The town had some pretty terrifying defences. High walls made of some weird plant-metal hybrid thing. Guards on every gate and sentry post of the wall seemed to be strong, but the people walking in and out of the gate seemed to be relaxed despite the security. The guards barely looked at most of the farmers and traders entering the city.

They weren't trying to stop traffic or guard the place against people.

Naofumi grit his teeth. Arabica and Naseem shared his frustration, "What now?" he asked as they headed away from the town.

"Their defences are powerful," admitted Naseem, "My senses are almost blinded by the enchantments on the walls. I can barely identify all the different magics, but the latent barriers and detection sphere are obvious."

"They knew we were coming," said Naofumi.

"They guessed," said Arabica as they reached Murasaki who was nibbling on some monster's corpse, "I find it unlikely that they knew precisely where we were going, but it would not be impossible to figure out a general area of where we could be."

Naseem frowned. "Those defences are not something easily set up," he said, "I thought they were for the Waves."

"Their Princess is the new Cane Hero," said the Draconic person dryly, "Magic is her domain. You remember all the absurd things the butcher could do, right? Star Weapons allow their skills to be passed on from one wielder to the next. If her level is high enough, she can likely do everything he could. Turning a small town in a defensive fortification is nothing."

Naofumi froze. He abruptly stopped pulling out some more food for Murasaki from his Shield and turned to the two demi-humans. "Is she there?" he asked. The Shield transformed into the best form for battle. A spike shield that had an attack stat.

"Unlikely," said Naseem, "A Hero is difficult for me not to sense. If she was there, then I would know."

Naofumi nodded and turned back to the Filolial who chirped eagerly when he gave her food again. The glutton ate far too much, but at least she was okay with the stuff his Shield cooked up.

"Can we signal the agent?" asked Naofumi, unwilling to risk going into that ridiculous fortress, "Someway to get him out here?"

The demi-humans turned to each other, seemed to have a silent discussion, and turned back to him with a frown.

"I...can't think of anything," admitted Arabica, "My illusions might be good enough to get past the guards, but we don't know the nature of the defences and I doubt that testing it would be wise even if I'm wrong and it wasn't created by the Star Cane. Illusions are the first thing most barriers track."

Naseem was silent. This was not his speciality. Naofumi was furious. That bitch was getting in his way again.

"Shield Hero!" called a voice.

All of them shifted into action. Weapons upraised, magic primed, and in Murasaki's case glaring at the man who had interrupted her meal.

They all blinked when they found the man who had called for him was alone. No weapons. Low level if his clothing and equipment was anything to consider, and most importantly a demi-human.

"The silent days pass with a hint of a storm overhead," said the man with his arms raised up as if to say he meant to harm.

Arabica and Naseem relaxed slightly, but did not lower their weapons, "We await the peace forged by the Lord Protector." they replied in unison, before Arabica's tone sharpened, "How did you know we were here?"

Naofumi already had his Shield Prison ready to go. He could guess that the password was correct, but that didn't change the fact that this man shouldn't have been able to find them so quickly.

The man chuckled as if he was not one moment from being killed by two high-level demi-humans or a cranky Filolial, "The word of the Shield Hero escaping the Church has been spread far and wide. Some of my spies confirmed that you were not at the coasts. It stood to reason that you might appear here. So," he said as a small sparrow landed on his hands, "My dear birds have been keeping an eye out on the surrounding area."

Naseem relaxed, but Arabica didn't. "Dispell your illusion," she commanded with a flat tone, provoking Naseem and Naofumi into aggression.

The man looked surprised. "Impressive," he said and snapped his fingers. The man vanished and a young woman took his place. A fox-demi human rather than the weasel she had been before. She grinned widely, "I didn't expect such skill."

Arabica glared at the woman, unimpressed, but Naseem got down to business, "We need to contact the Claw Hero."

"He has already reached out to me," said the woman leaning on a tree casually, "The Claw Hero has chosen to assault the border and the coast as distractions to infiltrate. The plan is to meet you at one of three locations to teleport the Shield Hero to safety."

All three of them stared at the woman. Arabica was the first to shatter the silence, "That idiot!" she said, her voice quiet. Tone frustrated, "He's being reckless."

Naseem was calmer, "War was inevitable," he said with a shrug, "At least, we have improved our chances of survival."

Arabica whirled around to him, "Of course, it was inevitable, but an army is noticeable!" she said, "We will be swarmed with entire army groups. Even those indolent idiots who didn't listen to the new ruler will be up in arms now. Naturally, my idiot brother and those fanatics didn't consider that!"

"Calm down," said the fox with a Cheshire grin, "The Claw Hero isn't that stupid. He's got a good plan and some support from Melromarc. All you three have to do is wait up at one of the rendezvous points."

"Support?" asked Naofumi, his voice low. The fox turned to him with complete focus. "Explain."

She smiled, and it lacked all the humour her grins had. "There's a coup d'état going on," she said, "Princess Malty is taking over and the Queen is desperate. She's cut a deal with us: Her shadows wreck the search for you and let the army through if they attack the right area as long as we avoid war."

"That's insane," said Arabica, suspicion colouring her words, "There's no way that woman would allow an army into her lands."

"She would if she knew we were going to send an army. That woman is expecting a small party. Plus, the land isn't hers anymore, and it gives her a chance to take it back. Even Q'ten Lo has started negotiations with us. Turns out even those people care about the Heroes being summoned in one country." countered the spy.

Arabica fell silent. Naofumi was apathetic. He didn't give a damn who ruled this country or what Siltvelt did. He knew what he needed, and the Claw Hero arriving was good enough for now.

"What are the rendezvous points?" he asked, half expecting her not to understand what he meant.

The Shield was damn good at translating.

The woman smiled at him and gave them the information. It was an uninhabited mountain away from the border and far from most settlements. Naofumi nodded and turned to leave. Not bothering with this woman or this worthless town.

He had a way out. They would invade Melromarc, and it would tear apart both sides.

That was a win for him.

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