Biggest thanks for Ace-Triad for fixing my SPAG problems, and Angel Wraith for beta-reading the chapter and providing feed backs.
As always, I will blabber some more in my end note.
Cross posted on AO3, for anyone who prefer that site.
The Melromarc queen, and the heroes' procession stretched long, longer than the eye could see as they moved their way along the King's Highway towards the northwest. They will go north from Crownland into the territory of the old kingdom of Boletaria, and then swing west towards the Defiant Bay peninsula and board House Arc's Albion fleet to Cal Mira Archipelago to attend the Hero Conference held with all the major world leaders.
Privately, Malty feels like they are going to cut their time more than a little close. With the next Wave only a week away, there's a good chance that the gathered heroes (and their core party, and retinue) would end up being summoned to fight the Wave before they even make landfall on the old neutral ground. Granted, if the Heroes have already been to Cal Mira Island and have its location saved in their WEAPON, they can simply port back after the Wave is dealt with. But since the porting ability only affects six members, it'll be a long time if they want to bring their entire retinue back to Cal Mira Island.
"Aren't we getting a little careless about cutting through the territory of the old Rabier County?" Currently, Malty is looking down at the map spread on the table of the queen's tent. Specifically, the route highlighted that they would travel through. She slowly raises her head up to look at the people gathered around the table. "I went to Rabier County with the Shield Hero before the Third Wave. Their roads were not maintained, and left in horrible condition by the Bitch Lord. It'll be hard for our large group to travel through. And what if we are ambushed by some bandit group who gets way over their head? You can never underestimate their stupidity even when it's against the royal possession with all the Cardinal Heroes present. They don't even have to be bold enough to charge our group. All they need is throwing some logs down, or causing a landslide near a mountain pass. We'll waste up to a week of time clearing the road even if we kill the bandits without suffering any casualties. This doesn't feel like a risk worth taking for the one, possibly two days we'll shave off our travel time."
"Oh. There's no more bandits here in Rabier County. We made sure of it." The Spear Hero's response makes Malty take a step back, and have to think over what he said. When did anyone find the time to clear out an entire county of their bandit infestation?
"'We' didn't do anything of that sort. The undead godzilla wannabe did the job for us. All we did was kill that zombie T-Rex." The Bow Hero crosses his arms in front of his chest and tosses a withering glare at Motoyasu. His comment makes Malty feel even more confused. The Shield Hero's slave turns her gaze over to her master, and finds he looks as clueless as her.
Chapter 2: Blast from the Past
"Start from the beginning, guys. You are making Naofumi and Malty look bamboozled." The Sword Hero gives a quick scolding to his fellow heroes before turning to face Naofumi. "After the Third Wave, we got an urgent message asking for reinforcements when we recovered our injuries from fighting the goddess. Turns out there's a giant, mountain-sized thunder lizard running amok around this area. And the army the local lord raised to fight the bandits couldn't contain it. By the time we arrived, all the bandits in this area had been killed, and raised as zombie thralls by it."
"So the corpse of that thunder lizard I left behind did become a major problem for everyone." Malty has to fight back the physical cringe she feels when she sees the pained look on Naofumi's face. "That undead zombie T-Rex was left behind by me. After I was kidnapped by the Bitch Lord to Rabier County, and then some guy released it to kill us when I was rescued. I knew leaving it behind was a bad idea, but we really didn't have the time, or the option to stay behind and clean it up with all the bandits still running around."
"Hey. It's all cool, man. You helped us first when we screwed things up, it's only fair we return the favor." Motoyasu takes a few steps closer and slings his arm around Naofumi's Shoulders. "We still have to help each other out, even if we are heroes. That's what we have to do if we want to help more people."
"If you have no more questions about the route we are going to take, revered heroes." Mother interrupts the conversation between the heroes. The faint frown she's unable to completely hide on her face shows that she is very much annoyed at having to babysit a bunch of amateur heroes playing at leading armies rather than have them handled by her more professional army commander.
"Let's retire from this meeting, Master Naofumi. The queen is clearly not amused that we are getting in the way of her more experienced and proven generals and army commanders planning out our routes." Malty subtly pulls at Naofumi's sleeve. Thankfully, none of the heroes look any indignant at the implication of them being burdens for the high queen of Melromarc and her advisors as all of them quickly withdraw themselves from the procession's command tent.
"I'll go with my party to raise our levels some more before we have to fight in the next Wave." Naofumi gives a nod to his fellow heroes. They have worked out a system where his fellow heroes would stay with the main group and train their skills with the veteran warriors that serve as a part of the queen's personal retinue whenever they stop and rest. While Naofumi would lead his core party (including himself, Malty, Raphtalia, Yatsuhashi and the two newly raised Filorial birds Rial and Lori.) and whatever extra escorts (Kael'thas always tag along even if he is not wanted) he needed to hunt monsters around the area to regain his lost levels. It's been working out so far, and his level is back in the twenties.
"Hey, if you need more help just ask. My children are pretty strong thanks to that mental bird queen. And they can take you and run if things get bad." As always, the Spear Hero is more than generous with his offer to have his bird 'children' assist Naofumi in his monster hunting sessions. "You could just turn off their experience sharing if you don't want them to steal your experience points."
"I think I'll be okay. Kael'Thas will be with me, and he has his signal arrow ready. If I'm surrounded by some nest of monsters, bandits, or whatever else he can immediately call reinforcements with the horde raiders. No need to have your children waste their time when they need all the time training themselves to make sure their power doesn't outpace their skill." Naofumi gently taps Motoyasu on the shoulder, showing that he does appreciate the offer even if he's not taking it. With everything settled, Malty quickly follows the Shield Hero as they get ready for another session of monster hunting.
o(-_-)o[T]
Lady Eclair Seaetto fights the urge to slap her palm on her forehead. Or better yet, bang her forehead at something hard and firm like the trunk of a tree. Granted, she'll probably just knock the tree down with her own head thanks to all the levels she gained after her traveling and fighting alongside the heroes. She was the only one among those who worked with Lord Shield Hero Naofumi Iwatani, who had some real experience in learning military doctrines and leading warriors on missions (even if only in a small squad). No, Prince Kael'Thas doesn't count because no sane Melromarc man would allow a Siltvelt warrior prince to lead them. The duty of commanding, and training his newly acquired retinue naturally falls on her shoulders. Sadly, they didn't have time to do a proper screening of his retinue due to their need to immediately depart for the still in session Hero Conference held in Cal Mira Island.
Out of his so-called retinue which were supposed to be hardened warriors who follow after their chosen heroes into the Wave of Catastrophe, and whatever else a conflict their hero gets into. Half of them were composed of noble scions or children of the wealthy merchants who want to cultivate favor with the Shield Hero for their family, the other overeager common folks who are inspired by the heroes' tale of glory. Both groups have their problems.
For the elite ... their skill was thankfully not lacking. The lessons glorious Melromarc's people learnt from The Great War through blood and tears still haven't been forgotten after twenty years. Any noble (except those from the Golden Coast province, that was never occupied) who didn't treat their martial lessons and training seriously was handily wiped out by the Siltvelt occupation. The problem is they don't have the mindset of hardened warriors who are used to the horrible condition marching out to war. Speaking of which...
"This bread is too hard and coarse." Flare Consevatie held a piece of wicker bread in her smooth, delicate fingers that indicated nary a single day of hard work. Be it actual work that would bring her family income, or rigorous training to prepare herself in combat. She would have been promptly turned away from joining Lord Shield Hero's retinue, if not for her immense talent in magic spells that Eclair had only seen a few talented magic users display such as her good friend Princess Malty. If only the spoiled little 'princess' of House Consevatie also had her friend's grits and personality... baby steps. Eclair reminds herself that a paladin has to be humble and patient to those who don't follow their path. "Can we have some brioche? How can we expect to march everyday, and fight an incoming Wave of Catastrophe if we aren't able to sustain ourselves?"
"They are bread, Lady Consevatie. What most of us, not only those of humble birth, eat every single day." Eclair feels a vein slowly work its way up her forehead from Flare's constant bitching and moaning on every single, and completely pointless thing. "We would be lucky if we had a constant supply of these if we actually marched out to war. And speaking about marching ... you don't walk on your legs like some of our footmen in the procession. You get to ride on that fancy looking, well-groomed unicorn your father bought you. We still haven't even left the border of the CrownLand yet. If you can not handle what we are going through now, I suggest you go home. Our living conditions will only get worse as we fight more Waves."
This seems to genuinely bring fear to Lady Consevatie as her face turns blue. She immediately turns around, and practically runs out of Eclair's command tent. Eclair's face finally hit the surface of her table, and she can hear the voice of newly appointed lieutenant Cardin Winchester. She doesn't have to look at the young man's direction to see his slightly smug smirk in her own mind. "I can take over if you need a break, Captain Seaetto."
"No. I'm not about to let you crack a few skulls, Sir Winchester. It's not how a knight like us should conduct ourselves. Not to mention that Master Shield Hero allowed us to turn candidates unsuitable back, not to bully and beat the stuffing out of them." Eclair slowly brings her head up from her table when she hears someone pulling open the flap of her tent. The snow white hair styled into a single, long tail immediately tells Lady Seaetto the identity of the newcomer.
"Lady Eclair. I found this young boy skulking around Lord Shield Hero's tent." Weiss Schnee drags a boy with short blonde hair into the tent by the lob of his ear. Eclair's throbbing headache instantly intensified when she realized the boy is none other than Raki from Lute village.
The reunion Eclair had with Weiss had been terse, but thankfully incident free. The Schnee heiress tried to pretend this was their first meeting even if the twitch in her usual graceful movement suggests that she knew exactly who Eclair had been from before. Eclair really should have been the one to offer apologies considering she technically insulted the Schnee family first, but she doesn't know how to breach the subject, and she feared that she would only make more unintentional insult to the wealthy merchant family. Plus, Cute was there to distract her, so the two of them end up mutually letting their previous grudge slide under the bridge and pretend it never happened. She supposed it could have gone much worse.
"Thank you for your assistance, Miss Schnee. You can leave Mr. Raki with me." The body of Weiss tenses up for a brief moment. Eclair wonders if she took offense that she's addressed as a 'miss' denoting her common status, rather than 'lady' meant for the highborn. But as much as Weiss believes their family's wealth set them apart from the rest of the citizens of humble birth, they are still not part of the nobility. The daughter of the Schnee family didn't make a fuss like she did back in the castle of Trumpet, and she simply left the tent once she left the blonde boy in front of Eclair. "...Why hasn't Gaston, or better yet, your elder brother Sir Aki taken you back to Lute yet? Mr. Raki?"
"I'm worried about Raphtalia! She's even younger than me, you know? How is it that you are fine with Raphtalia tagging along the Shield Hero, but you don't allow me to come and watch her back? I'm the leader of Lute village's child scouts, you know?" The answer from the Lute village boy brings a fresh Wave of headache. In a way, Raki's sentiment embodies the worst problem Eclair is facing when it comes to the Shield Hero's potential retinue members who were of humble birth. They are mostly people who have heard, or even directly affected by some kind of heroic exploit by the heroes and wish to serve said hero with overwhelming, almost self-destructive eagerness. Eclair had already turned down those who didn't pass a certain threshold for their strength or skill in fear of seeing them die for no good reason.
But it wouldn't matter to those like Raki how much strength, skill, or even actual experience fighting monsters in the wild or as their village's militia. As a child who hasn't even reached his teen years yet, Raki is an extreme example. But his willingness to be a part of the Shield Hero's retinue still reflect on how those of humble birth would put themselves into more dangerous situations than they could reasonably handle. That's why hastily mobilized levies make for poor soldiers even if they are accomplished fighters. While a proper, standing army needs to spend every year they are not in active combat training its members. To beat the impulsiveness out of the individual and instill the proper sense of discipline to have them work together as a whole unit. That's the kind of time Eclair doesn't have.
"I'm not 'okay' with Raphtalia traveling into danger with Master Shield Hero, Raki. But the reason they can't leave her somewhere else was initially due to her trauma not letting her leave the Shield Hero, and Princess Malty's sight. It's not ideal, but she at least knows to stay out of sight and danger during a fierce combat. As for you... I think your willingness to risk yourself to protect someone you care about is admirable, Mr. Raki. But it still doesn't change the fact that you would be throwing yourself into danger for no good reason. Raphtalia is younger than you, yes. But she has the ability to either change herself into a small animal to hide, or an adult form that is strong enough to not need your... or even Master Shield Hero's constant protection. You would only get in the way if you insist on coming along, and she might end up hurt because she's looking after you."
"You'll be okay with me tagging along and watching Raphtalia's back, if I become strong enough not to be a burden? Okay. I'll go back to Lute, and help hunt monsters around my village and get myself stronger!" Eclair fights back the urge to slam her head into the table again, when Raki clearly misunderstood the main points she's trying to make. Now, she's starting to understand why the Shield Hero didn't simply deposit Raphtalia somewhere 'safe' and continue on his adventure. She gets a strong feeling that he'll get himself in trouble, if not in mortal danger if she doesn't keep a constant pair of eyes on him.
"No... no. That's not the point I'm trying to make. You know what? I think it's better if you stay with us, for now. At least your older brother will keep an eye on you. And all the heroes with their own retinue will be at Cal Mira Island. Just... don't throw yourself head first into danger. Hang back, and observe how experienced warriors deal with a Wave." Eclair's tired handwave is met with an energetic fist pump by the young boy. He's clearly happy that now he gets the permission to stay with Raphtalia and no longer has to hide and skulk around their camp.
"Can I have some honeyed water to wash this rough clump of dirt down?" Flare suddenly peaks her head through the flap of the tent. The offending piece of wicker bread still held in her delicate fingers. A single tiny, dainty bite mark on it.
"Out. Now."
o(-_-)o[T]
In the meantime, Itsuki Kawasumi is dealing with his own share of frustration as he looks through the parchment with the list of candidates that applied for his own retinue. Unlike his fellow summoned heroes, he didn't have an experienced follower who he can delegate all these tasks to, so he has to get familiar with how screening, and commanding a small compared to the queen's procession, but still a very large group compared to his own adventure party of people works.
What's worse is that more people means more potential conflict within the body of the group itself. Especially between those who came from the aristocrats and those who were born as regular citizens. Thankfully, he had Rishia help with the inventory and logistics side, which was admittedly a huge relief. And Sir Crepe helps him out with the recruiting and training of his retinue, but she is very inexperienced in this matter herself.
Of Prince Joseph's daughters, she was the one most enamored with the life of a knight and army commander. But it didn't mean she did much other than playing pretend. She did hide her real identity and was trained as one of the queen's own knights. But she was only recently knighted before the current Wave of Catastrophe started, and was never put into the rank of even a minor commander unlike Eclair. And speaking of the princess who renounced her own heritage to follow him... Sir Crepe is currently stealing a glance at him from the corner of her eyes. Itsuki places a hand over his left eye and gently massages his forehead with the tip of his fingers. "Just say out loud whatever's on your mind, Princess Josephine. I think we went through enough for us to be honest with each other."
"It's just Sir Crepe now, Master Itsuki. I renounced all my family ties to House De Gallia. Put that aside, do you regret what happened to that traitor ... Mald? I mean... he's a traitor that tried to sell everyone out, you included, to the Three Heroes Church for his own gain. But if he's still here, he could probably help you manage your retinue better than I can." Sir Crepe's shoulder drops as her head hangs low. Combined with the bags under her eyes, she looks as exhausted as she is dejected. "He's a senior knight, after all."
"It'll make it easier for me in the short run. But I don't think that's a good idea. I haven't forgotten how he treated Rishia yet. And we have plenty of potential recruits that's even lower on the social status than she was." Itsuki's eyes roll towards the roof of their tent. He begins to think about how Mald bullied Rishia. At the time when he didn't know better, Itsuki had thought it was simply part of the social structure of this world. But looking back now, especially knowing Mald was a dirty rat bastard, it's easy to see it for what it is. Malicious bullying that doesn't serve any purpose other than making that thug pretending to be a knight feel good about himself. And Itsuki, a former bullying victim was complacent in that act... it took his vision going dark for Itsuki to realize that he's not drawing in enough air, why isn't he breathing?
"Breathe, Master Itsuki! Stay with me, one and two. One and two..." Sir Crepe is right in front of his face all of sudden. She's blowing with her own lips in an exaggerated manner that makes her look like a fish. She looks ready to lie Itsuki down on the ground, and start doing CPR on him if this fails.
Thankfully, after a while Itsuki's vision begins to clear between his hacking and coughing. "I think we- you should take a break for now, Master Itsuki. I'll look over some of the candidate names myself. See if I can spot anyone from Gallia that I know we can trust to lead your retinue. If that doesn't work... I'll have Maron write to her father. Sir Ashley Raithos is retired now, but as a veteran knight he could at least give us advice on how to lead. Even if he won't actively lead himself."
"Yes... that's a good idea. Both of them. I'll... I'll just make myself comfortable back here..." Itsuki slowly walks over to his sleeping bag with Sir Crepe's help. The disowned princess watches him laying down on his sleeping bag for a few more seconds before walking back to the table to look over scrolls of parchment once again. With nothing else to do, Itsuki pulls his knife out from his boot, and a piece of wooden stick. He needs to do something to calm his mind before he starts choking to death on nothing again. Carving wooden figures isn't model building, but it'll have to do in this RPG fantasy world. For a while, he lost track of both time, and his thoughts as he only focuses on his knife, and the wooden figure in his hands till he's drawn out of his trance by a surprised sounding hum from Sir Crepe. "Is there something wrong?"
"No... nothing is wrong, per se. I just saw Sir Graham's name on the list. For him to reach us before the queen's procession departed the capital... he must have left Galia and rode through the night as soon as he heard the call." Sir Crepe turned her head around to look at Itsuki. His confusion was probably written on his face, so she continues her explanation. "He was a knight from House Armure. He was... going to be my sworn shield. Until my father decided I shouldn't get a sworn shield at all to encourage the more... fanciful ideas I had about knighthood. Joke's on him in the end, I guess. I snuck out of our castle and trained as a knight under the queen's royal guards. He should have appointed Mald as my sworn shield if he wanted me to be a proper princess. Someone like him would beat the idea of being a knight right out of my head."
"Armure. That's the same family Mald came from. Right?" Itsuki immediately narrows his eyes at the mention. If the guy is related to that rat bastard of a knight, maybe it's for the best that he gets scrubbed out of his potential retinue before he has any chance to do damage like Mald.
"Nonononono!" Sir Crepe immediately jumps up from her stool shaking her hands. The series of explosive denial rushed out of her mouth so fast, they almost strung into a single line. "I assure you, Master Itsuki. Sir Graham is nothing like that inbred bastard Mald. He is a shining example of how a knight should hold himself. I'm not telling you to blindly trust him, but at least give him a chance to prove himself before you reject his offer."
Itsuki can't make up his mind on the matter. On the one hand, rejecting a person simply due to the behavior of another is unfair. But on the other hand... This Sir Graham could do a lot of damage if he was only pretending to be a good knight on the surface, but deep down is as rotten as Mald. Before he has a chance to reply to Sir Crepe, or even decide what to do within his mind, a strange noise catches the attention of himself, and Sir Crepe. It sounds like a mix between the noise one would make by scratching a nail on glass, and an ear piercing whistle. The Bow Hero immediately jumps up from his sleeping bag, and runs out of his tent to see what seems to be a flaming arrow rising into the cloud before exploding into a puff of fireworks.
"Lok'tar ogar!" "For the glory of the warchief!" In the distance, the orc- no, the Siltvelt raiders that willingly bound themselves to Naofumi have fully assembled. Which means they are riding out in a completely disorganized clump while screaming louder than the fans cheering their favorite baseball team in the championship finale.
"That's a cloud piercer. The arrow Siltvelt used to indicate military emergency, asking for any nearby reinforcements. It must be Prince Kael'thas. Lord Shield Hero is in danger!" Sir Crepe immediately runs towards the makeshift stable they use to keep their own steed. Itsuki didn't need another word from Sir Crepe to follow her example. Naofumi might be the Shield Hero, therefore is much harder to get hurt than any of them, but he's still only around level 20 now thanks to the queen's meddling. Itsuki doesn't know about the rest of his fellow dimensional interlopers, but he would never forgive himself if Naofumi gets hurt or dies, when he was complacent in the queen's verdict.
o(-_-)o[T]
A little earlier, north of the queen's encampment, they apparently still haven't fully left the area known as the Crown Land, but the open plain is giving way to rolling hills and ancient forest with trees that seem to stretch into the sky. Naofumi's group consisted of his party, the pair of knights following Malty, and Kael'thas, who insisted on coming alone with a pair of his rangers.
Both the Melromarc knights and Kael'thas' group denied Naofumi's offer to open experience sharing with them, stating the Shield Hero, and his two new filorials need to level much more than themselves. Naofumi is grateful for them all, although for different reasons. With his level now far behind, he doesn't feel like he can properly protect Malty, and the Melromarc knights solved that problem as they are clearly loyal to her if they were willing to go against their own queen.
And the Siltvelt rangers are great at scouting out the monsters hiding behind the foliage. Mountain dogs as large as a fully grown lion, with bone plates covering their head and back. And those ugly, featherless gutter beaks with the body of an elephant, but an ostrich's long neck and sharp beak that's apparently powerful enough to snap someone's limb right off. One would think they are easy to spot with how big they are, and how much they stink. But no, apparently they can blend into the treelines and he would know they are upon them until the ground starts to shake with their charge.
Naofumi shifts the weight on his shoulder as he gets ready to receive the beak snap from one of the ugly monsters. His training is definitely bearing fruit as he gets used to the heavy set armor to move as if they aren't there. But before he, or the giant monster has a chance to touch each other, snake-like strings of fire suddenly recoil around its body, making it reels back with a guttery screech of pain. For a brief second, Naofumi wonders if Malty used her magic because she's worried about him. But then, he noticed Kael'Thas' hands light up in red as a small, palm sized burning sparrow-like creature flies around him. The rangers around him jump up, and begin to cut up the legs of the gutter beak to bring it crashing down. They left the final to Naofumi's group when finally a kick from Rial to its neck ended the misery of the crippled monster.
Naofumi looks back, and sees Lori, the red filorial Malty initially wanted to name 'Mein', is hanging back with Malty. She's actually grooming Malty's hair with her beak right at this moment. It seems like despite Lori sharing the color of her feathers with Malty's hair, their personality is very different. As for his first companion who he forced to endure slavery just to keep her away from the hand of that sadistic pig of a king... she's currently chatting with Prince Kael'thas. Naofumi could almost see the metaphorical gears turning in Malty's mind. "You have unbelievable control with your fire magic, Prince Kael'thas. It is the advantage of Siltvelt sorcery, is it not?"
"The correct term for this school of magic in your tongue would be 'Animancy'. The manipulation of soul, and spirits. The souls of the world around us. But yes, it is what the Mon- the Medea people mostly refer to as 'sorcery'." The elf (He is aware Kael'thas isn't a real elf like his namesake from Warcraft, but it's hard not to think of him as one due to the force of habit) prince hastily cast his sight over at Naofumi like a frightened animal during his slip up. Considering how prejudiced Malty started out even as she was hiding her true identity, Naofumi can't really fault Kael'thas for his own prejudice. Especially not after what happened after the Third Wave. But at least he is clearly trying to act cordially with the human in front of Naofumi. "The reason the magic of these Brimirian heathens are hard to control is because the spell work itself is dead. They can only do what a Brimirian heathen calculated themselves in their own spell works, which are often imprecise and lack the ability to self correct regarding the intent of what they want to achieve with their casting. Animancy on the other hand is living, and the spell work itself can self-correct its effect thanks to our communion with the natural spirit we bond with."
"Is it possible for a monkeigh as myself to learn this 'Animancy'?" Malty narrows her eyes, and lets loose the suggestion of what she must have been planning from the start. "I hurt my heart as I was traveling, and fighting alongside Master Naofumi. My casting is extremely limited now by my fragile heart, and overcasting again will have me drop dead. But if I learn the school of magic you are using, it should help me better control my own magic even if I'll never be able to use real Animancy."
Naofumi has to admit, Malty's reasoning is sound, at least from his limited understanding. Kael'Thas also narrows his eyes, but he focuses his sight on Malty as if trying to size her up rather than rejecting her request straight away. After a while, he finally opens his mouth again. "It should be possible, especially since you are a sorcerer and not a wizard. Your way of casting within the magic flow in your own veins rather than through rigorous calculating a spell work and then sealing them into a magical tome is already similar to our way. But it'll be hard when you are so used to the spell work of those Brimirian heathens. Normally, I wouldn't bother. But since you are a trusted companion of my king, who has proven your loyalty... I will spend a little time at the end of each day to teach you the basics. How much you will actually learn depends on yourself."
"That is all I can ask. Thank you for being such a gracious mentor, Prince Kael'thas." Malty bows her head to the phoenix prince, as she steps back. She turns her head around to smile at Lori, and scratches the bird's chin. The big red birds let out a happy cooing. "Thank you for keeping me neat, little Mein."
Naofumi can't help but smile at seeing Malty looking genuinely happy with her bird companion. If only this had happened with Firo... hopefully, he had learnt something from the failure to raise his first 'daughter'. But then, he hears the hushed voice of Kael'Thas, sounding much more alert than when they first encountered the gutter beaks. "Be on your guard, someone is surrounding us."
"Bandits?" Naofumi walks up to Kael'thas and stands shoulder to shoulder with the Siltvelt noble. But instead of answering his question, Kael'thas almost rudely pushes him back and stands in front of Naofumi. He didn't take offense at the action, recognizing Kael'thas' intention to protect him from harm. Soon, figures begin to emerge from the trees. The Shield Hero hasn't encountered that many groups of bandits. But compared to Porter's group (who are more refugees resorted to banditry) and the band under Abby the Bitch Lord, their difference is night and day. None of them wore hide, or leather armor haphazardly sewn together. For a brief second, he can't even decide who among them is the leader.
"Faubley inquisitors." Malty's quiet whisper immediately put Naofumi at edge. His last encounter with this group didn't exactly start, or end well. At least this time there's no civilians around them. So he at least does not have to worry about them killing innocent hostages.
"Junior Inquisitor Kyrie Markieren, at your service." One member of the inquisitor steps forward. She has a confident smile underneath her short, ear length black hair. Her face is more mature than Malty, but younger than her mother. Instead of delicate features, she looks determined and hardened through a much tougher life. Like a well decorated military officer. She wears a set of protective black plates over dark brown leathers, and does wear a set of white fur collar around her neck. But unlike the wild and unkempt fur he had seen on bandits, hers is short and well trimmed, giving a sense of refinement. "Naofumi Iwatani, Shield Hero, illegally summoned by the Kingdom of Melromarc. I believe that you have met my mentor, Lord Inquisitor Emon."
"If you want to take revenge for your mentor, I'm going to tell you he started the conflict when he started executing innocent people without hearing me out." Naofumi narrows his eyes and glares at the self-proclaimed student of that murder hobo inquisitor. This Kyrie person might not be openly hostile towards him right now like her mentor, but he certainly doesn't want to get taken off guard.
The Shield Hero briefly considered cast away his current [Chimera Viper Shield] (which his level is thankfully high enough to use again) and start summoning his [Crown Shield]. With the way his Saiga works in this world, it will add all the passive stats bonus from all his current unlocked forms that he can use as its own primary stats. Which means he will be hardy enough to act as his party's main tank despite his much lower levels. But he decided against it. With the few examples he had so far with those from Faubley, he doesn't want to look like an aggressor and give them an excuse to label him a criminal. He has to think about what'll happen to Malty.
"We are not in Faubley, Miss Inquisitor. You have no jurisdiction to operate as you wished on this land. Especially not with its high queen so close to us." By contrast, Prince Kael'thas' tone is harsh as he takes another step forward. The elf prince doesn't stomp. He is obviously too graceful and high-class for such a rude and crude gesture. But the way the grass he walked through burst into embers clearly expresses his distaste. "I could have done nothing about your predecessor seeing how I was not present at the time. But rest assured, I will file a harshly worded complaint to your faith about this action after this is over."
"Melromarc has no right to bring to the arbiter's council of the Four Heroes' Church, or the judges of Faubley seeing how they broke the covenant and illegally summoned all four cardinal heroes. As for your complaint, I will take it into consideration. Now if you are done complaining, I have words to exchange with your master." Inquisitor Kyrie nonchalantly brushes away Kael'thas' bluster. Naofumi can feel the scourging seething radiating off the elf prince but he didn't have much time to dwell on it. As the inquisitor turns towards him next. "Will you speak for yourself, or will you let your servant talk for you, Shield Hero?"
Naofumi likes to think he is a fairly reasonable guy, but something about this Faubley inquisitor really gets on his nerves. Perhaps it's her holier-than-thou arrogance that's both displayed on her face, and in her voice. Or perhaps it's the fact that she is the student of a self-righteous, innocent killing crazy old fart. Regardless, he doesn't have patience to deal with whatever the female inquisitor is trying to play at. "What's there to talk about? You clearly already have your mind made just like your self-righteous murderer of a mentor! Piss off, if you don't want to get hurt."
"I was hoping you would say that." Something about the brilliantly happy smile that made the female inquisitor's eyes close underneath her eyelid made Naofumi realize he probably shouldn't have said that. In an instance, the cheerful expression of the Faubley inquisitor is gone, replaced by something that reminded Naofumi of her mentor. "Shield Hero. As you have openly threatened the life of a Four Heroes' Church inquisitor, I invoke the inquisition's right for self-defense. Tell your lackeys to lay down their arms if you don't want to get hurt as we bring you to Faubley to judge you for your crime. If not... we'll do it the fun way."
"Wrong words, you filthy mon-keighs!" Kael'thas reaches into his own cloak and throws an arrow straight into the sky. It begins to emit a noise that sounds both like a low whistle, and the sound of nails against glass. Irritating to the ear, but would definitely catch people's attention. No doubt, it's a signal that calls in reinforcements. Rallying help isn't the only thing Kael'thas did, as the elf prince immediately pulls his elegant sword out, and rushes towards the Faubley inquisitors as his rangers fall back and tighten their line around Naofumi. "Stand back, my king! You do not need to dirty your hands with filthy rabbles like these!"
"Going to throw your lackey's life away while you stay where it's safe? How typical of a conniving villain." The Faubley inquisitor fights with a clearly mocking smile on her face. Naofumi wishes he can be at the front like before his level reset (or before he lost his shield, for that matter). But he also knows he can't afford to simply stand before everyone in his current weakened state. So he does what he needs rather than what he wants. Cast away his physical shield, and begin concentrating to bring out his [Crown Shield]. He'll feel like he went through all of his Tokyo University entrance exams all at once afterwards... but that's the best way he can help his friends now. In the meantime... Kael'thas can take care of himself.
o(-_-)o[T]
Malty has been doing a quick headcount as soon as their assailant emerged from the treelines. Her near month-long escape from the Three Heroes Church's persecution had taught her to be very aware of her enemy's strength compared to her own group. They outnumber her own group about two, maybe three to one. They're pretty bad odds based on the number of bodies alone... for the Faubley inquisitors. They don't stand a chance even if only Naofumi's Siltvelt guards show up.
Of course, that leaves the actual strength and skill for the combatant. If they overwhelm everyone defending Naofumi and manage to take him away (or gods forbid... kill him), all would be moot. Oh, there will be hell to pay once the dust is settled. But it wouldn't matter to Naofumi, or herself for that matter. If the Shield Hero is indisposed of in any way, Mother would surely seize the opportunity to ship her to her uncle in exchange for some political capitals from Faubley. Malty extends two fingers out from her left hand, as small droplets of water begin to form, enlarge, and spin in front of them. Two [Hydro Sphere] spells, that's the limit to how many she can cast and still maintain a fine control over. Her fire spell is too volatile to be used in a densely vegetated forest, and she wouldn't resort to it until the situation proves to be truly dire. As her teacher Uncle Aldrecht always says: A mage's power is only as good as his control.
In the meantime, still has enough mind to observe the battle. That loud mouthed leader of the Faubley inquisitors immediately brought an axe in her hand, and charged towards Kael'thas like an enraged boar. Her furious, and brutish strikes clashing with the phoenix princes' elegant, almost bored parries. It's clear that Kael'thas is the much more skilled, and possibly even the stronger combatant in addition to being a powerful fire sorcerer.
The only thing that stops the Faubley inquisitor from being immediately taken down by him is her evident rush of strength going into combat, as well as five more of her companions all charging Kael'thas at once to support her. The companions of the female inquisitor are certainly well practiced in how to fight together against a single opponent, as they shift in and out strike to not get each other's way, and covering each other's defense when Kael'thas find an opening to strike at them with his sword, or his fire sorcery. Ironically, the cavalier inquisitor herself seems to be the weakest link, as she seems to pay no mind to anyone on her side and continuously assaulting the phoenix prince.
As for Kael'thas himself, the phoenix prince doesn't look bothered as he fights six opponents together. The little fire sparrow dances around his body, weaving a net of fire that seems to physically bounce back his opponent's weapons as if they are corporeal.
Yet despite Kael'thas' effort, he is a single man. And six bodies is all he can draw to himself with his solo charge, as the rest of the inquisitors charge towards the group surrounding Naofumi. Malty feels a push from her shoulder as she's tipped over to the Shield Hero. Baldy and Blue Eyes charge over her, doing their best to block more of their opponents from surrounding them. Deciding to do her own part, she releases the spells she's been holding and lets them swallow two Faubley inquisitors. The princess didn't stop there, with two of the inquisitors firmly in her metaphorical grasp, she began to guide her [Hydro Sphere] Spell around, and had them bumping and slamming into other Faubley inquisitors.
"Do not let up, my fellow inquisitors! Get the Shield Demon!" The lead inquisitor seems to finally realize that she's wasting time, and effort attacking Kael'thas. She jumps back from the rest of her compatriots' attack on the phoenix prince... which actually had them move much better due to her no longer getting in their way. She turns around to look at Naofumi, and charges at him.
"This farce had gone long enough." Malty hears a single, reserved sounding sigh from her former personal maid as Miss Mala leaps forward. The white tiger martial master lands her feet perfectly on the head of the dark haired head inquisitor. With one kick off from her own feet, she jumps at the head of another Faubley inquisitor, while pushing the head of the one she was standing on planted firmly into the ground. She repeats the process as many times as there are still upright enemy fighters, and pretty soon all of their opponent's heads are in the ground.
"Shit. I brought out my Saiga for no reason?" Malty turns her head around to look at Naofumi. The giant, red carapace-like shell is only starting to form around his right arm. He looks just a little indignant at not being able to help, so Malty places a comforting hand on his shoulders.
"Think of this as a training experience, Master Naofumi. Even with Ms. Mala's arms broken, she's much stronger than some random warriors who only reached prestige level range... or still staying in common level range." But even as Malty is comforting the despondent-looking Naofumi, she notices Prince Kael'thas narrowing his eyes at Ms. Mala. She feels like her heart skipped a beat, and realized that perhaps her former maid shouldn't have jumped into the fight when they weren't in any real danger.
"Lok'tar ogar!" "For the glory of the warchief!" That's the moment when the raiders who pledged themselves as Naofumi's slaves charged into the clearing.
End Note:
Yeah, after it was brought up before the 3rd wave (and the attempted coup by Three Heroes Church), the heroes finally got their retinue. No, it didn't magically solve their problems and they are looking at more headache. Well, Itsuki is getting more headache, the other three deligated and let their more experienced party members/allies get the headache for them.
And speaking of old plot point coming back to haunt the heroes... did you guys think Naofumi and Itsuki killing a Faubley inquisitor wouldn't cause any backlash? Well, enter his equally psychotic and self-righteous apprentice.