Disclaimer
The following is a fan-based Fiction.
Rising of the Shield Hero belongs to Aneko Yusagi
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The Last Trial
After eating, everyone went to bed to their own rooms, with a few exceptions like Naofumi's party all rooming with him in a large bedroom, due to the Shield Hero's paranoia. Or Misato having Fitoria sleep in the same room due to the bond they had formed. Especially since the Gun Hero has impressed Fitoria greatly, accomplishing a task that she deemed to be hopeless.
Fitoria felt Misato move and she woke up. "Misato?" She said, leaning up to look. She found Misato drenched in sweat, he tossed and turned, the gemstone on the Legendary Gun was red. "Misato!"
Misato saw various young men or women each wielding a different colored gemstone gun being killed, they died staring at their murderer in shock.
But then Misato saw one particular, a caucasian dirty blond young man wearing a bloodied gambeson with chainmail had a sword piercing from through his back and out of his chest, he coughed out blood. In his hand was a FN Scar rifle with a red gemstone.
His name is Jason Stewart, the Gun Hero, and he was ambushed and betrayed…
He was visited by a trusted ally, King Ames Lucien, leader of the nation that summoned him, they talked of pleasantries but then the town he resided in had rung the emergency bell, Jason went out to fight the invaders, prepared to organize with the local guards and the King's escort, only to find his loyal soldiers to be dead with their throats slit and impaled by a sword by soldiers bearing the King's flag. His party members were nowhere to be found.
In spite of his confusion, when the soldiers moved to attack Jason, the Gun Hero struck first, firing his weapon. Assuming the invaders were either traitors or infiltrators. At first, the Gun Hero had the advantage, utilizing powerful attacks and magic, against the army. But the army was seemingly endless, and his party had yet to return, Jason was running out of potions or syringes to recover.
But then the King and his escort came to support, at least, that was what Jason thought, as he turned away for only a second, and got stabbed in the chest by a sword.
Jason turned his eyes to see the Ames smirking at him, wiping Jason's blood off with a handkerchief.
"Wh-" Jason coughed out blood. "W-why?" He asked in disbelief, uncertain if this was real or a nightmare.
"I knew you intended to overthrow my right to rule this nation, you didn't think I noticed how the masses cheered for you? How the people seem to look up to you as a leader instead of me? The man who decided to summon you in the first place? It was only a matter of time, time I couldn't waste before you dare raise that gun at me. Before you become so powerful that even a King couldn't hope to stop." Ames said, glaring at the Gun Hero.
Jason's eyes widened, befuddled by the King's line of logic. "B-but, I-I w-would never-" He coughed out blood, interrupting his explanation.
He can't breathe…
Ames scoffed at Jason's response. "Don't bother lying, I saw the flames of ambition in your eyes, it was just like my younger brother, when he tried to slit my throat in bed…"
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'BUT I DIDN'T WANT TO BE KING!' Jason roared in his mind, unable to voice his thoughts. 'I had NO INTENTION! I just wanted to help people! TO SAVE THE WORLD! It is what I was summoned to do! What I wanted to do!'
"As for your companions, they will soon join you…" Ames said with a smirk and Jason's blood boiled.
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A dark beam of nearly black red light shoots through the sky, the Legendary Gun transformed into a rusty beaten up harpoon gun with chains and a crank. Ames starred in fear as the beam of light disappeared and Jason raised the cursed gun, uncaring of the sword impaled in his chest as there was only one clear goal in Jason's mind.
K̷̢̃̂͝î̸͈̥̘̐̉̕ͅļ̴̩͈̽͛͐͒̃ľ̶̯̊͌̌͝ ̶̤͉̽̀͛̈́A̸̦̝̠͐͗̋͐͝m̵̡̖̞̱͇͗̀e̷̡̬̫̮̻͘s̵̺̈͌͛ ̵̦̞͂̐̆͠L̵̻͙̯̯͍̀̌ų̵̳͚͚͕̈̽̓̃͠c̶͙͎͉̝͌͑͜i̵̡̻̝̹͉̔e̸͉͇͗̀ͅn̷͎̘͖̙̈́̇̄͠͝!̵̳̒́̅̓
The Traitorous King scrambled to create distance but with no sufficient cover to hide behind, such an action was futile against the Gun Hero. A harpoon with a chain attached flew and impaled the King.
Jason pulled the crank, dragging the struggling King. Ames cried for help as he was slowly covered in an ominous black mist emitted from the harpoon impaled in his body.
'DIE DIE!' Jason roared in his mind as Ames slowly got closer and closer. But he saw a silvery glint in the corner of his eye, Jason turned to see a sword swung at him and then he only saw darkness…
Misato leaned up from his bed. "DAMN YOU!" He screamed and Fitoria hugged his arm.
"Misato! It's okay, you're safe!" Fitoria said and the doors burst open as everyone ran into the room, bearing their weapons, even Melty and the Queen came in.
They all shouted in concern, wondering where the enemy was and if Misato was alright. It took a few minutes for everyone to assess the situation and realize Misato likely had a nightmare.
"What happened?" Naofumi asked. "Did you have a nightmare?"
Misato took a deep breath. "Sort of, not a normal one, I had a vision- No, I had multiple visions..."
"What did you see?" Fitoria questioned, curious for a clue of Forrest's past.
"It wasn't Forrest…" Misato said. "I saw Gun Heroes dying…"
His statement sent chills to everyone's spines.
"In each brief vision, I felt their emotions… I felt b-betrayed and hurt…" The Current Gun Hero said and Naofumi stiffened at his words. "There was one vision that was long, I saw a Gun Hero named Jason Stewart… He was betrayed by the King of the nation that summoned him, betrayed because that bastard Ames Lucien, assumed Jason wanted to overthrow him. But that was never true, I heard Jason's thoughts… He never wanted to rule, he just wanted to save the word and help people… And Ames murdered him…"
Queen Mirellia sighed with a bitter look in her eyes, Matilda glanced away and Sadeena was stoic but her hands looked tense, clenching her trident.
"In that moment… Naofumi, I think I felt what you felt that day…" Misato said, staring directly into Naofumi's eyes.
The Shield Hero stiffened as his mind flashed back to the trial and seeing his reaction, Raphtalia held his hand, trying to comfort him. Filo and Sakura hugged Naofumi's torso. The other three Cardinal Heroes could only wince, ashamed of their presumptuous actions in that rigged trial.
Fitoria grabbed Misato's head and slowly placed his head against her lap. "It's okay now, you're safe, you won't die like Jason did, I won't allow it…" She said, assuring Misato. "Go to sleep."
Seeing Fitoria comfort Misato, the parties leave the room, the Gun Hero's Party came out last, reassuring themselves that Misato was in good hands before going back to bed.
Fitoria gently stroked Misato's head as he slowly fell asleep.
In the following morning, everyone gathered at the dining room to eat their breakfast.
"Sorry about last night." Misato apologized.
"It's okay." Rifana said, voicing everyone's sentiment.
"Misato having visions of his predecessors being betrayed has troubling implications though…" Matilda said and Sadeena nodded.
"Maybe they were spies or assassins from the Waves?" Raphtalia suggested.
"It might be, it's clear that Heroes are powerful if they reach their fullest potential, it would make sense for the World Eater to send assassins to try and kill Heroes to stop them from reaching it." Melty agreed, recalling Misato activating the Legacy Series. "This King might have been influenced by a spy…"
"Maybe…" But Misato felt a tinge of doubt. Remembering his last few words to Biscas Balmus before placing the suppression disk on the Cardinal Replica.
"People like you… Are the reasons why Heroes lose to the waves…"
While they are definitely true, looking back now, the things he said to Balmus, it felt like those words had deeper meaning than just calling out Balmus's bullshit… Could there be a subconscious meaning to those words? That it was more than just a compulsion to vent his anger?
Later on the day, Misato, Fitoria, and the rest of the Cardinal Heroes alone talked in private within a small room with two couches and a table, Fitoria ensured it with her senses and field magic.
Fitoria was allowed in this meeting to understand the plan, she is vital to Misato's back up plan and she knows Misato's knowledge. She just has to be careful with her words with the other Cardinal Heroes. They don't know that they have fictional counterparts in Misato's Earth.
Misato explained to the formerly infamous Cardinal Trio about the Queen in the anime and how much of a major obstacle she potentially is when it comes to ensuring Malty's permanent imprisonment.
"You're kidding… She might actually refuse?" Itsuki said, incredulous to the idea of the Queen refusing Malty's imprisonment after everything she had done or attempted in the past.
Ren was silent but the furrow of his eyebrows made him look like he was lightly scowling.
Motoyasu looked neutral but his white knuckled hands resting on the table suggested otherwise, even he was upset over this.
"Bitch had a decade to be stopped…" Naofumi pointed out with a deep frown. "Politics or not, if the Queen could officially announce the Second Princess to be the next heir to the throne and handle the backlash, then she could have handled Princess Bitch's lock up a lot sooner before we were summoned."
"That's if my source is correct and if for whatever inane reason, she refused to imprison Malty, we'll have to shove the truth down the Queen's throat." Misato said.
"How?" Ren asked.
"With everyone's help, especially Fitoria, we basically hold the Queen and Malty hostage. We use the slave seal on Malty to speak only the truth and make her describe what she would have done if her family's fate was in the palm of her hands… Knowing this bitch threw Naofumi under the bus, sold Rino to slavery and tried to kill her own kid sister all with a sick grin… Malty might be the type to practically dream of doing fucked up things to people who stood in her way, even her own family. I bet Malty would've sold Melty to the Pig King of Faubrey, hearing Malty say that to the Queen might work…"
"Isn't forcing the Queen to hear that a bit much?" Motoyasu questioned and everyone gave the Spear Hero an incredulous look, he quickly cleared his throat. "I mean, surely the Queen learned her lesson after this, no way she would leave Malty out of her sight that easily." Motoyasu clarified.
"The Anime adaptation had the Queen ready to hold her own life hostage… The light novel and Manga had the Queen manipulate everyone to keep the villainess alive…" Misato stated. "With how frighteningly similar they are… What other choice is there? If Malty isn't dead or locked up for life then she is potentially a walking bomb ready to blow up with more controversy and bullshit. In my source there are hints that the Queen, in spite of everything her villainous daughter did, which is a lot worse than what happened here, the Queen still didn't want to sharpen the damn guillotine blade. It's likely that in this world, Queen Mirellia, still wants to buy her sociopathic daughter more time to somehow redeem herself. Frankly she has a better chance at that by mentally crippling Malty…"
The Gun Hero let out an exasperated sigh, leaning back, facing the ceiling. "God, in the anime, the Villainous Princess's fate was just a mere slave seal that got removed after Season 2…" Misato said with a scowl. He died before Season 3 came out but he can already picture the bullshit Rueben described to him… Bullshit that would've made Misato want to strangle Malty to death if he saw season 3.
"If one of us kills Malty, the Queen will resent us, subconscious at best, conscious at worst… Forcing Malty to describe how she would have dealt with her family would be the best way for the Queen to accept how fucked up Malty is without letting her harm her family for real. Then there's also the second child of the family I heard about…" Misato mentioned, remembering the tragic tale of the Second Child's death, something Matilda confirmed, as she was there to witness the Prince's death and he explained what happened to everyone else.
"If we questioned Malty on that and if she even had a single strand of hair over why her brother is dead, then it's likely more than enough to convince the Queen. Hell, I suspected that if Malty did manage to kill Melty, the Queen would need to birth a new heir quickly…" Misato guessed.
"Why?" Motoyasu asked.
"Because the Queen does love her family, since she let Malty get away with a lot of bullshit. But if that bitch killed her little sister, she practically signed up for immediate death." Naofumi clarified, understanding Misato's point.
"I saw the eager look in her eyes, the excitement she had over the fantasy of killing Melty… She seriously never thought what would've actually happened if she killed Melty, she underestimates her mother's limits." Misato explained. If Naofumi in canon failed to protect Melty from that fire, that would've led to Malty's death too.
"Dumbass bitch is more short sighted than her old man…" Naofumi commented and Misato snorted.
"I could give Malty a painless death." Fitoria offered and turned to Misato. "Even if you used the Legacy Series and combined your power with everyone, even the entire nation, you would have never been able to stop me. If I do it, then the blame would lie solely on me. Queen Mirellia would have no reason to hate all of you for something none of you could stop."
Misato shook his head and rubbed Fitoria's head. "The Queen knows how close we seem to be, even if there are rational reasons why the Queen shouldn't hate us, grief can make people irrational, she would resent me because some part of her might make up a reason to think that I could've prevented Malty's death by talking to you or might have influenced you to kill Malty." Misato pointed out with a frown. "Some people can make up stupid reasons to hate, remember, the Queen's dumbass consort had no reason to resent new Shield Heroes that had little to nothing to do with his past and yet he ignored Naofumi's existence despite literally doing nothing…" Misato trailed off, realizing something. "Actually, can anyone confirm if a Shield Hero was present during the war at all…?" Misato wondered.
Everyone shook their heads, uncertain if that was true. Even Fitoria couldn't tell as she was never interested in conflicts outside of the Waves.
"If that's true that makes King Trash more pathetic and stupid." Naofumi added, scowling at the idea that the King hated someone that didn't exist during the War.
Fitoria sighed and this time, she wasn't disappointed in the Heroes. Hearing these problems in person and witnessing some of these events in this nation. Misato was right, people who manipulate the Cardinal Heroes to fight each other are a serious problem to their unity, the fault of their separation does not lie on the Heroes alone.
Misato turned to the other Heroes. "If getting Malty imprisoned for life doesn't work out, will you and your parties back me up?"
"You know my answer." Naofumi said.
"Not certain about Matilda or Rishia, but I imagine everyone else will agree." Itsuki said.
"Me and my party will support you." Ren promised.
"After what she did to Rino, I don't want her to hurt anyone ever again, we're with you." Motoyasu vowed.
Misato grinned and Fitoria lightly smiled, seeing the Cardinal Heroes working together warms her heart.
Later on the day, every hero and their party gathered to meet in the throne room, except for Ren's surviving teammates and Itsuki's demi-human members, only Matilda could come along. When they all entered the room, they found the Queen sitting on her throne with Melty standing right beside her.
"Now that you are all here, it is time that we discuss Princess Malty and King Aultcray's ultimate fate before the trial officially begins two days from now." The Queen announced.
"Ultimate fate…" Naofumi muttered and his eyes narrowed, suspicious of the Queen's intentions.
"Okay, what's your plan here?" Misato asked, the Queen stood up from her throne, taking the small steps down to the same floor as everyone else and kneeled, much to Naofumi's surprise.
"My goals for Malty and my husband Aultrcray align with your goals, Misato." Mirellia said. No doubt she is aware of what Misato wanted when he talked to Melty before.
"Oh really?" Misato asked, skeptical of the claim.
"Yes." The Queen said with a nod.
"So you don't plan on giving your daughter a little time out, ground her for a few months? Give her a few slaps on the ass and let her go free to cause harm again? Give Malty a ridiculously long leash that she can rip off?" Misato said sarcastically with a mocking tone in his voice. Melty's eyes widened and her jaw dropped at what he said.
"Which would be 'sufficient' for her right?" Misato asked rhetorically. "For Malty, to redeem herself, to see the error of her ways… The same girl who sold Rino to slavery with a sadistic grin?" Misato pointed out.
"Misato! That is not fair!" Melty yelled and Misato frowned, staring at the young princess.
"No Melty, Malty had a decade to be stopped and look at what she did and attempted… Like trying to kill you…" The Gun Hero said, pointing his finger at her and Melty frowned at his point. "I may not know what punishments Malty may have received in the past but it clearly did jack shit." He spat out with venom, after dealing with so many intense fights, nearly dying so many times, he ran out of patience, so now he is openly frustrated by the Queen's actions in canon for keeping Malty alive and free to do harm. He leaned towards the Queen, his golden eyes piercing into her's, who stared back, not even flinching from his glare.
Motoyasu noticed Rino's knuckles turning white on her staff.
If the Queen didn't bullshit Malty's life away from death, so many lives would have been saved in canon! This is something Misato MUST NOT allow!
Today is one of the most important moments to Misato's plan, to place Malty in jail or kill her, because to continue on his journey to ending the Waves once and for all, Malty must be removed permanently for the safety of all, even if it means killing her.
Whether the Queen of Melromarc likes it or not…
"So stand up, put the fan away and tell me exactly how, do our goals align here?" Misato demanded, too irritated to kick around the bush.
The Queen calmly stood up, her expression no longer covered by the fan she often used to hide her mouth, not faltering as she faced the Gun Hero. "I am fully supportive of having Malty locked up in prison for life. I have an isolated prison for her."
…
"... R-really?" Misato accidentally stuttered, surprised by the Queen's explanation, expecting an intense argument from his goading earlier, only for all of his tension to disappear, like a popped balloon. The other heroes had the same feeling.
"Yes."
"Wait, since when was this prison made and for who?" Naofumi asked. A prison takes a long time to plan and build, why is there one now?
"A few years ago…" The Queen paused. "... It was made for Malty…" Melty gasped, staring at her mother.
"You made this before we were even summoned…" Misato stated, still somewhat in shock.
"Yes." Mirellia replied, her stoic cold expression not faltering even once.
"… Some part of you knew Malty's end was bound to happen…" Misato realized his eyes widening and his mouth agape at the revelation. Does that mean, the Queen in canon always wanted to do this? If that's true…
"We had just set up the perfect stage for you didn't we?" Misato said, connecting the dots.
The Queen smiled. "Close but not quite, there are still a few details I wish to smooth out and would require all your help, I will explain a little later in this meeting.
"I want to know the details of this prison, how it will hold her and I want to see every inch of it." Naofumi demanded, while Misato was still stunned, processing this reveal.
In hindsight it makes sense… In canon, the Queen was dealt with a bad hand when it came to manipulating the fate of Malty. Motoyasu was still under Malty's thumb… The other two were likely 'incompetent' in the Queen's eyes, untrustworthy to go along with whatever scheme she cooked up based on how they acted, they were more liable to slip out Malty's true fate in public.
Even Naofumi would be difficult and unpredictable with his hatred towards Malty, but knowing his personality, Misato suspected Naofumi would've been on board with this if it meant ensuring Malty's end. Maybe even Itsuki and Ren, since it wouldn't affect their delusions, but Motoyasu… He would've never agreed, he would cause a ruckus with his deluded stupidity, so maybe that's why things seem so different here. Motoyasu is no longer the man he was, in fact everyone here has changed one way or another, they have all grown up. They are all a hundred times better than their fictional counterparts.
"In fact I suggest Malty should have her level reset to ensure she would not have the strength to escape and take down any guards. There is a variant of a slave seal that requires the slave to meet their owner within a certain amount of time. Failure to meet would be pain or even death… The latter is something I plan to place on her." The Queen suggested.
"Are you certain about that option? You would be willing to do that?" Naofumi questioned, scrutinizing Mirellia's poker face.
"Yes. Although, I admit I am reluctant to do such a thing but after everything she has caused, foolishly scheming with the False Pope in hopes to take over… Making Naofumi an outcast by framing him with no regards to the consequences of her actions with the rest of the world… Scaring off or selling adventurers like Miss Rino… Her attempt to kill Melty…" Mirellia growled, snapping her fan into two, startling almost everyone and she looked directly into Misato's eyes.
"Even without your warnings, it's clear that as a Ruler and as a Mother, Malty must be locked up forever. Far out of reach from anyone in the world, to protect everyone and herself. I, Queen Mirellia Q Melromarc, declare that Malty S Melromarc's prison will one day be her tomb…" The Queen announced.
Everyone didn't need incredible senses to know that the Queen fully intended to do this with no hidden intentions to alter the plan. They all stared at the Queen, stunned by her declaration, until Misato clapped his hands.
"Alright, that's… Perfect." Misato said. "I'm sorry for giving you crap I let my frustration take over… You had a lot on your hands and I blinded myself to forget that…"
Misato underestimated the Queen's pragmatism, a permanent prison cell is the perfect way to stop Malty without killing her. He got so annoyed and blinded by the Queen's irrational decisions from canon that he forgot how cunning she is when it comes to accomplishing her goals. Permanent imprisonment can easily satisfy both aspects of her life as a Mother and as a Queen when it comes to dealing with Malty.
Taxes for Malty's imprisonment? What taxes? Mirellia is the fucking Queen, just lock Malty in a cell and melt the damn key. There is very little to no extra cost needed to maintain Malty's permanent imprisonment.
"It is alright, because you are right… In hindsight, Malty's punishments were not too different from what you said, albeit simplified, and considering what had happened, it's clear that those punishments had little to no effect. A part of me knew Malty wouldn't change no matter what I did, and the actions I had taken only delayed her, it did not solve the problem that I once refused to recognize." The Queen turned to face everyone else and bowed. "Thanks to everyone's efforts, I can make things right by doing what I should have done a long time ago…"
"However, I am in need of your help for this…" The Queen explained about Malty being the Pig King's 'fiance.' A fate worse than death and that the only thing that was preventing the wedding was Malty's duty in 'helping' the Cardinal Heroes. "I would rather have you tear apart Malty with your guns from bottom to top. As the pain would likely pale in comparison to the Pig King's disgusting fetishes…"
"She's not lying… She wholeheartedly believed it would be a better fate for Malty." Fitoria stated, sensing her emotions.
"Holy shit…" Misato muttered, hearing Fitoria confirm it made him lose his composure at the cold statement.
"So what's the problem?" Naofumi asked, uncaring of Malty's 'marriage' and Raphtalia frowned at his question.
"That's if Malty was firmly in the Pig King's clutches. As I recall we have a major enemy capable of brainwashing and weapon stealing within Faubrey too…" Mirellia trailed off.
"Takt…" Misato spat ou.
"And my spies told me of her relationship with Takt in the past when she attended Faubrey's school… They were quite 'intimate'…" The Queen sighed.
"So if you were to officially declare that Malty will be imprisoned for life… The Pig King could start some shit and or Takt invade to rescue Malty. Or if we give Malty to the Pig King, Takt would likely save Malty from the Pig King, then she tells Takt to kill us or worse…" Misato concluded, staring at the females in the room, remembering how the Claw Hero's female companion got brainwashed.
"So you're saying that bitch can't rot in jail forever?!" Rino screeched. "YOU PROMISED!" Motoyasu grasped her shoulder, afraid that his companion might leap and try to claw the Queen's eyes out.
"What do we do then?" Itsuki asked. "Both options have the terrible same results."
"We make a better option. Remember, those scenarios happen if Her Majesty officially declared Malty's fate…" Misato pointed out, emphasizing on the word 'officially'.
"Oh…" Naofumi realized.
A few seconds later, Misato could picture the light bulbs above everyone's heads turning on.
The plan was for the trial of the King and Malty to be broadcasted live across the nation, just like the Anime. It's much more transparent than simply doing the trial in the castle and announcing it like Naofumi's trial. The people can make their own judgment with more certainty than just messengers and rumors, it further proves the Queen's trustworthiness compared to the Pope and King.
However the key difference here was the Heroes and the parties are aware of what was going on, they just have to stay quiet when the Queen judges her daughter and husband. Misato and his party had to stay hidden in a different room watching the trial with a crystal ball, as the Gun Hero's identity must be kept a secret as much as possible, being seen or mentioned in a public recording would make it complicated.
As for the trial just like in almost every form of media, Malty was finally exposed, the slave seal shocked her for every lie she attempted to breathe. In this moment, her deep rooted habits have finally been ripped out, something Miasto found somewhat satisfying but not quite, he wished he could personally taunt Malty on how her greatest 'talent' is now useless. That when it comes down to facing major conflicts, she has no skill or talent to rely on.
But then again, Misato already said what he needed to say, he released most if not all of his rage on Malty, he got to break her teeth and roast her, both of which, as far as he is aware of, Malty never got for some reason in canon. He got to physically experience the fantasy of beating up Malty and break down to her on why she sucked at what she did, instead of hoping the main character would do it, which is something Naofumi didn't do at all.
Not that Naofumi's payback to Malty in canon was bad but to Misato it felt a little bit lacking when it came to roasting her, and then considering how Malty in canon would later become free again, her 'punishment' forever soured Episode 21 for Misato.
As for the King, many witnesses claimed that they saw Crown Princess Melty wielding the Star Staff, Queen Mirellia saw little reason to hide such a fact to the world and placed a slave seal on her husband. Despite how idiotic he can be, the King knew not to bother lying, for whatever dignity he had left, meanwhile, Malty by pure instinct, kept trying to lie, her slave seal's light was the brightest thing in the room for what felt like an hour as the Queen interrogated her.
Finally, Queen Mirellia tapped her fan on the throne armrest. "Hopefully you understand now. Despite being royalty, they used the dirtiest of tricks, tried to eliminate those who opposed them, instead of doing what was best for the nation, and sought to obtain power for purely selfish reasons."
"N-No… I…- GGUUAGGHHHH!" Malty screamed again.
The Gun Hero rolled his eyes at Malty's nth attempt to lie. "Dumbass…" He muttered.
"Even the dumbest animals can learn to stop doing the same thing when it hurts them enough." Fitoria commented.
"Misato, did you punch her too hard?" Keel asked, recalling the story of how Misato took down Malty.
"Maybe. But then again, you can't really break what's already broken…" Misato joked and everyone grinned, some even snickered.
"I would pay a hundred gold coins to do that…" Rifana said, already daydreaming.
"Ace would give up all five meal times to kick her face full force…" Ace said in third person, also daydreaming. But the King's voice in the projection got their attention.
"Perhaps my actions were unbecoming of royalty. But I did it all, believing it was for the sake of my beloved country and family! That is why I tried to get rid of the Shield and those who are on his side!" The King exclaimed, just like the Anime. "The Shield is the devil! It will surely bring about the calamity my family once fell prey to once again!"
Raphtalia noticed Naofumi's shoulders and fist trembling. "Naofumi?" She murmured in worry, and gasped at the intense look on the Shield Hero's face. She never saw him look like that before, it's not even comparable to his reaction towards the Queen's answer to his question earlier.
"I will never let it happen! NEVER!" King Aultcray, the former Staff Hero declared.
Queen Mirellia sighed, exhausted by her husband's circular reasoning and opened her mouth-
"Are you serious?" Naofumi blurted out, incredulous to the King's statement, walking towards him. Everyone in the throne room was silent, watching the Shield Hero approach the disgraceful King.
"What's he doing? This isn't part of the plan!" Keel said, worried about the plan being messed up.
"He's too angry to care about the plan, what he says or does in the public recording might complicate matters…" Sadeena realized.
"Should we stop him?" Fitoria asked and Misato had a thoughtful look for a little bit.
"No and he never had the chance to personally say what he wanted to say ever since that rigged trial, not here or in the timeline that no longer exists." Misato said. "In my opinion. I think Naofumi deserves to say what he wants to say from his heart to the King. It's no good to bottle it up, especially with what the King just said…" He sighed and shook his head. "I have no words to effectively describe how bad that argument was and his unjustified hatred for Naofumi, especially after Malty was just exposed… If I wasn't an unknown Hero, I would've been doing the same thing."
"Me too…" Rifana commented.
"After everything that has happened… You have the audacity to still claim I'm some monster? A demon? What fucking proof do you have on that? The Church of the Three Heroes?" Naofumi scoffed.
"The Pope may be blasphemous but the church's writings about you are correct!-"
"What the fuck?!" Motoyasu blurted out in a partial whisper. Voicing the sentiment shared by the rest of the Cardinal Heroes. The King is digging his own grave even deeper with his 'evidence'!
Melty clenched her dress, biting the bottom of her lip, the Queen had her fan up but if someone were to directly look into her eyes, she would be an open book. Thankfully the recordings were focused on Naofumi and the King.
-You and your nation, Stilvelt are a major threat-"
"FORGET STILVELT!" Naofumi roared, interrupting the King's idiotic rant. "That bitch finally admitted that I NEVER raped her!" He yelled pointing at Malty, who was still on the ground. "Which means I was NEVER the bastard you thought I was! I was an INNOCENT man you unfairly condemned!" He said, pointing at Trash.
"Everything that has happened afterwards, everything I did, I was NEVER in the wrong!" Naofumi yelled with righteous rage. "My party and I protected the people of Riyute from the waves! Motoyasu, the Spear Hero, and I saved the people in Lerno Village and when the Pope had an army burn it down, we tried to save as many as we could! I allied with the Queen, YOU'RE WIFE, I protected her and the army! And YOU KNOW what the Pope tried to do in the end! After everything I did to save your nation! You still think I'm evil?!" He questioned, slamming his fist on the wooden stand in front of the King. His rage stunned Aultcray, unable to respond to such intense hatred.
Naofumi took a few deep breaths, recovering from his rant until he had an epiphany. "No… You're just grasping at straws to say that you're right in some way… That you are somehow correct on something in spite of your incredibly stupid faults like leaving your wife and daughter to deal with the backlash of your dumbass actions! You are still too proud to admit that you were WRONG about me!"
The King scowled, indignant at the claim. "How dare you Shield!-"
"SHUT UP!" Naofumi roared, punching Aultcray's jaw, there was no damage but the shock from his punch silenced the King. "My name is NAOFUMI!" He yelled, grabbing the King's robes. "I am a man who had NOTHING to do with what happened in your past! I had nothing to do with your nation's war with Stilvelt! In fact there wasn't even a Shield Hero during that war! No Shield Hero had anything to do with your family's death! Your hatred of me is stupid!"
Before the meeting ended, curious about the King's root of hatred. Naofumi asked the Queen if there was a Shield Hero during the war she and the King participated in.
The Queen paused for a few seconds, pursing her lips. "No… There was no Shield Hero during the recent war…"
Everyone froze at the statement, some shuffled, uncomfortable from the atmosphere slowly suffocating them as they stared at Naofumi, anxious of his reaction. Like they were sneaking into a building only to let out a loud sound that echoed for miles, waiting for the inevitable alarms to ring. Or waiting for the slumbering dragon to awaken and roar.
"So this is the man you married…" Naofumi said, his voice unexpectedly hollow, and even though he didn't yell, something about his voice sent chills to almost everyone's spines. "Someone who hates a guy who never existed in his life… A man who just wanted an excuse… An excuse to enact revenge over someone whose crime was having a shield attached to his arm and nothing else…" Naofumi then glared at the Queen, it reminded Misato of Naofumi's look in the Anime when the King threatened to hurt Raphtalia and Filo, a glare that could incinerate a glacier. "If he and that bitch do something again because you turned a blind eye again… Like your dumbass husband… I will kill them, not even you and your entire nation will stop me…" Naofumi threatened.
In spite of his intense rage and threat, The Queen maintained her composure and professionalism. "I understand."
"Just because I am the Shield Hero doesn't mean I'm Pro-Demi human! Hell there were certainly some I disliked! Yes my party may be composed of demi-humans but after being framed who the hell was I supposed to trust? You judged me based on the words of LIARS!" Naofumi yelled, pointing at Malty for emphasis.
"And after the truth was revealed you still hate me? How pathetic can you be?! No wonder why the Staff left you! YOU ARE TRASH!" Naofumi finished with a shove and Aultcray slammed on the ground head first hard, like a sledgehammer that stood up before falling over.
"Naofumi please calm down!" Raphtalia pleaded, hugging the Shield Hero from behind. Ren, Motoyasu and Itsuki walked over to them, placing themselves in between the Foolish King and the Righteously Angry Shield Hero.
"Take it easy, you got your words in and a good shove, that's good enough." Motoyasu said, his voice serious and almost cold. A stark contrast to his Anime counterpart.
"Yeah, no need to waste your energy over him, it's not worth it anymore." Itsuki added.
Naofumi took a few deep breaths, staring at the King lying on the ground, before slouching, then he and Raphtalia walked back to where they stood before. The Shield Hero's rage had been quenched.
This was off script, Naofumi was never meant to go on a rant. In fact, normally he wouldn't even bother arguing with unreasonable people, seeing it as a waste of breath and would even walk away when it seems hopeless. But perhaps due to witnessing Misato tell assholes off multiple times, and combined with his newfound righteous rage over the King's pointless hate, for once, Naofumi felt the urge to follow Misato's example in spite of it potentially ruining the plan.
'No wonder why Misato does this, it's cathartic… It felt great… Releasing all of my hatred on Trash like that, I held back my rage for so long…' Naofumi realized, secretly happy to see the King groaning as the old man slowly stood up from his harsh fall. Naofumi held back his rage most of the time because he knew how much trouble he could be in if he didn't hold back. But this time, he finally did and it felt wonderful.
Ren turned to the center crystal ball recording them, drawing the recorder's attention. "Naofumi has a point, we Cardinal Heroes are judged too quickly based on the actions of our predecessors when in reality we are new people with potentially powerful weapons. Like the fact that we were never human supremacists, just because my predecessor might have been one, doesn't mean I am." He said and the other two Cardinal Heroes nodded right next to him. While they had very little irritating moments compared to the Shield Hero, they too were fed up being blamed or judged for their predecessor's actions like Naofumi was.
Despite the escalation the Queen remained seemingly calm. "They are right. This may be considered heresy but after recent events it's clear that there is more to the heroes than what our books may suggest. Something Biscas Balmus likely tried to hide by framing the Shield Hero, this was later more evident in his attempt to remove all Cardinal Heroes along those who supported them.
At first, Ren's statement made a few people in the throne room's audience whisper among each other, but now the Queen's statement led to the entire audience in the throne room to whisper. The Heroes and their parties suspected it was the same in all of Melromarc, maybe even the world.
"If there are no further interruptions…" The Queen said and paused in silence waiting for anyone to speak up. "I hereby hand down my verdict." And she officially stripped Malty and Aultcray of their Royal Status.
Malty argued about the repercussions of her removal but…
"There shall be no loss from this. Let me speak clearly… You are scum, after everything you have done, no one can ever look to you as a leader ever again, Malty…" Queen Mirellia declared with a smirk, pointedly not referring to Malty with her former title.
"However, if you obtained forgiveness from Naofumi Iwatani, the Shield Hero, the one who had suffered from your horrendous actions the most, I may reconsider…" Mirellia said, hiding her face behind her fan, no doubt she is hiding her amusement.
Malty begged, like the Manga, she went on a speech of how violence and revenge breeds only more, a painful cycle of hate. How it would be better for the Great Shield Hero to clear himself from resentment.
"Please… Lord N-Naofumi…?" Malty pleaded.
A thousand thoughts went through Naofumi's mind, the things he wanted to say… What he wanted to do… There were times where he was obsessed over those thoughts of getting revenge. A hundred fantasies of hurting her… But after seeing her taken down by Misato, ridiculed and humiliated by the Gun Hero, hearing the words she deserved to hear so badly, and now seeing her like this… Seeing her beg… Making up lies and bullshit just to get away with karma again…
"You don't believe that… You're just saying that because you just want to be a Princess again." Naofumi deadpanned with a hollow voice .
"E-eh?!"
"Well Malty, is that true?" The Queen questioned.
"N-no-AAAAGGHHHH!" Malty screamed again, Naofumi apathetically looked at Malty, uncaring of her pain but not filled with joy either. Right now he just feels…
Tired and bitter, he used up his rage on the King… He's done with this trial, but he still has to follow the plan…
"I command you to speak truthfully for now on Malty." The Queen commanded and turned to Naofumi. "What is it that you desire?"
"I demand for her death, cut off her head so the rest of the world can be rid of her bullshit." Naofumi requested with a hint of disdain and disgust towards the whimpering Former Princess.
"Very well." The Queen nodded calmly.
"WHAT! She is our child!" Aultcray argued. "That is too far!"
"Well your 'child' sold me to slavery!" Rino screamed.
"You-"
"SILENCE!" The Queen commanded and the slave seal on the Former Staff Hero's chest activated, electrocuting him.
"As for you Aultcray, as the former Staff Hero, it is your duty to guide the New Staff Hero, Melty Q Melromarc, the Crown Princess, into utilizing its powers to its fullest potential." The Queen announced and the Former King paused for a brief moment before nodding firmly. Finding it acceptable to train Melty on utilizing the power of the Staff.
"Change his name to Trash to and make it a Royal decree for everyone to refer to him by that name. He will live the rest of his life under that name" Naofumi requested and Aultcray, now named as Trash, glared at him.
"Very well, Aultcray will henceforth be known as 'Trash'." The Queen declared. "Malty's execution will be carried out immediately. Send this sinner to her death in front of all our people!"
Meanwhile back in the Gun Party's room…
"How similar was this from your vision Misato?" Sadeena asked.
"Her Majesty's words almost matched what I saw word by word…" Misato said. "Main difference is, Malty is getting the 'execution'..."
Malty screamed and struggled against the soldiers holding her chains, but her level was reseted after the Pope was defeated, she is too weak to break free. The King verbally argued in spite of his slave seal, so the Queen simply froze him in ice, presumably not enough to kill him but more than enough to shut him up.
The crowd cheered for Malty's death, but Heroes and their parties didn't feel the same, except for Rino, who was enjoying Malty's squirming.
Like the Anime, Malty screamed the Shield Hero's name, begging for him to save her.
'Like Misato said, Malty would beg again… I guess that's my cue but…' Naofumi recalled how his life fell apart in this world, the despair, the hopelessness, and Malty… Naofumi gritted his teeth and clenched his fist, his rage reignited for one last move…
Naofumi smirked, he pulled his eye and stuck his tongue out, identical to the face Malty made during his trial.
Malty saw his face and her jaw dropped.
The Shield Hero stifled a chuckle from her reaction and took a deep breath. "WAIT!" He yelled, his voice overpowering the blood thirsty crowd.
"The death penalty is too good for this scumbag…" Naofumi announced, walking towards the guillotine. "Death would release this bitch from fully taking responsibility for her actions in this Nation."
"The Slave crest didn't react this time. She's so thick-skinned, she can beg a guy she tried to kill for her life and actually mean it for once!" Naofumi pointed out with his arms open and smirked. "With skin that thick, the guillotine might not cut through her!" The crowd laughed.
Watching the live recording of Naofumi roasting Malty, Misato shrugged. "It's okay…" When Misato was younger watching the show, he thought it was great but now that he is older and after personally roasting Malty himself, Naofumi's roasts felt a bit lacking, except for his rant against the King, to Misato, that was brilliant.
"Imagine if Misato was in Naofumi's place instead…" Rifana thought with amusement, recalling his angry speech over Malty before knocking her out.
"So I have a proposal!" Naofumi snapped and raised his finger towards the sky. "The Former First Princess will forever be named 'Bitch'!"
"B-Bitch?!" Malty stuttered, her face red.
"Like her garbage of a Father and a King. She will live the rest of her life under that name! She will be placed under a watchful eye with a Cardinal Hero, fighting the Waves in the front lines, the most dangerous place to be in battle, fighting Wave Bosses! Better for a Bitch to risk her life to save the world instead of a good person!" Naofumi announced and the crowd roared in approval. "But if you don't like that Bitch, you're free to die right now!" Naofumi taunted.
"Malty also goes by 'Myne' as an adventurer. What about that?" The Queen asked.
"Then Bitch's adventurer name can be 'Slut' Or 'Whore'." Naofumi proposed, snapping his fingers. "It's your choice."
Queen Mirellia smiled. "The Shield Hero has granted his most horrendous and cruel oppressor the greatest mercy. Henceforth, Malty Q Melromarc will be referred to as 'Bitch,' with 'Whore' as her adventuring name." She declared as the locks were removed from the humiliated Princess.
"And the Three Heroes Church will be abolished! Melromarc will now adopt the Church of the Four Heroes as its state religion!"
The crowd roared even louder at the announcement, after Biscas Balmus's actions, the reputation of the Three Heroes Church fell rock bottom, anyone seen with symbols of that Church were harassed, some people even unofficially spreaded the Four Heroes religion before the Trial. Hearing the Queen officially declare it increased their morale.
This was part of the plan too, they had to delicately balance over who takes over the situation without being seen as tyrants. The Queen had her controlling moments in the trial, deciding her husband's fate and officially announcing their new religion. Naofumi had his rageful rant on the King, and he had the last say on Malty's fate, although the former was unexpected.
The Shield Hero and the Queen of Melromarc had to look like equals to the eyes of the public, if the relationship seemed unbalanced, propagandists could make up stories of one figure controlling the other, when in reality, it is far from that, but that's how it is with politics.
"Too bad it can't be Five…" Melty whispered with a small frown and her mother placed a hand on her shoulder.
"The Gun Hero doesn't seem to be the type to care much for the crowd's approval of him, only the approval of his friends." Mirellia said and Melty smiled.
"You're right."
"Now, it is time to make the exchange…" Mirellia said, bringing back her stoic mask, The Ice Cold Queen.
The Soldiers dragged Malty through the Castle Halls.
"Where are you taking me?! LET ME GO. I am the future Queen of this country, I demand you to release me!"
"Shut up Bitch, you are no Princess anymore." A soldier replied.
"You!-Huh?" Malty noticed the door at the end of the hall opening, recognizing the figure opening the door. It was Marina, one of her newest friends before Motoyasu left them. Perhaps with the archer, she can become free!
"Marina, please…" Malty stopped, noticing Marina's clothes. "What?" They look exactly the same to what she is wearing right now, Marina even had the same exact tunic she had to wear after Misato broke her chestplate. And since when were Marina's eyes green?
One of those pesky Shadows appeared by Marina's side holding chains, and the archer smirked at Malty, raising her hands up to the Shadow.
"W-What's going on?" Malty questioned, confused, watching the Shadow lock the cuffs over Marina's wrist.
"I don't know…" Marina said with a false frown of confusion before lightly coughing, clearing her voice, making odd but familiar sounds. "I'm just a dumb bitch…" She said with a smirk, her voice now similar to Malty, her aquamarine hair changed to a certain shade of crimson.
"W-WHAT?!" Malty shrieked, as the Shadow tied Marina's now red hair into a style just like Malty's,
Marina looked almost exactly like her!
Malty stood there, completely stunned as the soldiers that held her chains took Marina's, she watched them walk away with a subtle sense of joy in their steps. Before she realized she could run, the Shadow placed some cloth over her mouth and nose, she instinctively breathed and fell asleep.
Earlier in the meeting…
"We will switch Malty with one of my Shadows." Queen Mirellia said. "They will take Malty's place and will help one of you on your journey, while the real Malty is locked up in prison."
"I guess I'll take her then, my party could use more people." Motoyasu said and Rino nodded.
Mirellia lifted her fan and glanced away. "I am uncertain if you would like this particular Shadow…"
"Why?"
The Queen sighed and nodded towards a pillar. A Shadow walked out from behind the pillar and removed their mask, revealing a familiar face and dark brown hair that magically transitioned to aquamarine.
""Marina?!"" Both Motoyasu and Rino yelled, recognizing the Shadow.
"Yes, my name was merely a false name for me to take… I was a Shadow that was ordered by Her Majesty to gain some of Malty's trust in order to gather evidence for the Spear Hero to witness her true personality." Marina explained and bowed.
"I see…" Misato smiled. "Who could ask for anyone better to infiltrate Malty's trusted circle than a Shadow that was trained to act and look exactly like her?"
"She's Malty's body double…" Ren realized out loud.
'So that means the Royal Family has at least one Shadow that looks exactly like them, maybe even Melty…' Naofumi realized.
"S-So the things you s-said to me…" Rino muttered, Marina kneeled in front of her and Motoyasu.
"I am sorry for what I had said to both of you…" She said, "But in order to gain Malty's trust, I had to follow along." The Shadow explained
"..." Rino and Motoyasu frowned.
"We'll talk about who Marina will join sometime later after we make the switch." Misato interrupted, wanting to give Rino and Motoyasu time to adjust from this revelation.
The plan was albeit rough but successful, there was no script, most of it was improv to make their speech a bit more natural, although Naofumi's moments were definitely not acting, along with Ren telling everyone how they are judged too soon for their predecessor's actions. Thankfully, the Queen is very sharp to adapt to those unexpected moments.
Malty's prison is underground in the Royal Castle, deeper than any secret tunnel or dungeon, far too deep for any sunlight to reach. Underneath one of the guest living rooms, there is only a single tunnel that leads to her prison cell with multiple locked doors of varying levels of density, complexity and magic.
Fitoria personally inspected and vouched that there is no area nearby for anyone to stumble upon Malty, not even a nearby explosion in the nearest room could reveal her location. There was the ventilation but it was too small for anyone to fit, only a mouse could get through it and that's if they could find it. Dawn and Dusk claimed that there is only one ventilation towards Malty's cell and it is in the most confusing part of the ventilation system.
As for the toilet's tubes that lead to the sewers, it was too far and deep out of reach for anyone who dared to sneak into the Royal Castle's disgusting sewers. The tube is the size of a hand that leads to a large tunnel that goes straight down and it was one of many, many holes in that large tunnel. Thanks to the clever craftsmen and construction workers who designed the Royal Castle sewer system to mislead and confuse people.
"Keep your friends close and your enemies closer…" Misato quoted. Better for Malty to be within a certain distance to quickly ensure Malty's security instead of waiting anxiously to know if Malty was secured several weeks ago from an isolated mountain or something.
The slave seal had multiple commands Malty cannot disobey without being electrocuted. She knew the obvious ones like, she cannot escape or leave without permission, and can no longer lie. But little did she know, there are several secret commands, commands she was unaware of because she was knocked unconscious by a sleep potion soaked in cloth, so she had no idea what she cannot do, at least, until she disobeys them. They are kept a secret to prevent Malty from getting complacent and confident in finding a way to escape.
One command was that Malty could not brainwash or trick herself to bypass the slave seal commands. She cannot trick her own mind to believing her own lies.
Another secret command was that Malty couldn't intentionally provoke someone to attack her. To avoid Malty claiming 'self defense' if she felt in the mood to commit murder to a guard. If she was even capable of that since she is now level 1…
The third secret command was that Malty can't even attempt or think of escaping, she can't even attempt to find a way out. That one is going to shock her a lot…
The fourth was that Malty was no longer allowed to cast magic, if she so much as attempted to even breath the starting chant or channel her magical energy, she was getting electrocuted immediately.
There are several more secret commands, they are all a little redundant to each other but it was extra insurance for Misato and Naofumi to see that Malty's permanent lock up is very secure.
Malty had more than one slave seal, she was unconscious when she got branded, so she has no knowledge of how many and what they each do, they are high grade quality, so they are all hidden. Until Malty disobeyed one of the hidden seal's many secret commands.
There was one major seal Malty is very much aware of and it was a seal that was used on many Church Shadows. If Malty doesn't stay within her designated area for more than a minute, she will die painfully. If Malty somehow escapes her cell, the special seal will kill her after one minute has passed. Only when commanded by the Queen herself, is Malty allowed to get out of the cell without dying. Which would rarely ever happen…
With Malty secured, Misato decided to take one last visit. To meet the woman who was exactly like the character who seemed to be fated to cause so much harm by the author's decision, unfortunately for the Villainess, there is no author here to write Malty slipping away from justice again…
Just a young man who knew Malty more than she knew herself.
After going through the last door, the toughest and thickest solid steel door with multiple magic seals, Misato walked over to Malty's cell, hearing the prisoner being electrocuted, likely trying to think or find a way to escape.
Malty whimpered and screamed. "WHY?!" She grasped where her heart was, Misato saw the light of a seal underneath her hand, lighting through the tunic, Malty likely confused as to why it was activating.
"Hello there." Misato greeted, imitating a famous character's greeting.
The slave seal stopped and Malty paused, she moved her head to see Misato in his Siderite threaded gear.
"You…"
"Yep." Misato replied with an audible pop in his voice.
"What are you here for? To gloat? To mock my achievements being accomplished by luck and not my brilliant mind?!" Malty scoffed and grabbed the steel bars "You have no idea what I'm capable of! When-AAAGGHHH!" The slave seal over her heart activated, interrupting her totally threatening speech. Likely because she was going to fantasize escaping and killing Misato, then the seal activated.
Malty leaned against the cell and fell on her knees from the pain.
"No Bitch, I'm here… To threaten you…" Misato's voice dropped low and deep.
"Huh?"
Misato suddenly grabbed Malty's right arm and did a wrist lock. "GAH!" Malty winced, feeling incredible painful tension in her dominant forearm, she never felt this pain before, the way her hand is locked and twisted feels wrong. Misato pulled, pressing Malty's face in between the bars.
"This is your last chance to live the rest of your life… You escape, you die…" Misato raised a magnum and fired a blank shot right next to Malty's head.
Bang!
"HYAAH!" Malty yelped from the sound nearly deafening her ears and Misato waited for her ears to recover.
"Simple as that… Even if you get recaptured, I will kill you anyway…" He raised the Gun to the ceiling and fired for emphasis.
Bang!
Malty flinched and covered one of her ears from the loud second blank shot.
"Even if you got away and survived, there would be nowhere to run or hide… Your reputation is ruined, not even a fellow scheming scumbag would ever bother helping a worthless idiot like you… Even if by the power of your insane dumbass luck, you managed to turn the entire world against me." Misato's eyes looked directly at Malty's, like he was staring into her soul.
"It won't matter…
I…
WILL.
KILL.
YOU."
Misato promised, pressing the gun hard into Malty's forehead, staring deeply into her eyes for what felt like an hour. Seeing the intense rage in his eyes, Malty accidentally pees.
Seeing her current pathetic state, Misato lets go of Malty's arm and walks away, knocking on the door. The guard on the other side opened it, but before Misato exited, he glanced back with one last glare, his eyes glowed and he aimed his gun at Malty, who froze, seeing the gun aimed directly at her. "Remember, these steel bars are the only thing that is keeping you safe… From me…" He growled and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
"AHHH!" Malty screamed, falling over, frantically patting her body, checking for any wound. Finding no damage, she sighed in relief.
The steel door suddenly closed with a loud sound, echoing in Malty's cold and lonely prison cell.
Misato walked out of the secret tunnel, entering the guest living room, and his team was there, waiting for him, along with Queen Mirellia and Melty.
"Got your last good words in?" Sadeena asked but she already knew the answer and Misato nodded.
"Yep…" Misato trailed off, looking at the Carriage Hero. "Fitoria, how are the magic fields?"
"Secured, only certain individuals can pass through it with my permission, anyone without it would find themselves walking out the way they came in. If Bitch did get through the steel magic enchanted bars and doors, she would never be able to escape the tunnel. It's likely only the Ruler of the Waves or her forces can break it…"
"I doubt she and her forces would want anything to do with Malty. No matter how much their goals may align or how they could be very useful to each other, there is little to gain with rescuing such a selfish idiot." Misato said. "She has no other tricks anymore."
"Valid point, rescuing such a foolish girl wouldn't be beneficial, she would likely be a chore to deal with." Fitoria agreed.
Misato looked at the tunnel that led to Malty's prison as the Shadows and guards closed it and disguised it. He looked for any imperfection or flaw but was unable to find any tells that suggested that the wooden wall covering the stone layer wasn't ordinary. "W-we're good right? Secured?" He asked.
"Yes…?" Melty confirmed, unable to find any issues with the hidden tunnel. Hearing the confirmation, Misato turned to Queen Mirellia.
"And you Queen Mirellia, do you promise that Malty will never leave those tunnels? That you won't suddenly decide to shorten her sentence and bring her out? That I don't have to read inbetween the lines or decipher and break down any misleading words of your promise? That you REALLY intend to let Malty STAY in jail for life?"
The Queen paused, evaluating Misato, where before, he was always on guard with her, always wary whenever they were in the same room, doing his best to not give away his true emotions. But now… Misato looked like he was in disbelief, like he was having trouble figuring out if he was in a dream or not.
"I promise Misato… I said it before and I will say it again, I finally accept that Malty, uh sorry-"
"I don't fucking care, keep talking!" Misato blurted out, anxious to know, uncaring of Malty's new name.
Mirellia cleared her throat and continued. "I finally accept that Malty is too dangerous to be free even if I were to keep a hundred slave seals on her. So for the safety of everyone and for herself, Malty will never leave that tunnel…"
"G-Good…" Misato simply said with a nod and turned, stiffly walking out of the room, followed by his party.
The Queen turned to Melty. "Go with them, I'll see you later in the evening."
Melty gave her mother a thankful look and nodded before chasing the party. Mirellia looked back at the secret tunnel one last time and sighed in relief, collapsing on the couch.
"You're safe…"
The Gun Hero turned and entered the nearby hallway but his party noticed his legs were trembling.
"Misato?" Fitoria questioned, grasping his hand.
Misato turned to the Filolial Queen and looked at everyone who followed him. They were all concerned.
"T-That was r-real right…? That really was the Queen promising Malty's imprisonment?" Misato asked them.
…
"""Yes""" Everyone confirmed and Misato fell onto his knees.
"""Misato!""" They all cried, gathering around the Gun Hero.
"Sorry, I'm just relieved… I guess I was more tense than I thought, it's finally over…" Misato explained. "The Pope is dead… His reputation and the Religion, it's been smashed to dust…" What happened in that battle did more damage than in canon.
"Malty finally got a sentence that can prevent her from doing harm ever again all without alienating the Queen…" Misato pointed out and Melty frowned.
"I see…" Melty murmured, remembering her conversation with Misato and how he expressed his frustration over her mother's actions on protecting Malty. This whole time, Misato had been standing on a very thin line, if he killed Malty, his relation to her mother would be tense at best, hostile at worse, if he didn't and if Malty was free to roam the world, Malty could potentially be a massive danger again, no matter how careful the Shadows are.
"I know it's the beginning of many things to come but, I can't help but feel that finally… The major hurdles of my goal are gone… I feel like I can genuinely relax for once…" Misato admitted.
Almost throughout his entire journey, Misato mentally was unable to relax, not truly, unlike Naofumi, he was able to sleep normally but every time he took a physical break, he still brainstormed on his plan, trying to think of flaws to fix in his plan to deal with the Delusional Heroes, The Pope, the King, Malty, and even the Queen… But it's over… Sure there is Glass but he has Fitoria who is more than willing to help stop Glass and talk to her.
So now…
Misato finally feels safe. He no longer worried for the future as much as he did when he entered Melromarc for the first time.
Seeing how exhausted Misato looked, everyone in his party nodded to each other, a singular goal in mind, Rifana and Keel each grabbed his arms, gently pulling him forward. Fitoria, S'yne and Sadeena gently pushed him from behind, keeping Misato upright. Melty and Ace took the lead, guiding the Party to Misato's room.
The two youngest members of the party opened the door, and everyone else led Misato into his room. His combat clothing disappeared only wearing comfortable simple clothing, the sudden change of clothing was likely due to the Legendary Gun assisting him, like it always does.
Misato was gently placed into his bed with a blanket over his body. Fitoria gently rubbed his head.
"You have done the impossible… There is no need to worry anymore… Sleep Misato… Let go and relax…" Fitoria whispered, and Sadeena hummed, there was a gentle rhythm to her voice, like she was singing.
A few seconds later, Misato fell asleep, completely in peace.
Author's Notes:
Sorry for the long wait, I have been very busy with my life and my muse didn't hit me for a long time…
Okay, I'm going to bluntly say this, Malty will NEVER be an antagonist in any future arcs in my fanfic. From this day forward she will never be relevant as the opposing character. Maybe in a flashback or have mentions but she will never be relevant in my story. In fact, I don't intend to write a female character with a personality so identical to Malty that Naofumi would nickname her 'Bitch 2' or something. At least not in the present or future, maybe in the past like a flashback.
Not even the World Eater/Ruler of the Waves is going to be Malty 2.0
If I was the author of Rising of the Shield Hero, I would've never made Malty a villain in later arcs after Volume 4. Maybe there could be an escape attempt that fails spectacularly because Malty is just a lucky idiot, and Naofumi would've been more than ready to shut her fucking mouth. It would've been an example of how far Naofumi has grown, so much that Malty is no longer a serious threat in her failed escape.
The general idea in Season 2 and beyond, some familiar antagonists are going to be a bit different and there will be brand new antagonists. Hopefully the new antagonists and their personalities will be refreshing for all of you, especially those who read the light novels.
About a year ago, the initial idea for this chapter was for an intense dramatic one where the Queen refused Malty's permanent sentence, so with no other choice, Misato forced Malty to describe her sick dreams of damning her family to a horrible fate, a dream where she was Ruler of Melromarc and her family's fate was in her hands. One by one as Malty described what she would've done to each family member, the Queen's hope for Malty's redemption wavered immensely, bringing her down to her knees. Then finally, when she told the Queen that she would've sold Melty to the Pig King. The Queen would actually snap with extreme heartbroken rage, releasing ice so fast that Fitoria had to reluctantly intervene and save Malty, sensing that the Queen had genuine lethal intent towards Malty. Everyone else would've been too slow to react effectively.
Melty would've been eavesdropping on the trial and ran out to find a place to cry, seeing how fucked up her family is. Leading up to Ace comforting Melty, struggling to imagine his own siblings acting so horrible to their family and sympathizing with the young princess. Growing closer together. Slowly healing from what Misato had to do and in future chapters, repairing the relationship would be very rough for Misato.
After the trial, Misato would avoid returning to the Main capital for a long time, after what he had done. But when the Queen asked to speak with him, he would be pleasantly surprised to see that the Queen doesn't actually hate or resent him. Although she doesn't thank him, which would be fair. The Queen finally accepted that Malty is too dangerous to let her be free. Were it not for Takt though, she would've sent Malty straight to the Pig King.
Even the Queen's Shadows would personally thank Misato for making their mistress see how horrible Malty was, every Shadow deep down knew that Malty would only bring ruin. Like what Misato and Naofumi suspected in chapter 23. The Queen did hide some of Malty's crimes and no matter how much horrible evidence a Shadow would present to the Queen, she would only order the Shadows to destroy the evidence and simply keep an eye on Malty instead of making plans to remove her. Some Shadows admitted that they fantasized the idea of disobeying the Queen's orders, all for the sake of her and the Kingdom, but they were indoctrinated to be loyal to her, to be her very Shadows… To go against her orders is to quit being a shadow for the Queen. So they would be thankful for Misato doing what they never could do for the sake of Melromarc.
The leading Shadow who often says "Daresay." would declare that Misato is perhaps the most Powerful Hero in the world. Since Misato did what many of Queen Mirellia's enemies could never do.
But I realized that the drama would be too much and ultimately, unnecessary. As much as I like the fantasy of Misato bringing the Queen down on her knees, where so many of her enemies failed to do, it's too much wish fulfillment and power fantasy.
Might be a chapter in Gun Hero's Alternate Takes though.
So like Misato, I realized… Having Malty permanently imprisoned, is actually the perfect plan for the Queen to accept and maybe even went ahead on the arrangements before Misato even suggested the idea. Like Misato, I kind of forgot how cunning and extremely clever the Queen is, so it would make more sense that the Queen would have one last plan for Malty to live relatively okay, instead of being executed and or tortured. At least in ideal conditions, the plan could work…
We all know how bad the conditions were in canon.
As for the Prince of Melromarc. Sorry to disappoint, the idea of revealing his murderer was a plan that I had in my pocket just in case I changed my mind about the Queen putting Malty in jail.
But like I mentioned above, it makes more sense for the Queen to do this, and since the Queen is 100% on board, Misato would have no reason to force Malty to admit that she had a hand in her brother's death. It would be unnecessary drama and would strain his relationship to the entire Royal Family at that point.
Naofumi's roasting moments. Misato roasts somewhat represented most of the fans' rage (Mostly mine) against the King and Malty in Chapter 21. So it felt wrong to deny Naofumi that moment too and personally I don't like how often Naofumi is seemingly so repressed with his rage and how he would lash it out on the wrong people sometimes. But at the same time it seems in character for him. His time with Misato did change him a little bit.
In Season 3, sometimes I was like: "Naofumi say something or shut the bitch up already! Your stats are higher than Ren and Malty's! Knock those dumbasses out!"
As for Naofumi not roasting Malty in the trial (Not the execution scene), Misato already said what Malty deserved to hear, and Naofumi is a bit exhausted after his rant on the King. Misato already did more than enough on Malty.
However, for the King, there was at least one more "Reasons you suck" speech for him. Naofumi's roasts here were more personal than Misato's.
As for the Past Stilvelt War, the one the Queen and King were in, I did see some text mentioning a Shield Hero being in that war but I think it's more fitting and more pathetic that the King would hate someone that never existed in his time during the war. People always hate others for various dumb reasons. Also there is another reason why I mentioned that a Shield Hero wasn't present in that war but that's for future chapters and I imagine my clever readers could figure out a potential theme or topic in future chapters.
Don't worry, this isn't the "Season finale" It's like Episode 21, there is a bit more to come in this season.
Thank you all for reading and have a great day!