Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand we're back, ladies and gents. You would not believe how much we wrote down together in one day. #ThanksCorona
I think you can expect these updates every Friday for now.
Chapter Three: Rising of the Bald Hero
A few minutes later
"Okay, so let me get this straight."
Erhard sat at a table in the back of his shop. Aultcray was sitting opposite him in another chair. The shop in the front room had been cleaned up and organized. Erhard had also changed the sign on the front door of his shop indicating it was closed for the moment.
"That kid you brought in is the Shield Hero. None of the adventurers you found wanted to join his party... so you want me to help him level up, get stronger, and prepare for the waves?" He said, simplifying what the King had told him. "Is that right?"
"Yes."
...
Erhard sighed, rubbing his hand across his face. "Look, it warms my heart that you came to me for help first. But I don't know if I can do that, Aultcray."
"Is there a reason why? If it's because of money, I can arrange for you-" Aultcray was saying.
"No, it's not that at all!" Erhard said, quickly waving his hands in front of him. "I make more than enough with my business… it's just that he's a kid... I can't just take a kid and force him to fight monsters. I mean, what if he doesn't even want to-"
"Haha! Die you stupid dragon!"
The two looked out in the shop area in surprise. Only, there were no dragons. Naofumi was surrounded with some more shields to play with. He had the iron shield he'd copied equipped. He'd set up the iron shield he'd copied from in front of him on a chair. He'd somehow found something to mark up the surface with so it had a poorly drawn stick figure face on it with (fangs?) and a poor illustration of fire coming out of its mouth. Naofumi punched the shield in the (face?), only to get a resounding clang.
"Hey, my fist didn't hurt from that! Sweet!" Naofumi started to punch the shield again and again. His fists must have been as hard as steel now! Extra cool!
"I think you'll find that won't be an issue," Aultcray said, smiling at the adorable sight.
Erhard sweatdropped. "Okay, that just worries me even more."
"In what ways?" Aultcray asked curiously.
"He has a Shield. Will he even be able to kill monsters?" Erhard asked.
Naofumi's kid hands weren't hurting from punching solid metal. But the shield wasn't denting under the weak punches either… not that it should have dented from the punches of a little kid. Since that'd be a horrible and uncool shield to use in a battle.
"That's why he needs someone I trust to level him up," Aultcray said seriously. "Out of everyone I know, you're one of the few adventurers who can safely level him up without me having to worry about him being betrayed."
"Betrayed? Again, he's just a kid." Erhard said.
Naofumi had stopped punching the shield. Now he was behind the shield, making growling noises like a dragon. It was honestly pretty cute.
"It didn't stop my chief advisor from pulling a move against him for being the Shield Hero," Aultcray said seriously. "It might not stop others either."
…
Erhard sighed in defeat. "Fine. I'll see what I can do. I can't just close the shop and spend all my time training him you know." Erhard said.
"I'd hope you wouldn't. I know this is a big request I'm making. And I wouldn't be making it if I didn't have my duties as King to attend to." Aultcray said.
"Couldn't you just call the Queen back to take over again?" Erhard asked.
Aultcray grimaced. "I… might have angered the other nations by summoning all four heroes to Melromarc… while they were holding their Council in Faubley..."
…
Erhard facepalmed. "She's going to kill you when she gets home. If we're not in the middle of a big war with the other countries by that point." Erhard said flatly.
"Which is why keeping the Shield Hero safe from any other plots should be high on our lists," Aultcray said. "If we can keep him and the other heroes protected while helping them all to get stronger, we can placate the other nations by putting all the care in strengthening them on ourselves, making things easier on my wife." 'And making it less likely that she'll kill me when she gets home.' He thought, a nervous sweatdrop appearing on his forehead.
"Alright. I'll see what I can do." Erhard said. "You're lucky this is one of my slow days, or I'd be swamped with orders. Hey kid." He called out.
Naofumi popped his head out over the shield. "Yes?"
"Come here for a second, I need to check your sizes so we can find something that fits you," Erhard said, motioning with his finger. The boy walked over as the large blacksmith pulled out a stretch of measuring tape. He quickly took all of the young hero's sizes and walked into the back of the shop.
A short minute later, he emerged from the storage room with a new set of clothes and a small chest plate made of leather. "Since you're only level 1, you can't wear most of my stuff yet. But this should get you by until you're able to wear something a little more protective."
Naofumi looked between Erhard and the king. Aultcray smiled and inclined his head toward the other man. "Go on, young Naofumi. Try it."
"Okay!"
The boy walked over and grabbed the clothes out of Erhard's hands before entering the changing room. The clothes were a bit big on him, colors mixed with earthy brown and forest green. The breastplate was hardly a perfect fit, as it covered not only his chest but most of his shoulders as well.
When he looked in the mirror, he felt like some kind of American football player. He hoped he could upgrade to better armor soon. Football was totally lame.
"Um, how do I look?" Naofumi asked curiously as he walked back out.
"Magnificent!" Aultcray said boisterously. "You'll make a fine hero yet!"
Naofumi perked up. "Cool! I can't wait!" He said happily.
"Now, I must be getting back to the castle to resume my duties." Under his breath, he muttered. "Or my wife might actually kill me..."
Erhard opened the front door of the shop, and Aultcray left. "I'll see you another time, young Naofumi!" Aultcray waved as he left.
"See you later Mr. Aultcray!" Naofumi waved happily.
After Aultcray left, Erhard looked Naofumi over again. He still had the Iron Shield he'd copied equipped to his arm. "Alright." He hefted a spare war hammer from beside the door. "Since you're stuck with me, how about we go out to the fields and see what you're capable of." He suggested.
He opened the door again for Naofumi and the two left the shop. Erhard checked his sign to make sure it indicated his shop was closed and then turned to walk down the street. Only to find Naofumi going the wrong way.
"No, not that way!" Erhard said, grabbing the boy by the back of his shirt and turning him around.
Naofumi had been heading towards the castle by accident when he exited. "Sorry. I'm not good with directions."
"Sigh... No worries, kid. I'll help you to know these streets like the back of your hand." Erhard said. Giving the little guy a reassuring smile. "Now let's go... and try to stick with me this time."
The fields were only a few minute's walk from the city gates since Erhard's shop was already near the outskirts of town. Once they were a little way into the fields, the blacksmith held his hand out, stopping Naofumi from moving any further.
"Be careful, kid. We're far enough from the walls now that monsters will be hiding in the tall grass."
"You mean like in pokeemen?"
"… What the hell is pokeemen?" Erhard asked, then he shook his head. "On second thought, knock yourself out. Either you find them, or they'll find you."
"Ok-" Right as he said that; a large round-shaped growling object jumped out of the tall grass. "Ah!" Naofumi raised his arm in self-defense, and the object's mouth opened wide, biting down on it.
"Whoa, watch it-" Erhard prepared his war hammer.
"Hahahahahaha! It tickles!" Naofumi laughed.
The object, a balloon monster, continued to munch on Naofumi's little arm. However, it wasn't damaging him in the slightest. Naofumi sat on the ground, laughing at the tickling sensation he felt on his arm.
"What in the world…" Erhard lowered his war hammer. He'd never seen such a thing before.
Despite the creature's jaws biting into the soft fabric of his shirt, its teeth couldn't penetrate into his skin. Now Erhard had a high defense stat, but that was because of his level. He still remembered the days long ago when he was level one. And the balloons left more than just a bite mark.
"Are you sure you're level one kid?" Erhard asked.
"Umm, I think so. I just got here yesterday."
Erhard looked from the balloon to Naofumi. "Ok then. These things obviously can't hurt you. That'll make things easier for you. Now, how about you try to kill it?" He suggested. If Naofumi's defense was so high that not even monsters could kill him, it'd make his job of leveling up Naofumi a whole lot easier.
"..." Naofumi looked at the menacing, yet cute balloon monster. "Can't I keep it as a pet?" He asked innocently. "I don't want to kill it..."
…
...
Erhard facepalmed. Of course, his worries had been confirmed. "Kid. If you want to level up and get stronger. You're going to have to kill monsters."
"But not this one! I think it likes me! How could I kill it when all it wants is a chew toy?" Naofumi asked, looking at the orange balloon gnawing on his arm. Its expression was one of complete and utter rage.
"Now listen here-" Erhard raised his hand up to give a lecture about the dangers of monsters.
Chomp!
Erhard's eyes comically widened. "Ahhhhhh!" Another balloon monster had flown through the air. Biting down on Erhard's raised hand. He started running around, waving his hand like a madman. "Get it off! Get it off!"
Naofumi giggled at him. "See? That one likes you too! Now we both have one!"
Erhard's screaming attracted more balloon monsters. Chuckling menacingly to themselves as they surrounded the pair in the tall grass. A bunch of red arrows pointed down at their heads. There were at least a dozen.
"There's so many! How am I supposed to take care of all of you?" Naofumi wondered out loud. "And how am I supposed to name you all?"
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Erhard continued to run around screaming.
The balloon monsters screeched and jumped through the air towards the weird pair.
A few minutes later
"Heh, huh, heh, huh." Erhard breathed in and out heavily. His war hammer was clutched in one hand. His other hand was covered in bite marks. Surrounding him were the remains of many different balloon monsters.
"Awwww. You killed all of them." Naofumi said sadly.
The only one left was the one still munching on his arm. He looked between the balloon and Erhard before hiding his arm behind his back. "You can't hurt this one! He's mine!"
"Kid." Erhard did not look happy. "Those things are dangerous-"
"No! It's not hurting me!"
"Okay then. Those things are dangerous to other people." Erhard clarified. "You're lucky I can handle something like this chomping on my hand," Erhard said, holding his hand. Besides the bite marks, they hadn't punctured his skin and drew blood because of his own high defense. "But what if someone else was being attacked by these? Someone who could lose their hand! Would you think it's so cute then?! Huh!?"
...
Naofumi looked sadly at the ground, ashamed. He sniffed. "Well… I guess I'd protect them…"
Erhard's face softened, and he rested a hand on Naofumi's shoulder. "Look, Shield Kid. I know this is asking you a lot. But if you're going to be a hero... you're going to have to do things you otherwise wouldn't do if you want to help others."
"Like killing cute balloon monsters?" Naofumi asked.
"Not just balloons. Who knows, maybe one day you'll have to save people from dragons or ents or all sorts of different monsters!" He said, inserting some excitement in his tone to cheer the kid up. "Some are cuter than that thing there," Erhard admitted, pointing to the balloon. "But they won't hesitate to hurt or kill anyone they come across. You're going to have to be the Shield that protects those who can't protect themselves. And the only way you'll get strong enough to do that is by killing monsters."
…
Naofumi looked sadly down at the balloon. "Okay…" He raised a shaking fist up and brought it down on the balloon. It was a weak blow, but he hoped it was enough to put the cute little thing out of its misery.
It didn't react. It just continued biting his arm. Naofumi looked confused, raised his fist up again, and brought it down harder.
The balloon didn't react.
"Hey, don't you ignore me, mister!" Naofumi said, punching the balloon repeatedly. After several attempts and no results, he slumped. "I don't think I'm doing it right..."
Erhard rubbed his chin in thought. "No, I see it's health bar dropping slightly each time… Maybe you need a weapon. Here." He pulled out a small knife and handed the sheathed blade to the boy. As soon as Naofumi wrapped his fingers around the handle, however, a spark of electricity caused him to drop it to the ground.
"Oww! What did you do that for!?" he whined, rubbing his hand. "That hurt! You didn't tell me that would happen!"
Erhard looked surprised. "Odd. I could have sworn that wasn't a magic blade." He checked the weapon's description over again, and no. It was just a normal iron knife. "Try again."
Naofumi tried to wrap his fingers around the handle again. Only for it to zap out of his hands again. "Ow! It wasn't doing this back to me in the castle!" He said angrily. He'd held a knife while eating his food just fine then! Why couldn't he hold one now?! How totally uncool!
Words appeared in front of his face. "Heroes cannot wield weapons other than their Holy Weapon."
"Let me take a closer look at that shield of yours, kid."
The blacksmith inspected it with his appraisal skill as Naofumi went back to punching the balloon repeatedly again. After a minute, all he could get was the current shield's name. Iron Shield. That was it.
"How high of an appraisal skill do you need for this?" Erhard knew few people besides his Master that had a higher appraisal skill for armor and weapons than himself.
"Mr. Bald Guy?" Naofumi called out. "Apparently I'm not allowed to use anything except this shield."
"What do you mean?" Erhard was too busy focusing on the Shield to realize what Naofumi had just called him.
"Words just flashed in front of me. It says I'm not allowed to wield anything other than my Legendary Weapon." Naofumi said as he punched the balloon again and again. It was still munching on his arm. But its health bar had dropped considerably… over the course of four minutes.
"Hmmm." Erhard thought about it. "I guess you literally will be a shield for everyone if you can't cause much damage-" Erhard was saying.
Pop!
Finally, after five minutes of continual punching. The balloon popped into several yellow pieces. "Hey, I did it!" Naofumi said excitedly. A notification appeared next to his head. 1 Experience. "Um, Mr. Bald Guy. What's… experience mean?" Naofumi said slowly, making sure he was pronouncing it correctly.
"It's how you get stronger. Once you get enough, you'll go up to level 2 and some of your stats may go up too. Do that a lot, and you'll get super powerful… ... wait, who are you calling Bald Guy?!" He yelled indignantly.
"Well you don't have hair, so..." Naofumi pointed out, giggling childishly to himself.
"Why you," Erhard smirked. "At least it doesn't take me five minutes to do this!" He swept his war hammer behind him, instantly popping three more balloons that had been sneaking up to try and get a bite of the great blacksmith.
"Whoa…" Naofumi stared in awe.
"Oh, yeah. I should have done this earlier." Erhard pulled up his status magic screen and selected something on it. A new notification appeared on Naofumi's screen. "That's a party invitation," Erhard happily explained before Naofumi could ask. "You just have to hit accept, and then any monsters I kill in the future, you'll also get experience from them."
"Woah, cool!" Naofumi exclaimed, accepting the invitation. A small icon of a hammer and anvil appeared in the upper left corner of his vision, along with the name 'Erhard' next to it. "Erhard?... Nah, I want to change it to Mr. Bald Guy!" As if sensing what Naofumi wanted, a nickname replaced the name 'Erhard' with 'Mr. Bald Guy.' on his HUD. "There, much better!"
"Why you-" Erhard saved his grumbling. "I'll kill so many monsters that I'll put you to shame!" He yelled.
"Bring it old man!"
More balloon monsters rolled through the grass towards them. "Huahhhhhhh!" The both of them charged, yelling like the characters from Dragon Ball P. One of the only good things little Naofumi remembered from the show. Within minutes, the entire field was filled with leather scraps from the balloons.
Naofumi was still punching the first balloon he'd tackled. Because of Erhard killing monsters though, Naofumi had risen to level 2. "Yay, it worked!" Looking more closely, there was a lvl 2 next to his name. While next to Erhard (Mr. Bald Guy) was… his eyes boggled in their sockets. "LEVEL 90!?"
Erhard smirked. "What? Don't tell me you're feeling tired Shield Kid."
Naofumi punched the balloon one more time, finally popping it. "I'm just getting warmed up Old Man!"
"Really!? Then come at me, little bro!"
Several Hours later
"Ugh…" Erhard carried the tired Naofumi on his back through the streets. The poor kid looked all worn out. He was only at level 4. They'd stuck to only the fields, killing balloon monsters left and right. Well, Erhard had done the killing. Naofumi had pounded with his fists, again and again, only managing to kill five balloons by himself before he became too tired to fight.
On the bright side, he'd absorbed enough scraps from the balloons to unlock three more shields. The Orange Balloon Shield, the Yellow Balloon Shield, and the Red Balloon Shield.
Erhard opened the door to his shop. He walked up the stairs and dropped Naofumi onto the only spare bed he had. The boy was completely asleep by this point, and the blacksmith sighed tiredly himself. The monsters had all been super weak. But he wasn't as young as he used to be.
"Kid, I swear you're more trouble than you're worth." Naofumi rolled onto his side. His hands reaching out for something in his sleep.
Naofumi's shield flashed on his arm. An extravagant pillow from the castle came out of his inventory, right into his waiting hands. He sighed happily as he cuddled with it. "At least for now…" A small smile rested on Erhard's face at the adorable sight. "You'd better find a way to pay me back for all of this one day when you're a big shot." He mumbled to himself.
"Because I can already tell that's what you're going to be."
…
Erhard turned around and left the room. Leaving Naofumi to have a peaceful night of sleep.
The next day arrived, and Naofumi yawned as he woke up in bed. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and swung his legs over the side of the bed. "Mmm… something smells good." He mumbled.
He walked down the stairs. And was met with the sight of Erhard cooking eggs and what looked like bacon. "G'morning Shield Kid. Did you sleep well last night?" Erhard said happily as he flipped some of the eggs over.
"Like a rock. Those pillows from the castle are awesome." Naofumi said happily. He'd woken up to at least three of them surrounding him. He didn't remember pulling them out. But it'd made him really happy to snuggle with them in his sleep.
"Yeah, they looked comfy. I almost wanted to snag one for myself." Erhard said with a laugh.
"They're all mine, Mr. Bald Guy!"
"Better keep your guard up, or I'll steal 'em Shield Kid. Anyway, you hungry?"
Naofumi's stomach growled loudly in response. He flushed heavily in embarrassment as Erhard laughed heartily. "I'll take that as a yes. Here, eat up." He handed the boy a plate piled high with food. "Growing kids like you need to eat or you'll stay small forever."
"I'm not small!" Naofumi complained.
"Fine. You're short." Erhard teased.
"Well, you're bald!" Naofumi countered.
The two shared a glare off at that. "What did you say to me Shield Kid!?"
The two glared for a moment more, before they started laughing. Naofumi got to eating at the table. It tasted really good! Almost as good as the castle food!
The two ate in silence for a minute before Erhard spoke. "You know, I'll need to work at the shop all day. I won't be able to come with you this time, so you'll need to figure out what you want to do today."
Naofumi thought to himself. He honestly didn't know what else to try. "Hmmm, I could…" He trailed off. Lowering his fork and knife. "What's going on outside?" Naofumi pointed out towards the front of the shop.
Erhard stopped eating and looked out himself. "No idea." There were Royal Knights going around. It looked like they were gathering people.
"-ather around, everyone! There is an important trial going on in the castle throne room!" One of the knights shouted over the bustling crowd.
"A trial?" Naofumi abandoned his food, running outside.
"Wait, Shield Kid-" Naofumi left Erhard behind. Running out into the growing crowd of people. It looked like others were exiting their shops or homes to gather around individual knights in the crowd. Holding crystal balls up for everyone to see.
Naofumi struggled. There were so many tall people in the way! Why did they have to be so big compared to him!? Eventually, he got a brilliant idea and climbed up onto a crate nearby so he could peek over the crowd at the nearest crystal ball.
"The trial will now commence!" King Aultcray's booming voice roared over the crowd. The crystal ball projected some kind of semi-transparent screen behind the knight, allowing everyone to see what was going on.
Aultcray sat on his throne. His chief advisor was nowhere in sight. He was glaring calmly at someone in front of him. "Your Majesty, please." The screen shifted, showing a familiar-looking young man surrounded by knights. He was chained up. "What's going on? What do you mean trial-"
"Silence!" The king shouted. "Did you truly think you could force yourself upon my daughter and get away with it!?"
Naofumi's eyes widened. 'Mr. Aultcray has a daughter?' He didn't know what he meant by forcing himself on someone. But it sounded pretty bad. And if it was the King's daughter...
The man struggled against the spears that were crossed in front of him. "But I didn't do it! It's a lie! There's no evidence!"
"Bring in the evidence!" Aultcray ordered.
A knight came in, holding a piece of… was that clothing? Naofumi had never seen anything like it before. He couldn't even imagine a girl wanting to wear that! It'd be so gross and disgusting! Blech! It didn't even cover much!
The man looked surprised. "We found this in his room, sir." The knight said, bowing his head. "It was right next to a sack of coins he'd planned on stealing from the Spear Hero."
"What, no! Those weren't in my room before! And that's the money I brought with me-" The guy was saying.
"Enough!" Aultcray roared. "Let us hear what happened from someone who was there, shall we? Malty, dear, go ahead."
The image changed again. And Naofumi's eyes widened at what he saw.
It was the same red-haired girl from before. The one he'd gotten bad vibes about. She was hiding behind Motoyasu with the beginnings of tears in her eyes. "Th-that beast of a man stumbled into my room drunk in the middle of the night! He-He said the night is still young! And, and then he, he- Gah! Protect me Motoyasu!" She screamed in fear, hiding behind her hero.
"You scum! How could you do this to her?!" Motoyasu yelled angrily. His two other girls were nearby. Also crying over the atrociousness of it.
Naofumi finally remembered where he'd seen that guy before. He had chosen to join Motoyasu's party yesterday morning. "B-but I swear I didn't-" the man started.
"Enough! I thought you were an adventurer of the Kingdom! I thought you could be trusted to help out the Cardinal Heroes instead of trying… this!" The King said in anger.
The man paled and bowed to the ground. "Your Majesty, please, I swear there has to be some mistake. I'd never want to force myself on anyone. I have a fiance back at home waiting for me-"
"A rapist and a cheater!? How low can you get?!" Itsuki yelled. "You deserve the hand of justice that'll be dealt to you!"
"You really are scum," Ren said, looking calm and aloof from what was going on.
The man broke down in sobs. "Please, I swear I'm innocent." He cried, resting his head against the ground. "You have to believe me…"
"When all the evidence says otherwise?" Aultcray asked. His face was serious, a far cry from what Naofumi was used to at this point. The kind man was nowhere to be seen. "Do you have anything other than your word to give?"
"I'll give everything! All of my money, all of my possessions! I know in my heart that I didn't do it! But I'll give anything I have!"
"There's only one punishment fit for those who force themselves on a woman in our country," Aultcray said.
...
There was a pregnant silence, broken only by the man's sobbing.
...
"Death." Aultcray finally stated.
Naofumi didn't stay on the crate any longer. He jumped off, pushing past people's legs as he ran in what he hoped to be the direction of the castle. Had he looked at the screen projection from the balls, he would have seen the Three Holy Heroes also looking shocked at the sentence.
"Shield Kid! Where did you go!?" Erhard yelled. The crowd had erupted with talk and whispers. People looked shocked that such an event was happening. The people also looked conflicted. To be accused of raping a woman was a serious crime. But to be accused of raping the King's daughter?
The people divided on opinion. Some believed the man was guilty, but others thought he was innocent. Or thought that more time should be given to look into the matter before death was administered.
Naofumi overheard all these things as he sprinted down the street. Weaving between people as quickly as his short legs would take him. 'I have to get to the castle! What's going on!? Why is Mr. Aultcray being so mean!?' His senses were going crazy, and they were all pointing at that red-haired woman being at the center of it all. He didn't know why, but he knew he had to speak to Mr. Aultcray!
About five minutes later, out of breath, Naofumi finally arrived at the castle entrance. It looked like he was just in time too. They were beginning to come out of the castle doors, leading the shackled sobbing adventurer towards a large square building in the Castle Gardens.
"The execution will begin immediately!-" The king was shouting.
"Mr. Aultcray! Mr. Aultcray!"
Aultcray snapped his head to the side in surprise. An out of breath little Naofumi ran up. He waved his soldiers, the other heroes, and their parties on. "Young Naofumi, what is it?-" The King was asking.
"Why are you killing that guy? What did he do!?"
The king grimaced at what Naofumi said. "This is no place for children, Young Naofumi. That young man did something very bad to my daughter, and the law says he must be punished."
"But what did he do that deserves death?" Naofumi asked. "Did he… kill someone else?" He asked. "I know that's a pretty bad thing to do..."
Aultcray sighed. "No, he didn't kill anyone. I'd explain it to you, but you're too young to understand the seriousness of his crime-"
"No, I'm not! I'm ten! I can understand anything!"
"But you-" The king sighed weakly again, placing a weary hand on the boy's shoulder. "There are some things that can't be forgiven, young Naofumi. As King, I have to make tough decisions like this from time to time. And it pains me to do it. But the law leaves me no other choice."
…
Naofumi looked sadly down at the ground. "But didn't that guy say he had a fiance waiting for him at home?" He sadly asked. "What'll she do if he dies here today?... And what about his family? What will his mom do when she hears about this?" He couldn't even imagine what state his mom was in right now wondering where he was at. But he was alive. And he was going to see her again one day. He'd go home after this was all over and hug her, letting her know he was okay.
What would this man's family do when they heard he was dead?... how would his mom react to hearing her son had been killed…?
"Isn't there another way you could punish him?" Naofumi sincerely asked. "One that allows him to live?"
…
Aultcray was about to say no, but something about Naofumi's urging brought an idea to mind. One that would dispense justice, but would allow him to extend mercy in a way that would please both sides and appease his own anger. "Young Naofumi… thank you." Aultcray patted the little boy on the head and walked on towards the arena-like building.
Naofumi followed behind him. Eventually, standing next to the other holy heroes behind the King who overlooked a stand down below in the center. A guillotine had been set up, and the adventurer was sobbing next to it.
Throngs of people filled the sides. Yelling and throwing rocks down at the adventurer. A man dressed in weird robes and a weird hat sat in a large chair opposite Aultcray. He looked like the guys who preached at the church back home. An executioner was at the ready, waiting for the order to be given to put the man under the blade.
Aultcray raised his hands for silence. Immediately, all talking stopped. It was epic! By far one of the coolest things he'd done yet in Naofumi's opinion!
"Citizens of Melromarc!" Aultcray's voice boomed. SO COOL! "We have here today, a man guilty of one of the highest crimes against a woman! My daughter, no less!"
Boos and jeers came from the crowd, all aimed at the adventurer who was still sobbing. Waiting for his end.
"However…" Aultcray glanced behind himself at Naofumi and the other heroes. They'd called the man scum and all that. But at hearing what his sentence was, all three of them had looked surprised and conflicted. Including Motoyasu. "With the Waves of Catastrophe going on, I've decided the last thing we need is more bloodshed like what happened to the region of Seaetto." He declared.
...
The crowd was silent, staring at the King. The adventurer had stopped sobbing and looked up. Some were confused. Others listened in closely, wondering what the King was going to do.
"So instead of execution, I propose a different punishment." He looked down at the adventurer. "In exchange for your life, you will go back to the town you came from. There, you will be immediately enlisted to the town guard, and forced to protect your town from monsters. You will be given a 1000 gold piece fine, and you won't be allowed to leave! You won't be allowed to work for anything or anyone else until it is paid in full with the carcasses of the monsters you'll kill!"
Murmuring broke out around the crowd. Many people looked surprised at the proposed punishment, including the adventurer himself. Some were against it. But the majority looked all for it.
"I will be merciful this one time!" Aultcray's voice boomed over the crowd. "But if I hear about you forcing yourself on any other woman again. There will be no mercy. You will be killed where you stand without a second thought! Do I make myself clear!?" Aultcray's voice boomed epically.
The adventurer started sobbing again, and he immediately bowed to the ground. "Yes, your Majesty! I swear I will work with all my strength to protect my town, even after my fine is paid off!" Despite the sentence and the possibility of death that'd come with it. He was grateful that he wasn't going to get executed.
Aultcray nodded. "Then that settles it." He looked back to Naofumi, giving him an approving nod. "Unbind him. Escort him back to his home. And make sure the proper officials are notified so they'll make sure he fulfills his word." Aultcray ordered his knights.
The executioner looked disappointed as the adventurer was unbound. Several knights who were from the same village as him escorted the sobbing, yet relieved looking young man away. The people who'd gathered for the trial began to leave. Still murmuring to each other. A couple looking unsatisfied. But overall, the crowd was pleased by the King's decision.
"Papa." The red-haired woman appeared behind Naofumi, causing him to jump in surprise.
'Get away before she steals my soul!' He thought in fear as he backpedaled behind Motoyasu's legs.
The woman glanced in his direction with a frown but immediately focused on her Father again with a puppy dog look on her face. "That vile man defiled me, papa. Why did you allow him to live?" She asked. "Isn't it in our laws to have such swine killed off?"
"Yes, it is in our laws dear Malty." The king almost broke as her pleading expression begged him to comply, but he resisted. "But sometimes, there are things we must do for the good of our kingdom rather than just ourselves. Executing that man would have brought immediate satisfaction and justice."
He put a finger up in the air. "But by sparing him, we have just given his town one more person to help guard in case of monster attacks. In addition, that town is now in our debt as we appear to be merciful rulers instead of tyrants. Surely you know all of this? If you still have any desire to become Queen, you must plan these things ahead my dear daughter."
The King had thought it out in his mind while walking to his podium. Thanks to Young Naofumi speaking to him, he had not only brought justice for the young man's crime against his daughter. But he had taught his beloved daughter a valuable lesson and improved his standing among his citizens.
He could feel a part of his mind, the same part as yesterday, grinding its gears again. It was satisfying, in a way. Like meeting an old friend after many years apart. 'Meeting Young Naofumi…' he thought as he glanced at the boy in question. Motoyasu and Ren were talking with him now.
'Just what are you doing to me, young man? Why do I feel like... a hero again?' He hadn't felt like this since the day Malty had been born almost eighteen years ago.
Malty pouted. "But Father-" She tried to whine like a spoiled brat.
"Have mercy, my daughter." He said with a sigh. "This old man cannot handle the puppy dog eyes any longer. I'm sure Motoyasu will better protect you from swine like that in the future." He said, glaring at Motoyasu to make sure he got the message.
"Of course, your Majesty. I'll protect your daughter with everything I've got from now on!" He proudly promised.
"Sir Motoyasu." The red-haired woman held her hands over her heart. Swooning at his kind words.
"Hey, it was good seeing you again Naofumi!" Motoyasu turned around and said happily down to Naofumi.
The happy look immediately disappeared as she glared down at Naofumi behind Motoyasu's back.
"Wish it could have been under better circumstances," Ren said aloofly.
'So cool!' Naofumi looked up at Ren with stars in his eyes. Ren shifted uncomfortably in his spot, trying to keep the cool facade up.
'Am I going to have to be like this every time around him now? It's so much work...' Ren thought unsurely.
"I should be getting off. Me and my party still have a lot of grinding to do." Itsuki said boredly. He'd made the mistake yesterday of killing a lot of monsters on his own, forgetting to add his party members to his actual party. So the experience hadn't been shared amongst them all. He was already a day behind everyone.
Motoyasu rustled the boy's hair. "Be careful out there, Naofumi! Make sure you don't hang around bad people like that guy!"
He wanted to respond with something like, "Then why are you hanging out with that soul-stealing woman you moron?!" But part of him thought that probably wouldn't be a good idea since said soul-stealing woman was right there in front of him. And Motoyasu was actually nice despite his faults.
Plus, apparently, she was Mr. Aultcray's daughter. So that meant she could probably get away with stealing his soul.
Probably.
"I'll do that," Naofumi said happily.
Motoyasu and the others waved as they walked off. Malty gave him a low toned glare that made a chill travel down his spine as she followed Motoyasu. The other girls from the Spear hero's party each gave him a bone-crushing hug before waving goodbye.
Why couldn't the soul-stealing lady be nice like the rest of Motoyasu's party?
"Young Naofumi. Is there anything else you need before I get back to my duties?" Aultcray asked. Everyone in the arena stands was gone. Including that one weird robed guy.
"Ummm… Mr. Bald Guy said he was busy today… so I was thinking about exploring the town."
"I see." Aultcray rubbed his chin in thought. He inwardly chuckled at the nickname Naofumi had given his old blacksmith friend. "You may wish to expand your skills that don't pertain to fighting, then. Creating medicine and learning magic could help you in all sorts of ways. Speaking of which-"
He waved over one of his knights and whispered something in the man's ear. A minute later, the knight returned with some kind of crystal ball. It looked similar to the ones the knights were using to show the trial earlier.
"This, my boy, is a Magic Crystal Ball. It allows you to instantly learn a magical spell. What do you think? Pretty cool, huh?" Aultcray puffed his chest with pride as Naofumi's eyes lit up.
"Wooaaaaah! No way!"
"I put in a large order of these for the Heroes. They haven't all arrived yet. But when they're ready, all you'll need to do is break it and breathe in the wisps to learn the magic spell within." Aultcray said. "Though if you want to learn really cool and strong magic…" Steam was already coming out of Naofumi's ears again. His brain still had a lot of information to go through. "On second thought. I'll save that for another time." The knight walked off, carrying the crystal ball with him.
"Now, I must be off. Take care, young Naofumi." The King waved to Naofumi as he walked back towards the castle.
"You too, Mr. Aultcray!" Naofumi waved as the cool King walked away. Then he pondered to himself what he should do…
…
There were no adults around to hold a leash on him…
…
It seemed like the perfect time to go exploring!
Author's Notes:
This chapter was a blast!
Allen Blaster: When we were writing this. I knew I wanted Bitch to accuse the third wheeler since she's a Bitch and has to use her go to plan to accuse people of rape to get close to her favorite hero. However, while writing this chapter, we realized the person being accused wouldn't be a Cardinal Hero. And he would have been executed if he was accused of raping the First Princess. So yeah, it was a lot of fun trying to think of a way to get through that without traumatizing KidFumi to Mr. Aultcray.
RLTygurr: So we basically wrote two chapters in one day somehow. Things are finally starting to ramp up, so I hope you all enjoy where we take this!
Also, for anyone wondering. Yeah, Erhard is actually pretty high leveled in the beginning of the story. Not sure if it's actually level 90 or not. But he's way up there for reasons that would be LN spoilers. So for any authors out there on this site, remember the OP Erhard!
Hero Clips!
Can I Keep It
"Alright, we're pretty deep in the forest today Shield Kid," Erhard said, holding his war hammer at the ready. "You never know what type of monsters you'll meet out here, so you have to be ready for-"
"Hahahaha! That tickles!"
Erhard turned around. Naofumi was rolling on the ground. A brown Mush was attached to his arm. Trying to bite down on it. "Can I keep it Mr. Bald Guy?" Naofumi cutely asked.
"Kid! What did I tell you about monsters?!" Erhard yelled angrily.
"But I want to keep it-" He cut off with a happy screech as a Usapil (fluffy looking rabbit) hopped onto his other arm. Biting down on it like a chew toy. "Awww, it's so cute!"
"No, Kid, stop it!" Erhard looked frustrated. Naofumi wasn't even trying to fight back.
"Awww, they're both so adorable! I want to keep them both!" Naofumi exclaimed happily. "Can I Mr. Bald Guy! Pleasssseeeee!"
"Alright, pull yourself together Erhard." Erhard muttering to himself, putting his forehead against the flat of his hammer. "They're just low leveled monsters. At least they won't hurt the little guy-"
The ground shook. Erhard looked up again, and his eyes widened in shock.
"SO COOL!" A freaking dragon had landed by Naofumi. He was looking up at it in wide-eyed wonder.
The dragon opened its jaws wide and bit down at KidFumi's waist. "No, kid-"
Naofumi laughed inside the monster's jaw playfully. The dragon looked confused that the tasty morsel wasn't being bit in half by its teeth. "Mr. Bald Guy!? Can I keep him too?!"
"No, we're not keeping a damn dragon-" Erhard slapped his hand over mouth at accidentally saying the word damn to a cute innocent kid.
"Come on! Pretty please?!" Naofumi's voice begged from the confused dragon's jaw. Was it just it, or was the morsel in its mouth petting its tongue?
Erhard rubbed his forehead, groaning at the oncoming headache. 'What am I going to do with this kid?'
Till Next Time
Allen and RLT