“We’re baaaack!” “Hey, it’s Filo!” The slaves all came to welcome Filo back when we arrived at the village. “Huh? You came back with Bubba Shield?” one of the slaves asked. “Yuuup, we ran into Master while we were out!” Filo replied. “I see,” the slave replied. “Welcome back, Mr. Naofumi. I see Filo is with you for some reason,” Raphtalia said. “Yeah, she showed up right as we were about to head back, so I brought her with us,” I replied. “I see . . .” she muttered dubiously. “She came back a lot stronger than when she left too,” I said. I told Raphtalia about everything that had just happened a few moments earlier. “Now then, we should be arriving at Siltvelt sometime tomorrow. Somebody, fetch Sadeena for me. We need to think about what kind of problems we might end up facing there. Also, if we have Filo pull a carriage, we should all be able to enter the country together,” I continued. “Kwa, kwa, kwa!” Gaelion starting moaning. I’m sure he was complaining about the fact that I was going to take Filo. “Gaelion, it’s great that you can fly a small group of people around. But when it comes to large groups of people, Filo has the advantage since she can pull a carriage. You’ll just have to accept that,” I told him. “Kwa! Kwa!” “Umm, he says he can pull a carriage too,” Wyndia said. “Noooo! Pulling carriages is myyyy job!” Filo shouted. “I’ve been riding on your back for the past two days, so don’t complain about sitting this one out,” I told Gaelion. “Kwaaa . . .” His puppy eyes weren’t going to change my mind. Learning self-restraint was important too. And besides, it wasn’t like I’d completely forgiven him for all of the trouble he’d caused recently, although I had to give him credit for doing his best to make up for it.
“Like it or not, it’s Filo’s turn now. I can’t take a carriage using my portal, so we’ll have to get a cheap one there. Is that okay with you, Filo?” I asked. “Yup!” “Once we get closer to Siltvelt, we’re likely to receive just the kind of welcome I’d prefer to avoid. If that happens, the more of us there are, the better,” I continued. Riding Gaelion wasn’t a bad way of getting around, but I’d rather have more people with me if I was going to have to deal with a whole nation. I had to be careful with Siltvelt too. The country worshipped the Shield Hero. But I couldn’t be sure there wouldn’t be extremist elements not all that different from Melromarc. I couldn’t let my guard down. “Oooh, ooooh, Maaasteeerrrr, can Mel-chan come toooo?” Filo begged. “It’s probably best if Melty doesn’t come. You’d never guess she was a princess based on how obstinate she is, but she’s still royalty,” I replied. “What did you say?!” Melty yelped. “Do you want to go, then?” I asked her. “. . .” We were talking about a country that might even be dangerous for the queen to visit on diplomatic business. Anyway, we needed to check with the queen first. It’s not like we actually had business with the country itself. “Okay, I really don’t want to, but I’ll go speak with Mother. Let’s go, Filo,” Melty said. “Okay!” Filo replied. Melty climbed on Filo’s back after she changed into her filolial form and then Filo sprinted off into the distance. There was no time to rest for those two. They sure did get along well, though. “Mr. Naofumi!” Atla called out. She came strolling up with Fohl in tow. “Welcome back,” she said. “Thanks. We’ll be arriving at Siltvelt around tomorrow or the day after. We’re all going together once Filo gets back,” I told her. I looked over at Fohl. “So Fohl, you said you know some people in Siltvelt, right?” I asked him. “One of the people who used to look after us returned to Siltvelt. That’s all I know. We’ll have to find him,” he said.
“Can we trust this person?” I asked. Fohl crossed his arms and stood there thinking for a moment. “I don’t know, honestly. I was just a child at the time, and our parents never told even us about our grandparents in the first place,” he said. “I see.” The hakuko were a hot-blooded race that had gone to war with Trash. From what I’d heard, Trash had driven them into a corner and ultimately caused their fall from power. Realistically speaking, taking the siblings might have been dangerous. Even so . . . “At the very least, I’d like to show Atla the house we grew up in,” Fohl said quietly. “Is that in Siltvelt?” I asked. “No.” Fohl asked me to show him a map and then started to look for the location. He pointed to a spot near the area we had stopped at earlier that evening, just outside of Siltvelt. Making a stop there wouldn’t be out of the question. “By the way, I’ve been wondering about something, Fohl,” I said. “What?” he asked. “Can you speak the language of Siltvelt?” Raphtalia, Ren, Itsuki, and I all had weapons that would translate for us. But the others wouldn’t be able to communicate if they didn’t know the language. Rishia was smart enough to learn a foreign language in a matter of days, but not everyone was as talented as her. “Well, yeah . . . I learned to speak several languages during the time we were floating around, before we ended up in Zeltoble,” he said. “I did too. After all, conversation was about the only thing I could look forward to back when I was sick. I had Brother teach me several languages during that time,” Atla added. “Oh?” That was a skill I didn’t expect them to have. In other words, they could speak not only the language of Siltvelt, but other languages from the surrounding areas as well. That could come in handy when I decided to expand our trade routes. “Little Fohl still makes a fair number of mistakes when speaking the official language of Melromarc,” Sadeena said.
“Yeah,” Fohl replied, nodding. He glanced over at me with a curious look on his face. “How’s that work? I wonder what language . . . you hear . . . when I speak,” he said. He paused randomly several times as he spoke. He was probably switching languages each time. “Brother, stop trying to make a fool of Mr. Naofumi by speaking in multiple languages,” Atla snapped. She gave him a quick jab in the back and he groaned in pain. She was as quick as always. “Ugh . . . I was just testing him, is all, Atla! I want to see what he heard — especially that last part,” Fohl said. Apparently, “I wonder what language” had been the Siltvelt language, “you hear” had been the Melromarc language, and “when I speak” had been some different language with a really heavy accent. Atla said even she couldn’t understand the last part. “It was ‘when I speak.’ Isn’t that right, Mr. Naofumi?” Raphtalia asked. I nodded. “Conversations get translated by heroes’ weapons. I’m guessing that goes for even the most minor languages too,” I said. I guess the fact that the weapons couldn’t translate monster speech could’ve been considered a shortcoming. Or was it more of a saving grace? I couldn’t even imagine what a headache it would’ve been if I could communicate with normal monsters. I was much happier leaving that kind of thing to Filo, Rat, and Wyndia. “That sure is a convenient ability,” Fohl said. “What was the last language anyway?” I asked. “It’s a small dialect used on the outskirts of Siltvelt. One of our servants taught it to me a long time ago,” he replied. So the weapons even translated dialects flawlessly. Amazing. If being a hero wasn’t a job itself, maybe I could have made a living as an interpreter. “Even the Seaetto territory has its own dialect, you know,” said Sadeena. “Still, Fohl and Atla being multilingual is an advantage,” I replied.
Keel and the other slaves from Lurolona could generally only speak the official language of Melromarc. I wondered how many languages Raphtalia’s parents knew.
“Hey, Sadeena. What language do they speak in Q’ten Lo?” I asked. “There are some slight differences, but it’s basically the same as the language spoken in Siltvelt. The same goes for Shieldfreeden, even though they speak it with a really thick accent there,” she explained. This language they spoke was basically the official language of the demi-humans. “You probably didn’t notice when you were there, but you can get by with pretty much any major language in Zeltoble. That’s one of the things that makes the country so convenient,” she continued. “I’m sure different shops cater to different languages,” I said. Zeltoble had been a real melting pot of different nationalities and races. There was such a mixture that there was no point even trying to discriminate. “Faubrey has its own official language, by the way. Of the two, that one would be considered the major language,” Sadeena added. “I see.” Faubrey was the country of the heroes, so nobility and anyone of high birth would probably want to speak the country’s language. I’d heard that in the United Kingdom it was once possible to discern someone’s social class by the language they spoke. Perhaps the cultural landscape in Faubrey was similar. But none of that really mattered. We’d probably end up going there eventually, but it was Siltvelt that we would be visiting in the next day or two. “So are we going to make a special stop for Fohl and Atla then, Mr. Naofumi?” Raphtalia asked. “I wouldn’t mind as long as it’s a quick stop,” I said. In fact, I was all for it if it would help motivate them. I wanted to go back to my own world, but that was impossible. I could definitely understand the desire to return to one’s home. “I would like to, if at all possible. I want to show Atla the house,” Fohl replied. “I’m not interested. Not to mention I’m blind,” Atla said. The way she walked around so freely sure made it seem like she could see. According to her, it was because she could sense life force. “. . .” These siblings were on completely different wavelengths. I was starting to feel sorry for Fohl. “How about we stop by on the way back, if we have time?” I suggested.
Fohl looked disappointed. I felt really bad for him, so I’d stop by later just for him. “Awww,” Sadeena swooned. “You have a really sympathetic look on your face, Mr. Naofumi,” Raphtalia said. “Brother! Stop trying to make Mr. Naofumi pity you, you coward!” Atla shouted. Now Atla was scolding him. That just made me feel even sorrier for him. “Shut up! All of you! Don’t look at me like that!” Fohl shouted. Hopefully he would get something valuable out of going. But was Atla really that uninterested in the past? “We can ransack the place if no one is living there,” I suggested. “What the hell do you want from our house?!” Fohl shouted. “There might be some good stuff in there, right?” I replied. Hakuko royalty had lived there. Or maybe it had been a vacation home or something. But there could have been family treasures still hidden somewhere in there. “More than likely there’s someone else living there now,” I added. I had to admit I was interested in finding out what kind of place it was too. But we’d just have to wait and see what happened. “I guess you’re right. There might have been something in there that could help the heroes,” Fohl said after nodding. The next day arrived. Before heading out, I dropped by the mansion in the neighboring town where Melty and Eclair were staying. Eclair was in the courtyard. It was still morning and she already looked exhausted. Maybe it was just my imagination. She and Ren had just started practicing swinging their swords when Eclair let out a sigh of relief. “Nothing makes me feel more at peace than practicing swings,” she said. “This makes you feel at peace? Is that some kind of chivalry thing?” Ren asked. Eclair always looked the most alive when she was training swordsmanship with Ren. But even he looked confused now. The whole thing was pretty surreal. “Alright, you wait here for the others to arrive, Raphtalia. You’re in charge while I’m gone,” I said.
“Okay, understood. In that case, I guess I’ll practice swings with Eclair and Ren while I wait for you to get back,” she replied. “I understand the desire to practice, but I think you should be doing some more advanced training. I suggest we engage in a mock battle,” Atla said. “It’s still morning. I just want to work up a light sweat. I wouldn’t last until evening if we started going all out this early in the day,” Raphtalia replied. “That’s your problem, Raphtalia. It’s no wonder you still can’t understand the essence of the style that these people are working so hard to grasp,” Atla said. “Atla, you really are something,” Raphtalia replied. The two started arguing, but I just pretended not to notice. I headed into the mansion to look for Melty. It was still early morning, but I found her in a room where she was sorting through a huge pile of paperwork. “Oh, it’s you, Naofumi,” she said. “I heard you and Filo were here. I came to get Filo,” I replied. “Oh, so that’s why you’re here.” I don’t know if it was because she was worn out, but she plopped down and slouched in her chair. On the contrary, Filo was looking around like she was full of energy. “So? Did you talk to the queen, Melty?” I asked. “Yes, I spoke with Mother,” she replied. After they discussed it, the queen had decided that Melty should stay behind to avoid potentially stirring up even more trouble. Melty said she planned on assisting — oh, sorry, “supervising”—Eclair in her role as the acting governor. That’s why she was only sorting the paperwork and not filling it out. “Well, that’s probably for the best,” I said. “Yeah. If I went it would make things a lot more complicated, I’m sure. There’s something else too. You were planning on getting a carriage after teleporting there, right?” she asked. “Yeah.” “Mother said that she notified Siltvelt of your visit and asked for a messenger to be sent to your initial location with a carriage for you to use.” “Oh, that’ll be a big help,” I said. Whether we bought a carriage or just rented one when we got there, I was expecting to have to spend some money. I sure didn’t want to build one, so that worked out perfectly.
“The only thing is . . . Going to Siltvelt will likely cause quite a few problems, diplomatically speaking. You need to be careful,” Melty continued. “I know that. But do you really think we could convince them to help us if we sent any of the other heroes?” I asked. “Probably not. In fact, it’s doubtful whether they would even consider listening to anyone other than you,” she replied. She was probably right. To be honest, even though Siltvelt was kind of like the Shield Hero’s home field, going would mean having to deal with some really annoying political issues. I’d been using the rebuilding of Raphtalia’s village as an excuse to avoid going, but that wouldn’t work anymore. If possible, I’d wait until the world had been saved before going there, but I had no choice but to give up on that now. Running away wasn’t going to accomplish anything. I’d just have to smash through this annoying obstacle for Raphtalia’s sake. “Of course, Mother and I have already coordinated with the more powerful nobles to address any issues here in Melromarc. All of the major issues have been resolved, officially speaking,” Melty added. “You mean other than your big sister and the Church of the Three Heroes members, right?” I said. Melty nodded. “The extent of my sister’s foolishness amazes me. To think she would cause so much trouble . . .” she said. “You’re telling me,” I grumbled. She was still missing, along with Itsuki’s other companions. Not to mention, I’d heard that the one who was always wearing the gaudy armor was actually Melromarc nobility. Who knew what kind of shady business they might have secretly been up to. But they hadn’t caused any new problems yet. I hoped not, anyway. It wouldn’t have surprised me one bit if they tried to pull something off while I was gone. “You plan on coming back regularly, right?” Melty asked. “That’s the plan. You should keep an eye out and be prepared to protect yourself from attackers too,” I said. There was no guarantee that attacks would be limited to the village. Melty and I might have argued a lot, but I was rather fond of her. She was reasonable, unlike her sister, and she had a strong sense of duty. She had a bit of a temper when interacting with me, but that was only natural considering her age. In fact, it would’ve been hard for me to come up with something I really disliked about her. So I certainly didn’t want to see her getting hurt as a result of one of my problems.
“I know that,” she replied. “I’m counting on you to take care of scheduling while I’m gone too. We need to have Ren and Itsuki go to the Cal Mira islands soon so that they can work on getting their curses healed.” “Yeah.” “Hey, I was thinking. Why don’t we demote Eclair and make you the governor of this town instead?” I suggested. “You can’t be serious.” “Really. Eclair might be useful in battle, but she’s still stuck in the mindset of being a knight. I don’t have time to wait for her to grow up. I’d feel a lot better having someone in charge that I can already trust to manage the place. You, in other words.” “Y-you really think that?” Melty blushed. I’d only stated the facts. I guess she might not have been used to being complimented. Her mom was the queen, after all. She’d probably received a really strict upbringing too, since her sister had turned out so rotten. Now that I thought about it, Melty was still just a child, even though I treated her like I would a close friend around my own age. Praising her a little bit every now and then might have been good for her motivation. “I do. I figure you could even succeed the queen and manage to make things work somehow,” I told her. “Well, then. I had no idea you thought of me that way, Naofumi,” she replied. Melty seemed to be in a better mood now. I guess she was the type that benefitted from a little praise after all. Then again, Melty would probably do just fine being scolded too, but that was just because she was the kind of person who never gave up. It would probably be best to just give her plenty of compliments to keep her motivation high. She wasn’t the type to let it go to her head, after all. “That settles it then. You’re in charge while I’m gone,” I said. “Understood!” Melty replied.
She was full of enthusiasm all of a sudden. It was hard to believe she was the same person who had fired off that magical attack at me just yesterday. In any case, the territory would probably be fine while I was gone now. At the very least, it would be a lot better off than if I’d left it in the hands of Eclair, who had yet to achieve anything at all as governor. There’s probably no need to mention that Eclair gave me a really nasty look when I saw her afterward. “Alright, we should probably head out soon. I can expect a carriage to be waiting for us there, right?” I asked. “That’s what we discussed, but that was only yesterday. Whether it’s actually there or not, you’ll have to see for yourself once you get there,” Melty replied. “Alright. Filo, let’s head out.” “Okaaay!” Filo nodded cheerfully. She was going to be pulling the carriage in her top condition. Raphtalia had gotten used to it, but I was worried about the others. “Alright, Filo, they have a carriage ready for us where we’re going. I’m going to take everyone and then you’ll transport us, just like I mentioned before,” I said. “Okay! A carriaaaage!” she exclaimed. Yeah, I’d made her a promise. Thankfully we’d decided it could be a cheap carriage. Filo looked up at me abruptly. “Is that supposed to be the carriage you promised?” she asked. I had a feeling she was going to start whining if I nodded, but whatever. “That’s right. It’s a cheap one, but just deal with it,” I said. “Nooo! I want a better carriaaaage! I want a better one than befoooore! Get me a neeeew one!” she cried. Filo hadn’t had a carriage she really liked ever since Motoyasu stole her old one. “Stop complaining. If you do a good job I’ll get you a good one,” I said. “Ugh . . . I’ll do my beeeessst!” she shouted. Filo had had a string of misfortunes lately, so I’d been thinking about doing something nice for her anyway. I’d get her a better carriage after we took care of this mess.
That’s what I was thinking as I walked back to where I’d left Raphtalia, but when I got there . . . “Imitation Hengen Muso Secret Technique! First Form! Sun!” Atla shouted. “Oh hey, Mr. Naofumi,” Raphtalia said. She called out to me despite being in the midst of a fierce battle with Atla. Rishia had shown up out of nowhere and was watching the two fight, along with Eclair, Ren, and Fohl. They all had looks of shock on their faces. “Fehhh . . . Why are you able to do that, Atla?” Rishia asked. “The old lady said she was a natural, right?” I replied. “Ugh . . . The rest of us are putting everything we have into our training, yet all she has to do is be close and she can do it?” Fohl grumbled. He shouldn’t be so bitter! Hers was just an imitation of the real technique, so there was a good possibility that she hadn’t learned it perfectly. Actually, Raphtalia was able to deal with the attacks successfully. But she had been sparring with Atla for quite some time now, so she’d probably improved quite a bit. I wanted to be able to see life force too. I was ready for enlightenment to hit me any time now. “Oh?” said Sadeena. I wondered when she had shown up. “Something like this? That one’s a bit complicated. I think I’d have to rely on magic to mimic that technique,” she continued. That reminded me. Sadeena could use magic to buff herself. Drifa Lightning Speed, was it? She could use Descent of the Thunder God too. If this were a manga, someone that used electricity like that could probably master the use of life force by thinking of it as electrical currents within the body or something. Sadeena could probably get the hang of it in no time. “That’s enough practice for now. Let’s head out,” I said. “Understood! Make haste, Raphtalia! Just how long do you intend to continue practicing?” Atla said. “You’re one to speak! You’re the one that turned our practice into an all-out battle!” Raphtalia snapped. She sure had it tough. I really wished Fohl would keep Atla under control. “Fohl, don’t just let your little sister run amok. That only makes things hard on Raphtalia,” I said. “Ugh . . .” Fohl grumbled.
Groaning wasn’t going to help anything. “If anything happens, you’re in charge of helping Raphtalia stop her. Surely the two of you together can restrain her,” I continued. “I will overcome any obstacle that stands in my way!” Atla declared. A commotion ensued when I told her to feel free to not overcome this obstacle. “Anyway, it’s probably best if I take demi-humans with me since we’re going to Siltvelt. Raphtalia goes without saying. Then Sadeena . . . Filo is coming too, of course,” I said. I thought about who else to take. “I guess I’ll take Atla and Fohl too. But if it causes any kind of diplomatic issues, I want you to notify me of the situation immediately,” I continued. I figured having them there could be useful. “Of course we will! Right, Brother?” Atla said. “Yeah. Putting one’s employer at a disadvantage after being paid is one thing a mercenary doesn’t do. Well, I guess it depends on the employer too, but I have no reason to feel differently as of now,” Fohl replied. All said and done, Fohl seemed to actually understand how things were supposed to work. I guess it was just because of his sister that he was always on edge. “I’m not sure taking a huge crowd would be a good idea, so that will probably do,” I said. “Rafu?” “Of course I’m taking Raph-chan too,” I added. I picked Raph-chan up and hugged her. She’d finally gotten down off of Filo’s head. “Hmph!” Atla glared at Raph-chan for some reason. “Don’t tell me you’re even jealous of Raph-chan. I’m sorry, but that’s crossing the line,” I told her. Acting out against Raph-chan was unforgivable. I could accept her fighting with Raphtalia, since they were sparring opponents, but this was different. “The power emanating from her has grown denser. She’s stronger than before,” Atla said. “Raaafuuu!”
“Oh really?” I asked. Raph-chan did seem to be doing something while she was up there on top of Filo’s head. Maybe the effects of raising her mutability were starting to show. I checked her stats. “Oh? She has a level icon now,” I said. “Rafuuu!” Apparently there had been some kind of mutation that caused the leveling system to apply to Raph-chan too. That was fantastic! Forget about Filo — I wanted to level Raph-chan up and make her really powerful! “Mr. Naofumi?” Raphtalia muttered. “Anyway, standing around here talking isn’t going to get anything accomplished. We’ll be arriving in Siltvelt within the day, so I want all of you to be on your guard,” I said. “Understood!” Atla exclaimed. Her energy sure was impressive.
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