Chapter 2: New bonds
"So... Ya guys want me part of yer team?" Arms crossed, pacing in front of both Naofumi and Raphtalia, Garfiel didn't look at them as he made it look like he was considering something... that something was joining the party.
"I know, I'm amazing and I should be part of the team... But I don't know." Garfiel held his nose up high, as if he wasn't internally begging them to let him join. Naofumi had a bit of an... well... dumbfound face.
'Is this kid for real? He was almost begging us to let him join last night.' he thought.
Raphtailia found herself struggling to hold back her laughter. She found it adorable that he wanted to act this way. "But alas... my hands are tied. I have no idea where I even am, and ya two have been kind t'me so far, so I might wanna repay th't kindness back... or th't would be somethin' th't th'princess would say." Garfiel's mind thought of the silver haired half elf his boss was in love with.
"So I accept your offer!" He finally turned to them with a great, goofy grin on his face as if he believes he was doing them a favor.
Naofumi let out a sigh.
"Welcome to the team then, Garfiel Tinsel."
Just as Naofumi said this, one of the guards approaches the party to tell them that they are allowed in the castle, since the king had asked to see the four heroes.
Naofumi and his group entered the castle and made their way towards the throne room.
Once they enter the throne room, the atmosphere instantly becomes hostile with Motoyasu and Malty turning towards Garfiel and giving him an intense glare.
The demi human boy notices this yet shrugs it off, as if he didn't even know who they were, ignoring their presence and mindset on what they think of him.
The Sword hero and The Bow hero arrive with their respective groups a minute after Naofumi's group had entered the throne room.
The proceedings began while Garfiel's mind started to wander, looking around the throne room. His eyes darted across from the King ('Bastard...'). to Malty ('Bitch') and the other heroes.
He already wrote them off, but... his distrust of the bitch lightly tick off. It reminded him of someone.
His attention was called back to front when a bag of money was seemingly handed to Naofumi.
"And as agreed upon, I have set aside 500 silvers for the Shield."
Just as it seemed like he was about to get the bag of money, the king said,
"However...Since it's offset by the cost of freeing his slave from her curse, he will receive no funds this time."
Naofumi and Garfiel both instantly looked with disdainful facial expressions.
They two clearly know that this is unfair and just biased of the king.
"HUUUHHHHHHH? YA GOTTA BE FUCKIN' KIDDIN' ME WITH TH'S BULLSHIT!"
Garfiel shouts as he wants to punch the king in the face. Naofumi agrees with Garfiel but before he could say anything, someone speaks on his behalf.
"I don't think that's going to fly."
Naofumi, Raphtalia, and Garfiel all three turn their attention to the voice to see that it was Itsuki speaking on their behalf.
"He won the duel despite the interference. You decided to dispel...the slave crest, was it? He deserves to be compensated for all his hard work."
"Agreed. You removed the crest without permission, you should pay the price on your own and repay Naofumi."
"Tsk."
Malty smirked a bit.
"The Shield hero only won because that boy interfered on his behalf."
"YOU WANNA RUN TH'T BY ME AGAIN BITCH-!"
Ren held up his hand as he knew what to say.
Garfiel paused himself as he was caught off guard by this yet allowed it, curious to know what the Sword hero was about to do.
Ren takes a moment before confronting Malty.
"Which you knowingly interfered on your own first on Motorasyu's behalf. Either way, the duel was decided in Naofumi's favor, princess."
Ren's defense of Naofumi shocked the people in the throne room.
He sounded openly hostile towards Malty in this situation.
"So, give him his just due."
The King couldn't help but be pissed off, not only are things going south but everyone seems to be targeting his daughter.
He got up while saying towards Ren,
"Fine, I shall pay the Shield Hero what he has earned."
The reluctance in his voice strained out his words.
He couldn't afford to have the heroes turn on him, and with both Itsuki and Ren seemingly siding with the Shield, it was looking as if he could lose control of this if he wasn't careful.
The person handing the bag went back to get a few more silver coins to add onto the bag before delivering it to Naofumi.
Although the situation is annoying for the Shield hero, he found this somewhat beneficial.
He can somewhat rely on the Sword hero and Bow hero while also enjoying that the King is backed into a corner.
Just as he grabs the bag, the king says to him,
"You have it, so begone already."
"Well screw you too you, royal dumbass." Garfiel says while flipping the finger at him.
Everyone in the room was surprised by this since they didn't expect a demi human to literally disrespect the king in such a volatile and vulgar way.
The King's face turned completely hot red, completely filled with rage and hatred by this. Just as he gets up from his seat, Raphtalia quickly took hold of both Garfiel and Naofumi, a stronger grip on Garfiel's arm.
"Alright boys, let's go since we have our money now." She sounded cheerful, but within she was freaking out because of Garfiel's stunt. Almost dragging them, the trio left the throne room.
Not too far behind them, Ren and his group followed suit, the latter holding back his laughter from seeing the king so stunned and pissed off.
Just as Naofumi and his group are outside of the castle, they hear someone shout Naofumi's name.
"Hold up, Naofumi."
"Hm?"
The trio turned to see that it was Ren who was shouting at them, approaching the trio in a calm and collected manner.
Garfiel was on his guard but also tried to keep his cool, trying to figure out whether the Sword hero is here on friendly terms or on unfriendly terms.
Naofumi is unsure on what Ren wants, prompting him to ask:
"Yes?"
"I wanted to ask... What really happened with Malty that night?"
Ren at first believed Malty's story, as personally, something like that disgusts him when a man tries to take advantage of a woman.
But, after seeing how much the King was bending the rules not just for himself, but his own daughter; he began to question something was up.
They had nothing but Malty's word against Naofumi, and if he remembered correctly, Naofumi was very confused about the whole situation, even still calling out Malty.
He wrote that off at first, but now recent events put that into a new perspective.
Naofumi and company stared at the Sword Hero, who still had his normal serious look on his face.
The memory of that day was still fresh in his mind, but he didn't care about clearing his name... But he was being given a chance to do so.
"... I went to sleep late, and when I woke up, I discovered all my suppise had been stolen, and the soldiers came for me. That's it."
Ren nodded his head. His story hasn't changed, even after being asked more than once.
"I see. Your story still hasn't changed. And from what I have witnessed... I'm more inclined to believe it."
Naofumi was extremely skeptical at first, not sure if Ren was being serious about possibly believing him but after seeing that he has been defending him now, he might have some respect for the Sword hero.
"Believe what you will, but know that I will only speak the truth on that."
Ren just simply nodded, understanding Naofumi's point. Garfiel looks at the two and is not only lost, he is curious on what they were talking about.
"Th'hell's th's all about?"
Ren was the one who answered him, clearly since it was known that Garfiel doesn't know what's going on.
"It's not my place to say. Naofumi, Let's meet before next wave."
With that, the Sword hero's party and Ren walked away.
"Hey... Thanks for standing up for me back there." Naofumi finally got out.
Ren only looked back and nodded, the two going their separate ways for now.
As Ren goes off towards one direction, Naofumi with his group go towards another.
The first stop being the slave market as Raphtalia wanted her crest mark back.
"Are you sure about this?" Naofumi asked in his skeptical tone.
"Yes." Raphtalia answered without hesitation. Naofumi just gives a blank facial expression before leading the trio towards the slave market. Garfiel was confused by all of this yet he stood silent, figuring that he will find out if he pays attention.
The slaver puts the new crest on Raphtalia's chest with Garfiel looking very closely since he was curious on what was going on. While the slaver was working on Raphtalia's slave crest, Garfiel begins to question things.
"What's th't suppose t'do?"
"It's a slave crest." The slaver said. "It binds the slave to their master, as well as causes them pain when they disobey."
"Th'hell do ya want t'have somethin' like th't on ya?"
Raphtalia looked at Garfiel, noticing that he had a disgust look on his face. She closed her eyes and smiled while responding with:
"I want it. It is a symbol of Naofumi's faith in me."
"...I suppose th't's not a bad reason...still weird."
"Not that weird. Do you want one?" The slaver says as he is curious to see the boy's reaction. Garfiel looked at him with a stern look.
"Like hell! I don't need no symbol. Besides, I got people believing in my amazin' self anyway."
"Alright." The slaver said in a calm tone of voice, not surprise that the demi human boy doesn't want the slave crest on him. After a moment passes, he manages to finish putting the new slave crest on Raphtalia.
"There we go. She now has a new slave crest."
The sheer glee on Raphtalia's face was unmatched by anything. She stuck out her chest a bit, showing off a bit too much, as she pointed herself towards Naofumi
"How does it look, Naofumi-Sama?" She asked him. Garfiel noticed the way she was presenting herself, remembering something that boss and him talked about before Ram kicked them both in the butt.
"Yeah, what does Naofumi-sama think~" He mimicked her voice as best he could, causing the slaver to chuckle as well and Raphtalia to puff up her cheeks.
"Knock it off you two." Naofumi said to both of them meanwhile he was looking at his skill tree, noticing something interesting. "Slave User's Shield, huh?"
Naofumi turns towards Raphtalia while asking, "What is it?"
She closes her eyes and looks away while saying in a serious tone of voice, "Nothing!"
Garfiel began howling with laughter at Raphtaila's rejections
"Yeah, it was clearly nothing." Sarcasm dripped in his voice. Raphtalia looks at Garfiel with an annoyed look but before she could say anything to him, the slaver approached her. He was interested in the fact that she grew so fast in such a short time.
"Still...I'm amazed you helped that scrawny bag of bones grow so much in such a short time. Even if she's not a virgin, she's guaranteed to fetch you twenty gold pieces."
"I am a virgin!" Raphtalia retaliated.
"Thirty-five, then!"
"WHAT THE HELL!"
"Twenty more for him too!"
"FUCK YOU!"
"I agree!" Raphtalia added.
"Enough you two." Naofumi said, having found this interaction a bit annoying though this feeling would change into a curious one when he noticed a couple of eggs.
"What's that?"
"A monster egg lottery. Pay 100 silvers, and you're guaranteed at least a filolial! You'll win a monster chick that'll double in value if you raise it well."
"A filolial?"
"What's th't?" Garfiel asked, never having heard the name before. Raphtalia was surprised by this, prompting her to answer the boys question first before her master's question.
"By now you both have seen those large birds that pull around carriages, those are filolial."
Both boys thought back to when they were walking down the street, and Garfiel made a comment about wanting to eat... or was it fight, one of those birds. The slaver added in:
"What's more, if you hit the jackpot, you'll win a dragon worth twenty gold pieces!"
"Pft! A dragon? My amazin' self can kick a dragon's ass."
"Oh really...fifty gold pieces for him then."
"HEY!"
"What, it's like a gacha game?"
"Gacha game? Cap'n said somethin' like th't before?"
"Huh?" Naofumi looked at Garfiel, having registered what he said.
'He keeps talking about this boss or 'Cap'n' person...But given that Garfiel is a demi-human and clearly not from Earth, this person he knows must be...' his train of thought stopped.
"Would you like to give it a shot? Act now, and I'll give you a package deal for that and the slave crest!" The slaver said, hoping that Naofumi would accept. The Shield hero thought and thought for a moment.
"Naofumi-Sama, we already came here for what we wanted."
"Yeah, we should hit the road while we can."
His two partners chimed in as the slaver was clearly trying to get money from him... also trying to buy both of them, and both of them wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible...
'He really did it.'
Both Raphtailia and Garfiel had the same thought as they walked down the road while Naofumi carried a white egg with a seal on it in a very lavish looking basket.
Both of them could facepalm at this stunt.
The trio eventually left the slave market with Naofumi holding the egg. The three walk for a bit before Raphtalia ends up saying to her master:
"You shouldn't waste money like that, Naofumi-sama."
"Yeah, it's a waste of time." Garfiel added.
"Well, I figured it wouldn't be fair to make Raphtalia fight alone all the time. A monster should at least be some help."
"Who needs a monster when ya got my amazin' self th't can help." Garfiel said as he spoke with pride. Raphtalia couldn't help but chuckle at the way Garfiel was boasting himself. After a few seconds, she turned her attention to Naofumi to respond to what he said.
"I can fight by myself just fine so, we can just sell it back to the slave trader."
"And used the money to get some grub! Good thinking Talia!"
Naofumi had a slight tick mark on his head from his two partners and their antics. The three went around the village for a bit, receiving a grimoire and a book of medical things.
After a bit, the three head towards the top of the hill where lots of trees are located to relax for a bit. Naofumi attempts to read the grimoire yet he couldn't.
"I really can't read it."
"Let me try."
Garfiel carefully grabbed the book and attempted to read, having been fond of books. As he was going page by page, both Raphtalia and Naofumi looked at him. They did this for a good bit
"...You can't read it, can you?" Raphtalia asked him after he seemed stuck on the same page for a while.
"...here ya go."
"Haha! What happened?"
"...shut up." Garfiel said to Naofumi as he got up and took a moment to walk away, feeling dumb for not being able to read the book. Naofumi continued to chuckle a bit before looking at the book, feeling somewhat happy by the appreciation he got from the villagers.
"How about we all learn to read together?" Raphtalia said after having chuckled from Garfiel's way of acting. Garfiel and Naofumi turn towards her before turning at each other.
The two nodded at this before the three enjoying the sunset.
"Raphtaila! Garfiel! Wake up!" Naofumi's voice sounded urgent as he almost shook them both awake. Naofumi slept on the floor while the two younger companions slept on the beds.
Garfiel rose from his sleep looking as if he saw a ghost for just a moment, but his eyes were focused on what was going on. The egg from yesterday had fractures in it. It was hatching.
'This is...amazing.'
The three waited for a moment until the egg finally broke with a tiny filolial being born right in front of them.
The three stepped back for a moment, shocked until they noticed the little bird jump on top of Naofuni's head, creating a little nest for itself.
Garfiel and Raphtalia stood shocked while Naofumi had a blank expression as this was happening.
"It's so cute, Naofumi-sama!"
"Yeah, fits ya real well."
Both Garfiel and Raphtalia chuckled a little while Naofumi just looked at the two, feeling like he was being mocked. Raphtalia continued,
"It must think you're its mother."
"Nah, more like th'dad."
"..."
Naofumi stood silent, still feeling like he was being mocked by his allies.
"Well Naofumi, what're ya gonna call it?"
"...it does need a name...how about...Filo?"
There was a brief moment of silence, both Raphtalia and Garfiel taking the time to think on Naofumi's choice. The Shield hero waited for a bit before finally hearing a response from the two. Garfiel and Raphtalia both answered in unison,
"That's a cool name." Garfiel said.
"That's kinda lazy, Naofumi-sama." Raphtalia said.
Both of them looked at each other for a moment as they realized what the other said.
"It's not lazy! It's creative and I bet no one has even thought of it"
"But it's lazy! He just took it from the word Filolial!
"Knock it off you two." Naofumi began to wonder why he had to be stuck with these two... as Filo sat on his head the whole time.
'This is my life now.'
For the next two days, the three took care of Filo with Garfiel starting to get accustomed to the new world he found himself in though he does miss his friends and wonders whether or not they know he is gone. As the two days past, the trio had looked to see that Filo had grown up pretty fast.
"I can't believe she grew so much in just two days!" Raphtalia said in a surprised tone of voice. Naofumi responded to this by saying:
"My Growth Boost skill probably helped. Right, Filo?"
Filo squawked to respond to Naofumi's question. Garfiel couldn't help but add in,
"Yeah but my amazin' self also helped out too!"
"You almost got ran over when you tired to stop her when she was running off with Naofumi-sama yesterday"
"OH SHUT UP TALIA!
Naofumi just face palmed at this, seeing the two acting like siblings in a dumb conflict. Before he had the chance to say something to the two, the three overheard a villager say something that caught their attention.
"Why are the knights here?"
"Hm?" Naofumi, Raphtalia, and Garfiel all turned as they noticed what one of the villagers had said. They go to investigate to see that a couple of villagers are gathered together with a not so friendly person speaking to them.
"In light of his exploits during the last Wave, the Spear Hero, Motoyasu-sama, has been appointed ruling lord of this region."
There was a small pause as Motoyasu just gives a confident smile at the villagers, one they did not appreciate. Naofumi and his group all watch from the back. Garfiel looked at Malty with an annoyed facial expression.
'Fuckin' bitch.'
Malty continued, "To help the rebuilding efforts, we've decided to levy a toll. Fifty silvers to enter the village, and fifty to exit."
"The hell?!" Garfiel said as he saw this completely absurd and unfair to the village. Some of the villagers started to complain which annoyed Malty.
"You wish to defy your lord's orders?"
"Well duh"
This wasn't Garfiel shouting out again, this was Naofumi speaking this time. This caused Malty's attention to scan the crowds. She located him in the back of the crowd, standing there with his... demihumans. They disgusted her that he would freely travel with them. She composed herself once more and looked at him with authority
"What are you doing here? This is now Motoyasu-sama's domain, meaning you have no right to question him."
"Tell me, was this his idea or your own as another petty way to get one over on me?" Naofumi questioned. "If I didn't know any better, I'll say you hated me."
"Ha! You have some good jokes!" Garfiel added as he tried to keep himself from going up and punching both of them.
"Both of you..." Raptalia sighed from both of them cracking jokes, noticing Filo was also giggling. Malty just gave Naofumi a cold stare before continuing to say,
"Why don't you just get out this instant, criminal scum!"
"Tsk." Garfiel grinds his teeths as he really dislikes this bitch. Naofumi also looks the same amount of annoyed like Garfiel though he keeps his composure.
"I don't really care about being here anyway but the villagers won't like it." Naofumi turns his attention from Malty to Motoyasu. "Motoyasu, do you know how much it costs to spend a night at the inn here?"
"Uhh...?"
"It's one silver a night, food included. You're charging a hundred nights' worth of money just to enter and exit the village!"
As Naofumi said this, all the villagers rallied behind this idea and began to complain even more. Garfiel also couldn't help but also speak up on his opinions.
"Tis fucked up! Who th'hell calls themselves th'ruler when they didn't earn it? Not t'mention yer arrogant chagrin' these good people for no reason!"
"Shut it you damn demi human!" Malty said as she had reached her limit of listening to the boy. Garfiel couldn't help but smirk since he got the red bitch to crack. Naofumi also had a smirk since he was happy to see that Garfiel can piss Malty off. Malty turned her attention towards the villagers as she continued to hear them complain.
"For the rest of you, you dare complain about a royal decree?"
The moment she finished speaking, a couple of knights moved their weapons towards the villagers, threatening them. Garfiel put on his two shields as he noticed that things might turn violent, not only that but he also must protect the people.
Just as things were about to escalate, a couple of people in dark robes appeared in front of Malty, leaving her with a stunned facial expression. Garfiel was also stopped by one of these unknown people, seeing that the demi human boy was about to start the fight.
"Who da hell r'ya?!"
Garfiel was speaking in a hostile manner yet he was calmed down when Naofumi grabbed his arm, giving him a signal to keep calm. This annoyed the demi human boy for a moment before he simply nodded at the unknown person in front of him. Naofumi's group all turn towards Malty's direction, being able to hear one of the unknown people say,
"I trust you know who we are, Malty-sama."
"Why are you people here?" Malty asked.
This caught all of their attention, the way Malty's reaction was. Naofumi, Filo, and Garfiel all three looked serious while Raphtalia was a bit curious on something.
"Who are they?"
"Who knows. Who cares." Garfiel responds slightly annoyed Raphtalia since that response from Garfiel was not helpful.
"I wouldn't ask that if I didn't care."
"Well ya shouldn't, ain't our problem."
"Okay you two, be quiet."
Naofumi said as he gave the two a serious look, prompting the two to stay quiet. After that moment, he turned back to see how things were going with Malty, wanting to see how things would play out. They all notice Malty was handed what appeared to be a scroll which left her completely infuriated.
"How could this be?!" Malty stays silent for a second before pointing her finger at Naofumi. "Shield hero! Fight us for the right to rule this village!"
Naofumi and his group were caught off guard by this yet the shield hero regained his composure before turning around.
As he did this, he first signaled his group to follow him before responding to Malty's challenge with:
"No thanks."
"You have to! It is a direct challenge you–"
"I'll do it!"
Garfiel interrupts Malty, sensing that she is trying to instigate a fight in order to do something shady. Naofumi turned towards Garfiel, a little annoyed by this action. Malty instantly responded to what Garfiel had said by saying,
"No! The challenge isn't directed to some stupid boy! It is directed towards the Shield Hero! Know your place, stupid demi human."
"Ya think I give a fuck 'bout yer rules or insults? Please. I've taken worse from someone way hotter than ya!" Garfiel said with confidence, having compared the insults here from the insults he gets from Ram on a daily basis.
Not only that but comparing their looks, liking Ram one million times more than Malty.
Malty couldn't help but feel insulted by this and was tempted to attack but seeing that there were too many witnesses, she restrained herself reluctantly.
She took a second to calm down before returning her overwhelming confidence.
"My, Shield Hero, for a demi human boy to fight for your place instead of yourself. What kind of man you are?"
"One who is busy, now screw off."
Naofumi said, not allowing Malty to get him mad over petty insults. Before the shield hero could leave, the village lord approached him.
"Please Shield hero, help us."
"I refuse." The Shield hero said instantly, not wishing to be involved in things, especially if Malty is involved.
"But if we lose this, the village will fall into the Spear Hero's hands! As the current lord, even I cannot accept further taxation at this time!"
Naofumi was silent as he felt all of this to be a pain since this isn't a responsibility he wishes to have. Just as he was going to respond in an annoyed tone of voice, Garfiel chimed in to give his opinion on the matter.
"Doesn't hurt t'do th's. Besides, ya beat spear dumbass before, ya can beat him again."
"That may be true but this all still sounds like a pain."
"Life's a pain."
"Tsk. You aren't wrong there." Naofumi reluctantly agreed to what Garfiel had said. Before he could say anything more, his group all notice Filo acting all fired up as she was staring at a dragon.
"Seems like your filolial is fired up." The current lord of the village had said. This was something Naofumi didn't want.
"What's wrong with her?"
"So it's true that filolials and dragons don't get along." Raphtatlia said, which caught Garfiel's attention for a moment before the villagers all continued to beg Naofumi to accept the challenge.
"Please, we beg you. We promise you a reward for winning!"
Naofumi had a moment to pause, seeing that this could prove to be beneficial if he participates and wins this challenge. He sighs before saying,
"I'm not responsible for what happens if I lose, okay?"
"Thank you." The current lord of the village said as he showed his much appreciation with his words. Naofumi just had a blank facial expression before turning towards Filo, wanting to see what is up with her. Just as he did this, Garfiel had a slight criticism towards the shield hero.
"Ya gotta say th't ya will win! Can't say stuff like 'what happens if I lose' crap."
"I'm just telling him that I'm not responsible should I lose. Not like I'm planning to if there is a reward involved." Garfiel nodded as he understood what Naofumi meant while the Shield hero turned towards Malty to ask, "Okay then, what the hell is the challenge?"
"A race."
"Okay."
Naofumi approached Filo and began to pet her while Motoyasu just looked at him with complete hatred, still recalling how he lost his duel with him not too long ago. He waited for the right moment to confront his enemy.
"You are going to pay, Naofumi, you bastard."
"For what exactly?" The Shield Hero asked in a calm manner while having a blank expression.
"You know why. You humiliated me in front of a large audience!"
"If I recall, it was you who challenged me. You're the only one to blame for your failure to beat me just like how I'll beat you here too."
"Oh really? I would be inclined to take that seriously if you also had a dragon by your side but you have a simple filolial." Motoyasu said since he was confident that he will defeat the Shield hero this time.
"What's your problem with filolials?" The Shield Hero asked as he did not like the way Motoyasu was boasting.
"I have no issue with them. I'm just saying that dragons are better than filolials for a race."
The second this was said, Filo did not hesitate to attack Motoyasu by kicking him directly in between the legs while also sending him flying onto a haystack.
As he landed there, Malty looked shocked and concerned, causing her to approach him in a worried manner to which Garfiel and Naofumi were able to see right through.
"Motoyasu-sama! Healing magic! Hurry!"
Naofumi, Filo, and Garfiel all three had smirks on their faces as they watched Motoyasu getting healed from Filo's attack. Malty observed her knights going off to heal the Spear Hero. While she watched this, she turned towards Naofumi's direction with an annoyed facial expression.
"You cheater!"
"It's his fault for getting too close."
As Naofumi said this, he along with Filo and Garfiel began to laugh. Raphtalia noticed this and couldn't help but think about how this is the most she has seen her master smile.
As the moment passes, Motoyasu and Naofumi get themselves ready for their race in their respective rides.
While the rules were being explained, Raphtalia took this chance to ask the demi human boy,
"Why is it that you resort to violence?"
"Hm? Well, th't's how ya get things done. Ya beat th'bad guys, be th'hero. At least th't's how cap'n would phrase it."
"Captain? Who—"
Before she could finish her question, the two noticed that the explanations had finished. They both turn to look at Naofumi, both demi humans prepared to cheer for their ally and leader.
"Good luck, Naofumi-sama!"
"Ya got th's!"
Naofumi heard their shouts, smiling over to them before his face went into serious mode. "We can do this, Filo."
Filo only squaked in agreement as she readied herself.
"START!"
Out the gate, Filo dashed ahead, blitzing past the dragon with intense speed. Since not too many people could see what was going on, Ma had a plan to insure that Motoyasu would win the race.
As he rounded the last corner to finish the first lap, Naofumi could see a Knight out of the corner of his eye in the bush. Suddenly, a large hole opened up in the ground. Someone else felt this was going on.
'The hell..'
"Oi, Talia... I think the bitch over there is cheating again."
"What makes you say that?"
Just then, to avoid the hole, Naofumi and Filo slid across the track. This in turn, gave Motoyasu the lead on the last corner.
"Just a feeling." Garfiel said. Raphtaila nodded because something had to have happened there.
"Alright, how should we handle this?" She said. Garfiel looked around, only to see Malty nod to a Knight of hers.
"Stay here and keep an eye on this bitch. I'll make sure she doesn't have any more surprises from her weaklings."
Garfiel ducked down to not be seen, sneaking off to find out what was going on. He quickly ran as fast as he could, feeling something was off. He wasn't sure at first until he figured that it was the ground that was telling him where he had to look.
'Haven't tried th's yet since I'm here...'
He stomped his foot down, feeling his power surge. Once he did this, he heard someone scream out. He quickly ran towards the direction of the scream to find a knight on the ground, completely disoriented from the attack.
'I fuckin' knew it!'
Before the knight could recover, Garfiel took this opportunity to knock him out while trying to see if he could find any more of the knights trying to sabotage Naofumi. While he searched around, he looked at the knocked out knight with disgust in his eyes.
'Cap'n makes a better knight than ya.'
As he thinks this, he looks at the race to see that not only is Naofumi in the lead, but he has a way bigger distance compared to Motoyasu.
This made Garfiel somewhat satisfied, yet he felt that there were possibly more knights around, trying to help Motoyasu win the race.
This prompted the demi human boy to take a look around, using his senses to detect anyone. While he was looking around, one of the knights noticed that he needs to do something or the Spear hero will lose again to the Shield Hero. He put both his hands together while saying,
"Decipher the laws of nature and—"
"—allow my amazin' self t'kick yer ass."
"What?"
The knight turned towards the voice only to suddenly be knocked out by a powerful force.
Garfiel looked at disgust at this knight as well before having this disgust feeling turn into one of pride as he saw Naofumi eventually win the race in such a way that completely left Motoyasu more humiliated than before.
All of the villagers cheered as they saw the one that saved their village help them once again.
"Thank you, Shield Hero. We are in your debt."
"If you wanna thank someone, thank Filo."
As Naofumi finished saying this, he realized that something was up. This prompted him to turn towards Filo to see that she has changed physically, surprising him alongside the villagers.
"You cheated!" A bitchy voice spoke out, catching Naofumi's attention. "You didn't tell us your filolial was really this massive tub of lard!"
"But it only transformed after the race was over." The current lord of the village spoke out, defending Naofumi.
"Yer th'ones th't cheated, ya bitch."
"Excuse me?!" Malty said as she was insulted being called that. As she turned towards Garfiel's location, she along with the knights with her were surprised when he was carrying two of their own.
"Found these two actin' weird, so I put them t'sleep."
"Why you?! How dare you attack my knights! I should have your head for this!"
As Malty says this, she prepares to order her knights to attack Garfiel. This causes the demi human to set the two knocked out knights down before preparing himself for a fight.
"Come on then, bitch! I'll take all of y'all!"
Before a fight broke out, the unknown people in robes once again intervene as they seem to be on the side of Garfiel Tinsel.
"This boy speaks the truth, someone had attempted to tamper with the course."
"I-It was obviously that criminal!" Malty says while she was pointing at Naofumi, annoying the Shield Hero a bit. The leader of these unknown group responded to what Malty had said by saying,
"No, the magic we found is different. None of the Shield Hero's party have the elements of magic we found."
"Tsk! F-Fine! We shall leave for today!"
Malty reluctantly said as she along with her group started to make their way towards the exit of the village. Motoyasu passed by both Naofumi and Raphtalia, giving off a pissed off aura since this was the second time he was beaten by the Shield Hero.
Compared to the first, this one was more humiliating. The two heroes locked eyes for a moment with Motoyasu tempted to say something yet he just left, filled with anger and envy in his heart. Once Motoyasu's group left, the current lord approached Naofumi to thank him once again.
"Thank you so much, Sir Hero. We don't know how to express our gratitude for everything you've done."
Naofumi pauses for a moment.
"Forget that. Hand over the reward."
"We're going around the village collecting money now. Please give us a few days..." The current lord said to which Naofumi immediately responded with:
"I don't want your money."
"...sir hero." The villagers were surprised yet happy to hear this.
"I don't want rumors spreading about how I took all your rebuilding funds."
"Nobody in this village would ever say that!" Raphtalia said as she felt that everyone in the village could be trusted.
"Really, now?" Naofumi said as he went into his thinking position.
"But then, what else can we give you?"
The villager asks, leaving Naofumi stunned since he wasn't sure until he felt something poke his head. He looked to see that Filo wanted his attention since she wanted to alert her master that she wanted the wagon nearby.
Seeing this as an opportunity to travel, he tells the village leader that he wants the wagon for Filo.
The lord of the village accepts this and allows them to take it, giving Naofumi and his group a chance to start their travels.
While they were riding for a bit, Garfiel couldn't help but see that something was up with Raphtalia.
"Oi, Talia, ya alright?"
"N-No...Naofumi-sama...could we please stop for a bit?"
"Hm?"
Naofumi looked to see that something was up with Raphtalia, prompting him to stop the wagon. As the wagon came to a halt, the raccoon girl jumped out and vomited on some bushes. Garfiel saw this and couldn't help but comment,
"Damn...th't was rough."
"Oh shut it Garfiel."
"Oi, Naofumi, shall we sleep here fer th'night?"
"Sure. Doesn't seem like any danger is nearby."
Garfiel nodded and for the rest of that day, they set up camp in order to rest up.
The demi human boy woke up and noticed that his surroundings were a bit off since he last recalled that he was sleeping on grass. This time however he was asleep in some comfy yet familiar bed.
"Th'hell's goin' on?!"
The demi human boy looked around to see that the walls were way too familiar to the point that he figured where he was at.
'I'm back to th'Sanctuary!'
This didn't make any sense to him since he was first teleported to a whole new world with a whole new situation he wasn't prepared for.
Now he is back to the beginning, where he was too afraid to leave his comfort zone. He got up to take a look around, hoping to bump into one of the Ryuzu Mayers.
While he was walking around, his body felt danger all around despite being in a place he considered safe long ago. As he walked all around the house, he eventually came across an unfamiliar door.
'Th'hell?'
Although he wanted to open this new and mysterious door to see where it led, his body kept telling him that there was danger.
This annoyed him since he had faced many dangerous things before, prompting him to ignore the warning his body was trying to give him, causing him to open the door.
The second he did this, he jumped back as he saw something he immediately didn't like at all.
"It can't be!"
Garfiel opened his eyes, seeing that he is back on the actual world, the world he was teleported to by an unknown source.
As he woke up, he looked at his surroundings for a moment before stretching his body, disliking the nightmare he had.
During his stretch, he noticed that something was missing though at first he wasn't sure.
He got up and was about to go towards the wagon to grab a snack before noticing Raphtalia waking up.
"Oi, Talia, how're ya feelin'?" Garfiel asked with genuine concern for his ally. Raphtalia took notice of what she was asked and immediately answered the demi human boy with,
"I'm alright Garfiel. Thanks for asking."
"Don't mention it."
The two stood silent for a bit as Raphtalia got up as well, stretching her arms before deciding to turn towards Naofumi to see how he was doing while Garfiel turned towards the wagon, still wanting a snack.
The second Raphtalia turned towards her master, she saw something that immediately caught her attention, prompting her to call out for Garfiel.
"Garfiel. Garfiel."
"Eh? What?" The demi human boy asked in a carefree manner.
"Come here."
"Why?"
"Just come here!"
"Okay Okay."
Garfiel listened to Raphtalia and went towards her position, a bit curious to know what exactly she wanted.
After approaching her position, she pointed at Naofumi which prompted Garfiel to look, being surprised like her.
While the two were stunned by what they saw, eventually Naofumi woke up.
"Sorry, I must've fallen asleep."
Naofumi was about to get up until he felt something off. It took him a moment before figuring out that it was soft skin.
'Why do I...?'
He looked down to see a little girl sleeping on his lap, completely shocking him. He jumped out while having a surprised facial expression.
"Huh?"
"Th-That girl..."
Raphtalia spoke with a nervous voice as she didn't know how to process this, neither did Garfiel as he stood silent. The girl looked around before turning her attention towards Naofumi while a small set of wings grew out from her back side.
"Good morning, Master."
"Ma—"
"Who the heck is she?!"
Raphtalia said in a confused, concerned, and jealous tone all mixed together.
"Ya jealous?" Garfiel said as he couldn't waste such an opportunity though this might have been a poor timing joke since it only resulted in Raphtalia snapping at him.
"This is not time for games! Naofumi-sama! Who is this girl?!"
"I don't know!"
"Garfiel! Do you know?!" Raphtalia said which shifted Garfiel's tone.
"I don't know her!"
"Then who is she?!"
"I'm hungry!" The girl spoke in a happy tone of voice, prompting the three to eventually puzzle together that this was Filo.
'Things just got complicated, haven't they?' Naofumi thought.
Author's note:
Hello, this is GreenWarrior291 here. Me and my friend, KoolKen, want to apologize a bit with how this chapter took a while to be posted. Since the two of us are done with school until the spring semester comes around, we will be working hard on the next few chapters. Hopefully you all have enjoyed this chapter.