Aris trudged through the streets of Melromarc, his head hung low to stay inconspicuous.

"Oi, green boy with the right arm."

Aris recognized Erhard's voice. His mood lifted a little, hoping with all his heart that Erhard would be on his side.

His hopes were dashed expeditiously.

Erhard snagged the collar of Aris's tunic, slammed his back into a wall, and reared his fist. "I heard what you did to that girl you were with. And I oughtta punch your face so hard, your teeth all end up in your stomach and you'll be seeing 'em in the shitter after a few days!"

Tears welled up in Aris's eyes. "...You too, Erhard?"

Erhard stopped. His grip seemed to soften.

He let go of Aris's shirt and lowered his fist. Aris wiped away his tears.

"Never mind," said Erhard. "I'm not gonna punch a kid who's about to cry, no matter how old said kid happens to be."

"Thank you," said Aris. He wanted to hug Erhard as though the smithy was his father.

"Follow me," Erhard instructed. "We should get outta the open."

Aris followed him into a small alleyway, out of the reach of prying eyes and ears. Erhard presented him with a cloak and a metal chest plate. "You won't get very far dressed like that, so think of this as a...parting gift."

Equipped Armor: Iron Breastplate

Armor Type: Standard Overwear

Acquisition: Purchased from Heatwaker Armory (price: 3 copper)

DEF: 3

Equip Bonus: None

DESC: "A cheap Breastplate forged from standard Iron. Its DEF is much lower than the average Breastplate, but it'll do in a pinch."

"How much do you want for them?"

"I mean, you're broke right now, so we'll call it a clearance sale and leave it at five copper."

"Thank you." Aris accepted Erhard's gift and strapped the armor to his chest before donning the cloak. "You're...You're one of the only people who doesn't avoid me like I've some sort of contagious disease."

Equipped Headgear: Traveler's Cloak

Headgear Type: Cloak (Hooded)

Acquisition: Purchased from Heatwaker Armory (price: 2 copper)

DEF: 1

Equip Bonus: None

DESC: "A hooded cloak made of somewhat sturdy fabric. It won't do much in the way of DEF, but the hood can provide both concealment and minor protection from rain or harsh sun."

"I've never seen a guilty man cry," Erhard replied. "Now...wasn't there somewhere you had to be?"

"Yes. Away from this city."

Aris left without turning back.

Bellows and screams of furious exertion echoed through the meadows that day. Aris had elected to let off his rage upon the Orange Balloons.

Aris fought the Orange Balloons tirelessly, popping them all afternoon and well into the rainy night.

Finally, his efforts bore fruit. He leveled up from 1 to 2.

The next day, he managed to sell the many hundreds of Balloon scraps he'd scavenged to a local monster material merchant, who agreed to give him a sizable amount of copper coins for the lot of them. It was a meager sum for so many materials, but Aris took what little he could get. Five of the copper coins quickly found their way to Erhard's counter, along with a note that read "Thanks for the gear, friend".

While Erhard was likely discovering the five copper coins, Aris was scrounging for resources in a nearby forest when he found something that made his heart skip several beats.

NEW ITEM OBTAINED

Hearty Truffle

Type: Food/Ingredient/Crafting Material

Habitat: Unknown Location, Forest Undergrowth

DESC: None

"Hearty Truffles!? I thought those were native to Hyrule!"

Aris didn't waste a single second scooping up all the Hearty Truffles he could carry. How and why Hyrulean flora was in Melromarc, he hadn't the foggiest, but he definitely wasn't going to complain. There were a lot of Hearty Truffles in that forest, meaning that Aris had plenty of food to eat without having to spend a single coin.

From that day until the next, Aris ate Hearty Truffles, choosing to avoid entering the city unless he absolutely had to. He sat against the wall next to the entrance gate one evening, biting into a Hearty Truffle.

A scream.

Aris jumped to his feet. Someone was in trouble.

A teenage girl no older than Aris half-ran half-walked through the gate out of the city, clad in a torn-up brown dress. The girl had strange animal-like ears atop her head, and a tail protruding from just above her rear end. She was a Demi-Human, Aris noted.

He'd heard of Demi-Humans. He'd even seen a couple. That was when he remembered that Demi-Humans were viewed as an inferior race in Melromarc, and as such were often slaves. Which is why he was not surprised by the heavy-looking shackles on the girl's wrists and ankles.

"S-Someone! Anyone...help...p-please...!" the slave girl yelled in a voice so hoarse it was almost inaudible.

A short old man in a posh outfit and a top hat ran out after her. "You think you can escape me, wench!? Get back here, that's an order!"

Suddenly, the slave girl's body was lit up by amethyst lightning. She cried out in agony.

The man in the hat seemed to give an order to something or someone. "Attack! I want her alive, but if she needs to die to submit, use lethal force!"

A quadrupedal reptile resembling some sort of dragon ran out after the slave, whose eyes widened to the size of dinner plates.

The slave girl found a stick and picked it up, readying it as though it were a sword. It was clear that she would fight for her freedom or die trying.

The dragon charged. The slave cried out with all her energy, rearing the stick in a fruitless effort to defend herself.

Aris gritted his teeth. Human or otherwise, slave or free woman...he wasn't going to let this maiden suffer. He leaped into action, summoning his Soul Energy shield.

The dragon hit the shield head-on, stopping dead in its tracks. Aris whipped out the Master Sword and cleaved its scalp in two. He turned to the slave and used the blade to sever her shackles.

Before the slave girl could even react, Aris scooped her up in a bridal carry and made a beeline for somewhere safe.

"W-Who are you? Why did you...s-save me...?"

Aris met the slave's gaze with gentle eyes. "Because you needed saving. I was just in the right place at the right time."

The slave girl opened her mouth to speak, but all that passed her lips was a fit of hacking coughs. It sounded like she would lose a lung from her mouth if she coughed any harder. Aris noticed her skin tone - it was deathly pale. Far from natural. This girl was sick, and it had gotten very bad.

"Sit tight," he told her.

Aris got to work. He used some materials to set up a makeshift cooking pot over a campfire and filled the pot with water, filling the heated water with diced Hearty Truffles. With the addition of some other ingredients, the Hearty Truffles became infused with the water, making a sort of Hearty Truffle version of vanilla extract. Aris knew it would likely taste bitter, but knew it would help this poor slave girl.

He handed her a bottle of the Hearty Truffle extract. "Drink this. It should help with that cough."

The slave girl gingerly accepted the bottle and took a sip. Her face impossibly turned even paler as she coughed. "B-Bitter...!"

"Would you rather cough up one or both of your lungs?" Aris made a failed attempt at a joke.

The girl seemed to steel herself before, to Aris's utter amazement, chugging the entire bottle.

"Thank you..." she said quietly. "I...I think I feel better already."

Her voice sounded much clearer, too. Aris found it endearing.

"So, with that taken care of," he said, "what's your name?"

"R-Raphtalia," replied the slave girl.

"Raphtalia..." Aris echoed quietly, repeating the name several times in his mind. "I like that name. It...suits you, somehow. My name is Aris."

"Aris...I think I've heard that name," said Raphtalia. "Y-You're...the Shield Hero. But you use a sword."

"I'm starting to think I should tell everyone not to call me the Shield Hero," Aris mused. "But then again, what else are they supposed to call me? Lord von Pointyears VI?"

That elicited a chuckle from Raphtalia. "Is...that your actual last name?"

"No, no, it's not. Just a joke." He smiled at her. "Seems like you found it funny."

"I-I did."

Aris noticed something on Raphtalia's chest - or, rather, the center of her collarbone. It was a symbol or crest of some kind. "Raphtalia? If you don't mind my asking...what is this?"

"I...I think it's called a Slave Crest," replied Raphtalia. "It prevents me from disobeying orders from my master - the one the Slave Crest is registered to. If...If I disobey them...it hurts me."

"Then I'll try something."

Aris placed a soft left hand on Raphtalia's Slave Crest. He closed his eyes and whispered something. It sounded completely foreign to Raphtalia; it was a language she had never heard before.

Aris lifted his hand. The crest was gone.

"H-How...How did you...?"

"I made a plea to...a certain powerful individual to free you from your curse," said Aris.

"What about that...language you were speaking? What was it? I-If you don't mind me asking."

"I don't mind." Aris smiled at her. "It is the ancient language of my homeland."

"Your homeland...oh, right. I...forgot the Cardinal Heroes are from other worlds," said Raphtalia.

Silence ensued between them as neither Aris nor Raphtalia knew what they should say next.

"Sir Aris?"

"Please, just 'Aris' will do. But, yes?"

Raphtalia took a deep breath and exhaled. "I...I want to repay you. For saving me."

Aris shook his head. "You don't owe me a thing. I was just doing what was right."

"But...I've seen so many people who had the perfect opportunity to help me and were totally able to choose not to," said Raphtalia. "I...I thought that was normal. And in Melromarc...it kind of is, for a Demi-Human. Especially a slave. But...you saved my life. So...I feel like I owe you my life. You helped me...s-so I want to help you."

"What do you mean?"

"I want to join you, Aris," said Raphtalia. "...I-If you'll have me..."

Aris hesitated. He knew Raphtalia had courage; she'd made a bold escape from her master and been ready to defend herself or die trying when her master had sent out the small dragon. Raphtalia certainly had courage and tenacity. What she lacked, however, was proper combat training.

"Can you fight?" Aris asked.

"Not really..." replied Raphtalia. "B-But I'll learn from you...if that's okay."

"It's perfectly okay," Aris assured her. "I am more than happy to pass my skills on to you. But first...we'll need to buy you a proper sword. And some new clothes."

"Kid, you're back." Erhard seemed pleasantly surprised. "And...you brought a girl with you? Who's she?"

"She's my friend," replied Aris. "Her name is Raphtalia." His eyes narrowed at Erhard. "And I'm aware that she is a Demi-Human, but I expect her to be treated with the respect she is due."

"Hey, I've met quite a few nice Demi-Humans," Erhard said. He turned to Raphtalia with a gentle look on his face. "Nice to meetcha."

Raphtalia gave Erhard a shy wave.

"So, what can I do for you two?" asked Erhard.

"Get Raphtalia a sword she can use, and preferably a cheap one," said Aris. "And do you have any clothes she can wear? She is not very well-protected with what she has on at the moment."

"I gotcha, kid," said Erhard. "And just for you and your friend, the clothes are on the house."

Erhard rifled through his storage closet and returned with an outfit for Raphtalia. "This stuff oughta do it."

Raphtalia accepted the clothes from Erhard and retreated into the privacy of the changing room.

Erhard turned to Aris and whispered, "I saw those broken shackles on her wrists and ankles, is she..."

"She was a slave," Aris corrected before Erhard could finish. "I rescued her. She was escaping from her master, who sent some kind of quadrupedal dragon to attack her. I slew it and got Raphtalia to safety."

"So, you're not gonna use her as your slave?"

Aris was shocked. "In what parallel timeline would I do such a thing!?"

"Whoa, okay, touchy subject.

Raphtalia returned after a few minutes, clad in her new garb.

"Does it fit?" asked Aris.

"Yes," Raphtalia replied.

Erhard laid out a few cheap swords for Raphtalia to choose from. The Demi-Human took one and hefted it. It seemed like she wasn't entirely used to wielding a sword, but Aris could tell she had at least some swordplay experience.

"Have you used a sword before?" he asked Raphtalia.

She nodded. "I...I learned a few years ago. But I never had a chance to use it, so I'm out of practice. I-I hope you don't mind."

"It'll come back to you, I'm sure," Aris said comfortingly. "And I'll teach you a few techniques of my own. But for now, follow me."

Aris paid Erhard for the equipment and led Raphtalia outside, to an empty alleyway. He found a few barrels, all of which were conveniently empty. He set up the barrels on a few boxes as targets for Raphtalia.

"Try to take out all those barrels in one strike," he instructed.

Raphtalia reared her sword and charged. The wood of the barrels was damp from the recent rain, so her cheap blade was able to cleave through all three of them with a backhanded slash.

"Good, good!" Aris commended.

Suddenly, Aris noticed his right arm flashing green. "Huh?"

He opened his status screen. When he looked in Raphtalia's direction, something rippled his soul in a way he couldn't quite describe. On the status screen, he saw a prompt. "'Set as companion?'" Below the query were two selections: "yes" and "no". Aris chose "yes" and on the status screen, Raphtalia's name appeared under his own. He selected her name, and it showed a detailed overview of Raphtalia's attributes: her age (17, the same as Aris), her level (she was at level 1), and her "stats" (as he'd heard the other Cardinal Heroes begin to call them).

PARTY MEMBER RECRUITED

Raphtalia

"No matter how rough the path, I will follow you."

Age: 17

Sex: Female

Level: 1

Class: None chosen

HP: 98

MP: 32

EXP: 0/225

STATS:

ATK: 20

DEF: 10

SPD: 25

EQUIPMENT:

Weapon: Iron Sword (+15 ATK)

Headgear: None

Armor: Traveler's Tunic (+1 DEF), Hide Breastplate (+2 DEF)

Legwear: Traveler's Skirt (Attached to Traveler's Tunic)

Footwear: Thigh-High Leather Boots (+1 DEF)

"A-Aris?" said Raphtalia. "Is...something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh, no, I'm alright. It's...Hero business."

"Oh...okay."

A low growl sounded nearby. Aris's left hand instinctively whipped up to the Master Sword's hilt.

Raphtalia gasped, cowering as terrified whimpers left her mouth.

Aris's guard lowered when he realized no monsters were nearby. "What was that?" he asked. "I thought it was a monster."

"M-My stomach..." Raphtalia whimpered.

"Oh, you're hungry?" Aris laughed to himself. "And here I was, thinking some creature was preparing to pounce on us. Come with me, I'll buy us lunch."

Aris led Raphtalia into a local tavern, as he didn't want to use any more Hearty Truffles solely for food. Murmurs arose among the patrons upon his arrival, especially with Raphtalia trailing behind him.

"Is that the Shield Hero? He really does carry a sword."

"Isn't he the one who ra-"

"Shut up! You want him to hear you and get mad?"

"Why's there a Demi-Human with him? No surprise he's scraping the bottom of the barrel for party members."

"I bet she can barely even lift that sword."

Raphtalia's eyes grew watery as she heard what people were saying.

"Don't let their words faze you," Aris whispered to her. "None of them know the real you. Besides, if any one of them so much as lays a finger on you, I'll send my foot so far into their sphincter that they'll taste the leather of my boot in the back of their throat. In other words, I'll protect you."

Raphtalia seemed to calm down, but only slightly.

Aris placed an order for two cheap lunch meals, one for him and one for Raphtalia. He also ordered three drinks: one cup of water and two of jasmine tea. He loved jasmine tea; it was his favorite beverage. He hoped to convince Raphtalia to try some but chose to order some water in the event that she disliked tea.

Soon, their food was ready. Aris placed the lunch trays on the table, one on his side, and the other in front of Raphtalia.

"Th-This is...for me? All of it?" Raphtalia had a hopeful glimmer in her eyes.

"Of course," replied Aris. "Eat. It's unwise to physically exert yourself on an empty stomach."

Raphtalia didn't even hesitate to grab her fork and start practically attacking her food. It was as though she hadn't eaten a single crumb in weeks.

Aris ate much slower but found himself distracted by Raphtalia's demeanor. He snickered. "Small bites. Don't choke on it."

Raphtalia started calming down and eating more politely, albeit still very excited to be eating with a friend as a normal person would.

Their drinks arrived next. Aris took a sip of his jasmine tea. It was piping hot, just the way he liked it.

Raphtalia, meanwhile, seemed to recognize the water cup in front of her, but not the tea. "What is this?" she asked. "It...smells really nice. Is it for me?"

"Only if you are willing to try it," replied Aris. "It's jasmine tea, a favorite beverage of mine. Be careful, it's quite hot. Small sips. I don't want you to scald your mouth to ashes."

Raphtalia took a tentative taste of her tea. She quickly lowered her cup to keep too much from spilling into her mouth. "It is quite hot...but it tastes so sweet."

"It helps me calm my nerves," said Aris. "I always drink jasmine tea whenever I can after a hard-fought battle."

The two of them finished their meals and drinks before leaving to go level up in the fields.

"Good work." Aris sheathed the Master Sword. "We'll wrap up for the evening and have dinner."

Aris had scavenged some edible ingredients and hunted some meat to make dinner, which he threw together in a cooking pot. Out came a surprisingly tasty meal.

"Aris?" Raphtalia asked meekly.

"Yes?"

"Are you..." Raphtalia hesitated, "...Are you really the Shield Hero?"

"Well, Ren Amaki is the Sword Hero, Itsuki Kawasumi is the Bow Hero, and Motoyasu Kitamura is the Spear Hero...so that leaves me as the Shield Hero."

"But...why do you use a sword?"

Aris had a feeling such a question would arise sooner rather than later. He surmised that Raphtalia was owed an explanation.

"This is no ordinary weapon." He slowly unsheathed the sacred blade, holding it for Raphtalia to see. "It is known by many names: the Blade of Evil's Bane, the Sword That Seals the Darkness...but its true name is the Master Sword. It has a long history, spanning back eons ago, not long after my world was first created by the Goddesses. Those same Goddesses helped to forge the Master Sword. And it is the weapon of the Goddess' chosen hero. But...I am not the first to wield it, and if those legends and fairy tales of ancient Hyrule are to be believed, I will be far from the last. For the birth of a chosen hero comes with the reincarnation of a great evil that the hero must repel and seal."

Raphtalia sat there, her eyes wide with nothing but awe.

BGM: The Choice - Undertale

Aris met her gaze. "Raphtalia...I carry a heavy burden, but I do it because someone has to. The path of a hero is not an easy one to travel, but sometimes, you aren't given a choice. If I may ask...is this a path you want to walk by my side?"

Raphtalia was silent. She seemed to be contemplating Aris's question. A flash of worry showed on her face.

Aris amended his words. "If you do not have faith in your physical or mental fortitude, that is alright. I will not belittle you for it. In fact, if you want to leave and live the life you want to live, you may. There is no shame or disgrace in abstaining, only in retreat."

Still, not a word passed Raphtalia's lips.

Aris fell into the same silence, awaiting her answer.

Finally, after the longest silence in either of their lives, Raphtalia voiced her decision.

"I...I want to help you." Her hands shook; she was nervous. She clenched her fists to calm herself. A deep breath went in and out of her lungs. "I want to walk by your side...down the path of a hero."

"So you accept the burden that comes with your choice? You accept the sacrifice of...well, everything...that comes with it?"

Raphtalia nodded. "It's one I'm willing to make...that I want to make."

"May I ask why?" Aris tilted his head a little.

Raphtalia took another deep breath. "That day...yesterday...you saved my life. I...I had already accepted that I was going to die if I got caught escaping. And when the slaver sent that dragon at me...I thought that...that it was the end. But I decided that I'd rather die in some semblance of freedom than live the rest of my life in shackles and suffering. I...I was completely prepared to die that day. But...then I realized that my fate had other plans for me. Because your fate...it...it brought you to rescue me. So...if my fate calls me to be a hero...I'm going to answer that call. No matter how inexperienced or weak I might be right now...I'll do whatever I can to get stronger. I'll work as hard as I have to. Like you said, it's a heavy burden...but I'll carry it to the edge of the world if it means saving everyone."

Now, it was Aris's turn to be filled with awe. "I..." he was at a loss for words, "...I couldn't have said that better myself." He sat down in front of Raphtalia, taking both of her hands in his own. "But the burden - the burden of being a hero - it isn't a burden you have to carry alone. My homeland had an ancient proverb: 'It's dangerous to go alone.' At first...I believed it was ludicrous. After all, I'd been journeying alone for a long time before coming here. But now...I know what the proverb truly means. Though there is strength in numbers, that isn't what the proverb refers to. It refers to friends, companions, family members, lovers...anyone a person might form a bond with. Because their bond can be unbreakable - strong enough to hold any load. Even the weight of an entire world...or the entire universe. And the weight of this world lies on our shoulders, Raphtalia."

"Then we'll carry that weight, one way or another. And we won't do it alone. Because..."

The two finished in unison. "It's dangerous to go alone."