Chapter Six: The Church's Dog Monster
"Okay, Raphtalia. If we meet any strong monsters down here, we run. You got me?" Naofumi instructed the demi-human girl while carefully looking around.
"Yes, Master Naofumi," Raphtalia said, her voice quiet.
The two of them were walking down a mineshaft. Naofumi held a torch in one hand, lighting the way forward as they walked past lines of wooden beams that supported the tunnel. Raphtalia held a pickaxe that looked a little too large for her. It was among the things that they came across in the rest station outside the entrance to the coal mines. She'd been given some more cough medicine that morning in advance, and had a handkerchief wrapped around her face, as Naofumi was concerned that the coal particles in the air down here would negatively affect her already fragile lungs. It was unlikely that she would succumb to the "black lung" disease as it was called in his world from just a single trip to the mines, but he would rather not take any chances.
"Um, Master Naofumi." Raphtalia said.
"What is it, Raphtalia?" Naofumi asked.
Raphtalia took a moment to think about her next words. "I was just wondering, why did that one shield earlier make you so angry?" Raphtalia quietly asked.
The incident she was mentioning had happened before they entered mines. In the process of going through the mining supplies, Naofumi had absorbed several different items, including a broken pickaxe and some old rope. The Pickaxe Shield improved his mining skill. The Rope Shield, however, had given him his first skill.
" Rope Shield ? That doesn't even sound like a real shield." Naofumi muttered to himself as he looked down at the wound-up rope with a gemstone in the center of it. "This looks pretty useless too. Damn."
Raphtalia continued to look around with childlike curiosity at the various mining supplies while Naofumi looked at the shield's stats. "Wait a sec… Air Strike Shield? What is that?"
After quickly pulling up his help guide to figure out it was a skill, and after pulling up further information to figure out what skills were and how to use them, Naofumi raised his hand in front of him. " Air Strike Shield !"
A tall, glowing green translucent shield with a beautiful pattern etched into it appeared in the room. Raphtalia stared at the new glowing shield in awe. "Wow, so cool."
She didn't notice it, but a look of shock passed over Naofumi's face when he saw the design on the shield. "There's no way…"
Almost abruptly, he turned away, not watching as the Shield disappeared after a certain amount of time. Raphtalia turned to congratulate her master but was surprised when she saw the look of anger on his face. "Master-"
He started masking his anger. "Come on. We have some ore to mine." He ordered as he walked to the exit.
As he walked away, Raphtalia could have sworn he heard her master muttering something about not using that skill ever again.
Her mind returned to the present as Naofumi spoke. "It's nothing,"
"But, but-" She tried to say. He still looked angry.
"Come on. We don't have all day." Naofumi said, slightly increasing his pace.
Raphtalia gasped in surprise and quickened her pace as well to stay close to Naofumi. She felt bad about trying to bring it up now. She just wanted to help her Master feel better.
...
Eventually, the tunnel came to an end, and the two walked out into a large cavern that glowed from the light of many ore veins sticking out of the walls. "Wow, it's so pretty," Raphtalia said to herself in awe. Already forgetting about what had happened in the tunnels on the way here.
'The ore is glowing… that's strange.' Naofumi looked down at the map he'd gotten inside the rest station. This didn't look like coal. But he recognized the wide-open cavern on the map.
He put it away and went to a piece of ore sticking out of the wall next to the waterfall. It had a green arrow pointing down at it that he assumed meant he could mine it. "Raphtalia." He said, holding his hand out to her.
Raphtalia gave him the pickaxe, and he, in turn, gave her the torch he'd been carrying. He then changed his shield to the new Pickaxe shield and swung.
He was surprised when, upon impact, the ore and the wall exploded outwards. He coughed from the dust that rushed into his face, but when the dust cleared, he looked down in disbelief. Improved his mining skill?! This shield made mining easy! That glowing ore littered the ground at his feet!
Naofumi picked up several pieces to examine them.
Light Metal Ore Acquired! Quality - Normal
Light Metal Ore Acquired! Quality - Good
The higher quality was, no doubt, another benefit of the Pickaxe Shield. Reading the information that appeared on his HUD, he found out the metal itself held magic properties that made it useful for blacksmiths. 'So that's why it's glowing.' He smirked, finally feeling a little more upbeat.
"This is going to be easier than I thought." He gathered the ore at his feet, walked over to another glowing ore vein sticking out from the ground, and hit it; achieving the same results as before.
Maybe it was the benefit of being the Shield Hero? Instead of having advantages in combat, he had advantages in mining and other categories, but then why was it difficult for him to make medicine? Did his STR stat also play a factor... Thoughts for later, he supposed. Right now, he wanted more of this valuable ore! "
Raphtalia stood back, watching Naofumi mine. He took a particularly powerful swing at the ore vein, knocking not only the ore but part of the wall away too. It was pretty amazing to see how strong her Master was.
Pretty quickly though, Raphtalia got bored with watching Naofumi swing a pickaxe at ore again and again and she started to look around for something of interest. "Hmmm?" After a few seconds of looking, she noticed tracks on the ground. They looked like they came from a monster.
"Footprints?" She followed the footprints with her gaze. 'Odd, they look familiar, but I haven't seen any monsters since we entered the mines…' She continued to follow the footprints.
"Hey Raphtalia, let's try a little further in and see what we can find." He said while pocketing the ore. He got up, but Raphtalia made no moves to come to him. "Raphtalia?" He turned but stopped speaking.
'No, there's no way!' Raphtalia stood deathly still, her eyes widened in fear. She recognized to whom those footprints belonged now.
"Raphtalia-"
Boom, Boom, Boom, Boom...
Loud footsteps sounded, cutting Naofumi off. 'What the hell is that?!' He walked up next to Raphtalia, looking at where she was staring in the darkness.
Slowly, and menacingly, a large, two-headed monster lumbered out from the shadows of the cavern. It was far bigger than the footprints on the ground indicated it to be. Its main body alone easily made it over three-quarters of Naofumi's height, and the long snarling drooling dog heads attached to it had long enough necks that it made it look like a giant compared to them.
Naofumi's eyes widened at the sight. 'What the hell kind of monster is that!?'
BathumpBathumpBathump!...
Raphtalia's heart started to beat faster in her chest. Looking at the two-headed Orthrus Dog, she saw flashes of the three-headed Cerberus that killed her parents in between each heartbeat.
"Raphtalia! We need to run!"
Her fear consumed her completely with the beast's terrible presence. She got that feeling again, that feeling of being powerless. Stronger than when she'd had to face the Usapil. This time it was all-consuming. All-encompassing.
"Raphtalia-!"
"NOOOOOOOO!" She screamed, hunching over.
At her scream, the Orthrus roared and charged forward. Murderous intent gleaming in its eyes.
"DAMN IT!" Right before the Orthrus dog could bite into her, Naofumi grabbed Raphtalia and jumped off the ledge, falling down past the waterfall towards the water below. Raphtalia kept her eyes closed in absolute fear, even as she and Naofumi slammed into the water, knocking the handkerchief off from around her face.
Seconds later, Naofumi broke the surface, pulling a coughing and flailing Raphtalia back to the surface.
"Lasso!"
The Rope Shield's special effect activated. The rope unwound and launched through the air above him, wrapping itself around a rock on a ledge opposite the side they'd jumped from. He used the leverage to pull himself and a coughing Raphtalia out of the water. 'And to think I thought this Shield was useless earlier.'
"Raphtalia! What happened there!? Why are you freaking out again!?" He asked her as he climbed.
Raphtalia coughed again. Her eyes were shut tight. "Dog-dog-dog-dog-dog," She said fearfully.
"Dog? Raphtalia, I don't understand?! What's so special about that monster-"
"One of them killed all the villagers back home... even my mother and father." She cried. In her mind, she was reliving that memory all over again. It hurt so much more than her nightmares. "It killed them, and I couldn't do anything." She continued to cry.
…
"A dog monster killed your parents…" Naofumi muttered in realization.
She gave him a sad nod. Naofumi's anger disappeared, staring down at her limp form. Several different puzzle pieces finally came together 'Blood… monsters… her home was destroyed by a Wave...'
That was why she'd reacted the way she had before.
She was a victim of the Waves...
Suddenly, up above, the dog creature growled in excitement as it jumped from a nearby ledge to another. It was getting closer to where the end of Naofumi's rope was. 'No!' He realized he couldn't force Raphtalia to fight it. He had to get them out of there now!
He hurriedly climbed the rest of the way up to the ledge. There was another tunnel in front of them. However, right as he climbed up, still gripping Raphtalia tightly to him, the monster jumped onto the ledge opposite of them. Blocking their only escape route out. "Damn it!"
He tried to race past the monster but immediately jumped back when one of its heads bit down at him. This close, he saw the monster had a purple HP bar hovering over it on his HUD as well as a purple arrow instead of a red arrow. His help guide identified it as a boss monster. However, the scariest thing was its level.
LV: (?)
Every monster he'd faced before this, he could see what their level was. That, combined with the fact that this was a boss monster, Naofumi found himself very much afraid.
Up above, in the shadows, a man in black robes was holding an orb, recording the event for the Church as he watched the spectacle unfolding down below. "Yes, yes. It's all going according to plan." He said to himself happily. He set the orb on a stand and rubbed his hands in anticipation.
The Orthrus dog approached, a big, growling mound of teeth and muscles, and Naofumi was forced closer back to the edge. Would he have to jump in again? But what if the dog followed this time? They were closer to the water here.
'Damn it!' He hated himself for even considering this, but there was no choice. If he couldn't do anything to an Usapil, then what could he possibly do against this thing?! He set Raphtalia down behind him.
"Listen, Raphtalia. I need you to take that thing out." He said determinedly. Holding his shield up defensively.
"... Huh?" Raphtalia was in such a state of fear, that she assumed that Naofumi had to have said something else. He couldn't possibly be suggesting her to-
"We can't outrun it. If we want to live, then we'll have to kill this thing right here and now." Naofumi said. "Then, we'll fend off the Waves of Catastrophe together and make sure that what happened to you will never happen to anyone else ever again," Naofumi tried to sound determined, but he was scared. Raphtalia could tell.
'No, Master Naofumi can't be suggesting we fight this scary dog monster!' Her body started to go into a full-blown panic attack.
"Raphtalia, I'm sorry, but your parents aren't coming back." His words hit her like a battering ram and hurt far worse. "But we can prevent other kids from going through what you experienced." He took a fighting stance. "You can do it! I know you can! And what I'm capable of doing is making sure that it won't reach you, so fight as best you can!" He yelled, charging bravely at the dog monster with his rope shield still on his arm.
The dog monster growled as it also charged. The two met in the middle, with Naofumi blocking its charge and one of its heads with his shield. He was surprised when he managed to hold it back. However, that feeling of triumph didn't last long as the other head bit down on his shoulder.
"Augh!" Blood spurted out from around its teeth. Naofumi cried out in pain as the dog's strong jaws tightened their grip. However, he didn't let go of the dog monster and held it in place.
Up above, the man in the black robes started to smile more widely. "Yes, yes. Cry out in pain, devil of the shield. It'll be the last time you ever get to." He said to himself happily. 'Oh, I hope the Pope is as happy as I am watching from the Church!'
Raphtalia stayed standing in her spot, looking torn as to what to do. She wanted to protect her Master, but she couldn't bring herself to face this monster. 'I, I can't do anything! I'm stuck! Mother! Father!'
"Raphtalia, you've got to kill it!" Naofumi yelled, grimacing in pain as the dog head didn't let go of his shoulder. It tried to break free, but he held on tightly to it. "Grab your sword and kill this thing! Do it now!"
Raphtalia fell to her knees, still gasping from the panic attack she was suffering from. "I, I can't." She said fearfully.
"Augh!" She looked away when more blood from Naofumi spurted onto the ground from the dog monster tightening its grip. He yelled in pain again.
'I, I can't.'
"Raphtalia." His survival instincts kicked in. He was going to go to hell for this but he had to get her to fight if they wanted to live! "This is an order. KILL IT, NOW!"
"AUGHHHH!" Raphtalia eyes widened drastically as she let out a scream from the depths of her soul. It was the first time her slave crest had flared up since he'd accidentally used it before. It felt more painful this time though, so much more. It was like the physical pain was combining with the mental pain of her memories.
The Dog's heads tore into her Mother. Ripping her apart first. Her Father's sword of light cut through one of the heads, but the other bit off his arm.
"Ah!" He fell to his knees, looking up at the monster looming over him.
Next to him, he saw his wife's sword sticking out of the ground. Though a look of anguish covered his face, he reached out and gripped the hilt tightly with his remaining hand. "No. Not until she's safe."
The Cerberus's two remaining heads reared up, then swung down to attack him.
"Aughhhhhhhh!" He jumped forward, tearing the sword out of the ground.
Both heads bit down on his sides.
His sword sank into its chest.
She saw it all before she blacked out in the water.
She bent over. This pain was too much. The suffering was too much. She just wanted to get away from it all. Away from everything.
The memory of the Cerberus dog biting through her mom raced across her eyes again. The angry-looking wave up above swirling violently as the people who'd loved her the most were torn apart…
Raphtalia looked back up. Tears freely flowed down her face. Gasping in pain, grasping her sword unconsciously, but not even the burning agony of the slave crest embedded upon her chest could make her move. She couldn't shake the three-headed Cerberus dog overlapping with the Orthrus Dog in front of her.
'I can't do anything. Even now, I'm still weak and useless.'
She wasn't like her Father. She wasn't like her mother. They were both gone.
It was too much. It was all too much. She looked dejectedly down at the ground. 'I'm sorry, mother and father.'
…
Naofumi finally looked back and saw it. The trauma painted on her face. The pain she was going through...
It hurt him far more than the dog monster that had already bit halfway into his shoulder.
He realized he couldn't make her do this.
"Raphtalia." He turned to face the dog again, this time with a look of grim determination in his eyes. "This will be my last order to you. Stand up and run! Forget about me and save yourself!"
The glow on the slave crest disappeared, and Raphtalia gasped as the physical pain disappeared. "Wh-what?"
"If you can't fight, then get the hell out of here!" He ordered again.
"But, but Master Naofumi?! What about you?!" She asked, her voice still sounding scared.
"My fate was already sealed the moment I came to this world. I was only trying to run away from the inevitable. But you have nothing to do with this. You don't have to die with me. I'll buy time for you to escape, so go!" He said, his voice sounding resigned to his coming fate. The dog monster again tried to break free, but he pushed himself into it, gripping with both hands while still protecting against the other head trying to get past his shield to tear him apart.
'At least if I die, she won't have to suffer alongside me for the coming months. She can escape, get rid of her slave mark, and live a free life. The medicine cured her illness this morning, and she knows how to defend herself. She'll be fine.'
"What? No..." Raphtalia's tears fell faster from her eyes. Her master's words and tone of voice hit her in such a way that the slave crest never could. "Then that'd be just…" She saw her parents in front of her, the three-headed Cerberus dog approaching. "... Just like..."
She was falling back down that cliff, looking up at her parents smiling faces. They'd sacrificed everything for her to live! "... parents."
"Raphtalia! Hurry! I can't hold it forever!" Naofumi yelled in pain.
"Master Naofumi...!?" She said, also sounding in pain. Pain that came from her being torn in two.
"Argh!" Again, she had to look away as the dog monster bit down harder, trying to get Naofumi to let go of it. More blood spurted onto the ground. Naofumi yelled in pain again.
"No! I can't do this!"
The memory of her parents' deaths was overrun by different memories.
The ball she and Naofumi made together. The time he hid a smile as he congratulated her for killing her first balloon. The haircut he'd given her. The medicine he made for her.
Finally, she saw the two of them at night. With him comforting her after going through her latest nightmare.
"You can count on me to protect you Raphtalia. Even when I don't show it, even when I act like a total $# ! to you, just know that I want to protect you."
She had been woken up by him embracing her tightly, and she'd heard him. And he was doing that now. He was willing to die by this dog monster if it meant protecting her.
"No." She saw blackness, with her parents waving goodbye to her as they walked away. As much as that hurt, she saw Naofumi take their place. He waved goodbye to her too with a sad smile on his face as he started to walk away. And that hurt her more. Almost as much as her parents left.
"No don't leave me! Please don't leave me!" She yelled after him, and yet he kept on walking and no matter how fast she ran, she could not catch up to him. He began to slowly fade away into the dark parts of her mind.
"No! Please!" Raphtalia cried out again, running forward in her mind. Her hands reached out for him, trying to stop him. "Naofumi! NAOFUMI!"
In the real world, she got her sword at the ready. 'No! I can't let this happen again! NEVER AGAIN!'
She finally understood why her parents did what they did. Why her Father fought through his anguish and gave his life to guarantee the Cerberus's death.
She ran forward. Her fear morphing into a desire to protect the only thing she had left, the one person she cared for most. She jumped high into the air. Higher than she'd thought possible. "AHHHHH!"
With a loud scream and a well-aimed thrust, she buried her sword to the hilt into the head biting Naofumi's shoulder. Both dog heads roared in pain and the one head that held Naofumi released him.
For a split second, she hung in the air, looking bewildered at what she'd just done. 'I did it.'
Her victory, however, was short-lived as the one head bucked her off, throwing her to the side. Raphtalia hit the ground, sliding back into a wall. Her sword fell beside her.
The two-headed dog roared as it turned to face her, hatred burning in its red eyes. She gasped in fright. 'No… that didn't kill it…'
This was the end.
The Orthrus dog pounced at her.
"Air Strike Shield!"
A large green translucent shield appeared in front of Raphtalia, and the monster plowed with both heads into it. They screeched in surprise and pain from hitting the unexpected barrier.
"Now, Raphtalia!" Naofumi gasped in pain as the shield disappeared.
Raphtalia got back up, gripping the shortsword with both hands. She would make this one count! "Hahhhhh!" Thrusting forward, she buried her sword to the hilt in the center of the monster's chest.
Blood came spurting out in great clumps out of the wound as the monster's heart was pierced. Both monstrous heads lowered down to rip her head off. The two pairs of red glowing eyes stared into her own with an indescribable feeling of hatred and malice. But the girl did not look back with fear, she had her own canines bared as she glared at the beast with defiance.
"Never again." She growled out through gritted teeth. She'd never let fear freeze her while facing a monster again! She twisted the blade that was stuck in the abomination's rib cage, shredding its heart completely.
The Orthrus Dog howled out in agony one last time as it teetered on its two hind legs in the air... and then it fell back onto the ground with a final crash.
Raphtalia breathed in and out heavily. Once more, she was covered in blood from her hair to her legs. 'Is it… over…?'
+430 EXP
Raphtalia: LVL 10
'It is… it's finally over.'
"Well done, Raphtalia." She looked up and saw Naofumi gripping his arm under his hurt shoulder with a tired smile on his face. Blood slowly leaked down his arm. "Well done."
+340 EXP
Naofumi: LVL 9
"I knew you'd be able to do it." He finished proudly.
Raphtalia stared in shock for a few seconds, then tears started flowing from her eyes again. Tears of relief. "Master-" She cried, running forward. "-Master Naofumi!" She finished, clutching Naofumi in a tight hug as she cried.
He gasped in pain again as Raphtalia continued to cry into his chest. "Careful, even with this shield's power this wound still hurts like hell." He said, grimacing in pain. But he rested a hand on the back of the crying girl's head.
"Promise me you won't ever die. Don't leave me alone Master Naofumi, please." She continued to cry into his chest.
'...' As much as that title had annoyed him before, after what had just happened, he didn't find it annoying anymore.
He continued to rub the back of her head with his left hand. "Raphtalia. I'm so sorry for trying to force you to fight with the crest." He said sadly.
Raphtalia shook her head. "No, I'm sorry I froze up. I'll never freeze up again, I promise." She cried out, burying her head in his chest.
...
"How about this. If you promise to attack for me, then I'll promise to defend you from everything. That way neither of us will ever have to worry about dying. You got me?" He asked calmly.
"Al… Alright." She said quietly, her cries dying down. She could live with that.
'There's our little girl.' She heard her mother's voice say proudly in her mind.
'Good job Raphtalia. We're so proud of you.' She heard her father say next.
'Make sure to take care of the Shield Hero. He needs you. More than he realizes.' She faintly heard her mother's voice say as her parents faded from her mind.
Raphtalia's tears slowed. For once, she felt peace in her heart about her parent's sacrifice for her. They hadn't left her. They never did.
'Thank you, mother, father.'
She'd wondered since that Wave why they gave up their lives for her. Now, she knew why.
"We'll get out of here once I feed this monster to my shield," Naofumi said, not wanting to risk the chance of finding another monster like the Orthrus dog to find more ore. "Is that okay?"
"Okay, Master Naofumi," Raphtalia said. She didn't let go.
...
"Come on, get up." He told her.
"Please. Just a little longer." Raphtalia whispered tenderly.
...
Naofumi sighed but allowed her to continue hugging him. 'She just took on her worst nightmare head-on and came out on top... I think I can allow her some time to put herself together.' He continued rubbing the back of her head, finding peace in the middle of a cave full of glowing ore.
Up above, the black-robed man was still staring down below in shock. "What the hell." He muttered to himself. Still trying to process what had just happened.
Eventually, he slammed a fist on the ground beside him. "Altara said the demi-girl's parents were killed by dog monsters! She should have been traumatized from that! This plan was foolproof!" He said angrily.
"I daresay, I thought the Church of the Three Heroes was filled with nothing but fools." A voice spoke calmly behind him.
The Church Shadow's eyes widened at being discovered, but before he could even turn around a blade went through his chest. He stared down at the red-covered blade in shock, a gurgle escaping his mouth as the paralysis poison kept him from screaming out. "You clearly underestimated their strength, traitor." Slowly turning his head, he was met with the masked face of a mysterious lady.
"... The Shield… will still… be hunted… whether I die… or not..." He quietly gurgled out. His eyes falling onto the crystal ball still resting on its stand. He'd die here today, but the Shield Demon would still be expunged, one way or another.
"... I'm sorry. Your compatriots in the Capital never got the message." She whispered in his ear. "I switched out your crystal ball with a fake long before you even came here."
The man's dying eyes widened in realization. 'Then my death… was in… vain…' His eyes slumped into the back of his head, and the lady pulled her blade out of the man. He fell with a wet thunk onto the ground.
"And good riddance." The mysterious lady said calmly, cleaning her blade off on the Church Shadow's clothes.
The woman looked down at the Shield Hero, quietly embracing the demi-human girl to him. The shadow retained a look of calm despite the heartfelt situation. However, at that moment, she learned she'd made the right call after all.
"I am sorry for not being able to help you directly, Sir Shield Hero. But I shall dispatch the other operatives of the Three Heroes Church in the immediate area. I daresay, you and your companion have earned yourselves a reprieve and a chance to retreat." It could possibly put her at risk, but she had as of yet to receive orders from the Queen. So she would continue to act as she felt would best help the Shield Hero. Silently. Never being acknowledged or allowed to take credit for her actions.
This was the life of a Shadow. This was her oath that she'd given to the kind woman who'd shown her kindness many years ago.
One second she was there, and the next she became one with the shadows.
"Eat all you want. You earned it."
The table between Naofumi and Raphtalia was full of different dishes. There were all sorts of bread, veggies, fruits, cheeses, and meats to choose from along with sauces to dip food in.
"Thank you," Raphtalia said happily. She took a large bite of what she had on her plate.
Naofumi stared glumly down at his plate as she started to eat. His right shoulder was all bandaged up, and his cloak was off to the side for the moment. It hurt to have that thing over his shoulder. To ward off any suspicious stares, he'd turned his legendary shield into the Light Metal Shield and settled it against his lap. He'd unlocked the shield after he absorbed some of the light metal ore that he had mined.
It gave him some bonus defense against magic attacks. Besides that, it was an ordinary shield with an equip bonus that increased his Defense stat a couple of points. It looked normal enough on his arm to not appear out of place. It was also the strongest shield he had in his arsenal yet.
He tested out a bite, hoping that what had happened in the cavern was enough to allow him to be able to taste again. But unfortunately, the food was as bland as ever. 'So much for buying all this food if I can't even taste it.'
He was starting to guess why too now. And no, it wasn't because of Bitch.
...
Naofumi still felt bad. Even though they had both lived and made it back to Lute Village safely, he couldn't help but think that it was all his fault. He'd been so focused on wanting to get some valuable ore so they could get stronger. But that ore turned out to not be as valuable as Raphtalia was. Not because it was worth more than what he'd bought Raphtalia for, which it'd come very close to doing, but it was because Raphtalia was starting to become more valuable than money ever would be.
Even after being exposed to some of her worst trauma, she was smiling and eating happily. Her ball laid to the side, ready to be played with after dinner. It made him feel even more guilty that he'd almost destroyed her happiness by trying to force her to face the Orthrus. If he had destroyed this little girl's perception of life because of his selfish desire to live…
'I'd be no better than that redheaded bitch…'
Naofumi looked back down at his plate. His head hanging down. He didn't realize that Raphtalia had been looking at him for the last few seconds instead of eating.
"Master Naofumi."
Naofumi looked up from his bland meal down at the young Raphtalia. She paused in her eating and smiled widely for him. "No matter what happens, we're going to survive. Together." She said determinedly.
…
"Of course we are." He replied in an emotionless tone. 'Even now… after forcing her to fight that monster… she still wants to stay with me?...'
It almost brought tears to his eyes. 'I'll just have to see what happens down the road...'
Thinking on it a little more, he grabbed the little flag that had been on her meal and poked a finger into some red sauce. Raphtalia looked in childlike curiosity at him. "Hmmm?"
"Here, a kids lunch isn't complete." He said after he dabbed a little red dot on the center of the white square of paper. "Without this." He said, before showing her it.
"Huh?" She said confusedly.
Naofumi almost smiled at her childlike curiosity. It really was so much better seeing her look like a kid than like an abused child. "You see Raphtalia. This is the flag I have back at home where I'm from." He started to explain to her. "It represents the rising sun. That, no matter how dark or scary things will get, a new dawn will come and push the darkness away. But to me, it represents that no matter where I go or what I do, I'll still have a family, friends, loved ones… a home to return to. It helps me to remember that I have a reason to continue living despite the hell the world puts me through. That no matter what happens, everything will be fine since I know there's one place in the world where I'm accepted. A home."
He gave it to her. She looked in childlike wonder at it, again almost causing Naofumi to smile. Almost. The good memories he had of a home might have helped out a little bit.
"Why such a simple flag?" She asked.
His almost smile turned into a frown. "Hey, I already told you, that flag also represents the rising of the sun in my world." He said defensively.
"It looks like all you did was dab a red circle on a piece of white paper. "Raphtalia giggled to herself.
Naofumi's frown deepened. The look on his face only caused Raphtalia's giggles to turn into childlike laughs. He rolled his eyes and looked glumly down at his tasteless food. "It's not like a flag here would be any better." He muttered to himself as he raised another piece of the bland tasting meat to his mouth.
"Master Naofumi?"
The bite of food was left hanging below his mouth, and he sighed. "Yes, Raphtalia?" He asked as he set it back down on his plate.
She was smiling again and holding the flag close to herself like a treasured possession. "One day, we'll have a flag of our own raised up somewhere. That way, no matter where we are in this world, no matter how many waves you have to fight, you'll have a place you can call home." She said brightly.
Naofumi stared at Raphtalia for a long moment. Studying her expression to see if there was any hint of her lying to him or not. He briefly wondered if she'd say the same thing if she knew his situation. That if the Capital were to capture them, then the chances of them being separated and stripped of everything except their lives, if they were merciful, was about 100%. But the happy look on her smiling face kept him from doing so. In fact, it helped him to picture a future like that being possible for them.
At least, one day after this was all over.
A small smile appeared on Naofumi's lips. "Maybe."
"Are you smiling, Master Naofumi?" She asked.
"Eat up Raphtalia. Otherwise, your food will get cold."
Raphtalia's eyes widened in surprise before looking down at the food she'd almost forgotten about. After being spoiled the way she had with nice warm food, she didn't want to be reminded of the cold tasteless food she had to eat while she was a slave. With gusto, she went back to devouring whatever was on her side of the table.
Naofumi's small smile stayed on his face. 'You know, maybe I don't need a whole kingdom to approve of me... I'd be just happy with her approval.' He thought somewhat happily... up until he finally took a bite of his meal.
His expression soured again. 'Damn it!?'
…
"Excuse me, are you Naofumi?" A familiar deep voice asked.
Naofumi looked up and froze in his spot. The girl opposite him continued eating, though her ears twitched with curiosity at the newcomer's voice. 'Oh hell…'
Up above, the same burly village guard that had taken the toll from him to enter the village was standing by him. "Who are you?" Naofumi replied blandly, though he was tightening up in the case that he needed to fight.
The guard must have noticed this because he took a seat at the table behind Naofumi. He held up his hands to show he wasn't holding any weapons. "Only a simple friend of Elhart's that owes him a favor." The guard whispered.
…
Naofumi was still prepared to launch himself at the guard if need be, but he nodded his head to the guard. "Yes."
"Good. I thought it was you when you first arrived, but I wasn't sure." He said quietly, glancing at the girl to make sure she was busy eating. "What went down in the coal mines was an attempt by the Church of the Three Heroes to dispose of you." He cut straight to the point.
"... What?" Naofumi asked, not expecting to hear that.
"I talked to one of my friends, who overheard from the traveling merchant in town earlier today. He was talking to a stranger, and celebrating giving the 'disguised Shield Hero' the idea of going into the coal mines to have him killed by a strong monster placed there by the Church."
…
Naofumi's eyes narrowed down at his plate. It was like he hadn't heard the good news about the dog monster being killed. "Where is that guy?" He quietly asked, venom in his tone.
"The stranger he was talking to was found dead in the mines." Again, Naofumi was surprised. "That merchant and two of his friends are dead as well. One of my patrols found them on the side of the road. They were all poisoned. It wasn't by me or any of my guards. Regardless of that, I give you a couple of days at best before the Church or Capital gets suspicious and sends a battalion of knights to investigate." The guard continued to whisper. "By then, you'll have to be long gone. Otherwise, they'll think you killed them."
The guard smiled up at a waiter who approached and made light chat while ordering his meal. Naofumi continued to stare down at his plate. 'They… they know about Raphtalia…' He looked up across from him at the happy carefree girl. 'They knew what her trauma was! They not only wanted to kill me but also HER!' His mind boiled with rage. It was bad enough they wanted him killed, but to want to kill someone as sweet and innocent as Raphtalia...
Raphtalia continued to eat happily, having been so focused on her food that she didn't hear the quiet conversation. Naofumi had to cap down on his growing rage and promises of giving those in the Church a violent end quickly before it showed on his face. He waited to speak until after the waiter walked away. "What can we do?" He asked.
The guard looked back at him. "I'd stay here a day more, and then continue to lay low out in the forest. Only go into towns when you need supplies until the next wave. Wait for that demi-human girl to grow up and change in appearance so she isn't recognized if you have to. Even the Capital Knights will think twice before going into some of the areas around us, so it should give you plenty of time to hide out till the next wave if you keep moving around." The guard whispered, discreetly handing Naofumi a map.
Naofumi looked deep in thought as he stared at it. "Do you know when the next wave is?" Naofumi asked quietly.
The guard thought about it. "The way I hear it, the next one should be hitting in about twenty days." He replied back quietly.
The guard proceeded to take his food from the waiter and made some small talk with her again. Naofumi then noticed a person standing in the doorway. It was the monster shop owner from before. He looked outside, nodded to himself, and then continued to keep watch over their table.
Naofumi looked back down at his plate. Feeling like a thousand bricks had just been placed on his back again. The waiter eventually moved on, and the guard got up, carrying his food to go with him back to his post. "Good luck, sir Shield Hero." He whispered quietly before walking past. He met up with the monster shop owner, and the two left the inn together.
...
Raphtalia finally looked up from her food. "Who was that Master Naofumi, and what were you two whispering about?" She asked.
Naofumi glanced back up from his plate. "A friend of Elhart's. We were only discussing grown-up stuff." He said blandly.
'Twenty days to disappear and strengthen for the next wave… I wish I could just say to hell with it and not participate, but if Raphtalia's home was destroyed by a wave before she was enslaved, then I can't stand idly by. It doesn't look like everyone is against us anymore. I won't allow other innocent people to become victims like her!' He thought determinedly, surprised at his own decision. When did it suddenly become about more than just survival…?
He looked at the girl in front of him. Ah… that's when. So even though his food had no taste to it, he forced himself to continue eating. If only to give himself the energy he needed to continue to fight.
"You're right Raphtalia. We're going to survive, no matter what's thrown our way." Naofumi said boldly.
Because he'd be damned before he died facing the King, the Church, or the Waves.
Till Next Time
Allen