by Aneko Yusagi
“Rishia, I have a job for you.”
“Huh? What job is that?”
“I want you—along with Raphtalia and Filo—to help raise the slaves and monsters I just bought.”
“Umm, okay.”
“And I want you to take the lead.”
A jack-of-all-trades and master of none like Rishia would excel at a leadership position once she’d gotten used to analyzing the situation. Raphtalia and Filo would probably tag along as protection, but I wasn’t planning on just creating a bunch of high-level slaves that didn’t know how to fight. There was value in simply experiencing battle, so I’d gradually move Raphtalia and Filo away from the front lines. It was the perfect chance to have Rishia experience a strength of her own that couldn’t be measured by levels.
“Of course, you’ll still be continuing your Hengen Muso Style training with the old lady.”
“Okay! I’ll do my besht!”
There she went again with the weird pronunciation! Jeez . . . This girl was hopeless.
“I’ve selected some eggs that should satisfy the Shield Hero’s requirements. Yes sir.”
The slave trader returned with several eggs in hand.
“You have my thanks. Now then . . .”
Hmm . . . I guess there was no avoiding it.
“First things first . . .”
I looked back at the slave trader, who was rubbing his hands together, and made an announcement.
“I’m going to cook us a meal.”
I used the Spirit Tortoise meat that Filo had brought to prepare and serve several dishes in the tent. There was your standard grilled meat, as well as a soup and a stew. Having been made using Spirit Tortoise meat, the dishes tasted a bit strange.
“Oh! This is good!”
“What is this?! It’s better than my mom’s cooking!”
“Yeah, what is this?!”
“Mr. Naofumi is an excellent cook.”
“Yup! I love Master’s cooking!”
The slaves were all getting along and devouring their food.
“This is superb! The Shield Hero’s cooking is simply delectable! Yes sir!”
During the commotion of getting everything ready, the slave trader and his assistant had slipped in with the slaves and were helping themselves to the food. I couldn’t let it get to me. It wasn’t my intention to feed them, but they had provided the space, after all, so I decided to let it go.
“Do as you’re told, and this won’t be the last time I cook for you. I expect you all to work like you mean it!”
The slaves continued eating and nodded in response. They could just consider it celebration in advance, since things were going to get busy from here on out. They needed to be well-nourished or they wouldn’t last.
After finishing our meal, we set out into the night with the slaves, the slave trader, and his assistant in tow, making our way through the castle town and then departing for the territory.
Chapter Five: The Seaetto Territory
We made our leisurely march through the night with Filo pulling the carriage, and we reached the part of the territory near Raphtalia’s village by morning.
“Master, we’re heeere!”
According to the queen, Eclair and the others were not staying in the village that Raphtalia had lived in, but rather in a neighboring town. We kept going, and after a short while, we arrived at a town that looked a bit run-down.
“Oh!”
A Melromarc solider . . . The same young soldier that had asked to join me during the second wave, actually, was standing near the entrance to the town.
“Shield Hero!”
“Long time no see.”
“Indeed! I was there during the Spirit Tortoise incident but didn’t get a chance to talk to you.”
I had to give him some serious props for making it out of that alive. It was a close fight with heavy losses, so the fact that he had been there made me shudder.
“We received word that you would be coming. I assume you want to meet with Lady Eclair and Princess Melty?”
“Yeah. I figured I should at least say hello before anything else.”
“This way, then.”
We followed the soldier into the town. It had been reduced to ruins. The streets were lined with a variety of buildings, including houses that had been destroyed—perhaps by the wave—as well as others that still looked usable. It didn’t seem like it had been a very big town. Even the town mansion looked pretty average and wasn’t as big as the ones I’d seen in other towns.
The young soldier said something to the gatekeeper, who then opened the gate without hesitation.
“Ya! Hiya!”
I could hear some kind of shouting coming from the mansion courtyard. I climbed down from the carriage and made my way in that direction. Eclair, the old lady, Keel, and three other kids that I didn’t recognize were training in the courtyard.
“Mr. Iwatani!”
Noticing she had guests, Eclair stopped the training and waved to us.
“Ah! I smell Mel-chan!”
Filo let go of the carriage and ran off into the mansion.
“How is everything?”
“Bubba Shield! Long time no see! I heard all about it! You went to another world and defeated the bad guy, right?”
“Yeah, we took him out. I’ll tell you all about how he died later.”
“Ugh . . . I wanted to be there, too!”
Keel stamped his foot in regret. The reason he couldn’t come with us was because he’d fought recklessly and had to get his injuries treated.
“Keel, are your injuries all healed up?”
“I’m all good! They weren’t that bad thanks to you, bubba!”
“It’s been a while, Keel.”
Raphtalia smiled as she approached Keel. The other kids that had been standing at Keel’s side backed away several steps, speechless.
“Surprised, right? That’s Raphtalia!”
“No way . . .”
“Is that really Raphtalia?”
“She looks completely different!”
“Rafu!”
Just then, Raph-chan jumped up onto Raphtalia’s shoulder and howled.
“Ah! That was Raphtalia’s voice!”
“This little thing?”
“What is that? It sounds like your voice, Raphtalia.”
“Umm . . . Just ignore this little thing.”
“It’s a shikigami that was made using a lock of Raphtalia’s hair. They’re known as familiars here. Her name is Raph-chan. Be nice to her!”
“Oh? So she’s kind of like Raphtalia’s alter ego?”
“Keel! Don’t say that!”
I left Raphtalia and the others to rekindle old friendships and went to talk with Eclair and the old Hengen Muso lady.
“How have things been progressing? You’re working on rebuilding the territory, right?”
“Umm . . . About that . . .”
Eclair’s mood suddenly darkened.
“My student Eclair here has been training quite hard. The reconstruction, on the other hand, has not seen much progress,” interjected the old Hengen Muso lady.
“Oh?”
So it was so bad even the old lady could tell. Hadn’t the queen said that Melty was helping out?
“I fully intend to follow in the footsteps of my late father and rebuild the territory, but . . . I haven’t been able to find much help. It seems it will take quite some time,” Eclair explained.
“Well, your father’s connections can only take you so far, I’m sure. The Church of the Three Heroes made things a lot worse, too, from what I hear.”
“. . .”
Raphtalia’s family had died along with many of the villagers. On top of that, I’d heard that many of the survivors had been captured and sold into slavery.
“After all, you can’t expect the people that originally lived here to return if most of them are dead. Not to mention, the residents that were made slaves were all sold off before the queen could secu
re them. You’re trying to locate them now, right?”
“That’s right. We’re working behind the scenes to do everything we can to bring them back.”
“And what happens when you do? Let’s say you find ten, maybe twenty of them. Are you just going to throw them into the ruins of a town and say, ‘Alright! Rebuild your town!’ Is that your plan?”
“. . .”
Eclair fell silent. So that was seriously her plan? Try thinking ahead a bit! I couldn’t help but sigh. Eclair had an overly serious personality that made her an excellent knight, but she lacked the qualities that made for a good governor.
“Hey, where is Nice Guy, the guy that was taking care of Keel? Or even one of the country’s leaders will do. We need someone to drill you in the basics of reconstruction!”
I pointed at Eclair and spoke bluntly.
“How dare you!” she snapped.
Just then, Filo came running up, pulling Melty along behind her.
“Mel-chan, Master is over here!”
“I know! Calm down, Filo!”
“Melty! Perfect timing. What were you thinking letting this knucklehead govern a territory? Are you stupid?”
“We meet again after all this time and that’s what you have to say to me?!”
“Just what do you think makes me unfit to govern?!”
Eclair’s furrowed brow made it clear she was upset.
“Seriously? I’m sure Melty has noticed this, too, but Eclair . . . You obviously understand absolutely nothing about what governing a territory entails.”
“What?!”
“I’m certainly no expert, but I still understand what’s necessary to manage a territory and make it livable.”
I looked at Eclair and pointed to a chair. Melty subtly instructed her to sit down for me. Raphtalia and the others . . . I’d just leave them to getting caught up for now. We were going to be busy with other things soon, after all.
“First of all, governing a territory is about more than just owning the land. The people that live on that land are important.”
“I understand that much. That’s why I’m trying to bring the people that lived here back.”
“I’m saying that just bringing them back isn’t enough!”
I drew a picture of some people on the ground. That would represent the population.
“To rebuild the territory, you’ll need people, clothes, food, and housing.”
Securing food would come first. In a world like this, hunting monsters and using them for food would be quickest. Next would be a base of operations for daily life—housing and the like. And then there would be clothing. That would include equipment, too, in this world.
“As for the people, I totally get wanting to prioritize the people that originally lived here—those that were lost. But it’s not realistic. It’s not about how much we can prioritize them. There simply aren’t enough of them.”
“I . . . I know that! Princess Melty is working on that.”
“I am, but there haven’t been many people interested in taking part in the reconstruction. My mother seems to believe that your involvement, Naofumi, will make residents of Siltvelt and elsewhere want to cooperate, though.”
“That may very well work in our favor, but let’s be realistic. Time is limited. We need to be snatching people up greedily.”
Sigh . . . Of course, this wasn’t Raphtalia’s village, so it’s not like I needed to say anything, but still . . .
“I don’t really know what being nobility in this country entails, but establishing a safe living environment is what you need to be focusing on right now. Oh, but isn’t it just horrible to be stuck with rebuilding some ruined territory with no future?”
Eclair hung her head upon hearing my words.
“What were you doing during the two and a half weeks I was gone? Training?”
“I’d say that’s pretty accurate,” said Melty.
“No! I was working with Keel and the others to gather more people!”
“We did make some suggestions to my mother. She also sent one of her best to help out here at the mansion. We’ve made some progress with repairing the buildings, too.”
Melty gave me a quick report of the situation. I guess they were doing something, at least.
“And I guess you planned on moving on to the neighboring village once you finish rebuilding this town?”
Melty and Eclair nodded in response. I sighed.
“Well, do whatever you want. I’m technically the governor now, but I’ll leave the reconstruction of the town to you two.”
“Huh? Are you not going to help us, Naofumi?”
“I plan on rebuilding the neighboring village as I see fit. I’ll need to coordinate with you to do that, so it’s not like I’m just leaving everything to you and disappearing.”
There was no need for me to play boss and order Melty or Eclair around. We could all go about our own projects simultaneously. If my reconstruction plans went well, then people would naturally begin to gather here in this town, too.
“Now that that’s decided . . .”
I snapped my fingers, and the slave trader and his assistant climbed out of the carriage, came over, and grabbed the three kids standing near Keel.
“Wh . . . What are you doing?!”
“No! Stop!”
“Ah, I thought they might remember you.”
They had been slaves before, after all.
“Bubba Shield! Don’t tell me . . .”
“Yeah, you’ve already been through this, haven’t you, Keel? That’s right. You kids are going rebuild your village, and the best way to do that is by becoming my slaves so that we can improve your abilities.”
“I . . . I know that, but still . . .”
“Mr. Naofumi! I’m not sure that forcing them is . . .”
Raphtalia voiced her doubts with a worried look on her face.
“Don’t worry. It’s just a formality.”
“No! I never want to be a slave again!”
The little brats were struggling with all their might, but the slave trader’s assistant showed no sign of letting go.
“Mr. Iwatani!”
“You think you can rely on charity alone to bring back the village? Are you all just going to wait on Eclair and Melty to rebuild it for you? Do you really think you’ll get your village back that way? Seriously?”
The brats groaned in response to my questions. That’s right. I’m sure they had already figured it out long ago. The villagers that had been lost weren’t coming back. And it was clear that things weren’t going to get any better if they relied on Eclair.
“If you become my slaves, you can become strong like Raphtalia here. She played a big role in the battle against the Spirit Tortoise.”
“I’ve heard rumors, but . . . is that really true?”
“Keel has gotten a fair bit stronger, too, hasn’t he?” I added.
“Now that he mentions it, you do seem a lot stronger now, even though not much time passed before we were reunited, Keel.”
“Really? I mean, right?! Bubba Shield made me his slave and leveled me up.”
Keel looked proud of himself.
“Although he did rush into battle recklessly and end up in the hospital. Next time don’t be so rash.”
“I won’t! I got left behind because of my recklessness. I definitely won’t let it happen again!”
“So there you have it. To put it another way, you’ve all been chosen by the Shield Hero, so why resist? Become a slave . . . Become a hero’s disciple and join me in my quest to rebuild the village!”
“You changed your wording this time, huh?”
“Am I a hero’s disciple, too, Master?”
Maintaining a hierarchy was important. Too many of the people in this world were slackers. I couldn’t ignore the possibility that they actually believed that peace would come even if they just sat back quietly and waited.
“It’s not like I can’t find someone else to help me. But do
you really plan on doing nothing? Will you just surrender without a fight and end up back on the slave market again when disaster strikes?”
“Bubba Shield . . . You’ve sold me! I’m sticking with you!”
Keel came over and stood in front of me. I’m not really one to speak, but this kid was always getting swept up in the heat of the moment.
“I’m going to make it our village again!”
“Good answer! What about the rest of you?”
The other kids from Raphtalia’s village exchanged glances with each other.
“Naofumi may sound scary, but he’s actually a very caring person.”
Melty interjected with what seemed to be her idea of a show of support.
“To be honest . . . we won’t be able to take care of you here forever. I think it would be best if you went with Naofumi and learned to take care of yourselves, if possible.”
“Princess Melty . . .”
Eclair nodded as if Melty had said something deeply profound.
“I don’t see why not. Naofumi has taken it upon himself to come help out, so why don’t we all do what we can to work together and rebuild this territory?” added Melty.
“Understood. Friends of Raphtalia, the decision is yours! We’ll do everything we can to assist with the reconstruction, too.”
After Eclair had finished making her declaration, Raphtalia stepped forward and offered her friends her own take.
“I think . . . Instead of just standing by and watching, I think we should take it upon ourselves to get this done. Right?”
Raphtalia looked over in the direction of the village and then pointed at the flag flying on the mansion grounds.
“That flag that we lost back then . . . It’s finally within our reach. I want all of us to take back that place . . . to take back that flag together. So please, work with us to make that happen!”
Raphtalia’s friends seemed to be thinking about her words for a few moments, and then . . .
“Okay! I’ll do it!”
“You may look different, but you’re the same old Raphtalia!”
“Yeah, you said the same thing back when we were still living in the village.”
