"Talking"
"Thinking"
[Status Magic or other reference to a system or power]
…
After a little more discussion, they headed back to Fitoria's domain. They had three days to prepare themselves. Physically and mentally... for war.
...
The party spent the rest of the day as they did before Fitoria returned earlier. With Raphtalia and Eclair training, the kid's playing their game, which Melty called 'war ball' as a joke about how brutal it was, but they unironically liked the name and adopted it, and Naofumi was working on various things. He was doing things like looking through his drop items and moving them to his [Inventory] since there is no longer a weight limit, create more potions, and work further on the stat upgrade monster seeds. Among the various things Naofumi was doing, one was long overdue. He was looking through everything Erhart and the witch gave him. He had looked through the items before, that was how Raphtalia got her [Mana Blade], but they had a lot on their plate at the time so he didn't look into them too much.
Going through the items now, Naofumi wanted to shoot himself. There were plenty of useful items here. While they would not have been the deciding factor in either the three heroes fight or the battle with the Tyrant Rex, these items had a wide range of uses. Besides Raphtalia's two swords, Erhart also packed a container of cream and a pair of gloves. According to the note, the cream is used to polish bladed weapons. Doing so kept the blade from being negatively affected by the elements and certain magical effects, as well as bolstering its attack for several days, not unlike Naofumi's own [Sharpening]. The gloves granted a large increase in strength based on one's magical potential, but not attack in the wearer. Naofumi considered who'd be best to use these.
The witch's parting items were also great. She packed him a few potions, but were unlabeled. Having used [Inspect] now, he saw many niche potions that he'd likely not pursue in making himself, but were none-the-less of great help. There were potions that gave the user the full effect of 8 hours of sleep, restoring all forms of fatigue. There were also potions of temperature control. They not only allowed the user to stay at a comfortable temperature, but by consequence, left you resistant to all forms of heat and cold for the duration.
Besides the potions, she left them a ring and a fist sized ball. The ring was an accessory with the effect [Monster Repel]. It made monsters want to stay away from you. They had no use for it because it made the kids want to get away from the wearer as well. The ball was something they had already used once before, when approaching Idol's town. It had the effect [Ad Nauseam], which kept any magical effects on the holder in effect past the time such effects should expire. It wasn't that great, though, as it used the users Mp to essentially recast or maintain those effects.
After the first round of training and play was done, Naofumi divided up the items.
Naofumi gave the restful potions to Filo, Teal, and Leon.
"Here, you three. I imagine you will tire yourselves out first."
"Why us specifically?" Teal asked.
"...The plan I'm coming up with requires you three to separate the three heroes from everyone else. If those idiots went down with the army on top of them, one of them might wind up dead."
"Who takes who?" Leon asked eagerly.
"Teal will take on Motoyasu again. He doesn't think for shit, he-"
"Language." Raphtalia interrupted.
"... He doesn't think things through. I have no doubt that you'll think circles around him... and if he uses that shining spear again..."
"Then he screws himself, I see... I admit, I can't wait to hit him again. I'll avenge the cart, Filo." Teal promised.
"Yeah!" Filo was pumped.
"Leon?" Naofumi called.
"Yes?" Leon responded immediately.
"I can trust you not to kill Ren, right?"
Leon could not contain his grin. "Absolutely."
Teal had to ask. "But he has that anti-dragon skill. Wouldn't it be better if-?"
"Teal, trust in me. I won't lose." Leon said, showing a little of his dragon pride he had shelved since coming here.
Teal wanted to trust her brother, but common sense told her it wasn't a smart move.
"So, that leaves Filo to take on Itsuki?" Raphtalia questioned.
"I could fight him again? Someone has to guard Melty. Who better than Filo?" Monti suggested.
"...I've thought about it and no... Itsuki was able to get on the pirate ship the moment the boss spawned, remember? Then that [Phasing Arrow], the long range... It's clear that Itsuki's skill set is based on creating distance and firing at range. I don't doubt you, Monti, but Filo has the speed to stick to Itsuki and dodge his arrows. As an archer, his defense is probably the worst of the heroes."
Filo seemed not to mind, she had no opinion. Naofumi then handed Monti, Eclair and Melty the climate control potions.
"This helps regulate temperature. Because of that, it lessens fire damage a bit."
"And fire damage is prevalent in large group battles." Melty reasoned.
"Yeah. I want Monti and Eclair on 'princess protection' duty. At least until the real fighting breaks out." Naofumi joked.
"I am not weak anymore! My spells are quite strong, I can fight!" Melty felt they were belittling her.
Naofumi made sure she knew that wasn't the case. "Melty, they want you and me dead. You have a target on you. Everyone besides me and you are not a priority and only gain priority based on how hard they make it to get to us. The have some control of how much they can chew off, we don't."
Naofumi felt it was akin to aggro and ads. Essentially, Naofumi and Melty were the bosses. Killing them was 'winning'. So as long as the others didn't make themselves a priority, they won't be.
"Still, we can't take the whole army." Eclair argued.
"I can. I'm the shield hero. We hide behind wall after wall, skill after skill. I have Sp potions still. We last until the real fighting begins, then you take Melty to the queen." Naofumi explained.
"This isn't foolproof, it can fail." Eclair pointed out.
"It can, but we have nothing better. If we wait to engage after the others arrive, then the three idiots get to fight in that battle. We can't worry about failure, we need to just do everything possible to succeed." Naofumi dismissed her.
Eclair relented. She hated having Melty's life at risk, but all they had left is risks.
"Eclair. What kind of magic do you have?" Naofumi asked.
"Oh, well... I have affinity with light and support, but my abilities in magic are subpar."
"What support magic do you know?"
"I only know [Speed Up]. I only ever needed it for the brief initial advantage."
"Perfect, then here." Naofumi handed her the [Ad Nauseam Orb]. "When the queen's army comes into view, speed yourself up and run Melty there. I'll help as much as I can."
He went to put the [Monster Repel Ring] back in the bag.
"Melty should probably wear that during the fight, right...?" Monti suggested.
"Wha-Why? It'll only help with the few mounted units, it-..." Naofumi went to shoot Monti down, but caught the look in his eyes.
There was a serious look to them. After a moment, Naofumi realized why he suggested that. He looked to Fitoria who wasn't paying attention to them, then turned back and gave Monti a nod. He handed to ring to Melty.
"Don't put it on until that day, otherwise Filo won't let you sleep on her." Naofumi joked.
The party exchanged awkward looks between them, finally Raphtalia went to ask, "What was-"
"Drop it." Naofumi said quickly.
Raphtalia knew Naofumi and Monti must have good reasons, the kids thought the same. The family didn't question further, but Melty and Eclair wanted to know still. Naofumi kept the gloves for himself for now.
During the down time between training, Leon began his lessons with Fitoria in drawing out Gaelion's voice. Leon showed a lot of patience as he was insulted a lot during this time. He seemed to not be good at doing this. It was far different from casting spells, which came so naturally to him. In fact, his natural talent meant he hadn't struggled as much as others prior to this moment. So when he had to put real effort into this, it was all the more difficult for him. This was made even worse by Fitoria not doing very much to help him outside of giving him some basic pointers. She instead opted to speak with and advise Filo while doing as little as possible to help Leon as she previously agreed.
With Filo and Leon occupied, the kids never returned to their game that day. Naofumi decided to test out all the trial seeds with Teal's help, a few of them actually working out as wanted. They gave drops that seemed like they were the ingredients that they had been looking for. They began to try to make the stat potions in earnest. Monti had little he could do, so he read more of his intermediate grimoire. He quickly discovered the thing the Cerberus provided him. He was able to read his book, while also fully paying attention to Fitoria giving Filo instructions, while also listening to Naofumi and Teal as they brewed potions.
He had gained the ability to pay attention to more things, but unlike simply gaining better multi-tasking skills, it was as if he had three minds, each able to pay complete attention to something else. With his bad multi-tasking, it was a godsend, but that still meant that he couldn't really go beyond three tasks without struggling again. He was thrilled by the news and began to have one of his minds come up with ways to use this, while one read his book and the last paid attention to Fitoria. He imagined his ability to give orders during a wave would be much better now. However, he had an even better idea. One that was both very safe, but also required him to do things he didn't want to do. In a way, this ability allowed him to have one mind dedicated to worrying. That wasn't good, but that didn't mean he'd stop doing so.
Raphtalia and Eclair kept up their training, both seeing it as very useful. For Raphtalia, Eclair was a proper swordsmen, giving her insight into how to actually use the blade properly. Up to this point, she was completely self-taught and that lead to certain bad habits that Eclair was quick to exploit and force her to correct. For Eclair, Raphtalia had the stats and spirit to really push her and help get her muscles back into shape from her time stuck in prison. She was surprised by some of the intuition Raphtalia possessed as it came to the use of a sword, some things Raphtalia learned correctly despite not having any form of guidance. Still, there were just as many faults in her form as there were merits and polishing Raphtalia's swordplay would take far longer than the three days they had.
Melty alone had nothing to do. She eventual wound up next to Monti, taking advantage of his ability to have a full conversation while not subtracting from his reading. She figured this was the best way to not be alone, while also not being in the way. She was determined not to be a bother or burden.
The family eventually had dinner and settled down in the evening. They all read from their grimoires, except Leon, who opted to continue trying to draw upon Gaelion. Fitoria looked at the book Filo was reading in disgust.
"What? Why read?" Fitoria asked.
"To learn magic." Filo answered, trying to keep track of her place.
"But you can use magic without books..." Fitoria didn't get it.
"Filo knows, but this is a little faster... even though it's really boring." Filo admitted.
"Hmm, you know how to read?" Fitoria was doubtful.
"Of course Filo does. Mom and dad taught all of us."
"...Seems like a waste of time. You could just train instead." Fitoria concluded.
"Are you saying that you can't read, Fitoria?" Raphtalia asked.
"...I think I used to be able to, but that was a really long time ago." Fitoria admitted.
"Would you want to relearn?" Raphtalia offered, trying to be friendly.
"No. There isn't anything I desire in books." Fitoria stated, before leaving as to avoid further explanation.
Naofumi made it a point to finish the rest of the beginner support spells, but only after gaining his intermediate heal spell. He and Raphtalia read at each other's back, using each other for support and warmth, as always. He read for a time before he realized it was dark and they needed to sleep soon. He didn't know how Raphtalia would sleep. She faced her nightmare, but it was nothing compared to the woman she was now.
It was to his surprise he saw she seemed to have no issue and her mind seemed so clear now.
The kids turned in early, Eclair herself did too, wanting to start early tomorrow. Fitoria was still not around after being asked if she wanted to learn to read. He stopped Raphtalia and they went to a nearby tree, just far enough away from the kids to speak.
"Are you okay?" Naofumi had to ask.
"You don't have to ask. I know that if something was wrong, I'd merely need to say something and you would shift the mountains and seas to see it fixed." Raphtalia replied, the same sweet smile on her face.
"Okay... I just thought that you might want to talk." Naofumi said disappointingly.
"I'd love to, but not because I'm weak." Raphtalia reassured him.
Naofumi immediately went to correct her. "I never sa-"
"I know, I'm talking about me... I guess I wanted that monster to be this big unrelenting monster of great power, because that was what it was in my head. I felt disappointed at first. If it wasn't that strong, then I was weaker than I ever imagined before..." Raphtalia spoke.
"But that only proves how much stronger you are now." Naofumi assured her.
"I know, I get that now." Raphtalia told him.
The two came together, him leaning back against the tree, her leaning back against him. They looked out into the misty fields, to the filolials, to the party. It was a good feeling to be completely at peace again.
"I do have a question." Raphtalia broke the silence.
"About Monti's suggestion?" Naofumi clarified.
"Yes." Raphtalia responded.
"...If I told you it'd be better if you didn't know, would you trust the two of us?" Naofumi asked.
"Of course." Raphtalia dropped it immediately and went back to staring into the night sky.
"..." They were both quiet a moment.
"You'd just drop it, just like that?" Naofumi asked in disbelief.
"I've told you before, I know the person you really are. Your actions are driven by a need to protect. You are not this negative image you have of yourself. You asked me to drop it to protect me, or Monti, or both of us, from something. So it's dropped." Raphtalia answered confidently.
"Thank you. No one has ever given me so much trust before. No one has ever held me in such a high regard. You give me peace and support. Like you said before, I think so little of myself..., but I think a lot about you... and the kids... and you all think highly of me. So maybe I'm that that bad."
Finishing that thought, he surprised Raphtalia with a kiss that became more.
Off with the kids, Melty had yet to fall asleep and had been trying to hear their conversation, hoping she'd hear why she'd need the [Monster Repel Ring], but heard nothing about it. As she kept spying on them, they were suddenly kissing, a lot. Melty was embarrassed and was now watching the pair. She knew she should look away, but she also wasn't going to do that. Teal woke a moment later from the increased pheromones and looked to see her parents making out and Melty watching.
"No peeking." Teal whispered.
Teal nudged Filo, who woke to the same sight. She watched a moment before understanding enough and dragging Melty under the sheets.
"No thinking, only sleep." Filo said, not fully awake.
...
Queen's war tent that evening
...
The queen's forces had marched slowly, gathering more forces added in secret. They were resting for six hours before resuming. She had just received word that lord Reichnott and his men had arrived. They had yet to contact him and was pleased he had somehow known to join her forces. He had requested an audience, which she granted.
But she wasn't expecting three people to enter her tent. Those three being Van, Ake and Melty's shadow. The queen looked at the shadow a moment, recognizing which one she was.
"What happened to Melty!?"
"My queen, be at ease. Princess Melty is safe with the shield hero and dame Seaetto, I assure you." The shadow answered with a bow.
"Then why are you not with her?" The queen questioned.
"Extraordinary circumstances, I assure you." They responded.
"May I?" Van asked.
"Proceed." The queen granted.
"The shield hero was made aware of the full situation and when faced with this task took the advice of a defected shadow to be proactive and assassinate lord Idol Rabier." Van reported.
"A defected shadow? From the church?" The queen asked in suspicion.
"It seems this shadow was converted by the knight, Fitts, the man the church blames for the greater lords' assassination. He has survived all trials and brought much news to Briarhaven, and therefore to us."
The queen smiled, "He has shown unrivaled fortitude under these trying circumstances... How did the assassination go?" The queen asked.
The shadow answered. "Former lord, Idol Rabier was slain in single combat. There was also a church shadow, they could not be persuaded and so was eliminated as well. However, the beast said to be sealed in that town was unleashed and did heavy damage to the town, the shield hero and the others led it away, while we did what we could. Idol's forces are not only leaderless, but in horrible shape. They will not see the field."
"This shadow's suggestion led to a sound victory then. They'd never lose so much for a lie... So that means the source of this information is legitimate and needed, but first, Melty?"
Ake spoke "Um, y-your majesty... until just a few days ago, I was in the shield hero's party. He could not give me all the details at the time, but they are safe in some strange way."
"And who are you to be partied with the shield hero?" The queen questioned.
"O-Oh... Um, I joined the shield hero during one of the waves. That's why he trusted me enough to allow me to join his party again when princess Melty was attacked."
"You said, 'was' before? As in, you are no longer a member of his party? Why? I was told he had communication abilities, which would make keeping you in his party the obvious strategy." The queen was seeking answers.
"He had to remove most people, he had to answer a wave. If we stayed in his party, we'd have all been called to the wave with him." Ake answered promptly, not fumbling his words this time.
"What? A wave?" The queen asked with much doubt.
"I don't have all the details, but he managed to find an ally that can move him great distances. They took Naofumi to a dragon hourglass to receive class upgrades and had the misfortune of needing to repel a wave right afterward." Ake answered as best he could.
"And Melty was with them? In the wave?" The queen was clearly worried.
"I can't know for sure, your majesty. The shield hero did pass along a vital message though." Ake prompted.
"That being?" The queen asked.
"In four more days, he and Briarhaven plan to engage the enemy." Ake explained.
The queen did not immediately react. She put up her fan to hide her lips and thought deeply. After a moment, she began to think aloud.
"Briarhaven, the shield hero, ourselves, lord Wymarc... and the loss of Idol. If done correctly, this may be less trouble then we first imagined."
"There are two worrying pieces of news, though." Van offered.
"Those being?" The queen asked again.
"They have the three other heroes on their side and their parties, due to their ignorance. In addition... the pope has the holy weapon replica."
The queen's fan did little to hide her expression.
"That alone... This will be an incredible hardship for us all." Her voice was grave.
She spoke a little longer to the three of them, then dismissed Van and Ake, but not the shadow. The queen thought in silence for several minutes before speaking with the shadow again.
"It's honestly far less important right now, but I must stay on top of all things. What else can you report? On the shield hero, Melty and so on?" The queen asked broadly.
"...There is a lot. I feel I failed Princess Melty by not failing you. I left Melty in the dark and in so doing lost most of her trust. I am unaware if that loss of trust extends to you." The shadow admitted.
The queen hid her face and said nothing.
"Princess Melty was able to make the shield hero hesitate to leave, though it took a lot to do so. I believe retaining him is not a lost cause, despite all that has happened." The shadow continued.
Again, the queen simply hid her face and said nothing.
"...The other issue that needs to be addressed is that the shield hero firmly desires the death of the other three heroes now. I worry denying that while retaining him will be a delicate act." The shadow cautioned.
The queen spoke now. "Why would he want their deaths? His fellow heroes?"
"...The three other heroes intercepted us near Briarhaven and fought us, forcing us to retreat. At one point, each of the heroes were a single moment from slaying one of his children. His is now a father's anger and therefore not easily calmed."
"I knew playing house with monsters was going to cause more problems than comfort for him at some point. We'll need to begin to replace the shield hero's party with worthwhile adventurers." The queen suggested.
"May I speak freely, my queen?" The shadow asked.
"Granted." The queen said quickly.
"...They are not 'playing' or 'pretending' and the moment you try a single thing against his family, you will regret it. He probably won't kill you due to Princess Melty, but you would come to regret it. I've had the privilege of their company directly now and everything I've seen indicates that even the slightest affront to their family will firmly place you as an enemy." The shadow warned harshly.
"..." The queen was stunned at that. She took a moment to collect herself.
"...Dismissed." The queen eventually said.
The shadow left at once.
...
Fitoria's hidden kingdom the following day
...
Naofumi started the next morning pretty well. He woke up next to Raphtalia, which was always the best part of his morning. He had cooked breakfast, but he hadn't many traditional options based on the resources available and so opted to try a collection of dishes he hadn't made yet. He also made sure to switch shields again, having mastered the [Hourglass Shield] the night prior.
The smell of the food woke a few of them. "Breakfast, yay~!" Filo woke the rest of them.
They all pulled themselves from their sleep and marched themselves to breakfast without argument. Even Fitoria showed up for a plate the moment it was ready. They all understood they needed to try everything on their first plate, because Filo is a thing that exists. During the meal, Naofumi was embarrassed to get a thumbs up and unprompted look from Teal.
"I can't even kiss Raphtalia without the world knowing, apparently." Naofumi grumbled to himself.
"We should start our training right after breakfast." Eclair suggested to Raphtalia.
Eclair had no room in her schedule for much other than training. She was a huge help and incredibly beautiful, but she needed to lower the training at least a little or she'll never find a man, at least that was Teal's evaluation of her.
She mentioned that she wanted to join Naofumi's party at one point, but at this point he hoped that was no longer the case. She brought the fun vibe of the kids down and took too much of his tanuki's time for his liking.
Leaving his thoughts of Eclair, he shifted his attention to Melty. He had noticed her yesterday, having nothing to do or contribute. Naofumi didn't think she needed to contribute, she has had it rough. She overthrew her father for them, was lied to by her shadow and mother, nearly killed and was still near the top of the kill list, possibly above himself. She was more than allowed to be selfish, but he knew first hand that without anything to occupy your time, you quickly become your own worst enemy.
"Yeah, Melty." Naofumi started out of nowhere.
She flinched before looking in his general direction. "Yes?"
"You haven't really had a chance to test that magic of yours out since the class upgrade. We should probably see what you can do with it. How about we get you adjusted to your new stats, huh?" He offered.
"Oh. Yes, I liked that, but what would we be fighting?"
"You'd be fighting me."
"Sir Naofumi, you can't fight royalty, especially a child." Eclair reprimanded.
"I don't have too many offensive skills. She'll be safe. In fact, I have a great idea on how to do it, interested?" Naofumi explained.
"Of course, I want to improve, just like everyone else." She affirmed.
After breakfast, everyone went about their day. Raphtalia and Eclair continued their sparring. The kids wanted to play with Melty, but she was training with Naofumi now. So they decided to move the 'war ball' game to after lunch, not before, so they could all five play together.
So they found other things to do until then.
Monti kept at his book some, but Filo had too much energy and so they fought a bit. He was stronger than ever, but that feather/cow lick had given Filo great strength and he felt she was ahead of him yet again. Leon was probably passed him too with that second shard. He'd keep gaining power, though, so he took it in stride.
Teal began making clay pots with her earth magic. Afterwards, she asked Fitoria where the richest soil around here was and began filling them and placing seeds in them. They thought she had other plans afterwards, but she continued to do this over and over again until she had amassed 100 potted plants.
"Okay, but why?" Naofumi asked.
"Because they're [Iron Garden] seeds. With your expanded storage, you can carry them around and I can swap whenever my old one is destroyed or dies. Plus, they're weapons, they get you're sharpening bonus." Teal explained.
That reminded Naofumi of something. He explained to everyone that he'd need their weapons the night before the battle, to buff all of them.
Leon continued trying to contact Gaelion until...
"Hmm..." Leon felt something at last.
"Who dares...?" A bellowing voice of power threatened.
Leon stopped and his sudden movement got Fitoria's attention.
"So, has the lizard actually made some progress?" Fitoria mocked.
Leon sat there a moment before gaining a massive grin and switching to his grimoire.
"Oh? Scared to progress further?" Fitoria accused.
"I didn't know if you were lying or not... Now that I know it's true and I'll be able to give her his last words, I'll focus on my magic, it'll be helpful in the battle. Personally, I don't care about talking to him myself." Leon explained as he continued reading.
Fitoria actually liked the answer and left him be. After she was off somewhere else, Leon went to grab some of the others' grimoires as well. He regretted they had no water grimoires. He didn't understand water magic enough to counter even a beginner spell. His own fire affinity was weak to it. Water posed a legitimate threat to him. He'd speak to Melty tomorrow. She could use intermediate magic already, surely she'd have some insight for him.
Naofumi went on to train with Melty. He'd use [Bedrock] and defensive skills to advance and tag her, she would do everything she could to knock him away with magic. She has doubled stats and was no joke, but she could not keep him at bay the whole time. Still, she made it a goal to increase the time it took Naofumi to reach her, casting her spells faster and more often and being more clever in her application. Naofumi was even surprised to find out that Melty's [Zweite Aqua Slash] could deal damage to him if it reached him, which just meant that nearly everyone not class upgraded was well within her kill range in a single spell.
She went through 10 Mp potions in that training. Having an opponent like Naofumi, whom she'd never be able to kill, helped her greatly. She was able to better understand the adjustments she needed to make in her spell casting to make the best use of her current power. Before she met them, when her level was only 18, she already had great magical understanding, but what was good or efficient back then was very different from now at level 41. She had roughly 4 times her old stats and she couldn't help but wonder how strong she currently was when compared to her mother. Surely, even if Melty wasn't as strong as her now, she was going to exceed her mother by a large gap in time due to these boosts.
The next day was much the same, except Melty trained with Leon. He was far stronger than her, but her water versus his fire helped even things a little. Leon tried many times to counter her spells, but never managed to, even with Melty helping.
That day was fruitful as well as one day lead to the next, Naofumi mastering the [Cerberus Shield] and switching again. This day was nearly the same with Teal now stepping up to help Melty. Teal probably did the best out of anyone in preparing Melty for the battle ahead. She could attack Melty from any direction via roots and vines, with Melty needing to identify and halt the attacks.
During these days, Filo received instruction from Fitoria and it helped her in magic a lot. She also sparred with Fitoria a bit, which helped her understand how best to use her speed in human form. Filo actually came to really like Fitoria.
That day too came and went and sooner than anyone was comfortable with. It was the last day they had to prepare. The family did not push themselves too hard this day, wanting to be at 100% for the battle. Even Eclair pulled back a little. Naofumi had mastered the [Spider Queen Shield] and would have [Hydra Shield] mastered by morning.
As they readied for sleep for their last night before battle, Naofumi gathered everyone's weapons and polished them all with the cream he got from Erhart, then placed them in his [Inventory]. They all turned in a bit early, some more nervous than others.
Naofumi went to lay down with Raphtalia when he saw Fitoria staring at him. When their eyes met, she motioned for him to come to her. He didn't like it, but it wasn't like he could ignore her.
"So what did you want to talk about?" Naofumi asked nervously.
"I wanted to confirm your resolve. You will not kill the other heroes?" Fitoria warned with her question.
"I hate them, but if I die if they do..." Naofumi was being slow in his answer.
"You will, I would make sure of that." Fitoria glared.
"Then they live." Naofumi answered quickly.
"Good. The heroes need to work together. Only together can the waves be defeated." Fitoria advised.
"Huh? 'Work together'? With those bastards?" Naofumi actually gave some resistance.
"Yes. The waves grow stronger over time. Eventually, the heroes will need to work together and even still, failure would remain a possibility." Fitoria warned.
"That... That's asking a lot... To even try..." Naofumi wasn't going for it easily.
"It's not ideal, it's necessary." Fitoria argued.
"...then... I'll try as best I can." Naofumi could not honestly promise more.
Fitoria sat down next to him. She seemed to relax at his words.
"Hey, Fitoria?" Naofumi asked, breaking the silence.
Fitoria looked at him to continue, but said nothing.
"Was your father the shield hero too?" Naofumi ask.
"He was my hero, not my father..." Fitoria didn't like the way Naofumi spoke of such things, "But I can't remember." She admitted.
They sat there for a few minutes. Naofumi thought about the idea of the kids living so long, that they forget him, that by the time they did die, he'd be nothing too them. The thought hurt.
"Can you do me one more favor?" Fitoria broke the silence this time.
"Another one? You're being selfish." Naofumi complained.
"I know." Fitoria admitted with a lot of sorrow in her voice. Enough to make Naofumi care.
"What is it?" Naofumi asked, suddenly caring a little.
"Don't die." Fitoria asked as she laid her head in his lap.
Once again, Naofumi was reminded that she has probably suffered a lot. He wondered how many heroes she had killed and how many times she had failed. He couldn't help but stroke her hair, someone needed to grant her some form of affection. She has obviously been without it for far too long. He resolved further to not leave the kids in such a position as Fitoria was. Then again, Fitoria was alone, but the kids would have one another long after he and Raphtalia died. That alone would mean a lot.
"And maybe they can comfort you too? Freeing you of this self-imposed hell."
She eventually left to sleep and Naofumi did the same, for tomorrow was war.
.
[Author's Notes]
We got cool items, Raphumi fluff, queen scene, even Leon hearing Gaelion's voice. All their prep is done, next chapter, war.
How do you like Naofumi's plan?
I wrapped everything up so war can begin. Sorry if it felt rushed.
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