Sword and Shield

Intermediate 2: Filo and the Chimera Viper Shield

Naofumi reclined back into his chair, a book laying in his lap and his eyes dancing over the pop-up in front of his face.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield – Base Defence 45 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 12 / Poison Resistance (medium) (mastered)]

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (medium) / Hook

Good, the Chimera Viper Shield has been mastered. He'd been studying the written language of this world when the pop-up had suddenly appeared in front of his face.

Naofumi, Shirou and Raphtalia have been cooped up in their room at the Inn for over a day and a half now, recuperating from having their Magic Circuits opened and using the time to gain control over them. It took a little while and there were a few hiccups here and there that had all of them sweating, but all three of them had learned to turn their Magic Circuits on and off at will the day before.

In the meantime, as they recovered, they had also been studying the written language of Melromarc, and progress was going slowly, but there was progress nonetheless. All three of them had memorized the characters and could read a sentence if given a minute or two.

Even now they were practicing, painstakingly trying to read the books on the fundamentals of magic that the Magic Shop Owner had provided. Shirou was sitting by the window with a book in his lap, his face scrunched up in a curious mix of concentration and mild frustration, while Raphtalia was pacing the length of the room, book held in front of her face. Her mouth moved as she slowly but surely read through the chapter. Just like him, they were slowly starting to learn how to read, but it would take weeks at least before they could read fluently.

Hopefully, they would be able to use some magic before the next Wave. The hourglass symbol in the corner of his vision kept track of the time, so he always knew how long it would be until the next Wave. It had been a pleasant surprise when he had realized that they had a whole 45 days before the next Wave. Apparently, the Waves didn't come in set intervals of a month like he had assumed at first.

It might be a bit of a stretch to learn to harness magic in that time frame, but Naofumi didn't consider it to be impossible, and he was determined to try. All three of them were.

That said, the constant looking at page after page was starting to wear at him. The information contained within might be fascinating, it was about magic, after all, but the fact that it took over half an hour to read a single page was frustrating to put it mildly.

"Pi. Pi," Filo chirped from his head, having made Naofumi's raven locks her nest.

Naofumi smiled. He'd always liked to take care of animals, and the little bird offered a good excuse to stop studying every once in a while to feed her. The villager that Zeph had mentioned, the one that bred monsters, had come over and given them some helpful tips for taking care of a Filolial and several bags of bean paste that was perfect for feeding a Filolial chick. With a brief thought, one such bags manifested from his Legendary Shield, having been stored in his Item Box.

Filo chirped happily and jumped from Naofumi's head as he laid the bag of bean paste on the floor and loosened the string keeping it shut. The Filolial immediately dove in and started eating her fill. He had a premonition, as he watched her gorge herself, that Filo would always be a big eater.

Naofumi watched Filo eat for a short moment, but eventually his gaze dropped back to the Legendary Shield strapped to his arm.

The Item Box, the Drop Item and Recipe Synthesis systems were already proving to be quite handy. Nearly all the stuff they had been lugging around was now stored in the Item Box. They'd gained, all told, a little over 12 gold coins worth of wealth from all the item drops his shield had contained. There was also a lot of other stuff, some of which he was planning to pawn to gain some more cash. And the herbs and materials that'd been included in those drops that could be used for compounding were being processed by the Recipe Synthesis system into a plethora of potions.

Really, the Legendary Shield was much more useful than he had first given it credit for.

And he hadn't even figured out if this was all that it could do. Now that he had mastered all of the shields he had unlocked from the Chimera Boss Monster, and since he was now also taking a short break from studying, it was a good a time as any to experiment.

Naofumi accessed his Menu, his shield manifesting the paper that held all the information they knew about the Legendary Weapons. His fingers traced down the paper until it ended at the lines that described the Strengthening Methods available to the Legendary Sword.

"Here goes nothing," he muttered to himself and envisioned the [Level Link], [Weapon Proficiency], [Awaken Weapon] and [Upgrade] systems that Ren used to strengthen the Legendary Sword, believed with all that he had, and accessed the information on the Chimera Viper Shield.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield – Base Defence 45 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 12 / Poison Resistance (medium) (mastered)]

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (medium) / Hook

[Level Link] (Lv: 18): + 9 Defence

[Weapon Proficiency]: 100

Naofumi's released a breath as he realized it had worked. He took a brief moment to savor the immediate increase he had gotten from the [Level Link] Strengthening Method. He then pressed the new [Weapon Proficiency] option, and then…

Reset [Weapon Proficiency] level?

He hesitated briefly before choosing the 'yes' option.

Received 2000 mastery energy points.

Following the instructions on the piece of paper, Naofumi assigned the energy points to the Chimera Viper Shield, seeking to Awaken it. Only he didn't have enough. He needed 2000 more points. He quickly went through all the other Chimera Series of shields that he had mastered, and turned their accrued [Weapon Proficiency] into energy points that he then assigned to the Chimera Viper Shield.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield (Awakened) C – Base Defence 54 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 18 / Poison Resistance (large) (mastered)]

[Level Link] (Lv: 18): + 9 Defence

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (large) / Long Hook

[Weapon Proficiency]: 0

It had worked. Just like Shirou had written down, the base Defence Stat of the weapon had increased and its Equipment Bonuses and Special Abilities had improved. The letter C must be the rarity, Naofumi thought. Common, then, and if I put in even more energy points…

He quickly went through more and more shields, resetting their [Weapon Proficiency] and collecting energy points. Naofumi had mastered close to 700 weapons forms by now, so he had a lot to work with to improve the Chimera Viper Shield.

Success!

The first attempt at Upgrading the Chimera Viper Shield was an instant success, but the Upgrade after that took three attempts before succeeding, as there was percent chance of failing. Still, he had accrued so many energy points that it didn't matter. He just kept trying until it succeeded, and…

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield (Awakened) A – Base Defence 90 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 18 / Poison Resistance (large) (mastered)]

[Level Link] (Lv: 18): + 9 Defence

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (large) / Long Hook

[Weapon Proficiency]: 0

The Chimera Viper Shield's Rarity had been Upgraded all the way to max: Artifact, and its Base Defence Stat had been doubled to what it had been at the beginning as a result. If he had this shield during the duel with Motoyasu, Naofumi very much doubted the Spear Hero could have pierced his Defence even after his Stats had been nerfed by Debuff magic.

And there were even more options for improving his shield he could try. The Legendary Spear had its own methods of strengthening. Said options had already appeared in his Menu. It was starting to get quite easy to believe after several successes in a row like this.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield (Awakened) A – Base Defence 90 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 18 / Poison Resistance (large) (mastered)]

[Level Link] (Lv: 18): + 9 Defence

[Weapon Familiarity] (0/17): + 0 Defence

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (large) / Long Hook

[Weapon Proficiency]: 0

[Weapon Familiarity] had automatically appeared, but it didn't offer any bonuses yet. That would come with future use.

Unfortunately, much to Naofumi's frustration, he didn't have the necessary ores to try out the [Weapon Tempering] option. He'd have to find said ores first, but he could make use of the [Weapon Enchantment] and [Status Enchantment] functions. First, he would try [Weapon Enchantment]. He had collected tons of [Soul Fragments] ever since coming to this world, and a list of them had appeared in his Menu now that he believed in the [Weapon Enchantment] function.

Naofumi had well over 2000 [Soul Fragments] to work with, and he unceremoniously dumbed 500 of those into the Chimera Viper Shield.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield (Awakened) A – Base Defence 90 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 18 / Poison Resistance (large) (mastered)]

[Level Link] (Lv: 18): + 9 Defence

[Weapon Familiarity] (0/17): + 0 Defence

[Weapon Enchantment] Lv 4: +8% Damage-Reduction-From-Humanlike

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (large) / Long Hook

[Weapon Proficiency]: 0

W-Wow, now Motoyasu definitely wouldn't have been capable of harming him. He dumped another 500 [Soul Fragments] into the Chimera Viper Shield.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield (Awakened) A – Base Defence 90 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 18 / Poison Resistance (large) (mastered)]

[Level Link] (Lv: 18): + 9 Defence

[Weapon Familiarity] (0/17): + 0 Defence

[Weapon Enchantment] Lv 6: +12% Damage-Reduction-From-Humanlike

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (large) / Long Hook

[Weapon Proficiency]: 0

The [Weapon Enchantment] level had increased again, as had the damage reduction from humanlike, but not as much as before when he had used just as much [Soul Fragments]. It seems it really did become more expensive the higher the [Weapon Enchantment] level became.

Not that it mattered. The basic ability of the Chimera Viper Shield had improved in all aspects. It was already completely overpowered, but he still had the [Status Enchantment] function left to try.

Naofumi looked through his Item Box and because they'd helped clear the fields yesterday, he'd tons of Otherworld Zombie materials stored away. Well, it wouldn't hurt to try. The effect that monster materials could have was random, as in he had no idea what effect those materials might have, so he would have to experiment. He selected some of those Otherworld Zombie materials and used [Status Enchantment] on the Chimera Viper Shield.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield (Awakened) A – Base Defence 90 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 18 / Poison Resistance (large) (mastered)]

[Level Link] (Lv: 18): + 9 Defence

[Weapon Familiarity] (0/17): + 0 Defence

[Weapon Enchantment] Lv 6: +12% Damage-Reduction-From-Humanlike

[Status Enchantment] Lv 1: +3 Poison Damage

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (large) / Long Hook

[Weapon Proficiency]: 0

Huh, lucky. Considering the Special Ability [Snake Venom Fang (large)] of the Chimera Viper Shield, an increase in the damage and effectiveness of poison was perfect. And he'd used only a little bit of the Otherworld Zombie materials. If he used more…

Naofumi selected ¾ of all the Otherworld Zombie materials he had stored and selected the [Status Enchantment] function.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield (Awakened) A – Base Defence 90 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 18 / Poison Resistance (large) (mastered)]

[Level Link] (Lv: 18): + 9 Defence

[Weapon Familiarity] (0/17): + 0 Defence

[Weapon Enchantment] Lv 6: +12% Damage-Reduction-From-Humanlike

[Status Enchantment] Lv 13: +39 Poison Damage

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (large) / Long Hook

[Weapon Proficiency]: 0

Naofumi felt sweat drip from the back of his neck. He was fairly certain that the poison from the Chimera Viper Shield would be outright corrosive now, and highly deadly. He'd better make some high quality Antidotes just to be safe.

A knock on the door broke Naofumi from his thoughts.

"Enter," he called after exchanging glances with Shirou and Raphtalia.

Alfyn entered a moment later. He looked a little nervous.

"Guys," he said, sighing. "I hate to have to do this, but can I ask another favor from you all?"

"What is it?" Shirou asked.

"It has to do with the last Wave," Alfyn answered. All three of them tensed. "Since more than a few of the monsters spawned by the Wave escaped, I thought it might be a good idea if I had a few of the people in the village with tracking experience scope out the surroundings."

"And they found something?" Raphtalia asked in alarm.

"Yeah, you could say that," Alfyn said warily. "I sent several groups of people out and they confirmed our scout's findings. The mountain range up north has been infested by monsters spawned by the Wave. Mostly those zombies and such. They seem to have completely exterminated the local population of monsters there, probably increasing their Level and growing stronger, and have set up shop there. It isn't certain that they will attack the village, but the risk is too great to ignore. And, unfortunately, after the Wave, we simply don't have the money to hire any adventurers to deal with this."

There was a brief moment of silence, which was then broken by Shirou decisively snapping his book shut and getting up.

"Of course we'll help," he said, already checking if all his equipment was in order.

Raphtalia was doing the same a moment later.

Naofumi wanted to sigh, but he held back. He should have expected that reaction from Shirou. "We'll discuss payment later after we have dealt with this," he said, getting up as well.

Shirou shot him a look, but declined to comment.

"Thanks guys, really," Alfyn said, relaxing. "After all the help you have given us…"

"Don't think too much of it," Naofumi said, shouldering his satchel loaded with concoctions and potions. There was a small delay with items manifesting from his shield, so he had decided to always keep some concoctions and potions in easy, immediate reach. "All the sitting around and constant studying was starting to wear on me. It's a good excuse to go stretch our legs for a bit. Just see if you might be able to scrounge up some kind of payment in the meantime and we'll call it even."


Shirou was deep in thought as they tracked up the path of the mountain range. They had left Riyute Village behind over two hours ago, and they should be arriving within half an hour in the area where the scouts had reported seeing monsters spawned by the Wave congregating. His thoughts weren't focused on the coming skirmishes, but on Naofumi's actions in demanding payment.

"Naofumi, may I ask something?" Shirou spoke up.

"Hmm? Sure, of course. What is it?" Naofumi asked from his position in the front.

"You clearly were intending to help anyway, but you still demanded some kind of payment. Why?"

"Two reasons, really. One, it's a good chance to make some profits. I just said that if they could whip up a reward for us, I'll take it. If not, too bad, and I'll still have done as they asked, but there is the chance of a reward later," Naofumi began to explain. "Second, it's to avoid potential problems later."

"Potential problems?" Raphtalia blinked, just as confused as Shirou. "What potential problems?"

"Most people learn this as they grow older," Naofumi continued. "But it can come over as suspicious if you go around helping people without asking anything in return. Most people do stuff with the thought in the back of their minds that doing that thing will be advantageous for them later. Think of going to school to get a good career, but if I went to school merely to learn and not to build up to a career, people might start to wonder if I have any hidden motivations I'm not telling. My reputation is already in the gutter, I'd rather not throw more fuel onto the fire."

"So you're saying that doing good deeds for nothing in return will just make you look suspicious, and the rumours that spawn from that will just make your reputation worse?" Shirou asked sceptically. "That sounds rather farfetched."

"Maybe so, but I'd much rather be safe than sorry," Naofumi declared. "There are plenty of stories of people having their intentions misunderstood and suffering for it. So long as I demand payment for doing something without asking for outrages things in return, I can avoid that, still help, and we could get a reward out of it. A win three times over as far as I am concerned."

Shirou remained sceptical, but nonetheless fell back into deep thought as he mulled over Naofumi's words. Though he found Naofumi's thought process strange, there was some logic to it.

Raphtalia was similarly thinking over Naofumi's words, but the fact that Filo had constantly been chirping away from her place in Naofumi's locks, mimicking her owner's gestures as he talked made it, for her, rather difficult to take it all seriously.

She'd been too busy fighting to keep her laughter in.

Naofumi, meanwhile, had called up his Menu again and accessed the information on a couple of his newer shields.

Requirement met: [Beastmaster Shield I – Base Defence – 5 – Equip Bonus: Monster Growth up (small)]

[Monster Growth Up (small) – Provides small bonus Stat gain with each Level up (mastered)]

Requirement met: [Beastmaster Shield II – Base Defence – 5 – Equip Bonus: Monster Growth up (small)]

[Monster Growth Up (small) – Provides small bonus Stat gain with each Level up (mastered)]

Requirement met: [Beastmaster Shield III – Base Defence – 10 – Equip Bonus: Monster Growth up (medium)]

[Monster Growth Up (medium) – Provides medium bonus Stat gain with each Level up (mastered)]

He had unlocked the Beastmaster Series of shields by feeding the Legendary Shield the shell of the egg Filo had hatched from, and got it all the way up to Beastmaster Shield III by absorbing some of Filo's feathers and a little of her blood. It mirrored the Companion Series in Equip Bonuses and bonus Stat gain it gave, only for monsters instead of companions, and he had yet to figure out how to unlock the Beastmaster Shield IV, but he was sure that he would figure it out eventually.

It was too bad that neither the Companion Series nor the Beastmaster Series of shields could be Awakened. Naofumi had been hoping that he might be able to further enhance the bonus Stat gain his party members got, but unfortunately it just wasn't possible. It was the first time he had encountered such an exception in the use of his Weapon Forms, and he wondered how many more such exceptions there were.

Some twenty minutes later, they arrived at the scene the scouts had reported where monsters spawned by the Wave were congregating. It was in a craggy passageway that was surrounded by sheer walls of solid stone high up in the mountain range. Precious few plants were able to grow in the solid surroundings, and hard wind blasted gravel laid across every surface.

"There it is."

Shirou narrowed his eyes from where he, Raphtalia and Naofumi were hiding behind a boulder. Even Filo seemed to understand the situation and was as silent as the grave. Ahead of them, at the opening of the passageway, was a small group of Otherworld Zombies, as if they were guarding said entrance that led farther up the mountain. There were undoubtedly more monsters up ahead.

It was also clear that the local monster population had been exterminated. From what he could see with his Status Magic, the Otherworld Zombies here were several Levels higher then they'd been during the Wave. The one's guarding the entrance were all around Level 25, while the highest Level of monsters they had encountered during the Wave was 20.

Just like humans, monsters Levelled Up as they killed other creatures. Only the hunting down of the local monster population could explain the Otherworld Zombie's rise in Level.

The question was, now that they had exterminated the local monsters, what would these Wave spawned Monsters do? Shirou very much doubted they'd just stay put and not bother anyone.

Shirou shared glances with his party members, and nodded. He drew his Oak Longbow, pulling out one of the Iron Arrows in his quiver as Raphtalia drew her sword and Naofumi raised his shield.

The upgraded Chimera Viper shield was equipped a second later.

They stepped around the boulder, coming into plain view of the Otherworld Zombies. Said monsters snapped towards them, but before they could sound the alarm…

Twang!

The sound of a bowstring being released echoed over the wind blasted area. One of the Otherworld Zombies fell over, an Iron Arrow having pierced its rotten eye socket, the arrowhead exploding out of the back of its head in a shower of gore. What in game terms would be a Critical Hit had killed it instantly.

The remaining Otherworld Zombies, 6 all told, bellowed like the beasts they were and rushed head long towards the attackers, decrepit weapons clutched in their hands. It was like a stampede out of a horror movie.

Shirou was less then affected by the display and loosed another 2 Iron Arrows before the monsters could close the distance. One punched through another eye socket, while the other ripped through the throat of his target, damn near decapitating the creature.

Naofumi was impressed. Shirou hadn't been lying when he said he was good at archery. The kid had killed off over a third of the enemy monsters before they were even on them.

But now the monsters were indeed on them, and that meant it was Naofumi's turn. He stepped up, shield raised, though he was fairly certain it wasn't necessary. His hunch proved true when one of the hammer blows raining down on his body slipped past his guard, only to bounce off harmlessly.

"Shield Bash!" he shouted, slamming his shield against the head of the nearest Zombies. The monster reeled from the blow, the Skill triggering and stunning it, taking it of the fight for a short while.

Not like it was really necessary, though. Raphtalia had already killed two of the Zombies, slicing them in twain, and Shirou joined her a moment later, having put away his bow and drawn his sword. By the time the Zombie that had been stunned could move again, all its compatriots had been slain.

Raphtalia's last slice neatly decapitated said monster's head without fanfare.

It didn't seem that the monster's higher Level would be much of a problem, even if said Levels were a little higher than their own. Naofumi's Stats were much higher than his Level would indicate thanks to all the other ways Hero's like himself could grow stronger besides Levelling. And Shirou and Raphtalia had the benefit of the Legendary Shield's Stat Growth Adjustment ability.

Actually, the higher Levels of the monster was proving to be a boon more than anything else.

Naofumi EXP 285
Shirou EXP 285
Raphtalia EXP 310

Naofumi blinked, momentarily not believing what he was seeing. The EXP from the last monster, just like they had gotten from the other Zombies, was far greater than he had expected.

"That's… a lot of EXP," Shirou said.

"Yeah," Raphtalia agreed, nonplussed. "When we killed these monsters during the Wave we didn't even get a tenth of the amount of EXP we just got."

Naofumi frowned in thought. That made no sense whatsoever. Because the other Heroes were near at the time, he hadn't gotten any EXP during the entirety of the Wave, as the Legendary Weapons were said to interfere with each other while they were in close proximity. He had been informed of this through a pop-up in his Menu shortly after arriving in this world. But the other Hero's weren't present right now, so he could gain EXP, but that still would not justify a tenfold increase in said EXP, even if these monsters had gone up a few Levels.

So what had changed?

As if to answer his question, another pop-up appeared in front of his face.

[Wielders of the Legendary Weapons and their allies receive the Blessings of the World, increasing their rate of growth. This benefit is cancelled out for the Hero's allies and the Hero himself can't gain any EXP when two or more Heroes are close together, as the Legendary Weapons compete to receive the Blessing and none gain it as a result]

Ah, that would explain it. Being a Hero and his companion truly had its benefits. Naofumi wondered if the adventurers that the Thrash King had provided the other Heroes were aware of this before they joined the parties of the other Heroes. If so, it would be utterly hilarious if said adventurers were just using Itsuki, Ren and Motoyasu to get an easy and free ride to success.

He relayed this to Shirou and Raphtalia before they formed up again and they started up the track of the passageway, only pausing to allow Shirou to retrieve the Iron Arrows he'd just used and to let the Legendary Shield absorb the slain monsters.

They met several marauding bands of Zombies as they made their way up the mountain. The path was filled to the brim with the monsters, but they easily dispatched them. The sheer cliffs that made up the walls of the passageway restricted the avenues of approach the monsters had, so all the Shield Hero had to do was stand in front. With his newly upgraded Chimera Viper Shield equipped, these little monsters hadn't a ghost of a chance of harming him. He simply blocked them as Shirou picked them off one by one with his bow and Raphtalia swung her sword from the safety of his back.

It was indeed easy, but that didn't mean that it was without merit.

Naofumi Lv: 19
Raphtalia Lv: 21
Filo: Lv: 8
Shirou: Lv: 21

They weren't even halfway up the passageway yet and all of them had already gone up a Level. Hell, Filo had gone up 7 Levels in a good solid twenty minutes of fighting. The EXP gains here were simply insane. They had to wonder how much EXP they would have gotten if the other Hero's had not been present during the last Wave.

Shirou took the chance during a brief lull in the running battle to check his Stats. His eyes widened a little. It was like he had gone up two Levels, not one. His Stats had improved that much. The Companion Series of shields ability to improve Stat gain would be considered downright broken and unfair in an actual game.

Eventually, they came to the end of the passageway, having fought their way through another 50 or so Zombies by Shirou's count, only to find their way forward blocked.

[Otherworld Zombie Giant Lv: 27]

Another one of those big and uglies from the last Wave. It was a bit higher Level, but it shouldn't be a problem, even with the small horde of Zombies surrounding it.

The Zombie Giant roared a challenge as it spotted them, only to transition into a cry of pain as an arrow tipped with Iron punched through its eye. The giant monster rocked on its feet, stumbling and accidentally crushing one of its posse underfoot in its pained confusion.

It didn't die, unfortunately, the rules of this world combined with the monsters Defence and Hitpoint Stat ensuring its survival even if by all rights it should have died instantly. Shirou merely drew another Iron Arrow, notching it, aiming and firing it with practiced smoothness before the Zombie Giant could gather itself. Said arrow slid into giant monster's knee joint with deceptive grace, belying the damage that single hit did.

The Zombie Giant collapsed to a knee, its posse having been thrown into what amounted to panic and confusion. Some of the undead monsters rushed blindly at them.

Naofumi blocked their attacks effortlessly, not even needing to raise his shield. He just blocked the monster's frantic attacks with his arms and hands, and Raphtalia cut them down as Shirou continued to pick away at the Zombie Giant from a distance with his bow.

As Raphtalia continued to hack away at the small fry, kept safe by Naofumi, the Zombie Giant literally hurled itself at them in frustrated desperation.

"Air Strike Shield!"

The Zombie Giant bounced off the ethereal shield that manifested, once again knocked on its ass, and Naofumi dismissed the Air Strike Shield to give Shirou a clean shot again.

It was an opportunity Shirou didn't let go to waste. Another arrow tipped with iron punched through the first arrow that had impaled the Zombie Giant's eye, driving in deeper and killing the monster.

It didn't take long to take out the few remaining Zombies after that.

"Let's continue," Naofumi beckoned and they continued their track up the passageway.

Again, they continued to meet constant resistance, large groups of Zombies trying to stop them, but Naofumi, Shirou and Raphtalia were simply too strong for the monsters and the environment worked to the creature's disadvantage.

After a running battle up the path, they reached the end. There were no more enemies in sight.

"Uh, did any of the villager's mention this?"

Shirou's question caused Naofumi and Raphtalia to share a look and shake their heads. In front of the group, at the very end of the passageway, was an entrance to a cave. It was pitch black inside, and no movement was to be seen, but there was no way to know how deep the cave was. Since the Zombies had congregated in the passageway, it was not hard to guess what was inside.

"So this is their nest, huh?" Naofumi mussed. "You two wouldn't happen to know a thing or two about cave exploration?"

"Unfortunately not."

"Sorry, Naofumi-sama."

Naofumi stared into the pitch black darkness that led into the mountain itself, briefly considering pushing ahead regardless. They'd done something similar when they had entered the Dungeon at the foot of the mountain, but that was different. The layout of the Dungeon had been mapped long before he had even come to this world, so he knew what to expect going in, but here he didn't. There was no telling what dangers, aside the obvious, might be waiting for them inside.

"I say we go back," Raphtalia suddenly cut in. "We don't have the appropriate gear to go cave diving, we first need to prepare ourselves adequately before we go in."

"True," Naofumi agreed. "And maybe one of the villagers would know a thing or two about exploring caves. Let's go back."

Having decided to tackle the unexpected obstacle after having prepared themselves adequately, the group headed back down the mountain.


They returned the next day, with one extra party member in tow.

"You guys weren't kidding. This cave did not exist the last time I was here ," Zeph commented, gazing at the hole in the mountain.

Zeph was wearing his usual Apothecary clothes, satchel included, but there were a few new additions to his getup. A heavy looking backpack was slung over his shoulders, filled with a variety of tools. Several other tools were equipped to a built at his waist. And a moment's closer inspection revealed that underneath his usual clothes was another layer of protective fabrics that protected his most vulnerable areas. A long, sturdy knife was sheathed at the youth's side, the same one he had wielded during the Wave.

Naofumi, Shirou and Raphtalia were similarly decked out with variety of tools and protective clothing worn underneath their regular clothes and armor. Naofumi, meanwhile, had the Legendary Shield constantly cooking and preparing meals, storing them in his Item Box. It was impossible to know how deep the cave went or how long they would be down there, so he had made sure to stock up on a lot of ingredients for food and plenty of water for an extended stay underground.

Zeph traced the edge of the cave entrance with his hand, and frowned. "They dug this out."

"Why would they do that?" Shirou asked. "And could they really have dug out an entire cave like this in a matter of days?"

"If I were to hazard a guess, the monsters probably just collapsed the wall here to gain access to underground passageways that were already there," Zeph theorized. "As for why they would do so, I am not sure. Maybe we'll find out as we explore."

Naofumi nodded, and at a mental command 4 lanterns manifested from his shield. He lit the lanterns alight, the oil inside keeping the fire going, and passed them around. They attached the lanterns to their belts, allowing the light sources to dangle by their hips and illuminate the way forward as they'd descend into the cave.

"Thanks for coming with us, Zeph," Shirou said as they started down the cave.

"It's the least I could do," Zeph said from the rear of their formation. As the weakest combatant, that would be where he'd be staying. "The safety of my home might depend on rooting out this infestation. I am the only one with any real experience in cave exploration in the village, and you guys deserve my aid for all that you have done for us."

"Exploring caves is just a hobby for you right?" Raphtalia questioned. "Did you ever expect having to explore a cave in order to seek out and eradicate monsters?"

"Encountering monsters when exploring, especially in caves, is very common," Zeph said and shook his head. "I often go together with Alfyn, that's one of the reason why we are higher Level than most people would expect. Still, I never thought I would have to go caving in quite a situation like this."

"Still, you're skills and experience will come in handy now. Let's just hope everything goes smoothly and there are no surprises waiting for us down here," Naofumi said from the front.

"I think we can all agree to that," Shirou said. His hand hadn't drifted from the hilt of his sword since they had entered the cave. His bow would be next to useless in a cramped space like this.

Filo, meanwhile, was looking to and fro from her position on Naofumi's head. Instead of being scared like some might her have expected to be, she merely acted curious. The fact that compared to the day before she had swelled to the size of a football was more surprising. Monster's, like demi-humans, grew as they Levelled, but even considering that, everyone, even the Monster Breeder back in Riyute Village, had been surprised at Filo's rapid growth. Naofumi chalked it up to the Legendary Shield's Growth Adjustment ability.

They continued their way down the cave, falling silent. All of them strained their ears, but could not hear anything that would pinpoint the location of any monsters that had infested this place. Thanks to their lanterns, they could see perfectly well in the darkness of the cave, but only for so far. They'd have to use all of their senses on order to keep proper track of their surroundings.

It was moments like this that Shirou was grateful to have become a demi-human. The much sharper sense of hearing was handy in situations like this.

A few moments later, they came to a fork in the road, two tunnels splitting off.

"Which do we take?"

Both Shirou and Raphtalia strained their ears again, and after a moment they'd pointed to the tunnel on the right. "This one. I can hear faint scratching sounds coming from there," Shirou said. Raphtalia nodded in agreement.

With that, they continued down the right tunnel. Zeph scratched an X mark on the wall of said tunnel with his knife. If and when they came back here, they would know they had tread this path before. It was and old caving trick meant to help people keep track of where they'd been before and help them find their way back out of a cave.

"The sound is getting closer," Raphtalia said halfway drawing her swords. The others similarly readied themselves.

Shirou once again strained his ears. The sound had transitioned from a scratching noise to a sound of footsteps that steadily grew in volume and number until it sounded like a stampede.

"Incoming!" Shirou called, the first Otherworld Zombie emerging from the gloom ahead.

Filo, instinctually knowing the danger, jumped from her place on Naofumi's head and took up position behind the Shield Hero. Naofumi, meanwhile, braced himself and leaned forward, lashing out with his shield. "Shield Bash!" he shouted. The Legendary Shield struck the Zombie's head, the Skill he had used stunning it.

It made very little difference. Behind the first Zombie came what appeared to be an endless tide of undead monsters stampeding in their direction, like a river of necrotized flesh. In the claustrophobic surroundings of the tunnel, though, the advantage the enemy horde had in numbers was negated as they simply didn't have the room to gang up on their opponents. If anything, their numbers became a disadvantage as they were bottlenecked straight towards an unmoving wall: Naofumi.

Dozens of blows rained down on the Shield Hero, and the Zombies tried to push forward with the sheer weight of their press of bodies.

But Naofumi would not be moved. He simply hunkered down, instinctually making himself as small as possible and hiding his body behind his shield as much as he could, yet knowing that these monsters were not capable of harming him in the slightest. He had set his feet and held his ground stubbornly, the distinctive sound of the no damage indicator resounding again and again.

Shirou and Raphtalia stabbed with their swords from the safety of Naofumi's back. With a stab or two, one of the Otherworld Zombies died. They did not move, but simply held their ground, allowing the dumb as rocks monsters to fall on their unmoving wall and be ground to dust.

It lasted for about ten minutes, but eventually the last Zombie of the enemy horde fell.

"I'll take care of this."

Naofumi grimaced at the tunnel in front of them, every inch of it filled with bodies pilled several high and slick with blood. It wasn't a pleasant sight by any stretch of the imagination. Nonetheless, he absorbed the slain monsters one by one into his shield with but a touch. He was sure he would get a lot of useful loot, but taking the time to absorb every slain monster was a pain.

On the plus side, they no longer needed to dismantle monsters manually by cutting them up, as the Legendary Shield could, in fact, do that automatically. On the whole, they would lose much less time with after battle clean up then before.

"That's the last of them. Let's continue."

They continued through the tunnel, meeting groups of Otherworld Zombies periodically, which they easily dispatched. After another twenty minutes of walking, they came to another fork in the road, this time splitting off into three separate tunnels. Again, relying on Shirou's and Raphtalia's sharp ears, they chose one of the paths and continued. Zeph marked down the path they had come from.

"I wonder what might be down those other paths?" Raphtalia mussed.

"We'll find out later," Shirou said. "We might be following the path where there's probably the most of those Wave spawned monsters, but they could be anywhere in this cave. We are going to have to search and clear out this entire cave system if we want to ensure the village's safety."

Naofumi grimaced at the thought, but consoled himself that it wasn't a waste of time. The EXP gain here was incredible, and they, especially Filo, were Levelling quickly.

Naofumi Lv: 24
Shirou Lv: 26
Raphtalia Lv: 26
Zeph Lv: 19
Filo Lv: 16

At this rate, they might just catch up with other Hero's Level wise. That thought, though, prompted a question to pop up in Naofumi's mind.

"Shirou," he called. "There's something I want to ask you."

"Shoot."

"Motoyasu was much less strong than I had expected him to be during the duel," Naofumi began. "I mean, he was more than twice my Level and yet his normal attacks simply bounced off. Any idea how that's possible?"

Shirou blinked. "Any reason you want to know that?"

"It has been bothering me for a while now…"

Shirou frowned and called up the information on the Legendary Spear, reviewing all that he knew. He blinked, surprised. On a hunch, he similarly called up information on the Legendary Sword, only to find the same thing. "Huh, I think I know why Motoyasu didn't appear to be as strong as expected. It's because you, Naofumi, are much stronger that your Level would indicate."

"Huh?"

"From what I can tell about the Legendary Spear and its history, Motoyasu doesn't seem to be aware that a single monster can unlock more than one Weapon Form," Shirou began. "Nor does he seem to know that continually feeding the same materials to the Legendary Weapons will master that form quickly. During the duel, he only had a little more than 150 Weapon Forms mastered, and most of those are from weapons he copied in shops. His Level might be higher than yours, but you've built up a lot more Equipment Bonuses, more than enough to offset the difference in Stats."

"And considering Naofumi-sama's defence focused Stat gain and Skill set…" Raphtalia continued.

Shirou nodded. "It should have only be expected that the Spear Hero's normal attacks were less than effective."

"Hah!" Naofumi let out a bark of laughter. "All that boasting that he knew all that there was to know about this world, and that gullible fool doesn't even understand the basics! What a riot! HAHAHAH!"

"Naofumi-sama!" Raphtalia rebuked, scandalized by his less than Hero-esque reaction.

Shirou coughed and said, "To be fair, the Sword Hero doesn't seem to know these things either…"

Naofumi snorted. "That makes it even funnier. Those three Cardinal Hero Stooges…"

Filo chirped and skipped from where she was walking along by the Shield Hero's feet, happy seeing her owner being happy.

"I have no clue what you guys are talking about," Zeph muttered from the back of the formation.

After some more laughter from Naofumi, the group fell silent again. They'd continued through the tunnels, the path branching again and again, Zeph using his tips and tricks to keep track where they'd come from. They encountered Otherworld Zombies continuously, but with Naofumi's Defence Stat acting as their wall and the surroundings working to their advantage, the monsters were not so much a threat, but more a walking line of free EXP.

Finally, after walking another ten minutes, the tunnel opened up in a large, open space. Large, jagged red crystals sprouted from every surface, dotting the cavern and lighting it in an ominous crimson hue. This, combined with the large host of Otherworld Zombie populating the cavern, made all of the group have flashbacks to the harrowing battle of the Wave.

Shirou's sharp gaze counted the numbers of the enemy horde. "I count a little over 80 monsters," he said.

"How we're going to do this?" Raphtalia whispered. The Otherworld Zombies had yet to notice them.

"I think it'd be best if we goaded them to enter the tunnel," Shirou responded. "They will not be able to take advantage of their numbers and they can't get past Naofumi."

"Sounds like a plan," Naofumi said, already raising his shield and preparing himself. "Shirou, will you do the honors?"

Shirou nodded and drew his bow. He pulled back the string, notched an Iron Arrow and paused for a brief moment to give everyone the chance to ready themselves.

And then he released the bowstring. The Iron Arrow sliced through the air with a faint hissing sound, and a bare second later an Otherworld Zombie in the center of cavern was knocked on its back, killed soundlessly by the arrow that had punched through its skull between its rotten eyes.

There was a moment of silence, which was then broken by a cacophony of roars. Quickly pinpointing where the attack had come from, a stampede of necrotized flesh rushed to meet their attackers.

They edged back into the tunnel, simply watching as the Otherworld Zombies rushed them.

Stupid monsters, Naofumi inwardly grumbled, bracing himself.

The Zombie's charge entered the tunnel and broke upon the wall that was Naofumi, like how water would breaking upon a dam. They struck impotently upon the Shield Hero's body and shield, doing no damage and lacking the strength to push him back.

It wasn't long before the Otherworld Zombies laid slain, Shirou and Raphtalia having stabbed them to death. Said corpses were then absorbed into the Legendary Shield by Naofumi.

"So," Shirou began after they had finished the after battle clean up, if you could even call it a battle. "Anyone know what these crystals are?"

"I'm afraid I don't know much about geology or anything," Zeph said, shrugging.

Naofumi turned his shield into the Pickaxe Shield, a shield that raised his mining Skill. He broke off a small piece of one of the nearest crystal and fed it to his shield.

Requirement met: [Prani Crystal Shield - Base Defence 10 – Equip Bonus: +8 magic (unmastered)]

"Apparently, it's called Prani Crystal," Naofumi informed them.

"Are… Are you sure?" Zeph asked, eyes wide.

"According to the Legendary Shield, this is Prani Crystal," Naofumi explained. "Why the surprise?"

"Prani Crystal is a very valuable gemstone. Even a single crystal of poor quality will still net someone 50 silver pieces," Zeph said. "Prani Crystal is crystalized magical energy. It's very useful for mages in the preparation of rituals and whatnot, and not particularly common, which is why it's so valuable. I have never even seen Prani Crystal in person…"

"Huh," Naofumi looked around the cavern filled to the brim with the bright red crystal. "I think we've found how you guys will be able to pay us."

Zeph nodded, the realization slowly setting in that his home was about to receive a serious economic windfall.


"I can't believe it," Alfyn breathed.

They currently found themselves in the biggest room at the Inn that was used as a sort of conference room. Naofumi, Shirou and Raphtalia were sitting at a large round table, joined by Alfyn, Zeph, and the Village Elder.

"You'd better believe it, I was there too," Zeph said. "An entire chamber filled with Prani Crystal. Hell, we even found more chambers with other kinds of valuable ores and crystals. We're sitting on a literal goldmine, as in there's literal gold to be found down there, and we have not even mapped out the entire system of caves yet."

Yes, they had, and Naofumi was still smarting, because none of those crystals and ores had been the correct materials to further improve on the Chimera Viper Shield through [Weapon Tempering]. Truthfully, he had no right to complain, because he had unlocked another half a dozen shields with those materials and he had taken more than a few ores and crystals and stored them away in his shield for later use, but still.

"This is a great opportunity," the Village Elder, an old man with a thick beard and skin the texture of leather, said. "This village was first founded as a mining town, but that business dried up here when the mine inexplicably became a dungeon. With this discovery, we can go back to the old ways, and if what you are describing isn't an exaggeration…"

"It isn't," Zeph assured.

"Then we will be more than able to make up for the financial losses we incurred with the Wave," the Village Elder said. "But first we'll have to clear the caves of monsters…"

"We were already doing that, but considering this windfall I hope you understand that we'll be asking for a bit more than we'd originally decided on," Naofumi said, crossing his arms.

"Name your price," the Village Elder replied.

"I realize that it will take some time before you can get a mining operation set up, and that it will also take a little while before the economic benefits to start flowing into the village, so I'll won't ask too much," Naofumi laid out his reasoning. "In exchange for mapping the cave system and clearing it out, not to mention finding it, we request that we'll always have free access and be able to mine here as much as we want. Also, whenever I or my party seek to purchase any of the materials mined here, we will get favourable prices. Lets say… 20% less then market price."

The Village Elder seemed to ponder this for a short moment, then exchanged glances with Zeph and Alfyn. After a moment, he turned back to Naofumi, decision made.

"I think we can agree to that," the Village Elder said. "I'll draw up a Magical Contract."

Naofumi raised an eyebrow. Magical Contract?

He had a sneaking suspicion what such a document would entail…


Shirou sighed as they emerged in the open air again, leaving the cave behind for the fifth time in as many days. Feeling the sun on his skin after several hours of cave exploration was a relieve to say the least.

"Good work everyone," Zeph said, waving a rolled up piece of paper he had used to map out the cave system. "I think we have mapped out the entire cave. Now we just need to do another sweep to make sure that there are no more monsters down there and check for any hidden passageways we might have missed, and you will have done your part. The rest will be up to us."

They'd been entering and exploring the cave daily for several hours, and like Zeph had said, they were pretty sure they'd cleared the cave of virtually all Wave spawned monsters. After the third day, the encounters with the Otherworld Zombies had dropped considerably, and today they'd only fought two lone stragglers. This was annoying, as it meant that their EXP gain had dropped almost to nothing, but considering their progress…

Naofumi Lv: 31
Shirou Lv: 33
Raphtalia Lv: 33
Filo Lv: 28

The entire group couldn't find it in themselves to complain. The fact that they had found many and varied deposits of precious metals and ores that would revitalize Riyute Village, not to mention earn the group a pretty penny, made it definitely worth the effort.

"Gah!" Filo cried happily from where she walked beside them, equally as happy to be outside again.

Shirou glanced to the side where the Filolial walked. The full-grown Filolial. Even having gone through the process of accelerated growth himself, Shirou found himself surprised at how fast Filo had grown. In less than five days Filo was all grown up, and had proven to be a menace on the battlefield, displaying incredible speed, massive attack power and a sharp instinct for battle.

Now Filo was even a bit taller than him and Naofumi, being ever six and a half feet tall. Her features were ostrich-like, with a long neck, powerful legs and stubby wings. Her feathers were now a pristine white, with a few pink mixed in, and her eyes were a large and a deep blue. A large beak dominated her face.

He himself had found himself sceptical when Naofumi had bought that monster egg, but he felt no shame admitting he had been wrong. Filo's purchase had been worth every piece of silver she'd cost, both for her capability in battle and for her use as a beast of burden.

"Gah!" Filo cried, turning towards Naofumi with pleading eyes. The Shield Hero grumbled to himself, experience having taught him what Filo wanted, and took out several hundred pounds of cooked meat from his shield. Filo devoured it all in a few gulps even as they walked and simply whined for more when she was done. Shirou chuckled. It was a strook of exceptional good fortune that they now knew about the Legendary Shield's automatic cooking function, or feeding Filo would have cost them a fortune. Now they just processed meat from vanquished monsters into food for her.

"What is the next step now that the cave has been mapped and cleared?" Raphtalia asked, breaking Shirou from his thoughts.

"When the mine at the foot of the mountain closed down, most of the people who lived off the work said mine provided moved away to other mining towns," Zeph said. "Some of those have even had moderate success starting their own mining companies. The Village Elder has been working to contact the people who have the know-how, skills and funds to set up a mining operation, informing them of our find and offering them the chance to get in on the opportunity. In exchange for supplying the funds and the people necessary to get started, they'll get that chance."

"Sounds complicated," Naofumi commented. It sounded like a hard bargain to wage.

"It is, but the old guy is a good negotiator if nothing else," Zeph said. "I'm sure they will have everything hashed out before the end of the month. The potential wealth to be gained is too great to ignore for any businessman worth their salt."

Suddenly, Filo ran off down the path with a war cry, startling all of them. A local monster, a Red Borbatusk, that had been chased away by the arrival of the Wave spawned monsters and apparently returned now that the foreign invasion into its territory had gone away, looked up from where it had been looking for food. It only had a chance to widen its eyes before it died, Filo planting a vicious kick against its side that damn near snapped it in half and killed it instantly.

"Filo!" Naofumi shouted as they ran after the Filolial. "Don't just rush off like that!"

"Gah?" Filo tilted her head, apparently not comprehending what she had done wrong.

Zeph chuckled. "That's one damn feisty bird. I hope you'll be able to control her going forward. She's already ridiculously strong."

"I know," Naofumi grumbled, and quickly absorbed the monster corpse into his shield before Filo started tearing into it. Filo had proven to be willing to eat almost anything, even monsters they had just killed, if he didn't take it out of her sight pronto. It did not unlock any new shield for him, as he already unlocked all the shields corresponding to the Red Borbatusk before the Wave, but whatever item drops it would give him might be useful.

With that, they descended down the mountain. Filo continued to run off periodically to kill some of the monsters she spotted on the way down, but all in all, it was a pleasant end of their day.

Still, as they walked down the mountain, Shirou thought that he could hear some noise coming from Filo: a faint cracking sound, as if her bones were realigning. Was she still growing? Certainly not, she had to be fully grown by now. Right?


It happened the very next morning, an hour or so before they normally awoke. They were awoken by a heavy crashing sound heard just outside their window in the Inn, right near the stables where Filo'd been spending her nights.

Naofumi, Shirou and Raphtalia had already been throwing their clothes on, having an inkling what, or more precise, who, had been the cause behind that noise, before their door was thrown open.

It was the Inkeeper. "Shield Hero, come quick! It's your Filolial, she's…"

"Is Filo alright?" Naofumi asked, a little bit of worry audible in his voice.

"I, yes, I guess so, but…"

The man didn't seem to be able to articulate what exactly had happened. They finished dressing and went outside as quickly as they could.

A group of haggard looking villagers, the noise clearly having woken them up as well, crowded around the stable. Said stable's side wall had been demolished, something having broken through it from the inside. And who had done it was more then obvious. She was being gawked at by everyone, Naofumi, Shirou and Raphtalia included.

It was Filo, probably, but she had changed significantly compared to the day before.

"Filo, is that you?" Naofumi asked, working himself through the crowd.

The suspected Filo laid eyes on her owner, and gave a happy cry at the sight of him. Naofumi had to tilt his head back to take her in fully.

In a way, it looked like she had regressed back into a chick. Filo was now almost as wide as she was tall, said height now being over 8 feet and being 6 feet wide. She looked like a cross between an owl and an ostrich, her previously long neck hidden behind her feathers. Her feathers were pure white, except for a small plum of pink feathers on her chest, and a smattering of pink feathers on her wings. Long feathers, almost like eyebrows, extended from above her eyes and framed her head.

"W-what the hell happened?" Shirou asked bewildered. "I thought she was full grown."

"Me too," Raphtalia said, nodding and a little put off when Filo began nuzzling Naofumi like a puppy.

"She was, or she should have been," the Monster Breeder made his way through the crowd.

"You wouldn't happen to know what's going on with Filo, right?" Naofumi asked, having little success in getting Filo to quit it with her affectionate display.

"Maybe, I think I might have read something about an extra state of development that some Filolials go through, but that was a long time ago. I'd have to do a little research first, if you want a definite answer," the Monster Breeder said.

Naofumi grumbled, but nodded that he would wait for said definite answer. He then turned towards the Innkeeper. "I'm sorry about this, and I'll pay for the damages. How much?"

"You don't have to, Shield Hero…"

"Please don't misunderstand. I would feel guilty if I didn't pay for this. I'm doing it for purely selfish reasons. Now, how much?" Naofumi bulled ahead, not seeing the approving looks he got from Shirou and Raphtalia.


It was hour later that the Monster Breeder returned carrying an old book under his arm. They'd been waiting outside the Inn playing with Filo and constantly feeding the bottomless pit that was her stomach. The crowd of villagers had already dispersed by the time the Monster Breeder returned, so it was a fairly private setting.

"Did you find it?" Naofumi asked from where he was sitting, having just finished feeding another round of food to Filo.

"I have," the Monster Breeder said, flipping upon the book he was carrying and placing it on the table in front of Naofumi. It was a book about monsters, and the Monster Breeder's finger indicated the text of one particular entry: Filolial Queen/King.

"A Filolial Queen, huh?" Naofumi mussed, reading the titel it with difficulty and turning his head to look at Filo. She was currently playing a game of fetch with Shirou and Raphtalia.

"Correct," the Monster Breeder nodded. "They are said to be the elites of their race, but there is not much information on them. That's because they are said to be able to transform themselves in order to look like an ordinary Filolial and hide themselves in the fast flocks they rule over. It's also said that a Filolial Queen has instinctive knowledge on and the capability to perform magic."

"Anything else?" Naofumi asked. This conversation was turning out to be thoroughly interesting.

"I've not been able to find anything else, I'm afraid," the Monster Breeder shook his head and sighed.

"So, we're basically going in blind. What else is new," Naofumi said, sighing. "I am sure we have more than enough food stored to feed her, no matter how much she might need. But Filo is already so big and strong, I already can see we'll have trouble later down the line," he grumbled.

Unbeknownst to him, Filo had heard his complaints, and decided to do something about it.

Naofumi heard an odd sound behind him, almost the same sound as steam erupting out of a vent, but not quite the same. Shirou and Raphtalia cried out in surprise while the eyes of the Monster Breeder went wide as he looked over the Shield Hero's shoulder. For some reason, Naofumi really didn't want to turn around and look what was going on behind him.

"Master, I'm hungry!" a young girl's voice singsonged.

Naofumi mechanically turned around to look. Filo had transformed, taking on the form of a young girl, maybe around 10 years old. She had pure white skin, long blond hair, clear blue eyes and a cute face. A pair of angels wings grew out of her back.

Oh, and she was buck naked. Couldn't forget that.

"Well," the Monster Breeder said. "I guess that confirms a Filolial Queen's ability to transform, if not in the way described in the book..."

Filo launched herself at Naofumi and started tugging at the hem of his shirt, unconcerned for her nakedness. "Come on, Master! Filo's hungry! Can you make something yummy for Filo?"

It was an early hour, but there still were a few people out and about. Said people pointed at the spectacle and whispered between themselves. Naofumi's brow started to twitch rampantly as Shirou frantically Projected a sheet to cover Filo.

A naked 10 year old girl, calling him master and asking for something "yummy". What had he done to deserve something this utterly ridiculous?


Filo was stuffing her face.

This wasn't odd in and of itself, but the fact that she was now a young girl attacking the plate of food he had cooked for her like a wild animal, was, in fact, a rather odd and a sight to behold. At least Zeph had been kind enough to give them an old dress of Nina's so Filo wasn't naked anymore. That at least was an improvement.

They had retreated to their room at the Inn to talk in private.

"So, uhm, Filo," Naofumi began hesitantly. "Is this… how you look now?"

"Eh, when I wanna," Filo said around several mouths full of food. "But I can change back when I want to."

"Okay," Naomi murmured, nodding. "And, what do you want to do now?"

"Whatever Master wants to do, I'll do. I'm Master's Filo!" Filo nodded energetically.

"Are you sure? I mean, you could do anything with your life…" Naofumi hedged.

"No! Filo wants to stay with Master! Always!" Filo shouted her wants without a care in the world.

Man, that imprinting was really something. She was completely loyal to him even if he didn't feel like he had done anything to deserve that loyalty like with Shirou and Raphtalia. As a monster, he just thought it logical, but now that she could take on the form of a girl, he found it rather weird, but this is what Filo wanted, so…

"I see. I am happy to have you, Filo," Naofumi said sincerely.

"Welcome to the team," Shirou said.

"Let's do our best for Naofumi-sama, Filo," Raphtalia smiled.

"Of course, Shirou Onii-chan, Raphtalia Onee-chan!" Filo cried happily.

Naofumi hid a smile as Filo referred to Shirou and Raphtalia, who shared a surprised look, as her siblings. They were pretty much siblings in his mind. They even had somewhat similar features even if they weren't related at all, and after everything they had been through together… He really thought they'd make excellent siblings of each other.

And he was taking care of all three of them. So, did that make him their father? Well as the father, he better lay out some ground rules with Filo first.

"Okay, then Filo, I expect you to fight monster. Do you understand?" Naofumi asked.

Filo nodded. Having finished her third plate of food, she reached for her fourth, digging in with gusto.

Naofumi ignored her atrocious table manners, Filo eating with her hands and all that, and continued. "I also need you to listen to my orders, always, especially during battle."

"Whatever makes Master happy, Filo will do!"

Naofumi coughed. This simple minded devotion was… not bad, but definitely odd. "Okay, we will be going cave exploring again in half an hour or so. So be ready to leave."

"Okay!" Filo shovelled the last morsels into her mouth. She jumped back over the table, transforming back into her Filolial Queen form in an explosion of smoke, ripping her dress to shreds. "Filo's ready!"

"Don't transform inside!" Raphtalia rebuked.

Shirou sighed and reached down to collect the shredded remains. "I'll ask Zeph if he has anymore old clothes of Nina lying around," he grumbled. "I feel we are going to need them."

Requirement met: [Beastmaster Shield IV – Base Defence – 10 – Equip Bonus: Monster Growth up (large)]

[Monster Growth Up (large) – Provides large bonus Stat gain with each Level up (unmastered)]


It was after the sixth and final time that they had descended down into the cave up in the mountains that it happened. They had travelled back down and had just entered Riyute Village proper that they heard the makings of a riot.

"You can't do this! What the hell are you thinking?!"

Filo cocked her head at the shouting. She was in her human form, wearing an old dress of Nina's.

"Alfyn?" Zeph had recognized the voice heard clearly over the uproar, as had the others. They'd sped up, heading towards he main gate of the village where the apparent row was coming from.

A large crowd had formed there. What appeared to be the entire population of the village had been gathered, and it was immediately apparent that none of them were happy. As a matter of fact, many of them were outright angry.

But none more so than Alfyn who stood at the head of the pissed off crowd, arguing passionately with a group of unfortunately familiar faces.

Motoyasu appeared surprised at the vitriol he was being met with. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" Alfyn repeated, then waved a piece of paper he had just been given. "You think you can just stroll in here, declare yourself our leader and take over the reconstruction efforts just like that? You may be a Hero, but you cannot just do what you want. Not to mention that your orders are insane. You'd run is into the ground!"

"I have to agree," the Village Elder said. "I'm the governor of this village, and it's a position I was elected to by the people. Its highly irregular that the King has simply declared these lands under your rule. And your proposed policies… I understand the need to raise money for the reconstruction, but levying a toll of 50 pieces of silver for entering the village, and another 50 pieces of silver for leaving the village would drive us into poverty! We would never be able to survive with taxes like that!"

"But it's not that much money," Motoyasu protested.

"Not that much…" Alfyn repeated again, looking at him wide eyed.

Naofumi blinked in disbelieve. Motoyasu truly had a warped sense of the worth of money in this world. For the average person to live comfortably in this country, 20 pieces of bronze a day was sufficient. Staying at an Inn with a hot meal included was just a piece of silver. These new proposed taxes… the people could live for a 100 days with that money.

Who could even eat with taxes like that?

Shirou very much agreed. The demi-human marched up to the Spear Hero. Before he could say his piece, though, another person cut in.

"The gallant Spear Hero, Motoyasu-sama, has been given governorship over these lands by the King's decree! All in recognition of his glorious victory in the last Wave of Calamity! Are you implying that you all will disobey a direct order from your King?"

It was Malty, Myne, or whatever she was calling herself in that moment. She was haranguing the people with her spiel and grandstanding in the Spear Hero's name. The other girls of the Spear Hero's party were lined up behind her, and a large group of knights stood a little ways away.

"The King can't just do what he wants either!" Alfyn shouted, even as the Village Elder tried to rein him in. "The Spear Hero didn't even do anything to actually defend us during the Wave! And now you waltz in here, with this ridiculous decree and demands, and expect us just to roll over for you?!"

Even as Alfyn shouted the shared thoughts of the people of Riyute Village, some of the townsfolk already looked resigned. What could they realistically do against an order of the Crown? Not much, if anything at all.

Myne glared, failing spectacularly at hiding her displeasure. It was clear that she wasn't used to be being questioned, especially not in the manner Alfyn was doing it. "Motoyasu-sama fought and helped defeat the strongest monsters that were spawned by the Wave! He deserves your loyalty!"

"No, he really doesn't," Shirou said drily as he stepped into view of the Spear Hero and his party.

"You are…"

"The Spear Hero deserves loyalty?" Shirou repeated and shook his head. "Why should the people of Riyute Village be loyal to a person that outright abandoned them during their hour of need?"

Motoyasu glared at him. "I didn't abandon anyone! The Wave can only be stopped by killing the Boss Monster! The faster we killed the Boss Monster and stopped the Wave, the better!"

"It doesn't matter how fast you would have done it, nothing would have been fast enough," Shirou countered. "Because stopping the Wave doesn't make the monsters that have already appeared just up and disappear. You left the people of this village to face a deadly threat without any kind of protection. If it weren't for Naofumi taking the task of protecting the people upon himself, chances are that a lot more people, maybe even most, would have died."

"We signalled for the knight's to come here!"

"And it took them over an hour to do so," Shirou dismissed that argument. "There still would have been massive casualties."

Motoyasu gritted his teeth, apparently out of arguments.

"You really didn't think your strategy through during the Wave, huh?" Naofumi chuckled nastily as he walked up, the rest of the party plus Zeph trailing in his wake.

Myne sneered at the Shield Hero. "Quiet, you. The thoughts and opinions of a common criminal like yourself means less then dirt. Just like these filthy demi-humans you call your allies. Speaking of which, Motoyasu-sama won't tolerate criminals on his land. Get on your way and out of our sight!"

Naofumi was about to explode. Calling him a common criminal was bad enough, but the fact the she had insulted his party members damn near pushed him over the edge.

"Oh, so Motoyasu wouldn't stand for Myne here to be on his land. What are you even doing here in the first place, then?" Shirou asked.

Myne, and everyone else, blinked at the sudden question.

"…What?"

"I mean, last I checked, knowingly falsely accusing someone of a crime is by itself also a crime," Shirou explained, trying to affect innocence, but there was no missing the sarcastic edge to his voice. "I could understand if you might not have realized that, as rotten as you are, but you are the common criminal in this situation. So I'll ask again, what are you even doing here if the Spear Hero so loathes criminals? Has he taken pity on you?"

Naofumi barely held back a snort as Shirou really let his snarky side out to play, his mood soaring at the look on the that Bitch's face. Said face had gone as red as the princesses' hair, but someone else cut in before she could erupt.

"Myne did not lie!" Motoyasu thundered. "Naofumi-"

"We have been over this," Shirou cut him off. "She had every motivation to lie, while Naofumi never has shown any indication that he would, or even could, do what she accused him of. Considering the situation, her accusation is so full of holes it might as well not exist."

"What motivation?! Why would Myne possibly lie about being raped by a scumbag!"

"We alluded to one of her possible motivations the last time: the Church of the Three Heroes. Didn't you follow up on that and see what the church says about the Shield Hero?" Shirou asked deadpan. "Even besides that, there are plenty of reasons she could have lied. Her actions during the duel have proven that she's more than morally bankrupt enough that she could have lied and tried to ruin Naofumi out of pure sadism."

"You filthy demi-human!" Myne did not appreciate the aspersions to her character, no matter how well deserved. "You dare-"

"If I wanted your opinion, I would have asked, thank you very much," Shirou cut her off.

Malty's reaction at the sheer disrespect she was being met with was a sight to behold: her face as red as her hair, veins throbbing in her rage and teeth gritted in a snarl so vicious it would have been more suited on a monster. She looked like she was about to start screaming, or try and reach out and strangle Shirou.

Said demi-human gave her a flat look in return, all but daring her to try.

Surprisingly, she took a deep breath and calmed herself. Then she grinned nastily at them. "It doesn't matter what you say or think. Motoyasu-sama has been made governor of this backwater, his word is now final in these lands. Now leave, or-"

Suddenly, Malty was surrounded by people dressed in black. Their manor of dress that covered their bodies whole, face included, which made it impossible to tell anything about them.

They were like ninjas. One moment there wasn't a whisper of their presence, the next they had the princes surrounded.

"Miss Myne. We come baring a message for you," one of the figures said, their voice so distorted it was impossible to tell of the person was male or female.

Myne accepted the rolled up sheet of parchment with a look of displeasure. Her expression changed from displeasure to apoplectic as she read message's content.

"That damn meddling piece of…" the princess masquerading as an adventurer hissed.

Naofumi's eyes narrowed. Who could have the power to enrage that Bitch so? If he ever met them, he would by them a drink just for getting the wind out of her sails in that moment. Still, he was very curious to find out what was written down on that piece of parchment.

"Master, what is going on? Who are these strange people?" Filo asked curiously.

Naofumi sighed. "Just a gullible fool, an unmitigated Bitch and their entourage. As far the ninja's, I'm afraid I don't know. It be better if you keep your distance from all of them, Filo."

"Okay!"

Motoyasu turned towards Naofumi badmouthing him, eyes narrowed in anger, but he froze when he laid his gaze on Filo. A flush began to creep up his neck and cover his cheeks, as his gaze remained on Filo with frightening intensity.

"What do you think you are you looking at?" Naofumi asked, voice flat.

Motoyasu didn't seem to notice. He only had eyes for Filo, mumbling to himself. "…Angel," that was the only word that was heard clearly.

"Master, why is that strange Spear Guy looking at Filo like that?" Filo asked.

That seemed to get a reaction. "…Master," Motoyasu said slowly, an enraged look entering his eyes. "Naofumi, you bastard!" he snarled. "You… you bought yourself another slave!? You-"

"She isn't my slave," Naofumi said before the Spear Hero could really build up any steam.

"What? But she called you her master!"

"Don't think too deeply about it. That's just Filo being Filo," Naofumi rebuffed Motoyasu's words in a bland manner. "There isn't any Slave Crest on her, now is there?"

Motoyasu studied Filo closely. He grudgingly had to admit that Filo didn't bare a Slave Crest.

"That doesn't mean anything!" Myne suddenly shouted. "High level Slave Crests can remain invisible if so chosen!"

And just like that, the anger was back on Motoyasu's face.

"I'll repeat it until it gets through your skulls," Naofumi sighed, annoyed. "I don't use slaves anymore. Shirou, Raphtalia and Filo aren't my slaves, they are my companions. End of story."

"That doesn't matter!" Motoyasu declared. "Even if they aren't your slaves, you are a man with loose hands who can't be trusted around woman or children. I still say Raphtalia should dump your ass and this beautiful angel shouldn't even get within ten feet of you!"

Naofumi gritted his teeth. The self-righteousness on display was sickening.

Motoyasu turned his attention to Filo. "Beautiful angel, please abandon this piece of trash and come to my side! Naofumi must be working you hard, right? The mere thought of how he must be mistreating you makes my heart ache! Just give the word, and I will strike this man down and set you free!"

The Spear Hero finished his spiel with a dramatic flourish of his Legendary Spear.

Filo gave him a confused look. She almost looked at him pityingly. "Master… Is Spear Guy right in the head? Why is he talking so strange and saying crazy things like that?"

Naofumi snorted. "I don't think he ever was, even before coming to this world. It just became worse when he started to interact with… less than reputable woman and nobles."

"Enough!" Myne shouted and marched forward, shaking the piece of parchment she had been given in a tightly clenched fist. "It will be a competition!"

What? Multiple people narrowed their eyes. What was this crazy bint going on now?

Naofumi's eyes drifted to the piece of parchment. What was written on there for this Bitch to declare something that outlandish?

"Between the Spear Hero and the Shield Hero!" Myne continued to thunder. "Whoever wins gets to decide who will govern these lands henceforth! If you don't, we won't relinquish our right to rule these people!"

The ninjas started whispering between themselves.

What a bunch of complete nonsense. Naofumi's face darkened in displeasure. He didn't want Riyute Village to fall under the control of this gullible idiot and his Bitch, but neither did he want to take part in whatever crackpot scheme that Bitch was cooking up right now.

Give me a break.

Before Naofumi really got a chance to ponder his options, someone else cut in.

"It will be a duel, then. One on one between the Spear Hero and the Shield Hero. Same rules as during the banquet," Shirou suddenly declared.

"What?!" Naofumi let slip in his surprise. "Shirou, I don't want…"

"Naofumi," Shirou turned towards the Shield Hero. "Are you sure you don't want to properly finish that duel? To have a fair fight and see who wins? If it weren't for the interference last time you could very well have won," he said. What nonsense. Naofumi definitely would have won.

Shirou made a show of darting his eyes between the Legendary Spear in Motoyasu's hands and the Legendary Shield strapped to Naofumi's arm. The Shield Hero noticed immediately, and unnoticed by anyone else his own eyes narrowed imperceptibly. Considering all that he had learned, how much he had been able to improve his shield as a result, and how much Shirou was able to perceive about the Legendary Weapons with just a glance…

"Heh," Naofumi snorted. "Fine. I'll ascent to a duel, if they want one so bad…"

"It's decided, then," Myne announced triumphantly. She was about to continue, but before she could open her mouth, Shirou quickly piped up again.

"Before that, though," Shirou turned towards the Village Elder. "Would you mind drawing up a Magical Contract for us? To be signed by both the Spear Hero and the Shield Hero. Dictating that, if there is any outside interference in the duel in aid of either party, that both will forfeit the match and you will remain governor by default."

The Village Elder blinked, then smiled. "It would be my pleasure. A simple contract like that will only take a few minutes to draw up."

Naofumi hid a smile. Magical Contracts were exactly what they sounded like. A contract enforced by the magic woven into whatever fabric the contract was written on. Once signed, cheating it was virtually impossible. Shirou had likened it to a 'Self Geass Scroll' used by the Magi of his world, only it didn't have the requirement that both parties had to be capable of magic in order to be subject to the terms of a Magical Contract. By using a Magical Contract and the terms Shirou had proposed, they would be able to eliminate the risk of outside interference like last time.

"Hold up!" Motoyasu cut in. "What nonsense are you people talking about?"

"That's right!" Myne shouted. "Why would you require something bothersome like that?"

Shirou snorted. "I think that would be obvious. Do I really need to explain it," he said, then shook his head. "If you have confidence you can win without outside aid, then you would have no problem signing. Considering what happened last time, I think you'd at least be able to understand Naofumi being wary of agreeing to another duel. Some assurances of fair play are warranted. And like I said, if you are confident, there is no reason to hesitate."

Naofumi's smile turned vicious. "Unless, of course, you are afraid you can't beat me without outside help. So much for the vaunted Spear Hero, shaking in his boots at the thought of facing a shield!"

It was a taunt, a deliberate attempt to provoke them. Especially Motoyasu, who had final say on if he were to sign anything. So that they wouldn't realize the rather obvious flaw…

"Fine!" Motoyasu snapped, obviously angered by the taunt. "I'll sign your stupid contract and then I'll kick that bastard Naofumi's ass! I'll show you who should be afraid of who!"

Naofumi's devil may cry grin got even more vicious. What an utter fool…


As the Village Elder went off to create the Magical Contract, guarded by Alfyn, Zeph and several other able bodied men of the village at Naofumi's insistence, everyone else gathered in a large open field just outside the village gate. They were far away enough from the village so that they couldn't cause any accidental damage, but close enough that the villagers could spectate without being put at risk themselves.

Naofumi had very a brief conversation with Raphtalia, Shirou and Filo, giving some instructions. Then he started to prepare himself for the coming duel.

"Let's see," he mumbled. It hadn't taken long before he turned his attention to the Legendary Shield, pulling up his Menu and accessing certain information.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield (Awakened) A – Base Defence 90 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 18 / Poison Resistance (large) (mastered)]

[Level Link] (Lv: 32): + 16 Defence

[Weapon Familiarity] (9/17): + 18 Defence

[Weapon Enchantment] Lv 6: +12% Damage-Reduction-From-Humanlike

[Status Enchantment] Lv 13: +39 Poison Damage

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (large) / Long Hook

[Weapon Proficiency]: 100

Naofumi was reasonably confident he could win, but he still wanted to maximize his chances. After the last few days of cave exploration, his stock of Otherworld Zombie materials had been refilled and his backlog of [Soul Fragments] had grown again. He infused the Chimera Viper Shield with all the Otherworld Zombie materials there was to be found in his Item Box, and selected another thousand [Soul Fragments] to be added on top of that.

[Otherworld Chimera Viper Shield (Awakened) A – Base Defence 90 – Equip Bonus: Change Shield / Compounding + 18 / Poison Resistance (large) (mastered)]

[Level Link] (Lv: 32): + 16 Defence

[Weapon Familiarity] (9/17): + 18 Defence

[Weapon Enchantment] Lv 10: +20% Damage-Reduction-From-Humanlike

[Status Enchantment] Lv 24: +72 Poison Damage

Special Ability: Snake Venom Fang (large) / Long Hook

[Weapon Proficiency]: 100

With that, Naofumi released a small sigh. His shield had been further powered up, the Chimera Viper Shield was equipped, all his concoctions and potions were in order and he had taken the time to loosen his muscles. The only thing remaining now was to wait for the Village Elder to come back with the Magical Contract…

"Ah, speak of the devil," Naofumi muttered as the elderly man returned, accompanied by Alfyn, Zeph and another dozen men. A length of parchment waved slightly in the breeze.

Motoyasu and Naofumi both approached from their end of the field. For once, Motoyasu did not say anything or try and boast. He just gave the Shield Hero a heated glare, and signed the contract before stalking back to his side of the field.

Naofumi signed the contract as well after reading it and ensuring it said what Shirou had proposed. He was a little weirded out that Motoyasu hadn't taken the opportunity to flap his lips at him like the Spear Hero usually did. Was that a sign that the man was taking the duel seriously?

Considering the Spear Hero's less than stellar performance last time, Motoyasu would truly be a king of fools if he didn't think things through this time. Or pace himself accordingly. Considering that, the Shield Hero returned to his side of the field and turned to meet Motoyasu's determined stare. He set his stance, raised his shield and mentally prepared himself. One of Naofumi's hands dipped into his satchel.

"Well, then," the Village Elder said, and raised his hand. "The both of you already know the rules, so I won't bother repeating them. Begin!"

The hand was thrown down, the signal that the duel had commenced, but neither the Spear Hero nor the Shield Hero moved to attack. They just looked at each other like hawks, waiting for the other to make the first move and expose themselves.

Naofumi was the first to move, taking a step forward, then another, as he began walking forward. His hand pulled out and revealed a bottle filled with red powder from his satchel.

"Tch!" Motoyasu's face darkened and his eyes focused on one of Naofumi's hated concoctions. With caution born from experience, Motoyasu jumped back a bit, creating more distance again, apparently not wanting to get anywhere close to Naofumi.

The Shield Hero didn't seem bothered. He simply kept approaching with measured, sure steps.

"Second Spear!" Motoyasu held out his off hand and a second Legendary Spear manifested from the nothingness. Then he took up a throwing position, the spears taking on a different Weapon Form that clearly was meant for high attack power.

Naofumi simply continued to approach, not looking overly bothered. He merely raised his shield.

"Air Strike Javelin!" Motoyasu shouted, throwing both spears quickly one after the other. Said spears turned into energy and boomeranged towards Naofumi, retaking their physical forms the moment they were on target. Both spears were now heading towards the Shield Hero at bullet speeds, aiming to strike his chest on the right and left side respectively.

It was clearly an attempt to force Naofumi to deflect one, but not the other, or force the Shield Hero to halt is advance in order to dodge. But…

Naofumi merely crouched down and raised his shield, making his profile as small as possible. The Air Strike Javelins changed their trajectory to stay on target, hitting the Chimera Viper Shield and making it ring like a temple bell with the impact.

And in that ringing sound another sound rang out, barely audible even to Naofumi. Whatever tension he had been feeling just drained out of him at hearing that sound.

The Shield Hero surged to his feet, effortlessly deflecting both Air Strike Javelins. Smirking at the rictus of surprise on Motoyasu's face, Naofumi resumed his calm, measured advance, idly tossing the concoction in his hand up and down.

Motoyasu caught the Legendary Spear as it returned to him, its doppelganger having disappeared. He had to take a moment to ponder what had just happened. Thankfully, Naofumi's slow, measured approach gave him the time to do so.

He had equipped the Siderite Spear, a spear made from a meteorite and the most powerful Weapon Form in his arsenal. He had used [Weapon Enchantment], [Status Enchantment] and [Weapon Tempering] to exclusively raise its attack power to the detriment of anything else, to the point that equipping the Siderite Spear more than doubled his Attack Stat, but Naofumi still shrugged it off like it was nothing!

He had even used Second Spear and Air Strike Javelin to raise his attack power even further, and still it bounced off. He could believe that Chaos Thrust wouldn't do damage, as each individual thrust was weaker than when he just attacked normally, but this…

Even as he pondered, Naofumi had not halted his approach. Motoyasu would have vigorously denied feeling the sense of rising panic at the sight of the Shield Hero's approach, if anyone noticed.

"Motoyasu-sama! Don't falter! You have him right where you want him! Dead to rights even! Strike that Shield bastard down now!"

Myne shouted her ever present encouragement from behind him. She was quickly followed by the other girls in his party, cheering for him and denouncing Naofumi in the same breath.

Right! That's right! Naofumi was simply walking towards him like an idiot, or an overconfident fool. Leaving himself wide open. He had yet to use his most powerful Skills. If Second Spear and Air Strike Javelin weren't enough, he would just have to go a step beyond!

"Meteor Spear!" Motoyasu spun his spear, creating a disk of energy in front of him.

Naofumi just continued to approach.

Motoyasu thrust his spear through the disk of energy, which collected into a single point, launching forward in a condensed sphere of coruscating power. Naofumi had tanked this attack last time, but he had been forced to put up multiple barriers to soften the attack up first, and he'd still been injured. Not a lot, just a little bit, but if Meteor Spear struck dead on and with Naofumi so close…

"Air Strike Shield!"

Motuyasu cursed his opponent's quick reflexes. The ethereal shield had manifested between Meteor Spear and its target in the blink of an eye, impacting with a resounding gong. Like last time, their was a struggle between the Skills, but the Meteor Spear won out, even if it took a worrying long time…

The coruscating sphere surged ahead, directly to Naofumi, who hadn't halted his approach.

The Hero of the Shield, much to Motoyasu's horror, backhanded the Spear Hero's strongest Skill away with his Legendary Shield. Naofumi had simply used Air Strike Shield to soften Meteor Spear up a little and slow it down, then merely judged its trajectory and speed, then deflected it.

Said attack detonated over Naofumi's shoulder. It left a nice sized crater, but left the Shield Hero completely unharmed. And through it all, Naofumi still hadn't halted his approach, like a unbreakable wall slowly but surely advancing forward that would crush anything in its path.

How does one avoid being crushed by an unbreakable object? Simple, you either halt its advance or make sure you aren't in its path. Motoyasu decided to try both. The Spear Hero darted to the side, taking full advantage of his Speed Stat to make as much distance as possible, simultaneously spinning his spear, lightning surging up and down its blade's length.

Naofumi reacted instantly. He turned and rushed after Motoyasu, moving much faster than the Spear Hero would have figured. Shielders were usually slow as a rock, right? Still, even if the Speed Stat was the Spear Hero's highest natural attribute, Naofumi was still keeping pace with him.

"Lightning Spear!" Motoyasu turned on the balls of his feet, stabbing his spear in Naofumi's direction and releasing an arc of crackling electricity. Even Motoyasu thought that he sounded like he was begging the Shield Hero to stay away as he shouted the name of a Skill that would hopefully Paralyze Naofumi and stop him in his tracks.

Naofumi raised his shield in front of him and ran head long into the attack, electricity surging over his shield and being conducted directly into his body. And to Motoyasu's rising horror, he still he didn't halt his advance. Electricity danced over Naofumi's body, before dissipating, having done no harm and having failed to Paralyze the Shield Hero.

It was only natural. Naofumi's main form of attack was his concoctions that could inflict a plethora of Status Conditions, and he had long since fed those concoctions to his shield. The concoction that caused Paralysis had given him [Paralysis Resistance (medium)]. Naofumi had even taken the time to Awaken the shields that gave him resistance to various Debuffs. So he now had [Paralysis Resistance (large)]. Motoyasu's attempt to Paralyze him had been doomed to fail from the start.

Naofumi darted forward with a sudden burst in speed, getting in striking distance of the Spear Hero, who had been frozen in disbelieve.

"You cheati-" Motoyasy started to shout, instinctively lashing out with his Legendary Spear.

That was a mistake.

The Spear struck the Chimera Viper Shield, triggering its counterattack [Snake Venom Fang (large)]. The stylized extensions of the shield in the form of snakes animated, becoming real and lashing out with blinding suddenness.

Motoyasu let out a cry of pain as the snakes sank their fangs into his arm and pumped their deadly poison into his blood stream. "Argh!" the Spear Hero gritted his teeth as pain blossomed where he had been bitten. He yanked his arm free and jumped back, but that did not stop the poison that had already been pumped into his system from further spreading. The pain in his arm began to spread up and down the limb where he had been bitten, and it was excruciating, as if there was a corrosive acid in his veins.

The Spear Hero quickly accessed his Item Box, retrieving an Antidote and chugging it down as quickly as he could. But, it didn't provide him relief. The pain and damage of the poison did halt, and he could feel its spread stopping, but that was only for a moment. The pain flared up again after a moment, the normal quality Antidote having failed to cure him. The level of poison injected into his veins by [Snake Venom Fang (large)], further enhanced by [Status Enchantment], was simply too potent for a normal quality Antidote produced by his Legendary Spear to cure him.

The poison continued to spread through his system unopposed, like a virulent disease, a cancer, eating away at his insides. Motoyasu's skin had started to pale, and the flesh around the bite wound had started to display signs of necrosis, the poison literally acting like acid.

And Motoyasu, his panic reaching a crescendo and distracting by the pain, only noticed that Naofumi had thrown the concoction he had been carrying in his other hand since the start of duel until its glass container had already shattered against his chest plate. The Spear Hero's eyes widened, and the red powder it had contained and had now enveloped him abruptly ignited.

Naofumi watched the fiery conflagration consume the Spear Hero, honestly starting to feel a little bit bad. With his sudden increase in Levels the last few days – even if Motoyasu was still had more than 15 Levels over him – all the Equipment Bonuses he'd stacked up, the knowledge he had used to strengthen his Legendary Shield, and Shirou's assurance that Motoyasu hadn't improved much since their last bout, he had been fairly confident he could win. But this was barely even a fight.

The Shield Hero could not strike back directly, but Motoyasu's attacks simply were not strong enough to break through his Defence Stat in return. Maybe if they struck his skin directly, but the combined use of his Legendary Weapon and his Skills made that a difficult proposition. Which was kind of the point of being the Shield Hero. But Naofumi could strike back indirectly, and with outside interference an impossibility because of Shirou's quick thinking, this match was as good as his.

That still did not stop him from throwing another concoction of his onto the literal dumpster fire that was the Spear Hero, one that introduced another helpful dose of poison into Motoyasu's system. Naofumi did feel a little bad, yes, but it was overshadowed by the feeling of vindictive pleasure as he finally got to lay into this buffoon, and feelings of pity for others, especially for others you have an intense dislike for, only got you so far in life.

The flames dissipated, and Naofumi got a flashback to their first duel after he had dumped all his concoctions onto the man. Haggard breathing, skin the same pallor of a corpse, burns covering said skin, only it was a magnitude worse than last time.

A potion manifested from the Legendary Spear. "I'm…not giving up," Motoyasu said through his haggard breathing, sluggishly reaching for the potion.

Naofumi never got to find out what the potion's intended use was. He strolled up to the Spear Hero, being close enough and Motoyasu moving slowly enough gave him the time to do so, and struck the ailing Motoyasu with his shield in the head. "Shield Bash."

The Spear Hero's muscles locked up, the Skill's stunning effect setting in. Motoyasu collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut. The potion fell uselessly to the floor, shattering. A bare second later, fire once again erupted from Motoyasu, damaging him even more. Said damage was pilling up to the point that it would become lethal, if not treated soon. In spite of that, Motoyasu attempted to rise up to his feet the moment the fire dissipated, apparently determined to continue the fight.

Naofumi's foot planting itself on his chest stopped him cold. "I guess this means I've won," the Shield Hero said with not an inconsiderable amount of satisfaction.

"Fuck…you...," Motoyasu hissed, still attempting to rise, only to wheeze as Naofumi pressed down with his foot.

"Yeah, no thanks," Naofumi deadpanned. "By the rules of the duel I have won and you know it, and if you don't get treatment soon, you will die. You've lost. Deal with it."

The Shield Hero had looked up for a brief moment. The people of Riyute Village were elated, a happy murmur spreading through the crowd and a few cheers being released. Zeph looked relieved and Alfyn gave him a wide smile and a thumbs up. His party members also looked happy, with Filo almost dancing in her happiness, Raphtalia being all smiles and Shirou simply looking relieved.

In contrast, the soldiers that had accompanied the Spear Hero and his party looked to be in a state of disbelieve, not able to fathom the Shield Hero steamrolling the Hero of the Spear so. More then a few of them looked like they might make an issue of it, but they seemed to think better of it as the Shield Hero's gaze settled on them.

The same could be said for the state of the girls in the Spear Hero's party: disbelieve and anger. That Bitch looked especially venomous right now. Not able to help himself, even if he himself knew it was childish, Naofumi pulled down his eyelid and stuck his tongue out at her. The reddening of her face, the gritting of her teeth and veins of anger that popped out of her skin made it clear that his taunt struck home. Naofumi felt another surge of vindictive satisfaction.

Clang!

Naofumi looked back down, Motoyasu's attempt to strike at his ankle with his Legendary Spear dragging his attention back to the Spear Hero. "You really don't know when to give up," the Hero of the Shield grumbled. "Hey, Village Elder, would you mind declaring me the victor yet?"

Said Village Elder stepped forward, a smile playing on his lips, even if it was barely visible through the man's beard. "The duel is over, and the result is clear. The Shield Hero is the victor!"

With that declaration Naofumi removed his foot from Motoyasu's chest and stepped back. Motoyasu attempted to rise to his feet, but two somethings dropping to his chest stopped him.

It were two potions. "Here, a Burn Heal and one of the highest quality Antidotes I have been able to make," Naofumi said, then turned around and began to walk away.

"Do you…think…I'd accept…help from you!" Motoyasu shouted, then began to cough and hack.

"I don't care if you accept my help or not," Naofumi said drily, looking back over his shoulder. "I gave you those potions for purely selfish reasons. You may be a sanctimonious, self-righteous moron, someone who is being played without realizing it and all around pain in the ass, but you aren't evil. If I just let you die, I'd feel guilty, no matter how much you might deserve it. By giving you those potions, I have absolved myself of any responsibility if you die, so I'll have no need to feel guilty. Take that as you will."

With that, the Shield Hero continued, heading back to his party.

"Naofumi, I swear I will surpass you, and next time I'll crush you like the piece of trash you are!" the Spear Hero shouted a last, futile comeback at Naofumi's back, even as he, in spite of himself, reached for the potions he had been given.

A snort in return was all the answer he got.

"Good luck with that."

Unseen by anyone, even the ninja's that had been there earlier and had made themselves scarce the moment that duel had been declared, a person dressed from head to toe in black was hiding up in a tree a little ways away. They had observed the entire match, having recorded it with a record crystal. If someone had been able to see beneath their mask, they would have seen the hateful glare aimed at the Shield Hero's back.

From one blink to the next, they disappeared like a gust of air in the wind, never having been seen. Beneath the cloth of their ninja-like get-up, a pendant made up from a sword, spear and bow jangled, the only sign of that person's allegiance.

Some people would not be happy with this, not at all.


Later that day, as they were about to go to bed at the Inn and having finished their studying, Naofumi could be found going through his Item Box, checking out their loot of the last few days. There was a lot of materials that he could use for compounding. There was even a respectful number of pieces of silver mixed in, together with a few gems and ores. All in all, not a bad haul.

Then his eyebrows raised as he spied a drop with a rather odd name in the list. "The Laundry-Drying Pole?" he questioned the English translation of the name out loud, the item appearing from his shield and dropping into his lap.

It was a sword, sheath included. Said sheath was deep blue with golden accents, as was the hilt. It was long, but Naofumi did not appreciate how long until he withdrew the blade from its sheath, revealing a gleaming, slightly curved, single edged katana that was a meter and a half long.

It's Japanese name was the Monohoshi-zao, a name that was vaguely familiar to him, but he couldn't quite place it. Naofumi appraised the blade with his Status Magic.

[Monohoshi-zao – Base Attack 15 – Enchantments: none]

Hmm, not particularly impressive, all things considered. The Magic Steel Swords Shirou and Raphtalia used had considerably more attack power and considering the length of the blade, using it effectively in battle would take a lot of practice.

Disappointed, Naofumi was about to put the blade away, until he heard a gasp. He looked up, and he did not lock eyes with Shirou, since said demi-human was staring at the blade in his hands, wide-eyed and frozen.

"What?" Naofumi asked, blinking at Shirou's odd reaction.

Shirou hesitated for a short moment, before opening his mouth and explaining his reaction. Naofumi was sceptical of the explanation, but…

"Here, take it. I am sure you will be able to put it to good use," Naofumi said, handing the sword over to Shirou, who accepted it gratefully.

He nonetheless chose to entrust the blade, the Monohoshi-zao, to Shirou. Naofumi wasn't quite sure what if any good it would do, but he was sure it wouldn't do any harm either. The Shield Hero did not, and could not, have known it, but the mere sight of the Monohoshi-zao had, in that moment, set Shirou down the path of swordsmanship for real.