"Talking"
"Thinking"
[Status Magic or other reference to a system or power]
…
It was the battle with the Three Heroes Church all over again, but with even more lives on the line.
…
Four days passed too quickly for anyone's liking. This was now over a week of marching and the kids seemed to be sick of it. At the same time, they were putting up with it because of what happened to the village. Naofumi and Raphtalia still felt bad about all this. They still haven't really had time to rest. They got plenty of sleep, but every day was a new problem. Naofumi and Raphtalia kept telling themselves that they'd take some time when they could get it. They'd always be improving, but the kids still weren't that skilled and everyone was having a hard time with [Hengen Muso] without the old lady around to guide them.
They had the levels thanks to Cal Mira. Now they just needed time to polish their abilities, and polishing their abilities could be done in the village.
Naofumi had spoken to Ren about the waves that Fitoria took him and the other heroes to. They each went to a different wave. This meant that they each had monster materials to give each other and could help each other register to the hourglasses that they knew of. Naofumi already decided that he wasn't going to register to every hourglass he could. Each hero should register to 4-5 hourglasses, and not overlap too much. Naofumi figured that two heroes at any wave was good enough with as powerful as they all were now.
Two days into the march, they all received amazing news. They were told that for a second time, the Spirit Tortoise was dead. Felled by beams of light, just like last time. It gave the queen and Naofumi pause, but despite lacking a way to communicate directly, they both made the same decision. They ignored the information and marched onward. Half a day later, they were told the Spirit Tortoise got back up again.
Again, Naofumi had doubts and suspicions about what any of this meant, but he felt his assumptions and theories weren't good enough to make any big changes.
Naofumi looked at the hourglass timers for the waves. They were still frozen. If only they could keep the benefit of the Spirit Tortoise's awakening without it killing everything that exists. Naofumi also glanced at his stats. He was so strong now. He had ballooned up quite a bit, he tried thinking of that when thinking about where Motoyasu and Itsuki were. Itsuki had higher stats than Naofumi did, and Motoyasu could do the same if he used his curse series. So each time Naofumi saw his stats, he thought they were safe, wherever they were.
The night of the fourth day came soon enough. Naofumi, Raphtalia, and the council members met in a freshly set-up tent at the end of the marching day. Naofumi was told about any issues that occurred throughout the day, and Naofumi was expected to deal with them.
In reality, he mostly delegated the work, but he did have moments where he could address an issue, they were just discussing such an issue being resolved.
"Oh great Shield Lord, your divine guidance saved us yet again! The hunting parties are reporting back and it was just as you decreed!" Dou-Lon announced entirely too loud.
Naofumi was trying to use Werner as a buffer between Dou-Lon and his precious ears. Naofumi wished his high defense meant his ears could handle more of this abuse.
"Simple solutions are often for the best. Our food supply issue is all but resolved so quickly. We were so busy thinking about solutions for a normal war that we never stopped to consider that this war has unique exploitable factors." Renair thought aloud.
An issue that only existed because they formed a military force in less than a day and cared more about impressing Naofumi with numbers and not having the supplies to feed them all.
"Indeed. Knowing that monsters are fleeing the Spirit Tortoise and using that to have far more successful hunting in this wider pattern was exactly what was needed." Jaralis allowed himself to agree with Renair.
Naofumi really hated the praise. What he did wasn't really worth praising.
"Such tactical genius, such brilliant insight. We must remember to add these shining moments into the record of history!" Dou-Lon wasn't quieting.
Naofumi decided on a different tactic. "If you do, remember to correctly attribute the strategy to Melty Melromarc. When we were evading the three heroes church, she told us to pay attention to wild monster movements as a precursor to the enemy's arrival. I just figured the Spirit Tortoise caused the same reaction just on a large enough scale to exploit." Naofumi deflected.
A few council members soured a bit from hearing Melty's name, but behaved well enough to hide that fact.
Jaralis tried deflecting. "Even still, she merely gave you some knowledge. You are still the one that applied that knowledge and-"
"It wasn't applied, it was lifted wholesale. I used her idea. If it's really that clever, praise her." Naofumi suggested.
"..." And Naofumi bought silence with Melty's name. None of them wanted to praise a human that wasn't their Shield Lord, especially someone with the last name, 'Melromarc'. Raphtalia looked annoyed at the ploy Naofumi used, but she also wasn't stopping him either.
With the quiet moment, Naofumi reminded them again, something he had been repeating the whole trip. "Don't act up when we meet up tomorrow. If any of you start trading barbs with Mirellia, you're going to the front lines." Naofumi told them again.
"What about the king of wisdom?" Renair asked knowingly.
"Talk shit to him all you want, just don't interrupt too much." Naofumi answered honestly.
"I've had to deal with the queen of Melromarc for years, I think it best that I lead in the discussions tomorrow." Werner came forward with the offer.
Before Jaralis could object, Naofumi did. "That certainly counts for something, but do not overstep. You might be the best at playing nice with humans when needed, but you don't get to make promises with or command men you didn't bring yourself. During tomorrow's talks you'll be representing the elite races, not Siltvelt as a whole." Naofumi told him, seeming to await a reaction.
"Of course, such a task would obviously fall to you, Shield Lord." Werner showed no negative reaction.
"Eh, I was actually hoping to let Jaralis handle that." Naofumi said to the whole room.
"What!?" Jaralis was shocked.
"What!?" Renair was devastated.
Naofumi liked the way Jaralis moved on the board. He rarely challenges Naofumi directly now. He instead tries to align their interests when able and overall seemed to do the most to ally himself to Naofumi, with Naofumi doing very little work of his own on that front. Jaralis even dropped any misgivings about Raphtalia and the kids after the wave. He also seemed to have the biggest voice in the council and had the most resources in terms of manpower.
Werner seemed far more honest, though. He was straightforward most of the time and only seemed to argue with Jaralis when Jaralis started it. Otherwise, he conducted himself properly. Werner also never had outbursts. Everyone was against some of what Naofumi said and did. Only Werner quietly voiced disagreement while accepting that Naofumi was able to ignore his council.
Neither of the two could be called a friend, Renair was closer to that with how she doted on the kids like a favorite auntie. Still, they were potentially allies Naofumi could stand to trust if certain things happened.
It wasn't like Naofumi hadn't picked up on the context of Jaralis' and Werner's arguments. Jaralis resented Werner because he felt Werner being a member of an elite race is the reason he is important. Jaralis likely worked his way up the ladder and saw Werner's situation as unfair. And that was a reasonable assessment, however, Werner had also conducted himself in a manner that befits someone in the position he found himself in. While not earned, Werner seemed deserving of the position he held.
After having so many issues with nobles and royalty, though, Naofumi didn't find the idea of Werner or the other elite races having political power just for being born. That goes double in a society like Siltvelt that already has elected officials as the supposed highest form of governess.
So, Naofumi decided to test both of them now. He'd test Jaralis' temperament with how he deals with Mirellia and Aultcray. He'd test Werner to see if he was as against Jaralis as Jaralis was against him. Then he'd test them both on the battlefield. If one passed and one failed, he'd side with that one against the other. If they both failed, he'd turn to Renair. If they both passed though… Naofumi would need to get a little more involved in affairs than he wanted to be.
"...I see. If that is your decision, then we must accept it." Werner said after a moment of quiet shock.
"..." Naofumi stirred the pot a bit longer to no avail. He couldn't crack any of them with his ploys.
Naofumi ended the talks quickly. He wanted to sleep soon so they could leave early the next day. Renair spent most of her time tending to the kids, and after the meeting was no exception. Naofumi wasn't blind to the fact she was probably doing this to get closer to him, but he could tell there was some genuine goodwill there. Renair had no family left, if Naofumi could remember correctly. So she really did seem to enjoy taking care of the kids. Maybe that's why he wasn't testing her the same way he was testing Werner and Jaralis. Maybe he already trusted her enough.
…
The meeting
…
Over the days of travel, a few groups met up with Siltvelt's forces. There was expected conflict with many of Siltvelt's people believing in demi-human supremacy and owning human slaves, but they did nothing to displease their god and acting king. Or at least, nothing happened long enough to get back to Naofumi. The royal knights busted up any misconduct they saw.
Their meeting was to take place not in an open field, but a small trade town along the way. It was useful for many reasons. It let them resupply, it let them get updated information, and it allowed a secure place for all parties to meet. The bulk of the combined forces traveling with Siltvelt stayed outside the town, while the leaders entered. Naofumi insisted on Raphtalia and the kids coming with him, no one tried to voice disagreement. He was joined by Siltvelt's council, Werner, a few of Siltvelt's royal knights, and the leaders of the other forces that joined them.
They had beaten Melromarc by less than an hour. Melromarc arrived and mirrored Siltvelt. Ren, his party, Mirellia, Aultcray, and her lords entered the room along with the various leaders of the smaller forces gathered. They sat opposite to Siltvelt, letting the other leaders from other armies or groups serve as a buffer between the two groups. Raphtalia and the kids stood behind the seated Naofumi, Ren's party did the same. Sophia and Silvius stood behind Liviccic, and Chloe had apparently caught up with the army and now stood behind Fitts.
The first to seek was the leader of the city they were currently in. "I'm glad you've chosen to gather here. Our city will be its target by midday tomorrow. For coming to our aid with such formidable force, we thank you sincerely." The man tried starting things off.
There was a pause. There was animosity aplenty.
"Let's just get to it then." Naofumi told the room.
Mirellia spoke next. "Right, Aultcray has planned our side of the assault. As previously agreed, we will do everything in our power to not enter the other side of our enemy."
"Please do." Jaralis was being snarky and behaving at the same time.
"That said, this is going to be a rough engagement. We will allow leeway when able. And of course, these are terms between Siltvelt and Melromarc. No other ally is beholden to that agreement." Werner offered.
Mirellia looked at Aultcray expectantly. With a small delay, he spoke. "The enemy is so large that we normally have no way to slow or stop them. A surface view of this situation might lead one to think we must engage in constant retreat to keep pace with the monster, but we can do more."
Aultcray laid out a few plans and proposals. Ways to exploit its size, exploit the terrain, the best way to use ceremony magic during the engagement. Naofumi hated it after the 10th suggestion. Who was this man? Naofumi knew Aultcray well enough. This person was too tactful and had too many good ideas to be the same man. Naofumi couldn't help but become irritated.
Many of the smaller leaders argued that they wanted to take charge or lead, but Aultcray and Jaralis shut them down each time. Eventually, they saw that Aultcray's plans were the best course of action. Even Jaralis decided to copy several of those plans for Siltvelt's side, no doubt trying to later take credit for them.
"And then we heroes engage from its front?" Ren asked.
"Yes. I saw the power you had on Cal Mira. You three should be more than enough." Mirellia answered, including Liviccic with Naofumi and Ren.
"Speaking of that… Where are the other holy heroes? For what reason are the bow and spear heroes not here?" One of the smaller army leaders asked.
"...Unfortunately, they are both missing at this time…" Mirellia answered.
"They went missing at the same time all of this went down. Likely, they are defending whatever land they were on whenever the familiars attacked and don't know of all this." Aultcray added.
He said that to put people at ease. Truthfully, they should know about as much as Ren. Meaning they should have returned as Ren did and helped spread information about the threat.
The meeting was generally useful, but Aultcray and Jaralis exchanged insults and barely dressed up threats, all while the allied leaders continued to argue they should be given more priority. Jaralis did keep to Naofumi's rules however, only insulting Aultcray and saying nothing of Mirellia. Eventually, they moved to lighter conversation. Or at least as light as conversations about war can get.
"If we're placing our ballista and catapults there, Walter needs to be there." Godiva suggested.
Renair's ears twitched at that.
"Agreed. The man shot you safely to another ship in a storm. I assume him firing from a vantage point on a clear day will be no exception." Mirellia agreed. "I ask that you allow Walter to command-no, supervise the ranged forces. At the very least, allow him to set up the first barrage." Mirellia told the room.
"No Melromarcian human is commanding our men." The mammoth council member answered.
"Walter is neither Melromarcian, nor human. He's a demi-human. So you'll have no complaints?" Mirellia asked.
The council members looked like they wanted to say 'no', but- "Agreed, Walter is probably only behind Itsuki in accuracy, we agree to that. First volley only. Not sure how his commanding skills are and this isn't the time to test that." Naofumi answered.
"Hmm, speaking of demi-humans under your command, where's this demi-human lord you bragged about?" Renair asked.
"Mia is a talented alchemist. She's far more valuable in her lab than here." Leon answered, even though Naofumi told him not to talk in the meeting. Naofumi put his hand on Leon's head to remind him to not interrupt the important meeting. He was waiting for Werner or Jaralis to screw up, not his kids.
"...Either way, focus on the giant living mountain, please." Ren managed to say.
Ren hadn't spoken much in the meeting. Naofumi was hoping for him to put forth more of an effort, but he seemed to shrivel up around so many people.
"Can't swim, can't deal with people… How are you hero material?" Naofumi thought.
The meeting soon ended. Naofumi touched base with those he knew and made sure things were okay. Most were, but when he found Walter, he seemed like he was shaking, and Chloe was so mad at those of Siltvelt that she wasn't doing well either. "This was so much, so suddenly. I can't blame them for not adjusting well." Naofumi thought.
His attention and thoughts then turned to the kids. "Raphtalia is mentally tough enough to roll with the punches, but the kids are not… When this is over, we need to spend more time in the village. Not just time between important tasks, the time in the village needs to be seen as the important task. Maybe it would help them and us understand what we'll gain when we finally win." Naofumi considered.
Soon after Naofumi retired to the lodging the town provided for the important people in this joint military operation. Other people's problems continued.
Godiva approached the shaking Walter with a bottle of alcohol, hoping it'd calm his nerves. She wordlessly lifted the bottle up to him, but he raised a hand in refusal.
"None of that. I'm doing this sober." Walter said, sounding like he hated his own decision.
Godiva was more than surprised. "...Is that the best decision? You are suffering withdrawal, are you going to be able to perform?"
"I guess I'll have to, huh?" Walter said, not really addressing her concerns.
"...What's going on?" Godiva wanted to know what prompted his change in attitude.
"Mia's parents made it to her… I'd yet to see her so happy." Walter said with a smile.
"Okay…?" Godiva failed to see an issue.
"And one look at me and they had a low opinion. How can I blame them? I came from nobility and was brought down by my own actions. Mia started as a slave and is now a greater noble. Comparing the two of us, I look like a joke. Some drunken fool that plays with guns." Walter spoke, not thinking.
"Wait, you were a noble?" Godiva asked.
Walter's eyes shot open, realizing he had just screwed up. "...Goddammit… You heard nothing."
"...You think giving up drinking will fix the image they have for you?" Godiva dropped it and continued the conversation. It wasn't like she cared if he was a noble.
Walter responded by hitting his left shoulder as hard as he could. When he had no reaction, Godiva raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, Mia fixed my arm. Melee combat is no longer a death sentence for me. I can also move as fast as I want. I hadn't been able to run full speed since I was 14. I have to re-learn how to fight and abandon a bunch of these habits." Walter explained.
"If you are a noble, though, isn't that good enough?" Godiva found this to be too much work.
"Mia deserves more than 'good enough', and I can't openly state my name as things are… I'd need to solve three problems first." Walter now looked like he was thinking of something else.
"Well, it's nice that you are thinking so highly of Mia…" Godiva observed.
"Of course. I've seen countless people abuse their power, and countless more beg and scrape for any power they can. Mia isn't like that. She just wants to help. Power helps, but she cares little for it. Not to mention she is really beautiful. If she was born in Siltvelt, she'd probably already revolutionized the weapons there and would be on the council. She'd succeed anywhere." Walter gushed a bit about why he chose to pursue her.
They sat there a moment, before Godiva ruined it. "I might have told her parents that you were trying to get into her pants, sorry."
"I fucking knew it." Walter said, taking the bottle from her hand.
He eventually got up and went off to find someone else. Meanwhile, Fitts had his hands full with Chloe.
Seeing Chloe so mad at the situation, Fitts tried calming her down. "I understand you don't like working with Siltvelt, but you have to bear with it. Think of Raphtalia and Mia. They both work to better the very country that enslaved them. Given that, can you not hold back at least while the continent is at stake?" Fitts tried offering perspective.
Chloe seemed more annoyed at his attempt at 'helping'. "I am fully aware of the situation at hand and the strength of character other former slaves are showing even now…, but HE is here!" She shouted.
"...Who?" Fitts asked after a small delay.
"Who!? My former owner. I saw that fucking gorilla bastard with the nobles hanging at Naofumi's coattails. He and his older brother had many slaves. They shared them at that large compound they owned. I only escaped because I was registered to his brother. When he died, all his slaves ran for it. They prioritized catching the valuable ones. I only escaped because I was 8 years old and of little value." Chloe revealed.
"..." Fitts grew quiet. Dealing with her former owner was a level of tolerance that no one can ask for. Raphtalia and Mia had slain their former masters, so bringing their history up stoked the flame more than anything. He thought of what to say to her, but someone else entered the conversation at that moment
"His name is Gratin Gormun." Walter said, entering the room. "His brother was Burka Gormun."
Chloe gave her full attention to Walter. "How do you know their names?"
"Because I hate them too. Not as much as you, but a profound amount… If the opportunity presents itself tomorrow, would you want to remove the problem?" Walter offered.
"And why would I trust you?" Chloe asked.
Walter just smirked. "Because I currently have the tools and conditions to allow a flawless assassination. Interested?" He asked.
"...Let's hear the plan." Chloe answered after a moment
From there, they schemed.
…
Lute Village
…
Malty had to get up on time again. She had so many restless nights that she was given a three day reprieve by the lord. Instead of being thankful for a break she had no right to, she was mad that she was mad to do so much work before that. With the Spirit Tortoise's familiars attacking everywhere, Lute was attacked, just like everywhere else. When they did, Malty had to be the one to fight them off. She was over level 60 and had some of the best equipment money could buy. She also had fire and wind affinity, making the heat beams far less of an issue for her.
Lute village was such a small village so close to the capital that the volume of enemies going to the Lute as opposed to the capital wasn't that great. Malty was never overwhelmed and handled her enemies well enough. In fact, she did a great job. She had inherited many of her parent's talents, but never applied herself. When the lord told her to help the villagers that all changed. She was forced to actually do what she could, not what she felt like. The problem was only she could deal with them, so she would be woken up at all hours of the night to kill the few scouted by others. She was allowed to suspend normal tasks because the constant few familiars was a far more pressing matter.
Malty threw herself on her low-quality bed. It wasn't even as good as an average inn's bed. The fact that the bed, other furniture, and the entire room was given to her for free was lost on her. With Melromarc cleared of all familiars, she'd get to rest.
"Finally! This place is hell…!" Malty wanted to sleep, but found herself a bit thirsty. Not even two months ago, she'd merely need to say a word and servants would race to bring her the finest wines, and sweetest exotic juices. Now she had to drag herself out of bed when she was so tire to-
*Knock* *knock*
"...What?" Malty managed.
The door opened revealing the shadow that was assigned to watch Malty. She carried a pitcher and something under her arm. "Malty, While discussing things with the lord, it was decided that you've been very helpful. I have medicine to help remove the soreness you've no doubt gained from your defense of the village as of late. I also brought you this." The shadow sat the pitcher on the nightstand. "Because of how few familiar attacks hit Lute and the speed at which you dealt with them, a few traders have decided to stay a bit longer for safety. So they are trading at lowered rates. The lord secured some of the new juice from Lerno."
"..." Malty said nothing, but removed some of her clothes and motioned for the shadow to start applying the medicine.
The shadow stared at her a moment, then sat the medicine next to the pitcher. "Apply the medicine yourself." Was all they said, turning to leave.
"Please… it hurts…" Malty managed again.
"..." The shadow stopped and thought for a moment. They turned around and wordlessly assisted Malty. Soon after, the shadow went to leave. Malty took a small sip from the pitcher, her eyes lit up. She'd not had anything but water for weeks, and even still, she'd never had this before.
"The fruits of your own labor are sweeter than you thought, right?" The shadow asked rhetorically.
Instead of spite, Malty surprised them both. "Thanks…" She said in a low voice, then turned in bed to face the other way.
The shadow never thought they'd hear sincerity in Malty's voice. "She's probably still acting."
"You can have a pitcher of the juice per day for a week, that's what the lord could afford. Thank him, not me." The shadow then left, closing the door.
…
The day of engagement
…
Faster than anyone was comfortable with, the next day came. As discussed, they traveled further to a spot where three valleys converged. This would keep the battle from destroying the city and had several strategic advantages. They'd have needed hours to set up the catapults and ballista at the many high spots around the junction, but Leon's full form could lift them to great vantage points with little hassle. That meant Leon was doing his least favorite activity, manual labor.
Teal also planted seeds like crazy. She knew that this would probably do much to the Spirit Tortoise, but it'd work to stall the yeti familiars she assumed would be traveling with it. Then again, Teal's ground plants were always weak because she'd activate them within minutes of planting them. As she knew, the longer she let her plants wait, the stronger they were and the longer they lasted. So if the logistics were correct, and they had three hours to power up. Given Teal's level of power currently… maybe things would be different.
While Leon moved equipment, Filo moved the people. She was helping those who were to operate catapults and ballista to their stations. Walter being one of them. You'd think moving soldiers one or two at a time would take all day, but Filo was more than a little rough in her methods. She'd often rush to her destination so fast that people couldn't hang on, then she'd stop suddenly causing people to fly off to where they needed to be. After that was done, she took Walter to each location to adjust the position of each weapon. He'd make the first barrage flawless.
Naofumi had used [Knock Knock] to call Eclair to his side soon enough and sent her to help Mirellia's side of things. He'd wait to summon Monti, otherwise he'd try helping too much, or worse, wear himself out before the fight. Naofumi did what he could to help position people, Raphtalia assisting as best she could. The royal guards were so eager to receive their orders, but found them lacking.
"You guys, standby." Naofumi told them after seeing their eager faces.
They wanted to respect Naofumi while also disagreeing. "L-Lord Shield? We wish to-"
Naofumi cut them off. "I know. Like I said before, I take the lead. Ren follows up. When the fighting starts, stay as close to us as you can without disobeying orders. This battle will be a complete shitshow if the familiars overwhelm our position. Keep them off us."
"Understood. We will clear the enemies around Lord Shield to ensure he can engage his enemy unobstructed."
"Ren too. I expect better behavior out of you guys than Jaralis. Do what you can for every involved in the front." Naofumi added.
"If that is what you wish."
Time started slowing down as the nervousness of everyone involved slowly started creeping up. It was a normal amount of stress… at first. Then the small shaking occurred. The shaking was so small that the only thing people saw was small rocks shifting slightly. Soon, people could feel it. The whole valley shook with moments of brief calm between. It kept increasing until-
"There it is!" Walter yelled from a higher position.
For a moment, no one else saw anything, but one more step proved him right. A mountain's peak was moving. They could not see the actual monster, just the mountain. Many people tried wrapping their heads around how big their enemy was. Not seeing the main body only drove them to fear.
Naofumi used [Tele-communication] to contact Monti. "The enemy is in sight. Are you ready?"
"Of course! Hur-y a-d s-mm- me-" Monti's response was being cut off.
"That had never happened. Wait, it has! That damned sanctuary spell the pope used. DOes that mean!?" Naofumi realized too late.
He could not summon Monti to the battlefield now, for a reason he could only speculate on. That was one of their strongest fighters out of the fight before the first drop off blood was spilt.
"RRRRAAAAKKKKSSSS!" The monster roared violently as it came into view fully.
The monster was larger than the capital city of Melromarc, its peak nearly punctured the cloudline, each step raddled the earth more violently than the one before. The sun was eclipsed by the sheer number of familiars that flew around the creature, while countless familiars also walked the earth beside the beast. The day grew dark from the blackened sky, as the battlefield took on a haunting green glare from the monster itself.
The Spirit Tortoise had arrived on the battlefield.
.
[Author's Notes]
Next chapter, ST time. No more teasing.
Naofumi is playing Jaralis against Werner to see which one he'd rather back long-term. Aultcray is being useful, and plenty more!
Walter and Chloe fail to prioritize correctly. Now they are planning to kill someone, but the ST kind of needs their full attention.
Got a small Malty update. Nothing humbles someone more than intense physical labor and the small benefits that come from that effort.
I feel the last three chapters could have worked better as two chapters with more consideration on my part. At least we get a deadly fight next chapter with potentially dozens of named victims.
Please leave a review.