2,523Sword and Shield
Book 1: Game On 1
With a click, a collar was fashioned around Shirou's and Raphtalia's neck. Shirou glared up at the Slave Trader, but the Slave Crest would not allow him to do anything else. The douchebag that had just bought them let a look of satisfaction cross his face when Raphtalia let out a yelp as the collar closed around her neck. Feeling satisfaction at a small girl's distress… Shirou felt his gut churn.
The Slave Trader took hold of the chains fastened to the collars and led them out of the room, out of the building he just now realized was some kind of circus tent. They emerged in a dark alleyway.
On some unspoken signal, a couple of the Slave Trader's lackeys, the muscle bound men in masks, appeared. One of them carried a large jar filled with what appeared to be ink. They filled a dish with the ink and handed it the man that had just bought him and Raphtalia.
"Hero-sama, please give us a little blood. Then the slave registration will be complete, and they will be yours."
Shirou felt a wave of incredulousness wash over him. Did… did they just call this man that bought a pair of child slaves a hero? What the hell?!
The man, the so called hero, pressed a penknife into his thumb and dripped a few drops of blood into the dish of ink. One of the muscle bound men dipped a brush into the ink while one of the others removed Raphtalia's and Shirou's tattered upper clothes. Within a few moments, the Magecraft that would bind them to their buyer was painted onto their chests.
"Gahhhhh! AHHHHH!"
Raphtalia screamed as the updated pattern on her chest glowed. Shirou gritted his teeth in an effort not to do the same. He wouldn't give these slave using bastards the satisfaction.
Shirou had noticed that their buyer was looking off into space. If he too had access to a Status Menu like they did, he'd imagined the man was looking through the completion of the slave registration and probably also setting the terms of their contract. The Slave Trader had mentioned that the master of a slave contract could set the terms of punishment for disobedience to their satisfaction.
"Now these slaves are yours, Hero-sama. Your payment please."
The man handed over the 30 pieces of silver to the Slave Trader, the payment for their lives.
"You've overpaid, sir."
"I know. That's for the ceremony. You would somehow wring more out of me if I didn't pay upfront."
"…You are very wise. And sharp, too. You'll make a great customer."
The Slave trader laughed. Their buyer, meanwhile, looked uncomfortable at the Slave Trader's mirth.
"I will look forward to your future visits."
"Sure," their buyer agreed before ordering them to follow him.
The moment the collars around their necks were removed, they could move of their own volition again. Shirou immediately grabbed the miserable looking Raphtalia's hand and squeezed it, trying to give her some comfort. Her expression remained unchanged, but at least she squeezed back.
"Now then. Let's hear your names."
Raphtalia looked away while Shirou glared venomously at their buyers back. Said buyer merely sighed at their disobedience.
"That's not very smart, you know?"
Their Slave Crests activated, flickering with purple light. Raphtalia moaned at the pain and grabbed at her chest as Shirou did the same.
"Come on, tell me your names. I'd rather not continue calling you Slave A and B."
"Raph- Raphtalia." Cough. Cough.
"Shirou."
Their buyer raised an eyebrow at his name, but didn't question it any further.
"Raphtalia and Shirou it is, then. I'm Iwatani Naofumi,"
Their buyer, the now named Naofumi, introduced himself. He then led them out of the dark alleyway and into a bright street.
Back in the alleyway, one of the Slave Trader's lackeys was gathering the items used to bind Shirou and Raphtalia to Naofumi. With a blink, the man noticed that the jar of ink had disappeared. The man shrugged as he figured one of his colleagues had already cleaned it up.
Shirou looked around in open wonder as they walked down the street of what appeared to be a picturesque medieval town, still holding Raphtalia's hand. The street was cobblestone, the surrounding buildings were made out of wood and stone and stalls filled with a variety of food and other merchandise lined the road. People in clothes made out of basic cloth wandered up and down the street as carriages were pulled by horses and strange ostrich like birds he'd never seen before.
Huh, I've really ended up in another world, haven't I? One that functions like a game.
Of course, Shirou was acutely aware that, though this world had some definite game-like traits, it was not a game. What kind of game had you locked into a cage and sold off into slavery in the opening act without an obvious way out?
Moreover…
Why was everyone glaring daggers at Naofumi and steering clear of him like he had the bubonic plague? Slavery was obviously legal in this place, so it couldn't be because of the fact that he had just bought child slaves. Then again, Shirou could easily imagine this man being some heinous criminal even by the standards of a medieval society.
He didn't get long to ponder it. Naofumi led them straight to a weapon shop. With a thump, the door slammed shut behind them.
The walls and stands were filled to the brim with all kinds of weapons and armor. A tall, bald man with tanned skin, a beard and a goatee leaned over the counter and frowned at them.
"Shield boy, I hope those kids aren't what I think they are?"
"Give me two weapons that these kids can use. Keep it under 6 pieces of silver."
Naofumi ordered flatly. Shirou grimaced to himself as Raphtalia whimpered a little. They had really been bought by a grade A bastard, hadn't they? And now Shirou had a pretty good idea what the man wanted them for. He couldn't imagine this man getting willing party members easily.
The Shop owner, the Old Man, let out an explosive breath.
"You've gone rotten, haven't you? Fine, whatever you want. 6 pieces of silver, right?"
"Yes. Do you also have some extra clothes and capes back there?"
"Sure. I'll see what I can scrounge up for you. I'll even throw in a discount as a favor to you and your… kids."
The Old Man laid out some knives on the counter. From left to right there was a bronze, steel and iron knife. Apparently, they became progressively more expensive.
Naofumi had them hold every knife at least once, checking to see if their lengths were right for them, until he picked two that seemed to fit them best. Shirou's hand gripped the knife tightly in a white knuckled grip while Raphtalia was as white as a sheet, her eyes darted between the knife in her hands and their master.
Shirou and Raphtalia changed into the clothes and capes that the Old man provided as Naofumi paid for the knives. Raphtalia was coughing the whole time, concerning Shirou. He really thought that she should go to a doctor, or the local equivalent, but he really doubted Naofumi would take her any time soon.
Once they were done changing and appeared from the changing room, they found Naofumi waiting for them, sitting on a chair facing them.
"Okay, Raphtalia, Shirou. You now have weapons. I expect you to use them to fight monsters. Do you understand?" Raphtalia and Shirou nodded obediently. "Good, but first…"
Shirou felt a twinge of nerves as Naofumi turned towards him, his gaze sharp like a hawk.
"You've been hiding something."
The twinge of nerves became a roaring flame. He tried to not show it on his face. "I-I, uh," Shirou stuttered. "I don't know what you are talking about, Master." The words were barely out of his mouth before the Slave Crest punished him, flickering with purple light and giving him a painful shock.
"Liar," Naofumi flatly declared the truth.
Shirou had been afraid that this would happen. The Slave Crest could tell when he told a lie and would punish him accordingly when he did so. He'd hoped it wouldn't have such a feature, but it clearly did.
"You have been hiding something behind your back the moment we parted from the Slave Trader," Naofumi said. Ever since he had been betrayed, he'd become paranoid. His eyes were constantly darting around looking for enemies and traps around every corner. It was because of this that he had noticed. The only reason he had remained silent till now was because he didn't want to make a scene out on the street. "Just now, you stashed it in the changing room. Why don't you go get it and show me?"
Shirou grimaced, but complied. If he didn't listen, the Slave Crest would punish him until he did as told. He'd rather avoid the pain and being stubborn wouldn't gain him anything. He did as told, entered the changing room and returned holding the jar of ink used to bind Raphtalia and Shirou to Naofumi.
Naofumi raised an eyebrow at him and took the jar of ink. "Why did you take this?"
"…I thought I might be able to use it to break the Slave Crest somehow."
Naofumi immediately frowned, but sighed and didn't appear to be angry and he wasn't. If their positions were reversed he would have done the same. That said he couldn't let behavior like this slide. Better be strict and stamp out such ideas before the kid becomes more creative.
"This time I'll let it slide, but the next time I'll punish you in a most hellish way. Am I clear?" Naofumi's voice was stern and as hard as diamond. Shirou nodded meekly.
With that done, Naofumi's eyes turned towards the jar of ink. Slowly, his eyes darted between the jar of ink and the Legendary Shield strapped to his arm. Well, it wouldn't hurt to try. Naofumi poured the ink onto his shield and watched as it was absorbed into the green jewel.
Requirement met: [Slave User's Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 5 – Equip Bonus: Slave Growth Up (small)
[Slave Stat Growth Up (small) – Provides small bonus to stat gain with each level up (unmastered)]
Naofumi's eyes widened so much they nearly fell out of his skull. This was huge! Even if the bonus stat gain was relatively small, it would build up and make a big difference over time. And now that he'd unlocked this Shield before he'd started Leveling Up with his slaves because of a lucky happenstance, they could still get the full benefit from it.
"What was that?"
The question broke him from his train of thought. Naofumi looked up, seeing his two slaves giving the Legendary Shield peculiar looks, their ears twitching and their tails swishing behind them. He briefly contemplated just ignoring the question all together, but eventually he decided there was no harm in telling them.
"I'm the Shield Hero," Naofumi said, as if that answered all their questions. Raphtalia gasped in shock while Shirou just looked confused. "This Legendary Shield has the power to unlock new forms and abilities if I let it absorb monster materials and other objects. And when I equip a new shield like this…" The Legendary Shield suddenly changed shape from a basic iron shield into a much more dark and ominous shield, the Slave User's Shield. It honestly looked rather twisted. "…I can "master" it and gain stat boosts and new abilities, meaning that I can use them whenever."
They nodded their understanding, Raphtalia looking if she didn't quite believe that she had been bought by the Shield Hero. Shirou, not being aware of the legend of the Four Saint Heroes, just looked nonplussed, though he didn't voice his confusion.
"Anyway, that's not important right now. First…" Naofumi drew aside his cloak, revealing over half a dozen Balloons, orange balloon like creatures with sharp eyes and fanged maws, chewing impotently on his limbs and sides. Ignoring the wide eyed looks of his slaves, he tore one of the Balloons off and held it out towards them. "Stab this, and pop it."
"Heee?!" Cough. Cough.
Raphtalia let out a shriek of surprise followed by a series of coughs, taken aback. Seeing that she had almost dropped her knife in her shock, Shirou stepped forward, silently declaring that he'd go first. This would give Raphtalia a moment to gather her wits again.
Shirou gripped his knife tightly, braced himself and placed his other hand against the pommel for more thrusting power. Then he stabbed forcefully.
The Balloon popped loudly, just like its namesake.
EXP 1
Naofumi EXP 1
Raphtalia EXP 1
The words briefly drifted into his field of vision then quickly disappeared again. God, this world really functioned like a game, didn't it?
"Good," Naofumi nodded, then tore off another Balloon and held it out towards Raphtalia. "Now you."
Raphtalia bit her lip, but obediently raised her knife. Shirou's quick, resolute actions had given her the courage to do as told. She gripped her knife, hesitated for a brief moment, then stabbed the balloon in the back. The popping sound echoed in her ears.
EXP 1
Naofumi EXP 1
Shirou EXP 1
"Nice one," Naofumi said, rubbing their heads one after the other. Both slaves blinked, ears twitching and tails swishing behind them.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
In short order, Shirou and Raphtalia popped all the Balloons that Naofumi had been carrying with him, all of them earning a bit of EXP.
Naofumi gathered the shredded remains of the Balloons, planning to sell them later. Raphtalia and Shirou sheathed their weapons and were about to follow Naofumi out of the weapon shop.
"Hey," the Old Man called out to Naofumi.
"Yes?"
"You better make sure those kids come back in one piece, or else I'll make sure you'll suffer."
Naofumi gave a contemptuous snort. As if he wasn't suffering already. "I'll keep that in mind," he replied sarcastically.
As they left the shop, Raphtalia grasped Shirou's hand, squeezing it for support. Both slaves and newly minted party members of the Shield Hero followed after their master.
"Uhm, Master-sama?" Cough. Cough.
"Yes?"
"What is this?"
"A Kid's Meal. You wanted it, didn't you?"
Raphtalia stared uncomprehendingly at the dish placed in front of her on the table of the restaurant her master, the Shield Hero, had taken them. Shirou was sitting beside her, an identical Kid's Meal in front of him, equally confused.
"N-no… it's just… Why are you feeding us?"
"You guys appeared hungry, and I saw you staring at this dish when we walked in. So I thought you wanted it. Was I wrong?"
"But…"
Naofumi shook his head. Both of these kids were rather stubborn, he'd noticed.
"Anyway, eat up. You'll need the strength for later when we are hunting monsters. If you walk around all skinny like that, you'll just die on me."
Raphtalia was staring down at her meal, still not believing how nice her master was being. Most people wouldn't really think of Naofumi's actions as kind but compared to the people that had bought her in the past, he was acting like a Saint.
She wanted to reach out and eat the first real meal she'd had in months, but she was afraid that the moment that she did, that her master would reveal it had all been a cruel trick and that he would throw the food on the floor just to spite her. As she was thinking this, a hand gripped hers underneath the table. She turned to look at Shirou, who had already eaten a piece of sausage, smiling.
"Eat. You are hungry, aren't you?"
Raphtalia turned towards Naofumi, who nodded towards her Kid's Meal. She hesitated a moment longer before attacking her meal with her bare hands. Well, you couldn't really expect table manners from a slave, though Shirou was using his knife and fork as intended.
"How is it?"
"It's great!"
Naofumi raised a brow at her enthusiastic response, as if he doubted her words, but shook his head and continued eating his own meal without saying a word.
Naofumi led his slaves out of Castle Town after selling the remains of the Balloons, earning another piece of silver. Raphtalia appeared to be in a good mood after their dinner, humming a song under her breath as she walked hand in hand with Shirou behind him. He'd noticed that holding hands for them was becoming a habit, but he didn't stop them as it wouldn't do any harm.
The moment they stepped out on the fields, though, Raphtalia's good mood vanished like snow before the sun. Terror was plain to see on her face, though it lessened a bit when Shirou squeezed her hand and whispered something in her ear he couldn't hear.
If Shirou could keep her calm, then that was all the better.
"Okay, just like we did in the shop. I'll defend you guys from the monsters and hold them down, then you attack and kill them."
Shirou and Raphtalia nodded and unsheathed their knives.
Naofumi looked out over the field and spotted the now familiar groups of Orange Balloons, but today the fields looked a little different. Today there also were large groups of White, Blue, Orange, Green, Black and basically all the possible colors of Balloons scattered over the field. He'd raised an eyebrow, but inwardly shrugged. More materials for the shield to absorb, he supposed.
Naofumi got the attention of a nearby cluster of about a dozen angry Red Balloons. Soon enough, all of them were trying to bite his limbs off and making about as much headway as a dull stiletto knife would make through solid steel. The distracted and pinned down monsters were then easy pickings for Shirou and Raphtalia.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!
By the end of the fight, both Shirou and Raphtalia had become Level 2 and Naofumi Level 5.
Requirement met: [Red Small Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 3 – Equip Bonus: Defense +4 (unmastered)]
Naofumi fed some of the shreds of the Red Balloons to his shield, unlocking another shield, gathering the remaining pieces to sell later. Some small pieces remained laying on the ground.
"…Why aren't you taking everything?" Shirou asked, curiosity getting the better of him.
"These pieces are too small to sell," Naofumi answered. "The merchants won't buy them."
"So those pieces are useless?"
"Yes," Naofumi nodded, then paused. Unlike all the other Legendary Heroes, who had foreknowledge on this world because of the games they had played, he had come to this world wholly ignorant of its mechanics and structure beyond the standard rules of RPG-style videogames. It was probably best not to make any assumptions considering how he knew virtually nothing about this world.
Naofumi picked up the discarded pieces and tried feeding them to his Shield. To his surprise, the Shield continued to absorb the pieces of Red Balloon skin even though the corresponding shield had just now been unlocked. And when he'd finished feeding all the leftovers to the shield…
Requirement met: [Red Small Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 3 – Equip Bonus: Defense +4 (mastered)]
For the second time that day, Naofumi was left in wide eyed shock. So… if he continued feeding more of the same materials to the shield, he'd not only unlock new shields, but also master them in short order without having to equip them for an extended period of time first, making it that much easier to earn Skills and pile up on the Stat boosts the random shields provided.
Maybe, just maybe, his luck might finally be looking up.
"Okay, new plan. After a battle, gather all the materials. Leave nothing behind."
Shirou and Raphtalia nodded, both looking nonplussed at his sudden one eighty, but not questioning his orders.
And like that, out in the fields just outside Castle Town, the Shield Hero's party targeted one cluster of Balloons after the other, steadily earning more and more EXP as they went. They entered the forest at the edge of the plains as they went, encountering new mushroom-like monsters called Loomush. Just like the Balloons, there were several color variations of this monster as well.
Levels were raised, materials were farmed, shields were unlocked and then subsequently mastered in short order.
Just as Naofumi had thought, he'd be much more efficient with a party member.
Requirement met: [White Small Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 3 – Equip Bonus: Defense +4 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Yellow Small Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 3 – Equip Bonus: Defense +4 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Green Small Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 3 – Equip Bonus: Defense +4 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Blue Small Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 3 – Equip Bonus: Defense +4 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Purple Small Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 3 – Equip Bonus: Defense +4 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Black Small Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 3 – Equip Bonus: Defense +4 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Silver Small Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 3 – Equip Bonus: Defense +4 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Mush Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 1 – Equip Bonus: Plant Appraisal +1 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Red Mush Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 1 – Equip Bonus: Plant Appraisal +1 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Blue Mush Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 1 – Equip Bonus: Simple Recipe 1 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Yellow Mush Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 1 – Equip Bonus: Simple Recipe 1 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Green Mush Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 1 – Equip Bonus: Apprenticeship Compounding (mastered)]
Requirement met: [Black Mush Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 1 – Equip Bonus: Apprenticeship Compounding +1 (mastered)]
Requirement met: [White Mush Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 1 – Equip Bonus: Apprenticeship Compounding +1 (mastered)]
Etc.
[Status Magic Main Menu]
Iwatani Naofumi (Age: 20)
Lv: 8
Class: Shield Hero
Equipment: Legendary Shield, Standard Clothes and Cape
[Status Magic Main Menu]
Raphtalia (Age: 10)
Lv: 5
Class: Demi-human (Sub-type: Raccoon)
Equipment: Standard Clothes and Cape
[Status Magic Main Menu]
Shirou (Age: 12)
Lv: 5
Class: Demi-human (Sub-type: Raccoon)|
Equipment: Standard Clothes and Cape
After a long day of grinding, Naofumi looked over their progress in his Status Menu. Unfortunately, though his Defense had skyrocketed even more, none of the shields offered any Stat boost to his Attack or any of his other Stats. Leveling had raised all of his other Stats except for Attack. Oh well, the sudden upsurge of efficiency to his farming had left him with the best mood he'd had since his betrayal. He wasn't happy, but neither was he about to complain.
Closing his Menu, he looked at the two knapsacks his slaves were carrying. One of them held all the Balloon skins they'd collected, the other the herbs and plants he had taken pains to forage in between battles. Those materials would earn them several pieces of silver at least, the biggest haul he'd ever had since coming to this world.
"It's too late to go back to Castle Town," Naofumi said, looking up at the rapidly darkening orange sky. "Clean yourself. In the meantime, I will try and catch some fish and make some dinner."
Raphtalia and Shirou dutifully followed Naofumi's instructions. He turned away.
"…Good work today."
Both slaves blinked at the compliment and their tails twitched. Raphtalia smiled a little. Shirou looked at Naofumi's back, less and less sure what to think of the constantly sour man.
They quickly stripped and jumped into a nearby river. Meanwhile, Naofumi waded into the river to try and catch fish with his bare hands. Thanks to a shield that he had unlocked in the previous week that added +1 to his fishing Skill, the task was relatively easy, and he caught more than enough fish for a decent dinner. By the time he returned with his catch both his slaves were already sat by a fire he had prepared in advance, warming themselves.
Naofumi skewered the fish on several sticks they had collected and set them to roast by the fire. That done, he grabbed the knapsack filled with herbs, opened it, and took out several herbs. Today's rewards weren't just Leveling Up and Stat boosts, but also, the ability to make simple Medicines from the Loomush series of Shields. Recipes were included with the mastered shields.
With the use of a few rocks instead of pestle and mortar, he was going to try and make a few of those Medicines. He'd always enjoyed delicate work like this, besides, if the Medicine sold for more than the herbs themselves, he'd make more money by making and selling the Medicine. Without monetary aid from the Crown like the other Heroes had, he had to earn as much money as possible on his own somehow. Besides, having Medicine on hand could never be a bad thing.
[Healing Medicine Fabricated – Quality: Normal]
The information appeared directly in front of his eyes. That… had actually been way easier than he'd expected. Despite its drawbacks, the Legendary Shield had its upsides too, it seemed.
He tried another recipe.
[Basic Cold Medicine Fabricated – Quality: Normal]
This was actually rather fun, now that he was starting to get the hang of it. It still wasn't enough to get him to smile, though. He hadn't been able to smile since he'd been stabbed in the back.
Cough! Cough! Raphtalia coughed loudly from a small way away. Shirou, sitting beside her, rubbed his hand soothingly down her back.
The Slave Trader had mentioned she was sick. Must be some kind of cold. He wordlessly handed the Basic Cold Medicine to Raphtalia, who shot him a questioning look.
"Drink. It's bitter, but it will make you feel better."
He couldn't have her dying on him before she made back the money he had spent on her. It wouldn't be an outright disaster with Shirou here, but he'd rather not throw away a viable resource.
Raphtalia complied, gagging as she drank the bitter Medicine. Shirou, meanwhile, had the strangest look on his face. What, did he have something on his face?
Shortly after the fish had finished roasting. All three of them ate several of them, but to Naofumi all food was bland and tasteless since coming to this world. At first he thought all the people were pulling a fast one on him, but even the food he himself made tasted just as bland.
"Go to sleep. I'll have first watch. Then Raphtalia. Then Shirou."
Doing as ordered Raphtalia laid down by the fire, though Naofumi noted she appeared rather hesitant to do so.
Shirou remained awake and looked tense, as if waiting for something. Naofumi gave him a look.
"What's wrong?"
"Uhm, Raphtalia has night terrors."
Naofumi blinked. Hadn't the Slave Trader mentioned something about that? Something about panic attacks in the night. He shrugged and went back to compounding Medicine…
Rolling his eyes at himself for not thinking of it sooner, Naofumi fed some of the Medicines he'd made to the Legendary Shield.
Requirement met: [Small Medicine Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 1 – Equip Bonus: Medicine Efficacy Up (small) (unmastered)]
Requirement met: [Small Poison Shield Unlocked – Base Defense: 1 – Equip Bonus: Poison Resistance Up (unmastered)]
Huh, the Small Poison Shield was rather self-explanatory, but what did Medicine Efficacy Up entail? If he had to guess it would mean the Medicines he made, or administered, would be more effective, but as mentioned that was only a guess.
Not wanting to waste precious Medicine mastering his latest two shields, he changed the Legendary Shield into the Small Medicine Shield. Simply by having them equipped through the night he would've both Shields mastered before returning to Castle Town in the morning.
He continued compounding, but ten minutes later…
"AHHHHH. NO! NO!"
Raphtalia started shouting in her sleep. Naofumi's head snapped towards her so fast he thought he might have gotten whiplash.
"Mommy… Daddy… Please don't…"
Shirou was already comforting Raphtalia as she talked in her sleep, holding her close and telling her to calm down.
It didn't work, and her screaming attracted the attention of nearby monsters.
Several Balloons and Loomush of various colors appeared from the shrubbery. Shit! He hadn't thought that a panic attack during the night might attract monsters. Now that it had happened, it was blindingly obvious that this would occur, but he simply hadn't figured this could happen.
"Crap! Shirou, take care of the monsters! I'll protect Raphtalia and try to get her to calm down!"
"I'm on it!"
Shirou passed Raphtalia to Naofumi, then unsheathed his knife and dove towards the nearest cluster of monsters. Naofumi kept a wary eye on him, even as he held Raphtalia close to himself and ran his hand through her hair in an effort to calm her down to little avail. Neither of his slaves had fought without his formidable Defense keeping them safe from harm before. If Shirou was injured now that Naofumi wasn't taking part in the battle…
It would be a great inconvenience to him if he lost one of his attackers.
But…
BANG! BANG! SQUELCH!
It seemed he was worrying over nothing.
Even without Naofumi protecting him, it seemed that Shirou had excellent situational awareness. Even in the dead of night none of the monsters managed to flank or escape his notice. Both a Red and Orange Balloon were punctured in sequence with two clean stabs as they tried to lunge at Shirou, while a Blue Loomush was nearly decapitated with a quick and efficient slice. It became apparent that Shirou had been a high quality product without the Slave Trader knowing.
BANG! SQUELCH! BANG! BANG! SQUELCH! BANG! BANG!
Also, Shirou seemed to be a natural at wielding a knife.
BANG!
With one last stab, the last of the monsters, a Silver Balloon, popped, its last scream fading into the night. Shirou sighed and trudged back to Naofumi and Raphtalia - who had thankfully calmed down - clearly exhausted as he sheathed his knife.
"Good job," Naofumi said, still holding onto Raphtalia and running his hand through her hair.
Shirou stared at them and Naofumi realized it might be better if he laid Raphtalia down, but as he moved to do so Raphtalia clung to him with an iron grip.
"No… Don't leave me… Master-sama…"
Raphtalia started acting up again the moment he moved to let go of her. He tried multiple times, but even in her sleep she wasn't having it. Naofumi sighed and laid down next to her, a single arm around her as he shot a look at Shirou who strangely enough was smiling and seemed to instantly understand what Naofumi wanted to say without having to say a word.
"I'll keep watch," Shirou nodded, his evaluation of Naofumi having shifted without the man noticing.
A truly cruel man wouldn't bother protecting a child in distress, no matter if the man himself would or wouldn't be inconvenienced if said child were to come to any harm. Nor would they try to calm them down for the exact same reason, or protect them during battle, or make and give them Medicine of his own volition, but Naofumi had done all that and more. If it weren't for the fact that the man had bought child slaves to fight for him Shirou would have had no problem in referring to the man as a Hero.
There was clearly more to their master than what meets the eye, and he clearly was not an out and out evil guy like Shirou had first assumed. All in all, Shirou was curious to find out more about Iwatani Naofumi.