We finally get to the chapter where both Malty and Naofumi get to shine respectively in their roles. Hope you all enjoy!

Big thanks to Qinlongfei for beta reading this chapter and making important suggestions/critique.

With that said, let's get this chapter started!

Chapter 63: The Shadow over Silver Pass

Malty was really starting to like all of the former Vallerie slaves that they rescued from the estate. She couldn't pretend that she wasn't a bit iffy on it, but Thomas said that they couldn't just leave the former slaves on their own where they would probably be killed or get pressed back into slavery within the week. Malty couldn't deny that she did feel sorry for the former Vallerie slaves after seeing the state that they were living in for years. They deserved better than what they got in life...

This also meant a lot more people living at the fort that she very much welcomed. The fort always felt a little too big for just her and Thomas to live by themselves with so much empty and unused space that it scared her a little to go get a glass of water at night, so having all the extra company made her feel a bit better about their situation. Malty liked Thomas but her friend wasn't the best at making conversation at times, especially after all they had been through in these past couple of months.

Flint and Spark were really nice to speak to and be around! Well, Spark was nice to talk to and all, her older brother scared her a little but he treated her fine. Malty couldn't deny that it felt good being looked up to by someone and being called 'Professor Malty' by her student. Uncle Aldretch would be proud to see her now as she taught her fire magic to somebody who really wanted to learn. Malty could see that while Spark struggled, she had a lot of talent that could be refined into something better and she was sure that her student would be a great fire mage one day.

All the extra people also meant more people to go on field exercises with Thomas instead of it just being her there.

At the moment, she and several others were outside with Thomas standing in front of them with his arms folded behind his back in the same manner that reminded her of Coach Zellus when he got serious during their lessons. They were all standing at the foot of a tall and steep looking hill that made Malty guess that some sort of climbing activity would be involved in this exercise. The others looked a bit jittery and nervous, Malty actually felt excited as she always loved doing these field exercises as it usually meant that Thomas would teach her some more of his ranger tricks that she found pretty interesting.

She noticed Spark and Flint were just a few people down to her right, and she gave a small wave that Spark returned with a smile.

" Alright kids, strap up and pay attention. Today's lesson is quite simple so I'll keep this brief. A ranger is a master of their environment, they must be able to traverse any type of terrain quickly and without delay." Thomas pointed at the tall and steep hill that was in front of them." The training today is simple: Climb this hill and make it to the top as fast as you can. First 10 to make it to the top before the others gets two days off chores and training along with a hearty steak dinner tonight."

The reward got quite a few nods and big grins of excitement from the others who very much wanted it. Thomas was a pretty good cook, which he admitted might be due to some of his powers enhancing the flavor of the food he makes but Malty didn't say anything about that.

" Hey boss, where did the others go? Didn't they leave with you an hour or two ago?" Malty turned to her left to see an older dog boy raise his hand to ask Thomas a question. The dog boy was of course referring to another group of former slaves that Thomas asked to come with him two hours before he took them out of the fort.

He raised a good question, where did the second group go?

" Oh...they are around. I had them prepare some stuff for this exercise actually." Thomas had a mischievous smirk on his face that told Malty that there was more to this exercise than he was telling them. Thomas clapped his hands together as his left Marked hand emitted strange reddish smoke. " Now just give me a moment to get to the top of the hill and then we can start."

Thomas was true to his word as he vanished in a swirl of black smoke and reappeared at the very top of the hill. Some of the others looked amazed, but Malty was already more than used to the sight of Blink that she can't even say she's surprised.

" BEGIN!"

At Thomas's signal, all of them ran forward and started climbing the steep and tall hill, some of the others even pushing against each other to be among the top ten to earn the reward of having no chores or training to do for two days. Thomas certainly knew how to motivate people to train hard. But to be honest, Malty didn't really care about the reward itself so much...

As she did care about winning and being among the top 10.

Malty started climbing and scaling the hill at a decent pace, the others were clearly scrambling for speed to scale the hill as fast as they could that they ended up stumbling and falling back down a few meters. The hill was made up mostly of grassy terrain but also had plenty of rocks sticking out of it that made for good gripping positions. Malty was instead focusing more on efficiency rather than pure speed so that she didn't end up losing too much progress if she did misstep and slide back down.

Thankfully that didn't happen as Malty made good time as she climbed the hill at a relatively fast pace. Thomas had taught her all of his climbing tricks since she was young to the point that she was able to match Kat with how fast she can climb a tree. A tall hill like this was easy compared to the other things Thomas had taught her.

After a few minutes, Malty could see that she was in the lead alongside a few others as they reached the halfway point on the hill and weren't that far away from the top. Among the ones who were with her, she spotted Spark not that far away from her climbing the hill with help from Flint. It shocked her since Spark confessed that she wasn't the strongest physically, but to see her pushing herself like this made Malty proud of her student.

" You doing okay Spark?" Malty called out to Spark who turned her head for a brief moment to look at her.

" I-I'm fine. This isn't too hard, I think." Spark said as she let out several breaths. It was clear that Spark was struggling even with her brother helping her.

" Try to match your breathing with each pull upwards to not waste any stamina." Malty offered some good advice." Come on, we're almost there!"

" The hill is steep but I don't really get why this would be hard for-" Flint was cut off as something hit him right in the face that made Spark scream in shock as he almost lost his grip on the stone that he was pulling both himself and Spark up to.

" FLINT!" Malty shouted as she reached out to help pull Flint's arm up.

" I-I'm fine, what the hell was that!?" Flint shouted as Malty looked at the object that hit Flint in the face as it rolled down the hill.

It was a leather ball, the same kind they used to play with and it came from the top of the hill.

" Bullseye! In your face Flint!" Malty turned her head to look up at the top of the hill where she could see a group of demi-human and beastman kids standing at the top with rubber balls in their hands next to Thomas.

" Welcome to the second part of this exercise!" Thomas called out from the top of the hill with a rubber ball in his hands." Here comes your next challenge, get up here without getting pelted by balls by your friends." Thomas announced as the second group of demi grinned as they all had rubber balls in hand.

Uh oh.

Malty could hear Spark scream as they were suddenly being pelted by balls. She jumped between different rocks to avoid getting hit and raising her right arm to block the leather balls they were being bombarded with. They didn't really hurt to get hit by but they certainly were distracting when they were trying to climb a very steep and tall hill and getting hit by one certainly made balancing a lot harder. She could see some of the others who were keeping up with her slide back down as they were hit by balls.

" Keep moving!" Malty heard the dog boy from earlier call out to all of them as he hurriedly kept climbing to reach the top. Malty followed his example as she jumped between rocks to make herself harder to hit.

But it was while she was jumping to another rock for better reach that she saw a ball coming right at her. She didn't have time to dodge as a leather ball hit her square in the face and felt her grip slip.

Malty let out a cry as she stumbled back and rolled down the hill for a few meters, rolling in the grassy dirt...until she felt herself hit a rock that stopped her descent. But her left hand ended up crashing into it.

CRACK!

Malty felt the bones in her left wrist break as a flood of pain erupted her senses.

" AAHHHHHHHH!" Malty cried out as she quickly grabbed onto the rock with her other remaining wrist and positioned her left wrist onto the rock to inspect it as she was hanging off of the rock.

She's fairly certain her wrist is broken, it hurts a lot just to move it around and she's not sure she can make the rest of the climb. Malty looked up to Thomas who didn't seem to have noticed her situation and there was no way he was going to hear her over all the screaming from the others that were currently trying to make their way to the top.

Maybe she should just stop here and slowly make her way back down and wait for the exercise to be over. She's not sure she can make the climb with one broken wrist.

That was her first thought and just as she was about to give up, she saw Spark and Flint push forward despite the barrage of balls. Her student preserving even when physical activities wasn't her strong suit. If she could not do the same, what right did she have to call herself a teacher? Much less a proper student of Thomas?

No. She would not give up here, not when she was this close! She's still above the halfway point and if she can just push a little further she can make it!

Malty grit her teeth as she ignored the pain in her wrist as she pressed on, continuing the climb even with a broken wrist. She used her feet and her remaining wrist to propel herself forward, grabbing on to the grass and other rocks that were sticking out of the stone. Keeping her head down to avoid getting hit by another ball and even using her left arm to hold on to the rocks, despite her wrist hurting even more.

Her wrist might be broken, but she's not going to give up when she is this close!

" AH!" Malty flinched as the pain in her wrist grew with each passing second as she grabbed onto another rock to hoist herself up the hill. She was almost at the top, but with Thomas and the second group pelting them with balls its going to be hard to reach the top.

Malty thought about her options for a minute, a frontal charge up the hill is too hard. She'd be hit in seconds and knocked back down but she can't wait any longer. She shifted a little more to her left side as felt her dagger that was hanging off her belt press up against her a bit.

That realization gave her an idea.

Wait a minute, my knife! I think I know what to do.

Malty grabbed the rock with her left arm to keep herself steady as she took out her knife and held in a throwing position. She was only going to have one shot at this. She spotted Thomas with a leather ball in his hand and figured he was her best shot.

She waited until Thomas held the ball high up in his hand-

And let the blade in her hand fly free.

NOW!

Malty threw the knife with as much force as she could muster at the ball high above Thomas's ahead just before he could throw it. The blade flew through the air and hit the ball, making it pop and turn to tatters in Thomas's hands. And it also had the added effect of throwing both him and all the throwers on the top of the hill off-guard.

She and many others used this opportunity to push through this last leg of the exercise as she propelled herself forward with her feet and finally made it to the top of the hill. Malty let out a tired breath as she felt her body fatigue from the experience as the pain of her wrist was starting to get worse. She turned her head to see quite a few others make it to the top with her like Flint and Spark.

" Congratulations to all ten of you who made it up the hill first." Thomas clapped his hands together in congratulations." Flint and Spark made good pace, Ash you were lagging a bit behind but still good..." Thomas turned to her next." Malty. Great strategy using your knife to throw us off back there, genius plan and it gave the rest of you-"

Thomas was cut off as he noticed she was clutching her left wrist in pain." Kid, are you alright? What happened?" Thomas asked with concern in his voice.

" I-I fell down earlier and broke my wrist." Malty confessed as she tried to ignore the stares she was getting from the others.

" Holy shit, she climbed up with a broken wrist? Damn." She overheard one of the others whisper.

" WHAT!? Why didn't you stop?" Thomas questioned looking at her in shock.

" I...I didn't want to lose." Malty confessed.

There was a moment of silence where Thomas looked a mix of both surprised and oddly proud, as if he couldn't decide which one he wanted to be at the moment. Malty did see that quite a few of the others were giving her impressed looks or nods of respect, which she got one from Flint. That did mean a lot to her.

" Outsider above, I can't tell if you inherit your father's stubbornness or my stupidity at times." Thomas let out a sigh as he turned to one of the others who made it up the hill." Maya get over here. Help heal her wrist, its about time you put that healing spell to use."

" Got it boss." An older girl with what looked to be wolf ears approached her with a reassuring smile." Hi, my name's Maya."

" Hi Maya, my name's Malty." She gave a small smile back as she tried to ignore the pain.

" Here give me your wrist." Malty did as Maya commanded and held out her left hand as golden light emitted from Maya's hands." Fast Heal!"

The moment Maya casted that spell, Malty could physically feel the bones in her wrist fade away and readjust back into their proper place as the pain faded away. It seems that Spark wasn't the only one who had a talent for magic.

" Wow, that was amazing Maya!" Spark complimented.

" Thank you Maya for healing my wrist." Malty nodded in gratitude to the wolf girl.

" Do me a favor and don't do something stupid like that again." Thomas warned with a sigh." If any of you are hurt, just let me know."

Malty smiled back up at her friend." I promise!"

It was a good day, even if she did get hurt during the field exercise.

Mein had to admit that the overall security of Reichnott manor was actually quite decent. It was no fortress certainly, but whoever was in charge of security did a pretty damn good job of making the most of what they had with the resources available to them that she would have commended them for it.

Frequent guard patrols throughout the estate, not much cover leading up to the manor from the path aside from some stray bushes and the only plausible way in was through the front door that was constantly being guarded by at least two men and at most an entire squad. Not easy.

She had been staking out Reichnott manor for a day now and she thinks that she has a decent idea on their security. Mein thinks that she should be able to get inside with the use of some of her skills, but she will need to be careful. She cannot afford to get caught or seen during her infiltration and have the alarm raised, even if she manages to escape than this is only going to worsen the situation in Reichnott county with news of a break-in.

That means no kills or knockouts. She will need to be a ghost to get inside and figure out the identity of Reichnott's bastard.

She had all the info she needed but she still decided to stay on her rooftop turned observation post to make notes of any potential changes to the pattern of patrols. Mein leaned her head on her hand as she watches the main entrance of Reichnott manor like a hawk using Far Vision to get a better look. Information and knowing your enemy was half the battle, as her father used to say back at the palace.

But as she stared at Reichnott manor, she couldn't help but let her mind wander to the other big information she just learned about the presence of another heiress present in Silver Pass that should not be here.

Lacus Consevatie, the eldest daughter of House Consevatie and the technical 'heiress' to Jagged Reach.

Mein knew her well both personally and by reputation. By reputation, she knew that the eldest daughter of House Consevatie is quite well known and respected in high society. Praised for possessing a sharp wit, brilliant intelligence and a court mask that rivaled even that of the most experienced noble ladies in court. There were many who say that Lacus was the pitch perfect example of what a proper noble lady should be like to the point where some said that she even rivaled Lady Iris Amelia in intelligence, but those were probably overexaggerated rumors meant to take jabs at House Amelia.

But being the First Princess of Melromarc who had plenty of suitors and courtships, she had a lot more in-depth knowledge on Lacus.

During her thankfully brief courtship with the most annoying scion to ever be born on Medea, Mein was afforded a much more personal knowledge about the eldest daughter of House Consevatie. Which is why it scared her a little to see her here. She knew from experience how Lacus could switch from a cheerful and friendly face to a cold and downright emotionless face that wasn't even a well crafted court mask-it was just her true face.

So that raised the question: What is the daughter of House Consevatie doing visiting the grieving new Lady of House Reichnott?

It didn't take her long to come up with an answer: To turn her into a potential ally and thereby against House Seatto. It was the only possible explanation as House Seatto was House Consevatie's biggest rival, so sowing discord among their bannerman would be easy. Especially when one of them is a literal child who has no idea about all the intricacies of how the Game is played and just lost her father.

But that raised another question: Is she doing this of her own volition or was she ordered to by her father?

Mein knows that the rumors of inner discord among House Consevatie are true due to lord Grima favoring his son inheriting his nobility title as opposed to his daughter. Which was quite frankly an idiotic move on his part when his only son is an annoying braggart who only knows how to throw his weight around, Mein is fairly certain the idiot will run House Consevatie into the ground if he ever takes over. The moron is barely fit to be a court jester, much less rule a damn province.

She knew that Siggy(a nickname that Consevatie brat hates because Jaune came up with it) loathes his sister more than anybody else in the world. For one reason being his biggest competition for his father's title, as the only reason the pampered brat is up for consideration for his father's title is because he has daddy's favor, if it wasn't for that then he would be promptly pushed to the side for his more proper sister. And the second reason is that Lacus is a woman who is far better at him at just about everything regarding the court.

And Mein knows how much it burns Siggy's ego to have himself be put down by a woman. She still has a treasured memory where Siggy tried to gloat and taunt Lacus, who only responded with a few words that left him fuming with a red face.

Is Lacus acting on her own to try and gain more prestige within her own House by sowing discord in Silver Pass? That might make Lord Grima reconsider his stance on who should inherit his noble as nothing has been set in stone yet.

Mein let out a sigh as the many pieces on the board of the Game moving on Silver Pass is giving her a damn headache.

She hopes Naofumi is having a better day than her.

Naofumi's POV

Naofumi couldn't help but think about how odd it was to be out and about without Mein around. It wasn't like he wasn't used to Mein going off to do her own thing at times, but he struggles to remember a time where they were separated like this. The Shield Hero had gotten used to having his first red haired companion for whenever they left on a quest that he almost turned to ask Mein a question that she was not there for. It was a different experience that made him wonder if he had perhaps grown too used to relying on Mein for a lot of things.

And it was certainly different being in a fight without her too.

" Watch out! More Dragon Bees on the right!" Three Dog called out as he finished cutting down a rabid wolf that tried to jump him.

" I got them!" Naofumi shouted as he charged towards the large ass bumblebees that emerged from the bushes and were about to target some of the recruits before he intercepted them. " Hate Reaction!" A pulse of reddish energy exploded out from his shield and ended up turning all of the monsters attention solely towards him.

Hate Reaction was probably one of his most useful skills that he got from one of the copied shields at Erhard's shop, it gave him the ability to draw the aggression of monsters towards which was quite useful. The problem was that ALL the monsters were on him now which was kinda terrifying in its own right.

" Meteor Shield!" Naofumi used the skill just in time as a translucent blue barrier appeared around him as the bees, balloons, porcupines and other low level monsters all hacked it to try and get to him. Which left them completely exposed to everybody else who had a weapon in their hands.

" RAAAAAGGGGHHHHH!" The new recruits of Silver Keep alongside some actual knights let out a war cry as they charged the monsters that were clawing at his Meteor Shield and successful taking out a good chunk of them. Ake took the right side as he sliced and diced each dragon bee until they were little more than bisected bits of blood on the grass. In the span of a few moments, all the monsters were dead and Naofumi let out a tired sigh as blue shield dissipated around him.

" Is that all of them?" Ake asked out loud.

" Looks like it." Three Dog turned to the rest of the group while clapping his hands to get their attention." Alright people, we don't have all day! Monsters are dead, so let's get to work. Gather up what we came here for, everybody else keep an eye out for monsters and let's get back home for dinnertime alright?"

The group of new recruits had no disagreements there as they quickly got to work while the Silver Hands kept an eye on any other potential monsters that could stumble upon them. Some of them picked plants off the bushes, some that he recognized and others that he didn't. While others were tending to the dead monsters and were skinning them for their hides. They had went into the forest close by to Silver Keep and it seems they were under orders to collect everything that could be useful.

Naofumi had been asked to accompany a group of refugees turned new recruits of the Silver Hands to help them raise their levels and help gather resources for the Keep along with a handful of knights. It was easy to forget how much easier he and his fellow heroes had it when it came to raising their levels thanks to their Legendary Weapons multiplying the EXP they gain from killing monsters. According to Alice, it could take an average adventurer weeks or even months just to reach level 40 and that was if they were grinding every single day instead of growing their levels properly over a stretch of time.

Some of the former residents of Ebonheart city gaped in shock when he told them that his level was over 50. He still wasn't sure if his and Mein's EXP multiplier were combining together to effectively double their EXP gain recently but he decided not to question it.

" Sir Naofumi, is there anything specific you need us to do?" Ake asked as he approached alongside Raphtalia, Filo and Jun.

Right...I'm in charge of the party. I should know what I want the others to do.

" Ake, keep an eye on the others. Raphtalia, you can help me gather up herbs." Naofumi turned to both his bird daughter and technical dragon son." Um...Jun and Filo just stay close to me, alright?"

" O-Okay!" Raphtalia nodded in reply, as Ake merely nodded as he went to go join the other knights on security.

" Okay daddy!" Filo said happily, while Jun merely grunted with his arms crossed. It was clear that he was missing Mein, since he did see her as his mother, but he didn't kick up a fuss.

Naofumi got to work with Raphtalia picking whatever medicinal herbs and the like that he could find. Raphtalia was mostly just in charge of holding the bag while he carefully picked the plants so that they wouldn't degrade in quality like Malty had taught him. He had picked up some new recipes that he wanted to try out making to see if he could figure it out. Naofumi could have his shield do it, but he didn't want to sacrifice the quality for bulk, though he might need to in the case of health potions.

As he picked the herbs carefully with both hands, he couldn't help but let his mind wander on what Mein was doing right now. He wasn't so much concerned for her safety these days as he was worried about what kind of trouble she could run into. Naofumi knew Mein was more than capable of taking care of herself, there was no question about that but he couldn't help but worry and wonder what sort of trouble his companion could get up to.

Naofumi let out a sigh as he placed the next batch of herbs in the sack, perhaps he was worrying too much. He felt like one of those fussy boyfriends he saw on reality TV shows that worried about their eccentric girlfriend, that certainly felt like the situation he was in...if it was set in a literal isekai world and Mein really was his girlfriend who was a secret high profile heretic of pretty much every religion on Medea that wanted to kill her.

What has my life come to?

" Uh, we got trouble here!"

Naofumi was knocked out of his train of thought as he heard one of the Silver Hands shout and he turned his head as he saw a group of humans and demi-humans emerge from the shadows of the trees. They were all dressed in a mix of monster fur and leather armor, all of them holding various weapons from rusty swords, spears and bows while others had improvised weapons like woodcutters axe or pitchfork.

Bandits. He had fought them enough times to spot them from a mile away. And now there was a group of over twenty of them menacingly approaching their group with smug grins.

" Well, well, well, what do we have here boys? Some pathetic Silver Rats come out of their precious castle?" The supposed leader of the bandits armed with a handaxe took a step forward with a grin on his face, that made all the other workers who were picking plants run back behind the knights and Naofumi's group for protection.

Naofumi took a cautious step back as he wanted to protect the workers. The bandits didn't outnumber them per say, but over half the group was made up of workers who were just here to collect resources instead of raising their levels. They only had a handful of Silver Hand knights, Three Dog's crew and his own party. The bandits did outnumber them here in terms of fighters.

" Leave this land, you damned brigand! You stain and dishonor it with every step you take!" One of the Silver Hand knights shouted at the bandits with his hand on his blade.

" HA! God, you knights are so pathetic, I can't help but laugh. Do you spend more time fighting or practicing those speeches?" The bandit leader smirked as he raised his handaxe in the air." Get them boys!" The leader shouted the order and the rest of his band charged.

Naofumi thought in that moment, what would Mein do in this situation? He didn't have to think for long, she would probably be running up in close quarters cutting each and every one of these guys down. He obviously couldn't do any of that for a multitude of reasons...Mein was both their best fighter and strategist of the group. With her gone, its on him now to figure it out.

" Silver Hands, protect the workers! Everybody else with me!" Naofumi shouted as he came up with a half-thought out plan on the fly. He wasn't sure if this was going to work but he had to try! He charged towards the bandits with his shield raised in front of him, as he heard Three Dog's crew and Ake alongside Filo and Jun running beside him.

" Everybody cover your eyes!" Naofumi warned before he pushed his shield forward as it started to glow. " Shining Shield!"

The bandits stopped mid-charge as they had to cover their eyes from the sudden bright light that stinged their eyes." AH! What the fuck!? Who is this-"

" Shield Prison! Change Shield! Bee Needle Paralysis Shield!" Naofumi didn't waste any time using his classic combo to take out 5 bandits all at once from the fight, their levels likely being too low to resist it." Flank their sides!"

The rest of the group seemed to follow his orders as they spread out to better attack the bandit group's flank, creating a sort of enveloping maneuver that he might have saw once on the internet. The bandits being blinded were helpless as they were cut or knocked around by their group who had the advantage thanks to the break in their charge. Naofumi using a mixture of Air Strike Shields and Shield Prisons where he needed to defend people who were in danger.

" Zweit Chain Lightning!" Ake sent out a bolt of thunder that electrocuted 4 bandits and turned their bodies a charred black just before he cut down another.

" Get away from Filo, you meanies!" Filo shouted as she kicked and punched several bandits in the chest that sent them flying a good few feet. Jun was following her lead as he did the same to quite a few more men.

Within the span of a few minutes, the bandits were suddenly on the losing side with them being knocked down or killed by the group. And Naofumi felt a twinge of relief that it would be over soon...up until he heard Ake shout at him.

" Sir Naofumi, look out!"

Naofumi turned his head as he heard a war cry ring throughout the battle as the bandit leader charged at him with his handaxe over his head and prepared to swing down on him to cleave his head in half.

" DIE YOU DAMN BITCHBOY! " The bandit leader had a furious look on his face and Naofumi was about to raise his shield to defend right when he remembered his training lessons with Nina.

The judo throw technique!

Naofumi took a deep breath as the bandit leader charged at him and raised his handaxe even higher for the attack, but the Shield Hero met him right as he was about to drop it. Naofumi grabbed the bandit leader's arm and using the same technique Nina had spent quite a few days thoroughly beating into his head, he threw the bandit leader over his shoulder successfully in one single movement.

" AHH!" The bandit leader out a cry of pain as his body impacted the ground and Naofumi held his arm against his back.

" Is everybody okay?" Naofumi asks as he turns to the rest of the group who was mopping up the rest of the bandits who were currently either down or trying to flee but ended up getting knocked down by Filo.

" Y-Yeah, I think we're good here." Three Dog smiled at him." Good job Shield Boy."

Naofumi didn't bother with a reply as he let out a relieved breath that nobody died. Coming to the stark realization how much Mein helps out and when she will be returning.

Mein's POV

Mein didn't know why but she felt an odd bit of nostalgia come to her as she prepared to make her infiltration into Reichnott manor. And that was one heck of an odd feeling since she didn't feel nostalgia all that often in her life but this nostalgia felt oddly specific to her current situation.

It had been quite some time since she had broken into a high security location like a noble's manor and it reminded Mein of the old days with Thomas when she would help him break into entire fortresses and heavily defended estates belonging to noble families that were loyal to mother. She remembers the long nights of staking out heavily guarded estates that were crawling with guards, stealing the keys off of the guard captain, causing distractions and helping Thomas navigate around. Mein was starting to understand why she felt this wave of nostalgia come on.

She was currently at the top of her rooftop turned observation post preparing for her infiltration, sharpening blades, memorizing her notes on the patrols and other security details to aid in her infiltration. Reichnott manor may not be a fortress with constant security all-night around but to say it was going to be a piece of cake, would be seriously underestimating the challenge in front of her.

Yeah, this feels just like the old days. Only difference I'm not going there to kill somebody, but to learn information about a potential bastard that could give me some political leverage.

Mein took a deep breath as she pulled her hood and cloth up to cover her face as she looked over Reichnott estate. She could see that the manor had lights on inside based from what she could see from the windows, but the path leading up to the estate from the gate was completely unlit which was her main opportunity. She could see that there were only two guards stationed at the front door, but she knew that a shift change was coming soon that would change that number to five in a bit. So she needed to move now.

There could be no mistakes made on this job and unlike the old days she was completely on her own. While she was certain that if she was discovered than she could easily overpower the guards and escape into the night, but that would set off all sorts of alarms that would send the new Lady Reichnott into an even worse paranoid frenzy than she is probably experiencing right now. She could not afford that, especially with how sensitive her job tonight is.

Mein steadied herself as her marked hand glowed with a reddish smoke emitting from it, as she focused her mind and leaped off the rooftop-

She was grateful that whoever owned this building built it so close to wall surrounding Reichnott estate.

Within the blink of an eye, Mein focused her mind and used Blink to teleport herself over the wall and onto the ground. The first princess turned heretic performed a roll to break her fall, but she remained laying against the grass to avoid being spotted. Mein took a second to breath before she activated her next skill. She hadn't used this one yet but Mein had been curious to use it for a while now and decided this was the best place for a test run.

" Shadow Walk."

The moment Mein muttered those words, she felt her entire body...shift and change in ways that she never thought imaginable.

She felt her entire body change and contort itself into something different, something inhuman in the span of only a few seconds. Mein's arms had changed from their natural form to a much thinner shape as her hands felt strangely more flexible than ever before as they were now a black as night tint of shadow. Her vision become almost hazy and grey if such a thing were possible.

And it was at that moment that Mein realized that she wasn't even breathing anymore because she didn't have a mouth, but there was no discomfort from that fact as she realized what the skill had done to her.

Holy shit...I've become a living shadow.

The agent of the Outsider couldn't help but think that there was no other skill more fitting for her.

Mein didn't have time to ponder over that fact any longer she quickly crawled her way towards the front entrance and realized that she could only crawl in this form but didn't let that stop her. She took cover in some bushes nearby. This form didn't grant her invisibility even if it did make her harder to see in the dark so Shadow Walk wasn't going to be any help at getting past those two guards who actually looked like they were attentively keeping an eye on any potential intruders.

Thankfully, she already had a plan in mind for that.

Mein changed back to her normal human form and felt her body solidify back into its regular human shape, and taking a deep breath from how weirdly exhausting that was despite how short the duration was. She turned her attention back to the two guards who seemed stood firmly by the entrance with their spears in their hands.

" Mesmerize." Mein's marked hand glowed as she activated her next skill, and in that moment something beyond this world appeared in front of the two guards.

Mein herself was almost astounded by it. The void spirit was difficult to describe, it looked like a bunch of sharp feathers made out of metal but what shocked her the most was that the moment it was summoned it immediately grabbed the attention of the two guards as two eyes sprouted on its 'body' that drew their attention. Mein could literally see the blue lines connecting their minds to the Void spirit, it was almost uncanny to watch.

Like a beautiful horror they could not look away from.

She didn't have time to ponder on it further as she leapt out of the bushes and ran towards the front entrance before the next patrol could come around. The two mesmerized guards didn't even look in her direction besides whispering to themselves as she gently pushed past them and opened the front door to enter inside after using Dark Vision to confirm that there was nobody around.

Mein smirked as she finally made it past the first hurdle of her mission here. Now comes everything else.

Now if I was to hide information about where my bastard could be, where would I put it?

Lord Reichnott didn't really strike her as somebody who was overtly paranoid that he would hide said information in some extremely hard to find place that only he knows about. No, he strikes her as the type of man who would keep his most valuable and important places where he felt the most familiar and safe. Outsider told her to visit the manor itself to figure out the identity of the Reichnott bastard and for once, Mein was willing to bet the black eyed bastard wasn't fucking with her. So the information had to be in the manor itself...

His bedroom or his main office are good places to start. She's closer to his bedroom so she'll start there.

Mein quietly made her way through the halls of Reichnott manor, keeping herself in a crouched position to avoid making any unwanted noise as she moved like a shadow through the halls. The manor wasn't exceedingly lit up as it seemed only key areas of the manor were being illuminated and the hallways were dim at best, so she stuck to the shadows as best she could to avoid running into somebody. She couldn't risk being seen and knockouts were not an option as that would raise the alarm after she left.

Her enhanced hearing and Dark Vision were a true boon in this situation as she easily slipped past a handful of guards and other servants. Mein was fairly certain that she could have made do even without them but it certainly made her life easier as she avoided being spotted anybody. It was late at night so most of servants and staff were likely asleep, and it seems the majority of the security was focused mostly on patrolling the perimeter outside. At least, it made her life easier.

In no time at all, she reached the door that led into the bedroom of the former Lord Reichnott and she very gently turned the doorknob to unlock it. She only pushed it open as much as she needed to slip inside before closing the door behind her.

Mein took a moment to observe the layout of the bedroom that used to belonged to the now deceased lord Van Reichnott. The room itself was quite big but it had an almost modest approach to it. The room had all the basics, large bed, the floor was made out of nice wooden planks, a wardrobe, desk made out of fine ironwood and a mirror but that was about it. Mein didn't take lord Reichnott for a minimalist, but she supposes that she never really got to know the man to judge. There was a window that gave a good view of the backwall that should serve as a good escape path.

The agent of the Outsider quickly got to work turning the room over without making a big mess in the process, there could be absolutely no evidence of her presence here. The desk was her first object of inspection but quickly found that there was nothing of real note stashed inside besides some rudimentary notes about the state of the lands, reports and some such. She checked the wardrobe next, rummaging through the clothes that belonged to the dead lord but again found nothing and she even resorted to checking under the bed but once again found nothing.

Damn it! Where could he have stashed the info? Could it be in his office? Did I make the wrong call? Perhaps Lord Reichnott hid the info in a safe or something in his office.

The princess let out a sigh as she was about to leave the room when she accidentally stepped on a squeaky floorboard and that caused her to have a realization about something. It was only a hunch but the squeaky floorboard did give her an idea about one angle she was not considering. Mein activated Dark Vision and looked around the room and it was at that moment that she noticed a small box that was hidden underneath the floorboards. Just like what she did when she...robbed Naofumi on their first night and almost ruined his life.

She put those thoughts aside for now as she took out her knife to pry it open, but found that the floorboard was actually loose and was removed quite easily. That gave her access to pull the box out of its hiding hole and she sat on the bed to take a peek inside. Opening the box, she found quite a few items of note inside: Letters sealed in envelopes with the official seal of House Reichnott, papers, a locket and most interestingly a crystal ball.

No, a recording crystal used to store information.

This is the information Outsider told me about.

Mein put the box away in her inventory to comb through later as she finished cleaning up her tracks that she was ever here...right as she heard footsteps outside the door and saw the doorknob move. Somebody was coming in.

She didn't have time to think of a good hiding spot as she dove under the bed to hide herself. Probably the worst hiding spot one could possibly think of, but she didn't have the time to reach the wardrobe and hide herself among the clothes. Mein held her breath as the door to the bedroom opened and Mein could see that the shoes of the person who entered was far more formal and smaller than what you would expect of an adult. It didn't take her long to guess the identity of this person.

Lord Reichnott's daughter, Cute.

Mein observed Cute with Dark Vision as she slowly entered the room at a painfully slow pace, not making so much as a word as she just seemed to be listlessly walking around the bedroom that made Mein wonder what she was doing before Cute suddenly plopped down on the bed, burying her face into the covers.

And it was at that moment that she heard the sound of crying coming from the young noble lady followed by whispers that Mein had to physically strain her ears to hear.

" F-Father...please come back to me. I miss you, I miss you so much!" Cute cried into the pillow as she muffled her wail by screaming into it." Why did you have to leave me!? Father, please...don't leave me..."

Mein didn't move at all in that moment as her heart went out to the young Lady Reichnott. She knows very well the pain of losing father and what that can do to you. After Thomas died, she spent days crying in her room that was followed by burning down countless targets in the training yard to sate her rage.

If she wasn't here on an infiltration mission, she would almost want to give Cute a hug to comfort her but that was neither here nor there.

The door to the bedroom opened and Mein could see with Dark Vision a young boy around Cute's age peek his head into the room." My lady? Are you okay? The guards said they saw you come this way and I wanted to-"

" Leave me alone Jean!" Cute shouted at the poor boy bodyguard who came to check on her, who yelped at his lady's anger.

" M-My lady, I just wanted to see if you were-"

" LEAVE!" Cute repeated her order, this time throwing a pillow at the door which resulted in Jean slamming it shut on the way out. Mein felt bad for the poor bodyguard who was just concerned for his lady but at the same time could understand Cute's anger.

" Damn the Hound Lord, damn those animals...damn it all to hell!" Cute shouted in a mixture of anger and sorrow as she repeatedly punched her fist into the bed as she kept crying.

Mein just laid there quietly, feeling like an intruder to Cute's sensitive and vulnerable moment as she cried her eyes out onto the bed. Cute whispered and pleaded with her father's ghost to come back to her. To spend just a bit more time before the end came again...but all she would receive in return for all her cries was a hoarse throat and deathly silence that just punctuated the pain being in this room caused her.

She knew this hellish silence quite well.

After around 30 minutes, Cute cried herself to sleep and gave Mein her opportunity to escape. The agent of the Outsider very carefully crawled out from under the bed and found the Lady Reichnott fast asleep on her father's bed with tear streaks on her face. Mein made sure to move with as much caution as possible to avoid waking the sleeping lady up.

Mein was just about to open the window to make her escape when she heard Cute's voice reach her ears.

" No...father please come back..."

Those words were enough to make Mein turn back to the sleeping form of Cute who looked like she was mummering in her sleep as she curled up as more tears fell down her face. It would seem that even in her sleep, she could not escape the pain.

Mein stared at Cute for a moment as she stood in the darkness of the room without saying so much as a word.

Cute was no player or even especially strong pawn that could affect the Game of Thrones. If anything she was a walking political liability to Silver Pass with how young she is taking control of her own House. She was but a child.

A child who had lost her father and the most important person in her life. Mein had been that child once upon a time too.

The first princess didn't know what possessed her as she walked forward and gently pulled the blanket over the sleeping child to shield her from the cold.

It was a small comfort, but one that Mein felt she deserved at least.

She did no more as she leaped out the window and into the night.

Mein let out a sigh as she made it back to her inn room. She felt exhausted after the long night she has had and all the skills she used nearly drained her of SP, but at least she managed to get the job done without any major problems. The agent has to give credit where its due, the black eyed bastard didn't lead her astray with this tip about Lord Reichnott's bastard, it probably wouldn't have been long until somebody else stumbled upon that little hiding hole in his bedroom by mistake.

But her night wasn't over just yet. She still needed to review the information she has collected.

She took the box out of her inventory and started carefully going the the items. The papers looked to be simple drafts of wills and other important documents, she pondered on cutting open the envelopes containing letters but decided to save those for later and the locket contained a picture of the deceased Lord Reichnott with a smiling Cute by his side.

Mein tucked that away carefully for now as she turned her attention to the record crystal and activated it. At that moment a projection of the now dead Lord Reichnott appeared in front of her in what looks to be a seated position.

" Hello Cute...I suppose if you've found this crystal and the box then it means that I am dead." Lord Reichnott says with a soft smile." I was actually pondering whether I should make this or not, but I figured with the Wave of Catastrophe starting that I should leave something behind for you to find. Now what I'm about to tell you might make you hate me but I think its time you learn the truth..."

As she watched the recording of Lord Reichnott speak, she suddenly felt her fear of what sort of damage this information could cause to Silver Pass and House Reichnott as a whole rise up in her chest. This information felt...too hot for her to keep to herself.

When the recording of the dead Lord Reichnott finished, Mein took a deep breath to reel herself back in after what she had just learned. Right before she quickly gathered up her belongings and left the inn to head back to Silver Keep right away.

She needed to speak to Eclair urgently when she gets back.

You know, I've never been a big fan of cliffhangers...but I do personally love me this one.

:P

In all seriousness, the identity of Lord Reichnott's bastard will get revealed next chapter so stay tuned for that!

I hope you all enjoyed seeing both Naofumi and Malty get to shine respectively in this chapter in what I believe will be their future roles. Naofumi will slowly grow into being a proper defender for the party and kinda strategist, even if he'll never be on some of the other characters level. While Malty handles the more 'cloak and dagger' aspect of everything since her skill set is better suited for that kind of work compared to Naofumi. The two compliment each other, quite well if I do say so where Naofumi is the 'light' while Malty is the 'dark'.

But as we see in this chapter, Malty isn't made out of stone and does have some soft spots in her armor especially for kids like Cute who have been through hell. I do hope to include more scenes like it.

Now let's answer some guest reviews shall we?

To EXCUBITORE:

You will find out in the next chapter, but yeah a scandal is the last thing Silver Pass needs right now with all the shit going on with the Wave and the Hound Lord.

To Gabito16118:

Thank you so much for saying that! Yeah, Titan Storm has certainly grown on me these past few chapters and while I haven't figured out what their ending will be, I can promise that it will be a good one alongside Malty, Naofumi, Raphtalia, etc.

:)

With that said, I will see you all in the next one.

Angel Out.