The two stared at each other with an air of suspicion, but at the very least, they were logical enough to wait and hear an explanation before accusing each other of foul play.

They stared at each other with such intensity that the mood quickly darkened. In any country, city, or state, it was an offence of sorts to return from a trip and illegally bring back an unrelated child. Both Shirou and Naofumi came from their respective Japans, and the laws were generally the same.

"Well, Naofumi?" Shirou narrowed his eyes, expression stern.

Naofumi did not take Shirou's words lightly. "What do you mean, well? Why don't you look at yourself before calling out others?"

Shirou glanced down at Keel who he was still carrying in his arms. His lips twitched, a deep crease forming over his forehead before he released his grip on Keel and placed her on the ground. "…It's different," he reasoned stiffly.

"Yeah? Well this is different too," Naofumi hastily unlatched the chain that was still bound to the slave collar around Raphtalia's neck and set her free.

The two men stared at each other in silence which was soon broken by the scampering of a pair of feet.

Glancing down from where they were glaring at each other, Shirou and Naofumi turned their attention towards Keel and Raphtalia who had ran up to each other in a hug after being set loose. Keel's arms were wrapped around Raphtalia, and Raphtalia was sobbing. The both of them wore nothing more than torn white sheets and were bruised all over. It made one wonder what circumstances the two must have had gone through in their relatively short lives.

Children were more suited to play and laugh freely rather than cope by depending on each other's company in hard times. The former because it was an indication of a carefree life, well fed and optimistic for the future. The latter because it implied a life of oppression, grief, and heartache.

Much of the frost within Shirou and Naofumi's eyes thawed away to look at each other with weariness. The things that the both of them had seen today weighed down on their minds in more ways than one. For Shirou, he was used to seeing the cruelty of prejudice and atrocities that his fellow humans were capable of and so his countenance was simply grim, but Naofumi's was askance. The conditions that he'd seen Raphtalia forced to live in were even less accommodating than that of an ill-treated dog, but if anything, it wasn't the slave trader that was the cause of all the injuries. After all, the Slave trader wouldn't want to lower the quality of a product.

The two fell into silent contemplation. Neither of them said anything, but soon just nodded towards each other. They'd deal with explanations later. Right now, it was more important that they just let each other know their individual motivations in order to avoid any further misunderstandings.

"I saved her." They said at the same time while staring at each other incredulously.

"You what?" They echoed each other again.

Naofumi coughed into his hand and straightened his back. "I bought Raphtalia because she looked on the verge of dying in the Slaver's post."

"A Slaver's post?"

Naofumi deflated and hurriedly shook his hands in front of him. "There's an explanation for that I swear. I didn't actively look into it at the time, but I was swindled into coming by this kind gentleman."

A likely story. No really. Shirou actually believed it because he could picture the very same circumstances possibly occurring to him. It wouldn't be too far fetched either with the kind of circumstances that he'd already had to deal with in his life. He didn't question Naofumi any further and instead summarized his encounter with Keel.

"She was being forced into labour for no other reason than to cause her pain. I took her away from all of that in order to let her live freely," Shirou's explanation was curt and on point. It would be worse for him if he tried to hide what he'd done. "There may be some trouble with a Melromarc noble in the future as they are the most likely class of people to own slaves."

"Right." Naofumi nodded his head and accepted Shirou's explanation.

It didn't matter if neither of the two had any evidence for their words. At the very least, they had some degree of trust for each other built up through the observation of each other's characters. Besides, what mattered right now were the children in front of them.

"Keel," Shirou called out, causing the girl to look up at him.

Naofumi noted that the small fuzzy tail growing at Keel's back was wagging from side to side while her ears were slightly drooped as if she was self conscious.

"Y-Yes?" Keel stuttered before clapping her hands to her cheeks and pumping herself up. She then ran up to Shirou without any caution whatsoever.

Naofumi shut his mouth. He'd heard that children were generally trusting of strangers, but wasn't this level of trust too great already? He shook his head and decided to not question it. He had his own kid to deal with anyway. One who was looking lost at Keel with her head tilted to the side.

"Raphtalia," he called out.

Raphtalia grew startled at his call, but regardless, she tentatively made her way towards him. He'd just bought her recently and she was displaying an appropriate level of caution when compared to Keel. However, he inwardly felt bad that he was being stared at in such a way from a child.

Therefore, as soon as she got close enough, he placed a hand on her head and tussled her hair. "Relax a bit. No one here wants to hurt you or force you to do anything." He said while trying to sound reassuring.

But what were he and Shirou going to do about Keel and Raphtalia? Obviously, they couldn't force them to fight, but they couldn't just abandon the children either. His smile was somewhat strained, but the sentiments were genuine.

He sighed. He supposed he and Shirou would just have to deal with it as it was.

"Go play for a bit alright?" Incidentally, he echoed Shirou's words again.

The two glanced at each other wordlessly before huffing and turning away. Regardless if they accepted each other's explanations or not, the suspicion was still present. More so when each felt that their own reasons were justified and that the other's excuse was flimsy at best.

Keel and Raphtalia looked to each other before Keel nodded her head and ran up to Raphtalia who stared between Shirou and Naofumi. Keel then held Raphtalia's hand and the two wandered off towards a small open clearing by the temporary camp site Naofumi had made while waiting for Shirou.

Watching the two leave, it was only then that Shirou and Naofumi got down to business.

"How did the armour and weapon hunting go?" Shirou asked curtly while taking a seat in front of Naofumi who inclined his back against a tree.

Naofumi failed to answer, a finger scratching lightly at his cheek. Based on Naofumi's expression, Shirou could already tell the result of Naofumi's shopping. It went poorly.

As it would turn out, Raphtalia looked sick at the time of her purchase, and in order to help her, Naofumi explained that he'd used the last of his silver to buy her medicine. Her condition would stabilize in time.

"Well, I wouldn't say that you wasted the silver." Shirou actually displayed a look of approval, the creases over his forehead lightening. "But this situation isn't a game. You're going to need adequate armour and weapons to survive whatever this Wave of Calamity may throw at us."

Shirou had a point and Naofumi knew it.

To begin with, Naofumi had never heard of any game character or story where a shield was used as the main weapon. Sure, it probably had blunt damage if he rammed it hard enough against an enemy, but generally the trade off between a weapon of any kind and standard blunt force wasn't proportional.

"Sorry," Naofumi apologized. He could tell that Shirou was only looking out for his behalf.

Shirou nodded. "It's fine. As far as I'm concerned you did well."

Shirou inched closer to Naofumi and raised a hand up into the air, traces of magical energy congregating over his palm. He concentrated, and soon enough, a standard sword manifested in front of him. "For now, I can just make you a few weapons to use in the meantime. As for armours, that's going to be more difficult, but I have a few ideas in mind."

In truth, Shirou had wanted Naofumi to spend the silver on protective gear because he wasn't specialized in projecting anything other than weapons and the occasional shield. Nonetheless, it wasn't much of an issue for the time being. After all, his Traced weaponry didn't deteriorate in the new world that he was summoned into which meant that he could probably start a lucrative business as a weapon smith. If that venture failed, then his cooking could definitely earn the party some additional income.

"Thanks. I didn't think that a single person could be this reliable," Naofumi let out a breath in relief and reached out a hand towards the sword that Shirou offered.

However, moments after taking the sword into his hand, Naofumi bristled as a shock travelled through him and forced him to release his grip on the sword's hilt. "What the-"

Naofumi went to pick up the sword and ended up with the same sensation.

Shirou raised a brow and wordlessly traced a spear, mace, bow, and practically any other weapon that he could think about for Naofumi to test.

To Naofumi's growing dismay, nothing worked. He couldn't equip any other weapon than the shield already fastened tightly to his left arm.

[Owner of the Legendary Shield may not use any other weapon than a Shield]

A prompt came up from Naofumi's point of view, causing him to stiffen. "Bullshit. What kind joke is this?"

Naofumi scratched at his head and shared the new piece of information to Shirou who momentarily blanked. In Shirou's case, he felt like he'd just dodged a bullet when he remembered what had happened when he had traced copies of the Legendary Weapons.

Sweat suddenly matted his brow while his mouth dried. If the legendary weapons limited their user's choice of weapon, then didn't that mean that he had been seconds away from limiting his own armoury of weapons gathered throughout his life?

The thought caused him to shiver because he understood that his greatest strength in Tracing was versatility. There was nothing versatile about always pulling out a sword, a shield, a bow, or a spear.

Naofumi looked gloomy after the revelation. However, he really had no reason to be.

"There's nothing wrong with one who protects rather than harms," Shirou advised strongly. "More often than not, people are at their strongest when they have something to protect." The same went for him. He'd only ever gotten strong out of a desire to save others.

Naofumi did not look convinced. His brows were knitted together and he constantly tapped a finger against his thigh. "But I'd prefer being able to attack rather just waiting for the enemies to hit me," he continued to sulk.

Shirou placed a hand beneath his chin in thought before deciding to use another form of magecraft.

Altercation. It was a magecraft that allowed him to change the properties and shape of an object. It was what he used to form his sword-arrows by shifting their forms to be sleeker and more aerodynamic.

Right before Naofumi's eyes, he projected a flat and sturdy shield before then using Altercation and forming jagged blades on the edges and a chain that attached to the forearm. It looked intimidating for a shield and when Shirou threw it in a circular motion with the chain still attached to his arm, the blades over the shield spun like a saw through the air.

The shield struck against a nearby tree and tore it apart near the base, causing the whole tree to topple.

Keel and Raphtalia who were playing in the distance looked over in shock while Naofumi suddenly found himself standing firmly on his feet.

Shirou pulled the shield through the attached chain back towards him where he caught it by the handle. "Try this." He offered the altered shield to Naofumi who took it gingerly.

[Traced Series Shield Branch: Activated]

[Chain Shield Acquired: lvl 1]

[Descriptive Remark: The Greatest Defence is Attack]

[Atk: + 20]

[Def: + 10]

[Unique Ability: Splash Damage]

[Splash Damage: Randomly damages enemies near point of impact]

"Wow," Naofumi couldn't help but marvel and stare at Shirou like he was some sort of godsend.

"Did it work?" Shirou asked.

Naofumi had trouble responding. He just nodded his head before collecting himself. "Yeah it works," he verified. "Thank you. This seems very useful."

Right as Naofumi was talking, the Legendary Shield on his arm suddenly shifted into the form of the Chain Shield, meaning that the copy that Shirou had traced was no longer necessary.

"Uhm cool," Naofumi didn't see any problems with it, but Shirou raised his brow in speculation.

How did that work exactly? Shirou thought inwardly. Moreover, the better question was if it could do the same with other shields and work the same way as his Unlimited Blade Works. Could Naofumi and the other Heroes have an ability to let them store specific weapons and shields and pull them out when the situation required?

It was a question for another time and one that he didn't have the luxury to presently test with Naofumi. After all, Keel and Raphtalia had returned with growling stomachs.

He patted Keel on the head and nodded at Raphtalia before looking to Naofumi to see if he had bought anything that they could eat.

The answer was no.

Naofumi had used all of his silver on Raphtalia.

"Wait here. I'll go hunting for a bit," he said before Tracing a bow and readying himself.

Of course, Shirou knew that he and Naofumi had the option of finding a place to stay in Melromarc, but the people there didn't take kindly to Keel or Raphtalia. Moreover, Shirou felt that something wasn't quite right with King Aultcray and the people in power within the Kingdom.

It was better to be safe than sorry which was why he had convinced Naofumi to camp out doors.

"I'll be back in half an hour or so," he said before departing swiftly. Keel opted to try following him, but he signalled for Naofumi to stop her. There was no way that Keel was at the level to keep up with his hunting pace in her present condition anyway.

Left alone, Naofumi watched Keel stare blankly at Shirou's departing form with an outstretched hand. Afterwards, Keel looked at Naofumi with accusing eyes as if blaming him for stopping her.

Keel was a kid. He just chose to ignore her for the time being in order to find a way to remove the metal slave collar around Raphtalia's neck.

"Here, let me see it for a bit," He moved to sit next to Raphtalia who hesitated, but allowed him into her personal space.

Raphtalia wasn't stupid. In fact, she didn't how to feel about Naofumi yet, only that she was truly grateful for his aid. Not only for buying her, but because he'd even gone as far as to purchase her medicine.

Out of all the other slaves in the Slaver's post, she was by far the least valuable, but he'd still chosen her, a Demi-Human. Her mind in confusion, she looked at him frowning while fiddling with the collar around her neck.

"Damn thing, how do I get this off?" His tone sounded exasperated, the irritation on his face causing a bubble of amusement to well up from within her. Unlike the cold hands that sought to harm her, his hands felt warm and caring to the point that she subconsciously pressed her cheeks against them seeking their warmth. "Big sis Sadeena," she murmured out the name of a distant caretaker that both she and Keel knew.

Naofumi looked confused, but he didn't question Raphtalia about anything. So long as she was fine, then that was what mattered.

Behind Raphtalia, Keel grunted as if saying that Shirou was a better comparison to Sadeena. Still, Keel looked at Naofumi and couldn't help but be reminded of Shirou in some ways. Inwardly she decided that Naofumi wasn't so bad either.

"There!" Naofumi jabbed a finger to unhook a mechanism within the slave collar that released the latch around Raphtalia's neck.

With a clang, the slave collar clattered to the ground.

Naofumi patted Raphtalia on the head, causing her eyes to glance up at him and stare transfixed at the grin on his face.

"Now you're free," he spoke before pausing when he noticed the slave crest still on her skin. "Well, mostly. I'll find a way to get rid of it eventually so bear with me for a bit?"

"Mmh," Raphtalia nodded while sniffling. "T-Thank you."

"No worries," Naofumi stood up and tended to a camp fire that he'd made earlier.

If Shirou was hunting, then they'd obviously be cooking food on their own. Therefore, Naofumi figured he'd at least do his part as the Shield Hero Party Leader and not be so much of a burden on a fellow Party member.

Keel and Raphtalia sat off to the side and watched Naofumi work in the distance.

Looking at the two kids, Naofumi had many questions springing up to the forefront of his mind, but chose to keep them to himself for the time being. The two must have experienced a few traumatic events to somehow end up with their current lives.

Sitting adjacent to Keel and Raphtalia, Naofumi prodded the camp fire with a stick, letting the kindle burn brighter and send small embers drifting amidst the cold wind.

It was times like these that he was steadily beginning to solidify the concept that he was in fact within a new world. He stared at the bruises and clotted cuts over Keel and Raphtalia's skin.

It was torture on a level of a life sentence in jail in his previous world.

The reason he and Shirou probably accepted each others explanation of saving their individual kids was mostly because of the injuries that were inflicted on them.

The fire crackled in front of him, long tongues of flickering flame illuminating the area around as the evening set in.

Keel and Raphtalia huddled together for warmth, prompting him to take off his coat and wrap it around them. They didn't even know how to thank him. The realization that they'd never been shown such kindness in a long time or if at all, left a bitter taste in his mouth.

It made him understand that the world around him wasn't just a game. Although the weapons, menus, and icon prompts were all too game like, the people living in the world were real. They would be relying on him because he was one of their Four Legendary Heroes.

With his sturdy back at the forefront of the charge, let no attack fall upon those that stood behind him.

A body as strong as rock.

A will that blankets the sky and shrouds all with the warmth of protection.

The Hero of the Shield.

Heroes didn't have to be people that were strong, rather, a Hero that could protect all from harm didn't sound half bad at all.

'People are at their strongest when they have something to protect.'

A part of him seemed to finally understand the true meaning of what Shirou had meant in his words.

Waiting patiently for Shirou's return, he entertained the children by telling them about old folk stories from his hometown until eventually a loud thumping began to resound.

Glancing up towards the edge of the clearing by the creak, Naofumi and the others were greeted by the sight of Shirou hauling a large boar over his shoulders, the weight of which was creating loud foot falls.

"Dinner's here," he grinned while hearing Keel and Raphtalia's stomachs growling.

It wasn't the first time that Shirou had been camping in the wild so he was accustomed to the lifestyle. He laid the dead boar down and began the process of cooking it, Naofumi watching on the sidelines while covering Keel and Raphtalia's eyes.

Fifteen minutes later and roasted pork was served with a light berry garnish.

"I didn't know that you could cook," Naofumi stared in a daze at the empty fork in front of him as he chewed. His eyes then darted towards a new notification he'd just obtained. "I think I can cook like this too with a bit of practice."

"Well, you never asked if I could cook or not." Shirou dismissed the knives that he'd traced.

It may have had just been part of Naofumi's imagination, but he could have had sworn that he had felt a trace of killing intent when he'd implied taking over cooking duty in the future.

But why? It was just cooking wasn't it?

Shirou smile seemed somewhat strained so Naofumi didn't pursue the matter.

Meanwhile, Keel was staring at Shirou as if he was some sort of deity while wolfishly shovelling down bite after bite of food. Raphtalia was no different if just a tad bit more reserved. Keel and Raphtalia may have had been small, but they were still Demi-Humans whose appetites were difficult to judge at a glance.

Dinner was soon over as night descended over the land.

Mama Shirou acted like the mom of the group and was the one who helped clean up the food stains that both Keel and Raphtalia had made a large mess out of. Their cheeks were covered with grease and their fingers were all sticky. It had probably been the first large meal that the two had eaten in a long time. Naofumi did his part by tending to the fire. He would have had washed the dishes if Shirou hadn't already commandeered the duty just because it was kitchen related. Any insistence on Naofumi's part was met by a provocative glare.

'My Kitchen.'

It was as if Naofumi could read what Shirou was thinking even without speaking.

He wisely let the matter go until everything was cleaned up. Eventually, the time to sleep came.

The temperature was warm and allowed for outdoor camping. What was fortunate was that before Shirou had met Keel, he'd already bought a few bed rolls to sleep on during the course of a long journey. Of course. he bought extra just in case one of them broke.

Four bed rolls were laid out side by side with a foot's distance separating each, all out in the open and facing the moon above.

Shirou lay on the far-left side and Naofumi on the far right. The children were sandwiched in between the both of them.

"We can continue grinding experience tomorrow after settling everything," Naofumi spoke first. He was lying down while resting his head over his palms. "Moreover, what should we do with the kids?"

Keel and Raphtalia's ears perked up.

Shirou scratched his cheek. "Well, why don't we just add them to the party for the time being? That way they can get strong enough to protect themselves even without us. What do you think Keel? Raphtalia?"

"Yes!" Keel's response was curt. There was no hesitation whatsoever and her tail was wagging from side to side.

"T-Thanks," Raphtalia's was more subdued.

"Then its settled. Now get some sleep." Naofumi turned over onto his side. He'd never expected his life in another world to start off by taking care of kids. Well, it's not like he was complaining.

The group fell into silence, the sound of birds cawing and rustling leaves echoing within the forested area.

Minutes passed, then several before both Shirou and Naofumi became aware of a distinct change. Presently both of their eyes were closed so it appeared as if they were deep in sleep. However, this wasn't the case. They were still wide awake.

Opening his eye lid by a tiny crack, Shirou spotted Keel tentatively sneaking into his bed roll in order to snuggle up against his leg. Naofumi's situation was no different as Raphtalia clumsily made her way into his bedroll to sleep.

Naofumi's eye glanced in Shirou's direction prompting the two's eyes to meet.

'Shut up. Don't question it.' Shirou spoke with his expression.

Keel and Raphtalia must have had been through a lot in their childhoods for them to be unable to sleep comfortably on their own. No, more than that, they were probably seeking the kind of warmth garnered from a trusted figure.

Both Shirou and Naofumi wanted them to recover both mentally and physically before inquiring about their circumstances so the two decided to drop the current matter.

'Agreed.' Naofumi responded back before closing his eyes.

Shirou followed suit.

When Naofumi woke up the next morning, he felt far more refreshed than he did in his stay in castle Melromarc. Maybe it was just him, but the bedding that he had been provided there felt stone hard compared to the softness of the bed roll that Shirou had bought.

Speaking of which, Shirou had asked him to shop around in order to purchase Keel and Raphtalia actual clothes. The issue of money was something that Shirou said that he'd deal with so all Naofumi had to do was find some suitable clothes. Shirou had discussed the issue with him the previous night around the campfire so it wasn't as if Naofumi was uninformed.

Honesty, it felt good to have a reliable partner.

He pushed himself up into a seated position and rubbed the sleep from his eyes before shifting his attention to stare at where Shirou had slept the previous night. However, the man was already gone.

Shirou must have had already left in order to earn some money.

Damn that guy was attentive.

He blinked while looking at a neatly folded bed roll and Keel tucked comfortably under several layers of blankets. Shirou had obviously tucked her in before he had left. Her limbs were sprawled into a mess from beneath the covers, but her arms were firmly wrapped around a roll of cloth. Shirou must have had substituted the roll of cloth for his leg which Keel had been clinging onto the previous night.

Speaking of which, Naofumi's situation was hardly any different. Only that he probably wasn't as skilled as Shirou in order to successfully free his own leg that Raphtalia was hugging onto.

Expectedly he woke her up. Moreover, he grudging chose to ignore the wetness that he felt on his leg and the mortified expression on Raphtalia's face.

It didn't happen.

It didn't.

He'd probably just spilled water on himself while sleeping the previous night.

Raphtalia's face only became redder and redder the longer he tried to maintain the stoicism of his face. "It's fine. Leave it alone. Kids do these sorts of things anyway. Playing with water in the night is common."

Water. Right. So long as he believed it was water, then it was definitely water.

He stood up, woke up Keel, and then fed the kids breakfast that Shirou had left behind before leaving. The seasoned ham-sandwiches tasted pretty good.

With breakfast settled, it was time to get to the matter at hand.

He stared at both Keel and Raphtalia before deciding to take them into the city.

The two were still wearing nothing more than rags and it didn't help his personal image as the Shield Hero. It was already bad enough as it was, and if he didn't get the message from the previous day's outing on his own, then he would have had truly been an idiot.

The 'Shield Hero' was not very well received in Melromarc. He'd thought that it was only King Aultcray in the beginning, but certain vendors and townspeople stared at him with such grudging animosity that it was impossible for him not to notice.

It was uncomfortable.

Everywhere that he had went the previous day whether it was to purchase supplies or equipment, there would always be one or two people glowering at him within the crowds. He honestly blamed the animosity of the people in Melromarc for why he'd somehow ended up in a Slaver's trading post where he'd bought Raphtalia with a majority of his silver. It spoke volumes when the Slave Trader treated him as more of customer than actual legal vendors. Now if only the Slave Trader wasn't a Slave Trader, he'd call the man friend and willingly recommend the man's services to others.

Sighing, he walked Keel and Raphtalia into town where the two got preoccupied with staring at a group of kids playing with a child-sized rubber ball.

The two really were children.

Naofumi scratched his head while staring at the handful of silvers that Shirou had given him from Shirou's share of the money. It wasn't much because Shirou had used a majority of his portion of the money for bed rolls and supplies, but it was definitely enough to buy whatever ball that the children in front of him were playing with.

Fuck it.

While Keel and Raphtalia were fixated on the group of kids, he walked up to a street vendor and purchased a ball for Keel and Raphtalia to play with.

The two stared at him in awe when he came back.

"Here," he said while handing the ball into Raphtalia's hands. She shuddered.

"Why?" She asked him.

"Well, why not?" he smiled back kindly.

Raphtalia swallowed before sniffling. Keel placed a hand on Raphtalia's shoulder as if reassuring her that such kind people still existed in the world.

"Now go play for a bit, but don't go too far." He shooed Keel and Raphtalia away. He was just going clothes shopping anyway and he had his own younger siblings that he'd used to shop for. Therefore, he already had experience. He'd be fine on his own.

Keel and Raphtalia went and found themselves a spot to play while he moved on to the browse for clothing.

The vendors greeted him curtly, but didn't pay much attention to him after. It wasn't like it mattered.

He inwardly grunted at the treatment of the Shield Hero but he was more horrified to see the prices for the clothes that the vendor was selling.

D-Did kid's clothes actually cost that much?

His eye bugged out while staring at the number in front of him and then towards the silver in his hands.

He directly walked out of the store.

How was Shirou going to make enough money for everything? What did he mean leave the remainder on a tab? This was basically robbery. In fact, he had vague suspicion that the shop owner swapped the prices upon seeing him, the bitch. What was worse was that the vendor had still been smiling at him as if she'd done nothing wrong.

Bear with it.

Such petty people were undeserving of any sort of reaction.

He soon found himself back on the open streets, his shoulders slumping. This task was going to be harder than he had thought.

"Is that you, Lord Naofumi?" A woman suddenly called out to him, a soft smile on her face.

He turned to stare at her.

The woman had obviously been running because her red bangs matted themselves over her forehead from a light sheen of sweat. She was beautiful, her figure striking in the tight leather armour that she was wearing.

"Ms. Myne." It was the one woman that had opted to join him in his party when no one else other than Shirou chose to do so. Unfortunately, Shirou had made him decline the woman's offer due to some sort of suspicion. Speaking of which, why was she calling him out now of all times? "Is there anything that I can help you with?" He asked.

Myne nodded enthusiastically. "Actually yes. I've honestly been looking for you everywhere. My father said that you never booked any accommodations within Melromarc so finding you has been quite hard."

Is that so? Looking at how exhausted Myne looked, he inwardly felt guilty that he'd been leading her on a wild goose chase because he'd chosen to camp out in the wild. "Well, what was it that you needed me for?"

"Uhm, this," Myne carefully took out an invitation card that she'd been keeping in a pouch by her side. "On behalf of the King of Melromarc, I wanted to invite you to attend a banquet that the King is hosting with the other Heroes and High Aristocracy."

A banquet with the King? Somehow, he wasn't moved in the slightest regarding the offer. He felt better off buying Keel and Raphtalia actual clothes and then use the remainder of his time to speed level with Shirou.

"Sorry," he scratched at the back of his head. "I'm going to have to decline," he said apologetically. "Prior commitments and all."

"Oh," Myne said softly before hunching her shoulders and staring listlessly at the ground. "That's unfortunate. I was hoping that you would come."

Seeing her so disappointed at his rejection made him uncomfortable. More so because she'd always been so nice to him. "Well, maybe some other time?" He tried a different method to turn her down.

She smiled weakly in response as if seeing right through him. "With the Waves of Calamity, no one ever knows if there will even be a 'next time.' Are you certain that you won't reconsider? The banquet itself is more of a formality to introduce the Heroes to the members of state and government to garner increased support by those of influence."

He hesitated and Myne could instantly see that he was wavering. Besides, she wasn't wrong in her words, just that his situation was a little different. No one else knew the kind of abilities that Shirou possessed, and frankly, out of the four legendary heroes, Shirou was probably the only legitimate Hero among them. Itsuki and Ren were High schoolers while he and Motoyasu were college students. Shirou was actually a wandering mage Hero of sorts. There was no comparison about their origin stories at all.

Still, no matter how he tried to find an excuse to turn her down, Myne was persistent.

"No Hero should fight alone," she insisted on his behalf, pouncing on his previous hesitation with a hopeful expression. There was a red colouration forming over the ridge of her upper cheeks while her eyes glanced up coyly at him, her thumbs fidgeting over her clasped hands. "And if anything, you are a person that I'd like to know a little better if possible."

D-Did she just?

His mouth opened deftly at Myne's words, and all that he could do was look at her in stunned silence while she turned her face away, the tips of her ears heated. "Don't stare. It's rude," she chastised with a pout.

"No, I, ugh, sorry," he promptly shut his mouth lest he make more of a fool of himself. However, he was flattered. Considering Myne's previous kindness and willingness to reach out to him when no one else but Shirou had in Aultcray's reception hall, he decided to compromise.

"About the banquet, can I get some time to think about it?" He asked.

In all honesty, he was starting to doubt whether or not Shirou's caution towards Myne was even justified to begin with? Shirou may have had been something of a real-life Hero, however, that didn't mean that Heroes couldn't make mistakes. Just by looking at Myne, he could practically feel her sincerity. She earnestly wished for him to attend the banquet hosted at Melromarc's main castle.

"Please do. I wouldn't want to force you," Myne waved her hands in front of her in a small gesture of assurance. "Besides my personal motives, I just thought that it also would be a good place for you to foster better relations with the other Heroes. Although you can't form parties with them, that doesn't mean that the four of you won't work together during the Waves of Calamity."

So, she was only insisting that he go out of concern for his own behalf? The thought caused him to swallow.

"You're right," he couldn't help but admit.

Myne preened at the opportunity that she could see before her eyes.

"Moreover, you can also use the banquet to find a way to better your self-image. You never know, maybe you could form a larger party than just one individual?" She pressed while the iron was hot.

Now that Myne mentioned it, there only seemed to be benefits to attending.

Just as Naofumi was wavering on an answer, the sound of a rolling ball caught his attention.

"Ah?" A small gasp echoed out in his ear.

He turned around to see Raphtalia picking up the ball that he'd just bought her earlier to play with in her free time with Keel. She held it with two hands before she then hugged it tight to her chest. All the while, she was staring at him talking with Myne with a pair of curious eyes.

Keel wasn't too far behind but she stared at Myne with a cautious look just like Shirou had. Keel's intuition could sense that something felt off about Myne, like the smiles and gestures were too sugar-coated to be real.

Seeing Myne staring at her, Raphtalia cautiously dropped the ball that she was playing with and quickly ran up to hide behind Naofumi's leg, peeking out from time to time as Keel imitated her actions.

Myne looked curious about Keel and Raphtalia, but she held back her curiosity in favour of waiting for Naofumi's answer.

Naofumi made up his mind at that moment while looking at Keel and Raphtalia. The two had definitely been subject to harsh treatment by the nobles of Melromarc which greatly reduced any of his expectations about meeting them. Moreover, the two definitely wouldn't be comfortable if he attended such a banquet.

It was probably for the best that he talked with Shirou about things first before deciding everything on his own.

"I really will need a bit more time to decide," he tried to ignore the way that Myne flinched at his words, but he inwardly decided that he'd make it up to her somehow.

"A pity," Myne said.

The mood instantly became awkward as silence plunged between the two.

"Uhm, yeah, well I best be going. There are still a few things that I have to do." Naofumi unable to withstand the awkwardness quickly took Raphtalia and Keel by the hands and led them off shopping somewhere else.

Raphtalia held onto her ball with one hand while Keel seemed to growl in Myne's direction.

Naofumi ended up apologizing for Keel's behaviour, but Myne didn't seem to mind and kindly waved Naofumi off to have a good day.

However, once Naofumi had left, the expression on Myne's face abruptly changed into impassivity.

She bit down on the nail of her thumb and crossed her arms over her chest.

Damn it. A failed attempt.

She stared at Naofumi's retreating back before huffing her chest.

This wasn't over.

She left as quickly as she came.

Meanwhile, in another part of town, Ren, Itsuki, and Motoyasu's interest became peaked when an advanced weapon shop that shouldn't have had been in the beginner area that they remembered suddenly appeared.

It was called 'The Iron Forge.'

Thanks for Reading and thanks to my newest patrons: Earl Hardrick, Luis M, and Ricardo!

Next Update: TBA

P a treon. com (slash) Parcasious

Milestone Announcement: My first book has been published on Amazon's Kindle website! It's called 'Fated Legacy: Dark' (Author Name: Parcasious Grace)

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Summary of book:

Death. Grief. Ruin. Nothing was left unchanged after an unexplained tragedy led to the loss of millions across the world in key locations. Cities were reduced to wastelands of steel and concrete, and many were forced into migration. When events leading to the prior tragedy occur once more, Kevin Black was going to have to learn that sometimes mysteries were better left unsolved. Trapped with his friends in the world of a ruined city filled with monsters, the journey out would be far more perilous than the journey in.