(A/N: Just to be clear, since it has come up, any chapter not from Bard's POV is from Lucia's for now.)

So, after spending a bit over an hour defending myself, they finally answered my questions back, making me almost miss the game with Queen Fitoria…but gods was it awesome to see them again. They began to lay out the stuff I'd missed from the cliffside, including Myne getting shouted at by Ren for doing the things she'd done, and getting Motoyasu to defend her 'honor' or lack thereof, while she slipped away with the knights.

By the time anyone knew what was happening, she'd already set fire to the forest. Supposedly to drive us forward, so they could head us off at the next town. Which hadn't been our destination, as Naofumi was nowhere near that stupid…I hoped. Thanks to the map that Shadow woman had given us, which directed us through an otherwise unused path along the forest, we were headed in another direction entirely, anyway.

Regardless, she'd obviously hoped that, seeing as Melty wasn't used to physical activity(according to her), Naofumi was weakened by whatever he'd done to blow the cliff away, Filo was sealed, and I was being dragged along, that we'd be too slow to escape. It was a dumb idea, but then, Myne seemed pretty bad at improvising when it came down to it. Her plans were good, when she had an hour or fifty to think them through. Put her on the spot though, and she basically used brute force solutions that were counterproductive.

She, of course, didn't say any of that outright, but she very much implied it. Worse, when the fire had finally burned itself out thanks to the way the valley was shaped, they'd gone into the nearby village to rest and recover, and hopefully intercept us. There, the people wondered what had happened, and not knowing to leave well enough alone, she'd announced for all to hear, and sent the knights to spread it around, that the 'Devil of the Shield' had burned their mountain to ash, to destroy their livelihoods, all to make a clean getaway.

That had been enough for Ren, who openly told Motoyasu off for her lying about what she'd done, and mixed with both Ray and Lucia saying the same, he dragged her off to the capital, not sure what else to do. Luckily, their small group was able to (Fast Travel) with him all at once, his version being called (Town Portal) and, as it turned out, able to travel to any established city or town, so long as it had a fountain in it. He didn't even need to ever have been there before, the lucky bastard.

Whatever spell she'd had on him, be it her charms, or maybe some actual one, being confronted with her lying her ass off by not only another Hero, but my party members was enough to crack it just a bit. So he'd taken her to her father to explain herself, and to try and make sure the village they'd damaged by chasing away all the game would actually survive. Meanwhile Ren went to meet up with his own Party, while Lucia and Ray were contacted by the church, and so went there with the rest of them.

They had little specific info on what happened with either group, but for themselves, they laid out what happened in detail. Namely, Balmus had finally found the item he'd been searching for, the Replica Weapon, and presented it to the party, who, without my guiding hand, or interference, depending on how you looked at it, now had to decide which one of them would wield such a thing.

At first it was suggested Souka do so, but she declined after touching it for an instant, pointing out that the thing's MP requirements were insane. Balmus had chuckled, and admitted that they'd needed an entire group of priests, who had the unique ability to share magic between them, to cast even the most basic spells, let alone the higher ones. That meant Lucia or Shadow would have to use it, and they quickly decided on her.

Balmus, pleased with the decision, offered a second item to go along with it, the Robes of the Holy Mother. Woven from threads of starlight, blessed by all of the Seven Star Weapons(Apparently another name for the Vassal Weapons since Fitoria kept the Carriage out of circulation), and made nigh indestructible. It was an artifact in and of itself, and lowered the MP costs of most of the skills a user had, which luckily, included what the Replica Weapon gave her.

After that, he and they left to the castle, to meet with Motoyasu, while Lucia looked into how her new toy worked. It was…linked was the best word for it, to the Cardinal Weapons via the Vassal ones somehow. Its history file spoke of several attempts to make it, most resulting in lesser copies of its magnificence, but this was the one true relic of the era it had been made in, with the hope that it would replace the need to summon Heroes at all.

And it had failed miserably at the time. Conflict had broken out over it almost instantly, and the thing fell into the hands of bandits and tyrants. None lasted long with it, it simply asked too much of most users, and worse, there were no safeties in it. From what Lucia had felt, she could use her own lifeforce in it, to replace her MP, and it would greedily suck it out, resulting in her death.

It functioned, as it turned out, like a kind of save state of all the skills and forms the Heroes had ever unlocked. EVER unlocked. Not only the stuff we had done this cycle, but stretching back to the First Heroes, the original quartet who had saved the world in some misty era of history. Considering what I read in my help menu, I had to ask just how many forms she had for the thing, and she had to admit, she hadn't yet been able to go through them all with Ray, but they had a small list…of around seven-thousand.

That said, she had no upgrades, and the thing granted zero bonus points in any category directly. The forms had no use mechanic, no real way of gaining power, and she had to have it IN a form to make use of the skill attached to it. All in all, it was almost a gamebreaker all by itself, given what she had access to through it, but the MP costs of the skills, and the limitations of the forms that kept her from mixing them together or fast casting, kept it just this side of broken.

Of course, one of the first forms she discovered was the (Seeker's Sword), the one with a skill that was useless in combat, but most certainly of use in sorting people out. I had to admit, I was curious just who the Hero was who unlocked it, considering what it did, and what conditions were needed for that unlock, but sadly, while she had access to things like status menus and the like via the Replica Weapon, she had no 'Help' menu in her version;.

Regardless, on seeing what it was, she immediately dragged Ray, with Balmus close behind, to the castle, even demanding the guards let her by in a way that was probably not conducive to good relations with the royal family. Still, she made it to the throne room just as Myne was getting to the story, and was convincing both her father and Motoyasu of her innocence, and how she had merely been trying to help, and that what had gone wrong was all Naofumi's fault.

With the (Truth Field) active, lying was suddenly beyond her, but Myne, for whatever reason, just sort of slid into letting it all out. According to Ray, she was extolling how, if he'd just surrendered, then none of this would have happened, and then immediately slipped into detailing how she'd had her sister's assassination all planned out, with a vial of poison she'd been making thanks to Motoyasu's help.

She detailed how each step on his path, fighting plants, killing the healer, and everything else had been to get the notes and items needed to make something akin to a carbon monoxide bomb of some kind. Undetectable, it would have filtered out in the morning, and she would have seemingly died of whatever Naofumi had done to her in her sleep. That had been the plan at first, when she'd set the knights on them.

He was supposed to die to the knights, they were some of her strongest 'supporters', and they would kill his two slaves too, to remove them from the board. They'd then bring her sister back, 'rescuing' her from him, and she'd act all fawning and like the dutiful big sister. Then she'd die, and everyone would be sad, and Myne would again become the rightful heir to the throne, as she should have been all along.

That…yeah, it was weird that unlike the rest of us under the field, who couldn't speak at all if we tried to lie, she instead spoke truths she most certainly should not have. Ray speculated that it was a quirk of her psychology. She HAD to be speaking, to keep the conversation going, and it had become so ingrained into her head that, when she couldn't speak of one thing, she shifted into the other without missing a beat, and without thinking about what she was saying.

Her father had reacted as one might expect, and had his guards seize her. She killed one with a fireball, and then, noticing the three at the door, and knowing they were behind it, she'd tried to end them too. She was powerful, to be fair. Statistically, she was stronger than Lucia in direct combat, though Lucia was the better mage, it didn't matter when she was still recovering from using (Truth Field) however.

That said, Ray was faster than both of them put together, and had her blades out even as Myne charged a massive fireball, and before she could let it go, the panther demi-human had kicked her in the gut. Motoyasu, frozen in place, unable to act, had not been needed, luckily. Much as her regalia boosted her stats, her father had been a mage longer than she'd been alive, and he froze her to the spot in a pillar of ice, leaving only her head exposed, enraged at what had been done. Right in his own throne room at that.

She tried, briefly, to act like the sword being used by Lucia was doing something to her, but it was quickly revealed what, and…well it was damning. She, of course, tried to protest, tried to explain away her behavior, but it was no use, and before the sun was fully in the sky, Myne was stripped of her royal title, and forced to reveal everything she knew, and all that had transpired.

And it was a lot. They'd spent most of that day having her detail her crimes. Including murder, forcing others to be her 'toys' before discarding them, and even some less savory things that Lucia refused to elaborate on. Even Motoyasu, after all that, was disgusted with her, but she was, over the hours, quick to finger others who had aided her in her ambitions, nobles and church people.

That, in turn, fingered Balmus in…actually only the death of Lord Seaetto. Balmus was quick to admit to it too, which surprised the two women. He was, of course, forced to tell only the truth, but he spoke of what had happened because of Lord Seaetto's death, the summoning of the four of us and our victories over the Waves, along with what we'd done for the country, clearing monsters and saving people. He left out WHY he'd done it, showing at the time that the (Truth Field) only forced you not to lie, not that you had to spill out every secret you knew.

King Aultcray, at this point, revealed to Lucia and Ray that he had no idea of his daughter's deception in regard to Naofumi's first 'crime'. It had happened before after all, and so to have Naofumi try his hand at taking her only seemed logical for one so soaked in Sin. That didn't make him blameless, as they noted, but it did mean that whatever punishment was needed should fall on the head of the one who committed the crime, not the one who was deceived.

He still bore the blame for how he'd acted afterwards, and for all the things he'd allowed in his presence. He admitted that the duel had been his idea, not his daughter's, but otherwise, he had a country at war with a natural disaster to run, and had stayed out of the Heroes affairs as much as he could. Ceremony demanded he present us with rewards for a job well done, but otherwise, he only heard reports.

Luckily for Balmus, he turned out to be innocent of the attempt on his Second Daughter's life, completely ignorant of it, and his answer framed in a way to make it sound like he would never have thought of being party to such schemes. That ran counter to what he'd told me, something they said just showed how good a liar the man was, that he could speak honestly, and still not be telling the truth, but they moved on.

From there, they got the names of all the nobles involved in her deeds, mostly from the upper crust who had, on more than one occasion, offered to support her claim to the throne over her sister. That had been her focus since Queen Mirellia had declared Melty their primary heir. Schemes, plots, plans, and all other manner of dastardly things had been hatched in pursuit of that goal, which she felt was getting closer by the day.

A few accusations like the one she used against Naofumi saw to the death of some minor nobles who supported her sister. A few whispered words in the right ear so more well established families found themselves displaced. Even Aultcray had been a big help, or so she bragged, in paving her way to the throne, which at the time might well happen regardless of her crimes, if Melty died while with myself and Naofumi.

After they had a list of names, Motoyasu and Ren offered to help root out the corruption. Over the next few days, with the assistance of the Heroes and the Royal Knights, the King had gone around the country and…dealt with those who had aided the Princess over the years, most simply being clapped in irons to face trials, one or two requiring a bit of muscle to remind them of who was in charge of the nation.

Only one had required an all out brawl. Interestingly, he was the same one who had locked away Eclair Seaetto, who had never been freed, despite the Pope's order to do so. That man was…scum of the highest order. He took ladies of high birth and broke them into toys to sell to the King of Faubury, a practice that was well known enough that, had the continent not been so divided, they would have united all against him.

Regardless of that, they freed his current batch after some massive battle, requiring Ren, Motoyasu, and even King Aultcray to fight him, with the final one dealing the finishing blow with a massive stone block, crushing him to death beneath it. They then freed the noble ladies, with some to be given back their realms, as they'd been amongst those taken by the First Princess' designs with her fellow conspirators.

One, however, a Rishia Ivyred, had no home to return to, and, with the Spear Hero being the one to protect her when the Lord had tried to use her for a human shield at one point, she'd fallen head over heels for the blonde bimbo. She'd all but thrown herself at him, and, given he was on the rebound after everything that had happened with Myne, he was all for catching her.

Luckily, he wasn't a complete waste of space, and had added her to his party, rather than immediately taking her to bed or something, and insisted she recover, something now former Pope Balmus helped with greatly, earning the thanks of the pair. He'd cured her lingering status effects, and otherwise helped her get back into fighting trim in a few hours, rather than the weeks it should have taken.

That took us on a tangent, as it turned out Balmus had been forced to resign his position, lest his…well his murder of Lord Seaetto be revealed, as the man had been beloved by his people. As it happened, the Princess had been his instrument there, as Lord Seaetto had been in the castle at the time, and she'd been the one to push him over the edge. Literally, as she detailed how she'd used a paralysis spell to freeze him in place, taunted him, and then shoved him off his balcony, enjoying every moment of frozen terror on his face.

Regardless of her performing the act, it had been at the behest of the Pope, and so he'd made a deal with him. One that should have waited for me to finalize, as it involved Sanctuary. A new Cathedral was opening there, one that was already planned to be as good, if not better, than the one in the Capital. He had demanded, for his silence on matters about the Princess, and his own stepping down, that he be granted a Royal Stipend, to be paid annually, to said Cathedral.

The plan, as they laid out, was that he would run the church in my city, offering all the healing and such the church could to not only those living there, but adventurers who passed through. In exchange, my city would not be subject to taxes, Royal or otherwise, and I was to be given free reign completely. As in, the Knights would keep their noses out for so long as I claimed the city for my own. Even with the Demesne that had been, I was literally being given my own small country to run, with a hospital being paid for by another nation.

That…it was a good deal, especially since they would also give up all claims on the two relics they'd given my party, the Robes and the Replica Weapon. Those alone were worth a considerable fortune, and to hear Aultcray had agreed? He wanted this buried as soon as possible. After all, the list of crimes of his daughter was extensive, and whatever she did, regardless of if she was punished or not, would reflect back on the King and Queen for allowing her to get away with it for so long. Worse in many ways if it was under their noses and they were unaware.

Getting back to it, Lady Ivyred, despite her destiny to be sold to the King of Faubury, had been held back for some time so the noble who took her could gain access to the Armor that Motoyasu now wore, hidden by her parents. They'd refused, even for her freedom, to give it to the man, and so he'd put them to the sword, and been doing his best to break her instead, bending her to his will.

She offered, without prompting, the Armor to the Hero who saved her, and Motoyasu, with some cajoling, had taken it. With it and its unique properties, they'd been tearing through the nobles that supported Myne, arriving by chance at the Rabier just in time to find out a massive monster had appeared, and that the other two Heroes were already engaged with it, causing them to run to catch us the moment they knew about it.

Obviously, they failed, however, from their description of the event, King Aultcray had suggested that they meet with his wife. At the time, it had seemed simply to be because she was due back the next day or so. As it was now, it was likely because he'd recognized Fitoria, and the Vassal Carriage. He had hoped Queen Mirellia would be able to summon her to them, or at least direct them to where she might be found.

Then we showed up out of the blue. That was unexpected to say the least. He'd brought Myne simply to discuss with his wife directly what to do with her, with Motoyasu already having asked for the right to fight for her…freedom or life was probably the right word. She had been banished from the Royal Family, stripped of her name, and was now simply the Adventurer Myne, and not to be addressed by her original title or name ever again.

"And, given all that, let me guess. The Brothers, and Souka too, are back in Sanctuary. Just in case Balmus tried something?" I said as we finished up, and Ray nodded.

"We can trust his self interest, I think, but that's a thin line of trust at the best of times. These are not the best of times. The loss of a Princess, and party member to one of the Heroes, the sudden shake up in the sphere of the nobility, even if for reasons of outing conspirators is likely to change a lot of things. Balmus could be planning on using Sanctuary to shelter himself and his faction, and come in after everything's over to pick up the pieces," she explained bluntly, and it made sense.

"So, keep an eye on his people in Sanctuary, make sure they're not stirring up anything, while you two keep an eye on the man himself, with the reasoning that he could use the body guards before he goes to his permanent residence. Not a bad play," I admitted.

"El…Trader Marie thought so, and has been doing her best to keep the villagers from falling under the sway of the Church OR the Guild, who both are now acting like they're in charge of Sanctuary. We hope with your return, we might keep this from turning into some kind of recruitment for either side, given they both can offer access to the Hourglass, through differing channels to be fair," admitted Ray, which made me nod, only to pause and snap my fingers.

"Oh, right, I almost forgot. The upgrade with the Hands I told you about, it had a secondary effect. Everyone who 'Follows' me, like the villagers we rescued, or I guess anyone aligned with my goals gets Leveling as an innate ability," I said simply, and the two ladies just kind of froze, both taking a moment to process that bit of info.

"It does…what?" asked Ray, a bit coldly, but before I could explain, a knock at the door interrupted us. Answering, it was a guard, who'd already met with the others downstairs. Motoyasu had returned, and was at the palace with his party, and so our presence was 'requested' as well, to make sure everyone was up to speed. That tabled the discussion we'd been having, though I was certain the ladies would have more words to say when we had some private time.

(A/N: I'm aware some people might object to my reading of the Replica Weapons abilities, especially now that I've read the Manga and seen what it said about the other 'Lesser' versions of said Weapon in a later arc.

However, given Balmus specifically says the Bolt of Divine Retribution he fired to kill Ren and Itsuki, and then Motoyasu and Naofumi WAS from the Weapon, unless one of the Heroes has that ability unlocked and for some reason never bothers using it before or after, then this is the only way that makes sense to me.

I'm not saying it's not possible one of them knows that skill/some kind of lesser powered version his Weapon is somehow powering up, despite the direct statement being it's 25% as powerful as the weapons it's copying. However, if Motoyasu or Itsuki knew it, they'd open EVERY fight with it, just because cool laser show, and Ren…he probably wouldn't but that's because he wants to get closer and hit things with his Sword, also his unlocks and abilities seem closer range most of the time.)