The Rising of the Shield Hero Volume 10 Read online

  That reminded me, where was Trash? It felt like I hadn’t seen him in forever. Was he still around?

  Trash was the queen’s husband and had been serving as the Crown by proxy in her absence. He’d had another name, but it had been changed to Trash as punishment for his actions. He had been one of the culprits responsible for framing me for religious reasons.

  There he was. He was glaring at me with disgust in his eyes.

  He couldn’t say anything since the queen was keeping a close eye on him. Or so I thought . . . Looking more closely, I noticed he was wearing a collar.

  “—!”

  Oh? He was touching the collar like he wanted to say something. It seemed to be tightening. Now this was funny. I laughed at him.

  “——!!”

  He seemed super mad now, but every time he tried to scream out, the collar tightened and silenced him before he could make a noise. Talk about quality entertainment!

  “Mr. Naofumi . . . ?”

  Raphtalia called out as if to reprimand me. Apparently she hadn’t noticed Trash’s collar.

  “What can I say? It’s funny! Look at that.”

  “Sigh . . . That’s just like you, Mr. Naofumi.”

  Raphtalia’s voice was tinged with disapproval.

  “Ah, yes. Mr. Iwatani, you mentioned that you would like to speak with the seven star heroes.”

  “Huh? Yeah, that’s right.”

  The queen looked over at Trash, as if to imply something. The knights surrounding Trash dragged him over in front of me and forced him to his knees.

  “Allow me to tell you about a certain seven star hero.”

  Why was she saying this after dragging Trash over here?

  “This hero was an extraordinary character formerly known as Lüge. When Siltvelt made an attempt at world domination twenty-something years ago, it was this hero that attacked them head-on, saving Melromarc and many other countries in the process.”

  “Sounds like quite the reputation.”

  Twenty-something years ago meant that the hero had to be pretty old now. Thinking about the people I knew, that would probably limit it to the old lady, the slave trader, or the accessory dealer. The last two were out of the question, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it turned out to be the old lady. She’d made a dramatic turnaround and gone on a rampage after I gave her that medicine, after all. Still, something about her didn’t quite fit.

  “Despite being the Staff Hero, this hero came to be known instead for his formidable intelligence, and the people referred to him as ‘His Excellency, the Wise’ when telling stories of his deeds.”

  “—!!”

  Trash was really starting to struggle for some reason.

  Hmm . . . His Excellency, the Wise? Must have been a pretty impressive guy. If he was that smart, then . . . I looked over at Rishia.

  “Your father?”

  “Fehhhh!”

  Rishia shook her head emphatically. So it wasn’t her dad, then.

  “Do you know who she’s talking about, Rishia?”

  “Yes, I do. It’s that man. The king is the Seven Star Staff Hero.”

  “Huh?”

  Dumbfounded, I pointed a questioning finger at Trash, who was still struggling for some reason.

  “It’s thanks to the king that Melromarc and the other countries still exist today.”

  Hold on. She was saying that Trash—that this stupid, power-hungry fool—was a seven star hero? No way! I had never seen him holding any kind of staff. And His Excellency, the Wise? Seriously? More like His Foolishness, the Daft!

  “Good one, Rishia. You almost had me there for a second.”

  “!”

  Trash snorted and glared at me.

  “It wasn’t a joke. I’m sure that this all must be some kind of strategically planned act. Mom and dad always said that Melromarc would remain peaceful and secure as long as the king were here.”

  “And that right there is why your mom and dad ended up ruined nobility.”

  “Fehhh . . .”

  “Mr. Naofumi!”

  Raphtalia reprimanded me again. But it was probably true.

  So from what she was saying, if we were talking about my world, was he like some kind of famous military strategist? Was he the kind of character who couldn’t be underestimated because he was always several steps ahead, and even if he acted foolishly, it was sure to be some kind of trap? Yeah, I wasn’t falling for that.

  “I get it. The guy exists, but this is some kind of political decoy, right?”

  I pointed at Trash defiantly. Unable to stand it any longer, he made a fist and lunged at me.

  “I will not allow it! Icicle Prison!”

  “!?”

  Now encased in a cage of ice, Trash glared at the queen.

  “Or maybe the real Trash died, and this is some kind of replacement?”

  “Not at all. This is all true. Right, Trash?”

  “!”

  “Ah, yes. You can’t speak because of that collar. Think about it, Mr. Iwatani. Why do you think I made Bitch my slave but didn’t do the same to Trash?”

  She had a point. Trash seemed to have given up relatively quickly and I figured that’s why she had let him be, but now that I thought about it, maybe his punishment had been a bit underwhelming.

  “I am sure you already know this, Mr. Iwatani, but it is not possible to enslave a holy hero or a seven star hero.”

  “Ah . . . So what you’re saying is that you can’t make Trash a slave and that’s why you’re keeping him quiet with a collar. But does the collar really work?”

  “Yes. Of course, he could easily break it if he wanted to, but he doesn’t because he knows he would be punished for doing so.”

  As soon as the queen finished her sentence, Trash ripped the collar off.

  “I can’t take it anymore! Shield!!”

  He was as annoying as ever.

  “I will let that slide this time. So there you have it. Aultcra—Trash, I mean. Tell Mr. Iwatani how you power up your staff.”

  “I’ll never tell him! I . . . I refuse to accept this! The Shield, a Count?! Absolutely unacceptable!”

  “Oh my, what shall we do? I’d like to request that you spare his life at the very least.”

  As she said this, the queen delivered repeated blows to Trash’s face. Being my twisted self, I’d begun to enjoy the whole spectacle a bit, but realistically speaking, it would be difficult to get Trash to share his power-up methods. In that case, killing him, waiting for a new staff hero to appear, and asking the new hero would be quicker. But the queen was asking me to show leniency and overlook his behavior. This was proving to be a real predicament.

  “Queen. Use every means of torture available to make him speak. A hero that has no intention of fighting for world peace does not deserve to live.”

  “Insolence! I’ll—?!”

  The queen ordered Trash gagged and quieted.

  “Understood.”

  “The deadline—”

  The queen interrupted me just as I was about to decide how much time to give him.

  “My daughter Bitch presents another problem for us.”

  Oh? Had there been some kind of development?

  The power-up methods were certainly important, but they could wait for Bitch. I had a feeling the queen had purposefully changed the subject, but I could always just bring it back up again later when I got another chance.

  “According to the account of events given by Mr. Kitamura upon regaining consciousness, it seems very likely that she survived.”

  “That is a problem. You must find and capture her at once.”

  According to Kyo, Motoyasu had been abandoned by the rest of his party upon facing the Spirit Tortoise. I had no doubt that she’d survived.

  “As you wish.”

  I had no idea if she would return to Motoyasu. Then again, maybe she should be executed for deserting him in the face of the enemy?

  “I will need to speak with her before anythin
g else. Depending on how that goes, you may find the outcome quite pleasing, Mr. Iwatani.”

  “That would be most excellent. Heh heh heh . . .”

  The queen and I laughed together as we sneakily probed each other’s true intentions.

  “Mr. Naofumi!”

  “Yeah, yeah. I know.”

  Jeez, was she ever going to let me get away with a bit of mischief? Raph-chan never seemed to mind.

  “Rafu fu fu . . .”

  Speaking of Raph-chan, she had been imitating me for the past few minutes and had a sinister grin on her face.

  “In any case, I have many questions for you, as well, Mr. Iwatani.”

  “I know, but I have some things to take care of first.”

  We’d just gotten back from the other world, and we needed to get started on preparations.

  “Later, Trash of the world. From here on, you shall forever be known as His Foolishness, the Daft, Framer of Heroes. Isn’t that nice? You’re famous!”

  “—!!!!”

  As we made our way out of the throne room, Trash was pointing at me and struggling violently in an attempt to destroy the cage of ice. I had no doubt he wanted to attack me, but the surrounding soldiers wouldn’t allow it. The queen sure knew how to handle things.

  But all of that aside, was that piece of trash seriously a seven star hero?

  Chapter Two: Whereabouts of the Slaves

  I lay down on the bed in the guest room and rested. Yeah, I really was exhausted. Lying down made it all the clearer. The effects of the curse were heavy, and I could feel them taking their toll on me. In the end, I had spent the whole day discussing future plans with the queen and her advisers.

  “That reminds me . . .”

  I hesitantly checked my equipment status. Sure enough, my armor’s name was unrecognizable. The Barbaroi Armor had ceased to function.

  “Raphtalia? Rishia? Filo? Check your equipment.”

  “Ah, yes, I did. The name listed is garbled, and the effects are null.”

  Raphtalia had already changed into her previous armor from this world. Damn! She had changed so quickly!

  “Why do you look disappointed?”

  “Do I?”

  Because it looked so good on you! Because it looked so much better than your old armor!

  Raphtalia looked at me suspiciously as childish responses flooded into my head.

  “Oh! My breastplate name is unrecognizable now, too.”

  “Do you prefer a kigurumi?”

  I seemed to remember having another Pekkul Kigurumi left over somewhere. Where did I put that? Had I left it in the castle storeroom?

  “Fehhh . . .”

  “Now, now, Mr. Naofumi. I’m sure Rishia has outgrown her kigurumi phase.”

  “Heeey, Master! Where is Mel-chan? She wasn’t in her room.”

  Filo unfolded her pajamas as she asked about Melty, so I inspected them, too. Oh? Apparently the Filo Pajamas were compatible between worlds.

  “Melty? I’m pretty sure the queen said she had gone to help Eclair.”

  “Oh, really? Will we see her tomorrow, then?”

  “Maybe.”

  We were planning to head that way, after all.

  “That aside, Mr. Naofumi . . .”

  Raphtalia suddenly drew near to where I was lying on the bed.

  “A territory! And you’re a Count! You’re a real hotshot now!”

  “I was already a hero, you know. Doesn’t feel like much of a change.”

  “What is it that you’re after, Mr. Naofumi?”

  Raphtalia looked at me with uncertainty in her eyes as she asked. That reminded me, she had almost said something when I told the queen which territory I wanted.

  “Are you talking about the territory business? It’s just like I said. Considering that the battles are going to start getting rough, I think it would be best to build a private army like Kizuna, Glass, and L’Arc have done.”

  “But why did you choose the area that was damaged by the first wave for your territory?”

  I wasn’t sure if I should just be honest with her or if that was a bad idea. I started to feel like it might seem patronizing, so I decided to just gloss over the issue for now.

  “It’s an area I’m already familiar with and I should be able to do things my way there. The area has strong ties with Eclair’s father, and it’s unlikely that anyone would have a problem with me getting involved there.”

  Raphtalia and I sat there in silence for a few moments. Finally, she let out a sigh of resignation.

  “Understood. We’ll just leave it at that.”

  “We’ll round up some slaves starting with those that you know, Raphtalia. It will be easier to fight with people you’re already familiar with. After that, we’ll move on to other, ordinary slaves. Once we’ve established a respectable amount of fighting power there, we can consider training the castle soldiers or something.”

  I wanted to train the slaves and develop enough fighting power that we would be able to easily defeat Glass and the others should it come to that.

  “At the same time . . . muhahaha . . .”

  This meant that Raphtalia’s friends would have to join my private army if they wanted to return to their precious village. I was basically holding the territory hostage.

  “You’re trying to act all bad again. Let me guess—something about hostages?”

  Yikes. She had completely seen through me.

  “Hehe . . . You two are like an old married couple.”

  Rishia went and dropped a real bombshell. Although, it was true that I had spent more time with Raphtalia than anyone else in this world, so she probably did understand me better than anyone. We were nothing like a married couple, though.

  “Wh . . . wh . . . what is that supposed to mean?!”

  Raphtalia’s face turned red in embarrassment as she shouted at Rishia. Just like I thought, any talk of love or romance really ruffled Raphtalia’s feathers. Rishia had stepped on a landmine.

  Raphtalia may have started out as a child and a slave, but she had an exceptionally kind heart and always looked out for others. She’d lost her family and her village had been taken from her, so it was easy to imagine the sorrow she might have felt. That was why she was fighting—to ensure that no one else would have to end up in a situation like hers.

  Driven by such a noble goal, Raphtalia undoubtedly had no interest in things like love and romance. Not to mention that, even though she may have looked like an adult, she was still a child in terms of age. She wasn’t even old enough to be interested in boys yet. I guess since Rishia was in love with Itsuki, for better or worse, her female mind would be sensitive to stuff like that.

  “That’s right, Rishia. Raphtalia doesn’t like those kinds of jokes. Best be careful.”

  “M . . . Mr. Naofumi . . .”

  Raphtalia’s face returned to a normal color as she began to regain her composure. That was much better. I didn’t want Raphtalia getting too upset.

  “Oh . . . okay . . .”

  Rishia cocked her head to the side in confusion while staring at Raphtalia and me.

  “Now then! Tomorrow is going to be a busy day.”

  I was going somewhere with that, but thinking about what was to come suddenly reminded me of something.

  “That reminds me, Rishia. We were talking about whether or not you should reset your level, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “I want you to consider going without the reset.”

  “Wh . . . why is that?”

  “But Mr. Naofumi, didn’t you say that starting over from level one would improve her abilities?”

  “I’ve been thinking about that. I observed Rishia’s performance to a certain extent while we were in Kizuna’s world. You know that much, right?”

  “Yes.”

  I made sure to keep an eye on how Rishia developed while we were there.

  “Honestly, there’s not much of a difference between her abilities right now and what they were
like over in Kizuna’s world. It’s practically nil.”

  “Really?”

  “I mean, there is a small difference, but compared to Raphtalia or Filo . . .”

  “Fehhh . . .”

  “So, Rishia, I estimate that your abilities will likely have a growth spurt coming. Your class-up could be a problem, though.”

  Raphtalia and Filo both improved drastically after their class-ups. Fitoria’s feather had made it possible for Filo to have a special class-up that paved the way for a lot of her abilities to really blossom. Depending on the person and their abilities, a class-up could have long-lasting effects. Rishia was a jack-of-all-trades and master of none, but for all I knew the right class-up might make her more adept at a certain kind of magic or something.

  “Oh . . . huh?! Ah, I suppose you’re right. But . . . Itsuki chose this path for me. That’s something that I treasure and wouldn’t want to change.”

  “I see. Understood.”

  She may have been tossed aside by Itsuki, but her heart hadn’t changed. That was all the more reason to make him regret it. That sounded good to me.

  We continued to just hang out for a while, resting up for the coming day.

  “Okay then.”

  After eating breakfast at the castle, we spoke with the queen briefly before getting ready to head out.

  “Where are we headed?”

  “To visit the slave trader.”

  “Mr. Iwatani.”

  The queen raised her hand as if there was something she wanted to say.

  “Might you be going there to purchase slaves from the same village Raph . . . Miss Raphtalia is from?”

  “Yeah, why?”

  “Regarding that, we may have complicated matters a bit. I must apologize in advance.”

  “. . .”

  What was that supposed to mean? I had a really bad feeling about this. My cheek started to twitch. Actually, I didn’t even want to know what it meant. But there was no way around asking.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well . . . After the Spirit Tortoise incident, I reinstated Miss Seaetto’s status as nobility and issued a proclamation ordering all Melromarc citizens—including nobility—to release any demi-human slaves from the Seaetto territory immediately.”