INTERLUDE:

THOSE LEFT BEHIND

"So, this is Zeltoble…"

Sadeena smirked as they walked down the streets. "Yep. So, what do you think?"

"…It looks cleaner than I thought, given its reputation."

Sadeena laughed at Itsuki, though not mockingly. The Bow Hero had come with her once they had been debriefed by Mirelia, using the teleportation item. "Zeltoble has its dark side, but it's a nation of commerce. The rich want to walk down clean streets, so they pay people to clean them. Honestly, Faubrey or Siltvelt would be worse. Faubrey's polluted by what you'd call heavy industrialisation, while Siltvelt…well, for all that it is a democracy, in truth, the power is mostly held by the nobles, and they only care about the parts of the city they walk down, for the most part. Q'Ten Lo…I was talking to Raphtalia about it. She said it was like Japan during the Tokugawa Shogunate, with the isolationist policies from that era, if that means anything to you?"

"It does," Itsuki said. "I think my timeline diverged from the others mostly around the end of the Bakumatsu, given what I heard. You ever want to go back to Q'Ten Lo?"

"Sometimes I do. The fact remains that, if they do decide that Raphtalia needs to die, then they will send assassins, like the Shadows, but stronger. And while I have failed her once, I refuse to fail her again. Her parents wouldn't let me rest in peace, otherwise. Still, for now, I can make up for not being there at Lurolona. I can continue my mission here. And…you're still willing to help?"

Itsuki nodded. "My level may be pretty high, but as a hero, I've pretty much hit rock bottom. Helping you buy back these slaves and freeing them will be a good start to get back into the game, so to speak. And given what you said about the consequences…I guess you can help me in learning how to deal with those."

Sadeena looked to him sadly. "…Itsuki…Harry and Raphtalia told me about your world, about what your technology allows you to do, to play these…computer games, I believe they were called? They sound like intriguing things, but…do they prepare you for consequences?"

Itsuki was struck by the question, before he said, "Well, it depends on the game. Some RPGs are linear, especially those created in my home country, Japan. Others have decisions and consequences, not unlike tabletop RPGs, but even those games only have so many choices you can make."

"Hmm. Fair enough. So in other words, limited choices, almost like a play with multiple versions of scenes that you can choose, but still limited," Sadeena said. "Unfortunately, life isn't like that. Especially when you have power to cause disruption the way you and I can. And you can't foresee all consequences. No, all you can do is try to consider them. It's not easy, and only something experience can give you. But I'll do what I can to teach you." She then blinked. "Wait a moment…"

Itsuki looked in the direction she was looking, at a café, where a girl with silvery hair and blue eyes was sitting, eating, her expression dull and lifeless. She was in her mid-teens, apparently. "Who's that?" he asked quietly.

"S'yne Lokk, the Vassal Weapon wielder from a destroyed world," Sadeena said. "She's the one I told you about."

Itsuki's heart went out to the girl. The expression was much like the one he had caught himself wearing in the mirror after his party's betrayal. But with him, the trauma was betrayal, and left to Kyo's non-existent mercies. That girl had seen her entire world die. Itsuki literally couldn't comprehend such a thing. Imagine an entire world of people snuffed out like a candle, millions if not billions of people wiped out? And S'yne's sister betrayed that world. That would only compound it.

The girl might be a Vassal Hero, but she needed a hero herself. And while he had to admit his heart belonged to Rishia, even if he needed to prove himself worthy of her, he still wanted to help S'yne. So he made the decision, and walked over to her, sitting down in front of her.

She looked up, blinking slightly. "Hi," Itsuki said quietly. "I, uh…sorry if I seemed rude, but…Sadeena here told me and the other heroes about you. I thought you needed someone to…well, not talk to, but to be there for you. I'm Itsuki Kawasumi, the Bow Hero of this world."

S'yne peered at him, before she said, her voice occasionally crackling with radio-like static, "S'yne Lokk…Vassal $3w1ng W3ap0n Hero…"

"I wish I'd been there," Keel groused to Ren as she was lying in bed. "I just feel so damn useless lying here after what that damned monster did to me."

"Keel…remember what happened to Rifana," Wyndia said. The dog demi-human had stayed at Lurolona during the Spirit Tortoise battle, and had basically become the nurse for Keel. "Harry was probably worried about losing you as well, and I'm sure Raphtalia would have too."

"Agreed," Ren said. "I've elected to guard Lurolona until Harry returns. Her Majesty and Éclair are leading the Melromarc army back, so only Elrasa is back here. And she's teaching the Fayon siblings after I got them back from the castle. Besides, from what I saw at the Wave at Cal Mira, you're a good fighter, Keel. All you need to do is rest and recover properly."

"She's a bit difficult when it comes to telling her what to do," Lord van Reichnott, a mild-looking man with glasses, observed with a rueful smile. The man was partly in charge of Lurolona, especially when Éclair Seatto, Harry and Raphtalia were absent.

"What happened to the Spear Hero?" Wyndia asked.

"I handed him over to Lieutenant Itami at the castle. For now, he's under house arrest at the castle while he recovers. He was still pretty much comatose when I left him. The sad thing is, he was tricked into helping Kyo."

Wyndia scowled, looking away. "If it weren't for the fact that the Waves get worse if a Cardinal Hero dies, I'd have left him to die. I'm sorry, but…I can't find it in my heart to forgive him for murdering Father. Between that damned princess hanging off his arm, his listening only to his lust, and that lord tricking him into killing my father…"

"I know, Wyndia," Ren said. "Honestly, I want to slap him a few hundred times for his idiocy and gullibility. But…sometimes, I wonder…what if Harry and Raphtalia hadn't gotten me to think of this world as being real, and not a game? I might very well have been the one to kill your father."

"…But you didn't. I remember when I first met you, how cold you seemed, and yet…you also seemed concerned about me when you asked those questions about Father and I," Wyndia said. "Ren, you're a good person. A bit cold and aloof, but…I get the feeling that, at times, you're not good with people."

"No…no, I'm not," Ren admitted. "But I still want to help them."

"Well, that's what matters, isn't it?" Keel asked. "Don't get me wrong, we're mostly fans of the Shield Hero here, but you and Itsuki, you guys have been good to us. Itsuki's main problem was those arseholes in his party. But you've been trying to help us."

"Like I said, Harry and Raphtalia were the ones who gave Itsuki and me a wake-up call," Ren said. "Anyway, if you're up to it, maybe we can watch Elrasa with the Fayon siblings."

"True. And I can still do the meditation stuff while I'm recovering," Keel said. "Well, let's go…"

Ren was always impressed by the skill of the Fayon siblings as they fought Elrasa. While Atla was most impressive on account of her blindness, Fohl was no slouch. Then again, Ren reminded himself that the brother had spent at least a few months fighting in Zeltoble's arenas. Even if that had only been the beginning, it was enough to learn quite a bit.

Of course, neither of them held a candle to Elrasa. For all that Ren was familiar with the martial arts story trope of an ancient master beating the younger fighter through experience and power, it was another to see it in action. Elrasa flowed from strike to strike like water, with a grace that her age belied. In some ways, it was like the choreographed moves in martial arts movies back home, and yet, it was a very different dance, one that was more decisive and less showy, and yet beautiful in its own way.

It reminded him somewhat of his spar with Éclair, and the earlier one he'd had with her mentor. He was glad that Harry and Raphtalia had knocked some sense into him. Otherwise, he wouldn't have taken his defeat well.

His guardians had instilled in him a competitive nature that he hadn't shaken off, even if he tended to channel it into VRMMORPGs rather than study. Not that he was an intellectual slouch, or that his grades ever suffered. But his guardians, while not actually cruel, weren't exactly affectionate either. Nowhere near as bad as Harry had hinted his own guardians to be, but Ren's guardians had pushed and pushed and pushed him. Instead of nurturing his intellect, they force-fed it fertiliser. It was little wonder he escaped into VRMMORPGs, preferring to do things on his own.

Then again, it wasn't like Ren's story was unique in Japan. Even in Itsuki and Kitamura's timelines, to say nothing of what Raphtalia said about Mahoutokoro, education in Japan was high-pressure. Harry fared better, being British, even if his education in mundane areas were a touch potted.

Still, Ren was glad to have Harry and Raphtalia as friends, and Itsuki had grown into one soon after. Hell, Ren and Harry seemed to share the title of being a leader. Harry had more experience in fighting in reality, but he had less gaming experience than Ren, and while Ren couldn't consider himself a good leader, he at least understood gaming and how it related to this world. And he wouldn't say no to Raphtalia taking the lead either. She had the most experience of this world, having spent the first decade of her life here. And she had a charisma about her.

Ren had been told, albeit in private, about Raphtalia's lineage. To think she was a princess, the heir to a distant empire's throne. He could certainly believe it at times. Most of the time, she was gentle and friendly, even casual, a far cry from the more formal manners of even the friendlier nobles here. But in battle, she was serious and focused. Usually calm, but heaven help you if she got pissed off. Hot or cold, her anger was lethal.

Speaking of demi-human royalty, he thought as Atla was sent flying by a blow from Elrasa. He managed to catch the Hakuko demi-human. She looked up to him, as much as she could with her eyes closed, and nodded, giving him a smile of gratitude. "Thank you, Ren," she said.

"You okay?" Ren asked, even as Wyndia healed her.

"Elrasa is pulling her punches," Atla said, dusting herself off, even as Fohl was knocked away, albeit in another direction, Wyndia hurrying over to heal him. "Otherwise, I would have more than mild bruises. And compared to what pain I felt prior to my treatment, this is trivial. But thank you for your concern."

"I'm guarding this village until Harry returns, as is my party," Ren said. "The safety of everyone here is my concern. Besides, capable though you are, you're still a blind girl who was only recently treated for a congenital disease. I can't help but worry."

"…I'm glad you are sincere," Atla said. "If I didn't have the ability to sense your life-force and emotions, such words could be considered condescending. But you're just genuinely concerned."

"I am. Especially after what happened to…well, most of the inhabitants of this village," Ren said. "And given what you went through, losing your parents, and your brother fighting for you in Zeltoble…"

"Well, thank you, but…I am working my way past that. You're very kind, Ren. Never lose that…"

"I'm sorry to say this, but you done goofed, Motoyasu."

Youji sighed as he watched the blonde cringe at the blunt assessment. Motoyasu had only just woken up in the guest room, and Youji had questioned him. "But…I didn't do anything wrong! He tricked me! Kyo tricked me!"

"Hey, nobody's debating that, Motoyasu. Kyo did manage to trick you, and honestly, Harry's been kicking himself that he didn't describe Kyo to you. And I'm sure being used as a battery by Kyo hasn't been fun." Youji shook his head, sitting down on the bed next to the blonde. "But the fact remains that thousands of people are dead. And I'm sure there's a few amongst the survivors who are clamouring for your head on a spike."

"They wouldn't do that!"

"Why not? Many in Melromarc were eager to convict Raphtalia, my adopted daughter, on the strength of the ex-king and the Pope's accusations…including you, I should add." He looked to Motoyasu solemnly. "It ain't so fun being on the receiving end, isn't it?"

"…No. But you're having fun salting the wound."

"…I can't confirm or deny that, even if that's not all the reason I'm doing this," Youji said with another sigh. "Motoyasu, your problem is twofold. Firstly, you have or at least had this delusion that this place is basically a game-based afterlife. It isn't. Secondly, you've got to stop thinking with your dick. There's being chivalrous to the ladies, and then there's taking their side even when there's evidence to the contrary. The former king at least had the excuse that she was his daughter, I can understand him not wanting to believe she was a bitch. But beauty doesn't always mean goodness. And being a hero doesn't mean having a harem gathered around you. It doesn't mean pursuing fame or fortune. It means doing the right thing, even when nobody else will."

"But I tried to do that!" Motoyasu complained. "And it still backfired! I was trying to do the right thing by the King and the Pope, only to discover they were assholes! Everything I try to do as a hero, I fuck up! The best thing I did was killing that Wave Boss at Cal Mira, and even then…that poor girl Rifana died, and I couldn't do a damn thing to those Death Eaters afterwards!"

"Then be better, Motoyasu!" Youji snapped. He ran a hand through his hair as he calmed himself. "Look, the Cardinal Weapons have so much potential. What's more, if a Cardinal Hero dies, the Waves become stronger, and besides, Fitoria wants you guys to cooperate. And when a T-Rex-sized Chocobo wants you to do something, you pay attention. Look, don't view this as rock bottom. View this as a fresh start. You'll need party members who aren't just eye candy, but who'll have your back. You need to get over this notion that your party is also your harem. Honestly, I couldn't give a damn if you were sleeping around, as long as it's sane, safe and consensual, not to mention you not breaking anyone's hearts. But you need to take your duty as the Spear Hero more seriously from now on."

Motoyasu, after a moment, shook his head. "I…I don't know how to do that. Though now that I come to think about it…Itsuki's own party ditched him. Is he okay?"

"As much as he can be. He's got Sadeena as his chaperone while he's in Zeltoble, and from what I've heard of her, she's a good woman." Youji sighed. "Motoyasu, I can't pretend I'm at all happy about what you did to my adopted daughter, or your lusting after a girl who is basically my adopted granddaughter. Don't get me wrong, admiring moe is one of the finest past-times of any otaku, but Hedy's a daughteru, not a waifu. But…you're not a truly bad guy, just in dire need of a clue or two. We can work with that. Like I said, view this as a fresh start. Allow us to help you, okay?"

Motoyasu just stared at the floor. Youji sighed again, wondering if he should have the guards be on suicide watch. As much as this blonde idiot aggravated him for his actions, he wasn't really malicious. He was just an idiot. Time would tell if he improved over that…

INTERLUDE ANNOTATIONS:

So, there you have it. An insight into what the others have been up to.

Now, keep in mind, there's no shipping with Sadeena or S'yne for Itsuki here (this story is strictly Itsuki/Rishia). Sadeena is basically his big sister figure and mentor. As for S'yne, Itsuki, having heard of her story, wants to reach out to her, console her as a big brother figure. Incidentally, I found the way her words portrayed in the light novels lacking, whereas I like how they had parts of her sentences crackling with static or sounding like they've gone through a ring modulator (basically the same device they use to create Dalek voices in Doctor Who) in the anime, so I wanted to convey that. All of which means that S'yne will probably join Lurolona a little earlier than in canon.

As for Ren, given that he's closest to Harry and Raphtalia, it seems natural that he guards Lurolona in their absence, and that he's become adored by the inhabitants. He's still struggling with working with others, but he's at least got friendships forming with those he is protecting. Plus, I don't really remember him interacting much with the Fayon siblings in canon, so him having a friendly bond with Atla was nice.

As for Motoyasu, I was tempted to bash him to hell and back. Instead, I had Youji Itami, from one otaku to another, tell him off, but also tell him to be better. Time will tell if that sticks.

Anyway, this is the last chapter that I wrote prior to publishing this as a full story. The next chapter has been partly written, but as it involves Yomogi, a character I detest, well…it's a slog, to say the least. But hopefully, you've enjoyed the ride so far.

Review-answering time! L: Yeah, Naofumi remarking on being accused of rape was a deliberate allusion to his canon fate. As for the Vassal Weapons being linked to certain Cardinal Weapons, I had no idea, but each Cardinal Weapon and possibly their associated Vassal Weapons did originate on separate worlds prior to their merging, from what little I know of some upcoming lore in the light novels. As for Raphtalia's Miko dress, she'll be keeping that hidden in the Expanded Trunk for now. The uber-Shadows of Q'Ten Lo won't have followed them to this world, so she's safe for now. But the next chapter opens with her going back to her usual outfit. But she intends to put it on when she decides she's going to take on Q'Ten Lo…

No numbered annotations this time.