The Rising of the Shield Hero Vol 09

by Aneko Yusagi

  —Your death here would greatly inconvenience me. I suppose I must assist you.

  The voice wrapped around my heart, suffocating and powerful. I couldn ’t resist it. Then suddenly the same puzzle that Ost had shown me appeared before my eyes, and began to assemble itself.

  —That should be sufficient.

  —But the use of my power comes with a heavy price. Be prepared to pay it.

  —Do you understand that which you ask?

  I had no idea who was speaking to me, but I could hear the voice clearly.

  I didn ’t know what the price was and I didn’t know what fate awaited me, but I knew what I came here to do and I wasn’t backing down. Kyo had to pay for his crimes!

  I didn ’t hesitate. I was ready to activate the spell.

  But before I starting chanting, icons appeared in order to select the target.

  What? That normally didn ’t happen until after the spell was cast.

  There were three icons, so I could only select three targets.

  It was set to cast on myself.

  I was going to use All Liberation Aura.

  Who would benefit the most from increased stats and abilities?

  I could count on Raphtalia , but Rishia also needed an ability boost.

  I quickly set the spell to focus on Rishia. Suddenly, my field of view toggled red.

  I was getting a bad feeling about this. A feeling that I shouldn’t use the spell after all.

  What if I wasn ’t the one to pay the price? What if we all had to pay?

  —Tsk, Tsk. Do you think victory comes to cowards?

  —The Hunting Hero knew the risks and came anyway.

  Damn it! Even if that were true, I couldn ’t ask Raphtalia and the others to suffer.

  “Master! I’ll do it! I’ll make up for the turtle lady! I’ll help you and big sis and everyone!”

  Filo?

  Could she hear what I was hearing? How did she know what was happening?

  I guess it wasn ’t that surprising. She’d always been influenced by the Shield of Wrath .

  She was right. If I held back, then we might lose a fight we could have won.

  I changed the spell to focus on Filo instead of Rishia.

  And nothing happened—no red flashing.

  It was like . . . like something deep inside me had warned me not to set Rishia as the target. Like my heart had pumped the breaks.

  It was time!

  “I, the Shield Hero, borrow the strength of the Demon Dragon and the power of wrath to command the heavens, command the earth, defy all reason, join, and spit up blood. Oh great strength of the dragons, join the power of the heroes with magic, life force, and sacrifice. The source of power that is the Shield Hero commands you. Read and comprehend all that is under the sun, and show your power to me! I command you—give them everything!”

  “All Sacrifice Aura!”

  Chapter Twelve: A Heavy Price to Pay

  What ?! Sacrifice? No! I was trying to cast “Liberation!”

  There was no stopping it now. Terrifying black flames burst from the shield and engulfed Raphtalia, Filo, and I.

  “Ugh . . .”

  I felt my whole body burning, and I could see my HP, my life force, begin to drain away.

  Strange black and red particles covered the three of us completely, producing a power from the energy it drained from us.

  “What the ?! But I . . .”

  “It hurts! But I feel really strong now!”

  All three of us felt a rush of power.

  “Ha! Powder Snow!”

  Raphtalia leapt forward, her blade slicing through Kyo ’s defensive barriers like butter. It was so easy. She didn’t need a follow-up attack—only one slice.

  Filo was right behind her, her claws flashing . In an instant, his barriers were all gone. He was exposed.

  Then Rishia was on him. She flew at the opening and delivered a solid hit.

  “What ?! ”

  Taken off guard, he quickly threw up an arm to block her attack. He stopped the attack, but blood gushed out. His arm was broken.

  “Arrgh! That really hurt! Dammit! Damn you!”

  He pulled a page from the book and tried to use it to cover his open wound, thinking he could use the Spirit Tortoise energy to heal it. As if I would let him.

  I ran forward, charging with my shield, bashing through the barriers he’d deployed. He’d used a skill that had taken on the form of the Spirit Tortoise ’s head. At contact, black flames poured from my shield, burning the head and destroying it.

  Then I grabbed Kyo by the collar and used skills with my right hand.

  “Attack Support! Raphtalia! Rishia! Filo!”

  “Yes! Misty Moon!”

  Raphtalia lowered her sword then quickly sliced upwards. The blade flashed, and a darkened, ghostly moon-like disc appeared, spinning and slicing at Kyo ’s torso.

  Then . . .

  “Hyaaa!”

  Rishia dashed forward in a perfect emulation of Eclair ’s thrust, her short sword shining.

  The sword plunged deep into Kyo ’s chest.

  “Hey book-guy! You made the Spirit Tortoise lady cry! Book-guy, say goodbye!”

  Filo swiped her claws right through Kyo ’s throat.

  “A . . . Ah . . . ARGH ?! ”

  Kyo was unable to speak , but it wasn’t over yet!

  Spirit Tortoise energy was running from the cuts and wounds all over his body. I used my shield to absorb it all.

  “Not done yet!”

  “That’s right! Brave Blade: Mist!”

  “Haikuikku!”

  “I’m not finished! So many great people have died because of you! I will not forgive you!”

  I still had a grip on Kyo ’s collar, so everyone was able to make an additional attack.

  “Rafuuu!”

  Poor Raph-chan . She wasn’t strong enough to join in.

  But she wasn ’t content to sit back and watch. She jumped up on my outstretched arm and started punching him in the face.

  Yes! I finally had enough power to switch back to the Spirit Tortoise Shield. But it wasn ’t time for that. Kyo was already beaten to a bloody pulp.

  “You . . . You think you can . . . I’ll . . .”

  “What do I care? You killed my friend Ost! You killed so many! My anger . . . Our anger will wipe you from existence!”

  I leaned all my weight forward and threw him against the wall.

  “Shield Prison! Change Shield (attack)! Iron Maiden!”

  The cage of shields appeared around him and spikes appeared on the inside of the cage closing around him. Finally he was enclosed in a giant iron maiden, piercing him through in all directions.

  The problem with Iron Maiden was that it used all of my SP, but with any luck it would be enough to finish him off. Truthfully, All Sacrifice Aura had basically made a drawn-out battle impossible.

  “. . . ?!”

  Kyo ’s screams echoed throughout the laboratory.

  Finally, the iron maiden opened and disappeared. Kyo had been stabbed all over. He tottered, and fell forward.

  Ugh . . . I was in so much pain I could hardly see straight. But I couldn’t fall. I couldn’t let myself fall—not while the battle was still on!

  “D . . . Damn . . . Not . . . over.”

  The punk was still alive!

  He clumsily tried to heal his wounds, glaring at us as he did.

  All the energy draining from him continued to stream into my shield.

  Raphtalia and the others were all exhausted and out of breath .

  “It’s over! You haven’t seen anything yet! The forbidden composition . . .”

  Kyo held his book aloft—the cover had changed dramatically. It was ominous and frightful.

  It must have been his equivalent of the curse series.

  Damn it! If he had a stronger attack up his sleeve, we were out of options.

  I had already used my strongest support magic—and the Shield of Wrath too!


  I didn ’t know what to do—then Ost passed through my mind.

  . . . That’s right. She . . . she would want to finish him.

  I changed to the Spirit Tortoise Heart Shield.

  The indicator that only twenty percent of the necessary energy had charged up suddenly flashed and, as if it knew exactly what was going on, changed to read one hundred percent.

  “My strongest attack will kill you all! Revelation!”

  “Energy Blast!”

  A pedestal formed from magic appeared before me. I set my shield on it and readied myself to destroy everything in my path. I fired Energy Blast!

  At the same time, Kyo ’s book opened and creepy white feathers flew from it. They turned and danced in the air. They almost looked black depending on the angle.

  Then I knew why. Every feather started firing burning, black lasers around the room.

  Then many of the feathers clumped together in one spot, and all their laser beams converged to form a giant black beam that slammed into my Energy Blast beam, stopping it in midair.

  Other feathers flew back to Kyo and encircled him, healing his wounds.

  The skill was offensive and defensive at the same time ?! It was healing his wounds and attacking us at the same time!

  But judging from the way Kyo had avoided using it, and the things he ’d said, I was guessing there was some risk involved on his side.

  “Ahahaha! What do you think? You’re greatest move is nothing compared to mine! Ahaha!”

  “Damn.”

  Slowly, inch by inch , my Energy Blast beam was losing ground.

  I focused and gave it all the power, emotion, and determination that I had—but it was still losing to Kyo’s skill.

  If his attack broke through Energy Blast, how was I supposed to protect Raphtalia and the others? I wasn ’t sure if my shield could take a direct hit from that black beam of his.

  If I lost, if the beam broke through, we would all die. Rishia, Raphtalia, Raph-chan, Filo—they’d all die.

  That single thought ran through my mind, and I couldn ’t tell how much time was passing. I was filled with a sense of inevitable loss, of losing things you can’t get back.

  Time slowed to a crawl, but my heart was pounding quickly in my chest.

  I felt myself slipping into solitude and despair , but then I heard voices calling for me.

  “Mr. Naofumi!”

  “Master!”

  “Naofumi-san!”

  “Rafuuu!”

  Everyone called for me, rushing forward to support me and keep me on my feet.

  That ’s right. I wasn’t fighting this battle alone.

  And I . . . I wasn’t about to lose. Not here!

  There was a reason I was here, a reason I ’d made it this far.

  For Ost , for all those that had been sacrificed to this man’s insanity . . .

  And that ’s not all.

  It was for those I couldn ’t save, the enemies I defeated, and the friends that fought with me.

  I carried all their wishes, all their hopes with me . I had to make sure justice was served.

  Just then, a light came flying though the wall and flew into my shield.

  Was it the mirror vassal weapon?

  Many mirrors appeared in the air around me, concentrating the Energy Blast beam.

  “The mirror vassal weapon ?! ”

  “Everyone and everything hates you! It isn’t hard to see why!”

  A pulse like a heartbeat thumped inside my shield. The gemstone set in its center filled with energy and began to glow.

  63% . . . 61% . . . 58% . . . 62% . . . 65%.

  The energy was slowly depleted before it stopped and began to rise again.

  It was almost like it was reacting to my willpower.

  “W . . . What ?! ”

  98% . . . 105% . . . 110% . . . 120% . . . 130%.

  As the energy level surpassed one hundred percent, the beam grew stronger and thicker, moving in pulsing waves until it began to push back Kyo ’s attack.

  “HA! Not yet! That’s not enough to beat me!”

  He produced another bookmark and slid it into his book. The number of feathers dancing in the air increased, but it wasn ’t enough to keep up with the rapidly strengthening Energy Blast coming from my shield.

  “Haaaaaaaa!”

  The pedestal of light was formed of magic, so I quickly sent that energy flowing directly into the attack. Finally, the beam was powerful enough to blast through Kyo ’s attack.

  “This is it! It’s over!” I shouted, bracing my back foot and pressing the shield forward.

  Raphtalia and the others stood behind me, their hands on my back, pressing me forward, supporting my weight.

  “Mr. Naofumi! We’re almost there!”

  “You can do it!”

  “This is it! We can do it! For Ost-san!” Rishia steadied her footing and launched her short sword at Kyo.

  The shining blade flew beside the Energy Blast beam, absorbing it s light. The blade was unharmed. In fact, it seemed imbued with new and furious power.

  The shining blade sliced through the remaining black light from Kyo ’s attack before plunging deep into his chest.

  The whole sequence reminded me of the battle we ’d already fought with Kyo—the one in the Spirit Tortoise Core chamber.

  But there was one important difference.

  That time, Rishia had thrown her sword to save another hero . This time, she threw it to defeat Kyo.

  “Cough! Ugh! You bitch!”

  I didn ’t have time to see how the blade had hit him, how it had hurt him, because at that same moment the energy blast completely overpowered his attack and burst through.

  He was engulfed in crackling light. It burned and scorched.

  “Gyaaaaa!”

  His skill was washed away in a torrent of light. Our attack—and Ost’s too—pierced through his heart.

  The beam blasted a hole through the wall that led outside.

  Kyo stood before it. Clutching his stomach, he fell to the ground, battered and beaten.

  He was a stubborn bastard. I wished the Energy Blast had just vaporized him.

  “If he tries so heal himself, what are we supposed to do?”

  Rishia stalked over to him and used the handle of her sword to roll him over.

  “Ugh . . . you . . . Kill you all . . .”

  It didn ’t look like he’d be getting up anytime soon.

  Still, I was shocked he was still alive after taking a hit like that.

  But he was haggard, and seemed to be hanging on by a thread. He coughed up blood, and his breath was heavy and weak.

  He ’d die soon.

  “Time to repent. Any last words?”

  “Who’s . . . dying? It’s just . . . because . . .”

  He didn ’t finish his sentence before he died.

  Suddenly the gravity field grew lighter.

  It left a bad taste in my mouth—watching someone die.

  But knowing justice had been served helped lessen my feelings of guilt.

  “I suppose this means we’ve won.”

  “I suppose so.”

  But the energy he stole from the Spirit Tortoise hadn ’t returned yet.

  Had we wasted it? Had it been used up in the battle?

  I looked at the book of the vassal weapons.

  It rose softly into the air. I thought it would fly off, but it didn ’t.

  Instead it shot over to the area where Kyo had originally appeared.

  “Rafuu! Rafuuuuuu!” Raph-chan was barking and pointing desperately at the book, trying to indicate its destination.

  “Filo, turn back into your filolial form and stomp that whole area flat!”

  “Okay!” she shouted, transforming in to her filolial form and dashing forward to cut off the book.

  I chased after them both. That’s when I figured out what all the fuss was about soon enough.

  There was a tank jutting from the floor, and inside it was . . . Kyo
’s body.

  There was no way to tell if we ’d been fighting a homunculus this whole time, or if that person had been real and this person in the tank was a homunculus.

  But one thing was certain: it was being used for experiments to turn the body into a vessel for the power of the Spirit Tortoise.

  “Well, well . . .” I switched to the Shield of Wrath, summoned a blaze of black flames, and snatched the book out of the air. “Look at that. Who knows if this is the real Kyo, or if we just defeated the real Kyo. But I know one thing for sure: I don’t plan on sticking around to see if this thing reanimates and starts that whole battle all over again.”

  Raph-chan was barking and pointing, like she could see Kyo ’s soul.

  “Rafu,” she chirped, jumping up onto my shoulder and placing her paw on my head.

  I could see something. Whatever remnant of his soul that was stored in the book was floating out from its pages and toward the body in the tank. It looked like a ghostly thread floating on the air.

  It slowly changed to resemble a person, but it didn’t look anything like Kyo. It looked like a skinny man in his thirties. Is that what his soul looked like?

  “Ahaha! You think I’d be defeated so easily? Just you wait! This body is filled with the power of the Spirit Tortoise, and once I join with it, you’re all as good as dead! I’m invincible!”

  It sure sounded like Kyo.

  The soul is a mirror for the heart—I guess.

  “Rishia!”

  “Y . . . Yes!”

  “Throw an ofuda at that thing, the one you got from Kizuna!” I shouted, pointing at the tank with Kyo’s body inside. The soul was just before it, reaching out its ghostly hand desperately to touch it.

  “Kyo! I won’t let you forget what you did to Tsugumi and the other women, what you did to Albert. Have you forgotten?”

  Kyo turned around and his face was pale.

  He had figured out what I was planning.

  “W . . . Wait! I swear! I’ll let you live if you help me! Let’s talk this over!”

  “It’s too late for that. I’m tired of dealing with you. Here’s what you would say in my shoes, ‘ You idiot! Why would you believe that? Everyone lies when they are begging for their lives!’”