For disclaimers and notes, see chapter 1.

CHAPTER 3

Taylor came down to breakfast and ate with the other Heroes. They greeted her politely enough, though Ren still looked irritated with her. Breakfast was a simple affair of unleavened bread, cheese, and water of questionable cleanliness. When she finished, Taylor headed for the Adventurers' Guild.

The guild was a large two-story building only a short walk from the inn. On entering, she paused to look around. There weren't many people. Some seemed to be adventurers looking over posted quests while others seemed to just be relaxing, probably waiting for their comrades. A few were gathered near the main desk, talking to a weary looking man with a fixed 'customer service' smile. While some of the adventurers looked promising, appearances could be deceiving. She knew that better than most. Pushing some rather ugly memories to the back of her mind, she approached the main desk. She had to wait while several adventurers got approval for the quests they had taken and went on their way. The young man standing behind turned his customer service smile toward her.

"How can I help you?"

"I'm looking to recruit some adventurers." She introduced herself and explained her needs. The man looked confused.

"We sent the best we had to the castle to serve as party members for the Heroes."

Taylor had suspected as much. "Do you have any that are not devoted to the local religion?" she asked. Aggravating the man likely served no purpose, but he doubted the guild would be of much use.

"What do you mean?" the man asked, hesitantly.

"They were allowed to choose which Hero to work with. Each followed the church's teachings and chose any but the Shield." She didn't know for a fact that they had been specifically instructed to avoid her, but the reactions of the people she had met were telling. The claim that they avoided her because she knew less about the situation than the three gamers was suspicious, as was the speed with which that news had spread. She liked to think that some of the adventurers would have sense enough to know that it was counter-productive to hamstring one of their summoned Heroes with their entire world on the line.

"We don't have anyone else available," the man's smile looked a bit strained. "All I can suggest is…" He trailed off and looked around. "I normally wouldn't even bring it up, but if you're really desperate, there's a way." He gave her directions to someone that, he said, might be able to help her, but he didn't offer any details.

Taylor, lacking anything better to do, followed the directions, taking in the locations of potentially useful shops as she did. Halfway there, she noted an alley that would take a few minutes off her walk and was about to turn in when she heard a noise from the alley. There seemed to be a struggle of some sort going on and she paused, reaching out with the small swarm she had gathered to investigate. What she saw through the eyes of some lazy needlewings surprised her. Malty was there with a large, brutish man. He shoved her against the wall and struck her hard in the stomach. Malty looked more irritated than injured, but she didn't fight back.

What is going on here? She nudged some of the insects closer and focused on what the bugs could hear as she pretended to show no interest in anything save the directions that she had written on a scrap of parchment the guild employee had given her.

"Sorry, princess," the man said quietly, "but this has to look real, and she'll be here soon."

"I know," was the peevish response, "so try harder. I barely felt that." A solid blow to the face stopped her complaining. "You're enjoying this a little too much." Two more body blows and another to the face started to leave appreciable marks.

Taylor decided that enough was enough. She roused the needlewings from their weather induced lethargy and sent them swarming toward the pair. Soon Malty and her assailant were shouting in pain and panic. They fled the alley, running right past Taylor, who looked up, doing her best to look confused by what she was seeing. She wasn't the only one staring, and then several shouts about needlewings went up.

She made a point of stepping in and using her new [Air Strike Shield] to protect some of the bystanders from the annoyed insects. Several people thanked her for her help, and she went on her way, keeping track of the princess and her friend till they were out of her range. She noted that they were headed in the direction of the Church of the Three Heroes.

She made note of that, but had no idea what to do about it for the moment. Instead, she finished her journey and found herself at a large tent at the edge of town. A short, plump man with a decidedly untrustworthy look about him came out and greeted her.

"Greetings. My name is Beloukas, a humble merchant." He took in her appearance. "Ah, I do believe it's the Shield Hero. Excellent."

"Why is that?" Taylor wasn't sure what to expect, but what her swarm was showing her was not encouraging.

"I had heard of what happened at the castle. The church sullied your reputation before you even had the chance to make one. Most unfortunate, but not unexpected."

"Surprised me," Taylor sighed. "How exactly can you help?"

"Why with my fine selection of products, of course. I have for purchase, at reasonable prices, the finest selection of slaves in the country."

"Slaves?" Taylor froze. She had hoped she had been wrong, that there was another explanation for the state of the people in the tent. The ABB had a habit of kidnapping young women and forcing them to work in hidden brothels or selling them overseas. The merchants had forcibly addicted people to narcotics of various types and used them for whatever purpose they wanted, since their victims were willing to do nearly anything for another dose. The man in front of her…

"Perfectly legal and safe, I assure you. Criminals are often sentenced to slavery, and the crest applied keeps them from rebelling, disobeying, or harming their owners."

Taylor sent more of her swarm discretely through the tent, gathering more information than the collection of fleas, roaches and other pests could give her. She found people of various sizes in cages and in the cases of the larger ones, in chains. She found two dead people, one of whom was too small to be anything but a child. There was also one living child.

Pushing her emotions into her swarm, and keeping her face neutral, she addressed the man. "Show me."

The man led her into his tent and through the aisles formed of cages to a large humanoid feline. Taylor was not interested in him, but analyzed him anyway. He was level 75 and his status read as 'enemy.'

"You're showing me your most expensive slave?" she asked, glaring at the slaver.

"You need something to compare the others to," he answered smoothly. "This one is 15 gold pieces. He's a fierce fighter and would do well in any adventuring party."

"And what precisely was his crime? Not being human?"

"More or less," the slaver shrugged easily. "Demi-humans and beast-folk aren't well liked in Melromarc, so enslaving them is perfectly legal, even if it is frowned on by polite society."

"And yet, those in polite society are your best customers."

The man chuckled. "Too true. Let's see about something more in your price range." They walked away as Taylor fumed silently. Something caught her eye and she walked over to a cage with a missing door. The hinges were clearly damaged. The slaver paused and grimaced at the sight, clearly remembering something unpleasant.

"I was sold a slave with a badly applied crest," he offered, unprompted. "Damn beast nearly killed me."

"Looks like the cage won't be much use to you. Mind if I absorb it?"

"I was just going to try to sell it for material, but you've got me curious. Go ahead."

Taylor pressed her shield against the damaged wooden cage and it vanished.

[Cage Shield]

+1 Def

[Ability: Beast cage] Create a cage around a target for 30 seconds.

She nodded approvingly, and shared the results at his curious look.

"I can see that being quite useful," he commented. He then led her to another section, pausing briefly at a cage containing a dead demi-human child.

"Blast," he muttered. "Oh, well. That one wouldn't have gotten me much anyway." They moved on while Taylor resisted the urge to throttle the man and stuff him into one of his own cages.

They stopped at a cage holding the one living child in the tent. "This is my cheapest slave, except for the dead ones." The demi-human girl looked about 10. She was thin and frail and gave a wracking cough as Taylor watched. Seeing little choice, she used [Analyze] and determined that the girl wasn't as bad off as she looked, but a few more days of the slaver's 'care' would likely kill her. "As you can see, she won't last long. For just a few silvers more, however-"

"I'll take her." Taylor spoke without hesitation. "All she needs is medicine and proper food."

"You won't find many who will help you with that," the slaver snorted. "I thought the goal was to find a slave that could fight for you?"

"I'll be fine in that regard." She examined the girl more closely as he brought her out of the cage and lead the way back toward the front of the tent. Taylor noted the markings on her upper chest. "That the slave crest?"

"It is."

"Remove it."

"What? Are you sure?" Her order seemed to honestly baffle him.

"Very."

The man shrugged and had the girl sit at a table in the main area of the tent while he used holy water and a foul-smelling chemical in a small bottle to remove the seal, after Taylor had paid him, of course. While he did, she used her power to remove her fleas and a couple of internal parasites that were troubling her. She sent the fleas to Beloukas. Glancing around, as the man worked, she spotted a display that caught her attention.

"What are those?"

"A new venture of mine. A monster egg lottery. Those are monster eggs. Impossible to tell which is which, but each contains a monster that, if raised well, has the potential to become a powerful ally. Many are likely filolials, but if you get lucky, you might pick a dragon!"

Taylor walked over to them and began to search with her powers. She wondered if she might find something like the giant beetle she used to have. From most of the eggs, she got nothing, but two caught her attention.

The first seemed some sort of giant spider monster. That had possibilities. The other seemed to be some kind of flying insect that didn't have any direct analog on Earth Bet. Both, she could tell, would grow to be quite large and formidable.

"I'll take these two."

"Very well," Beloukas nodded. "Why those two?"

"No particular reason. Just have a good feeling about them." She turned around to find the slaver had finished his work. She approached and paid him for the eggs and incubators to care for them as she offered the girl some rations she had purchased at a market stall along the way and then gave her some water.

"T-thank you," the voice was weak and reedy and Taylor gave her some dried meat to chew on while she finalized her business with Beloukas. As they started to leave, Taylor leading the girl by the hand, paused.

"One more thing before I go," Taylor turned back, her tone mild but her swarm gathering just out of the man's sight. "I have no problem with you buying and selling criminal slaves, if that's how the nation punishes its criminals, but," her tone grew hard and the insects nearby leant her words a buzzing, ominous tone that had the man looking around nervously. "If I ever find you dealing in children again, you and I will have a long and painful conversation. Am I clear?" The buzzing rose to a crescendo, echoing her words in a decidedly unnatural way. It was an intimidation technique she'd mastered long ago and it had served her well.

"Y-yes. Perfectly." The slaver wasn't sure how she was doing that, and part of him admired her intimidation technique. It was clear that the new Shield Hero would be one to watch.

Taylor left with her purchases and the newly freed slave. She had noted an herbalist's shop not far away and it seemed the best place to get medicine for her. The man who ran the shop was reluctant to deal with the Shield Hero and grew more so when he learned the medicine was for a demi-human. She was able to convince him with a little extra silver, though, and not only got the medicine but instructions on how to make more, which she wrote down in English and put in storage. She might have been able to intimidate him, but decided that that would be counter-productive. She also bought some older tools of the man's trade at a fair price after telling him about abilities involving potion making her shields gave her. Apparently, there was money to be made selling medicine and medicinal herbs, and he had more orders than he could keep up with. The notion of selling the man not only collected herbs but potions she made as well, appealed. They then headed for the inn to get some food.

The pair got some odd looks, but ate without being interrupted. Raphtalia, her new friend, had little appetite, but she ate as directed. Taylor had noted the girl's longing look at a meal a child at one of the tables was eating and had the server bring one for the demi-human girl, much to Raphtalia's surprise. The small flag that adorned the meal seemed to fascinate her for some reason, but Taylor decided not to ask. As she was finishing her food, Taylor checked the inn via her swarm, and found that someone was trying to break into the room. There wasn't a lot of time to decide how to respond to this problem, but she took a few seconds to look around the room and find the town guard she had spotted when she came in. One of the king's or the church's stooges.

She sighed and got to her feet. "Come on, we've got a small problem to deal with." The demi-human girl looked confused, but followed her obediently as Taylor approached the guard who had come in just after they had. Taylor had tagged him earlier as he didn't seem to have any business there other than to watch her.

OOOOOOOOOO

Yalan blinked in surprise when the Shield Hero approached him.

"I have a crime to report."

"You do?" Yalan asked, genuinely perplexed by this turn of events.

"Yes. Could you follow me?" He tried to demure, but he couldn't think of a reason not to. It was part of his duty, after all, as a town guard to respond to such claims. She led the way to the second floor and to what she told him was her room. The door was open and by the sounds, there was clearly someone inside.

Somehow, he doubted that this was what the church elder who had asked him to be at the inn that day intended. He gestured her to wait before approaching the door quietly and peeking into the room. There was a large, thuggish man on his knees. As he watched, the man removed something from his tunic and pushed it under the bed.

"Stop right there." The man looked up and saw Yalan entering the room, followed by the Shield Hero, and the owner of the inn, who had followed them without Yalan noticing, likely concerned about a crime against one of the Cardinal Heroes in his establishment.

"What are you doing in here?" the innkeeper demanded before either Yalan or the Shield Hero could continue. "I'll not have anyone stealing from my guests!"

The man, Jesle, if Yalan recalled correctly, seemed even more flummoxed than he was, which was saying something. The priest at the Church of the Three Heroes had told him to be there when the Shield Hero's crime was discovered so he could take evidence to the king. Yalan hadn't asked for details, simply believing that there would be a crime and evidence. The church taught that the Shield Hero was not to be trusted in anything, was in fact, an embodiment of treachery. How they could know that about the young woman was beyond him, but he trusted the church.

Now, everything was getting muddled. There was a crime in front of him, but it wasn't the Shield Hero's crime. It appeared that Jesle had just shoved a heavy-looking sack under the bed. The situation looked very suspicious, and Yalan, who didn't like being used or made a fool of, asked a simple question.

"Is that stolen money you're attempting to hide under the Shield Hero's bed?" If this was an effort to tarnish the young woman's reputation before she could even begin earning one, it, in his mind, cast doubt on the church's teachings, or at least the actions of the current priests. It had never made any sense that anyone summoned for the Shield would be utter trash. Why would anyone summon them to begin with if that were the case, and why would a sacred weapon always choose such a person? He had seen the woman with the Shield working hard in the fields alone and had seen her defend townspeople attacked by needlewings.

"O-of course not! I was asked to search the room for missing money, but not retrieve it." Jesle stared at him as if Yalan had somehow betrayed him, personally. Yalan didn't like the way he was being glared at and didn't think the man's story made any sense, given what he had seen the man doing when he came in. He also knew that Jesle had had more than a few brushes with the town guards.

"Why would anyone ask you to do that?" The Shield Hero sounded genuinely curious.

"That's not your business, Shield Devil!" the man answered hotly.

"Ah. The church put you up to it," Taylor nodded, unsurprised.

"I know the church doesn't like the Shield Hero," Yalan frowned, "but turning the people she's supposed to help against her with false accusations seems…"

"Stupid?" the innkeeper offered. He shook his head. "Just get this man out of here, please. I don't need my inn's reputation tarnished with such happenings."

"We're going to have to bring this before the king," Yalan said with a wince. He knew this wouldn't end well.

OOOOOOOOOO

The king frowned as he heard the testimony of the man caught in Taylor's room and the testimony of the guard that she had asked to investigate the intrusion. The man caught in her room was a known criminal, and the bag of silvers in his possession was more money than he had ever likely had in his life. The guard's testimony was strictly factual and lacked any indication that he believed the Shield Hero guilty of anything, or her behavior in any way suspicious. This, in itself, was a mark against the man, as far as the king was concerned. There had been no reports of stolen money, but the king realized, that didn't mean the money hadn't been stolen.

"Where exactly did the money come from?" he asked, looking at Taylor.

"I don't know. You'd have to ask him," she replied, pointing at the thug.

"He claims you stole it, and he found it hidden under your bed."

"I still have most of what you gave me the other day," she answered and removed the sack from her inventory. She didn't like showing him that particular trick, but since she obviously wasn't carrying any money on her, it would give him reason to doubt her and cause trouble. "I don't need to steal, and if I wanted to, I certainly wouldn't hide it under a bed in a room anyone could enter." She put her silver back in inventory. The king looked baffled at the sudden appearance and disappearance of the money, but after a moment, set the matter aside and tried to think of a way forward, but evidently couldn't dispute the logic of that statement.

"An amazing talent to be sure," a smooth and familiar voice spoke from the entrance to the throne room. Taylor turned to see Pope Balmus approaching. He stopped at a respectful distance from the throne and a few paces from Taylor, giving her a measuring look. "One that would make it remarkably easy to steal."

"So, the money was stolen!" The king pounced on the pope's words. Taylor kept her expression neutral. While the pope's statement was true, she was almost certain that he didn't know how she had done it.

"Yes, but not by her," Balmus replied. "Jesle is a devout young man, but he doesn't always think his actions through. It seemed he wished to rush things by framing the Shield Hero for a crime she didn't commit. I would prefer to deal with his transgression internally, if it please your majesty."

Jesle paled at the pope's words, something that wasn't lost on Taylor, or Yalan.

Now the king, Taylor noted, just looked confused, and she found herself wondering what Balmus was up to. A man who headed a church that taught its parishioners that anyone using the Shield was pure evil would hardly defend her. Not sure what to expect from him, she stayed silent.

"That is acceptable," the king allowed after a moment, "but what of the Shield Hero? Even without intending to, she causes problems." He went back to glaring at her.

"The Shield Hero visited the church earlier to register with the hourglass, and we spoke," Balmus answered. "She made a valid point. She is new to this world and is not responsible for the actions of the previous Shield Heroes. If this one proves true to form, however, there is no need to expend energy trying to prove her nature, as she will do that herself."

"I would sooner not be taken by surprise by whatever she does," the king snorted.

"Then assign a watcher," the Pope advised. He looked over at Yalan, who had failed to meet the church's expectations so spectacularly. "I believe young Yalan is a man of fine character and is extremely fair minded. As he would not speak against her when she was falsely accused, I believe he would also not defend her if he discovered she had committed a crime, and she has no party members." He didn't even glance at Raphtalia.

Yalan looked alarmed at the notion. Being a town guard in Melromarc's capital wasn't a safe or easy job, but it was far better than running toward fights with monsters and directly confronting the waves. Despite his training regimen he was only decent with a sword and in no way qualified to be an adventurer.

"A fine idea," the king agreed, thinking that there was likely little hope for the young fool, but being assigned a 'minder' would irritate the secretive young woman, so it wasn't a total waste. "Yalan. You are assigned to the Shield Hero's party. She needs someone with offensive ability and someone to help her stay out of trouble."

Taylor looked at the man and found him less than thrilled with the idea. The king was looking smug as if he'd done something clever, and the pope had the same serene look on his face she had seen at the church; impossible to read.

"Thank you very much." She could certainly use the help, Taylor admitted, and someone who wasn't predisposed to mistrust and betray her wasn't the worst choice, even if he was blatantly placed with her as a spy. "I don't wish to force him, though."

"You're not," Yalan supplied. "This is a royal command." He looked to the king and the pope. "I'll do my best."

"I expect nothing less," the king assured him, icily. He then dismissed them so he could get on with real work.

OOOOOOOOOO

When Yalan, Taylor, and Raphtalia reached the main street outside the castle, they paused. Taylor looked at him sheepishly.

"I'm sorry you got dragged into this."

"It's not your fault," Yalan shook his head. "I don't know why they tried to frame you like that, but it wasn't right." He hesitated a moment, and then, reluctantly pushed on. "I was told by a priest at the church that the Shield Hero had committed a crime and that the evidence would be found at the inn. I wasn't given many details. I don't think they intended things to go like that, but," he paused to consider what he had been told and how little sense it made in retrospect, "I honestly can't see how that could have worked, or how I could have done anything other than what I did."

"The king decides what's true, right, and fair?" Taylor offered. Yalan winced. "He doesn't like me because of something a previous Shield Hero did." She shook her head, feeling exasperated. "I don't understand that kind of thinking, but it doesn't really matter. I have to deal with the situation as it is."

"Unfortunately true," Yalan agreed. The things he had been taught by his family growing up, and the things the church preached now seemed at odds. His father had always told him to respect the church and those of honest faith, but to always make up his own mind rather than follow blindly. Those two lessons had never seemed in conflict before. Now, they seemed very much at odds. He took a deep breath, dismissing the matter for later consideration and formally introduced himself to Taylor and the demi-human girl. He then asked to join her party, a request that confused Taylor until she checked her help screen and got the idea. Yalan and Raphtalia were quickly added.

"What now?" Raphtalia asked.

"Now, we go train," Taylor supplied. "We've got to get you a weapon first, though. I think a dagger to start would be good." They made a quick trip to Erhard's shop where the purchased a good quality dagger and some light armor, that was a little large on the small girl. Erhard assured them that she'd grow into it quickly as she gained levels, as demi-humans aged differently than humans. Once properly outfitted, they headed out to the field where the balloons could be found and began training.

Taylor took the opportunity to test [Telecommunication], the communication function she had gained by absorbing her phone, and found that it worked well enough. It seemed an odd cross between a radio and telepathy. She had to speak aloud to be heard, but the others could hear her regardless of distance. Yalan described it as sounding like someone was speaking right next to his ear. No one else nearby, though, could hear the message. The same was true of his replies. Taylor could hear them, but Raphtalia, who was standing right next to her, couldn't, unless she was included in the 'channel.' Switching channels was just a matter of concentration for Taylor.

"That will prove to be a useful skill," Yalan admitted. "It's a little disconcerting, at first, but we'll get used to it." He considered a moment. "The biggest problem is that you have to initiate it. We can't contact you if we need to."

Taylor nodded. "That is unfortunate, but we work with what we have." They spent some time trying to determine work arounds and protocols for using [Telecommunication].