Written by Oblivon2991

Proofread: The usual drunken gang of misfits and TranscendedPotato

Thank you for reading my fanfiction and for giving me a chance.

My mother tongue isn't English, so please be patient about the grammatical issues.

I don't own One Punch Man anime/manga/webcomic, it belongs to ONE.

I don't own The Rising of the Shield Hero (Japanese: 盾の勇者の成り上がり, Hepburn: Tate no Yūsha no Nariagari), it is written by Aneko Yusagi.

If you have anything to add or have questions, or remark, please review, or send a PM.

Thank you!

Now let's start the story!

(So, this is the proofread version of the same chapter, I cut the actual chapter two because honestly, it grew to be 25k word+! Hopefully, it is more digestible. Who read it before, only the way of meeting Raph will changes slightly, nothing drastic)

Chapter 4: The Meaning of Hero (Part 1)

"So, how far away is it again?"

"Not that far, I assure you. We'll be there soon."

He said the same thing a minute ago, but it didn't seem like he was getting any nearer. King was starting to think that this person was just trying to lure him into an even darker corridor so that a bunch of his thugs could come and kill him.

Usually, he'd fear for his life. But after re-thinking that his stats are much higher than the average person, he became more confident. That didn't mean he was any less cautious, though. The last thing he needed was to die here without knowing what happened due to his overconfidence.

Still, as much as the trader wanted to sound trustworthy, it was hard to do so after following said trader down some dark alleyways. If it was a normal day, he wouldn't have gone down here at all! He'd much rather be grinding for more levels.

Being under-prepared for a wave that crippled an entire kingdom's military? Well, sorry for being so over-vigilant in ensuring he was leveling enough, his current efforts could put even his prior efforts in a game to shame. The things one could do when their life was on the line was astonishing.

"Honestly, I don't like this, I don't like this at all! Why did this person have to go and attack me?! I'd leave him on the ground, seeing as I already did proper first-aid, but in this world where modern medicine doesn't exist? I may as well kill him myself to save him the troubles of infection!"

"And what's with the way this fellow walked? It's so creepy!" King wasn't always a big complainer, but those steps of his were big enough to be called skips.

"So, what does your business deal in, anyway?" King had to ask. As they arrived by the trader's circus-tent, King had a sneaking suspicion on what this place dealt in. Though this was some medieval-fantasy-esque place, he had to hope that his guesses were wrong.

Further going down a long, dark hallway, King could see some cages, and those cages were filled with glowing eyes, filled with what he could speculate were beasts or humans — Some looked like a combination of both, and most looks miserable and broken, clothed in rags, their living conditions squalid. He could see them in cages and nothing else with them aside from food and water to keep them alive. There wasn't even some bedding for them!

Of course, his assumptions were correct.

"Slaves, Dear Shield Hero. Slaves." The man announced proudly, smirking constantly.

"Wait, how does he know that I'm the Shield Hero?" Wait, that was a stupid question. Of course he'd recognize him immediately. By that stupid Legendary Shield that was stuck to him since the first day he was summoned.

Of all things, why was he the shield-user?! All the other heroes could keep their 'legendary weapons' in more convenient forms, why didn't his have that function?!

"I already suspect my arm is molding underneath…" In a world like this where all the modern comforts of his old world were nowhere to be found, and the cleanliness of this world was downright horrible, it would be a miracle for his arm to not be infected by yeast or the like, unless his shield magically made it so that the area underneath his arm would not sweat. Otherwise, the second the shield gets removed from him, his arm was bound to be molding, or at least smell horrible!

Only the blind won't be able to spot the shield stuck to him 24/7, so unless they thought he was some sort of shield-fetishist, it would be pretty obvious that he was the Shield Hero!

"Slaves?" Then, what the trader said came to his attention.

"Yes, or you call them companion substitutes, living wares, whatever you like."

Well, he had his assumptions but it was confirmed! This country had its own dark side as well. Then again, so did his world.

In his world, there were monsters, villains, and other similar things. Here, there were bandits, monsters, and slaves.

Yet, his surprise was only really mild, as in a fantasy setting, it was not rare that there were slaves. Hell, in some games, he even bought some to serve as hard laborers or fodder. At least his reason for that was that for one, the lore stated that they were criminal slaves that were meant for the guillotine anyway, so at least as slaves they could be useful. Secondly, they were cheaper.

"Still, that was only a game…" But now, witnessing so many slaves, he felt slightly sorry for them. After all, it wasn't confirmed that they were all criminals or evil-doers. There were probably some innocents in between them.

"I see…"

"Hmm, you don't seem very surprised."

"Just disappointed." He muttered. "Not unexpected, just slightly disappointing."

"Hmm, you don't like slaves, Shield Hero?"

"It's not the best way to keep living beings…" King only said this much, and that was more than enough.

Even if he wanted to free these slaves, what was he do to? It would be stupid to assume that his fellow didn't have security. Even if he tried and succeeded, he was sure that some of these slaves deserved being here, and if he freed them, what was to say they wouldn't stab him in the back the moment their freedom was ensured?

On a second note, he wasn't some champion of justice. He was a coward with no alignment to sacrifice himself for others — whether he was called a hero or not. He tried to be a decent person, that was all he could say.

To consider him a hero... was going too far. If he could save someone from dying, he'd do that. But if attempting to do so would risk his life? He'd run away faster than an otaku/NEET running away from responsibility.

"Hmm, I see that you have your own opinions about slavery. But hear me out; a slave will never betray you. They obey your orders without question. They do not slack, and will complete your orders as best they can. Not like that gentlemen who only tried to extort you, and not like the person who accused you of rape. Slaves are perfect underlings, both competent and loyal."

"So, you've been watching me?" King asked. Yeah, he had a creepy feeling someone was watching him since he came to this world — in truth, when in the open, King always had such a hunch. He can't help it; his fame came with such premonition.

"Hmm, can you blame a man for his curiosity? Let's just say that a few little birds told me some interesting things about you, and that's it. I wanted to witness the infamous Shield Hero who demolished a large part of the forest only with a single strike of his fist, waking the whole country from its slumber."

"I see…" King still had no idea what the hell those people were referring to.

The only thing he could remember was that after he was cornered by some trees, he just punched forward in desperation, closing his eyes, hoping that someone would save him. The moment he opened his eyes, the entire section of the forest in front of him was completely devastated, as if Saitama had appeared in the very last moment to save him, only to disappear the next. To think that it was he who destroyed it? Well, if it wasn't so absurd, he'd laugh it off like some sort of bad joke.

Sadly, that 'bad joke' was his entire week since arriving here, and it didn't seem to be stopping any time soon.

"And well…"

"What is it?" King raised his brow.

"There was a customer who wanted to enslave the Shield Hero. But, well... witnessing your prowess first hand, it would be a greater hassle than it's worth, not to mention the impossibility of the task. None of the people I can hire are even close to being able to match you in combat anyway."

"... To enslave me, you say?" King couldn't help but tremble, his 'King Engine' activating immediately.

[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]

"Ah! That sound! Rumors says it is your bloodlust increasing. Truly intimidating, truly. But I understand, I, too, would be upset if someone wanted to enslave me. You have every right to be angry."

"What do you mean by bloodlust?" He wanted to ask, but as always, the little man cut his words out with his sweet, honeyed words.

"I thought, why not approach the Shield Hero with an offer of my own? He seems like a promising customer…" The short man chuckled.

"Are you saying I should buy a slave? Aren't you afraid I might attack you? I am the Shield Hero…" King tried to be convincing, but he did not feel confident at all!

"Why not? What could you possibly lose? In this country, slavery isn't against the law. And as I said, nothing is forced, if you don't like my wares, you can simply leave." The man shrugged, as always, smirking.

"Hmm…" King just hummed, having nothing else to say.

"This way…"

Leading him forth, soon, they reached a more spacious area — it was most likely the middle of that huge circus tent.

Before them, the slave trader opened a massive gate. The interior was much like outside; dimly lit, with a necrotic odor hung in the air.

"What a strong odor… how can someone live like this! I want to vomit!" It took all of his willpower to suffocate his urge to expel the half-digested contents of his stomach, already paling.

"Upset?" The trader looked back at King. "I understand. All the summoned heroes always frown upon slavery, until they learn how convenient it is to use slaves."

"…" King didn't answer, he felt as though if he opened his mouth for even a second, he'd immediately retch everything he ate, including the jerky he ate in the afternoon while he was farming.

Seeing this, the slaver hummed, leading him to a table.

"Put him there…" It was to be expected, despite carrying a fully-grown man for who knows how long, he didn't feel tired at all. He already experienced his increased physical strength when he managed to knock the lights out of a monster attacking him with an accidental shield bash, but his increased stats were really convenient.

Putting the still-unconscious man on the table, the pudgy man raised his open palm, starting his chant.

[On my authority as the Great Slave Merchant Beloukas, I order thee, decipher the laws of nature and appraise my target to reveal its true nature, All Zveit Appraisal!]

Immediately, the slaver's hand started to glow, and so did the man on the table.

King watched the event with some neutrality; he had already seen the pharmacist do the same procedure before to appraise the herbs and potions he sold.

"It seems as though the chant is different for everyone…" Watching the event happen again, he wondered if he could also use magic or not.

He definitely had a magic stat! That meant he too should be capable of using it. The question was… what chant should he use?

"I need to come up with a cool one." Even if he himself was the furthest thing from 'cool', at least his chant should sound cool.

Fortunately, he already had a few ideas. Well, that was if magic needed chants. If he could cast magic without chants, that was better. It'd save him some time. Also, if it turned out that his chant was lame, it'd save him the humiliation. Remembering the chuunibyous back in his high-school... yeah, he definitely didn't want to seem like one of them.

"Hmm, it seems as though his dagger was heavily rusted, thus causing sepsis. Not to mention, he seemed to have poisoned it some time ago, as there are traces of poison on the dagger that hadn't dried yet. It's a rather popular one, as well. It's cheap and requires either a high-class potion or a healer to get rid of it. Still, this would be rather expensive for a common mugger, so he is probably one of the more influential muggers in town, or maybe a member of a gang."

"Just my luck…" Yeah, he went toe to toe with basically the only mugger in the town that used poison, and there was a chance that he came from a gang. "I'm definitely cursed; there's no way in hell this kind of misfortune would befall any normal person…"

First, he transported to a different world, and then accused of rape by the only person that was willing to join him. Now this…? King didn't want to know what would come next.

"Hmm, this may need some antidote, the potion you used, albeit a strong one, was not made to heal this specific poison. Even though it's just remnants of the poison, if not removed would cause a painful infection. And for this man, he should've died, as the poison directly entered his blood-stream and straight to his head. Fortunately for you and this gentleman, I have a few bottles of the antidote on hand. If you excuse me for a moment…"

The man left for a moment, entering the smaller tent that was most likely his office. Judging from the light coming from that place and the lack of smell emanating from the tent, King came to that conclusion.

"I mean, it has to be, I can't think of any other reason that specific tent would have lights and have less smell…"

Looking at the man on the table, he still showed symptoms of a high fever, the cut on his neck started to swell, and despite the expensive healing potions he used on him, it seemed as though his condition was slowly worsening. He would definitely die if he was just left like this.

"That dagger looked pretty rusty." Looking at the man, not just his neck, parts of his body seemed to be affected, as well. From the swollen cut, purple veins could be seen extending from the cut, almost covering the entire top half of his body. Just what kind of poison did he use?! Not to mention, it was just remnants of the poison, wasn't it?! If it managed to hit him... King didn't know if even he would be able to walk that off.

Unbeknownst to him, due to the massive amount of shield passive effects stacking onto him, King was long since immune to lesser and mediocre poisons. Only the higher-grade poisons would be able to affect him in the first place.

"Here we are…" Emerging from the smaller tent, Beloukas brought two bottles along with him, first pouring the one with green liquid into the man's mouth, waiting for a moment before pouring the reddish potion that made Rock glow up. His fever went down almost right away, a relieved expression visible on his face. The purple veins started to disappear, as well.

"Is he…?"

"He will be fine for now. But his body is exhausted by the poison; it may take a few days for him to wake up. It might even take a month to fully recover from the effects."

"I see… how much I owe you?"

"A gold will do, great customer…"

"A… gold?" King almost gasped. That totaled to 100 silver! "Are you trying to extort me?"

"Of course not, I wouldn't dare after what I heard from you and witnessed what happened in that alley. It is just that the potions and the antidote I used aren't cheap. As I heard, you're also an expert of herbs and potions. I wouldn't dare to try con you. It wouldn't work anyway."

"Me? An expert?" King blinked. "Why do you think that?"

"Hmm, recently, the price of certain herbs and potions dropped. At the same time, a certain Shield Hero was also seen around the shop of the local pharmacist- and quite often, I might say. Coincidence? I don't think so. Even if you got hurt every day, I doubt that you'd need to visit the pharmacist so often anyway — unless you were selling large quantities of herbs and potions." Beloukas started to twirl his mustache, making him even creepier.

King needs to be a lot more observant after all. It seems as though this creepy little dude was watching his every step.

"Is he a pervert or what!?" With that mustache and creepy outfit, he definitely looked like a figure who'd chat with little girls under a fake profile.

"…"

"So, can I interest you with a few of my wares?"

"I suppose I can check them out…"

This little man was just weird; King had a bad feeling that this man was hiding something from him, even being near him made him uncomfortable.

"He just made me remember that creepy ringmaster from that manga!" But still, he could just check out the slaves he was offering. Not like he had anything to lose; he could just walk out of here if nothing interested him.

He still needed a companion, or he wouldn't be able to proceed normally. Unfortunately — or perhaps fortunately, until now, no one wanted to join him.

"Except for those muggers…" But the only thing they wanted was to mug him, so that didn't count. They didn't plan on following him in the first place.

"Follow me…" Beloukas grinned, leading him further down the rows and rows of cages.

"Sure…"

King felt moment by moment, his creepiness meter was increasing. And when it reaches the max… he'd probably leave as soon as possible. There was a limit to how creepy someone could be, you know!

...

After a few twists and turns, they approached a rather large cage, a pair of dangerously glowing eyes immediately lighting up as they approached.

"Now; this is my recommendation to you." The short man pointed his cane at the beast inside.

"Grrr! Grah!" The creature lashed out, almost reaching King's face.

"T-That almost hit me!"

The suddenness of the event shocking him, the King engine flared! The Strongest Man could only do one thing! One instinctual thing that unbeknownst to him had saved his life numerous times!

[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]

"GRAHHHHHHHHH!" King released his mighty battle cry! A shout of strength and rage! Malice and terror! Bloodlust and death!

An expression that others might even consider threatening or downright terrifying was frozen on his face, his terrible voice echoed throughout the whole tent, making even the most courageous beasts fearful!

Immediately, the creatures around him became uneasy, hearing the unknown, beating sound, hearing the echoing cry of 'rage'! And soon, the whole establishment was filled with the beastly moans of terrified slaves!

The creature inside the big cage watched King with confused, then started to shudder, retreating to the farthest section of the cage, whimpering like a little puppy.

"Huh…" King finally stopped his 'battle-cry', still shocked, but relieved after checking himself one last time.

"Calm down! Calm down! You're perfectly safe! It can't hurt you from inside the cage!" King tried to calm himself, but it was easier said than done.

"Oh my! How strange…" Caressing his chin, the merchant snapped his fingers.

"Gauhhh!"

The cages around them started to light up, the moans and whimpers quieting immediately.

"...What was that? Do they usually act like this?"

"That was their Slave Crest, a seal etched on them to keep them in control. After all, it would be dangerous if they could rebel against their masters. This makes it much easier to control them, doesn't it?"

"And they wanted to put something like that on me…!?" As usual, his existence was cursed with bad luck. Still, didn't he read that his Legendary Weapon protected against slave seals and control-type curses or something?

"As for your prior question, no, they usually don't act like this. They used to be calm and silent; I made sure to break them properly. It seems that your bloodlust is affecting them, Shield Hero. I request that you do not upset my wares. It will bring no good if they break out from their cages in a frenzy."

"Easier said than done!" King was more scared than the creatures around him. Hell! If he wasn't rooted to the ground, he would have already run away; his creep meter already reached the maximum.

"I do my best to hold back…" He urged himself to calm down to reduce his heartbeat, but it was not that easy. He couldn't control his heartbeat!

"By the way, what are these things...? They look human, yet not." He already suspected the answer, but he wanted confirmation.

"Beastmen, of course…"

"Beastmen?"

"Yes, though many may call them demi-humans instead. They are classified as intelligent humanoids. More or less…"

"More or less?" King raised a brow.

"I suppose the rumors were true, the Shield Hero is not well versed in how things work here. Very well, let me explain." Beloukas pointed his cane at the still whimpering werewolf. "The Melromarc Kingdom has a human superiority custom, which makes it a difficult place for demi-humans and beastmen to reside in."

"Huh…" At least he found one positive thing in his current existence; that he was human, meaning he wouldn't face too much discrimination... well, he was already discriminated against a lot due to his false reputation as a rapist, but that was because of a false accusation.

Speaking of that, why did the King look overly disgusted at that? True, the accusation of rape was a heavy one, but he was so angered and disgusted it seemed as though he raped his own daughter.

"I assume there is a difference between demi-humans and beastmen."

"It is as you say… demi-humans closely resemble humans while having non-human traits and features, like their ears and tails, and some demi-humans like lizardmen have scaly skin. Beastmen are even less human compared to them, oh yes."

Looking towards the werewolf, it simply whimpered in response to King's glare, turning away from him. It seems that King had completely and utterly scared the werewolf into submission.

"So, does this one interest you, Shield Hero? I assure you, I can offer him for a great price."

"I don't think he's in any shape to fight…" King said, looking at the werewolf, which simply whimpered in response.

"Hmm, you're right. A battle slave that can't even fight properly is a useless slave. It seems like your battle-intent has scared him into submission. Regardless, nothing the slave crest can't solve." And again, the man snapped his fingers, and the werewolf cried aloud, standing up, still trembling. The crest on its chest glowed brightly, as it took forced steps towards King.

"It is unnecessary to hurt him. I get your point."

For a moment, the werewolf stopped trembling, looking at King curiously. The fact that a stranger, someone that was browsing for a slave no less, showing compassion to him? One could say that pity and remorse were foreign concepts to him, yet this fierce-looking man that intimidated him had showed him those values.

"Hmm, don't say you're pitying him."

"Even if that's the case, what does it matter to you?"

"I suppose it does not." shrugged Beloukas. "He costs 15 gold, by the way. I assure you, he's a quality product."

King mentally jumped. Even if his current money was doubled, he would go bankrupt after spending 15 gold.

"You know I don't have that kind of money, and despite that, you show me this slave."

"Of course, great customer! My eyes rarely deceive me! You see, I believe that one day, you will become a prominent person. A person that I want to make a connection with as early as possible. After all, we can't have some other incompetent traders selling you inferior goods for a higher price, right?"

"I suppose you are…"

"This is the status of the slave for reference." Showing King a small crystal; it displayed the werewolf's stats.

[Battle Slave: LV 75]

[Species: Werewolf]

"Holy shit! That's more than twice my level!"

[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]

King was disturbed; there was no way he could control such a thing! Wait, it was true that the 'slave crest' on it will allow him to control it better, but at such a high level, King would be surprised if it couldn't just kill him before he tried any 'commands'!

"I see you're excited. Don't worry, if you were to buy it, you can lift it's restrictions and spar with it as much as you like."

"Who the hell is excited!? Spar with it? Unless I'M the one with twice its level, there's no way in hell I'm sparring with it! I'd probably die even if it was holding back!"

"A little bit of info about this product. It had previously been fighting at the Coliseum. I picked it up when it was discarded due to its broken arms and legs."

"So you want to sell me a broken product?" King questioned. True, it had broken arms and legs, so it obviously wouldn't be as much as a threat, but with that high a level, King wouldn't be surprised if it could still overwhelm him instantly. He was less than half the werewolf's level, after all!

"Don't misunderstand, it's not as I want to con you. It is still under the market price."

"Most likely…"

"Now then! As you have already seen our best product, what kind of slave is to your liking?"

"Hmm… I think I will browse some of the cheaper slaves. My budget isn't exactly high at the moment." King said, yet, all he could think of is to get away from here, without becoming suspicious or losing face if possible.

"I see... It makes sense, I suppose. You need to be able to afford a room in an inn and some equipment for the slave you're buying, so spending too much is unwise. You're a smart customer, Sir Shield Hero." The slave merchant grinned creepily, which only unnerved King. "Follow me, then. I'll bring you to see some of the cheaper wares."

King followed the slaver merchant down the rows of cages of the cheaper slaves. The more expensive slaves were at least healthy, looking at the cheaper slaves, they looked malnourished at best, and half-dead at worst. The further they went, the smell of death was heavier, and King could see stains of dried vomit, blood, and pee everywhere he looked.

How someone could even live in such squalid conditions? King didn't know. Half of the slaves here either had an arm or leg missing, a horrible infection, or both.

"Well, these are the cheapest of the cheapest. Some of these slaves could be bought for just ten silvers. Though of course, finding any slave at that price that doesn't have a disease, all their arms and legs, and any time left to live in the first place is rarer than finding a gold coin on the street." Beloukas remarked. "We shouldn't dally here longer. Do you have any suggestions?"

"...Not really. All I ask is that they have all their arms and legs attached, and don't have any strange disease that cannot be cured." King said. "Slaves that don't even have all arms and legs?! Horrible infections?! That's more than just a crime against humanity in my old world, that's a hazard for people in general! What kind of sick fuck-"

"Hmm... we don't really have a lot of slaves that fulfill those conditions here. Shall we go to view the normal products? I can assume you none of them have any diseases or physical maladies." The slave merchant suggested.

"Okay then, let's go-" King wanted to move away as quickly as possible. This place was creepy as all hell! So many tormented slaves here... almost a quarter of all the cages were just corpses! King didn't want to stay here any longer, opting to stay as far away from here as possible.

But due to his incredible want to leave this place as soon as possible, King accidentally stepped on a puddle of piss that hadn't dried yet without noticing, and due to moving too quickly…

*CRASH*

…He slipped and fell, crashing into a cage before him, right away breaking the bars on it.

"Huh?" he can only blink, it was strange, yet he felt nothing when his face collided with the cage.

"Ah… AHHHH!" His attention snapped, hearing the sudden scream coming from before him, followed by frantic movements and a clamor against the furthest part of the cage. Looking up to see who he disturbed-

"…Are you joking with me?" A little girl around the age of ten was in the cage, a demi-human with a strange fat tail and round ears, almost completely skin and bone. She was heavily malnourished, that was for sure.

She was in bad shape, wearing nothing more than rags. On her face was a terrified expression, mixing both terror and desperation, tears flowing from her eyes. Her entire body was trembling uncontrollably, and slowly, a puddle of liquid gathered under her nether regions. Just by looking at her, King felt endless pity for the child in front of him, and for some reason, an unknown feeling rose in his chest.

"Ahh… Ahhh!" She was terrified, backing away to the back of the cage as she spotted King's bloodied face in the dark, however with another snap of the fingers from her master, her whimper ceased.

"Ahhhh!" replaced by a painful cry.

King slowly emerged from the cage, disturbed, dusting himself.

"What was this?"

"Ah, yes, I remember her. She arrived in quite bad shape. A problematic child indeed." Pondered Beloukas, not even caring that his 'ware' was on the verge of dying. A scared child who only wanted to get away. "Speaking of which, you accidentally broke a cage of mine, but no worries, I won't be charging you for that. It was my fault for not cleaning up this place, anyway."

"...You keep kids here?" King was horrified! How could a human be so cruel!?

"What? Don't you say you are pitying them? As I've said, they are just slaves. I care not for how they became slaves, but to me, they are nothing more than 'objects' to be sold for a profit."

"…" King remained silent, horrified by the cruelty of the man.

"Well, I'd better put her somewhere else. I have much better products to show you." Beloukas moved to grab the girl in the cage, leading her to who knows where. The girl seemed to resist, but with the commands of the 'slave seal', it lit up and followed by a cry, she obediently followed her master.

King was frozen, not only by the cruelty of the man but a small chill up his spine, thinking that someone wanted to have him a slave, like this poor girl over here!

No, just looking at the broken thing that was the girl made him remember himself! All his fears! All the trauma he ever experienced!

He... he just... not just as the 'Shield Hero', not just as the 'S-Class Hero King', but as a decent person, he could not allow something like this to happen!

"What would a hero do? What would Saitama do?"

He tried to come up with a solution, recalling his first meeting with his friend and savior.

Flashback:

"Are you alright? Is your eye okay? Try opening it slowly."

"Who-Who are you?" Looking up, before him, a bloodied man stood, heavily wounded after a fierce battle.

"Me? I'm just a hero for fun. If you see a hero rising, that'd probably be me."

"Y-you're hurt!"

"What, this? This is nothing."

"…"

"Heh, today was a great victory!" His smile was bright, filling King with peace and calm- a calm knowing that he was now safe.

Flashback End:

King remembered it all too well, his first meeting with Saitama. His bloodied appearance — still with hair — engraved in his mind. Granted, at the time, he didn't know who he was, but the point was that it was something he could try!

"Wait…!"

He placed his hand on the shoulder of the trader, making him turn around.

"Hmm…? Ugh!" Towering above him in the dark, King's bloodied appearance filled Beloukas with a foreign feeling — oh wait, he recognized it. It was a feeling that he had long since lost.

Dread.

[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]

"Stop for a moment, I'll inspect her."

"Hmm? So you pity her? She will be a hindrance to you in the long run, you know?"

"I don't care." King walked before the still trembling little girl, getting on one knee to get closer to her. She just sat on the ground, her eyes filled with dread, all her body trembling.

"Are you alright? What's your name…?"

"…" The girl simply whimpered, not daring to say a word. Beloukas was about to raise his hand and give the order, but King's 'death stare' was enough of a message to him.

"No." King's single word was more effective than the commands of a slave master, Beloukas's hand immediately stopped in its place.

"It's fine; I won't hurt you. I am King. Do you want to leave this place?"

"…" The girl stopped trembling for a moment, looking away.

"I've decided. I'll take her."

"Hmm, she's not really the best choice. But according to my information, you like obedient girls more..."

"Those rumors are unfounded…" Whatever he meant, King was sure it was nothing flattering.

"I see, I suppose that part of the rumor didn't match up. The rest however was definitely accurate."

"…" King's glare was profound, piercing even, making even the calm slaver clear his throat in embarrassment.

"This way, I keep a dagger in my office. We can get your blood out that way. We'll only need a drop."

"Why do we need my blood?" King asked, getting nervous.

"Now, now! It's nothing sinister. We just need to reprogram her seal so it will activate at your command, and not mine. Of course, you can change the trigger if you want."

"Is that really necessary?" King questioned, looking at the already suffering girl. She looked back at him, her eyes filled with hopelessness.

"What? Don't say you want to free her… Pft!" Beloukas released an amused chuckle.

King was not a hero. His life wasn't even decent — all day, every day stuck in his apartment playing his games and watching anime. If the people knew of his true self, they wouldn't even call him a decent person — much less give him the title of 'The Strongest Man On Earth'.

But now? Now was his chance. A chance to save someone. A chance to change her life for the better.

He was aware that he couldn't save everyone — heck, no one could. Not even Saitama. Even he couldn't be everywhere at once. But what he could do was save this little girl from the horrible fate of being abandoned and discarded— a girl who reminded him of himself— an ordinary person who was alone in the world of monsters, at the wrong place, at the wrong time.

It may not have been the wisest nor best decision, but he was certain that if he didn't save her right now, he would definitely regret it down the line. After all, he could definitely afford her! There was no way a small girl like her would be valued a lot by the slavers — as horrible as it sounded, it was beneficial to King, at least. He didn't need to bleed himself dry to save her.

"Yes, I want to free her…"

"…" Her eyes lit up for a moment upon hearing him, looking up at the previously scary man. Now, within her vision, King looked different from the scary monster she visualized him as earlier.

"Your choice, but you know, she's only level 1. She'll be a hindrance to you- urk!"

[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]

The King Engine beat vigorously as King stared at Beloukas, almost like he was staring straight into his soul.

"I don't recall that being any of your concern. And that will be... my problem." King looked down at the little girl. "So, how much does she cost?"

"20 silver coins for her. Another five silver for the cost of the removal of the seal..."

"I'll get her." Though it wasn't really much for him, the thought that he saved this small girl from her probably gruesome fate was in a word, relieving. It was like when he managed to buy the very last limited-edition Doki-Doki Sisters copy in the store.

Was this how heroes always felt when they saved lives? Honestly, he had no idea. If it was, then he could understand why they would want to save people so often.

"Very well, in that case, please follow me. We'll seal the deal and remove her slave brand."

"Hey."

"Huh?" The girl looked up to him; her expression still blank.

"Do you want to hold my hand? It's scary here, isn't it?"

The girl gulped, still wary of him, but accepting King's hand, nodding as the two of them followed her previous master.

After they removed the brand, King handed the money that was agreed on — twenty silver, plus one more gold for saving that other man.

He spent a great deal of money here; he honestly hoped he would not regret it later. But still, the money was for saving two lives. One was some mugger that attacked him — so it wasn't really reasonable to save him — but another was a little girl that he would definitely not regret saving. Even if he were to die from the waves, it was a comforting thought that he at least managed to save one life.

"See you again, great customer. We'll be looking forward to your next visit."

"Sure…" King just muttered, leaving behind the creepy little man and his dark establishment.

"Hmm, interesting choice. I am looking forward to your future accomplishments, dear Shield Hero." Beloukas said to himself once the Shield Hero was out of sight.

…

King and the girl walked through the dark streets, holding each other hands, as the girl just watched him, still unable to process what really happened. She expected to have been a slave again, but right now, she was free! She could run away right now and he couldn't command her to stop running. Yet something stopped her from doing so. Perhaps it was his strong grip? Or was it just the feeling of safety from being around this man?

'Cough! Cough! Cough!'

"Hmm, let's find an inn for now. I'll get you some clothes and gear tomorrow…"

King really hoped he could handle what was coming because one thing was for sure.

"What will I do with a kid? I'm so stupid, not thinking about this beforehand. Man, I'm so strained and tired!"

Now, he had to take care of her, AND prepare for and survive the waves, then find a way back home. Also, what was he going to do about her when he does leave eventually? He wanted to go home as soon as possible, but to raise a child until she could take care of herself... King REALLY didn't want to spend a few years in this nightmare of a new world.

The difficulty scale just raised a hundred times, and it was not the good kind of difficulty!

"Man… this is so annoying. I just want to quit already."

Scene Change: Next Morning:

"I am so tired… I couldn't sleep all night." Under King's eyes, deep circles were visible. Because of the girl coughing all night, he could barely sleep, this leading to his current appearance.

"Man, how they look at me right now is getting worse…"

He was already aware of the false rape charges Aultcray started to circulate about him. However, he was still clueless about why people looked at him with a lot more disgust and fear than yesterday.

It wasn't only because he was 'King'. It was because of the dried blood on his face and his chainmail still there from last night. A ragged demi-human walking with him was only the topping on the already messed up 'cake'.

King was too tired last night to take a bath after finding an inn, he rented a room with two beds, and went to sleep right away — at least trying to, but the girl's coughing woke him up in the middle of the night more times than he could count.

He didn't even recognize the flabbergasted and scared stares of the people around — and the quivering tone of the innkeeper back then. He was too tired to care at the moment.

"…" Looking down, the kid barely said a word, not even questioning where they were going.

"Are you alright?"

The girl just nodded but said nothing more.

'Cough! Cough!'

"I need to make her some medicine… by the way? What will I do with a kid? I really didn't think this through. I mean, I never took care of kids before. What do they even need? I know what I'd need as a kid, but I wasn't that normal a kid when I was younger, either. I doubt any kid in this world needed 14 hours of non-stop gaming and the rest for eat, sleep, and showering. There was definitely something else they needed! Something I didn't have as a kid!"

That was a question for later, as at this moment, King and the girl arrived at their destination.

"Oh, welcome my… shop."

"Hello…" King nodded to the shopkeeper, the well-known blacksmith of the town.

Honestly, he tried to buy some clothes from the clothing shop he spotted in the meantime, but for some reason, the shopkeepers either screamed at them in fear or immediately calling for the guards. His only option was to leave their establishment.

Thus, knowing no other place where people would at least tolerate him, it led his way back here — to Erhard.

"Yo-You!?"

"Do you have some clothes for her?" He motioned to the girl near him. "I tried a few clothing shops in the meantime, but the shopkeepers just screamed and called the guards."

"Tch! And you're surprised? Walking around all bloodied and menacing, dragging around a demi-human slave, and you ask why?" Erhard was pissed, and that was an understatement. Still, he wasn't foolish enough to try and pick a fight with King again. That one time was enough — even though they didn't actually exchange fists — and that was a good thing. After all, one fist was enough to destroy an entire section of a forest for this man.

"Bloodied?" King blinked, looking at the girl who nodded.

"Huh, I might have forgotten to clean myself. I was attacked by a few muggers last night."

"That's still not an excuse to clean yourself. There's a well behind my workshop. It's free of charge; you can clean yourself up there!"

"Oh, thanks, I guess."

When King returned from cleaning himself, Erhard was silent, still measuring the girl from head to toe.

"Still, I didn't think you'd do that in the end. I know that the country's corrupted and all, but buying a slave? You? What do you even need a slave for? You're plenty strong on your own!"

"Hmm…" King didn't even mention that he already freed her, as in the end he'd probably be misunderstood once again. "So, do you have some clothes around for her? I can't really go anywhere else."

"There might be a few, let me look around."

"A weapon would also be good…" She needed to protect herself; after all, King was unsure if he could properly protect her or not. Despite his legendary weapon being a literal shield, he was basically good for nothing when it came to attacking anything near his level.

"It would be the best if I could entrust her to some orphanage, or find her a loving family." But as the slaver told him before, demi-humans and beastmen were discriminated heavily in this country. She'd most likely end up in the same place again.

'Cough! Cough! Cough!' The girl gently yanked his arm, and King's attention wandered towards her.

"Hmm?"

She shook her head; her face had an expression filled with fear.

"Look, I don't like it either. Weapons are scary, even if you're the one holding one. I'll try my best to keep you safe, but I can't be there all the time." In fact, King was sure that he wouldn't be able protect her well at all. Still, to say such a thing to a child? Even he knew that'd bring no good.

"…" Still silent, the girl looked around herself, nodding in acceptance. The reality hit her; even if she ran away, the same thing would happen, and she'd get sold off to the slavers. Her only choice was to follow this man, the one that freed him and was even willing to buy a weapon for her.

To say that he was the nicest master — well, he technically wasn't her master, as he already freed her — would be an understatement.

"Bring some fitting weapons, too, please."

"Sure thing…" Erhard nodded, leaving after measuring the girl one last time.

…

"Those clothes are a little over-sized…" King thought, a little bit amused.

After the girl cleaned herself up a little bit in the backroom, she changed into her new clothes, exiting the changing rooms to show herself- fortunately, Erhard allowed King to clean himself up a little bit with the well behind his shop, so now he was definitely less scary than before.

"Aren't those clothes a little bit baggy?" He inquired with a raised brow.

He shouldn't complain, as this man was the only one who tolerated them in his shop. Still, it was just weird looking at the girl.

"She almost looks like an anime character with oversized clothes…" Or just any girl with oversized clothes. He saw many pictures and videos online when a girlfriend would wear the boyfriend's shirt; revealing it to be too big, the clothes just hanging on her.

"Don't be a pervert! She is just a kid!" King berated himself, he could already hear special forces banging on his door.

"She'll grow into it soon enough, there's no need for you to worry."

"That'll take years…" King deadpanned, that would take too long, and in less than a month's time, he'd most likely die along with the other heroes. Even if he did survive, he'd rather find a way home before a year passes. If people found out about his 'second life' stashed away in his apartment... he'd die of shame.

"Oh, so you don't know? Well, I suppose since you were summoned here a week ago, you don't know about it yet."

"What?"

Erhard sighed, starting his explanation. "Demi-humans are different from us humans in the way that they develop faster than humans. She'll grow into those clothes in no time."

"Sure…" Though King doubted it'd happen that fast. Maybe in a year or so if he was being generous, but in less than a month? Even dogs didn't grow that fast!

Well, that wouldn't really be weird for him; a person who came from a world where obsessions and immense negative feelings could literally transform you into a monster.

Yet, now, as he watched her checking her new oversized clothes, he felt something akin to pity towards her. Poor girl, stuck with a useless person like him. Anyone else would make a better guardian — him? Honestly, even a random police officer would do. And the police were essentially useless against monsters.

"So, can you show her a few fitting weapons? With a reasonable price, of course."

"Sure thing, wait just a moment."

Soon, Erhard prepared the required wares, placing them out on the counter.

"So, little lady, pick your fancy! I would personally recommend some short blade, like a dagger, or a shortsword. When you grow bigger, I can recommend you some bigger blades!" Erhard joked.

The girl looked around, still scared, looking at the weapons Erhard prepared.

"Hmm, I don't think she really likes weapons." It was evident from her expression that she was thoroughly scared by them.

"Well, you said you want her to have one." Erhard scratched his bald head confused, somewhat pitying not only the girl but King whom had to deal with her, aside from completing their 'grand' quest of pushing back the waves.

"Sigh... Then just give her your recommendation, I'll pay for the rest."

"Sure thing…" With that, Erhard picked up a fancy looking shortsword, putting it in a scabbard.

"Wait, I said pick your recommendation, but that looks fancy, won't that cost a fortune?"

"I'll sell it to you well under the market price; it was ordered by a noble for her daughter years ago. It's highly unlikely they'll pick it up anymore; it's just sat in my storeroom for years, collecting dust."

"Well, thanks, I suppose. So, what's the grand total?"

"A mere forty silver, and it is yours. I'll also give you the clothes for free."

"Hmm…" King started to calculate.

Last night, he spent around one hundred and twenty silver to save that man and buy this little one. It was one more silver to sleep in that inn. Spending forty silver to a weapon she'd most likely never use…? He was unsure if he should make this decision.

"Fine then…" He still had more than six hundred silver with him thanks to the plants, potions, and monster parts he sold, though the majority of it was just leftovers from the budget that Aultcray gave to him — well, before he banished him for 'raping' his party member. This single weapon won't be the thing that'll push him to bankruptcy — at least, he hoped so. More so, hopefully, that weapon would one day will serve her well — once she overcame her fear of weapons, that is.

"Master…?"

"Oh…" King blinked. "So you can speak?"

"…" She nodded silently, it seemed that she was just very timid.

"I see…" King paid for the weapon, handing it to the girl who put it around her waist — it was still a little too big for her.

"Hey, one more thing before you leave."

"Huh?"

"Don't go dying disgracefully out there, you hear me!?"

"I'll try my best… and thanks for the weapon and clothes."

"Sure thing…"

With that, King and the girl left, leaving the blacksmith alone.

"This guy… seriously! I know he looks like a ruffian, but he's a soft person at heart, huh? I suppose that accusation of 'rape' was false after all."

Outside, the fragrant scent of roasted meat and every other kind of food filled the air. It made King remember that he didn't have anything to eat since last night, and he hadn't had his breakfast yet.

"Man! I'm starving…"

'Gruuuh!' Of course it was evident, he wasn't the only one who was hungry.

"Do you want anything to eat?"

"…" Timidly, the girl nodded.

"Let's get something to eat, then." King considered the fact he was too soft, but then mentally punched himself in the face. He bought her from slavery, he had to deal with it. Also, who could say no to a starving child? She wasn't all that thin, but that didn't change the fact that she was malnourished for her age!

"Ah...!"

Finding a somewhat decent restaurant, it was almost like the kid wanted to say something before the two entered.

Unfortunately, King was too preoccupied to recognize it — feeling insecure thanks to all the stares they received, but mainly too hungry to care.

Immediately, many surprised stares aimed against them.

"We-Welcome…"

"Is there a free table for two?"

"Si-Sir? Didn't you read the sign outside?"

"What sign?"

"Demi-humans are not allowed here."

"Sigh... I see." King sighed, disappointed, and the girl just watched him uneasily. "Look, we're hungry, and we're willing to pay. Also, she's just a kid; we'll cause no trouble."

"St-Still…"

"She is just a kid…" That stare! That death stare scared the server out of his wits.

"Th-This way…"

Thus, they were led to an empty table, hidden somewhere in the back.

"What would you like…?"

She didn't answer, but subtly, she glanced towards a table not far from them where a kid enjoyed his meal with his parents.

"What is that?"

"A kid's menu." The server notified them.

"One from that, and a steak with some fries…"

"Ri-Right away!" It was evident that the server was scared out of his wits, King was just that intimidating. Not intentionally, of course, his face and depressed aura were natural.

Well, his aura seemed to grow ever since he was transported here, but what could he say? He never spent more than a day apart from his manga and games... it's been a full week since then! Though he did bring some with him when he was transported here, he already read the manga in his free time, and there was nothing to play his games on! Cars weren't even invented here, to say less about a gaming console.

Shortly after, their meal arrived, the child only watched it hungrily and salivating, King had already started to eat, reading one of his manga on the side.

"I-Is this really for me?"

"Hmm?" He looked up, surprised. Gulping down the bite of steak, King asked; "Are you not hungry? Or do you want something else…?"

"N-No… it is just…"

"Don't worry about it." King offered an encouraging smile. "I bought it for you, after all. If I freed you from slavery, I have to take care of you too, don't I?"

"O-okay."

This new environment had to be shocking to her; he somehow understood her situation.

"She most likely feels overwhelmed. Like me, when I received the invitation to become an S-class." Well, being freed from slavery and being promoted to an S-Class Hero were two entirely different things, but both counted as great changes in the individual's life.

King somehow understood how overwhelmed the girl felt.

She started to dig in immediately, using her bare hands and not the cutlery offered.

"She most likely never learned how to eat with them properly…" He had no idea where she came from, nor what her upbringing was like before becoming a slave. Only one thing was sure; she had a harsh life until now to not use the cutlery, as if afraid that the meal would disappear should she not eat fast enough.

In all honesty, King had no idea what to do with a kid like her.

He's never taken care of a child before, not to mention, he had absolutely no idea what a demi-human required, or how their bodies differed from a human. Did they need more food? A different diet?

Only one thing was sure; she reminded him of himself. Helpless and scared by the world around her. Stuck alone in a world full of monsters, every corner filled with danger and uncertainty.

No one deserved to experience that.

"No one should feel that way…"

…

With their meal finished, they headed out. Like usual, King continued the daily routine he picked up in the passing week.

Collecting herbs, trying to herd and kill every monster coming in his way — in other words, farming.

King wasn't confident enough to go deep into the forest where stronger monsters would pop up — also, as he said before, he didn't have the attack power to defeat any enemies that were relatively close to his level. The occasional wolf or bear could be dealt with.

Even if he could survive, the kid he now needed to take care most likely couldn't. She was just level 1 — according to the party icon that popped up after she joined him. Meaning, he needed to help her power-level. As a level 33, King could deal with most threats on the open field, like basic balloon monsters and other minor mobs with complete ease. However, he needed to make sure that the girl he was taking care of knew how to deal with them.

"Strangely, for Myne, this party notification didn't appear." What was odd! In truth, he didn't really do anything differently from when Myne wanted to join his party and the little girl over there.

Not to mention, when the transaction had been made with the slave trader, the notification popped up if he wanted to add her to his party — that did not happen with Myne.

The system said that members in a party would gain EXP together at an increased rate, so it was a no-brainer to accept her into the party.

Speaking of which, he still didn't know her name yet, and thus, she was still displayed as 'girl' in the party window.

"What an odd system…"

Grabbing a mushroom-like monster that tried to attack him in mid-air, King effortlessly squashed it with one hand, killing it instantly. He was level 33, the monster was level 1-ish. Even with his stupid-low attack power, it was more than enough to one-hit most monsters in the starter area.

[Congratulations! 'Girl' has leveled up!]

"Whoa!" the girl's eyes went wide, seeing how effortlessly King finished off a monster. Granted, it was an easy starter one, but no normal human could do something like that so easily!

"Well, that's been taken care of…" King muttered, looking at the girl's handiwork. She was still afraid to really use her blade, only instinctively slicing or stabbing towards the ones got through him — most of the times screaming in fear.

Still, it was better than standing completely frozen, waiting monsters to eat him.

"Yeah, she can deal with monsters better than me…" at least, compared to his past self.

"Master, just who are you?"

"Me?" King blinked, pointing at himself to confirm that he was her target of question.

"Mm!" The girl nodded curiously. It seems that slowly but steadily, she was regaining her voice. Perhaps she's brave enough after she's realized that she's no longer a slave?

"Or maybe she was just hungry…?" King pondered on the possibilities, he too was more vocal when he was not hungry.

"I am King; I was summoned as the Shield Hero." He didn't even mention his previous rank in his original world — it wasn't important anyway — and he didn't want to boast with a title and rank that should've belonged to Saitama in the first place.

Not to mention, there was no point in explaining who he was in his original world — unless he planned on bringing her back to his original world.

The girl froze, trembling after discovering King's identity. "T-The legendary Shield Hero?"

King chuckled, bitterly the girl think him like this. "Legendary? Nothing of the sort. I'm just a person that was summoned here to fight the waves." King sighed sadly, Raphtalia looking at King in a new light.

"By the way, what's your name?"

"Ra-Raphtalia, Sir… I mean, master!"

"Just King will do. I'm not your master, remember? I already freed you from slavery."

"O-Okay…"

"Well then, I'll be gathering materials today, you try your best to attack any monsters. All the monsters here are weak, but try to stay behind me at all times. I don't want you to get hurt, after all."

"R-Right…"

That meant that he had to place himself in harm's way, but he was drastically over-leveled for this area. There was little to no risk of injury here, so he could focus on defending the little girl.

'Cough!'

"Hmm, I'll need to craft some medicine for her later." Fortunately, he already unlocked a shield which allowed him to make simple medicine and a few more recipes. He still didn't have the ability to craft high-quality potions like the two he used for saving that mugger.

With that, they continued their farming venture, King doing most of the heavy lifting while the girl named Raphtalia remained behind, trying to defend herself if a monster get too close.

Though for the most part she just collected monster parts, there was that one time where a small monster ambushed Raphtalia, and she managed to kill it herself before King needed to do anything.

Most times, it was just a lucky slash, or just her instinct. Still, she was doing pretty well for a little girl that had was afraid to even hold a weapon previous, and probably little to no prior experience holding a weapon to go with it.

Even an adult like King was scared of monsters; he didn't need to imagine how stressed a little girl would be.

And thus, they spent their day like this.

A few hours later, King told Raphtalia to clean herself in the river after a particularly nasty encounter with an egg monster. Despite doing so in Erhard's shop, she had most likely just washed her face and wiped her body, not doing a thorough washing.

"Hmm, let's try this new recipe." With great practice, King recovered a few ingredients from his bag, and changed his shield to the Mushroom shield, preparing the basic set the pharmacist gave him as a bonus during one of their trades — and he also showed him how to do basic compounding.

Immediately, the icon popped up, which signified his increased effectiveness in compounding. Also, there were recipes displayed which he could craft now, paired with the material requirement and how much he had under his hand from the said ingredient.

Using his simple set, King imitated the proficient moves of the pharmacist — with a lot less finesse he might add.

[Compounding success! Medicine for Cold Created! EXP gained 2!]

The notification floated before King's eyes.

There were times when the creation process failed, and the ingredients used turned into a black waste, and he had to start over again.

In a way, this crafting system really resembled a game — yeah, of course it would. Everything in this world so far resembled a game so much, King would mistake it as a VRMMORPG if he was none the wiser. Sadly, those didn't exist yet back in his world so it was a definite 'yes' to the fact that he was in a different world, no matter how he'd like it to just be a dream or a test-run of a VRMMORPG.

"Hmm… everything really is game-like in this world. Honestly, if not for the looming threat of death in the next month, I'd be slightly happy about being here."

King was not a fan of crafting in games, only doing so if it was necessary — for example, the best armor, weapon, and items in some games were only available if you crafted them yourself.

In those cases, he had no choice but had to suffer through the leveling grind of professions, then farm for ingredients to craft those items. Some games had good crafting mechanics and were actually pretty fun to level, others were just pure grinding that would make even the most patient gamer want to give up.

"Still, this shield is pretty handy in the way where I don't need to grind for recipes nor leveling up any crafting skills, I just need to level up and upgrade the shield itself, and feed it ingredients that I want to use to craft a potion! It's as easy as that, and some recipes are immediately unlocked after, talk about convenient!"

Of course, he didn't dislike the crafting process of creating an item, only the grinding necessary to reach it. In this case, it was convenient enough to not need to care much about it — not to mention, it was his biggest source of income so far. On some days where he could find almost no monsters to kill, he'd even be able to earn more EXP from crafting than grinding.

These things, combined with the immense usefulness and quality of the potions created with his shield, it made him reconsider his stance about crafting. Then again, it was a lot less stressful than fighting monsters, so naturally King was biased towards the former.

'Cough! Cough! Cough!'

When Raphtalia was finished, she sat down not far from King, warming herself near the fire which he lit.

"Who'd have thought the integrated laser pointer in my phone would've come handy one day…?"

It's strongest setting was strong enough to light small leaves to start the fire with; also, the phone contained many useful survival gadgets he didn't really care about back then — but now they were immensely helpful.

At first, King had no idea why Metal Knight integrated all these things into every Heroes Association communicator, but now he was glad that he did.

"I don't know how to actually light a fire with just simple tools, aside from those videos I watched online. I'm also lucky that my phone was in my pocket when I was transported here." More so, he was lucky that he was an S-Class hero and had access to such unique experimental technology only the brightest minds of his world could come up with.

The phone contained high-efficiency solar panels, and gyroscopic charging, making sure that it would practically never runs out of energy — unless one WANTED it to run out of energy and had to actually put in effort to drain all the energy in the phone without charging it.

Now, he only needed to move around or open up the small solar panels onto direct sunlight, and it would be always charged!

"I need to make sure that I'm available in case someone from the Hero Association tries to reach out for me."

It was true that he was in an entirely different world, but he came from his world to this one — there was definitely a way back!

Be it magic or science; he trusted the eggheads back in his world — Or at least, had enough faith in them to figure something out.

"Like in a manga I've read that one time, all windows are two-way entrances…" In that case, what is brought through, should logically be able to be sent back, no? At least, King really hoped so.

"Sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic…" At least, he really hoped so. If even Child Emperor or Metal Knight weren't able to figure it out, he'd be in seriously deep trouble. Living in this world with almost zero modern comforts?

"Shit…"

'Cough! Cough!'

"Oh! right, here, drink this." King offered the simple medicine to the girl, who flinched from the bitterness of the drink.

"Um..."

"Be careful, it is bitter…" He offered a small smile, only to receive a small pout. True, the drink was bitter even for him — for a little girl? He was surprised that she didn't immediately vomit it out.

King recovered a small portion of the dry rations he bought back in the town, offering it to the girl.

"Here, you need to keep your stamina up…"

And thus, she ate the dried meat, enjoying even this kind of food.

"Sir Shield Hero…"

"King is fine…"

"Sir King… why are you so good to me? Why did you free me?"

King stopped on his tracks, glancing away. "I suppose you reminded me of myself," King told the truth, he doesn't want to lie to her.

"Yourself?" The girl's ears perked up, and King just nodded. "Bu-But, you're the Shield Hero! It can't be…!"

"I'm no hero; at least, I don't feel like one."

"Do-Don't feel like one?"

"I'm just a simple person trying to survive in a world of monsters, doing what he feels is right. That can't be considered a hero. Also, it's the task of the strong to protect the weak, one can't be called a hero for doing just that."

"J-Just a person? Doing what you feel is right? Protecting the weak…?" Raphtalia pondered for a moment, her expression going blank as she mumbled, thinking through what her savior told her.

Outwardly, King looked confident — his expression stoic and serious — yet, deep inside, he screamed in denial.

"THE HELL IT IS!? I STOLE THIS FROM A MANGA!"

"Well, shall we stop for today? The sky's darkening, and it would be bad to spend the night outside."

"Mm…" The girl nodded timidly, remembering the cold nights in her cage without anything to cover her.

King was aware that he had to start traveling further away from the town if he wanted to find monsters appropriate to his level.

"I still have no idea what to do with her in the long run. Nor how to defeat monsters close to my level..."

She was now at level 5 after just a day of grinding.

An impressive growth compared to her when she was level 1, when she started out.

Still, King wasn't sure if she would be able to survive if they started to go to more dangerous areas.

He couldn't be there all the time to protect her; not to mention, she freaks out when she needed to use her weapon.

"I need to do something. If aggro works like it does in games, she'll be the one to draw monsters towards her from the furthest areas if we proceed further before leveling her up."

Things didn't look very bright; King already feared what will come next.

As the last rays of sunlight painted the horizon with orange colors, King decided it was time to head back, sell the excess loot, and find an inn to rest.

"Sooner or later, we'll have to spend our time outside the city, but how would we manage? The kid's only starting to learn how to properly use a weapon, and if we have to sleep outside, what about monsters? What about then?"

Maybe, if he could manage to convince her to use a weapon properly, they could level up and proceed faster. They had less than three weeks to prepare, after all.

"I know it's risky, also, making a kid use a weapon?" It was heavily against King's moral code, but what could he do? He was out of options.

"Nonetheless, I can't do anything about it right now… I'll think more about it tomorrow."

With that, they retreated for today, after selling their loot and crafted potions, they found an inn where they spent the night.

It was to be expected; once again, King barely slept thanks to the girl. Her coughing lessened, but she screamed all night, calling for her father and mother.

He barely managed to calm her down— the innkeeper almost throwing them out in the middle of the night — but then suddenly decided to change his mind. King wondered why, but it was obvious. His face was enough to leave the innkeeper scurrying. It didn't stop him from kindly asking them to leave the next day, though.

If this continued on like this, not only will King collapse out of exhaustion, but they'd need to spend every night under the sky — something King hoped wouldn't happen so soon.

"Sorry…" The girl sniffed, feeling guilty the next morning.

"Don't worry, it's not your fault. I'm sure we can solve this." At least, he really hoped so.

While walking out of the city, King even bought her a ball to comfort her. He couldn't help it; kids were his weak point.

According to a few manga he read before, children would calm down after playing around a little bit or after receiving a toy.

He really hoped that this cheap ball made from balloon scraps would be able to calm her and make the next few nights bearable.

…

And thus, a whole week passed like this. Farming, crafting and leveling, trying to push deeper into the forest to find stronger monsters.

Despite all the progress they had made, King started to feel that it was hopeless. He'd likely never find his way home or level enough to survive. Day after day, he felt exhaustion — both mental and physical — catching up with him.

"A positive thing, though; she no longer freezes up when the monster is coming right at her, and she's fine with using her blade and stabbing them now. Still, I feel bad for making her do this."

He offered her the chance to leave under the passing week, he even planned to give her some money to start her life, but she said no — 'I want to accompany the Shield Hero and help him in his quest to save the world' — as she proclaimed proudly — even pouting slightly.

Poor kid, she had no idea what kind of person fate brought her together with. Still, for the time being, he had to take care of her, until she was able to take care of herself.

"Also, even if she had accepted my offer to leave, where would she go?" Hearing her screams at night, she would constantly call for her parents. "They'd have most likely died." He could understand her thinking. She didn't want to go back to being a slave, and she didn't know how to survive out on her own. Obviously, she'd take the choice of following him around.

"Sigh..."

One thing that was positive, though, was that he realized he could use his shield to teleport around. He could return to the town or any areas he had previously visited. Thus, it was no problem to move quicker and continue where they left off last time. It was quite handy, it was a starter skill every game character had for their convenience — they worked in almost the same way.

"S-Sir King?" The girl blinked, catching up with him as they walked down on a dirt road.

"Yes?"

"Am I just a hindrance to you?"

"Why would you be?" King asked, raising a brow in confusion.

"It's just…" She bit her lip. "It's just that I always cause trouble for you."

"Trouble?" King was surprised, aside from the few problems that arose but weren't her fault — like her nightmares and coughing; she was a good kid. Why would she be a hindrance to him?

"You know…" She started to play with her fingers. "Because of me, we can't sleep in inns for more than a night; and you need to protect me. Like yesterday, when those boys tried to take my ball away, and you had to scare them away."

"Oh, that…" King hummed, remembering what happened yesterday.

Flashback:

Being unable to take it anymore, he rented a room in a cheap inn he never visited before, willing to sleep through the day to make it up at night without the kid. Speaking of which, it was strange that he didn't feel the chill of the night anymore.

"Hmm, it's probably just my high resistance stat working…" And it was pretty much confirmed; his body was like that of a game-character's.

"It is really fine for me to go out?"

"Of course, you're still a kid, I can imagine how bored you would be just staying in this room all day. Just come back before nightfall and don't stray too far from the inn, otherwise you could get lost."

King would not mind being alone, as throughout the whole week, he had hardly any time alone because of needing to take care of her. An introvert Otaku like him would really crave being alone for even a few short hours, at least.

"Yay! Thank you!"

With that, Raphtalia left the room, going out to play a little bit with her ball. King was lying down in his bed.

"Finally, some peace…"

He wasn't worried about her. As he got to know, being demi-human or not, adventurers and traders were left alone by the local authority—not wanting to raise the ire of different countries these people belong to. As much as they discriminated against demi-humans or beastmen, they wouldn't just directly harass them in broad daylight, unless they wanted to invite trouble for themselves.

"Ah, some sleep… finally."

And he really, really hoped that he could finally get some sleep, yet just before he could fall into the REM phase, a scream made his eyes pop open.

"Eiii!" It was Raphtalia's scream.

"Oh, for fuck's sake..." King mumbled indignantly. He was just about to get some shut-eye, dammit!

"Why is a demi-human like you playing around here?"

"Yeah, go away! Filthy beast."

"Gi-Give it back!"

"What now?" King's heart started to beat loudly, being woken up so suddenly, he walked to the window and looked out.

[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]

"What's the meaning of this!?" King shouted, leaning out from the window of his room.

"Not your problem, old geezer!" Shouted back one of the delinquents, a kid only a few years older than Raphtalia.

"Old geezer? Seriously? I'm just 29! Wait, no, I'm pissed at them for ruining my sleep!"

"Yeah, just ignore this!"

"This isn't your problem! Or do you want to protect a filthy demi-human?"

"You will leave, before I get down there…" King squinted his eyes angrily; for the first time, the 'King Engine' didn't beat out of nervousness. He just wanted to get some sleep, but these little shits HAD to go and ruin his day. Nope, enough was enough.

King wasn't just angry. He was fucking pissed.

"Huh? What's that noise?"

[Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!]

"Stealing isn't nice. I'll ask you again, leave, and give her ball back... or there will be consequences." He told them in a steady tone, recognizing that one of them was holding Raphtalia's ball.

"Ahh… Ahhhh!"

"Sorry!"

"Please forgive us!"

"Huh?" King just blinked, his anger turning into confusion, not understanding what just happened, with the kids running away scared out from their wits.

"Yeah! Sir King, you're a true hero! Thank you!"

"Sure…" King just sighed, still confused about what happened. Nonetheless, he was relieved those kids were leaving his companion alone. That kid was through a lot; bullying her was too much.

Then again, he was just super pissed that something interrupted his sleep.

"Just be careful. Tell me if something happens."

"Mm!" With that, Raphtalia went back to playing happily and cheerfully with her ball, and unbeknownst to either of them, the people in the surroundings were whispering to themselves, not daring to approach her during the day, fearing the wrath of the mighty King coming for them! He spared no one, not even children!

Flashback End:

"Still, it's a little strange why they ran away so fast. Maybe they got scared after realizing I was going to complain to their parents about their behavior? No matter, I'll be sure to give them a piece of my mind if that happens again."

Of course, the reason behind their sudden escape was entirely different.

Unknown to him, waking up so suddenly increased his pulse enough to make the King engine audible, combined with the dark circles under his eyes and with his face that could intimidate even Dragon-level threats, it would be a wonder that they didn't run away immediately.

Adding onto his 'threat' was a weapon that able to disable even the strongest monsters back in his world.

A presence that painted a terrifying picture of a monster in human skin in the mind of those kids, a person who wouldn't ask twice, and when angered would release a bloodbath that would make even the ghosts wail.

Yeah, it was a trademark look of his that saved his skin more times than he could count.

"That isn't your fault, it's those children, and their parents for not educating them right."

"Really? You're not mad about that? But then that time I peed the bed? You weren't angry at me?"

"Well, that wasn't a good thing, but that wasn't your fault either, was it? Accidents happen sometimes, and they're not controllable. You're getting over it now, and that's a good thing."

Though he had never peed the bed before, he had definitely pissed himself before, like that one time a bird monster popped into his apartment. If not for Saitama being there at the time, he'd probably have been a red mush the police wouldn't have been able to identify.

"Ye-Yes, I suppose you are right."

"Good…" King patted her head, smiling.

"Thinking about it, her ears are really fluffy…"

"S-Sir King, please stop!"

"Oh, sorry about that…" Her ears might be sensitive, too. Animals usually don't like when someone tampered with them.

"Lo-Look out!" Suddenly, a rabbit-like creature that was bigger than normal jumped out from the bushes, aiming towards King. Its huge fangs looked dangerous, and they were heading for King's neck.

It would've done absolutely nothing and King would've shrugged it off by literally crushing the monster in his hand, but Rapthalia didn't know that.

In just a moment, the girl was before King, using her shortsword to cut the monster in two.

[Exp gained: 10!]

"I-I killed it! I-It's blood!" Her face went pale immediately after realizing that she was now covered in blood.

Up until now, they had only fought creatures that didn't have blood! Actually, being near blood terrified the girl!

The girl breathed haphazardly, seeing the terrifying red substance that covered her whole body, making her hair sticky.

"It's alright…" King placed his hand on her shoulder, looking in her eyes. "You managed to kill it."

"Bu-But… it is dead. Its blood! I-It's…!"

"Sigh… Look. We kill, or we die, that's the law of nature. We eat them, or they eat us."

A quote from a manga. One of King's many sources of inspiration.

"I-I see…"

"I hate blood, too. Blood, weapons, violence, I don't like any of it. Whenever we get attacked by a monster, it's normal to be afraid. Even I feel fear when I think about facing an enemy." And that was the truth, the thought of facing a monster that was the same level as him... it terrified him!

The single, lone thought that there would be a wave coming in the near future that would kill everything if they didn't stop it was all that King needed to push him to wake up every day and get to grinding.

"If it wasn't for this wave thing... It's a no-brainer, I'd just hide somewhere and let the other heroes to the job for me. I mean, what if I don't survive the wave? Will all my suffering in this world just be for nothing?"

"Th-Then…?" She gulped, looking into King's deep blue eyes. "H-How, can you face them? How can you be so… courageous?"

"Courageous?" King smiled bitterly, pitying the poor kid for expecting such a thing from a coward like him. Honestly, she was just deluded, not recognizing how much he trembled every time they wandered out.

"Fear is the sign that you are alive, Raphtalia. Courage is overcoming your fear to protect what's important to you."

"I totally stole this from somewhere!" Unfortunately, it didn't come to his mind where he stole this quote from.

"I-I see…" She mumbled, looking down.

Though this was stolen from some of the manga he read, it didn't make it any less accurate.

Courage was needed to overcome fear. If you didn't fear anything, there would be no need for courage to overcome those fear.

Unfortunately for King, the only thing that pushed him forward was an even bigger fear. The fear he would not live long enough to go home. In that case, he didn't use courage to overcome his fears, he just stamped out his fears with an even bigger fear.

"Though it still leaves me in fear anyway…" He was back in square one. That thought didn't help his frail ego and self-esteem at all.

"Let's get you cleaned up; I'll solve the rest for today."

"And hey..."

"Y-Yes?" the girl looked at him, still slightly shaken.

"You did well! You're one step closer to overcoming your fears." King offered a thumbs up, smiling encouragingly. A moment that was engraved in the heart of the girl, a moment she would treasure forever.

"So, let's try and overcome our fears together, okay? Let's get stronger, in order to survive."

"O-Okay…" And with that, the image of the inspiring hero — King was NOT — was born in the heart of Raphtalia, making her push herself harder to live up to his savior.

Continuing their adventure, will the two manage to survive what's coming? You will know if you read further!

Until then… be safe, and may King be with you!

A/N:

Well, that's for now!

I hope it was good enough!

The next chapter is coming when it is ready!

In the next chapter:

Overcome your fear! The wave of the apocalypse!

Can the "strongest" hero save the world!

Read and find out!

Until then…

Be safe! Sail safe! Good day! Good night! Be well! Stay clear from Corona!

RnR!

Read and review!

Send PM if you have question!

Editor's Note: Corona's a bitch, but shitty internet is another. Sorry for the delays.