that didn't describe a perfectly executed mission, nothing would. Granted, they did make a couple risks that could have definitely been avoided, but it all worked out in the end.
Naofumi stood by the doorway, looking in on the conscious demi-humans, who were finally starting to realize that they were well and truly free, tears beginning to pour from their eyes. He knew he had done a good deed, but… it didn't feel like enough. It didn't make up for everything else that has happened to the people he loves, and all those he holds close.
"I must admit, I was not expecting the most wanted man in Melromarc, the Shield Devil himself, to waltz right up to my door and barge in," a new voice sounded from behind him with a teasing tone.
Naofumi turned to meet the man behind the voice and came face to hair with a glasses wearing noble, dressed in white and blue cloth, and quite skinny. The man had his eyes closed, a slim smile on his face, and just exuded a calming atmosphere around him.
"I'm very sorry for the disruption, but the postal services are a bit unavailable to us at the moment," Naofumi said with a well-meaning smirk.
Reichnott let out a laugh befitting a man of his stature, before reigning himself in. "Noble and comedic? The Shield truly chose an excellent bearer this time." The short noble looked into the room, his eyes softening at the overjoyed former slaves, "It's a beautiful sight, isn't it? To be able to see others experience for the first time the wonders we take for granted every single day."
Naofumi recognized the truth in the noble's words. Even as the most wanted person in Melromarc, he still had the freedom and power to do whatever he wanted to (for the most part). For someone of his situation to have more free will than every single one of the demi-humans inside this very manor? It was disgusting.
"This world is too cruel to its own people," Naofumi said, avidly trying to not think of the remains of Lerno.
Reichnott nodded solemnly, the smile on his face vanishing briefly at the hero's words, before returning in full, "It is. But such cruelty can forge some of the most beautiful things."
Naofumi sighed, before tired eyes and a small smile met Reichnott's eyes once more, "I guess you're right, Reichnott."
The noble pat the hero on his back, "Of course I am! My name is Right-nott for a reason, afterall!"
Every single maid inside the room groaned in utter mental fatigue, bringing a bout of laughter to the two men's bodies. The atmosphere was lightened and everything was enjoyable… until it got very dangerous as a large gauntlet clad hand clasped on the corner of the hall, Elina's enraged face coming into view.
"Who said that? I swear to everything that I will end them," Elina got out past her gritted teeth. How they hadn't shattered by this point was a wonder in of itself.
Reichnott kept his smile, even as rivers of sweat poured down his face. He hurriedly clasped Naofumi's arm and led him from his potential death at the hands of a very angry woman, "Come, come, Sir Shield Hero! I'm sure you're famished. This way to the dining area, let's not keep the cook waiting! Hah, hah, hah!"
Eventually, Elina had managed to calm down from her utter boiling rage and joined Reichnott and the rest of Naofumi's party at the dining table. Introductions were given and some amazing tasting food (compared to the regular roasted monster meat they had been eating for weeks on end) was dished out. From there, all that was left was to extend the plan to Reichnott and hope for the best.
"A siege of the castle, you say?" To the nobleman's credit, he didn't cry out in shock or even choke on his bite of food in the slightest and seemed to be seriously considering the idea. Such a bland reaction to a completely insane suggestion of what boiled down to 'let's overthrow the king' was not expected, to say the least.
"At least have some kind of reaction!" Rifana cried out in dismay.
"That's right. The Sword Hero and the crown princess have been travelling the country for the last week garnering support from the many villages the crown has abandoned since we were summoned." Naofumi explained, attempting to reassure the nobleman, "We're even having some trusted friends evacuating as much of the capital as they can to avoid every casualty we can. The way I see it, this is our best shot at a bloodless resolution."
"Well that is certainly an interesting viewpoint, Naofumi," Reichnott responded, "Although, I must wonder what you believe will occur should you successfully take control of the capital? Do you expect the king to submit to your demands, or perhaps you expect the church to stand down? What will happen should neither of these come to pass?"
It was a valid counter-argument to the entire plan, but none of them would be at this point if they hadn't already considered such a likely course of events.
Raphtalia stood from her seat, locking gazes with the blue haired noble, "We understand your reservations, Lord Reichnott, but we have already accounted for something like that to happen. While none of us enjoy having to take such drastic measures, we are capable of-"
Silver decided it was her turn to speak, "We're gonna use Melty as a hostage!" The little silver winged girl said cheerily as she took a bite of her food.
A sentence as sinister as that should never come from such a small and innocent girl's mouth.
"O-oh… I see…" Reichnott was floored.
While Naofumi tried to persuade Silver to take note of what words she uses to say what she wants, Rifana attempted to win over the noble in her own way, "She's not wrong, but we have the crown princess's consent to-"
Elina's gauntlet cut off the rest of Rifana's sentence, "Alright, that's enough out of you." She picked up the weasel, throwing her over her shoulder and walking out of the room, not even reacting to Rifana pounding her fists on her armor.
"A-anyway, as I was saying." Raphtalia cleared her throat, trying to regain some semblance of control, "We are well aware that the King is extremely protective of his family, so we will use that fact against him, if we have to. We don't want to rule over him, we just want to sway him to our side, as tough as that may be."
"The King has been losing faith in the church as time goes on," Naofumi rejoined the conversation, Silver back to happily eating her food, "Ren has told me that the King knows the church has been blatantly lying to his face. Topping this with their repeated failures in subduing us with the Spear Hero and the Bow Hero's rampage, Ren believes that one final push will be all it takes for him to turn against them."
"And what better final push than the combined voice of over half the country's residents?" Reichnott summarized.
Naofumi and Raphtalia nodded.
"You do understand that your plan hinges on the accuracy in the Sword Hero's assessment of the King's mental state, correct?" Reichnott asks seriously, "Adding such an uncertain variable into a very delicate and impactful event is a massive risk."
Naofumi and Raphtalia shared a glance, Raphtalia ushering towards Naofumi to reassure the worried noble. Naofumi steeled his expression, meeting the noble's closed eyes head on, "It is a massive risk, but it's one this country needs to take. If not for the country, then for the entire world."
Reichnott went silent, quietly assessing the information he has. The two other adults watched on while Silver finally finished her meal, letting out a satisfied sigh. She turned in her seat to hug her Dad firmly. As meaningless as such a thing seemed to her, that one action was the last thing Reichnott needed to see.
"Your plan is dangerous, reliant on uncertain factors, and even listening to you could get me locked in the King's dungeons for the rest of my life," Raphtalia and Naofumi's expressions hardened, "but seeing how much faith that girl has in you, is quite an indicator of your capabilities. Afterall, what's life without a little bit of faith?"
Reichnott has seen people visibly deflate before, hell, he's don't is himself in times of great stress, but these two took that to an extreme. Raphtalia melted onto the back of her chair and Naofumi all but collapsed forward, trapping Silver between his chest and lap. Said girl screamed playfully before giggling as she tried to push him off her.
Naofumi limply looked up, "Raphtalia, I'm starting to think we gave Ren and Melty the harder part of the plan. That was absolutely terrifying."
All Reichnott could do was laugh.
Reichnott offered the five lodgings for the night, but seeing as the knights could ransack the manor at any time for any kind of minor and pointless reasoning, they all decided it was best if they left as soon as possible. Of course, Reichnott couldn't just leave it at that and decided that he would help them make a quick and easy exit. Since the knights loved to harass the residents of Reichnott's town, he decided it was time for a little payback. His residents were inclined to agree, and that was without knowing that Naofumi and his party were in the town with them.
So when a few demi-humans got into a brawl with a few knights and the rest of the town jumped in, pummeling the knights, followed quickly by one of his own threats that any reporting of the attack would be met with less than desired results for the knights, who could really say what really incited the brawl?
Meanwhile, the Shield Hero and his party left the town, none the wiser.
Reichnott loved his job.
Being watched was nothing new to the party of five. They had all been hunted nonstop for about two weeks and even before that every single demi-human in Shieldfreeden watched them constantly with awe and adoration, so being watched secretly wasn't a new feeling to them. However, the feeling of being watched and being unable to locate exactly from where they were being watched from was definitely new. They could all tell, but none of them could accurately pinpoint the location, even with Rifana's incredible eyesight and Raphtalia's incredible hearing.
Despite their mounting frustration, none of them gave off any indication that they knew, in the hopes to catch their stalker/potential enemy off guard when they eventually pinpointed their location.
So, the group continued their travels, each one talking with one another as they normally would, keeping their guard up for when their watcher revealed themselves.
Eventually, they did.
A branch snapped from behind them. Immediately the five darted off, trying to shake their pursuer. Just as they had practiced, Silver ran ahead of them all, transforming to her filolial form for the far slower Elina while the rest used their own respective agility stats to charge ahead.
Rifana took point, using her axe to carve a path through the denser materials that blocked their path and throwing anything she thought useful behind them all. Raphtalia was next, trimming away any remaining debris from Rifana's warpath from the rest of the group, while throwing her own blinding spells at their pursuer. Naofumi sat atop Silver's head, blocking any stray attacks that came their way while Elina rode on her back, dragging her war axe effortlessly through the ground, destroying the clean path they had formed just for them.
It was an excellent retreat strategy, effectively shutting down any melee focused pursuers, blocking ranged attacks as a result of the mess of debris that trailed behind them, and ending any potential for the enemy to use their cleanly trailed path to pursue them. That wasn't to say it was perfect, because it wasn't. The retreat needed the ground to be uneven, so attempting it on something as clear as a road likely would end up failing due to the other flat grounds pursuers could travel and it relied heavily on Rifana's ludicrous agility stat to pull her ahead and clear a path for them.
So someone with a higher agility stat than Rifana, as unlikely as that would be, would be able to effectively ignore this form of tactical retreat.
Luckily for them, since life could simply not throw them a bone, their pursuer did have a higher agility stat than Rifana. Much much higher if the wind that buffeted them as their pursuer passed them was any indication.
"Crap!" Naofumi knew they couldn't hope to outrun them, so they would have to hope to lose them in the forest. "Rifana, carry Raphtalia and charge ahead, full throttle!"
Rifana looked overjoyed at being allowed to really stretch her legs while Raphtalia paled. Despite knowing it was necessary, travelling at the insane speeds Rifana could go while being jostled around by the girl carrying her was not her definition of fun.
"You got it 'Fumi!" Rifana skid to a stop, allowing Raphtalia to catch up in a moment and hop on her back.
Making sure Raphtalia was secure, Rifana dropped to a runner's stance and tensed her legs. With a single push, the two rocketed off, the ground beneath them cratering from the sheer force.
Naofumi looked towards Silver, "Try and keep up with them Silver! We need to stay together!"
"Ok Daddy!" The silver winged filolial girl responded before shifting to her own highest speeds.
Naofumi kept his eyes open against the blistering winds that dried and stung them. He needed to be able to keep a lookout for this mysterious pursuer and guide them away from them. He noticed some movement in the trees to their right, calling out to his team to charge left.
His callout came not a moment too soon as something rocketed into the ground right in front of them, the ground they would have been had they not abruptly changed courses. Naofumi couldn't be sure, but from his small glimpse, whoever was chasing after was small.
'An assassin from the church?' Naofumi was possible, especially knowing the underhanded methods the church loved to use in its spare time.
As much as he would like to confront the lone pursuer (assuming they were alone at all), they couldn't afford to engage with the church yet. The meeting date was still three whole days away. To get caught now would put everyone in danger.
So, Naofumi would continue to direct his party to the best of his ability. Throwing out some of his Shield's skills to delay the pursuer as much as possible.
"Right!" They barely avoided them. "Reverse!" Reversing their momentum and heading in the opposite direction bought them a little time. "Right!" That one was too close for comfort, the figure actually managed to pluck one of Silver's feathers, much to the girl's displeasure.
Evidently, the group's avoidance seemed to annoy their pursuer just enough for them to suddenly vanish without a trace. The forest went quiet, only the sound of the rushing winds filled Naofumi's ears as he kept watch of everything around him.
That was until a massive tree was thrown at them, the tree crashed into the path behind them, chasing them down even at the insanely high speeds they were traveling.
"Holy shit!" Elina screamed out as the base of the tree neared her.
"Wireframe!" The stand appeared without delay and threw a volley of punches at the bark that threatened to impale, then flatten them all.
"Ikari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kari-kaRI!" The stand called out as its fists met the wood head on, shaving it down to the best of its ability. Then again, Wireframe didn't have the greatest physical strength, so it could only do so much.
"Fuck! Wireframe, cover us!" Naofumi called to this stand. Wireframe rushed forward, snagging the hem of Raphtalia's dress and pulling the two close enough to grab all five of Naofumi's party just as the tree caught up to them, passing through them thanks to Wireframe's phasing ability.
Once the entirety of the tree had passed through them, the five scrambled to their feet, forming a defensive circle. That was, until a surprisingly young voice sounded out over them.
"So you're alive. That's good. I was worried I had gone overboard."
They turned to face the new voice, coming eye to eye with a short white-gray haired girl with three cowlicks and white feathery wings sprouting from her back. She wore a white frilly dress with a cute red bow atop her chest.
"Well, I suppose your title is indicative of your resistance, isn't it, Shield Hero? Though I must admit, you five were a bit frustrating to catch up to," the little girl spoke in a monotone voice.
Speaking calmly, but keeping his guard up, Naofumi responded to the girl, "Why did you attack us? Are you with the church?" He found it unlikely, seeing as the girl wasn't wearing a rosary, but it was never bad to be cautious.
"Attack?" The girl tilted her head in a confused manner, "Do you mean the tree I threw at you? That wasn't an attack." She spoke resolutely.
A thick vein throbbed on Elina's forehead, "How the hell was that not an attack you little brat?!"
"If I wanted to attack you, you all would be dead within an instant," she spoke with no emotion. The toneless line striking a cord with the five, sending chills down their backs.
"She's not lying, Daddy…" Silver spoke up, her voice trembling. Naofumi looked over to her in surprise, "I don't know how I know, but I do. If she wanted to kill us, she could without even trying."
Hearing that, Naofumi clenched his fists before lowering his shield and stepping forward. Raphtalia, Rifana, and Elina all called for him to get back, but he stood firm. "If we can't even put up a fight against her, then what's the point of keeping our guard up? The best shot we have is if we hear her out." He turned to the girl, "Now, having said that, my name is Naofumi Iwatani, the current Shield Hero. What is it you want with us?"
The girl nodded at his introduction, "I know, that is why I sought you out. My name is Fitoria, I am the queen of the filolials." Fitoria spared a look towards Silver, "I wasn't expecting a filolial queen candidate to be with you, though. As for what I want, I must speak with you."
Naofumi raised a brow, 'Filolial Queen candidate?' He shook his head, he could think about that later. "Alright, I'll talk with you. I'll assume you have somewhere specific you want us to talk?"
Fitoria nodded again, "That's right. This is not a valid location to discuss matters of importance, please step into my carriage." Just like that, an elegantly decorated carriage rolled out from the foliage, stopping by itself and opening its side door, exposing its lavishly decorated and furnished inside.
Knowing he had no other choice, Naofumi did as he was told, asking the others to do the same. Once they were all sat in the carriage, the carriage began moving, again seemingly by itself before the scenery around them changed seemingly with a single blink. The party of five all blinked in shock, some rubbing their eyes to see if they were hallucinating. Fitoria stepped out of the carriage without another word.
They all exited the carriage after her, seeing they were now in the center of a ruins, with filolials loitering about everywhere.
"How did you-" Elina tried to ask before another voice cut in.
"Ah! Fitoria, you're back already? I thought you would be gone for… longer..." Itsuki Kawasumi, the current Bow Hero trailed off as he saw the five people who accompanied Fitoria from her carriage.
Naofumi, Raphtalia, Rifana, Elina, and Silver all stared in shock at the sudden appearance of the mass murderer.
Itsuki chuckled nervously and half-heartedly, looking away from the five as he scratched his jaw, "Ah… long time no see, huh?"
Naofumi Iwatani
Class: Shield Hero
Level 48
Legendary Shield,「Wireframe」
Bizarre Otherworldly Clothing
ATK: 59
DEF: 426
MATK: 50
MDEF: 334
DEX: 129
AGI: 185
Stand Arrow Charge: 39%
Raphtalia
Class: Demi-Human Knight
Level 45
Magic Iron Sword
Swordswoman's Dress
ATK: 163
DEF: 101
MATK: 146
MDEF: 54
DEX: 102
AGI: 193
Rifana
Class: Demi-Human Rampager
Level 45
Steel Dagger,「I've Been A Fool」
Short Furred Covering
ATK: 206
DEF: 95
MATK: 62
MDEF: 56
DEX: 205
AGI: 252
Elina Poli
Class: Human Thrasher
Level 46
Magic Iron War Axe
Plate Armor
ATK: 296
DEF: 124
MATK: 47
MDEF: 43
DEX: 96
AGI: 99
Silver
Class: Adult Filolial Guard
Level 46
Steel Wings
ATK: 176
DEF: 222
MATK: 178
MDEF: 269
DEX: 71
AGI: 172
Wireframe
Power:
D
Speed:
C
Range:
C
Durability:
E
Precision:
C
Development Potential:
A
I've Been A Fool
Power:
C
Speed:
E
Range:
C
Durability:
C
Precision:
A
Development Potential:
C
Notes:
Itsuki's baaaaaaack! It would seem Fitoria got to him before anyone else could, I wonder what that means for our least favorite cursed bow wielder?
Regardless, the plot progresses. Not a lot of action here, mostly just setup and a little exposition. Next chapter will be much the same since its Fitoria time but after that there's not much in the way for the big plan to have to wait for, which means a lot of writing for me... Meh, I can deal with that when it comes. Problems for future me, I suppose.
For the tree chase-down, I tried to envision it like that one part in Megamind where Titan throws a whole skyscraper and it chases them down the road while they try to escape, only with stands and instead of an overly buff white ginger guy in spandex, its a white haired and emotionless loli tossing the motherload of all trees at a group of idiots.
Finally, I included the Stand Arrow Charge in Naofumi's stat spread because its too big of a thing to just not have there, so it'll be updated as time progresses from chapter to chapter.
Anyway, see you guys next time :)
- RandomA99