Chapter 61

After some limited rehabilitation for Atla, Usa came back at a near run. The look on his face however, told me it was good news, not an emergency.

"Ma'am! The people of Lurolona are just out of sight over that way." I offered him a hand up to the (mostly symbolic) driver's seat, and with a huff he got up with me, then sat down with a sigh. "They passed through Lerno without issue, and are taking a nearly parallel road to us now."

I offered him a water-skin, and he tried to use his off hand to unscrew the top. It took him a moment, but he managed, drank, then handed it back, "They are making great time then." I smiled, holding the water-skin for him while he used his off hand to cap it again.

"They are. It was..." He had to take a deep breath to collect himself, "I have never seen so many wagons."

I looked ahead, smiled to myself, and handed Usa the (purely symbolic) reins for Tetsu. "Gonna find Raphtalia. Pretty sure she and Clive are out hunting."

"Fohl?"

"Scouting ahead."

"I'll keep my ears open."

Raphtalia was indeed pleased to hear the news, and it wasn't long after that we met up with the (yeah, that IS a lot of wagons!) caravan of her displaced villagers. It felt weird to have people so happy to see me, but I had to put my foot down, so to speak, and insist we keep going. We were still most of a day out from the former town of Lurolona, and we were going to have to travel part of the night to get to the port village on time.

That didn't mean I was ignoring the people. While we travelled the rest of the way, the sun reaching apex, then shifting to evening, I toured the wagons as they were pulled onward by hard working filolial. I made sure to check up on everyone, and see what we had on had to help get them settled in, and to explain to them I wasn't going to be able to help the rebuild right away.

They understood that I had 'important hero business' to do, and were already so thankful for all my party and I had done already. But to a few people Raphtalia pointed out, as well as Sadeena and Elrasla, I told them of the one thing I was going to do before leaving, and if they could spread the word, I'd be thankful. I didn't want to tell people as I visited, since that would ruin my efforts to 'just say hello'.

Because I was going to make another tree.

"There it is." Raphtalia pointed as we crested over (yet another) hill.

The former site, and soon to be reborn site, of Lurolona Village was incredible. Or rather... It used to be.

Oh, sure, it wasn't super fancy. But from here, you could see a long stretch of ruined houses along an extremely pretty beach. We'd been smelling the ocean for a while now, but the amazing blue-orange of the ocean at dusk was amazing. A white sand beach overlooked by a long row of hilly cliffs made it a perfect place for a settlement.

That said, the destruction here was almost total. Fire, wild animals, weather... From here, we could also see the former foundations of Raphtalia's home exposed to the elements after the disaster that happened after the first Wave.

"There..." Raphtalia pulled my attention from the view and all the little ideas I had popping into my head. "That's where my parents rescued me..." She pointed again, "Where I lived..." And again, "Oh... even Lord Seaetto's home is gone..."

I looked in that direction, and all that remained was a collapsed stone building. Now no taller than my hip, it looked like it was pretty humble for a lord. But that in of itself spoke well of the late lord Raphtalia and her village thought so well of.

"Pick a place." I said, patting her shoulder. "So long as it isn't on top of the graveyard..." I saw one last thing as we followed the path around a slight bend in the road. I'd have mistaken it for yet another ruined stone foundation, but not only was it larger than all but the former lord's house, the stone markers inside the border were about the only things that didn't have the mark of fire on them.

Setting up for their first night back home was fairly simple. The night, I could tell, would be a bit cool, but Van had provided, Lerno had provided more, and everyone would have tents to sleep in, and ample blankets to keep warm with.

Add that to a few dozen filolial who were quite fond of their new handlers, and the wagons being lined up to make a protected stockpile or emergency shelter in case of 'rampant' monsters... They would be fine until the people could start really building again.

I also set up a grove of Fox-berry tree/shrubs, as well as some fast growing trees for lumber with the 'cursed seeds' I had in the Shield. Being able to edit how a plant will grow on the fly was... kind of insane. But if the ability was there, I was going to use it.

But just after full dark, after dinner, the people joined me on top of the grassy cliff where Raphtalia had been saved by her parents.

I was dressed, once again, in just my house robe, my skin still itching a little from the salt water bath I'd just had. Kunshu, my faithful second (and still holding the egg in her middle arms), stood behind and to my left. Raphtalia stood behind and to my right, holding a carefully wrapped bundle in her arms, the remains of her dear friend Rifana.

And directly behind the three of us, were the graves of her parents.

"People of Lurolona." I started, the former refugees, their protectors, and the few others who had joined them. I looked over them, young and old, all tired looking, but so much brighter now that they'd been freed from the slaver tents.

"You are home." I said finally, "The first wave brought tragedy, and uprooted you from your home. I'm much the same. The first Wave saw me summoned to your world, taking me from my own family. Yes, it was to 'deal with the waves'. But where I come from, the job isn't done until you've cleaned up."

I glanced back to Raphtalia, and she turned and stepped over to her parent's gravestones. I waited until I heard her start digging before continuing. "It's my opinion, pulling all of you out of the slaver's pens was the easy part. I look over what's left of your village, see a shadow of what it was, and understand that bringing it back to what it was, then exceeding it, will be the greater task."

The digging ceased, and there was a little ruffle of fabric and the click of dry bone. "This." I made a wide motion with my arm, "Was duty. I don't need an excuse to bring a family back together. I don't need payment to restore someone to their home. But I hope I can rely on your support, because I can't do this alone."

Raphtalia returned to my side, her hands dirty. "Behind me, are the graves of Raphtalia's parents, and now, her best friend. Without her support, not only would I be having a much harder time with my stay in your world, but I might never have known about you and your plight. So, to honour her, I would ask you help me once again."

I turned my back to them, and knelt. This time, I had no curses to cleanse, no dragon soul stone to calm down. No, this time, I had or at least hoped I had, the support of all the people of Lurolona. As I dug my fingers into the soil, I started to feel the pulse of the world around me. The people near me, the soil, the cliffs under the soil, the sandy beach, the nearby ocean, and distantly, both of the trees I'd already put in place.

This time, I extended my inner senses towards Rifana's bundle of remains. On that bundle, buried with her, was another pouch of medicinal plant seeds. Slowly, with one mental finger resting on that bundle, I started to pull in the energy around me. From the rock under the ocean under the sand under the dirt under the people under the sky, then back, from the sky to the people to the soil to the sand to the ocean to the rock...

(Motoyasu)

I had to admit, this new wagon was really nice. I'd never been much for camping, and until I'd been (firmly, but politely) told to learn, I'd never spent a day out doors before coming to this world. But now? Thanks to Kuro's weird fixation on wagons, and Kodori's weird power to suddenly have things get done, it was even better than when the Queen herself gifted it to my new little sister.

Speaking of, seeing Kuro so happy, even as she trotted along the path, made me smile. The new leaf springs Kodori had apparently taught one of Erhard's friends to make, squeaked quietly with each bump or little pothole we went over, though the wagon hardly seemed to shake at all. I've had car rides rougher than this!

Then again, she had said she was an engineer. Hard to argue with proof... Yeah. Proof. The thing that snapped me out of the haze that Ren and Itsuki were still in.

It was so weird, now that I was like Kodori, an outsider looking in. More like a sane person looking at madness. She'd been serious from the instant she got here, while the rest of us got lost in the fantasy. She'd beaten the stupid out of me, then showed me exactly how real this world was. But how could we do that with Ren and Itsuki?

"Master?" Kuro's voice pulled me out of my thoughts, even as the noise of the rest of our little caravan crowded into my senses again.

"To the West!" Someone shouted.

That was one thing I was still trying to memorize on the long list of survival skills I was being forced to learn. But before I could make too much of a fool of my self looking for 'west', a giant pillar of purple, gold and silver light shot upwards into the sky!

While I'd been wandering about with Myne and those other two girls... wow, I didn't even remember their names! Anyhow, when I'd still been with Myne, I'd seen the first pillar. Was looking right at it while we ate dinner. Then, it had been a scary looking thing, like two beasts fighting around the shaft of light.

The second time, I only caught a little bit of it, Kuro and I were fighting in the swamps. But it was no less intense, like an array of spotlights pointing upwards on a foggy day. It had also been more purple than anything else, until the last instant where it was like a lightning bolt I had to blink away after it flashed.

This time... The pillar of light was just... light. No animals fighting inside. No sudden burst of retina burning intensity. Just light.

Then it was gone, and I swore I could smell sakura petals over the nearly overpowering scent of ocean salt and harbour fishing.

From behind me, surprising me with how sudden it was, that girl... Rishia? Yeah. That was her name. She spoke so close to my ear I nearly fell out of the seat. "Fueee... It happened again!" Then she looked at me, bowing and nearly smashing her forehead on the top of the little half door between the driver seat and cabin, "Ah! I'm sorry!"

She seemed to be perpetually apologizing no matter what she did. "Don't worry about it." I tried to assure her. "What were you in there for?" The wagon was mine sure, but I wasn't going to hog it all to myself while others were around.

She shied away some more, but caught herself, "fuee... Laundry. Following Sir Itsuki around doesn't leave much time for chores, and the others leave it all to me."

Kuro was looking back at me, now that the light show had stopped, and was squinting at me with her very best 'do better' looks. It hurt to see, but I hardly needed encouragement for this! A woman needed a hand! (but just a hand, this one had such a shrinking violet vibe to her...)

"Lemme give you a hand. Kuro will be upset with me if I leave my own chores too long. You figured out the weird magic laundry machine already?"

(Kodori)

Even after all this time, though for most, a little over eight years isn't much time at all, magic is still weird. For someone like me, who had most of their life rooted in the mundane, magic was still weird.

But, as I knelt there, feeling like I'd just moved a mountain, held up a house, and run a marathon all at the same time, there was something to be said about just how satisfying it was. In front of me, already shedding wild amounts of flower petals was another tree. Another amalgamation of impossible symbiosis, brought into being by my will and the power of the people and things around me. I had once again driven my own bit of order into this weird world.

Unlike the other two trees, where bits of dragon crystals and cursed energy resided, this one instead sheltered the graves of Raphtalia's parents, and her dear friend Rifana. The weird multi-trunks of the tree had created a small cave for the three graves.

But that couldn't be all. Not for something like this. That much power, pulled up from the land and down from the sky, didn't just go through me.

"Call to her." I said quietly, the only way I could speak with how tired I felt.

Raphtalia and Kunshu looked back to me, but of course, I could only be talking to one of them.

"If she's still willing..." I continued, fighting to keep my focus, "A friend must call for her."

She blinked at me, even as Kunshu knelt by me to stop me from falling over. Then with a surprised blink she turned to the hollow under the great tree, "Rifana?"

A pure soul, with no regrets, with hope in her heart until her very last breath, who died in her friend's arms. Something so spiritual, so pure, without even a speck of curse... I had no idea if I could make it happen, but I knew I couldn't make it happen alone.

"Rifana? Are you there? The Shield Hero... She's here now. She came to my rescue." Raphtalia called quietly, her voice echoing slightly, even as the noise of the ocean on the shore make the inside of the tree sound like a great pair of lungs.

"I... I am? I am here!" There was a giggle, quite, but heard more with the heart than the ears, and from behind one of Raphtalia's parent's tombstones, appeared a girl. Dressed in a riotously coloured house robe (unlike my black goes with everything one), she had a bright smile, little triangle ears, pink hair and a long thin fuzzy pink tail.

But it was clear she wasn't... 'all here'... She took a few steps, the gloomy interior of the tree making her look solid and real. But as she set foot outside of the tree's protection, the starlight marked her for what she really was. A spirit.

Of course, Raphtalia and her tried to hug each other, two long lost friends finding each other again. But as soon as the Raccoon girl got her arms around her friend, she vanished.

Only to step out from behind the tombstone again, "You were always a little rough when we played." She giggled at Raphtalia's look of shock.

Behind me, the people of Lurolona were recovering from their own shock. Mumbles of surprise and even a little horror.

Raphtalia and Rafina had stepped towards each other again, this time limiting their greeting to a simple holding of hands. Ignoring the noise behind me, and hoping this would do for an explanation, I asked, "Are you willing to stay? To help me? To help them?" I offered my own hand, and felt a gentle static tingle as Rifana placed her hand in mine. "This isn't my world, and I can make no promises for your service..."

Even if she was the spirit of a young girl, the weight of her eyes as she looked into mine was very heavy very real. "My friend has called me, so I can see my Hero. I think that deserves at least a little favour in return, right?"

She stepped back, the shadow of the tree making her seem 'real' again, "The tree might be your only home... I don't know if the world outside its shade can sustain you."

"Maybe. But if the Shield Hero called me back from the dead to ask for my help, I don't think I could rest if I didn't at least try."

I had no real idea of what kind of girl she was before she'd died. Raphtalia's stories of her only did so much. But her smile was so vibrant... "Then please. Rifana. I give you your first task, as guardian and watcher of the tree of Lurolona."

I took off my ring, and tied a string around it. She knew what was expected, and bowed her head so I could put it around her neck.

"I trust you with a connection to my world, in a place representative of my power. When the next Wave happens, hold the right tightly, and call out the name under the memory of my wife." I put my hand over the ring as it hung around her neck, feeling not her heart, but the pulse of energy from the land I had used to build the tree. "Do you understand?"

"I do, Kodori Haruhime. Shield Hero. Master."

"Friend." I corrected, unable to resist and applying a headpat that made my palm tingle with ghostly electricity. "Raphtalia? We have to leave soon."

crack

I turned to look at Kunshu, then down at the egg. Heh, when it rains, it pours. "Rifana? Meet Kunshu. I leave her and her partner here, as guardians of the physical, while you hold the spiritual."

Kunshu gave Rifana one of her well meaning headpats, knelt with me, and held up the egg box as the life inside pulled its way free. Like Kunshu, it was black fuzzed with a silver and gold carapace. "Hello Kunshu. And welcome to the world."

"Tenno." Kunshu 'said' to me, her antenna brushing one of my horns, "Means... Emperor, yes?"

I looked to the curious giant bee (who was actually shaped like a bee, not a bee who was person shaped), "Welcome to the world, Tenno." And like I had with Kunshu, offered his first meal as my 'animal companions' tab in the Status Screen updated.

The people (tired over there hand wave) had accepted what had happened with the same kind of shrug I had when someone told me magic existed. Thankfully, since I had been the one to do it, and they'd all seen it before, they were that much more accepting of it, even after what amounted to necromancy.

But the instant I'd finished giving Tenno a bit of his first meal, and gave the people of Lurolona one last 'thank you for helping me' speech, Raphtalia (to the giggles of Rifana) had taken hold of one of my ears, my newest tail (huh, suppose you're just as good at the other two, no, I brush you later, about to nap) and dragged me to the wagon to sleep.

I was already being held up by the hopes of the people of Lurolona and what little wishful thinking the rest of the world had for me, so I offered no resistance past that of 'lemme take my slippers off first'.

I woke up to the wagon shaking suddenly. Pothole? Probably. I could see some predawn light attempting to get through the nice dark curtains of the wagon, and was already sad that Kunshu was staying behind. The best not-cat ever would have made me feel better, even if everything still hurt.

"We're not quite there yet." Usa said as I started trying to sit up. "You could probably sleep another half hour."

We went over another bump, and I suddenly had Usa flopped over my chest. Like anyone who was about to fall, he'd tried to brace himself. "Hope you can feel that." I said, unable to stop myself from teasing him.

His good hand had braced against the wall, but his weak hand only made it as far as my left breast. The poor rabbit suddenly felt feverish as he tried to figure out how to lift himself off of me without being improper.

It was all well and good (and good fun) to make someone into a stuttering idiot, but I didn't want him to feel shame for an accident. So I wrapped my arms around him, swing my legs over the cot, and pivoted on my rear. The move shifted him over and off me, and with a smooth motion he was now sitting next to me, his hand no longer perched over my breast. I let him go, gave his thigh a pat, and stood up. "Who's driv-oh."

Tetsu and Raphtalia were occupying the cot on the other side of the wagon, the two of them barely able to fit on the narrow bed, but looking adorable while they did. To be fair, that was where Atla had been, so it was a little wider by design.

"Ah! Um, we borrowed a couple of filolial from the caravan. Atla, Fohl and Elder Ragnarok will be using them to take the wagon back to Lurolona when we depart." Usa explained, his weaker hand making 'grabby hand' motions while his stronger hand squeezed his forearm and bicep. I wondered how Issei was doing.

"Clive?"

"Patrol with Fohl."

I felt a little worry spike in my gut, and moved the curtain between the cabin and driver seat aside. "What? Thought I'd let the blind girl drive?" Elrasla grumbled as I looked left and right. "We have to talk."

"So you drove over potholes to wake me up?" I frowned.

"No, the roads here just suck." She shot back.

This was not how I wanted my morning to start. So, I opened the little half door, stepped out, and sat next to Atla. "Pardon me." I said.

"Oh, it's no-Ah!" Atla exclaimed as I picked her up and sat her on my lap. "I am not a doll." She pouted, but wiggled carefully, getting comfortable.

"What about?" I asked, getting a brush out of the Shield and carefully brushing Atla's nice tiger tail.

"The girl has talent." She said flatly. "The boy, not so much. He means well, but he's a bit..."

"Be easy on him. My brother tries very hard." Atla scolded Elrasla gently.

Seeing the old lady's face actually shift to something that one might imagine as 'apologetic', I couldn't help but smile a little. "If you could help her recover after a lifetime of being unable to walk or move properly, I would be thankful."

"I'd have done it without you asking." She huffed.

"And I'd still be thankful." I sighed. "If I had time to do it myself, I would."

Again, she grumbled, but then asked, "Why did you bring them along if they weren't going with you? They could have stayed back, and I'm sure your nice little wagon would be safe here."

"After so long laying in bed, and spending almost all their effort and attention to caring for each other, I wanted them to see a little more of the world." I replied, carefully wiggling out from under Atla and putting her down between the Elder and I, "And if there are things in the markets here Lurolona needs that I didn't think of, or wasn't provided by Lord Van, then you can get it back there with this." I gave the wagon wall a pat.

"I am very glad the Hero is so thoughtful, if a little clingy." Atla said, patting one of my tails.

"I have seven children at home. My day feels incomplete if I don't take care of someone. I haven't even baked cookies for weeks!"

The Port Village was a pretty upbeat place. Sure, it was probably because of the extra traffic. But it was the third place I'd seen so far with 'modern' buildings.

As we crested the last hill before town, I could see all kinds of red brick warehouses, stone cobble roads, white stone/clay roofed houses, and solid stone and wood, maybe even primitive concrete, piers. They might have called it 'Port Village' but this was a bustling town of at least a thousand residents or more.

As I scanned over all the nice features, I noticed a long river that went back in the direction of Melromarc. Maybe this was where the Clown had been going after he'd dropped us off outside, way back when I picked up Clive, Usa and Raphtalia.

Of course, once my architectural soul had done its once over of the town, I looked at the ships waiting in the harbour.

"Are you familiar with boats too, Kodori?" Raphtalia asked from beside me, her hands trying to guide the filolial around the occasional pothole.

"Not as much as I'd like. But back home, we have a guy named Njord. His fishing barge makes these look tiny. But the stuff living in the water back home is pretty scary." I scratched one of my ears, "But those are pretty impressive."

The ships docked at the harbour were big. Meant to haul cargo, but also stand up to abuse, I'd have guessed it was almost a hundred metres from stern to figurehead, and twenty five metres across. Five masts plus a big frontal sail (a jib? I think...). It was clear monsters were also a 'thing' in the waters here too. It also had harpoons, two on the bow corners, two amidships, and two on the stern. Well, more like 'giant crossbows' but still, these were obviously meant for 'big fish'.

"Can you swim?" Raphtalia asked me.

"When I had all my tails, it was more... 'squid'. But reasonably well." I smiled, "But with a ship like that, I don't think 'swim' would be a good idea unless we really had to. Maybe if we have time when we're there. Bound to be places to swim over there."

Suddenly, the curtain behind the driver seat was pushed aside, and Tetsu's head and shoulders burst out between the two of us. "I smell FISH!"

"We'll probably have time to eat before we leave." I sighed, "Good morning sleepyhead."

"Kodori!" Motoyasu's voice carried over the bustle of the market street as I led the party towards the docks. The 'plan' was to do a bit of shopping, pay for 'delivery' to the wagon, and send the tiger siblings and the Elder back. Not only would this let them enjoy the city a little, they could see the massive ship, and maybe help with ideas for what to buy. As much as I didn't really like the old lady, I knew they'd be safe with her afterwards.

I looked towards the voice, and spotted him waving at us. I waved back to show him I'd noticed, then paid for what I was looking at (Raphtalia said it was for a plant kind of like cotton), and started walking towards the Spear Hero.

We had to step to the side of the busy street before we could talk. "I think everyone saw the light show last night. That was you, right?"

"Yeah." I nodded, "And before you ask, Kunshu stayed behind. Where's Kuro?"

"Pouting back at the wagon. I was just looking for breakfast before we shipped out. We're leaving a little before lunch, at least, that's what I was told..."

"Well, the Queen set this up just for us. I doubt she'd lie about it." I nodded, "Hear that Tetsu? We have time for a little more food."

"Yay!"

"Speaking of. Ever been on a boat before?" I looked to Motoyasu.

"Nah, never had the urge."

Raphtalia, Usa and even Clive gave me 'the look', and for a moment, I considered where the karmic scales sat between Motoyasu and I.

"Well, don't eat anything heavy, and if you start feeling sick, look as far off into the distance as you can, and take deep breaths. Don't lean on anything if you can help it, and let your legs relax. Like you're standing in a crowded train car." I explained.

Raphtalia nodded to everything but the last one, but she didn't know what a train was.

"Seriously? All that?"

"Yes. Oh, don't look at your status screen. Don't try and read anything." I added, seeing a little flash from my 'party' menu icon. "Oh... suppose that would be... lets see..."

"Problem, Ma'am?" Usa asked.

"One of Ake's knights just gained a level, and it reminded me to take them out of the sub party list. Don't want them teleporting away from Lurolona when the wave hits."

"We should be back on land when it happens, right?" Motoyasu asked, his eyes flicking sideways, "We're only going to be there a couple days, and I'm pretty sure someone said it was only a half day one way."

"Still don't want them suddenly getting pulled from guard duty." I shook my head.

"Fair. Anyhow, I have to go find something to take Kuro's mind off leaving the wagon behind." He paused in mid turn, "Any ideas? I mean, past food."

"Here. Oh, you get one too." I handed him two of the 'water breathing' tokens. "Wonder if I should give the other two one as well?"

Motoyasu gave the silver token a look, blinked at it, then smiled a little ruefully, "They won't learn if we let them die. I've been trying to think of ways to snap them out of it, but most of them end up with 'beat them up until they figure it out'."

"Yeah, me too. Thank you for at least thinking on it. Maybe we can figure it out later." I sighed, "See you at the ship."

We watched him slip back into the crowd, "I like him a lot better now." Usa said.

Clive and Raphtalia nodded with him, and Tetsu replied with a, "He's not as good with headpats, but he doesn't need me to ask for them!"

Business done, money paid, the tiger siblings and grumpy old lady waved at as we turned towards the docks... I was a little surprised. There were a fair amount of people, almost all 'adventuring types' in line with us. While the Queen had chartered the ship for the four heroes, she had not closed what ever this 'event' was off to the public.

And I liked that. Maybe it meant more people would survive when the Waves started spawning monsters all over the place, and there were more than the local guards around to handle it.

But, it also meant we had to wait in line like everyone else. That was fine too. Even if I was the strongest in Orario, I would wait in line unless it was 'disaster level' important.

"Oh man... I am absolutely pumped for this!" The guy in front of me said. He sounded like Welf just before starting a big project. One part 'childish glee, one part 'enthusiasm'.

Hidden by his bigger frame, a woman's voice spoke up, "Must you act so..." She sighed, "Try and contain yourself L'arc."

"I can't help it! Ships get me excited!" He continued, and much like Welf, he turned around to find someone to share his good mood with, and maybe get on his side to justify the 'childish glee' part. "You're excited to- oh wow."

Short spiky hair that was just short enough to stay out of his eyes. Handsome face. Muscles that spoke of healthy eating and lots of exercise. His eyes went wide when he looked at me, "Not as excited as you." I said with a shrug. The thing that caught my attention, though I had to wrench it away so I didn't raise suspicion, was a scythe hanging from his hip. A scythe with a very distinct gem set between the short shaft and the crescent blade.

"Now you're just bothering people." Him turning to face me had revealed the woman, and she was... Very pretty. Not like Rias, with her unique red hair and gravity defying anatomy. Or like Haruhime with her soft curves and quiet strength. But this woman had pale skin, soft blue-green hair done in a perfect braid, and an incredible amount of exceptionally made jewellery. Most of the time, wearing all kinds of adornment like this would become gaudy. But from the nice matched bracelets, subtly worn polished crystal buttons on her blouse, and the dainty tiara on her forehead, nothing clashed with her overall look.

Of course, I could feel the magic coming off the two of them, and they were both being 'auto translated'. Or rather, whatever they were saying was different than what I was hearing. It wasn't the local language I was sure.

"It's fine." I waved away her concern, "But I think the line's starting to move."

"I'm sorry Ma'am." One of the crew said as my party and I were given 'the tour' towards the berths. "Two of the other heroes and their parties have commandeered the berths meant for you..."

"Explains why we're being led down into the middle decks, not the outer hold..." Raphtalia mumbled icily. "Joke is on them if they get seasick easily."

She was right, the further from keel, the worse the shaking would be once we got on the water. But at least they'd have windows to puke out of.

"It's fine." I said, "Any limits to deck access?"

"No Ma'am, not at all. Just stay out from underfoot, away from the wheel, and don't touch the rigging for the sails." The sailor seemed surprised I didn't care about the 'downgrade' to the lower deck 'common rooms'.

"Neat." I smiled, "Show us where our berth is then, just to say you have, and we'll go back up to take in the air and get our sea legs."

My party was just as agreeable as I was, and with a relieved smile he continued guiding us. "We ask that you stay in your cabin just until we get underway. We'll ring the bell 'all clear' once we've gotten the sails rigged for departure and the risk of getting underfoot is reduced."

"Oh hello again." Tetsu and I stepped into one of the shared cabins, and saw that L'arc and his companion were there already. "Got stuck down here huh?" I gave Raphtalia, Usa and Clive a nod as they were led to the next door down, then finished stepping into the little bunk room.

"L'arc..." I could tell that if this lady were to ever get wrinkles, it would be his fault. "You'll have to forgive him. He's very excitable."

Tetsu tugged my sleeve, "Why can't I understand her?"

L'arc blinked as if remembering something, "Oh yeah. Therese?"

The refined yet sensibly elegant woman leaned over a little and touched the short reaper's scythe at L'arc's hip. There was a little transfer of energy, and she asked, "How's this, little one?"

"Perfect!" Tetsu smiled broadly, "I'm Tetsu!"

"Oh right! L'arc Berg." L'arc introduced himself with a lazy salute.

"Therese Alexanderite."

"Kodori Haruhime."

He frowned at me, "Huh, why would you use that name? Isn't it for a man? That Shield Hero is named that, isn't he?"

I shrugged indifferently, but before Tetsu could say anything (and I knew she'd start arguing about it) I hugged her head to my side and started to apply headpats. Thankfully, the ship started to sway a little more, and I could hear orders being shouted above.

"It's my name all the same."

"Bah, but why that name? I mean, after spending the last few weeks hunting for him, and finding a dozen imposters..." He sighed, again, like Welf would after figuring out his most recent project would need to wait for dinner or something. He then pointed at me, "I'll just call you Fox!"

"L'arc..." Therese sighed.

"I accept." I nodded, "Imposters huh? Why would anyone want to pretend to be the Shield Hero?"

"Beats me... Say, you a mage?" L'arc asked, seeming to notice my giant Book Shield hanging on my hip, "That's a super fancy book!"

"Enchanter. But I'm a reasonable hand with magic." The ship was really starting to give the impression of 'forward movement' now.

Then I heard the bell, and the call of, "We're underway! All Clear!"

"Leaving already?" Therese asked, "I was hoping to talk, now that I know you're an enchanter."

"It's been a long time since I've been at sea. I want to take it in while I have the time." I nodded, "Tetsu? Let's hope the other three aren't seasick."

NOTES!

(Mysterious Kitsune intensifies!)

Thank you for reading! And if you want to see any full colour art, join the discord!

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