"Talking"
"Thinking"
[Status Magic or other reference to a system or power]
...
The guard proceeded to remove the hoods of all those that remained in the back. Those being the three heroes and their parties. Motoyasu looked dead, Malty's words really showed him the truth. Ren was unreadable, even to the queen. Itsuki's eyes shifted between everyone, he was having a lot of thoughts.
Naofumi immediately shot a look at the queen, wondering what changed her mind.
"...Now we will begin the trials of the bow, sword and spear heroes, as well as their parties." The queen announced.
...
Naofumi couldn't help but speak out.
"What's the point in doing this if no one is here to see it?" Naofumi asked in annoyance.
The queen stifled her volume. "If found guilty, the truth of their crimes will be known by all. It's only being done this way because you requested that Monti's origins stay a secret. I can't very well risk them spouting off the secret in a room full of nobles." The queen eagerly shut Naofumi down.
"...True." Naofumi had no counter to that. Keeping Monti's origins a secret was paramount to being left alone. To keep it secret and see them brought to justice required this way of doing things.
In the end, the queen decided to put the heroes on trial, but it wasn't solely for Naofumi's sake. After seeing all that they have done and how they were tricked into fighting against her, she felt it was her duty and a service to the world to straighten these heroes out. If they rejected Melromarc for this, she only lost weak, incompetent heroes, but if she could help correct these heroes here and now... She could have four competent holy heroes. The losses weren't great and the gains were immense. So she made her gamble.
"We will start with the spear hero then, step forward." The queen ordered.
Motoyasu shuffled forward, stealing a glance at Teal. He had heard everything. That some of the girls in his party were sold off as slaves right from under his nose. That Malty planned to kill her entire family to steal the throne. That he was garbage to her. That his bastardized version of trust left him a complete tool, to be used by others... and he just let it happen. After also glancing at Filo and the queen, Motoyasu lowered his eyes and stared at the floor.
"There are a number of crimes that you have been accused of, some I have direct evidence of. Chiefly among them, the near extermination of Lerno village and its people. According to testimony given by all the surviving villagers, including the local lord, you brought them a cursed seed during a desperate time, promising it to save them all. That thing turned into a dreadful monster that spread out and overtook the village, leaving the villagers to abandon their homes and create a nearby makeshift fort." The queen began to explain.
Motoyasu was realizing that it was all true, every word. He had hurt so many people.
"The property damage is immense, the number of dead came to 22. It would have been twice that or more, but Naofumi cured the survivors of the sickness that the creature spread. This is a very serious crime..." The queen let her words hang in the air a moment. "What defense or excuse do you offer?" The asked.
"..." Motoyasu just stared at the floor.
"Speak." The queen demanded.
"None. I offer no excuse." Motoyasu managed.
That was surprising to Naofumi. Motoyasu just admitted to it outright? ...It seemed that he was now broken.
"You robbed the shield hero of his legal property under the guise of an unjust and illegal duel. During the duel, Malty assisted you illegally, yet neither of you received punishment. For robbing a fellow hero and winning a sacred duel through illegal means, I'd have no choice but to find you guilty. Any defense or excuse?" The queen said coldly.
"None." Motoyasu repeated.
Motoyasu was finally looking at his actions as they were and not how he had framed them. He couldn't begin to understand what he was thinking back then, but that was it, he wasn't thinking back then. He let Malty do the thinking and he just followed her advice... or orders.
"That wasn't the last offense you made against the shield hero. You attacked him in broad daylight, in the business district of this very city. You were accused at that time of trying to kidnap one of his party members... What say you?" The queen asked.
"...I still don't understand something about that..." Motoyasu actually began to speak up now. "When I first met Filo-chan, she admitted that my accusation was correct, that she was bought from a slaver... That was why I went to free her... So what is the truth?" Motoyasu was confused.
"You are to answer questions, not ask them yourself." The queen told him.
Naofumi held out a hand, wishing to speak. The queen nodded.
"Mr. Beloukas here in town does both slave trade and monster rearing. I bought Filo as an egg there. She doesn't have a slave crest, never had, never will... The same as the rest of my kids." Naofumi explained.
"B-But Raphtalia-chan...?" Motoyasu began to argue.
"...I have shields that grant bonus stats to registered slaves when they level up. After you cheated the duel and Raphtalia was free, it was reapplied at her own request. If it didn't grant her bonuses on level up, I'd rather she didn't have it at all." Naofumi told him straight.
"Then... none. No excuse." Motoyasu admitted.
"...Then we must now talk of the attempted murder of one of Naofumi's party members. I've been told that had Naofumi not acted, you would have slain one of his children, any arguments?" The queen inquired.
Motoyasu tried arguing a little. "W-well... I hoped that she would survive... With her regeneration, I was hoping my attack would have-"
"It would have killed me." Teal told him.
"Then... once again, none." He responded, hanging his head.
Motoyasu was putting up little argument, which was convenient in some ways, but it would make the punishment he'd receive seem all the more ill-fitted to the crimes.
"Lastly is the matter of assisting in the coup against me." The queen's anger was heard through her voice.
Motoyasu felt the anger coming off of her.
"I-I didn't know. All I know is what other people tell me. Myne said it was the thing to do, so I did it." Motoyasu lightly argued.
"You are a stranger in a strange world. I can understand that at least... That goes for you two as well." She motioned to Ren and Itsuki. "I'll overlook your foolish attempts because I know that you lacked the information to know better..." She was done with him for now.
"Step back, spear hero. Sword hero, step forward." The queen commanded.
Motoyasu shuffled back as ordered, Ren seemed less cooperative. He eyed Naofumi and Leon. He sighed heavily and came forward, towards the designated spot. He seemed to be shacking a bit, but he'd stop doing so sometimes. There was no telling what he was thinking.
As Motoyasu went to the seat he had before he was called, something was odd. He sat by himself, none of the girls that normally surround him. The same for Ren, no one sat waiting where he was a moment ago. One could have been mistaken for assuming the other heroes were not allowed to have their party members accompany them here, but the green haired girl next to Itsuki disproved that.
The truth was that Motoyasu no longer had a party to speak of. Rino's whereabouts were unknown, Elena quit the moment Motoyasu got into trouble, and Malty was now quite busy. He was alone for the first time since he came to this world and it was easy to read his face. He was miserable and lost, Naofumi remembered that feeling, not that he'd ever have that feeling again.
Ren's team was actually just fine, waiting for him at a nearby tavern. Even under such harsh circumstances and despite having given no solid reason for it, they remained loyal to Ren. He only told them to not come because he wanted fewer eyes on him. In Itsuki's case, he meant to do the opposite of Ren and bring his party. He didn't think he did anything wrong, so the idea of hiding his shame never came up. Unfortunately, Itsuki's party no longer saw him the way they did before and all he had was the green haired girl. Mald never returned with the others, smartly running off somewhere. For attempting to kill Itsuki, The queen would have likely put him to death.
"There are a number of crimes you are accused of. As previously mentioned, I will overlook the assisting of the coup. None of you could be expected to know and as the queen of Melromarc, I don't wish to bring harm or strife to the heroes... however, that is not to say that you can do as you please. Sword hero, you are accused of murdering Gaelion, a peaceful dragon that has lived amicably alongside the people for generations. What say you?" The queen began.
"...I... I was told it was an evil dragon and it was a quest through the guild! How the hell was I supposed to know tha-" Ren found his voice and began to argue.
"Raise your voice to the queen further and I will discipline you, personally." Eclair broke in from behind Mirellia.
"...So, ignorance is going to remain as your excuse? While the guild and those that hired you share in your blame, you are far from guiltless. You never thought about the fact that it had a nest there already? That the surrounding towns were completely fine? Where did you think Gaelion came from? Did you not have a single thought going through that head of yours!?" The queen was making herself angrier the more she thought about it.
Ren went to argue. "That's how it's supposed to be. Go to the place, kill the thing. How wa-"
"Do you still think this is a fucking game!?" Naofumi cut in, yelling. Speaking just before Leon was going to do the same. Raphtalia was not going to call him out for cursing right now. Monti was now tucking his ears in.
"It's not. You guys thought the church were the good guys? Fucking wrong! You think monsters just fucking spawn? Fucking wrong! You just believe what other people tell you? Fucking wrong! This world is just as complicated as the worlds we came from, grow up!" Naofumi brow beat him.
Ren was very pissed off and not wanting to believe Naofumi... If he believed Naofumi, if this world was real, then how was he supposed to live with himself? Having done what he did...
"Shut up, Naofumi! Just be quiet!" Ren was snapping back defensively. He didn't want to think about it... "If this is all real..."
"Are you aware that killing Gaelion resulted in roughly 130 deaths? Mirso village suffered from a disease that spread from the corpse you left behind. If not for Naofumi, that number would have been around 300. What were you thinking? Leaving the corpse there?"
"...Um, actually..." Naofumi interjected. "The village asked him to leave the body, it was part of their plan to profit from it. Yeah, it was dumb, but to be fair..." Naofumi drifted off.
"I see... Naofumi?" The queen considered this and asked.
"Y-Yes?" Naofumi didn't like the look in her eyes.
"You seem like you are not one to let things slide, what punishment do you think those responsible for this should receive?" She asked him directly.
"Everyone who was involved besides the lord and Ren are dead... The lord lost his son to the plague and blames himself. He is also gathering funds to pay back Wyndia, Gaelion's adoptive daughter... They've received their punishment already." Naofumi told her.
"I see..." The queen was beginning to see revenge wasn't going to control Naofumi much at all. This trial was about more than pleasing Naofumi and straightening these heroes out. It was about understanding the character of all four of these heroes and finding the right ways to manipulate them, should the need arrive.
"..." There was a pause in the room and Ren felt beyond uncomfortable receiving everyone's gaze.
"And then we come to your attempted murder of young Leon, twice." The queen began. "Will you claim ignorance again? Is that all there is to the sword hero?" The queen asked.
Ren tried to speak his mind. "No... I... I thought... I don't know what I thought. The second time, there was a wave. I thought I had to hurry up and save lives. The fir-"
Itsuki cut in. "That's right! Naofumi has a wave monster in his party. Why are you overlooking that? We're here to fight the waves and he jus-"
"While the shield hero and Raphtalia were fighting Balmus and his archbishops in an inescapable barrier, and you three 'heroes' were losing to children, who do you think was protecting my daughter, Melty, the future queen of this country?" The queen asked.
The family was surprised that the queen would defend Monti like that.
"A-um..." Itsuki didn't expect the queen to say something like that.
"Speaking down to him seems misplaced to me. If he is so lowly, then what does that make the three of you? All of whom have caused great harm to the people, while he saved the queen-to-be... I wish for you heroes to succeed, but as of right now, this wave monster has done more for this country than any of you. Wouldn't you say that speaking ill of him is only a further indictment of yourselves?" The queen spat.
Whether because he protected Melty or to side with Naofumi, or both. Whatever the reason, the family appreciated her defending Monti.
"..." Itsuki was stunned. He wished to retort, but he couldn't think of where to start.
"I would like to think that I am reasonable. I would love to help each of you heroes to succeed in the future, but I'm also not so proud as to turn down help offered by someone or something like him. If it bothers you so much, then make yourselves more useful than him. Do that, then speak of such things..." The queen ended the topic.
"..." No one objected.
While they hadn't really concluded Ren's turn, everyone knew what his excuses would remain.
"I think I've had enough of you, sword hero. Bow hero, you seem so eager to speak, come forward." The queen commanded.
Ren moved back rather quickly, wanting to get away from the attention of everyone. Itsuki came up just as fast, eager to defend himself. He looked at everyone present.
Liviccic, Van, Eclair, Melty, Mirellia, Naofumi and his party, Fitts, Chloe, Mia, Godiva, Motoyasu, Ren, and Rishia.
The queen began to speak to Itsuki. "Bow hero, let us begin listing your crimes. Firstly-"
"I haven't committed any crimes!" Itsuki argued.
Eclair was done warning and stepped forward and made it halfway down the stairs to Itsuki.
"Dame Eclair, that won't be necessary." The queen bid her to stop.
"Understood." Eclair complied.
"Bow hero, disrupting these proceedings is a criminal act. So an outburst in court declaring that you've committed no crimes is oxymoronic." The queen told him, her patience was getting short.
"..." Itsuki grit his teeth in frustration.
"Bow hero, let us begin with something straight forward. Did you attempt to murder Monti?" The queen asked.
"Yes and that isn't a crime!" Itsuki immediately argued.
"I just explained this, stop with such an argument." The queen ordered with an icy voice.
"It's still complete crap. You're condoning him now, so what we did back then is a crime? He's a wave monster. Even if you want to make all these stupid exceptions for him, those weren't in place at the time. How are you going to tell me I broke a rule that didn't even exist yet?" Itsuki argued, completely ignoring the queen.
It was a petty argument. Itsuki was ignoring any moral argument and arguing purely on legal grounds.
"...Am I to take that as you understanding that moving forward, such an action will not be tolerated?" The queen asked with thinly veiled anger.
"...Y-Yes..." Itsuki answered. He felt like he won the argument.
Everyone was upset that Itsuki basically got to get away with almost killing Monti.
"Then for now, we shall move on. Bow hero, you have been accused of breaking into the home of a greater lord and heavily damaging the property. There are multiple witnesses and plenty of physical evidence. What excuse do you have for that?" The queen asked, seeing that Itsuki was likely to use excuses from start to finish.
"He is a villain. He uses the dead as his puppets and allows his victims no rest, not even beyond the grave!" Itsuki declared dramatically, like some kind of anime protagonist.
"Wow, you're stupid." Teal said.
Before Itsuki could bark back, Liviccic spoke.
"My curses move the bodies of the dead. It has nothing to do with the souls of the departed. Those people are long gone." Liviccic explained.
"Regardless, though his abilities are strange, nothing about his manner of magic is illegal." The queen added.
Itsuki refused to admit he was wrong. "B...B-but it's immoral, he-"
"So which is it? If you are arguing that morals should matter, not the law, then attempting to kill Monti is a crime. If the law is what matters, then you have no excuse for breaking into Liviccic's home and damaging it." Teal cut in, pointing out the hypocrisy.
"Sh-Shut up, you're not involved in this!" Itsuki argued weakly.
"I was involved the second you tried to kill my family! Do I need to ask Sophia to beat your ass again!?" Teal was losing her cool, again. Naofumi tugged on Teal's kimono, ushering her to cool off.
"Both of you, quiet!" The queen roared.
"..." The room fell silent.
"So which is it, bow hero? Are you arguing your actions are moral or legal?" The queen picked up Teal's argument.
"..." Itsuki refused to answer, as either one made him wrong.
"So you've resorted to not answering?" The queen couldn't help but sigh.
"...So these are the three other heroes...? One so broken, he agrees with everything. One so childish, he refuses to consider his actions. And one so cowardly he can't even stand behind his own arguments..." The queen was thoroughly disappointed.
"Next is the attempted murder of a greater lord, in broad daylight, with over 200 witnesses. What say you, bow hero?" The queen just moved on.
"..." Itsuki refused to speak.
"Why is this happening? Can't they see that I am the good guy!?" Itsuki thought bitterly.
"Your silence will be considered an admission of guilt." The queen told him.
"..." Itsuki looked even angrier, but still didn't speak.
"If they're against me... and I'm the good guy... that means they are the villains!" Itsuki was pulling at nothing in his head, trying to explain things to himself in such a way that he wasn't wrong.
Liviccic held out a hand, the queen waved him to speak.
"Your majesty, what of him stealing from the hard working people of Briarhaven?" Liviccic asked in as nice a manner as he could.
At this point, Itsuki was shaking in anger. He was about to cause another outburst, but the queen spoke first.
"I am sorry that you feel differently, lord Blackcrown, but Melromarc will not see the heroes' ability to copy weapons as a crime of any sort. Technically, there is no harm to the owner of the goods. I do not wish to criminalize a method of the heroes becoming stronger... Despite what you heroes may be thinking, I truly wish that you all become powerful and successful." The queen said.
Liviccic showed no sign of being upset and stepped back.
Itsuki thought she was done, but she had one more crime to tell him about.
"Lastly, bow hero... You have been accused of assassinating a country's leader to the north..." The queen gave no more information, she needed him to not know more.
"...That is true. He overtaxed the people and they suffered. By killing him, I saved countless people from his tyranny. That is what a hero does." Itsuki said loudly.
The queen allowed a moment of pride to swell within Itsuki... before tearing him down.
"After his assassination, three separate groups fought for control of the country, resulting in a number of deaths, including the people who hired you. That was why you never received a reward." The queen began.
Itsuki froze. "That can't be true. She's lying, she has to be lying. I fixed the problem... That's what I do, what I'm supposed to do! I'm a hero..."
"After a new leader finally fully established themselves, things only got worse. The old leader wasn't irreplaceable, but things were done in such a messy way, that no one who came to power ever had the ability to lead and the whole country fell into a deeper and deeper spiral of economic collapse..." She informed Itsuki.
Itsuki looked out of it, like he didn't know where he was or even who he was. "But that would mean that it's all my faul-No! It can't be! I wanted to help people! Being a hero was all I ever wanted to be! I'm a good person. You're saying that I screwed it up that badly!? That I ruined peoples' lives that I... That I would have caused peoples' death... No, please no...stop." Itsuki's awful feelings were becoming more. Something was calling to him, telling him he was not only a righteous hero, but that he was the only righteous hero.
"You so proudly admitted that it was you a moment ago, yes? You admit to causing all that suffering?" The queen had him, she needed him to straighten up.
"...I..." Itsuki couldn't find his voice, but the tears started falling.
He fell to his knees and began to quietly cry.
"So that was it... I was the villain. That actually makes sense. Why? I wanted so badly to be the hero, to help people, why did it end up like this?" Itsuki was having a bit of a breakdown.
"...But what if I'm wrong..." Itsuki was becoming desperate, his identity and much more was damaged greatly. "If they were the villains then it's f-fine and-"Naofumi felt something coming from Itsuki. Something similar to his own curse series.
The queen went to drive the point in further, but Naofumi called out. "Stop! Not another word!"
His voice was full of concern, so the queen heeded him.
A golden aura began to pulse out of Itsuki. It spread out then slowly started to drift upward. His bow started to grow and so did his power. Everyone could feel Itsuki's power rising. His growth was not subtle in the least. Filo stood in front of Melty, ready for a fight. Leon moved behind Naofumi, while Monti moved in front of Raphtalia, they both raised their shields. Teal and Eclair inched closer to the queen, in case he targets her. Godiva took point in front of Mia.
While everyone else readied themselves and stood their ground, one approached Itsuki. The green haired girl who came with Itsuki was named Rishia. Despite the rest of Itsuki's team abandoning him, Rishia did not. She approached Itsuki from behind and sat down next to him.
"...Please calm down, Itsuki..." Rishia asked lightly.
"B-But I... I didn't screw up, right? I wasn't in the wrong, right!?" Itsuki was desperate for validation.
Rishia really wanted to back down and simply consul him, but that wasn't what needed to be done. Itsuki was a hero, her hero. He needed to be corrected, they needed to face this.
"You were wrong... We were, but we can fix thi-we must fix this." Rishia tried to sound strong, but it didn't feel right.
"No, no. I wanted to help people, I didn't want this." Itsuki argued.
She found it hard to confront anyone, doubly so Itsuki.
"I know... And you did... You saved me, right?" Rishia assured him, not wanting to disagree with him.
"But all those people..." Itsuki's aura grew again, it was getting dangerous.
Rishia looked around at the room... Itsuki was about to make a huge mistake. Something that would not be fixable. She wasn't sure she could do anything to stop it. In fact, she felt there was nothing she could do. Maybe it was because it didn't matter that she tried or maybe it was that she wished she was wrong.
"Saving everyone isn't easy, it's really hard. If saving everyone was such a simple task, then we wouldn't need heroes." Rishia began.
"But I wasn't supposed to fail, I was supposed to do it correctly." Itsuki told himself
"It's going to be hard and it only makes sense that you're going to fail..., b-but a real hero wouldn't give up. A real hero would never stop just because he did wrong! He'd do what he could to make it right a-and... and..." Rishia lost her voice as quickly as she found it.
"I'd never stop, but how am I supposed to... deal with this...?" Itsuki's guilt was piling up.
"...Don't you owe it to all the people to be better? What of the people that are just like me, waiting for someone to help them?" Rishia asked.
"She still sees herself like that...?" Itsuki realized.
"But... this means that I wasn't really a hero. That I never was, that I was... just playing at it." Itsuki was becoming more bitter, the aura swelled. "That can't be..."
"You've proven that you can be a hero... you were mine. Does that count for nothing? Because it matters to me... It matters more than anything." Rishia was now tearing up a bit.
Itsuki finally looked at her.
"Why does it matter to you so much?" He asked.
"B-Because when you saved me, I saw what I wanted to do and who I wanted to be... I completely understand wanting to be a hero, because... because I want to be one too. I... um..." Rishia confessed.
Itsuki motioned for her to continued, he wanted to hear more. His own thoughts were a mess and that made her words so much clearer by comparison.
"F-Fueee..." Itsuki wanting to hear her more was a surprise. "So please, don't give up. If my hero gives up like this then... then I never did have a chance at being a hero myself, did I?" Rishia managed to say.
"...But how do I deal with having done these things?" Itsuki was beginning to get it, but the guilt was still there.
"You deal with it because you have to. That's what a hero would do!" Rishia found her voice again.
The aura around Itsuki was snuffed out like a dowsed flame.
"She may be right. That is what heroes would do, right?... and I want to be a hero." The building haze in Itsuki's mind that was warping it subsided.
With the aura gone, everyone else in the room relaxed a bit. That said, no one moved from their spot. With new clarity, he was able to think over what Rishia said more thoughtfully. She was right and he was thinking about things all wrong. It wasn't that he wanted to be a hero and that meant he'd help people, it was that he wanted to help people and that meant he'd become a hero.
"Thank you." Itsuki gave her a one armed hug. He was very grateful.
"F-Fuueeee!" Rishia made a noise as he did so.
With Itsuki's arm still over her shoulder, she helped him stand. After a moment, Itsuki gathered the nerve to look up and face the queen again.
"...I'm sorry, I don't know what that was... I... I-I plead guilty." Itsuki said.
Everyone relaxed a bit more, the queen sharing a look with Naofumi that said 'we will discuss this later'. The queen thought it best to excuse the outburst, after all, she really couldn't do anything meaningful to the hero.
"Very well... I will move on to the sentencing... Spear hero, the world needs you, so I can't afford to punish you directly, but for your actions against Lerno village as well as the shield hero and his party, it will be told to the people. In that, your actions will not go unnoticed. Also, at the personal request of the shield hero, he asks that you do not speak to or approach his daughter. I cannot enforce this, but seeing as you would lose the bout, I ask you don't start the fight to begin with..." The queen started with Motoyasu.
Motoyasu didn't raise his head, he just nodded a bit, giving no other proof he was even alive.
"Sword hero, as I've said, the world needs its heroes. Though I find you guilty of the murder of Gaelion and attempting to do the same to Leon, punishing you directly is something I must refrain from doing. The people of Melromarc will know of your action, the people's scrutiny is not as restricted as my own. If ignorance really is to be your excuse, then it is all the more important to educate yourself. Someone with as much power and importance as you cannot afford to remain ignorant. Please understand the weight of responsibility that you hold." Mirellia told Ren.
Ren heard her words, but wanted so desperately to reject them. He was doing everything he could to ignore, not only Mirellia, but any and everything.
"Bow hero, you too are guilty. The people will be told of your actions against lord Blackcrown, Melromarc's newest hero and greater lord. Further, I will be sending an envoy to the northern countries explaining the truth of your involvement in the events in ruining their lands. It would take some time to spread amongst them with their tarnished infrastructure. Perhaps doing what you can to fix your mess now will let them see you more favorably when they are made aware of your wrongdoing? It is best for everyone involved that I ignore your attempted murder of young Monti, because explaining him is an issue, but as stated before, I will not tolerate further action against the shield hero and his family. I hope I make it clear to you all, if nothing else..." The queen finished.
Itsuki was actually grateful. He took her words as meaning she would delay sending the information until after he tried to make up for it.
The queen went to close out the court.
"While you are all guilty of much, you have the opportunity to more than make up for it. Our entire world is at stake. The lives of every single person alive today or that will ever be born is at risk. All that is can be erased... faced with that, those who can save us from such a fate would have our eternal gratitude and forgiveness." The queen emphasized their importance.
"...You are hereby dismissed. Court is adjourned and people may leave and enter freely. Heroes, please gather here in a week's time. I wish to help you do just as I ask." She finished, walking toward Naofumi.
Liviccic also walked up as well. Motoyasu began to leave by himself. Itsuki and Rishia immediately left via [Portal Bow]. Ren also went to leave behind Motoyasu, but Naofumi called to him of all things.
"Oi. Ren. If you really think that this is all a game, if you don't believe me... meet me in front of the castle in three days, early morning." Naofumi offered.
Ren stopped moving a moment and considered his words a moment, before continuing to leave.
"So you are willing to help straighten them out?" The queen asked after hearing Naofumi's offer.
"To a point. That's one of the two things I have to do or Fitoria kills all four of us." Naofumi answered, putting the topic he wanted to discuss on the table.
"Queen Fitoria... I see we have much to discuss. Please, all of you follow. All of you." The queen began to leave the throne room, opting for a more appropriate meeting setting.
There was more to discuss. Their need to travel, Lurolona, the curse series, and much more.
.
[Author's Notes]
Obviously the queen can't really punish them, but I hope the absolute tongue lashing she gave them was of some comfort.
Motoyasu is now somewhat broken and alone, but Teal pointed out his over reliance on others. Maybe he now has the chance to figure himself out before turning to others?
Ren outright rejects everything, but how long will that last?
Itsuki almost pride bow'd the fuck up in court, that would have been awful. That said, Rishia pulled him back and he is willing to play ball a little. He DID unlock his curse series then, so that is going to be a thing.
Random question: Which of the three OC kids are your favorite? (Monti, Teal, Leon)
Please leave a review!