Diligence of the Shield Hero

by Allen Blaster

Hope is not enough to survive the trials ahead. If they're to live, friendships must be retained. Knowledge has to be acquired. And as Fitoria said, Naofumi will have to learn to be Diligent to protect the friends and loved ones he has come to cherish. Multiple pairings. Cover by Temero. Covers Season Two territory. Arc 9: Ch. Seventy-Eight: Approaching Danger

127. 64: Unwavering Bonds

Just know, if you didn't read the Author's Note from last chapter, I'm going to post an Interlude Chapter or two from Motoyasu's perspective in the village after this. I'd like to give him and others a little time just so we can see how things are going back home before I jump into the rest of the Otherworld Arc. I have enough written for one chapter thus far. If there are any other suggestions or storylines with characters I might have left hanging at the end of Arc 7 or the start of the Spirit Tortoise Arc that haven't been mentioned before now, this might be the time to remind me of them.

---

Chapter Sixty-Four: Unwavering Bonds

---

Naofumi had to admit that he was rather enjoying the party.

Well, it was more like a festival really. Since it stretched all the way out to the end of the castle town and lasted well into the night. But it was honestly pretty amazing, really.

Prime Minister Stone announced to the people the news of Kizuna's safe return, the Otherworld Heroes presence, the choosing of a new Katana Hero, and their intention to bring Kyo to justice. All before the party even started.

People had definitely seemed surprised by the additional things they were celebrating. But thanks to a torrent of food, games, and maybe a little bit of alcohol, no one seemed to mind Naofumi and Itsuki or their friends being there amongst the festivities any longer.

Part of Naofumi did wish they could get to leveling up and training and all that so they could go kick Kyo's &^%. But another, larger part of him enjoyed finally having a bit of downtime with his family and friends.

Which, after everything he'd gone through, was something they all desperately needed.

"Oooh, Aksel, look over there! I've never seen a game like that before!" Maya said excitedly.

The knight looked, and saw a gem person operating some kind of booth. There were bottles set up at the end of it. And a box full of balls was on the front counter.

"What do you do for this game?" Aksel split off from the group to ask the gem person. Fortunately, Therese had used her gem magic on the pair earlier, so they could finally understand what others were saying now.

That was a huge relief for them. Not being able to understand anything could get really annoying at times.

"The game's simple." The gem male smiled happily. "For only 10 doumons, you get three balls to knock the bottles there down. Knock them all down, and you'll win the beautiful lady a fabulous prize."

"Come on Axie-Poo! I believe in you!" Maya cheered.

"Huh, I've never really tried a game like this before." Aksel smiled confidently as he paid the cost and hefted a ball in his hand. "How hard could it be?"

Naofumi and Itsuki continued on. Raphtalia and Rishia were talking to each other about something. But Naofumi didn't know what. And honestly, he was just happy to have his girlfriend nearby again.

"Yayyyyy~!" Filo went around from table to table. Sampling whatever she found. She stayed close enough that she didn't leave Naofumi's sight. But she definitely looked happy eating all that food.

"Wait up, Miss Filo!" Dou-Lon also followed her. Looking like an excited kid as he sampled all the various foods alongside the young girl.

At times, Filo would randomly burst out into song. Captivating those around her with her beautiful voice. At one point when she did that, Dou-Lon paused to listen to the song, recognizing it, and he started to dance along with it. Gathering a crowd around the duo.

It was honestly pretty cool to see. The two looked very happy doing what they loved.

Naofumi and Itsuki were in the middle of talking about something when Raphtalia suddenly approached him. "Itsuki, could you and Rishia watch over Filo and Dou-Lon for a bit?" Raphtalia asked.

"Huh? What do you need us to watch them for? Can't you two do it yourselves-?" Itsuki began to ask.

"Don't worry, we'll keep an eye on them, Raphtalia." Rishia said happily, grabbing Itsuki by the wrist before dragging him off after the pair's child and friend. Itsuki, though surprised at the bold action, followed behind the green-haired girl.

"... Couple stuff?" Naofumi asked hopefully.

Raphtalia blushed a little bit. "No… not yet, at least."

"So… there will be couple stuff." Naofumi raised his eyebrows mischievously.

Raphtalia dragged the Shield Hero behind her by the collar back towards the castle. He laughed as she tried her best to not burn through the ground in embarassment.

"Fueh…" Rishia shuffled in place awkwardly behind Filo and Dou-Lon, who were completely oblivious to her and Itsuki's presence.

"So, um…" Itsuki began unsurely.

"Y-Yes?" Rishia stuttered nervously. Now that it was… technically just the two of them.

"I guess we'll follow them around, then?" Itsuki finally said.

…

…

Gods, the Bow Hero could be so dense at times. Rishia had never felt so disappointed in her entire life.

Naofumi followed Raphtalia back to the castle. They passed Aksel, who was now struggling at the game from before to win Maya a prize. The girl in question encouraged her sweat covered boyfriend to not give up. Even though for some reason, the stupid balls weren't knocking the bottles over no matter how hard he tried to chuck them!

The Gem Person at the booth continued to smile as the stubborn knight stacked coins on the counter in a desperate refusal to give up against a stack of glass bottles.

Naofumi also saw Ethnobalt floating around on his Boat, smiling as he participated in the various activities. Therese was diving in and out of the crowd as if she was looking for someone. Raph-Chan and Chris were chasing each other around and stealing various treats from tables.

"Rafu!"

The ever adorable Raph-Chan, of course, was surrounded by kids who began to pet her furiously. She absolutely enjoyed the love and attention while Chris folded his flippers on his chest and pouted at her.

Ha! Take that you stupid penguin! Even the kids agree that Raph-Chan is the most adorable thing to have ever walked the face of the planet!

He seriously couldn't tell why Raphtalia hadn't approved of Naofumi making her. Couldn't she tell what perfection was when she saw it?

"Naofumi, you're really making me worry more with those thoughts of yours right now." Raphtalia sighed out loud.

"Am I wrong?" Naofumi replied.

"Why do you have to sound so serious?" She whined.

"Because I am. Raph-Chan is the pinnacle of perfection. And nobody is going to change my mind on that. Nobody." Naofumi crossed his arms.

Raphtalia sighed again. Naofumi, however, continued. "After all, she inherited many things from you. How could she not be perfect?"

"And… well, when I couldn't find you, I…"

…

Raphtalia turned to look at him. The Shield Hero was shaking outside the entrance of the castle. And when her eyes landed on his, they glinted with unshed tears. "I really, really, really… really missed you, Raphtalia. I…" Naofumi choked on the words.

It was beyond words, really. The pain he'd gone through without her around. To not know how she was doing. Not knowing if she was safe or not. He'd described it in part earlier before L'Arc dragged them to that meeting, but he could hardly do it justice.

He knew the definition of hell. It wasn't a burning fiery pit with some weirdo with a pointy tail and a fork to poke the damned with.

It was anywhere that didn't have Raphtalia around.

The half-Tanuki girl trembled. "I… I know. I felt much the same thing without you around… I…" She raised her hands to her face, and Naofumi realized she was crying.

"I knew you needed me by your side… but the moment you needed me most, I wasn't there for you! I'm… I'm really sorry, Naofumi."

…

Naofumi realized their definitions of hell weren't that far off from one another. He hugged the half-tanuki girl close and rested his head against her hair.

"We really had a bad time this past while, haven't we?"

Raphtalia slowly nodded. Hugging him back.

After a moment, they separated enough that he could smile down at her. "But… I can tell. You've definitely grown from all this."

"Months ago, you couldn't kill Idol Rabier because you were afraid that you wouldn't be able to stop yourself from killing an entire town if you did. But today, you disposed of someone in the most ice-cold way possible." Naofumi's eyes clouded over a bit after that.

"Not to say that killing someone is a good thing. But sometimes, it's necessary, as horrid as that might sound. I'm glad you understand this now."

"I…" Raphtalia stuttered a bit. "To be honest, I wanted to slash him in half at the waist first. To give him a chance, but… But at the last moment, it was like my weapon had a mind of its own, and…"

"Whatever the case, I think I'm right when I say that my Sword has returned to my side sharper than ever." Naofumi smiled.

Raphtalia's eyes misted over. And then Naofumi looked down at her outfit, and his nose started to bleed again. "And, um… you look really hot in that." He couldn't muster the brainpower to say more.

Raphtalia blushed intensely. "Y-You really think so?"

Naofumi plugged his nose. "Yeah. Can we find a way for you to wear that in our world? I don't think I ever want to see you in another outfit ever again." Naofumi spoke before he could even think his words over carefully.

Understandable. Since all the blood that should have been going to his brain was currently going to other places.

Raphtalia's face heatened up tenfold. There was still something they needed to talk about. Well, a couple somethings thanks to this conversation. But she could feel her desire building up in her, and Naofumi looked so incredibly sweet, and-

"Aioooo! Kiddos! Who wans a drik witha me?!"

The moment was instantly shattered.

"L'Arc… why is your timing always so goddamn terrible?" Naofumi asked flatly.

"Ah, Kiddos! Did ya know Theris picked ou her cerren outfit? Cool stuff, huh." L'Arc drunkenly stumbled up to Raphtalia, resting an arm over her shoulders. His other hand carried a half empty bottle of wine and rested itself on Naofumi's shoulder. He turned his head to the Shield Hero and gave him a drunken grin. "Shield Kiddo? You want some?"

"... no." Naofumi said firmly.

"Eh, sue yurself. Also, your nose is bleeding. You should probably fix that."

Yes, Naofumi still had a nosebleed from Raphtalia's outfit. He fixed that while the half-tanuki continued to maintain the biggest look of "are you &%$#ing kidding me" directed at the Scythe Hero.

L'Arc leaned heavily on her. "I hope I'm not interrupting some big moment between you Kiddos now. Ahahahahaha!"

Naofumi finished healing his nose and scowled at him. However, before he could say anything, a voice called out from the crowd of people around them.

"Young master! Young master!"

L'Arc's goofy grin disappeared. With a surprising face of calm, he grabbed Naofumi and Raphtalia by the shoulders, pulled them together, and then crouched down behind them as one of the ministers from earlier ran by.

"Oh, where is that boy? For goodness sake, he's almost as bad as his father was at his age! Young master! Young master!"

…

The couple turned to look at L'Arc. He was crouched down low, with his hands held over his ears. "What's with him?" Raphtalia asked.

"I think I might know." Naofumi bent low, and brought his mouth close to L'Arc's ear. "Hey there, your highness."

"Don't call me that! That's almost as insufferable as young master!" L'Arc stood up indignantly, looking and sounding a lot less drunk than before.

"Naofumi? You know what's going on?" Raphtalia asked curiously.

"Yeah. I figured it out earlier. Honestly, I should have realized it a lot sooner." Naofumi smirked as he pointed at L'Arc. "This boy here is the King of this country."

…

Raphtalia's eyes slowly widened. "Really? Him?!"

"I know, I'm just as surprised as you. But apparently he's the big man in charge here-" Naofumi began to reply.

"Shhhhhhhh!" L'Arc loudly shushed the pair, looking desperate. "Come on, Shield Kiddo, I can be allowed some time to party too, right?"

…

"Oi, your King is right-" Naofumi started to yell.

"No! Please! I beg you!" L'Arc prostrated himself to the ground.

"Drop the Kiddo title then." Naofumi smirked. L'Arc paled. "Or, I guess I could get used to calling you boy if you'd rather."

…

"N… N… Nao… Naofumi…" L'Arc forced himself to say the Shield Hero's name. Going against every urge in his body to go with the nickname he used outside of any serious situation.

…

Naofumi quirked an eyebrow while L'Arc struggled to maintain his composure.

"Damn it! I just want to call you Shield Kiddo since you look so much younger than me!" L'Arc caved.

"Alright then, boy. It appears we're at an impasse. Hope you enjoy your new nickname."

"Noooooooooo!" L'Arc pulled at his hair as he ran back into the party going on in the main hall.

Naofumi rolled his eyes. "Wow, for a King, he's surprisingly immature."

A few seconds later, Therese appeared running towards them. "Excuse me, Master Craftsman, Raphtalia, have you seen L'Arc by any chance?"

"Um, I believe-" Raphtalia started to say.

"That way." Naofumi pointed down the hallway with a grin. Not a shred of mercy in his voice. "Tell that boy I send my regards."

Therese grinned back. She was about to run off when she suddenly stopped, and then ran up to Raphtalia. "I forgot, I needed to give you something!"

She handed the half-tanuki girl a box, and then hugged her close so Naofumi couldn't see what it was. However, whether it was because of the item, or what Therese whispered in the half-tanuki's ears, Raphtalia was blushing wildly. "Good luck!" Therese winked before she took off in the direction L'Arc had run off too.

"... So, want to tell me what Therese just gave you?" Naofumi asked curiously.

Raphtalia had already absorbed the box into her weapon's gemstone. And at the question, she simply looked away and tried to smile. "Oh, just something, for later."

"Huh. That sounds oddly cryptic." Naofumi smirked as his hand rested back into hers.

Raphtalia giggled. And her hand gripped his as she smiled back.

It looked like the moment L'Arc had shattered was about to return…

…

"Why aren't you taking Rishia up on her offer for Hengen Musou training?" Raphtalia suddenly asked.

…

Naofumi's smile transformed into a sad frown. "Oh… she actually told you about that, huh?" He should have seen this coming.

"Yes, she did." Raphtalia rested a hand against his cheek. "Don't worry. I'm not here to judge you. But as someone who loves you very much, I want to know why you don't want this."

"Especially since, as Rishia explained it to me, you not learning it could leave you very vulnerable to attacks that could kill you." Raphtalia frowned worriedly. But put every ounce of love and care for her companion in her eyes that she possibly could.

…

…

Naofumi's fists clenched at his sides. His mouth opened and closed, and he struggled to form the words stuck in his throat.

Gods, it almost felt like he was choking. Naofumi stared at her helplessly. How could he admit to something that'd completely warped his perspective of his role?

…

After struggling a while longer, he tried to form the thoughts in his mind. Knowing it'd reflect on his face, and then, maybe, just maybe, Raphtalia would piece them together for him, since she was really good at doing that when it came to him.

And Raphtalia did study him intently. Staring deep into his eyes as if she was gleaning into his soul. And while the words wouldn't come to his mouth, they came to hers.

"You don't want to learn Hengen Musou… because you're afraid that doing so might give you an option to attack."

…

Raphtalia frowned. "But… for so long, you've wanted to be able to attack and kill monsters on your own more than anything. But now you're… you're afraid to do that? Why?"

Naofumi slowly nodded his head. "After… after what happened with Ost…"

…

Realization suddenly lit up Raphtalia's eyes. "Oh, Naofumi…" She rested his head on her shoulder, and the Shield Hero hugged her tightly as his body trembled against hers.

With her releasing the proverbial dam from his lips, Naofumi's words cascaded like an overflowing river from his mouth.

"After Ost… after she asked me to kill her, I… I realized exactly what I'd been asking for all along. I realized just how horrible it is to be able to take another's life. Especially when that someone ended up being a dear friend."

"I can't put myself through that again, Raphtalia. I can't go out of my way seeking ways to hurt people anymore. It was something I started to realize when I hurt you, and Filo, and Dou-Lon, and Eclair, and Melty, and everyone else when I yelled at you for all those stupid things. I…"

Naofumi trembled, but Raphtalia held to him tight. "I don't want to learn if I could use ki to attack my enemies with defense piercing or defense rating attacks like Rishia. I'd… I'd rather defend you, and Filo, and everyone else I care about. And when I can, annoy the hell out of my enemies and use their attacks and magic against them. But…"

He fell silent, and Raphtalia listened to the sound of his beating heart in his chest. Her eyes closed in concentration as she thought over what she wanted to say.

"I'd… I'd rather keep you all safe than try and learn something to satisfy any personal vendetta I might have against others. You're far more important to me than any of that revenge bull&^%$." Naofumi admitted.

…

"Naofumi. You know one of the reasons why I love you is because of your kind nature, right?" Raphtalia finally asked.

Naofumi slowly nodded. "You keep saying that, but I still don't see how since I'm not often kind."

"You are. You just don't see it as much as I do." Raphtalia smiled softly, and pushed him back to look him in the eyes. "And I'm so proud of you. You've accomplished so much good relying on me and everyone else to fight your battles. And from what you told me, you were able to grow and accomplish a lot without me around either. Rishia was lucky to be able to fight alongside you."

"But Naofumi… you're being an idiot right now!" Raphtalia's smile dropped to a frown immediately.

…

Naofumi's face took on a confused expression as Raphtalia leaned forward. He hadn't been expecting this kind of turn in the conversation. "I'm sorry, what do you-"

What'd looked like her being about to kiss him turned into her nipping his ear instead. He backpedaled in surprise at the aggressive and assertive side Raphtalia had just shown. "Oi, what the hell was that for!?"

"If you don't want to learn it to attack others, learn what you can from Rishia to defend yourself and me!" Raphtalia angrily replied as she closed the distance between them again. He backed up into the wall in terror as she got up into his face. "Do you think I want you to worry about me in the middle of a battle because I didn't hone my skills enough to be your sword against your enemies?!"

"N-No, of course not-"

"Then don't make me worry about you when some rando pulls out defense piercing and defense rating attacks just like Rishia! Especially after you made me promise not to worry about you whenever we fought our enemies!" Raphtalia grabbed him by his collar and pulled his face down to hers. Her eyes were livid. "You have nothing to defend against those kinds of attacks right now! Do you really want to be useless in those kinds of battles?! Do you want to be unable to protect me or your daughters from danger?!"

"NO! I'D RATHER DIE THAN-!" Naofumi yelled back.

Raphtalia then fiercely kissed him on the lips. This shocked Naofumi into silence.

After a moment, she pulled back to stare at him with more emotions clouding her eyes than ever before. "After tonight, you're going to approach Rishia, and you're going to beg her to train you to use ki. And I'm going to make sure you take your training seriously since I'll be participating alongside you."

"I… I… wha-" Naofumi looked so lost.

However, Raphtalia's lips crashed against his again. And Naofumi completely lost track of himself after that.

One moment, they'd been at the edge of the party inside the castle by themselves.

The next, they were crashing into a random room in the castle. Lips battling against each other as they fell onto a bed.

Naofumi's shirt was already missing, and he couldn't remember them separating to allow that to happen. Meaning she must have ripped it off him… or something.

His brainpower was already dropping due to all his blood flowing to another part of his body. He didn't even know if the room was already used by somebody else or not. And after looking down at Raphtalia, who's outfit had opened down the middle, his already rapidly depleting brainpower went completely out the window.

Naofumi, looking down at her, his hands shakily gripping her shoulders…

He didn't see Bitch.

He didn't see anything remotely bad.

She was beautiful.

"P… Please…" She whimpered softly. Her arms tightening around his back.

He somehow understood the meaning behind her words.

Please, don't stop this.

Please, don't leave me ever again.

Please, don't let the past ruin what's happening now.

That last one was very important. They'd tried to be careful in advancing their relationship because of his past traumas and everything else. But now, more than anything, she wanted him. She didn't want to take things slow or careful. She wanted to dive off the deep end and take him along with her.

And he wanted that too. He wanted that so badly.

You see, that day, blocking the Spirit Tortoise's powerful breath attack to protect Raphtalia, Itsuki, Ren, and everyone else he cared about behind him, when Naofumi had confronted the darkest parts of his mind; he discovered a fear far deeper than anything Bitch had inspired from him. Something far greater than anything in the whole wide world. And being away from Raphtalia had only forced him to confront it over and over again.

What he feared the most wasn't actually Bitch.

No, what he feared was losing everyone and everything important to him. And he feared that he'd lose it through some fault of his own making.

He hadn't had one panic attack ever since he'd realized his true fear and confronted it. And being away from Raphtalia, he'd been forced to confront that pain over and over and over again.

Now, in this moment, Naofumi couldn't hold it back anymore. He wouldn't be able to hold it back ever again.

He cared about this beautiful, half-tanuki, half-raccoon girl more than anything else in the entire universe. And hearing her whisper that one word to him, he let himself go.

His mouth crashed against hers. Their hands tore at the remainder of each other's clothing.

And thus, they were lost in the sea of their shared passion for one another.

---

…

"Wow…"

Sometime later, Naofumi stood at the balcony of their room, overlooking the festival still going on down below.

He was dressed in a nightrobe he'd found in the room's closet. And the Shield Hero's green eyes looked a little different than normal. They were shining as with the light of a thousand stars. Naofumi's posture looked way more relaxed and loose than it had since being summoned to his world.

His world, huh… he finally realized he'd gone from calling it Raphtalia's world to his world for a while now.

Strange, how his brain was finally picking up on things like that.

Perhaps what'd just happened had made him go crazy?

Then again, he'd already figured he was crazy since he absorbed the condom he'd used earlier into his shield, expecting to get a new weapon form from it. Apparently, that had been what Therese handed Raphtalia earlier. A whole box of freaking condoms just for them.

She'd also whispered the directions to the store they were made at to Raphtalia so they could get more in case they ran out…

That sneaky gem girl really did have a dirty mind believing the two of them would need the protection so soon.

She'd been right, of course. But Naofumi was still going to need to talk with her about it.

He might have also been crazy because he and Raphtalia had actually done it. Naofumi, a random otaku, had treaded territory now where only Motoyasu had gone before with… … …

Ugh, thinking of it like that brought Naofumi down from his high somewhat. Poor Motoyasu, having to live with that on his head for the rest of his life.

The horrible thought was eventually banished though and Naofumi was smiling again within moments.

Also, in case you were curious, no. He hadn't gotten a new shield from absorbing the used condom. He hadn't gotten a new shield from the sex either. And Raphtalia hadn't unlocked any new katanas from what'd happened either.

Because it would have been beyond stupid to get weapon forms from that.

As imperfect as they are, the weapons DO have standards. At least, they have higher standards than those Heroes who recorded the adventures of their escapades in their diaries.

Still, with it being a form of 'protection', he'd figured the Shield would give him something. But no, it had not. And that was probably for the best.

It'd be weird for just any sicko to unlock a shield just from having sex.

Seriously, just how stupid and braindead is that?

…

A pair of arms slowly wrapped around him from behind, and Naofumi smiled as he felt Raphtalia sink into his back. "Mmmm, why aren't you in bed? I'm cold."

"Sorry, I was having random thoughts and didn't want to bother you." Naofumi smiled as his hands settled gently over her arms. "I also wanted to see what the world looked like now."

"Oh, and what does it look like?" The girl moved beside him, revealing that she was wearing his shirt like a pajama.

Man, if only she'd been naked… then again, that would have been a very bad idea since people from below could probably see them if they looked up right now. Plus, wearing his shirt, she looked insanely hot right now and-

Damn. He needed to get these horny thoughts under control. They'd only had sex once and he'd already turned into a complete idiot.

Raphtalia giggled, and somewhere in the back of his mind, he figured she'd just read his thoughts again. "Well, it doesn't look any different compared to before. Still seems bright and annoying out there."

Raphtalia punched Naofumi's shoulder, and he laughed at her pout. "But don't worry. Now that you're here, everything looks a billion times better. No, a trillion times better."

"Yeah, whatever Naofumi." She rolled her eyes, but relaxed against his side, allowing him to rest an arm over her shoulders as she lightly blushed at his compliment.

His Shield laid on his back in its current smallest weapon form, and her katana rested on her other side in a makeshift sheath.

The two Heroes were silent for a moment, staring at the festivities below…

…

"You're not sore or anything, right?" Naofumi suddenly asked worriedly. He'd been a virgin up till that night. He had no idea what to expect from his partner and companion.

"No." Raphtalia smiled widely. "Therese warned me the first time is usually painful. But strangely enough, it didn't hurt at all."

Naofumi's smile slowly fell. "Wow. To think my weapon restriction would make my lack of attack stat go that far." He deadpanned.

Raphtalia giggled. "At least there weren't any Clanging sounds, right?"

"Oh, oh no, that would have been the biggest mood killer ever. You know, besides that drunk redheaded jerk." Naofumi drawled.

Raphtalia laughed, and Naofumi felt his heart warm at the action. "Well, you don't have to worry. I very much enjoyed it. More than I thought I would. Especially since it was you."

"Ha." Naofumi did his best to keep the blush off his face with little success. "I've been demoted from Hero to butler before, but now, I've reached a new low."

"Don't joke about that." Raphtalia swatted his shoulder. "Whatever form you take, I'll still love you regardless of what happens."

…

"... thank you." He whispered, after a moment of silence. "That means more to me than you'll ever know."

She just continued to hug him, smiling contentedly as she did so.

…

"Still, I think it'd be a good idea not to discuss this with anyone else. If word spread that my shield made me a pleasure tool for sex…" Naofumi trailed off.

Raphtalia's blush deepened tenfold. "Oh, Gods, no wonder so many of the past Shield Heroes had harems." And no wonder a female dragon had enjoyed intercourse with a past Shield Hero.

It'd been weird when Tersia and Farrie told her about what they'd learned. But now, it made sense.

In a very, very horrifying way.

"Well, you won't have to worry, because I'm not letting anyone else have you." Raphtalia put her foot down.

"Oh, really now? You seemed very quick to agree to that-"

Raphtalia shut him up by kissing him on the lips. When she pulled back, Naofumi was speechless, and she smiled at how easily she was able to quiet him.

Another peaceful silence passed between them. But before they could go back in, another question came to Raphtalia's mind.

After another moment of cuddling, she spoke again. "So… why Raph-Chan? Knowing your mind, I would have thought it'd be Rafu-Chan."

Naofumi chuckled. "Raph-Chan looked like living and breathing perfection after she was created." He smiled as he turned to look at her and her pout.

"You're really going to worry me if you keep on insisting on that," Raphtalia said.

"Well, whatever you might think, she's perfect, and I wanted to make her name perfect. So what could be a more perfect name than something from the most perfect woman I've ever met?"

…

Raphtalia's smile fell just a little, and no blush filled her face. Because she knew that she was far from perfect.

…

Yet, eventually, she did smile warmly. Because she remembered L'Arc's words to her before. And she knew that even if she wasn't the perfect Hero now, or the perfect girlfriend, that she had the potential to become better.

So, perhaps, Naofumi's statement then and there wasn't that far off.

"Alright, I accept your logic… but we're naming our next daughter Rifana." Raphtalia said determinedly.

"Oh, already looking forward to our next child, are you-" Naofumi began to tease her. Only for Raphtalia to cut him off once again with another deep kiss.

Going forward, the two would be ok.

…

Their lips separated, and Raphtalia looked up into his eyes hopefully. "Round two?"

"... you really are horny." Naofumi chuckled. "We just did it a few minutes ago. I'm not sure I can just put it up again on a whim."

"I-It's o-only because I had to go through puberty again! And Therese gave us an e-entire box to keep me from getting pregnant! And yes! I've wanted to do this with you for a very very very long time! S-S-So-!" Raphtalia blushed deeply, but then she crashed her lips against his again and pulled him back into the room away from prying eyes.

Yep.

They'd definitely be ok.

…

Something was rising, and it was definitely the Shield Hero this time.

---

Rishia let out a very tired yawn.

"Long day, huh." Itsuki remarked unsurely next to her.

"Mmhmm." Rishia mumbled as they slowed to a stop in front of his door.

Rishia had been given a room near his. After distracting themselves all day with the events at the festival and keeping an eye on Filo and Dou-Lon, the two were very much tired and ready to call it a day.

However, now that they were at Itsuki's bedroom door, the young man struggled to say something to his friend. Who, despite yawning, seemed as much alert to their coming parting as he was.

"Rishia… um… uh…"

"Fueh…" Rishia whimpered, but waited expectantly for what Itsuki was going to say to her.

"I… I…"

…

"I hope you have a good night." Itsuki turned toward the door.

…

Rishia felt her heart fall in her chest, just like it had earlier when Itsuki had decided not to treat what they were doing as a date, and so she sadly turned away. "Y-You too." She managed to speak out.

Itsuki went into his room, and Rishia walked down the hall towards her room. As she did that, she passed by a slightly open door, and curiously peaked inside.

Maya and Aksel were in bed together. The large man held the raccoon girl to himself in his sleep, and Maya was smiling widely while hugging a large penguin plushie Aksel had managed to win for her… from a different game that hadn't been rigged.

They looked so cute and wholesome together… and Rishia would have been lying if she didn't admit that she wanted the same thing with Itsuki too.

But… every time they tried to grow close, they only grew more embarrassed. As neither of them seemed to have any idea what they were doing.

Rishia seriously considered what Naofumi had told her to do back at camp… but the thought of doing something so forward made her cheeks flare red in embarrassment. And her heart began to hammer in her chest. And her knees went weak, and she nearly collapsed against the door to her friend's room, and-

Oh, SHE ALMOST BURST INTO HER FRIEND'S ROOM!

"Eep!" The short smol and well-endowed girl frantically rushed down the hall to her room. Slamming the door behind her with a loud crash before resting against it and breathing in and out heavily.

That was dangerous! How could she have done something so stupid!?

She immediately wanted to throw herself onto her bed and forget about the entire day in the hope that it'd never come up for her ever again and-

Bzzz… Bzzz…

…

"H… Huh?" Rishia looked around herself curiously.

Strange, that was the sound of one of her communication ofuda receiving a message, but who would be…?

She pulled the right ofuda off her belt, and her eyes widened in surprise when she realized which ofuda it was.

Itsuki: "Hey."

…

Rishia stared at the ofuda in confusion. She wondered what this was all about when another message came in on the same ofuda.

Itsuki: "You asleep yet?"

…

Rishia looked around herself again, not sure what to make of this. Why was Itsuki using his communication ofuda to talk when he was just a couple of rooms over?

Shakily, she moved over to her bed and sat on the edge before focusing her magic power on the ofuda.

Rishia: "Not yet. Is something wrong, Itsuki? Why are you using your ofuda to talk?

A few seconds later, Itsuki replied.

Itsuki: "Everything's fine."

Itsuki: "Just wanted to chat."

Rishia: "Okay, I'll come over in a minute."

Itsuki: "No!"

At that, Rishia frowned as her confusion began to turn into annoyance. Itsuki said he wanted to talk but then changed his mind?

Rishia: "So you don't want to talk?"

Itsuki: "No, I do!"

Itsuki: "Just."

Itsuki: "Sorry, I should have explained it better earlier."

There was another long pause as Rishia kept a level look at the slip of paper. Finally, another message appeared. Considerably longer and more detailed this time.

Itsuki: "In my old world we had devices like these Ofudas that allowed people to contact each other. But they became so cheap and commonplace that instead of only using it for work and emergencies, people started to use them in everyday life as another way of socializing. When I saw what these Ofuda could do, it reminded me of that and it made me feel a little nostalgic. I used to chat like that with someone a lot when we were younger. So I wanted to try it out with you for old time's sake. Sorry for being weird. Good night Rishia."

The annoyance vanished off the green-haired girl's face in an instant as she frantically sent another message.

R: "Itsuki, wait! It's not weird. Now that you explained it, I get it. But why not use the voice transmission ability of the ofuda instead? It takes time and focus to send text through them."

There was another pause as Rishia eagerly waited for the reply which came shortly.

Itsuki: "Even if it's not face to face that would still be talking to someone."

Rishia cocked her head.

Rishia: "Isn't that a good thing? And aren't we talking now already?"

The pause was longer this time.

Itsuki: "It's kind of like when you write someone a letter. You're talking too, but it's also different. When talking face to face or voice to voice, the conversation happens in real time. You don't always have the time to think your words over and focus. To really express what you want to say. Or you might hesitate as you overthink it and say something else. A bad thing about letters is that it takes a while for them to arrive and for your pen pal to reply but by being able to send texts quickly like this you can hold a conversation like in a letter. It's slower paced, but that slowness gives you an opportunity to really think your words over and speak from your heart."

…

Rishia's mouth opened slowly in realization and she send a message over without thinking.

Rishia: "Oh."

Itsuki: "Sorry, like I said it's just me being stupid and obtuse. You don't have to keep sending me messages."

Rishia: "No, Itsuki what you said is true. I get it. I really, truly get it. I still write to my parents regularly but it always takes a while for their letters to reach me! So I understand what you mean now! The people in your world are really really smart to think up something like that!"

Itsuki: "Well, I wouldn't go that far. It was more like a fluke, really."

Rishia: "How so?"

It was time for Itsuki pause as he held his finger over the slip of paper with bated breath. Fortunately another message came.

Rishia: "Did you not like your old world?"

The words made the slip of paper feel like lead in the Bow Hero's hands in that moment. He had alluded to some things in the past that Rishia must have pieced together.

Itsuki: "Not… no, not really."

…

Rishia: "Do you want to talk about it?"

Itsuki's fingers hovered over the piece of paper. He breathed in deeply, trying to take comfort in the fact that no one could see what he looked like right now.

Itsuki: "I wish I could. But… I don't feel ready to talk about it… yet."

Itsuki: "Can we talk about something else instead?"

Rishia pondered to herself for a moment. She felt worried about Itsuki keeping that topic closed off, based on the little she did know about it. Still, now that they were talking like this, she didn't want to stop, so she looked around herself, trying to think of something to say.

Rishia: "It's nice to be able to finally rest indoors, isn't it?"

Itsuki: "Yeah. It really is."

Itsuki: "The last time we had that privilege was back in our town."

Rishia: "That feels like it was so long ago."

Itsuki: "I know, right?"

At this point, Rishia was smiling a little. Feeling a bit more confident, she continued the back and forth exchange with the Bow Hero since he hadn't shut that down.

Itsuki: "How are you holding up, by the way?"

Rishia: "Pretty well, I think."

Rishia: "I'm still sad that we weren't able to save all those soldiers.

Rishia: "But at least we brought their murderer to justice."

Itsuki: "Yeah, we did."

Itsuki: "You did fantastic today, by the way."

Rishia: "Thank you. That means a lot."

Itsuki: "I mean it!"

Itsuki: "You were killing all those monsters left and right even while weaving through Glass and I's attacks! It was nothing short of spectacular!"

Rishia: "It wasn't anything too big, really."

Rishia: "You were just as amazing in the battle today."

Itsuki: "Really?"

Itsuki: "It didn't really feel like I did anything big today."

Itsuki: "I thought we were going to go along with my plan sneaking through the city."

Itsuki: "And then we ended up falling back on Naofumi's crazy plan anyway."

…

Rishia: "You backed me and Kizuna up the whole fight."

Rishia: "That was big enough for me."

Rishia: "Even if we did have to live through another one of Naofumi's crazy plans. :)"

Itsuki: "No kidding, why can't he settle on a normal plan like what we did for the Spirit Tortoise!?"

Itsuki: "That was well thought out for the most part, right?"

Rishia: "At least the parts you and Ren contributed to were well thought out."

…

Itsuki: "Oh gods, Naofumi is nuts."

Rishia: "You're just now noticing that? Maybe you should party with him for a week and see what you learn about him."

In their rooms, the two individuals both laughed in delight.

Seconds turned into minutes as Rishia messaged back and forth with the Bow Hero. It was so strange not speaking to him face to face. But, in a way, it also felt kind of liberating.

The shy, closed off girl began to smile widely. Feeling comfortable even though she was holding a conversation with her crush over text. Soon, an hour had passed, and they'd discussed all sorts of things from their time in the Otherworld to random stuff they'd never talked about before. Like what their favorite colors were, or what their parents were like. They'd both had loving parents that really cared about them. Yet their childhoods had been… less than desirable.

They talked about the festival. How Itsuki had sweeped some of the games despite them being rigged. How exhausting but fun it'd been to keep up with Dou-Lon and Filo as they sang and danced throughout the party.

Rishia only noticed how much time had passed when she let out a long yawn and noticed her eyelids felt heavy.

Rishia: "Sorry, I think I should be getting to bed.

Rishia: "I'm really tired right now. :("

…

Itsuki: "Wanna do this again later?"

Rishia's eyebrow lifted up curiously.

Rishia: "Do what?"

Itsuki: "This. Messaging each other each night before we go to bed."

Itsuki: "Well, it doesn't have to be every night, unless you'd be comfortable with that?"

…

There was a long pause after that. But eventually, a message longer than the rest appeared on her ofuda before she could think of a response to the Bow Hero's weird inquiry.

Itsuki: "Truthfully, this was why I asked for the extra ofuda to begin with. I know how hard it is to talk in real life at times. And I understand how hard it is for you and me to talk to each other like normal people. So when Kizuna told me about these, it reminded me of how people socialized in my world in a way they were comfortable with, and well."

His message trailed off, but after another moment, a new message followed up behind it.

Itsuki: "I was hoping it'd help us out."

…

Rishia felt her heart swell in her chest. And happy tears sprang to her eyes as she sniffled and wiped them away.

Rishia: "Yes, I'll be happy doing this.

Rishia: "Every night, or as often as you want. I like talking to you like this, Itsuki. It's much easier this way for me."

A second later, Itsuki's response appeared on the ofuda.

Itsuki: "GREAT!"

Itsuki: "Sorry, I didn't mean to send that last message in all caps!"

Itsuki: "Is there a way to cancel that! What do you mean I can't cancel it?!

Itsuki: "Ack, is all of this being sent!?

Itsuki: "Ignore everything I just said here!"

Rishia giggled to herself, and she sent a message back to the Bow Hero.

Rishia: "Have a good night, Itsuki. Thank you for today."

Rishia: "I'll see you tomorrow morning."

…

…

…

Itsuki: "See you tomorrow, Rishia. :)"

Even though it'd been a minute after he'd sent the last message, Rishia immediately gripped the ofuda when it buzzed to read the words. As well as the smiley face he'd attached at the end.

Her heart swelled in her chest again, and Rishia grasped the communication ofuda paired with Itsuki's words close like it was her most precious possession. And… it might have just become her most precious possession.

It was only a start…

But what a start it was.

---

L'Arc peaked around a corner at the drinks table. His hands carried a quarter-empty bottle of wine. He would need a replacement soon if he wanted to keep the good night going.

He looked from side to side. Good, it didn't appear that any of the ministers or Therese was nearby.

With a sigh of relief he rested against the wall inside the alcove that he was hiding in and slid down on the floor. He took another swig from the bottle and set it down next to himself before closing his eyes and inhaling deeply.

It felt nice, being back home. The walls, the floor, the sounds, even the air tasted familiar. The buzz of alcohol was spreading a warm sensation throughout his body that allowed him to finally relax and just take a quiet moment for himself.

For all of his energetic tendencies, even he appreciated something like that once in a while. He could not linger here for long, however, as someone would be bound to find him here eventually.

He always sucked at playing hide and seek. Whether it was with Therese, Kizuna, or Glass. And besides, maybe he could find a cute girl here to flirt with, or Bow Kiddo since he probably wouldn't rat him out to his pursuers, or-

"You still chugging this imported, over-sweetened swill from Lazuli?" Kenshiro examined the bottle in his hands with a look of mild disgust. "A real man should be drinking sake, not some fancy wine."

"Guhoooo!" L'Arc rapidly backed away into the alcove before suddenly bonking his head on the wall. "Ow! God damn it!"

The ghost in front of him rolled his eyes bemusedly and set L'Arc's wine bottle on a nearby table. "You haven't changed at all even after all these years."

"K-Kenshiro?" L'Arc managed to force out the name in a hoarse voice.

"Obviously. Or have you met someone else who shares my handsome features?" The tall man gestured at the burnt half of his face.

L'Arc blinked his eyes repeatedly. Then rubbed them as if to make sure he wasn't seeing things. He looked around, but it didn't look like anyone else was there to see the ghost standing in front of him.

"What… how are you-? The King of Sickle's stunned expression suddenly changed to a grim one. "What do you want?"

The ghostly samurai averted his eyes at the change in atmosphere and his cocky grin vanished. "Just... wanted to say goodbye, I guess."

"Well you sure took your sweet time." L' Arc grimaced as he shakily got up and walked out of the alcove before snatching the bottle from the table and taking another swig. He then pointed at the ghost with the index finger of his free hand. "Being dead must be a full-time job with no days off if you weren't able to spare even a moment to drop in and mention that you hadn't passed on."

"...You're drunk." The ghost replied bitterly.

"Damn, what gave it away?" L' Arc said back sarcastically before extending the bottle out. "Want a sip? Oh wait, that's right, mister ex-Katana Hero here is too good for such luxuries. Only the finest fermented rice water for him! Not like you can drink it anyway since you're not really here!"

"L' Arc..." Kenshiro closed his one eye and inhaled sharply. "I'm... I'm sorry."

…

…

There was a long pause before the King of Sickle slowly turned his head to look at the ghost again. "Well, $%^&, that's a first. Now I'm completely certain that this is just an alcohol poisoning induced hallucination and that I'm about to wake up in my bed with Therese's angry expression hovering over me."

"I'm afraid you aren't so lucky." Kenshiro's wry smile returned if only slightly before disappearing again. "In my defense, I wasn't in good shape till recently. I was almost on the verge of turning into a vengeful spirit because of what my nephew had done to me and my country for a very long while."

"... Oh. That's what happened." L' Arc replied somberly and looked away. He attempted to take another swig but changed his mind at the last moment and set the bottle down instead.

"It was only thanks to the Katana that I didn't turn into a mindless monster." Kenshiro continued. "And even then, I had days where I wished I could throw the Katana away so I could come back as a vengeful spirit to strangle my nephew myself. It would have felt so great too."

"… but you didn't." L'Arc answered.

Kenshiro shook his head. "No, I didn't. I chose to grit my teeth and continue to uphold my duty instead. Even in death. All too ensure that the Katana would be kept safe until a new wielder was ready to receive it."

"Why did you have to keep it safe? What did the Scythe mean when it told me that Kazuki was about to 'steal' the Katana?" L'Arc asked.

…

"Honestly… I don't know." Kenshiro shook his head. "I don't know how my nephew had such an ability. But however he got it, he was going to use it to force the Katana to serve him. And all he had to do was grip it to make that happen."

…

More of L'Arc's drunk demeanor disappeared. To think the Katana had come so close to falling into the wrong hands… then, there was also something else that Kenshiro had said.

"... for how long have you been keeping an eye out on Raphtalia?" L'Arc asked.

"... On and off ever since the time her village was destroyed almost a year back or so." Kenshiro shrugged. "But her world isn't connected to our own, meaning that the Katana could only observe at times for so long. There's also the difference in how time flows in our worlds. And there were also other potential candidates the Katana was keeping a close watch on. Figures who'd appear on the horizon, only to fall off as they became more prominent in their worlds, or were chosen by other weapons."

"... But not Raphtalia." L'Arc said.

"No, she remained as a constant presence. And eventually, the Katana focused on her more and more until she appeared with you in this world." Kenshiro continued. "After that, I observed her more closely myself to see what the Katana saw in her."

"Her loyalty to her Hero is greater than anything I've ever seen. But more than that, it was her loyalty to her promises. To the friends she met. Her unwavering commitment to never give up in the face of her mistakes… and above all, her sense of duty that convinced me that she was a worthy inheritor of my legacy."

"I wanted to duel Raphtalia to make sure she was ready for the blade, but the Katana wouldn't allow it. So I had to give it up as is. A bit disappointing, really. The old girl must have gone soft over the last few years."

"... heh. I don't doubt that. You always were one to say that duty comes before everything." L'Arc muttered.

"Yes… and only now do I understand what a fool I was for spouting such nonsense." Kenshiro replied.

L'Arc looked back up at his friend in surprise. Somehow, even with his face so scarred, he looked genuinely sad at that moment. "Duty is important, yes, but… friends. Family. Those relationships I hacked off after being chosen should have been just as important to me. Maybe even more so."

"Besides my nephew, there was one other thing keeping me tied to this world. One last thing that wouldn't allow me to move on."

"And what would that be?" L' Arc inquired.

"I think you know the answer to that. I already said it, after all." The samurai replied wistfully.

...

...

"I'm sorry too." The scythe hero sniffed loudly. "During the Wave, if I came to help faster-"

"Nothing would have changed." The ex-Katana Hero cut him off. "It all happened in an instant. You saw the state that my body was left in. The wound that Wave Boss inflicted on me in that moment of weakness was fatal. I was dead before you'd even killed the monster."

...

The two men stood next to each other silently, only the distant sounds of the party going on were audible.

"I was always envious of you, you know." Kenshiro broke the silence.

"You? Envious of me?" L'Arc looked at his old friend in disbelief. "The star of Label? The guy who forced one of the Demon Dragon's generals to retreat on the same day he became a Hero? Envious of Sickle's resident clown?"

"I wasn't always that." The samurai breathed out. "We... weren't always that.

"And I never cared for power and fame or titles. I didn't care that you were a prince and that I was just a lowly noble's son. I didn't care that you inherited your country's weapon at such an early age while my brother continued to hold on to his."

Kenshiro shook his head. "But what I did care about was that one day, both of us had a loving family. And the next, one of us didn't."

…

"Ah..." L' Arc opened his mouth in realization."

"We were close friends growing up, L'Arc. But when I lost my family to the Demon Dragon, and… when yours didn't suffer from such a tragedy, I became bitter. Resentful.

"I clashed with you as often as I did because I wanted you to learn to appreciate your family more. And, after some time, I truly came to resent you for being so laidback to them. And to your friends and the Hunting Tools Hero and…

"I was angry because of my loss." The ghostly man let out a long sigh. "I don't expect you to forgive me for being such a bastard, but I wanted to get this off my chest all the same. I had a lot of time to reflect and think my life over as I waited for the end of my vigil. I was quite the fool in retrospect."

…

…

"That makes two of us then." L'Arc rolled his eyes as he chuckled.

"What do you mean?" Kenshiro asked.

"Don't you remember what it was like after the war?" L'Arc asked back.

"Of course. We still weren't getting along all that well-" Kenshiro began to say.

"Yet I still kept reaching out to you. I kept up with your surprise challenges whenever we visited each other. You accepted my request for help when Kizuna went missing. Hell, I even drank that awful rice water you like so much when we went to that one party together since they didn't have any wine but I still wanted to try getting drunk with my best friend anyway!"

Kenshiro laughed softly, remembering the memory of L'Arc's disgusted face as he tried sake for the first time. L'Arc smiled a little too. "Do you really think I would have put myself through all that if I hadn't forgiven you? If I hadn't still wanted to be your friend?"

"But… then why were you so standoffish when I appeared earlier?" Kenshiro asked confusedly.

"Ken, you were dead for several years with me thinking I'd never see you again, and then you just pop back in to give Raphtalia your blade without saying a word to me! Then you finally appear and say goodbye while I'm drunk?! For all I know, this could be a damn hallucination from the wine! What else did you expect of me?!" L'Arc angrily retorted.

The two of them both laughed. It honestly felt great, as bittersweet as it was.

"There is something else I wanted to speak about before I leave." Kenshiro's demeanor became serious again. "The Book Hero, Kyo."

"What of him?" L'Arc tensed up.

"I know you'll be going to challenge him soon." The burned man continued. "I won't waste my breath telling you why you must do this. You know it already. Just don't underestimate him. When you faced him before, he was completely confident in his victory. Now, he's cornered. He won't fight the same way as before. He knows that there aren't any escape routes left for him. He'll be desperate and will use every dirty trick in his 'book' to survive. Remain vigilant when you fight him."

"... I will." L'Arc promised.

Kenshiro nodded before opening his mouth again. "Also… about the Hunting Tools… no, about Kizuna. Despite my concerns she has grown into a fine Hero. Tell her that she isn't a greenhorn kid anymore for me. She has my respect."

"Heh, as if she'd believe me that you said it… but fine. I can do that" L'Arc smiled.

"When you do, tell her not to give up hope on the other Heroes too." Kenshiro smiled sadly. "It wasn't for long, but I worked with them. They might seem like a shortsighted and lazy lot at first sight, but if Kizuna could grow to become a Hero, then I'm sure they can too. They just need a little bit of tough love to push them forward. There's a little more to the reason for why they're refusing to participate in any waves."

L'Arc's eyes widened. "Really, what-"

"When she meets them, tell her that instead of asking them why they're not fighting to ask them why they must keep on living."

As he said it, Kenshiro's spirit began to fade. L'Arc's eyes widened in surprise. "Ah. It looks like my time is up." Kenshiro smiled warmly. "I can hear my brother calling for me. And our parents too. It's been so long since I heard their voices… L'Arc, thank you for forgiving me. I can finally pass on in peace."

The Scythe Hero sniffled as tears entered his eyes. "N-no problem Ken. I'll miss you, man."

"Don't feel bad. We'll meet again on the other side. You better sharpen your skills for that moment though, because the first thing I'll do the next time we meet is challenge you again. Can't have anyone think that you might have surpassed me, after all."

L'Arc couldn't help but burst out into laughter. "I'll make you eat dirt next time, you bastard!"

"Heh, we'll see. Make sure to take your time. Gods know, you're gonna need all the prep-work in the world to stand a chance." Kenshiro grinned cockily as he made a mock bow.

"Would it really kill you to just tell me to have a long and fulfilling life like a normal person?" L'Arc shook his head in exasperation.

"That's not my style." The samurai shrugged before smiling smugly. "And besides, I'm already dead."

"Just… just go man." The King of Sickle facepalmed at the morbid joke.

"Very well… I think I stalled you for long enough anyway." Kenshiro smiled wryly one last time as his spirit faded away from view entirely.

…

L'Arc's head tilted to the side in confusion at the final whisper his friend had uttered.

"There you are!"

Unfortunately, that only made it easier for a certain gem girl to grab him by the ear and begin dragging him out of the alcove.

"Ow! Ow ow ow ow ow!" L'Arc yelled in surprise and pain.

"Honestly, you were allowed an hour to party and you sneak away from your guards to get even more drunk?! It's a miracle that no one's usurped you yet, L'Arc!" Therese grabbed the near-empty bottle of wine off the table as she passed it with the Scythe King in tow.

L'Arc's eyes slowly widened in realization as the meaning of Kenshiro's words sunk into his mind.

HAD THAT BASTARD REALLY BEEN STALLING HIM SO HE'D BE FORCED TO FULFILL HIS DUTIES AS KING?! THE TRAITOR!

And it was so like his best friend to do. That'd definitely been the real deal.

"Come on, you know you have important things you have to do L'Arc!" Therese continued to pull the resisting Scythe Hero along.

"No! There's nothing more important than Lapis Wine! I've missed the stuff so much! Come on Therese, just let me have at least another bottle or two!" He desperately tried to move towards the drink table where other bottles sat waiting for him to consume them.

"... oh?" Therese paused, turning to look at him with a sultry face. "Is your wine really as important as… say… making me happy?"

"After all, how will I be able to reward you after all the growing up you've done lately, my love?"

…

L'Arc's throat dried, and to add to the effect, Therese gave him a sultry wink as she rubbed a hand along the side of his face and down his neck to his shoulder. Goosebumps ran along the length of his skin.

Had he been fully sober, L'Arc might have realized it was a trap. That there was no way after all the back and forth between them that Therese would just give in that easily.

Unfortunately, he wasn't fully sober. And L'Arc began to grin like a dope as Therese moved her hand from his ear to his hand. They began to walk together through the corridors. Past other party goers. Towards his room where his bed waited for the two of them to consummate their love for each other!

All the blood was rushing away from his brain! Finally! At long last! After years of waiting and waiting! They were walking towards his door and…

They walked right past it to the door next to it.

Before L'Arc could realize what was going on, she'd set him in a chair at his desk, where large stacks of paperwork resided. Several ministers sat across from him, eager to finally get some important things in their country out of the way.

"Thank you for finding the young master, Therese." Prime Minister Stone said happily.

"Oh, it was no problem." Therese hugged the stunned L'Arc's side as she planted a nice kiss on his cheek. She then stood up and took a large swig from what had been L'Arc's former wine bottle before casting a spell on the Scythe Hero.

L'Arc sobered up almost instantaneously as the alcohol was cleansed from his system.

"Mmmm, I can tell why you missed this now. But don't worry, my love, I'll make sure to drink enough Lapis wine for the both of us. After all, I need to have fun too sometimes."

She drained the rest of the bottle in one large swig, and threw it away. She hiccuped before giggling at the look on the redhead's face. "Have funnnnnnn." With that, Therese gave him another sultry wink and walked towards the door, swaying her hips from side to side as she did so, knowing L'Arc would be staring at her.

…

L'Arc's throat was still dry. But unfortunately, he had no way to relieve the lower brain of his body. And Therese had gotten rid of his drunk stupor so he'd be capable of working for the long hours ahead.

"Thank you for gracing us with thy presence, boy." Prime Minister Stone clasped his hands together. "Now that you're here, we can finally begin to make a dent on everything that's been piling up over the last few months while you were gone."

"W-Why isn't Glass handling these things?! She has permission to act in my place!" L'Arc yelled incredulously.

"Because these are things that needed our King, and not just a Vassal Hero or one of us ministers. Your Father understood this better than anyone." Prime Minister Stone replied. "Do get comfortable. This is going to take a while."

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

---

"Oh man, Glass, let's go here next!"

"Please, slow down a little Kizuna," Glass said tiredly.

"Come on, there's still so much to do!"

Kizuna pulled her spirit woman friend along behind her. And even though Glass weakly protested, she was still smiling as softly as when they'd started.

Even though Kizuna had dragged her from game to game. Even though Kizuna had ran from one end of the town to another tugging Glass along. Even though Glass's only reprieves had come from Kizuna stopping to talk to friends she recognized and reacquainting herself with friends she hadn't seen in years but remembered after a few sentences. Even though Glass was still cursed making her energy lower than it had ever been. She was happy.

It was a strange experience for her, after spending so long feeling like she was actually a spirit. Merely drifting around, moving from one thing to the next only for as long as it gave her purpose to keep going. And the long, intermittent clouds of depression in between that marked the times when she felt she had no reason for existing.

Seeing Kizuna again.

Holding her hand.

Watching her smile.

Seeing her laugh.

It was strange to say… but Glass had never felt so happy before.

And it was that thought that made her realize she had been happy before. Even with Kizuna gone, though it'd been in smaller, less noticeable amounts.

She'd been happy when L'Arc and Therese remembered her birthday.

She'd been happy when Ethnobalt surprised her with a surprise outfit for Chris.

She'd been happy when she came to do her ritual cleaning of Kizuna's home, only to find L'Arc and the others had already done it for her, and had prepared a seafood party for old time's sake.

…

She'd been happy…

But… not as happy as she was right now. With Kizuna back, safe and sound.

…

Glass's eyes fell.

She'd… she came to realize just how much of a terrible friend she'd been for all those years. How terrible of a person she'd been in general.

When Kizuna had gone missing… when it'd become clear they had no chance of finding her… she'd lost it. She'd fallen into Despair and immediately rose through the Curse Series to unlock the Curse of Wrath.

Even after L'Arc and Therese had managed to rescue her. Even though they'd tried their best to help her out. She'd been stuck in a deep black haze that consumed every ounce of goodness she came across for a very, very long time.

Because she'd failed Kizuna.

She'd failed her mistress. Her best friend.

…

"Hey, Glass, let's go try this game over here!" Kizuna spoke up happily, dragging Glass back from her thoughts.

"Sure, lead the way." Glass smiled as she held onto Kizuna's hand and followed her again.

They traveled a good ways. Heading towards the edge of town. Glass wondered if there was something going on out there. A bonfire event, perhaps? Or something. Kizuna had said it'd be a game.

But Kizuna continued on. When they reached the town gate, they ran past it onto the road into the darkening night.

"Kizuna?" Glass asked unsurely.

"Don't worry, we'll get there soon enough!" Kizuna replied back upbeatedly.

"I thought you said it'd be a game?!" Glass said back worriedly.

"It is! Trust me!" Kizuna answered playfully.

Glass stared at the ponytails on the back of Kizuna's head. Wondering where she was being taken to now. She looked around, expecting others to be following them or something. But she found no one. And what monsters she saw in the forest took one look at Kizuna before instantly turning tail and running off.

She'd always had that effect on low leveled monsters. Most looked at normal adventurers and knew not to mess with them. But with Kizuna, they feared her. She was like a walking monster repellant for any weak monsters they came across in their travels since long ago.

Glass felt somewhat glad to see that was still true now. Some things just didn't change no matter how much time passed.

"Are we there yet?" Glass asked breathlessly.

"Almost, just a little bit further!" Kizuna said excitedly.

They continued a little while longer. And then, as the two skirted around the next town, which was also in the midst of the celebration surrounding Castle Town, the smell of the ocean hit the spirit woman's nostrils.

Glass's eyes widened in realization.

A minute later, the pair ran past Kizuna's home to the docks outside it.

It was a perfect night. The stars shone brightly in the sky up above. And the moon's pale glow waxed in the night air around them.

"W-Why are we here?" Glass asked in surprise.

"Eh, didn't you want to get away from everyone else?" Kizuna asked curiously.

"Well, yes, I suppose it was getting a little annoying talking to people, but you were having so much fun seeing everyone again, and, and you said we'd be playing a game-" Glass started to say back in response.

"See? That definitely meant it was time for a break! And what better game is there to play than the game of fish on our favorite spot?!" Kizuna said happily as she changed her weapon to its fishing pole weapon form.

Glass stared at the small girl… only to slowly chuckle. "You mean your favorite spot. Also, since when is fishing a game?"

"Since I said it was." Kizuna stuck her tongue out at the spirit girl.

"I guess I can accept your logic there." Glass smiled.

"Of course! It's irrefutable, and holds no counterargument to it whatsoever!" Kizuna spoke happily. "Come on! Join me in the game of fish Glassy!"

Glass genuinely laughed, and it was like a wave of sunshine that expelled some of the darkness clinging to her soul. Kizuna pulled out another fishing rod from her weapon, and though Glass wasn't one who enjoyed fishing, she accepted it and sat down next to her best friend on the dock before the pair cast their lines into the water.

…

…

…

…

It was very quiet. The two sat, peacefully staring out at the sea in front of them.

For once, Glass didn't think of anything. She only saw the bobbing of her line in the water and heard the sounds of the ocean waves lapping at the wood beneath their feet.

It was so peaceful. Sitting there next to Kizuna.

Glass realized… she could have done this all day. Every day. Never tiring of it, because… because…

Because… … …

…

She wouldn't have… deserved such a thing-

"Glass?" Kizuna suddenly said.

"Yes?" Glass trapped the dark emotions that almost sprang up again to address the ball of sun next to her. She attempted to put a satisfied smile on her face.

"You were really unhappy while I was gone, weren't you?"

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

Glass's world came tumbling down in her mind.

Her hands tightened around the fishing pole, and her body trembled.

What could she say to that? What could she possibly respond with? Unhappy? That didn't even come close to the hell she'd gone through these last few years. Despair wasn't a strong enough word for it either.

Glass had genuinely wanted to die. She'd even been willing to kill herself because of that mimic monster she'd fought.

Because deep down… she understood that what Kyo had said was true.

Had she been there… she could have saved Kizuna. She could have prevented her from suffering all on her own for years in that Labyrinth. Maybe she could have prevented Kyo from leaving as well as Kenshiro's death… and the state their world was in… and…

It'd been her fault. It'd been all her fault, and she didn't deserve to accept any happiness because Kizuna had suffered and the world had suffered and it was all her-

"Hey, I'm trying to talk to you!" Kizuna, who couldn't slap sense into her friend like any normal person, settled instead on pulling on Glass's cheeks to grab her attention.

"Ack!" Glass reeled in surprise. And when she focused on Kizuna again, she found the girl looking at her seriously instead of with a grin or smile like before.

"Don't ever think like that again, Glass! It's undeserving for someone as great as you!"

"Wh-What do you mean-" Glass began to respond in confusion.

"You know what I'm talking about!" Kizuna grabbed the spirit woman by the shoulders and shook her, shocking her into silence. "It's the same thing I struggled with down in that damn Labyrinth! Depression! In its purest, darkest form!"

…

"But… but you look so happy…" Glass muttered.

"I am right now." Kizuna's face softened. "But that doesn't mean I don't struggle like you do at times."

"I'll be honest, Glass. When I was down in that Labyrinth, I… I almost gave up. I found a cliff that was tall enough to throw myself off of and... It would have been so quick… I thought I'd numb myself to the point that I'd be able to go through with it and end it all. Time and time again whenever I visited that spot..."

Kizuna glared at her best friend determinedly. "I know how shallow it can sound coming from other people, but Glass, I UNDERSTAND! I understand better than anyone what it means to stare into that abyss of despair! To stop trying and to think I don't deserve to live! That I don't deserve to be happy! And I know I suck at it when it comes to handling other people's depression!"

"But Glass, you're my best friend! Besides L'Arc, Therese, and the King, you were the first person I met on my journey who was willing to set aside everything to join me! You were the one that overcame your struggles and hardships back then to help me and to keep me going even when I felt crushed by the weight of the world's expectations for me! You were always there for me whenever I needed it!"

"But I wasn't there for you when you were captured!" Glass yelled back. Tears of guilt fell from her red eyes and she couldn't stop them. Not anymore. She couldn't keep her pain contained any longer as her mind was a sad, dark, painful mess. "I wasn't there when you were thrown into that Labyrinth! When you spent all those years suffering on your own when I-"

"SO WHAT?!" Kizuna shouted over Glass, silencing her with the force of emotion behind the small girl's words.

"So what if you weren't there?! So what if I lost a few years of my life?! So what if everything went to &^%$ while I was gone and I spent years in that Labyrinth never knowing if I'd see you or anyone else I cared about ever again! What matters is that both of us are still alive here and now!"

"... when I came back, I learned that King Berg had died… I'm still not ready to see him now, despite everything we've accomplished so far." Kizuna then added in a small, vulnerable voice.

"I don't know if I'll ever be ready to say goodbye to such a great man… and… and to know that Kyo fell so far after I disappeared…" Tears fell from Kizuna's eyes. But as she wiped them away, she focused on Glass once again.

"I'm not ready to lose another friend, especially my best friend! Not now! Not ever again! I want all of my friends and family to be happy, just like me!" She shook Glass by the shoulders again. "I refuse to allow you to be unhappy because of some stupid twist of fate, Glass!"

"B-But-" Glass started to reply.

"No, from now on, if you laugh, we're going to laugh together! And when you cry, we're going to cry together! And when you have fun, we'll have fun together! Because you deserve every bit of happiness in your life Glass, whether you think so or not! And even if I can't be there to convince you of it, I'll make damn sure that either L'Arc or Therese are there to fulfill that role for me!"

"Because you're my best friend Glass! And I refuse to allow you to be unhappy for my sake ever again!"

Glass was openly sobbing at this point. And Kizuna was crying too as she embraced the spirit woman tightly in a meaningful hug. The two gripped to each other, and it felt like a huge weight had fallen off the Spirit woman's heart at that moment.

"Y-You idiot!" Glass bawled messily. "Why do you always have to be so stubborn?!"

"Hey, I learned from the best." Kizuna laughed weakly.

"I swear, I am going to kill L'Arc for being such a bad influence on you!"

"Might as well add Naofumi to that list too. He's just as stubborn as L'Arc. He even taught me a few cuss words. Man, letting them out felt great."

"THAT BASTARD!"

"Hey, watch your language Glassy! Or else I'll have to blame you for corrupting me too!"

The two girls laughed. And the darkness of the night all around seemed to vanish at the action.

Yes, it was still there in the background. Lurking in the shadows of their minds.

Because depression is real. And no words will ever be enough to drive it away.

But… actions. Their actions. They went a long way in helping the pair out. Just as they had tonight.

Because while Glass cried, Kizuna cried with her. And when she laughed, Kizuna laughed with her.

It wasn't a declaration of love like Glass had always dreamed of.

No, it was something more.

No matter what, they'd be by each other's sides for the rest of their lives. Doing everything together. As best friends. Or… perhaps one day, if Glass ever gathered the courage for it.

"K-Kizuna…" Glass stammered out shyly.

"Yeah?" Kizuna replied with a smile. The two were still hugging each other.

"It's… it's alright for you to call me Glassy." Glass managed to laugh out.

Kizuna laughed as well. "If you're talking about those old hero tiles schticks or whatever, you already know I never liked using them anyway!"

"I-I know! I just wanted to say I won't get frustrated about that anymore!" Glass continued to laugh. "Because you really are the bestest friend I could have asked for."

Kizuna smiled in contentment as she rested her head on the spirit girl's chest. And a semblance of peace finally settled permanently inside Glass's soul, driving some of the effects of her Cursed Series away from her mind as she rested her head on top of hers.

The two fishing rods were left begotten.

Glass was still uncertain about what their future and what the future of their world held… but, finally, while being held in the arms of her best friend…

Glass let go of some of the anger she'd held for herself for a long time… and accepted that despite her shortcomings and everything they'd gone through…

She could feel… happy.

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End of Arc 8

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Author's Notes:

Wow. What an arc.

Having friends who have chronic depression, I can really empathize with Glass. She suffered for a long time, and did horrible things all because she wanted to be reunited with her best friend. Because she wanted to be happy. And… well, I think she's going to be a lot happier from now on. Especially since she's surrounded by friends who have been helping her for all that time…

Alright, I know you all want to hear it. Yes, it has finally happened. Raphtalia and Naofumi had sex and they enjoyed it. I am happy for them to reach that milestone. But, I didn't write out their sex scene, just like with Aksel and Maya.

Besides the fact that it'd raise the story to a M-rating, I refuse to be a smut writer. I've seen what some of those fics contain thanks to friends on Discord pointing out absolutely stupid things from them and me going in with ctr f to see if it was true or not (remember me pointing out how stupid sex shields are, that's why, way to disappoint me guys).

If you want a scene of Raphtalia and Naofumi consumating their love, or Itsuki and Rishia boinking in that tent, or whatever with the other characters, please write it yourself. While I won't do it, I won't stop others from doing so. If it's based on my fic though, ASK ME FOR PERMISSION FIRST. Whether on Discord, or PM on this site, or whatever. And please, don't introduce something stupid like a sex shield. Naofumi is already a walking vibrator as it is. XD

But before all that, this arc deserves one, final omake. And you know what, I might as well end it on a high note!

Sorry Naofumi and Raphtalia! There are just some things you should absolutely not say during a chapter!

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Hero Clips!

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Clanging and Honking

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"Hmhmhmhm."

The little blonde-haired girl hummed to herself as she walked through the doorway into her room. It was located next to Mommy and Daddy's room.

It'd been a fun day today. Filo got to spend some quality time with Tiger Guy, Bow Uncle, and Broccoli Aunt. She and Tiger Guy got to put on many performances for crowds of people. And some had even given them money that allowed them to play all sorts of fun games and do more than just sample subpar food, since nothing could ever come close to Daddy's cooking!

It was too bad Mel hadn't been there, but Tiger Guy had been enjoyable to hang out with! He was always kind and respectable towards Filo. So Filo liked being around him.

Bow Uncle had also been pretty amazing. Absolutely killing it at some of the games and loading Broccoli Aunt with all sorts of gifts that made her blush and tremble.

Then again, Broccoli Aunt and Bow Uncle looked so awkward during those moments too. They really should have tried to mate as Daddy recommended. Perhaps then they'd be less vanilla and more sweet whenever the two were together.

At least, she assumed those were the right words for it. Mel had done her best to teach Filo what her instincts hadn't already taught her. But there were still some gaps here and there.

The little girl began to lay down in bed.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Filo sat upright at the faint sound. It was coming from Mommy and Daddy's room.

"Mommy, Daddy, is everything ok?!" Filo jumped out of bed and ran towards the door. It was locked for some reason, but before she could think of a way to open it, Daddy's voice sounded from the other side of the door.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME SHIELD?! DO YOU HAVE TO MAKE THAT SOUND HAPPEN NOW?!"

Filo tilted her head to the side curiously. The Clanging on the other side of the door had paused.

"Naofumi, please, I really don't mind." Mommy's voice sounded next.

Clang!

There was another Clang, but another one didn't follow it.

"Honey, I love you, I really do… but the sound is really killing the mood right now." Naofumi admitted. "BECAUSE IT'S NOT LIKE I'M ATTACKING HER OR ANYTHING!"

Filo continued to listen in. She couldn't see what was going on. But… based on the heavy breathing of her parents, Filo deduced they must have started mating with each other.

Awwwwwww! It'd finally happened! Filo would have started shedding tears of joy and considered finding Little Sis to tell her, however…

Honk! Honk! Honk!

An even more ridiculous sound like a clown horn came from the other side as the young couple tried to resume where they'd left off. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Naofumi's voice roared from beyond the door. "THAT'S THE SOUND YOU DECIDED TO CHANGE IT TO?!"

Honk! Honk!

And then, it sounded like a goose.

"&^%$ YOU STUPID YANDERE SHIELD!"

Ewwwww, was Daddy going to try mating with his Shield now?! That sounded like something Spear Guy would do!

UGH!

FIlo rolled her eyes and went back to her bed to go back to sleep.

Horny people were weeeeeird.

And thus, Naofumi's lack of attack stat led to the Yandere Shield finding a new way to torture its wielder. And forevermore, Naofumi would be haunted by the sound of the Honk! whenever he and Raphtalia tried to engage in intimate activity.

And that was the reason Naofumi was finally driven crazy.

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Till Next Time

Allen