I'm sorry Naofumi, I really am, but like you, I also want to live, and that means that for the time being... Its every man for himself… Even if Ryou couldn't subdue the guilt that emerged from that decision.
After getting ready for the day, Ryou decided to hit the forest beyond the hills, intent on making has much progress has he could, and if possible to take his head off the situation that was most likely happening right now.
Going for supplies, mostly food for the day, although he had also bought a few miscellaneous items, like a small knife, a Wood Axe, a Pickaxe, a shovel, and even some cooking utensils. All the things a new explorer should have with him, before going on an adventure. After that he decided to go out through the eastern gate. His reason for that was simple, Naofumi, had meet Erhard in canon, before going into the forest in an effort to vent his frustrations. Erhard store was located in the western part of Castle town, a hundred meters or so from the gate. This would put him on the opposite direction from the shield hero. Ryou had no intention of meeting Naofumi right now, much less with the wound still so raw.
Starting his second monster hunting session, he decided to make is way slowly into the forest, he still needed to unlock the rest of the colored balloon bows.
It took most of the morning to get enough remains, but after nearly forty balloons he had done it. Hunting balloons was an easy affair, although some came particular close to him, and one had actually sneaked on him from behind, lodging itself in his sides. Even with the thing munching on him, it didn't hurt, because of the armor, but the sight spooked him a little. Having a Jack-o-lantern wannabe monster trying to sink his teeth on his belly was disconcerting to say the least
One interesting discovery, was the appearance of a new bow after he had unlock all three colored ones. After questioning its appearance, Ryou had reach the conclusion that it was a special bow unlocked after completing the entire series. This one, was simply called Balloon Bow, and while the stats on it were much better then on any of his other bows, the requirements were pretty steep. Not only did it need another ten remains of each balloon, but it also came with a level twenty restriction. On the other side it offered an ability, called monster encyclopedia. After playing so many RPG's it was easy to understand what it was, it was a bestiary. A very nifty thing, that Ryou definitely wanted to unlock down the line. For now, though, it would have to wait, level twenty was a goal he doubted he could reach before the wave.
It was after a quick break for lunch, that Ryou made is first true error in judgment.
He had made his way into a clearing in the forest, a small open area surrounded by tree's, and bushes, Taking a look around, he quickly spotted the three balloons on the other side of the clearing. Easy prey, Ryou thought, and with that in mind he took aim. One had been killed instantly, after the first shot. By the time he had ready himself to kill the second, they were already halfway through the clearing. After the second one was dead, Ryou, measured there would be no time to kill the third one, so he threw himself to the side to avoid it, or tried to at least. The moment he tried to avoid the creature, he almost got whip lashed, and landed on his rear, by the time he had regained his bearings the balloon was inches away from his face, startled, Ryou put his arm in front of his face to protect himself.
Pain was the first thing that registered... Not as much as unbearable, but it had been so unexpected that he gritted his teeth. Looking towards the end of his arm he saw the cause. The orange monstrosity had sunk its teeth on his hand. Trying to shake the thing amounted to nothing, the creature had no intention of letting go of his hand.
"Motherfucker, let go!" Roared Ryou, before grabbing the accursed thing, ripping it from his hand, and throwing it towards the other end of the clearing.
The aggressor righted itself, and hopped twice before an arrow exterminated its existence.
Breathing hard, Ryou lowered his bow before inspecting the damage. Four small puncture wounds on the back, and front of his hand, deep enough to draw blood but not much else.
Taking a look behind him, Ryou saw what had caused this particular bad encounter. His cloak was entangled in a thorn bush, one that he had neither seen, nor felt.
Are you fucking kidding… It took a moment for everything to sink in, and when it did Ryou placed his palm over his face.
He had carefully thought every one of his steps, taking all precautions he could think of. Rationalized every little thing. But apparently he had forgotten the most basic of things... common sense.
Because bringing a long hooded cloak to a dense forested area is such an amazing idea, right..? Ryou thought sarcastically.
The bloody thing had look cool, that had been the biggest motivator for buying it, not even taking a second to think about it logically. And now, he couldn't help but to feel a spark of anger towards himself, out of sheer stupidity.
The cause for his anger hadn't been the damage to the cloak nor the damage to his hand, the true reason being what the mistake trully represented. He had made a mistake in judgment, a very easy one to overlook, and the price had been paid. It was pure luck that the enemy had been a balloon, but if it had been anything more dangerous, then that small error could have sent him to an early grave. Why? Because the bloody cloak looked cool, nothing more.
Calming himself, and taking a seat he looked at his hand again. The bleeding had mostly stopped, leaving only a faint trail of red in his hand where the blood had leaked. Looking at it carefully another thought crossed his mind, one far more solemn, and grim.
In the exaltation of discovering his ability, and spending hours pretty much one-shooting everything, he had made another mistake. The very same mistake that had been responsible for the death of every single one of his characters back when he played games in hardcore... Arrogance. He had developed a false sense of security, one attributed to the small amount of power he now wielded. That false sense of security had put in his brain, the assumption that because one arrow was enough to kill everything so far, there existed no danger. The wound on his hand would be a reminder, a reminder that no matter what kind of power he wielded, his existence would always be that of a mortal, and that wouldn't change even if he had one hundred levels.
If the balloon had been just a little faster, it could have sunk its teeth in his face, and he could have lost an eye. He had to remember that he wasn't Naofumi, he couldn't afford to tank hits… Ryou had come to that conclusion the day before, but apparently it hadn't been enough for it to sink in.
This really isn't a game… No matter how many times I have told myself that, somewhere in my mind I still assumed it was, on some level at least…
He had to be even more careful, and mindful of everything not just what lay in front of him, or he wouldn't survive for long.
With those thoughts in mind Ryou shoved his tattered cloak inside his inventory.
The rest of the grind had come, and gone in a flash. Ryou, continued to level up, although far more carefully this time, taking into consideration both the monsters, and the environment, not wanting to repeat his latest blunter.
Collecting an assortment of plants, remains, and other materials, had Ryou unlocking bow after bow, some of them giving a passive increase in stats, others just non-combat abilities, very much like Naofumi's shields in canon, but he was using the Shield Hero's upgrading method so it only made sense that his own progress was similiar to his.
The process of utilizing his new bought tools was an interesting one. He already knew that wielding anything else besides his bow would result in a nasty shock. A fact that had come true when he tried to cut a small tree. So after thinking about it, and remembering that Naofumi had been able to more or less use a pickaxe he decided to absorb the small woodcutting axe, not sure what to expect.
[Woodcutting Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 to Woodcutting Technique, Serrated Shot]
The description on the new bow was quite weird. The new skill, had the name 'Serrated Shot', yet it suffered a penalty on damage, making it less efficient then his normal arrows. What it allowed, was for his arrows to cut down trees, and wood. Interested on how it worked, Ryou released his new skill on the small tree, watching as the arrow impacted with the trunk, and downed the whole thing, with a loud crashing sound. Upon closer inspection he could see an almost perfect cut on the remaining stump.
So it can cut a tree perfectly, yet it has a penalty against monsters..? Once again, the system behind his own legendary weapon was a confusing blend of real life, and video game logic. It made no sense, realistically, yet in a weird way it made sense if you were in a video game - gathering skills, where never used against mobs.
I think its this kind of crap, that makes the others believe this is a game…
Leaving those thoughts behind, Ryou unleashed his arrows on the trunk of the tree, watching has each one went through, and trimmed it perfectly, until he was left with nothing but planks of different sizes. While an interesting ability, that might be handy to have down the line, right now it was mostly useless to him. Picking a small plank he let his Bow do its thing.
[Woodwork Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 to Woodworking Technique]
Carpenters all-around the world, cry in despair, for your Nemesis has arrived... Ryou thought in amusement before releasing a snort. It would be a good ability if he ever decided to buy a house, and furnish it. Other then that he doubted that making wood furniture would be a good choice for money making.
Ryou then repeated the process with both the pickaxe, and the shovel for similar effects.
[Mining Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 to Mining Technique, Drilling Shot]
[Digging Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 to Digging Technique, Tunneling Shot]
After a few tests of his new weapons, Ryou came to the conclusion they worked in the same manner as, the previous bow. While not particularly useful, he was sure that having the ability to dig things out, and mining ores would definitely be a boon somewhere down the line.
After that he had resumed his grinding session, taking upon himself to switch between bows every time he mastered one, trying to master has many as he could. This process had the benefit of raising his stats, though the one that increased the most by far had been agility. He had also gain access to abilities like gathering, butchering, fishing, and blending.
He had entertained the thought of dipping into the blending ability, there were certain benefits to be able to make potions of all kinds, although after a while he decided to leave it for now, after all the only potions he actually used were health restoring ones, and they were not that expensive.
It had actually come has a surprise that he could easily break even, just by killing low level monsters. Balloon remains went from one to three cooper each, depending on the color with Orange being the cheapest. and most common, however Usapil pelts for instances, could go from twenty to fifty cooper depending on the quality, and condition. Honestly the first one he had killed had left his stomach quite queasy, Usapils unlike Balloons actually bled, and sometimes survived the first arrow which resulted in a bloody mess, not even counting the whole butchering process.
After spending the great majority of his day hunting, Ryou had returned to town, dropping by one of the monster materials merchant to sell the surplus of remains, and other materials.
It was during this trip that Ryou realized something, at every single corner almost everyone had been gossiping. It had only been a day, and apparently everyone already knew what Naofumi had supposedly done. Like every piece of gossip ever, especially on a medieval era like town, the facts where already being stretched out beyond normal proportions. One variation that he heard from two old ladies that had not been regulating their volume, detailed how the other heroes had been called to detain Naofumi, himself included. That had been an interesting story... Especially since he had not laid eyes on the Shield Hero after leaving the Castle, although in part he had made an effort to avoid the said hero.
If they could convert gossip into experience points, there would have been no need to summon us, in Melromarc... Even the common civilian would have been able to one-shot anything the waves could have thrown at them…
Although once again, he could almost bet the reason behind the rumors, having spread as far, and as fast has they had, could be attributed to his Majesty, the king of douchery, Aultcray.
On a slightly more positive note he had been able to level up, from level one to five in one day. Honestly that was more progress then he had expected, and even more impressive was the boost to his attributes, especially since almost all of the bows that gave passive attribute bonus, focused on agility. The biggest improvement from leveling besides agility, had been on attack, obviously, and surprisingly enough on his health points. Ryou had yet to figure out how the health points system worked. The Balloon that bit him hadn't inflicted any damage, so… How did it work exactly?
One possibility would be that only life threatening wounds counted, or maybe it didn't need to be a life threatening one, a grave wound would suffice. Or a third possibility was, the damage had been so small it didn't even registered.
No matter what theory rung true, Ryou had no hurry to test them, even if he knew that it would happen sooner, rather than later.
Laying on his bed, arms crossed behind his head, Ryou found himself skipping through the help menu. So far the menu had been a well of information that hadn't been explained in canon, He had to question why the others hadn't bothered reading it. Motoyasu, and Ren were one thing, they both thought the whole thing had been a game, so maybe they were afraid of the 'noob' stigma that came from using it, or maybe they just hadn't cared enough. But, Naofumi, he had actually been showed looking at it, and yet he had failed to grasp things like the teleportation system between others.
It was partly due to these deep musings, that Ryou suffered his third, less then gracious fall, since arriving in Melromarc.
"You seem to be doing well Yuusha-sama…" The voice broke through the silence of his room, Spooked Ryou made a move to raise himself, the problem came when instead of his hand meeting the bed it met nothing but air, and the result of such action send him tumbling into the ground.
"A word of advice if you allow me, Yuusha-sama, you really need to work on your landings." The now familiar voice held a tone of amusement that put a glare on Ryou's eyes. Raising his head he took in the familiar mask of the woman, that had also send him tumbling into the ground on his first night in Melromarc.
The 'Shadow Maid', he had started to call her that, at least mentally, had taken a seat on his now opened window. How had she been able to not only open the window from the outside, but done so without him noticing he honestly had no clue.
"And who, exactly, is it, that has made it a hobby, of making sure, I end up on the ground, every time she makes an appearance?" Ryou growled out, now moving to take a seat on the bed. The Shadow Maid still had the same small smile on her face that almost looked mocking.
"Your faults, are you're own Yuusha-sama, I simply thought prudent to finally announce my presence, it was you who failed to correctly measure the size of the bed." Although that actually rung somewhat true, Ryou couldn't help the urge that arose from within, a urge that told him to send the woman to a very nasty place, before calming himself.
"If you are going to keep popping in like this, at least have the decency of warning a guy beforehand." And Ryou most definitely heard a less then ladylike snort, that came from her direction.
"I'll take that into consideration next time..." So there would be a next time, Ryou contemplated before launching a question.
"So why exactly have you come? A lady climbing up to a man's window in the middle of the night, is pretty suspicious, and one might get the wrong idea..." If the woman had the intent of screwing with him at every chance, then he would pay back in kind.
"Well if you, Yuusha-sama had the decency of paying me dinner first... Then perhaps that wrong idea, might turn into a correct one…" The Shadow maid answered, with a coy tone, that left Ryou gaping at how easily she had turn the tables. He expected a woman from the medieval times to not be used to such a direct approach, and become flustered, but not only had she taken it in stride she had turned the tables on him, she knew how to play the game, probably way better then he did.
"Interesting propositions aside, tell me, Yuusha-sama, what is your opinion on Naofumi-sama's crime?" She asked offhandedly.
"Why do you want to know?" Ryou barked, and he couldn't help but to curse mentally, the defensiveness had come out as a reflex. He took a deep breath, and closed his eyes momentarily.
"Simple curiosity, I would like to know the thoughts of my preferred Hero, that's all." The fact that she admitted to have favorites, actually surprised him.
"So we are playing favorites now, are we?" Even in the darkness he saw her shrug clearly.
"I never went out of my way to hide that fact, actually its quite obvious, really... And you... Yuusha-sama are deflecting." The Shadow Maid had easily seen through it. Out of everyone he had personally met on this world, she was by far the sharpest one, and that also made her dangerous, very dangerous. Reflecting, he decided the best approach would be an half-truth.
"Okay fine, since you are so interested in it, here's what I think…" Ryou, interlaced his fingers on top of his lap, before continuing… "Naofumi... He didn't really struck me as someone who would do something like that, however we didn't spent that much time together, so while I have my doubts, I can't discount the possibility that he, actually did what rumors say." The woman just hummed in thought, before interjecting.
"No doubt that someone has observant has you Yuusha-sama, as already realized that our esteemed king holds no love for Naofumi-sama…" She stated, almost offhandedly.
"I might have noticed... A bit of concealed hostility..." Ryou conceded while a myriad of thoughts crossed his mind.
"It won't remained concealed for much longer I'm afraid, our Majesty as, lets say, a distaste towards the Shield Hero, and he's certainly not the only one."
Ryou closed his eyes momentarily, he had a small inkling of what the maid had been trying to point out, and he decided to take a leap of faith, and meet her half way.
"Are you, implying that the charges on Naofumi might have been fabricated?" Ryou questioned tone slightly more heavy.
"Perhaps they were, perhaps they weren't, I'm sure you will eventually find out which one is it." That almost forced a groan out of him.
"Will you ever give me a straight answer?" He asked in exasperation, the Shadow Maid actually had the nerve to released a small laugh.
"Yuusha-sama, next thing you know, you will be asking me to fight the waves for you. I cant do your job for you, now, can I?" Meaning he probably would never get a straight answer out of her, however…
"You know what... That idea actually has merit." Ryou stated in a joking manner, although, given the skills she possessed, the Maid would probably make a very nice party member.
She let out another laugh, before swinging her legs to the outside of the window.
"Unfortunately, I have other equally pressing duties to attend, for example I still have a report to make…" She trailed off, and Ryou released a sound of amusement.
"To that mysterious mistress of yours?"
"Indeed, but before I take my leave…" she paused, and turned her head in his direction before continuing, "Here's a little piece of interesting trivia, although his Majesty might be making some very questionable decisions as of late, he's still the King of Melromarc, that fact hasn't changed... He will never stand for people who profit from the fear, and devastation brought about by the waves... He might have turned a blind eye to it in the past, especially if it helped in his crusade, but he won't risk angering my mistress anymore than he already did, on that front at least." She finished, and Ryou could only stand there confused.
"That…" he begun "…is completely random information, how the hell is that even useful?" The only thing he could gather from that statement, was that the maid pretty much confirmed who her mistress was, if even the king threaded lightly around her.
"Just something to keep in mind, I'm sure this little piece of knowledge will be useful to you in the future. Well until next time Yuusha-sama, and don't die out there... You are my favorite after all." And the accursed woman actually had the nerve to send him a flying kiss before disappearing.
After she left, Ryou couldn't help but to mutter, "What actually was the point of that..?"
Following what had been another sleepless night for the most part, Ryou continued to lay in bed. His thoughts throughout the entire night were focused on the Shadow Maid, and their second encounter. The woman once again came, and went like the wind, leaving more questions then answers.
One of those questions pertained to Naofumi, he already knew that the charges against the Shield Hero had been a set up. The woman however hadn't been aware of that fact, so she appeared to try, and point him towards the right direction, perhaps in hopes he would give Naofumi a helping hand.
The Queen knew for sure that her husband, and the church had quite the hate for the shield hero. In the original canon, if he could remember correctly, she actually went has far has to send Melty to remind the King that he should play nice with Naofumi. But if the Maid, and the Queen by extension knew what kind of person he was, then they should also know, that Ryou wouldn't throw himself into the fire to help Naofumi. It didn't matter if the people at large thought he was a hero, Ryou was far from being that righteous, so what had been the point of that? Had she just done it to plant the seed of doubt in him..? Was that her aim all along..?
Another question had been the complete random piece of information she had left him with. The only thing he could collect from it at first, had been the fact she pretty much confirmed his suspicions about her mistress being the queen. The woman had after all confirmed that even the king was wary of her mistress, had that been her goal? To point him out that the true power in Melromarc rested with her mistress?
That fact made no sense, since it hadn't been a secret that the country worked on an Absolute Matriarchy.
Or maybe it was... Ryou, contemplated, after thinking deeply about it. That fact wasn't exposed until Melty herself stated it.
Before that, there had never even been a mention of a queen. Perhaps the King, and the Church of The Three Heroes, moved to suppress that particular piece of information, while the Queen had been out, and about in the other countries. That actually made some sense, because they couldn't have the other Heroes question the King's authority, Naofumi most of all. After all if he found out before hand, about the existence of someone, who possessed more power in the country then the King, then he might have become desperate enough to take his chances with that person. Knowing Naofumi the probability of that happening would be pretty low, with his trust issues, and general distaste for nobles, but the King would never allow such a thing to pass.
Besides that there was the last piece of the random message. '…He will never stand for people who profit from the fear, and devastation brought about by the waves...He might have turned a blind eye to it in the past, especially if it helped in his crusade...'
What about Raphtalia's village..? How had that benefited his crusade? Had that happened because the demi-humans worshiped the shield hero, and the king decided to turn a blind eye, like the maid had mentioned... If that was the case it made a little bit of sense... After the wave, the knights themselves laid waste to the rest of the village, and sold the inhabitants into slavery. Sure the orders might have come down from some other noble, they did appear to have some amount of power over the military forces of Melromarc. But even if the orders for such a thing, came from someone else, like that bastard of a noble that had owned Raphtalia, and her childhood friends, that kind of actions reached the king's ears for sure, and he took no action at all as far as Ryou had been aware.
The only conclusion that he could make would be that taking out the village would cut some support towards the Shield Hero, and that definitely helped the king in his anti-shield hero movement.
All of that destruction, and suffering... For what..? Ryou didn't actually knew the reason behind Aultcray's hatred towards the Shield Hero, he had no recollection of it being explained in the Story.
Not that it actually matters, the man will continue with his hatred even when he is forcibly brought down to his knees… Something that had actually happen in canon.
Well there's no point in speculating, for now that has nothing to do with me, even if I wanted to help, I hardly have any power to do so... The only thing that truly matters for now is getting stronger, and surviving…
With that though Ryou got up from bed, it would be another day of Monster Hunting after all…