"Talking"
"Thinking"
[Status Magic or other reference to a system or power]
...
"..." Leon thought for only a moment. "Rebel!" Leon yelled.
"Wha-" Monti turned around, seeing the others running for the exits.
"See ya Monti, we'll be back before Mom and Dad get back… probably." Teal teased.
"W-Wait!" Monti began to chase them down.
And so Warden Monti now had a prison break to deal with.
...
Monti didn't know what to do, Teal and Keel went out the exit to the right, Leon went out the exit to the left and Filo was able to pass him with her speed and she left out the front exit. For a moment, Monti stood there freaking out.
"Why!? If Mom and Dad see any of them before I can get them back here, they'll be disappointed in me... I WILL NOT LET THAT HAPPEN!" Monti was prepared to do anything to fix things.
He turned around and left out of the hotel. He had no idea where they went or how to get them back to the hotel, but he'd do it. He would not be a disappointment.
...
Naofumi and Raphtalia
...
The two of them left the hotel and began walking down the main street. With the sun nearly down and the lanterns that lined the main streets being lit, the small island took on a different mood. The streets were filled with many adventurers, tired from a long day of grinding. That low energy and the lights gave the whole place a relaxing feeling. Raphtalia was already holding Naofumi's hand, but now she was leaning into him as they walked.
"Are you tired? Are you sure you don't want to rest?" Naofumi asked in concern.
"I am fine." Raphtalia answered immediately.
"Naofumi-sama, take the hint! C'mon." Raphtalia complained internally.
Naofumi felt Raphtalia was pushing herself for him. He put his arm around her to support her better. He was being dumb, but he still reached the right answer. The pair first went to the fishing shop, believing that it was likely to close first. As they reached the shop, they saw a boat in the back that wasn't there before, attached to a small dock that was part of the building.
As they made their way inside, they noticed the sheer number of odd items inside. Fish bones, shells, coral, but also other things that were likely rare and worthwhile.
A voice came from the back. "If you came for something specific then hurry up, I'll be closing shop soon."
Naofumi looked to see an old man half his size sitting on the counter. They made their way towards him.
"Yes, we were hoping you could tell us about dacna pearls." Naofumi told the man.
"Ah, trying to buy a pretty gift for yer woman?" The man inquired.
Seeing the way Naofumi had his arm around Raphtalia and the way she leaned on him, it was obvious that they were a couple.
"If I was, I wouldn't buy those ugly things. I came here to find out why anyone would want those things." Naofumi responded.
"I understand why you are rude to strangers, but please..." Raphtalia wished Naofumi at least reserved his rudeness.
"Ah, so yer a dumb one." The man hopped to his feet and leapt behind the counter.
"Sorry I insulted those mud colored... What?" Naofumi stopped as the man held up a dacna pearl.
It was ghostly white, clear near the surface then fading into a deep foggy white. The item gave off the illusion that it was deeper than it really was, like you could see a mile away into it or further, if only the fog would clear up.
"This is a dacna pearl." The man told them both.
"That looks nothing like the ones we have, Naofumi-sama." Raphtalia couldn't help but comment.
"Oh, ye got some ugly brown ones? I'll buy'em off ye." The man offered.
"...No. There's something you're not telling me." Naofumi said with suspicion.
"Of course, trade secrets." The man freely admitted.
"Normally I'd respect the man's hustle, but the village needs every coin I can scrape up..." Naofumi thought.
"I'm sure we can make a deal." Naofumi began.
"Ah, ye understand." The man was receptive to the idea.
"I'll trade one of our dacna pearls for the answer." Naofumi told him.
"Hehe, that'll do." The man answered easily, not feeling a need to negotiate too roughly.
Naofumi pulled a dacna pearl out of his shield and the man fell on his ass in response.
"Y-Y... That shield, are ye a hero!?" The man stammered.
Naofumi assumed the worst. "Dammit, don't think of jacking up the price on me, I'm tired of this sh-"
"No, no. Yer a hero. A cardinal hero. On Cal Mira, we know to respect you. I'll tell you for free and even buy it at a fair price. What an honor for a hero to step into my humble shop. I'll do all I can to help you." The man was quite agreeable now, even more than before.
That was a pleasant surprise. Naofumi didn't want to take that earl's words at face value, but it really was looking like Cal Mira was going to treat the heroes well, himself included.
"That trade secret first." Naofumi controlled the conversation.
"Of course, of course. Hero, it's like this, dacna pearls are great material for channeling magic. I channel my magic into this dacna pearl and my wind affinity makes it look like a foggy morning over the water. Any elemental affinity will do, but healing and support affinities never seem to make the pearl look different."
Naofumi listened carefully, but Raphtalia had to ask questions. "What if you have two elemental affinities?"
"Those lucky enough to have favorable affinities like that could produce a more valuable pearl. All depends on affinity." The man began to explain.
"What about light and dark affinity?" Raphtalia asked.
"If one had both of those, they might just have an illusionary affinity. That's the most sought after dacna pearl." The man said with a slight excitement.
"Really? I have those affinities, I have an illusionary affinity." Raphtalia replied happily.
"Really now?" The man was pleasantly surprised.
"Why is illusion affinity so valuable in dacna pearls? Because it's rare?" Naofumi questioned.
"Has nothing to do with rarity. All dacna pearls give off a visual illusion to those who stare at it. It appears to change, yet stay the same. Like something in such a slow motion, you can't be sure it's even moving. Illusion affinity dacna pearls are the most visually appealing, everyone agrees. The visual illusion is more than a novelty and it makes them very beautiful." The man explained in detail.
"So... if I give them my mana, they will sell better." Raphtalia was happy she could help.
"Are you sure you have the mana? You seemed awfully tired." Naofumi asked her, clearly concerned.
"I was never tired." Raphtalia huffed.
"hehehe, hahaha. Hero or not, ye dumb, boy." The shopkeeper commented.
"Oi! ...Wait, what did I do wrong?" Naofumi wasn't getting it.
Raphtalia was slightly annoyed that Naofumi couldn't see it. She wasn't tired, she wasn't leaning on him because of that. The shopkeeper laughed louder.
"I can help you sell those dacna pearls, but you have problems I can't begin to help you with." The shopkeeper added.
"Oi, stop... What did I do wrong?" Naofumi asked.
"Just... forget it." Raphtalia gave up. She'd explain it to him later, if at all.
Naofumi stood there a moment, slightly frustrated. "Fine, fine. She wasn't tired, but why was she leaning... God, I'm fucking stupid!" Naofumi realized.
Naofumi didn't know what to do now. If he acted too blatantly in correcting himself, it'd only be worse. While Naofumi was stuck there for a moment, considering what to do, Raphtalia and the shopkeeper continued.
"I'd be willing to pay well for such dacna pearls, how many do ye have?" The shopkeeper asked.
"We have 19, if I remember correctly." Raphtalia promptly answered.
"19!? Those things are rare as heck and ye got nearly 20 of the buggers? That's a hero for ye. If it wasn't for the event, I'd lack the funds to buy that many from ye."
Those words snapped Naofumi out of his thoughts. It begged a question.
"How does the event affect your business? Don't you fish?" Naofumi probed.
"I fish often, but I also dive. In either case, the increase in monsters means I have more resources." The shopkeeper responded.
Naofumi understood. He hadn't even considered it before, but it made sense. It wasn't just the islands being affected, but the surrounding area as well. Meaning the monsters in the water, including fish, were more abundant than ever.
"I see ye understand. I've been raking in fish and selling it to local places to feed the influx of adventurers. So I have the coin. For ye hero... I give ye 15 gold and 50 silver each." The man said.
"Wha… What!?" Naofumi was freaking out.
"That much!?" Raphtalia was also freaking out.
"Hehe, I can understand ye surprise, but I'll still be able to sell'em at a profit. I have no idea how ye got so many, but dacna pearls are as rare as they come. I dive three times a week at a minimum and I get about two a year." The shopkeeper revealed.
"I thought I was unlucky to only get 19 for all those we killed, but I guess the drop rate increases were hard at work." Naofumi reflected.
"I'd like to work out a slightly different deal." Naofumi started.
"Oh?" The shopkeeper was receptive.
"I am now the lord of Lurolona village. We need food more than anything, I'd like to ask you to deliver your catches to our village. We can deduct what you'd owe for the dacna pearls from those deliveries. And… I'd like to ask for more than just frequent fish deliveries… We can't import forever, we gotta stand on our own two feet. I'd like to ask you to help us in making our own fishing boats." Naofumi gave his offer.
"Hehe, ignoring the quick gold to help the people, ye a hero alright. Consider it settled then." The shopkeeper offered his hand.
Naofumi did the same, they shook hands.
"I'll sell you 18 of them then. We'll hold on to the last one." Naofumi told him.
"That is great to hear. I'll send out feelers for potential buyers after the event then. Do you want any amount of the payment upfront?" The shopkeeper asked.
"No, I think we're fine for now." Naofumi told him, sharing an assured look with Raphtalia.
From there, Raphtalia channeled her mana into each of the 19 dacna pearls. She felt so happy that her specific affinity was the best option for the pearls. It made her feel that she had helped a great deal in securing more resources for Lurolona. In less than 40 minutes, the two of them had completed their business with the old shopkeeper and were now on their way to the next destination. They relaxed into their previous arrangement with Naofumi being a little more aware.
The atmosphere of the area was so soothing that anyone would be in a good mood.
…
Warden Monti
…
Monti wasn't in a good mood.
He was rushing down the street, leaping and using his wings when needed, desperately chasing after the others.
"Stop! Come Back!" Monti half demanded, half pleaded.
"What did I do wrong? Why are they doing this? I thought we'd just have some fun in our room and go to sleep. I can even imagine the look mom and dad will give me if they get back and they're still missing. Just this look of 'oh well'. I want to be reliable, I want them both to rely on me. I want them all to-the village to…" Monti's minds were racing, shifting between desperation and uncomfortable feelings he was going to consider.
"C-Crap! Monti sure is fast." Keel exclaimed.
Monti's eyes and head snapped towards Keel, seeing Teal running, pulling Keel along. With some sparks coming off of him, he shot out at them. The normally sweet older brother now looked like a real threat to the currently scared Keel.
"What the hell!? You said this would be fun! Being chased by Monti is not fun! Get us out of here!" Keel was freaking out as Monti grew closer and closer.
Teal looked back at Monti, seeing he was far faster than she had known. She considered different modifications she could potentially make to her body… Even alone, she had no way to outrun him. At that moment, she had to make a decision. She had things she wanted to do tonight. So… sacrifices must be made…
Teal let go of Keel's hand.
"Wha-?" Keel's face was one of exaggerated betrayal.
"Sorry, we can do cool stuff some other time, but I promised Leon to help him kidnap that gorgeous woman." Teal shifted her body slightly and created a gap between her and Keel.
She couldn't outrun Monti, but she didn't need to be faster than Monti. She only had to be faster than Keel. Keel slowed down, giving up. Monti nearly slammed into Keel, grabbing his arm and making sure he couldn't get away.
"Hey, let go!" Keel demanded, trying and failing to free himself.
"No way, now tell me why you guys ditched me and ran off. We were supposed to stay at the hotel." Monti needed answers to catch them all in time.
"I'm not their kid like you guys, I can go where I want, now let go." Keel argued, fighting a bit harder.
"No. Where are the others going?" Monti's grip was not letting up.
"Screw you, let go." Keel was about to start biting Monti.
"Not until you tell me where they went. I can't screw up." Monti demanded an answer.
Keel couldn't see how he could accomplish what he wanted to. "You'll never catch all three of them before Raphtalia and Naofumi come back, just-"
"I AM NOT GOING TO FAIL!" Monti roared, Keel shrank back in fear
"..." Keel couldn't hide how scared he was of Monti right now. Likewise, Monti could see the fear and felt a little ashamed. He let Keel go.
"Listen… I'm sorry…" Monti managed to say.
"..." The two of them were quiet for a bit, neither wanted to speak.
Keel was the one to finally say something. He finally had the chance to ask. "...Monti… why do your eyes look like that? They look like the waves…"
"..." Monti didn't want to answer, but the building silence was unbearable.
"I am… I was an egg recovered from the wave boss of Lute village." He told Keel.
Keel flinched at that. That was more or less what he thought. He was a wave monster, like the ones that destroyed their home.
"But I'm not like that… I… It's really hard living in Lurolona and not feeling terrible. The place was half destroyed because of a wave… and everything that happened after that is because of the waves. I'm sure all the villagers will find out, but… I just wanna have the time to get them to like me first… Then they might not hate me afterwards. I just want everyone to rely on me and not think about… where I'm from." Monti spilled his guts a bit.
Keel listened and started feeling more pity than fear for Monti. He found it dumb that Monti would worry about that when the villagers and the family seemed to really like Monti. He also had nothing to add and didn't want some embarrassing conversation. That'd be super uncool.
"...Well I'm hungry." Keel settled on saying that.
"W-What?" Monti felt that Keel had ruined the mood completely. He was hoping Keel would say something like 'it wasn't your fault'.
"I said 'I'm hungry'. You want me to go back to the hotel? Promise to get me some food." Keel wasn't going to say what Monti wanted. Blaming Monti for things he didn't do sounded too dumb to need addressing, so he just ignored it.
"...Deal." Monti flashed a quick smile and composed himself.
Keel wiped his sweat away from the running.
"Well then, I'll head back…Oh, normally I wouldn't snitch, but Teal betrayed me which is super uncool. Teal and Leon are trying to kidnap somebody." Keel thought to tell him.
"What!?" Monti exclaimed.
"It's not enough to be a bunch of rowdy bastards, now they're committing crimes!? I'll lock them up and throw away the key!" Monti thought.
"Good hunting." Keel offered, but Monti was already gone, shooting off in the direction that he saw Teal escape.
"I might as well score some free food if getting me to like you is so important…, but maybe you shouldn't put so much stock into what other people think." Keel thought to himself.
…
Naofumi and Raphtalia
…
Naofumi and Raphtalia made their way towards the traditional shops. Raphtalia was leaning against Naofumi and he finally had the good sense to understand what that meant now, holding her close. Seeing the night scene the island took on, Naofumi felt stupid for not seeing the romantic potential this atmosphere was building. It almost seemed like a waste of these night time hours for something like making money, but he knew that his work wasn't done.
It could be three years or more until he could well and truly rest. He'd look forward to such a day.
They went to the first shop and they found potions lining a shelf.
"Excuse me. You sell medicines and such, right?" Naofumi started the conversation normally.
"Yes, I do! How many can I get you? What kind?" The shopkeeper was eager for the sale, it seemed.
"Slow down. I don't need any, I was wondering if you do. Supplying all of these adventures must hit your stock something crazy, right?" Naofumi began his pitch.
"Ha, a fellow merchant? I may have a passing need for potions." The shopkeeper said.
"A 'passing need'? I'd expect you to sell 100 [Healing Medicines] a day and half as much [Magic Healing Water], am I right?" Naofumi pushed.
Raphtalia felt out of place in this interaction, not having much to contribute.
"And not a bad merchant either. Fair enough, I could do with more supply, everyone could… The question is the price." The man admitted.
"How much are you selling them for?" Naofumi asked.
"8 silver for healing and 10 silver for magic." The shopkeeper said plainly.
"What the hell? That's like double the normal price." Naofumi reacted.
"Indeed, during such an event the need and scarcity is far greater than normal. You must understand." The man saw nothing wrong with it.
"I do, but the monster corpses don't have much to offer outside the cactus worms. So those prices will bottle-neck the progress some of the adventures will make. And those adventurers will go on to help people all over the world. This particular business venture seems short-sighted." Naofumi told him.
"Listen. If you want to sell me something at a good price, I'll buy it, but I never asked for your advice on how to run my business." The shopkeeper was offended by Naofumi's assertion.
"If I show him I'm a hero and offer to sell him at a low price if he passes on the savings… he might do it… But even if it costs everyone else down the road, I need to focus on Lurolona. This man probably sees what he is doing, but has his own priorities too." Naofumi thought.
"Sorry if that's what it sounded like. I'm just a very…-" Naofumi was trying to find a nice way of saying it
"-opinionated person." Raphtalia chimed in, knowing just what to say after making excuses for him often.
"Yeah, that. So let's say half price?" Naofumi offered.
"Hmm, that sounds fair, but I'll need to check your product." The man motioned.
"Fair, here. I have about 15 dozen of each type." Naofumi pulled out one of each type and sat it on the man's counter.
The man stared for a moment. Naofumi felt his hero status was a benefit on Cal Mira. Honestly, his hero status might be positive in general now that the queen has squashed all the deceit thrown at him.
"Are you the-?" The man began to ask.
"I'm Naofumi Iwatani, the shield hero." Naofumi answered before the question was asked.
The man quietly took one of the potions and examined for a moment. He took only a short moment to check the medicine before handing it back to Naofumi.
"It seems you are. It's said that the shield hero also went by the name 'savior of the heavenly fowl'. So this medicine's high quality is to be expected. I'll gladly buy what I can." The man became more happy as he spoke.
From there, Naofumi was able to sell a lot of potions, but not even half of his stock. They'd need to do this roughly twice more to sell their stock. As the pair went to leave, they were hailed by two familiar faces.
"Naofumi, Raphtalia, how was your first day?" Godiva asked.
She was walking somewhere with Mia and noticed the pair, waving them over.
"Today was very productive… How was yours?" Raphtalia answered and asked.
They both made a face which said a lot.
"That bad?" Naofumi questioned.
"That bow hero is such an asshole that he even caused Mia to yell at him. Mia." Godiva repeated her name for emphasis.
"He barked orders at us all day and kept pestering me to give him items for free. That piece of-... Sorry, he really got under my skin." Mia caught herself.
Indeed, Mia never previously came off as the type of person to have outbursts of anger, but she was also a scared child before, but now she was looking like a 16-17 year old young adult. She was about as shapely as Raphtalia, but still a bit shorter. She had been coming out of her shell some and that outburst against Itsuki might have been the first of many to come, at least as far as dealing with insufferable idiots went.
"Will you two be able to handle him for the duration of the event?" Raphtalia asked in concern.
"Yes, of course." Godiva answered quickly, not willing to fail at something she saw as simple.
"But that doesn't mean nodding our heads and doing whatever he says. We're going to push back and if that leads him into deciding to remove us from his party, all the better." Mia said, not holding back her feelings on the matter.
"Heh, you don't really sound the same as the first time we met." Naofumi commented.
"...Thanks for the compliment." Mia replied with a slight delay.
"Glad you're taking that as a compliment." Naofumi said.
"Of course. I wasn't of much help to anyone. In fact, I was no help at all. I could make things that were useful, but I myself was not useful. Hopefully that is changing." Mia reflected.
"It is. Your stats aren't bad anymore and combined with the weapons you make, you really pack a punch." Godiva encouraged.
"So are you two retiring for the night?" Raphtalia asked.
"No, we need to buy local supplies for more items I plan to make." Mia answered.
"Don't forget that I'm getting you drunk. I'm wondering if that loud side of yours will come out while drunk." Godiva teased.
"Ugh, I said I'd drink one cup, one." Mia reminded her.
"Uh huh." Godiva dismissed.
"Besides, we have to find that one adventurer that uses guns. I can't find them if I'm drunk." Mia reminded her.
"The event is lasting a week or more, we have time." Godiva defended.
"Wait, gun? This world has guns!?" That threw Naofumi for a loop.
"The world you came from had guns?" Mia asked curiously.
"Yeah, it was the go-to weapon. Melee combat was all but non-existent as a means of waging war there." Naofumi informed her.
"Wow. Maybe they are worth further consideration than I initially granted them…" Mia seemed excited by the idea.
"If guns exist in this world, then why haven't I seen any of them?" Naofumi asked.
"Because they suck." Godiva answered.
"That's far from the proper explanation." Mia chided.
"But they do." Godiva insisted.
"...I'll explain then. Guns are a newer advent and therefore their stats are far lower than something like a bow or crossbow. Because the makers of bows and crossbows have countless years of study and development of the craft, whereas guns have no master gunsmiths and there won't be for at least another century. Combine that with the fact that only Faubrey seems to use them and, yeah, they're rare." Mia explained concisely.
Naofumi put a hand to his chin, considering what she said and what that meant.
"If that's the case, why is an adventurer here using them?" Raphtalia asked.
"That's what makes this so odd. This adventurer is using an inferior and rare weapon for some reason and yet was successful enough to make it to Cal Mira. They may be some rich fool, but either way I'm interested in the idea of studying them. They might have a future as worthwhile weapons down the road." Mia told them
Godiva pat Mia's head and ruffled her ears. "Stop talking nerd, we need to hurry up." Godiva teased.
Naofumi and Raphtalia suppressed a chuckle as Mia flustered under her friend's hand. They went to part ways, but Naofumi thought to ask something.
"Hey, if you guys can escape Itsuki, can you consider taking Keel for a few days?" Naofumi thought to ask.
"Why remove Keel? Do you think he's slowing us down?" Raphtalia asked with a slight disappointment.
"Not really. It's just that we have a party of 7 and that means our EXP is penalized. Plus, Godiva can teach Keel how to fight. None of us can teach him hand to hand." Naofumi explained.
Raphtalia tilted her head. "True… Would you consider it?" Raphtalia joined Naofumi in asking them.
"Sure. With all the bonuses you've provided, I doubt they'll be dead weight. With Fitts and Chloe, that means we'd be a party of 5." Godiva agreed.
"I doubt that the bow hero will stand dealing with us much longer. We will let you know when it happens." Mia added.
From there, the two groups parted ways. Naofumi and Raphtalia visited 3 more shops to sell their supplies, while Mia and Godiva did the opposite, going to multiple shops to buy supplies. The two groups were unknowingly going to meet back up
…
Filo's Feast
…
Filo was the first to get away and she knew she was faster than Monti ever could be. Really, there is no way that Monti could ever catch her. Which meant there was no reason to try. She found herself easily distracted by the smells of foods she had no memory of before.
Filo began making her way over towards the outdoor venue the smell came from. It was a centralized dining area with tables and chairs strung about, with several different food stands or open-door restaurants surrounding the area. Filo watched as people went to different stands and got their food of choice before meeting back up. The idea of everyone getting the food they wanted, but eating together was lost on Filo. She was wondering why all the 'food places' weren't in a line. That way she could get food from each of these places and then sit down.
"That's just dumb… What to get first…?" Filo now thought about one of her favorite subjects: food.
She went to pick one and stopped.
"How much allowance does Filo even have?" Filo thought.
She pulled out a pouch from the inventory. Naofumi found it easier to just add their silver to these assigned pouches than to present it to them. Mostly because Leon would do a weird celebratory dance when he got his allowance handed to him. They were getting three silver a week. That meant that Filo only had 12 silver. That was a lot for just food for the average person, but Filo was Filo. For just the briefest of moments, Filo considered taking some of Leon's hoard. She picked on him a bunch, but she knew better. Taking money from Leon was like taking food from Filo.
It wouldn't end well.
Filo determined that she'd eat her way through her money, then worry about it afterwards. She took a single step before hearing.
"I knew you'd be here!"
But the voice wasn't Monti's, it was-
"Mel-chan!~" Filo heard her friend and turned to tackle and hug her.
Liviccic, Sophia, and the others were with her.
"Give the Princess room to spend time with Filo. We'll sit nearby."
"Understood" Silvius, Ida, and Isidor answered in unison.
Melty gave Liviccic a nod of appreciation.
"Come on, Filo-chan. Catch me up on everything." Melty prompted Filo.
Filo was no longer considering Monti at all as the two sat, talked, and ate with her best friend. Though Melty was doing more of the talking and Filo was doing more of the eating. Still, Filo found time to talk.
"And then Leon nearly burned Keel because he's really dumb." Filo continued with her story, doing her best to make Leon look bad.
"Keel, that other person in your party?" Melty asked for clarification and in concern.
"Yeah, Leon just does things without thinking." Filo said without the faintest hint of self-awareness.
"...Is that so…?" Melty hadn't the heart to call out her friend.
Melty saw Monti coming up slowly from behind. He had a finger up to his mouth, telling Melty to act normal. Filo hadn't told Melty that she was running from Monti. Had she, Melty would have likely supported her best friend.
Monti snuck up behind Filo and attempted to sting Filo in the neck. He struck out at his sister, holding back, but knowing he was going to need to use some force.
Clang
He couldn't break her skin to paralyze her. The effect of [Love] was now an obstacle Monti could not power through. Filo hopped up and dashed to the side.
"Ah! You almost got Filo, but you can't sting Filo~." Filo celebrated.
Monti stood there in frustration. "I have to want to hurt them to hurt them, but if I don't hold back I could do more damage than I intend… dammit." Monti felt stuck.
"Ha, you can't catch me or hurt me, I'm unstoppable!" Filo declared lightly.
"C'mon, Filo. Listen to your big brother." Monti pleaded.
"Monti, no one would be mad at you for having some fun. You're a kid too." Filo told him.
The words made Monti flinch a bit. Filo used this moment to run off. Leaving Monti and Melty alone a moment.
"Um, what's going on?" Melty asked.
"Stupid Teal convinced everyone to run out on me right after mom and dad tasked me with watching them. I don't get why they're doing this..." Monti was being more childish in his demeanor and mannerisms than normal.
Melty picked up on that too. She liked Filo, but doing this to Monti seemed mean. She also still owed him for protecting her during the battle.
"...I have a suggestion." Melty offered Monti.
"Please, I can't catch them alone." Monti admitted.
.
[Author's Notes]
Sorry for the long delay between chapters here. I had and am continuing to have IRL things happening that have interrupted my ability to get this chapter out, but hopefully that stops now.
This chapter was much longer, but I had to cut it in half. At least know that some of the next chapter is already written.
They've secured more coin and supplies for the village, things are going great.
Some canon reasons for why guns suck in the SMS. Mia is optimistic about their future use, but history in Raphtalia's word has not been kind to firearms.
Monti catches Keel, but he was never the issue. [Love] actually makes it all the harder, but maybe Melty can think up a way to deal with them?
Please leave a review!