Chapter 15
Glass' World
"Hey let go!"
"Quit your complaining! You're my property now!" said a man with a gruff voice.
Having been separated from their party. Filo along with Luna and Sora had been found and taken as slaves by the owner of a circus. It didn't help that their connection to their respective skills and abilities were cut off, making escape almost impossible. As of right now, they were being dragged by the ropes tied around their hands and being dragged into a large cage.
"Get in there!" the slave owner demanded.
"No! I don't wanna!" Filo yelled as she pulled back against the ropes.
"That's right, you can't make us." Luna argued.
The slave owner was in no mood for angry slaves and roughly dragged them into the cage. Having brute force used on them, the girls were practically tossed inside. From there, the owner locked the cage which prevented the girls from breaking out of their captivity.
"When Master gets here, he's going to kick your butt!" Filo yelled.
"Yeah and my master can eat human souls like you would eat a steak!" Luna added.
"Arashi can't do that!" Sora spoke up.
Luna shushed her older sister, "Don't let them know, besides Arashi is also a dovakhiin. He can eat dragon souls, so maybe he can do the same to rude jerks." she said.
"I'm pretty sure Naruto-sama said that about his brother to make him look more intimidating." Sora said.
"Well it doesn't matter, I guess we have to wait for everyone to find us." Luna said with a sigh.
Filo hit her arms against cage bars, "Dumb man! Filo isn't a circus anima!" she said as tears welled up in her eyes.
Sora gently cradled Filo, "Don't worry Filo, we'll definitely be out soon." she said as Filo held onto her for safety.
"Yeah, this guy is going to regret kidnapping us." Luna said as she glared at the slave owner.
With the Shield Hero's Party
After meeting Kizuna and getting the basic summary of having the role of a cardinal hero of another world along with revealing that she knows Glass' party as they are actually members of her own party. Naofumi's group tried working with Kizuna in order to gain their skills again. At the same time, work on trying to find an exit. Because they were apparently trapped inside of a pocket dimension called the Infinite Labyrinth that Kizuna has been trying to find an exit to.
Though, there seems to be a possible way to escape the pocket dimension through a cathedral. They just needed to puncture through or somehow remove an osbtacle that may work as a doorway between here and the world Kizuna is allied to.
"So just break the locks on some magic door? That's it?" Arashi asked as he looked around.
"If it's really that simple, it's going to take some effort to make it work." Naofumi said.
"I guess that's why nii-san said to never get excited about reaching the end goal." Mito said. "Though that didn't mean being optimistic and preparing for anything isn't a bad idea." he said.
"I think having little faith is something I share with Naruto." Naofumi said, referring to his bad luck.
As the group looked around, Arashi noticed a collapsed wall with light going through it. Though he appeared to have issues going through it.
"I think I found the exit but it's blocked." Arashi said.
Tania gently moved him aside, "Let me try." she said as she channeled magic into her palms. "Open sesame!" she said as she lit it on fire.
Then nothing happened, other than a small fire that everyone had to put out. After putting out that mess, Naofumi noticed something messing with his status.
"I think cardinal heroes are restricted from going to your world." Naofumi said.
"For real?" Kizuna asked. "Then how are we getting out?" she asked.
Naofumi started thinking as he noticed how odd the exit was, "It's like a game bug, sort of like a glitch that we're not supposed to find." he said.
Kizuna looked concerned, "We're not going to destroy the universe are we?" she asked.
"And how are we going to do that?" Naofumi asked rhetorically as he tried thinking of something.
As they were thinking and talking, Tomoe tried using force on the barrier. However, even with her massive strength, she wasn't able to do much. However, the attempt did get Naofumi thinking as he saw some minor (very minor) progress being made with the use of force.
"Okay, I think this is going to take a genius." Tomoe said with a sigh. "Mito, think of something!" she commanded.
"Me?" Mito asked.
"I think we're gonna have to take a bigger risk than with that fire." Naofumi said as he took out a seed from his inventory.
One that Raphtalia vaguely remembered, "Master Naofumi, that's not the plant we saved the village from, is it?" she asked.
"What village?" Mito asked.
"There was this village that had a famine. So the Spear Hero tried feeding them with a plant that turned out to be a monster and made more monsters." Raphtalia explained.
"Wait, why are you using that?" Mito asked the Shield Hero.
"Hold on, if this really works. We can puncture a hole and leave into Kizuna's assigned world." Naofumi answered.
"Or lots of monsters appear, is this really worth the risk?" Arashi asked.
"It's not like we'll do any better." Tania said, open to any idea by this point.
Thus, everyone let Naofumi through and try his risky idea. The seed was planted and came to life. Tearing open the "game bug" that Naofumi opened and created a large corridor that could fit everyone. Everyone quickly ran through the passage Naofumi created before the seed could fully materialize into something dangerous.
"I guess this wasn't entirely a bad idea after all." Mito said.
"Hopefully this takes us to where I came from." Kizuna said as they reached what appeared to be the end.
Glass' world
The group managed to arrive before the plant sprouted out of control. When they left the Infinity Labyrinth, they found themselves at a building that looked similar to a traditional shinto shrine.
"We're back!" Kizuna cried out as tears fell down her cheeks.
"I swear, I was going insane running around that place." Arashi muttered.
"Where to now boss?" Tomoe asked.
"Kizuna?" Naofumi asked.
Kizuna wiped away her tears before speaking again, "We should try to get to Sikul. That's the country that summoned me." she said. "Although it's going to take a week to get there on foot." she said.
Naofumi frowned as his clock reactivated, "That's not good enough, the waves are returning in ten days." he said.
Kizuna looked shocked, "We'll barely make it on time!" she said.
"Uh guys, remember something?" Tania asked as she pointed to herself and Tomoe.
"Right." Arashi muttered.
The things became silent for some reason and Kizuna felt an uncomfortable amount of unnecessary tension. Only because no one told her about what species the girls really are. Until Naofumi suddenly lifted Arashi and mito up by the back of their clothes.
"Get on the dragons." Naofumi ordered.
"You heard him girls." Mito said.
Kizuna then witnessed Tomoe and Tania transform into their true forms as dragons. The Hunting Hero hoped that this wouldn't spook or the locals of Sikul when they arrive via dragon. Despite how different things are in this world, dragons aren't a casual mode of transportation. Sure they have sentient cardboard boxes as low level enemies but Raphtalia's world had sentient balloons as their counterparts.
"So… how common are dragons in the other world?" Kizuna asked.
"Not common at all." Naofumi answered, confusing Kizuna.
In Konoha, Hokage Tower sealing room
Greyfarn was working on his new creation from the plans he showed to Minato. By using Minato's help as his knowledge of Space Time Ninjutsu would be a key factor to his plan. Greyfarn believes that he may be able to locate the Shield Hero from one of the man realms where Naofumi and most of his party has been sent to.
"Okay Greyfarn-san, what do we need to do?" Minato asked.
"Ah what?" Greyfarn asked, forgetting what he was doing.
"The Shield Hero, we need to find him for the Queen of Melromarc." Minato said, reminding the old wizard.
"Who? Oh yes! That is exactly what we are going to do!" Greyfarn said as he finished drawing up some kind of magic circle. "We just need you to create a new seal to locate the boy." he said.
"But my Hiraishin transports me between locations and lets me take others as well. It's not built for transporting someone to me or tracking them." Minato explained.
"That's the trick! You have a general idea of where your seals are, which allows me to amplify the power. Thus, I can now have a general idea of the boy's location and then we can begin traveling towards them." Greyfarn explain.
"That sounds really amazing, I'm impressed." Minato said with a smile.
"Impressed with what?" Greyfarn asked, forgetting his own explanation.
"Never mind, just keep doing your thing." Minato said, hoping Greyfarn's senile personality doesn't obstruct his progress.
Locating the Shield Hero is one thing, however no one realizes the dangers that are waiting in Glass' world. Something far worse than anything Kyo himself had been expecting. The thing about third parties is determining what their stance and purpose in conflict is. As recent events dictate that there is more dangers than the waves and internal politics within each kingdom and government.
In Melromarc, castle throne room
Still in the throne room, Yasaka was still speaking interacting with the two queens. Aside from having pleasant talks on personal matters, they three monarchs seemed to have made good progress with their negotiations. Hopefully things can get better once Queen Mylene is able to establish talks within her own kingdom once she returns home. Hopefully after Leon's airship is fully repaired and ready for travel.
Assuming the family members of the nobles don't try to have him executed for this incident. Though with his luck, Leon will likely make up for it somehow. Last time, he caught a bunch of sky pirates and exposed a girl who tried getting Leon and a couple of others killed.
"And how are your girls? They've been gone quite a while." Mylene asked.
Deep down, she wishes her children were still young, naive and innocent again. Okay maybe not naive, Melty and Kunou are quite well mannered and educated enough to handle some politics. Most likely because they're heiresses to governments and not just nobles with control over businesses and land.
"I'm sure my husband is keeping a close eye on them." Yasaka said before hearing Naruto return.
With Melty and Kunou grabbing Naruto by the hand as they came in.
"Did you two have fun?" Mirellia asked.
"Yes mother/your majesty." the girls answered.
"I think it's time to for dinner. I believe we have had enough time to concern ourselves with politics." Mirellia said as she stood up from her throne.
Meanwhile, Naruto felt very anxious but didn't show it as he sensed some hostility. Not from his wife or the queens or even the guards. For some reason, the sense of hostility and desire for harm was moving all over the room. Naruto kept a stern face as he didn't allow his emotions to expose his thoughts.
'Is there an agent working under the King or the church?' Naruto wondered as Mirellia called for her servants to set up a table.
At the dining hall
While the monarchs and children were having dinner with Queen Mirellia. The students and a couple of guards were in the dining hall. For some reason, most of the class had their cheeks swollen. Leon had just arrived and prepared to question what was going on. When Momon appeared with some orcs around her.
"Holy crap! We're being invaded!" Leon yelled.
Angelica quickly tried to explain things, "Leon no! She's just a…"
*SLAP*
Angelica was interrupted by Momon slapping him, "Didn't your mother tell you not to raise your voice?" Momon asked.
"I think she implied it at some point." Leon asked as he rubbed his cheek.
So Momon slapped him again, "Then you're either deaf or stupid." She said before moving along.
"Ow! Creepy snake lady." Leon said before being hit by a mace with a hand print on it.
"Leon, you really need to read the room better." Angelica said with Olivia nodding in agreement.
Leon gave her a tired look, "It's not my fault that anything I say or do will likely get me killed. Can you imagine how scary that is?" he asked.
"I don't want to and I won't have to either if you just stay quiet and think before you speak." Angelica said sternly.
"You can't understand my pain." Leon whined.
Olivia gently grabbed his arm, "Leon, maybe we should just enjoy dinner for now." she said.
Then they heard a student snarl at Leon, "Worst vacation ever." they said.
"I know, how do you think I feel?" Leon asked.
The girls sighed at their friend's personality.
In the castle courtyard
Tanya sighed as she waited for the queen, she hoped that the rumors of her being a competent ruler were true. Because she didn't want to deal with some stuck up monarch. When she arrived, the knights told her that the queen was currently having dinner with the others. So that left her waiting with only Vikotriya by her side. Not only that, weapons were prohibited for cautionary reasons.
"What do you think of the situation Serebryakov?" Tanya asked.
"I'm sure it will go well, colonel. The ruler of this country is said to be strict, but fair and good ruler." Viktoriya answered. "So I'm sure she will hear you out without finding an excuse to avoid you." she said.
"I hope so, I was hoping to relax but this parasitic invasion has been a pain." Tanya said.
"It's frightening in my opinion. Those creatures possess people and make them into wild animals." Viktoriya replied.
That's when Tanya heard some shuffling, "Did you hear that?" She asked.
"Hear what?" Viktoriya asked before her leader heard more shuffling.
"That? What is that?" Tanya asked. "Is this castle haunted or something?" she asked.
"I think you're just feeling tired. Do you want to rest on my lap?" Viktoriya asked, remembering that Tanya is still a child.
Tanya shook her head, "No, I'm fine. I swear, my instincts never let me down. It has to be something." she said. "If only I still had my handgun." she added.
"But that would cause an international incident. Surely you can't be thinking of firing wildly." Viktoriya said, feeling concerned for Tanya.
Tanya looked around the shadows with a lot of suspicion. Leaving her subordinate to feel concerned with her mental wellbeing. However, the child soldier's instincts will have once again saved her life.
Maybe not literally save her life, as it only warned her on how to avoid death.
"Serebryakov!" Tanya shouted as she saw something in the shadows.
"What's wrong?" Viktoriya asked, not noticing the dark figure attempting to pounce her from behind.
"Move woman!" Tanya yelled as threw Viktoriya to the side.
A moment later, the brown haired subordinate watched as Tanya was tackled across the ground. Viktoriya panicked as she watched the creature trying transform it's hand into an ax and attempted to butcher her leader. Viktoriya attempted to reach for her service pistol only to realize that and every other weapon wasn't on her body.
"Oh no." Viktoriya said as she stood up. "Someone help! There's an intruder in your castle!" she yelled as she tried to help Tanya fight the creature.
In the dining hall
Leon was enjoying his dinner with his female friends when he heard the ruckus outside. He thought it was just some servants or patrols moving around as it sounded like a lot of movement. He would not realize that there was a real danger heading towards his class very shortly.
"What do you think that is?" Olivia nervously asked.
"Don't worry about it. It's probably just some shift change or maybe some idiot broke a toilet." Leon said before they heard louder noises
"You call that a plumbing issue?" Angelica asked.
Leon shrugged, "Multiple toilets? I don't know! It's not my fault someone probably ate something rancid." he said.
"I hope it's only something that small." Olivia said.
Olivia's wish would not come true but there would be an explanation. Once Tanya came crashing through the window and landing on top of Leon's food.
"Crap, there goes my dinner." Leon said nonchalantly. Then he realized the danger that was occurring, "Wait, where did this kid come from?" he asked before hearing a roar.
That's when Viktoriya came crashing through the same window and hitting a wall with a loud thump. The students panicked and immediately began to run once they saw something enter the room. Another sentient made of the black ooze arrived and let out a loud shriek.
"What is that!?" Angelica asked.
'Crap! Is that Venom!?' Leon thought as he remembered a similar looking monster from a comic book. "Run for it!" he yelled as he grabbed the girls by their hands.
As they tried to escape the dining hall. The guards attempted to charge at the monster only to find themselves being smacked away by the monster's whip shaped arms. The guards found themselves hitting the wall as the monster started laughing at them like a sadist. Soon enough, more guards came kicking down the door and aimed attempted to corner the creature.
"What is that monstrosity?" One guard asked.
"Don't let it get through!" the captain yelled.
"Move you fodder!" the monster said as it slapped the guards away again.
As the guards attempted to recover and organize themselves again. Prince Julius suddenly ran to the fight and picked up a sword and shield that was on the floor. The prince then ran towards the monster and quickly ducked under the next whip strike. Where he attempted to thrust his sword towards the monster's abdomen only for it sink through the monster as if it were made of clay.
Julius looked surprised as he attempted to take his weapon out of the monster's abdomen. Then raising his shield as to avoid an ax strike from the side.
"Monster, I will not allow you to harm my fellow noblemen. Even at the cost of my own life!" Julius roared as he used all of his strength to pull on his sword.
However, this sudden act of chivalry and determination did not give Julius any superpowers. Not even the placebo effect could help him here. Nor did Jilk help in any way as he came behind the monster and he stabbed it in the shoulder with a fallen spear.
"Julius, don't throw away your lives for us! Allow me to take your place!" Jilk said.
From there, everyone was subjected to some lame sounding banter about heroic sacrifices. Even the monster was annoyed and only felt excruciating pain, but because of the weapons jammed inside of it's body. The sounds of this chatter gave it a really bad headache.
"You two are the most annoying heroic wannabes. Are you both related to the Spear Hero?" the monster asked.
"It speaks!" Jilk yelled.
"It's been talking for a long time, idiot!" Leon yelled as he everyone was still trying to escape the dining hall.
Before Jilk could retort, the monster ripped the spear out of it's shoulder and gripped Jilk by the throat before slamming him into a table. Julius snarled as he let go of his sword and picked up a nearby kitchen knife. Then jumped into the air in an attempt to plunge the blade into the monsters chest. Only to be caught with minimal effort and disarmed.
"Wow, you have so many weapons lying on the ground and you picked up something meant for cutting steak. So impressive." Leon said sarcastically.
"Leon! You're not helping!" Angelica yelled.
"Fine, I'll help." Leon said as he grabbed a chair.
"No, that's not what I meant." Angelica said as Leon threw the chair at the monster.
The monster quickly destroyed it with it's ax shaped arm. Leon then proceeded to use strength enhancement magic and shattered a wall.
"I tried anyways, now go through there!" Leon commands as he points at the broken wall. "Hurry, it doesn't look entertained by Julius' stupidity!" he said.
Leon expected the creature to chase after them, but it instead threw Julius on top of Jilk. Where it broke down the wooden doors and ran straight towards the throne room. At that moment, Tanya and some of the guards began to recover.
"We need reinforcements!" Tanya yelled as she clutched her ribs.
With the monarchs
Momon had just arrived and finished introducing herself when Naruto suddenly got up and looked at the door. Momon was worried that her adoptive grandson was resorting to his strange behaviors. As he started growling at the door just like when he was a child and heard someone outside.
"Naruto behave yourself!" Momon said.
"Empress Yasaka, is your husband okay?" Mylene asked.
Yasaka narrowed his eyes, "His mind is, but he senses something." she said before hearing a crash in the distance.
The guards of every faction including Momon's orcs stood by Naruto's side as they assumed a defensive position. It wasn't too long before the doors were broken down and a couple of orcs came flying out through the door. For the monster came in and snarled at everyone.
"Another one?" Naruto asked.
"Hello mother." the creature said as it grinned at Mirellia.
"Malty?" Mirellia asked with wide eyes. "Daughter, what has happened to you?" she asked.
"Don't act as if you care! You never care!" Malty yelled as he hopped over the guards and ran directly towards her mother.
Only for Naruto to tackle her down and pin her limbs with his tails. Malty let out a snarl as several spikes made from the ooze on her body pierced several parts of his body. Naruto gritted his teeth as he grabbed Malty by the back of the head and slammed it into the floor.
"What is happening? Why has my daughter lost her humanity?" Mirellia asked out loud.
"You make it sound like she always had it." Momon replied before laughing.
Ignoring the quip of Malty being considered a very bad person. The guards were doing their best to help Naruto contain the monster that revealed itself to be Malty.
"Get of you stupid canine!" Malty yelled as she tried biting on his arms.
Naruto growled as it hurt his arm and forced him to let go of Malty for a brief moment. Where she quickly slapped him with a whip made from her arm. However, this didn't stagger Naruto for too long as he transformed into a fox and grabbed her torso with his jaws. From there, Naruto started shaking his head around like a dog playing with a toy. Resulting in Malty developing motion sickness as she struggled to break free from the yokai's jaws.
"Hold on! We need her alive!" Mirellia yelled out.
"Naruto drop it! Drop it right now!" Momon commanded, but was ignored. "Drop it! You're going to get a cavity!" she yelled, making Naruto drop Malty who was covered in bite marks and slobber.
"She's quite authoritative." Mylene commented.
"She raised him after all." Yasaka said before noticing Malty trying to crawl away.
Momon then looked at the guards, "Don't just stand there, restrain her. She's weak to fire and electricity in this state!" she yelled.
The guards of all factions looked at each other for a brief moment. Before a couple of the magic users among them channeled low powered lightning attacks onto Malty. Using only enough force to burn the black ooze off of her body and leaving her in human form. Though slightly charred from the looks of it.
One of the guards from Melromarc even poked Malty's damaged body with the other end of his spear. Poking Malty a couple of times until they noticed that shew as breathing.
"She's alive. Barely breathing but alive nonetheless." a guard of Melromarc said.
"Should you throw her in a cell or get her to a doctor?" a guard of Holfort asked.
One of Momon's orcs extended his two hands, one hand contained iodine with a bandage while the other had a battle axe. In other words, he was asking if they were going to heal the princess or just skip to the execution. Mirellia finally spoke up to give her answer.
"Take my daughter to the infirmary, but keep her under surveillance. I want to know where Malty has been hiding these past weeks." Mirellia ordered.
"Yes your majesty!" her guards said as the lifted up Malty's body.
Just as they prepared to take Malty away. An injured looking Julius came running in with a sword in hand. He was looking for his mother and Queen Mirellia as he thought they were in danger. Now his attention was focused on one fo the orcs who moved out of the way for the guards.
"Die beast!" Julius yelled as he brought down his sword onto the orc's shoulder.
The orc winced in pain before ripping away the sword from Julius' hands and then breaking it in half. Luckily the weapon itself was already pretty old and needed some repair. Though the jagged edges and old metal only added pain rather than damage.
"Julius Rapha Holfort! Stop what you are doing, at once!" Mylene shouted.
"Mother! I…"
"Julius! It is bad enough you made a poor impression and now you harmed this poor orc who is just another soldier!" Mylene angrily said.
"A poor soldier named Elmer I might add." the orc said. "Also, I think compensation is in order." he said, pretending to look more wounded than how he really is.
Mylene sighed, "And now you have to compensate for Sir Elmer." she said.
She wasn't stressed because she owed money to Momon now. She was stressed because her son has no idea how money works and never worked a real job in his life. Except for that time Julius worked at a host club with an overpriced menu with subpar food.
"I think we'll talk about this later." Momon said as she made a medic take Elmer away.
"Who even hires orcs?" Julius asked.
Momon suddenly appeared in front of Julius and slapped him hard enough to make him hit the ground. She then lectured him about the concept of employment.
"If it can think, speak and learn. Then anyone can be a competent employee, look at my grandkid. He's already an emperor, sure he shares the title but it's more than what my youngest son does." Momon explained as Julius clutched his cheek.
Funny enough, Igner came rushing inside with an ax over his shoulder, "I'm here mama! Where's the owl?" he asked.
"My point still stands." Momon said.
As Naruto checked on his wife and daughter, he wondered why Igner was carrying a weapon around. It was a bad idea to ask, but he asked anyways.
"Igner, why do you have an ax?" Naruto asked.
"I'm an owl exterminator." Igner answered.
"Tou-sama, why does oji-san need…"
"Kunou, it's best not to ask. Igner is his father's child, minus the knowledge of magic." Naruto answered.
This however gave Mylene an idea, "Are there any opened positions for the owl extermination industry?" she asked.
The next day
Igner was leading Julius and Jilk through Leon's airship, "Remember, always look at the floor. That's where the owls come in." he said.
"Aren't owls supposed to fly?" Julius asked before tripping.
"They sure do, but they also waddle." Igner said as Julius had tripped on an owl.
"These creatures are harmless, why do we need to get rid of them?" Jilk asked.
Then Igner pulled out a bag of bird seed, "This is why." he said before throwing some onto his new employees.
The boys screamed as the owls surrounded the pair and started pecking at them with the intent to devour the bird seed. Igner smiled as he slowly pulled out wooden torch and proceeded to light it on fire.
"You guys are good! Now time for my part!" Igner said before beating them both with wooden torch.
The idiots somehow got caught on fire but nothing was permanently damaged. Aside from the jumpsuits that Jilk and Julius were forced to wear as uniforms. Mylene thought this would be a good chance for the boys to develop a sense of work experience and hopefully learn the value of money. Mylene is somewhat aware of the stress that her son has as a prince with his royal duties, but cannot help but feel ashamed by the fact that Julius still takes advantages of the perks that come with his title.
Julius enjoys food and events of the commoners, but for some reason can't survive without a lot of money and other resources meant for the nobility. Hopefully being an owl exterminator would help, especially with the mess being built up in Leon's engine.
"Wow, you guys are good at attracting owls!" Igner complimented as the two look injured. He nodded as he grabbed the iodine, "You guys are super lucky. This job comes with affordable healthcare." he said before rubbing the iodine.
"AHHH! THAT BURNS!"
"MY FLESH IS BEING TORN OPEN!"
"The pain means that it's working!" Igner said with a smile. "Besides, you guys are getting paid after this is over." he said.
A while later
Leon did his best to hold in his laughter and keep a professional look in front of everyone. At the same time, he was looking at Igner's bill and thought the price looked fair. So he paid the man what he owed during the clean up.
"Here buddy, keep the change." Leon said as he handed over the money.
"At least Leon knows how to tip." Angelica commented.
Igner nodded as he managed to count the money, "Here guys, this is your cut." he said.
Julius counted the money several times, "Mr. Igner, how exactly is the payment calculated?" he asked.
"How what?" Igner asked.
"How do you decide on how much you pay us?" Julius asked, trying to be more clear.
Igner still looked confused, "You did the job for one day, so you get paid for one day." he said.
Jilk decided to step in, "Mr. Igner, how much do you pay employees?" He asked.
Igner shrugged, "I don't know, my brother Walt does all of the math. Sometimes Larry does it when Walt is gone." he answered.
"Then how do you if you are paying the right amount?" Julius asked.
"Ask your tax person." Igner answered.
"My what?" Julius asked.
Leon was biting his tongue as he really wanted to laugh, "He means the people who collect taxes." he said.
"People who collect what?" Julius asked. Then Leon let out his laughter, "What are you laughing at!? Stop mocking me!" he demanded.
"He doesn't know what taxes are!" Leon said as he continued to laugh.
Olivia, being a gentle person, decided to explain things, "Taxes are the money that the government collects. They are used to fund public works such as law enforcement, the military, and more." she explained.
Julius still looked confused by the explanation. While even Mylene and her husband aren't aware of all the calculations of tax collection and revenue done all over Holfort. At least they understand the process and necessary uses. Clearly, Julius assumed that the money is just there for him to grab.
"In all seriousness, we're screwed if this guy succeeds Queen Mylene." Leon said, offending Julius.
Meanwhile, with the Shield Hero's party
After a long trip, Naofumi decided to give Tomoe and Tania a break. The two landed near a town just as dawn picked up so there was hardly anyone around to notice two large dragons flying in the sky. When they arrived, Kizuna gave the basic rundown of the types of races and people in her world. Where Naofumi learned about the truth of Glass' party.
Glass herself is a spirit, a humanoid creature that looks like a ghost that is also very slow at regenerating mana. Therese is a gem person, a humanoid with a gem on her forehead which she keeps hidden under her headband. L'arc is just a regular human with no unique characteristics like his female party members. There was also an elf like species that are the equivalent of demi humans in Raphtalia's world. For some reason, they are called Grass.
When they landed, Naofumi decided that there were two important things he needed to get done. The first was getting himself and Raphtalia to level up while the second was to build up finances. The second part being important as he needed better equip everyone with new weapons and armor. Especially now that they're in a world where their regular gold and silver pieces have no value here.
So Naofumi had to settle with unique ways begin his sales.
"Come one, coma all! Witness the exquisite wares I've brought all over the land! Like this rare soul soothing potion!" Naofumi announced like a carnival barker.
He managed to get himself a mask along with ones for Rishia and Kizuna who would help him sell his potions. The potions themselves were legit, Naofumi may be a bit harsh but at least he's honest when it comes to business. It was a good thing Naofumi managed to get his hands on a potion that grants more SP (mana) and feels like it could grant a second wind to the user. An expensive potion that Momon gave to him for free after participating in the photoshoots that she forced him.
Now Naofumi was hoping to use these potions to sell to local spirit populous. Which Kizuna said is a good idea if the potion works because spirits would want an easy refill of mana.
"You there, you are spirits aren't you? Would you not like for your mana to instantly return to you?" Naofumi asked a pair of spirits.
The spirits looked hesitant and wanted to ignore what they thought was a crazy man in a mask. Only to see Raphtalia acting cute as she wagged her tail around.
"We give free samples, so you can have a free try yourselves." Raphtalia said.
Naofumi also forced the twins to do the same by making them use their henge to turn into cute demi humans. Since they were twins and can transform into anything that they can imagine. It would help bring in more customers by having adorable mascots come in.
Tania and Tomoe suggested using their wiles, but Naofumi wasn't going to go that far for advertisement.
"Do you want one?" Arashi asked, now looking like a chibi fox.
"Want one, do you?." Mito said, also looking like a chibi fox.
"I do believe they want one." Arashi said.
"They want one, I do believe." Mito agreed.
"You will feel very healthy!" Arashi exclaimed.
"Very healthy, they will feel!" Mito exclaimed.
Naofumi smirked under his mask, 'I knew those kids had it in them.' he thought.
"This is so bizarre, but it's working." Kizuna whispered.
"I was amazed when I saw it too." Rishia whispered back.
From there, the twins and Raphtalia were pouring small samples on the spirits. Each potential customer suddenly felt like they were rejuvenated. As if they had just woken up from a great sleep.
"This is amazing!"
"I need this!"
"I've never felt this good so quickly!"
Naofumi suddenly had a small crowd forming around him. With every spirit offering lots of money to get their hands on at least one potion to feel instant rejuvenation. The sun wasn't even setting yet and Naofumi was already out of product and had to quell the disappointed customers who didn't get the chance to buy any.
"I'm sorry everyone, but do not despair. I will return tomorrow with more potions. As I said earlier, there are limited ingridients but you will all have a chance to buy them." Naofumi announced.
Sure the ingredients would be tricky to get, even with the female dragons who were collecting them in them woods. However, this was a marketing strategy that Naofumi would use to gather funds more quickly.
A couple of days later
Having made a sufficient amount of money and purchased the necessary equipment. Naofumi prepared to leave the city and continue his journey to Sikul when he saw a crowd forming up outside of a small castle like building.
"What's going on?" Naofumi asked.
"Oh, are you from out of town? There's this mage from another country who figured out how to transport himself with the Return Dragon Vein." a citizen explained.
"Yeah, even though it can only be used by cardinal heroes and vassal weapon users." another citizen said.
Then Kizuna whispered to Naofumi, "Hey, you mentioned something about chasing down a mage right? Is this the guy?" she asked.
Naofumi suddenly felt suspicious after hearing that question. With how the citizens describe this mage, it sounds like something Kyo could do. Naofumi already assumed that arrogant ass was likely the mage everyone was hyped about. Only to realize it wasn't Kyo, but some arrogant looking man in expensive regal clothes with a smirk that said that the world should feel grateful for his existence.
Everyone in the party already hated him and it didn't help that this man was as arrogant as he looked. With some old man already praising him and inflating his ego.
"Thank you Kazuki-dono, we hope you are willing to let us use it once it's in mass production." the old man told the arrogant man.
"I'll think about it while I drink a nice bottle of sake and watch the snow fall." Kazuki said with little care.
But he still appeared to have fans who couldn't care less about his attitude.
"You are so amazing Kazuki-sama!" one of them said.
"We knew you could do it!" the other said.
"It was trivial, of course I could do it." Kazuki said as he left the castle grounds.
Naofumi shook his head, "His personality is similar but that's definitely not Kyo." he said.
"Agreed." Raphtalia said.
"Who's Kyo?" Kizuna asked.
"If all humans who acted the same were the same person. Then it's close enough." Tomoe said as she glared at Kazuki's head.
"Hey, don't leave me out of the loop. I wanna know who Kyo is!" Kizuna exclaimed.
"We'll tell you later." Mito said, making Kizuna pout.
Some time later, at an inn
Naofumi began to explain the situation with Kyo to Kizuna to the best of his ability. With Kizuna grasping the idea of how dangerous Kyo is and why they need to work on getting to Sikul faster. As to prepare for whatever the madman is.
Although, Naofumi found himself not saying anything about Dumas since he himself didn't know what the helmet wearing man is up to. Though he can tell he's a lot more dangerous than Kyo himself. With many thoughts clouding his mind, Naofumi returned back to reality once he felt the table at the inn they were staying at begin to shake.
"Really? An earthquake right now of all times?" Tania asked.
"I think we just have the worst luck!" Rishia whined.
"First the labrinth, now this?" Kizuna asked as she fell on her butt.
"Everyone hang onto something!" Naofumi yelled before hearing a loud popping noise outside.
The loud noise had suddenly made the earthquake stop and everyone was able to calm down. In the heat of the moment, everyone assumed that a building was destroyed during the rapid shaking. When they managed to look outside, they saw a glowing crack in the center of the road.
"What is that?" Kizuna asked.
"That's what happens when you cut open the fabric of the universe." Arashi casually said to mess with her.
"EH!?" Kizuna asked, now fearing for her life.
"Don't say that!" Mito yelled as she scolded her brother.
"Oh, so it's not the end of the world and that's not a tear in the universe?" Kizuna asked.
Mito sweat dropped, "It is a tear, the universe won't end though." she said making Kizuna look scared again.
Her fears didn't waver as she saw the crack starting to open. Especially with her and those with sensitive ears hearing the loud sounds of glass breaking as the crack grew. By the time it finished and became a wide portal, Kizuna was rapidly vibrating as if every part of her inner ear had been damaged.
"The world isn't ending, but I think my hearing and sense of touch is gone." Kizuna said.
Even Raphtalia looked shaken, "Mine too!" she said.
Naofumi started gently rubbing her head, "Does this make it feel better?" he asked, causing Raphtalia to blush.
"A little bit." Raphtalia said, enjoying the gesture.
"We want head rubs too!" Tania and Tomoe said.
"Here you go." Arashi said as he rubbed their heads.
"OW! You rub too hard!" Tania whined.
As everyone was being comforted in their own way. Many citizens were watching in awe while others were calling for the guards to find a way to deal with this. As the commotion began to spread, Grayfarn stepped through the portal and looked around.
"It worked!" Grayfarn shouted like a madman.
"Who is that man?" asked a bystander.
Grayfarn adjusted his glasses, "Who am I? What are you?" he asked.
The bystander felt hesitant to answer, "I… I am a Grass." he said.
"Grass? You're not grass! Don't think you can trick me, I've seen grass before!" Grayfarn said with a glare.
The Grass felt offended, but to be fair. They're in a world where some things have weird names. So it's not their fault that the elf like people of this world are named after the type of plants that grow on someone's front lawns or at some pasture.
"Now, what was I looking for?" Grayfarn asked himself.
"Hey, it's the crazy old wizard!" Arashi pointed out.
Grayfarn looked up and spotted the group at the inn, "Oh hello children, your parents are worried sick about you." he said. "Oh and you found the shield user as well! That's very good news!" he said.
That's when a bipedal crustacean arrived, "Who needs medical help?" he asked.
"No one." Naofumi said.
"Don't go away yet Zoidberg, I'm afraid someone might lose anything from a toe to an artery in the coming days." Grayfarn whispered.
"If it's that small, I'll just keep the bone-saw around." Zoidberg replied.
"You oiled it right?" the old wizard asked.
"I can't afford oil." Zoidberg answered.
"Meh, good enough." Grayfarn said, not caring for how painful any future surgeries will be.
Back in Melromarc
The airship to Holfort had officially finished with repairs. All hardware was fix and ready, Igner double checked the entire layout of the Partner for Owls and now it was ready for take off. Queen Mirellia and Yasaka were both saying their farewells to Queen Mylene and wishing her the best of luck in her travels.
"And I wish you a safe journey, Queen Mylene. May our kingdoms prosper with this potential alliance." Mirellia said.
"And I wish you luck as well, Queen Mirellia. Hopefully your own government and family can be stabilized once again." Mylene replied.
Mirellia sighed, "I always pray for that, please don't burden yourself by doing the same." she said. "Though at the very least, your son seems to understand the basics of hard work." she said.
Mylene watched as Julius and Jilk were covered in owl poop and covered in various scratches around their bodies. The owls must have been very territorial during the work efforts. What made things worse for them is the fact that Mylene's advisor had to explain the basics of economics and taxes. So now the boys were feeling stressed knowing that they would lose some of their hard earned money to the government.
Not directly to Queen Mylene herself, the money is always divided. As far as they know, their pay could go anywhere from building a hospital or sealing up a crack on a road.
"i think reality is finally catching up to him." Mylene said.
Mirellia giggled, "I suppose our youngest children will be the future of our respective kingdoms." she said.
"That I hope." Mylene said as she had another son and daughter she could depend on.
Yasaka smiled at the two, "And hopefully we can continue this lovely relationship in the future." she said.
Both queens were happy to have met someone they can relate to. Though both envied Yasaka as Kunou is her firstborn and is already disciplined enough on her own. Most likely willing to succeed her parents should the time come.
"Well then, I best be on my way. Farewell Queen Mirellia, Empress Yasaka, this trip was not expected but more relaxing that I expected." Mylene said.
"Don't forget your complimentary towel and bathrobe." Igner said, suddenly appearing.
Momon apparently started continuing her war of economics in the background. Now she was initiating bathhouses and hot springs which seemed to be a generous form of charity on her part. In reality, it was slowly hypnotizing citizens and travelers into liking her products and then waiting for them to go global. Something similar is likely being planned for Holfort once Makai's imperial airships develop enough to reach the islands hidden in the sky.
Because now it seems that Mylene is interested as she found herself relaxing at one of those hot springs that Momon had built. Along with being a free gift to add to the mental manipulating.
"Oh my, I almost forgot. Do give Lady Momon my thanks." Mylene said as Igner nodded and left.
As the monarch prepared to leave, Leon was already getting his final updates from Luxion. While Naruto approached him with a box in his hands. Leon immediately turned stiff as he tried thinking of what not to say to disrespect the emperor. He didn't want to end up like the idiot who thought Naruto was the servant of a high ranking human noble.
"Hello captain! I mean er, sir! Damn!" Leon said, cursing himself for not knowing what title to say.
"It's majesty, but forget about titles for now." Naruto said as he presented him with a box. "This holds a firearm that shoots flares. Use them if you require assistance during the flight." He said.
"Is that going to be useful? We're flying pretty high and you did say your own airships can't handle that level of flight." Leon asked.
"My military doesn't, but Sir Titanius does." Naruto said as the familiar robot came crashing down beside him.
"Ow…" Titanius muttered.
"He has a medium sized dominion of automatons. He's essentially a king among them and has access to more machines than most other kingdoms and empires." Naruto explained.
Leon sweat dropped as he looked at the robot, "Are you sure he isn't outdated?" he asked.
"Hey!" Titanius yelled as he stood up. "Listen here you sack of sweaty meat! I'm not as flashy as your giant war boat, but at least my competent mages know what they are doing!" he said as he pointed at his own airship.
Leon looked at where Titanius pointed and looked at a giant piece of metal that looked like it came out of some steampunk artwork. If that thing was escorting him, he hoped that it was actually capable of flight and won't accidentally ram him back to the surface.
"Okay." Leon muttered.
"We also have a competent crew. Like Roberto!" Titanius said.
Naruto frowned, "You brought back Roberto? Again?" he asked.
Suddenly, a crazed brown robot with a knife appeared next to some people. He was wielding the blade around and thrusting it at some people. More specifically, a random student who was complaining about Leon causing this mess.
"You want something to complain about? You should complain about your flesh! It's missing some skin!" Roberto said before cutting a student. "Hiyah! Hiyah!" he said as he kept swinging the knife around.
"Get me away from this monster!" the student yelled.
"Aw come on, it's just some skin. You'll grow it back, you pink avocado!" Roberto said before chasing the student around.
"I'm definitely coming." Naruto said, to ensure the safety of the Partner.
"Or you could leave the crazy robot with a knife." Leon suggested.
Then Roberto appeared behind him, "Did you say I'm crazy?" he asked.
Leon paled, "No." he lied.
"You didn't? You didn't!?" Robert asked.
"No!" Leon repeated.
"Hm, my hearing must be bad. I'll take your ears then." Roberto said as he tried cutting off Leon's ears.
Only for Naruto to shove him into the ground, "I'll keep Roberto restrained." he said.
A few minutes later
Yasaka giggled as her infants attracted the attention of some of the girls from Holfort. Olivia was having the most fun as Kairi was reaching out to her while Ichigo giggled at Angelica who felt her heart melting.
"How old are they?" Angelica asked.
"They will be one year in two months time." Yasaka said before realizing how quickly her babies grew.
"Ma'am, w-would it be a-alright if I held her? Just for one moment?" Olivia nervously asked.
"Sure child, I can see you have a good soul." Yasaka said as she handed Kairi to Olivia.
Angelica smiled as she saw her friend adjust her hands with Kairi. As the baby fox girl wiggled in her hands, making Olivia a little nervous at first. Causing her to feel like she was holding a vase made of glass. Kairi giggle as she enjoyed moving around in Olivia's arms.
"You're a cute little fox." Olivia said as Kairi's tail wagged.
While Kairi enjoyed being in Olivia's arms, Ichigo was staring at Olivia with a serious gaze. The baby boy was developed enough to show some level of facial expressions. With the boy looking like he wasn't happy with Olivia who was carrying his twin sister. Angelica started picking up on this and thought that the boy was being protective.
"Is he okay?" Angelica asked as she gestured to Ichigo.
Yasaka snickered, "Ichigo-chan, are you worried about your sister?" she asked, receiving a confused stare as a result. "Oh my, you are quite protective aren't you?" she asked.
Ichigo swung his arm at Olivia's direction, making the girl feel a bit nervous. Yasaka just laughed it off as Ichigo developing a sense of familial protection.
"Ichigo-chan, do not be angry. This girl is nice, she isn't taking your sister away from you." Yasaka said.
"Ah?" Ichigo asked.
"Yes, Kairi-chan will stay with you." Yasaka said before Olivia returned Kairi to her.
Olivia smiled as she gently rubbed Kairi's ears, "Bye little Kairi." she said.
As the girls prepared to leave, they saw Naruto arriving in a new uniform, "I'll be helping Titanius escort the Partner. I can't depend on his crew mates." he said.
Yasaka frowned, "Why?" she asked.
"He rebuilt Roberto of all people. What do you want me to do?" Naruto asked.
"Then why did he rebuild that psychotic machine?" Yasaka asked.
"There are many questions and I cannot answer them all." Naruto answered as he adjusted his gloves. "I will be back, hopefully within less than two hours." he said.
Yasaka sighed at her husband, "Why do you need to participate in these things?" she asked.
"Would you rather Roberto stab everyone?" Naruto asked.
Yasaka ignored her husband's question as she just to give her husband a brief farewell kiss.
"You better return with haste." she said.
Naruto gently cupped his wife's cheek as he kissed her on the lips, "I will." he said with a smirk. He then gave her another kiss on the cheek, "It will be fine." he said before letting go.
"You better tell Kunou as well." Yasaka said.
"I already did before she went to play with Melty." Naruto replied as he went to Titanius' airship.
"That husband of mine is still the same." Yasaka muttered. She then looked around, "Where is Kunou?" she asked, feeling slightly anxious.
In the sky
After bidding the ground farewell as if they were on cruise ships. The Partner and Titanius' airship, The Glorious, made their way towards the sky. Both maintaining open radio communication open in the event of technical issues or potential attacks. Apparently, there were a lot of dangerous flying creatures in the sky where Holfort is.
Instead of having an ocean, those people have the sky so they must have been struck with the bad luck of sky monsters over sea monsters. Thinking about it, have these people ever seen an ocean before? A large lake or river is possible, but what about an ocean?
"How far up do you think this airship can reach?" Naruto asked Titanius.
"I don't know, pretty far maybe. It's supposed to be better than the fancy airships that rich people have." Titanius said as he poured a beer bottle down his throat. "Also, it's tough enough to handle heavy artillery. At least in terms of explosions and giant crabs." he added.
"I hope so, we might end up on uncharted territory." Naruto said.
Then Titanius realized something, "Hey, you're a fleshy thing with a tail. Don't you need Element O (Oxygen)? We're going high so Element O is might be hard to get up there." he said.
"Those people on the Partner were in fine health. Surely there's lots of air where they live." Naruto said as they continued to fly higher.
"Whatever, I don't carry any oxygen tanks. So don't complain if you can't breathe." Titanius said as he finished his beer bottle.
Naruto let out a chuckle, "This almost reminds me of the good old days. Back in Momon's private army, we rarely did any invading since most of the troops were wimps and we were under staffed. Back then, we mostly did recon and helped grandfather Grayfarn with his research before the darker days." he said.
"Don't care, don't want to think about it." Titanius said as he opened up another beer bottle. "Didn't care back then, didn't think about it then either." he added.
"You're lucky I can't use your patriot function anymore. I had to bribe you to get you here." Naruto said.
Titanius laughed at him, "And the old wars is the last time I'm throwing away my life for humans and animals for free." he said as he chugged his beer down.
The nostalgia died down as The Glorious started to make loud winching sounds. Soon enough, the whole airship started to compress and rapidly shake for a few minutes. With the systems and engine almost falling apart as they started reaching an unearthly height with the wind adding more pressure to the airship.
"She's a goner." Titanius said as he grabbed a third beer bottle.
Naruto looked too determined, "We can keep going. We just need to push back against the winds!" he said as he put on an army garrison cap on his head. "I'll take the wheel!" he said as he took the helm of the airship.
After a few minutes of the wind pressure crushing the airship's hull and the engines using up a lot of energy. The airship started to calm down as they reached a height where they saw strange flying animals. Along with pieces of the earth floating in the sky as if it were completely natural.
"Hey are you guys still there? That storm broke a few parts of my hull. We're lucky the air is breathable." Leon said over the radio.
"We're fine Bartfort. We had bad snags, but we are very alive." Naruto said over the radio.
"Good to hear, so you guys are following us right? I think we might need some repairs and you probably might have a hard time going back down to the surface." Leon asked.
"That might be a good option. We will follow you back to Holfort and ensure your safety." Naruto said.
"Hey, are cannons and other weapons are still working. That's neat." Titanius commented.
Naruto nodded, "Good, I don't trust all of these animals." he responded before seeing something in the distance. "There appears to be some kind of massive shark. We better avoid it." he said.
That's when Titanius extended his glass eyes, "That's no shark! That's an airship!" he said.
"That thing is an animal, what are you saying?" Naruto asked before the ship came closer towards the shark.
That's when the shark revealed itself to be some kind of monster that was fused with a large airship. The ship itself could rival the size of the Partner and it was definitely bigger than the Glorious. Though Naruto wasn't sure about the threat level as he couldn't see any weapons. However, there was a big threat as he saw more airships arriving.
"Titanius, get the weapons ready." Naruto said.
"Sure thing." Titanius said. "Yo Roberto! There's a bunch of flesh bags on those ships over there! They said that you're probably thinking about the number 56!" he yelled.
Suddenly Roberto kicked open the door to the bridge, "56? 56! Aw! Now I'm only able to think about is the number 56!" he yelled. "I'm gonna cut up those 56-ers!" he said as he pulled out a machete.
Then the radio came on again, "Uh guys, we might need some help here. We're surrounded and Angelica just told me that these guys are from some kingdom called Fanoss." Leon said.
Roberto then started carving up the wall, "Fanoss huh? Now I know the name of the fool I gotta stab." he said.
"Apparently we're in some treaty and they're violating it. I know you guys are neutral with them and all and technically we're not in some treaty yet either, but you mind doing us a solid and helping out?" Leon asked over the radio.
Titanius shrugged, "Meh, it's all the same to me. Then again, we only signed up for fighting flying fish. So I don't know." He said, unsure if he should help fight.
Technically speaking, Naruto was volunteering to help the airship take flight. So technically, this was a contracted business between Holfort and Titanius' dominion of Cornwood. However, Titanius would eagerly wish to kill humans and fight against Fanoss' forces once a stray cannon hit the Glorious. Resulting in Titanius losing grip of his beer bottle and dropping it on the floor, shattering as a result.
"Those meaty racist wastes of space! That's it, we're ramming them!" Titanius yelled as he took the helm from Naruto.
"Wait, that's not a good idea!" Naruto yelled before Titanius hit the accelerator.
With Leon
As the airships came closer and began to surround the Partner. Queen Mylene's personal guards took up arms and prepared to fight for their monarch and citizens with their lives. Once again, feeling righteous, Julius grabbed a spare weapon and also prepared to fight as well with Jilk being willing to die to protect Julius and Mylene.
However, the students looked more than willing to surrender and give Fanoss whatever the wanted. Leaving Mylene feeling contemplative about whether or not to surrender. On one hand, she saw there was little chance of victory let alone no casualties. On the other hand, the Kingdom of Fanoss was in the wrong and there was no guarantee that they would spare the children onboard if they surrendered. Either hope for the best or fight against a military force lacking in honor.
Meanwhile, Leon was giving his harsh criticism of the entire student body minus his two close friends. His criticism being about the students talking so highly about their status as nobles and the stories of their famous ancestors who created their noble titles
"Fine, if that's what you all think! You can all stay in hiding like cowards knowing that you bring shame to your ancestors!" Leon yelled, earning a lot more hate from the student body. "I'm right! You know it! Your ancestors worked their asses off for their titles and here you all are crying and whining and smearing their name and basically erasing all of the accomplishments they worked hard for!" he yelled.
With that, everyone including Queen Mylene was left silent by Leon's harsh words. It was obvious that he's vulgar and came from a lower status family, but he had a point. Leon started from the bottom and became a low ranking noble after clearing a dungeon and finding an island. During which, he almost died fighting a machine that was built to resist magical tools and weapons. Now here he was, ready to fight regardless of whoever is onboard his ship.
As much as Julius hated Leon, he secretly agreed with Leon. He didn't like what Leon said about the nobles and how he said it, but that's the truth. Most nobles are lazy and wouldn't go through the same hardships as their ancestors if they occurred again.
Just as Leon prepared to leave to grab his armored suit, The Arrogance, he noticed that he struck a chord in everyone. Though an unexpected one in the form of the students suddenly gained the courage to fight back. As well as promising vengeance to hurt Leon later.
"We can fight!"
"We'll send those losers running!"
"Then we're going to kill you, Bartfort!"
Leon ignored the last part, 'Whatever, I got everyone motivated.' he thought as he went to grab his suit.
As Leon launched himself out of his airship, he saw a giant swarm of animals flying towards the partner. Each carrying some kind of magic seal on their bodies. At the same time, the Glorious had released an absurd amount of machines capable of flight. There were so many that Leon initially thought there was a flight of birds in the distance. Where he immediately realized that those things were actual machines.
"That is scary! Where did they come from!?" Leon asked as he flew away from the Partner.
On the Glorious
Titanius looked over at Naruto, "Where did they come from?" he asked while referring to the swarm of robots.
"Momon." Naruto answered as he held up a couple of large containers. "They were neatly folded like lunch trays and sprung out on their own." he said.
"Is that old witch trying to kill us?" Titanius asked.
"That old witch got me a free taxi!" Roberto yelled as he jumped over the rail.
Naruto and Titanius stared at the rail in silence. Both thinking that Roberto killed himself out of being insane. However, they were wrong as Roberto suddenly returned while riding on the back of an automaton that looked like a tetradactyl made of pipes and bolts.
"Oogala moogala!" Roberto yelled as he flew towards the enemy flagship.
"I guess his insanity saved him." Naruto said.
"He robbed the same bank three times in a row in less than a week. What do you expect from him?" Titanius asked.
"Good point." Naruto replied.
The Fanoss Flagship
Hertrude Sera Fanoss, first princess of the Principality of Fanoss sat on a sofa while speaking to Earl Garrett. Garrett is one of the commanders of the fleet behind this attack on the Partner.
"That airship is quite advanced. I suppose you can never expect what a nobleman of another kingdom will do." Garrett said.
"It shouldn't matter, should it Garrett? I was expecting the heirs of a few noble families, but to hear that this Bartfort boy was able to invite the queen as a passenger. I expected a larger fleet to accompany them." Hertrude said, feeling confident in her sudden attack.
"This attack alone is a great risk, princess. We are in luck it is only them and that jalopy of an airship. Although, it may be tricky to combat that airship without taking a single hostage." Garrett said as he twirled his curled mustache.
"It doesn't matter, the strength of a noble comes in their blood both literally and physically. However, any essence of a fighter is more than likely gone." Hertrude said. "Most importantly, the resistance is very small. Although, I do hope you avoid ignoring that jalopy." She said while looking out the window.
Which was at a terrible time because Roberto jumped off of the pterodactyl shaped automaton came crashing through the window. In that very moment, Garrett and Hertrude were surprised by the sight of Roberto stabbing the machine to death.
"Hi there, I'm Roberto and I'm just practicing my stabbing techniques." Roberto said as he kept stabbing the machine. "Anyways, it's nice to meet you all all… hostages!" he yelled as he pointed his knife at Garrett and Hertrude.
"Guards! Remove this mechanical monstrosity!" Hertrude yelled.
"Monstrosity? That's a new one." Roberto said as he scratched his head.
At this moment, Garrett and the other soldiers in the room pulled out their revolvers and proceeded to shoot at Roberto. Unfortunately, Titanius improved Roberto's outer shell when he repaired the psychotic machine. So now he could withstand a few pieces of metal filled with gunpowder. Although that didn't stop his artificial pain receptors as Roberto started feeling like he was being swarmed by bees.
"You're shooting is making me go crazy! Hiyah!" Roberto yelled as he stabbed Garrett right in the gut.
"Don't stop!" Hertrude yelled as she retreated backwards.
"Don't be shy, being stabbed ain't so bad. Just look." Roberto said as he kept stabbing Garrett.
"For the love of… kill this menace!" Garrett ordered before being lifted up by the mustache.
"You keep shooting me and I'm going to stab this man in the ass!" Roberto yelled.
The soldiers lowered their weapons only for the airship to be hit by cannon fire. With the impact causing Roberto feel threatened and prompting him to stab Garrett right in the buttocks.
"See!? I ain't lying you avocados!" Roberto yelled.
"He's crazy!" Hertrude yelled.
Roberto tilted his head in confusion, "You know, it's funny you say that. You see, I was made by a group of rogue inventors who wanted to build an insane robot." he said, making Hertrude start to shake in fear. "But it seems that they failed." he said.
Garrett decided to voice his opinion, "I think those inventors actually did…"
"Heeyah!" Roberto yelled as he stabbed Garrett in the throat. "Don't interrupt me, Curly Fries!" he yelled before grabbing Garrett by the mustache.
Where Roberto then threw Garrett over the broken window. At that very moment, a winged creature passed by and caught Garrett in it's mouth. The remaining soldiers continued to shoot at Roberto before finally running out of ammunition. Which gave Roberto a better opportunity to stab everyone minus the princess.
"This is why I like cutting some skin. The bullets just make a big mess and it gives me a headache!" Roberto said as he kept stabbing people.
Back with Naruto
While Roberto attacked the flagship, Naruto had assumed his fox form. Where he proceeded to charge up chakra into his mouth and released multiple blasts of chakra from his mouth and aimed at the many flying monsters. He could go for what is called a "Bijuu Bomb/Bijuudama" by traditional jinchuriki, but Naruto didn't want to accidentally destroy the Partner as a result.
"Keep shooting Naruto! If I wanted to see lots of flying sea animals, I would visit Elzar's!" Titanius shouts as Naruto continues to open fire. "Ooh! We should visit Elzar's later." he added.
"Not now Titanius!" Naruto yelled before firing on a giant fish-like monster. "How long have they been planning for this attack? Also, what happened to that military support? Shouldn't Leon's kingdom be looking for their missing queen?" he asked.
Instead of getting a good answer, Naruto received a wave of enemy robot suits heading his way. Titanius quickly went back into the airship's cabin in an attempt to pilot the airship into a better position. Just as Naruto prepared to adjust his aim at the incoming mecha army. Leon's airship fired a strange beam of light into the air.
"What the heck was that!?" Titanius asked from the cabin.
Suddenly, every flying monster was destroyed along with most of Fanoss' mecha army. A few of Momon's monstrous creations were also hit, but nothing significant was lost. Funny enough, that just left the remaining robot suits to fend against the incoming machines.
"Well that works too." Naruto said before watching monster on the flagship let out a roar of pain. "Thinking about it, that's a nasty design." he said before charging up a bijuudama.
Not even caring by this point as the flagship was far away. Naruto fired the heavy ball of chakra straight at the airship. At that moment, Roberto escaped the flagship through the mouth of the monster hybrid. The crazed robot was riding on some kind of floating motorized bike as the bijuudama hit the flagship and exploded right behind him.
"Heeyah! You almost burned me there!" Roberto yelled as he crashed through the window of the airship.
Naruto crawled back onto the main deck of the airship and went into the airship cabin. There he saw Titanius drinking more beer while Roberto was dragging around his hostage. Who appeared to be a very scared looking Hertrude.
"I got us a hostage." Roberto said while holding up Hertrude who is tied up.
"Neat." Titanius said.
Naruto sighed, "Who is this?" he asked.
"Some princess or something. Yo Titanius, don't hog the beer man! I needs the stuff too!" Roberto said.
Naruto looked at Hertrude who looked composed, but because of the emperor's sensory abilities. He can feel a lot of fear coming from the girl.
"I suppose you wish to surrender?" Naruto asked.
Hertrude didn't say anything but merely nodded in response.
"Take us back with the Partner. This war is over." Naruto said as Titanius nodded.
"I'm getting paid for this right?" Titanius asked as the battle had finally ended.
TO BE CONTINUED…
