Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to characters from the Mario or ROTSH franchises.
Review responses:
T.V. 2000: Understandably, Malty would make such accusations against Luigi, given his gender. And it's clear that Peach and Daisy, who have known Mario and Luigi for years and are in a relationship with them, would never believe her. These deep-rooted relationships add a layer of authenticity to the story.
As for Aultcray, his involvement in the plot to accuse the Shield Hero in this fic paints him in a darker light. His blind trust in the pope, which was not present in the original canon, at least not to the extent of knowing about Balmus's plans for the Shield Hero, makes him appear a more flawed and less admirable king, a portrayal I aimed for.
Ren and Itsuki can be better heroes if they follow Peach's advice and talk to their teammates. Hopefully, they will get to know them better and not fall for false praise. As for Motoyasu being the Spear's choice, I remember reading somewhere that the Spear, Bow, and Sword weapons were corrupted due to all the battles with the evil goddess. Not to the point of being cruel but unable to summon their preferred wielder. They don't even get the backup choice. They get the fourth or fifth backup choice.
And who knows? There's a thrilling possibility that Mario might be chosen as a weapon holder. But which one? This uncertainty adds an element of excitement to the story.
Viruz Pirata and indescribable10: Thank you for the compliment. I'm glad you're enjoying the story.
Eternal4ever: Yep, Rifana lives, and Raphtalia won't suffer as much. There's also a strong possibility of another happy reunion for these two. And yeah, the trash king and lying whore princess will be making many mistakes because of their greed and selfishness.
Perseus12: Thanks for the thumbs up. And Mirellia should be pissed at Aultcray for antagonizing Luigi. Not just because it could incite another war with Siltvelt and Shieldfreeden but also because it could turn the Shield Hero and his friends against Melromarc. And one of her shadows is on their way to inform her of Mario's strength.
blueassassin996: Oh, it backfired big time. Let's hope Ren and Itsuki can break the king's and the church's hold on them. And now, most of the kingdom does not trust Aultcray and will be more receptive to Luigi.
Redburndragon: Let's hope the Sword and Bow heroes learn from this experience. Yeah, the power-ups from the Mario games are simple but versatile. And yes, Luigi will find many loopholes to attack.
TyTylerBarela100: I'm glad you liked the chapter. I hope you will enjoy how Itsuki's and Ren's personalities will change due to the failed trial.
Chapter 3: Rescue of Lurolona
Luigi and Daisy were staying in the room they rented with Raphtalia. She had awakened from a nightmare, but Luigi and Daisy were there to comfort her. As Daisy held Raphtalia in her arms, Luigi was nervously pacing. It had been quite a while since Mario and Peach left to kill monsters, but they still hadn't returned.
"Is something wrong, Sir Shield Hero?" Raphtalia asked.
"It's-a my brother and Princess Peach. They should have been back by now. And call me Luigi, Raphtalia."
"Okay, Sir Luigi."
Luigi just chuckled at how Raphtalia was so formal with him.
"I wouldn't worry too much, Luigi. They probably just lost track of time. I'm sure they're okay. In fact, they'll probably walk through that door right now." Daisy said.
On cue, the door opened, revealing Mario, Peach, and a small girl with animal traits like Raphtalia walking in.
"Hey, bro! Where've you been?" Luigi asked.
"Oh, well, we were killing monsters and lost track of time and where we were, so it took us a while to find our way back," Mario answered.
Luigi looked at his brother and Peach in surprise while Daisy just laughed. While Daisy was laughing, Luigi noticed the girl standing between Mario and Peach.
"Um, who's that?"
Daisy and Raphtalia looked to where Luigi pointed, and Raphtalia gasped in shock. Before anyone could say anything, she jumped off Daisy and ran up to the girl.
"Rifana?"
"Raphtalia?"
The two girls stared at each other for a moment before they hugged each other.
"I didn't think I would ever see you again. I'm so happy you're okay."
"Me too. Let's never be apart ever again!"
The two girls said in tears. The four SuperStars just watched the scene before them in silence.
"Huh? They must know each other," Mario said.
"Obviously. Hey, Raphtalia, is she a friend of yours?" Daisy asked.
"Yes, she's my best friend from our village. When I was sold back to the slave trader, I thought I'd never see her again." Raphtalia said while drying her tears. "How did you escape?" She asked Rifana.
"I didn't. Rabier tortured me until I was about to die, and then he had his men throw me away in the woods." Rifana answered. "I would've stayed dead if Mario and Peach didn't find me."
"I see. Wait, stayed dead? You died!?" Raphtalia asked in shock.
"Yeah. We left the herbs I bought here for you in case you needed more medicine. So we had to use a one-up mushroom to bring her back to life." Mario answered while rubbing the back of his head.
Raphtalia just stood in shock at this revelation. She then started to cry happy tears.
"To bring back my best friend, the Shield Hero, and his friends are truly powerful."
"What, Shield Hero!? Do you know the Shield Hero?
Rifana was shocked to hear her friend mention Mario and Peach knew the Shield Hero.
"Yeah, he's my brother. He's right there."
Mario pointed to Luigi, who showed off the shield on his arm. Rifana ran up and hugged Luigi's leg.
"The Shield Hero saved me! This must be fate! We're meant to be together!" Rifana exclaimed.
Everyone was confused by Rifana's actions. Raphtalia walked up to Rifana with a hesitant look on her face.
"Rifana. I hate to be the one to tell you this, but Sir Luigi, the Shield Hero, already has a girlfriend."
"What!? Who!?"
"It's Lady Daisy."
Rifana looked up to see Daisy holding onto Luigi.
"I see." Rifana let go and looked disheartened.
"Um, what's wrong with her?" Luigi asked.
"Remember, Luigi? The Shield Hero is considered a god to demi-humans. She probably had some fantasies or dreams about marrying the Shield Hero." Daisy explained.
"Yeah, she did," Raphtalia confirmed while comforting Rifana.
"Oh," Luigi said in understanding.
He, Mario, and Peach were trying to find a way to fix the situation. But Daisy already had an idea.
"You know, you may not be able to date the Shield Hero because he's already mine, and you're too young, but what about calling the Shield Hero father?"
Mario, Peach, Luigi, Raphtalia, and Rifana look at Daisy in shock.
"What!?" They all said.
"Are you sure, Daisy?" Luigi asked.
"Yeah, it's a good idea. We could protect these girls, and it's not like we weren't thinking about starting a family."
"I'm not-"
"I like it!" Rifana said as she latched onto Luigi's leg. "Papa Luigi."
"Rifana! I'm sorry about that, Sir Luigi."
"It's-a okay, Raphtalia. Unless you don't want to be adopted?"
"Huh!? I mean, if it's okay with you."
"Of course."
"Then, thank you, Papa."
Raphtalia then hugged Luigi's other leg before she looked at Daisy.
"And Mama."
Daisy just smiled at this. Mario and Peach wondered how this would change things once they returned home. Obviously, a wedding would need to occur as soon as they return, but would Luigi have to leave home to assume his new role as King of Sarasland? Mario would be saddened but would send his brother off with a smile.
"Welcome to the Mario family, you two," Luigi said.
Raphtalia and Rifana looked at Luigi in confusion.
"Mario family?" Raphtalia said.
"Yeah, my last name is Mario, so my full name is Luigi Mario."
"Oh, wait, then?"
Both girls looked towards Mario after hearing that.
"Yes, my full name is Mario Mario," Mario explained.
The two demi-girls just shrugged and went back to hugging Luigi. That's when Rifana jumped up in shock.
"Wait! Papa, you need to save the others!"
"Others?" Luigi and Mario asked.
"Yes. Rabier still has the rest of the villagers in his dungeons. He's going to torture them to death." Rifana explained.
"But, it's just the four of them, Rifana. And Rabier has a small army of knights at his estate. I don't think they would be able to save them."
"What do you mean, Raphtalia? Papa's the Shield Hero. He can do anything."
"But,"
"It's-a okay, you two. We'll save your friends." Luigi said.
"Are you sure? He does have a small army of knights at his estate. They patrol the walls protecting his estate, the grounds around it, and the halls of his mansion. It'll just be you four against at least one hundred men." Raphtalia explained.
"Eh, nothing we haven't done before. We usually face an army of a couple thousand on our adventures." Mario said.
Raphtalia and Rifana just looked at the four SuperStars in awe.
"See! I told you Papa could do anything! And Mama, Auntie Peach, and Uncle Mario as well!" Rifana said.
While Mario and Peach were getting used to being an uncle and aunt, Daisy smiled at being a mother.
"It's late, so we should rest for now. We'll save them tomorrow." Mario said.
While Raphtalia and Rifana didn't like making their friends wait, they couldn't argue against Mario's logic. The group went to sleep to prepare for the next day.
The next night
Raphtalia and Rifana led the four SuperStars to Rabier's estate. When the group approached, they saw a large wall surrounding the mansion he lived in. Up on the wall were knights keeping an eye out for any potential threats.
"Mamamia, you weren't kidding. This guy must be paranoid if he has knights guarding him twenty-four-seven." Mario commented.
"Not only that, but he's also a powerful noble with ties to the king. He kept bragging about being a war hero who fought by that bastard's side during the war." Rifana spat out.
Daisy pats her head to calm her down.
"It's going to be okay. We're here now to save your friends."
Rifana calmed down and smiled at Daisy's words.
"How are you going to save our friends?" Raphtalia asked.
"Easy, we'll use our power-ups," Mario answered.
When Mario and his friends first arrived, they wondered what the levels were for. They assumed it was a way to track their experiences, as they all had high levels upon arrival. But they still wondered what the 'New World Levels' were for and why they were at one. As they fought and leveled up, their stats did increase slightly. But the most significant benefit was that it unlocked their original power-ups.
Flashback
While Luigi and Daisy were killing balloons on the second day of their arrival, they noticed they had leveled up to level four. Their stats only slightly increased, but they assumed it was because of their already high stats from their home. And that's when something unexpected but great happened.
[Level requirement reached—connection with past abilities granted. The wielder now has access to power-ups. Power-ups available: Mushroom, Fire Flower, Super Star. More power-ups will become available at higher levels.]
Luigi was surprised by this notification.
"Daisy, did you just get a notification about power-ups?" Luigi asked.
"Yeah. This is great, isn't it?"
"Definitely."
While Daisy and Luigi discussed this new development, Myne rested under a tree. So, she had yet to learn about these power-ups that Luigi and his friends could use.
Present time
Since then, the four SuperStars have reached New World Level fifteen. They now have access to one more power-up: the Mini Mushroom. Thanks to this world system, they could activate power-ups by thinking about them, but there was one drawback. The power-ups could be used repeatedly but worked like a skill in the sense they had a cool-down period. Luckily, it's short, only about five minutes until they could be used again, except for one: the Super Star. It had an hour-long cool-down period. Mario hypothesized that the stronger the power-up, the more time it takes to recharge. The others agreed, as this explanation made the most sense.
"Be careful, you two," Peach said.
Mario and Luigi nodded and activated the Mini Mushroom power-up. They both shrunk and proceeded to sneak into Rabier's estate while Peach and Daisy stayed back to watch Raphtalia and Rifana.
We see a fat man sitting at a desk cleaning a whip inside the mansion. This was Idol Rabier, war hero, friend to Aultcray, and an avid follower of the Three Heroes faith. He was smiling in anticipation of enjoying his favorite hobby, torturing his slaves. He believed that all demi-humans were destined to go to hell, and by torturing them to death, he would send them to heaven, or so he states. Many believed that was a lie, and he just enjoyed torturing demi-humans, especially children. Suddenly, a knock at the door broke him from his thoughts.
"Come in." He called out.
A knight under his employ walked in and kneeled before him.
"My lord, our search party has returned."
"Well? Did they find that weasel girl?"
Rabier had sent a group of men to retrieve Rifana so he could kill her himself.
"Unfortunately not, sir. They searched the forest extensively but could not find a trace of her."
"Hmph! She must have been eaten by some wild animal—a shame. Now, I can't send her to heaven. Oh well, you can't save them all."
"Do you require anything else, sir?"
"No, you may return to your post."
"Very well."
The knight left to return to his duties, leaving Rabier in the room. He opened a drawer and pulled out a set of keys.
"Time to begin the night's activities." He said with a grin.
He then left his office and walked down to the deepest part of his mansion. This was his dungeon, a room he had put a lot of time and effort into, both in the slaves he had bought and in making sure the room met his expectations. While slavery is legal, torturing your slaves was not, especially if they were children. He hated how the queen and those like her preached equal treatment of demi-humans. Thanks to her efforts, the demi-humans were gaining more rights in Melromarc, with some territories outright banning slavery altogether. The problem was that she was politically sharp and powerful, with her ice magic making her one of the strongest mages in the kingdom. That's why he put so much effort into keeping his dungeon a secret, built to keep sounds from getting out.
"I hope you're ready, you filthy animals. Your path to heaven will continue." Rabier said as he entered his dungeon.
The cages were filled with demi-humans from Raphtalia's and Rifana's village. The queen had sanctioned a village for free demi-humans as a sign of peace with Siltvelt and appointed one of her most trusted supporters to watch over it. Both Rabier and Aultcray were against the building of this village, but the queen's word was final, and they couldn't do anything about it, which is why he believed it to be a blessing when the first Wave appeared over the village. It gave him and Aultcray the perfect chance to send knights afterward to capture the villagers and destroy what was left of the town. As long as the queen never finds out about the knights attacking Lurolona, it would be believed that the Waves destroyed the village and killed the villagers. He didn't know that the queen's shadows had already seen the attack and left to report it to her.
Rabier was walking down the cages, deciding who he would torture tonight. He kept going until his eyes landed on a child. A wolf boy who was close friends with the raccoon girl he sold back to the slave trader and the weasel girl who died the other day.
"Yes, you."
He snapped his fingers, and two knights came to get the boy. He tried to resist, but the knights dragged him out and chained him to the wall with his back facing Rabier.
"It's Time to begin your repentance. Let's hope you last longer than your friends," Rabier said with glee.
The wolf boy gritted his teeth, remembering Raphtalia and Rifana's treatment by this man. He swore that he would make Rabier suffer one day. He just had to endure the torture until he found a way to escape. Rabier swung down the whip, only for it to fall out of his hand.
"What!?"
Rabier looked at his hand as if the whip had been forcibly pushed out. He bent down to pick it up, only to fall over.
"Who did that!?" Rabier demanded as he looked to his knights.
"Uh, what do you mean, my lord?"
"Someone kicked me!"
"But, who? The only other people here are us, and neither of us kicked you."
Rabier was furious as he looked around for the culprit. He didn't see anyone else, so he returned to pick up his whip. However, as soon as he was about to grab it, something hit his head and forced him onto the ground.
"My lord!"
The knights shouted as they rushed to help Rabier up. But one knight tripped and fell. The other looked only to have one of his legs swept out from under him. Rabier looked furiously for the culprit, and that's when he saw it. Two tiny people, no bigger than ants, were attacking them.
"There! They're insects! Squish him!" Rabier ordered.
The knights saw this and attempted to catch or kill the intruders, but they were too fast. The tiny attackers were evading the knights' attempts to grab them and attacked the knights when they could.
"Grr! Enough of this!" Rabier shouted as he grabbed a red stone from his pocket. "Burn!"
Rabier unleashed a fireball from the stone and fired it towards the tiny attackers. The fireball also engulfed the knights, killing them. He didn't care, though; he could easily replace them. Rabier smirked satisfactorily until one of the tiny attackers landed on his nose. He saw a mustached man in red shaking his head in disappointment. Rabier was about to use the magic stone again, but the other intruder kicked it out of his hand. The red man punched him, causing Rabier to hold his nose in pain. The two attackers landed before him and grew to average size.
"Who the hell are you two?" He asked. That's when he saw it, the shield one of them had. "You! You're the damn Shield Devil!"
All the slaves heard that and looked to see that the Shield Hero, their god, was there. The wolf boy tried to turn his head to see their savior.
"I prefer Shield Hero, but your faith constantly depicts me as a devil, so I'm not surprised you called me one," Luigi responded.
Rabier grits his teeth in anger before yelling for more guards.
"That won't work," Mario said.
"Huh, why not?" Rabier asked.
"Didn't you make this place soundproof? No one outside can hear us."
Rabier was stunned by this development. He never expected to see his dungeon design turned against him. He saw his whip next to him and decided he would kill these two intruders here and now himself. Aultcray would undoubtedly reward him if he brought the Shield Devil's head.
"Die, sinners!"
Rabier attacked the Mario Bros. with his whip, but the two evaded the attacks effortlessly.
"Hold still you damn heathens!"
Rabier was getting frustrated as Mario and Luigi evaded his attacks. Mario pulled out his hammer and let Rabier's whip wrap around it. Rabier smirked as he tried to pull Mario's weapon away but couldn't. Mario was stronger and pulled away the whip instead. Rabier was now defenseless and backed away in fear.
"You, you better stop this. Do you know who I am!? I am Idol Rabier! War hero and friend to King Aultcray himself! There will be dire consequences if you attack me, but if you both kneel and grovel at my feet, I might show mercy."
Mario and Luigi looked at each other, gobsmacked by Rabier's audacity in asking them to beg for mercy. Luigi shrugged and pointed his finger at him.
"What are you doing?"
Rabier got his answer when a bolt of electricity was fired from Luigi's finger. Rabier was electrocuted and fell unconscious. Luigi held back so he didn't kill Rabier by mistake.
"Bang," Luigi said as he blew away the smoke from the tip of his finger.
Mario grabbed the keys from Rabier's belt and handed them to Luigi.
"You free them, and I'll send the signal to Peach and Daisy," Mario said as he left.
Luigi proceeded to free all the demi-humans in the dungeon. They all began to kneel to Luigi and thanked him for saving them, except for the wolf boy.
"Where were you?" He asked.
"Huh?" Luigi was confused by his question.
"Where were you!? Why didn't you come and save us sooner!? I thought you were a god!"
"Hush, child!" A goat man said. "You cannot blame our misfortune on the Shield Hero. We don't even know how long he's been in our world. Tell, Sir Shield, how long has it been since you've been summoned."
"Hmm, about three or four days," Luigi answered.
"He hasn't even been here a week, yet he's already saved us. You should be thanking him."
"But, but my friends are, they're,"
The wolf boy was about to cry or scream, but Luigi touched his shoulder to stop him.
"Are you, Keel?" Luigi asked.
"Yeah, how did you know my name?"
"Raphtalia and Rifana told me. Because of them, my brother and I knew where to find you all."
Keel's eyes widened at this.
"They're alive!?"
"Yes, and they're waiting outside."
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go already!"
"Hold up! We need to wait for my brother. They're still knights patrolling the grounds outside. But don't worry, we have a plan."
Outside, Mario jumped to the mansion's top and launched a fireball into the sky. It exploded, causing all the knights to look at it in confusion. Meanwhile, Peach and Daisy could get close enough to the mansion to do their part thanks to that distraction. They both started to dance, and a pink and orange aura covered the estate. Soon, all the knights fell into a deep slumber. Mario then jumped back down to retrieve his brother and the rescued slaves.
"Where is he? We can't wait here forever." Keel said.
"Patience. He'll be here soon." Luigi said to Keel.
"Hey, bro. Peach and Daisy just took care of the knights. Now we can escape." Mario said.
"Speak of the devil. All right, everyone, let's-a go!"
Mario and Luigi led everyone out of the mansion. But no one noticed Rabier getting up.
"Damn, that devil! I swear, I'll get my revenge!" Rabier screamed. That's when it hit him. "That's right. I still have that." Rabier left with an evil smirk on his face.
Back with Luigi and Mario, they were leading the rescued demi-humans past the walls and sleeping knights. Mario looked back to see Keel trying to take a sword from an unconscious knight.
"What are you doing?" Mario asked.
"Taking this bastard's weapon. We should be taking some valuables as well to rebuild our village." Keel answered.
"There's no time. Besides, we can help with the money problem, so get moving already! The knights won't stay asleep forever."
"Fine!"
Keel dropped the sword and was about to join them when the ground shook.
"What the hell!?"
Keel fell down as a large black dragon creature emerged from Rabier's mansion.
"What is that!?" Raphtalia asked in horror.
"Oh no. It couldn't be!? That fool released that awful beast!" A demi-human said in fear.
"What are you talking about!?" Rifana asked.
"I overheard that bastard talking about it. Underneath the mansion was a powerful and evil creature that the four Cardinal Heroes of the past sealed up. They sealed it with a powerful spell because they couldn't kill it."
Everyone looked at the dragon in horror.
"And he released it!? What was that fool thinking!?" Raphtalia said.
"Probably about revenge. The Shield and his brother made Rabier look like a fool." The goat man said.
Rabier was laughing like a madman inside the mansion as the monster was wreaking havoc.
"Yes! Go, Tyrant Dragon Rex, and kill them all! These filthy beasts and their heathen god! Kill them all! Ha ha ha ha! Huh?" Rabier stopped laughing when he noticed the dragon's foot was about to crush him. "No! Not me! No!" Rabier tried to run but was crushed by the tyrant dragon.
The dragon roared, continued moving forward, and was about to crush Keel.
"Keel!" Raphtalia and Rifana shouted as they reached out for their friend.
All Keel could do was look up in fear as his inevitable death approached. But Mario and Luigi rushed to him and threw him towards Peach and Daisy. Everyone watched as the dragon stepped on Mario and Luigi.
"No! Papa and Uncle Mario! They can't be dead!" Rifana screamed.
Everyone stared in horror, having just watched their god be killed by the evil dragon—everyone except Peach and Daisy, who were smiling.
"Why are you smiling?" Raphtalia asked.
"Oh, just wait for it," Peach answered.
Everyone didn't understand what she meant and looked back to where Luigi and Mario had been crushed. Then they saw something unbelievable.
[Super Star theme from the Mario Movie starts playing.]
The dragon's foot was being pushed up, and Mario and Luigi were fine.
[Super Star power-up activated. Five minutes of invincibility and increased stats have started.]
Mario and Luigi looked at each other and nodded. They pushed off the dragon and rushed towards it. Luigi ran up one leg while Mario jumped up the other. The dragon saw this and tried to kill them with its dark fire breath. Mario saw that the flames would have hit the other, so he charged a fireball and launched it towards the dragon's mouth. The fireball overpowered the dragon's breath and exploded inside its mouth.
The dragon reeled back in pain as Luigi ran up its chest. Once in the middle, he jumped and launched his green missile attack into the dragon's chest. The dragon was pushed further back as it roared in pain. Mario then jumped up to its head and launched a powerful uppercut. The dragon continued to be pushed back as the Mario Brothers overpowered it.
Once it was far enough away from the rescued demi-humans, Mario and Luigi jumped down to its tail and grabbed it. They then pulled it and began to spin the dragon around and around. Once they had enough momentum, they threw the dragon into the sky. Mario charged up fire into his hands while Luigi charged up lightning. Then, they jumped to the tyrant dragon and launched a fire and lightning attack. The two elements combined created a powerful explosion that blew the dragon to pieces.
[Super Star theme ends]
"Amazing." The goat man said as he saw the Shield Hero and his brother defeat a monster that the four Cardinal Heroes of the past couldn't beat.
"Yeah! That's my papa!" Rifana cheered.
"What are you talking about Rifana?" Keel asked.
"Oh, Rifana and I were adopted by the Shield Hero and his girlfriend," Raphtalia explained.
"Huh!?"
Keel was about to ask for more details when Mario and Luigi landed in front of them.
"Whew! That was one tough dragon." Mario said as he adjusted his cap.
"I know. Not as strong as Bowser, though." Luigi added.
"Who?" Keel asked.
"Oh, just from our home world. Is everyone alright?" Mario asked.
"Yes, we are all fine, thanks to you both. Let us all remember the day the Shield Hero and his brother killed the mighty Tyrant Dragon Rex." The goat man said.
Many of the demi-humans cheered and bowed to Mario and Luigi.
"It's nothing. Just doing what a hero would do." Luigi said.
"Indeed."
Mario and Luigi looked around and noticed there were no knights.
"Um, what happened to the knights?" Mario asked.
"Oh, the dragon's roar woke them up. And they ran for the hills as soon as they saw it." Peach explained
"I see. Now then, let's see about getting you home."
The demi-humans looked at each other after hearing this.
"But our home was destroyed."
"What if someone has already claimed the territory?"
The demi-humans were unsure of what to do when Daisy spoke up.
"Hey, it'll be okay, everyone! We'll help you rebuild, and if someone has already claimed the territory, we'll help you find a new home."
The demi-humans looked hopeful at hearing this.
"Truly miss?" A cat woman asked.
Daisy just smiled, Peach, Mario, and Luigi joining her.
"Oh, thank you!" The demi-humans were happy to have the Shield Hero and his allies help them.
"Okay, now how do we get you all there?"
While Mario was pondering this, five large birds came forward pulling carriages.
"What are these?" Mario asked.
"They're filolials. They're monster birds that are used to pull carriages. Many ranchers raise them to sell or rent out." Raphtalia explained.
Mario nodded and started to get everyone on board the carriages. As Luigi was about to get in one, another filolial came with a letter in its beak. Luigi took it, and the filolial ran off into the forest. Luigi was confused but decided to read the note.
"Hello, I have been watching you and the other heroes ever since you were summoned into this world. I was worried when the king tried to punish you for a crime you didn't commit, but you and your friends managed to expose their lies and avoid punishment for a false crime. Not only that, but your actions have also changed two of the other heroes into being better and learning who to trust. That is good, as the only way to save the world is for all four heroes to work together. The Spear may be a lost cause, but I believe I have a solution that your brother can help me with. Until then, keep growing stronger and saving those in need, Shield Hero.
P.S. Good work defeating the Tyrant Dragon. You should absorb its parts but do not absorb the crystal.
The Filolial Queen, Fitoria.
Luigi put away the note and wondered about who this Fitoria was. The note said she was the Filolial Queen, but what does that entail? Do the filolials have their own kingdom, or does she rule over all filolials in the world? There were many questions, but they could be answered later. For now, he needed to help get these people home. And get those monster parts. He got off and ran to where the remains of the dragon were.
"What are you doing, bro?" Mario asked.
"Absorbing monster parts," Luigi answered.
"Oh yeah."
Luigi began to absorb the dragon pieces and unlocked many powerful shields. Then he found what Fitoria was talking about. It was a large purple crystal that emanated evil energy. Luigi examined it as Mario approached.
"Is something wrong, Luigi?"
"It's this crystal, Mario. I was told not to absorb it."
"By who?"
Luigi showed Mario the message he had received. Mario thought about Fitoria and who she might be.
"Well, it sounds like she's a friend. But we should be wary until we meet her in person. We have people act like friends before, only to try and stab us in the back." Mario explained, remembering Malty and Aultcray.
"Yeah, but what do we do with this then?" Luigi asked as he held up the crystal
"Hmm. How about I carry it? The letter said not to absorb it, right? There should be no problem if I carry it."
"Good point."
Mario took the crystal and threw it into his item bag.
"Okie dokie. Now, let's go. The others are waiting for us."
"Right."
Mario and Luigi joined the others and left for Lurolona, the village the demi-humans called home. As they left, three shadows working for different employers watched them. One belonged to the king, one to the queen, and the last one to the church. The shadows left, unaware of the others, to inform their employers.
That's the end of the chapter. Thank you all so much for reading it. I hope you enjoyed it. Feel free to leave a review, and have a nice day.