Hidden Horrors and Agendas

Mansion of Idol Rabier

As expected of a nobleman, at least one that was clearly as self-loving as Rabier, the mansion Darius found himself in was more than a little fancy. It sat atop a rocky hill which used the natural stone wall as protection, keeping the five floor mansion safe from outside attack. The building itself was a typical U-shape design with a strange obelisk sitting in the middle of the courtyard. As for the inside, it was decorated much as the cardinal hero had expected with numerous furnishings, green carpeting, ornate walls and ceilings with a large staircase in the main entrance, and a fancy table that was likely longer than it needed to be.

"So tell me," said Rabier as he drank a glass of likely very pricey red wine, "How did one such as yourself acquire those abilities? I've heard and seen many forms of magic in my time but never have I seen someone call upon ghostly weapons from thin air."

"Learned it from some old ruins my master brought me too," explained Darius, trying to sound convincing while also trying not to cringe at the man's overly friendly façade. He wasn't the greatest at reading people but something about this nobleman just screamed danger. "And before you ask, I haven't the slightest idea how to find them again. Once I got the basics down she sent me here with her own magic."

"Yes you did mention being unfamiliar with the kingdom of Melromarc," said Rabier after taking a hearty bite of what appeared to be some kind of steak, "Tell me, where do you hail from?"

"I doubt you've heard of it," said Darius as he took a bite of his own food. His Stat screen allowed him to gauge that the food wasn't poisoned, but he still didn't have much of an appetite being in the same room as Rabier. "It's a land on the other side of the sea, one that would take a lot of time to reach traveling normally."

"How fascinating," said the nobleman as he stroked part of his mustache? 'Cliché much,' thought Darius. "And what sort of errand would require you traveling all the way to Melromarc's capital?" The Armory Hero greatly considered lying about it completely, given that he wanted to be out of there as soon as possible. But at the same time the truth itself conveyed a sense of urgency which anyone would, hopefully, understand. So in the end, he went with the truth, or at least a bit of it.

"My master has tasked me with finding the four cardinal heroes," Darius explained, "They were summoned in Melromarc's capital not long ago."

"Really, the cardinal heroes are in the land of Melromarc," said Rabier as he wiped his mouth with a fancy napkin, "That is an interesting turn of events. But I do wonder why they bothered summoning all four of them."

"That is how it works, isn't it?" Questioned Darius, "four cardinal weapons for four cardinal heroes. Doesn't it take all of them to fight off the threat of the waves of catastrophe?"

"If you can really consider a shield a weapon," scoffed Rabier, "honestly I wonder what those summoners are doing some days. I know the magic is ancient but is it really so hard to only summon three? The sword, bow, and spear heroes should be all we ever need to fend off the waves."

"If that were true then there would only be three cardinal weapons, but since there's a fourth that must mean the shield has some use," said Darius, deciding it best to omit the fact that there were actually five for the moment. Fitoria had warned him ahead of time that most people in this day and age had never heard of the Armory Hero.

"The shield is nothing more than a blight on this land," said Rabier, "He likely only exists because some conniving demi-humans managed to tamper with the ritual. Why else would each incarnation of the shield hero defend them otherwise?"

"Are you saying the other heroes have never defended the demi-humans?" Questioned Darius, "Come to think of it, are y'all at war with demi-humans at the moment?"

"The other heroes stood up and defended proper people," said Rabier with a smile that turned into a sneer, "Demi-humans may look more like people than regular animals but they are still just that, animals. Their only real use in this world is as slaves and beasts of burden. But the Shield Hero wishes to upset that natural order by insisting that we are all equal, that animals are as good as humans! It can only mean that there isn't a human behind that shield but a demon who plots against us all!"

"So I see," said Darius with an impassive face while hiding his right hand under the table. Each word had managed to infuriate him more and more, causing him to tighten his grip on the fork he'd been eating with. Glancing down, he saw that it resembled nothing more than a bent up piece of metal now. He quickly hid it in his inventory before anyone noticed. "Well Shield Hero or not, I still need to reach the cardinal heroes before the waves hit."

"It is true the heroes all tend to form their own parties," said Rabier, "And someone with the ability to summon any weapon they want would be more than beneficial to any one of the heroes. But you know, there is a way you could help all of them in one single act."

"And what would that be," asked Darius, mostly out of curiosity, "I haven't even met them yet, so I'm not sure what kind of help they even need at the moment."

"Why you could eliminate Melromarc's hidden enemy before he has a chance to grow in strength," said Rabier with a smirk that didn't even bother to hide his sadistic intent. "You see while it is true that he doesn't have a proper weapon, the Shield Hero's defense is said to be nigh impregnable against all forms of ordinary attacks. But I don't think even he can stop something he can't see coming."

"Just hold up there," said Darius as he crossed his arms, "Are you telling me to kill the Shield Hero. Kill a person I've never even met or have reason to kill?"

"Have you not been listening," said Rabier, "He is not a man but a devil wielding a shield! He will bring about calamity if left unchecked, that is why the Three Heroes Church opposes his presence here!" Rabier pulled out a silver symbol with spear, bow, and sword jutting out to form a type of arrow with a red jewel in the center. "I can supply you with transportation, supplies, money, anything you could possibly need to locate the devil of the Shield. With your ability to summon weapons out of thin air, you could gain his trust and strike him when he is most vulnerable, earning you rewards and praise from the entirety of Melromarc! The king himself would applaud you for ridding our land of that monster!"

"The king has it out for the Shield Hero?" Questioned Darius with a raised eyebrow.

"If the rumors are to be believed," replied Rabier, "His support of Melromarc's main religion, the Three Heroes Chruch, certainly lends a lot of credibility to it."

"Ain't that something," said Darius as he went over his options in his head. On the one hand, he could outright refuse the ludicrous request he'd just been given and try to walk out right now. But a quick glance at the guards at the door reminded him that the mansion had at least twenty to thirty soldiers he might not be able to fight through if he had this Rabier douche pegged right. He could pretend to go along with the whole scheme and then just not do the deed, which could work assuming he convinced Rabier he was trustworthy enough to not send anyone along.

Problem was, if he did send someone along with him then Darius would need to find a way to get rid of them before they reached the capital. He personally didn't want to kill anyone and even if he did, how long until Rabier decided to send someone else or even come down himself to check on his progress. It was a whole mess of problems. "So what do you say," said Rabier, his voice breaking Darius out of his thoughts, "Are you willing to take this chance to become a hero of the kingdom, the man who slew the devil of the shield?"

"I," the Armory Hero thought quickly, "I'll need a day or two to think it over." Rabier was about to protest that there was nothing to think about but was quickly cut off. "If the Shield Hero is as dangerous as you say, it may take more than a simple dagger in his back to finish him off. If I'm going to take on a job like this, I'll need to insure as many factors are in my favor as possible. You're not wrong in saying this is a once in a lifetime chance, but rewards won't mean much if I die in the process."

"You do make an excellent point," said Rabier, that same irritating smirk reappearing on his face, "monsters and demons are crafty, so it only makes sense you'd want to be prepared beforehand. So how about this, while you're deciding feel free to use one of my guest rooms and my guards will be on standby outside your room should you need anything."

'In other words I'm not going anywhere until I say yes,' thought Darius as he stood up. "You're too kind," he said, "Now it seems to be getting late and I'm a bit tired from all the walking and fighting. So if you've got nothing else for me this evening, I'll be turning in."

"Of course, of course," said Rabier as he signaled his guards, "Show him to one of the guest rooms we've prepared if you would." The guards nodded before Darius followed them out of the dining room and up another flight of stairs. His room turned out to be in one of the mansion's back corners on the top most floor. It wasn't the fanciest room out of the ones he'd seen but it had a comfortable looking bed, a decorated wardrobe, and a polished desk with a chair. Some night clothes had also been laid out on the bed for him.

"We'll be standing by out here should you require anything sir," said one of the guards.

"Sounds good," said Darius, "But what do I do when it's time for you guys to go to sleep?"

"Worry not," said the guard, "We rotate regularly to insure the mansion is guarded at all times. Pearson will be showing up in a couple hours to take over for me, so if you need anything then just talk to him."

"Always good to see security working efficiently," said Darius, "Happy guarding then and good night." He closed the door before heading right over to the one thing he'd hoped his room would have, a window. At first he wondered why it was unlocked until he opened it and looked down. 'Yep, that's a steep drop down to solid stone ground,' he thought, 'no wonder they didn't bother barring the windows and there isn't enough material in here to make a long enough rope. A fall from this height would be almost certain death and even if someone did survive they'd likely be too injured to run.'

It further drove home the point that despite his friendly act, Rabier would not be taking no for an answer. All in all, he was not in an ideal situation and yet, Darius still felt a small smirk tugging at the edge of his mouth. 'How unfortunate for you Mr. Nobleman,' he thought, 'If I'd been just an ordinary adventurer, this might've worked. But you're not dealing with an adventurer.' Darius took a quick look around the outside of the window until he got a view of the corner.

'That spot looks like it'll be out of view of the other windows,' he observed, 'all I need to do is convince them I'm sleeping now.' The Armory Hero went back to the bed then, pretending to change out of his street clothes while also setting up the bed to make it look like someone was sleeping in it. 'I really need to get some adventuring duds, especially now that I don't have any Filolial help to wash my regular clothes.' But as he always told himself, one problem at a time, and now that he was done with basic preparations, he crept back over to the window and looked out to make sure there were no guards below.

"Alright, hero time," he said as he held out his hand towards the corner of the mansion, "Phantom chain claw." A small white portal opened in response as a familiar iron hand on a chain reached out several feet and wrapped around his outstretched arm. Darius then proceeded to climb up on the windowsill and, after taking a few quick breaths and reminding himself not to look down, hopped out of the window. For a few seconds, he was swinging through the air like a hero from all the old medieval stories, before twisting around and hitting the wall.

"Oooooow," Darius cringed in pain as he dangled from the chain, once again happy that his pain was a bit regulated. 'That wasn't so much Robin Hood Prince of Thieves as it was Men in Tights,' he thought as he finally stopped swinging and began slowly lowering himself. True to its description, the chain was able to reach quite a length, allowing the cardinal hero to rappel nearly all the way down before he dropped to the ground. The chain quickly retreated back into the portal from whence it came as its master proceeded to sneak around the side of the mansion with the fewest guards.

'I will say this,' Darius thought as he glanced around a corner, 'One of the few upsides of coming from a police state is you get kinda good at sneaking around.' He waited another few moments for a patrol to pass before bolting beneath a stone arch and into the shadows of another corner. He hugged the wall as he crept along, his eyes open for any sign of movement. But as he was about to turn the corner near the gate, another patrol came around the corner.

Darius instinctively backed up and turned to head in the opposite direction. As luck would have it he spotted a stairway that led underground and took it without hesitation, going down several steps until he was sure no one could spot him and listened. The sound of footsteps and a bit of banter reached his ears, but nothing to indicate anyone had seen him. The Armory Hero took a calming breath as soon as the patrol passed and began to make his way back up, until a noise caught his attention.

The surprised American whirled around and summoned a mace to his hands as he strained his ears. The sound came again and this time he realized what it was, a cough at the bottom of the stairs. Against his better judgement, Darius proceeded further down the rectangular opening in the ground with his weapon at the ready until he reached the bottom. It was dimly lit, but it was more than enough for him to clearly make out what kind of place it was. A horrid, foul-smelling medieval prison.

But it wasn't the state of the cells or even the smell that nearly made Darius puke. It was what he saw when he looked in the cells. "W-who's there," said a timid, frightened voice as a small girl with raccoon ears and a tail sat up. Darius didn't answer at first as he glanced at the other cells, discovering the same story in each cell. 'I knew he probably had a screw loose,' thought the Armory Hero as he put a hand to his mouth, collapsing to one knee as felt his dinner coming back up, 'But this bastard, is keeping and torturing children down here!'

His eyes roamed to the back of the cage then as he spotted another child, a girl with dirty blond hair, weasel ears and a tail. She wasn't just cut and bruised but appeared to be sick as well. "What d-do you want," asked the raccoon girl, finally reminding Darius that he hadn't even said a word.

"What's," He had to clean some of the bile out of his throat, "What's wrong with your friend back there?"

"I'm not sure," said the raccoon girl, "She's just, b-been coughing and running a fever."

"I see," said Darius as he went through his inventory and selected a potion. 'Sorry Fitoria, I know you said to save this for emergencies but I can't very well let an innocent child suffer.' "Give her this, it should at least help." The raccoon girl was clearly reluctant at first, likely weary of humans in general. But eventually, she extended her shaking hands and accepted the healing potion before taking it back to her friend.

The Armory Hero waited silently as she managed to get her friend to slowly drink the concoction, having to stop once or twice when she started coughing. Once she was finished, the raccoon girl made her way back to the cell door. "T-thank you sir," she said as she handed him the empty bottle, "Rifana's been looking terrible for the last couple of days."

"Rifana huh," said Darius, "That's a pretty name. What's your name little one?"

"R-Raphtalia," replied the raccoon girl in a weak voice, as if she hadn't been asked her name in some time.

"Why are you all down here?" Questioned Darius, trying to keep the edge out of his voice.

"Our homes were destroyed in the last wave," explained Raphtalia, "T-then that n-nobleman killed all the a-adults and brought us here. H-he, he's been beating and w-whipping us whenever he feels like it." The little one couldn't hardly take it anymore and broke down in tears. Darius responded instinctively and put a hand on her head, causing the girl to flinch at first.

"It's okay, just let it out," said Darius as he lightly rubbed Raphtalia's head, "You're all very strong, to have survived up to this point."

"C-can I ask who you are," questioned the raccoon girl between sniffles.

"My name is Darius, Darius Saxon," he replied, "I'm not with the nobleman who brought you here."

"Are you h-here to h-help us?" Questioned Raphtalia with a pleading look in her eyes.

"I," Darius thought carefully before answering, "I might be able to help all of you, but not right away. I could sneak past all these guards by myself but not with five or so kids tailing behind me, and I can't fight them all while protecting you either. I hate more than anything to say this, but you'll have to hold on for at least one more day, possibly two."

"But you will help us, w-won't you?" Raphtalia more pleaded than asked.

"I was called here to be a hero," said Darius, "And that's exactly what I plan to do. Just hold on and I promise I'll come up with something." The raccoon girl nodded, some hope actually coming to her eyes as the Armory Hero turned and headed back up the stairs. One plan after another raced through his mind as he retraced his steps back to his assigned room, avoiding the guards along the way as before.

He used his chains to pull himself back up to the window, though he had to make up an excuse about falling out of bed when one of the guards knocked on the door after hearing him hit the floor. He hardly slept afterwards as his mind continued to race for some way, anyway to escape the mansion with the children. Eventually it dawned on him. Whatever the outcome tomorrow, someone was going to die.

The Next Morning

'If I didn't respect actors before I sure do now,' thought the Armory Hero as he found himself yet again in Idol Rabier's dining room, eating a collection of pastries, meats, and eggs for breakfast. 'It's taking everything I have not to dismember this piece of shit right now.' It was only thanks to the fact that he knew he would get what was coming to him later that Darius was able to restrain himself.

"So tell me Mr. Saxon," said Rabier after swallowing a rather large piece of meat, "Have you come to a decision on my offer?"

"I have," said Darius as he laced his fingers in front of him, "As you said yesterday he isn't too strong at the moment, so I'll take you up on your offer. The Shield Hero's days are numbered from this moment onward."

"Oh splendid, absolutely splendid," said the nobleman with a clap of his hands, "And I'm of course ready to provide you with anything you might require for the deed."

"Well then we'd best get started," said Darius with his best smirk, "I've got quite a list and a good bit of planning and examination to do. We are trying to kill a demon after all, even if he's just gotten here. Oh, and I'll need to be paid a small sum upfront, travel expenses and the like."

"I wouldn't expect anything less, but first, a toast," said Rabier as he held up his glass of wine, "To the death of the devil of the shield."

"To the ridding of a monster from this world," added Darius as he drank from his own, which was very watered down. This time his smirk was real as his plan was set into motion. It was going to be a long day, and for some, their last.

Later That Day

The cardinal hero wasted no time after breakfast as he had Rabier show him the mansion's armory where the guards stored their weapons when they weren't on duty. He'd decided to explain some of the basics of his abilities in order to stress the importance that he would need all of the weapons he could get. It was also how he convinced the nobleman to allow him to examine all of the guard's weapons in private during their shift changes, explaining that he needed the highest quality of weapons he could get for himself and for the ones who would be accompanying him. Whenever Rabier would have any doubts about Darius's methods, the Armory Hero would simply demonstrate another form of his abilities or come up with an excuse about limitations until the nobleman was assured that everything was in order.

"I do find it quite amazing really," said Rabier after a while as he stood outside of the armory, "The waves are supposed to bring catastrophe upon us all, yet good fortune has fallen on me and the people of Melromarc. What other force but fate could bring us one capable of destroying the devil of the Shield so soon. Perhaps the world has finally come up with a way to reject him for good."

"Who knows," said Darius as he stepped out of the armory with a set of battle gear Rabier had picked out specifically for him. It consisted of a grey, flexible chest piece with basic shoulder pads, lightly armored gauntlets, long pants with dark brown boots, shin guards and a belt with a few pouches and a lightly decorated sword hanging from it. "I've never really been one to try and guess which direction fate's trying to go. But everyone else seems to think I'd make a decent demon slayer, so why not?"

"Are you certain you want to keep those strange articles of clothing you had on," questioned the nobleman, "They're not very practical for the mission you'll be undertaking and it's unlikely you'll be switching back to them anytime soon."

"Call me sentimental," said Darius as he stored his old clothes with his inventory ability, "They're kinda the only thing I got to remind me of home."

"As you wish," said Rabier, "Now then, you said you'd be needing to learn a couple of skills before departing?"

"Yep," replied Darius, "I've never really driven a wagon myself before and even with a few people going along with me, I can't have them doing all the work. After that I'll need to see the skills of your best guards in order to pick who's coming along. Truthfully I should only be traveling with one other person, but given the length of the journey and the dangers we could face, a four to five person group is likely the better option."

"I must admit I was surprised when you turned down a large armed escort," said Rabier, "But your reasoning seemed more than sound. A lone adventurer happening to catch a ride with a few guards transporting some supplies, it's a believable story."

"Ain't it," said Darius with a forced smile. He'd truthfully bullshitted most of his logic, pulling the majority of it from video games and what little he knew of D&D. But no one had objected so far, likely assuming he knew exactly what he was talking about given that he was an 'adventurer.' "Anyway we're running out of daylight so we'd best get moving." The nobleman was more than happy to oblige as he introduced him to his best carriage driver.

The rest of the day was split between Darius practicing driving, and nearly crashing, a basic wagon and watching a dozen of Rabier's best guards show their skills with varying weapons. By the time they were done, the sun had set and they'd headed back inside. The plan now was to talk final preparations but, little did anyone else know, Darius's were already complete.

"Ah there you are," said Rabier as the cardinal hero entered his office, "dinner should be ready shortly but don't feel the need to wait on me. I need to indulge in a little private matter for a bit."

"I've already eaten actually," said Darius as he closed the door behind him and discreetly locked it, "Figured I'd best now before I lose my appetite."

"Lose your appetite," repeated the nobleman with a raised eyebrow, "is something the matter Mr. Saxon?"

"I'll be leaving tonight," explained Darius, "I've already had the wagon prepped and I've selected who's going along with me. All I need to do now is get a Filolial hooked up."

"Your urgency in wanting to resolve this issue is certainly admirable," said Rabier, "But leaving at this time of night isn't really wise. I'm certain the guards you've selected will say the same thing."

"I didn't say I'd be leaving with any of your guards," said Darius as he narrowed his eyes and finally let the friendly tone in his voice drop, "I'll be leaving with the children you've got imprisoned in those cells beneath the mansion."

"H-how do you know about that," said Rabier as his eyes widened in surprise.

"I got nosy trying to make my way out last night," said Darius, "truth is I was warned ahead of time about your little bullshit church, but even if I hadn't been there's no freakin' way I'd help someone as sketchy as you, especially when it came to harming any of the cardinal heroes. That's why I've just been gathering what I need to get me and those kids out of this madhouse. Of course, all of it was only possible because of you, so thanks for being an overly opportunistic bastard."

"So this whole time you've been, making a fool of me!" Seethed Rabier as he drew the sword at his hip, "I'll make you pay! All allies of the Shield shall die!" The nobleman came at him with a diagonal cut, intending to wound him instead of outright killing him. But the blade never reached his body as Darius caught it between his pointer and middle finger.

"Hate to say it," chided the college student, "But you won't make it far with a replica like this." He twisted his fingers then, causing Rabier's eyes to widen as the sword disappeared. Darius followed up with a nasty left jab to the nobleman's face, knocking him over onto the floor. 'Fitoria did mention I'd get stronger physically when leveling up, but damn this is something else,' he thought as he glanced at his fist for a moment before opening a portal and pulling out a saber. "This is your sword."

"Just," Rabier sneered as he struggled to his feet, holding his now likely broken nose, "Just who do you think you are?!"

"Who," repeated Darius as he used his left hand to summon another one of Fitoria's gifts, a short white cape that went across the back of his neck and had two pieces of cloth hanging from each shoulder, "I'm the fifth and the forgotten of the cardinal heroes, the Armory Hero!"

And the tables have turned as the new hero confronts his first villain! Hello everyone and happy 4th of July, which we're celebrating early here with a chapter out a day earlier than normal! Oh and just to clear up a few questions you all might have about Darius's powers: 1). His 'Imitator' ability is able to copy hand to hand attacks along with weapon attacks which include spells that enhance the body such as 'High Quick' and the like. 2). He can make more than one replica of a weapon, we'll touch more on this in the next chapter. 3). The power of his replicas is affected by his level but he cannot create a replica more powerful or durable than the original. We will also touch more on this later down the line.

Now a quick question from me: Does anyone know for sure which kind of animal Rifana is? Because the wiki says 'weasel' but her appearance screams 'cat' to me. Now then, I hope you've all enjoyed this latest chapter and as always feel free to leave a comment on what you liked/disliked/if you got an answer to the Rifana question or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as the Armory Hero attempts his first act of heroism. 'Til then.