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Dyliokhan- maybe.

DreadAngel - To be fair, my Terraria fanfics always incorporated some degree of game mechanics (in ways that probably shouldn't, I might add), however, it's not until recently when I started going this in-depth into game mechanics in my writing.

Anyways folks, Journey's End, aka 1.4, is here. I do plan to add some of the new content at some point, however, it will take some time.

So I discovered that there was supposed to be a week-long timeskip...damnit, I set too many things up.

Knock knock!

"Sir Dagger Hero! The king has requested that the heroes are to attend an urgent meeting with him as soon as possible!"

The door slowly creaked open as a pair of purple eyes stared deep into the guard's soul.

"Who dares disturb my sleep?" Naito's true voice came out unhindered, like that of a demon in the dark.

"A-Ah! Apologies sir Dagger Hero!" The guard stuttered out. "P-Please take your time…!"

The door was shut. Naitokirā sat on the bed, annoyed that he was now wide awake.

He sighed, and begrudgingly got ready for the day.

[Later, at the castle…]

Now here he was, in the throne room of Melomarc's castle, assembled with three of the other heroes.

The girl who had accompanied Naofumi was here, crying into the Spear Hero's chest, which was covered in a suspiciously familiar-looking suit of chainmail.

"What's going on?" The Dagger Hero impatiently asked. "Why was I forcibly awoken at this hour?"

"Th-That dastardly shield devil...he...he...he pushed me down onto the bed! And..and…"

Oh.

Oooooooh.

Welp, this got dark pretty quickly.

"I see." He responded. "I apologize for my rude behavior. You have my condolences."

The throne room's doors opened as the unfortunate Shield Hero was dragged in and unceremoniously thrown to the floor.

"Wh-What's going on—"

"SHIELD HERO!" Aultcray bellowed angrily. "Who do you think you are?! To think that you would show your true colors so soon…"

"W-Wha— I didn't do anything?!"

"L-Liar! You came into my room, drunk, and...and...You violated me…!" The redhead exclaimed, pointing at him.

"Truly, a disgusting human being," Itsuki said, crossing his arms.

"Despicable, really," Ren added.

"Why, I ought to strike you down for what you did to her!"

"The law states that the punishment for the crime of rape is...execution." The King proclaimed, "However, as you are one of the Four Cardinal Heroes, you are needed in order to fight the waves."

At that moment, Naitokirā witnessed an instantaneous change in Naofumi.

Gone was the naive kid of yesterday, and in his place...well, that's a character development speedrun if he ever saw one.

"Send me back," Naofumi demanded. "If I am guilty of this so-called crime, then why don't you just toss me out and summon a new one?"

"Of course he wants to go home, after committing such a horrid crime!"

"Taking the easy way out? Coward!"

The King scoffed. "I wish I very well could, Shield Devil! But the only way to summon a new hero is if the previous wielder dies!"

Ooh….damn. That kinda sucks.

While this was going down, Naito threw many glances towards the Spear Hero. More specifically, his chainmail. Had he been paying attention, he probably would've seen the red-head, who was now by the king's side, make a "Gotcha" gesture.

"Fine then!" The kid all but shouted. "I didn't ask to be summoned here, and I most certainly did not ask for this goddamn bullshit!"

He turned around, yanking open the grand doors.

"FUCK EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU IN THIS ROOM! YOU WANT A HERO? FUCK YOU AND FUCK THIS WORLD!"

SLAM!

….Damn. Naito actually shivered a little, despite his warrior training.

The nobles in the room began to talk amongst themselves, admonishing the hero's actions.

"Your majesty, if I may speak." The Dagger Hero spoke up, raising his hand to talk.

"Yes, sir Dagger Hero?"

"Something does not add up here, thus, I believe that there is a conspiracy in the works. Why is the Spear Hero wearing the chainmail..." He motioned towards Motoyasu. "...That I saw Naofumi himself buy and wear?"

The entire room went quiet. Even the redhead's face went a little pale.

"I do not know yet who is involved nor their purpose for doing so. That is all I have to say about the matter."

…

…

…

"I see…the idea of a conspiracy is a concerning one. However, since the evidence points towards the Shield…hero…being the culprit, then I declare them guilty. Though...if what you say is true…I...I'll look into it." He seemed to trail off a bit there, with that promise being delivered half-heartedly. "Heroes, you are dismissed."

Naito tried his best to ignore his cleric's anti-shield rant as he traveled down the road to visit Erhard.

The Dagger Hero had decided to hold off on visiting the magic shop, given as he didn't really have much use for magic and would like to save his Mana for his Skills.

As he entered the door to the blacksmith's little shop, Ravil eep'd and hid behind Naito as they came face-to-face with the devil himself; Naofumi Iwatani.

"Oh. It's you. Have you come to finally throw your shit at me, after staying silent during the whole sham?" The Shield Hero spat at him.

"Oi, kiddo…"

Naito turned to his party members. "Ravilese, Theonades. Go…wait for me at the Church."

"B-But…"

"This could get...very messy."

"...R...Right! If you say so, sir hero!"

Naitokira stared at the Shield Hero dead in the eyes.

[Flashback]

"Now, young man, listen up." The dark-skinned mage in red began. "It's important to know the true feelings of those you meet. Whether it be in battle on the field or in the office, the best way to gauge someone is by looking into their eyes. Your own father knows more about this than I do, but as you know, he's busy today."

She stared at Naitokirā. "The eyes are the gateway into the soul, young man. A lot can be learned by just getting a good look. Now, tell me."

She got up reaaaaal close to Naito, gazing deep into his soul. "What do you see, young child?"

"...I see amber, Miss Calamitas!"

"...Young child."

"And...and I see...Miss Calamitas...do you need a hug?"

…

…

…

"Yes. Yes I do…"

"Aight, you're good." Naitokirā suddenly relaxed his shoulders, as well as his tone of voice. This really threw Naofumi really off guard; he didn't think the mysterious man was really capable of doing the former.

"Been told how to read people through their eyes. Think I do it a bit too well, honestly." He shrugged and sighed, revealing his true, laid-back nature for the shop's other two current inhabitants to see. He meandered over to the counter and leaned against it.

"So, Naofumi. Uuuh…" He lost his thoughts for a moment. "Look, I'll get straight to the point. You've been caught up in some of...conspiracy, I guess, and after looking into your eyes, I've got it all figured out!"

…

"I gotta say, though, I'm actually impressed by your performance back there. I've come face-to-face with literal gods before, so imagine my surprise when I actually felt kinda scared. You know, not in the 'oh god I'm about to die' scared but the 'oh god oh fuck' kind of way.

[Flashback]

"PLEASE DON'T CRY, KID. I DID NOT MEAN ANY HARM."

The god-eating worm grew more and more panicked in its attempts to soothe the young child it had spooked, quickly changing its focus between the child and the imposing figure of the Jungle Tyrant who was impatiently tapping his foot and slowly pulling his Ultisword out of his sheath in a very, very threatening manner.

"Wait, all figured out?" Not even Naofumi's immense anger could hold back the tide of confusion.

Even Erhard raised an eyebrow.

"That's right," The Dagger hero confidently declared. "It's all the Spear Hero's fault!"

"...Huh?"

"Think about it. Who else would have a reason to screw you over? When that pretty lady—"

"Don't EVER call her that."

Naito flinched. "W-What?"

"That 'pretty lady' is a fucking backstabbing bitch, SHE'S the one who set me up!"

"...Wait, she's the mastermind? That…"

…

"...Damn. I...may have told the King that I suspected a conspiracy was in the works…after you stormed out."

"You did WHAT now?"

"You heard me."

It was at this moment when Naofumi realized that the one other ally in this world thus far was a huge fucking idiot.

"Hey...so...uh...sorry."

"Huh?"

"Sorry for not saying anything during the trial. You might not have heard me when I discussed this with Itsuki...but...I know a little bit about high-end politics. My mother...she manages my homeland's treasury. Had to bribe me with a lot of candy whenever little ole' me found a super secret document describing what over-budget death machine the royal scientist was trying to make this time— He tried to build a planet-busting spaceship! Can you believe that?!" Then he sighed, leaning against the counter, ignoring Naofumi's slightly unnerved face and the blacksmith's face of total confusion.

"There's a time to stay silent, and it's almost all the time. Politics are tough, Shield Hero. This is why I prefer being out in the field. None of that stonewalling hanky panky— Uncle Yharim made a lot of enemies in the past, and I intend to make sure none of them ruin his efforts to repent for his numerous sins. Well, once I move on to actual human targets. I...I don't think I'm ready for that."

"...I don't fully understand what the two of you are going on about, but…" Erhard shrugged, "you're kinda taking up precious time, just standing around."

"Sorry," Naito began. "I'll wrap it up quickly. By the way, did you finish smelting those bars?"

"Oh, about that, some high-end adventurer came in and requested some repair work be done on their weapons, so I was only able to get it half-way done."

"Aight, good enough for me. Say...Naofumi. Let's have a truce."

"What?"

"The moment I leave this shop, I'll be back in my tough-guy persona. No more friendly interactions for us. So I propose a truce."

He held out his hand.

"In exchange for a secret truce, I offer you—"

[WEAPON VIOLATION DETECTED!]

"FUC—" A certain shield materialized into his outstretched hand, only for it to spark and bounce away. He tried to catch it, only to incur another weapon violation.

"SHIT—" And another.

"GOD FUCKING—" And yet another.

"STAY STILL!" Zap.

Eventually, Naofumi raised his shielded arm up to block the oversized projectile when it suddenly shot at him with suspicious precision.

It hit the large green jewel, which immediately began to glow. The Shield of Cthulhu digitized and deconstructed block by block as it was absorbed by the shield.

[Naofumi POV]

[Weapon Copy successful!]

[Terraria Series unlocked!]

New weapon unlocked - Shield of Cthulhu

+2 Agility

+2 Defense

New skill unlocked: Shield Dash

Dash into enemies to deal damage. Spiked shields deal 20% more damage on impact. Short cooldown.

[Naito POV]

"T-This is…"

"Thank me later. Truce?"

Naofumi smiled, a quite devious smile indeed.

The two shook hands.

As Naitokirā left the shop, his inventory now carrying a few bars of Crimtane and Demonite, felt ever so slightly stronger.

Erhard looked at Naofumi and sighed.

"I'm kind of jealous, that kid learned how to do the whole eye-reading thing much earlier than I did…"

—

The Dagger Hero approached the church where he had left his party members.

"Sir Dagger Hero!" Ravil ran up to Naito, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. "Are you okay?!"

"I am fine, miss Ravilese. We had a few heated words, and nothing more."

"I'm glad you're safe. Knowing the Shield Devil, there's nothing they could really do…but still…"

"Ah, Dagger Hero." A priest walked up to Naito, a small smile on his face. "We humbly welcome you to our church! Please, allow me to show you around!"

Naito nodded, stowing away a portion of his usually cold demeanor. "Thank you for the warm welcome and the tour, sir." It'd be useful to know the facilities he may come to use in the future.

As the priest guided him around, their tour guide went on about how the Sword, Spear, and Bow heroes were gifts from God and the such.

Out of the blue, the priest turned to Naito. "Dagger hero, what are your thoughts on the Shield's wielder, especially after...the crimes he has wrought upon us?"

He thought for a moment, then replied. "While I do not fully believe he committed the crime, I will not associate myself with him, unless it is to keep him alive. If one of the heroes is dead, then that the lack of manpower poses a great risk to my own survival."

"I see…anyways, onto a different subject. We heard that you came from a world different from those of even the other heroes. Out of curiosity, what is the religion from your world like?"

The hero thought for a moment.

"So-so. Many lesser divine entities, which we call Elementals, have fallen from grace, many becoming nothing more than feral. One has even gone as far as to attack those who attempt to worship her, thinking them to be mocking her."

"I...I see. Though, you speak of lesser entities, as if there are greater beings?"

Naito nodded. "Indeed. Our world has very few gods that still live. One of the remaining goddesses is very….indiscriminate when it comes to judging people."

The priest seemed interested. "Oh?"

"She declared the entire world guilty and now seeks to purge it in flame."

The priest nearly choked on his own spit.

"T-That's...you have my condolences, Dagger Hero."

"As if that weren't enough, there are people...crazy enough to worship her."

The Church-goer imagined his religion becoming an apocalypse cult, his face going pale.

"A-Ah….I...I see. A-Anyways, I'll...I'll show you our services." He sputtered out, not really interested in hearing more.

Meanwhile, Ravil kinda just...frothed at the mouth until Theonades nonchalantly elbowed her in the side to snap her out of it.

The group was led to a large room. Inside was a grand, multi-segmented hourglass full of red sand, surrounded by finely sculpted gold golden strips connected to a pair of majestic dragons in flight.

Did I mention it was roughly 7 meters tall?

"This, S-Sir Dagger Hero, is the Dragon Hourglass. This relic displays the amount of time remaining until the next wave. You should be able to link up to it. Just raise your weapon up, and the hourglass should do the rest."

The warrior in-training held his weapon up. The jewel began to glow, a beam of light connecting it with the hourglass in a fantastical display.

Time until next wave - 1 month, 5 weeks

Naito bowed. "I see. Thank you, kind sir. This will be useful."

"Ah, but we have more to offer you, Dagger Hero. Though, truthfully, as we don't fully trust you, being the wielder of an entirely new Holy weapon...so it may cost extra."

"I understand. What do you have?"

"We can sell you high-quality wares, such as our finest holy water. In addition, we can offer you the sand of the hourglass in exchange for 25 silver."

Naito thought for a moment. He currently had roughly five gold coins on him. That...well, that was a fair amount of money, though that was without the few hundred silver the king had given him.

"Do you accept foreign currency? From what I have seen, this world uses an incredibly similar system to mine." He asked, drawing 10 silver Terrarian coins from his pocket.

The priest took one and inspected it. "Hm...I'll allow it. This silver...it's surprisingly pure, but it'll do."

"Heh." Naito smiled behind his obsidian bandana. "How much for the holy water?"

New weapon unlocked: Portal Dagger

54 Rogue Damage

4% Crit chance

[Locked]

[1/4] Defeat four bosses

[0/1] Repel the Waves of Calamity

"Dagger hero! Do not drink the holy water!"

Naito just shrugged. He had to admit, it tasted like fizzy water, yet it burned his throat like alcohol...for some odd reason. Not at all like what they used back home.

Currently, Theonades was leading them to the adventurers guild, after which they would head out deeper into the wilderness around the capital city and officially begin their adventure.

As they entered the tavern-like building, a bunch of people recognized his paladin comrade and came up to congratulate him. A few even wanted to shake hands with Naitokirā, a gesture he gladly allowed.

Once the celebrations died down, his party approached the desk to make their guild cards.

"Ah, sir hero! Welcome to our humble guild! I presume you're here to sign up?"

"I do believe that is the plan."

A few minutes later, the warrior-in-training was handed his guild card. Its surface was beautifully iridescent, gleaming with various colors as the Dagger Hero inspected it.

"Normally, there is an entire ranking system one must go through. However, we have a special status reserved for summoned heroes; Bismuth Rank. They may take on any quest regardless of rank, though we insist that you choose those that better suit your level, and especially those of your party, as they too will lose the restrictions.

"I see. Thank you for the information, though I have a few requests."

"We'll do whatever is within our power, sir hero."

"First of all, do you have any starter kit, and perhaps have a bestiary of some sort?"

"Indeed we do! First one's on us, though with the introduction of the waves, the bestiaries may eventually become outdated, is that alright with you?"

"Some information can be better than none."

"Ah, I see. Well, give me a moment…" the receptionist reached under the desk and pulled out a wooden case and a decently-sized book. "Here you go, sir hero!"

"Ah, thank you. One last request…

...Do you know where I may find information about local fishing areas?"