Sorry for the long wait!
Here's the chapter that you all have been waiting for! Enjoy~!
Disclaimer: I don't own Rising of the Shield Hero or Pokémon. I only own Tyler, my OC. Kurisu Hanatabi belongs to Coral the Leviathan.
Chapter 4: Birds of a Feather
(Somewhere, ?)
A purple haired woman was dressing herself up with the help of several maids in the room.
"Is that what the king has been up to?" The woman asked to a masked figured by the window, kneeling towards her.
"He has apparently." The masked figure replied. "I'm sure Princess Malty must've talked him into it."
"How's the Shield Hero, holding up?" The woman asked another question.
"He procured a demihuman slave from a slave trader a while ago." The masked figure explained. "He also gained an ally of a young man who can summon creatures through a small white and red balls, one of which have defeated the Spear Hero in a duel. I believed that they were called "Pokémon" by the young man."
"Is that so?" The woman said with a smile. "That's a relief, I must say." That smile soon turned into a frown. "However... News of Melromarc summoning of the Four Cardinal Heroes is made no small impact on the kingdom as well as others. We must prevent our neighbors from meddling with our affairs, no matter what it may take."
"Never fear, my lady." The masked figure replied. "We'll continue keep a watchful eye on the events at the capital."
"I'm counting on you." The woman said as the masked figure took her leave.
(In the castle of the capital)
Naofumi and his party were then called to come to the castle in order to receive the reward from the king. Apparently, the other three Heroes and their party were also there.
"As a reward for his efforts during the Wave and for fulfilling my request, Master Motoyasu will receive 4,000 silvers." The king stated as one of his servant handed said Hero the bag of money. "Young Masters, Itsuki and Ren, will receive 3,800 silvers." He continued as they have their reward money received. "Finally, I've set aside 500 silvers for the Shield Hero." Naofumi proceeded to reach out to the bag of money in front of him. "However, due to the offset of the rematch and the medical fee to heal my daughter, he will not receive the reward at this time."
Naofumi proceeded to get angry at the king.
'Rematch and medical fees?' Tyler thought angrily. 'What a cheap bastard! I think he's still salty of seeing his favorite Hero lost to Dunsparce.'
"Wait a second! That's not gonna fly!" Itsuki interfered as everyone turned to him. "First, The rematch wouldn't happen if you didn't rigged the first duel and let Naofumi win in the first place. Second, I don't think you need to charge on healing some broken bones. Lastly, this isn't exactly a fair play if you refused to pay him up."
"Yeah, that's right." Ren chimed in, glancing towards Motoyasu. "If you followed the rules, Naofumi would've won the duel and there's no need for a rematch."
"What are you talking about!?" Motoyasu exclaimed, oblivious to the fact. "I was clearly winning against Naofumi."
"Yeah. Sir Motoyasu was winning..." Myne, whose real name is Malty, added while she had her left arm bandaged. "The Shield Hero's the only one with the monsters inside of him."
"He only does that because he has no means of dealing damage himself." Tyler countered with a serious look. "You cheated by firing a magic spell on Naofumi just as he close to winning."
"Then, what about that weak looking monster of yours?" Myne retorted. "There's no way something like that could possibly beat one of Cardinal Heroes!"
"You say like that because you're still salty about the rematch." Tyler told the lying princess. "Keep whining, or I'll call that girl again here to break your other arm!"
This caused Malty to cringed at that very thought.
"And let's not forget that it was the Shield Hero and his party was the one who saved Lute Village during the Wave, not the knights." Ren reminded as Tyler nodded in agreement. "It's only fair that he needed to be compensated as well."
Malty clicked her tongue at this before her father stopped her from lashing out.
"Fine. I shall afford the minimum agreed amount." The king relented. "But there will be nothing else."
Naofumi proceeded to swipe the money from the servant's hand, not liking the king's attitude towards him.
"Well, you have it. So begone already!" The king told the Shield Hero.
Just when Naofumi was about to rant, he felt someone's hand on his shoulder. He turned around and see Tyler.
"I'm pissed at them as much as you do, but we shouldn't waste anymore of our precious time talking to these clowns." Tyler told him, causing Myne and her father offended by the former's remark.
"I agreed with Tyler, Master Naofumi." Raphtalia said as she glared towards the two royalties. "We should be going now."
Naofumi couldn't help but to smile as his companion's willingness to stick up with him, despite the odds.
"Come on, you two. Let's go!" Naofumi told them as he turned around and walk away from the king.
"Right!" Raphtalia said as she followed her master.
"Right behind you, man." Tyler added before he caught up with them as they leave the castle.
After leaving the castle, Naofumi and the others proceeded to head somewhere.
"So what's our next stop?" Tyler asked Naofumi.
"There's something I needed to do with Raphtalia." Naofumi told him. "There's a place I know who can help me deal with that problem."
"Okay." Tyler nodded as Raphtalia was curious about what her master wanted to do with her.
(At the slave market)
"Wait, you want to keep the Slave Crest?" Naofumi asked with disbelief. Shortly after arriving at the place, they were met with the slave merchant that sold Raphtalia to Naofumi, The Shield Hero asked the merchant to remove the Slave Crest on Raphtalia since there was no need for it. However, the demihuman refused to have her crest removed.
"Why not, Raphtalia?" Tyler asked her. "That way, no one won't treat you like a slave anymore."
"Even so, I'd like to keep it." Raphtalia replied. "I think of it as a symbol of your fate in me."
"If you say so..." Naofumi said before looking at the bottle next to him. Getting curious, Naofumi picked the bottle up and pour the liquid down to the gemstone of his shield. This allowed him to be notified a new form of the shield.
"Slave User Shield, huh?" Naofumi muttered.
"Gimme some of that." Tyler said before his friend handed him the bottle as the former proceeded to pour the bottle down to the gemstone of his gun, causing him to be notified about the form called "Slave User Gun". "I wonder what it can do?"
Naofumi noticed Raphtalia pouting for some reason. "Raphtalia, what's wrong?"
"Oh nothing." Raphtalia said before she turned away, causing the Shield Hero to be confused by her behavior. For Tyler, he could take guess of Naofumi's obliviousness towards Raphtalia's feelings.
"Oh boy. He still has a long way to go." Tyler muttered before putting his gun away.
"I'm amazed!" The slave merchant complimented as he took a closer look at Raphtalia. "To think you've help this scrawny bag of bones grow so much at such a short time." He added. "You could get 20 gold pieces if she was a virgin."
"But I am a virgin!" Raphtalia told him, but she was ignored.
"Then 35 gold pieces!" The man said to Naofumi.
"Wow, 35 gold pieces." Naofumi said as Raphtalia continued to fumed at this while Tyler simply sweatdrop.
"Master Naofumi!" Raphtalia called him before Naofumi noticed a case full of eggs. Each of the eggs have markings on them.
"What's that?" Naofumi asked as Tyler and Raphtalia looked towards the case as well
"That is a Monster Egg lottery." The man explained. "For 100 silvers, I guaranteed at least a Filolial. You'll win a monster trip that will double in value if you take care of it properly!"
"A Filolial?" Naofumi and Tyler questioned in unison.
"Yes. I'm sure you two must have seen them before." Raphtalia chimed in. "They're those gigantic birds everywhere that pulls people's carriages around."
"So that's what they're called huh?" Tyler muttered as he remembered seeing several Filolials around the kingdom. The weirdest part is that those Filolials were staring at him briefly before they move on.
"That's certainly something." Naofumi said.
"And that's not all! If you hit the jackpot, you'll win a Dragon!" The man added. "And need I remind you, that beast worth 20 gold pieces!"
"It's this like a gatcha game?" Naofumi commented, couldn't help but to feel a similarity towards a game he was familiar with.
"What's a gatcha game?" Raphtalia asked, having heard of her master's comment.
"It's nothing." Naofumi assured her before the slave merchant approached him.
"So what will it be? You want to give it a go?" The man asked the Shield Hero with anticipation.
(Later on...)
"You know, you shouldn't waste money like that, Master Naofumi." Raphtalia told her master, who had a egg in his hands. Apparently, Naofumi ended up buying the egg.
"Raphtalia's got a point there, dude." Tyler chimed in. "We can't afford to waste 'em because of that cheap geezer limiting our budget."
"True, but after thinking for awhile, I figured it wasn't fair for you two do the fighting." Naofumi told them.
"I fight just fine, thank you very much!" Raphtalia argued.
"Though he had a point there." Tyler commented. "We could use a non-Pokémon creature to fight."
"See? He gets it." Naofumi said to her slave.
"At any rate, you shouldn't loosen our purse strings so much." Raphtalia advised him as they arrived in front of a shop.
"Yeah yeah, fine." Naofumi said before they entered the shop.
"I have lots of relative in Lute Village." The shopkeeper said as he had presented them a grimoire as soon as he saw them entering his shop. "They're the ones who asked me to help you out here."
"Do you think it's someone you saved back then?" Raphtalia questioned her master.
"You got me." Naofumi simply said. He was just as surprised as anyone here.
"This grimoire has recipes for finer medicines than the ones you bring me." The man explained. "Use it. It's yours."
However, Naofumi couldn't seem to understand of what was written there.
"Thanks, but I can't read this word's language." Naofumi said.
"There's also something else you need to know. The old hag at the magic shop was asking to see you." The shopkeeper told him. "It's for a similar reason. She said you helped her grandkid out in that Lute Village battle."
(At the magic shop)
"You have a rare affinity for healing and support magic, Shield Hero." A woman with a witch hat told him. Fortunately, the magic shop isn't too far from the medicine shop they were previously in. She was had her hands near a crystal ball. "The young man here has an affinity for lightning magic, they're known for one of the best offensive magic." The woman told Tyler before she turned to Raphtalia. "And the young lady here has affinities for light and dark magic. She's half raccoon after all. Make sure she learns illusion magic~!"
'I really don't get about these "affinities" crap...' Tyler thought.
"Every living beings have affinity for magic." The voice of the gun told him telepathically. "Since yours are lightning magic, then you better put it to good use."
'What are you, my Mom?' Tyler asked in his head.
"No, but I am your superior. Remember it well." The gun retorted.
'Sure you are...' Tyler thought as he rolled his eyes.
"Now that being the case..." The woman said before she presented them a grimoire.
"We don't have the money to buy a magic grimoire though." Naofumi refused nicely.
"It's a gift. As thanks for helping my grandchild." The woman insisted before she glanced towards the crystal ball to her right. "I would have preferred to have given you a crystal ball instead of it."
Naofumi and his two party members turned to the crystal ball.
"Oh, you mean you didn't know? If you used a crystal ball, you can learn one of the magic sealed within it." The woman explained.
"First time I've heard of that." Naofumi replied.
"Yeah, me too." Tyler added.
"But I heard the Royal Court had ordered a bunch of them to give all the Heroes." The woman added.
"They probably did." Naofumi remarked. "To all the Heroes but me, that is."
"Learning magic from a grimoire is certainly hard." The woman told them. "But if you keep at it and do the work, you can learn as many spells as you want. You can do it!"
"Thank you so much!" Naofumi said before he realized the words that just came out of his mouth. "Thank you so much...?" He repeated the words quietly. Clearly having used the words ever since the night that broke him.
Then they decided to leave the capital to head somewhere through the woods. Though they ended up making a stop. Naofumi was leaning against a tree as he tried to read the grimoire he just received with Tyler next to him.
"I really can't read it." Naofumi said as he still couldn't understand about the words written in the grimoire.
"Trust me, man. You're not the only one having trouble reading this." Tyler told him as he also couldn't understand what was written in the grimoire. "If only there was a skill that would translate those words for us."
"Lucky for you two, there is." Raphtalia told them, causing the boys to look towards her in curiosity.
"Really?" Naofumi replied before the half-raccoon demihuman leaned towards him.
"But the keyword is together." Raphtalia simply answered, causing Naofumi to crack a smile.
"I don't mind learning some language here." Tyler said. Since he's going to be in this new world for a while, the Pokémon Trainer saw this as an opportunity to learn the languages.
"Well since the next Wave isn't due for another month, I guess that's the plan." Naofumi said, finally decided on his next move as he stood up and walked towards the edge of the cliff that was overlooking a certain village.
"Let's spend the night down in Lute Village." Naofumi told them. "Then tomorrow after breakfast, we can go out and grind some levels."
"Sure thing." Raphtalia replied as she smiled happily.
"I'm down with that." Tyler added as they went down towards Lute Village and into the forest area ahead.
Once they entered, they kept their guard up as they walk forward, in case of a sneak attack from the monsters. After walking for a while, they heard a bustling sounds of a bush to their right.
"Something is there." Tyler said as they looked to said bush with caution. Sure enough, an mushroom monster suddenly came out from the bush as it lunged towards Naofumi. Since its approach was not too different than the porcupine from the other day, The Shield Hero managed to counter it.
"Not this time!" Naofumi proceeded to dodge the mushroom monster. This allowed Tyler the chance to pull out his gun and shot the mushroom monster, killing it instantly.
"That was a close one." Raphtalia added.
"Yeah." Naofumi said as he saw Tyler obtaining a few EXP points.
"Still, that was quite sudden." The gun wielder said.
"Sorry!" A familiar voice can be heard as a certain someone appeared before them... who was none other than Kurisu. On each of her arms were a pair of tonfas. And judging from the looks of it, it wasn't a normal wooden one. "That was my fault. You see, that monster ran away and-" She stopped herself as she recognized the group before her. "Hey! It's you guys again. Didn't think we met so soon."
"Yeah. Even after that send-off you gave last night." Tyler told her. "Anyways, what were you doing out here?"
"Yeah, Kurisu. Shouldn't you be at Lute, helping with the rebuilt?" Raphtalia added.
"I was out patrolling the area." The Trainer in Villager's clothing answered. "In case there is a strong monster lurking around Lute." She added. "The question is, what are you three doing out here?"
"We were just on our way to Lute." Naofumi told her. "Since the Wave won't appear in another month, we could use a little downtime in the village."
"I see." Kurisu said as the Shield Hero noticed the tonfas.
"Are those... tonfas?" Naofumi asked her while pointing towards the said object.
"Tonfas?" Raphtalia repeated.
"Yup. And it's no ordinary one." Kurisu replied. "You see, I won them in a martial arts tournament when I was in junior high school."
"And how is it special exactly?" Tyler asked her.
"You'll know when I'm fighting with it." Kurisu said, much to Tyler's dismay.
"That figures." Tyler muttered, feeling disappointment.
"That being said, mind if I tag along?" Kurisu asked them. "I'm done for today anyway."
"Of course you can." Raphtalia said before she turned to Naofumi. "You have no objections, right Master Naofumi?"
"Nope." Naofumi simply answered.
"The more the merrier, I guess." Tyler said as he scratched the back of his head.
"In that case, let's go." Kurisu said as they immediately took their leave.
Fortunately, there weren't any monsters attacking them so they managed to arrive at the village safely. After that, the party immediately checked in at a inn that Kurisu lead them to before she parted ways with them.
(The next morning)
"Hey, Raphtalia! Tyler! Wake up!" Naofumi said as he tried to wake his party members up, which they woke up due to the former calling them.
"What is it, Master Naofumi...?" Raphtalia asked drowsily as she got up from het bed.
"You know I'm not a morning person, right?" Tyler said, also getting up. "What's this all about?"
"Look here." Naofumi pointed them to the egg, which have some cracks on it before a shell fell of. It didn't take long for the egg to broke completely, revealing a slightly pink chick from it.
"Fiyo!" The pink baby bird chirped, causing the party to take a step back in surprise. "Fiyo." The hatchling proceeded to fly up before it landed on top of Naofumi's head. "Fi!"
"It's so cute, Master Naofumi!" Raphtalia commented, eyeing the bird's cuteness.
"No kidding." Tyler added as he and Raphtalia looked towards the newly hatched Filolials, who were currently chirping.
"It must've think that your it's mother." Raphtalia commented.
"Imprint, huh?" Naofumi said.
After that, they proceeded to went to the tavern below them to get some breakfast. Once there, they see Kurisu who were sitting on a table.
"Morning, you three." Kurisu greeted them before noticing the Filolial on Naofumi's head. "What a cute little guy." She said before she come closer and scratched some feathers under its beak, which the baby Filolial like it. "Where did you find it?"
"We didn't." Tyler told her. "We kinda hatched it from an egg."
"I see." Kurisu responded. "So, do you know how to take care of it, right?"
When the girl asked them that, it dawned on Naofumi, Raphtalia and Tyler that they, in fact, did not know how to take care of a Filolial. And as it turned out, they did not need to verbally answer the question, for Kurisu could easily tell by their faces that they didn't. Though only the Pokémon Trainer of the party realized what she meant.
"It's like taking care of a Pokemon, right?" Tyler then asked.
"Similar to it. At least, as far as I know. We have a Filolial barn in the village. Well, not much of a 'Filolial barn', since most of them died during the second wave. But the breeder there knows everything there is needed to know about them. I recommend stopping by over there. Especially for baby filolial food."
"Well, that's good to know." Naofumi commented before he glanced towards his two party member.
"Let's stop by that then." Tyler suggested as they all head towards aforementioned barn.
The trio, especially Naofumi, proceeded to raise the Filolial as if it was meant to be treated. Naofumi even took it on their training at a monster-invested area near the village. They were shocked that the Filolial grew quite fast, justified since it ate a lot of its food. So fast that in a span of two days, it has grown to its proper size. Its feathers are now white with pink streak on the tip of its two feathers on its head. On the second day, Naofumi proceeded to do a test drive of him riding the Filolial, which was met with... unexpected result that involves running through the bushes. Eventually, Naofumi made his way back to them... in the evening.
Though for some reason... before leaving their Filolial at the barn, Tyler noticed that it been giving the 'stink eye' towards Hydreigon when he was out of his pokeball, which the gun wielder couldn't find out why. Kurisu, who learned from the villagers, told him and the others that Filolials have an intense rivalry with dragons, so she advised the gun wielder to not let his Hydreigon get anywhere near the Filolial, worry that it would assault him on sight. Which was why Tyler went on his own so he can train with his Pokémon without interference.
The next day, Naofumi and his party visited the barn again to check up on the Filolial to the party.
"I can't believe she grew up so fast in just two days." Raphtalia commented. Apparently, they've been told that the Filolial was a female.
"Kinda like Raphtalia, except this Filolial's growth was faster." Tyler added.
"My growth boost skill probably help a little." Naofumi replied as he was using the Monster Tamer Shield to use the aforementioned skill. He also the Filolial's name and her level, which was Level 12. "Right, Filo?"
"Guah." The newly named Filo spoke in her Filolial sound at her name.
"Her name is Filo? After the name 'Filolial'..." Raphtalia questioned, sweatdropped at her master's choice for the name. "Uh... don't you think that name was quite obvious?"
"Unlikely. She seemed kinda happy to be called that." Tyler told Raphtalia. "My mom used to tell me that simplicity is sometimes the best course of action. Don't you agree, Naofumi?"
"You've said it." Naofumi spoke.
"Guah."
"Hey. Look at that. Why the knights here?" A voice of the villager with the bandana on his head said, earning the attention of the group.
"Sounds like something interesting is about go down." Tyler commented as he and the others went to check what's going on.
"In light of his exploits during the last Wave, The Spear Hero, Sir Motoyasu, was appointed to be the lord of this land." Malty explained as she showed the entire villagers the paper that detailed a certain love-blinded being a lord in Lute Village once arriving at the village. "To help with the rebuilding effort, we decided to leviate a toll. This toll will be: 50 silvers for entering as well as leaving the village."
Let's just say the villagers didn't take the price for the toll well.
"50 silvers for just entering and leaving!? That will ruin us." A villager complained.
"Yeah, we won't be able get food for tomorrow." Another villager said.
"You dare to defy your lord's orders?" Malty questioned with a glare.
"Yup. You bet!" A familiar voice can be heard as the princess looked towards the source... who was none other than Naofumi. Accompanying him was his party and Filo.
"The Shield Hero? Why are you still doing here!?" Malty spoke before she has a smug look on her face. "This is Lord Motoyasu's domain now. You have no right to question him. Actually, leave here now, you miserable criminal!"
Naofumi clicked his tongue at this but he managed to retain his composure. He now know better than to fall to that bitch of a princess's taunts.
"Oh I don't mind leaving, all right. But I'm not sure the villagers is happy with that extortion." Naofumi calmly retorted before look towards his fellow Hero. "Hey, Motoyasu! Do you have any idea how much it cost to spend a night at the inn here?"
"Huh?" Then it dawned on the Spear Hero that he has no idea the price of staying at the inn. "Well, actually-"
"1 silver a night, with food included." Naofumi interrupted him. "You're charging the equivalent of a hundred nights just for enter and exit! Do you realize that?"
The villagers then agreed to their savior's argument on tnd matter.
"Yeah, yeah!"
"He's right!"
"And you can't just show up here and call yourself our lord!"
"It was the Shield Hero and his party that saved the village when the Wave of Catastrophe hit!"
Malty also didn't take their complaints very well.
"Do you dare to voice your complaints on a royal decree." With the swipe of her arm, she ordered the knights to aim their weapons at the villagers.
Naofumi didn't like the response that Malty gave.
"I suggest you knock it off!" Naofumi warned her, but Malty ignored it.
But before she gave the knights further commands, they were suddenly struck by something fast that made them to drop their weapons to the ground.
"What the-"
"How-"
"Looks like someone refused to learn their lesson." A familiar voice appeared, one that the group recognized.
"Is that-" Tyler was interrupted as the one responsible appear... who was none other than Kurisu's Riolu.
"You're with-" Malty spoke before she was interrupted.
"I went away for several minutes, and this is what I come back to?" Everyone soon turned to the other newcomer... who was Riolu's trainer, Kurisu.
"What is going on here?" Kurisu asked.
"Kurisu...?" Raphtalia spoke.
"You...!?" Malty exclaimed as she was surprised by the Trainer in Villager's clothing's appearance.
"You royals must be complete ass-hats." Kurisu coldly said with a glare. "Tell me straight to my face, Princess. Is this really a royal decree?"
Malty simply smirked at the question. "Why of course it-"
"Lies." Kurisu instantly claimed, interrupting the adventurer princess, who glared at her.
"Excuse me? What do you mean it's a lie? I am here as the next in line to the-"
"Lies." Kurisu interrupted once more. "You can lie to whoever the hell you want, and I won't care about it so long as it doesn't cost a life of any kind. But you dare lie to this village about being here with orders from the king, and as the heiress to the throne? Who the hell do you think I am?"
"You filthy peasant! Don't you know who-" Malty said before she was interrupted by a group of cloaked figures, who suddenly appeared out of nowhere. All of which are kneeling down towards her. "What...?"
"I trust you know who we're represent, Princess Malty." One of the figures greeted the princess.
"But why have you come?" Malty asked one of them.
Rather than answering her question, the cloaked figure in front of Malty proceeded to hand the princess a scroll.
"For you."
"Master Naofumi, who are they?" Raphtalia asked her master.
"I haven't a clue, but they're important that's for sure.
"How could this be...!" Malty muttered aloud, feeling distraught and frustrated by the content of the scroll. She proceeded to look towards the Shield Hero and then pointed her finger towards said person. "Shield Hero!"
"Huh?"
"Fight us for the right to rule this village!" Malty challenged him.
"Hold up, what!?" Tyler exclaimed as he and the others were shocked by the princess's declaration for a challenge.
"I decline!" Naofumi spoke out his refusal to the villagers that had gathered around him earlier after Malty and his group went to prepare for the challenge, which was a dragon race. Kurisu, of course, was told about what had transpired when she was out looking for food.
"But, sir... If you don't accept the challenge, the village will fall into the Spear Hero's hand." The village elder insisted. "Though it pains me to admit it, not even I, as the lord, can accept further taxation."
"But why do I need to ride in the Dragon Race?" Naofumi retorted. "Sounds like nothing but a pain in the butt."
"But they ask, specifically, for you, Shield Hero." The elderly lord explained as Filo went somewhere. "As a result, we don't have any right to challenge a Cardinal Hero."
"You know what I think? I bet it's because of that message that bend Myne out of shape." Naofumi commented.
"Do you think she is taking it out on you?" Raphtalia questioned.
"That's probably what she do at this point." Kurisu added as she has Riolu by her side. "To be honest, I didn't think she would resort to assume control of the village under a royal decree. And using Mononashi for her selfish goal too."
"Mononashi?" Tyler asked her.
"It's something I called to guy who has no brains whatsoever." Kurisu told. "Seeing how he was oblivious to that lying princess's true nature, that's why I called him just as that."
"I see."
"Guaaah. Guuuu." They turned to see glaring towards Motoyasu's Dragon, which was going to be used for the race.
"It seems that your Filolial is certainly up for it." The old man told Naofumi as Filo has fire in her eyes, not willing to lose to a Dragon, who proceeded to glanced towards her with an indifferent look.
"What is her problem...?" Naofumi muttered with his hands on top of his head.
"I guess it was true that Filolials and Dragons don't get along with each other." Raphtalia commented.
"Please, we beg of you!" The elder spoke as he bowed towards Naofumi. "We'll give you a huge reward for winning if you accept it for us."
Seeing no alternative on this matter, Naofumi reluctantly agreed to compete.
"*sigh*... I just can't make any guarantee that I'll win." Naofumi replied.
All of a sudden, one of Tyler's Pokémon came out of its pokeball all on its own... who was none other than Rapidash.
"That being said, I'm entering this race too!" Rapidash declared, shocking Tyler and everyone due to her sudden entrance.
"Actually... You can't." Tyler told the Fire Horse Pokémon. "It's between that Spear idiot and Naofumi."
"Come on! Why not?" Rapidash whined. "It's not like I'm getting in the way or anything."
"Tyler has a point, though." Kurisu stepped in. "You're too fast for them, so you just have to watch in the sidelines for time being."
This caused Rapidash to pout in disappointment.
"I guess..." Rapidash muttered, knowing that her trainer and the other trainer were right.
Kurisu proceeded to whisper something in Tyler's ears, which made him came up with something.
"You sure about that?" Tyler asked the female trainer, who simply nodded. And with that, the gun wielder knew what to do. "And besides, you and Scrafty need to do something else for me." Tyler said, which piqued the Fire Horse Pokémon's interest.
"What do you have in mind?" Rapidash asked.
(Several minutes later)
After a while, the villagers left Naofumi and Raphtalia so the Shield Hero can prepare for the race. Tyler decided to went somewhere with Kurisu and Rapidash to discuss about something. Naofumi was currently petting Filo once he was done doing some preparation with her.
"That is so lame!" Naofumi and Filo turned around to see Motoyasu, who have approached them. "You're riding that bird-thing? Not a Dragon?"
This remark seemed only to make Filo offended as she twitched.
"How can you possibly keep up with my Dragon with that thing?" Motoyasu mocked.
Not willing to take that insult lying down, Filo decided to retort in a rather, appropriate manner... by kicking him in the balls high into the air.
"Ahhhhh...!" Motoyasu shouted before he landed on a pile of hay, which was near Malty as she was talking with the knights about something.
Malty heard the sound of crashing behind her, which led her to find her Hero on top of the hay.
"Sir Motoyasu!" Malty called as she proceeded to rush towards him. Said person was holding his crotch in pain with one hand. "Healing magic, come on!" She said to her knights.
"Right...!"
As this happened, Naofumi and Filo watched over the scene with smiles on their faces.
"I'm gonna bruise! Ugh... Son of a-"
"Hmph..." Naofumi loved what he was seeing there.
"You cheater!" Malty cursed him.
"What? It's his fault for getting too close." Naofumi replied before he and Filo laughed at the Spear Hero's expense.
"I've never seen Master Naofumi laughed so much." Raphtalia commented. "It suits him."
"Yo, I'm back! What did I miss?" Tyler greeted the demihuman as he immediately looked at the scene, then he barely contained his laughter at the sight he was seeing. "Well, damn. Right in the goodies, huh?"
Once everything was settled, Naofumi and Motoyasu (who have recovered from Filo's crotch kick) proceeded to head towards the startling line with their respective riding partner. Once there, they're all in a position to start the race.
"The race will be three laps around the outskirts of the village." Kurisu explained. "Whoever reaches this gate first is the winner!"
"Sir Motoyasu!" Malty cheered him from the sidelines.
"Master Naofumi! Good luck! You can do it!" Raphtalia cheered for her master.
"It's your time to shine, man!" Tyler added, also cheering for his leader.
"It will be amusing how this race turns out." The gun said in Tyler but he chose to ignore it.
"On your marks. Get set..." Kurisu raised her hands, but not before she signaled Tyler to get ready about what they've discussed earlier, which he replied with a thumbs up as he proceeded to go somewhere. "Go!"
On cue, two racers proceeded to dash forward in their steeds as the race begin. Naofumi and Filo managed to get in the lead as they left Motoyasu and his Dragon in the dust... quite literally.
"Let's go, Filo!" Naofumi told towards his steed.
"Guah!" Filo replied as she proceeded to sprint forward.
But little do they know, they were running straight into a trap. One guard nodded at the other as he proceeded to initiate the trap.
"As source of thy power, I order thee..." A knight chanted a spell. "To decipher the laws of nature and create a pit in front of me." He readied himself as the Shield Hero and his steed were getting closer and closer. "Earth Hole!" As he spoke that, a hole immediately appeared right in front of Naofumi's way, causing Filo to tripped over and fell to the ground. This allows Motoyasu to get in first place, though he was unaware of what happened to Naofumi.
The villagers and Raphtalia were getting worried because they see Motoyasu crossed through the first lap first, which made Myne smirked at this. Luckily, Naofumi and Filo managed to recover and they proceeded to caught up to the Spear Hero and his Dragon. Dissatisfied by his persistence, Malty motioned a knight to get ready for the next trap.
As Naofumi continued to keep up with Motoyasu, a knight was hidden nearby, ready to deploy the next trap.
"As source of thy power, I order thee... To decipher the laws of nature and hear my command to slow down my enemy!" Another knigh chanted. "Speed Down!" As he shouted that, Naofumi was covered in pink light before found himself slowing down.
"What?" Naofumi was flabbergasted as Motoyasu proceeded to get into the lead easily. This allowed the Spear Hero to dash forward, causing Filo to be stunned by the act. "Urgh. Damn it!" Naofumi proceeded to pull forward so Filo won't fall off again.
"Guah!" Filo replied once again as she decided to sprint with all of her might.
Surely enough, this paid off as Naofumi managed to caught up to his fellow Hero again.
"What are you doing? Go faster, damn it!" Motoyasu told his Dragon before he found himself outsped by his opponent, allowing them to enter the final lap first. Though the spectators have to covered their eyes due to dusts made by Filo.
"Filo!" Raphtalia cheered. "You only have one lap left to go!"
"Come on, Shield Hero! Filo!" Kurisu cheered. "You can do it!"
Malty coughed in response to the dust that got caught in her face. "Urgh...! Foul beast!" She cursed as she can't believe what she was seeing despite the traps she planted for Naofumi.
"To decipher the laws and of nature and hasten my target." A knight chanted as he was hiding near the track. "Fast Speed!" On cue, Motoyasu and his Dragon was covered in a light, which caused the Dragon to become faster.
Not willing to take any chances, Motoyasu proceeded to have his Dragon block Naofumi's path to eliminate the chance if the latter finding an opening to get ahead.
'Damn... He's blocking my path!' Naofumi thought as he noticed the same hole that Filo tripped over. 'We're headed straight to that hole!' Despite that, the Shield Hero managed to come up with a plan to counter the trap and allow himself to get in the lead at the same time. "Let's do this, Filo!" He spoke as another hole appeared, but the young man won't make the same mistake twice. "Now, Air Strike Shield!" He shouted as the shield shaped energy covered the hole, allowing Filo to use it as a stepping stone to jump briefly in the air.
While this made Raphtalia and Kurisu smile, Motoyasu and Malty were shocked at this. Filo proceeded to land on the side of the track before continuing to sprint to it, allowing her to even the odds with Dragon's enhanced speed. After that, Filo proceeded to jump back to normal track to go for the final sprint. Neither Heroes won't give up to the other as they are doing everything in their power to win the race.
"Master Naofumi!" Raphtalia called out.
"Hang in there, Shield Hero!" A villager cheered.
"Push it! Faster!" Malty demanded as the chance of her Hero winning isn't looking so good.
"Don't let him beat you! Keep running!"
"HRAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Both Heroes let out a battle cry as each of them try to outspeed the other and proceeded to energy into the final sprint into finish line.
Despite that neither side put everything they had in the final leg of the race, the race ended with Filo's beak touching the line first, earning the Shield Hero the win against the Spear Hero.
Once he was declared the winner, Naofumi have Filo stopped before he got off of her.
"I supposed... I guess we won." Naofumi commented as the elder along with Kurisu and the villagers were approaching him.
"Brilliantly done. It was thanks to you that we can rest easy and focus on rebuilding the village." The elder congratulated as they, except Naofumi, saw something happening to Filo after a green flash.
"You wanna thank someone, thank Filo here." Naofumi replied before he noticed the looks of the Kurisu and the villagers and proceeded to look to what they are looking. He noticed that Filo have grown larger and have undergone some changes besides the size. The two feathers on her head have extended far, her body shape was similar when she was just a chick, and there are some pink feathers on her chest.
"Guaaahh." Filo said as she looked down towards her master.
Even Naofumi was shocked about Filo's unique transformation.
"You cheated!" He and the others proceeded to look towards Malty, who was accompanied by two knights. "You didn't tell us that your Filolial was really this massive tub of lard I see!"
"No, he didn't cheat!" Kurisu retorted as she came to Naofumi's defense. "Filo is only like this after the race, so it doesn't count!"
"Look who's talking! The ones cheated around here were you guys!" Naofumi spoke as Raphtalia went to his side. "What about the holes in the road?"
"Holes? Don't be ridiculous." Malty denied as she feigned ignorance.
"Nope, you were lying." Kurisu simply told her. "Didn't I tell you that I hate liars?"
"That maybe so... But do you have some prove, peasant?" Malty said, trying to weasel her way out of the mess.
"You want prove? I got all of 'em right here!" Malty looked to see a bunch of pictures detailing of her knights initiating some spells to sabotage the race, including were she gave the knights the green light. All of them were courtesy of Tyler and his Pokémon, Scrafty and Rapidash. "These pictures here prove that you were engaged in a attempt to sabotage.
"How can you...?" Malty were shocked that all of the acts were caught on the picture.
"I don't want to believe it at first, but I knew you were going to sabotage the race. Just like how you did with the duel from the other day." Kurisu explained, revealing that the Trainer knew what the Princess was trying to do. "That's why I asked Tyler and his Pokémon to get solid evidences of your actions."
"To be honest, I didn't think I would relearned Agility in span of two days." Rapidash commented. "But I'm glad I learn it when I did."
"Why you!" Malty growled. "Those weren't real! They could be fake for all I care."
"Not convinced? Why don't we ask them?" Tyler said as he stepped aside, revealing a few knights who were tied and beaten up, shocking everyone (excluding Kurisu) especially Malty. "I found all of them near the race track especially the one nearing the hole. You know what the funny thing is? They were all your men. Coincidence? I think not!"
"Fool us once, shame on you, bitch! But fool us twice..." Scrafty spoke towards her. "Well, your asking for an ass whoopin'!"
"So, what do you have to say for yourself, you little liar?" Kurisu questioned with her arms folded.
"How dare you...!" Malty growled as she was about to order the knights for an attack.
"The Shield Hero and his companions were right." A familiar voice can be heard as Malty found herself surrounded by the cloaked figures. "We detected traces of magic on the course."
"Um..." Malty struggled but not before she made an attempt to lie. "Look at him! It was obviously that filthy criminal's illegal magic! As well as those monsters!"
"Not true." The cloaked figure retorted. "The Shield Hero has affinity for support and healing. His raccoon friend has light and dark magic. And finally, the young man who commanded the creatures he called 'Pokémon' has affinity for lightning magic. They are different types of magic than the ones we found."
'When did they learn so much about us? And how did they know about Pokémon?' Naofumi pondered.
"And thus, it is clear that the Spear Hero's party cheated." The cloaked figure concluded.
"Well... We'll leave for now." Malty said, having no choice but to relent as she turned her back towards them just as the cloaked figures disappeared. "But we'll back, you can count on it."
Once she and her men started leaving, a certain Spear Hero proceeded to go to their side.
"Remember, I let you win today." Motoyasu told him. "But it won't happen next time! And you won't have that fat tub of-"
"Hey now. How's your crotch doing?" Naofumi interrupted him, making cracks about what happened before the race.
"Master Naofumi!" Raphtalia scolded him about how inappropriate that statement is.
"You know, Spear Pervert, I'm surprise that you were able to race after getting kicked in the croth." Tyler added.
"Not you too, Tyler!"
Motoyasu growled at the their insults of him.
"Well... You... Anyway, I'll get you yet!" Motoyasu said before he left to catch up to Malty, all while holding his crotch.
"Feel better." Raphtalia sheepishly told him, who was groaning in pain. After that, the party proceeded to look towards the villagers.
"Sir Hero! Again this whole village thank you very much." The elder expressed his gratitude on behalf of the villagers. "We don't know how to express our gratitude for everything you have done."
While Raphtalia and Tyler gave out a smile, Naofumi keeping on his stern look.
"Forget about that. Just let me have the reward." The Shield Hero demanded.
"Sir, we're... We're going to around the village, collecting the money right now. Please give us a few days to-" The elder pleaded before he was interrupted.
"I don't want money." Naofumi interrupted him, much to his relief.
"Sir Hero!"
"I sure don't want any rumor spreading about how I took all of your rebuilding funds and left you all with nothing." The Shield Hero explained.
"Nobody in this village would ever say such a thing." Raphtalia told him.
"Hmm... You think not?" Naofumi replied.
"You know, I'm feeling grateful of how you saved this village twice..." Kurisu said with her arms folded. "So... I decided to join your party."
"Wait, you sure?" Naofumi asked her.
"Yeah, I think now's the time for me to went out in the open." Kurisu explained. "You know, expanding my horizons and such."
"We would love for you to be in party." Raphtalia said before she turned the other members of the group. "You don't mind she is coming with us, do you?"
"As long as she can keep up with us, then I'm fine with that." Naofumi spoke out his statement.
"The more the merrier, I always say." Tyler added as Scrafty and Rapidash look towards Kurisu with a smile.
"Then it's decided." Kurisu said before she turned to the villagers and bowed towards them. "Thank you for taking care of me during my time in this village. I won't forget the kindness you gave me by letting me stay here for the past few weeks."
"Your words always inspired us, Kurisu." The elderly lord said. "You're always welcome to visit us, along with the Shield Hero and his party."
"Of course." Kurisu told him with a smile.
Filo proceeded to tap Naofumi's head with her beak which have successfully gotten his attention.
"Guah. Ah." The big Filolial pointed Naofumi towards something, which was a big cart that was located not too far from them.
"Oh." The elderly man said as he remembered about the carriage
After fixing the cart up a bit and loading it with some goods (a bit of Kurisu's stuff), the party bid farewell to the villagers as they left the village on their new carriage, which was pulled by Filo. The Filolial was more than happy to pull it as she let it out a cry of happiness. Unfortunately, not all of them were enjoying as a certain demihuman wasn't feeling well the moment they continued their trip on the cart.
"Ugh... Sorry, Master Naofumi. But um.. can we stop for a little bit just for a second?" Raphtalia asked Naofumi as he immediately have Filo stopped pulling the cart, which allowed Raphtalia to run from the back of carriage so she can find a spot to throw up on.
"Looks like Raphtalia has a motion sickness." Tyler commented as he and the others could here of Raphtalia throwing up nearby. "I can get that since she's not used to this kind of stuff."
"Should we stop here for the night?" Kurisu questioned him.
"Yeah." Naofumi said as she let Filo out of her restraint before he went to check on his demihuman slave.
By the time he finished treating Raphtalia of her motion sickness, the skies was already dark as nighttime appeared on them. Tyler have just finished setting up his tent and Kurisu's due to the fact that he brought an extra for her. Naofumi was about to putting Raphtalia to bed so she can rest early.
"I'm sorry about this." Raphtalia apologized to her master, who proceeded to put her down gently. "To make you work after putting me to rest all day."
"We'll be traveling a lot by cart now." Naofumi told her. "You need to find a way to get over your motion sickness."
"I'll try." Raphtalia replied with blushes on her cheeks.
"Your face is a little red. You have a fever?" Naofumi proceeded to put the blanket over her.
"No, I don't." Raphtalia replied as she looked towards Filo, who was sitting in front of the cart. "Filo looks happy now she gets to pull a cart."
"I guess she is." Tyler commented.
"She sure does." Naofumi agreed.
"Guah."
Naofumi proceeded to pull out a pass which he received earlier.
(Flashback)
"Are you interested to become a traveling trader, Sir Hero?" The old man asked Naofumi.
"A trader?" Naofumi repeated as the old man pulled out the pass and then showed it to him.
"If you are, then this pass will come in handy." The elderly lord explained. "It exempts you from paying tolls across the countries, so you will be free to travel the roads however you wish."
(Flashback end)
"Now we can run a traveling business while fighting monsters and leveling up. It's not too bad." Naofumi commented.
"Considering we got paid so little by the kingdom, I'd say this is a good choice." Tyler spoke.
"I take it that the king only favored the other three Heroes?" Kurisu asked.
"You could say that." Naofumi answered. "Heck, all of three of them but me got a crystal ball."
"Looks like the king's been playing favorites for a while, just like how he did with that spoiled daughter of his." She stated.
"That I couldn't agree more." Tyler agreed at the female Trainer's statement.
"I'll do my best too." Raphtalia spoke towards Naofumi.
"Get some sleep for tonight." The Shield Hero urged her. "I'm not tired so I'll keep watch."
"Samesies. I'm not ready to turn just yet." Tyler added.
"Me too." Kurisu added.
"Oh. All right." Raphtalia said before she went to sleep.
After that, all three of them (and Filo), were keeping watch in case there some monsters tried to attack them in their sleep. So far, not a single one appeared much to their relief. As they continued on with their night watch, Naofumi proceeded to ask Kurisu the one thing that has been on his mind about her.
"Hey Kurisu. Can I ask you something?" He asked.
"You technically did, but go on." she answered, willing to hear him out.
"Back before the race began, and before those cloaked figures arrived, you kept calling Myne out for lying. Is there a reason? I'm not saying this in her defense or anything, but was she really lying or did you just say that to piss her off?"
"Now that you mentioned it, you even called her out for the accusation of Naofumi... Well, you know." Tyler pointed out, joining the conversation.
"Ah. That's because I can tell if a person is lying. I'm basically a living lie detector." Kurisu answered. "Any sort of lies, no matter how small, I detect them easily. You could say it's my own special ability."
"Are you serious? Then again, how do I know if you're not lying about that?" Naofumi asked, feeling skeptical of her claims.
"Then how about we play a game? Two truths and one lie. This game always worked out for me when people unfamiliar with me have doubts about my lie detecting skill." She challenged them.
"I'll go first..." Tyler said, volunteering to go first to test her skill on detecting lies. "I'm the smartest one there is."
"Sorry, but you're lying." Kurisu said, accurately describe his lies.
"Wow, you're pretty good." Tyler complimented her.
"Though you could at least make up a good lie? That one was pretty obvious." Kurisu told him.
"Hey! I'm not that dumb!"
"All right, I'm next." Naofumi said, calming them dowm. He proceeded to tell a statement on his turn. "I was an otaku before being sent into this world." He stated. "So, was that a lie?"
"Nope. You're 100% telling the truth on that." Kurisu told him.
Several rounds have passed as Naofumi and Tyler kept challenging Kurisu's lie detecting skill. They found out that her skill was very accurate and precise. Needless to say, they were impressed at her ability of detecting lies with Naofumi claimed that it will be useful in situations with Malty, who considered herself as a skilled manipulator and liar. Now, they are entering final round of the game.
"Okay, this is the final round because it's getting pretty late." Kurisu told them.
Naofumi and Tyler looked towards each other with a smirk on their faces as they glanced back towards her.
"Sure. One round is all we need to catch you off guard." Tyler boasted.
"Bring it." Kurisu said, full of confidence.
"This one's for all the marbles!" Tyler said. "Despite how her looks and she acts, Raphtalia is actually 10 years old!"
"Wait, what!?" Kurisu exclaimed at Tyler's statement, catching her off guard. "She's actually 10 years old!?"
"So, did he lie, Kurisu?" Naofumi asked her.
"No, he didn't..." Kurisu replied, still taken aback by the revelation. "Still... I didn't think she's actually 10 when I first met her. First time I've ever heard about that. How did she grow that much?"
"According to her, demihumans have quicker growth rate than humans." Tyler explained "Their body matures as they level up. Because of that, people in the capital regarded her folks as nothing more than 'animals'."
"I see... So she''s like a Pokémon." Kurisu muttered. Like Tyler, she knew that there are some species of Pokémon, like the Caterpie line, evolved quickly as they level up. Still, now she knew the reason why demihumans were discriminated in the capital.
"Anywho, it's getting late. So I'll be turning in for the night. See ya." Tyler said as he went to his tent to catch some sleep.
"Me too. I need to get ready for tomorrow." Kurisu said as she too went to her tent to go to sleep.
Once they're gone, Naofumi proceeded to look on with a smile.
'Those Pokémon Trainers... they sure were something.' He thought as he prepared to go to sleep. But before then, he saw Filo about to sleep near him.
"Your feathers were stuffy as hell, you know that..." Naofumi told Filo before he found himself fallen asleep. It was that moment he felt something... or someone responding to his statemsnt.
"Meanie..!"
(The next day)
"Master Naofumi! Master Naofumi!" The Shield Hero began waking up after hearing Raphtalia's call. He saw Raphtalia, Tyler, and Kurisu looking at him with surprised expressions on their faces.
"Hey, what's up? I guess I must've fallen asleep." Naofumi greeted in an oblivious tone before he felt something... or rather someone sleeping on his lap. The Shield Hero then noticed a small, naked, blonde girl with white wings on her back was sleeping on his lap. It didn't take long for her to open her blue eyes.
"Whoa!" Naofumi proceeded to take a few steps back as he was just as shocked as his party.
"T-That girl is..." Raphtalia said with flabbergasted tone.
"Strange, I didn't see a little girl last night." Tyler stated. "I wonder where she comes from?"
The new girl proceeded to stood up before she turned to them, more specifically, towards Naofumi.
"Master, hi! Good morning!" The little girl greeted him as she extended her little wings, given the appearance of a small angel.
"Whoa!" Naofumi exclaimed.
"Wait a second, why did she called you 'Master'?!" Tyler exclaimed at the little girl's response.
"Who the heck is she?!" Raphtalia asked, freaked out about this new, nude girl who was sleeping on her master.
"How should I know?!" Naofumi said, also just as freaking out as her.
"Why is she naked and on you?! And why did she call you 'Master'?!" Kurisu asked next, who was just as confused and disrupted of the newcomer here and the situation at hand. This made the female Trainer to realize a speculation about Naofumi. "Don't tell me... Are you really...?!"
Naofumi did not need her to finish that sentence to know what she was going to claim him to be. "I am not! And I don't know her!"
"Can I have something to eat?" The little girl asked, oblivious to the others' reactions of her.
Two things dawned upon the gun wielder when she saw the little girl. He noticed that Filo wasn't here and the little girl shared some features of her like the color if her wings and eyes. After putting two things together, he realized about one thing about the newcomer.
"Guys... I think that little girl was Filo." Tyler comcluded.
"WHAT!?" All except the newcomer shouted in surprise as the little girl, who turned out to be Filo, looked towards them in dumbfounded expression.
Next Chapter: Special I: Kurisu, the Officer In-Training
That's all for today's chapter, so I hope you enjoyed it.
Up next was the origin story for Coral the Leviathan's OC, Kurisu Hanatabi. Rest assured, that chapter will be up real soon.
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Until then, be sure to leave a review and some comments~! Hmm