SCENE: RAPHTALIA enters the restaurant, stops, puts her hands on her hips, and looks around. The hall is full of tables with rich-looking GUESTS. Suited WAITERS are shuffling between tables, commanded by MAITRE D, who notices RAPHTALIA and furrows his nose in disgust. MAITRE D heads her way.
MAITRE D: This is not the servant's entrance. Leave before I throw you out.
MOTOYASU catches up with RAPHTALIA. RAPHTALIA turns her head a bit in his direction, and points at him with her big finger.
RAPHTALIA: I am with this clown.
MAITRE D notices MOTOYASU and his face changes completely. He bows deeply.
MAITRE D: Sir Hero! I thought you had left to attend other affairs. I apologize, I did not recognise your servant…
RAPHTALIA: His servant? Oh, that’s rich.
RAPHTALIA laughs, loudly. Several nearby GUESTS turn their heads in their direction. MOTOYASU flinches. MAITRE D scowls, before glancing at MOTOYASU and schooling his face into a deferential mask. MOTOYASU tries to recover his composure.
MOTOYASU: Show us to my usual room, please.
MAITRE D nods, and MOTOYASU and RAPHTALIA follow after him. He leads them to the back of the restaurant, where individual rooms are available for special GUESTS. They enter one of the largest rooms, with exquisite decorations. Center of the room is taken up by a large table, surrounded by leather armchairs. RAPHTALIA plops down into one, and tilts it back so it stands on its back legs, supporting herself by putting one leg on the edge of the table. MAITRE D gapes in horror. MOTOYASU sighs as he looks at her.
MOTOYASU: Oh come on Raph, would it kill you -
RAPHTALIA’s cold eyes snap to MOTOYASU’s face, and his mouth snaps shut on its own.
RAPHTALIA: Raphtalia.
MOTOYASU manages to gather his composure once again, and throws his hands up in the air.
MOTOYASU: Fine! Raphtalia! Why are you being so rude? Are you trying to embarass me?
RAPHTALIA folds her hands on her chest, pumping her leg slightly to rock her armchair.
RAPHTALIA: I said I’d let you apologize. I didn’t say I’d be polite to any human supremacists that work here.
RAPHTALIA nods towards the MAITRE D. MAITRE D scowls from behind MOTOYASU.
RAPHTALIA: Although you patronizing them does make your apology seem pretty hollow.
MOTOYASU sighs again and takes a seat opposite her. MAITRE D approaches them.
MAITRE D: What would you like to have…honorable guests?
MAITRE D pauses as he looks over RAPHTALIA with a look of disgust. RAPHTALIA winks at him, and puts her second leg on the table. MAITRE D flinches.
MOTOYASU: Just the usual for me, please.
MAITRE D nods at MOTOYASU and turns to RAPHTALIA.
RAPHTALIA: What’s the most expensive thing you offer in this place?
MOTOYASU folds his arms on his chest, his face getting red. MAITRE D pauses, glancing between them.
MOTOYASU: Now you are just being mean.
RAPHTALIA glances at him.
RAPHTALIA: What? Apologies don’t come cheap. I know you can afford it, whatever it is.
RAPHTALIA turns to MAITRE D and waves him off.
RAPHTALIA: Whatever, I don’t need to know what it is, as long as it’s your most expensive course. It will be a little surprise. And the best wine too, please.
MOTOYASU sighs and nods to MAITRE D. MAITRE D leaves, closing the door behind himself. MOTOYASU fumes for a bit. RAPHTALIA looks at him calmly, then stretches over to pick up a piece of bread from the bread basket, and starts snaking on it. Finally, MOTOYASU speaks.
MOTOYASU: You know, ladies aren’t supposed to be rude like you.
RAPHTALIA looks at MOTOYASU, chewing on bread.
RAPHTALIA: If you ask that lad at the entrance, I am not “supposed” to do anything other than bring humans their slippers.
MOTOYASU: Oh come on, this is not what I mean.
RAPHTALIA: What do you mean then?
MOTOYASU: Just…why do you have to be like this? I said I was sorry, didn’t I? Why do you have to make me look bad in front of the Maitre D?
RAPHTALIA frowns.
RAPHTALIA: Why do you care?
MOTOYASU: What?
RAPHTALIA: I mean, why do you care if you look bad in front of him?
MOTOYASU throws his hands up in the air.
MOTOYASU: Because I come here every other day, and I care about how I look like?
RAPHTALIA: Hm. That’s strange.
MOTOYASU: What does that mean?
RAPHTALIA gesticulates with her bread.
RAPHTALIA: Well it’s just, you challenged Naofumi to a duel because you thought that he had a slave. And you wanted to apologize to me for not asking me first, right. From that, I started to think that you care about what I feel, slavery, those sorts of things.
MOTOYASU: Of course I do. Slavery is evil, anyone knows that.
RAPHTALIA: But you care very much how that … what did you call him? Mater-something, thinks of you.
MOTOYASU rubs his forehead. MAITRE D knocks on the door, and comes in carrying a tray of appetizers. He puts a plate of shrimp in front of MOTOYASU, and a plate of mussels with black caviar in front of RAPHTALIA.
MOTOYASU: What do those things have to do with one another? You aren’t making any sense.
RAPHTALIA: Have you seen how he looks at me? This bastard probably uses slaves himself, and if not, only due to being too poor to afford one.
RAPHTALIA nods to MAITRE D. MAITRE D is fuming, but schools his expression back into a polite smile when MOTOYASU looks at him. He uncorks a bottle of champagne for RAPHTALIA and of wine for MOTOYASU, and pours them their glasses.
MOTOYASU: Oh come on, that’s not true, is it? Marcus, tell me this isn’t true.
MAITRE D’s eyes look around in a panic. RAPHTALIA smirks at him.
MAITRE D: Ah, your highness, what is?
MOTOYASU: You owning slaves. You don’t, do you?
MAITRE D: Ah, no, I can’t say I have had the opportunity, your highness.
RAPHTALIA nods confidently.
RAPHTALIA: Like I said, too poor.
MAITRE D is visibly struggling to hold onto his polite smile.
MOTOYASU: Oh come on, that’s just not fair. Marcus, would you really buy a slave if you could? Be honest with me.
MAITRE D’s eyes flicker between RAPHTALIA, who is smugly finishing up her bread, and MOTOYASU, who is awaiting his answer expectantly. Finally, he turns to the door as if looking at someone in the main hall, and then bows deeply to MOTOYASU.
MAITRE D: I can’t say that I’ve thought of that, your highness, but I beg your forgiveness for I must go - it seems I am needed in the kitchens.
MAITRE D makes his retreat. RAPHTALIA snorts.
RAPHTALIA: Coward, and an uncreative one at that. That’s one of the worst excuses I’ve ever heard.
RAPHTALIA picks up her plate of mussels alongside her utensils and starts confidently eating them. She is still reclining with her feet on the edge of the table, so she has to put the plate on her lap. MOTOYASU looks at her curiously.
MOTOYASU: You know how to eat mussels?
RAPHTALIA raises an eyebrow at him.
RAPHTALIA: I grew up in a fishing village, of course I know how to eat mussels. You know, before the local nobility enslaved me.
MOTOYASU gets flustered.
MOTOYASU: Look, it’s not a common food anywhere else. Many people don’t know how to eat them.
RAPHTALIA: Hm. I suppose that’s why this is supposed to be expensive. I figured that man was playing a joke on me.
MOTOYASU stares at her in annoyance.
MOTOYASU: With how many times you’ve insulted Marcus there, aren’t you worried he might have spit in your food?
RAPHTALIA looks down at her plate, then shugs.
RAPHTALIA: We hunt monsters every week. You think when I get drenched in blood and gore from gutting a beastie I don’t swallow worse by accident? Spit isn’t dangerous.
RAPHTALIA eats another mussel to punctuate her point. MOTOYASU rubs his forehead again.
MOTOYASU: This really isn’t how I expected this to go.
RAPHTALIA snorts, gesticulating with a mussel speared on her fork.
RAPHTALIA: What, did you think you’d just get to flirt with me the whole way, and then I’d fall into your arms like a tavern wench? That’s not going to happen.
MOTOYASU sneers at her, clearly caught out in the open.
MOTOYASU: No, I figured you’d at least be nice enough to let me properly apologize.
RAPHTALIA: I am being nice. I didn’t even try to stab you.
RAPHTALIA takes a sip of her champagne.
RAPHTALIA: But enough about me - tell me about yourself.
MOTOYASU looks at her warily.
MOTOYASU: You want to know more about me?
RAPHTALIA shrugs.
RAPHTALIA: Why not? You seem to have a good heart for a person with many slaver friends.
MOTOYASU purses his lips and doesn’t speak. RAPHTALIA laughs softly.
RAPHTALIA: Oh come on, don’t be like that. Surely someone as…gallant as you would have a story or two to impress a lady. How about the world you came from?
MOTOYASU is grimly poking at his shrimps.
MOTOYASU: Naofumi must have already told you all about it.
RAPHTALIA nods.
RAPHTALIA: Some. But he tells it like Naofumi - getting personal anecdotes, stories about the little things that make up life out of him is like torture. You seem much more personable.
MOTOYASU looks up at RAPHTALIA with a faint hope in his eyes. RAPHTALIA keeps a slight smile on her face. Finally, MOTOYASU sighs.
MOTOYASU: My world… It was very different from this place. We didn’t have magic, so instead we used a lot of technology - complicated machines that do things for you.
RAPHTALIA: What’s the difference?
MOTOYASU: Well…it was cheap and everywhere, for one. For example, in my world, those mussels would have been put into a cold box when caught, and so people could eat them anywhere in the world. Here, making a box like this would be very expensive, so they transport them in salt water barrels - which is still very expensive, so only a few restaurants in Melromarc serve them.
RAPHTALIA nods.
RAPHTALIA: Makes sense. You seem to know a lot about this.
MOTOYASU smiles.
MOTOYASU: I wanted to be a chef. Studied for it, actually, before I got summoned here. Whenever I go to a new restaurant, I always try to ask how they do things - force of habit, I suppose.
MOTOYASU gets into talking about the intricacies of cooking in Melromarc versus back on Earth. RAPHTALIA listens attentively, asking key questions throughout.
A WAITER comes by, bringing in their main courses. RAPHTALIA smirks, seeing that MAITRE D did not return.
RAPHTALIA: Well, maybe you could open a restaurant here. It’d be interesting to try some Earth cuisine.
MOTOYASU deflates a bit.
MOTOYASU: Yeah, it would be nice, but I don’t think Myne will let me.
RAPHTALIA: You are marrying her soon, right?
MOTOYASU: Yeah, this week.
RAPHTALIA: You don’t sound very happy about it.
MOTOYASU sighs.
MOTOYASU: It’s just… I like Myne, but she has been so busy with the King lately. We barely spoke last week. I don’t know, maybe she just wants to marry me because I am the Spear Hero.
RAPHTALIA: That’s pretty bad.
MOTOYASU stares into the distance, deep in thought.
RAPHTALIA: Hm. Did you know she owns slaves? A lot of them, too. So many of them are in the palace right now.
MOTOYASU throws his hands in the air.
MOTOYASU: Again??
RAPHTALIA crosses her arms.
RAPHTALIA: Excuse me for caring about the brutal enslavement of my people. Truly, I am an inconsiderate monster.
MOTOYASU: Oh come on! She doesn’t own them, her family does.
RAPHTALIA: Which she is a part of.
MOTOYASU: It’s not hers! That’s the point.
RAPHTALIA: Hm. And did you challenge the King to a duel over it?
MOTOYASU cringes. RAPHTALIA nods.
RAPHTALIA: I see.
MOTOYASU: Come on, how could I challenge her father? I tried talking to her about it, it’s just… I don’t know. There is always something that comes up.
RAPHTALIA points at him with her fork.
RAPHTALIA: Have you considered that she might like owning slaves?
MOTOYASU scowls, but his face shifts uncertainly.
MOTOYASU: No. She is a good person, I know it.
RAPHTALIA: Is she? She called me an animal, didn’t she?
MOTOYASU: She was just being heated.
RAPHTALIA: Hm. Maybe. Or maybe she just doesn’t care. You said it yourself - she even treats you like a lapdog.
MOTOYASU shirks back, RAPHTALIA’s remark having struck a nerve. RAPHTALIA gesticulates with her fork.
RAPHTALIA: I am just saying. Think it over.
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SCENE: NAOFUMI, FILO, CONSTANCE and REN are sitting at a table in a tavern. RAPHTALIA walks in, and heads towards their table. NAOFUMI frowns when he sees her.
RAPHTALIA: I hope I am not late?
NAOFUMI: Not yet, but you were cutting it close - we were just about to head out. Where were you?
RAPHTALIA looks between NAOFUMI, CONSTANCE and REN, pausing for a moment.
RAPHTALIA: Motoyasu took me to lunch.
NAOFUMI blinks. REN raises an eyebrow.
NAOFUMI: What?
CONSTANCE leans towards NAOFUMI.
CONSTANCE: Lunch is a meal typically eaten in the middle of the day, Sir Hero.
NAOFUMI scowls at CONSTANCE.
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NAOFUMI: That’s not what I meant. Where did you even find Motoyasu?
RAPHTALIA: He found me, actually.
RAPHTALIA sits down next to them. NAOFUMI is still squinting at her suspiciously.
NAOFUMI: And he, what, just saw you passing by on the street and invited you for lunch?
RAPHTALIA glances at CONSTANCE before continuing.
RAPHTALIA: Well, he might have heard me debating the finer points of slavery with a couple of guards.
REN looks at RAPHTALIA. CONSTANCE sighs.
REN: Debating?
RAPHTALIA: Sure.
REN rubs his forehead.
REN: Did you get into a fight with the guards?
RAPHTALIA crosses her arms.
RAPHTALIA: We came to an understanding. Their sergeant was left breathless from my smooth debate skills.
REN covers his face with his hands. FILO frowns.
FILO: You shouldn’t try to strangle someone in a fight.
REN turns to FILO with a thankful expression on his face.
REN: Thank you!
FILO: It’s way too slow and ineffective. If you have to keep them alive, it’s much better to go for the pain points - the balls, the solar plexus, things like that. I’ll show you the books Fredalia gave me in the evening.
REN’s expression drops, his face whitening. RAPHTALIA rolls her eyes.
RAPHTALIA: I was very quick. And what was I supposed to do? They stopped me and demanded I show them my tits to prove I am not a slave.
REN: They what?
RAPHTALIA: Yeah, it’s some kind of new law. Slaves can’t move around alone.
REN ruffles his hair in shock. CONSTANCE frowns.
CONSTANCE: That sounds like a big problem for us, if so.
REN: I…I haven’t heard about it. I’ll see what I can do about it. This is ridiculous.
RAPHTALIA shrugs.
RAPHTALIA: Knock yourself out. Until then, I’ll keep “debating” the guards.
RAPHTALIA looks at NAOFUMI.
RAPHTALIA: Before we go to meet the Baroness, I want to bring the things I bought back to our base. Could you pop us over there quickly?
NAOFUMI shrugs.
NAOFUMI: Sure. Let’s go.
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SCENE: NAOFUMI, RAPHTALIA, CONSTANCE and FILO materialize in the village of LUTE near the central square, carrying a lot of packets. In the square, a group of HUMANS and DEMIHUMANS are pulling on ropes to erect a new water tower. Their group heads towards the tavern.
They enter the tavern, and put the packs down on one of the tables. RAPHTALIA takes out a message from the SLAVER from her pocket and hands it to NAOFUMI. FILO hops on a bench and puts her hands behind her head, relaxing.
RAPHTALIA: I also met the slave trader from before. He seems to be looking for whomever killed Reibia.
NAOFUMI’s face darkens. He quickly skims the letter. CONSTANCE reads it over his shoulder.
NAOFUMI: Be careful what you wish for, you might just get it. I think it’s about time we handled this loose end.
RAPHTALIA: I was starting to think you forgot about him.
NAOFUMI shakes his head.
NAOFUMI: I don’t forget things like that. No, I just didn’t know what we could do with his slaves. Who knows what condition they are in - they could be pumped full of drugs, or traumatized half to death, or god knows what. We had neither the facilities nor the training to help them, and any mistake could have easily exposed us. But now that Shieldfrieden is helping us, I think it’s time.
CONSTANCE sighs.
CONSTANCE: Well, if things are going to go this way, let’s see if my poison idea will work out. Frankly, it’s no longer safe for us to go into Melromarc without it, if you keep running into old friends there.
CONSTANCE goes to the packs on the table and starts unpacking them. RAPHTALIA helps her search for ingredients. NAOFUMI watches curiously.
NAOFUMI: What was your idea? You didn’t explain much, besides it being about poisons and needing these ingredients.
CONSTANCE: It’s really quite simple. There is a strong poison called the Midnight Sleep, and I’d like to see if your shield could make it. It saps the powers of those affected - warriors lose their strength, mages cannot cast their strongest spells. At high doses, it all but puts you into a coma.
NAOFUMI: Sounds a bit like our curse.
CONSTANCE: Somewhat. From your descriptions, I think that’s what Raphtalia drank before your duel. It works when ingested or from a cut, is practically undetectable after the fact, and there is almost nothing that can make you immune to it. I believe the Shadows even make manacles infused with it, to contain prisoners in the long term, though I have never seen it.
RAPHTALIA: Can’t we just buy this poison?
CONSTANCE chuckles, putting the ingredients aside on the table. She sits down, and starts writing a recipe.
CONSTANCE: No. Melromarc is rightfully considered the world’s capital in alchemy: the quality and variety of ingredients found here is unmatched anywhere else, to say nothing of the expertise of the alchemists themselves. Potionmaking is a very large industry, and some types of brews take months if not years to come to fruition. Midnight Sleep is one of them. But that also makes it easy to control - the crown holds an iron grip on the process, and should the Shadows find you producing it, you would be executed. Of course, it is also sold precisely nowhere.
RAPHTALIA frowns.
RAPHTALIA: But if that’s the case…how could we make it?
CONSTANCE: Because what is kept hidden is the process of manufacture - the list of ingredients has been known for quite a while. And so I am hoping that would be enough for your Shield, Naofumi.
CONSTANCE finishes her recipe and hands it to NAOFUMI, alongside the ingredients. NAOFUMI puts them all into the shield, and focuses for a moment. A small potion of teal liquid appears on top of the shield.
NAOFUMI: Seems like your guess was correct. Great work, Constance.
NAOFUMI hands the bottle of poison to CONSTANCE. CONSTANCE snatches it and cackles, putting it near the window to look at it in the light.
CONSTANCE: Oh, how long I’ve wished to get my hands on this.
NAOFUMI makes several more bottles, handing them to RAPHTALIA and CONSTANCE. RAPHTALIA looks at the bottle curiously. CONSTANCE turns back to RAPHTALIA.
CONSTANCE: This is something of an emergency measure. The ingredients that go into it are still rare and expensive, so don’t go crazy with it. But if the situation demands it…
RAPHTALIA: Like if we have to face another giant dinosaur?
CONSTANCE: Exactly. In that case, we’ll be prepared.
----------------------------------------
SCENE: NAOFUMI, RAPHTALIA, CONSTANCE, FILO and REN are waiting at the city gates. NAOFUMI is pacing. A large group of people riding filofials appear from around the corner of the road: GUARDS, HERALDS, SERVANTS, SHADOWS and so on. BARONESS rides in the middle of the group. HERALDS are holding trumpets.
BARONESS rides towards NAOFUMI and REN. NAOFUMI has his lips pursed.
BARONESS: Honorable Heroes. It’s good to see you today.
NAOFUMI: Where are we heading?
BARONESS nods.
BARONESS: Straight to business then. We head to the palace.
NAOFUMI crosses his arms.
NAOFUMI: Will you at least tell us who you really are?
BARONESS smiles.
BARONESS: All will be revealed soon, Sir Naofumi.
Together, they head through the city. HERALDS sound their trumpets occasionally. A small crowd of ONLOOKERS gathers after them. As they walk, CONSTANCE approaches NAOFUMI. They whisper to one another.
CONSTANCE: You seem pissed.
NAOFUMI: I am. We have a lot of problems on our plate, and we should be dealing with them, not wasting our time here.
CONSTANCE side-eyes NAOFUMI, then shrugs.
CONSTANCE: You’ve seen my analysis. In terms of expected benefit per hour spent, this is actually fairly good. For example, until our friends to the east get more resources together, this is one of our best bets for funds.
NAOFUMI purses his lips.
NAOFUMI: Even if that is true, we are still being used. I don’t like it.
CONSTANCE raises an eyebrow.
CONSTANCE: Not the first time and not the last. It is, in fact, most of what courtiers do - use one another in various ways. This isn’t why you are pissed.
NAOFUMI walks in silence for a while.
NAOFUMI: It will sound stupid.
CONSTANCE: Such things usually are.
NAOFUMI sighs.
NAOFUMI: I don’t like the castle. I already figured we would be going there, and now it’s certain. Nothing good happens there.
CONSTANCE chuckles.
CONSTANCE: I can’t say I disagree. But alas, no other way around it.
Soon their group crosses the drawbridge heading to the castle. At the gates of the castle, they come face to face with a group of GUARDS. SHADOWS in the vanguard of their group are arguing with them. As they come closer, MYNE exits the gates, being led by a GUARD IN FANCY HELMET.
MYNE: What is going on here? Why are there all these people in my castle?
BARONESS rides out towards MYNE and dismounts. When their eyes meet, MYNE’s face goes through a series of emotions: confusion, recognition, rage and finally dismay.
BARONESS: Hello, sister. It has been a while.
SHADOWS and GUARDS around the BARONESS bow deeply.
SHADOW 1: All hail Melty Q. Melromarc, crown princess and first heir to the throne, daughter of Mirellia Q. Melromarc!
CONSTANCE slaps herself on the forehead.
CONSTANCE: Of course! Oh, I should have thought of this.
She turns towards NAOFUMI. His face is fuming in rage. Her expression changes, and she puts a hand over his shoulder, grasping his neck from the back. She leans close and whispers in his ear.
CONSTANCE: Kindly keep quiet and don’t do something stupid, Naofumi. Don’t say anything, don’t do anything - we will talk later, when the official part is over.
CONSTANCE waits until NAOFUMI looks her in the eyes and nods. They turn back to MELTY and MYNE.
MYNE: Is the Faubrey climate no longer to your liking, Melty?
MELTY reaches into a bag on her waist and takes out a scroll. She unfurls it, showing an official text, with a glowing magical seal at the bottom.
MELTY: The Faubrey is fine. Our mother, however, has ordered me to assume your duties, Myne, effective immediately. As your older sister, I ask for your understanding in this.
----------------------------------------
SCENE: NAOFUMI, RAPHTALIA, CONSTANCE and FILO are huddled in a remote room of the palace, whispering to one another. The door to the room is closed.
NAOFUMI: How the fuck did you not guess she is a fucking princess?
CONSTANCE shrugs.
CONSTANCE: Analyst’s curse, I am afraid. As far as I’ve been concerned her existence was a mere rumor - the Queen kept a very tight lid on everything, it seems. But I do not work in rumors, so subconsciously I must have dismissed her.
CONSTANCE shakes her head.
CONSTANCE: Eventually I would have thought better of it, but alas. She must have been sent off to Faubrey almost as soon as she was born, and studied there ever since. I do not know how the queen managed to conceal the pregnancy, but that she did.
RAPHTALIA: But why go to all that trouble?
CONSTANCE shrugs.
CONSTANCE: She is the first heir, an obvious target for all sorts of court intrigue. It’s not unheard of for a monarch to keep their heir especially safe, and often that means being as far away from the country as possible. Her age does puzzle me, if that is what truly happened: if she was simply kept safe until she was of age, then I would have expected Mirellia to bring her back a good five years earlier.
CONSTANCE paces a bit.
CONSTANCE: It also explains why Myne was going through all this trouble in the first place. If she could secure her position enough, she could force the Queen’s hand into kicking Melty out of the line of succession. Otherwise, it’s an open question if she would ever get the crown at all.
RAPHTALIA frowns at something and quietly approaches the door to their room, then yanks it open. There is a MAID behind it. MAID scrambles away from the door, pretending she was not listening in.
RAPHTALIA: Do I need to make your insides your outsides? Scram.
MAID is stuttering in fear.
MAID: I, uh, I mean -
MAID takes out a letter with shaking hands and hands it to RAPHTALIA, then runs away in terror. RAPHTALIA closes the door and leans against it. She quickly opens the letter and reads it.
RAPHTALIA: She wants to meet with us again.
NAOFUMI pinches his nose and sighs.
NAOFUMI: Do you think she’d be satisfied talking to Fredalia?
RAPHTALIA shrugs.
RAPHTALIA: She mentions you by name.
NAOFUMI looks away.
CONSTANCE: We really need those funds, Naofumi.
NAOFUMI: Do you think I forgot? I’ll get you your Faubrey guns. Knowing it’s necessary doesn’t make this any easier. I’ll have to go be polite to a fucking princess - a literal symbol of the monarchy, of the state power in this country and of everything that is wrong with it. Worse still, princess from a family that had personally fucked me over multiple times.
NAOFUMI sighs. CONSTANCE comes closer and puts a hand on his shoulder.
CONSTANCE: Don’t worry, I know just the thing to cheer you up. I’ll schedule the meeting for tomorrow evening. For now, let’s get back to the throne room.
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SCENE: Slave pavilion. It is a large tent, with a hole in the middle of the roof to let some sunlight in during the day. It is late evening, and the sun is already down. The entire thing is filled with slave cages, multiple layers high.
NAOFUMI, CONSTANCE and FILO enter the pavilion. FILO is wearing a poncho on top of her dress, hiding her lack of a slave crest. All three are carrying large backpacks. NAOFUMI whistles for the SLAVE TRADER. Soon, SLAVE TRADER comes from behind the cages.
SLAVE TRADER: Ah, Naofumi! I see the young Raphtalia is not with you?
NAOFUMI: She fell sick this morning. I didn’t want to push her. You said in the message you wanted me to find who killed this noble to the north?
SLAVE TRADER: Oh yes! The city is full of rumors about demihuman magic, but I don’t believe them. I have never seen any such thing, and you can say I’ve worked with quite a few demihumans. But we have to find whoever did this - I can’t have some of my largest clients die out.
NAOFUMI scratches his forehead in thought.
NAOFUMI: But why me? Surely you can hire a professional investigator.
SLAVE TRADER shrugs.
SLAVE TRADER: This is clearly a magic problem. You are the most magical person I know. Come now, there is something in it for you: I’ll let you have any one slave I have, free of charge.
NAOFUMI: So what, you didn’t hire anyone? Did you at least tell the guard you knew him?
SLAVE TRADER scratches his chin.
SLAVE TRADER: Why bother? I only just started to look for an expert when I saw the young Raphtalia.
NAOFUMI: So you didn’t even tell anyone else about this?
SLAVE TRADER: No, not yet. Do you think you’d need help?
NAOFUMI sighs in content.
NAOFUMI: No, this is fine. Filo, you go ahead.
FILO darts forwards and punches the SLAVE TRADER in the face. A moment before her fist makes contact, a shimmer of blue light covers the SLAVE TRADER from head to toe. His body flies through the air and impacts a large wooden pole supporting the tent with a loud crack. The tent splinters, but holds. SLAVE TRADER picks himself off the ground. FILO looks at her fist in confusion.
FILO: He should be dead. Tricky fucker.
SLAVE TRADER snarls.
SLAVE TRADER: You think you are the first person who tried to kill me? I am not defenseless. I have guards!
SLAVE TRADER looks around, as if expecting something to happen. Finally, RAPHTALIA appears from the back of the tent, dragging a couple bodies behind her.
RAPHTALIA: These guards?
SLAVE TRADER scrambles away from RAPHTALIA. FILO approaches him, and does a downward kick, plunging him head first into the floor. SLAVE TRADER still seems unharmed.
FILO: Are you straight up invulnerable? Tricky. How about strangulation?
FILO pins the SLAVE TRADER down and puts him in a leg lock. His face starts going blue. CONSTANCE comes closer.
CONSTANCE: It’s not a spell, it’s an amulet. They are extraordinarily expensive, and only good for a few hits. It would have ran out if you kept at it.
FILO grunts noncommittally. SLAVE TRADER slumps down, dead. FILO gets up and searches the body, taking a small blue glowing necklace from the SLAVE TRADER’s neck, and throwing it to CONSTANCE.
FILO: Souvenir, if you say it’s expensive.
CONSTANCE puts the necklace on. RAPHTALIA comes closer to the SLAVE TRADER’s corpse, and spits on it.
NAOFUMI: Alright. You set everything up, while me and CONSTANCE will start evacuating the slaves.
NAOFUMI and CONSTANCE start going between the cages, talking to the SLAVES. Soon, they gather a group together, and NAOFUMI goes into the middle of the PAVILION, under the open sky. Their group vanishes into light.
Meanwhile, FILO and RAPHTALIA take jugs of oil out of their backpacks and start spreading them on the ground and across the pavilon’s fabric. They lead a trail of oil into the SLAVE TRADER’s office. RAPHTALIA searches the office, and takes a box with gold and jewelry, and a stack of financial books. Finally, she goes to a grandfather clock in the corner of the office, and pours a large puddle of oil under it. She cracks one of the jugs open, turning it into a bowl, puts a large piece of cloth into the bowl and pours more oil into it, soaking the cloth. Finally, she takes a long candle wick, and ties it to the side of the clock so that the bottom of it falls into the bowl of oil. She winds the clock back and spears a candle on one of the clock hands, and lights it with a piece of flint.
As she is finishing up, NAOFUMI enters the office.
NAOFUMI: We got all the slaves out. It’s time for us to go.
RAPHTALIA nods, motioning towards the clock contraption.
RAPHTALIA: In thirty minutes it will all light up. By then, we should be in the palace talking to Melty. She’ll be our perfect alibi.
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DRAMATIS PERSONAE
NAOFUMI IWATANI, THE SHIELD HERO. The first socialist. Protagonist. Amateur poison manufacturer.
RAPHTALIA. Champagne socialist. Negs poor Spear Heroes. Engages guards in spirited debate.
FILO. Allegedly a combat expert. Failed to punch a poor merchant. Probably needs more training.
CONSTANCE VON MARUKIEVICH / FREDALIA. Secretly demihuman. Great analyst, when she doesn’t miss things.
KITAMURA MOTOYASU, THE SPEAR HERO. Just wants to grill. Studied to be a chef. Soon to be married to MYNE.
AMAKI REN, THE SWORD HERO. Against debating. Probably a video essayist. Liberal in mindset.
PRINCESS MELTY Q. MELROMARC. Secretly a princess. Claims to be in a coalition against MYNE.
SLAVE TRADER. Innocent merchant in the business of selling people. Sold RAPHTALIA to NAOFUMI.