Chapter Thirty-Two: The Spirit Tortoise: Round Two
This was the day of battle.
Naofumi was once again standing at the front of a large army. He couldn't help but think how things like that were slowly starting to become the norm for him as of late.
But this time, Mirellia wasn't standing beside him. Nor were they standing on a pillar of earth to meet with some other army. This time, he sat in the driver's seat of a carriage, facing the ominous dust cloud billowing from the mountain range in front of them.
They couldn't see its main body yet, but they could see the series of mountains the Spirit Tortoise carried on its back as it crashed through the mountain range in front of them. Its footsteps could be heard easily now, with vibrations shaking the ground beneath their feet. At any moment, the Guardian Beast would step foot onto the plains.
And then, the battle would begin.
The area chosen for this grand face-off was a large dry plain. This not only gave the Heroes plenty of room to maneuver around, but it also gave the rest of the army a wide-open area with plenty of options to split off, fall back, and recover before rejoining the fight. The mountains far in the distance behind them were the metaphorical line that they couldn't let the Tortoise get to, no matter what.
If that happened, the army would have to pull out completely, and the Heroes would be forced to fight in terrain very unsuited for fighting Titanic-sized monsters.
The Shield Hero nervously looked down at the reins of the Filolial that he was directing. It had brown feathers and was Lv. 70. It was among the highest level Filolials that the coalition had to offer. It kept on pawing at the ground beneath it. He rubbed a hand through its back feathers to try and calm it down, with some measure of success.
To get them as close to the Spirit Tortoise as fast as possible, the Heroes were given two open-air wagons pulled by two different Filolials. Naofumi and Ren were in the current wagon with the rest of the vanguard, while Itsuki was holding the reins for the other wagon where the ranged supporters sat in anticipation.
Their approach and retreat options were taken care of, but as far as what everyone would do after they reached the Guardian Beast... well, Naofumi was still working on figuring that out. He had to learn if they could at least successfully block the Tortoise's attacks first.
If they couldn't, then there was little chance of defeating it even with everyone's backup.
But if they could block the Spirit Tortoise's initial attacks, their chances of winning would go up drastically. As long as Ren and the others had a way of landing attacks on its head that is.
"Remember, once it begins to take us seriously, we'll need to watch out for gravity magic," Ren said behind Naofumi.
"Yes, I know," Naofumi replied.
"And more than that, we need to watch out for its electric breath attack." Ren continued, his voice nearly breaking from anxiety.
"We went over this last night," Naofumi responded stoically.
"It fired that attack twice in my game, but it only fired it once in Itsuki's game. Regardless, we'll need to keep an eye on it just in case-" Ren frantically continued to speak while starting to hyperventilate.
Right. Naofumi noted internally. The Sword Hero also had to not pass out in the middle of the battle from the stress. That was needed too.
"Ren." Naofumi looked back at him. "Calm down... Remember my promise."
Ren took several deep breaths, his face falling at the end in shame. "S-Sorry."
The Filolial in front of him started pawing at the ground nervously again. Naofumi reached forward and began stroking its back again.
"Nervous?" Raphtalia peaked her head over his shoulder.
"Him, definitely." Naofumi chuckled.
"I was asking about you." Raphtalia clarified.
"Oh… Is it showing?" Naofumi's confident smile faded away despite her close proximity.
"I'm sorry. I'm not supposed to be reading your face anymore." Raphtalia sat next to him and lowered her head sadly.
"I mean, I'm supposed to put on a brave front. But if you can tell I'm nervous, everyone else will be nervous about our chances of winning and-" Naofumi started to speak nervously just like Ren.
"Oh, don't give us that nonsense Sir Naofumi!" Dou-Lon bellowed loudly from the back of the wagon. "Why, I didn't think you were nervous at all!"
"I thought he looked a little nervous," Welt whispered. "I mean, do you see the size of that thing?"
"I'm definitely nervous?" Aksel grimaced while squirming in his seat.
"Second-hand accounts certainly couldn't hope to describe that monster." Bakta agreed. More mountains fell, forming a large dust cloud that obscured the moving mountains for a moment. They didn't even want to imagine how big the monster had to be to even carry those mountains on its back.
As they continued to speak, Raphtalia hugged Naofumi's arm. "Are you sure you're ok?" She whispered to him.
"Well-" Naofumi was about to lie, then he remembered the promise he'd made with her only yesterday. "Not really. I'm scared, and I wish I didn't have to fight that thing again."
The longer they waited, the closer the Spirit Tortoise got. He could feel his stomach knotting itself over and over again as fear settled in his bones.
"Raphtalia…" Naofumi's throat was dry. "Remember what I told you before, ok."
"Don't worry, I won't be making the same mistake again," Raphtalia reassured him.
"I know. It's just… this thing is strong enough to hurt me." He said bitterly. "If you try to take any of its attacks to save me, you will die. No ifs or buts about it. So don't do that, no matter what happens."
…
She looked sadly at him. "Our enemies keep on getting stronger, don't they?"
"It's a sad fact of life. There's always a bigger fish out there." Naofumi agreed.
Raphtalia nodded. They were, quite literally, looking at the biggest chunk of sea life yet. "Is it bad that I wanted to protect you before?"
He opened his mouth to answer, but Raphtalia was already ahead of him. "Nevermind, of course, it was. I'm supposed to be your sword, not your shield. I let my love for you blind me to that fact. I'm not meant to be your shield. I never was."
"Why… why did you want to shield me anyway?" Naofumi felt to ask.
"I grew up seeing your pain every day. Even after you began to really trust me, I still noticed the times when you were suffering. How you chose despite that to protect me, then Filo, then others. It seemed no matter how many you took under your wing, you were determined to protect them. And somewhere along the line, I had the thought: If you were so busy protecting others, who was going to protect you?"
...
When she looked at him, there was no sadness in her features. Only determination. "I won't regret protecting you from your curse. I'll strive to protect you from yourself no matter what. But… I guess I should allow you to protect me and the others from monsters now and then."
"Raphtalia…" He sadly smiled as he patted her head. The affectionate gesture broke her serious face. "I really don't deserve you."
"Tough. I already chose to stay with you no matter what. So you better get used to it. I'm not going away ever." Raphtalia stuck her tongue out at him.
He realized. It'd been a while since he'd seen her be immature. He was so used to seeing her be a mother to Filo and Melty, training outside the village, helping out with a variety of tasks… but the moment of immaturity wasn't that of a kid. It was like the playful flirting of an adult.
He'd already taken note of it before. It would have been really awkward initiating a relationship with her had he not already been so acutely aware of these details. But she really wasn't a kid anymore. She wasn't a ten-year-old living in an adult body. She was, truly and fully, an adult at heart now.
Demi-humans were a strange race indeed. It saddened him to think he'd robbed her of her childhood forever. But she'd given it up to become who she was.
They looked ahead again. They watched as another mountain crumpled in its path. Then, the Spirit Tortoise's head finally came into view.
Bakta gulped behind Naofumi. "We're… we're really going to try to stop that thing, huh?"
"Ah, yes, this will definitely be a story to tell the kids when we're old and fat!" Aksel laughed boisterously. It didn't hide his nervousness in the slightest, but he carried on joking. "Imagine, we got to help the Shield Hero stop that thing there! We're going to be legends!"
"If we're not squashed underfoot that is." Bakta grimaced.
"Well, you could still be legends," Welt commented. "I can already see it. The legend of the two idiots squashed by the moving mountain. What the hell were they thinking?"
That elicited some laughs from others in the wagon. Both the tanks scowled at the swordsman.
"Don't do that. I'd be very sad to lose you." Maya said quietly, rubbing the arm of her favorite knight.
"Well, not sure if it'll help much or not, but we're going to be using these today!" Aksel grinned as, instead of an ax, he held up a large round shield. Bakta was similarly missing his greatsword and was instead holding a large rectangular tower shield on his lap.
"The more defense, the better!" Bakta nodded in agreement.
"It'll be weird not hacking into this thing alongside you guys. But if we can help Sir Naofumi, it'll be all the better." Aksel said happily.
"What are those grooves for?" Maya asked curiously, her finger sliding along one of the indents in the side of Aksel's shield.
Naofumi had copied Bakta's current shield once back when he'd visited Elhart's shop. But looking at Aksel's current shield, the Shield Hero couldn't remember copying one like it at all. "What is that?"
"Oh, this is one of the Sword Shields those knights from Siltvelt use." Aksel happily answered. "I asked if they had any good shields that I could use, and they lent me this one."
"Huh, I remember trying to train with one of those." Dou-Lon looked at it in awe.
"Watch." Aksel pressed some button on the back of it, and then from the grooves, small blades sprouted out.
"I thought you said no slicing or dicing was going to happen." Bakta glared at him.
"Hey, it's not my fault you didn't grab an attack shield that could sprout blades." Aksel shrugged with a cocky smirk. "You think I'd be fine with just stopping the Spirit Tortoise in its tracks? I want to make it hurt too!"
"Is your attack stat even high enough to hurt it though?" Ren asked, anxiety temporarily forgotten as he curiously studied the bladed shield.
Touching it, the Sword Hero found that he couldn't copy it. He guessed it was because it wasn't actually a sword.
Naofumi, upon seeing the Sword Hero's expression, shrugged and reached out a hand to try and copy this latest shield himself.
Weapon Copy Activated!
Sword Shield Unlocked!
Naofumi was actually surprised! It worked! Changing to the shield, he found the sword-like blades came out from it too!
Ha! He honestly thought his Shield wouldn't classify it as a shield! But it had, and-
…
...
And despite it being an offensive shield, his Legendary Weapon still didn't magically gain an attack stat. Once again, an offensive weapon was completely useless in Naofumi's hands.
Everyone heard the annoyed groan that Naofumi released. And everyone saw the scowl that appeared on his face.
"Ack, I'm sorry!" Aksel retreated in terror.
"Naofumi?" Raphtalia snapped to attention.
The Shield Hero breathed in and out through his nose. Raphtalia rubbed his shoulder to help calm him down. "Raphtalia, why does this shield hate me so much?" He asked.
Seriously, the same thing had happened with those gauntlets he copied too! Why couldn't the weapon reflect the stats?! Why did his legendary weapon have to determine everything?!
Its equip bonus didn't even provide a bonus to Attack! It was only a slash resistance (medium) boost! That definitely wouldn't be useful against the Spirit Tortoise right now!
Screw you Yandere Shield!
"It doesn't hate you Naofumi. Your weapon just wants to make sure you're focused on protecting me and everyone else." Raphtalia said, continuing to rub his shoulders.
"I mean, we're kind of banking on you being focused on defense to survive." Ren pointed out. "Imagine if at least ten percent of your defense stat was put into attack."
Naofumi definitely wouldn't survive with that. Not because he wouldn't be able to kill more than low leveled balloons, but with the power scales of some of the enemies he'd faced even before the Spirit Tortoise, he would have died if not for his insane defense.
It was still a bitter pill to swallow regardless, no matter how many times this came up. And he would have remained sulking in his seat if not for one, tiny detail running towards them from the side right now.
"Is that…" Raphtalia stood up, her eyes wide with shock. Her hands, which had been rubbing Naofumi's shoulders soothingly, now gripped them tightly.
"What is it… now..." Naofumi stared, stunned speechless at the very large Filolial running in front of the confused army. Two smaller Filolials followed behind her.
"Yayyyy~! Mommy~! Daddy~! Filo found you!"
No way… there was no freaking way...
The Sword Shield completely forgotten, Raphtalia and Naofumi both jumped out of their wagon, startling the Filolial attached to it as Filo rushed up to them. Within a few seconds, she jumped into the air, transforming into her little girl form before getting embraced from both sides by her parents.
"Oh my Gods, Filo." Raphtalia cried, kissing her blonde hair lovingly.
"Mmmm~!" Filo hummed happily as she hugged both adults. Daddy in particular was gripping her tightly and was trembling far more than Mommy.
"How… why did you come back?" Naofumi asked, tears shining in his eyes.
"Filo wanted to see Mommy and Daddy again." Filo smiled happily, tears shining in her blue eyes. "Filo left while Mommy and Daddy were going through so much pain. Filo realized that Filo couldn't leave them in pain."
"But how did you find us?" Raphtalia sniffled, rubbing Filo on the head with such a look of love in her eyes that it would have been impossible for a stranger to think that she wasn't Filo's birth mother.
"Hmmm~" Filo looked up, thinking to herself before shrugging. "Filo's not sure. After Fitoria teleported Filo and Filo's friends, Filo felt like she had to run in this direction."
Naofumi chuckled, rubbing a hand through her hair. She hadn't even known where they were, yet Filo still managed to find them anyway. "Did you hear what I said a few days ago or something?" Naofumi asked.
"Huh? But how could Filo hear Daddy when Filo was away?" She tilted her head confusedly. "Filo just had the feeling that Daddy and Mommy needed Filo's help."
"Never mind, it's nothing." Naofumi chuckled, bringing her into a hug again.
"Shield Hero, is something the matter?" A shuzaku messenger flew down from the air above them.
"Ehem." Dou-Lon grabbed the man's attention. "Don't worry. That is another one of Sir Naofumi's allies. She and her friends are here to help us." Dou-Lon explained with a smile on his face.
"Oh, well, that's great to hear! I shall let the leaders know that everything is fine!" The man quickly took off, not interrupting the family reunion that was going on.
This was almost too incredible. They were about to go into battle, and Filo was here. And it didn't look like she hated him either…
But if Filo was there then... He hadn't thought he'd have this opportunity before they fought the Guardian Beast...
Naofumi gently let her go and looked his daughter in the eyes. "Is Fitoria listening to us right now?"
Filo cocked her head curiously to the side as if tuning in to something. She wasn't sure if the Filolial Queen wanted to talk to her anymore since Fitoria said that Filo wouldn't be welcome back to the herd. But, to Filo's surprise, Fitoria admitted that she was still listening in. "Mmhmmm~!"
Naofumi stared into Filo's eyes. A thousand words and none went across his tongue. None of them were uttered. It was like he wasn't staring at his daughter anymore. Rather, he was staring at the red-eyed, stoic little girl on the other end, standing in the middle of her Sanctuary.
After she abandoned them. After she took Filo away and forced him to come to terms with himself… what could he possibly say?
...
The words eventually came to him, and he smiled sadly at his daughter. "Fitoria, I just wanted to say, thank you."
Raphtalia rubbed his shoulder comfortingly. Filo remained silent, which allowed Naofumi to continue. "I know you don't trust me anymore, and frankly, I'm glad you don't. It's my fault that we're in this mess. And now, after looking back on it, I'm glad that you were kind enough to rescue Filo from me."
"I want you to know that me and the other Heroes are choosing to save the people instead of the world. But if we fail... if we do die here, then I hope that the next batch of Heroes will be better to you than I was."
"I'm sorry for not living up to your expectations. If we do survive, I hope I'll be able to make it up to you one day."
…
Filo suddenly cocked her head. "Odd. Fitoria isn't listening in anymore." She said curiously.
"Don't worry about it." Naofumi lovingly rubbed the top of Filo's head, eliciting a giggle from the little girl. He'd said all he wanted to say. And seeing her same cute, carefree reaction, Naofumi's smile hurt as well as his heart. It was like the last few days had never happened at all.
… his actions had driven Filo away. And yet she'd come back. She still cared about him and Raphtalia.
He swore that tears weren't falling from his eyes right now. He'd cried too much during the last couple of days for that to be the case.
"Ah! Daddy's crying!" Filo pointed out. "Don't cry, daddy! Everything will be fine now that Filo is here! Filo's going to help take away Daddy's pain!" She reached out, gently wiping his tears away with the sleeve of her dress.
Damn it. His own daughter was making him cry. Raphtalia too, by the looks of it.
While their reunion was happening, Blue and Amber approached the other Heroes.
"Blue…" Ren smiled fondly. He looked so happy seeing his Filolial friend there.
"Gwah!" Blue rubbed his head affectionately against Ren's hair.
"Careful Wyndia. You don't want to set your hair on fire." Tersia warned the dog girl who was giving a death glare to the monster taking up all the Sword Hero's love and affection.
"I'm fine… it's not like I'm jealous or anything… no, I'm definitely not jealous." The dog girl denied vehemently. However, the fact that her canines were showing and how the wood of the wagon was crunching underneath her death grip didn't help to convince the other two mages in the wagon.
Her growling wasn't a good sign either.
"Gweh?" The orange feathered Amber looked around in confusion.
"What's she asking?" The Bow Hero turned to Filo.
"Oh, Amber is wondering where Spear Guy is. Don't ask Filo why though. Filo can't stand Spear Guy!" Filo made a face of disgust. "Did Spear Guy cause this whole mess? Filo will kick Spear Guy through the air again if that's the case!"
Naofumi couldn't have been more proud of her. She'd grown into the perfect daughter.
"Don't give me that look Raphtalia! You raised her too!" He fiercely whispered to her.
"What look? I wasn't going to say anything?" Raphtalia looked at him weirdly.
Crap, maybe Naofumi had some habits of his own to get rid of. He shook his head. "Never mind, forget it."
"I'm sorry, um… Amber, was it?" Itsuki asked the Filolial, who nodded her head. "We have no idea where Motoyasu is right now. But if you want, you could help us find him after this."
"Gwah…" The wide-eyed, sad look and quivering beak Amber was now giving him made Itsuki reevaluate his opinion on Filolials. "Don't worry. We know for sure that Motoyasu is still alive. We'll find him. I promise." The Bow Hero soothed the mount.
"This is great. With their help, mobility won't be as big an issue as before." Ren pondered out loud. The statement even surprised himself as he continued rubbing Blue's head. He'd already added Blue to his party, and the Filolial was listed at Level 75. His stats were higher than the Filolial assigned to pull their wagon.
The Filolials the coalition had provided to them were only meant to get them to and from the Beast. But with Filo and her friends, they'd be able to fight together.
"Gwah!" It looked like Blue agreed.
"They'll be… fighting… together…?!" Whoa. Wyndia looked truly and beyond pissed now.
Why did she have to stay back as magic support?! She could fight with a full-sized katana now! She should be up there fighting alongside Ren and all the other frontline fighters!
This was stupid!
Blue looked towards her and stuck out his tongue.
'...!' THAT'S IT! THAT BIRD IS GOING STRAIGHT TO THE BARBEQUE! WHERE'S THE SAUCE?!
Eclair rested a hand on Wyndia's shoulder while the girl fumed. "Have a little faith in Sir Ren, Wyndia. He won't be alone. Your magic is still your strongest asset and we're going to need all the strength we can muster if we want to survive today."
Wyndia crossed her arms and huffed. She couldn't wait for this battle to be over.
The sooner they kicked the giant turtle's butt, the sooner she'd be able to get rid of that featherbrain and steal Ren for herself.
"Besides, you should know how Sir Ren feels about you," Eclair whispered in her ear.
Wyndia blanched, looking up at the rose-haired knight. "Wh-What do you- what are you talking about-"
Eclair smiled mischievously. "Let's just say I saw what happened last night on my way back from sparring. I was really glad to see you two so happy together." She then looked serious as she nodded. "So don't worry. You know how much Sir Ren cares for you."
Wyndia looked away, blushing profusely. "O-Okay."
Tersia and Farrie looked at the rose-haired knight, wondering what she'd whispered to get Wyndia to calm down so easily. But Eclair simply smiled and didn't say a word.
Even if it was slightly embarrassing… remembering last night helped Wyndia to make the jealousy go away. In fact, when she looked back at Blue as Ren walked up to Naofumi, she gave the Filolial a wide grin. 'What are you so high and mighty about? Ren already told me that he loves me. There's no way you'll be taking him from me after this.'
Blue gave the dog girl a weird look.
"Gweh? (Why is Dog Girl giving Blue such a creepy smile?)"
"Gwah. (Amber wants to see Blondie again.)" The orange bird cooed sadly.
"Gwah! (Worry about Blondie later! Right now Dog Girl is giving Noodle and Blue weird looks and Blue doesn't like it one bit!)" Blue puffed up defensively while looking at Wyndia with suspicion.
Naofumi and Raphtalia climbed back into their wagon. The original Filolials that were going to help them tried to protest but eventually made way for Filo as well as Amber and Blue. In the end, they actually looked relieved about no longer being forced to run towards the giant scary turtle that was looming over the horizon.
Filo, now in her Queen form, picked up the wagon but looked down at her sides curiously.
"This isn't Filo's wagon. Can Filo pull Filo's wagon instead?" She asked with a hopeful voice.
"Sorry, but it's still back at the village," Raphtalia said soothingly.
"I don't know, maybe she should…" Naofumi pulled up his Portal Shield, but he found that he couldn't activate it. Looking ahead, there was only one reason as to why it wouldn't work.
"Did you know that the Tortoise could prevent portaling?" Naofumi asked Ren.
"Huh? Of course, I know that. Portaling was the first thing I tried to do when everything went to hell last time." Ren looked at him weirdly.
…
Now that Naofumi thought about it. Had that been possible, there would have been absolutely no way for them to be squashed by the turtle before.
It's weird the details you miss when your life's on the line.
"Oh well. You'll have to pull this one Filo. I'll make sure to thank you when this is all over." Naofumi promised.
"Kaaaay~! Filo can't wait to taste Daddy's cooking again!" Filo cried out happily.
"I didn't mean- but I- urgh, fine." Naofumi relented.
He wouldn't cook her a buffet this time. But he'd cook her dinner for sure. It was the least he could do for his daughter.
In all honesty, it was probably stupid that they were still going to fight the Spirit Tortoise. But they had to at least give it their all before they gave up. The world was counting on them now more than ever.
And besides, Melromarc was in the Tortoise's path. That meant many people he'd come to know and care about, as well as the places he'd seen, would be in danger. After all the work they'd put into the village, the last thing he wanted was to see it and the people living there destroyed.
That was Naofumi's choice. He didn't want to protect the world. The world could screw itself for all he cared. Between the monsters, the way the rules worked, and the treatment he'd received early on, his love for the world wasn't high on his bucket list.
But he didn't want the people he cared about to die. He didn't want the home he'd worked so hard to build up to be destroyed.
So, for their sakes, he'd fight this thing.
Finally, the last mountain toppled over, and the Tortoise took its first step onto the plains. Behind them, loud trumpets began to blare, signaling for the Heroes to advance.
"Hah!" With a flick of the reins, Naofumi ordered Filo to charge forward.
And so they sped towards the Guardian Beast.
Towards fate itself.
"No… why is this happening?"
Fitoria paced back and forth along the grassy ground. Her calm disposition had disappeared entirely.
"Fitoria, I just wanted to say, thank you."
Fitoria had expected the Shield Hero to be angry. She had expected him to be cruel and unkind. She'd expected several different kinds of negative reactions from him for taking Filo away.
She hadn't expected that.
"I know you don't trust me anymore, and frankly, I'm glad you don't. It's my fault that we're in this mess."
Was it really though? Fitoria had said that to him, but was she right about that?
"And now, after looking back on it, I'm glad that you were kind enough to rescue Filo from me."
Fitoria began to tremble harder.
She hadn't done that out of kindness. She'd only done it because it was her duty to protect Filolials from evil humans. She'd thought Naofumi would be different. But then he hadn't been.
And yet Filo had chosen to go back anyway. Because...
"I want you to know that me and the other Heroes are choosing to save the people instead of the world. But if we fail... if we do die here, then I hope that the next batch of Heroes will be better to you than I was."
Just thinking over Naofumi's words over and over again. Running through her mind like wild monsters...
"I'm sorry for not living up to your expectations. If we do survive, I hope I'll be able to make it up to you one day."
Tears began to leak from the corners of her eyes.
He'd hurt her. She'd hurt him. He didn't mean what he'd said, and she…
And yet, why hadn't he screamed at her? She'd seen what Filo saw. She saw the pain hidden under his smile. She saw how much he was hurting, and yet he still thanked her for protecting Filo. And the love he'd shown when he saw Filo...
Looking over their connection again, she saw Filo was now pulling a wagon. Naofumi held her reins, leading the Heroes towards the giant Spirit Tortoise.
He'd meant it. The Shield Hero was choosing to risk his life to save the people of the world. "No… please don't."
Filo looked back as she made a tight curve. Fitoria saw the look of determination and resolve on Naofumi's face.
He was still hurting from everything that had happened. Yet he was putting it aside to save the world. Just like… just like...
"No." She felt that feeling wrack her chest again.
She was brought back to a distant memory. It wasn't her Hero. But another group of heroes in the past. Another group of Heroes that she'd cared for.
She'd been weaker then. But she'd still had some hope in humanity left. When she could still trust despite being betrayed time and time again.
She'd fought alongside the other Heroes. They hadn't been strong enough to kill the Spirit Tortoise. But together, they'd been strong enough to defeat it and seal it away.
It'd come at a high cost.
The Heroes had made great sacrifices over the course of that long battle. One Hero had lost his entire party. Another Hero had nearly died from the injuries he'd incurred.
One Hero held the girl he loved in his arms as she passed on.
It'd been terrible. If she'd only been stronger back then… if she'd only been stronger now...
She realized it.
She cared for these Heroes.
She cared for Naofumi.
She remembered it now. She'd gathered all this power since then not only to protect Filolials but so that she'd never have to see those she cared about go through such heartbreaking circumstances ever again! Yet she'd chosen to sit on the sidelines when their lives were at stake?!
Amber and Blue were right. She'd made a grave mistake choosing to not help.
"I have to help them!"
She immediately opened her list of registered spots on her HUD. But a quick scan almost made the Filolial Queen go into a panic.
She didn't have a location registered where the Spirit Tortoise was. She wouldn't make it there to assist in time…
Then she remembered that it'd be futile even if she did have a location in the area registered since the Tortoise canceled out teleportation naturally like the Waves. Even with how powerful she was, there was no magic she could cast to overrule a natural phenomenon caused by the Waves and the Guardian Beasts.
They're already starting to fight it. She saw it clearly through Filo's eyes.
She finally found which of her registered locations was the closest. It was the one she'd sent Filo to. An area that had no humans living in it whatsoever. Besides the Hero's village, this area and all the rest of her saved locations were areas that were uninhabited.
If she'd only come to this realization sooner!
She'd just have to run as fast as she could.
Bright light surrounded Fitoria's form, and with a loud crack, she disappeared from the Filolial Sanctuary.
The charge towards the Spirit Tortoise was, understandably, a very bumpy one.
Upon catching sight of the army, the Guardian Beast had let out a loud roar. The bat familiars flying around the peaks on its back immediately followed its master's command, blotting out the sky with their countless numbers as they flew forward and descended upon the numerous hosts waiting to receive them.
Along with the bats, large yeti types jumped down from the large Tortoiseshell alongside other types of familiars. After hitting the ground, they ran forward on all fours, charging towards the army and the Heroes.
Between Filo's insane momentum, combined with the shifting ground that shook harder the closer they got to the Spirit Tortoise and the army of familiars in their path, it was a miracle that the wagon didn't collapse entirely by the time they came within a mile of it.
"Meteor Shield!" Naofumi's skill surrounded himself and the wagon's occupants within its five-meter radius. The bats that tried to attack from above found their heat beams bouncing uselessly off of its translucent blue surface.
"Zweite Tornado!"
Filo's wind spell then took care of whatever stragglers that remained.
The ground familiars weren't a problem either. Filo didn't even bother to use magic, choosing instead to squash every large yeti-type underfoot with her large taloned feet. If that didn't kill them, the speeding wagon that ran over them right after finished the job.
Filo's reaction time was also quick. Several times, she managed to change course just as part of the ground in front of them would burst up from another one of the giant Tortoise's steps. Naofumi would always grip her reins tightly out of reflex whenever this happened.
"Wuahhhhhhh!" On one particularly sharp curve, everyone in the wagon screamed in terror when the ground burst up close enough to shatter Naofumi's shield skill. They were certain they should have flipped several times over, yet Filo's grip remained firm, and they were tossed back into their seats once again when they hit solid ground.
"Urk, at this rate, I won't be able to fight at all." Aksel groaned nauseously.
"Buck up man, we can do this!" Bakta encouraged him.
Naofumi felt none of the nausea that the others in the back were experiencing. He was staring in awe at Filo.
He'd forgotten just how powerful she was. Her level was currently 70, lower than what he remembered it being after Cal Mira. But her stats were a bit higher than before.
Had Fitoria done something to help boost her stat growth like his Shield's abilities?
Well, if she had, he was grateful the Filolial Queen had helped his daughter to become stronger.
Eventually, the familiars in front of them thinned, and they continued past the Heroes towards the large army. Only a few stragglers remained here and there.
By the time the Heroes and their allies were jumping out of the back of the wagon and onto the splintering ground in front of the Guardian Beast, the Bow Hero had already jumped out of his wagon that stood a mile away from them. Immediately after stopping, Naofumi used Zweite Aura to buff himself and everyone around him. At around the same time, a golden glow covered the Tortoise's body as Itsuki's Down spell affected it.
Other buffs appeared in his vision, courtesy of the support mages in the coalition. They didn't help as much when compared to his Aura spell, but every bit would count in a battle like this.
Dou-Lon, Maya, and Welt were soon attacking the familiars around them while Naofumi, Bakta, and Aksel ran towards the Spirit Tortoise's massive foot.
"Holy crap! This thing's even bigger up close!" Aksel screamed.
"Yeah, way to state the obvious?!" Bakta yelled back, also sounding similarly terrified.
Naofumi didn't respond to either tank. He instead switched to the Shield of Hope II right out of the gate as he saw the Tortoise preparing to raise its foot.
00:10:00
Damn, ten minutes?! He couldn't remember ever having so much time before. But would it be enough for this fight?
"Air Strike Shield! Second Shield!" He summoned the two skills on top of each other, forming a double barrier that the turtle's foot slammed into.
The shields cracked from the impact but held in place. Much to the colossal giant's surprise.
"Alright, you two, let's bring it down!" Naofumi yelled to his sides.
"We're actually doing this?!" Aksel screamed back.
"We won't know until we try! Now come on, while it's stuck!" Bakta urged him on.
The three tanks rushed forward, and just before Naofumi's shields broke, they grabbed the front of the turtle's large foot.
"Urgh!" All three of them let out grunts of exertion as they pulled down. They were buffed and the Tortoise was debuffed. There was no other option than forward. This had to work!
The floating shields finally broke, but the trio didn't relent. They pulled down with all their strength, and then-
Grapple attempt: Success.
A message helpfully popped up in the corner of Naofumi's vision.
"█ █ █ █ █"
The Spirit Tortoise's massive foot was forcibly yanked back and it crashed back onto solid ground with a deafening noise.
'... Ha! Piss on that physics!' Naofumi laughed hysterically inside his mind.
Here they were. One hero and two nonheroes, holding down the foot of a bloody kaiju. Actually, this thing was far, far bigger. The world sucked, but the rules really did help out in times like this. Their stats were just enough now.
The triumph didn't last, however. This was nothing like the whale from the last wave. Holding the guardian beast in place was taking everything they had and Naofumi could feel his grip slipping almost right away. "I, urgh, can't hold it." Bakta strained out through his teeth next to the Shield Hero.
The Spirit Tortoise had been surprised by their initial counter. But now, it looked annoyed and began to lift its foot up again.
"Alright, let go, shields up!" Naofumi barked an order and then the three of them let go. It'd only been for a few seconds, but they now knew that they could do it. As the beast raised its foot again, the three simultaneously raised their shields and blocked it together.
"Oh gods, I think I just felt my spine cracking." Aksel groaned out, though he sounded more upbeat than before. Naofumi, taking the brunt of the hit, saw his HP bar drop a little, but the Tortoise was unable to move forward once again. The damage also didn't matter as healing spells from the coalition washed over him and the other two tanks, healing the damage they'd taken instantly.
""█ █ █ █ █ █ ?""
Standing together in a shield wall formation, their combined defense with all the buffs they'd received was just barely enough to withstand the kick without immediately toppling over. And fortunately, their efforts also grabbed the Spirit Tortoise's attention and the resigned look in its eyes was quickly replaced with a strange glint as it turned its head towards them.
It'd worked. It was time to go on the offensive.
"Dritte Shield!" Naofumi formed the third shield in the air above and behind him. Filo, who'd already taken a massive jump off the ground, jumped off the third shield, heading right towards the Guardian Beast's head. Raphtalia gripped tightly to her back, a gleaming white sword held in her grasp. Filo's taloned feet also shined brightly with the white claws she was now wearing, courtesy of her mother.
"Light Slash! High Quick!"
Raphtalia's magic attack flew from her sword, slamming into the underside of the beast's jaw just before Filo's own attack landed. Shredding lines across the Spirit Tortoise's face.
The Guardian Beast let out a cry of pain. Then, a skill from Itsuki's bow slammed into its snout in a glorious display of power. This was followed up by what looked like a Sea Dragon and a blazing inferno carried by wind.
More and more attacks began to rain down on the Spirit Tortoise's head. Magic spells from their casters. Itsuki's powerful skills, which he fired from an orange, glowing bow in his hands.
"Eagle Piercing Shot!"
It was one of the higher leveled Dragon Bows which he'd unlocked a while back. Besides his Cursed Bow, it had the highest stats out of all of his available weapons.
Even from this distance, his SP was still being drained. But the drain was slower. It was a similar case to the magic users around him.
Itsuki's skill flew through the air, letting out a screech just before it sank into the Tortoise's face, causing it to roar and shake its head in agitation. Itsuki's rough estimates from the last battle were on point. They were just close enough for their attacks to still be effective. But far enough away that they weren't in any real danger. Eclair, Crystal, Rishia, and the others around them were doing a fantastic job of holding off the familiars too, so they were able to completely focus on piling on the attacks.
"As source of thy power I order thee, decipher the laws of nature. Bring forth darkness from the face of the earth. Form into a mighty blade to decapitate my enemies." Rachel chanted, the hate directed at the beast that took her family away from her empowering her resolve. "Drifa Dark Cut."
"Bunker Shot!" "Drifa Earth Shot!" Rachel's spell was followed by Itsuki's skill and Tersia's earth spell. The three attacks hit around the Tortoise's head as Ren closed in for his own attack.
"Meteor Slash!" Ren, riding on top of Blue's back, slashed upwards at the massive Guardian Beast. His sky-blue Filolial Crown Sword launched the attack, and it slammed into the side of the Tortoise's face.
"█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ !"
Yes, finally, they had a real battle!
Two more shadow spells launched from the indignant dark mage one after the other, hitting the Spirit Tortoise on the mark.
"Wow, you're really firing off the magic today Rachel!" Farrie complimented as the dark-haired mage wiped sweat from her forehead.
"That thing killed my Father." Rachel's voice was dark and bitter. "I won't stop until either it's dead, or I am." And with that, she went into chanting her next spell while Wyndia's own struck next: a series of spinning blades made of wind, launched through the air, impacting all over the front of the Spirit Tortoise.
Everyone was giving it their all. Yet all the wounds that the guardian beast was suffering from gradually began to heal over just like in the previous fight.
But it wasn't regenerating fast enough this time. As one cut would heal, three more would be inflicted. As a deep wound began to close, another attack cut it back open, just a little deeper than before.
It was an excruciatingly slow uphill battle, but they were winning so far.
"Itsuki, Healing Waters!" Tersia called out.
Itsuki immediately paused, throwing Healing Waters to the mages first and then to Eclair and the other fighters as they broke off from the familiars to get their MP replenished. Up ahead, Ren and Naofumi took a similar short break, pulling out Magic Healing Waters from their weapons for their comrades as well as Soul Healing Waters for themselves.
Even with how short the break was, the Tortoise regenerated some of the damage they'd inflicted on it. It also started to focus on the army in the distance once more.
The Spirit Tortoise began to raise its other foot to move forward, but Naofumi ran towards it. He felt his speed increase as he was buffed by another spell from the coalition army fighting valiantly against the army of Familiars the Tortoise had brought with it.
It was weird how they were miles away, yet it was almost like he could hear the sounds of their own battle all around him.
There were the sounds of bats being shot out of the air by archers or mages as they in turn launched heat beams or dove to attack those that looked weak. There were the sounds of knights ganging up on the larger yeti types and other familiars, some succeeding in bringing them down, others being brought down by powerful blows. There was also the flapping of wings from the Shuzaku and other bird-type demi-humans fighting in the air, as well as the roars of dragons and their riders flying through the thick of the battle.
Each man and woman was screaming with bloodlust, determination, or fear as they died. Doing their small part to help with the battle. Naofumi shuddered at the thought of what the battle would have been like if they had to fight a neverending onslaught of the turtle's familiars at the same time as the guardian beast itself. Even if they were weak individually, their sheer numbers would have swamped and then drowned them in their mass, making it impossible to fight just like before.
The Shield Hero continued to run, reaching the Tortoise's foot as it was about to impact with the ground.
"Shield Prison! Meteor Shield!"
The Tortoise's foot slammed into the ball of shields first. Then, it slammed into his barrier, and finally into his own shield as he stood tall to face it.
Even with the softened blow, he took a little damage and began to be pushed backward. But a couple of seconds later, Bakta and Aksel were at his sides again, pushing back with their own shields alongside him. And healing magic from the coalition once again healed the wounds he'd suffered.
The Tortoise's foot hit the ground, but not with the earth-shattering, game-changing force it'd wanted. It was forced to stop once again to deal with the pests and it stomped repeatedly at the three ants standing in its way with a furious roar. Each earth rending impact could be felt in the trio's very bones but they held on. And when Naofumi's skill cooldowns wore off, the beast had to uselessly strike against them while more attacks and spells from Itsuki and his mages rained down on its head once again.
"Drifa Tornado!" Filo's wings flapped in front of her, and a large, powerful tornado of wind came from her, slamming into the side of the Tortoise's head.
"Gwah!" Several balls of water appeared around Blue, striking the other side of the Tortoise's head.
"Thunderbolt Slash!" Blue, having run up the length of the Tortoise's leg, jumped close enough for Ren to use the powerful attack. Ren specifically aimed at where the water attacks had hit the Tortoise.
A large gash was inflicted on the underside of the Tortoise's neck, drawing massive amounts of blood that rained down on the ground. The Tortoise also shook its head in annoyance from the electricity sparking around its head due to the water.
"Shadow Slash!" Falling down the other side on Filo's back, Raphtalia's white blade coated in darkness made another gash into the thick skin of its neck.
Blue landed against the side of the Tortoise's other leg, and with his talons digging into it to keep himself from falling, he ran along its length to prepare Ren for his next attack.
The next few minutes slowly passed, with all groups working together to bring the Guardian Beast and its minions down.
"Grand Cross!" Eclair's blade dug into the ground in front of her, and a familiar cross of light appeared around her and the familiars she was facing. Healing magic washed over her, healing the damage she was taking while the familiars burned to ash from the power of the attack.
"Sir Itsuki, I need another Magic Healing Water!" Eclair called out.
Itsuki immediately turned, throwing another potion from his Bow for the rose-haired knight to drink. But as he turned to face the Tortoise again, several familiars popped up in front of him.
"Fueh!" Rishia dove into their midst, a rapier in her hand. "S-Spiral Slash!"
The weapon in her hand glowed with energy, and as she thrust forward, a spiral pattern was unleashed from it. Striking the familiars over and over again.
"Well done Rishia!" Granny smiled happily nearby, signature hoe in hand. "That was an excellent life force attack!"
"Fuehhhh! Th-Thank you!" Rishia happily smiled at the older lady.
"But you shouldn't hesitate when you attack! Watch and learn, Spiral Slash!" The old lady's own version of the attack with the hoe completely decimated the familiars in front of them. They didn't even stand a chance. Rishia stared in awe at her master.
Itsuki found himself smiling as well, glad that he decided to agree to the old crone's offer to tag along with them as he focused on the Spirit Tortoise again.
Things were going well.
And then, seeing how much damage it was taking, the Tortoise finally began taking the fight seriously.
As Ren was preparing his next skill, he suddenly felt an overwhelming weight crash into him. He and Blue began to plummet through the air.
"Gweh!" Blue shrieked out in surprise.
"Urgh!" Naofumi, Bakta, and Askel fell to their knees as the invisible force affected them as well. It was like they had become several times heavier than before.
Filo up above, having felt something was wrong by the magic flow in the air, had jumped further onto the Tortoise's back with Raphtalia. They weren't brought crashing down as Ren and Blue currently were. But the Filolial Queen had definitely been slowed.
"Wh-What's happening?!" Aksel screamed.
"This must be the gravity attack that Sir Ren warned us about," Bakta muttered, forcing his head to look up.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!" Ren was screaming loudly at the unexpected freefall he and Blue were going through.
"Air Strike Shield! Second Shield!" Naofumi summoned the two skills in the air above them. One was sideways, and the other was diagonal. Blue managed to use the two shields for well-timed jumps that slowed his fall just enough that he and Ren didn't turn into bloodstains when they hit the ground.
The impact still hurt the blue-feathered Filolial though. "Gweh…"
"Thanks, Naofumi." Ren panted as he fought to stand up with a grimace.
"Dritte Shield! Shield Prison! Meteor Shield!" The Tortoise's next step was interfered with by the array of shields Naofumi brought out while they were incapacitated.
"I'll take it this means that it's starting to take us seriously now?" Naofumi asked, turning to look at Ren.
"█ █ █ █ █ !" Itsuki's next skill slammed into one of the beast's eyes, partially blinding it. The turtle let out another screech as it began shaking its head from side to side. It was during one of those shakes that Naofumi saw Raphtalia and Filo running along the upper length of its neck, sword and talons sinking deeply into wounds Ren had inflicted on it earlier to keep them from closing. There wasn't much else they could do, however, since if they inflicted too much damage, the Tortoise would focus on them. And with the increased gravity, they couldn't risk going down the sides of its neck like before.
"Yeah, not sure if that's a good sign or a bad sign though." The Sword Hero grimaced. He hadn't been sure if the turtle had gravity attacks or not like in his game. But now that it'd confirmed that it did, the risk of it possessing the rest of its arsenal had grown exponentially.
"Well, you and Itsuki planned on what to do if this happened. Do it already before it recovers and tries to squash us again." Naofumi managed to say through gritted teeth to him.
"What are you- oh, right, sorry!" The flustered Sword Hero began to chant, having forgotten the potentially vital role he had to play.
While it was gravity magic that the Spirit Tortoise was using, a type of magic they hadn't encountered in the past, it was still a magic attack that the massive monster was using. And if it was magic…
"Zweite Magic Enchant!" Ren lifted his sword high above him.
Thin, grey mist was sucked from the air around them into Ren's sword. As that happened, the heavy weight Naofumi and the others had been under began to dissipate, albeit, not entirely.
"I'm sorry, that's the best I can do!" Ren apologized.
"It's fine, at least I can move again. Come on, let's put the hurt back on it now!" Naofumi ran towards the giant's foot, which had begun to lift off the ground again, shattering the rest of his shields. He then once again proved how he was the most annoying thing to ever exist against monsterkind as the Tortoise experienced another lull in its movements.
Ren found himself amazed at this, watching the shining blue Shield Hero working together alongside Bakta and Aksel to slow the beast.
This definitely wasn't the same Naofumi he'd fought side by side with a few short days ago. It was like Naofumi was determined to not let this beast go.
"Gwah." Blue tugged on Ren's hair, grabbing the Sword Hero's attention.
"Sorry, are you still hurt?" Ren asked, being shaken out of his thoughts.
"Gwah!" Blue cheered brightly. It looked like whatever injuries he'd suffered from the fall had been healed over, courtesy of healing magic from the coalition army.
"Good." Ren mounted on his back again. Blue then got a running jump before jumping as high as it could under the increased weight once again. Landing on the Spirit Tortoise's leg, Blue began running up its length back towards the head above.
It was at this moment, looking up at the Spirit Tortoise, wondering what skill he could use next that he finally became aware of a flashing icon on his HUD. 'Huh, what's-' His eyes widened in shock, and he almost lost his grip on Blue.
Dang it! He'd nearly forgotten! Sometimes, absorbing spells could give him a special attack! He'd been so used to absorbing spells from his allies that he hadn't considered that the same thing would happen if he used it on a monster's spell.
Looking it over, this wouldn't kill the Tortoise by any means… but it could help bring an end to this battle far more quickly.
Blue neared the top of the Tortoise's leg. It began to turn in preparation to jump towards the neck, wings out wide when Ren pulled him more towards the left. "No, don't jump for the neck this time! Jump for its head!"
"Gwah!" Blue didn't hesitate, changing his trajectory on the spot.
Instead of aiming at the underside of the turtle's neck like before, where fat drops of blood were visibly falling from it from its slowly closing wounds, Blue's jump took them over its head.
Ren jumped off his mount's back, bringing his sword up high while aiming for the center of the Guardian Beast's forehead.
It'd tried to use gravity magic on them, and not only had they foiled it, but now Ren was about to give it a taste of its own medicine! This once-in-a-lifetime chance wouldn't go to waste!
"Gravity Bash!" The hilt of his sword slammed into the center of the monster's large, bloodied face.
...
The world around them stopped for a brief moment as if the very reality around them had skipped a heartbeat.
But as soon as it passed, the earth around the Tortoise's feet immediately began to tremble. The monster's eyes widened in surprise. What would have been impossible in Ren's world was made possible in this one thanks to stats. The monster that had been strong enough to carry a mountain range on its back found itself unable to continue to stand all of a sudden as its weight multiplied tremendously.
In short, its bulk began to crash down into the ground.
Violently.
"Back! Get back!" Naofumi directed everyone around him in their hasty retreat from the front of the Spirit Tortoise.
"█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ !"
After a few seconds of free fall, the Spirit Tortoise's entire body crashed down with deafening noise, making the biggest earthquake yet. The force of the Turtle's fall partially buried its torso into the ground. Its head, which had been hundreds of feet up before, was now resting against the earth with a stunned look in its eyes.
Ren stood up, looking around himself from the top of the Turtle's head. The others, safe thanks to Naofumi, stared up at him in shock. Even the army in the distance had paused, looking in shock and awe at the downed Guardian Beast.
Naofumi had his arms crossed and the widest smirk possible on his face. Damn, he loved it when the other Heroes managed to pull off surprises like this. But couldn't Ren have at least given them some warning before this? Oh well, it was still pretty amazing to witness regardless.
"WHAT ARE YOU STANDING AROUND LOOKING AT!? ATTACK! NOW! CUT ITS HEAD OFF WHILE IT'S DOWN!" The Sword Hero screamed.
And just like that, everyone else was brought back to their senses. Seconds later, everyone was attacking the head with vigor.
"High Quick!" Filo raced across the length of the beast's upper neck, clawed talons digging deeply into it as she raced across it over and over again.
"Ha!" Raphtalia followed right behind her daughter, also digging her sword in deeply. The blade glowed brightly with light magic. She was then followed by Welt, who suddenly looked ecstatic to be contributing to hurting the Guardian Beast instead of taking care of the familiars left on the ground.
"Hahaha, yes!" Even Aksel was having a blast, digging the blades of his shield into the side of the turtle's neck repeatedly. Though, as Bakta noted, they really didn't do much damage. It was probably because even with the blades, the shield was more suited for defense than it was for attacking people.
"Take this! And that! And more of this!" Dou-Lon thrust forward with his own spear over and over, opening up hole after hole in the Tortoise's face.
As magic attacks and bow skills launched from their group, the old Granny laughed. "Hahaha, yes! I've been waiting for a chance to hit the big guy!" She began kicking the air in front of her repeatedly, leaving energy in the air with each kick, gradually forming a shape until, with one final kick, the life force attack was complete. "Full Moon!"
The attack flew forward through the air. Despite the distance, when it struck the Tortoise's head, they could see the explosion inflicted by the attack. It'd been just precise enough to avoid hurting any of their allies too.
"What… what the…" Karn looked from the old lady to the Tortoise and back again.
What the heck was up with this old lady?! How was she so damn powerful!?
"Great one Granny!" Itsuki and Rishia both complimented her at the same time.
This was why the Bow Hero had allowed the old lady to come with them.
And the attack Heroes weren't idle as this was going on.
"Crimson Blade! One Hundred Swords! Thunderbolt Slash!"
"Bunker Shot! Dritte Arrow! Eagle Piercing Shot!"
Down here against the ground, they were free to unleash attack after attack. With the Guardian Beast unable to move, it could do nothing but watch as its head was damaged and its massive neck was slowly cut through one section at a time.
"Alright, it's time to put the technique Fitoria taught Filo to good use!" Filo breathed in and the air around her shined as magic was sucked in through her beak. This was a move she hadn't pulled off since she'd first dueled with Fitoria, but it looked like in the time she'd been gone that she'd finally perfected it.
She stood still for a while as she charged up. And then, as Filo began to glow from the amount of power she'd absorbed, large, green ethereal talons covered over the white claws she was wearing. Filo's blue eyes opened wide as she brought her foot back.
"Wind Cutter!"
And then with one powerful, charged-up magic strike, Filo inflicted the largest gash yet into the Spirit Tortoise's meaty neck.
"█ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ █ !"
Holy hell, had Filo actually just delivered an attack stronger than the other Heroes?! That was amazing! Blood poured out from the open wound like a running river!
Naofumi stood back from the action and unequipped his Blessed Shield which had about one minute of equip time left. He couldn't believe it'd only been a little under ten minutes since the fight had started. It felt like it'd been much longer than that. He'd lost track of the amount of Soul Healing Waters and Magic Healing Waters he'd used over the course of the fight, making all those skills and buffing himself and his allies.
Actually, maybe it had been longer. During the times when he'd paid attention to it, the timer hadn't seemed to be dropping that quickly if at all.
"Way to go Filo!" Naofumi called out to his daughter.
"Thanks, Daddy!" Filo waved back.
"H-How did she use a move that powerful?!" Ren looked so shocked that he'd actually paused in his attack.
"Questions for later. Focus Sir Ren!" Welt yelled at the Sword Hero.
"Ack!" Ren drank a Soul Healing Water before resuming to hack away alongside Welt, Raphtalia, and everyone else attacking the large head.
Despite the overwhelming advantage that they held, Naofumi still continued to stand vigilant. He could no longer contribute since it was now a matter of winning the DPS race against the turtle's health regeneration rate, to which he could add nothing with his single-digit attack stat.
So instead, he kept careful watch on the downed turtle, looking for any signs of trouble. It'd already used its gravity magic on them, something that had turned to their advantage, so it wasn't going to use that avenue of attack again. But that wasn't the only move the other Heroes said it had...
Damn it. His pessimism was proven right once again as he noticed that the beast's body had started to glow. And just when they were almost done cutting its head off too!
Back where she was positioned with the other mages, Wyndia began to chant another Dragon Vein spell. She was covered in sweat from the sheer amount of magic they'd used over the battle. But she was smiling widely now, their victory at hand.
"Give him the strength of the Gods of old. Give him the speed of the great Beasts of the earth! Give him the power to turn our defeat into a victory!" Wyndia chanted, drawing power from the earth around her to buff the distant Sword Hero. She put her hands forward to cast the spell.
Only to stop in shock. 'What the- the vitality, where did it go?!'
The vitality she'd been drawing from to structure the spell had suddenly disappeared on her. She looked around, trying to find another source of vitality. But none was to be seen. Even the grass around them was dying. What was-
Wait, the Tortoise was glowing. But, it couldn't be, that was… that was the vitality for Dragon Vein Magic!
"Back! Everyone get back!" Naofumi shouted while running forward with his shield up.
"But, but we're almost there!" Aksel started to yell back.
"Do what he says! That's its electric breath attack! Get away from the head!" Ren shouted in fear as he recognized what attack the Tortoise was using.
Bringing its head down to the ground had made it far easier to attack, but now they were all ground level with one of the Spirit Tortoise's most powerful attacks!
Naofumi cursed and pulled the Shield of Hope II out again. Of course, it couldn't have been that easy, couldn't it?! He opened his mouth to begin calling up all of his various shields to assist him but cursed again when he realized that he'd used the last of his SP on some skills earlier and hadn't done anything to replenish it since he'd been distracted by getting everyone to retreat from the Spirit Tortoise.
He pulled out a Soul Healing Water and began to chug it. The Tortoise's mouth opened wide, and from its depths, a very powerful attack began to form.
Naofumi focused on it. As the bottle left his lips, he opened his mouth to call forth the array of shields that'd help him out.
...
But he couldn't.
He'd frozen up.
'No. Goddamnit, no! Not now!'
It'd been so long since the last one. He'd thought with everything that had happened, he'd finally be past this.
But no, his joints refused to move. His eyes widened with terror. His breathing came fast.
And that laughter that accompanied every panic attack he had began to sound in his mind once again as darkness covered the corners of his vision.
'No, get back! I don't want to deal with you right now!'
"Did you really think it'd be that simple?" A Doppelganger of Naofumi appeared beside him, a malicious smirk on his face. "That you could just give in to your anger, apologize to everyone, and then hope that things would get better?"
Naofumi's face tightened with pain. The turtle's attack. He couldn't see anything around him anymore.
"No, life isn't that simple. You can't get rid of me that easily. You can't just ignore me and throw me back into the cage of your mind and expect no consequences for it!"
Images tried to force their way into his mind. Naofumi grit his teeth, trying to move past them. To try and focus on the battle at hand.
He couldn't let the same thing that happened before happen again. He couldn't freeze up when everyone's lives depended on him! Not now, not ever!
"Ah, willpower. How quaint. But that won't be enough!" His doppelganger scowled and leaned in. "Those foolish hopes and dreams of yours won't save you on their own! You need me!"
"&^%$ off! I don't need you!" Naofumi forced himself to shout back.
"Yes, you do!" The stubborn battle of wills escalated. Naofumi felt like he was at war with himself. "You have cursed yourself to have me always be a part of you! As long as you resent this world, as long as you can't forgive that red-headed whore for everything she's done to you, you will have to live with this anger! You will have to deal with it at one point or another!"
"There's no going back to that naive otaku life you were living back in your world! So stop forcing me down and accept it already!"
"I DO ACCEPT IT!"
…
Naofumi breathed in and out heavily in the darkness of his mind. "I know it. Right now, I'm angry and I'm afraid. I'm angry that all I could do was slow this thing down. I'm angry that I can't do anything to hurt it without hurting my friends. But above all, I'm afraid of what'll happen to them if I'm not strong enough to block this attack." His steely glare met his own. "And I won't let you keep me from trying! SO! &^%$! OFF!"
"... Hmmm…" The doppelganger looked thoughtful for a moment and then smiled eerily. "Very well, do what you must. But before I go, a lesson if you will."
"When it comes to being Diligent, it takes every single part of you. Both the good and the bad."
"If you somehow survive this, do not forget me. I can either save you, or I can destroy you."
Naofumi didn't have time to question what this meant. Nor did he have time to think. The darkness around him dissipated as the doppelganger disappeared, and he heard several people screaming his name just before a bright light beyond even Judgment engulfed him.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Naofumi screamed as the Spirit Tortoise's breath attack washed over him.
This attack… was beyond anything he'd ever taken before. He could feel all of the exposed skin on his body burning.
Healing magic from the coalition washed over him, but it hardly did anything to offset the pain. This was… this was unbearable. It was like he was being cooked alive. It didn't stop either. It was one continuous beam of power, and the sheer power behind it was pushing him back. If he fell…
No, he couldn't fall! Raphtalia was behind him! Filo was behind him! Ren, Itsuki, and their groups were behind him! And behind them was Mirellia and the rest of the coalition!
If this attack took him down, then everything behind him would fall too!
"URGHAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Naofumi screamed. Despite the overwhelming pain that he was in. Despite all of his senses telling him to fall, to run, to do something to survive, he stood in the face of this powerful beam. The Shield of Hope II glowed brightly in his hands as its magic defense capabilities prevented the entirety of the thick beam from going past him to harm his allies behind him.
But not even the blessed shield could protect Naofumi from this level of hurt. He briefly smelled the scent of his own burning hair and flesh entering his nostrils before his lungs were filled with fire instead. The coalition's healing magic was hardly doing anything to help at this point. He was just taking too much damage all at once for it to matter.
He felt something on the left side of his face swell before suddenly bursting with a hiss, the contents leaking down his face before quickly evaporating.
The shield hero's iconic and strong barbarian armor couldn't keep up with the rate of damage either. It began to crack and snap under the strain.
Naofumi no longer had lips to form words with. Not that it made any difference. He couldn't get his mind to focus on forming any skills. All he could do was continue to stand there and take it. He nearly stumbled as his pain spiked and his bones began to whine painfully as the marrow inside them began to boil, but he dug his feet in behind him.
Endure. He had to endure this at all costs. He would take this pain a hundred, a thousand times more if it meant that no one else he cared about would get hurt. But it was so hard, he was so tired, he was in so much pain that he felt himself going delirious-
Suddenly, a bright flash lit up the front of his shield. There was the sound of something breaking, but thankfully, mercifully, the rest of the Spirit Tortoise's beam attack was deflected into the air above Naofumi.
It continued to travel, going over everyone, going over the top of the coalition army, and eventually impacting against a mountain in the distance. The whole thing was destroyed by the power of the attack. But no one besides Naofumi had been harmed.
...
Naofumi stood still in his spot, smoke coming off his blackened body. His breathing came out as pained, high-pitched wheezes. It felt like his entire body, inside and out, had gone through a blast furnace. In front of him, the blurry remains of a skill disappeared. Yet, he couldn't remember calling out any skills, especially one that looked like that.
'What… was… that…' Almost slowly, painfully slowly, he faced his shield towards himself. Looking with his one remaining blurry eye at the source of the power that'd saved him at the last moment.
He found nothing odd about the Shield of Hope II. But the accessory that had been attached to the jewel was now gone. What remained of it was in pieces on the ground. 'Where… did… it…'
…
'Oh… maybe… it wasn't… that my… accessories... were… special…' A ghost of a smile came onto Naofumi's blackened face at the discovery. To think that a simple thank you gift from that ratty Accessory Merchant had been the thing to save his life and the lives of many others in the end.
It was… good...
…
The timer on the Shield of Hope II, which had been stuck at 00:01 for the last minute, finally counted down its last second before the shield transformed back into its base form.
A second later, Naofumi Iwatani collapsed.
From where she was on Filo's back, having been prepared to finish the Spirit Tortoise off, Raphtalia's breath hitched as she watched the burned-out husk of the great Shield Hero fall.
"N… Naofumi…"
The Shield Hero didn't move.
"Daddy?"
Naofumi didn't respond to the broken plea.
"Unless the enemy somehow brings me down, I don't want you or anyone else to worry about me in battle."
Tears entered Raphtalia's eyes. She'd kept her promise. Doing her best to not worry about him. To stand out of his way so she could be his Sword and attack.
But she couldn't now. Because the unthinkable had happened.
The Shield Hero had fallen. And he wasn't moving.
"NAOFUMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"
"DADDDDDDDDDDY!"
Author's Notes:
What do you want me to say? Two more chapters left before this arc is over and the next one begins or something? I'm just looking forward to next week.
Till Next Time
Allen