On our way, I opened the book, which was, as might be expected, written in Japanese, with my only recognizing it because I played far too many video games. I couldn't read it, of course. I barely spoke my own native language at times. Still, the pages did their thing of translating and loading themselves into my brain, same as with the local writing, so I was soon reading over not only descriptions of the fight I had just witnessed, but several minutes before I'd entered, as the battle had lasted a bit.
Interestingly, there were some tactical analysis of the battle as well, with each bit accompanied by some commentary, including on which hand the other person led with, how they moved around, and all in all, it was a great help in understanding the tactics used by the two during the whole of the fight, including the opening gambit which had apparently been Motoyasu turning Rishia all the way up, and dumping his stats into his attack trying to end it quickly, only for Naofumi to play defense, and succeed.
By the time we were in the arena, I snapped the tome shut, having gone over only about half its contents, since each page only contained a few sentences, probably a result of having no lines to follow, allowing Ren to write larger on each page. Regardless, I held it under my arm, as we entered the arena proper, and found the two parties who'd been looking like they were about to kill each other mere minutes ago, laughing at something together.
Well, okay, Motoyasu, Raphtalia, and Rishia were laughing at something, Filo was puffing out her cheeks, probably the butt of whatever joke it was, while Naofumi was faking a smile. Not to say it wasn't a good fake, but I was old enough, and had worked retail enough, to recognize someone not having the best time, and who would rather be alone with friends they liked, or just away from this particular situation. It was a normal feeling, and as they all turned to us, that fake smile was replaced by a real one.
"Bard, you're here!" he shouted, waving us over, and we soon convened in the center of the arena, so I could get the low down on what was going on. Specifically, as it turned out, we were seeing the third match of three with the other Heroes. Naofumi, on discussing it with the others last night, had mentioned my ability to organize the knights and himself during the fight with the T-rex, and had proposed the three parties have quick matches with the non-participant watching, so they could observe and make notes about the fight.
I also got a second shock as Motoyasu pulled out two tomes, identically bound to Ren's, which had the descriptions of the other two battles in them, courtesy of Naofumi watching Ren and Motoyasu, while Motoyasu had written about Ren and Naofumi's match. However, the shocking part of this was that Motoyasu pulled them out of thin air, and he explained, as he had last night, that they'd figured out what system he had that matched my translations and Ren's minimap.
Motoyasu, the lucky blonde git…the actually pretty decent enough guy when you got to know him, had item storage. It wasn't infinite, as he was quick to point out, but it did grow larger the more he stored in it, like expanding a muscle. My immediate thoughts were to ask about momentum conservation, or just weight, but he was quick to remind me that, even if he did take a cannonball and drop it on someone's head, his own skills did more damage anyway.
Naofumi apparently had item crafting, allowing him, without even using any skills, to see the grade and use of items in the world, something he'd assumed we all had naturally. His still required the most work, mind, as he still had to USE the items properly, like grinding potions and stuff, but since the system provided step by step instructions on how to do so, well it was easier than learning that skill the normal way, and even provided better results, again the more he did it.
It also explained why his potions were both more numerous than we'd seen from others, and also higher quality. His skills helped with that, and better, like some of my sub-skills like (Appraisal) they got better the more he used them. Good to know, and it meant he really was a support class like myself. On and off the battlefield, as he was, even now, being handed a few leaves by Motoyasu, and using his hands to grind them into powder that he let fall into a jar, showing off that the stuff sparkled as he did it.
"So, does that mean my party and I go against all three of you, one after the other?" I asked, and the three Heroes looked at each other, then laughed, not quite to the same degree as Ren had in the stands, but enough to make me puff out my own cheeks, as they quickly calmed down, and explained that I, being battlefield coordination, would NOT be in the thick of things, and in fact, they tasked Ray and Lucia with keeping me safe, something that seemed to please the latter immensely. To mollify my wounded pride, Motoyasu pulled out a magical orb from his item box, and passed it to me.
It turned out to be for an (Awakened Mind) spell, basically telepathy, as he put it. The thing allowed me to cast my voice, even without speaking, into the mind of whoever I wanted. He mentioned he'd been hoarding that one for a while, after finding it…well he didn't want to say, which meant it was probably taken from someone while he'd been with Myne. Either way, it would act like an in-game SMS(Short Mail System), so I could give orders on the fly, and keep everyone informed, without having to shout over the din of a battle.
Using it, I tested it out a bit, and was shocked to see it was almost exactly as advertised. The thing integrated itself into my menu, and even had a list of people to send to individually, or do some general chat stuff, and all I had to do was think of what I wanted. Sadly, they couldn't respond via the same method, as Motoyasu only had the one, and had been saving it until it would do the most good, so I could issue orders, but not receive feedback, making it more useful if I stayed out of the thick of battle.
Luckily, the cost of the spell was minimal, and with my ring that caused my MP to skip the recharge delay, even sending something to everyone all at once caused nothing but a small blip. Better, it paired well with my telescopic vision ring, I was quick to point out, meaning about the only other thing I could have used was either that minimap that Ren had, or, even better, some way to fly over the battlefield, which started a discussion, until the doors opened up, and a knight announced the Royal Family was ready to see us.
A quick trip through the castle saw us to the central room, the bunker, and this time, rather than waiting outside, the other Heroes and myself, insisted that our party members should join us, as what was to be discussed today would be of import to us all, and they could offer perspectives beyond what we Heroes might think of. Luckily, before that discussion could go on too long, Princess Melty opened the door, and settled the issue, allowing her friends, Filo and Raphtalia in, and thus allowing the other four in as well, with a few guards rushing off to fetch some extra chairs for everyone.
With them set up behind us, we were left in the room for a moment, as the King and Queen had been busying themselves with something as we were gathered, the pair entering and showing that, while we'd had relatively good nights and mornings, the two had obviously not. Oh, they looked fine, the King was once more in his robes, as was the Queen, the royal family exuding that aura of command that such attire brought to the table as they took their seats.
The Princess and Queen wore clothing a bit different than before, the Queen's garb changed out for a more formal affair, with far more flair to it than her, I suppose, on the road clothing, while the Princess did much the same. The King, no longer in his armor, wore instead the same mantel and robes we'd met him in many times in the throne room, looking like they had been recently pressed and cleaned, if the creases along the sleeves were anything to go by.
But no amount of small touches of makeup or fancy clothes could hide the circles under their eyes, or the lethargic way they held themselves. These two had had a long, trying night, for all that their daughter had seemingly slept well. She was even smiling, and helping her parents to their seats, earning words of thanks from them, as everyone finally settled down, and the King opened his mouth to speak, only to apparently recall his wife was present, and turning it over to her, before she let out a massive yawn, and her daughter placed her hand on her shoulder, giving her a concerned look, and then turning back to us.
"Heroes, it gladdens the hearts of the Royal Family of Melromarc to see you this morning. The four of you, Defenders of our Land, and we hope the day finds you well," she said, and the two elders seemed to mumble some agreement, as she smiled, and tried to make the best of it. Before she could go farther, the doors opened again, and a servant rushed into the room, moving a cart with a tray on it, one loaded with a few steaming cups that she set before the Royal Family with a bow, and then quickly left the room.
The King and Queen sniffed at the content of the cups for a moment, then drained two apiece in a few seconds, looking instantly revitalized as they did so, making me wonder, idly, if there was some kind of potion mixed with their drinks, or if this was just how coffee worked across universes. Regardless of the answer to that question, they both sat up straighter, as they took third cups, sipped them once to assure themselves there was more at hand, before turning to us.
"Indeed, Heroes, it is heartening to see you rested well, and to hear of you already planning for the future. This is the attitude and actions of Heroes who stand for all the ideals of the Weapons they carry," she said, placing her hand on her husband's shoulder as he still seemed a bit out of it, but roused at her touch, downing one more cup, before he seemed to focus enough to see us.
"And such efforts, Heroes, deserve a reward, one that took great effort to acquire," he said, and as he spoke, the King placed his hand inside his robes, and gently pulled something out from with them. The thing, a wrapped package tied with strings, looked dusty and like it had sat in one place for years. Which it probably had. In fact, the strings holding it glowed slightly in the low light of the torches that lit the room, their flickering revealing the magical aura that still kept the thing sealed.
The King's fingers seemed to trace a rune in the air above the package, and with a noise like a tiny bell ringing, the strings seemed to 'pop' turning into motes of light the flew away from the package, revealing it to be silk, laid with even more runes, though they didn't resist at all, as the King almost reverently unfolded the fabric, eventually laying it flat, and revealing the thing that lay within.
"I present you with the Vassal Staff, treasure of Melromarc, and my personal Weapon during the final war with Siltvelt," he declared, showing off the thing, looking at first less like a staff than a rod, with a diamond shape at the end that held a red gleaming jewel, the same color as the Spear's actually, and a black and gold color scheme that, had Aultcray been in his armor, would have matched it perfectly, as he pulled the foot long thing up.
And up…and up. The rod turned into a staff, into the Vassal Staff, before our eyes. It didn't unfold or telescope out, instead, as it rested in his hand, the thing seemed to grow longer as if through some visual trickery, forcing him to stand as it came to its full length, a good six feet, or about two meters, so slightly shorter than myself, though taller than Aultcray as he stood before us, his body looking not only far less tired, but younger than it had a moment ago.
"A lifetime ago, I worked wonders with this item, felling all the enemies that dared threaten this land, and eventually slaying one who wished to place our people beneath his iron fist as he had the nation he ruled. We fought and won, but in that victory, I did many things worthy of contempt. Thus, we sealed it away. The work of a night long ritual has brought it back into this world, so I might present it to you, Heroes, and ask that you use its power well," and so doing, he, along with all the others, turned expectantly towards me.
That…made sense, given I was the one to unlock the system with the Carriage, and so I rose from my seat, and walked around it, to stand before the King, who turned the Staff, holding it horizontal now, shrinking it in the process, leaving him looking a bit weaker, as his gaze fell towards the Weapon, looking at it longingly, like it was the only thing that mattered to him, and I wondered if he would give it up.
But he blunk against it, his eyes closing tightly, and when they opened again, he thrust his hands towards me, almost insistent that I take it from him. Reaching out my hand, I placed it on the Weapon, and pulled it to me, holding it high, and letting the feeling of having it fill me, allowing all that the Vassal Staff had to flow into my own Weapon, and sync with it as I had done with the Carriage, waiting for the windows to open and offer me my next choice.