Sword Hero Who Dances in the Shadows chapter 08: The Sacred Duel
Lyall the Werewolf: I actually did the fight portion of this chapter long before now, so it didn't take me very long to update. I just had to tweak it a bit to fit what has led up to this point in the story. This chapter will satisfy and shock you for all its worth. If some of it scares you off, I won't blame you. Just know that you've been warned.
Now, to the duel!
(I don't own Senran Kagura or Shield Hero)
Following the meeting in the throne room regarding Asuka's restriction and outright refusal to accept any more aid, King Aultcray and his daughter Malty had yet another private after the Three Heroes vacated.
"Malty… these antics are getting out of hand." Aultcray complained, "How long must this rivalry with the Sword Hero continue?"
"Until she realizes her place, Papa." Malty answered, "She's defied us for the last time. And we'll use the duel to our advantage in order to utterly crush any fighting spirit she has left."
"Are you certain your plan will work?"
"Yes it will. Just do your part, and we'll all get what we want." Malty smiled, "The Shield Hero's reputation won't be salvaged, and that Sword Bimbo won't back us anymore."
"Yes as much as I want the Shield Hero to suffer, what should we do if she refuses to swear loyalty to us?"
"That's a simple solution, one that will make sure she stays in line after Motoyasu-sama wins."
"Is that so?" Aultcray asked.
"Yes…" Malty quickly whispered something into her father's ear. Within moments, his face contorted with outrage at what he had just heard.
"Malty, are you mad?! To do that would be-"
"Papa, you do want our family to be safe right? Mama and Melty are away right now, but who's to say the Sword Hero won't come after them at some point? If we keep her under our control, that won't happen." Malty said with a caring smile on her face, one that Aultcray could not ignore.
He paused for a moment. Above all else, the safety of family was his primary concern. That was why he tried the Shield Hero before he could rise to power and allow the demi-humans to gain influence. And now, the Sword Hero was support the Shield, and had even threatened Aultcray's life. She would no doubt do the same to his wife and his two daughters. Frankly, he could not see any other option. If it went keep his beloved family and country safe, than the risks were worth it.
Thus, he silently conceded, much too Malty's demented delight.
[-Night: Courtyard-]
That night, the sacred duel between the Sword and Spear Heroes had finally taken place. The sacred duel was to be held by the end of the week, but it appeared to be happening now, as dictated by Princess Malty.
The courtyard coliseum was filled to the brim spectators. Nearly all in Castle-Town were in was attendance.
Standing on the courtyard arena grounds were Asuka Harada and Motoyasu Kitamura, the Cardinal Sword Hero and Spear Hero respected. They stood face to face, with serious looks in their eye.
In the stands, Naofumi, Raphtalia, Vento, Rino, and Conan all sat in an empty area. While Raphtalia and Rino were cheering loudly for Asuka to win, Naofumi, Vento, and Conan remain silent. Asuka easily spotted them in the crowd rooting for her, and having Enhanced Sent Detection certainly helped. She also found Erhard and Evelyn's respective scents in the venues. It made her happy to know they made it. She was especially happy to see Naofumi, whom she was initially certain he wasn't going to show up at all. Not only will she get to win this duel and clear his name, but hopefully, his world will get a little brighter.
Itsuki in a separate area with his party. Itsuki was intent on seeing Asuka's full fighting capabilities first hand.
"The Sacred Duel between the Sword Hero and the Spear Hero will now begin! The fight will end if one of the combatants is pinned, or admits defeat! This duel will be observed by King Aultcray and Pope Balmus of the Three Heroes Church! Therefore, it is both legitimate and official!" decreed an announcer, as the King and Pope sat at separate specially decorated balconies.
"I highly doubt this whole thing is legit. This had to have been passed by the Queen by now. If she really calls the shots here, then there's no way she would approve of a duel like this. Then again, Lora-chan must be watching from the shadows somewhere. If she really works for the Queen, then she must not be allowed to interfere unless things get out of hand."
Asuka's eyes turned toward the Pope, who had a pleasant smile on his face as he sat comfortably in his arm chair overlooking the area, similarly to the King on the other side.
Pope Balmus was a middle aged man with oval spectacles. He wore holy white, gold and red robes befitting his position as head of the Three Heroes Church. He also sported a rosary with the symbols of the Sword, Spear, and Bow around his neck.
Asuka had spoken with him a few times while she at the cathedral of the Three Heroes Church. Their conversations were always brief and business related, largely because something was off about him that the Sword Hero didn't like, despite his politeness.
Anyway, the Sword Hero had more important things to deal with, like her duel with Motoyasu about to begin at any moment.
"You know, I wished this day wouldn't come, but now that it has, I just want to let you know that I have really conflicted feelings about fighting you, Asuka-chan." said Motoyasu to his opponent, "Even if it's to free you from that drug, I don't want to hurt you. Just admit to defeat!"
Asuka didn't say a word. She merely drew her sword, with a dead serious look in her eye. Motoyasu was a complete fool if he thought he could talk her out of this. Sadly for him, she wasn't going to back down. Not for his sake. She accepted this challenge, and she would win it to restore hers and Naofumi's honor, and shut these ungrateful people up.
However, something needed to be addressed first.
"Motoyasu-sama! Good luck!" Myne cheered to the Spear Hero as she was standing off to the side on the ground floor. She stood close to the wall, and far enough away that she wouldn't get hurt, but the Sword Hero felt the need to question why this was.
"Your Majesty!" Asuka called out to King Aultcray, "Why is Princess Malty allowed to stand down here where it could get potentially dangerous?"
"Why you ask? So that she may provide Motoyasu-dono better moral support, of course." answered Aultcray, his voice echoing throughout the coliseum.
"Isn't there a chance she might interfere with the fight?" Asuka asked, "This is a one on one fight! So if she decides to interfere, wouldn't that count as breaking the rules on Motoyasu-kun's part since she's a member of his party?"
"You are correct in your assumption. And if such a thing were to happen, then I will halt the match immediately." said Aultcray.
"Liar…" Asuka muttered under her breath. She decided she would end this as quickly as she possibly could to avoid that outcome.
Meanwhile, up at the stands, Rino glowered down at Myne's direction, hatred spread across her face. Naofumi found this interesting, but didn't show it. He figured she must have a similar history with that bitch, being betrayed like he did. But, Naofumi was indifferent. For now, he decided to watch the fight, and see if what he had heard about her was true or not.
Opening her sword's skill tree, Asuka picked out the current strongest weapon in her arsenal, the Iron Sand Sword, and got into fighting position. "I'm ready to fight. Are you?"
"So, you're serious. Then, I'll give it all I got to save you!" Motoyasu declared as he also got into battle position, changing his Legendary Spear into a different form, but Asuka noticed something interesting about his stance.
While it was fairly good defensive wise, it was pretty basic. In his presumably advanced level, he should have tweaked this stance to be more defensive and combat ready, not that she was an expert on pole arms. Still, this was a telling sign about his fighting style, which she would get to see within moments.
"BEGIN!"
Motoyasu wasted no time charging forward with a mighty battle cry. He leapt forward, raising his spear above his head and prepared to thrust it downward onto Asuka, who stood completely still, and waited until the right moment to block and parry the spear. Motoyasu continued his assault, with several quick and precise thrusts of his spear, while Asuka remained on the defensive, blocking away and evading each thrust.
Raising her sword up, she timed it just right for both weapons to collide once more, with the spear head pushing down on the Legendary Sword's blade above her head.
"Not bad! I guess you haven't been slacking off, huh?" Motoyasu smirked confidently, "Cute girls like you don't like getting dirty, after all!"
"Just as I thought." muttered Asuka. Irritated as she was that Motoyasu had this "girls don't like to fight" mentality, she was still able to figure out his flaw.
"Huh?"
"You don't know how to use your spear correctly, do you?" Asuka asked with a piercing stare.
"What?"
"Sometimes, the question of whether or not the sword or spear is better comes up, and universally, the answer is always some variation of 'it depends'. In a fight between a sword and spear user, the one with the spear is usually one to keep his distance and react defensively toward the sword user's assault, while a sword user goes in for close strikes and keeps the momentum going. Sure, spears can hit harder and faster than swords and have a wider use due to their wide range, thus they can conceivably win, but that's if the spear user has the skill and experience to use their weapon."
Back in her old world, Asuka had studied up on the different weapons, including swords and spears. This knowledge came from some of the teachings from her grandfather and Kiriya-sensei. She had never fought anyone with a spear before, but it would appear that her prior knowledge was going to come in handy for this fight, especially since it was apparent that Motoyasu never studied actual weapons before, seeing as he charged first and got in close, while also letting his guard down.
"W-What's your point?!" Motoyasu asked, just now noticing that Asuka hasn't buckled an inch since the initial clash, while he was struggling to get past her defensive form as she held him in place. At this moment, he realized that he hadn't landed a single blow on her since the fight began.
"My point is your fighting style speaks of inexperience." said Asuka, who immediately deflected the spear up in the air, making Motoyasu lose his balance. She followed this by delivering a swift kick to Motoyasu's stomach, sending him flying backward. Once again, she didn't use full strength, as it was just enough to knock the wind out of him.
He barely managed to his landing on his feet, but it didn't take long for him to buckle down on his knees from the pain in his stomach.
"Your offense is good, but it would appear your defense is lacking. Not only that, but you charged straight at me instead of using your spear to keep me at bay, and that left you wide open for an attack. Seem you have a lot to learn, Motoyasu-kun."
This surprised the vast majority of the viewers, especially those who were expecting Motoyasu to win.
Myne's jaw dropped. She assumed the Sword Bimbo had gotten lucky when she threatened her father. How in the world was it possible for that little brat had such skill? No matter. All she had to do was wait for a perfect chance to strike, and then Motoyasu should be able to obtain victory with that one move she told him to use if he was on the ropes.
"It's clear, that aside from monsters and enemies you've beaten in whatever games you've played before and up to now, you've never fought a serious fight in your life." Asuka said.
"A-A serious fight…?" Motoyasu wheezed as he staggered back to his feet. "This… is just another game, remember? All we need is our high levels and skills, and we can overcome any challenge! That's why our weapons are the best equipped for a fight!"
"Just relaying on your weapon to do fancy tricks isn't enough to win against me I'm afraid."
Motoyasu clicked his tongue in frustration. His stance readjusted, the Spear Hero ready his spear with a new stance. Drawing a glowing circle with his weapon, the Spear Hero lunged forward again, this time with a flurry of magic powered thrusts.
"Chaos Spear!" he yelled out as charged toward Asuka, who was unimpressed with the lack of strategy. He seemed to think that attacking over and over would enable him to win the fight. The only true way to win a fight was a calm mind, adaptability, and perseverance. Luckily for her, Motoyasu was quite predictable, and taking him down wouldn't prove difficult.
From her point of view, Motoyasu was simply moving in slow motion, making it easy to predict and dodge each strike. She didn't break a sweat as she evaded the thrusts from Motoyasu, who even increased his speed during the assault. This continued for several seconds until the final thrust. She jumped was perfect ease above the Legendary Spear.
Motoyasu could have used this moment to evade her next attack, if he had not been distracted by Asuka's bouncing breasts and panties flashing after the jump she made. Using this moment of distraction, Asuka sent the perverted Spear Hero flying with a speedy roundhouse kick to the face. He rolled and bounced across the arena until he was laid out on his back.
A few seconds later, as his eyes open and his vision snap back into focus, he saw Asuka diving down straight toward him, ready to slam her sword down on him. He narrowly avoided getting stabbed by rolling over to the side, thus Asuka jabbed her sword into the ground where Motoyasu laid. The Spear Hero took this chance to thrust his weapon at Asuka, but the Sword Hero used her scale mail to deflect the spear by pushing against the broad side of the Legendary weapon, and within moments, delivered an uppercut to the jaw of the Spear Hero that sent him spiraling into the air for a few seconds.
After pulling out her sword with ease, Asuka quickly leapt up into air to met him, and gave another kick to his side, slamming Motoyasu against the ground on his back again, just a few feet apart. The Sword Hero landed on the ground without any problem.
The audience was shocked by how she was simply quick stepping and maneuvering around as she dodged the Spear Hero's attacks, and getting by with physical attacks alone.
Naofumi was amazed by Asuka's movements. It was like he was watching a ninja fight with a graceful display of skill.
"S-She's so cool!" Raphtalia exclaimed in excitement by the fight.
"Yeah…" Naofumi answered with a growing smile. He was very much enjoying this. Watching Motoyasu get his ass handed to him in public was way better than a nut punch. If Asuka kept this, she might actually win.
Vento smiled, very impressed with the display of Asuka's technique. Wherever she came from, she was definitely trained well.
"You got this, Asuka! Kick that sorry jerk's butt!" Rino cheered loudly.
Conan watched as Asuka fought silently.
Erhard and Evelyn, who sat together in a separate venue, were so impressed by Asuka's feats of skill and how she used them to trounce her opponent.
Meanwhile, Itsuki watched Asuka closely as well. Not many know this, but he had come from a world of EPsers, people who had special psychic abilities. His psychic power was a low-class ability called Accuracy, which allowed him to use long ranged weapons more efficiently than most. It had other uses too, like helping him keep up with Asuka's fast movements when clearly, Motoyasu couldn't.
"Asuka-san has the upper hand… and she hasn't even used a skill yet. All she's been doing is using physical attacks." Itsuki said to himself. Perhaps, what she was saying about her superhuman abilities being natural wasn't off the mark. His Accuracy ability made it clear that everything Asuka was doing during the fight was a hundred percent real, as hard as it was to believe.
The King furrowed his brow in frustration. He realized his mind wasn't playing tricks on him when the Sword Hero had attacked him before. The Sword Hero being this powerful would make dealing with the Waves much easier, if she wasn't so stubborn about defending the Shield Hero, and refusing to be cooperative generally speaking. Still, this was no problem. They still had Malty's plan waiting in the wings.
The viewers in the stands were also making their comments about the one-sided fight between the two Cardinal Swords.
"At this rate, the Sword Hero is going win."
"Yes. It seems the rumors about her skill and fighting prowess weren't an exaggeration."
"As impressive as it is, she's still fighting for the Shield Hero. If she wins, his name will be cleared."
"I guess she's still a Fake Hero, after all."
"Damn it…" Motoyasu muttered, rubbing his cheek. In his HUD, he could see his health bar dropping with each hit she dealt him. Even then, he could tell she was holding back, otherwise, he'd be seriously injured. He looked at Asuka, who was calmly approaching him.
His mind was reeling, struggling to comprehend how Asuka was literally kicking his ass all over the place. He was currently over level 20 and nearing the 30s, while she was stated to not even reach level 20 yet. How could she be winning, and with only physical attacks at that, which wasn't what this game was about? It didn't make sense to him. Was she cheating like Itsuki said? No, this felt way too real to be a cheat.
"Is that really the extent of your strength?" asked Asuka, who wore a bored expression, "I knew this would be pitifully easy."
"Y-You haven't won yet! You still haven't even used a skill!" Motoyasu stated as he stood up again.
"Obviously, because I don't even need to. I've gotten by just fine with physical attacks."
"You don't use physical attacks in the game!" Motoyasu yelled.
"Complain all you want, it doesn't change the fact that you haven't hit me once and that I'm beating you. You couldn't even hit me with that Chaos Spear move of yours. You might want to think about switching strategies."
"Tch! Okay, then how do you feel about a long ranged attack!" Motoyasu switched his spear's form to a more pointed form. The spear glowed red before forming into a massive bolt of lightning, and he reared his arm back. With a might heave, he thrust his spear toward the Sword Hero.
"Lighting Spear!"
Once again, the attack was in slow motion for Asuka, and once again, she dodged by side-stepping to the right. While she briefly distracted, Motoyasu quickly used this moment to lunge forward again. He would have used Chaos Spear again, had it not been for the damned cool down time after one use. So, he had to use this element of surprise to his advantage.
Unfortunately for him, he could not have known that Asuka switched swords, this time to the Dire-Wolf Fang Sword, and activated its Bonus Skill, "Wolf Soul Bite!"
Asuka released an aqua energy wave, which formed into an ethereal howling wolf head. It lunged from the wave as quick as lightning and bite a surprised Motoyasu in the shoulder, stunning him after the skill phased out. Asuka took this opportunity to leap forward and attack him with a punch to his chest and threw him down on the ground hard.
"Gah!" Motoyasu gasped in pain, saliva lurching out.
An audible gasp was heard from the crowd above. Some were impressed with the Sword Hero's skill, while other seemed annoyed that the Spear Hero was doing so poorly against her. Namely the King, who gave an order to one of his retainers.
Asuka stood over the groaning Spear Hero, watching as he struggled to get back up to his feet.
"Y-You said you didn't need to… use your skills…!" Motoyasu grunted.
"I never said I wouldn't use them." Asuka smirked confidently, before frowning, "But seriously, this is a poor showing from you, Motoyasu-kun. You're supposed to be a bunch of levels higher than me and you're losing."
"I-I… haven't lost yet!" Motoyasu's body ached all over from the thrashing he had taken.
"Clearly you have, and I'll tell you why. Not only did you neglect your defense, but also you don't even think before you act. You just wasted your skills trying to look flashy and expected to win. Case in point, you're losing because of your over reliance on your weapon. Besides the level grinding and strengthening your weapon, did you do any practical, physical training at all?"
"…Ugh…" Motoyasu could barely utter a word. In his mind, developing ones defense was meaningless, so long as the weapon was strong enough to deal damage for him. Also, physical training? Since when did physical training become a thing in video games? The skills you develop and the strength of your weapon were more than sufficient to win a fight. At least, they should be…
"I'll take that as a no." Asuka sighed. She began to hear jeers from the audience, most of whom were nobles.
"What a mockery! To think the Fake Sword Hero would endeavor to humiliate the Spear Hero in such a manner!"
"Have you no shame for defacing a sacred duel?!"
Asuka paid them no mind, seeing as these people were just doing it because the King was likely ordering them to make it look like she wasn't playing fair. Hard truth, she was fighting in accordance to her ability. Motoyasu fought a superior opponent and lost fairly at that. She was still holding back to avoid leaving serious injuries on him, but, this was the end result, and really, this had gone on long enough.
"Look, you fought well, but I think it's time you gave up. You can't beat me in this state. And I'm starting to feel bad about this too."
"I-I can't…!" Motoyasu grunted, staggering to his knees, using his spear as support, "I promised that I'd free you from Naofumi's control…! I promised that I'd save you!"
"Seriously…" Asuka groaned in exasperation. His determination would be admirable, if it wasn't so misplaced. "Fine. I'll end this by knocking you out. Hopefully, after you wake up, you'll have a clearer head."
Asuka raised her sword up and prepared to knock Motoyasu unconscious with the hilt, however, she paused.
Her vision clouded, and in that moment, she saw it. The visage of a defiant Homura in place of Motoyasu, glaring up at Asuka. Seeing this, Homura's passionate glare, her words of a promise to protect her friends and keep fighting during their last and final clash right before Orochi absorbed her, and then former Good Shinobi and her friends being engulfed in its terrible dark flames one by one, it all made Asuka tremble and break out in a cold sweat. Her body and soul shook uncontrollably.
The audience quickly took note of this almost immediately, seeing as their jeers had stopped.
"What's wrong with the Sword Hero? Why is she hesitating?"
"She has the perfect chance to end this and win, but she's frozen?"
"What's wrong with her face?"
Naofumi noticed this as well, and the pale expression on her face looked familiar. It was just like when they were first summoned here, where she collapsed almost immediately. Was it the trauma of her death? No, it was more than that. It was like she was looking at a ghost.
"W-What's wrong with Asuka-san?" asked a concerned Raphtalia.
"I don't know…" Naofumi grimly answered.
"Asuka, get it together! You're so close to winning!" Rino called out.
"Asuka…" Conan mumbled in worry.
Vento remained silent, but concern was seen across his face. That face the Sword Hero was making, it looked like the kind of face a shell-shocked rookie adventurer would have from a disastrous first quest.
Asuka remained frozen and trembling in place until her Shinobi instincts kicked in again. She sensed an attack coming and jumped back to avoid a gust of wind blowing in her direction.
With her senses back in order, she turned to the direction of where the gust of wind came from, and lo and behold, Myne was the cause, as her hand was surrounded by a light purple magic energy of some kind. Asuka mentally kicked herself. She was so focused on the fight she had nearly forgotten about Myne. A careless mistake.
The vile Princess was wearing a smug smirk. She took advantage of Asuka's momentary lapse of sanity and attacked her with some of wind magic. Thankfully, Asuka was able to snap back to reality in time to dodge the sneak attack.
Unfortunately, she was unfocused, due to still reeling from the shock of that memory resurfacing, as seen as when she landed on the ground, she didn't stick the land and twisted her ankle.
"Agh!"
This also provided Motoyasu the perfect opportunity to use a spear he had been saving because he hoped he wouldn't have to use it. He didn't know why Asuka froze up and leapt away from him, but now was the perfect chance activate it if he had any chance of winning.
"Sorry, Asuka-chan! Don't hold this against me!"
The tip of Motoyasu's morphed into what looked like a scorpion's tail.
"Scorpion Stinger Spear!"
While she was distracted by the pain in her ankle, Motoyasu thrust his new spear into Asuka's chest, creating a burst of dark orange energy that exploded upon impact, sending the Sword Hero flying, tearing her top and exposing her breasts, much to the shock of the audience.
Landing a few feet away on the ground, the attack left Asuka physically paralyzed. She couldn't move her body and nothing could save her from suffering a humiliating loss, due to being pinned down.
"The winner is the Spear Hero!" the announcer declared, which earned some cheers from the crowd, save for a select few.
Naofumi gritted his teeth, while Raphtalia looked sad that Asuka didn't win. The Shield Hero knew something like would happen. That bitch of Princess had to interfere. It made him sick to his stomach, especially with Motoyasu seemingly not noticing what happened moments prior and using that cheap shot he used to finish the fight. Scorpion Stinger Spear to the chest? What the hell?
"And he thinks I'm the pervert."
And then, there was Myne. At this point, he realized just how similar Myne was to that Red Haired Princess in the 'Record of the Four Cardinal Heroes'. While there were obvious deviations, like the Sword Hero being female, but in the end, Myne was still out for herself, and she intended to seize power by either using the Heroes, or actively sabotaging them. Clearly, Myne intended to become a Hero herself, one who would be remembered as the Hero who defeated the Evil Shield Hero and rescue the captive Sword Hero.
Vento was massively unimpressive by how this "win" was carried out, while Rino was seething with rage, and Conan was visibly upset.
Meanwhile, on the courtyard floor, Asuka was struggling to get up.
"W-What was…?!" Asuka could barely speak.
"That was… the Scorpion Stinger Spear." Motoyasu panted, regaining his footing, "I got it from a monster called the Giant Scorpion King that I fought and killed a while back. It's tail had a paralyzing effect, which is where this spear gets its ability. It has the ability to paralyze anyone or anything it comes into contact with. Works more effectively when you hit the chest. Of course, I wasn't expecting your clothes to rip like that." Motoyasu said with a light blush. He stared at her breasts again, and clearly he was enjoying the exposed view, more than he reasonably should.
"Ugh…" Asuka growled with disgust, her cheeks glowing red from utter embarrassment from her breasts being exposed in public, while tears of frustration began to form. Normally, this wouldn't affect her too badly because most of her opponents were women and they fought in the Shinobi Barriers, where no normal person could see or enter. But, that wasn't the case here as everyone could see her in this compromising position.
"Don't worry, the effect isn't fatal, and the paralysis will wear off eventually." said Motoyasu, "And in case you're wondering, Myne helped me get this particularly spear by directing me toward the scorpion monster once I was at a high enough level." he added as Myne approached Motoyasu and clung to his shoulder.
"I had a feeling you were a little too nimble for your own good, so I did research on that monster's paralyzing ability and I knew it would strong enough to pin you down."
"Y-You…!" Asuka growled as she scowled with hatred at the vile Princess. If she was able to cut that witch's face, she could have, but this paralysis effect was much more potent then she thought. Thankfully, Motoyasu seemed to be telling the truth. Little by little, she could feel the effect going away, and she could start to move again, slowly and stiffly.
"Don't look at me like that! You lost fair and square to Motoyasu-sama, Sword Bimbo." Myne smirked smugly.
"H-He didn't win…! You… You interfered!" Asuka yelled out as she finally sat up.
"What?" Motoyasu was confused.
"T-This was a one on one fight, but you… you helped Motoyasu-kun win by trying to hit me with some kind of wind magic attack!" Asuka shouted to Myne. Having found some feeling, the Sword Hero began moving her arm up to barely cover her exposed chest.
"Oh dear, are you being a sore loser, or are you just delirious from the drug?" Myne asked teasingly.
"They all saw it! E-Everyone… who was watching saw you use magic to help him win!" Asuka was waiting for a response from the silent audience. However, no one spoke up, much to her shock.
"No one saw a thing. That much is clear." said Myne.
"T-That can't be… e-everyone in the c-crowd should have…" Asuka mumbled with shaky eyes. She could see that some were hesitant to speak. Was this the King's order, or was it of their own accord simply to spite the Fake Hero they came to loath?
"I shall listen to no more excuses! Brave Spear Hero, you are the victor!" declared the King, wearing a smug smile. With this, not only will the Sword Hero not be able to defy him any longer, but the Shield Hero's reputation will not be restored. Nothing could make him happier.
The crowd wildly cheered, save for a select few.
Vento glared at the direction of the King, shaking his head in disapproval. He knew it would be pointless to speak out against this now. The vast majority of viewers would vote against him otherwise, due to the pressure from Aultcray.
Naofumi thought the same. His disgust and hate toward the King, Myne, and Motoyasu intensified. Using underhanded means, especially exposing her like that to win, they ensured the false charges placed on the Shield Hero would stick, and Asuka would now have to swear loyalty to royal family of trash.
"M-Master…!" Raphtalia whimpered, unable to process what just happened.
Conan growled. He couldn't understand why the crowd was cheering for Asuka's lose when there was clear foil play.
"Damn you!" Rino seethed as she looked down at Myne.
Evelyn also bore an furious expression, while Erhard remained stoic, having already expected something like this to happen. It didn't mean he wasn't pissed on the inside.
Down on the ground floor of the courtyard, Asuka was trembling from a mix of emotions, such as anger, confusion, and apprehension. These people, who were previously confident in her win, would sooner side against her than defy the King and his daughter. It was frustrating, losing in such a humiliating manner and seeing how two-faced and cowardly this society really was.
"I knew you would win, Motoyasu-sama." Myne said, hugging him amorously.
"Yeah, but…" Motoyasu looked toward Asuka, "I still didn't wanna use this spear on her…"
"But, it paid off in the end. Now you're the victor! Be proud of that!"
"I am proud, but there's something that's bothering me. Why did Asuka-chan freeze up and jump away like that?"
"It must be because she realized how much she was hurting you, and she felt so guilty she had to let you win."
"I see. Well, you don't have to worry, Asuka-chan. I ache a little, but I'll live!" Motoyasu boasted.
"T-That's a lie… Motoyasu-kun… you had to have seen her… u-use magic…"
"Asuka-chan, are you still being influenced by that drug? Is that why you're saying all of that?" Motoyasu asked in concern, "I thought winning was all it took, but she's still…"
"He still believes that…?!"
"Motoyasu-dono, congratulations on a well earned victory." said Aultcray as he approached the "victor" with a satisfied smile. He had come down from his balcony a few moments ago, along with a medic who was instructed to heal the Spear Hero's injuries. "I knew there was a reason my daughter could count on you."
"Thank you sir, but…" Motoyasu paused.
"What seems to be the problem? Should you not be in a more celebratory mood over your victory?" asked Aultcray.
"Well, I think Asuka-chan is still being influenced by the drug Naofumi slipped her. She keeps saying Myne interfered."
"I-I see…" Aultcray replied with a raised eyebrow, finding it difficult to comprehend why the Spear Hero thought this so-called drug was still the cause of the Sword Hero's refuse to submit.
"What does it matter? Drugged or not, the Sword Hero still has to fulfill her side of the terms we agreed upon." said Malty.
"Yes, Malty. You're right." said Aultcray. He began approaching the paralyzed Asuka, "I will admit it I did not expect to see you fight so gracefully. You have my apologies for underestimating your talent, Asuka-dono."
In response, Asuka gave a hostile glare to the King, evidently not taking his apology seriously. Especially because he allowed Myne to get away with cheating on Motoyasu's behalf and shamelessly declared him the victor in spite of the foul play at work.
"However, you still lost the sacred duel. Thus, as par the agreement, losing the duel means you cannot leave Melromarc, and you are sworn to our services from this day forth."
"N-Never…" Asuka growled out.
"Your refusal to accept defeat is dishonorable." Aultcray said.
"D-Don't talk to me… about honor! You let her interfere with what was supposed to be a one on one Sacred Duel, despite p-promising you stop the fight if she did! I s-should have known you'd g-go back on your word!"
"I don't know what you're talking about." spat the King, "All I know is that you have failed to secure your win. And now you can't clear the Shield of the charges you claim to be false."
"F-Failed…" Asuka felt that word punch her in the spiritual gut.
"That's right. You failed." said Myne, approaching and squatting beside the Sword Hero, "This was just a stunning failure for you, Sword Bimbo. The struggles you went through to 'restore' the Shield Hero's reputation and prove your own strength was a massively epic fail!"
"Ugh…" Asuka could only groan in contempt and apprehension.
SLAP!
Myne delivered a swift slap to the cheek to Asuka, to surprise of all who witnessed it.
"M-Myne?!" Motoyasu called out, only to be ignored.
"Say something, you miserable little bitch! I dare you to snap back at me like you always do!" Myne ordered, putting a sadist smirk.
Asuka slowly turned her head to face the vile Princess. Rather than a defiant look in her eye, she looked defeated, just the way Malty liked it.
"Oh good, there's an expression I can learn to love." Myne said with a faint blush, due to perverse excitement for what she was about to do next.
The vile Princess roughly grabbed Asuka's left breast, and gave it tight squeeze, causing more pain to the Sword Hero.
"Agh…" Asuka groaned.
"Goodness! Up close, these things are huge!" Myne exclaimed, "Not only that, they're so firm and so soft! Now I know why Motoyasu-sama is obsessed with you." the vile Princess looked back at Motoyasu, who was turning away to avert his eyes from sight.
To him, girl on girl would normally be hot, but something about this felt… off.
Among the disturbed and horrified audience, Naofumi growled with utter contempt, "That bitch…!"
All that woman wanted from this was to humiliate Asuka in a far worse way then she did with him.
He wasn't the only one angered by this.
"Let go of her, you witch!" Rino came close to jumping down and getting ready to pummel that vile woman, but Vento held her back.
"Stop! There's nothing you can do!" the gentleman said with great reluctance.
Evelyn looked away, horrified, and Erhard's face hardened into a scowl.
"Ugh…" Asuka continued to groan as she groped. Tears of anguish started to flow from her eyes. She couldn't believe she was thinking this, but she was beginning to miss the times Katsuragi had groped her. Compared to Katsuragi, who was always using a playful, gentle touch when molesting her or anyone else, Myne was deliberately squeezing hard just to cause her pain. She could practically feel her sharp fingernails digging into her flesh.
"It really annoys me. Another woman thinking she's more attractive than me? Thinking she can show tits like these off? Fuck that!" growled Myne as she squeezed it harder.
"Ow! S-Stop!" Asuka cried in pain, only to receive a second slap to the face from Myne with her free hand.
"I don't recall giving you permission to beg for mercy, Sword Bimbo." Myne stated with an authoritative tone.
"Malty, that's enough!" Aultcray called out to his eldest daughter, "This is unnecessary! Do not prolong the Sword Hero's humiliation any further!"
Myne quickly complied, satisfied with herself. Asuka glared at her once more, with fierce hate and mortification in her eyes.
"Forgive my daughter, Asuka-dono. You won't suffer being exposed to this crowd any longer. That being said, I must also apologize for what we're about to do next." Aultcray turned to a black and purple robed man approached him from behind, carrying octagon tray, which had a small vial, small plate with a black paint like substance on it, along with a paintbrush and dagger.
This confused both Asuka and Motoyasu.
"What's all that?" Motoyasu asked.
"That's what's used to make a Royal Slave Crest." Myne answered, to the shock of Motoyasu and Asuka.
"Say what?!" Motoyasu gasped, as he witnessed Myne march over to the cloaked man.
The crowd was equally shocked to hear this.
"And to ensure you will remain obedient, you will be given a Royal Slave Crest. As such, you will be registered as Malty's slave." Aultcray explained to Asuka while his daughter took the small dagger and lightly poked the tip of her index finger to draw blood. She let a small amount of blood drop from her fingertip into the black paint, thus registering her at the master.
"Y-You're going to… enslave me…?" Asuka uttered in revulsion.
"Yes." Myne grinned wickedly.
"Wait, your Majesty!" Motoyasu cried to the King, "I didn't hear anything about this! I mean, letting Myne enslave her?! Isn't that super extreme?!"
"Let me assure you, I am just as apprehensive." Aultcray replied, "But, this is the only way to ensure she remains obedient and does not become a threat to our country and the royal family. Malty insisted that she be the Master, so I could not refuse."
"Ngh… N-No… No!" Asuka's cried out, trying to move her body so she could escape. Unfortunately, she still couldn't move her body completely, and she could only go so far. Not to mention, her ankle was still hurting and swelling.
"Guards, grab hold of her and make sure she stays put!" Aultcray ordered to the knights standing off to the side. The knights immediately comply and hold the panicking Sword Hero down.
"Myne, are you serious about this?!"
"I'm sorry Motoyasu-sama, but I think this is for the good of our country. We can't defend ourselves against the Waves without her, so forcing her is our only option." Myne said, feigning sadness. Motoyasu would have fallen for it, but…
"BULLSHIT!" shouted a familiar voice. All eyes went to Naofumi who had just rushed down to arena floor, having existed the left gate just moments prior. He was wearing an absolutely livid face at what they were about to do to Asuka.
"N-Naofumi-kun…" Asuka uttered in relief.
"This isn't about loyalty or fighting against the Waves! This is someone about abusing their power and using it to control another person against their will just for their sick pleasure!" he bellowed as marched to Motoyasu and Myne. He couldn't deny it anymore. Asuka was the only positive influence he had in this world, and he would be damned if he let her suffer a worse fate than he did. He knew it was probably stupid to come down here confront his former ally and his enemies, but he didn't care.
"Oh no, it's the Shield Hero!" Myne cried and hid behind Motoyasu, who quickly got defensive. The Shield Hero just ignored her, knowing she was faking it just to gain sympathy.
"Naofumi…" Motoyasu growled with hatred.
Aultcray had also given the Shield Hero a hostile glare.
"Motoyasu, tell me you're not gonna go along with this?! I know you're a fucking moron, but c'mon, do you want to go down as a Hero who helped enslave another one?!" Naofumi yelled at the Spear Hero.
"N-No! This isn't what I wanted at all!" Motoyasu yelled back, "And why the hell are you yelling at me and calling me moron?! You're the one who drugged-"
"Forget about the damn drug! You're just standing there while they're about to put a slave crest on Asuka! Is that really what you want?! You call that saving her?!"
Naofumi was the last person to speak, since he owned a slave himself, but there was no practical reason he could think of for these two shitty royals to enslave Asuka. Not that he was going to reveal that he had a slave in the first place.
"I have the same question!" Itsuki suddenly called as he too existed from the left gate. He was outwardly calm, but even he showed disgust, having seen just about everything, from Myne shamelessly interfering with her magic, groping Asuka in front of the masses, and preparing to enslave her. "Not that I'm agreeing with Naofumi-san, but even I think trying to enslave Asuka-san crosses the line, even for members of the royal family. You're a Hero, so this kind of injustice can't stand, right?"
"I-I…" Motoyasu muttered.
Naofumi watched Itsuki silently.
"So, he has enough standards to call bullshit. Just not for me."
"Not only that, you don't even realize you forfeited the duel." Itsuki added.
"What?!"
"Myne-san interfered on your behalf using some kind of wind magic to attack at Asuka-san, who wasn't even in her right mind at that moment."
"H-Hold on! Myne wouldn't do that! Asuka-chan froze up because she wanted to let me win! That's why she stopped attacking and jumped back!"
"That's not true. She jumped back to avoid the attack." countered Itsuki, "Also, the reason why she frozen wasn't out of some guilty feeling about beating you. To me at least, she looked like she had seen some kind of ghost. Maybe it's something related to her death before being summoned here."
"Huh…?"
Asuka cast her head down, unsure of how to answer.
"Either way, it was quite shameless of Myne-san to take advantage of that to blindside her!" Itsuki said with a stern look toward Myne and the King.
"Oh please! Clearly you imagined it. No one saw a thing."
"The King told everyone to keep quiet about it! The nobles do in fact agree there was foul play." Itsuki looked down to King Aultcray with disappointment, "It's hard to believe royalty would interfere with a Sacred Duel. And now you're trying to enslave Asuka-san? For what end?"
Motoyasu looked toward the King for an explanation, who had a flat expression.
"Ignore them. You know the Shield Hero can't be trusted. And Itsuki-dono is just being naïve." said Aultcray, "This is for the good Melromarc, and the royal family. This is our only option."
"B-But, enslaving Asuka-chan is…"
"Motoyasu-sama, if I enslave her, the Sword Bimbo won't be able resist your advances. I'll make sure of it personally, as her Master. The slave crests make it impossible for slaves to disobey their masters, so why not take advantage of it?" asked Myne, placing her slender hands on his chest, "By the way, I wasn't kidding when I said her breasts were soft and firm. Wouldn't you like a chance to finally grasp them in your hand?" Myne wickedly stared toward the downed and still paralyzed Asuka, who was starting to look fearful at the implication.
Motoyasu paused, indicating that he might actually be considering the idea.
"Don't fall for it, Motoyasu!" Naofumi called out.
"Just this once, think with your head and not with libido!" Itsuki yelled.
The nobles in stands stirred from all that had unfolded.
"The Bow Hero is one thing, but even the Shield Hero opposes this?"
"Is this right? I know she defied and even attacked the King and sympathizes with the Shield Hero and Demi-humans, but what point is there in enslaving the Sword Hero?"
"I heard she was rethinking her decision to leave Melromarc, so maybe there isn't a need for the slave crest?"
"He said it was to ensure the safety of Melromarc and the royal family, but this seems excessive. And morally so, considering what the Princess is implying to the Spear Hero."
"It's outright blasphemous! Why isn't the Pope saying anything?! He's the head of the Three Heroes Church, for god's sake!"
It wouldn't be long before an uproar began, as the people jeered at the King and even demanded that he stop what he was doing.
This somewhat surprised Asuka, due to having come to believe them to be cowardly, but it seemed even they had standards and they weren't willing to keep quiet about them.
"Silence! I have spoken with Pope Balmus and he has agreed to this decision!" Aultcray announced, to the complete shock of all who heard his words.
At that, Pope Balmus stood from his seat and stepped toward his balcony's railing.
"Even I recognize this as a heinous sin against a Cardinal Hero, especially since it is the Sword Hero, one of the Three Heroes of our religion! However, as things stand, we cannot have the Sword Hero threaten the peace of Melromarc by leaving us to die at the thralls of the Waves of Catastrophe, nor can we have said Hero deface the faith we hold deep in our hearts! So, with a heavy heart, I shall allow this to take place!" the Pope declared.
"There you have it! We are doing this for the good of our country! I am willing sacrifice even the freedom of a Cardinal Hero to ensure our peace of mind! If you don't agree, then step forward and be ready for execution!"
The King's threat quickly silenced the previously angered and now frightened crowd.
"He'd even threaten his own people with death?!" Asuka stared at the King with disbelief.
"You bastard!" Naofumi gritted his teeth. Despite his weak levels, he was about attack the King, but the knights restrained him.
Itsuki wasn't able to stand this either, and he would have prepared his Legendary Bow and would have open fire to stop this, but he did not want to be restrained like Naofumi and make things worse.
Motoyasu stood there conflicted. Was this for the best? Myne said Asuka wouldn't be able to resist his advances if he allowed his companion to enslave her, but this still brought him a huge amount of discomfort. He wanted Asuka to be free from Naofumi so that she would accept that he loved and cared about like all the other cute girls. Forcing her like this would be the cruelest thing one could do to a cute girl. What was he to do?
"Can't we do anything to stop this?!" Evelyn asked Erhard, who somberly shook his head.
"There's nothing we can do, especially under threat of death by the King." he answered, to Evelyn's anxiety.
"Do it." Aultcray ordered to robed man, who silently approached the panicking Sword Hero, with the paintbrush now covered in the black paint with the Myne's blood contained within. He moved in close to her exposed chest and slowly prepared to inscribe the Royal Slave Crest upon it.
Myne grinned with anticipation, seeing the smug little Sword Bimbo panic and about to become her very own slave. The vile Princess was greatly looking forward to torturing her new toy emotionally.
"No… No! NOOOO!"
Asuka's entire world suddenly turned dark.
It was just her, all alone in a dark depressing void.
Time seemed to have slowed down for the silent Sword Hero, as she began to contemplate that had happened.
What was she hoping to accomplish in fighting that duel? Win back her honor and restore Naofumi's reputation? Achieving both seemed impossible now. Not only had she lost the match, she had now lost her dignity and freedom to this horrible world, in the most humiliating way possible via enslavement to the most despicable people imaginable.
First she died fighting Orochi, then she was summoned to this world to serve as a Cardinal Hero and made to be a part of ridiculous and pointless trial where her only friend was accused of a heinous crime while being made into an unwilling victim, and now, after promising to reclaim their honor, she was thoroughly disgraced by cheaters and had now been stripped of her freedom.
"Why… why is this happening… what did I do to deserve this…?" Asuka clutched her head.
"Because… you failed, Asuka."
"Eh? That voice…?!" Asuka looked up and saw the ghostly visage of someone she knew. Someone she considered her friend and rival. "H-Homura-chan…?"
There was no way Homura could be here. She was dead, as her spirit was taken by Orochi. This specter that looked like Homura had to be some kind of hallucination. But, it looked so real, Asuka's tattered mind couldn't help but believe it was real.
"You failed to defeat Orochi. You failed to save and avenge your friends. You failed to defend the Shield Hero. And now, you've failed to win a simple duel." said Homura, "How much of a failure are you?"
"N-No! it wasn't my fault! They cheated! It should have been my win!"
"You still failed to keep your promise in the end." said another familiar voice, echoing in the void.
Asuka turned and saw yet another apparition, this time, taking the form of Ikaruga.
"I-Ikaruga-san?!"
"You promised Naofumi-san that you would win his honor back and restore his name, but in the end, it didn't matter. Those cowards took advantage of your weakness, and now you are unable to fulfill your promise. Only a failure could achieve such a feat."
"N-No!"
"Yes." Yagyu appeared to her left, with silent contempt, "They were all stunning failures. You being unable to kill Orochi and avenge us, and you not being able to repair what was a lost cause. You couldn't save Naofumi, and now, you can't save yourself."
"That's right! And it's your all fault!" Katsuragi appeared to her right, revealing unrestrained rage, "It's your fault that we died! It's your fault that Naofumi was branded a rapist! And now it's your fault that you lost against that lecherous Spear Bastard and let those royal assholes brand you a slave! Now you're going to pay for it by becoming their slave!"
"Why? Why did you fail to help everyone? Why are you becoming a slave? Why was your fault, Asuka-chan?" Hibari appeared right in front of her, with a mocking sadness in her voice and on her face.
"N-No… I didn't… I didn't want this to happen!" Asuka cried, "I swear! It wasn't supposed to be like this!"
"But, it happened, anyway." declared the masculine voice of Naofumi from behind her.
Asuka slowly turned to face him. He had a look filled with hate.
"N-Naofumi-kun…"
"I should have known you couldn't do anything to help me." said Naofumi, turning his back and trotting away.
"W-Wait! Don't go, please! I'm sorry! I'll try again! I swear I'll win!" Asuka pleaded, but he didn't stop or turn back.
"Goodbye Asuka. I hope I never see your face again. Enjoy being a slave to those cowards."
As if on cue, a chain was clasped around her neck by Princess Malty and her father Aultcray, both of whom smile maliciously, while Motoyasu stood behind them, licking his lips lecherously.
"No! Let me go!" Asuka screamed, struggling to get free. "Naofumi-kun! Homura-chan, Ikaruga-san! Someone help me!"
"You can't escape now!" the vile Princess laughed maniacally.
"No! No! NOOO! HELP ME!" Asuka cried out as more chains appeared and wrapped themselves around her body. Her desperate pleas went unanswered, as her friends disappeared one after the other.
She was strung up above the ground, wiping all alone.
However, she was soon visited again by new and familiar spectral hallucinations. Those of her family.
"Mom… Dad… Grandma… Grandpa…" Asuka murmured as she looked up at them. They didn't say a word. In fact, they all had their backs turned on her, unwilling to show their faces. Asuka could not detect any love or affection like they would normally have. Eventually, without so much as a word, they disappeared as well.
"No… please… don't go…! Take me with you! Save me!" Asuka reached her hand out to them with a broken smile, but it was too late. They were gone.
And all she had left was the Legendary Sword, which appeared in her hand, much to her frustration and sorrow. At least, it helped her cut the chains and freeing her from her binds, but the cold heartless feeling still clung to her like mud.
"Why… why do I still have this damned thing?!" Asuka snarled.
Why did those cowards want to see her fail like this?! Why did they want to enslave her and take away her freedom?! They were ones who summoned her after she had died! They wanted her to save this world, yet they only care for making her and Naofumi as miserable possible. It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair!
"Your fault! It's all your fault!" Asuka threw the sword away, now convinced the damned sword was cursed. Unfortunately, no matter how far she threw it, it came right back to her hand.
"It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault! It's your fault!"
Those eerie words repeated themselves in her head. She tried to close her ears, but no matter how much she tried, she couldn't drown the voices out. Their contempt, their anger, their sadness, their disgust. They wouldn't go away. It was too much for the Sword Hero to bear.
"Please stop…!" she whimpered, "I don't care anymore! I don't care about saving the world! I don't care about the promises! I don't care about being a Hero! I just don't care anymore! Just please… PLEASE MAKE IT STOP!"
The jewel on the Legendary Sword ignited with dark blue light in response to Asuka's negative emotions. This was not a good sign, as she unwittingly unlocked a dangerous new power in her Legendary Sword.
|Requirements Met: Cursed Series Unlocked! Sloth Sword Obtained!|
ZAP!
To the astonishment of everyone who witnessed it, the slave branding paintbrush was rejected. The Legendary Sword was floating in front of and glowing with a protective light over Asuka, who was catatonic from the external and internal traumatic experience happening in her mind.
"W-What the…?!" Aultcray exclaimed in shock.
"Papa, what happened?!" asked a frantic Myne.
"I-I don't know! I've never seen anything like this before…" Aultcray said.
"Huh?" Motoyasu gasped.
"What is it, Motoyasu-dono?"
"My help screen is saying that the Cardinal Heroes are immune to things like enslavement curses because our weapons protects us." answered Motoyasu after a new prompt just popped up.
"He's right. As long as we have our weapons, we're protected from enslavement." said Itsuki, who had also received a prompt.
Naofumi did as well. He could only surmise that this prompt would activate in the event that one of the Heroes was about to be enslaved but failed.
"T-Try again! We have her right where we want her!" Myne cried. She wasn't about to lose her new toy. Not what she worked this hard to finally crush that stupid Sword Bimbo's spirit for continuously mocking her.
"Please don't waste your efforts, Princess Malty." from out of nowhere, three figures appeared in front of Myne and her father, kneeling on the ground. They were dressed head to toe in black, and where a mask that made it impossible to tell if they were a man or woman.
"W-What the…?! What you're doing here?!" Aultcray bellowed. He almost seemed as though he was panicking. The King wasn't the only one. Myne was also sweating bullets at the sight of the Shadows.
"Um… what's going on here?" asked Motoyasu.
"I don't know, but Myne and the King are freaked out." Itsuki said.
Naofumi was silent and curious.
"You know who we represent, yes?" the shadow agent in the middle took out a rolled scroll from their sleeve and held it up to the shaking King. "For you, King Aultcray."
Aultcray hesitantly took hold of the scroll and opened. After reading through it, he wore a shocked expression.
"T-This can't be!"
"it is, and you know Queen Mirellia better than anyone. This time, you can't ignore her orders. As such, by order of the Queen, this sacred duel, which was held against her wishes, will be officially declared a draw. There are no winners or losers, and the promises made before hand shall be null and void." the agent spoke, "As for allowing the First Princess to brand the Sword Hero with a Royal Slave Crest… I dare say, I don't think I even need to tell you how reprehensible this is, your Majesty, and that you are to abstain from any more attempts at branding her with a slave crest."
"W-Who do you think you are, giving me lectures and ordering me around! I am the King! I do what is right for my country and my family! Now get out of my sight this instant!" Aultcray shouted at the unfazed agent.
"You forget your station. These are the Queen's orders, in the event you and Princess Malty try go beyond that station, like you have now."
"P-Papa!" Myne bemoaned.
"Grr…" Aultcray sighed in defeat, "As my Queen commands. Step away from the Sword Hero, and release the Shield."
The knights did as ordered, releasing Naofumi and standing away from the silent Asuka.
"Very good. Please be on your best behavior. We Shadows are always watching." the Shadows disappear from sight.
"What the hell?! A draw?! But, I won!" Motoyasu became livid after that hearing the decree regarding the outcome of the duel, "Why does the Queen get to decide the outcome of our duel?!"
"Obviously, because she's the one with true power here." Itsuki answered.
Motoyasu grunted in frustration. He won the duel fair and square, and now his victory was taken from him and it was made into a draw? How was that allowed to happen? But, at the very least, Asuka wouldn't be getting a slave crest, but still, it wasn't fair.
Speaking of Asuka…
Motoyasu turned about and saw that the knights had released her, only for the Sword Hero to collapse on the ground in fetal position, with her sword lying beside her, silently weeping to herself, while her ankle continued to swell. The paralysis seemed to worn off, otherwise, she wouldn't be able to do that. Still, it was a depressing sight, seeing the once cheerful and upbeat cute girl become so… lifeless.
"Asuka-chan…" Motoyasu was about to go see her, and hopefully comfort her, but then Naofumi stepped in front of him with a menacing glare. "Get out of my way, Naofumi. She needs me!"
"I hope you're proud of yourself, Motoyasu." Naofumi sneered, his voice low and dead serious, "First, you were so desperate to win you had to cheat using Myne's help, and now this. I'm almost impressed by despicable you are."
"I didn't cheat! Asuka-chan felt bad and she let me win!"
"Bull fucking shit!" Naofumi pointed to Asuka, who was still weeping in fetal position, "Look at that! There's your victory! Are you satisfied?!" Naofumi loudly asked, "Not only did you humiliate her in front of so many people, you stood by and let Myne and her father do whatever they wanted! And for what? To force her to join your personal harem of harlots? Now look at her! She's curled up into a ball trying to close off the rest of the world to protect herself!"
Motoyasu could only glare response to that question.
"You dare to accuse Motoyasu-dono of such cowardly acts only you would commit?!" Aultcray shouted, stepping forward to Naofumi.
"I'm not talking to you!" Naofumi snapped at the King, causing the latter to flinch. The Shield Hero shifted his hostile gaze back to Motoyasu, "I had a feeling you were a complete idiot, but this? This goes way beyond idiocy. You've officially sank lower than I thought you ever could. You're no winner, and you're certainly not a Hero. In fact, you're worst than a dog sniffing for scraps."
Motoyasu growled, almost ready to lose it and attack Naofumi with his spear.
"Who the fuck do you think you are that can lecture me?! You're the one who tried to rape Myne and you're the one who made Asuka-chan take that drug that makes her like you subconsciously! That's why it's up to me to help her and set her free! And I'll do just that, even if I have to kill you!"
"No you won't!"
Motoyasu spotted a familiar girl with long blonde hair running up to him and-
SLAP!
"Don't you care get any closer to her, you creep!" Rino yelled after she had struck the Spear Hero in the face. Whatever affection she had for him left was gone in that moment, and her instinct to protect Asuka drove her to run up and slap him in the face.
"R-Rino-chan…?!"
"W-What the hell are you doing here?!" Myne bellowed, shocked to see Rino here after she was sold off, and angry that she slapped Motoyasu. She did not need this right now.
"I'm here because I wanted to cheer Asuka on! We are a party now, after all!"
"So that's who she is. Asuka found a party member?" Naofumi wondered.
"W-Wait, so you left my party to join up with Asuka-chan? That's great and all, but why'd you slap me?"
"Because you're a liar, a cheat, and an absolute scumbag for all the things you did to Asuka!" Rino barked.
"Things I did?"
"Like ripping her top apart with that cheap shot, acting like you won when it was clear that you didn't, and standing there looking stupid while they were about to put a slave crest on her! Now look what's happened to her!" Rino turned back and saw Asuka just a few feet away, still curled up in fetal position. A mixture of pity and anger swelled up from within the swordswoman.
"W-Well, that's…"
"Stop it! Motoyasu-sama wanted to save her! And he won that right!" Myne interjected, and was met by a fierce glare from Rino.
"Only because you interfered with your magic, you two-faced princess!"
"How dare you say that! Take it back right now, you whore!" Myne prepared to slap Rino in the face for her insults.
"Malty!" Aultcray called out, making his daughter stop. "That's enough."
"B-But, Papa!" Myne was about to complain, but her father didn't seem to be in the mood to listen. After those shadows forced him to submit, that would be understandable.
"W-Why is this happening…? Because that damned drug…" Motoyasu grumbled, unable to process this whole thing.
"Motoyasu-san, that ridiculous drug doesn't exist." Itsuki refuted with a sigh, "Everything Asuka-san did and said were done entirely on her own accord, and the things she's felt were genuine, which means she genuinely hates you."
"What? T-That can't be…!"
"Can be! And I understand how she feels! I hate you so much right now, and I especially hate everyone in your party!" Rino cried.
"T-That has to be a lie!"
"It's the truth. I didn't do any of those things. Not that I expect you to believe me on account of how stupid you are." retorted Naofumi. He turned on his heel and walked over to the still fetal positioned Asuka, who seemed to just toned out everything around her.
"Hey! Get away from her!" Motoyasu yelled, ready to charge at Naofumi, but Rino stepped in front of him, forcing the Spear Hero to stop in his tracks. "Rino-chan…?"
Rino gave him a glare that said 'I will end you if get any closer'. Motoyasu reluctantly backed down.
"R-Rino-chan, you seriously don't hate me, do you? You had so much fun with us, didn't you?" Motoyasu sheepishly asked, "I mean, sure you weren't around for too long, but you didn't need to feel like you had to leave because you didn't fit in. You loved being around me, didn't you?"
"Sure, I would have, had you not been so stupid." Rino retorted, "As for why I really left the party, why don't you ask that two-faced Princess what really happened? Assuming what she says is the truth instead of a bald faced lie, that is."
Myne glared at her again for her insults.
"Myne would never-"
"Stop. Just stop." Rino shook her head, "Leave us alone."
The blonde swordswoman turned on her heel and walked away from the confused Motoyasu and toward the Sword and Shield Heroes.
Meanwhile, Naofumi was standing over the depressed Asuka, silently.
"Asuka…" Naofumi said with pity in his voice. Something told him that he'd probably be in a similar position, if similar circumstances had happened to him. He gazed upon her Legendary Sword, and saw that it was still glowing, but with a dark depressing aura surround it and its wielder. Clearly something wasn't right with that, but right now, Asuka needed more attention then her sword.
"Why are you still here…?" she asked, her voice low and cracking. It was near emotionless. "I couldn't do anything… I failed to clear your name…"
"Yeah, you did."
"I lost the duel… I couldn't prove anything…"
"That you couldn't, and look where it got you. This is why I didn't want you to do this in the first place."
"Why are you still talking to me…? Don't you hate me now…? Just go away…"
"What good would that do? You're my friend."
This sparked some life in Asuka.
"I admit, I've been wrestling with these feelings of hating you and wanting to believe in you." Naofumi kneeled down to Asuka, "But, you believed in me, and fought so long and so hard for me, and all I did in return was yell at you to stop. Hell, I even thought you were faking being nice to me from the start, and tried convincing myself that I hated you just as much as everyone else, for honestly preposterous reasons. Now I see how stupid I was."
Slowly, Asuka rose her head to Naofumi, revealing her emotionally dead face and lifeless eyes.
"Really, I can't thank you enough for how much you've been a great friend to me. You believed in me this entire time. For that, I'm grateful to you." Naofumi said, with a genuine smile. "That and beating the piss out of Motoyasu was awesome."
The dark blue aura of the Legendary Sword vanished and life came back to Asuka's eyes. They shimmered with tears of joy welling up and pouring out as quickly took hold of the older Hero and cried uncontrollably. He was initially surprised, but he took it in stride. He tenderly hugged her back.
This brought a tear to Rino's happy eye, seeing Asuka recover.
Unable to stand the sight, King Aultcray turned on his heel and trotted away, followed by Myne, who also found the Sword Bimbo looking so happy to be the repulsive thing she had ever seen.
Itsuki saw no reason to stick around either and rejoined his party.
Motoyasu stared at the scene with utter befuddlement and envy. He didn't understand why. Why was Asuka still showing affection to Naofumi? The Spear Hero won, but Asuka wasn't free from Naofumi's drug. That was when he started to think… maybe, Asuka really did like Naofumi more than him. Maybe, she wasn't drugged at all. If that was the case… maybe he was brainwashing her somehow. There was no other explanation.
Eventually, with this eventful night over, after the crowd left of the coliseum, the Sword and Shield Heroes along with Rino meet with their respective friends outside. Naofumi had given his cape to Asuka to cover herself with to preserve her modesty. They carried her by the arms due to her sullen ankle.
Evelyn and Raphtalia ran up to the Sword Hero, understandably concerned about what she went through. Conan looked concerned as well, but he stood next to Vento and Erhard quietly.
"Color this old man impressed. You really showed the Spear Hero what for, Lass." Erhard chuckled.
"Thanks… I still lost, though…" replied an exhausted Asuka. The paralysis may have worn off, but it appeared there be after effects of exhaustion. Coupled with mental exhaustion and a sore ankle, the Sword Hero was ready to pass out.
"You didn't hear? The duel was declared a draw." said Vento.
"Eh?"
"Not surprised you didn't hear anything, since you shut down after the slave branding failed." said Naofumi.
"It failed? So I'm not a slave then? But, why?"
"Apparently, our weapons protect us from things like that." answered Naofumi, "If you want, I could give a crash course on how these enslavement curses work."
"No thanks. I'm too tired for anything really…" Asuka said, halfway conscious.
"I'll take care of her from here, Shield Hero." said Vento, walking. Naofumi stared at him a little. "Rest assured, I haven't any ill intentions."
"I know. But, I'm coming with, just in case." said Naofumi, much to Raphtalia's delight.
"Suit yourself." Vento smiled.
"Great! Guess I'll head back to my shop knowing the Sword Lass is in good hands." Erhard grinned.
"I wish I could go with as well, but my job calls as well. Please take care of her."
"Will do!" Rino smiled.
Asuka was truly happy to find friends like these in this corrupt world. While clearly not as tightly knit as the ones in Hanzo, it helped her peace of mind immensely.
Up above, the Shadow observed as the group parted ways.
It was a good thing the Queen instructed her and her comrades to intervene in case the King and First Princess tried something drastic, like enslaving one of the Cardinal Heroes. As always, Queen Mirellia was right on the money.
Personally, she hoped to step in sooner, but it wasn't known if a Cardinal Hero could be enslaved or not, so the Queen wanted confirmation first, before the Shadows could take action.
Her Majesty will be pleased with the results of this duel, as it was very enlightening.
Lyall the Werewolf: Wow, was this an emotional doozy. Of course, I wasn't kidding when I said I would break Asuka. Luckily, Big Bro Naofumi is there to help. It's pretty obvious at this point that Naofumi has softened up considerably thanks to Asuka. Now, he isn't back to his old self just yet, in fact, it's doubtful he return to his less grumpy self in the future, since if I'm not mistaken, the light novels still portray him as a cynical character, even after all the good things (as well as bad) that has happened to him recently.
In any case, it's clear that I've deviated from Shield Hero's original story quite a bit. I don't know if Naofumi will unlock his Wrath Series at the rate everything's going. Something different might happen. I guess it depends on where the goes from here.
I would also like to point that Itsuki was aware that the "drug" supposedly influencing Asuka's behavior doesn't exist. If you look back on chapter 04, you'll see that he didn't readily buy the whole drug story, and he knows Asuka genuinely hates Motoyasu. He just didn't bother pointing it out until now because he felt it would be wasted energy. Only Motoyasu believes in the drug, because he's that stupid.
I decided to bring the Slave Crest angle back because I thought it would an appropriate way to help Asuka awaken her Curse Series.
Oh, and um, speaking of which… Asuka got the Sloth Sword as her Curse Series Weapon? WHAT?!
Well, I can explain that. See, it would make sense to give Asuka the Wrath Series, since it is clear that she is getting angrier the longer she stays Melromarc, but I think that's too obvious and it relates to Naofumi a little too much. We can't forget about the traumatic experience of her death in her home series, which undoubtedly left scares that haven't healed yet, as seen by the hallucinations, indicating that she believes her friends hate and blame her for failing to stop Orochi from killing them. A part of Asuka, deep inside doesn't want to be a Hero, due to this depression. And if I'm not mistaken, depression can be associated to the sin of Sloth to some degree. Depression can lead to people losing interest in doing anything, hence the desire to rest.
As for Pride, I feel that wouldn't work either, because while she does show pride in her abilities as a Good Shinobi and being Hanzo's granddaughter, Asuka wouldn't let it go to her head. She is quite humble like that too.
I had Sloth in mind from the beginning, and I think it could work because it's the opposite of Asuka's character, and in her current state of mind, I'd say it's worth exploring. Plus, it works because of what I have in store later down the line.
That's all for now. See you next time.
