Biggest thanks for Ace-Triad for fixing my SPAG problems, and Angel Wraith for beta-reading the chapter and providing feed backs.
As always, I will blabber some more in my end note.
Motoyasu turns his head to look at Itsuki. He feels bad for what happened to his much younger fellow hero. The war he fought in had clearly made him very upset. And now he lost two of his companions right after they came back to Stormwind with Melty. The Spear Hero can't help but feel responsible for Itsuki's recent misfortune. Especially when one of them got beaten to a pulp, and got dragged out of the room by Iris' men. He would have tried to call a stop to the whole thing, if Dida wasn't the one doing the beating. He's even more scary than girls when they are angry!
The Spear Hero looks around. Realizing everyone is still focused on Sir Crepe and Lesty, he quietly scoots off his chair, and tip toes his way besides Itsuki. Motoyasu pokes his fellow hero a few times with his fellow hero before whispering in his ear. "Hey, Itsuki. If you need someone to join your party, I'll find someone for you. Iris' brother runs things here in Stormwind. And Katarina knows a lot of people. Oh, wait. I know! I can even have some of my children join your group! They can fight, they can pull carts, and you can ride them like how we went back to the capital. I'm sure I'll find someone for you."
Itsuki didn't reply to him immediately. In fact, the much younger hero stays quiet and still as a statue for a few moments. Thinking the Bow Hero must have completely ignored his earlier whisper, Motoyasu is about to poke Itsuki again when his fellow hero turns to him. "...What for?"
"Oh... you know. That fat knight guy and Lesty were your companions. And one got dragged out of the room. The other is probably going away because of what Sir Crepe said. You are now short of two guys in your party." The Spear Hero immediately pulls his finger away from Itsuki. He puts them behind the back of his head, and chuckles to hide his own nervousness. "I just thought I'd be nice to you, and help you find some replacement? Because, you know? Dida works for Iris?"
"Hmm... I guess he did." The Bow Hero nods his head along. His eyes wander all over the room, like he's being distracted by something Motoyasu can't see. After a few more moments of silence, Itsuki shakes his head. "Don't worry about it. Mald had what's coming to him. I don't know why he believed I would still think the Three Heroes' Church are good guys after what they did to Naofumi, or your companions."
"Yeah. They were clearly a bunch of asshole bullies!" Motoyasu's raised voice makes a few people inside the room turn to him. The Spear Hero looks down in embarrassment for a brief moment, before moving closer to Itsuki once again. "Anyways, you just lost two of your companions. You are going to need someone to hide behind, since you are an archer. Right? So I was thinking about finding you some tough guys. Or have a few of my children tag alongside you. Should be a big help in a pinch."
"Yes. That sounds good. I'll depend on you." Itsuki nods his head. It makes Motoyasu feel better to know he's helping out a friend in need.
"What are you two mumbling about?" Both of them turn their heads, and see Ren walking over.
Interlude 23: Rising of the Three Heroes
"Oh, I was just trying to hook Itsuki up with some more companions. Because you know, he's now two men less because of what just happened." Seeing Ren's raised eyebrow, Motoyasu continues to explain. I just thought out of us three, I'm the one who has the connection to find the best fighters for us? Because Iris' family is really rich and powerful. Katarina's apparently related to a lot of strong people? Not to mention I have been raising a lot of my children, and they are apparently pretty strong too."
"Makes sense.. but hold off on lending out your bird children for now." Ren nods his head for a few seconds, before he starts shaking his head. "We'll need all of your children not looking after Melty scouting around the mountain range south of us. If Naofumi is trying to escape from the Three Heroes' Church, he'll most likely try to cross the mountain. Have them patrol in pairs of two. If one group finds Naofumi, have one of them lead him to us, and the other run back and tell us where Naofumi is."
"Right! Good thinking there, Ren." Motoyasu slaps his own head. It sounds so simple when Ren explains it, the Spear Hero has to wonder why he didn't figure this plan out himself. Then again, that's why he leaves all the thinking part to smart people like Iris, Naofumi or Ren. He turns his head around to look at his own group. Particularly, at the young woman with long orange hair that tied into two braids. "You heard what Ren just said, Matsu?"
"Yes, Master Motoyasu. I will pass Master Sword Hero's order to my brothers and sisters now." Matsu closes her eyes. To someone else, it might appear that the glasses wearing girl has fallen asleep. But as her 'father', Motoyasu knows that Matsu is a rare breed of filorial monarch who has the ability to communicate with her siblings with her mind from a short distance. Much like her own namesake.
"What were you thinking, Itsuki? Why haven't you kicked that brute out of your group already?" Motoyasu turns around, and sees Ren berating Itsuki with a frown on his face. "Did you even hear what he was saying before he got the stuff beat out of him? That guy is like one of those Three Heroes' Church fanatics we've been fighting against! Did you think someone like him near us would have been a security risk? What if he said something to the wrong people, or passed a message directly to Three Heroes' Church when we went to rescue Melty? We'd be walking right into a trap!"
"Yeah, yeah... Mald had always praised the Three Heroes' Church, and talked bad things about Naofumi. I should have probably left him somewhere further away. Fort Wolf's Mouth isn't far enough if he found himself here in Stormwind." Itsuki nods his head along. Privately, Motoyasu thought the younger hero looked rather pitiful. He's being chastised like a child by someone younger than him. Ren is the youngest among them... right? Motoyasu keeps forgetting about it since Ren likes to act older than his age.
"Please don't be too hard on Master Itsuki, Master Sword Hero. There's a lot that's on his mind. Especially after he helped fighting against that Siltvelt army at Fort Wolf's Mouth." Rishia stands up behind Itsuki. She walks over to the Bow Hero and joins her arm with the Bow Hero. "Sir Mald had served Master Itsuki since his summoning. It wouldn't be right for Master Itsuki to discharge his service before Sir Mald committed some kind of grievous error, or showed himself to be a traitor. His faith in the Three Heroes' Church, or his distaste towards the Shield Hero isn't something unusual for a lot of people."
"You are defending your own bully?" Ren blinks his eyes. He looks to be having a hard time believing what Rishia is saying. Although now Motoyasu thinks about it... Rishia is acting awfully brave for how timid and shy she usually is.
"My personal treatment from Sir Mald has nothing to do with this matter, Master Sword Hero." Rishia shakes her head. She closes her eyes for a brief moment and seems to recoil her neck back. Motoyasu briefly wonders if Rishia's soft nature had finally caught up to her action. But when she opens her eyes again, there is no sense of her usual nervousness in her eyes, or her voice. "The point is Master Itsuki must act fair if he wants to have the support of the people. The way Sir Mald treated me might have been wrong, but it would equally have been wrong for Master Itsuki to punish him beyond his fault when he had served Master Itsuki faithfully till this point."
"Fine... whatever. We got lucky he didn't have the time or chance to sell us out. At least everyone knows whose side he is on now after his outburst." Ren shakes his head and then turns his face to look at Iris. The way he looks at Iris reminded Motoyasu of an owl. "I doubt Motoyasu's girlfriend would leave him unsupervised from now on. He wouldn't have another chance to go tattle, or pass a message to our enemies with him being watched."
"Excuse me. My friends and I couldn't help but overheard that Lord Bow Hero is in need of some additional companions?" A completely unfamiliar voice makes Motoyasu turn his head to the other side. He sees the three foreign men around his own age standing in front of them. The Spear Hero blinks his eyes a couple of times, trying to remember who these people are. He sees Barn, Iris' younger brother standing behind them and remembers that these are his schoolmates from that hero academy from Faubley. "We would have to return to Noble Faubley once our school break is over. But in the meantime, it'll be our honor to serve the legendary heroes in any way we could."
"This Three Heroes' Church rebellion doesn't concern you, Ed. You, Dorsen, Van and Nevile only came to visit me for your vacation. There's no point for you to get involved with this mess." Barn pulls at the sleeve of this 'Ed' from behind. His frown is as big as Ren's.
"Nonsense, Barn. I have every reason to involve myself with this affair. As a scion of House Tasmeria, I am the unofficial Faubley representative. Therefore, I have every right to witness the full treachery committed by the Three Heroes' Church and present all the evidence to Faubley's House of the Lords upon my return to make sure the guilty are properly punished, and the innocents have their justice served." Ed gently pulls his sleeve away from Barn. He turns around, pulling his back even straighter as he talks to Iris' brother. But after a moment, he lets is rigid posture drop, as he grabs Barns hand with both of his own hands. "But as one of your friends, I Edward Tome Tasmeria, second to my name, have a personal duty to see the besmirched good name of your family cleared. And if I have to fight through the Three Heroes' Church to do it, so be it. Remember what we said when we became friends in our first year, Barn? We, the Enforcers, are better than the Marauders. Because there will be no traitors among us."
Barn looks like he wants to say something back to Edward, but the door opens before he has the chance. A maid of House Amelia (not Tanya, she's still standing right behind Iris) quickly runs into the room. "Lady Iris, Lord Barn. Her highness Princess Melty has awoken."
Nearly everyone, including Motoyasu himself, immediately began to speak while trying to push their way out of the room. They are all silenced with a loud snap, followed by Iris' voice. "Everyone, get a hold of yourself! Princess Melty will be weak after waking up. We can't all gather in front of her. Master Motoyasu follows me. We'll go tend to Princess Melty. King Aultcray commanded you to protect his daughter in his absence. Everyone else, wait for us in this room."
The Spear Hero steals a quick glance over at Ren and Itsuki. Both of them have their feet rooted on the floor, looking completely calm, or too distracted to defy Iris' wish. And with the two of them staying quiet, no one else decided to object to Iris' order either. With her leaving the room led by the unnamed maid and followed behind by Tanya, Motoyasu quickly catches up and follows his fiance out of the former king's study. The Spear Hero would have described the walk as deathly silent except for their footsteps, but he can't hear the sound of their shoes touching the floor either thanks to the carpet in the hall. After a few moments, he carefully asks the noble lady in front of him. "Did I do something wrong?"
Iris suddenly freezes in front of him. Her personal maid Tanya pulls to a stop in the most elegant way possible considering her master's abrupt action. Motoyasu on the other hand isn't as lucky. He ends up tripping on his own feeting trying to avoid colliding into the older maid. Thanks to the carpet (or perhaps his DEF rating), he didn't feel any pain as he fell on his ass. But he does feel scared when Iris' face turns around to look him in the face. Her features, especially her eyes, reminded Motoyasu when he's stabbed by Ikuyo and Momiji. "Why do you say that, Master Motoyasu?"
"Well... you said it. The king asked me to look after his daughter. And I got my ass whipped by that goddess Lautrec summoned like a total chump...?" Motoyasu's body begins to lean further and further back into the floor as Iris turns around and walks towards him. His voice also grows progressively quieter. "Eck! Don't stab me?"
"I- I'm not going to stab you!" Iris takes a step back. She looks rather upset by what he said with the way her eyes suddenly grow very large. She backs away, takes a few deep breaths to calm herself, before walking up to Motoyasu again. "Why do you think I want to stab you?"
"Oh. You look upset there." The Spear Hero looks around him. He lets out a fake chuckle in an attempt to hide his own nervousness. "And the last time girls got really upset with me, I got stabbed."
"I- yes, Master Motoyasu. I am upset." Iris' eyes twitch at Motoyasu's words. The Spear Hero scoots back further till his head touches the wall. This looks exactly like the last time when Ikuyo and Momiji are upset with him now. "But no. I'm not 'upset' with you, Master Motoyasu. I guess you could say that I'm upset with our situation. And even if I'm upset with you, I would not have stabbed you. That would be distinctively unladylike."
"True, milady. You would have Dida stabbed Master Spear Hero. Failing that, you would have Dida give Master Spear Hero another one of his training sessions." Tanya bends her back forward, and whispers into Iris' ears. But she's still loud enough for Motoyasu to hear her every word. "And even if you would let Master Spear Hero get away with upsetting you, I would have stabbed him myself."
"You aren't helping here, Tanya." Iris turns to face her personal maid, and waves Tanya off before facing Motoyasu again. "I know you always meant well, even when you make mistakes, Master Motoyasu. That's why if I'm upset with you, I will explain to you what you did wrong, and how you can improve to make better decisions, or do things better next time. Stabbing you, or any other kind of corporal punishment would be very self-defeating considering you are one of the four summoned heroes, and need to be alive for the betterment of this world. Now, if you are done with being silly, let's go tend to Princess Melty. She must be awfully confused, and upset considering the way you 'rescued' her."
"Oh, okay. I can do that." Motoyasu grabs Iris' hand to stand back up. They resume their journey once again without saying any more words. At the end of the hall, the unnamed maid stands beside the door and bowes her head. Indicating this is the room Melty was being kept in. Yume and Karasuba stand on both sides, posting as guards for Melty. Tanya pushes the door open and lets Iris walk in. Motoyasu quickly follows and ducks his head into the room as well.
The room itself looks like one of those rich bedrooms from sword and sorcery fantasy games. Expensive looking polished wood furniture and decorations. The space is filled with a strange smell that's not really pleasant. Although not the kind that reminds one of a filthy public washroom. The scent is more towards bitterness, like traditional herbal medicine. Yes. The room smells kind of like that one where they found the unconscious king was kept in the back of the church. Motoyasu looks up at the bed inside the room. He can't see Melty, the bed itself has one of those tall, wooden hanger looking things (what was it called? He doesn't know) with a large piece of silk draped down. Hiding whoever is currently lying in the bed like a tent. All Motoyasu can see are two maids bending over near the end of the bed, clearly fussing over whoever is lying in there (which is Melty, unless the maid leads them to the wrong place). An elderly woman in a dark gray robe, her dry hair already turned into a much lighter shade of gray, is sitting by a desk, writing something.
"How is Her Grace doing, healer Nagu?" Motoyasu turns his focus onto Iris at what she said. He's not smart like Iris, he knows it. But even he recognizes the name Iris said doesn't sound like one of those European names most of this world (or at least this country)'s people have at all. Then again... Melty, or her sister Malty doesn't exactly sound like one of those European names either. Or maybe he simply hasn't heard about them.
"Ah, milady." The elderly healer looks up from what she's writing. She quickly leaves the stool she's been sitting in, and bows her head down at Iris. Seeing the elderly woman wobbling on her feet, Motoyasu quickly takes a few steps over and holds onto Healer Nagu, making sure she doesn't fall over. "Her Grace isn't in any danger. But her body and mind had been extremely stressed out, nearly to the breaking point by what happened to her family after the Third Wave. When the heroes confronted her about the church's betrayal, the shock pushed her beyond her limit. Her constitution is extremely weak right now, not helped by her young age. It'll take some time for her to recover, which is why I choose the more traditional herbal brew to slowly build her body back up, rather than trying to shock her system even more with potions."
"Very well. Do what you have to do to keep Her Grace in good health. We can not afford to let anything bad happen to the princess while she is in our care. It would have given the Three Heroes' Church all the ammunition they need to turn everyone against us." The elderly healer bows her head once again at Iris' words. Motoyasu can feel her skinny body underneath her thick robe slightly trembling with his hand. The Spear Hero gently guides Healer Nagu back onto her stool, before turning towards the bed. He sees the two maids who bent over its head now stand back at attention. Iris on the other hand is now sitting by the edge, murmuring something to whoever is lying in there. Tanya stood a short distance beside her. He still can't see anything with their bodies covering the opening of the silk 'tent'.
The Spear Hero let go of the elderly healer and tip toes his way to the other side of the room. He sees a copper bucket filled with water, and a small piece of damp blanket folded on the edge of the bucket. Realizing the maid was using it to tend Melty, Motoyasu dips the piece of fabric in the cool water, washes it out of any sweat or dirt, dries it up with his hand before carefully brushing the silk dripping aside to look into the bed.
Sure enough, Melty is lying in the middle. The young princess looks much smaller than Motoyasu ever saw her with her skin pale, lips dry, and eyes barely open. Even her blue hair, which almost had an unnatural glow, looks dull and lifeless as her body sinks in the silken mattress. The princess doesn't seem to recognize him as he carefully dips the damp blanket over her forehead. "Lady Iris... tell me truthfully. Were I lied to? Did Uncle Balmus honestly betray Father?"
"If you mean what happened to your sister and Lord Shield Hero. You were indeed lied to, Your Grace. Both of them were victims of the Three Heroes' Church's greed. Two of Lord Shield Hero's companions were killed in the aftermath, and the other two were unjustly taken as slaves by the church. Your sister, and Lord Shield Hero was forced to flee for their lives. I personally saw the church launch a [Providence Fireball] at them while they were fleeing by air. It forced one of Lord Shield Hero's companions to sacrifice himself to detonate the spell prematurely to save the lives of Lord Shield Hero, and Princess Malty." Iris' explanation gives Motoyasu a pause. That was how Naofumi's other companion died? He thought the rabbit man died alongside that wolfman, and got tossed into that mass burial. He... should have probably asked Iris what happened, but it slipped his mind with everything else going on. Damn, now he truly feels bad for Naofumi.
"As for Pope Balmus himself... I don't know." Iris pauses for a brief moment, then continues to explain the situation to Melty. Her answer makes Motoyasu twist his browns together. He knows that Iris is much smarter than him, and he's willing to listen to her for most of the things. But he doesn't know why Iris is taking such an uncertain attitude towards the leader of the Three Heroes' Church. All of the church people are bad. They enslaved Naofumi's daughters, Mutsu, and a bunch of other people from what Iris' family told him. They kidnapped Melty, almost killed her sister and (probably) poisoned her father. Surely, he must also be a bad, a very bad guy to be their leader. "The members of the Three Heroes' Church aren't all loyal to the Miracle Maker himself. There are other, more greedy and self-serving high rank members under him. It is still possible certain high ranking members, such as Head Confessor Cromwell did certain things opposite of what Pope Balmus wished, and forced his hands."
"I see... so, the Three Heroes' Church were the ones who tried to kill big sister Malty." The small princess closes her eyes. For a brief moment, Motoyasu thought Melty had fallen asleep once again. But after a few moments, she opens her eyes again. This time, her eyelids have fully pulled back. "I don't care if it's the clergy, or nobility. I will have no peace with scum of earth who want to harm my sister! Tell everyone for me, Lady Amelia. Your allies, your vassals, the common folks under your family and everywhere else. This rebellion will only end till I die, or they die!"
Motoyasu looks to the other side of the bed. He sees Tanya holding a crystal ball. Exactly like the one which Barn and his friend were using to watch the recording of that filorial race. Since there's no projection coming out of the magic crystal, the personal maid of Iris is clearly recording the meeting between Iris and Melty.
"As you wish, Your Grace. But are you truly determined to fight the rebelling Three Heroes' Church and their allies to the bitter end? From how I understood the situation, they did not mistreat you while you were under their care. Even if they had tried to throw a coup, they are not trying to overthrow your family." Iris leans her body down, and lowers her voice to that of a bare whisper besides Melty. "They would likely put you on the throne afterwards. If only for the stability of the nation in the face of the Wave of Catastrophe, and a possible crusade against our nation. But if I publically spread the words of what you said now, you will get your wish. This badly thought out rebellion of the Three Heroes' Church will end with the death of them... or you. As much as it's unfair to Princess Malty, it might cause even more hardship and tragedies to the people of Melromarc if we fight the rebels to the bitter end."
"That's not true, Iris! The Three Heroes' Church are bad people! They will only bully and mistreat everyone if they are allowed to do what they want!" Motoyasu can't help but blurt out what he's been thinking all this time. The Spear Hero only realizes he made a very bad mistake when the eyes of Iris, and Melty both fall on him.
The Spear Hero, Motoyasu Kitamura knows that he's not smart like Iris, Naofumi or Ren. That's why he listens to their advice rather than making decisions by himself. But this time ... he spoke up against Iris, someone smarter than him.
Yet, deep down. The Spear Hero knows he is right this time. "I'm not smart like Iris. I'm not rich like her family. Or knows so much about what's going on in this country before, or after the Three Heroes' Church tried to kill Naofumi. But even someone like I heard about what they did after the Third Wave. Those bad, church people enslave entire villages and towns. Force them into soldiers to fight and die for them! Letting them do everything they want will bring no good to anyone even if they treat Melty well!"
"As what Master Motoyasu said. Even if the rebelling clerics of the Three Heroes' Church stay loyal to me..." The young princess moves her arms, trying to push herself up from the mattress. Her arms lose their strength halfway, nearly throwing the princess onto her side. Thankfully, Motoyasu managed to catch Melty before she fell. The small piece of fabric on her head falls down on the mattress, now completely dried up. "I can't forgive them for what they did to my family, or my people. I'm still young. But with my father in their hand, my mother still forced to stay behind on Kal Mira island, and my sister in exile, I am the only one left of my family to make decisions. And my final decision is to fight the rebels to the bitter end!"
"As you wish, Your Grace. We shall pass what you said today to all your allies, and the people of glorious Melromarc to strike back against the traitors and rebels. In the meantime, you should rest and recover your strength. I will prepare for our counter attack against the rebels with the heroes." Iris gives one more bow to Melty. She stands up from the edge of the bed as Tanya drips a piece of fabric over the crystal ball and backs away. Before Motoyasu has a chance to worry about his earlier action might have upset Iris (and possibly being stabbed by Tanya), she looks over at him. "Will you come with me and let Her Grace rest, Master Motoyasu?"
"No. You do what you have to. Talk to Ren if you need one of us for something. I'm not as smart as him, and Itsuki still hasn't recovered from what he saw fighting in that fort thingie. I'm going to tend to Melty for a little, like you told me." The Spear Hero gently lays Melty back on the bed and picks up the blanket beside her. He is about to wash it in the copper bucket again before he steals a glance at Iris. "Did I... did I upset you just now?"
"No. You did well, Master Motoyasu." Iris gives him a long stare before she turns around, and leaves the bedroom with her personal maid in tow.
"Where is Sir Palmer, Master Motoyasu?" The Spear Hero looks down, and sees Melty's eyes drifting closer. Her eyelids twitch, seemingly trying to stay open.
"She-" The Spear Hero is about to blurt out the truth when he thinks about it. He's not smart, but even he realizes telling Melty what really happened would probably make her upset. She's clearly tired, maybe someone else can explain better after Melty has a good rest. "She's with my children. I raised more angel birdies for you. They'll meet you when you get well, have a good rest for now."
"Yes... that does sound nice..." Melty's eyes finally close, but she still lets out some words even as she drifts back to sleep. "Please... don't hurt Uncle Balmus if you don't have to."
"I'll do my best."
Two days have passed since Melty woke up. Itsuki stayed with them instead of going back to the fort. Motoyasu doesn't understand what's been going on with that war, but from what he heard, things had been going well for Melromarc defenders. That elf looking prince guy never showed up since the first day when he talked with Itsuki. The Siltvelt army never managed to get onto the wall of the fort, and the attempt to stealthily infiltrate through the mountain was stopped by rangers of Melromarc patrolling the mountain range.
Yet, Iris doesn't look any less upset than when the whole mess started after the Third Wave. In fact, she looks even more upset as she practically glares at the map spread in front of her on the table. "This kind of mundane tactic doesn't feel like Prince Kael'thas at all. He is one of the two most famous young Siltvelt military commanders alongside Lung, their Claw Hero. For a Siltvelt noble to be put on the same pedestal as a hero... he shouldn't be this unremarkable."
Motoyasu leans closer to Iris, and massages her shoulder to help relieve her stress. Across the table, Barn simply shrugs his shoulders. "What's there to think, and worry about, Sis? In that case, his name was clearly overrated by those Siltvelt savages. Or who knows? Maybe their Claw Hero is on the same level as this Prince Kael'thas."
"It's also possible that he's having his lieutenant keeping the pressure on Fort Wolf's mouth, while he himself went to cook a different scheme. I would rather not underestimate a potentially dangerous opponent... what's that noise?" Iris turns her head towards the window. Motoyasu follows his fiance over to the window, and sees Dida bringing someone over to the foot of the castle. The man had his body completely tied up, and his mouth gagged. It took Motoyasu a few more moments to realize the prisoner is Mald. Didn't he go south alongside Lesty to pass Sir Crepe's message to her father.
"Come with me, Master Motoyasu. We better gather everyone." Iris gives a quick tag of his sleeve. The Spear Hero nods his head, and follows his fiance out of the study. Tanya begins to shout orders to some of the other servants and maid on the way, and they immediately run off. They are joined by Katarina, Bertia, and their fellow servants not too long after. When they reach the former throne room of the Stormwind, Melty is already sitting on the king's former seat. Not too long after, Ren and Itsuki come in with their respective companions.
"milady, my men and I followed this trash after he left the city. And just as you thought. This trash immediately parted ways with his female companion after he went over Griffin's Spine." Dida kicks Mald's helmetless head with the tip of his boot. It causes some blood to spill onto the carpet.
"Stop that! Sir Mald is a knight, even if he is your enemy and prisoner. He should not be mistreated like this! He isn't some common criminal! Like a cutpurse, or thief you catched on the street." Motoyasu turns his head over to look at the one interrupting Dida. It's the short haired knight serving that Prince Edward guy. One of Barn's friends from Faubley.
That's apparently the wrong thing to say to Dida. As he immediately turns his head to face the other knight and sneers at him. "What? You think this traitorous trash's title makes him more important and precious than someone who grew up in the slum. And having to grow up, fighting for a piece of stale, moldy bread? That's why knights like you are nothing more than out of touch, old relics that's only fit to be stepped on by milady! Do you even know what the pig did? He left his companion by herself, and went west to the ruin of Port Harp. Trying to sell us out to the Three Heroes' Church! Here, let him tell you himself!"
Dida rips the fabric gag that's tied around Mald's head and steps away. With his mouth clear, the thuggish knight immediately starts to scream at Itsuki like a pig that's about to be butchered. "Master Itsuki! I did it for your own good! These traitors and heretics had you fooled. And now they have you kidnapped Princess Melty for their own greed! That's why we need to inform the Three Heroes' Church to bring everything back to order again."
"...Mald." Itsuki leaves his ground and walks over to the captured knight without any expression. As he stops in front of his begging former companion. The Bow Hero suddenly balls up his fist and punches Mald right in the face. Two loud cracks can be heard one after another. The first one when Itsuki's fist collided with his face and sent him flying, the second one when his head slams into the stone wall. "I should have done this a long time ago."
"Better late than never. And good riddance!" Dida crosses his arms in front of his chest. He shoots another smirk at Edward's knight almost like a challenge.
"That's enough, Dida! We are trying to fight a war against the Three Heroes' Church. There's no room for your personal grievances against knights or nobility." Iris raises her voice. This was enough to have Dida lower his head, and walk back to stand up against the wall. Iris turns her head towards Tanya next. "Take this traitor to the dungeon, but make sure he doesn't die."
Tanya walks over and starts examining Mald's wound, while a pair of guards walks over to the now unconscious captive, ready to take him away. Three figures suddenly run into the throne room almost at the same moment. Motoyasu recognized two of them. One being Matsu, the other is also one of his filorial 'children'. The one he doesn't recognize is one of Iris' soldiers. He looked ready to scream at something, but Motoyasu opened his mouth before the soldier. "Yomi?! You were partnered with Akitsu, weren't you? Have you found Naofumi?"
"Yes, Master Motoyasu! I-" Yomi had to bend over, and put her hands on her legs to take a few deep breaths. This action immediately tells Motoyasu that something is very wrong, considering his children have enough stamina to run all the way from Stormwind to the capital without resting. Yomi had to be running like crazy to cover the much shorter distance, and to be out of breath. Behind her, the soldier looks like he wants to shout her over, but he's quickly pulled back by two other guards in the throne room.
"Akitsu and Yomi found Lord Shield Hero and his companions while they were crossing Griffin's Spine." Matsu takes a step forward, and explains for her younger sister. "They were caught up by pursuers from the Three Heroes' Church! Akitsu stayed behind to help defend Lord Shield Hero, and Yomi ran back to-"
Matsu didn't finish her explanation when Ren immediately jumps forward. "Then what are we waiting for? We have to go help Naofumi now!"
"NO! Please wait a moment, My lords! Siltvelt army... A Siltvelt army is coming at us! They are less than half a day away!"
"A Siltvelt army? Where could they have come from?!" Barn suddenly screams at the soldier before Iris, or Melty had a chance to say anything. "How many men are there?"
"Too many! I couldn't count them all. They look like a swarm of locusts riding their way on wargs through the plain from the east!"
"Damn... damn it! How could I forget! And here I thought Prince Kael'thas was a fool. He played us all for fools!" Motoyasu turns around and focuses his attention on Barn. Iris' younger brother is scratching at his hair. "This must have been his plan all along."
"What do you mean, Barn? Where did this army come from, and what does it have to do with Kael'thas?" Iris whips her head over to look at her younger brother. "Warg, that's the preferred mount of the Siltvelt army from their south western region. Right? They are the most savage of them all. I wasn't trained in warfare, but I know they are the ones that periodically come south to raid the smaller kingdoms, free cities, and even northern Melromarc."
"Yes! The raiders must have been the checkmate move Young Phoenix planned all along. His army that's laying siege to grandfather's garrison, and his elite rangers that've been trying to infiltrate from the mountain range. Both are distractions meant to keep our attention away while we were also dealing with the Three Heroes' Church and their allies." Barn stops spinning on his heel to face his sister. "An army described by our scout is at least over ten thousand warriors, probably more. The phoenix prince must have gathered every raiding party around, and his target had been Stormwind all along. Because we have no terrain advantage to dig ourselves in like the forts along Griffin's Spine. He must have set his sights on Stormwind for our port, where he can take the ships and avoid our army defending the mountain range!"
"Could they have planned this together with the Three Heroes' Church? I thought they were enemies with each other?" Ren turns his head towards the Amelia siblings too. His gaze pierced.
"No. Prince Kael'thas can't have planned this together with the Three Heroes' Church. You are right, they are enemies. His goal must have still been to rescue the Shield Hero." For the first time since Motoyasu knows her, Iris seems to be biting her own lips. She closes her folding fan with a snap. "It's simply an unfortunate coincidence that he launched his attack just as we need to save Lord Shield Hero from the Three Heroes' Church."
"Then we have to stop him. We can't leave the people in this city to him!" Ren instantly turns his body towards Wyndia... and the small form of Gaelion resting on her head. "You go stop the Siltvelt army, Gaelion. Tell them what's going on here, and make sure they don't attack Stormwind and kill innocent people while we go save Naofumi and Princess Malty!"
"I'm a son of Gaia. Not some sellsword you get to order around, boy." Gaelion's body is snatched down by Wyndia before he even finished his complaining. Looking into her sad eyes, the small dragon changes his tone almost instantly. "Okay, okay! Just this once. Because I don't want to see my daughter sad. But you owe me big time, you damn hero brats..."
"Go summon all the non-combatants inside Stormwind's wall and prepare city defense, Barn. We have to prepare in case Lord Gaelion was unable to convince Prince Kael'thas to call off his attack. And prepare the mounts from the stable too. We'll ride to Lord Shield Hero, and Princess Malty's aid." Iris' brother immediately runs out of the throne room following her command.
"Do we have time to wait for our ride, Iris? Naofumi needs our help right now." Motoyasu can't help but to question Iris' command once again. "And I'm pretty sure I can run faster than a common filorial myself after training alongside my children."
"You would be fighting Lord Shield Hero's pursuers, Master Motoyasu. You don't want to tire yourself out like Yomi just did. We'll just have to hope Lord Shield Hero's group, and Akitsu can hold out till we arrive." Iris immediately waves his objection away. Once again, Motoyasu has to admit that she has a point. That's why she's the smart one who does the thinking for him.
"I... I think I'll only end up being your burden. Master Motoyasu." The Spear Hero turns around to look at Melty. The big seat meant for a grown man or woman makes her look even smaller, and her skin still looks unnaturally pale. "Please, bring my sister safely back to me."
"You can count on me, Melty!" The Spear Hero slaps his own chest to hide his nervousness about Naofumi, Malty, and Akitsu's fate. He walks out of the castle alongside the rest of the group who is either going to Naofumi's rescue or help with the city's defense.
Some of them walked in silence, while others nervously chatted with each other. He's close to Barn's Faubley friends, and he can hear that Edward guy whispering with the young man from their group. "Maybe you should stay here in Stormwind, Nevile. If we are going to fight against the church to defend the Shield Hero, there's a chance they wouldn't hold back against us even if we are Faubley nobility. Or maybe I should tell Dorsen to take you back to Faubley while there's still a chance..."
Curiously, Motoyasu turns his head to the side to look at the brothers. The much younger man looks scared, with the way his eyes seem to twitch around, while he himself seems to cling to his older brother's legs. But he shakes his head in the end. "No. I... I want to stay with you. Ed."
"Did Grandmother... Lady Arya gave you a hard time again?" The young noble from Faubley frowns at Nevile's answer. He gives his younger brother an encouraging pat on the back. "Okay. Stay behind us in the fight. Don't try to be a hero and run if things turn bad!"
"Oh, okay." Nevile nods his head and goes quiet afterwards.
Outside the castle, people in armor and holding weapons run on the walls while those in plain cloth run on the street. Everyone, both the soldiers and civilians look like they are being chased by some scary monsters behind them. Gaelion going his full size, and flying away nearly sent them into another wave of panic. Motoyasu hopes they can beat the bad church people fast, and still have time to come back and defend Stormwind if Gaelion wasn't able to scare the Siltvelt army off. Then again, if this Prince Kael'thas guy truly wanted to save Naofumi, maybe bringing him safe over is enough to have him call off the battle. It all hinges on them beating the bad church people.
Motoyasu doesn't know how long he waited for the ride alongside everyone else. It feels too long for the Spear Hero when he's worried for Naofumi, Malty, and his daughter Akitsu. But in the end, Barn rides to them with a large flock of regular filorials covered in armor, reins and saddles. Without any more words, they leap onto their rides. Yomi turns back into her bird form again, and they ride south to save Naofumi's life.
End Note:
As last interlude chapter, we get a further glimpse at Iris' short coming even if she is supposed to be one of the smartest characters in this story... as opposed to her canon self who is constantly portrayed as a near perfect being. She allows bad behaviors from her followers (at least till they become too destructive, as how she ordered Dida away after he almost broke Motoyasu's back 'training' him), and she isn't well versed in matters of warfare (and other things). But yes, she intentionally left Mald enough ropes for him to hang himself like she did with Van from her original canon. And that's more or less the end of Armor, as nicknamed by RotSH fandom.
Motoyasu shares a small moment with both Iris, and Melty. As always, I mostly take his characterization from Reprisal of the Spear Hero side story, where he's just a good, eager boy who wants to do what's best for his friends.
Also, we get a glimpse of the military play by Kael'thas even though he doesn't even physically appear in this story. Both Escharum's frontal assault of the border fortress, and the infiltration attempt by his elite rangers are distraction to buy him time, and cover to collect all the scattered raiding parties around other places so he can launch an assault on Stormwind to steal a ship and avoid the northern natural barrier. Of course, it wouldn't have worked, at least in term of saving Naofumi since he isn't even in the border of Melromarc anymore and Kael'Thas would have missed his king. But I'd say he get points for at least trying.
And of course, this marks the end of the interlude chapters before the final battle. Next chapter onward, we'll be going straight into the end game for Three Heroes Church saga.