We stans a Tanuki Queen.

Naofumi placed Raphtalia back on her feet, in which she shivered from her bare skin making contact with cold stone. The only thing providing any sort of warmth was the embrace of her new master.

"First things first, we need to get you a set of actual clothes and not these rags," Naofumi said. "Thankfully, we stopped at a shop with some decent merchandise. That and you look like you haven't bathed in a while."

Raphtalia was taken aback by Naofumi's statement, but it was true that the slave tunic she wore continued to chafe against her and she wasn't given the chance to bathe. But was it really alright to have something more comfortable?

"R-Really? Why?" Raphtalia asked, failing to notice that Naofumi's heart skipped a beat.

Why would anyone enslave someone like Raphtalia? Even her voice is dazzling.

Naofumi shook his head from his thoughts, "Because, in spite of everything that's happened, I don't want you to be my slave," Naofumi said, clenching his fist when he remembered that he had several bones to pick with Aqua. "I just couldn't stand to see someone innocent in such pain, plus who knows what those guys would've done to you? I saw the intent in there eyes."

Raphtalia shivered, silently agreeing. She had seen the same thing, but thankfully she retained her purity, even throughout her ten years of slavery and Raphtalia knew that, had Naofumi not been able to save her, it would only be a matter of time.

"But still, lets get inside where it's warm, how's that sound," Naofumi asked.

Raphtalia simply nodded.

Naofumi took Raphtalia by the hand and led her inside the shop. Inside on every shelf was some items that Naofumi and Raphtalia couldn't even come close to understanding their purpose. Strange clockwork contraptions like something out of a steampunk series and other peculiar magical apparatuses that made Naofumi and Raphtalia put their sanity into question. Some were simple enough, like magic staves and wands of different materials as well as daggers and swords in the same regard. Naofumi appreciated some of the quality of the weapons here, thinking that Raphtalia could put them to better use.

But whether or not Raphtalia wanted to be Naofumi's companion was purely up to her.

"Hello! Welcome!" chirped someone from behind, making Naofumi and Raphtalia slightly jump from the suddenness. Raphtalia's tail and its fur stood on end, similar to a cat, which didn't make any sense to Naofumi.

The two whirled around to see a woman in a purple robe and with long, brownish hair that covered one eye.

"I suppose you're the merchant that owns this place," Naofumi asked.

"Yup! I'm Wiz," Wiz greeted, doing a little twirl. "I suppose you're looking for clothes and a bath for Raphtalia?"

"How do you know my name?"

"How did you know that?"

"I heard you two from outside," Wiz replied. "That and there was serious talk about Axel's Doctor of Philosophy saving a demi-human slave through rather unorthodox means. The people think you're some kind of hero, even if your only option was to purchase her."

Both Naofumi and Raphtalia were floored while Raphtalia blushed at the notion of being saved by a hero. Well, she supposed Naofumi was her hero in a sense.

Did that really make her some poor damsel in distress? Probably, considering she's never had any combat experience nor any amount of training.

"Well, either way, I'll show you to some clothes that I can tailor into something suitable for a demi-human and I'll have my bath prepared for you," Wiz said. "But I'd be careful if I were you, Doctor. The Axis Cult, the same cult that worships Aqua, will inevitably hear of this. Enslaving any and all demi-humans is their shtick after all."

Naofumi snarled at the mention of Aqua.

Aqua, you are so dead.

Finding clothes for Raphtalia was a rather simple affair, and, conveniently, Wiz also had a set of armor that was perfect for Naofumi. While it was originally Barbarian Armor, Wiz modified it by removing all the metal parts and replacing them with hardened leather pieces. This had essentially made it into hardened leather armor. The armor had dark green accents and a green cloak as befitting of Naofumi's status as an Arch Druid.

As if to show off, Naofumi allowed vines to grow and encircle his arms and torso.

Raphtalia was given a common set of women's clothes, so as to appear more like a member of the people instead of a slave.

However...

"What?! She had Eight Point Acupressure Cuffs?!" Wiz exclaimed.

"Yes?" Naofumi replied uneasily. "... why? What are Acupressure Cuffs?"

"Well, they are exceptionally rare due to how they function and the fact that the metals used to make them are also rare in the same regard due to their durability," Wiz complained, regretting such a rare item had slip past her. "Making them, however, is the hardest part and only two people in the world can make them, the inventor included."

"Okay, but what makes them so special among all other types of restraints?" Naofumi asked.

"Well... for one, the acupressure needles in the cuffs puncture nerves in the wrists that paralyze your arms," Wiz explained, much to Naofumi's horror. "That and there is a special mechanism inside that makes it so that the more you move the cuffs, the tighter they become."

Now Naofumi could understand why Raphtalia was in such agony when the slaver pulled on the cuffs.

Good thing I destroyed them. Such a horrific contraption doesn't deserve to exist.

Naofumi, by pure instinct, looked at Raphtalia's wrists as she held the articles of clothing she had yet to put on. And much to Naofumi's horror, there were angry red spots on Raphtalia's wrists. Probably from when that damn slaver pulled on her cuffs since acupressure needles don't leave such obvious marks.

Holding Raphtalia's hands tenderly, Naofumi lifted up her hands to make a closer inspection. Raphtalia felt warm inside at the comfort that she was bereft of for so long, ever since her parents were killed in a bandit raid.

Naofumi then closed his eyes to concentrate, using an Arch Druid spell he had procured a while back.

Slowly, the vines around Naofumi's arms grew longer and slithered around Raphtalia's scarred wrists. Raphtalia had flinched and began to tremble from all the memories of her enslavement rearing their ugly heads.

But, before Raphtalia could scream and run, she felt a warmth as the vines glowed a brilliant gold. The golden light subsided and the vines slithered back towards their master like serpents under a spell. Raphtalia and Wiz stared, amazed when the puncture wounds on her wrists were no longer there. The only thing there now was clear, healthy skin.

"Natural Healing," Naofumi said. "I used plants as a medium for a powerful restoration spell I learned since I'm an Arch Druid. Now you should get yourself cleaned up and put those clothes on so that we can head back to the guild hall, okay?"

Raphtalia nodded silently, in which she placed the common clothes on a nearby chair, the action confusing Naofumi and Wiz.

But the changing room is over...

Naofumi and Wiz's trains of thought were brought to a screeching halt when Raphtalia slipped one of the tunic straps over her shoulder, thus leaving it bare. Raphtalia slipped another one over, lowering the roughspun tunic to the point where she was showing off a fair amount of skin.

Shit!

Naofumi covered his eyes with his arm, "Raphtalia, please, change in the other room!" Naofumi exclaimed with his and Wiz's face turning a lovely shade of red.

Raphtalia, who had been used to changing in a public setting, jumped from the sudden outburst. Snatching the commoner clothes from the nearby stool, Raphtalia bolted into the bathroom.

Sighing in relief, Naofumi placed himself on the stool.

"So... you do realize that if you try to register her as an adventurer, the slave brand will prevent that, right?" Wiz asked.

"Wait, what?" Naofumi asked, confused.

"Slaves are registered as add-on's to your own adventurer card, since slaves are considered property and not actual people," Wiz explained, causing Naofumi to face palm. "That and word has already gone around Axel that you saved a demi-human slave by buying her, but that only goes so far. If you head to any other country with her, people will think you buy slaves for your own personal gain like everybody else."

Naofumi simply sat there as he weighed his options, "So either I can free her from slavery and deal with the Axis Cult, or I can keep her as a slave and get a lot of shit from the masses?"

"Do you have any direct contact with Aqua?" Wiz asked. "The brand can only be broken by either Aqua herself or by some other source of divine influence."

Naofumi bit his lip in frustration. Aqua could be as stubborn as a mule when it came to her religion and surely Aqua would not ever go against her own religion by breaking the brand herself. That and, even if she would, Naofumi would have to give something in return, probably something absolutely absurd to humiliate him or Raphtalia.

Either by Aqua or... wait!

Crush Magic was capable of dispelling any kind of magic by destroying the source of it, either through the person casting or the magic circle used as a base. And since the brand was essentially a thing of magic and that Aqua gave Crush to him as a blessing...

Naofumi had thought about this for a good half hour, with Wiz wondering why he went as still as a statue.

"Master, I'm done," Raphtalia said, walking into the room with her new clothes on.

What Naofumi saw, for the first time in his lives, took his breath away. Raphtalia wore what looked to be a golden brown sundress with a pair of sandals and a white bow that tied her hair together near the end. Her tail was just underneath the sundress, swaying to and fro.

"I-I can see that, but please don't call me 'master,'" Naofumi said, his cheeks turning slightly pink. "I didn't buy you so that you could be my slave. I don't want to see another innocent person suffer."

Raphtalia simply nodded, still not exactly used to kindness.

"Hey Wiz, do you have any sort of device that I can use to contact Luna over at the guild?" Naofumi asked.

Wiz beamed, "Of course! Tell Luna I said hello!" Wiz said before handing Naofumi what looked like a generic crystal ball. "I've got some things to deal with in the back so take as much time as you need."

Wiz left and disappeared on the other side of the door, leaving Naofumi and Raphtalia in the room by themselves.

"Okay... um... Luna, the Adventurer's Guild?" Naofumi announced to the ball.

Much to Naofumi and Raphtalia's surprise, the inside of the ball shimmered like the reflections of water before it showed a familiar blonde from within.

"Wiz? It's been-" Luna's words stopped when she laid eyes on Naofumi. "Ah, Doctor! I heard about what happened in the shopping district! Is it true?"

Naofumi simply sighed, "Yes, and I had no other choice but to buy her," Naofumi said, still a bit sick to his stomach from what had transpired hours before. "Still, even if she is a slave, I plan on treating her as an equal. And besides..."

Naofumi let his words trail off as he pressed a finger on Raphtalia's brand before making what looked like a pulling motion. The motion caused the brand to be lifted into thin air and off of Raphtalia's skin. The action shocked both Raphtalia and Luna while Naofumi let the brand float over his hand.

"I was never the religious type."

Naofumi instantly crushed the brand in his hand, in which the sound of glass shattering could be heard.

Naofumi had done what no one thought possible.

And finally, they headed back to the guild.

Of course, the instant Naofumi had walked in, every head in the room turned to Naofumi. The room had turned silent as they took notice of the demi-human girl hiding behind him.

Eighteen years old and she hides behind me like a toddler. I guess I'll give her points for cuteness.

Cuteness points aside, Naofumi had one final thing to do. Tear Aqua a new one.

Naofumi walked around the hall with Raphtalia in tow until he found the big pointed hat belonging to Megumin and the blue color scheme belonging to Aqua.

"Hey, Naofumi," Megumin greeted with Aqua not even sparing Naofumi a glance. "So I'm guessing this is the slave you saved?"

Naofumi smirked at Aqua, who had looked to see what Megumin was talking about, "Former slave more like, I removed the brand from her and destroyed it."

There was a deafening pause as every single person in the guild, including Megumin and Aqua, looked at Naofumi, slack-jawed.

Megumin's mind was running a million light years per second. That's impossible. That's impossible! No one could break Aqua's brand! It was a brand created by a goddess! Naofumi would need some amount of divine power for that to work! Is this why his stats were so high on the first go?! How he could transform into dragons?! There was no other way! What next?! Naofumi brings down The Destroyer?!

"And speaking of which," Naofumi said with a fake smile. He then leaned close to Aqua to whisper in her ear. "You, come with me. I have a bone to pick with you."

The tone of Naofumi's voice was low and harsh as stone, in which Aqua felt like she had been rooted to the spot under the stare of an apex predator while the walls closed in like said predator's lackeys. To make sure that their prey couldn't escape. Fear and dread grasped at her while her whole body shook, as if trying to shake free and failing miserably in the attempt.

Aqua could only stiffly nod before Naofumi led her to his animals' home.

Raphtalia fidgeted nervously in her seat next to Megumin while Megumin simply kept eating.

And finally, the silence was broken.

"S-So... you're Master's companion?" Raphtalia asked.

Megumin blinked owlishly before sighing, "The good doctor has made it abundantly clear that you're not a slave anymore, so you don't have to call Naofumi 'master,'" Megumin said. "That and you are no longer restricted by the demands of others, so whether or not you want to call Naofumi your master is up to you. And, yes, I'm his companion."

Raphtalia had paused, seemingly floored by the very notion of free choice, "I... see... and what class are you?"

In an instant, Megumin entered character, palming her face so as to only show her eyes, which shined a bright red, "I am Megumin! My calling is that of an Arch Wizard who calls upon the might of Explosion Magic!" Megumin announced, happy to see that Raphtalia looked dazzled by the display. "I am one whose power is so monstrous, that others have attempted to seal me away! Only to fail in the attempt."

Finally, Naofumi and Aqua entered a storage area at the very back of the house.

"So what is this about?" Aqua asked, but something in the back of her mind said that something wasn't right.

Aqua got her answer in the form of several vines trapping her legs in place so that she may not escape Naofumi. Aqua turned, only to stare into Naofumi's stone-faced eyes. Eyes with all the seeming of a demon and the lamplight over him casting his shadow over Aqua and onto the floor.

"Let me ask you something," Naofumi said. "What made you think slavery was a good idea?"

Aqua had no answer, only stammering as Naofumi's eyes bore so heavily into hers, Aqua thought she might be crushed under the sheer weight. The walls once again closed in on her, Naofumi's animals staring intently at her with predator mentality and a seemingly psychopathic killing instinct.

"Did you honestly think that you could enslave an innocent race and get away with it?" Naofumi asked once again.

Those words seemed to pull Aqua out of her torpor, "Innocent race? They're abominations that tried to-"

Aqua was cut off when vines circled her wrists and proceeded to pull her down to a kneeling position with her arms being pull backwards and the rest of her leaning forward.

"While having some amount of animosity towards others is unavoidable, going so far as to enslave them, even if they are abominations in your eyes, is torturous and unnecessary," Naofumi said, tightening Aqua's restraints when she tried to struggle.

Naofumi created thin tree roots that reinforced Aqua's restraints. Aqua then felt a smaller tree root grasp at her neck and squeezing slightly. Aqua looked up with terrified eyes.

"How does it feel, Aqua?" Naofumi asked in a low voice, doing his absolute damnedest to restrain his anger so as to not seriously injure the goddess. His eyes glowed menacingly as his face was cast in a shadow. "It hurts, doesn't it? Being completely restrained and forced into a painful position with no way to escape. You've only felt this for a minute, yet the demi-humans you enslaved have to endure this for years at a time. Even their whole lives."

Naofumi continued to stare into Aqua's eyes with his natural shackles tightening on her. Naofumi wanted so badly to give her a heavier punishment for what she's done to an innocent race. And even if demi-humans have done some bad things, should the younger generation repent for the actions of their predecessors?

But...

(The sight of Raphtalia in her chains and Acupressure Cuffs flashed before his eyes.)

...

Sighing, Naofumi released Aqua from her restraints, letting the roots and vines fall to the floor. Aqua simply fell to the floor on her hands and knees, looking up at Naofumi, confused.

"You know what? I don't care," Naofumi said. "What matters is what happens now."

Naofumi allowed himself to take a deep breath to calm his nerves, "It doesn't matter what you do. I will free as many slaves as I can and nothing will stop me. Not even you. And here's a little word of warning for your little cult."

Naofumi grabbed Aqua by the front of her blouse to pull her up to his face, "If any of your little zealots tries to hurt Raphtalia or enslave her again, I will not hesitate to put. Them. Down," Naofumi growled while Aqua's whole body shivered at the notion of her followers being slaughtered. "Understood?"

Aqua nodded numbly.

"Good, now let us head back," Naofumi said with a fake smile. "We wouldn't want our friends to worry about us, right?"

Meanwhile...

"You're Raphtalia, right?" Luna asked.

"... yes?" Raphtalia replied, unsure.

"Good, well, I would like to say that the Good Doctor has been generous enough to cover the entry fee for you," Luna said with a smile brighter than usual.

"Entry fee? For what?" Raphtalia asked. She had some issue trusting people she didn't know, though the only people to show her kindness for the first time in ten years was Naofumi, Megumin, Wiz, and now this woman?

Wait, wasn't she the receptionist from the front desk.

Then that meant...

"For your registration into our guild."