Chapter 4: Does the early bird get the worm?
The next day arrived, and Naofumi wasted no time, rushing into the forest almost immediately. Though it was still pretty early, so early that the sun hadn't even risen yet. But the only thing on Naofumi's mind was getting levels; a good night's rest be damned. When Sakura hatched, she was level one and was very energetic for a newborn. Of course, at this level and size, she was extremely vulnerable to any attack, but he was the shield hero for a reason. Why worry about her defenses if she wasn't going to get hit in the first place?
"Alright, let's kill this one."
"Piyo!"
Naofumi ran forward, catching the balloon out of the air as usual and pinning it to the ground. With no chance of being attacked, Sakura happily jumped on top of the balloon and perched on its head.
Naofumi expected Sakura would have to do a lot of attacks to kill it. Not as much as him, but still a lot since she was level one. He regretted not paying attention, however, as he heard a loud pop seconds later.
Sakura
3 Exp
Naofumi
3 Exp
Holy shit, she did that in one attack? Of course, she could; her attack stat is vastly superior to mine. If she was able to do this at level one, what would she be able to do when she is fully grown? Maybe I have a chance to- "HEY! Don't eat that; you'll choke!" Naofumi shouted as he picked up Sakura. She just attempted to eat the balloon she just killed. And whether she was a monster or not. Naofumi wasn't going to take a chance with her eating no edible objects.
"Pio Pilo."
"You can't just try to eat everything you see, especially since balloon rubber isn't edible."
"Piiilo." Sakura drooped.
"That was our first fight, and you killed this thing in, like, five seconds. There's no way you're out of energy already!"
"Piiilo!" Sakura chirped furiously."
"Don't chirp at me in that tone; I'm not the one who's starving!" Naofumi sighed as he grabbed another balloon on his back. "We'll finish fighting the monsters in this area, then we'll stop for breakfast. Does that sound good?"
"Pio." Sakura chirped happily, driving her beak into the balloon and popping it instantly.
"Great, now I have to worry about food for two. What has my life delved into? Naofumi sighed again. "Why am I even arguing with a bird? How am I arguing with a bird? I'm probably just going insane."
With their plan in motion, Naofumi and Sakura gathered and popped as many balloons as they could before dawn. Naofumi wanted to continue, but Sakura kept pecking Naofumi on the neck as she whined for food. After more back and forth, Naofumi gave in and left for the castle town after his usual clean-up routine.
/~/
Back in town, Naofumi went to the shops from yesterday and began to sell his wares, earning him around three silvers in total this time, thanks to the additional balloon skins. Once he got his coins, he wasted no time and immediately went back into the inn. Inside the public kitchen, he found someone else's leftover ingredients that were pretty much tossed aside. Believing that no food can be wasted, Naofumi took the leftovers and used them for his and Sakura's meal.
Passing Sakura a bowl of small meats, she tore into the meal, finishing in under a minute. Begging for more, Naofumi was forced to give her some of his meal to satisfy her hunger, but it didn't do much since every time she would finish, she would become hungrier somehow.
"It hasn't even been a day yet, and I'm exhausted." Naofumi sighed. Looking over at Sakura, he found the bird to already be fast asleep in the bowl she had just eaten from. Carrying her in the bowl she's lying in. Naofumi entered the room, redid all his barricades, and collapsed on the bed. "Now I know why people complain about parenting; it hasn't even been twelve hours yet," Naofumi complained as he slowly dozed off.
/~/
Waking back up in the evening, Naofumi left the inn and searched the market for some proper bird food. He wasn't 100% sure if a Filolial was an omnivore or could even eat human food, but that would be something he'd figure out later if Sakura ended up getting sick.
He then went back out into the forest for a bit, killed a few more balloons, and then returned for more food and sleep. Aside from taking a few breaks to feed Sakura and gathering more herbs, Naofumi's routine stayed the same throughout the week.
Two days in, however, Sakura reached level six, and the exp they got from the balloons was no longer good enough to satisfy their leveling. So Naofumi spent some time trying to find a new monster to grind, with mixed results.
There was the mush, but it gave little exp as the balloon, and Sakura didn't like getting the slime and muck on her face. The other option in the area was the usapil, something they could relatively kill with minimal effort. The only issue is that Sakura also disliked getting the blood on her face, further limiting his options. There was the occasional red balloon, but those were far too infrequent to grind.
Once again, Naofumi found himself stumped in his leveling. He thought having a mentor would make it easier, and in many cases it did. It's just that he didn't expect said monster to be a stubborn brat who would throw a wrench in his plans.
With a heavy groan, Naofumi decided to call it a day. He went straight for the tavern for a quick meal, feeling too exhausted to cook for himself. But as he got there, he dealt with the usual scowls and annoying servers before sitting down to stuff his face.
This is all just one big mess. I'm getting nowhere, and it's been a week already. How am I supposed to do anything now? Naofumi thought as he ate his bland food. For some reason, Sakura hopped onto his shoulder and began nuzzling his cheek.
Did she sense my despair? or is she just hungry… Who am I kidding? She's probably just hungry.
"No, Sakura, you can't have my food. Eat yours."
"Pio Pio." Sakura chirped as she shook her head; she turned and began bouncing, directing Naofumi's attention behind him. When he did, he saw two people behind him, both with a suspicious smile on their faces.
Oh great, who are these people? I swear if it's more idiots from Siltvelt, I'll find the place and burn it to the ground.
"Alright, let's make this quick. No, I don't have spare change. No, I'm not trying to buy anything. And no, the bird is not for sale."
"What are you going on about? We're just here because we want to join your party." The man smiled, looking even more cynical.
"Oh, that. No need, I'm fine on my own." Naofumi shooed them away, seeing through their bullshit immediately. But the duo didn't back down and instead continued pushing their proposition.
"Oh, don't give us that. We know you're hurting for dudes. Come on, it'll be fun." The man tried to convince Naofumi again, but that only made the shield hero even more annoyed. He needed an outlet to vent his anger anyway, so he decided to humor the duo.
"Fine. Follow me; I'll take you to the headquarters or whatever." Naofumi sighed as he went out the door and into an alleyway. If things were going to get dicey, then out of the public's eye was the best way to go about it. Mostly because the guard will most likely join the opposing side.
"Alright, I already know how you guys operate. Luring in adventurers to rob them, I've read it hundreds of times. So drop the act and let's get this over with."
"Then we can make this easy for both of us. You hand over your money, and we'll leave you be." The man chucked.
"Drop in that filolial of yours too; I've been craving chicken for a whil- Agh!." The bandit cried out as a balloon was shoved into his face.
The other bandit tried to attack, but he was immediately blown back as soon as he hit the shield. When he got up to attack again, he fell into despair as he found his dagger snapped in half on the ground. Having been beaten by the shield so quickly and without much effort, he decided to leave before anything else happened.
"I don't know what their plan was about, but attacking a person who specialized in defense wasn't the best idea. These balloons came in handy for situations like this.
"Pio pio pio!"
"Why are you going on abo-, Woah!?" Turning to Sakura on his shoulder, Naofumi narrowly dodged an axe aiming for his head.
Thinking quickly, Naofumi grappled the man's arm, preventing him from swinging his weapon again. While his arms were stretched out, Sakura jumped over his shoulder and leaped off, poking the axe bandit in the eye.
"AGH!" The bandit cried out. As he backed up from the pain, he tripped on some trash left in the alley and fell onto the waste.
"Mind holding this for me?" Naofumi grinned and dropped a balloon on the man's face. The bandit struggled on the ground for a bit before running off into the street to regroup with his friend.
"Thought that guy was done already. Perhaps I can tolerate you for a bit longer."
"Piyooo!" Insulted, Sakura tried to peck Naofumi, but a metallic clang played every time she struck.
"Chill I was joking. Now let's go back for my meal. I-"
"Well, that was quite the show, sir hero. Very interesting indeed."
Naofumi turned around, recognizing the voice.
"Great. It's you."
"You don't seem too happy to see me."
"If you were hated by an entire country, I believe you'd feel the same." Naofumi scoffed.
"Ahh yes, I've heard about the tragedy myself. The story of how the shield hero forced himself onto his dear and beloved party member."
"I SAID I DIDN'T DO IT!" Naofumi shouted as he slammed his fist against the wall. But with his low attack, the wall effortlessly survived the hit.
"Culprit of this heinous crime or not, I wouldn't care. I just saw that you are in dire need of help, and being the calculated man of business I am, I've decided to be said help… for the right price, of course." The slave trader grinned.
"You would take advantage of me at my lowest point just to gain a profit."
"Of course, I'm glad that you were able to catch onto my intention so quickly. It would make our business go a lot smoother." The trader grinned even more, making Naofumi cringe.
"Wow… you are a piece of shit." Naofumi sighed. "Show me the extended inventory."
"Wonderful! Now if you would follow me, I would lead us back to my glorious tent."
"That's cool and all, but assuming this is my second time shopping with you, can I at least get a name and proof of purchase this time? Can't have any more bullshit happen like that."
"Proof of purchase is a simple thing to do. As for the name… not a lot of people ask me that, sir hero. But you can call me Beloukas."
/~/
Naofumi followed Beloukas across town and back into an alleyway he had entered so long ago.
"Welcome back to our monster area."
"Speaking of monsters, what the hell is up with mine?"
"Pardon me, sir hero. But didn't your filolial just hatch?"
"She did, and she's been hungry seven times throughout the day. I'll happily assume you didn't modify her to have this happen." Naofumi crossed his arms.
"I would never. I am a fair and… somewhat honest businessman."
"Somewhat doesn't help your case," Naofumi grumbled.
Walking through the tent, Naofumi passed through the monster area without batting an eye.
"Oh, and by the way, I'm not looking to buy a monster."
"Oh, you aren't buying directly? Then perhaps you want to try your hand at the lottery again for a chance at an even stronger monster?"
"Not that either. I need something to help me grind now." Reaching the desired area. Naofumi pulled back the curtain and walked into the slave section of the tent.
"I desire your cheapest option. Preferably around the ten-silver range." Naofumi demanded. Though when he gave the order, Beloukaus looked quite pleased with it.
"Oh, this is quite the development. If that is truly what you desire, follow me over here." Beloukas cheered as he led Naofumi over to a few cages. Removing the cloth revealed a big cage with a few slaves inside. Though Naofumi only looked at them for a second before putting the cloth back on.
"Anything else?"
"Are you not satisfied, hero?"
"Well looking at them, one is missing an arm, another looks severely damaged in the mental department, and the other one is I assume dead. Why would I be satisfied!"
"I'll have my henchmen deal with that later, but this is the cheapest of the cheap I can offer. But for you, I can attempt to make a compromise. I have a new shipment coming in by next week. If you return, then I can probably find something you'll like." Belokaus took out a quill and started to write on a paper. "Do you have any preferences?"
"Cheap, but effective."
"As in cheap, do you mean—"
"Look for something that's not broken or dead. That would be a decent start."
"Will do; I promise to not disappoint. Now about your Filolial."
"She is not and will never be for sale." Naofumi furiously stated.
"No need to worry, Sir Hero; I have no desire to take your Filolial. It's just an answer to your question from earlier."
"Go on then," Naofumi demanded.
"Well, it could be due to any number of reasons. But might I ask, have you been leveling up lately with the little bird in your party?"
Please don't tell me that's the reason. Naofumi groaned. "Yeah, what about it?" Naofumi asked, trying his best to keep composed.
"Then that might be the issue. Levels can influence a monster's growth, which would explain her desire to eat more and more food despite being only a few days old."
Goddamn it! Naofumi swore.
"Well, that's good to know. But I have a feeling that information wasn't cheap."
"For some, yes. But for you, Lord Hero, it's free of charge. Let it be a testament to our further business together."
"Bold of you to assume I'll be returning, but sure. Just keep up your end of the deal and I'll keep up mine."
"Then I wish a good night's rest to you, sir hero," Belkaus waved goodbye as Naofumi walked outside the tent.
"Just in time too. I can use this moment to get some of Raiber's slaves." Belokaus chuckled. "Henchmen! Grab the quill and parchment; it's time to send a letter. And please remove that corpse; we don't want any smells around here."