"Stand in the ashes of a trillion dead souls, and ask the ghosts if honor matters. Their silence is your answer." - Javik, Mass Effect 3

Back at it again! I've been having a lot more motivation to write lately, both because I have a lot of good ideas flowing and because I have the time to do it. I've been recently living on my own after some life changes, so it's a lot quieter around here. For better or worse, anyway.

Things are definitely changing this chapter. I hope you like them.

Enjoy!

After the pope was captured, the heroes were asked to accompany the army back to Melromarc's capital to meet with the queen. Werner was nervous about having Naofumi leave so soon after returning, but he assured the Shusaku that he would be fine. The Siltveltian soldiers also seemed upset that their god wasn't sticking around.

Whether or not that was because he wouldn't be there to cook for them was uncertain.

The trip back to the capital was absurdly fast. With three of the four heroes having their portal skills registered to the Melromarc Hourglass, they were able to teleport back to the capital within seconds. Naofumi, with the quick assistance of Melty, received a small amount of the sand within the hourglass to unlock his own Portal Shield skill.

He was still only level 41, so he had to do some more work to do in order to use it.

In the meantime, they were led to the throne room where the queen sat waiting upon her throne. She stood at their entrance. "Ah, Melty. I see you've brought the heroes, as well as our...troublemakers." She said that last word with a noticeable malice that made Raphtalia's hair stand on end.

"Yes, Mother." Melty responded with a slight bow.

The queen tucked an errant lock of purple hair behind her ear. "Then allow me to formally introduce myself. I am Mirellia Q Melromarc, the queen of this country and the highest authority in this land."

The heroes all introduced themselves as well, just like they had the day they were summoned. In the meantime, Malty, Aultcray, and the pope were dragged by knights into the throne room. The red haired woman struggled the most, thrashing against her captors like a caged animal with a gag placed in her mouth. The king couldn't even bring himself to look up from the floor out of shame, and the pope continued smiling that mysterious smile he was notorious for.

"Hey! Why is Myne treated worse than them!? She didn't do anything wrong here!" Motoyasu exclaimed. The queen sighed, looking like she wanted to roll her eyes.

"She cannot be expected to remain silent. Until we get to her wrongdoings, it is in everyone's best interest for her to be silenced. Now then, I suppose we should get down to business." the queen said, snapping her folding fan shut. She walked down from the throne until she stood in front of the three prisoners. "I left the country for diplomacy, and left my most trusted advisors in charge. I firmly believed that Melromarc would still be standing when I returned."

She slowly walked in a circle around them, like a shark circling its prey. "Then, I heard that the waves had begun. Those advisors all perished in the battle, leaving my own husband to pull the country together in my absence." She stopped in front of them before slapping the king in the face. "And what do I come back to!? A war!? Is my husband such a fool that he would undermine everything that I've worked hard for!?"

The woman's explosion made Naofumi recoil in slight shock. 'Oh...she's pissed.'

Even as the queen berated her husband, repeatedly slapping him in the face all the while, he never spoke a word of opposition. After some time, she huffed. "And it seems you know all of this, don't you? You realize what has happened, do you not?" she asked.

"Yes, I do." For the first time since he entered the throne room, Aultcray lifted his eyes. "But I did it all for what I believed was in the best interests of the country. The report I received-"

"Was given to you by this man, if you recall." Mirellia interrupted, pointing down at the pope. "And he was pulling your strings the entire time, just like a puppet. I'll admit, I underestimated how deep the church's reach and resources were."

Balmus smiled, eyes closed. "God's reach is-"

"Silence him."

The guards put a gag on the pope, preventing him from speaking further. His composed expression faltered, and a vein appeared on his forehead as he continued his rant. Not that anyone could understand it, of course.

The heroes all felt slightly uncomfortable around the queen. "Now then, I suppose I should take care of you first." the queen said, reopening her fan. "Biscas Balmus, you not only attempted the assassination of the shield hero in broad daylight, but you also manipulated events to attack our neighboring country of Siltvelt. What do you have to say for yourself?"

The pope tried speaking, but the gag muffled it too much to be understood. "Nothing? Very well, then. Your guilt is undeniable. I hereby declare the Three Heroes Church to be heretical, and Melromarc will follow the Church of the Four Holy Warriors from now on!"

The name said it all. Rather than a church that discriminates against a single hero, this church would treat all the heroes equally. Naofumi had to admit, it sounded much better than even the Church of the Shield Hero in Siltvelt. As much as the preferential treatment was nice on occasion, it had caused him no small amount of trouble in the past. He'd rather just be treated normally than to be worshipped, anyway.

"B-but my Queen! As much as I understand your reasoning, would you really abandon the very traditions that gave rise to our kingdom!?" Aultcray stammered.

"Our kingdom? If I recall, this is my kingdom." Mirellia glared down at him, and he shrank under her intense gaze. "A kingdom that I entrusted to you, and you brought us to the brink of war! Do you have any idea how much work you nearly ruined!? And besides, why would I cling to a tradition that causes nothing but trouble!?"

"Ugh..." He apparently didn't have a retort for that, and settled for looking down at the floor again.

"Now, I suppose we should move on to you." Mirellia harshly ripped the gag from Malty's mouth. The red haired woman cradled her jaw in pain. "If it weren't for your schemes, your father wouldn't have accused the shield hero of a crime he didn't commit!"

"But he did, Mama! This wretched demon tried to rape me!" Malty cried, still struggling against the hold of the guards.

"And?..."

Even the heroes stopped at that. Such a blatant disregard for her daughter's safety was concerning. Even though Naofumi knew he wasn't guilty of such a heinous crime, the fact that the queen didn't seem to care in the slightest whether it was true or not rubbed him the wrong way. That uncaring attitude made her seem not unlike her bitch of a daughter.

Either that, or she already knew all the answers and was just torturing the woman. When he thought about it that way, it didn't seem quite as bad.

"It's unfortunate. If you really did have relations with the shield hero, there might have been a way to save you." The queen didn't even seem angry at her. She just looked disappointed. "Had you not caused such a scene, you could have been married to Mr. Iwatani and relations with Siltvelt would have prospered."

"Married!? To HER!? Don't make me puke!" Naofumi yelled in disgust. Maybe he'd feel better if he actually did throw up on Malty. Maybe messing up that red hair and pretty face of hers would teach her a lesson.

'Nah, I'd better not. Raphtalia wouldn't let me forget it if I did.'

"It seems that's not an option any longer. I suppose I'll have to hold out hope for Melty. It will be hard, but I think there are plenty of reasons to be hopeful."

"M-Mother!?" Melty cried.

"What are you saying!? She's just a little girl!" the king exclaimed in shock. Naofumi, for once, was happy to be on the same side of an argument as Aultcray. At the very least, he didn't like the idea of marrying off his own child to some guy whether he liked him or not.

"SILENCE! I'm sorry, but it's only natural that Melty should marry Mr. Iwatani." Mirellia snapped her fan shut once more.

Despite all arguments against the idea, the queen was adamant about it. Arranging a political marriage between Melty and Naofumi would force Siltvelt and Melromarc to be in peaceful relations with each other. One was a princess of one country, the other was a god of the other country. Naofumi was disgusted by the mere idea of marrying a child, and the alternative proposal of having a child with her before returning to his own world actually did make him gag a little.

Melty didn't appreciate his reaction, but she was on his side of the argument. She obviously didn't want to marry him either.

"All of this is because my foolish husband and daughter destroyed our other opportunities. Everything was fine when you left to join Mr. Iwatani's party. You could have brought more people into his party and domesticated him - kept him for yourself. Had you succeeded, the throne would have been as good as yours." Mirellia said to her eldest daughter.

Malty seemed equally disgusted. "Who would want to do that with someone as ugly as him!? He tried to rape me!"

"He's not ugly!" Raphtalia shouted. "You're the one with the ugly heart!"

"Indeed. It seems you don't have a single drop of purity left in you." Mirellia said, crossing her arms under her sizable bust.

"What are you talking about!? I was a virgin! Ask Lord Motoyasu!" Malty cried.

"Don't even try to lie to me about that. You may be able to fool the spear hero, but you cannot fool me. I've known you for a very long time, and you've always had a nasty habit of taking joy in the misery of others."

"Myne didn't do anything as far as I know!" Motoyasu yelled in her defense. "She really isn't a bad person! I've been with her this whole time, I would know!"

"Mr. Kitamura, please don't talk as if you know my daughter better than I do. In fact, how about I show you how little you know about her?" The queen snapped her fingers, and an attendant walked up with a needle and a pot of ink that Naofumi instantly recognized. She poked a small wound into her finger and allowed the blood to drop into the ink base.

"I see...So you're making her your slave so she'll tell the truth." Naofumi thought out loud. Motoyasu panicked.

"A slave!? You'd do that to your own daughter!?"

The queen's attendants pushed Malty to her knees and pulled her breastplate down just enough for a brush to draw on her chest. "If she tells the truth, the slave crest will not harm her. If she doesn't, it will be most unpleasant."

The attendants began drawing a slave crest on her chest. She howled in pain as the crest burned itself into her skin, then it vanished. Even after the crest was fully drawn, they held her down.

"On the condition of death, you will not attack Mr. Iwatani. Do not raise your hand against him." Mirellia mentioned. "Now then, here is the question. Were you raped by Mr. Iwatani?"

"Yes!" The crest reappeared, and the purple lightning of disobedience surged through her body. Motoyasu looked panicked, while the other heroes simply cringed. Raphtalia gently grabbed Naofumi's sleeve, bad memories returning for a fleeting moment before washing away. However, she didn't release him.

After a short time, the pain became too much. "Okay fine, fine! The shield hero didn't rape me! It was all a lie!"

The lightning ceased. Only three people reacted in shock to this revelation: Motoyasu, Itsuki, and - most surprisingly - Aultcray. Naofumi noted his confusion with a raised eyebrow. 'So he really didn't know...? He wasn't doing that on purpose?...' he thought. 'Maybe he really is just a gullible idiot...'

"See? Have a look, everyone. It was all a lie." the queen said, coldly.

"But how can you say that when you forced her to say it!?" Motoyasu yelled furiously. Naofumi couldn't necessarily blame him. The blond didn't seem to know how the slave crest worked at all, probably too proud or self-righteous to even consider owning a slave. It wasn't out of the question to believe that the queen could simply force someone to say what she wanted.

"Very well, then. Mr. Kitamura, perhaps you would like to ask the questions?" Mirellia hid her smirk behind her fan. He agreed, pricking his finger before the attendants redrew the slave crest onto Malty's chest.

"Alright Myne. You were almost raped by Naofumi...weren't you?" he asked, hopefully.

"Ye-OUCH! OW!" She struggled against the power of the crest, even as pain flooded her body. Motoyasu's face drained of color.

"B-but...but..."

"But there's more, isn't there?" the queen added. "You stole all of Mr. Iwatani's possessions, didn't you?"

"I did NOT! UGH! AAAAAHHHH!" Malty's pained screeches echoed through the throne room. At this point, Ren and Itsuki had already averted their eyes. They'd apparently seen enough to come to their own conclusions. Naofumi couldn't hide the vicious smirk on his face.

"Master Naofumi..." Raphtalia sent him a tired glare.

"I know. I shouldn't be enjoying this so much, but man does it feel good to watch."

"You really make yourself sound evil when you do that."

"I know. Just let me have this one."

"Fine."

After a short period of questioning and zapping, Malty was practically foaming at the mouth. She had already collapsed onto the floor, breathing erratically from the agony of the slave crest. Motoyasu looked like his entire world had been turned upside down, pale as a ghost.

"I think that concludes this interrogation. Now then..." Mirellia paced in front of the three guilty individuals before stamping on the king's foot harshly. "Don't think she's the only one getting punishment!" Raphtalia noted that the queen was wearing very sharp high-heels.

Ouch...

"As of this moment, I officially disown you both. From this time until eternity, neither of you will be considered part of the royal family."

"Wh-what!? B-but my queen-"

"DO NOT 'MY QUEEN' ME!" The purplette slapped him in the face once again, silencing him in a way not unlike their youngest daughter did. If Naofumi didn't see the family resemblance before, he sure as hell did now. "You were an archduke and a soldier. Now you're just a soldier once more. Remember that."

"M-Mama!"

"I have disowned you, so stop calling me Mother. The only reason I shouldn't hand you off to the king of Faubley is because you're aiding a hero. Should that change, you know the consequences." Mirellia's voice was like ice, cutting through her daughter and causing her to panic even harder.

"Oh and by the way, since you'll be working as an adventurer from now on..." The queen pulled out a scroll and handed it to Malty. "This is a record of your debts to the crown."

"B-but I could never repay this!" she whined.

"This sum is the amount you requested from the guild as a member of the royal family. Did you think that money would simply appear when you wanted it? No. You will work like a slave until the entire amount is paid in full."

Mirellia paced back and forth like a hungry cat. "Now, what punishment is suitable...?" she wondered aloud before turning. "Mr. Iwatani, what punishment would you prefer?"

"Oh no..." Raphtalia mumbled.

"Death! Death to the Bitch and the piece of Trash!" Naofumi yelled, slitting a thumb across his throat. "They've done nothing but ruin my life and the lives of others! It's about time they paid with their own!"

"What!? Naofumi, you can't be serious!" Ren cried. "I get that they both deserve serious punishment, but death!?"

"It does seem a little unbalanced, but I suppose you were the one who was treated unfairly." Itsuki said, crossing his arms. "I...don't know whether death is an appropriate punishment, though."

"Hmm...that seems a bit boring don't you think?" The queen's voice sounded a bit like a certain slave trader Naofumi knew. "Why not let them think they're free, then tear their freedom away right before killing them? The looks on their faces would be much more satisfying."

It was official. Werner was right, the queen really is a terrifying woman.

Naofumi thought for a few moments. "I suppose it would be a bit more interesting to tear a few limbs off first. Maybe force them to fight monsters without any arms? That would be entertaining to watch."

"It would certainly provide some momentary entertainment, yes. However, I'm afraid simply executing them is not an option." The queen reopened her folding fan to hide her mouth. "This fool was once a wise and powerful man, and he has many allies who still revere him for his accomplishments."

"So you're saying that killing him would cause more issues than it's worth?"

"You catch on quickly, Mr. Iwatani."

"Master Naofumi," Raphtalia tugged on his arm. "Is this...really what you want?"

He was about to respond with "of course!", but the look in her eyes made him falter. It was a look that screamed "If you go through with this, I'll be extremely disappointed in you." No matter how much Naofumi wanted to simply end the lives of his two biggest problems, he would have to find other ways to punish them.

"I...I..." he stammered before letting out a sigh of defeat. He looked down at the floor, avoiding Raphtalia's searching gaze as much as possible. "Dammit...No, as much as I'd love to have them killed, it really wouldn't do any good at this point."

Raphtalia sent a beaming smile at him, though he had his eyes closed in frustration. He was finally given the opportunity to enact some sweet revenge upon the two people who wronged him the most and threatened his life. And because of the words of one person, one very special person, he found himself unable to go through with it.

'Damn...Maybe I really am whipped already.'

"Oh? And what would you suggest we do to punish them instead?" Mirellia asked, a curious look on her face.

Naofumi looked between the two. Malty was unrepentant, completely happy with her life choices no matter the consequences. If she was given the chance to go back in time, she'd do the exact same thing again - or worse. Aultcray on the other hand...

He looked genuinely ashamed of himself. The former king definitely knew how badly he'd screwed up. Starting a war based on hearsay was no small matter, and people died because of his decision. Quite a few, in fact. Though the battle at the border didn't last more than half an hour, there were a considerable number of casualties on both sides.

"I've made my decision." Naofumi looked up at the queen, whose eyes made it seem like she was smiling at him. "From this point forward, these two will be known as Bitch and Trash."

"What!? How dare you-MMMGH!" Malty screeched, before she was gagged once more.

"I see. And what of her adventurer name? If that is what she will continue to be, she will still use a different name for accepting guild requests." Mirellia added.

"Whore."

There was more struggling from Malty, who was now named Bitch. Thankfully, the guards held her down. Aultcray, now renamed Trash, looked infuriated. However, he bit his tongue and kept any scathing remarks to himself.

"Very well, I feel that is appropriate. From this point forward, the adventurer Malty Melromarc will be known by the names Bitch and Whore. The soldier Aultcray Melromarc shall hereby be known by the name Trash. Anyone using their old names will be punished swiftly and harshly." the queen declared. An attendant furiously scribbled the order down onto parchment before sprinting out of the throne room to make copies.

"And of course, we haven't forgotten about you." she glared down at the pope, who seemed to be still struggling in his restraints. "Prepare the guillotine immediately."

"Yes, your Majesty!"

"Wait."

Naofumi stopped everyone in their tracks. Raphtalia was worried that he would demand something terrible in exchange for letting them live. After all, simply changing their names was...childish. Petty, even. Knowing her master, he could be much more cruel when he wanted to be. He'd already shown zero mercy against Jaralis, who also attempted to kill him.

"Yes, Mr. Iwatani? Is there some other punishment you'd like to add?" Mirellia seemed excited at the prospect, now that he was no longer demanding their lives. "Perhaps you'd like to strip them down and force them to run laps around the castle with weights attached to their limbs? Oh! Perhaps you'd like to cook them rotten food and force-feed them until they get sick? It's a personal favorite that I planned on using myself."

"No, nothing like that." Naofumi said with a shake of his head. He walked up to the newly named Trash and stared him in the eyes. For a short time, the two men were engaged in a battle of glares.

"What, no forcing me to grovel at your feet? No licking your boots?" Trash spat.

"Do you really want to? I suppose they could use a bit of shining." The man merely growled in response, and Naofumi crossed his arms. "I hope you realize what you did. Not just to me, but to other people too."

"What do you mean?" Trash snapped back.

"Because of your negligence, I was left on the streets to die. And because of him," he jabbed a thumb backward toward the pope, "I almost did die. You do realize that the waves become significantly harder to stop all around the world if a single hero dies, right? If I hadn't been saved by the spirit within the shield, this entire world may have been doomed."

The white haired man lowered his gaze slightly, but then snapped back to meet Naofumi's eyes. "The only report I received was that the shield hero was injured. Nothing more, nothing less."

"You trust your reports far too much." Naofumi said, shaking his head. "Answer me this: did you really, truly think I had raped Bitch?"

"Yes. What father wouldn't overreact to such a claim?"

Naofumi's eyes softened. "I guess I wouldn't know what it's like. But still, there's no way you didn't know how often she lied to get ahead. Was there ever a sliver of doubt in your mind that she could have been lying about that as well?"

"I..." Trash grit his teeth, shaking his head as if his guilt would be shaken away with it. "By the time I had calmed down, it was far too late to fix it even if she had been lying. You would not have returned to face another trial, regardless."

"You're right about that, at least. Everyone I've talked to has called you the Wise King, or the Sage King. You're not stupid, but all I've seen from you is someone who's gullible and easily fooled." Naofumi said. Though his words were sharpened like barbs, his tone was nearly flat. Uncaring.

"You try leading a country when the world is ending, and tell me how easy it is to make decisions."

Naofumi sighed. "You've fought in a war, haven't you?"

"Where are you going with this, Mr. Iwatani?" Mirellia asked, impatiently.

"Then he knows the consequences of war. The cost isn't in silver or gold; the cost is in lives. Even for as short a war as this one was, quite a few soldiers on both sides were killed. Are you prepared to take responsibility for those lives that were lost as a result of your decisions?"

The air in the throne room was tense. The fact that Naofumi spoke with such a calm tone made the pressure that much stronger. Trash's expression was twisted with shame and frustration - whether that anger was at Naofumi or himself was unknown.

"Then here's my one, personal punishment for you, Trash." Naofumi pointed at him. "You will go and apologize, on your hands and knees, to each and every family who lost someone because of the war you caused. Both those of Melromarc, and of Siltvelt."

Mirellia made a noise of approval. "I see! Humbling himself before the families of the slain may remind him of the consequences for his actions. I wholeheartedly approve."

Raphtalia didn't say anything, but Naofumi could see her smiling at him out of the corner of his eye. For whatever reason, he found himself glancing over at her for approval more than anyone else.

Trash grit his teeth, but bowed his head. "Very well...shield hero. If that is my punishment, then I shall receive it." Though his punishment was sure to be both humiliating and draining, Trash knew that he had gotten off easy. Based on what he had seen, there were easily hundreds of slain soldiers on both sides of the short conflict.

"Now that our business is concluded, let us reconvene in the courtyard for the heretic's execution. Come, Melty." Mirellia said, turning and walking away.

"Please follow me, heroes and their companions." An attendant bowed before leading them down a different hallway. Raphtalia nudged Naofumi before smiling at him.

"Hey."

"Hey..." he responded quietly.

"I'm proud of you, you know. That was a very mature thing you did."

He scoffed. "You make it sound like you're my mom. Killing him would have made me feel a lot better than this. But..."

"But...?" Raphtalia prodded.

Naofumi raked a hand through his hair. "I guess...it would have only felt good for a little while. After a week or two...maybe a month? It would have worn off."

She sweatdropped. "A whole month?...Regardless, I think having him take responsibility for the lives that were lost was a very good idea." Raphtalia pinched him, and he winced. "BUT, changing their names to Trash and Bitch? Really? How childish!"

"Look, I had to get them back somehow!"

She dropped the subject, rolling her eyes. However, her hand lingered on his arm the entire way to the courtyard. Filo eventually ran over and grabbed his other arm, not wanting to be left out. Naofumi found a smile worming its way onto his face, and he continued toward the courtyard hand in hand with his two most trusted companions.

During the walk to the courtyard, Motoyasu was lost in his thoughts. Bitch was still gagged, and both she and Trash were following them to the courtyard. To Naofumi's surprise, the former king didn't struggle or say much at all. He had fully expected some manner of outburst at this point, but he had taken the news of his punishment relatively well.

Maybe he really was wiser than he seemed. Or maybe he was just glad he wasn't the one being dragged to a guillotine right now.

They soon were brought to a balcony overlooking the courtyard. This particular place brought a few unpleasant memories for Naofumi, who remembered his duel with Motoyasu taking place here. Despite the fact that the battle had ended in his victory, the stakes were depressingly high that day. Had he lost, there was a good chance he would have been imprisoned at best.

After they arrived, a massive number of nobles crowded the stands around them. "And now begins the execution of Pope Biscas T. Balmus, guilty of high treason and heresy!" the queen announced from a different balcony. The crowd exploded into cheers and calls for his beheading.

The pope was dragged into the courtyard agonizingly slowly, prolonging the event for as long as possible. The crowd loved it, but Naofumi just wanted it to be over with. Soon, he was forced to his knees and locked in the gallows. The blade of the guillotine hung hungrily above him, a sharpened edge eagerly awaiting its prey.

"God will not look kindly upon this, my Queen." the pope said, face twisted into a snarl for the first time. "You have been brainwashed by the shield demon, just like all the others! The faithful will never give up the fight against evil!"

"We shall see. The punishment for your crimes is death by beheading! Now Balmus, see what your ambitions have wrought!" Mirellia lifted a hand into the air. The roar of the nobles was deafening, and Naofumi momentarily looked to Raphtalia to see if the noise was hurting her ears.

It wasn't. Good.

"God will never stand for this! I will never stand for this! The afterlife will welcome me with open arms, and I shall transcend these mortal chains to become a true God!" Balmus ranted, eyes widening in fear or madness. Naofumi wasn't sure which.

The executioner gagged the man so he would stop spouting nonsense.

After a short time, the crowd went silent in anticipation. Naofumi covered Filo's eyes, not wanting her to witness something so gruesome no matter how much the man deserved it. The queen, glaring down at the guilty man, chopped her hand down...

*SHHHHHHHINK* *thud*

...and the guillotine blade followed. The nobles erupted into cheers once again, celebrating the death of the pope. Naofumi was disgusted.

'These are the same assholes who were happy to throw me under the bus, too. They're just pandering for the queen's favor now that she's back. At this point, she's definitely flexing her authority over everyone.' he thought with a sigh, having to move his hand continuously to keep blocking Filo's sight. 'At least she's on our side...for now.'

"Masterrrrrr Filo already smells the bloooood! Filo can handle seeing it!"

Naofumi ignored her protests, dragging her out of the courtyard. Along the way, they were met with an attendant who requested they meet with the queen in private. Curiously, the other heroes were not invited.

When they arrived at the large conference room, Mirellia had sighed and slumped in her chair. She explained how she had been out of the country for general diplomacy, but once she received word that all four heroes had been summoned in her country, she was forced to stay abroad to do damage control. The agreement between the countries was that Melromarc would be the fourth country to summon a hero once the waves began, but that agreement was broken.

If it weren't for her efforts and shrewd diplomatic skills, there was a good chance all of the other countries would have declared war on Melromarc for real. After all, hoarding all of the holy heroes, and the protection that they inevitably bring, was no small matter. In exchange for not declaring war, it was decided that the seven star heroes - another group of heroes chosen from this world who were designed to aid the holy heroes in saving the world - were prohibited from aiding Melromarc.

Mirellia once again insisted that Naofumi marry Melty and bear a child to foster relations with Siltvelt, but they both vehemently refused. Raphtalia actually spoke up as well, though she became quiet once the queen asked why she was concerned. Filo shared a confused look with the princess and wrote it off as 'one of those weird things Big Sis does sometimes'.

They were given rooms in the castle to spend the night. The queen prepared separate rooms for the heroes to relax, but Raphtalia and Filo insisted that they wanted to stay with their master. She raised an eyebrow at their request, but allowed it. Naofumi woke up the next morning with his face buried in Raphtalia's cleavage and a sleeping Filo clinging to his side.

Somehow, the raccoon had managed to fall asleep while hugging his head. Naofumi was thankful that he slept on his back, otherwise he might have suffocated. As much as he avoided thinking about it too much, you could really get lost in between those things. They were deadly.

And big. He was never a very shallow person when it came to attraction, but it was getting even harder to ignore the fact that Raphtalia was extremely cuddly. Naofumi, for whatever reason, enjoyed the comfort more than he was ever willing to admit.

She was soft and warm. Sue him.

He awoke earlier than his companions, and opted for wandering the castle. Now that he wasn't in danger of being attacked, he was free to do some exploration. Naofumi eventually found himself in the castle kitchen, where the chefs were busy chugging down as much coffee as possible while preparing the ingredients for breakfast.

Seeing nothing else to do, he decided to help. Before he realized it, nearly two hours had passed and he was already assisting with cooking breakfast. Seeing no reason to stop midway through, he wound up finishing the meal with a few personal touches to see how it would go. The other chefs were in awe at his skill, whispers floating around that the shield hero was the mysterious Chef from Hell all along.

He refused to acknowledge the rumors, however. Naofumi may enjoy when someone likes his cooking, but he didn't want to steal the real Chef from Hell's name and title from him.

The queen and other heroes were surprised when Naofumi, sleeves rolled up to his elbows and apron covered in flour and grease, walked into the dining room with two massive platters filled with food. Raphtalia merely sighed with a smile on her face. He just couldn't resist whenever food was involved, and she knew it.

After a meal that made the queen swear she'd force him and Melty to marry if only for his culinary skills, Naofumi and the others took off for the Dragon Hourglass. Now that Raphtalia and Filo were at the level cap of 40, they needed to receive a class-up in order to go beyond that. With the queen's permission, the soldiers and nuns allowed them to do so without issue.

However, a slight issue presented itself.

When they touched the Dragon Hourglass, a massive web of options appeared before Naofumi's eyes. Things like increasing speed, granting special skills, or prioritizing certain stat upgrades were just a few of the selections he could make. However, he decided to let Raphtalia and Filo choose their class-up for themselves. They would be the ones living with that choice for the rest of their lives, so he wanted them to have that freedom.

In the end, Filo's cowlick began glowing and the class-up option was chosen automatically for them. Apparently, something to do with Fitoria's blessing interfered with the normal class-up ritual and forced a special option to be chosen. Naofumi was originally upset that her blessing not only locked the dragon series, but also prevented a class-up.

Then he saw their stats, and his eyes widened.

'Holy crap! Their stats are nearly double what they were a few minutes ago!' he thought, double checking just to be sure he wasn't reading the numbers incorrectly. 'This is insane...! Is this really the difference in power between someone who is and isn't classed up!?'

He later found from the queen that such a massive boost in stats across the board was completely unheard of. Usually, one or two stats would get maybe half of the boost that Raphtalia and Filo's did. They had to forego any additional skills, abilities, or special effects to get such a large boost in stats though.

Raphtalia didn't mind it very much. She originally wanted Naofumi to pick her class-up for her in the first place, so receiving a generally large leap in strength was more than acceptable. Filo, on the other hand, was upset that she wasn't able to spit poison. Naofumi was personally glad that she wasn't able to make that choice.

He couldn't imagine her being responsible enough to handle spitting poison with her personality. With how she usually acted, she would be so happy spitting poison at everything that she'd cause loads of trouble for everyone nearby. The world was a safer place without a poison-slinging Filo in it.

Now that the wave was taken care of, the international crisis was averted, and things finally seemed to calm down, Naofumi found himself with more spare time than he was used to. They stopped by Elhart's shop to get some new equipment, and he was beyond shocked to see them.

"Hey, kid! Long time no see, huh?" the blacksmith waved them in with a smile.

"Boss! How have you been?" Raphtalia asked excitedly.

"Oh, same old song and dance day in and day out. So, uh...did you two get, um, busy while you were gone or something?" Elhart asked, pointing toward the blonde girl who was admiring the shiny armor sets.

"N-no! Filo i-isn't-!" Raphtalia stammered, tail fluffed in embarrassment. Her face burned so brightly that Naofumi swore steam was coming out of her ears.

"She's not technically ours, but sometimes she feels like one." Naofumi admitted, patting the filolial girl on the head. "Filo is actually a type of monster. A filolial who can transform into a human. Go ahead and show him what you can do."

"Hmm? 'Kay!" Filo poofed into smoke, transforming into her filolial form. Elhart gaped as the tiny girl suddenly occupied a majority of his shop.

"I...uh...I...I don't really have any words for that."

Naofumi chuckled. "You should have seen when she did it the first time."

"Please don't remind me of that night." Raphtalia buried her face in her hands. "I swear that was the most embarrassing night of my life."

Elhart raised an eyebrow. "Well, it sounds like you've had quite an adventure, kid. So, did you come here just to loiter around my shop or are you gonna buy something?"

"Actually, we could use some better things." Raphtalia said, dropping her sword onto the counter. Elhart unsheathed it, inspecting the blade.

"Well it looks like you've outgrown this one. The blade wouldn't have lasted more than a few hard battles in its current state. Take a look around, see if you like anything. If not, I'll make something special."

"Thanks Boss!" Raphtalia ran over to the blade rack to test their weight and balance.

"And? Hey, what happened to that sword I gave you?" Elhart crossed his arms and leveled a half-hearted glare at Naofumi. "Don't tell me you broke it?"

"Actually...I sorta lost it." Naofumi looked away with a sheepish chuckle. "You see, we got stuck fighting a dragon and the sword couldn't cut through its scales since it was too powerful. A few...things happened, and some of us got pretty heavily injured. I honestly forgot it there in all the chaos."

The blacksmith groaned. "You're killing me, kid. So what, have you just been running around without a sword ever since?"

"Well I met a nice blacksmith in Siltvelt who made me a nice axe. Well-balanced and pretty powerful, considering my level anyway. Buuuuut someone attacked me out of the blue and broke it."

"You really suck at keeping up with your weapons, don't you? Maybe I should charge you a premium knowing how poorly you'll treat 'em."

"It's not my fault!"

"Sure, kid. Whatever you say."

Raphtalia giggled, tail flicking back and forth as the two men bickered. 'Even though he tries to distance himself from most people, Master Naofumi and Boss have such a strange friendship. They almost act like father and son.'

"Well maybe I'll just copy all of your damn shields and not pay a thing! How about that!?"

"What!? You brat, that's theft!"

She sweatdropped. 'Yeah...almost.'

In the end, Naofumi ended up copying a shield that Elhart called 'an experiment'. Apparently it was the result of his efforts at a blacksmithing competition of sorts in Zeltoble, the country of merchants. Though it didn't look like anything extraordinary, the ability it gave Naofumi was one he had been wondering about for some time.

'Shooting Star Shield, huh? So that powerful ability was just sitting in the back of his shop this whole time?'

Ever since he'd seen the effects of Ren's Shooting Star Sword, Itsuki's Shooting Star Bow, and Motoyasu's Shooting Star Spear first hand. They looked like the type of skill in a game that was deliberately flashy and cartoony, but was ridiculously powerful. For all three of them, the skill launched a stream of multi-colored stars that would deal heavy damage to opponents.

His Shooting Star Shield apparently created a barrier around him that protected everyone inside. Just like all of his other abilities, it didn't have any offensive capabilities to speak of. He'd found that he could combine his Air Strike Shield with his Change Shield skill to essentially add that shield's special effects to the floating shield. When he had time, he'd try to do the same with this new skill as well.

On the way out of Elhart's shop, they bumped into Ren and his party. Their conversation was relatively short, and they both avoided the topic of the trial or the execution as much as they could. The sword hero pulled out scraps of white and black materials, claiming they were parts of the wave monsters and bosses that they'd killed.

Naofumi had almost forgotten about them entirely. Having a war to stop took most of his attention at the time, so he was glad Ren remembered to save some for him. They unlocked the Shadow Shield and the Soul Eater Shield. One only gave some minor shadow resistance, while the other had a plethora of extra effects.

Soul Eater Shield: ability locked

Equip Bonus: Spirit Resistance (medium), Spiritual Attack Resistance (medium), SP Up

Special Effect: Soul Eat, SP Recovery (medium)

The resistances and SP recovery were all self-explanatory, but Soul Eat was a bit more vague...and a bit frightening. 'Am I able to eat peoples' souls? That sounds like something an evil person would do. Dammit Ifrit, are you trying to make me look like a bad guy, now!?'

He hoped he would never have a reason to use its ability on normal people. No matter how much someone may deserve death for doing something unforgivable, the idea of consuming their soul felt wrong. In another world where he didn't have Raphtalia to drag him out of that pit of despair, he very well may have been excited to try it out on some poor sap who pissed him off.

But if there were ghosts or spirit-type opponents, Naofumi was sure it could come in handy somehow. Maybe it was just one of those skills that were extremely useful, but only under very specific circumstances? He'd worry about it later.

Knowing that they could easily teleport back to the capital made it a lot easier for Naofumi to justify walking everywhere. Since they had to leave in such a hurry after the wave, they didn't have time to go back to pick up Filo's carriage from Reichnott's mansion. The girl was beyond excited to retrieve it, going so far as to grab Naofumi and Raphtalia and start running until they told her to put them down.

She pouted, but did as she was told. They had plenty of time before the next wave hit, and it was only about a day's walk from the capital anyway. For once, Naofumi was happy to just relax on the road.

They quickly arrived and checked in with Reichnott. The slaves were all recovering, though their conditions still ranged from 'sick' to 'bedridden'. It had only been a few days since they were rescued, and many of them would still require serious medical aid. The nobleman had apparently requested it from the queen now that she had returned, but they were too busy with other matters to provide it.

Naofumi, feeling a small surge of empathy from seeing Raphtalia's worried face, decided to stick around and cook them all dinner. He noticed that it was becoming a trend. They go somewhere, people are hungry, he ends up cooking food, and people leave with filled bellies and happy smiles. Even if it made him feel like the mom of the group, he didn't mind it way too much. As long as it didn't happen every single day for every meal, he could manage.

The boy that Raphtalia knew, Keel, was recovering somewhat well. He was in good enough condition to eat on his own, and he devoured Naofumi's cooking with a gusto that even Raphtalia hadn't had as a child. And she was the one who could scarf down several times the amount of a normal person, back then anyway.

That had recently begun to slow down. Naofumi figured it had something to do with her rapid growth into adulthood. Filo was ravenous from the moment she was born, so she wasn't a good example to compare to.

Despite his weakened state, Keel was adamant about keeping Raphtalia as far away from Naofumi as possible. The boy growled at him constantly, claiming that he was 'controlling his best friend using super yummy food' or something along those lines. After he'd tasted Naofumi's cooking, however, he couldn't help but want more and more. At that point, he no longer cared whether he was being corrupted.

It was just too delicious for his little taste buds to handle.

The raccoon swatted him on the head and chastised him like a mother would her own child. Though he still protested, Keel eventually decided he wanted to come with them. Naofumi wanted to refuse, and he was glad that Raphtalia did it for him. She claimed that Keel needed to focus on recovering first, and that he would need to grow big and strong if he wanted to come with them. The mention of mortal danger didn't seem to phase him in the slightest, if the rapid wagging of his husky-like tail was any indication.

After leaving some extra medicine with Reichnott and leaving, the group headed south for the next few days. Halfway through their journey, they spotted something that seemed out of place. To their right was what appeared to be a massive forest...or was it a jungle? It was hard to tell the difference with how overgrown everything looked.

Massive roots and tendrils slowly spread out from the treeline, crushing any other vegetation in its way. Based on what Raphtalia remembered from the area, that hadn't been there the last time she was here.

Something was wrong. Very wrong.

That constant feeling of paranoia stuck with them all the way until they saw the ruins of a fishing village. Raphtalia crawled out from the carriage and sat beside her master on the driver's seat. After a short period of silence, he nudged her with his elbow.

"You going to be okay?" he asked. Raphtalia shook her head.

"I just...This will be my first time coming back here since..." she trailed off, folding her hands in her lap.

"I know. We can still turn around if this is too much for you."

She shook her head again. "No. I need to see it. I need to see my parents one last time, so I can tell them all about what's happened."

Naofumi turned his eyes forward to see the crumbled buildings and damaged land. "I...don't know how happy they'll be to hear about that stuff." he said, awkwardly. He hadn't lost anyone close to him like that before, so the hero wasn't sure how to console her.

"I know it's silly to talk to the dead, but I want them to know about what I've gone through. Who I've met. You." She ended off on a topic that made Naofumi stiffen for a moment.

"Me? What, are you going to tell them about the time I had to clean up after you wet the-"

"NO! ANYTHING BUT THAT!" Raphtalia screeched, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him with a dark blush on her face.

"Siiiiiiiis, what happened? Did you do something embarrassing with Master?" Filo turned her head and asked.

"NO! DON'T ASK ABOUT IT!"

"Aww...Sis keeps so many secrets from Filo..." The filolial genuinely seemed sad about it, and Raphtalia sighed.

"Fine...A long time ago, I...I-I wet the bed and Master Naofumi had to clean it up!" she exclaimed, burying her face in her hands.

"Hehe, even Filo didn't do that! Sis is a bed-wetter~ Sis is a bed-wetter~!" she sang.

"STOP OR I'LL POISON YOUR MIDNIGHT SNACKS!"

"Whaaaaaa!? Sis, noooooooooo!" Filo whined, stopping the carriage and turning around to pout. "You wouldn't do that to Filo!"

"Midnight snacks?..." Naofumi emitted a dark aura. "I had a feeling some of our food was disappearing overnight. Do you have something you want to tell me, Filo?"

"Uhhhh...Filo didn't do it?"

"You couldn't come up with a better excuse!?"

After they reached the village, Naofumi stopped the carriage near what he thought was the center of town. Rubble was everywhere, and any possessions were looted long ago. Raphtalia hopped down, forlornly staring at one destroyed memory like a statue before moving on to the next. Naofumi and Filo followed her silently, unsure of what to say.

They were Filo's only family, after all. She'd been born with them, so she might not understand loss on this scale at all.

They eventually stopped in front of a nondescript building that was just as wrecked as the others. Raphtalia placed a hand on some of the stone that used to make up the doorway, closing her eyes and allowing a few tears to leak out. "This...This used to be my...my home." she managed to say, sniffling midway through her sentence. "And just like everything else...it's gone."

She balled up a fist and slammed it into the stone as her tears fell to the ground. Naofumi placed a hand on her shoulder. "Raphtalia..." he started. When the raccoon refused to look at him, he settled for staying silent. She probably needed to cope with this particular trauma on her own.

"Hey...we're going to take a look around. Will you be okay here?" Naofumi asked. When he received a nod in response, he squeezed her shoulder before turning around. "Come on, Filo. Let's take a walk."

"Huh? Is this where Sis used to live?" she asked, head cocked innocently to the side.

"Yeah. Let's let her be for a bit."

"Okay..."

They left Raphtalia in front of her old house, wandering the destroyed city for any sort of distraction. But everywhere they went, it was exactly the same. Destruction, ruin, and emptiness.

'Is this really all that's left?...This is so depressing.' Naofumi thought, holding Filo's hand to prevent her from running off on her own. The girl seemed to pick up on the atmosphere, staying silent and observing everything around her.

She could be pretty attentive and smart when she needed to be.

"This place feels sad..." Filo noted, the usual childlike exuberance was nowhere to be seen from her. "It's too quiet. Empty."

"Yeah, I'm with you on that one." Naofumi responded quietly.

Along the way, he spotted a pile of rubble that had something sticking out of it. With Filo's help, he managed to move some of the debris and carefully plucked the object from the wreckage. Naofumi held up the remnants of a flag. The pole was almost completely gone, and the fabric itself had tears here and there.

But it was mostly intact. That's better than he could say for anything else in this place. He hid the flag within his inventory with the plan to give it to Raphtalia later.

Naofumi led her to the edge of the village, where the grass gave way to a coastline. The sand was still warm under their feet, and Filo made it a point to enjoy the feeling of it between her toes while she could. The man looked out over the ocean.

'So as far as we know, Raphtalia and Keel are the only ones even left alive from this village. She already said she wanted to come with me, but...what if that isn't an option?...' His thoughts turned sour. 'Even when we first got summoned, they didn't mention anything about bringing anyone with us. Will I even get a choice? Will I get forced back to my world no matter what I want?...'

He kicked some sand. The ocean breeze picked it up and sent it off to the side. 'If that happens and I can't bring Raphtalia or Filo with me, what the hell is she going to do? Her family is gone, her village is gone, and all she's known for so long is pain and suffering. What can I do!?...'

"Master Naofumi?" He turned to see the object of his thoughts standing behind him. Her eyes were still red and puffy from crying, though she smiled sadly at him. "I...want you to meet my parents."

His eyes widened for a moment before turning to their third companion. "Filo, I'll be going to Raphtalia, okay?"

"'Kay! Filo will stay here and play in the sand!"

"Just don't run off on your own."

Naofumi allowed himself to be guided a short distance across the coast until they came upon a cliff overlooking the ocean. At the very tip of the cliff was one large gravestone, crudely made using a nearby rock and some utensils to carve the names in.

Even though he could read this world's language, Naofumi couldn't quite make out what their names were.

Raphtalia grabbed the hem of her skirt, tears leaking from her eyes once more. "Hi Mama...Papa..." she began. "It feels like it's been forever, but it's only been a few short months. A few months since...I lost you."

Naofumi bowed his head and stayed silent, allowing her to pay her respects. "It's been...hard...not having you around. I had to endure a lot of painful memories, but then I found Naofumi." His head shot up in surprise at being mentioned. Raphtalia sent him a smile and waved him over, so he walked up and stood beside her.

"Mama, Papa...I want you to meet my Master: Naofumi Iwatani."

It was the first time she'd ever called him by his full name, and Naofumi didn't know how he felt about it. She'd called him by his given name a few times before, when she was serious. But having her call him by his full name - in front of her parents' grave no less - felt different somehow. More official, in a way.

Was this what it's supposed to be like to meet a girl's parents for the first time? He felt nervous, even though they weren't even alive. Maybe their ghosts were staring him down or something.

"He's done so much for me in the past two months that I don't even know where to really start." Raphtalia continued, finding a soft smile as she grabbed Naofumi's hand with her own. "I was sick, injured, and tired. Tired of being hurt, tired of losing people, and tired of living. But...he showed me that there's more to life than just pain and suffering."

She took a few moments to breathe, wiping away some tears before they could fall. Naofumi squeezed her hand, hoping it helped. Raphtalia squeezed back, so he figured it did. "He fed me, brought me back from the brink of death, and gave me a reason to keep living. I may be his slave, but Naofumi has been so much more than just a master to me ever since I met him."

"Hey-" Naofumi started, but she ignored him and continued.

"We found Keel, by the way. He's safe, and he's getting healthier by the day. He didn't like Naofumi very much at first, but I think Naofumi's cooking won him over in the end. Keel never could resist food. Don't you remember?" she said with a nostalgic smile. "He always used to try to sneak in through the kitchen window to steal Mama's cooking. And he didn't mind Papa's horrible attempts at food either."

"Raphtalia..."

She shook her head. "I'm going to keep living. Not just for myself, but for everyone in the village. I'm going to keep living, so that other children don't have to suffer as I did. I'm going to keep living...for..." Raphtalia glanced at Naofumi, but then immediately blushed and stammered. "I-I'm...I'm going to live for the whole world! We're going to protect everyone we can!"

The man noticed how she flushed with that final declaration, but chose not to mention it. "Master? Do you want to say anything to them?" Raphtalia asked. He scratched his head.

"I...guess so." Naofumi took a deep breath. "Hi, I'm Naofumi Iwatani. I'm the shield hero, and...I guess I'm your daughter's master?..." he awkwardly trailed off until Raphtalia squeezed his hand again, and he found a bit more courage to continue. "I don't think I'd be alive if it weren't for your daughter. She saved me, just like she says I saved her. I'd say I'm not being too hard on her, but I think that would be lying."

"Master Naofumi!" she slapped his shoulder.

"She's a hard worker, and I..." He looked down at the ground. "...I don't know what life would be like without her anymore." A slight blush invaded his cheeks, and he coughed into his free hand. "I, uh...I promise I'll keep her safe. It won't be easy, but I'll do whatever I can to protect her."

He wasn't sure whether he believed in ghosts, but he felt an unnatural, comfortable warmth wash over him as he finished speaking. If he didn't know better, he would think her parents were hugging him tightly. Naofumi shook his head, hoping he wasn't losing his mind.

"I think they would have loved to meet you for real." Raphtalia noted, laying her head against his shoulder. He didn't have the heart to refute that claim.

"Maybe."

The raccoon clasped her hands together and prayed for a moment before grabbing his hand once again. "I think I'm done. Do...Do you mind helping me bury her?"

Naofumi nodded as he retrieved two shovels from his inventory. "Yeah. Just show me where."

Together, the two of them dug another grave right beside her parents'. Raphtalia gently placed the bag containing Rifana's remains inside, and they covered it before arranging some stones as decoration. They broke a nearby boulder and Naofumi carved it into a large gravestone that rivaled that of her parents.

Raphtalia plucked a few flowers from nearby and placed them on top. "There. I'm sure she'll rest easier now. My parents always loved her like a second daughter." After a few moments of silence, she stood up and dusted her hands off on her skirt. "I think I'm ready to go, Naofumi."

He smiled, slowly getting used to her calling him by only his name. "Okay. Let's grab Filo first." As Raphtalia led him back toward the village, hand in hand, he looked up into the starry night sky.

'I'll do whatever I can to protect her, huh?...' he thought, reminiscing on the words he had recently spoken. 'After the waves are over, I need to have a backup plan in case she can't come back with me. But how...?'

His mind went back to the flag he'd recovered, and Naofumi nearly let out a noise of realization. 'That's it, that's what I'll do. If this village is so important to her, I'll find a way to rebuild it. I can't bring back the people she lost, but I can bring back the home she loved. It may be hard, and it may take a long time, but...it'll be worth it if it's all for her. I'll protect her home with my life if I have to.'

Naofumi's eyes locked onto the strange forest standing ominously over the horizon.

'And the first step to protecting this place, is to deal with that.'