I sighed as I looked warily at a glass of wine that I had in my hand. I then looked around the room to see it crowded with nobility and the other heroes. I just made my way back over to Naofumi who was sitting in a window isolated from the rest.
"Don't have too much fun over here" I said dryly in a tone that more or less agreed with his decision to be isolated
"Don't worry I won't" he grumbled "I wish they'd just give me the reward already so I can get the hell out of here" he said bitterly
I just shrugged and took a look at the wine before I dumped it onto the ground not trusting anything alcoholic unless I was the one who made it or I saw it opened for the first time.
Naofumi just raised an eyebrow at me as I dumped it out before shrugging.
"Mr. Naofumi, the food here is amazing!" Raphtalia said as she walked up with a slice of cake on a plate
"That's good, eat up while you can, it'll save on food expenses" Naofumi said and I chuckled
"But If I eat to much I'll get fat!" She said and I sighed
'Every girl is the same I swear' I thought to myself as both Naofumi and I passed over the topic
"Anyway its good to see you again Raphtalia" I said and she looked at me
"I've been meaning to ask, but you sound familiar but i don't recognize you all that well…" she said and I chuckled
I then briefly lowered my hood to show my ears and hair.
"Erebus!? What happened to your eyes?" She asked and I chuckled
"I wrapped them so no one could see them. It was just a precaution Don't worry I didn't go blind or anything" I said as Naofumi looked up
"So you're also a demi human?" He asked and I nodded as I put my hood back up
"In a sense yes" I said cryptically
"Erebus fell from a crack in the sky one day, months before the first wave" Raphtalia said and Naofumi looked at me closely "The villagers believed him to be from another world" she said
"So like the heroes then?" Naofumi said with narrowed eyes
"Kind of, but unlike the heroes I wasn't summoned, I simply fell into the world through the rift" I explained and he nodded
"Is that so?" He mused before his expression darkened and I saw the red and silver garbed spear hero walk past me
I then watched as he pulled off a glove and threw it at Naofumi. I just groaned at the challenge.
"Naofumi, I challenge you to a duel!" The spear hero said and I just sighed
"What the hell has gotten into you? Have you finally lost your mind?" Naofumi asked with anger lacing his voice
"I've heard everything, that girl with you, Raphtalia, she's a slave!" He shouted and it was at this point I tuned out
It sounded like he was trying to be a hero to free a slave from captivity but he didn't even see the facts around him. Yes I thought slavery was wrong, but in this world it's allowed, and even if she was a slave, Raphtalia looked like she wanted to be with Naofumi. The spear hero just wanted to play hero, and the sight just passed me off.
The conversation between the two got more heated and Naofumi eventually walked off with Raphtalia following. However as they made it to the staircase I heard the king's voice call out escalating the situation further.
"Seize the hooded man as well. He obviously has something to do with this" the king said and I grit my teeth as I drew my sword and held it in front of me as knights surrounded me
"Hey! He has not--" Raphtalia tried to say but she was suddenly gagged
I felt my anger rising by the second as I felt a familiar feeling of deja vu.
"Drop your weapon and surrender slaver" the knight said and I tightened my grip on my sword
"Oh please, I'm not a slaver" I spat at the knights
"Then explain why you would hang around the Shield Hero who currently has a slave?" The knight said and I chuckled
"I did not know she was a slave" I said as I used my free hand and lowered my hood revealing my ears and eyewrap "As you can see, I am blind, and although I can use my hearing as a way of navigation, I cannot actually see" I said lying out of my ass but they didn't know that "I am also a demihuman which is why I wear the hood, so I'm not discriminated against. Does that answer your questions?" I said convincingly
I heard the muttering of nobility and even the king seemed to be taken aback by my sudden declaration of not only being a demihuman but blind as well.
"Sir, I do believe that this demihuman is telling the truth, so please let him off" I heard a woman's voice say as she walked up,
She looked to be of lesser nobility but still was very pretty, objectively speaking.
I looked towards the king and he nodded. At this action the knights withdrew their weapons and I sheathed my own. I then was about to put my hood up when the noble girl walked up to me.
"Please keep the hood down, you don't need to hide anymore" she said kindly as she took my arm "Would you please join me for the duel?" She asked
'Damnit, I can't refuse after she just saved me a log of trouble' I thought to myself as I held my head and acted if something was hurting my ears, when in reality I was activating my Link Pearl
"I'll be rooting for you Naofumi" I said in the Eorzian Dialect through the link pearl quietly
"What was that" the girl asked and I cleared my throat
"Sorry, I would be honored too" I said and I looked at Naofumi and gave a slight nod to him before I was lead to a garden that was being rearranged for the duel
We waited in the stands as everything was being set up. Then I watched as both combatants walked into the arena. Knowing I had to play the role of a blind man I leaned towards the girl.
"Um, which one is the Shield Hero?" I asked quietly
"The one on the right, can't you tell using your hearing?" She asked confused
"Normally yes but at a distance everything appears similar, so it can't really be used for long distance, which is why I prefer close combat" I explained and she nodded
Soon the match started and I was watching to make sure no foul play was had. I knew Naofumi couldn't attack, however, it seemed he had a few things up his sleeve.
"Man, the shield hero doesn't know honor does he!" I heard a noble man say and I grit my teeth slightly
"You haven't heard the rumors have you?" The girl asked me and I titled my head "it was said that the Shield Hero forced himself onto his first party member when he was summoned to the castle, that's why the spear hero is trying to save that demihuman girl" the girl said and I shook my head
"I fought side by side with both of them, in fact I used to live in the same village as that girl. She fought with a spirit only someone who is resolved to fight for something other than themselves could have, she was happy to be next to the Shield Hero after the wave as well. If those rumors are true, why would that girl be so happy? Why would she fight the way she does" I questioned and the girl tilted her head slightly as of pondering the idea
"While I don't really understand, I guess it's only something that could be seen while fighting, but even now the shield hero uses monsters to fight for him" she said to me
"Yet he fights with conviction, he can't deal damage, and he probably knows that if he can't deal damage he would lose in a one on one against someone who was able to deal damage. It's not that the Shield Hero is fighting cowardly, but his only weapons are the things that attack on their own" I said and she nodded in slight understanding
"I see, so you still believe in the Shield Hero?" She asked
"Yes, I do" I said with conviction
"Very well, then I will as well" she said as she held herself closer to me
'Why, why is this happening?' I asked myself as I watched Naofumi stand over the Spear Hero
That's when I saw an orange line shoot out from the sidelines where the redhead girl was. And then two seconds later Naofumi was thrown across the arena.
"Direct interference by the king's daughter?!" The girl next to me said in quiet shock
I bristled in anger, as the fight continued. Then in a few more moments the spear hero had Naofumi at spear point. I tried to move forward but the girl held me back.
"The spear hero is the Victor! Bring the shield hero's soon to be former slave!" A noble said and I watched a gagged and bound Raphtalia be brought forward
They then lowered her shirt just enough and poured a liquid on the slave crest. I watched as Naofumi collapsed and withdrew into himself. I tried to shake the noble girl off but she held firm when I heard the slap. I looked over to see Raphtalia slapping the spear hero before going on a rant. I smiled and relaxed slightly when I heard her.
'Well at least I know she wants to be with the shield hero' I thought to myself as everyone slowly started getting up and leaving. I watched as Raphtalia then moved away from the other heroes and over to Naofumi.
"Leave me alone! Your free now, or do you want to get one last look at the lower!" He yelled and I clenched my fists
'What the hell did these people do to him…' I thought to myself as I watched Raphtalia start talking to him as I felt the girl lean next to my ear
"Let's leave them be, you can sleep at my place, my father will allow it this one time" she said quietly and I bristled with concern
"Thank you, but I should really check up on them, then I need to head back to the village that was attacked as I still have a contract with them, perhaps next time?" I said lying as I stood up and jumped down to the arena trying to get away from the noble
I walked over to Raphtalia and Naofumi as they sat in the arena together.
"How's he doing?" I ask simply as I get close only to notice him asleep
"I believe he will be fine, he is the Shield Hero after all" she said with a hint of some sort of feeling behind her words and I smirked
"Aw, does little Raphtalia have a little crush?" I teased
"N-No! It's not like that!" She said far to quickly causing me to laugh
"Sure, well I'll stay here and keep you two company… it's better than being in the arms of a noble…" I muttered with a shiver as I sat down a pencil and paper in my hand with my sword across my lap as I started sketching the next design for my sword