Chapter One: The Reprise of the Spear Hero
All of that was a long time ago.
My name is Motoyasu Kitamura! I have a feeling I might seem a bit different now, but I don’t care! I’m the Spear Hero, meant to save the world, and I’ve sworn to protect Filo-tan and all the filolials! Alas . . .
“Gahhh!”
I was faced with an inordinately strong enemy and I was defeated! I wanted to at least look my enemy in the eye, but I couldn’t even manage to do that. My vision grew blurry, and everything started to fade to black. Alas! It was the second time I’d died, but dying never gets any easier.
Now that I thought about it, getting stabbed by a pig was how I ended up in this world. Back then . . . Ah, yes, I remember. There were two girls that I liked, but I could never make up my mind which one I wanted to be with. One of the girls began bullying the other viciously, perhaps because she didn’t like my indecisive attitude. I stepped in to help the other girl, who then decided she wanted me all for her own.
In the end, I ended up with two selfish girls coming at me with knives, both trying to force a fake double-suicide on me! Which one had stabbed me first, again? I couldn’t remember. Wait. Did I say girls? I misspoke. Those were pigs, I say! I couldn’t even remember what those pigs looked like anymore! When I tried to recall their voices, all I heard were squeals.
But more importantly than all of that—Filo-tan! Such a glorious angel! I had shown up in the game world that I knew and loved, and I naïvely set out to create my own harem, intent on keeping my relationships with the pigs uncomplicated at the time. It was Filo-tan who was gracious enough to try to beat some sense into me. I would be walking along with my pigs in tow and she’d suddenly come running like a bat out of hell and kick me off into outer space. And it was all because she cared about me, I say!
And then there was Witch —the crimson swine. She was the former princess of the country that had summoned me to this world. She deceived Father and then took advantage of my cluelessness to make me treat him like an enemy. Eventually, Father raised Filo-tan, which then led to our fateful encounter!
A lot happened after that. Unaware that I had been deceived, I went chasing after the pigs that had abandoned me once I could no longer afford to spoil them. I did my best to try to win them back again. But then I finally realized what a clown I’d been and fell into hopeless despair. And when I did, it was Filo-tan that tried to make me feel better! “Cheer up,” she said! I’ll never forget the way she looked at me that time, I say!
In the end, my gaming knowledge and my experience with getting along with pigs didn’t help me much. But my encounter with Filo-tan genuinely made me a new man! After that, I decided to fight to save the world for the sake of Filo-tan and all the majestic filolials. Being able to devote myself to that cause, until the very end, is all I could have asked for, regardless of how things turned out!
That’s what I wanted to say, but I had to admit it probably wasn’t completely true. I wished I could see Filo-tan’s smile again. I wished I could still be with Filo-tan. I wished I could do more to help Father. I didn’t want to die! At the very least, I wanted it to be after I married Filo-tan!
And then everything went black.
“Oh wow.”
When I came to, I looked up to see men in robes in front of me, looking back at me in awe, and apparently speechless.
“What’s all this?”
“Huh?”
Whose voice was that? It sounded like Ren. Was I dreaming? I looked around to see Father, Ren, and Itsuki standing there. They didn’t seem to know what was going on. Below us was one of the magic circles they used in this world. It was a rather large one too. I’d seen these brick walls before. And this altar. I’d seen it all before. Everything looked exactly the same as it had when I was first summoned to this world. The whole situation was just like it had been then too.
“Where are we?”
Ren turned to the castle mages and spoke. Ah, this must have been a fond memory of that day —the day I first arrived in that new world.
“Oh heroes! Please save our world!”
“What?!”
Father, Ren, and Itsuki all responded in unison. Ah, yes, that’s right. I’d responded the same way, right along with them. The flashback seemed so real. But what was this spear in my hand?
Minute Hand of the Dragon 0/300 LR
<abilities unlocked> equip bonus: ability “Time Reversal”
equip effect: diverging worlds
I figured I would try opening my weapon book to check. What was this “Time Reversal” listed as an equip bonus, anyway? Even I had finally gotten it through my head that my knowledge of games wasn’t going to help, so . . . Wait. Had I gotten it through my head? I couldn’t remember. Hmm . . . I could remember up until the point that Filo-tan cheered me up, but I was having a hard time remembering anything after that. The rest was all a haze.
?
My fragmented memory was a bit disconcerting. But there was something I could never forget , and that was this boundless love I felt for Filo-tan and all filolials! I didn’t know if I was dreaming or if by some stroke of good fortune I’d gained a skill that had sent me back in time, but there was only one thing for me to do. I would fight for the sake of the world!
“I wonder how much you’re willing to consider our wishes here,” Ren said.
“Depending on how the conversation goes, keep in mind that we might end up enemies of your world,” Itsuki continued.
I’m pretty sure those had both been my lines the last time we were summoned. Father’s expression looked like he felt he was somehow losing to the others.
“Yes, well, we would very much like you to speak with the king. He will discuss future compensation with you in the throne room.”
The castle mage, who was in charge, opened the door and motioned for us to follow.
“Whatever.”
“Fine.”
“Come on. Let’s go,” I said as I extended a hand toward Father.
“Oh, umm, okay.”
Something about Father’s face was more cheerful—or perhaps childlike—than I remembered. There was an innocence there. I wondered if he would grant me his daughter’s hand if I asked now. But wait! If I really had returned to the past, wouldn’t that mean that Father hadn’t raised Filo-tan yet?!
I considered that possibility while we were being led into the throne room. Ah, there was Trash. Just as his name implied, he was a real piece of trash. He was reclining on the throne.
“Huh, so these kids are the four holy heroes?”
He was staring at us. It sent a shiver down my spine. The old man was a real troublemaker, he was! I could only imagine just how much Father had suffered because of him.
“My name is Aultcray Melromarc XXXII, and I rule these lands. Heroes, show me your faces!”
Ah yes, that was his name, wasn’t it? I had completely forgotten. What had I been thinking around this time back then? I was pretty sure it was something like, “I’ve traveled to a parallel universe! Hell yeah!” I remembered getting even more excited when I realized I already seemed to know how things worked here.
Then they explained the waves to us. The waves were actually . . . huh? I couldn’t remember anymore. That was strange. I remembered it being some kind of incredibly grave problem. Was this a side effect of Time Reversal? It must have been. My memories of my dates with Filo-tan were slowly starting to disappear too! No! This was the worst mistake I’d ever made!
“Like they said, we don’t have a responsibility to help you. If we dedicate our time and lives to bringing peace to your kingdom, do we get anything besides a ‘thanks and see you later’? I mean, I guess what I really want to know is if there’s a way for us to get home. What can you tell us about that?” Father asked.
“Hmm . . .” the king responded with a groan.
The sound of Father’s voice brought me back to reality. I was busy thinking about other things and had stopped paying attention. This really wasn’t the time to get distracted. But it wouldn’t be a problem, since I still remembered this part.
Besides, I had a much more serious problem on my hands—my memories of Filo-tan were disappearing! Those were supposed to go to the grave with me! What could I do to make myself remember? But when I really thought about it, I didn’t actually have to remember. I could just create new memories! I could imagine them now! My new memories would be even more glorious than the ones I’d lost!
“Hey.”
Father gave me a little jab with his elbow.
“Huh? What is it?”
“Your introduction.”
“Oh. My name is Motoyasu Kitamura. I’m twenty—”
How old was I again? I was currently in my 21-year-old body. But I wasn’t sure how many years I had been fighting now.
“Twenty years old?”
“No. I’m 21, I say!”
I puffed my chest up and told Father the simple truth.
“‘I say’? Umm, what’s your occupation?”
“I’m the Love Hunter!”
“Huh?”
Winning Filo-tan’s heart was the reason I chose to fight. I’d ridden myself of boring titles like “Spear Hero.” I was the Love Hunter, now and forever!
“He’s clearly unemployed.”
Itsuki apparently felt the need to comment. He could say whatever he wanted! My love-filled days with Filo-tan were much more than an occupation, anyway.
“Now then. Ren, Motoyasu, and Itsuki, correct?”
“Don’t you forget Father’s name!” I roared.
“Huh?!”
To think he would forget Father, of all people! Ah, yes, that reminded me! Trash was the father of that crimson swine, wasn’t he?! I would bring them both to justice!
“‘Father’?!”
Whoops! Saying something like that in our current situation made me seem suspicious. First impressions were everything with people. I needed to do my best to make a good impression on Father or he wouldn’t give me Filo-tan’s hand in marriage.
“Oh, my bad. You look just like the father of the girl I love, so it just came out like that unintentionally.”
“Oh, uhh . . . Do I really look that old?”
“Not at all! You look quite young, just like him!”
“Just how old does that make the girl you like?!”
“Let’s see . . .”
How old was she? I tried to remember how old Filo-tan had been for a moment but then decided to just go with what was true at the time.
“She’s not born yet!”
“You’re quite the character, huh?”
“You think so, Father?”
“Is that what you’re going to call me from now on? I’d really prefer if you didn’t.”
“Heroes, please keep the personal conversation to a minimum.”
A rather inconspicuous government minister reprimanded us.
“Back to what I was saying, then. Father’s—”
“Umm, Kitamura, right? Please stop calling me ‘Father.’”
“As you wish! I’d like the king to apologize for intentionally failing to state Naofumi’s name.”
“Intentionally?!” the others responded in unison.
“That’s right. Trash here is intent on trying to cause the downfall of the Shield Hero. He has all sorts of dirty tricks in mind to—”
“Oh! I’m sorry! That was my mistake, Spear Hero! Please! Calm down!”
Hmm . . . Trash seemed to be genuinely apologizing. The four holy heroes must have still had their full authority at this point.
“Just who do you think you are, calling the king ‘trash’?” asked Ren suspiciously.
Huh? Had I said something strange? The king’s name was Trash, right? He’d just told us his name, but I’d already completely forgotten what he’d said. It wasn’t worth remembering, after all.
“I’m the Love Hunter!”
“. . .”
Ren’s gaze suddenly seemed to grow very cold. Had I said something strange?
“Ahem . . . We got a bit off track there. Heroes, please confirm your status and give yourselves an objective evaluation.”
“Huh?”
As if I didn’t already know! I checked my status screen. Oh? I was stronger than I remembered being the first time. That meant a new game in god mode?! This would make things too easy! The first wave would be laughable—I wouldn’t have anything to do.
“Excuse me, but how are we supposed to evaluate ourselves?” asked Itsuki.
“You mean to say that you all haven’t figured it out yet? Didn’t you realize it the moment you arrived here?” asked Ren.
He was acting like he knew everything. He sighed and was about to start explaining. Yes! This was my chance to show off in front of Father!
“I mean, hav—”
“Haven’t you noticed any weird icons hanging out in your peripheral vision? Just focus your mind on those!” I interrupted.
“Huh?”
Ren was standing there dumbstruck after I beat him to the punch. He looked like a complete fool.
“Level 1? That makes me nervous.”
“What is all this?”
“Do these things not exist in your world, heroes? You are experiencing ‘status magic.’ Everyone in this world can see and use it, I say.”
That wasn’t me speaking. That dirty minister must have been trying to mimic me, I say!
“Really?”
Ah, I’d forgotten there was a time when Father acted like this. The Father I remembered always looked menacing, said terrible things, and got mad at everything. It was a relief that this Father seemed much more reasonable.
Oh? I imagined the Father I remembered looking at me with his icy gaze and saying, “You’re the one who’s unreasonable!” Hahaha! What a jester! Of course I was a sensible guy!
“And what are we supposed to do? These numbers seem awfully low.”
“Yes, well, you will need to go on a journey to further polish your abilities and to strengthen the legendary weapons you possess.”
“Strengthen them? You mean these things aren’t strong right from the get-go?”
“That is correct. According to the legends, the summoned heroes must cultivate their legendary weapons by themselves. That is how they will grow strong.”
I stood there silently. Father was thinking hard about something with a worried look on his face for a while before he began to speak.
“Even if they are legendary weapons, mine is only a shield. Wouldn’t it probably be best if I used a sword or something?”
Ah, Father didn’t know yet.
“It seems that’s not an option. You can’t use other weapons while possessing a legendary weapon, I say.”
“Huh?! Really?!”
“Yes. You’ll just have to rely on your companions, Fa—Naofumi.”
“Are we going to form a party? The four of us?”
“That’s not allowed, either.”
“Huh?”
“The legendary weapons interfere with each other and prevent us from gaining experience. We can share the materials used to strengthen them though!”
“Wait just a mom—”
“Hm?”
I interrupted the minister and he fell silent. Was there some kind of problem?
“You seem unusually knowledgeable about all of this, Motoyasu,” said Itsuki.
He was looking at me suspiciously.
“That’s because I come from the future, I say!”
“I see.”
He believed me quite readily. Everyone was still so good-natured this early on! I thought it would have been best if I explained things before they all got stuck in their ways.
“So you were saying?”
Itsuki was trying to get the minister to talk. Had he not been listening to me? It seems like he hadn’t believed me, after all.
“Well, what the Spear Hero says is accurate, more or less. The weapons will interfere with your growth if you form a party with each other.”
Father seemed to be looking at something on his screen. Was he reading the help files? Impressive, as usual!
“I guess it’s true. So you think we should try and form our own parties?” Father asked.
“I will attempt to secure travel companions for you all. Regardless, evening draws near. Heroes, you should rest for the night and prepare for departure on the morrow. In the meantime, I will find companions for you,” Trash replied.
Hmph. He was clearly plotting something. I’d have to stay on my guard, no matter what.
“Thank you very much.”
“Thanks.”
“The Shield Hero deserves to be treated the same as the other her—”
“I know! I’ll find someone! I promise I’ll find people willing to be his companions!”
Trash snapped at me to shut me up. He clearly didn’t know his place. Whatever. Maybe everything would be alright now.
Back in the chamber provided for us, everyone except for me was closely inspecting their weapons and reading the explanations on their status screens. We’d all had such high expectations at first. But we would end up going through so much hell. What miserable fates! It would happen to Father sooner than later too.
“Hey, this is just like a game, don’t you think?”
“It does seem like a game, but it’s not quite—”
“This world is from a console game.”
“No, it’s a VRMMO.”
“Huh? VRMMO as in virtual reality MMO? That sounds like something out of the future.”
“Huh?! What are you talking about?!”
“Wait a second!” I called out to stop them from arguing.
The answer was right there in front of them.
“Ren and Itsuki. Naofumi. Listen carefully.”
“Huh? What is it?”
“All of us here came from different worlds. We’re all from Japan , but our Japans are completely different. I want you all to remember that.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Yes. If I remember correctly, Itsuki’s world is . . .”
Hm? I knew there was something characteristic about it, but I couldn’t remember what it was.
“My world is . . . what?”
“I can’t remember.”
“Anyway, you seem to be unusually knowledgeable about all of this. What’s the deal with you?”
“I told you. I come from the future.”
“Yeah. Okay.”
Ren brushed me off. Just who did he think he was, ignoring such important information?
“Regardless, what the self-proclaimed time traveler said does make some sense. Let’s go over what we know for sure.”
They ignored me and just went ahead with their conversation. Hmm . . . Did that mean they wouldn’t believe me? It was useless, then. They had just been transported to a parallel universe! Surely they could believe in something paranormal like time travel. Either way, I would still tell Father what I knew.
“I’ll stay up all night and fill you in since you don’t know anything, Naofumi.”
“Umm, thanks. You sure are considerate, Kitamura.”
“Don’t mention it! And no need for formalities. Just call me Motoyasu. In return, I’ll take the liberty of calling you Father!”
“Please don’t!”
Father looked really displeased when he refused. Uh oh. That was not the response I was going for.
“Mutual trust between the heroes makes our weapons stronger. Knowing the power-up methods that Ren, Itsuki, and I use will make you more powerful too. Ren and Itsuki might tell you that shielders are weak, but don’t worry. You can become incredibly strong! That shield has just as much potential as our weapons.”
Back then our hearts had all been in different places and we made things difficult for Father. But it didn’t have to be that way this time!
“I want you to hear this too, Ren and Itsuki. The things I know might not match up with the things you know. But trusting each other will reveal the power-up methods.”
“Okay, sure,” Ren replied with a sigh.
“Uh huh,” said Itsuki.
Their responses weren’t very enthusiastic. They didn’t seem to believe me. What could I do to make them believe me?
“I guess I wouldn’t mind hearing more.”
Father never failed to impress! He had a thirst for power, after all. I was just about to start explaining when . . .
“Heroes, we have prepared a meal for you.”
Someone came to take us to eat.
“I’ll explain it all after we eat.”
“Thanks.”
Afterward, I stayed up all night explaining the weapon power-up methods to Father. More specifically, I mimicked the Father I remembered and told him what that Father had told me. Believing those words and staying faithful to them would produce results, I say!
?
After the Father I remembered finished explaining, he faded away like a fog lifting. I took my time and went on carefully explaining the power-up methods to Father, and eventually he began nodding off. I looked over and noticed Ren and Itsuki were already asleep. I tucked Father into his bed, and then I went out for a nighttime walk.
The scenery looked a bit different than I remembered. There were no Spirit Tortoise mountains in the fields outside of the castle town.
I pinched my own cheek to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. What in the world was going on? Had I really gone back in time? I started thinking about what I should do if that were true. Of course, the answer all came down to Filo-tan. Filo-tan had asked me to bring peace to the world.
?
?
Aye, it was I, Motoyasu Kitamura, who would make Filo-tan’s wish come true! Oh, how I yearned to see Filo-tan again! Wait a minute. Father hadn’t met Filo-tan yet. If things went right, I could probably become even closer to Filo-tan than before, right? I felt a sudden surge of motivation!
I was walking around the courtyard thinking about such things when I caught a whiff of the scent of majestic filolials! I followed my nose toward the origin of the scent, where I found a stable of filolials.
“Gweh!”
“Gweh!”
It was late at night, so the filolials were already asleep. Ah, that scent! It was irresistible! Now that I thought about it, since arriving in this world, I had gone more than half a day without smelling the scent of a filolial. I was probably on the verge of exhibiting withdrawal symptoms.
“Good evening, I say!”
“Gweh?!”
I walked into the filolial stable and greeted the filolials. They woke up, surprised. They seemed to be looking at me somewhat warily. How embarrassing!
“Please don’t be alarmed, my lovely filolials!”
“Gweh?”
They didn’t make a “kweh” sound. Oh, how I missed Filo-tan! But they were still majestic filolials! They deserved to be fed some more!
“Come, I shall offer you some feed!”
I took some dried meat from the nearby storage shed and offered it to the filolials. They were certainly interested in the offering. The filolials all rushed at the meat and began gobbling it up.
“In return, I hope you don’t mind me taking the liberty of petting you all!”
They all seemed to be in good spirits.
“Gweh!”
“You have my sincere gratitude!”
I started petting the filolials and running a comb through their feathers while thoroughly enjoying their fragrance. Before I realized it, I had fallen asleep there in the stable with them.
“Is it just me or do you stink, Kitamura?”
The next morning, I’d woken up refreshed and gone to meet the others.
“’Stink’ is a bit rude. This is the fine fragrance of the majestic filolial, I say!”
“Filolial?”
“Filolials are filolials!”
“That doesn’t explain anything.”
“They are bird-type monsters that pull carriages,” added the minister assigned to us.
“Oh. Those.”
Father must have understood, because he nodded. A few moments later, we were called for.
“The heroes enter!”
When we arrived at the throne room, there were a bunch of pigs and men waiting there. There were twelve of them in all. We were supposed to bow to Trash. I didn’t like the idea of that. But since Ren, Itsuki, and even Father all bowed their heads, I had no choice but to play along.
“As we discussed yesterday, I have called for others to assist you in your journey. Apparently my call did not go unheeded.”
I was pretty sure, last time, I had been wondering if the women would choose to come with me. But there were no women here now. Only pigs, I say! More than that, I was worried about Father. I couldn’t let him end up all by himself!
“Now then, gathered adventurers, please choose the legendary hero with whom you will travel.”
Ren, Itsuki, and Father all looked surprised. Ah, that was right. It was the adventurers that did the choosing. The adventurers came over and gathered around the hero they wanted to group with.
Four people stood before Ren.
Three people stood before Itsuki.
Three people stood before me.
And two people stood before Father.
“I seem to be one short,” Father mumbled discontentedly.
He’d been chosen by exactly zero adventurers last time, so this was a big improvement! And it was all thanks to me, I say!
“Ren, give him one of yours!” I said.
Ren’s companions (?) started hiding behind him. I was surrounded by pigs. It was sickening. I felt like I might throw up.
“Oink oink!”
“Oink oink oink!”
I had absolutely no idea what they were saying. Speak human words, you swine! Blech! There were two pigs in front of Father too. There were so many pigs. How annoying! What was Trash thinking, gathering up all of these pigs?
“Naofumi, I’ll give you three of my herd if you like,” I said.
“Really?! But then you wouldn’t have anyone left, Kitamura. Wait, ‘herd’?”
Just as expected of Filo-tan’s father! So humble! To think he would be worried about me! I was deeply touched, I say!
But the Father I remembered shot me a spine-chilling, cold glare. He was in my head now, telling me, “Don’t try to push your trash off onto others.” That glare of his was nice, but the kind eyes of this Father sure were swell too, I say!
“Heroes, please stop trying to trade adventurers without their consent.”
“Hmph.”
Going on an adventure with a bunch of pigs is not something I wanted to do.
“Now then, heroes, I have set aside these funds for you. Please accept them.”
A money pouch was placed in front of each of us. I could hear something heavy and metallic rattling inside of them. I seemed to remember there being 600 silver pieces inside.
There was a red pig over near Father that caught my attention. It was difficult to tell one pig apart from another, but I had a feeling that was my nemesis, the crimson swine. Ah, so that was what happened. She must have noticed the vigilant look in my eyes and gone straight to Father from the start.
“Heroes, I have given each of you 600 pieces of silver. Please take these funds, equip yourselves, and begin your journey!”
“Yes sir!”
I could hear pigs squealing! Did they really think this bunch was going to help us save the world? What a joke!
After taking the silver and getting ready to begin my journey, I tried to go speak with Father, but the pigs got in my way.
“Oink oink oink oink!”
“Oink oink oink oink oink!”
I had absolutely no idea what they were saying. Just what kind of joke was this, trying to force me to go adventuring with this bunch?! There were lots of things I needed to do to help Father, before anything else.
“Oink oink oink oink!”
“You’re a nuisance! Out of my way!”
I shoved the pigs out of the way and started to approach Father, but they got right back in front of me. Persistent swine! The pigs of this country had no discipline!
“Oink oink oink oink!”
“Umm . . . Spear Hero, I’m not sure you should be treating your companions like that.”
One of the castle soldiers scolded me.
“I couldn’t care less. They’re all fired, effective immediately!”
“Oink oink oink oink?!”
“Stop your annoying oinking!”
“Please calm down, Spear Hero!”
“Let go of me! There are things that I need to tell Father—”
But Father disappeared while I was arguing with the soldiers. Immediately afterward, Trash called for me and lectured me about treating my companions with respect. His words went in one ear and out the other.
“Hmph. You’re just playing king while the real boss is out. Stop acting so big!”
“Ack! Just how much do you know?!”
“Out of my way, nuisances!”
I ignored the pigs and Trash and went to search for Father. In the end, I didn’t have any luck due to the soldiers’ continued interference and my self-proclaimed companions clinging to me the whole time. I was going to murder them if they kept that up! But I restrained my urge to kill them and decided to figure out what I needed to focus on.
It was the day after we had been summoned. Where had Father gone and what was he doing? Now that I thought about it, I had only been concerned with myself at the time. I was regretting that now. I decided I should give up for the day, since I wasn’t going to find him. I was sure my chance would come!
That reminded me! Why not go ahead and buy a filolial? I could buy Filo-tan! I had plenty of money, so I decided I should go see the monster trainer. I sprinted off into the back alleys and lost the pigs and soldiers. Surely they didn’t expect a hero to be strolling around the back alleys. They would probably be searching for me on the main road.
“Welcome! Yes sir!”
I’d made my way to the gentlemanlike monster trainer’s place of business. His monster trainer business was a cover for being a slave trader, I think. He got along well with Father.
“You are a new customer, I see. What brings you to our humble little shop?”
“Filo-tan.”
“Huh? Oh, umm . . . Do you mean a filolial, perhaps? Yes . . . sir.”
“Filo-tan.”
?
I’d heard that this was the shop where Father had gotten Filo-tan. Oh! I just realized that I should even be able to become Filo-tan’s owner!
“We don’t have anything called that . . . I’m afraid. Yes sir.”
“Umm . . .”
What was Filo-tan again? Come on, brain cells! Let me remember! I was trying to remember her species. Ah, yes, that was it!
“I’d like to buy an aria-type filolial egg!”
“Understood.”
“I have 100 pieces of silver to spend.”
I was pretty sure Father had paid 100 silver pieces for the egg. The memory was hazy. There were a lot of things I didn’t know about Filo-tan and Father’s relationship.
“Very well. I’d be happy to oblige.”
And then a mountain of around thirty eggs was brought out. Oh no! Which one was Filo-tan?!
“Which one will have pink feathers when hatched?”
Filo-tan had white feathers with pink tips in the beginning. I could still remember our first meeting! It was at a village just outside of the castle town called Riyute. Father was with her then. It was a predestined encounter, I say!
“I’m afraid there’s no way to know until they hatch. Yes sir.”
The monster trainer had a puzzled look on his face. I suppose that made sense. I’d raised tons of filolials and even I couldn’t tell what color they would be before they hatched. But I was feeling lucky. I chose like my life depended on it!
“This one!”
I went with my gut feeling and chose an egg. I was sure it was Filo-tan!
“Thank you for your business. What would you like to do about the monster seal registration and incubator?”
“You just need a drop of blood for the registration, right? And I suppose the incubator is sold separately?”
“Correct.”
“I’ll take one!”
I gave the slave trader 130 pieces of silver and bought the egg that I thought was Filo-tan and an incubator. If it wasn’t Filo-tan, I could . . . No, I could never sell off a majestic filolial! I would just keep buying more eggs until I found her! I didn’t really need to level or unlock any weapons, anyway. I would just focus on earning money and producing Filo-tan for the time being!
And so, having purchased the filolial egg, I left the monster trainer’s tent and headed out.
When I thought about it some more, I realized that Father had likely gone to the fields outside of the castle town on the second day. I’d meet up with him there! That’s what I thought, but taking the main road led to my doom. That’s where the pigs found me, unfortunately.
“Oink oink oink oink!”
“Oiiink! Oiiink!”
The pigs were making a fuss and it was making my head hurt! They dragged me into a tavern, where the master lectured me about needing to find more companions.
“Companions? There’s no one even worth considering around here!”
That went for the adventurers at the tavern too. The pigs were clearly out of the question. They were all just riffraff.
“If I run around with companions like this, I won’t be able to accomplish anything!”
Maybe in their next life, if they were lucky enough to be reborn as filolials!
“You scumbag! You surround yourself with women and you talk like that?!”
“Surround myself with women? You mean these pigs?”
“P-pigs?!”
The adventurers in the tavern started gathering around me for some reason.
“Hey, you bastard! Show these women some respect!”
“Pigs are pigs, regardless of what you might say. I’d happily take a man over a pig, I say!”
“You hear this guy?! Pretty boy is gay!”
“Don’t get the wrong idea! I only have feelings for filolials!”
“He’s a deviant!”
“Oink!”
“Say what?! The Spear Hero?! This creep?!”
“That’s right! My mission is to fight for the sake of the world, I say!”
“Lies! A deviant like you?!”
“Whether you believe it or not is of no concern to me. I shall save the world for the sake of Father, Filo-tan, and all the majestic filolials!”
I knew what was important. I didn’t care if everyone in the world called me names! If it meant bringing peace to Father, Filo-tan, and all filolials, I would overcome any hardship!
“Of course, I shall save the other inhabitants too. That includes all of you!”
“Who does this bastard think he is?!”
“Stop screwing around!”
The adventurers started trying to pick a fight with me.
“Allow me to show you the difference between my strength and yours!”
I swiped at them with my spear. I held back since I was likely to kill them if I swung too hard.
“Wahhh!”
My spear had only brushed them lightly, but they went flying through the air and smashed into the tavern wall. They were a bunch of useless weaklings.
“How the hell?! That bastard! He barely even swung his spear!”
“Is this the strength of the heroes?!”
“Give up already, I say!”
I had put the adventurers in their place, but it seemed to have caused a commotion.
“I’m getting annoyed, so that’s enough for today. Farewell then, I say!”
I left the tavern. I went and searched for Father for the rest of the day. I tried keeping an eye out near the castle town gates for a while before it got dark, but in the end, I never found him. If that red pig really was who I thought it was, then Father was in danger. I asked at all of the inns after that, but they claimed guest information was confidential and refused to tell me if he’d checked in.
Why had my sway as a hero lost effectiveness? Was it because I caused a commotion at the tavern? Damnit! All of these obstacles were causing me a lot of trouble! It was a gamble, but I had one last idea. I would wait at the tavern where I met the crimson swine!
“Oink!”
It was the crimson swine! There was no doubt about it. That red pig was her, I say! She was carrying a suit of chainmail and came over to me. How thoughtful.
“Oink oink oink oink?”
If I remembered correctly . . .
“Oh? Is that you, Mr. Motoyasu?”
I think that’s what it had been.
“Oink oink oink oink.”
“I would love to join you, if you don’t mind.”
I seemed to remember that’s what she’d said last time, while acting all cheerful. I’d happily obliged and the two of us hit it off. A short while later, the crimson swine gave me the chainmail as a gift and then left. And then later that evening, she came rushing into the inn where I was staying and asked me to rescue her.
“Sure, I guess we can talk for a bit.”
“Oink oink oink oink.”
I had no idea what she was saying! All I could do was just randomly nod and smile. Everything would be fine. That’s the kind of animal pigs were. All you had to do was nod here and there and they would carry on the conversation themselves. The content of the conversation didn’t actually make any difference. Thinking back on my time in Japan , I could see that clearly now.
And then finally, the red pig tried to give me the chainmail.
“I know you stole that. You will return it to its owner, pig!”
“Oink?! Oink oink oink?!”
“Don’t think you can frame Naofumi! I won’t let you, I say!”
“Oink! Oink oink oink oink!”
She was really mad now. I didn’t know what she was saying, but she was making the face that pigs made when they got mad. Pigs were such selfish animals! They pretty much always responded like this when they didn’t like an answer. Filo-tan and the other filolials, on the contrary, just puffed up their cheeks and whined. They were so cute! It was rude to even draw a comparison.
The crimson swine must have realized I wasn’t going to budge, because she spun around and stomped out of the tavern.
“Now then, it’s about time I get some sleep!”
I’d rejected the stolen goods and kept my guard up. I was sure things would work out better now. I wasn’t going to be an accomplice to the false charges against Father this time, I say! I’d managed to squash them preemptively.
I went back to the inn and fell asleep while sniffing (what was supposed to be) Filo-tan’s egg.
That night, I had a nightmare. Or perhaps it was more accurate to call it some kind of lingering memory of the past.
Bam! Bam! Bam! It was in the wee hours of the morning, before the sun had risen, and I was still asleep. I heard a loud banging on the door of my room at the inn.
“It’s too early! Who is it?!”
I opened the door and looked with sleepy eyes to see who it was.
“Oink oink oink!”
Let’s see . . .
“Please save me, Mr. Motoyasu!”
I could remember the crimson swine crying and begging for me to rescue her. Her clothes were all torn for some reason. I’d instantly snapped out of my half-asleep daze and asked her, “What happened to you?!” I’d thoughtlessly assumed that she had gotten caught up in some terrible incident and took her into my protection last time.
“Oink oink oink! Oink oink!”
Sob… Sob… “The Shield Hero drank too much, and he came bursting into my room. He held me down and said, ‘The night is still young, baby.’ Then he started to rip my clothes off. I was so scared! I screamed as loud as I could and ran from the room. That’s when I came to ask you for help, Mr. Motoyasu.”
The crimson swine had completely fabricated the whole story. It was a complete package, with messy clothes and a dramatic delivery. But at the time, I assumed everything she said was true and got so mad that I started shaking.
“That otaku bastard! I’ll never forgive him!”
In a fit of rage, I’d stormed into to the castle, explained the situation, and then had the heroes summoned. I had Father brought in and denounced him, absolutely certain that I was doing the right thing.
Had I been thinking normally, I’m sure it would have been obvious. Someone who had just been summoned to a parallel universe, with no one to rely on, wouldn’t have tried something so dangerous. That would only ruin their reputation and make things hard on them if people found out.
And regardless, I should have listened to Father’s side of the story too. Without doing that, there could be nothing just about what I’d done. That would reduce justice to a simple matter of speaking first, whether it was truth or lies.
“What are you talking about? I went to bed right after we finished eating!”
“Liar! If that were true, why would Myne be crying like this?”
“Why are you speaking for her? And just where did you get that shiny new chainmail of yours?”
Of course I knew now. The crimson swine had stolen it. But back then, I . . .
“Last night I went to the bar for a drink. I was sitting there, alone, when Myne came running over. We had a couple drinks together, and she gave me this chainmail. She said it was a present.”
Ugh . . . I was wearing the chainmail in the nightmare. It made me sick. That wasn’t mine! It was Father’s. I had taken something from him that I would never be able to return.
After that, Father quickly realized what had happened and his expression gradually turned to one of hatred for the whole world.
“You! You had your eyes on my money and equipment, and so you made all this up to get your hands on my stuff!”
Everyone around us suddenly disappeared and Father was standing there, pointing at me and glaring.
You’re wrong! You’re wrong, I say! Father! I . . . I . . .
“Ah!”
I jumped up and looked all around. Now I was certain that I really had traveled back in time. But I still hadn’t rescued Father! I would save him for sure, no matter what, I say!
I woke up early that next morning and headed for the castle. I had to make sure that things had changed drastically! Surely the future would change if I hadn’t become an accomplice to the crimson swine and didn’t denounce Father.
“Please wait, Spear Hero!”
“Out of my way!”
I’d been left out. Ren and Itsuki had already gathered at the castle. Ugh . . . Did that mean I hadn’t been able to stop it? If I remembered correctly, they were preparing to condemn Father for crimes he hadn’t committed!
The soldiers were standing in front of me to keep me from entering, but I kicked them out of the way and walked into the throne room. They probably realized it would look suspicious to the other heroes if they tried to keep me out for no reason, because they didn’t try to stop me after that.
Itsuki was standing there wearing the chainmail. The crimson swine was standing next to him with her arms folded. The other pig that had been with Father was standing next to him too. I guess if I didn’t play accomplice to the setup, then Itsuki would. Was this the power of history to correct itself? I felt like the universe was laughing at me and telling me that there was no way to avoid Father being framed, even if I didn’t play the part.
“O-oh? Kitamura? What are you doing here so early?”
Trash was playing dumb, but I knew what was really going on!
“You!”
That filthy crimson swine! I’d turned her down, so she just went crawling to Itsuki!
“I heard about what you did, Motoyasu. You called Myne a pig, didn’t you? What kind of person are you?”
“Whatever. When I look at her, all I see is a pig, and I hear nothing but squealing coming out of her mouth. It’s because her heart is as black as coal, I’m sure!”
“Your behavior is a disgrace to the very title of Hero!”
“You have no right to say anything! You’re an accomplice to a crime and you’re wearing stolen goods like it’s only natural!”
“Stolen goods? What are you talking about?”
“That chainmail that you have on.”
“This was given to me by Myne.”
“And I’m telling you that it’s stolen goods.”
“Stop making things up. Do you have any proof?!”
“I do! The weapons and equipment in this country are magically imprinted with—”
The memory was vague, but I remembered! Weapons and equipment in this country were magically imprinted with the creator’s name and an identification number. I remembered Ren saying something like that. He’d spent time helping with blacksmithing at a weapon shop. I don’t think Father had been there at the time.
Itsuki and I continued going back and forth, and Father was brought in wearing nothing but his underwear. How humiliating! He needed to be given something to wear immediately!
“Myne!”
Trash, Itsuki, and Ren all glared at Father.
“Huh? What’s with those looks?!”
Seeing the situation left a bitter taste in my mouth. I wouldn’t make the same mistake this time!
“You mean you really don’t remember?”
“What do you mean? Remember what? HEY!”
Father stood there dumbstruck, pointing at Itsuki.
“So it was you! You thief!”
“Who’s a thief? I didn’t know you were such a scoundrel, Naofumi!”
“A scoundrel? What are you talking about?”
“Wait!” I shouted.
If I didn’t stop this, no one would! After I realized I’d been deceived by the crimson swine, I don’t know how many times I’d looked at Father and wished I could take it all back. And now, by some miracle, I’d been given the chance to do just that! I had no intention of ever falsely accusing Father again. I wanted to help! I would prove his innocence no matter what, I say!
“King, I—”
“We will now hear the charges against the Shield Hero.”
Damn it! It was clear they intended to completely ignore me! Several soldiers came and stood in front of me so that Father couldn’t even see me. They must have known that I would try to protect Father.
“Charges? But . . . but I—”
“Oink oink . . . oink . . . oink oink oink.”
“What?”
“Oink oink oink oink!”
She’d completely deceived me last time. This was her little performance. That filthy crimson swine!
“Oink oink oink oink!”
“Huh? What are you talking about? I went to bed right after we finished eating!”
“Liar! If that were true, why would Myne be crying like this?”
“Why are you speaking for her? And just where did you get that shiny new chainmail of yours?”
“Father, I—”
“Last night we all went to the bar for drinks. Myne stopped by the tavern too. We had a couple drinks together, and she gave me this chainmail. She said it was a present.”
They clearly had no intention of letting me talk in the first place. If that’s how they wanted to play, I had other options. I was just about all out of patience. And now that I thought about it, I wasn’t the type to act with discretion like this.
“That’s it! Your Highness! I’ve been robbed! My money, clothes, equipment—everything but my shield has been stolen! Please bring the person who did this to justice!” Father shouted.
“Silence, scoundrel!”
Trash! That bastard! He was determined to go through with his plan! Should I just kill him? No, it would put Father in a bad position if I did that. Father was still low-level. I couldn’t risk doing anything that might get him killed.
“Any act of sexual aggression committed against the people of my kingdom against their will is barbaric and unforgivable! If you were not a hero, you would be put to death immediately!”
“But this is all a mistake! I didn’t do it!”
Father was still trying to be polite. He still believed in Trash and the people of this world. But then Father’s expression started to fill with anger. No, Father! You mustn’t! More than anyone else, I wanted Father to have love for this glorious world that Filo-tan would be born into!
Thanks to Filo, Father’s face had eventually grown kind and he began working hard for me and for everyone else. But I knew he still had trouble trusting people. He was constantly fighting off doubts and suspicions and was always on his guard. Seeing Father like that was painful at times.
I didn’t want to let him end up like that again! The world may have been a cruel and merciless place, but if nothing else, I wanted to make the part of it around Father a kinder place. I had been given a second chance, and there was no way I was going to let it slip through my fingers!
“You! You had your eyes on my money and equipment, and so you made all this up to get your hands on my stuff!”
Father was always quick to grasp the situation. That was one of his finer points! If I’d shared such a fine trait back then—even if only a bit—then perhaps I would have been able to stop myself before I had denounced Father.
“Ha! Who would believe the words of a sex offender?”
“You come to another world and treat your companions this way? You’re trash,” Ren interjected, coldly condemning Father.
“Stop screwing around! You had your eyes on my money and equipment from the start! You and your little friends had a meeting about it, didn’t you?!”
The soldiers were still blocking my way to try to keep me from talking. But they better not think that was all it took to stop me!
“You’re in my way! Brionac!”
A beam of energy shot out from the tip of my spear toward the soldiers blocking my way. Of course, I throttled the power so that it would only knock them out of the way and not kill them.
“Gahhh!”
Everyone was left speechless and the room fell silent when they saw the soldiers go flying through the air. I seized my chance and pointed my spear at Trash, the crimson swine, and Itsuki.
“Huh?”
“I believe Father. He didn’t do it. This is all a conspiracy, I say!”
Father wasn’t sure what was going on. I gave them the bare facts while glaring at Trash.
“You seem intent on doing something thoughtless while the real boss is out, but if you’re going to try to harm the Shield Hero, then I—the Spear Hero—will not allow it, I say! It goes against that which is love!”
I pointed my spear threateningly at the soldiers who were restraining Father.
“Let go of Fa—the Shield Hero, I say! I don’t care who you are. I won’t forgive anyone that interferes!”
It felt like there’d been a fog that had settled over part of my mind, and now it began lifting away as I awakened to a clear picture of what it was I wanted to achieve. I glared at Itsuki and Ren next.
“That goes for you two, as well. You two are no match for me in your current state.”
I held my hand out to Father, who was now free of restraint, and bared my soul. This was my chance. Once I’d realized the truth, I thought I’d have to live with the regret of what I’d done forever. This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to put things right. I had no intention of making the wrong decision again, I say!
I’d been summoned to another world to serve as a hero. I decided that—that time for sure—I would believe in this world’s angelic women no matter what, and I would gain their trust. And so I did my best, in my own little way. I helped everyone level up and I cooked for them. I fought bravely against the waves and reigned victorious. I bought everyone the accessories they wanted because I thought it would make them happy. I did so many things out of devotion for them.
But that determination had been a mistake! No matter how devoted I was, they were still pigs at heart. Being spoiled by others was only natural in their eyes. Whenever things didn’t go their way, they started squealing up a storm. They mistakenly believed that they belonged to the privileged few. When they didn’t get the response they wanted, or when people didn’t go out of their way to satisfy them, they would get bent out of shape and resort to violence.
Those were no angels! Angels were compassionate. They lent a helping hand when someone was about to stray from the path. Pigs that thought of no one but themselves were not angels. Nothing good would come from believing in pigs! I should have believed in the angelic Filo-tan, or Father, who displayed compassion befitting a god.
But I had foolishly chosen to believe that pigs were angels. Whenever Filo-tan saw me, without fail, she would come over and give me a reproachful kick before running away. In the beginning, I didn’t understand that she was being compassionate, so I grew wary of her. I just thought of her as a savage bird-monster that kicked me whenever she saw me. I even wanted to kill her!
It pained me to recall how long it took to realize that — from her angelic appearance to her pure, innocent character — she was the perfect embodiment of an angel in my eyes. When I realized that the crimson swine had deceived me and fell into despair, it was Filo-tan who cheered me up. It then became crystal clear that everything she had done prior to that had simply been tough love!
If hurting me was all she wanted to do, she wouldn’t have tried to cheer me up. That’s right! A true angel had been right there all along! She might not have been blue, but Filo-tan was the bluebird of happiness, I say! When I was acting foolish, it was Filo-tan and Father who stopped me from straying even further from the path than I already had. I would protect them, no matter what, I say!
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