Chapter 8

Last-minute preparations.

Lyn made as much medicine as he could for most of the night. When he had over 300 bottles he stopped. While Raphtalia slept inside an inn, Lyn went back to the campsite.

He took out a shovel and started to throw dirt into his inventory shield. When he dug a decent hole, he dropped his shield into the river and let it absorb a ton of water.

After absorbing a few rocks, and finding gold at the bottom of the river, Lyn finally went back to the inn. It was almost morning already but Raphtalia was still asleep. He petted her hair and continued to work on an accessory.

00:15:37

Here we go again.

Civilians had all hidden in their homes, while knights and adventurers were ready to dispatch to any location.

"Almost, Raphtalia."

"Yes!"

She paused for a bit, before opening her mouth again.

"Lyn-same... may I say a few words?"

"Sure. Speak your mind."

"Thank you for giving me this opportunity to fight alongside you. The truth is that... I was enslaved due to the spawning of the first calamity."

"Oh."

"I used to live in a remote region of this country. The demi-human village that I grew up in focused on agriculture and farming. It was also the spawn point of the very first wave."

Her parents were killed during the first wave and while repairs were taking place, soldiers selling of everyone in the village. She was sold to several nobles, each being cruller than the next.

"I'm really glad I've met you Lyn-sama. You were the one who taught me how to live a proper life after all."

"For that reason, please allow me a chance. A chance to confront this wave."

"Of course."

"With that said, I'll do my best!"

"Well so will I!" Lyn replied enthusiastically.

00:00:02

00:00:01

00:00:00

A bright light consumed him. As soon as the light faded, Lyn turned around, surveying his surroundings. He spotted the village of Lute he was at two weeks ago.

A flare came from the village.

"The sky..."

Two people dashed past Lyn, followed by seven other people. He watched them as they went towards the center of the wave.

"Damn it. Raphtalia, we are going to protect the Lute village."

"I'm coming with you," Lyn heard behind him. It was Ren.

"Alright, join my party for now," Lyn said, sending Ren an invitation. "We will help the village evacuate and try to keep casualties to a minimum."

The three of them ran towards the village, but they saw that the monsters would reach the village faster than them.

"Damn it! [Overdrive]! [Airstrike Shield Dome]! [All speed]! [All Omega speed]!" Lyn yelled. A giant shield dome appeared around the village, with a single shield missing for the people to exit. The spells he cast on all three of them increased their speed tremendously.

"Raphtalia! Help the villagers evacuate. Ren! I'll attract the monsters while you take out any that get too close to the village. I won't be able to keep up the dome forever. When all the villagers evacuate, we regroup and chase the monsters away from the village."

"Okay!"

"Got it! Don't die out there, Lyn!"

The three of them split up, Raphtalia running inside the village, Ren running in front, and Lyn running towards the wave.

When he was right in front of them, Lyn let one of the monsters hit him, then he grabbed his shield with both hands and slammed the shield into the ground.

"[Lightning shockwave]!"

Every monster in a 20-meter radius got zapped. It wasn't strong since the shield was at level 1, but it did the trick of attracting the monsters. With the monsters running towards him, Lyn ran at another bunch and repeated the same process and punching a few monsters on the way. Then when he got a few meters away, he directed the shield at the monsters and let the closest one hit him.

"[Flamethrower]!"

Fire emerged from the shield, burning every monster in from of him. The attack damage was nonexistent, but the burning damage slowly damaged the monsters.

Some wasps flew past Lyn but they were all gunned down by Ren.

"[Lightning slash]! [Crimson Blade]!"

His moves are sloppy as hell but he's doing it.

Lyn used up all of his own SP so he took out the bracelet and vambrace and started to tap into the stored SP.

The shield dome was a draining spell but it stopped the monsters from attacking the villagers.

"Hey look, it's the shield hero."

"The sword hero is here too."

"The dome is so cool."

"Let's let the heroes handle this."

The villagers had different opinions on the shield hero, but it looks like his dome was changing their opinions for the better.

The shield dome finally dropped as the last few people evacuated and Lyn regrouped with Raphtalia and Ren

"The evacuation is complete."

"Good. Ren, what's the damage."

"None, your skill held up well. And the monsters are weaker than I thought."

"Good. Let's charge forward."

Ren and Raphtalia nodded. The three of them started to run forward at the monsters in front of them.

Then, a rain of fire poured down.

Lyn saw a fire spell being shot out from the horde of knights.

Idiots!

"[Shield prison]!" Lyn yelled, covering both himself and his companions. The blast slammed into the shield but it didn't hurt anyone in it.

"Took all of them out at once. They burn quite nicely."

The knights went around the house and noticed the shield prison.

"Hmph, so that is the Shield Hero... He's surprisingly resilient."

What appeared to be the knight commander threw me a glance and spat on the ground as he uttered those words.

As soon as the Shield Prison fell, a shadow dashed at him, brandishing a sword.

And with a loud 'Klang!', the knight commander quickly unsheathed his sword and locked blades with his attacker.

"What was the meaning of your actions against Lyn-sama?! I will cut you down depending on your answer!"

Raphtalia declared with great bloodlust.

"A companion of the Shield Hero, huh?"

"Correct, I am Lyn-sama's blade! I shall not forgive any act of disrespect!"

"... How dare a demi-human try to speak on the same level as us knights?"

Suddenly a second shadow dashed at the captain and knocked the sword out of his hands.

"You bastards! We had everything under control and kept the damage to a minimum. Look how much damage you just caused!"

Unlike the cool and calm facade that he was putting up whenever he talked to anyone, the current Ren was yelling at the knights. He was absolutely livid.

"S-Sword Hero?! But we burned down the monsters..." the captain began but Ren cut him off again.

"What monsters?! None of them even made it inside the village thanks to Lyn! What you burned were a couple of corpses that fell of the dome. What you did was cause a ton of collateral damage!"

"Everyone shut up! We have a wave to deal with so put your idiotic grudges aside for a couple of minutes and focus!"

Lyn yelled at everyone. He saw a couple of monsters start to sneak up behind the knights.

"A criminal Hero doesn't have the right to say such crap."

"Raphtalia, check for anyone who didn't evacuate."

"But..." she began.

"I'll be fine. Shield hero, remember?"

She nodded and ran off to the village.

"Hey Ren, let's go on ahead and leave the village to the professionals? Go check on the others."

"But..." Ren nodded to the monsters. Lyn winked at Ren.

Ren nodded and ran towards the wave slashing every monster nearby.

"You don't like me much right?"

"Of course! Who would ever be fond of a criminal?!" the captain yelled back with a grin.

"Well my contract didn't specify that I had to save all the *ssholes I see."

Lyn muttered just loud enough for the knights to hear. Finally he raised his head to look at the knights.

"Ok, see ya! Good luck with the juggernaut!"

Lyn yelled and turned around.

"The whaAAAA!" The captain turned around to come face to face with a giant skeleton knight. It raised its sword and swung at the captain.

"[All Defense]."

clang*

Lyn blocked the sword with his bare hands and lifted his shield.

"[Flamethrower]!" Lyn yelled, burning the head of the monster. He turned to the captain.

"I don't care if you hate me. I don't care if you want me dead. I don't care if you think of me as the scum of the earth, or think badly of my companion. We are at war that threatens our entire world! You and I are both here to protect people! We have a common goal so put the lives of others before your petty grudges and let us unite forces for the sake of the world!"

Lyn reached his hand out to the captain.

"Tch."

The captain slapped the hand away and got up.

"Like hell I'd work with you."

He is a lost cause.

.

.

l̸̨̗̮͍͕̘̜̦̤͎̞̤̄̒̊̃͂̄̑̔̒͠ͅô̴̪͍͕̣̭͚͕̠̬̤͈̙̜͂̉̆̿̈́̊̈́͒̕͘̚̕͜s̶̢̲̠̥͖͖͉͎̜̩͉͈͈̗̘̿̓͆̊̕̚t̸̛̲̰͗̑́͋̀͒̿̍̃̿̔͘̚ͅ ̴̥͙͊͆̏̽̓̌̈́̈́͋̉͒̒̕͝c̵̡̧͕͓̱̱̥̯̬͕̜͕̯̏͌͑̔̓̾͛̄̌́̊̊̕a̴̺̝̽̀̅̇͒̈̓̇̀́́̎u̶̢͖͕͎͙̝͛̄̓̌͂̏̈́̐̾̏̽ṣ̶̜̱̟̺̩̰̂ȩ̶̢̡̯̗̪̏̍̿͌̀̔̈́̃̂̒̈́͂̽̅̚

l̸̡̧̠̲̦̱͍͎̘̻̫̼͙͕̮̦̿́͛͂̋͊̌̈͑̿͌̽̔̉͛̎̋͆̌͘͘͝o̸̮̝̩̖͕̱̝̤͙̜̳͉̩͓̭̪̟̐͐̊̔̒̓ͅs̴̡̛̠̣͔̱̦̄̓͑͑͌̃̐̾̈́̈́̕̕͝͝͠͠͝t̷̢̢͈̰̘̲̰͉͍̻͖̙̺̯͇̙͚̻͚̥̜͇̲̆́̈̏̍̋̄̌̏̃͗͋ ̵̤̬̬͚̟͇̻͈̖̩̳͇̱̤̰̠͙̩̱̅̈́̓̽̈́̓̈͂͆̃̀̓͋́̊̕͝͝c̵̛̺̮̭̱̜̼͉̃̌́̏̌̈́͑͒̽̆̋̔̎̆̒͋̀̄̓̃̑̚͝͝a̸̡̡̨̢̳͇͇͈̖̫̪͕̰̙̘̠͔͕̼̹͂̾͑̒̉͑̀͂̈̎͐̄̎́͘͘̚͝͝ͅu̷̡̲͈̯̭̖̻͎̫͎̣̭̭͔̳̬̓̀̆̓̂͗̐͂̄́̂̌̊̓̑̎͗̍̋́̕͜͠ͅs̶̢̺̲̩̳͍̠͈̗͉̠̹̫̤̝̙̰̘̟͕̺̬̺̾̅̆̈́̎̂̃̋͒̀͒̐͆̑͐́͋̾̌̑͜͜͝͝͝͝ͅe̶̛͙̱͖̯͎͊̋͑̾̉̃̀͌̂̏̔̊͑̾̿̆̔͋̄̽̕͘ l̸̨̗̮͍͕̘̜̦̤͎̞̤̄̒̊̃͂̄̑̔̒͠ͅô̴̪͍͕̣̭͚͕̠̬̤͈̙̜͂̉̆̿̈́̊̈́͒̕͘̚̕͜s̶̢̲̠̥͖͖͉͎̜̩͉͈͈̗̘̿̓͆̊̕̚t̸̛̲̰͗̑́͋̀͒̿̍̃̿̔͘̚ͅ ̴̥͙͊͆̏̽̓̌̈́̈́͋̉͒̒̕͝c̵̡̧͕͓̱̱̥̯̬͕̜͕̯̏͌͑̔̓̾͛̄̌́̊̊̕a̴̺̝̽̀̅̇͒̈̓̇̀́́̎u̶̢͖͕͎͙̝͛̄̓̌͂̏̈́̐̾̏̽ṣ̶̜̱̟̺̩̰̂ȩ̶̢̡̯̗̪̏̍̿͌̀̔̈́̃̂̒̈́͂̽̅̚. l̶̡̧̼͙̝̪̱͗̎̀̋̃̊̊̕̚ȯ̶̢̬̞͙̥̦͕̼̲̙̝̬͌͊ş̵̢͕͎̖̮̤̥͔͎̪͓̯̗̈̆̍͘͠͝t̸̨̼͙͈͎̂̀͐̾̀̀̕ ̵̧̨̨̧̳͉̳̦͍͈͉̦̼͕̽̈́̍̑c̷̛͓̭͖̟͙̹̱̰̣͙̖̑̅̋̕ã̶̛̩̲͒͆́̒̅͋̕̕̚͝͝u̵̧̢̠͕̦̝̩̥̩͖̣̲̻͔̾̾͂̒͊͗̄̉͐̿̇̐͛͑͘͜͝͝š̶̢͚̯̣͈͇͇͆̽̑̓e̵̛͍̦̹̅͊͗̿̃́. l̸̨̗̮͍͕̘̜̦̤͎̞̤̄̒̊̃͂̄̑̔̒͠ͅô̴̪͍͕̣̭͚͕̠̬̤͈̙̜͂̉̆̿̈́̊̈́͒̕͘̚̕͜s̶̢̲̠̥͖͖͉͎̜̩͉͈͈̗̘̿̓͆̊̕̚t̸̛̲̰͗̑́͋̀͒̿̍̃̿̔͘̚ͅ ̴̥͙͊͆̏̽̓̌̈́̈́͋̉͒̒̕͝c̵̡̧͕͓̱̱̥̯̬͕̜͕̯̏͌͑̔̓̾͛̄̌́̊̊̕a̴̺̝̽̀̅̇͒̈̓̇̀́́̎u̶̢͖͕͎͙̝͛̄̓̌͂̏̈́̐̾̏̽ṣ̶̜̱̟̺̩̰̂ȩ̶̢̡̯̗̪̏̍̿͌̀̔̈́̃̂̒̈́͂̽̅̚ l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ ĝ̴̨̨̢̡̢͈̤̣̦̥̻̗͚̬͚̥̘̜̥̘̟̮̙͕͉̯̞͎̖̘͇̼̠̦̳̗͙͚͈̓̄͋̀̓͗̈́̀̓̓͐̍̀̈̊͒̿͑́̉̔̀̋̆̚͜ͅͅi̶̢̛̼̳͔̫̞͓̭͓͉̭͖͍̬̺͖͊̍͑̅̓̔̿̄͑̒̅̋̀́́͛̄͋̊͋͝͝ͅv̷̨̨̨̱͙̭̪̤̼͕̮͈̗̪͎̦̤̹͍̤̘̯͖̫̗̳̞̦͔͉̘̮͉̺̺̘̺͍͚̪̠̞͇̫̹͍̒̽̏͋̈̌̉̌͛̊̌͌̍̾͜͜͝͝͝͝͠͝ę̷̧̧̨̜̬̣̹̻͕̟̣̘̫̼̱̞̼͈̳̟͉͈̙͓͎̙̦͖̅͌͗͛͋͗̆̓̽̽̑̄̂͒̉́͆̄͠ ̵̢̨̧̛͎̘̮͎̗̻̯̖̱̥̦͎̠̂̈́̅̾̑͌̔͋́̈́̈́̃̓̐̓̈́́͑̄̕̕͜͝ư̴̡̡̢̭͚͚̱̫͕̗̯̤̥͖̲̞̻̪̝͖͇̝͖͍̦̖͓̫̰̰̯̗̂͗͛̈̋̈̀̿́̄͋͑̄̊̃̔́̏͐͛̏̀̽͑̓̿̄̽͛͠͠p̶̡̨̡̛͙̹͖͕̪̼̞̣̹͖̦͙͈̱̩̦̮̿̈́̉̏̀͐̽͒̓̎͑̂̾̽̀̄͛̈́̏́̄̈́̃̋͑̔̈̌͂͌̊͛̔̍̅́̚͝͝͝ l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ

l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ

l̷̬̖̻̥͉͔̳̄̽͂̀̍̊́͝͝͠o̷̧̧̞̟̭̭̲̳͓̲̞̫̬̦̲̤͒͊͐̀ș̵̱̤̻̼̣̣̘̮̣̠͚̻̮̖̣̖̯̗͕̣͍̱̱̤̙̣̘̱̇̈͒͗͊̐͛̓̎̆̆͘̕͝ẗ̸̡͎̞̞͔̝̩̠̪̼̬̩̻̻̻̱̱̼̰̤̗̩͒̿̀̔̒̑͗͐̓̇̍̅̕͜͜͝ ̶͓̦̀͒̎͌̂͆̎̅̓́̂̕c̷̛̘͇̮͙͓̜̉̇̀̈́̒̀̉̓͗͆̀͆͊̆̓̍͘͘͝å̴̢̡̡̡̢͍͔̯̜̦͈̼͈̫̘̹̜̫̝̟̳͍̩͕̞͗̋̋̒͑̋͒̽͂̅́̚͜͝͝ͅͅͅù̷͚͖͍́ş̷̡̱͕͌̔̈̕ę̸͙̥͖͎̫̜͈̼͔͖̬͕̪̣͉̖͎̺̲̻͓͒̈̈͐͂ͅ

.

.

"Knights, let's go offer our support to the other heroes!"

The words of the captain brought Lyn's attention back to the battlefield.

Some of the knights ran off but the vice-captain stayed.

"Phoenix Formation to support the Shield Hero!" he yelled out to the knights that stayed.

Lyn looked at the vice-captain and nodded.

Well, at least there are a few decent people here.

A few minutes later the sky cleared up and the monsters stopped pouring down onto the land.

"Finally! Took them long enough!" Lyn deactivated [Overdrive] and walked towards where the others were. He saw the other heroes standing over the corpse of the boss. Most of his stored SP, MP, and HP in the bracelet and vambrace were depleted. Lyn put the bracelet in his shield and began to store up whatever he could.

"Alright, I guess that's the end."

"Seems like it, this boss was a cakewalk."

While Motoyasu and Ituski were discussing the next wave Ren turned around and walked towards Lyn.

"Lyn, do you want the head? There are only three and the other two are taken."

"Let me show you a trick that only I can do."

Lyn grabbed the remains of the corpse and absorbed it.

"Give me your weapon."

"Huh?"

"[Synchronize]."

Ren watched as a small beam shot from Lyn's gem into his. New swords popped up in his HUD which included several from the boss.

"Woah. So you can unlock a weapon for all four of us with just one piece of material?"

"Yep. It's a useful skill I'm not ready to share with those two idiots."

Lyn pointed to Motoyasu and Itsuki who were just out of earshot.

"Why?"

"If I give them power while they are still dumb af, they will cause more harm than good. It's like giving a child a nuke."

"Alright. I don't know you too well, or know why you do what you do, but I will trust you for now since you seem to know a lot more about this world than us."

"Thank you. Also welcome to my party."

Ren raised an eyebrow before looking at his status and remembering that he was in a party with Lyn.

"Wow. We really can level up together now."

"Let's talk later, go catch up with the other heroes. Oh and don't talk to me too much while the king or his subjects are around. We gotta keep you on good terms with him."

Ren nodded and went to follow Motoyasu and Itsuki.

"A job well done, oh brave heroes. The king has properly readied a feast in celebration of your achievements. We humbly invite you to join in since we will also be giving your rewards there."

Guess I'll have to come. I'm not short on money but an extra few hundred silver won't hurt.

"Ah, um..."

The Lute villagers came over to talk.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you very much Shield Hero We would all be dead if you and Sword Hero weren't here."

"Just doing my job. A shame the knights set some houses on fire though."

"The damage wasn't too bad all thanks to that metal ball shield of yours. While guarding yourself you also guarded a couple of houses."

?

Lyn looked around the village and saw that some houses were intact while the ones next to them were burned to a crisp.

Ah right, I was using [overdrive]. So I must have subconsciously covered some houses with the extra [Shield Prisons] I had. Well, I won't complain.

"Well, you're welcome."

The villagers bowed and left.

"Lyn-sama!"

After the long battle, a muddy, sweaty, and smiling Raphtalia ran over.

"We really did it! Everyone is expressing their gratitude."

"Yeah."

"With this, there will be nobody who'll end up like me. It was all thanks to Lyn-sama!"

"No, it was thanks to all of us. You did really well," Lyn said, petting her head.

And so, the duo headed to the castle.

"Well well! As expected of our heroes. I cannot contain my surprise after seeing the difference between the casualties from this battle and the last."

The king declared this in the middle of the party. The banquet was grandiose. Lyn absorbed a lot of food when others weren't looking and got a few more shields. Also, he tried to look into an upgrade system that relied on food consumption, but he was too tired to bother with it, so he just enjoyed the food, ignoring the glances everyone gave him. This was an opportunity for him to eat plenty and to store some food. If the king was gonna be a prick and try to short-sell him, Lyn was gonna take all his damn food as payment.

Ren was also on his own in the corner of the room with his dish. Several royals tried to approach him but he politely declined their attempts of a conversation.

Raphtalia however was walking around and trying everything. With the leveling up she did, she hit her 40* limit and finished maturing. But that also brought upon a huge hunger.

"Lyn-sama, this is so good."

"That's good."

"Yes."

While Lyn did enjoy ripping the king off and confusing the chefs with the disappearance of food, this place unnerved him. Mostly because a raging Motoyasu was approaching him, giving him a murderous look.

"YO! LYN!"

"...?"

He removed the glove on one of his hands and threw it on the ground below Lyn.

You bastard want a duel? Well, this will be a great opportunity to see how strong one of the two are.

The crowd was stirred into motion by his following statement.

"Duel with me!"

"Why?"

"I know it all! Raptalia-chan was only tagging along with you just because she's your slave!"

"Define slave?"

"A person you treat like an object and abuse without their consent!"

"Then she's not my slave."

Motoyasu looked dumbfounded and turned to Myne.

"Don't listen to the lies of a rapist. She has a slave seal on her chest."

Motoyasu turned to Lyn, his angry expression returning.

"True, she does have a slave seal, but she doesn't fall under you description of slave."

"What?! YOU BASTARD! SO YOU ADMIT IT!"

"*sigh* so what?"

"'So what?'... you say?! Did you just seriously say that!?"

"Yeah? She's my slave. What's it to you? Slavery is legal in this world."

"It's... it's not the enslavement that's wrong! It's because we're heroes with different worldly ethics than the people here which makes your actions wrong!"

"Different worlds different rules."

Every old world had slaves at one point. It's a constant between most multiversal travels. You damned Pointy D*ck on a Stick! You and your bias beliefs. If it was anyone else, you wouldn't give a sh*t. Hell you wouldn't have given a sh*t if Raphtalia was male! And you only chose to duel me because I have the offensive power of a toddler!

"Bas... tard!"

"*sigh* alright, name all the conditions."

Gritting his teeth, Motoyasu swung his fist at Lyn.

"If I win, release Raphtalia-chan! And if you win, you can do whatever you desire with Raphtalia-chan! Just like now."

"Are you retarded? That's your conditions? That's lame as f*ck and I get nothing out of it! Let's raise the stakes and even the deals!"

Motoyasu looked at Lyn as if he was insane.

"If you win, I give you all my exp, all my money, all my items, Raphtalia, and even some game mechanics out of my long as hell manual that you probably don't know about."

Motoyasu looked at me with greed in his eyes.

"But if I win, I get all of your items, 50% of your reward for this wave and all of Myne's exp. Do we have a deal?"

Motoyasu grinned, and before Myne or the king could stop him...

"Deal!"

Good. Now I get something out of beating his *ss.

"Well then, the duel shall be held in the castle's garden!" The king said, slightly disappointed, but not at all worried.