"As a reward and thanks for fulfilling my request, Motoyasu~Dono shall receive 4,000 silvers, and Itsuki and Ren~Dono shall receive 3,800 silvers." The king spoke, as the individual hero's were given their individual amounts.

"In order for you three to recuperate after the damaging effects of the wave, you three shall be given 3 days to rest in the castle. Now, as agreed upon, The Shield shall receive 500 silvers we've set aside." Naofumi reached out to grab the bag.

"However, since it's offset by the cost of dispelling the curse put on his comrade's slave, he shall receive none." The bag was taken back as Naofumi and Raphtalia scowled.

"Actually, that's not going to fly." Itsuki spoke up. You looked over at him as he spoke.

"You interfered in Y/n and Motoyasu's duel, dispelled the... slave crest? And now, you refuse to pay Naofumi and his party not only the funds for the wave, but what Y/n was promised for winning the duel?" Itsuki asked.

"Sounds like it." Ren put in as Motoyasu turned towards them.

"If there was no interference, your life wouldn't have been put in such danger. In fact, Y/n clearly stated that he healed you, then used that spell, A Call Beyond, to punish you for cheating. It's more than safe to say that you were actually quite safe from death the entire time." Ren explained.

"Wha- I didn't lose, and he was clearly going to kill me!" Motoyasu insisted.

"You must me mistaken, Itsuki~Sama, Ren~Sama." Myne started putting in.

"It was a one on one duel, and Y/n was about to kill Motoyasu. That is why Father didn't declare him victor-"

"Even if Motoyasu was about to die after the final spell, it was because you clearly cheated by firing that wind spell at him. Y/n would've otherwise quickly ended the duel with a spell like that Madaras Serpent. Besides, during the wave, it was Naofumi's party that defended Lute village against all odds, and while we were defeated by that massive beast, Y/n came in and saved us, killing that thing in a matter of two hits. In fact, it's even safe to assume that Y/n may be more experienced in killing these things then any of us could know." Itsuki pointed out as all heads turned towards you, and the Beast Saif on your back.

"Either way, the Shield Hero's party must be compensated in some way, and Y/n rewarded for the duel." Ren spoke up. Myne only grew angry at the words as the king sighed, giving in.

"Fine. The shield hero shall receive his reward, but before his advocate receives his two thousand, he must tell me the beasts weakness, so that we may further help this country." He ordered. You shrugged, drawing the saw spear from nowhere.

"Beasts flee before fire, which purifies them, granting swift death. Otherwise, if one want to effectively cut them down, use a serrated weapon." You spoke plainly, which seemed to surprise the king.

"Serrated?" Ren asked. You flicked the saw spear open, planting it in the floor.

"Tell me, sword hero, would you use a serrated knife or a cheese knife to cut a slab of steak?" You asked.

"If I wanted a clean cut, I would use the-"

"No fancies." You interrupted, shocking the other heroes.

"No 'smoothness,' no 'clean cuts,' you have to cut through a slab of meat as fast as possible. What knife do you use to slash the meat open?" You asked. He narrowed his eyes, looking at the saw spear.

"The serrated one." He answered.

"Exactly. Beasts are all fur and bloody meat, and your smooth blades will simply glide off unless you put all your strength into stabbing the creature. And let me remind you, the beasts won't wait while you do that." You told them.

"Slashing them with a serrated weapon, however, will cut their flesh open, and let their blood spill." You turned your head towards Motoyasu, holding out your hand.

"Now, I believe you owe me something?" You told him. Motoyasu sighed, handing his pouch of coins to the maiden who gave them to him.

"You can't seriously be complying to his demands, Motoyasu~Sama!" Myne spoke, shock evident on her face.

"He saved our asses during the wave, and he's telling us how we can avoid that situation again, Princess Malty." He told her. You smiled as a fat sack of coins was handed to you, and Naofumi was handed a significantly thinner bag.

I understand now. Spear Hero, you may not be as hopeless as I thought. Perhaps your sense is being clouded. If she wasn't here.... you shot a look at Myne.

Then maybe you could have some sense like Ren, or Itsuki. I believe my pact with Mirellia isn't hopeless after all.

"And... that should do it." With a trace of sparks, Raphtalia's new slave crest was completed, with your blood and all.

"So you're really sure about this?" Naofumi asked Raphtalia, who nodded vigorously.

"I will forever stand by you and Master Y/n. Besides, I spoke with him about this while you slept, right?" She looked to you, who nodded, tossing the due amount of coins in a pouch. The slave trader, his name was Beloukas or something, caught the pouch, speaking as Naofumi started to look around.

"Nonetheless, I'm quite surprised that a slave would grow up to be such a pretty woman." Beloukas smiled as Raphtalia drew back, before looking towards you.

"Don't let live, but don't kill. You, good sir, are exactly what a good slave master looks like!" Beloukas exclaimed.

"What kinda person do you take me to be?" You asked as he continued to admire Raphtalia.

"Amazing. She'd be worth 20 gold pieces, even if she wasn't a virgin!" He said. That ticked you off, as it seemed to do to Raphtalia as well, as a bright blush painted her face.

"What!?" She shouted.

"I'm still Y/n's slave, and I'm a virgin!" She shouted.

"35 gold coins then!" Beloukas declared. This seemed to catch Naofumi's attention.

"35 gold?" He brushed his chin. Raphtalia looked devastated by this, looking to you for comfort. You patted her head to calm her down, as Naofumi's turned his attention to a bunch of eggs in a crate, each bearing a crest.

"What are these?" He asked. You nudged Raphtalia's shoulder, nodding towards the eggs.

"Monster eggs?" You asked her. She nodded, as you both listened in on their conversation.

"It's 100 silver coins a draw!" Beloukas makes the price.

"That's a bit much for me..." he muttered as you held out your hand, dropping a large handful of the currency in his hands.

"Not after I beat Motoyasu. Consider it a thank you for helping Raphtalia get better when she was sick." You told him. Naofumi nodded, handing the coins to Beloukas.

"You two wait outside while I pick my egg." Naofumi ordered you and Raphtalia. You both nodded, stepping outside of the tent. You leaned against a wall, as Raphtalia drew her blade, inspecting it. She turned it, looking at it from several angles.

"Something wrong?" You asked her. She shook her head.

"Just thinking how I would like to use one of your weapons." She told you. You sighed, walking towards her, taking the blade. She didn't complain as you gave the sword a few swings, twirling it in your hands before planting it into the pathway, taking it out and giving it back to Raphtalia.

"Your sword is still pretty new, and considering the material, it's gonna last a while." Raphtalia sighed, sheathing her blade.

"But...." you continued, causing her to perk up.

"That weapon can take a few modifications. After Naofumi gets his egg, I'll take you to the weapons shop, and I'll see what I can get to make you a trick weapon." You told her. She nodded excitedly, smiling brightly.

"You have any ideas what you want for your sword?" You asked her.

"I want it to be light and simple, cheap, and have some form of serration, like you said killed beasts easily." She told you. You nodded, reaching for her sword again. She handed it to you as you held it up.

"Your best bet would be one of two options." You told her, looking at the blade.

"I can get the boss to knock a bunch of chips out of the sword, making the whole thing serrated, and get you a bladed sheath, or keep your current sheath and get one side of the blade serrated." You told her. She went over the options carefully, inspecting her sheath.

"How heavy would the sheath be?" She asked.

"Probably pretty heavy. I'd recommend only using it for slow heavy attacks." You told her. She nodded, grabbing her blade.

"I would like one edge serrated, and a new sheath with one side bladed." She asked. You nodded, watching Naofumi walk out of the shop. In his arms was a glass case, holding an egg on a velvet pillow.

"Perfect timing! We're getting Raphtalia a weapon upgrade!" You called out. Naofumi sighed, holding his egg.

"Alright. I guess I'll browse for a bit. I'll meet you at the shop later." He told you. You nodded, grabbing Raphtalia's wrist(with a startled eep and a light blush from her) and started the walk to the shop.

"So, upgrading for the big guys?" The bald smith you knew so well asked.

"Not quite. Upgrading for beasts." You nodded to Raphtalia, who got to work explaining her request.

"Arresting the sword and getting a bladed sheath..." the boss grabbed a file, inspecting the blade.

"The blade is no issue, but the amount of metal I would need to use..." he muttered.

"We've got time and money. Make it as light as you need." You told him. He nodded.

"Alright. If I used iron with some magic iron mixed in, I'd be able to get a decent weight for the girl. How does 50 silver sound?" He asked. You nodded, handing him the stuff as he grabbed the blade. You stopped him, grabbing the items.

"How much for a good file?" You asked.

"2 silver." He said. You dropped another two coins on the counter.

"We'll need the weapon in case we need to fight. You can work on the sheath, I'll do the blade." You told him. He nodded, handing you the file.

"Alright. Come back tomorrow evening. I'll have your sheath ready by then." You nodded walking out of the store, Raphtalia behind you. As expected, there was Naofumi, holding the egg.

"You two get something to eat. I'll be outside, working on Raphtalia's weapon." You told them. Raphtalia's face brightened as she reached into a small knapsack.

"Actually, if we're going to eat..." she took out several cloth-wrapped items, revealing them to be sandwiches.

"Here! I asked the castle kitchen for their leftovers in the morning. It's been a while since I made them though, so they might not taste as good...." you smiled, both you and Naofumi grabbing a sandwich as she took one for herself.

"It was thoughtful of you, but it's not like I'm gonna taste it...." you all settled into an alleyway, as Naofumi took his first bite. His words were silenced as he sat, a stunned look on his face. You smiled at his face as Raphtalia looked over.

"Naofumi? Is something wrong?" She asked as you started eating your food.

"I... I can taste it...?" he muttered, shocked. Raphtalia's eyes widened as he continued to ramble.

"Ever since I came here, nothing I've eaten has had any flavor. This.... this is delicious." You smiled as Raphtalia shrugged, fixing her hair as he continued to eat. You let them have their moment as you took out Raphtalia's sword. From a pocket, you drew a charred stick, using the black remains to mark the areas on her sword that would be filed away.

As the two conversed over the flavor of the food, you got to work, as Raphtalia watched you file away at her sword, slowly, but surly serrating it.

"Fourty Five days, huh?" You and Naofumi had.... varying reactions to your new time limit. It's been a day, and you were close to finishing Raphtalia's upgraded sword. All you had to do was finish filing, get a bit of edge on the serration, and polish. Then you could pick up the new sheath.

"That's more than a month! What are we going to do while we wait?" Naofumi was in utter shock at it. Kinda embarrassing, seeing as he was shouting in the middle of the street.

"Well, I've gotta finish getting Raphtalia's sword filed down, why don't you go try and sell some things? We could get some more funds." You told him. He sighed, nodding.

"I made some extra medicine for the wave. I can go see how much that can fetch. Why don't you take Raphtalia to get her weapon, then meet me...." he looked around for a bit, before shrugging.

"Outside the blacksmith shop. That sound good?" He asked. You nodded your approval.

"Great. I'll see you in a moment." He told you, walking off as you turned away.

"Come on Raphtalia." You spoke up.

"Yes, Y/n." She followed you, step for step.

"Now, that should suit her up nicely." A thin metal sheath was placed on the counter. You could clearly see your reflection in the silver and red design. You took out Raphtalia's weapon, which you had the boss help in completing as the sheath finish cooling off from a heated state while forging, and placed it in the sheath, surprisingly, it fit perfectly.

"Alright. See how this fits you." You handed the newly made trick weapon to Raphtalia, who seemed able to hold it without trouble.

She nodded, fastening the sheath to her hip. You watched her take in a breath, before drawing her blade, swinging through the air a few times. She then sheathed her sword, attempting to turn a circle as she whipped out the sheath, trying to slice the air with a heavy attack. She tripped, and you catches her by the her clothes just before she could fall on the blade. You pulled her back up, as she grunted, holding her weapon. You took it from her, and lightly pushed her aside.

"It's a heavy sheath. Wield it with both hands, and keep it on your back, instead of your shoulder." You placed the sheath on your back, and turned to where Raphtalia was swinging her weapon.

Raphtalia watched you effortlessly swing the weapon through the air several times, before flipping the blade and sawing your imaginary foe with the serrated edge, before sheathing the blade on your back and lifting the blade above your head, slamming it onto the ground, lifting it again with a rising thrust. You nodded, handing the weapon back to Raphtalia, who had been watching the swings with great interest.

"That's really cool, Y/n! Do you have any weapons like this?" She asked. You nodded, as a massive iron sheath appeared on your back, and a thin sword in your hand. You lifted the sword, which was a few inches longer than Raphtalia's.

"No serration though." You told her, sheathing Ludwig's Holy Blade. She nodded as you turned towards the boss.

"Thanks for this! I'll make sure she kills lots of beasts with it!" You called out to him as he waved at you both, leaving.

As expected, the Shield Hero was waiting for you, holding not only a new bag of coins, but a new book.

"What's that?" You asked him. He held it up, shaking it.

"Shopkeeper I met repaid me because we saved a relative of his in Lute during the first wave. Apparently, some magic shop owner also wants to see us." He told you. You sighed, as he started walking straight away.

"So, you are the Shield Hero!" A cheerful, older lady greeted Naofumi with energy uncharacteristic of someone greeting Naofumi.

"It seems our staff owes you a great debt!" She declared, turning to the inside of her store.

"Come in, come in!" She stated, taking Naofumi's hand.

"O-okay..." he followed her to a crystal ball, which she sat behind, gazing into.

"My my! It seems you have a natural affinity for recovery and protection magic!" She told him.

"And for you, miss, it's light and dark!" The woman then turned towards towards you.

"And for you....." she fell silent as a haze appeared around her head. Her insight grew by one as she gasped.

"You have no clear magic affinity, but something else resides within you... arcane power." She looked deeper into her crystal ball, observing your magical abilities.

"You, you could do anything with the right practices!" She exclaimed. You grabbed her hand as she went for another gaze, stopping her as she snapped back into reality.

"We're here because you wanted to see the shield hero, not my arcane abilities." You reminded her. Raphtalia and Naofumi looked at you in curiosity as the woman nodded, bringing out some books.

"Yes, yes! These grimoires are novice, but they're packed full of spells! Please, take them!" She urged. Naofumi groaned in annoyance as you grabbed the books, opening them.

You didn't recognize the language, but the symbols were easily readable for you. Your best guess was your near infinite insight, and knowledge of the eldritch, but it could've been wired into your brain by the queen's pact.

"Uh... can you read this, Raphtalia?" Naofumi asked, pointing to the book.

"As long as it's easy, yes." She admitted.

So, Naofumi's illiterate in this country's language. That's understandable, seeing as he's from a foreign world. You squinted at them, peeking into their stats.

It seems their experience level is different from blood levels, which I run on. That means... you looked at Raphtalia, who looked back at you with interest.

I can increase her arcane and bloodtinge to unheard of levels. She could truly be my apprentice. Maybe an Evangelist of sorts if I want this country to heed to my power.

You all walked a long path out of the city, Naofumi holding a book, attempting to understand the contents.

"I've been avoiding this for too long, I guess." Naofumi sighed.

"I need to learn this world's alphabet." He acknowledged. You hummed, looking at Raphtalia. She wasn't too literate either, and your only plausible method of help was seeing if a high enough insight would help. And honestly, that was a terrible idea. They could go mad.

"Hey Raphtalia, how about in between training and whatnot, you sit down with Naofumi, see if you both can learn to read together?" You asked. She nodded, letting you see the broad smile she had on for the past hour or so.

"You look strangely happy." You noted, getting a short giggle out of here.

"Well, I can't help but believe that we've done nothing but made the right choices." She told you.

"Is that so?" You asked. She nodded vigorously.

"We saved so many people in Lute, that even people who were bitter towards us have started to trust us. Practically the entire village believes in not only your, but Naofumi's ability to protect them all. It's unbelievable, if you ask me." She stated. You smiled at her, lifting a hand to rub her head as her ears flicked.