Disclaimer

The following is a fan-based Fiction.

Rising of the Shield Hero belongs to Aneko Yusagi

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Some Deep Reflecting

The Heroes have all arrived at Reichnott's main town, surviving their encounters with the Vanguards, they evacuated as much as they could but not every civilian made it out safely with the Heroes. Naofumi and Itsuki had to teleport to help Fitoria evacuate the villagers from Riyute. After resting for the day, all parties, minus Misato, meet inside Reichnott's dining room to discuss what has happened.

That was when Naofumi discovered who the Shadows belonged to and who Misato was working with this entire time.

"WHAT?!" Naofumi roars, scowling at the Gun Hero's Party. Everyone, except Fitoria, Sadeena and Matilda, flinches at the Shield Hero's rage.

"That bastard WORKED with that SCUMBAG family?!" The Shield Hero yells, standing up from his seat, Melty flinches and lowers her head in shame. Raphtalia frowns, while Filo and Sakura hold each other's hands, uncomfortable seeing Naofumi like this. Naofumi turns to look at Ren and Itsuki, the two heroes Misato helped. "You two knew…"

Ren gulps and sighs, trying to regain composure from Naofumi's intensity. "After Misato was separated they told me, without them, I would be dead."

Itsuki frowns. "I knew for a while too and I can see why he was hesitant to tell you." He says firmly, indirectly telling the angry hero where he stands. Matilda grasps his shoulder, afraid of a fight breaking out from Itsuki's remark.

Sadeena stands up from her chair, speaking. "Naofumi, listen, there's a reason why-

"I'm not listening to a word from the followers of that lying bastard-

Smash!

"AGH!" Naofumi yelps as a wooden chair suddenly smashes against his face.

"Naofumi!" Raphtalia yells, walking over to him, checking for wounds. It didn't hurt him but the intentions were clear. Raphtalia turns to where the chair was thrown. "Keel?" Raphtalia gasps, seeing her friend's chair is missing and her ears immediately flatten seeing the Gun Hero's Party on the other side of the table.

Keel, Rifana, and Ace are now scowling at Naofumi, no longer ashamed or guilty, only enraged for the sake of someone they follow faithfully. A good person and Naofumi dare call him a bastard?

"FUCK YOU NAOFUMI!" Keel yells, slamming her fist on the table. "Misato was afraid of your paranoid SHITTY ATTITUDE! Where you are no better than his Stupid Majesty!" Naofumi eyes widen, Raphtalia gasps at the comparison. "Unwilling to reason or listen for the tiniest relation or connection to the people you hate!"

"Take that back!" Naofumi replies, enraged to be compared to that trash. Raphtalia flinches, feeling extremely conflicted, as her friend and the man she admires are fighting.

"You're not proving me wrong! You're pissed the moment you heard that Misato allied with a Royal family member, regardless of if they are actually good! Without even trying to gather evidence that proves otherwise! Regardless of how much Misato helped you. At least Misato tried to see any more evidence beyond what he foresaw!" Keel says, standing her ground, glaring back at the Hero she once looked up to growing up.

Naofumi flinches at Keel's point but clenches his fist from the memory of that trial, grasping his resolve again. "I can't trust that family!"

"Neither could Misato at the time, but he gathered information as best he could to see if his knowledge was true." Fitoria vouches. "But have you tried? Or did you only make assumptions of the entire family without gathering more information from different sources?" The Filolial Queen 'questions', condemning the Shield Hero's conclusions of the Gun Hero.

Naofumi glares at Fitoria and grits his teeth. Frustrated because she is right but at the same time, Naofumi's mind keeps rewinding to when Malty taunted him in that trial, clouding his mind…

The Gun Hero's party, S'yne, Melty, Fitoria, Ren and Itsuki, they all began to speak of the deeds Misato accomplished, the pain he suffered trying to protect everyone. How he fought off an army alone, how defeated Malty and the King, slayed the Sword Vanguard. How he overcame impossible odds, suffering the most out of everyone. With every feat, Naofumi falters.

"He just kept going, he didn't stop until we were safe. Unlike him, I was well rested before the invasion, but he wasn't, his weapon forced him to awaken and yet as we continued fighting the Church, Misato showed little signs of fatigue, where I was reaching my limits…" S'yne says, her voice, not breaking apart as she describes Misato. "Despite the pain and exhaustion, he kept going until he dropped…" Melty nods in agreement with S'yne remembering how exhausted Misato looked when they came to this town.

"For a man with incredible focus and will to keep everyone safe the best he could. Can you really say he's a bad guy?" Keel concludes.

"What if Misato didn't tell you everything?" Naofumi points out, recalling how Misato didn't tell everyone his source of knowledge. "What if those shadow lapdogs of the Queen are lying about Misato? So can you trust him lying to you? Remember, the Queen is the mother of Malty, the woman who raised that bitch and Misato helped her!"

"Naofumi…" Raphtalia covers her mouth with her hand, shaking her head. Even Filo and Sakura are frowning at him.

"What?!" Naofumi says, and his party flinches. Why is his party looking at him like that? Like he is wrong?

"You are too angry from what has happened recently… This necessary misdeed Misato committed to you, brings you back to what happened that day and you still don't know how to handle it now… So now you lash out on those who care about you, those who can help you, those who do not deserve such hatred." Fitoria states factually, figuring out Naofumi's issue. While little, her time with Misato helped connect the dots to the source of Naofumi's rage.

Rifana points at the Shield Hero. "If it weren't for Misato you would have struggled on gaining more methods of strength because you are still too distrustful, assuming the worse too quickly. Misato did his best to provide you information about future events, you knew about the Pope having the Replica Weapon, and sure, Misato was wrong about the Vanguards but we were still somewhat prepared for the unknown because of how often he cautioned us." Rifana stares directly into Naofumi's eyes.

"Would you honestly have believed in Misato if he told you about the other half of the Royal Family being good and that he was working with them because he needed their help? Misato is good but he can't be everywhere at once, that's one of the reasons why he reached out to the Queen…" Fitoria says. "So Naofumi, if he told you this, would you have run away upon hearing Misato's alliance with the Queen without hearing him out? Even though he did so much to help you?" Fitoria asks neutrally.

Naofumi steps back from Fitoria's point, he looks at everyone staring at him varying from pity or disapproval. The Shield Hero recalls Misato's actions, and he frowns, uncertain if he really would have just walked away from Misato if he heard the full truth… Naofumi takes a deep breath and walks towards the door.

Raphtalia raises her hand. "Naofumi-

"I'm not leaving, I just… I-I just need to cool off, you can all stay…" Naofumi says, interrupting his companion, walking out of the makeshift meeting room.

Raphtalia stands up from her seat, walking out of the room with Filo and Sakura following her.

After the Shield Hero party left, everyone told their story of recents events. Ren and Itsuki expressed frustration, recalling how they failed to kill the Bow Vanguard, who showed great archery and capability to fight opponents up close. Motoyasu was the same as he and Naofumi failed to defeat the Spear Vanguard, who showed great spearmanship and skills Motoyasu never considered before. They were all shocked to learn of how Misato defeated an entire army, and the Sword Vanguard, showing the recording of Misato fighting Adele on the rooftops. Where everyone was in awe and amazed of the Gun Hero's power, Fitoria was silent seeing Misato's blue eyes and the way he fought the Vanguard, reminding her greatly of his predecessor. Then they told how Misato defeated the Princess and The King.

"He commanded the Staff to shock the King?" Fitoria asks Melty

"Yes… He said something out loud before the King finished his spell. Then later, he called upon the staff and afterwards, it reappeared in my palm…" Melty explains showing the small pink gemstone wand in her hands. "Somehow, he made me the Staff Hero and even took my father's levels to increase mine before passing out.

"Why didn't Misato tell us we were capable of that?" Itsuki asks and Ren nods.

"Actually, I don't think Misato knew about it and I don't think it was Misato who fought the Sword Vanguard." Melty states. "Before fighting Adele, He said someone else took over 'this body'" Melty explains.

"Forrest…" Fitoria gasps, the Gun Hero's party eyes widen at the news.

"Who?" Melty asks.

"Misato's predecessor…" Rifana explains and Melty's eyes widen, realizing what 'Misato' said wasn't an area full of trees, it was a name.

How?

"Wait… So it wasn't Misato who fought off the Church Army or the Sword Vanguard, it was somehow Forrest?" Keel clarifies, recalling the notes of when Misato's eye color changed and glowed during those times.

"It was… I could never forget his presence…" Fitoria confirms. "Even when I was miles away from Melromarc, I felt his soul for only a moment… In fact, the color of Misato's eyes at that time matched Forrest's eyes."

"How is that possible?" Sadeena says in disbelief. "If Forrest was dead then how…"

"Forrest must have somehow preserved himself inside the weapon… It's the only explanation, even after all these years, I barely scratched the surface of the potential power these weapons have." Fitoria explains with a hint of awe. "While Misato is a promising fighter, his skill level does not even come close to his predecessor, and the way he fought in the recording against the Vanguard… I know for certain Forrest fought like that before."

Itsuki, Ren, Motoyasu and Melty stare at their weapon gemstones, all wondering if the soul of a previous wielder is inside.

Fitoria, Keel, Rifana, Sadeena and Ace observe the recordings of 'Misato' fighting the Vanguard trying to compare it to how Misato fought before.

"Ace's head is going to explode…" Ace groans from the overwhelming information, resting his head on the table.

"I suppose we had enough talking for the day…" Sadeena says letting out an exhaustive sigh, patting Ace's head.

The Spear Hero's 'party' rests underneath a tree, resting.

Motoyasu frowns, recalling his fight against the Spear Vanguard.

"What's wrong Motoyasu?" Rino asks.

"The Spear Vanguard… How could he express such blind loyalty in spite of all the horrible things they were all doing? How can that guy express such loyalty and faithfulness when they have done horrible things?" Motoyasu says, frowning even deeper. "Seeing that guy… Really rubbed me the wrong way… It was almost like a twisted reflection of myself…"

Rino sighs and hugs Motoyasu's back.

"You'll never become horrible, I won't let you…"

"Thank you Rino…"

Itsuki sits on the bench, thinking deeply about his fight against the Bow Vanguard.

"What is eating up your mind, Itsuki?" Matilda asks suddenly, sitting next to him.

"The Bow Vanguard, he was always exclaiming things about justice like he knows what it is, saying how wrong Ren and I were, I don't like it." Itsuki explains. "Misato told me what the Bow Hero in the 'future' was like, what he became… Could… Could Anselm be what I would've been like were it not for you?" Itsuki asks, staring directly at Matilda.

"Itsuki… Thinking about what if, doesn't matter, you're only hurting yourself." Matilda gently lectures, rubbing his back. "I do not see a horrible man who is selfishly obsessed with one specific type of justice, what I see is a great young man who genuinely wishes to help people… If you make a mistake, I will help you learn, and so will the others in the party."

Itsuki nods and smiles. "Thanks Matilda…"

Naofumi frowns, walking through the village, recalling his actions in the past before meeting Misato. Fitoria was right, before meeting Misato, Naofumi believed the nation was rotten, putting him down because he was the worthless hero, the easiest target, to make themselves look better in comparison.

He even once thought the other Heroes were in on the false accusation too, that they had a hand in the framing. Until Misato explained what the religion in Melromarc is, that the false trial was just propaganda to prove how their religion is true, and he explained how the Heroes were just as ignorant as him… The evidence about the former was easy to find, but Naofumi never looked into it until he met the Gun Hero…

The Shield Hero growls, hating himself for not looking into it before.

…

Damn, he yelled at Raphtalia, Filo and Sakura…

Naofumi sighs, feeling ashamed, leaning his back against a wall.

Misato was asleep and he jumped to a conclusion without even thinking about talking to Misato… He was ready to ignore everything Misato's party was going to say…

"Naofumi-sama?" Raphtalia calls out, getting the Shield Hero's attention. Filo and Sakura run over to him, hugging Naofumi.

"Keel was right, I really was no better than Trash…" Naofumi says somberly and Raphtalia cups his cheeks.

"But unlike the King, you learned and will be better than him." She says assuring Naofumi.

"... Thank you Raphtalia…" He says, grasping her hands.

The next day, Melty, S'yne and the Gun Hero's party return to the dining room, to answer Melty's questions in Misato's place, since he is still unconscious. Melty and S'yne described how Misato defeated the King and Malty, the intense rage he had that made everyone freeze when they witnessed it. Melty accurately quoted everything Misato pointed out to the King. Even the Shadows provided a recording of how Misato took down Malty, the things he said startled the Gun Hero's party. Except Fitoria and Sadeena, who watched with a neutrally.

Melty didn't show it to the heroes earlier because she doesn't want to create a gap between them seeing Misato like that, especially since they were still recovering from their ordeals.

…

After a few minutes of processing the information. Fitoria stands up from her seat and stares at Melty.

"I'm surprised Malty and the King are still alive." Fitoria states, Melty leans back from the statement and looks at everyone else, seeing them all nodding in agreement. "He warned us of how Malty would escape from your mother's clutches and would cause even more damage in the future if we don't make the right choices. So it might be part of the reason why he was so angry." Melty frowns at the mention of Malty's possible future. "You should know that the only times he expressed similar emotional intensity was against Idol Rabier for crueling torturing innocent children and those slavers in Zeltoble looking at a child as an item to sell." Fitoria explains. The former victims of Rabier frown at the mention of the cruel man.

"Rabier… That bastard took children to make them scream…" Keel vouches for Fitoria's explanation.

"Then there was Rikert…" Rifana scoffs, frowning, recalling how the old pervert leered at them.

"He mated on a lot of people by force… Ace smelled it and knew how they were so scared and hurt badly…" Ace explains, scowling at the memory of those girls he helped. "Ace thinks Rikert would have done it to S'yne, and Melty too when you are older…" The said two girls frown even deeper at Ace's point.

"So from what we are all saying, for Misato to look so intense and angry means they deserve it." Keel states and Fitoria nods, confirming it.

"If that's true, then I'm impressed by Misato's willpower to not kill the King and Malty considering how righteously angry he was with their actions and the pain he just went through fighting them." Sadeena comments. "Especially knowing what Malty did to Rino…"

Everyone pauses, contemplating each point. For every time Misato expressed rage, the people receiving it were clearly terrible and they deserved their deaths. So it's strange to know that Malty and the King are still breathing. Especially the former, as Malty did horrible deeds with no remorse, the type that Misato would normally not hesitate to kill.

"When Misato did his speech, he never screamed at them, it was never loud but it was still intense. So for Misato to express his rage so loudly, means his rage was likely even higher than those he killed before…" Fitoria deduces. "I remember Misato's speech before he killed Idol Rabier, I sensed how intense his emotions were… It was like a forest was on fire at night.

…

Melty sighs at the emotionally exhausting and tense conversation. "Thank you for answering my questions…"

"So what do you think of him now?" Sadeena asks.

"I haven't made a conclusion yet, I still need to ask him myself." Melty answers, because while productive, Melty cannot make a conclusion about Misato Morgan, not without speaking to him. "I want to know what Misato thinks of his own actions after recovering from the many painful trials he went through for the sake of the world and the sake of my home…" Melty states her thoughts, recalling Misato's journey after he was separated from his Party.

Fighting an army alone, awakening during the first phase of an invasion, rescuing her, fighting the King, fighting off an army again and defeating the Sword Vanguard. He went through so much, perhaps the stress made him so angry or maybe the rage was always there but he kept inside until her father hurt him, pushing his limits to break.

The Gun Hero's party all gives Melty a small smile.

Fitoria nods in approval. "A wise decision, Staff Hero." With such a mature mindset, it's no doubt the New Staff Hero will surpass her predecessor. Melty blinks, staring at the Vassal Staff, conflicted about her new status.

"I'm still not used to being called that…" Melty admits, frowning at the weapon in her hands.

"In time, you will…"

Another day has passed. The Heroes, even Naofumi saw the recording of Misato taking down Malty. Initially the Cardinal Heroes were disturbed by Misato, the amount of hatred he had, made them wonder if he unlocked the Curse Series they were warned about, until Rino said. "After what I nearly went through… This is the least she deserved, for her to realize that she isn't invincible, thinking she could do whatever horrible thing she wants… When she is fucking wrong."

Rino's comment made the Heroes reconsider the reason for Misato's anger and when Misato knocked Malty out, they got over their fear and waited patiently for Misato's reasons.

Melty frowns, recalling her time with her mother. She was never in the meetings where Mother negotiated with the other countries after the Heroes were summoned, trying to placate them. After the news about Melromarc summoning all four cardinal heroes, she only heard bad things about her father and refused to believe it. Until she saw what happened to the Heroes, to Misato, and her father's questionable actions, not even believing her about the Church's actions. Now… Now Melty feels guilty, because Misato had a point, he made her realize how much danger she and her mother was in, that she… Was powerless to help.

Despite all the lessons, she still doesn't comprehend politics and she underestimated how far someone can get when they are angry… How twisted and horrible someone could become…

Melty sighs, recalling her conversation with the Shadow.

"Is it true… Was Misato right? Could things have gone horribly wrong during the negotiations when the Heroes were summoned unplanned?" Melty asks the Shadow.

"..."

Melty glares at the Shadow. "You and Mother have to stop hiding things from me! How can I become a good ruler if I can't be trusted to understand the politics in the world? Misato had a point, a powerful point that I never considered. It correlates with what mother was doing, I saw her destroy those paintings… Mother must have narrowly avoided potential death multiple times in those meetings, and she won't tell me anything! As the Next Queen, I demand you to answer."

The Dare Saying Shadow sighs. "Yes… My brothers and sisters were ready to fight with their lives to protect you and the Queen from them, were it not for the Pig King's selfish interests towards Malty, Our Majesty's quick wits and sharp tongue… I daresay, were it anyone else negotiating, a war could have broken out with Melromarc against the entire world. We were very lucky… But the King's idiotic decisions made it even harder for your mother…"

Moments later, Melty stares at her father in a room alone with the Shadows guarding them.

"Aultcray." Melty mutters and the King eyes widen at Melty referring to her father by his name. Even Melty feels a bit put off but she's too upset to care. "Did it ever cross your mind, the amount of danger you nearly caused for me and Her Majesty?"

…

"... It did, but I believe your mother would protect you and she did like I knew she would."

"But the risk was high, would you have been able to help us before anything happened?"

The King flinches at the reminder of Misato's point. "I would walk over every mountain on my broken legs to save you and Mirellia…" The Former Staff Hero declares, something that briefly warms Melty's heart.

Keyword 'briefly'.

"But what if something happened? What if we died or were taken hostage?" Melty pushes.

"I would save both of you."

"But would you be able to prevent it from within the safety of the castle?" Melty points out and the old man winces. "You were too far away to prevent a potential fight from breaking out."

"You shouldn't listen to Misato, he's trying to deceive you and tear us apart."

Melty frowns deeper at her father's attempt to change the subject. "Answer me." Melty demands.

Aultrcray moves his gaze away from his daughter "... No, it never crossed my mind that I was too far away to protect you two from immediate danger your Mother couldn't handle… I'm so sorry… I am ashamed of my actions. But it doesn't matter now, you and Mirellia are saf- Melty? Wait, please listen!"

The Crown Princess stands up from her seat, leaving the room with Shadow walking behind her, ignoring her father's pleas. "Escort him to his cell when I leave the building…" Melty orders the guard.

"Yes Princess." The Guard complies with a salute and Melty continues walking, wiping a tear off of her face with her shaky hand. Melty reaches the exit, basking in the sunlight, taking deep breaths and regains her composure

"Princess." Her shadow says.

"Yes?"

"I got word that Misato has awakened."

Misato awakens staring at blackness, he leans upright, touching the ground, the texture reminds him of the roads from the 21st Century… He looks down, confirming it indeed is similar to his old world but, why does he only see blackness around him? This vision looks different…

"Smith!" A man yells and Misato turns to the end of the street, he sees a dead body of a man in ragged clothing riddled with holes with a large sniper rifle next to him. At the other end of the street, he sees two, wearing what looks like police uniforms but their armor and vest is different, a bit bulkier than the usual ballistic armor. One officer, a man in his 40s, is inspecting the bodies of a woman, a man and a little girl, lying nearby, motionless. The other Officer, someone in their early 20s, kneels near Forrest Smith who is also in the same uniform, but it's soaked in blood, he's wounded, a large chunk of his torso missing, the police officer is trying to stop the blood flow in vain with some cloth.

"Forrest, it's going to be alright, help is on their way!" The officer yells, like he is trying to convince himself.

Forrest coughs out the blood. "T-the…The family are…?" Forrest coughs again.

The officer turns to the older Police Officer, who shakes his head. They died? Misato looks at the family… They're not breathing…

"Y-you… You saved t-them!" The officer stutters and Forrest frowns at the stutter, he turns his head and his eyes widen, seeing the bodies "I'm sorry I lied! Just live please I'll make it up to you man!" The officer pleads, trying to stop the blood. "Just live!" He yells, grasping Forrest's brown hair and pulls his head up to grasp it, tilting Forrest's head up,

"Forrest…?"

Forrest doesn't respond, his soulless blue eyes staring blankly in the sky.

"FORREST!" The Officer lets out a gut-wrenching scream.

Misato opens his eyes, finding himself inside a large white room, he sees a group of people, wearing what he could describe as somewhat futuristic looking armored vests and helmets, wielding strange guns. Along with some people wearing simple dark coats with their hoods up.

At the center of the room is Forrest, still in his strange police uniform, but unwounded, like nothing happened, in the hip holster, is the Legendary Gun, in the form of a simple USP gun, the blue gem shines brightly. Next to him is a young woman wearing pajamas that looks too large for her body, on her back is a large wooden wheel with a pink gemstone in the center..

A woman in a trenchcoat places her finger against the earpiece on her head. "The summoning was a success, we got the Gun Hero and the Transport Hero." She pauses, likely listening to the receiver. "Understood sir."

"Ma'am, the Gun Hero is waking up." One of the hooded figures says as Forrest opens his eyes, groaning. He sits up right, staring aimlessly, until he gasps, checking where his wounds used to be and stands straight up.

"W-what?! I'm alive?" Forrest says, patting his chest.

"Don't tell me he is a Tier Three…" A soldier mutters with disdain and Misato frowns.

Tier Three, what's that?

The woman, likely the 'Transport Hero' groans, leaning up, she looks at her hand and gasps, grasping it with her other hand. "My hands… They're soft." She then touches her own face. "My face… It's no longer wrinkly and my hair…" She grasps the front portion of her brown hair. "It's brown and not gray…"

"Sounds like she's a Tier One, good." One of the soldiers' whispers.

"Excuse me, Sir, Miss, I know you two are very confused but-

The woman in the trenchcoat's voice turns static and Misato's vision goes dark.

Misato groans, opening his eyes, vaguely recognizing the ceiling. He sighs, finally remembering what happened. Holy Shit…

He leans up on his bed, resting his back against the frame. The door opens and Misato turns, seeing S'yne holding a tray of food, her jaw drops seeing Misato awake. The Vassal Hero quickly walks over to Misato, placing the tray of food on his lap.

"E*t" She says and Misato complies, practically starving, devouring the soup.

"Thanks." Misato says in between bites, S'yne nods and walks over to the door,the hall.

"H* is a*wake!" S'yne yells down the hall, and Misato hears footsteps further down the hall near his room.

"Please tell me that Malty is locked up with ropes and chains, with a gag tied so tightly in her mouth that she can only breathe?" Misato asks, or else he might walk over to the prison cell to break her jaw if she is trying to bullshit her way out, again...

"Yes, ma*ic f*eld* too."

Misato sighs in relief, even more happy that they even put some magic to secure her. "How long have I been asleep?" Misato asks, as S'yne take a seat near his bed.

"Thr*e da*s"

"Eh?" Misato blurts out, three days?! Before he asks what happened, he hears several footsteps down the hall, getting louder with each second. S'yne grabs Misato's tray and moves away from him. "Huh?" Why did she take his food?

Bam!

The door slams open, revealing Fitoria and the Gun Hero's party right behind her.

"""MISATO!"""

Fitoria appears on Misato's lap in a blink, creating a small gust of wind in the room, blowing the nearby beds and curtains, hugging Misato, her arms tightly wrapped around his neck. Ace hugs Misato's arm a second after Fitoria. Everyone else comes around Misato a split second after Ace, forming a group hug.

"You're okay!"

"We were worried sick!"

"Never do that again!"

After a minute, one by one, each teammate lets go, breaking up the hug.

Misato smiles wide. "I'm so glad you're all safe." The party nods, smiling back at him.

"Yes, however…" Fitoria mutters and Misato looks at her confused, only to see her hand suddenly in front of his forehead.

Flick!

"Agh Why!" Misato yelps, grasping his forehead, leaning against his bed from the stinging pain.

"You recklessly risked your life, along with many others and the Sword Hero over a dragon, when a ceremonial spell was about to destroy you all." Fitoria points out.

"But-

"You should have left that dragon behind to hold off the enemy and escape with as many people as you can, it was illogical to believe all of you can make it out. While I am overjoyed that you are alive, I am still upset that you went through so much in the first place, especially when you had other, better decisions, you got very lucky and I don't like to count on such a notion…" Fitoria lectures, clenching Misato's arm, emphasizing her feelings over the matter. "So why did you choose not to leave the dragon?"

…

Misato recalls Wyndia's reaction to Gaelion's state and his fists clench. "I… I'm tired of seeing good families torn apart…" He admits.

…

Everyone stares at the Gun Hero, thinking over what he said, some empathizing with him. Rifana and Keel, they don't know if their parents are alive. Sadeena is the same, she was the protector and 'big sister' of Lurolono Village, she feels guilty, knowing the families there are gone and are in pain. S'yne doesn't know if anyone else made it out of her world's destruction, her people…

Only Fitoria and Ace couldn't empathize. The former, outlived the people she loved and grew somewhat apathetic to innocent lives that seem to disappear in a blink. The latter still has his flock back at the sanctuary. But even then, these two filolials knew Misato's pain and could grasp why he made his decision.

"But Misato, if you were to die, this party, this family… Would have been torn apart too." Sadeena points out, grasping Misato's shoulder. "Do you think we would have been fine if you died? Hero or not, we would have been so hurt if you died…"

"Ace would have been so sad and angry…" The filolial boy whimpers, resting his head against Misato's torso. The Gun Hero pats Ace's head and looks at the others, who all stare at him. The look in their eyes tells him more than enough that they agree. Filling the hero with guilt.

"I… I'm sorry everyone." Misato sighs. "You're right, I made a mistake that could have been huge. I shouldn't have risked everyone's lives like that. I was such a cowardly idiot, willing to risk my life to avoid that guilt and pain, ready to leave you all behind to suffer…"

"Misato…" Sadeena mutters.

"I'll still fight hard to save as much as I can or if possible, save everyone, but I won't do something like that ever again… Not if I can help it." Misato declares.

"No… Not if we can help it." Keel says, raising her fist. "We'll fight hard to save people together, you're not alone Misato."

"She's right." Rifana nods.

"I won't fail you all like I did in Lurolono." Sadeena declares.

"I d*n't lik* see*ng pe*ple to*n apart too." S'yne adds in.

"Ace will fight for good flocks and his own!" Ace says, flapping his wings.

Fitoria smiles at everyone's declaration. "Remember to rely on all of us, alright?" She says, facing Misato.

The Gun Hero nods. "I will."

Fitoria turns to the door. "You can come in." Hearing Fitoria's prompt, the door opens, revealing Melty with the rest of the Cardinal Heroes and their respective parties, minus the Shield, entering the room.

"Ah so this is the one-man army I heard so much about?" Motoyasu says with a grin, but his eyes don't match his expression. "Looking good Misato-san, hope you're alright…" he says in a serious tone, catching Misato off guard a bit.

"I am, thanks Motoyasu-san." Misato replies respectfully and the Spear Hero nods.

"I'm glad you're up and well Misato." Itsuki greets and Ren nods, silently conveying the same notion.

"Misato, when you are ready, I wish to discuss what happened recently and for you to answer a few questions please." Melty requests calmly but something about her seems off, she looks stiff…

"Alright." Misato says, feeling a bit nervous on how to interact with Melty after making her witness what he did to Malty and her old man…

Naofumi silently enters the room with his party trailing behind him and everyone stares at him. Misato frowns, not needing Ace or Fitoria to sense the tense atmosphere. "You know, don't you…" Misato 'asks' Naofumi. It wasn't hard to figure out, Misato was asleep for three days, that's plenty of time to talk about what happened and his secret alliance to the Queen was going to be revealed eventually.

The Shield Hero nods. "Yeah… Later after talking to Melty, can we talk in private? I'm not going to fight, not like I can anyway." He says with a hint of self pity and Raphtalia frowns rubbing his back.

"Of course."

"Although… Big bro needs a bath, Ace is having a hard time breathing through his mouth." The Filolial Royal comments, pinching his nose, Filo and Sakura do the same. After fighting so much with little to no break, he must stink like a sewer…

"Good point…"

After Misato eats another meal and cleans up, he grabs his bomber jacket, the clothing he wore on his last day on earth… His magic threaded jacket is fine but it's incredibly dirty and sweaty, his other black adventurer jacket from his first few battles is fine too but…

Misato rubs his finger over the patch job his friend did.

Although he has grown bigger than his jacket, he feels like wearing it today, his friend did work hard on fixing the rip… It would be wrong to waste her efforts.

Melty waits inside Reichnott's garden, drinking tea on a small humble intricately carved wooden table, she looks up seeing Misato approach the Princess. Melty doesn't comment over the strange, smaller simple jacket Misato is wearing.

The Gun Hero takes his seat and a maid walks over, bowing, pouring the tea into his cup. "Thanks." Misato says, taking a sip.

"You may leave." Melty requests and the maid bows, leaving the Garden. After a minute, Melty looks at Misato, directly into his eyes.

"Melty." Misato pauses, taking a breath. "I'm sorry for making you see all of that. I should have kept my emotions in check and not traumatize you. You should have never seen your family hurt like that…"

"No Misato, I must apologize for overreacting… So much had happened, and it was too much to process, but you went through so much more. So much that I believe you handled what happened admirably considering the circumstances, were I in your place I am not certain if I would have handled it well." Melty apologizes. "So, I'm sorry for reacting so fearfully to you when you were only trying to help."

"Are you still afraid of me?" Misato asks bluntly.

"No." Melty says, her gaze not faltering at Misato's.

The Gun hero closes his eyes, nodding. "I accept your apology, is there any more to ask me?"

"Looking back at what happened, what you did to my father, was right." Melty announces and Misato stops his jaw from dropping at the statement. "While harsh, looking back at his actions from when he summoned the Heroes and how the other leaders of each country acted towards the Queen. How he refused to acknowledge his wrong doings, how…" Melty pauses, frowning, remembering her conversation with her father. The denials, avoiding the answer…

"How… F-Father never thought about what could have happened to M-Mother and I-I…" Melty admits, letting out a whimper. Remembering Misato's main powerful point.

"Melty?" Misato asks, leaning forward in concern for the Princess but Melty raises her hand, shaking her head.

"You were right… Things could have gone so wrong that day and Father… N-Never t-thought what could have h-happened." Her voice cracks, a tear slides off down Melty's face, she wipes it off but another tear takes its place. "He…" Melty hiccups "He said he loved us b-but… W-why… WHY DID HE DO ALL OF THIS?! Knowing how far away mother and I were?!" Tears stream down Melty's face, she slams her palms on the table, shaking the teacups.

Misato stands up from his seat and walks over to Melty's side, crouching, holding his arms up. "Melty…" He mutters, waiting to see if the Princess wanted a hug or not. He can't make the move, it's inappropriate, they know very little of each other, especially after what he did.

Melty hiccups, wiping off her tears and hugs Misato's neck tightly, much to the Gun Hero's surprise. "It never crossed his mind what could have happened! He greeted me at home like nothing bad happened, no concern about mother and I when we were at Faubrey!" Melty rants and Misato nods, rubbing the back of her head gently. Melty leans her head back to face Misato.

"Before the fight, he showed no sign of regret over what we nearly went through with his decisions! And I didn't realize it either! I realized that mother must have faced so many death threats and anger all by herself in those meetings!" Melty wails "Father was faithful but was foolish about how strong mother is! Mother is strong, really strong but she can't fight off the army of EVERY NATION ALONE!" Melty continues crying, hugging Misato for what felt like hours.

'How long has she been holding back her tears?' Misato wonders to himself. 'Did… Did Melty in canon ever comprehend how horrible her father's actions were in the anime? Maybe… but' Misato frowns at Melty's state. 'I am certain that it sure as hell wasn't like this…'

A little later, maybe an hour, Melty sniffles, rubbing her red eyes and wiping off the dry tears on her face. "Do you feel better now?" Misato whispers, patting her head.

"Mhm…" Melty murmurs, standing up, fixing her dress and taking her seat again, drinking the cold tea, regaining her composure.

"How long did you hold back the tears?

"Just a little bit before you woke up." Melty admits.

"We can talk later when you feel better." Misato offers.

"No, I want to clear the air…" Melty refuses. "The main point is, I no longer fear what you did to the King. In hindsight it was surprisingly tame." Melty says, seemingly calming herself. "What you said was absolutely necessary for him to realize the potential major consequences of his actions from before."

"Alright." Misato nods.

"But I must ask, what do you think of the King?"

Misato frowns, thinking deeply. "Your father… Is an example of someone, I will never become…" Misato declares and pauses, letting his statement sink in for Melty. "Based on our pasts, by all means, we should be able to empathize with the similarities of our scars but his actions in the present… I am uncertain if I will be able to ever understand or comprehend how he could make such horrible decisions." Misato admits calmly. Even now he is up the wall trying to connect the dots, he wasn't certain if Rueben's explanation would have been able to help him figure the King out or frustrate him even more.

"Whenever he comes to mind, I can only think about how petty and shallow Aultrcray allowed himself to become, damning a nation for a small group's actions… To let his hatred blind, him from those he loves and make himself so easy to trick… To let his mind rot to the point of seeing the world as black and white, when it's truthfully, it's largely all so… Gray…" Misato mutters.

Melty nods somberly. "I see." She says while taking a sip of her tea and so does Misato.

Melty places her cup down, facing the Gun Hero again. "I think what disturbed me the most that day was… Your hatred against Malty." Misato stiffens at the mention of the villainous's name.

"Misato, I know you can see the future… So, I wonder, what did you see that made you hate her so much? So much that you humiliated her, ridiculed and destroyed her ego like that instead of simply knocking her out immediately when we were not safe?" Melty asks.

Melty frowns. "I am aware of what Malty had done in the past and that would make any righteous person angry, but you know more… You saw a future that may never come to the past but it also may have affected your decisions in that moment." Melty says neutrally, remembering her conversation with Rino.

"If I had his strength, I would have killed Malty after humiliating her…" Rino admits venomously inside Melty's memory.

Misato takes a sip of cold tea and sighs. "I'm going to be extremely blunt about this and honest, but you're going to hear things you are not going to like."

"Go ahead."

"Alright…"

The Gun Hero then explains Malty's trial, the questions she tried to avoid in spite of the slave seal, but then her actions afterwards. Attempting to poison the Shield Hero's table of food, freeing herself from the slave seal after abandoning Motoyasu and how she caused the downfall of every Cardinal Hero. Melty looked more horrified and even outraged as Misato continued describing each Hero's downfall.

"I saw a woman doing the same horrible things to people left and right… I saw someone who will never change. In every major obstacle the Heroes face, It's always her causing it… She causes so much damage and it's so infuriating, because in that future she was lucky just like before. She wasn't cunning, she wasn't a genius, she was just lucky, right place, right time. Just like how she escaped, by sheer stupid luck. It's like the entire world wants Malty to live and do harm." Misato pauses and Melty frowns.

"While I could have been wrong, your sister has done absolutely nothing to prove otherwise. After what she has done recently… It is clear that Malty will never feel remorse for her actions, if anyone simply lectured how wrong she is, she would never care. She is horrible and stupidly arrogant, believing she's unstoppable because of her dumb streak of good luck in her schemes." Misato calmly rants, even projecting the recording of Malty smugly smiling behind Naofumi's back during the duel.

"I think in her mind, anyone who dares stand in her way, no matter how strong they may be, they will eventually fall by her hand… Like a few days ago, she likely thought she could finally get rid of you to take what's rightfully 'hers'." Misato says, turning off the projection, pointing at Melty, emphasizing his point.

"I see…" Melty mutters.

"Maybe due to recent stressful events I lost hold of my emotions but seeing her falsely claim that she wished to save you… Made me hate her so much, knowing that I was correct about her personality and how much damage she could cause in the future." Misato continues "The punishment she received in my vision… It wasn't enough for what she did, to Rino and to who knows how much more, especially knowing that she becomes free to harm more people. In that moment, I wanted Malty to understand that she isn't who she thinks she is, I wanted her to be hurt, to destroy the only thing she has success in, the only thing she thinks she is good at, when she is truthfully just lucky. The skill she will take great pride in…"

"Lying." Melty finishes and Misato nods.

"Exactly… And Your mother… Had the chance to end Malty's reign forever." Misato states, uncaring of acting respectful to Mirellia's title and Melty looks at Misato in confusion but a second later, her eyes widened.

Melty gasps cupping her mouth. "You meaning by killing-

"No." Misato interrupts and Melty leans back into her seat in relief, sighing. "I understand your mother not wishing to kill her. But Malty should have been locked up in the deepest darkest prison where daylight can never reach. A Maximum-security prison."

"What is a maximum-security prison?" Melty asks.

"A prison where the prisoner has little freedom because they are too dangerous and cannot be trusted to not escape. Back in my world, they would each hold the most dangerous people in the country, people who would repeat the same horrible crimes… Just. Like. Malty."

Melty frowns but nods at the information.

"It's the only solution where Malty could never hurt anyone again other than killing her because I know your mother doesn't have the damn heart to cut Malty's head off and save everyone the trouble of her bullshit." Misato claims.

Melty blinks "How do you know for certain?" She asks, confused because the terrifying amount of rage she saw her mother had on the paintings of her sister suggest otherwise.

"If your mother wished it, Malty wouldn't be part of our problems the moment the Heroes were summoned, maybe even before that. I'm willing to bet any of her shadows could have killed Malty the split second the command leaves the Queen's mouth. Like me, they could have killed your sister long ago.

Of course, for some reason, there would be bullshit political problems for your sister's death but it doesn't change that Malty is practically walking on paper thin ice, has a dagger hovering over her back and she is digging her own grave blissfully unaware of these things because she is a tunnel visioned narcissist idiot. The only reason why Malty is alive is because your Mother deem it so."

Melty frowns at the point. While Mother's Shadows are good, could they really have killed Malty easily, if Mother commanded it?

"The moment I raised the gun to kill a bastard, I accepted that no matter how many horrible people I may kill, there will always be more… For every Melty." Misato raises his open hand towards the said Princess. "There is a Malty." He says raising his other hand. "But it's total bullshit when the same exact horrible person does the same horrible things again and again because someone wouldn't take the proper measures, always underestimating them…" Misato frowns, recalling Naofumi having second thoughts of Malty's death and the Queen prepared to hold her own life hostage for Malty in the Anime. Or the Queen in the Manga manipulating Naofumi to show mercy…

Back then before his death, when Rueben told him what Malty does afterwards, Misato was no longer able to enjoy Episode 21, knowing that Naofumi and Mirellia made such a huge mistake. A mistake that is very stupid in hindsight.

"So yeah, I'm not just angry at Malty, I am upset over your mother's actions, frankly, she needs to let Malty go…"

Melty looks down on her cup, frowning and looks back up. "So why did you not kill her? If you hate Malty so much why did you not do it?" Misato raises two fingers.

"Two reasons, one, the heroes need your mother's help. We need a powerful political ally, someone who actually has good intentions and not a false mask like the Pope. Your mother is perhaps the only ruler in a nation that actually gives a fuck about taking care of people." Misato exclaims, his emphasis on the word 'fuck' made Melty nearly flip her tea over. "Killing Malty would only strain our relationship because she still cares for her. An ideal alliance is when both sides fully trust each other. Killing Malty would ruin that because some part of the Queen will hate me, even when she doesn't realize it."

"Second reason…" Misato pauses, taking a breath. "It's because I don't want to break you and your mother's heart."

"Huh?" Melty blurts out.

"You're a good person, I don't like hurting good people and that includes your mother, even though we absolutely do not see eye to eye on certain matters. I don't want to hurt Mirellia any further." Melty relaxes her shoulders upon hearing Misato's speech.

"Were Malty the daughter of anyone else, were she the daughter of someone not great as your mother, someone who led this country fairly and competently with good intentions as best she could, I would have killed Malty a long time ago, were she the daughter of anyone else…" Misato emphasizes the last point and Melty stares, uncertain how to respond, trying to process the information.

Misato takes deep breaths from his long speech. "Sorry, if I made you very confused and conflicted on how to feel about what I said…" Misato apologizes, he made a lot of contradicting points…

"No, it's fine, in fact, I appreciate your transparency." Melty replies courteously.

"So… What do you think of me now?" Misato asks, curious about where he stands in this relationship.

"I think… I think you're a good person too, even after this talk, I don't fear you, if possible, I do wish we could be friends." Melty requests. Despite the emotional turmoil she just went through due to some of Misato's actions, she can't actually hate or fear him. Maybe because now she knows for certain that Misato is a good person, a young man with a lot of weight on his shoulders. Someone who worked so hard to unite the heroes for the sake of the world and fought so hard to save Melromarc. His will is incredible, that in spite of his rage, he held it back…

Actions speak louder than words and because of Misato's actions, Melty can find herself trusting in Misato.

The Gun Hero smiles. "So do I." He says and Melty smiles back.

"Oh! One more question… Will you explain who and what you exactly are? I respect your party's decision to not explain but I'm curious… You did so many things unheard of before, things that should be impossible." She says, raising the Vassal Staff to prove her point.

Misato nods. "I'll explain later, to everyone, but first, I gotta talk to Naofumi."

Misato and Naofumi awkwardly face each other on the balcony surrounded by mist provided by Fitoria on Naofumi's request for privacy. While Misato's expression is neutral, Naofumi looks like he is scowling, then again, he has had it ever since that sham of a trial, making it tricky to read his mood sometimes. The Gun Hero tilts his head, breaking the staring contest and Naofumi sighs.

"Why did you not tell me about your alliance with the Queen? Why tell Itsuki about this sooner than me, after everything we accomplished before we separated? I thought you trusted me… I did what you asked me to do." Naofumi asks, sounding surprisingly neutral but hurt at the same time.

"I believed it was too early for you to know… Your emotional scars were too fresh, I was afraid you would have run away or refused to listen if I told you the truth, even if I had good reasons behind the alliance, even if I could drag you by the ear to listen, that would only make things worse. I allied with the Queen because I needed her help with uniting the Heroes, I couldn't be everywhere at once, I needed someone who could keep track of them." Misato explains and bows. "I'm sorry for causing you pain, I realize now, that I was just a coward who feared your reaction to something inevitable, and didn't trust you enough to tell you sooner… I should have told you from the day we met."

Naofumi sighs at the answers. "True but I'm also the asshole who keeps jumping to conclusions too quickly. In spite of the good things you did, I focused on one thing too much… You didn't expect the Church to make their move before the Third Wave, you were too busy fighting for your life."

"So were you and Still, I made a bad move, I should have tried convincing you on the day we met… How can I make it up to you?"

"You can start by answering more of my questions truthfully and not leave anything out." Naofumi says.

"Alright, hit me."

"Why are you working so hard to save Melromarc and help the Queen?" Naofumi asks, going straight to the point.

"We need her help, we need a powerful political ally that doesn't intend to screw us over for some selfish agenda or some extreme misguided belief. An ally with the resources to support us in our battles against the waves and the skills to negotiate with other countries. We aren't as strong as Fitoria yet, we can't bulldoze and punch any selfish asshole who stands in our way, sure we have a decent chance now with how strong we are but most of the time we would be on the run from the world we are trying to save. That's why I believe the Queen really is the best option despite the glaring flaws Melromarc has. Based on my source, her actions, and the rumors. She is perhaps the only genuinely good person in power…"

"What if you're wrong?" Naofumi says, reasonably skeptical.

"Fitoria will save my dumbass, take all the Heroes and leave by brute force. Also if I'm wrong then the apple certainly didn't fall from the tree, therefore, fuck the rest of the Royal bloodline at that point and the world. If we got no nation, we'll just go to each Wave in and out with Fitoria's help and do the bare minimum. We'll kick anyone's ass who wants to drag us into their dumbass schemes. I know Fitoria would be more than willing to do that especially if they don't like the Heroes being united, but we'll have to be careful with her identity." Misato answers.

"Sounds like a decent back up plan but what about the other countries? What's wrong with the others?"

Misato winces. "From what I know so far outside of Shadow and Anime sources…

Stilvelt is out because their beloved 'God' 'somehow' died there, their religion and culture is the polar opposite of Melromarc so they would give Ren, Itsuki and Motoyasu bullshit and would probably show extreme disapproval of the idea of the Cardinal Heroes uniting because of their religion. Just like our resident Pope…"

"Even ShieldFreedon is out, sure they might be nicer but there will certainly be outliers that we cannot deal with…" Misato explains and then leans towards Naofumi, lowering his voice. "Personally, if I hear one more religious nonsensical spur, I might break something more than the speaker's nose…" Misato mutters and Naofumi mouth twitches threatening to turn into a smile at Misato's relatable opinion. Both the Gun and the Shield Heroes are already fed up with the local fanatics.

"Faubrey…" Misato grimaces. "Okay they might be the only nation that promotes all Four but… Do you know what their sick fucking Ruler does so proudly?" Misato says, remembering his conversation with some merchants.

"What?" Naofumi asks and Misato explains the King of Faubrey's reputation.

"WHAT THE FUCK NO WAY WE ARE GOING THERE!" Naofumi screams and Misato nods in agreement.

"Q'ten Lo is too isolated and unknown, plus they have a trade deal with Stilvelt so that might be a problem too…" Misato summarizes. "As for Zeltoble it's a definite maybe, at least we don't have to deal with deep rooted corrupted religious stuff, probably… I don't know, there might be a fanatic who is rich. But they might be a bit too neutral and more than willing to throw us under the bus for money or favors if something happens."

Naofumi groans. "Fuck this world and their conflicts, is it really too much to ask for a nation that isn't fucked up?" Misato nods in agreement to Naofumi's rant.

"I know…" Misato says, letting out an exhaustive sigh, taking a sip of water. "What's the next question?"

"Why did you not kill Bitch? She tried to kill you and I saw how you took her down, it's clear you hate her a lot, maybe even more than I do. So why did you not kill her and end her wannabe tyrannical reign? Naofumi says, recalling the recording of Misato roasting the hell out of Malty, it was satisfying because all of Misato's points were so true, his words attacked Bitch straight to her black heart. But his rage made it so unsettling. Any belief of Naofumi having the most amount of rage among the all heroes was thrown out the moment they saw Misato verbally curbstomp Malty thoroughly destroying her ego.

"I haven't killed Malty because no matter how intelligent and pragmatic the Queen is, some irrational part of her will resent me. Because based on my source and her actions. The Queen still cares for Malty, in the anime, she is doing her best to make Malty come out alive at the very least but still be punished."

"Are you shitting me? The reason why I and maybe so many people suffered is because the Queen is too soft when it comes to that bitch?" Naofumi asks incredulously about the idea that a Ruler who was rumored to be fair and competent has the second stupidest bias he has ever heard. Second to the King's bias.

"Yeah…"

"That's fucking stupid." Naofumi growls.

"I agree… I agree soooo muuuch." Misato admits, groaning. He is frustrated with the Queen's actions in Episode 21 nowadays.

"Hah. Birds of a feather flock together." Naofumi scoffs. "No wonder why she and Trash are married." The Shield Hero slams his fist on the balcony.

"Yeah, unlike the King though, the Queen is at least capable of comprehending how bad Malty is, hence why Melty is next to the throne but her last string of love of Malty is the very reason why I cannot kill her. Having a genuine alliance where we could trust each other would be impossible. The Queen would subconsciously only see me as her precious daughter's murderer… Some part of her will die the moment I put a bullet in Malty's head…"

Naofumi frowns at Misato's statement and sighs.

"Maybe we should just take all the Heroes and move on from this nonsense and war…" Naofumi offers. "I mean you did your job, the Heroes are united, and this fight isn't ours. Plus this is the Queen's fault, she failed to deal with the Pope, she can't expect us to clean up her messes."

"Yeah, but can we really handle going on the run every time? Plus there is Fitoria, sure she could literally crush anyone but there is a high chance that in the future, we slip up and the horrible people in power who want to take the Heroes as their living weapons for their nonsense, they might try to commit genocide to Filolials. Then of course Fitoria would retaliate but those assholes could ruin her and the reputation of filolials forever, officially listing them as a dangerous species that must die."

"Fuck…" Naofumi curses at Misato's point, thinking of Filo and Sakura. No way will he allow any twisted bastard to kill them and their kind... "Well if that's the case, I hope you're right about the Queen. So what's your plan with Malty?"

"Place her in the deepest darkest jail for the rest of her life. We'll build a maximum-security prison for her if we have to."

"What if the Queen won't accept putting Malty to jail?" Naofumi asks

"What makes you think that?" Misato says, inquisitive of Naofumi's thoughts.

"Malty had at least a decade to be stopped before we were summoned and yet the Queen seems to have done nothing or maybe chose to not take extreme pragmatic measures, considering the amount of crap Malty nearly got away with. I bet there are more skeletons in her closet we don't know about. Some of the skeletons in there might have been from the Queen hiding her stupid daughter's messes to protect her." Naofumi scowls, clenching his fist on the railing. "It's also the reason why I felt so wary of the Queen because if she was a good person she would have done something to Malty a long time ago. Hell, I'm still having trouble seeing if your source is correct with the Queen." Naofumi admits.

"Yeah, I do have suspicions of that too and I'm still somewhat wary of the Queen…" Misato agrees because truthfully, he is not one hundred percent certain, maybe ninety percent. "But on the other hand, she has helped us so far… So, there are some good chances that I'm right." He says, leaning on the railing.

"So how will we get Malty into jail if the Queen will fight us if she truly loves her for some inane reason?" Naofumi questions, somewhat in disbelief to the idea of the, maybe, Good Queen being the last obstacle to stopping Malty for good.

Misato sighs, standing straight up, staring directly into Naofumi's eyes "If it comes down to it… I'll force the Queen to accept that Malty is beyond hope…"

"H-how?" Naofumi says, unintentionally stuttering, feeling a chill from Misato's cold piercing stare.

"You know how twisted Malty is, after what she did to you, to Rino and tried to kill Melty, her kid sister… So it's likely possible that Malty practically dreamed of doing horrible things to her family… Using the slave seal, I would force Malty to describe it right at the Queen's face. No matter who or what, if it comes down to it, I will make Mirellia finally face… The. Truth." Misato declares firmly.

Naofumi stares at Misato, unable to turn his gaze from Misato's intense look. For some reason Naofumi has a feeling that Misato will really do it if the Queen stands in his way. 'Considering the impossible things he pulled off, honestly, I'm starting to think Misato is an unstoppable force, literally if he levels up enough… At least he's on the same side… I think.'

"So, by making the Queen swallow the truth, there's a chance she won't argue with us about putting Malty into jail forever, maybe even more cooperative." Naofumi deduces, no longer feeling as tense as he was before with the Gun Hero because it's now clear to Naofumi that Misato doesn't fully trust the Queen either.

"Exactly…"

…

"You thought of all this the moment you were summoned, didn't you? You had a plan for the day Malty would get her trial…" Naofumi says, trying not to sound accusatory in his statement.

Misato shrugs, shaking his hand. "Sort of, I had a basis of a plan in case the Queen opposes us over Malty of all people, day by day, the idea formed bit by bit, and now I do have a plan. But I have to admit, I really hope it doesn't come to that…"

"I understand." It's true, Naofumi really does, executing Misato's plan would be very dramatic and intense. Misato certainly doesn't seem the type to express such intense emotion at people he believes are good.

"And… I forgive you." Naofumi says, facing the Gun Hero, who stares at him stunned by his forgiveness. Despite Misato omitting the truth, Naofumi really can't bring himself to actually hate or blame the guy for doing all of this. "I can't really say anything for the others but if the Queen opposes us, I got your back."

"Thank you…"

Later, Misato and Naofumi enter the dining room with all the other heroes, Matilda, S'yne, Raphtalia, Rino, and the majority of the Gun Hero's party. Filo, Sakura, Ace and the others remained outside.

Keel stiffens seeing Misato and Naofumi walk together. The Gun Hero raises his hand. "We made amends." He states and Naofumi nods. "Do you have something to say to Naofumi-san?"

Keel walks in front of the Shield Hero and bows. "Sorry for throwing that chair at you… I was also still pissed at what happened with the Church."

"It's fine." Naofumi says. "Let's get this meeting going." He says, walking to a chair nearby his party, and everyone follows his example, each silently taking their seats.

Misato turns to Fitoria. "Create the strongest field you have, one that even cuts off teleportation and communication from the crystal balls, we are not taking any chances."

Fitoria firmly nods, casting the spell. The Shadow holding the crystal ball stiffens as it stops glowing.

"Mother will not be in this meeting?" Melty asks.

"Sorry but no, if you want the Queen to know, your shadows will have to walk over to her face to face in the most secure room she has. No crystal balls, there might be ways it can be traced and eavesdropped that we don't know of. They might not have the same protection our weapons have in secure long-range communication." Misato answers, placing his hands on the table, staring directly into everyone's eyes.

"What I am about to tell you all… Must. Not. Leave. This. Room… The information is sensitive, if word gets out, Melromarc and maybe even the world will be destroyed."

Melty involuntary gulps, clenching her staff tightly. Itsuki, Ren and Motoyasu nod, waiting eagerly.

Misato sighs. "Here I go…" He turns his head facing Melty. "Melty, the things I did that should be impossible for a Projectile Hero, are possible for a Cardinal Hero.

"What?" Melty gasps and Matilda's eyes widen as the implications sink in. Rino drops her staff.

"I'm not one of the Seven Star Heroes…" Misato raises the Legendary Gun in the air, its gold gem shining brightly.

"I'm a Cardinal Hero too…"

Misato, with the help of Fitoria, explained everything… Misato's status as a Cardinal Hero, his predecessor, the Army of the Waves and their leader. The Secret weapon his predecessor has hidden.

Melty collapses into her chair, slightly trembling at the weight of this information, even Rino and Matilda do the same.

"Damn…" Motoyasu mutters, processing the information dump.

"An entire world destroyed…" Itsuki murmurs, rubbing the Legendary Bow.

Ren stares with a stoic expression but his fists clenched on the table suggest otherwise.

"H*ow is t*e Gun Al*ve?" S'yne asks in awe, staring at the weapon. "My W*apon is d*ying…" Fitoria stiffens, likely sensing the Vassal Weapon's state.

"I'm not certain, not yet, but if Forrest lasted until he died of old age, then so could you…" Misato says and S'yne smiles wide, filled with hope.

"If the vault requires all Five Heroes to be united, then let's go over to the Sanctuary now and use the weapon right away!" Itsuki proclaims. "We're united right? Plus, we could probably use the weapon to take out the Pope!"

"I don't think that's a good idea, if the weapon requires centuries worth of souls installed into it… It's possible the weapon is a one shot only." Ren points out and Itsuki falters.

"There might also be more information in there we need to know and right now I think I'm at max capacity." Motoyasu sighs, rubbing his forehead and Rino pats his back

"Yeah… We got to deal with the shitty Pope first, letting our minds wander about the World eater is going to distract us." Misato explains.

"Are you certain of this? We could just leave now." Fitoria says and Misato shakes his head.

"I'm sorry Fitoria but you have to wait longer… We need the Queen's support and right now she needs our help to save Melromarc from the Pope." Misato apologizes, leaning down. "Can you watch the Sanctuary a little longer?"

Fitoria shakes her head. "No." Fitoria then jumps on top of the table, gathering everyone's attention.

"For the first time in centuries, the Cardinal Heroes are Truly United with no hidden ill intent of each other. My memories of Previous Heroes are maybe faulty but this…" Fitoria waves her arms towards everyone. "I know for certain… Your bond is something I have never seen before, it is at a level that I once believed was impossible.

"Your predecessors in the past did work together before, but once the Waves ended, they returned to conflict almost immediately afterwards. They only worked together because of how much a threat the waves became at the time but they still despised each other…"

"But all of you, do not carry such pettiness towards each other. I sense a brotherly bond among you all, a bond that will not be so easily broken by those who wish to break it with lies… I believe I will not forget such a feeling anytime soon." Fitoria admits smiling, placing her hand over her heart. "Thanks to your efforts, I get to witness something I thought would never come to be… Which is why." Fitoria faces Misato. "I will… join you in this battle… I will help you remove the disgusting filth that dares to try and erase it all."

Misato smiles wide. "Welcome back Fitoria." He says with his arms open and Fitoria nods still smiling, jumping into Misato's arms, hugging him.

"It feels nice to be back…" Fitoria admits, whispering into Misato's ear and the Gun Hero gently places Fitoria back on her chair.

"Alright so… What else do we need to say?" Misato asks, uncertain if he missed anything.

"What Weapon Series allowed Forrest to take over your body?" Ren asks.

"Oh yeah…" Misato blinks, remembering how shocking it was to discover that Forrest is somehow alive inside the Gun. It certainly explained a lot of things in the past…

"I think I know…" Misato glances at this HUD.

"When I visited Forrest's grave, with his Police Badge, I saw a memory of his, and Fitoria confirmed it was real. Afterwards, I had this new series that was slowly unlocking itself with a passive effect activated but the series was just a black bar and later a scramble of letters I couldn't decipher. Along the way, I would sometimes witness memories that belonged to Forrest. When the hunting army tried to kill me, the series was unlocked, then I blacked out, likely because Forrest took over and fought them all alone." Misato explains, examining the Legendary Gun in its first form.

"Then I discovered what the passive effect does, it's called Combat Assistance, from what my Gun is telling me, it helps me fight better overall, it keeps me a little calmer than normal, makes me react faster, and think quicker. It says it helps my technique and skills, not Hero Weapon skills but like actual fighting skills." Misato says describing the passive effect. "In fact, looking back, when the King tried to decapitate me with Wind Cutter, I backflipped to avoid it, which is something I never tried before and yet I did like I practiced it so many times…" His memory is surprisingly clear as well, memory of relevant information from his time on Earth anyway. It would explain all the details he remembers well.

"This weapon series is called… The Legacy of the Gun Hero…" Misato announces sending chills into everyone's spines.

"It says that it's a series that is made to help accelerate my training and growth using all experiences from Previous Gun Heroes." Everyone remains silent, staring with rapt attention to this new weapon series Misato is describing.

"There is this skill called Full Combat Mode. It tells me that when I activate it, it will give me and everyone in my party extremely high levels of regeneration, and high pain negation." Misato says.

S'yne eyes widen, placing a hand on her cheek remembering how her bruise felt numb and how she was slowly healing back when Forrest was fighting the Sword Vanguard. Melty gasps, remembering the same, how the Loyal Soldiers were slowly healing from their wounds.

"It would also double my current stats and allow me to fully utilize all the skills and experience all the Previous Gun Heroes had in an indefinite moment to fight. It also seems to allow the previous wielder to take control but it doesn't say that for some reason. Unfortunately, the Series is recharging, it might take a few days to be ready." Misato says, pausing, letting everyone digest the information.

Misato then continues. "There was a quote from a famous martial artist from my world, 'I fear not the man who has practiced ten thousand kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick ten thousand times.' In other words, it is better to master one single thing in fighting than learning multiple things with very little refinement put into it during a day. But what if this series… Makes me someone who practiced each kick ten thousand times each? Instead of a Jack of All Trades, I could become a Master of All Trades." Misato says.

"What if this series is meant to help the Cardinal Heroes gain skills and technique faster than normal, using their predecessor's experience to refine each move quicker? It makes sense because we Cardinal Heroes start off pathetically weak, we could've fallen and snap out necks at level 1, our enemy, the World Eater, could send assassins to kill us before we could reach our potential because we aren't skillful enough to fight them off. This power could make us reach far beyond what most people are capable of…" Misato finishes, taking deep breaths and large gulps of water.

"Amazing." Melty blurts out.

"Misato… You think we can unlock this power too?" Ren asks, hands trembling in excitement, same as everyone else.

"Maybe… But, that's very risky and it will be tough. We don't know if any of your predecessors are truly buried where it is said they are, it's been many years, lots of wars happened. Plus the other nations might be so keen on letting you leave so easily right now when searching in their tombs" Misato answers and the other Cardinal Heroes groan.

"He's right, the other nations likely have fucked up problems too and make things complicated…" Naofumi vouches.

"But Mamoru might have been buried in the Sanctuary." Fitoria offers, Naofumi and Raphtalia smile.

"Melromarc might have at least one previous Cardinal Hero buried somewhere, maybe even more." Melty suggests and a Shadow steps forward.

"We'll look into it." Dawn says, giving the other Three Heroes hope for this power.

"Fitoria, with your permission, can I look into your personal recordings for everyone to have a reference image to look for in the history books?" Misato asks and Fitoria nods.

"Of course, I trust you to look."

Misato grins and looks into the files stored in his Gun. He skims through the recordings, until he finds one where it shows everyone in Forrest's group, even a new but oddly familiar-

"What the hell?!" Misato blurts out.

"What's wrong?" Fitoria asks and Misato projects the image for everyone to see. Showing Mamoru, R'yne, Filolia, Forrest, Holn, and…

Everyone gasps, seeing a woman in a Miko dress, bearing a remarkable resemblance to Raphtalia…

"Why does that girl look like Raphtalia?!" Naofumi says. "Who is she?"

"The Vassal Hammer Hero, Natalie, the Empress of Q'ten Lo of that time period." Fitoria answers and her eyes narrow, noticing Sadeena stiffening at the reveal.

"So Raphtalia is a descendant from Royalty?" Keel questions, looking at her childhood friend.

"I guess but Mama and Papa never mentioned this before…" Raphtalia admits, thinking deeply, trying to remember any clues.

"You know something don't you Sadeena…" Fitoria states, calling out the Eldest Demi-Human, gathering everyone's attention on her and Sadeena. "I sensed it, your reaction to Natalie was odd compared to the others… You were anxious."

"Sadeena, explain." Misato says.

Sadeena sighs, taking a sip of water and reveals her secret.

The origins of Raphtalia's parents, how her father wished to be free of Q'ten Lo's politics, how he and his wife came to Lurolono Village, how Sadeena was from a family dedicated to protecting the Royal family, and how she abandoned Q'ten Lo to protect Raphtalia's parents. How Sadeena was always wary of the Shinobi sent over to watch the family, ensuring they are not a threat to the throne before Raphtalia was even born, and even when Raphtalia's father had clear intentions of not pursuing the throne.

Naofumi, Keel and Rifana became enraged the most realizing those spies let Raphtalia's parents die, they let Raphtalia and the survivors be enslaved. That they would rather let an innocent ignorant girl suffer and die. Everyone got aggravated when Sadeena warned them to not let Raphtalia wear the same outfit her ancestor is wearing in the image, because the shinobi being so dogmatic to their code and honor, they will see it as a declaration of war.

"FUCK!"

Smash!

The dining table splits in half with bark chips, glass and silverware flying all over the room. Misato stands at the center crack with his fists clenched, trembling in rage, and everyone stares, disturbed by his outburst. "It was already bad enough to have Melromarc with people thinking they are holier than thou… But now we have Shinobi spying on us waiting to kill us for the slightest misstep? No matter what we say or do, they will try to kill Raphtalia and anyone else she befriends with? That is the most…" Misato growls in frustration, sounding like a wolf. "GOD I got NO words to describe how idiotic it is! Fuck these idiots in power too paranoid and stupid to JUST LET things be! When I deal with the church I'm GOING TO-

"Misato, calm yourself." Fitoria interrupts, placing her hand on his shoulder. Misato pauses, looking at Fitoria and looks at everyone else, staring at him in fear, filling him with shame.

"I'm sorry… It's just… This is just too much…" Misato sighs, sitting on his chair, leaning on his arms over his knees. "I'm reaching my limits with all this nonsense. I knew there would be issues beforehand but now that I am facing them…"

"I understand your frustration, these needless complications are aggravating…" Fitoria mutters softly, rubbing Misato's back.

"Yeah… I'm running out of patience too." Keel says with an exhaustive sigh and Rifana nods, hugging Raphtalia.

"This Q'ten Lo crap is stupid…" Naofumi comments and the rest of the Cardinal Heroes nod in agreement. "It's one thing with the church but now we have to deal with some pig headed island ruler?"

"As long as we avoid mentioning it and having Raphtalia wear the same outfit as Natalie, we will be fine. Not only that but the spies have yet to return." Sadeena assures and Misato frowns, looking at Natalie.

"It is true, I have yet to sense any unknown spies other than the Queen's Shadows." Fitoria vouches.

"Too bad, Raphtalia would look so pretty in that outfit…" Rifana comments, observing the image and Raphtalia lightly blushes.

"Does anyone know the current Hammer Hero?" Misato asks and everyone shakes their head. "Crap…"

"What is it?" Naofumi asks.

"Considering how Heroic Raphtalia is and if the Hammer has no wielder, it might latch onto Raphtalia, and since Natalie was its wielder in the past, a fact that Q'ten Lo might not have forgotten, they might see that as a declaration as well…" Misato guesses. Since Raphtalia was chosen to wield the Katana, that implies how compatible she is to most of the Vassal Weapons. Especially since Raphtalia really is the Descendant of the Previous Hammer Hero. Like how Melty was immediately the Staff Hero after her father.

Naofumi groans.

"Oh come on!" Keel complains.

"If that's true it would have chosen Raphtalia a long time ago, so maybe the Hammer is occupied." Sadeena points out and everyone sighs in relief.

"Okay then…" Misato yawns. "We'll discuss the Q'ten Lo nonsense later, for now let's focus on our plan about the Church."

"The Pope has taken over the main capital and we got word that they are starting to convert the civilians by force to join their army…" A Shadow explains and everyone's expressions darken at the news.

"Sick bastards…" Itsuki growls and turns to the Gun Hero. "What are we going to do Misato?" Itsuki asks, holding his bow eagerly. Everyone turns to Misato, waiting for him to speak much to his surprise.

'Do they really look to me for leadership now?' Misato shakes his head at the thoughts and stands straight up.

"We train and level up like hell." Misato raises his arm to Fitoria. "With Fitoria's help, we will fight monsters beyond Melromarc, that way, we won't leave a blood trail towards this town. Along the way, we will gather materials to create new weapons and armor, maybe even find a Vassal Hero to get their strengthening method if we're lucky." Misato pauses, taking a breath.

"Then, when we are ready… We'll show those bastards the Power of ALL Cardinal Heroes COMBINED!"

Welcome to the End of this chapter, thank you all for reading!

Boy this was perhaps the longest chapter I made, or it feels like it. Sorry it took a while, it's the Summer, I thought I needed a bit of a long break.

So time to justify some events here in this chapter and explain my thoughts all in order.

Naofumi being angry that Misato did not tell him that he is working with the Queen. Personally when it comes to being angry and 'snapping' it's always the little things that slowly build up until eventually you snap into rage and scream.

In this case, Naofumi came out of a terrible fight, witnessing so many people die to what looks like a psychopath (Spear Vanguard) Then suddenly, after a long time reluctantly trusting Misato's information, following his orders, he discovers Misato was working with a family member of the Trash and Bitch. Not telling him who and why for a long time. Naofumi felt betrayed and hurt for Misato not trusting him. Whether he was wrong or right that's up to you. Same towards Misato's decision to not tell Naofumi.

Rifana, Keel, and Ace's reaction were similar, think about what they went through too. Plus I thought it would be nice to see Rifana and keel take a stand on their own and say their thoughts without Misato there.

Fitoria's reaction to Naofumi kind of goes without saying.

Overall, with what everyone went through, don't be too surprised to see them so tense and angry in this chapter.

Hope you don't see it as Naofumi bashing, I just thought it fits his character at this moment.

One of the Cardinal Weapons from the Same world as the Gun is revealed… The Transport Hero, I'm going to let you figure that Hero out.

The reason why Melty broke down in Misato's arms. I think in Canon, Melty, being a somewhat naive and sheltered child, didn't FULLY comprehend the implications of what could have gone down when the Cardinal Heroes were summoned. That she and her mother could have seriously hurt and Misato's rant on the King made her realize that.

Misato truthfully was never fully on the "Queen is the Best." Bandwagon, at least not until Malty escaped in canon and caused more damage when his friend told him. She is the very reason why Misato has not shot Malty in the head because she will still grieve for her and lash out on Misato without realizing it. The Queen's wish to keep Malty not maimed and not dead is the most irritating thing in the world. If Malty was like Elena, then that's fine but Malty's canon personality… Fuck no.

Misato's end goal for Malty is just making her live in a Maximum Security Prison Cell forever. Cause killing her would make the Queen upset, and yeah… THERE IS a political reason why Malty MUST NOT die… It will be revealed later.

Also, I just realized, WHAT is this coincidence? In the Anime, Malty was exposed and punished in Episode 21. In this fanfic, Malty was roasted in Chapter 21. It was fate!

Misato's backup plan if the Queen refused to lock Malty up forever is pretty viable, I think so anyway. Misato basically has the backing of all Cardinal Heroes and the unstoppable force that is Fitoria. They could force Malty to speak her sick dreams out loud and the Queen would not be able to stop them, and might even reveal her involvement with a Certain Prince's death. I also hope you like how Misato is slowly becoming someone who is described as 'An Unstoppable Force' To highlight what his virtue is.

The Legacy of the Gun Hero. That's right everyone, Misato basically has the Avatar Gun State! Although just to clarify, Misato isn't capable of using Endgame Gun forms Previous Gun Heroes had, he can just use their martial arts and experience they all mastered in the past. If you name the martial art that compliments fighting with a Gun, then it's likely in the Legacy Series somewhere deep inside.

If he has the appropriate stats he can use some of their rare magic spells and Lifeforce (Hengen Musou) Techniques that even Elrasla (Granny) doesn't know.

The Legacy Series also makes up for the one serious weakness every Summoned Hero has, which is combat experience and training.

There is a reason why Forrest took control when the Series was designed for something else, more will be revealed later.

DxD-Supreme suggested the Raphtalia Heritage reveal scene and I liked it. Plus it was a good example of how these tiring events have taken a toll on the Gun Hero's mind and worn down his control of his emotions. I mean can you blame him after what he just went through? In Season 3, those shinobi were trigger happy bastards, Misato would've (and maybe will) demolish them with his bare hands. Because if his Gun won't work, then he'll start Throwing Hands.

Okay, that's all I have to say, thank you all again for reading. Have a good day!