Just so you know, I have to hold back my anger when writing a certain part of this chapter. And you would be too. Especially that pervert and the bratty princess.
I'll make something clear... The Spear Hero is my least favorite character for a very good reason. As a matter of fact, I hate him the, same way I hate that redheaded bitch. At least, that's my opinion anyway
Just a little note that the color of gun's gemstone is magenta.
And one last thing... there's going to be surprising plot twist in the duel part.
With that said, let's go!
Disclaimer: I own only the OCs that appeared in this chapter.
Chapter 3: Duel of Dishonor
Later at night, many nobles and other people came to the castle for a banquet that commemorate the Heroes' triumph against the Wave. Several musicians are playing the appropriate song in the area as others are enjoying their feast. The king is at the top, facing towards the guests.
"Thanks to our Heroes, the battle was splendidly won!" The king said. "And tonight, we celebrate!" He then raised his cup of wine. "Let's enjoy ourselves to the fullest!"
"Hooray!" Everyone cheered as they all raised their cups in response to the king's statement.
Of course, not anyone enjoyed the celebration as much as everyone here. Sitting by the window was Naofumi, still scowling as usual.
'This is ridiculous.' Naofumi thought. 'I wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for the reward.'
"And the latest report said there are a very few casualties." A nobleman said as he gathered around not far from Naofumi.
"We all owe everything to our brave heroes." A noblewoman added.
"Well, I did my part." The mustached knight said. "I held my ground against a massive monster with my honor as a royal knight!"
'Yeah right.' Naofumi scoffed, knowing that the knight did absolutely nothing in fighting the big zombie.
"Somethin' wrong, Naofumi?" The Shield Hero turn around and see Tyler with an empty plate in his hands. "Not a fan of parties?"
"Not when it being held by that bastard of a king." Naofumi replied.
"I agree with you on that one." Tyler said. "There's something off about him... I can't put my finger on what."
"A little advice: Don't trust him no matter what." Naofumi said without looking at the Pokémon Trainer.
"You don't have to tell me to keep my guard up." Tyler replied before realizing there's something he wanted to ask of him. "Say, I've been thinking about this ever since that battle in Lute. That redhead skank... did she set you up or something?"
"It's none of your business!" Naofumi retorted harshly, surprising Tyler.
"Whoa, chill. There's no need to shout." Tyler assured him. "I was asking nicely, that's all."
"I could ask you why you called her a skank?" Naofumi asked.
"That's..." Tyler said as he stuttered around. He then sighed in defeat. "The only I can tell you is... I've met a girl like her once. From that day onward, I never look at women the same way ever again."
"You don't say..." Naofumi said as he sensed that Tyler's backstory is just as similar as him.
"To be honest..." Tyler said as he look up to the ceiling. "Telling you that lift the weight off my shoulder. I guess we're like peas in a pod, huh?"
"Whatever you say." Naofumi said, not caring about Tyler's statement. He's still skeptical about his party members being loyal to him since the last time he let someone into his party... it didn't end well for him. So, you can't really blame him for being cautious to his own party. 'Don't get the wrong idea, but I only sees you and Raphtalia as tools. You two will eventually turn your back on me just like everyone else.'
"Master Naofumi." The boys turn around and see Raphtalia, who was holding a glass. Speaking of which, she now looked slightly older and her attire changed as well, now having cream colored tunic with black lines. "The food here is amazing. You sure you don't want something to eat?"
"If you wanna eat, go ahead." Naofumi answered.
"I'd really like for you to join me-"
"I'll pass." He interrupted her, causing her sadly frown before she go towards somewhere.
"Simple no would've been sufficed, man." Tyler said, but he was ignored so the Pokémon Trainer decided to walk away to give him some space.
Naofumi then looked towards a description that appeared in front of him.
'So I can teleport people with me?' Naofumi thought. 'That would've come real handy before.'
"Are you sure you don't want some food?" Naofumi saw Raphtalia through the window's reflection as he turned towards her. "How about you try a little bit for me?"
"No thanks-" Naofumi refused before he was cut off when Raphtalia has a piece of cake near his mouth.
"Come on, try it. It's good, I promised." The demihuman insisted as Naofumi reluctantly eats the cake from the former's fork. "See?"
Tyler can't help but smile at this. However, the moment is ruined when he saw Motoyasu taking off one of his gloves.
"Oh no. What's that pervert want this time?" Tyler muttered as he saw the Spear Hero threw the glove towards Naofumi's feet.
"Naofumi." Motoyasu called as the aforementioned person turned towards him. "Let's fight."
Tyler can tell that when the first time he laid his eyes towards him, he'd be a pain in the ass later in the future. He then turned towards the redhead girl, who is smirking from behind the scenes.
'Damn slut. Don't make things harder than it already is!' Tyler thought with annoyed expression. 'You're goin' get yours, one way or another. I won't forgive what you did to him.'
"I've heard you made poor Raphtalia your slave." Motoyasu told him. "And you made her obey your every command."
"And what do you care?" Naofumi retorted.
"Watch your tone." Motoyasu retorted back with venom in his tone.
"Yeah, Raphtalia's my loyal slave." Naofumi answered. "So what's it to you?"
"You listen up! You can't be saying you think it's okay to enslave others!"
"Do you even hear yourself right?" Naofumi asked rhetorically. "In this crazy place, slavery is legal. And besides, she's been a great help to me."
"But we're Heroes in this world! We shouldn't behave like that here and you know it!" Motoyasu argued.
"Gee, I wonder who I got that from?" Naofumi deadpanned, causing Motoyasu to become furious. He then pointed his spear towards the Shield Hero.
"Let's do this." Motoyasu told him. "If I win, you'll set Raphtalia free!"
"And if I win?" Naofumi asked.
"Then it won't happen." Motoyasu answered. "And if it does happen, it will stay the same."
"Don't be such an idiot. As if I'd fight you." Naofumi then turned his back and began to leave.
"Buddy, wait up!" Tyler said as he gone after his friend.
"Master Naofumi!" Raphtalia said as she followed him.
"I never thought he had a slave." Itsuki commented.
"How low can this guy be?" Ren added.
Clearly they don't know the truth.
Just as he about to go down to the second set of stairs, he was blocked by a knight.
"It has been brought to my attention..." The king said as he looked towards Naofumi. "You, a Hero, have been using a demihuman as your slave to fight for you! You have violated the customs! And that is incomprehensible!" He said before looking towards the girl with a smile, something Tyler immediately caught on.
'Shit! It's another setup by that skank again!' Tyler thought as he gritted. 'I should've known she's gonna start a shit with Naofumi.'
"You are to accept the duel right this moment!" The king threatened the Shield Hero. People started talking amongst themselves about Naofumi.
"Hey! They didn't need to fight! I'm with Master Naofumi out of my own free will-" Raphtalia said before a knight used his hand to stop her from talking and at the same time, taking her hostage.
"Hey!" Tyler said before the knights captured him as well. "What the hell!? Let me go, you assholes!"
"You leave them alone!" Naofumi said, seeing his party members got caught by the knights.
"Poor creature." The king said to Raphtalia. "You must've been placed under the Shield Hero's curse."
Raphtalia would object that statement. Unfortunately, she can't because her mouth was blocked by the knight.
"Curse!?" Tyler exclaimed angrily before he kicked the knights that hold him down. "Where did you get that idea!? Naofumi's not type of guy who would do that!"
"And you, young man? How can you be so sure?" The king asked with a glare. "You're nothing but a hired brute. Therefore, you're opinion on the matter is irrelevant."
"Hey, I'm maybe look like a delinquent but I'm a decent guy!" Tyler said before kicked down a knight. "Just because he has a slave, that doesn't mean he should get punished. And I'm starting to think that you have a petty grudge against Shield Hero in general! Not just him!"
"Don't take that tone with me! Learn your place, you insolent wretch!" The king snapped before two knights managed to get the best of the Tyler as he was pinned down to the floor.
"Tyler!" Naofumi called him.
"You better choose your actions wisely, Shield Hero." The king said. "Accept the duel or your accomplice and the slave shall be executed."
Naofumi couldn't help but growled at this predicament. Not only his slave was held hostage, but also his enforcer as well.
"There's no way you're getting out of this, you coward." Motoyasu said as he slowly come down.
"Just so you know, that is line meant for a true Hero, not a sex puppet like you!" Tyler remarked.
"Don't you dare mock Sir Motoyasu, you third rate thug!" The redhead girl said as she stomped him with her heel. Little did she know, Tyler's six pokeball shake around rapidly, implied that the Pokémon inside are pissed at the turn of the event. Each of them would come out and interfere if they could... but they couldn't since interfering would get them and everyone involved with Tyler more harm than good.
"Alright, fine!" Naofumi shouted, seeing no alternatives to handle the situation. "I'll accept your stupid duel! And I'm going to win it!"
"Are you sure?" The redhead girl asked in mocking tone. "Since that demihuman and the thug fight for you, you won't land a hit."
Naofumi could only growled as this predicament have gone from bad to worse.
(With Kurisu)
"That's weird." Riolu muttered as his eyes are glowing with blue energy.
"What did you find, Riolu?" Kurisu said as she done bandaging her left arm for some reason.
"Their auras seemed to move somewhere away from the castle. And that's not all.." The Emanation Pokémon said. "It seems both of Raphtalia and Tyler's auras are near two auras that I don't recognize. And the Shield Hero's aura is far from them."
Kurisu couldn't help but think that her new acquaintances may got themselves into trouble.
"Where are they now?" Kurisu asked. Just as Riolu was about to reply, they are passed by a pair of nobles.
"That Shield Hero was a wretch." The man said. "Who would've thought a Hero like him, owned a slave. A demihuman, no less."
"Then again, he is the Shield Hero after all." The woman said to the man. "I hope the Spear Hero defeated him in the duel."
Little did they know, Kurisu overheard their conversation.
"A duel, huh?" Kurisu said before she widened her eyes at the realization. "That means they're in some kind of a arena!"
"I know where they are, Kurisu." Riolu told his trainer.
"Lead the way, Riolu!" Kurisu said as she followed her Pokémon, who is running towards where the arena is.
(With Naofumi)
As soon as the door opens, he stepped through, revealing that he's in a coliseum-like place. The Shield Hero stepped into the ring where he saw his opponent and the redhead girl. He also saw both Raphtalia and Tyler, being tied down to a chair and having their mouths gagged.
"Sir Motoyasu! Best of luck!" The redhead girl cheered for the aforementioned Hero.
"Will do, Myne!" Motoyasu said while walking. He then stopped at his side of his arena as he faced towards Naofumi. "Remember the folktale about the Irresistible Spear and the Immovable Shield?" Motoyasu said as he twirled his spear around for awhile before stopping. "Naofumi! Be a man and admit defeat!"
Naofumi said nothing as he proceeded to change his shield to an appropriate form while Motoyasu did the same with his spear. Both sides are ready to engage with one another.
"Ready? Begin!" The referee shouted.
With no hesitation, Motoyasu proceeded to charge towards Naofumi with his spear before he jumped and thrust his spear towards his opponent, who blocked the strike. The Spear Hero decided to strike again and again, but all of his attacks are blocked.
"Not too bad. Guess the Shield Hero has a few moves." Motoyasu commented.
"You got that right." Naofumi replied, still blocking Motoyasu's spear with his shield. "So in this folktale battle between a spear and a shield... Did you know that the spear actually lost when it couldn't pierce the shield?" He continued before he mustered up his strength to push the Spear Hero back, though the latter simply jumped backwards.
His spear glowed as he aimed it towards Naofumi.
"Chaos Spear!" Motoyasu said as he thrust forward, causing several small projectile launched from it.
Naofumi did his best to try and dodge the assault, but he bleed on his left shoulder when one of the attacks hit him. This let him vulnerable to the rest of the projectile that caused to get on his knees. Raphtalia and Tyler would call out his name if it weren't for the fact that their mouths are gagged.
Naofumi then charged towards his opponent as he proceeded to punch Motoyasu in the gut with his shield. Being the Shield Hero, however, Naofumi was unable to land a significant damage to his opponent.
"Hehe~! He's trying to strike using the shield." The redhead girl stated smugly. "That'll never work-" She stopped herself when she saw something in Motoyasu.
"What!?" Motoyasu exclaimed as he looked down and saw an orange balloon monster biting his stomach.
"A balloon!? Used as a battle weapon!?" The redhead girl exclaimed.
Naofumi proceeded to unveil his torso, that is filled with several balloon monsters biting to him. It's fortunate that his armor protected him from all those bites. This earned him a surprised reaction from the audience as well.
"Tell me... What the hell are you up to?!" Motoyasu growled towards the Shield Hero.
"If it's true that I can't win, I'm gonna hurt you as much as I possibly can!" Naofumi replied before throwing one of the balloon monsters towards the Spear Hero.
"Like hell!" Motoyasu retorted before popping the monster. He twirled his spear a bit before aiming it towards his opponent. "Come on, Shield Hero! You're going to fight fair!" He then thrust forward, but Naofumi blocked it.
In a surprising twist, he turned his shield into the Two Headed Dog Shield, where there's the heads of the two headed dog monster on the center. The eyes of two headed dog heads glowed before it stretched forward to bite the spear, pushing Motoyasu in the process.
"Get off of me!?" Motoyasu exclaimed, never seeing anything like this attack before.
Then Naofumi changed his shield into the Rope Shield form.
"Air Strike Shield!" Naofumi said as shield shaped barrier appeared in front of him, but it was aimed horizontally before launched itself straight to his opponent's gut. This causes Motoyasu to spurt some saliva from him. Having no intention to let him up, Naofumi proceeded to shift his shield's form. "Shield Prison!" Naofumi shouted as some balloons monsters lunged towards the hapless Spear Hero before they are encased together in a metal sphere.
Inside the sphere, Motoyasu opened his eyes before he noticed the glowing red eyes around him. He didn't anticipate this attack at all.
"Hey! Stop that!" Motoyasu shouted as the sphere that trapped him shake around while he was mauled by the balloon monsters inside. "No! Hey! That hurts!"
"It can't be..." A woman muttered.
"At this rate, the Shield Hero might win." A man added.
"Naofumi and his shield have the upper hand." Itsuki commented as his friend next to him only responded with a "Hmm".
"Does that lowly Shield Hero think he can win against the Spear Hero?" Another woman said.
"Have you had no respect for the sanctity of a duel!?" A man mocked Naofumi.
"Hmph! Maybe they should look themselves in the mirror before saying that." The gun scoffed telepathically in Tyler's head.
Naofumi ignored those insults as he marched towards the spherical prison.
"I think it's time for you to admit defeat." Naofumi said. "Or do you want more embarrassment, tough guy?"
As soon as the sphere disappeared, Motoyasu was barely standing up as he used his spear to support himself.
"And why would I surrender now...?" Motoyasu retorted.
"All right, I see..." Naofumi said before he grinned towards his opponent. "So then..." He then grabbed two balloon monsters in each hand. "Guess I'll take aim at your "handsome" face and that precious manhood of yours!"
Motoyasu couldn't believe that his opponent would go to that extent.
"Might as well since I'm a cowardly cheater!" Naofumi declared as Motoyasu used his hands to brace for the former's attack. Unfortunately, he was struck by a wind type spell, causing him to be sent flying before landing on his side.
And the culprit was none other than that redheaded girl, whose right hand is glowing. And the girl looked at him with a mocking smile.
Tyler would curse her for an underhanded move but he could only muffled in anger. He's even more angry when he realized that the audience around him said nothing about the move she pulled.
'She has magic!?' Naofumi exclaimed in his head. As soon as he stood up, Motoyasu thrust his spear forward. Naofumi managed to dodge it, albeit narrowly. That was not that the end as Naofumi had to block every assault his opponent throw at him. At some point, however, he's forced to back away when Motoyasu broke through his defense.
The spear glowed before its wielder hoisted high as blue lightning suddenly appeared on the tip of the spear.
'Naofumi/Master Naofumi!' Tyler and Raphtalia screamed in the head, knowing that they can't talk.
"Lightning Spear-" Motoyasu shouted before he was struck by something, preventing the Spear Hero from landing a finishing blow as he tumbling down on the ground before he fell to his side.
"What's going on!?"
"Something interrupted the Spear Hero!"
"The hell...!?" Motoyasu muttered before he stood up and saw the one responsible... which was none other than Riolu.
"Looks like I made it just in time." Riolu commented.
"A bipedal raccoon!?" Motoyasu exclaimed.
"You're with that girl..." Naofumi said as he recognized seeing Riolu during the battle of Lute.
"So you guys can speak up when someone interrupts the Spear Hero, but not the Shield Hero? How daft can you guys be?" A familiar voice questioned as something... or someone entered the ring, and it was none other than Kurisu, with a glare on her face.
"Who are you!? How dare for a peasant like to interfere!" The king asked, but she simply ignored the so called "Wise King" she heard about.
"What is she up to...?" Naofumi wondered as he was able to recover thanks to her interference.
The young woman then raised her head as Riolu went to her side, still keeping her stern face.
"From the way I see it, this duel is over!" Kurisu announced. "The winner goes to the Shield Hero!"
"This is outrageous! The winner is obviously the Spear Hero!" A nobleman protested.
"I concur. Who do you think you are, deciding the winner of this duel!?" A noblewoman beside him added.
"Go back to where you came from, you country bumpkin!" Another nobleman insulted her.
"Silence!" The king shouted as the complaints of the audience died down. He then proceeded to look towards the trainer in villager's clothes with a stern look. "Tell me, village girl. What gave you the reason to believe that the Shield Hero should be the winner, instead of the Spear Hero?"
"I can give you one, simple answer..." Kurisu said with a serious look on her face. "I saw a certain someone used a wind type spell towards the Shield Hero when he's just about to claim victory." She then glanced towards the person responsible, which was Myne, with a angry look on her face. "Someone who would do whatever it takes to make the Shield Hero lose."
"Such nonsense!"
"That girl is absolutely deluded!"
"I saw no spell casted here!"
"You all can tell me whatever crap you're telling me..." Kurisu said, ignoring the audience's objections. "Because you all clearly saw it happened, but in the end, you chose to say nothing about it. Am I wrong?" She stated as the audience's voices died down, proving her point. "This duel is supposed to be fair."
"And what do you know about fair?" The king questioned her. "The Shield Hero used several underhanded tactics to obtain the advantages."
"That's because all he can do is to protect, not attack." Kurisu said to the king. "You forced the Shield Hero into a duel he can't possibly win. I'm pretty sure that it was you who told the audience to keep quiet."
"That's absurd-" The king scoffed before he was interrupted.
"I agreed with her." Ren said as he arrived at the ring with Itsuki. "I'm starting to think this duel's only purpose is to make Naofumi lose."
"The Sword Hero!?"
"Why would he side with that peasant!?"
"Me too." Itsuki chimed in. "And I'm pretty sure we know who attacked Naofumi from behind." The Bow Hero then turned towards the redheaded girl. "Isn't that right, Myne?"
"I have no idea what are you talking about." Myne replied, feigning ignorance. Something that wasn't go unnoticed by Kurisu.
'So it was her after all...' Kurisu thought with a glare, who had seen through Myne's lie. She then turned to Motoyasu. "And you! I thought you were smarter than this!" She scolded him before slowly approaching him. "Why you would challenge the Shield Hero to a duel that he wants no part of?"
"I have to do it!" Motoyasu answered with a serious look on his face. "If I don't, Raphtalia would suffer serving him because she's his slave-"
He didn't get to finish as Kurisu slapped the Spear Hero across his face.
Tyler and Raphtalia gasped at their acquaintance's actions. Especially the latter, who gladly to slapped the Spear Hero in the trainer in villager's clothing's place should Motoyasu win with no interruptions.
"How dense can you possibly be!?" Kurisu shouted angrily. "She clearly didn't ask for you to set her free! So don't go doing that without her consent!"
"And what do you know about that criminal? You're nothing a lowly country bumpkin!" Myne questioned.
"Actually, I do know." Kurisu countered. "When I fought alongside them during the Wave, I observed their fighting style. The way they cover each other's weak points during that battle... certainly proved that their relationship are more than a common master and slave one."
"But... it doesn't have to be her..." Motoyasu stated.
"Then riddle me this, Spear Hero..." Kurisu told him. "If you really are against slavery, then why you didn't do a thing against other slavemasters?"
This question left the Spear Hero speechless. No matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn't figure out the most logical way to answer that riddle.
"That's because-"
"And if you did, then you probably have one of this!" Kurisu interrupted before she ripped the bandages off her left arms, revealing a whip scar that she may have gotten earlier.
Seeing it made the Heroes and some of the audience, as well as Tyler and Raphtalia, to widened their eyes in shock.
"It's just a scar. What's so important about that?" Myne scoffed.
"I got this scar recently when I was protecting a young demihuman from his master." Kurisu said before she wrapped the bandages back. "I had to "re-educate" the slavemaster so that he wouldn't abuse his slave again." She said before glaring daggers towards the Spear Hero. "If you believed that the Shield Hero is just like what everyone said, then you were clearly the one who don't know anything about him."
"Don't you dare speaking like that to Sir Motoyasu, you poor villager!" Myne told Kurisu. "Who do you think you are, to side with that Shield Devil over the Spear Hero!?"
"Shield Devil?" Kurisu repeated, raising a brow at Myne's statement. "Last I remember, there are no devils in this room. This sacred duel is between two heroes. One who uses the spear and the other who uses a shield. Where in here is a devil?"
"The Devil here is obviously that Shield Hero!" The king told the young woman. "After all, that insolent wretch have tried to rape my daughter!"
"He what?" Kurisu said with widened eyes.
"It's true! He would've absolutely raped me if I didn't call Sir Motoyasu and the others for help. Don't you see? I'm the victim here!" Myne said in innocent tone.
"And I assure you, miss. I can back up that claim." Motoyasu added.
Kurisu narrowed her eyes at this piece of information, in which Naofumi noticed.
'She's going to believe them...!' Naofumi thought with fear on his face. Unbeknownst to him, his negative feeling brought rise of an unknown dark power. 'It won't be long before she turn her back on me like everyone else! And soon, I'll lose everything like before-'
"Naofumi, was it? Did that really happen?" Naofumi snapped out of his thoughts before looking towards the female Pokémon Trainer, who asked him. The Shield Hero realized that the question was asked directly to him. And the dark energy that gathered around disappeared.
"Of course it did! That's what we're trying to tell you!" Motoyasu butted in. "Naofumi is supposed to be a Hero and yet-" He didn't get to finish when Riolu struck him with a Force Palm to the gut, blowing him back. This action shocked everyone.
"I believe that Kurisu was talking to him, not you." The Emanation Pokémon said.
The female Pokémon Trainer nodded at her partner Pokémon in gratitude before she turned back towards Naofumi.
"So, did it happen?" Kurisu questioned the Shield Hero once again. "I can't help you if you don't tell me the truth."
"You'll... help me?" Naofumi repeated as he widened his eyes after hearing there's still someone out there, willing to reach out to him. Not only did she and that raccoon like creature, which he started to believe to be a Pokémon just like Tyler's team, stop Motoyasu from finishing this duel that he was forced to take part in, but the young woman in front of him was actually willing to hear his side? When no one else would? Realizing that he was taking a while to answer, he finally spoke his piece. "No, I didn't. I was never drunk on that night to begin to with."
Kurisu then looked into his eyes. If there was one thing people should know about her, it would be that she's a living lie detector. She can detect any lie a person tells, no matter how small. It was something she had developed since childhood due to her... unfortunate circumstance. And from what she can see from Naofumi, she didn't detect any lies from him at all. Kurisu can now believe that Naofumi's telling the truth.
She then proceeded to look towards Myne.
"And you. You said that he undoubtedly raped you, and that you were so frightened that you ran to that Spear Hero for help. Is that true?" Kurisu questioned the princess.
"Why are you even asking me that? Of course it's true!" Myne answered. "I was frightened at that time! Not to mention felt helpless against him! You're a girl too, aren't you? Surely you would've done the same thing!"
Kurisu then processed those words that comes out of Myne's mouth as she looked towards the girl in the eyes. Then, the female Pokémon Trainer proceeded to approach the princess before the former placed her hand on the latter's shoulder.
"You're right," she said, to Naofumi's shock. "As a girl, if there's one thing we can never tolerate, it's being taken advantage of."
Smirks were formed on the nobles and the king's faces, as a smile did form on Myne's, who was smirking on the inside.
"However... There is one thing I do not ever tolerate as a person, no matter who does it..." All of a sudden, Myne felt her body go light. Next thing she knew, the princess was slammed to the ground and she found herself being pinned down the Pokémon Trainer in villager's clothing. Kurisu focused her grip on the lying princess's left arm. "I don't like being lied to."
As the she said that, the sound of bone snapping can be heard, causing Myne to scream in pain. This caused surprised reactions from everyone.
"Myne!" Motoyasu shouted in worry as the some of the audience have mixed expressions.
"How dare you do that to my daughter!" The king said furiously. "Guards!"
In a matter of seconds, Kurisu and Riolu was surrounded by the royal knights. Kurisu proceeded to stood up.
"You're calling the guards because I dislocated her arm, but no punishment is to come to this liar for interrupting the sacred duel? Princess or not, there are lines that even she cannot cross."
"But that doesn't mean you can snap her arms!" The king said.
"The fact that you seem to be favoring her so much to even look the other way when she casted some magic on the Shield Hero when he was winning this duel says it all! You're no king; you're not fit to rule if you take only one side that is your own lying daughter!"
Naofumi can't help but to feel impressed about the girl's amazing feat.
"Don't you speak ill of His Majesty, you insolent village girl!" The mustached knight said. "I have no qualms of killing you, right here right now if you don't let go of Princess Malty."
"Go ahead." Kurisu said before one or her hand grab Myne's right arm. "I dare you."
"Please, no!" Myne begged her.
The king was truly ran into a dead end. He could kill this insolent stranger, but that would cost her daughter getting her other arm snapped as well as proving thar girl's point. As it pained him to ask his knights to stand down, but he knew better than to make an irrational decision, especially when it involves his family.
"Knights, stand down." The king ordered.
"But Your Majesty, she-"
"I said stand down!" The king ordered loudly, causing the knights lowered their weapons.
"Smart move there, king." Kurisu told him. "Wouldn't want your daughter to lose both her arms, would you? Even if they can get all healed up?"
"Don't get ahead of yourself, girl. I only did it in order to avoid the worst possible scenario." The king replied.
"Then I guess I don't need to do punish this liar any longer." Kurisu said as she let go of Myne, who immediately got helped back up by a knight.
"However..." The king said with a stern tone. "This doesn't change the fact that you interfere with the duel. Therefore, There will be a rematch at once!" He said as the audience started talking amongst themselves. "And nothing you say will change my mind."
"Sure. Why not? It's not like it will change anything." Kurisu accepted, shocking the heroes except Motoyasu, who grinned. "That being said, instead of having the Shield Hero fight, why not have one of his party members do the fighting in his place?"
"Huh? Why would I do that?!" Mononashi questioned as he frowned. "I still have a score to settle with him. I need to make that bastard wished he never enslaved Raphtalia. Not to mention him raping Myne."
"For one thing, I noticed he was only fighting with his shield. And by fighting, I mean defending. " Kurisu explained. "What sort of 'sacred duel' is this suppose to be if only one side is able to attack? That is... Unless if you want to get chomped by those balloons again."
Motoyasu could only cringed at her statement. Sure, those balloon monsters are weak, but they can be troublesome when they ganged up on him. Especially in that enclosed space.
"Speaking of which, how is that even a sacred duel in the first place?! If Naofumi hadn't thought things through before this whole thing started, he wouldn't have lost because you were strong; it would be because you put him at a disadvantage in the first place!" The girl continued. "And you call yourself a Hero?
"She does have a point there." Itsuki commented as Ren nodded with him.
"Even so-" Motoyasu said before he was interrupted.
"Fine." The king said, shocking everyone except Kurisu and Riolu. "I shall accept those terms."
"Papa! You can't be serious!?" Myne told him, holding her broken arm.
"Looks like there's someone that needs to be "reminded"... Well?" Kurisu remarked as she looked towards Myne. Her look alone made the princess to back off. "That's what I thought."
"Well, who do you think will fight in the Shield Hero's place?" The king questioned her.
"Easy. This guy." Kurisu answered, pointing her finger towards Tyler, who gasped in surprise.
"Very well." The king said, just before he issued an order though...
"Oh. One more thing..." Kurisu said before looking towards Raphtalia. "You better released her too."
"And why should I do that?" The king asked.
"From the way I see it, you've been treating her as a prize, an object. Demihuman or not, she should be treated with due respect." Kurisu explained. "Either that or we can consider this rematch cancelled."
"Fine." before motioned one of the knights next to him to carried out Kurisu's demands.
After releasing their restraints, Tyler and Raphtalia was escorted to the ring. Though Ren and Itsuki returned to their seats.
"I guess I should to thank you for helping us out." Tyler told the female Pokémon.
"Save it until you defeated the Spear Hero." Kurisu replied.
"Right." Tyler said before looking at the aforementioned Hero with a serious look. "I got something I'd like to say to that turd." He proceeded to take a step forward.
"So you'll be the one who I'll be fighting?" Motoyasu asked with a smirk. "This is fine. You're going to pay for threatening me and Myne the other day."
"Oh boo hoo. Cry me a river, mark." Tyler mocked him. "Also, I don't think you understand something here."
"And what's that?" Motoyasu questioned, raising a brow.
"If we're gonna do this..." Tyler said before he pulled out a pokeball. "We're gonna do this, my way! Dunsparce, I choose you!" He then threw his pokeball as a Pokémon came out from it.
"What is that!?"
"What manner of magic is that?"
Appearing before Tyler was a serpentine Pokémon with a primarily yellow body, blue underside, and blue-and-cream-striped back. Its head is round with a wide mouth extending under its jowls and curving up toward the middle of its face. Its chin is blue with two rounded prongs. Its eyes—round and rimmed with blue—are kept closed, revealing its cream-colored eyelids. On its upper back are two small, white, bird-like wings split into two sections each. Its body ends in a striped, drill-like tail.
"I'm ready when you are, Tyler!" The newcomer told his trainer.
Everyone except Tyler was flabbergasted at the Pokémon that just appeared..
"What... the hell is this thing supposed to be?" Motoyasu questioned, clearly flabbergasted of the creature in front of him.
"Your opponent." Tyler answered. "Yeah, it's kinda odd when I say it like that, but trust... I meant what I said."
The audience proceeded to burst in laughter at the sight.
"Did that fool actually think he can win against the Spear Hero with that weak monster?" Myne mocked, also laughing at towards the Pokémon.
"Balloon is one thing, but that..." Motoyasu said, couldn't stop laughing. "That thing couldn't possibly hurt me."
"Is he really going to use that?" Naofumi, raised an eyebrow at Tyler's choice of Pokémon. "More importantly, what is that? A Pokémon?"
"It's a Dunsparce." Kurisu stated.
"Dunsparce?" Raphtalia repeated.
"A Normal type Pokémon that usually flees when they see a person." Kurisu explained. "Because of that, not many are lucky in finding this Pokémon. To be honest, I never seen one myself until now."
"This is going to end badly." Naofumi muttered, fearing what would happen if Tyler lose.
"Yeah, that's right. Laugh it up while you still can, mark." Tyler said. "You'd be surprised how powerful my friend is."
"I'd believe when I see it." Motoyasu said before he twirled his spear around for a bit. "I'll end this in ten seconds."
"Hmph. This is should be over in three seconds." The king scoffed, knowing how this duel will end.
"The duel between the Spear Hero and one of the Shield Hero's party members is about to go underway." The referee shouted. "The winner is decided when combatants from neither sides is unable to battle."
'Huh. It's been awhile I battled like this.' Tyler thought. 'It feels good to be back.'
"He's done for." Itsuki commented. "There's no way he'll able to win using that thing."
"That maybe, but..." Ren said before he noticed the seriousness in Tyler's eyes. "I had a feeling he put faith in that little monster."
"What made you say that?" The Bow Hero asked his friend.
"Just watch, trust me." The Sword Hero answered.
"Ready? Begin!" The referee shouted.
"I'll end this with one strike!" Motoyasu said arrogantly as his spear is covered in red energy. "Air Strike Javelin!" He shouted before throwing the glowing spear towards Dunsparce.
"Roll to your left, Dunsparce!" Tyler commanded.
"On it!" Dunsparce replied before the Land Snake Pokémon rolled to his left, avoiding the attack.
"What!?" Motoyasu exclaimed, flabbergasted that his attack missed.
"It's our turn, now!" Tyler said before extending one of his hand. "Dunsparce, you use Thunderbolt!"
"Let's see if you like this!" Dunsparce said before he jumped high in the air.
The audience as well as the princess and the other heroes were in awe about the display they were seeing.
This was just the beginning as Dunsparce's body began to be surrounded with electricity before shooting a bolt of yellow electricity towards Motoyasu.
"Crap!" Motoyasu cursed as he was struck by the attack. He didn't expect for small creature like Dunsparce could attack him with a lightning bolt.
"Sir Motoyasu!" Myne called as her father and the audience couldn't believe what they're seeing. Even Naofumi was impressed. Sure, he saw three of Tyler's Pokémon battling first hand, but he didn't think that something as small as his Dunsparce could do the same feat.
"Damn it..." Motoyasu said, gritted his teeth as saw Dunsparce landed on the ground safely. "How can something so small can inflict so much damage?"
"The thing is, it's not the size of his body that you should worry about..." Tyler told the Spear Hero. "It's the size of his strength."
Kurisu couldn't help but nodded at that word of wisdom. And that's meant certainly something coming from someone who looked like a delinquent.
"Tch. Get real, pal." Motoyasu said with disbelief look on his face. "That was simply a fluke. I was going easy on it, that's all."
"Keep telling yourself that and see where that gets you." Tyler remarked. "Now, Dunsparce! Use Coil!"
As Tyler said that, his Dunsparce proceeded to coiled its body around, causing him to be covered with rising red aura as it disappeared soon after.
"What did Dunsparce do just now?" Raphtalia wondered, and so did Naofumi as well.
"That move is Coil." Kurisu answered. "It's a move that increases the user's Attack, Defense, and Accuracy."
"That was pretty smart move on his part." Riolu commented. "Considering who Dunsparce is up against."
"This is where I get serious!" Motoyasu said before it the tip of his spear glowed. "Chaos Spear-" Just before he initiate the attack, he suddenly felt himself being paralyzed as he sees some static electricity around his body, canceling the attack.
"What... happened to me?!" Motoyasu exclaimed.
"Paralysis? When did he get that?" Raphtalia asked.
"It's around when Dunsparce used Thunderbolt." Riolu explained in Kurisu's place. "Some Electric type moves like Thunderbolt have a small chance of inflicting paralysis."
"Then again, I think it's because of Dunsparce's ability." Kurisu said.
"Ability?" It was Naofumi's turn to ask.
Kurisu nodded at the Shield Hero's question. "From the looks of it, This Dunsparce has the ability called Serene Grace. It's an ability that increases the likelihood of the moves' additional effects."
"He's actually pretty good." Itsuki commented.
"I can tell he's very experienced with this." Ren told him, also impressed at Tyler's style.
"From what I witnessed from your rigged duel with Naofumi, you were quite fast with your attacks." Tyler told the Spear Hero. "So now, I know just the way to beat you."
"So what if I got paralysis? I can still fight!" Motoyasu said before he charged towards Dunsparce with his spear in hand and thrust his spear forward towards the Pokémon. While it didn't really impaled him, Dunsparce felt some damage as he sent flying backwards albeit not far. Fortunately due to his increased Defense thanks to Coil, the damage wasn't fatal.
"Damn it. That thing's more resilient than I thought." Motoyasu muttered.
"Dunsparce! Are you okay?" Tyler asked his battling Pokémon.
"I'm fine." The Land Snake Pokémon replied.
"There's more where that came from!" Motoyasu said as he was prepared to thrust his spear again. Unfortunately for him, Dunsparce knew better than to fell for the same attack twice as he dodged the attack.
"Tch. What a slippery monster." Myne muttered, growing annoyed at Dunsparce not losing when he was supposed to.
"Dunsparce! Intercept him with Drill Run!" Tyler ordered.
"Okay!" Dunsparce said as he dodged Motoyasu's thrust before jumping in the air and aimed his drill-shaped towards the Hero. Then, it lunged towards his opponent tail first before spinning like a drill.
"As if I let that happen!" Motoyasu said as he thrusted his spear forward to counter Drill Run. As the move made contact with the spear, the Spear Hero was doing everything he can to deflect the attack should the opportunity rises. Unfortunately, he was unable hold the attack any longer, causing the attack to nailed him in the gut. The effect of the move caused him to be sent flying backwards before tumbling down on the ground.
"How is this possible!?" Myne asked with disbelief.
Tyler proceeded to glare towards the downed Spear Hero.
"That's one for Naofumi." Tyler said as the Motoyasu proceeded to stand up.
"I don't understand..." Motoyasu said while glaring towards Dunsparce, who was doing the same. "Why am I losing... to a weak looking monster like that!?"
"That's the power of a Pokémon for you. Not like you'd understand anyway." Tyler told him. "Looks like there's no need to keep up with this charade any longer. Use Coil!"
"I'll end this with one shot!" Dunsparce said as he coiled his body around again, causing the Land Snake Pokémon to be enveloped with rising red energy.
"That's my line, you stupid monster." Motoyasu said before he hoisted his spear high, causing a blue lightning bolt suddenly appeared on the tip of the spear. "This is the part where you lose!"
"Not today! If anyone's losing, it's gonna be you!" Tyler said before extending his hand one more time. "Finish him with Last Resort!"
Dunsparce proceeded to jump high in the air before being covered with a golden aura. Then he formed a large, yellow energy sphere in front of his mouth.
"This is the end! Lightning Spear!" Motoyasu shouted before he thrusted his spear forward, causing a stream of blue electricity to be launched towards Dunsparce, who replied by shooting the sphere.
Unfortunately for Motoyasu, the Last Resort move cut through his attack. He widened his eyes in shock right before the sphere hit him, causing an explosion where the Spear Hero stood.
"Did that will do it?" Tyler muttered as he stared forward, hoping that attack got him.
"What attack was that?" Raphtalia asked Kurisu.
"That... was Last Resort." Kurisu said as she too was surprised. "As the name suggest, it's a move that can only be used when the user have used the other three moves at least once."
Once the dusts, created by the explosion, subsided, they then saw Motoyasu lying on the ground, unconscious.
"U-Uh..." The referee said, also flabbergasted at seeing a Hero lose before he snapped himself out of thought that he was supposed to announce the winner. "R-Right! The Spear Hero is lost. The winner goes to a member of the Shield Hero's party!"
The audience, the king, and his daughter couldn't believe that a small monster like was able to defeat the Spear Hero. This wasn't supposed to be happened.
"That... That small Pokémon of his actually won...?" Naofumi muttered as he couldn't believe what he just saw. 'How powerful these Pokémon can be?'
"That was a great job, Dunsparce." Tyler said as he knelt down to his Pokémon eye level before patting his head.
"It was nothing." Dunsparce replied. "I'm glad I was able to teach that bully a lesson."
"That you did." Tyler said before pulling out Dunsparce's pokeball. "Now you take a good rest." He then returned the Land Snake Pokémon back into his pokeball, then he put said ball away.
He then proceeded to approach Naofumi.
"Well, dude. I won." Tyler told his friend.
"So you did." Naofumi replied.
"Now that you've won, we shouldn't waste our time in this place any longer." Kurisu said with Riolu.
"Good idea. I just had enough of this bullshit anyway." Tyler said as they all left the coliseum while the king and the audience were still in shock about the outcome of the duel.
As they walking towards somewhere, Naofuni couldn't help but to think about something. Something that's been bothering him during the rematch.
"Hey, Tyler..." Naofumi called him.
"Yeah?" The male Pokémon Trainer replied. "If you got something to ask, then by all means, fire away."
"Back before we fought the Wave..." Naofumi began. "When you said that... was it all true?"
"Of course it was, man." Tyler said with a smile. "I meant what I said." He then turned towards Raphtalia. "Same can be said to her too. Right, Raphtalia?"
"Yeah." Raphtalia nodded in agreement. "Even if the world is against you, Master Naofumi. We will always stand beside you."
For the longest time, he's been waiting for someone to say those. No... he heard those similar words before. He just didn't hear it clearly. He couldn't help but to smile genuinely for the first time in a while. While he's not blessed with offensive powers like the other three Heroes, he was blessed with companions that would stand beside him to the very end.
"Oh yeah, that reminds me..." Tyler said before he turned to Kurisu. "I thought you were in Lute, helping with the rebuilds. So what brought you here?"
"You know, I've been wondering about the same thing too." Raphtalia chimed in.
"Oh yeah. I think one of you..." Kurisu said before she pulled out the Vivillon plush strap. "Dropped this."
"That's..." Tyler said before he turned away with blushes on his cheeks. "I-I see you had that on you."
"So it was you." Kurisu said as she looked at the strap. "From the looks of it, this was done handmade."
"You could tell?" Tyler wondered.
"It's quite obvious." Kurisu replied before she handed him the item.
"Thanks again... I guess." Tyler said before putting the strap away. "Actually, I didn't think I catch your name."
"Oh. I guess we didn't introduce ourselves." Kurisu said before she cleared her throat. "I'm Kurisu. Kurisu Hanatabi. Nice to meet you, Tyler." She then glanced towards Riolu. "And this is Riolu, my partner Pokémon."
"Nice meet to meet you." Riolu greeted.
"So you're a Pokémon? I didn't expect that!" Raphtalia said.
Tyler proceeded to pull out his Pokédex in order to find out about Riolu.
"Riolu, the Emanation Pokémon. A Fighting type. Riolu has the power to see and understand emotions like happiness and anger in aura waves."
"I take it that's how you track us down?" Naofumi said.
"That's right." Kurisu answered.
"When I first saw you, your aura is filled with sadness and hate." Riolu stated. "But now, I can see that you're feeling better now."
"It sure was." Raphtalia said, happy that she get to be with her master.
"You know, I need to be get going now. I'm already past my curfew as is." Kurisu told them.
"Okay then. Be careful on your back!" Tyler greeted them.
"We will." Kurisu said as she and Riolu went home towards Lute.
Tyler then turned to Naofumi and Raphtalia.
"Now what should we do next?" Tyler asked them.
"We should turn in. It's getting very late now." Naofumi told him.
"Sure." Both Tyler and Raphtalia said in unison before they went back to the inn they were staying to catch some sleep.
After several hours of sleeping, the trio went out as they're currently having sandwiches that Raphtalia made for breakfast while looking at the scenery.
"Welp, down the hatch!" Tyler said before he took a bite on the sandwich. "Oh! This is so good! It's hard to believe that you made this all by yourself!"
"I'm glad you like it." Raphtalia said before Naofumi stared at her.
"Hey, Raphtalia... is it really you?" Naofumi asked her, causing the demihuman to raised an eyebrow. "Guess I need some time to get used this."
"Took you long enough to notice, dude." Tyler said before he turned towards Raphtalia. "Not that I'm not curious about that too. You've grown quite a lot in span of a week. How's that even possible anyway?"
Raphtalia smiled before she turned to the view. "It is sudden, but when demihumans level up as childrens, they became instant grownup in blink of an eye." She explained. "That's why we're seen as animals. Always abused and discriminated against."
"So you're like a Pokémon, huh?" Tyler muttered while eating his sandwich. He then turned to Naofumi. "Dude, you should try this. This's so good."
"Yeah. Give it a bite, Master Naofumi." Raphtalia insisted as Naofumi looked towards his sandwich before taking a bite off it. As he did that, the Shield Hero gasped in surprise that left him daze for a while.
"Is there something wrong, Master Naofumi?" Raphtalia asked.
"Yeah, is there something wrong with the sandwich?" Tyler also asked.
"I... can actually taste it!" Naofumi said before taking another bite.
Seeing this made two of his party members to smile, especially Raphtalia, who blushed happily.
"Let's make a deal: To eat lots of delicious food from now, okay?" Raphtalia said as she and Tyler saw their leader shed tears of joy due to able to taste food again.
"Master Naofumi..." Raphtalia called Naofumi.
"Yeah?" The Shield Hero responded.
"Let's do the best we can." Raphtalia said before she grab ahold of his hands as they all look at each other.
"I'm feeling like the third wheel of this relationship." Tyler muttered with a sweatdrop before he grinned. "Guess we're not bunch of lost causes after all." He added as he could say bright days ahead of them.
Next: Chapter 4: Birds of a Feather
That's a wrap for today's chapter.
With the inclusion of Tyler and Kurisu, I had to alter the plot a little to suit for this story.
There will be another Pokémon Trainer hailed from Tyler's world. And he/she will make an appearance later in this story.
One last thing... the review section is not meant for asking about how long will I update my stories. If you want to ask that, please PM me.
Comments and reviews are acceptable~!