Give major credit to RedFistCannon! This story was essentially a collaboration of ideas from the both of us and RedFistCannon has played a major, major hand in this! You are a godsend!

Talon C.: Also, we want to put up this VERY IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER! RedFistCannon and I are NOT medical professionals in any stretch of the imagination. We only know the bare basics when it comes to first aid and most of what you might see in this story moving forward is probably from Wikipedia.

And now, a word from my collaborator!

RedFistCannon: Hello dear readers! RedFistCannon here, just wanted to thank you all for reading through this. Talon and I are having a blast writing it and I hope you can excuse the delay, we believe that quality trumps quantity so we're constantly rewriting and improving our drafts before posting! We're trying to stay somewhat faithful to canon all the while altering the events of the story accordingly to the butterfly effect Naofumi is causing. So expect a lot of big events coming up.

PAIRINGS!

RedFistCannon: Before anyone asks about pairings, Talon and I have already decided on it and no, it's not a Harem. Anyway, I hope y'all have a wonderful weekend and enjoy this piece!

Dawn had yet to arrive and Naofumi found himself already awake. Over the years living with danger hanging above his head, he's found himself sleeping less and less. Even if the bed he's lying on was, admittedly, the best thing he'd slept on in a long time, it was simply hardwired into his biological clock. He'd always wake up early, prepare his tools and any materials he might need for the day (or week) ahead then exit his hideout. Naofumi would look for anything to salvage (especially books or pieces of technology) or look for anyone who might need his assistance. It wasn't something he'd call a "healthy lifestyle," as ironic as that sounds coming from a man of Naofumi's profession, but it served to distract him from the depression clouding his mind. As long as Naofumi had some energy, he could use it to benefit someone in some way.

Naofumi sat up, noticing that he hadn't taken his mask off last night and had slept on his side to accommodate this. Grimacing as he "woke" the arm he slept on, Naofumi put on his clothes and went outside on the veranda, perhaps relaxing and taking in the view would be enjoyable. The night was clearer than he ever remembered back on Earth. Even before the war, he could see the first light starting to paint the horizon a nice shade of yellow and green as the sun would be peeking soon enough. The only sounds his ears received were the chirps and coos of the early birds living in the trees of the castle's gardens, which he might comment, looked to be worked on and decorated by various flowers and hedges. It was all such a peaceful and beautiful view that Naofumi momentarily let go of all his worries, he looked back to make sure the others were asleep and took off his mask to bask in the cold but refreshing morning air.

Before the Doctor knew it, the sun had already started rising on the horizon and he could see the town start to come to life. He heard some shuffling behind him and wordlessly put his mask back on and resettled his goggles, hiding his features from the world.

"Hey Naofumi, you really like watching the view, eh?" Itsuki's voice drew a chuckle from the Doctor.

"It has been years since I've seen a clear sky and a busy town, I want to enjoy the sights while I can," Naofumi answered, making Itsuki look down briefly as he remembered last night's conversation.

"Oh right... um... that," Itsuki awkwardly replied.

Naofumi said nothing in reply and waited for the others to awake in silence.

Soon enough the four had finished their morning rituals and gathered in the throne room. The King and the Nobles were already there alongside a selection of people standing with their backs to the throne. Naofumi had to arch a brow at the strange assortment. Mages, scouts, and warriors. It was certainly a different bunch, he glanced at some of their levels briefly, most were in the thirties.

So these are the adventurers that are to accompany us huh? They look competent enough, and if their levels are anything to go by, strong enough.

"Noble heroes, I hope our accommodations were to your satisfaction. Today you will embark on your journey to defeat the dreaded Waves and to help you on this most perilous task, we have acquired the best adventurers in the city," Aultcray announced. At the King's prompt, the aforementioned adventurers bowed to the King in recognition. "Adventurers! Choose the hero whom your heart wishes to serve!"

Naofumi, once again, arched a brow in surprise. That was certainly a useful method as the four of them had little idea of these adventurers' strengths and weaknesses. That, and it was better for these men and women to voluntarily work for them than to feel compelled to. Although...

The book did mention a princess masquerading among them.

Naofumi's eyes scanned over the adventurers, making sure to pay attention to any woman that stood out.

As he was mulling in his thoughts, the adventurers had made their choices and stood behind their respective heroes. To his confusion, however, not a single person had opted to stay behind him. Ren had five followers, Itsuki had three and Motoyasu had four (all of them women). Naofumi would normally not be bothered with such a development but it did make him realize something.

The King said that the entire country was in danger. While I can understand having preferences on who to work with, shouldn't the safety of the people take priority?

"This certainly is a unique situation," Aultcray mumbled, sounding troubled. A man that looked like the Monarch's right hand or adviser came to speak on his ear, the King nodding and seemed to be deep in thought. "It seems rumors about the Shield being ignorant of our ways have been circling around the castle. Legends say that the Heroes usually have a concise understanding of our world." The King stroked his white beard as he pondered.

That... could be a problem, it was obvious they had been spied on, and while Naofumi made no mention of any personal experience in video games, he believed that the rumors were overly exaggerated. Concise understanding? What, did they expect him to know everyone and every important location?

Motoyasu echoed his thoughts, whispering that one of the maids might have listened in on their conversation. Ren and Itsuki both seemed to agree with the older blond while Naofumi opted to remain silent.

The King, seeing that the Shield wasn't shaken by that development, cleared his throat, "Ahem, would anyone like to join the Shield Hero?" Aultcray asked, although it seemed as if the question itself was asked for appearance's sake.

None of the adventurers moved, even when the other three heroes turned to ask them the same question, Ren more or less threatened them with leaving them behind if they "dragged him down." They all felt a little more pity for the lone Doctor, not only was he the Shield which was already a weak class in their opinion, but he had to enter into this entire adventure solo.

"It's alright your Majesty, as I told my fellow Heroes yesterday, I'll manage," the Doctor stated.

"Sir Shield!" A cheerful voice rang out, accompanied by a dainty hand raised in the air, Naofumi following the movement to the figure of an, admittedly, beautiful young woman in her late teens or early twenties on Motoyasu's team.

She spread a hand against her chest and turned to address the king, "Would you allow me, Myne Sophia, to join the Shield Hero?"

Motoyasu quirked his head, seemingly unsure, "Are you sure?" whether he was worried for her safety or worried for himself losing a potential party member was left in the air.

"Yes!" The girl closed her eyes and nodded, throwing out a beaming smile for extra effect.

Naofumi remembered his earlier suspicions and decided to appraise the girl more thoroughly.

Did she hesitate that much? Or is she trying to put on a scene? Either way... what the hell?

Taking a closer look at her, his Appraisal showed him something interesting.

Her level isn't showing up... strange...

Either Myne was too strong or there was something else at play, both options had their downsides.

"Even with a single party member, it looks like you will have to gather your own followers, Sir Shield. But fear not, we shall provide you with a slightly higher starting fund for your journey. I assume that you all agree with this?" The four nodded and the adviser came forth, taking this as his queue, to distribute four sacks of coins, one of them a little larger than the others.

However, Naofumi straightened his back and nodded, accepting the girl into his team, if only to better keep her under a watchful eye.

"Thank you for your kindness," he said curtly, his tone not giving away anything.

"As compensation for his lack of companions, the Shield will receive an additional 200 silvers. Please use these funds to equip yourselves and your party accordingly and push back against the evil that threatens our land." the King announced. Naofumi had received 800 silver coins while the other had 600, he nodded and turned to the exit alongside the others, he glanced at Myne from the corner of his vision, a nagging feeling scratching at his skull.

In any case, I could always use a gofer, Naofumi thought in the end, shelving these worries for later.

With that, the four parties made their way outside, exiting and going about their separate ways, the three offensive Heroes each took the lead of their respective groups and went in different directions. Naofumi and Myne chose to go eliminate low-level monsters for experience grinding. Still, spending the years he did in what he dubbed as "Hell" has given the Doctor the ability to read people better. That, and he's learned to start trusting his gut when it comes to such issues, he's dealt with his fair share of conmen and tricksters to recognize the feeling that came over him, the same feeling that this Myne character was exuding. He would have to tread carefully.

"Sir Shield Hero, we should go straight to the fields to start training so we can level up! There are lots of low-level monsters there that should be easy for someone like me to take care of," Myne had said as she once again, touched up Naofumi's arm and tried to drag him there by the hand, only for young woman to nearly trip considering Naofumi didn't so much as flinch from the sudden pull.

Naofumi pulled his hand away from Myne's, "I'd appreciate it if you didn't touch me," Naofumi said curtly. "I'm... not used to such contact."

Naofumi rubbed the back of his head to appear bashful. While it wasn't that far from the truth, he actually really didn't like it when people he didn't know touched him, some might call it similar to OCD or paranoia but it was something unrelated. He simply did not like unwelcome intimate contact.

The redhead's smile twitched as she regained her bearings, "Alright then, Sir Shield Hero, but we should be on our way."

The Doctor only nodded before gesturing for her to lead the way while he opted to move at a sedate pace behind her, taking the time to once again try and memorize his surroundings. The wares were quite exotic, some he had never seen before while others were things that he hadn't seen since the aftermath of the war. Heh, saying it like that made Naofumi sound like a veteran (which he kinda was). He did notice one strange thing however.

These signs... I can't read any of them... that might prove to be problematic. The Shield seems to translate the spoken tongue fairly easily but there has to be a way to understand anything written.

Naofumi would have to either find some way to read the written dialect either through some magical translator in his Shield, or he would have to learn as a child would. Naofumi would prefer the easier route considering time was something of the essence.

In fact, when does the next Wave even start? Is there something that can tell us when?

A worry for another time.

Naofumi stared into each sign, examining each letter, or symbol, in the written language, hoping that perhaps the Shield would automatically translate. But that was in vain as nothing miraculously transformed into kanji, romaji, katakana, not even hiragana.

Arriving outside the walls in the fields and pastures surrounding the city, Naofumi took a moment to once again admire the greenery and the beauty of nature, he noticed something moving in the grass, a red holographic arrow pointing down at it. He dropped his bag, removed his shotgun, steeled his nerves and twitched his hands, preparing himself for the worst.

What came out was something... unexpected...

Naofumi had honestly wanted to laugh.

What are those things?! Hahahahaha! They look like something straight out of an old anime!

The first monsters that Naofumi and Myne found were small, ball-like creatures that were a dark orange color and had the most cartoonish version of a menacing expression he had seen since his childhood.

One of them had decided to charge at Naofumi, bouncing up and down at a rapid pace while making a funny sound similar to when you slammed a dodge ball into someone's face. Lunging forward to take a bite out of the Doctor to see what he tasted like, Naofumi easily caught the small creature with one hand, kept a grip on it and brought it closer to his face to inspect it. He was taken by surprise by the sheer ridiculousness of the entire scenario that he unconsciously ignored the other balloon creatures jumping and biting into his back.

Myne stood there, watching the whole affair with wide eyes. The Shield Hero was supposed to be weak and inexperienced, and yet Naofumi caught the monster so easily. Then again, he seemed to have missed the ten other creatures that lunged and bit into him, so that one might have been a fluke.

She smirked. Combat experience or not, Naofumi was the Shield Hero, thus he had little to no attack power, it would surely take him hours to kill even one of these measly creatures.

As if to prove Myne's thoughts incorrect, and to see if Overhaul worked as it should, Naofumi gripped the balloon creature and activated his skill. The Balloon's surface seemed to ripple for an instant before popping in a similar manner to its inanimate counterpart. Raising an eyebrow at the minor delay to his power, he shelved that worry for later and opted to rid himself of the rest of them. He grabbed the others, popping them in a similar manner all the while noticing a similar delay appearing as well as a drain on something inside him. There was also the tiny notification appearing at the corner of his vision, indicating a +1 EXP gained after each kill.

It's taking me exactly one second to kill each balloon and...

Looking at the top left of his HUD, Naofumi noticed one of the bars had dropped to almost three quarters of what it used to be.

SP huh? Skill Points I guess? So Overhaul uses up some of it, but how much?

As if to answer him, a notification popped up into his vision.

[The Special Ability "Overhaul" is classified as a Skill by the Legendary Shield]

[Skill: Overhaul]

[SP cost: 1 pt / 1 second of use]

[Area Of Effect: 300 Cubic Meters]

[SP: 29/40]

Myne meanwhile, just stood at the sidelines, her thoughts coming to a stop at the unbelievable sight and trying to understand how any of this was possible. The Shield Hero, the supposedly weakest of the heroes, had just touched a balloon creature and it died in an instant! So consumed in her frantic thoughts was she, that she did not notice the same balloon-like monsters creeping up on her until one of them jumped and bit her firmly on the ass.

"Aah!" Myne squealed, losing her composure and going into panic. She took her sword out and started swinging like a mad woman at the little creatures, massacring them with extreme prejudice, all the while her partner just stood by and watched her in amusement.

The Doctor turned to his recently killed prey and gathered the popped balloon pieces, feeding a couple of pieces to his Shield to unlock the [Orange Shield] which only offered a measly two additional defense points.

The whole thing might take a while, but I guess I'll just have to put everything I find into the Shield.

The Doctor's thought process was cut off by his partner who came up to him, a series of bite marks and various tears littered her body and clothes. She seemed to be incredibly frustrated and trying her hardest not to show her anger towards him to the point her face was turning a lovely shade of scarlet. She muttered some curses under her breath before straightening out and speaking in an overly cheery voice.

"Sir Shield Hero, I think we should buy some better equipment, I know the best blacksmith in town," she announced, making the doctor raise an eyebrow at her behavior, mentally noting it down before opting to go with her.

They had arrived at the blacksmith's shop all the same. The only thing indicating the shop's role was the metal sign over the door which looked like it was handmade into the shape of an anvil. The shop was rather unassuming, but Naofumi could feel the heat of the forge from where he was standing in front of the door.

Opening the door with the sound of a ringing doorbell from above their heads, Naofumi and Myne entered the shop. Naofumi was impressed with some of the equipment that was placed on display.

"Welcome to my shop! The name's Erhart, I'm the blacksmith here. What can I do for ya?" A large, burly man stood behind the counter. Although Erhart was a little put off by the attire of the strange man that entered his shop, the seemingly friendly face of his redheaded companion seemed to help balance that out.

"Sir Shield, you should pick out a weapon to practice with, like a simple iron long sword," Myne said. "It's perfect for beginners."

Naofumi shook his head, "I can't, the Shield doesn't allow me to wield a weapon," Naofumi replied simply. "Besides, I'd rather rely more on my ability to keep myself and others alive, and the Shield is perfect for that."

Erhart's brows raised, "Oh? So you're the Shield Hero? Word around the corner that you're a dud but I gotta admit, I just don't see it," the smith said as he grinned, as Naofumi arched a brow. "Let me have a look at that Shield of yours, I'm pretty curious."

After receiving an approval from the Doctor, and he knelt down with a loop. The instrument shined, surprising Naofumi further and got him to ask about it. The smith replied that it was a magic tool used to appraise high-level weapons, it unfortunately couldn't read through the Shield and thus, the bald man gave up on that endeavor. He instead offered to look for some swords for Myne and ventured into the back, the redhead meanwhile opted to browse through the displays.

Naofumi took his shotgun and bandolier and put them on the counter, he narrowed his eyes at both objects before choosing to take a gander. His shield didn't seem to react to the shotgun but it did absorb one of the shells which in turn, unlocked a new series in his Shield. The Shield transformed into what looked like a small book with an illustration of different ammo types on the cover.

[Ammunition Shield I Unlocked!]

[DEF +10]

[Equip Bonus: Basic Production Guide]

The Doctor was pleasantly surprised, that was a great development. He had imagined he'd be throwing his shotgun away or sell it once the shells were used up (even if he himself couldn't use it, he could have pawned it off to a potential companion), but if he had the knowledge to produce more shells, well then that was one problem solved.

Naofumi turned just as Erhart came back in, a handful of swords under his arm. The man's eyes widened at seeing the shotgun on his counter and was quick to ask a slew of questions, one of which was the blacksmith wondering if the Doctor purchased it from Faubley, making Naofumi mentally note the name down for further research. Naofumi did his best to explain himself, surprising the man once again with his identity and the fact he was actually older than Erhart imagined.

"I have to ask, do you offer any enchanted clothes and accessories here? Preferably something similar to my current attire," Naofumi asked, remembering that magic existed here, as far fetched as that concept sounded to him.

"Well I personally got nothing out front that looks like what you're talking about, you'd usually have to go to the Magic Shop for any accessories or if you wanna enchant something but I do have something in the back, give me a second," The older man shuffled into the back once more, the tell tale of crates being moved and armor clattering on the ground, before the smith emerged holding up what seems to look like a black leather overcoat and shoulder cape alongside a black wide brimmed hat.

"Here, it might look a little dusty, but this belonged to an old friend of mine. He was an adventurer that liked to dress all dark and spooky," the smith chuckled good-naturedly, Naofumi snickering alongside him. "It might not look like much, but the coat is made out of Dragon skin leather. Pretty sturdy stuff and offers some bonus in both defense and agility, while the hat is plated with ivory and offers a good defensive bonus."

Erhart presented the items and Naofumi, while impressed with the description, used Appraisal just to make sure of everything the man said.

[Plague Walker's Coat]

[Defense Up (Medium) - Agility Up (Medium) - Slash Attack Endurance (Medium) - Fire Resistance (Strong) - HP Restoration (Weak) - Automatic Recovery Function]

[Plague Walker's Hat]

[Defense Up (Medium) - Fire Resistance (Strong) - HP Restoration (Weak) - Automatic Recovery Function]

Scratch his earlier thoughts, Naofumi was very impressed. The description Erhart gave didn't really do the true quality of these items justice. The stats were really good, especially for someone of lower level like himself. But the question remained...

"Are you sure I can have this? Seems kind of a personal item to sell off," Naofumi asked. He did not want to owe the man, as pessimistic as that sounded, he preferred not to be in debt to anyone.

"It isn't really, my old friend dropped it off after he found himself something better,"' replied the smith.

"Alright then, how much do I owe you for it?"

"How about we settle it for a hundred silvers?" bargained Erhart with a grin.

"That's way too high, you're making a hundred percent profit on this no matter what I pay," Naofumi said with narrowed eyes underneath his goggles. Two could play at this game.

"Are you kidding me? A hundred silvers is already dirt-cheap compared to what these two are worth, count your blessings I ain't charging more!" Erhart replied, his grin growing wider.

"And I'm telling you, not only is it old, but from what you said it's been doing nothing but gathering dust, you got it as a gift which means even if I pay you a single copper, you'd still win. Twenty-five silvers!" Naofumi announced, who also grinned under his mask. This was just too much fun.

"Are you insane? Seventy-five silvers!"

"I'm being generous. Thirty silvers!"

Myne watched with unblinking eyes as the two bickered over the price of some dusty-looking coat and hat and she simply couldn't see the appeal. Just what about that gaudy outfit was special enough for the Shield Hero to make bargains at such high intensity?

And finally, for what felt like an eternity, the two businessmen had finally come to a consensus.

"Forty silvers! Take it or leave it!" Erhart said with his grin threatening to split his face in two.

"Deal!" Naofumi announced while slamming forty silver coins on the table while Erhart, without taking his eyes off his "opponent," slipped the coinage somewhere under the counter.

Naofumi, grinning like a loon, sped over to the changing booth to get himself strapped in his new shadowy attire. However, in the middle of flinging the coat and shoulder cape over his shoulders, Naofumi remembered that his mask and goggles were starting to fall apart. And while he could fix them right up, Naofumi saw the opportunity to make one more change to his aesthetic and maybe get some stat bonuses thrown in.

And the Doctor knew just what material he needed.

A while passed with Myne taking a gander at the different swords Erhart brought before her eyes settled on one sword in particular. Picking up the sword and unsheathing said sword to reveal a magnificent silver blade.

"Sir Shield, since I'm the swordswoman and your only method of attacking, I feel it's only right you buy me a powerful weapon to help with that role, don't you think?" Myne asked as she presented the weapon to Naofumi.

Appraise.

[Level 12 Silver Sword]

[ATK: 50]

[+25 ATK to Undead, Demons, and Lycanthropes]

[Durability: 300/300]

{200 Silvers}

Naofumi stared at Myne and deadpanned, much to her nervousness.

"Myne, I don't think it's a new sword you should be worrying about," Naofumi said, much to Myne and Erhart's confusion. "When you fought those Balloons, your swings were wild and your stance was rigid. Combine that with the fact that you had your eyes closed, something that you should definitely not do in any combat scenario unless you rely on your other senses, then your performance as a fighter was lackluster at best. This brings into question your abilities as an adventurer and considering the fact that you're supposed to be my only method of attacking and gaining levels, I highly doubt you could fill in this role at the moment. I think you should practice with what you have rather than have me waste money on something that you can't even use."

Myne was simply stunned into silence while Naofumi picked the silver sword from her hands and then placed it back on the shelf.

Erhart had stared at the scene with raised brows. He had half-expected the Shield Hero to be some young amateur willing to comply with the demands of someone else simply because she was the opposite sex, but he was happy to have been proven wrong. The Shield Hero's analysis was spot on since Erhart could see that the Myne girl was only level three (probably from killing Balloons in her frenzy, if what the Hero said was anything to go by).

"Now now, man, as much as I agree that she needs more training, you should still buy her something," Erhart said, though what he said was more of a small test than anything.

"You stay out of this, you're biased since this is your business," Naofumi said simply.

"Heh okay okay," Erhart raised his hands up, a smile on his face and not offended in the least.

"Myne, you already have a decent sword, use that for now and don't expect anything better until you've shown to me that you can pull your weight," Naofumi lectured. The young redhead was biting her lips in anger at the verbal lashing.

Erhart just smirked, even if it cost him some potential business, he was glad to see one of the Heroes had his head on straight.

"As for you, do you perhaps have any spare iron ingots in your forge? Some glass chunks would help as well and a perhaps a portion of ivory?" Naofumi pointed at the bald man who was taken aback by the strange request.

Nevermind, this guy is just weird, The smith smiled uneasily, suddenly regretting his earlier assessment.

Myne Sophia, real name Malty S. Melromarc, was having a pretty shitty day. She was doing everything in her power to refrain from ripping off her perfect hair in frustrations or making her hatred for the Shield Hero obvious as they walked back into town and into the inn she had suggested earlier that day.

That man was the worst! Not only did he deny her high-level equipment, he instead chose to spend his (her) money on inane things like useless hunks of glass and metal! How stupid could this man get?

Oh! Oh! And don't let her even get started on her "companion's" recent purchase. She could somewhat understand his reluctance at spending too much money on equipment right off the bat, hell she could even let the materials and books slide since they were pretty cheap as well.

But buying himself what looked like an undertaker's outfit to go with his new, bone-white, beaked mask (he had somehow made it from the bit of ivory he had requested from the smith and combined it with his red goggles)? When he preached so much about saving money? Now that was crossing a line. Not only was he cheap, but he was also a hypocrite and selfish to boot! This wasn't how a Hero was supposed to act! They were supposed to take care of their companions! They were supposed to trust their companions! Hell, they were supposed to just care about fighting monsters and leveling up!

Instead, she just had to get stuck with the one gnat that didn't take things at face value! At least the others looked like they could be manipulated easily, especially the tall one with the ponytail, Moronasu or something, at least that part of her plan wouldn't fail. But the Shield Hero was really making it hard to believe she had a chance at that.

The bastard had unknowingly taken half her plans and stomped on them with little remorse! But she had to bide her time, the most critical part of her plan had yet to be enacted, patience was a virtue after all, and as the eldest princess (and future queen), she had to be some level of virtuous to achieve her destiny!

The two arrived at the inn, Naofumi choosing to drop off his baggage and come back down to have dinner before retiring for the day. He came down to the restaurant section of the inn and saw Myne already seated, one of her patented smiles on her face, on a table with food already ordered for herself and a bottle of what looked like wine in the middle. He snorted to himself, he had already deduced that the woman had an angle, from joining him after he received extra funds, to never calling him by his given name, settling for his title instead as if to put some distance between them, to trying (and failing) to coax him into buying her some high-grade stuff (who needed a sword worth two hundred silvers to take care of monsters that could pass for beach balls?), to attempting to dodge his attempts at evaluating her fighting ability. If she was trying to sell the "partner" image, then she was doing a pretty shitty job at it.

She was obviously not used to this life, perhaps she was a sheltered noble, whether she was really the princess was up in the air, but Naofumi had been right to suspect her having ulterior motives. Now he just needed to wait for her patience to run out with him and act rashly, he'd then catch her red-handed, he'll see what her deal was next, but for now, he'll sit through her act and pretend to go with it.

Naofumi walked over to their table and sat down with poise, taking off his hat and coat as he did so, looking at the meal his (temporary) partner had ordered, it was nowhere near the level of extravagance that his last dinner at the castle was, but it wouldn't really make a difference. Naofumi would give her points for making a good choice. Pureed chicken breast with carrots, a sliced up oven-baked potato and a side-dish salad was a nice mix of protein, fibers, and starch. All he needed was a cup of water to wash everything down and he'd be satisfied. He frowned however at the bottle of wine in the middle, both expensive and something he never was interested in. Alcohol, while a nice disinfectant, was not something he had any intention indulging in, regardless of the minor benefits of drinking in small doses and the fact that he could simply repair any cellular damage it could do to him in larger doses, with his taste buds not working as he wished, there was simply no reason for him to drink.

On the other hand, Naofumi could just let her have this, considering that depending on how the night goes, he might be ripping her a new one before tomorrow.

Myne made to start a conversation and he nodded alongside her as he continued eating, using the same trick he did yesterday to the befuddlement of anyone watching. She did not seem affected however and continued to use a map he had bought earlier that day to list-off potential travel routes, dungeons and such, something Naofumi made sure to memorize and made a mental note to research it later on. The entire time, she was giving him that sickeningly sweet smile that would've made him think she was genuinely pure-hearted.

The meal was soon finished and the Doctor made to get up but was stopped by Myne who put a hand on his own "Care for some wine, Sir Shield Hero? To commemorate our partnership?" she asked, smiling slightly with a half-lidded gaze, one that would normally be associated with flirting or even downright seduction.

The Doctor extracted his hand gently, "Hmm, I'll think about it once you start using my given name."

With that said, he put on his hat and carried his coat with a hand, excusing himself and retiring for the night, missing how Myne's expression seemed to shift slightly into a more sinister one.

To the outside observer, Naofumi would seem to be staring at the ceiling of his room, his mask was off of his face and on the nightstand next to him, alongside a pouch containing his remaining money. The reality of the situation was visible only to the man in question who had his 'Status Screen' pulled up, and was idly browsing through the 'Help' section of his 'Menu.' The rumors that the King spoke of that morning weren't that far from the truth, it had been more than a decade since Naofumi had last touched a console or a video game of any kind.

And while Naofumi still remembered some of the nomenclatures, like his own stats, the 'skills' and 'effects' that came with acquiring new Shields (which he'll have a blast experimenting with), he realized he knew nothing beyond that. Nothing about this world, nothing about how to 'upgrade' or 'buff' himself and his weapon, nothing about magic, etc. Naofumi would have been at a severe disadvantage if it weren't for Overhaul, even then it seemed as if that Shield was insisting on being a nuisance. A second of delay was something he could not accept easily, not when that period of time could mean life and death in a fight. Add to that the Shield's restriction on using any sort of weapon, and his previous "Hit-and-run" style of fighting would have to be shelved. Naofumi would need to find ways to pin his opponents down before finishing them and fighting multiple opponents at a time would be a pain.

Guess a partner is necessary in this situation, but is Myne being honest? I'd feel bad for figuratively poking her with a stick all day if she turns out to just be a clumsy, innocent girl. But I doubt it.

The Doctor had already noted down whatever information Myne had provided him and had resolved to learn the world's language, whether by finding some sort of shortcut or by learning it as a child would. His first objective would be to gather further information, he already had a plan for that. He'll just have to find any of the city's underworld's information brokers, the kind that would sell information to both sides of the law. That would ensure their neutrality.

Naofumi looked at the clock provided by his HUD - 9:00 p.m. - it was early for his usual routine but he figured he'd just wake up earlier tomorrow, take the time to stroll in the city before it became animated with business.

Sighing to himself, he turned to his side to go to sleep when he heard the telltale sound of his door unlocking and opening.

He closed his eyes and made sure to control his breathing to give off the impression of sleeping, all the while he kept his eyes open just enough to spot a shadowy figure enter his room unannounced. The figure moved through the room, paused as if to make sure he was asleep, and made to reach for the money, a feminine giggle emanating from the would-be thief.

He waited for her hands to grab the bag and sprung into action, one of his hands shooting out and gripping her wrist, the second pulling up his mask before covering her mouth to prevent any scream from emanating.

"You so much as utter a squeak or try to resist and I'll break that tiny neck of yours," Naofumi whispered harshly as he finally got a good look at the culprit.

The wide green eyes of Myne Sophia looked back at him, holding nothing but shock, fear and a hint of anger.

He removed his hand from her mouth and wrapped his fingers around her neck, "I have to say, I'm not as surprised as I should have been" he started and hid the mirth he felt at her surprised expression, that women really thought she was being slick "Nothing you should worry about," he continued "all you need to know is that I'll be asking some questions here, and you're going to answer them truthfully, you will not lie, if you so much as think about deceiving me I will introduce you to a world of pain, understood?" he asked slowly and she nodded, pale and quivering "Good. Now the first question: What is your name?"

She started fidgeting in his grip, her eyes, still full of fear, looked away from him for an instant, "S-s-sir Sh-shield! D-d-don't you rem-m-member? I-I'm M-Myneeee-hmph!" she started to squeal before he once again covered her mouth. She didn't know what was happening! A sensation similar to her feet being stabbed repeatedly assaulted her brain.

Overhaul operated for a total of four seconds, disassembling and reassembling her feet every two seconds, making her HP fluctuate before refilling after he reassembled her limbs the second time. While her limbs were complete once again her brain hadn't yet caught up with the end of the process and was still in the midst of receiving a high dose of pain transmitters from her formerly destroyed legs. Even after repairing the damage, phantom pain still pulsed for a while up until the brain realized the body was whole again. That was only four seconds, and if his SP bar was anything to go by, he'd be able to perform Overhaul efficiently for thirty six more seconds, plenty of time to get the girl to admit the truth.

Myne (if that was even her real name) was lying and he knew it, her pulse which he had been monitoring with his grip on her wrist for the last few dozen seconds, had been already fast during this whole ordeal, but it seemed to accelerate, just for the few seconds she spoke in. Couple that with her fidgeting, avoiding eye contact and sweating brow and he had all the biological signs of a liar. The situation could have been resolved had he only stopped her with a word and asked what she was doing in his room, but he wanted to throw her off her game, and putting her in a corner like he did so would make her abandon any calm composure or wits she could've had in any other situation. Had she been trained in handling these situations, she would have kept her calm and answered him evenly, fortunately for him, that wasn't the case.

"I thought I told you not to lie."

"Y-you can't do this! Y-you're supposed to be Herooo-hmph!" Myne squealed once again but was cut-off, this time the sensation assaulted her free arm alongside her legs, her eyes widened to saucers as she witnessed his power's effect on her moving arm. She could see her own flesh being torn from her bones then reattaching itself flawlessly, leaving no trace of injury. She finally realized the fierceness of the beast she has been trying to poke all day and abandoned all measure of calm, struggling like a cornered animal, vainly trying to escape his grip. In an attempt to free herself, she used the moment when one of her legs was reformed and just threw a kick into the man's lower region.

A sound reminiscent of hitting a stone wall was her response.

Heh... neat.

Naofumi was smirking at the realization under his mask, her attempts were pitiful and his high defense stat did its job of protecting him.

"And you were supposed to be my partner, instead you chose to be a thief, guess we're both disappointing one another," Naofumi lectured. "Now I'll ask again, and if you keep this charade up, I'll increase the pain so much that your heart will give out and you'll die. There won't even be any evidence to trace back to me." Naofumi played his card, waiting for her obvious reaction.

This man! H-He's a Demon! Myne thought fearfully but her survival instincts kicked in when they recognized a predator. She was reduced to prey, one that had used up every means of defense and realized the futility of their situation.

"Y-you can't! I'm the first princess of this nation! Killing me will bring nothing but misery upon you!" She finally caved, genuinely fearing for her life.

Naofumi's eyes narrowed in fury, not only for confirming his doubts but for essentially putting him in a tight spot. He couldn't kill her as that would make him the prime suspect of her murder, even if he made it look natural, and bringing her to the King won't insure that justice is delivered. There was no guarantee that the King wouldn't take her side, even with a lack of evidence. Going to the other heroes with this would also yield little results, he had no tangible proof of her actions and nothing to use against her beside the fact she hid her identity while she had much more resources to bribe any witnesses and turn the whole thing against him.

"And your name?" he asked calmly.

"M-Malty S. Melromarc!" she almost screamed at him.

"Good."

Naofumi her go as she fell to her knees, her legs not quite capable of supporting her yet. She scrambled to keep as much distance away from the man as she could.

Naofumi for his part simply walked to the door and opened it for her, "You can go," he said, waiting for her to dash out the door.

"W-What? just like that?" Malty asked with trepidation, fear filling her heart.

"Sure, you pose no threat to me, regardless of your status," Naofumi calmly informed her. "But princess... if you ever try to pull something like that again... I'll make you experience Hell itself." Naofumi threw in one last threat to drive the message home, the crimson lenses of his raven-esque mask shining from the moonlight.

Malty seemed to finally found enough strength and practically vanished out of the door, almost tripping over herself in the hallway. Meanwhile, Naofumi simply closed the door and went about collecting anything of his.

Well... that's one hell of a pickle I got myself into. I might have just turned the entire government against me, but at least I still have my money.

Naofumi picked up his sack of coins, deep in thought

I'll just have to make use of the time I have left before things get complicated. If worse comes to worse, I'll just book it.

With that, Naofumi closed the door, and looked at his clock - 9:15 p.m. The torture had only lasted for a few minutes, Overhaul was only used twice for eight seconds, but the experience would've no doubt felt much longer for Malty given the amount of pain she experienced. The use of such a barbaric method would have normally appalled him, but when it came to people fucking with him, he's long since learned of the need to play dirty.

While she might be traumatized, Naofumi had little sympathy for her. She tried to trick and steal from someone who belonged to what her father had admitted were their last line of defense against potential destruction. If she couldn't grasp the importance of his job and was willing to endanger civilian lives by impeding his progress, then she could take a little punishment from him.

Naofumi got down the stairs, gave his key to the receptionist and announced his departure while leaving the man a silver as a tip and continuing on, ignoring the man's befuddled look and questions, as he disappeared into the night.

Doctor Iwatani Naofumi could count the amount of times he had gotten a break in life on one hand and still have fingers leftover, from having to live up to his overbearing parents' expectations at a young age, to dealing with all the attention (both positive and negative) he garnered with his rapid rise in the field of medicine, to the headaches that came with entering the political game and finally to the torturous years he had to spend in what felt like Hell, his mental state deteriorating and finding himself adopting a more cynical and pessimistic view of the world.

That being said, Malty's attempt at undermining him hadn't really affected him much, he had dealt with worse things than an entitled brat and he was pretty sure he'd overcome anything she threw at him. Still though, he couldn't afford to dismiss her threat completely, he was in the middle of unfriendly territory and the cards were stacked against him. The King would no doubt side with his daughter, seeing as he already felt some semblance of dislike towards him, and he wouldn't put it past the other Heroes to be dragged into this and be put in a position that'd have them make rash decisions. Two of them were teenagers for crying out loud! Hormonal teenagers who, from what he was told, had both already experienced death once! His experience with soldiers suffering from PTSD due to near-death experiences could help him but how does one deal with kids who actually died once already?

However, it was the King's disregard of him that made Naofumi wonder. Just what was it about him that gave Aultcray that flash of anger and condescension in his eyes whenever they settled upon him? It can't be out of uselessness, that would be stupid and rather nitpickey. If the Shield was so useless, then why have it in the first place? Were there other Shield Heroes before him that had committed some kind of atrocity for such discrimination to take root?

Either way, Naofumi needed answers. He needed to know just what he was up against. Everything about Melromarc in its entirety rubbed Naofumi the wrong way.

Walking down the cobblestone path, Naofumi turned to a local merchant who looked to be a jeweler and was about to close up shop for the night. There were some gemstones that Naofumi had not seen in years since the war engraved upon a couple types of metal that Naofumi was not familiar with.

"Excuse me, sir," Naofumi said, gaining the merchant's attention. "If I were to look for or buy information, where would I go?"

The merchant felt some surprise at the man's strange appearance but pushed past it once his eyes settled on the Shield on the man's arm, choosing to simply answer the Hero "If it's for information or if you need to... relieve stress, then the Heaven On Earth brothel is the best place to go," the merchant said.

Naofumi grimaced, "Are you sure that's wise? I'm supposed to be one of the Cardinal Heroes," Naofumi reasoned. "I don't exactly want to be caught in a brothel. I'm already on thin ice as it is."

The merchant quirked a brow, but didn't question, "Then don't pay for services, just ask for Madame Elizabeth Cresswell and you can get the information you're looking for," the merchant said. "Madame Cresswell is the best info broker in Melromarc and I'm sure you have something to offer in return."

Naofumi nodded, "Okay then, where can I find the brothel?" Naofumi asked, grimacing again. Not a question he thought he would ask in his life.

The merchant had directed him to the place that sat right in between the red and green light districts of the kingdom. It was quite the extravagant place and you would have no trouble finding it if you knew what to look for. It helped that it was the only brothel in Melromarc and the most reputed brothel in the world, attracting customers and even nobility from various countries for its exquisite service and exotic choices, however it only catered to the needs of someone who was single and of decent intent. Why bother to enter such a place and ask for services when your own wife/lover could help? All it would cause was needless drama for both the client and the prostitutes.

Still, Naofumi, single as he was, was only here for information. Nothing more, nothing less.

He just hoped to God that the other Three Heroes and/or the Royal Court wouldn't take this the wrong way if they saw him here.

Sucking in a breath of air, Naofumi braced himself as he pushed aside the door. The door opened, revealing a large room surrounded in sofas and futons of all sizes while the room was bathed in a rich, magenta light. The place smelled oddly of wisteria, a fragrance Naofumi had not smelled in years. The whole ensemble was one of the most welcoming sights Naofumi had laid eyes on, but such a sight did not deter him from his primary objective.

Walking at a cautious pace, Naofumi ventured towards the receptionist, who regarded him with a warm smile and a kind wave in spite of his Plague Doctor appearance. She was someone who struck a decent figure with long, wavy black hair and bright magenta eyes filled to the brim with kindness and slight curiosity.

"Hello, how may we help you today?" the receptionist asked.

"I'm looking for the head matron of this place," Naofumi said, much to the receptionist's surprise. "I'm in need of information and I heard that Madame Cresswell was the best info broker in the kingdom."

The receptionist grinned, "Then you heard right, is it something needed right away or can it wait?"

Naofumi slowly lifted up his Shield, much to the growing shock of the receptionist, "I need to learn all I can about this world that I'm in and I don't trust the King for a second."

Blinking out of her stupor, the receptionist bolted out of her chair, "Please, follow me," the receptionist said with seriousness that Naofumi could appreciate. Time was of the essence and they needn't waste it on pleasantries or bureaucratic crap.

The Doctor followed the receptionist at a brisk pace, completely ignoring the advances of some of the... workers and entertainers there. The prostitutes there were quite exotic, showing physical features unique to Naofumi, but this was a new world so that was to be expected.

However, what had caught Naofumi's eye was that half of the girls he had seen had some type of animal feature. Demi-humans, Naofumi believes they were called. Not the most creative name, but Naofumi couldn't bring it in himself to care. There were some that look to be foreigners with their various colors and different animal parts.

One girl with golden fox ears and in nothing but red lingerie latched onto Naofumi's shoulder, "Mmm, I bet you look scrumptious under that mask," she said with a grin as she pressed Naofumi's arm right in between her breasts. She had gotten a good feel of Naofumi's arm and could tell that there was a good amount of muscle that twitched in response to her touch.

Naofumi turned to the lady on his arm, about to politely ask her to leave but thought of something better. He smirked underneath his beak-like mask when an idea sprung, "Do you want to know what's underneath this mask?"

The fox girl grinned before nodding, believing this to be some kind of kinky little game.

Slowly, Naofumi used his free hand to lightly brush his mask with an index and middle finger, "I'll have you know..." Naofumi said, purposefully trailing off his words to add suspense. Judging by the way the fox girl shivered in anticipation, Naofumi knew it was working.

"That just underneath this... cold mask of mine," Naofumi said. "There lies..."

Naofumi trailed off his words again, this time, he lightly pushed up the beak. The fox girl's smile grew while a group of other girls and the receptionist watched to see what would happen.

...

"Another mask!" Naofumi announced in an uncharacteristically cheery tone as he presented a black surgical mask just underneath the beaked one.

The fox girl and the other onlookers simply stared dumbly as they processed what the doctor just said, the receptionist held a hand to her mouth and giggled quietly and the prank. Naofumi used the opportunity to detach himself and continue on his way.

Naofumi and the receptionist had turned and weaved around several corners and walked through several hallways (all while he did his damnedest to ignore the grunts, groans, and moans of the residents in the rooms). The receptionist ignored them quite easily, but that was more due to constant exposure than anything else.

Finally arriving at a set of double doors with a wisteria symbol made of stained glass on each door, the receptionist presented the doors to Naofumi, "Madame Cresswell is just inside."

Naofumi watched as the receptionist walked away and disappeared around a corner before Naofumi set his sights on the doors in front of him. The place exuded an odd yet welcoming feeling in general, but he stayed cautious in case of foul play.

Still, the woman apparently had the information he needed and this was his supposed best chance.

Steeling his nerves, Naofumi opened the doors, revealing an office space and a Queen-sized bed in one corner of the room. Behind the large desk in the middle of the room sat one of the most beautiful women Naofumi had ever seen.

Madame Elizabeth Cresswell looked like some secretary or office worker straight from a porno, a pretty stereotypical one at that, not that Naofumi wasted his time on that sort of thing, but one rather compulsive patient of his in the past wouldn't stop talking about how he missed them.

Platinum blonde hair tied up into a bun with piercing verdant eyes behind a pair of ornate reading glasses greeted him, her eyes holding a calculative yet mischievous gaze.

Overall, her level of beauty would leave Malty as red as her hair.

"Well, well, well... I would have never expected a Cardinal Hero to grace my establishment with their presence, much less the so-called 'Useless Shield' that the nobles have been raving about," Madame Cresswell said with a sultry smirk. "But this is not the first time anyone has entered my office and personal living quarters looking for something other than the services of my girls."

Naofumi, however, was unfazed, "I'm only here for information and nothing more," Naofumi said in an even tone. "As universally acclaimed as your establishment might be, I have my priorities as both a Cardinal Hero and a doctor."

Cresswell rose a brow at the claim, "A Hero and a doctor? My my, that's quite a rare combination," Cresswell complimented, though she frowned internally when she detected no visible reaction in his body language nor was there any sign of arousal. "So what kind of information are you looking for? Knowledge of the world?"

"I wish to have a more in-depth understanding of the system here, on the political, religious, and societal level and in exchange..." Naofumi paused, the lenses of his mask seemed to glow an eerie red, making the woman before him lick her lips. "I'll offer my own medical expertise."

"Hmm, it is true that one of my girls has come down with something and healers are hesitant to enter this place considering pretty much all of them are either married or religious," Madame Cresswell said. "I can give you the information you want, but I want two things in return."

Naofumi raised a brow, "Oh?"

"You'll offer your medical services and…" Cresswell trailed off her words for added effect. "Perhaps you could show us your face?"

The man simply deadpanned, "The fox girl put you up to this, didn't she?"

Cresswell shrugged, "She was a little miffed at your little prank," she replied.

Naofumi just sighed, "Fine," Naofumi said, conceding. "But let's meet with your employees and I can give them their check-ups and see if there's anything to work on."

Cresswell nodded before following the Shield Doctor out the door, eager to see what Naofumi had to offer.

Naofumi himself was a tad nervous. It was difficult, telling certain patients that they had some kind of sexually transmitted disease that they had no hope of removing, but Naofumi hoped that they either weren't infected or that such diseases actually didn't exist.

After assembling her workers, girls of all colors and in rather scandalous clothing sitting or standing in a wide circle, Cresswell presented Naofumi in all of his professional glory. Some girls were a little put off by his appearance while other girls simply raised an elegant brow at this strange ensemble of his.

"Alright girls, this is Naofumi Iwatani, the Shield Hero," Cresswell announced, much to their surprise. "However, he is also a doctor and has offered to give each of you medical treatment in exchange for information."

One girl, one with mocha colored skin and the ears of a tiger, raised her hand, "Why do we need a doctor? Is one of us sick?"

"That is what I'm going to find out," Naofumi said while presenting a leather tote bag filled with his medical equipment. "I'm not going to beat around the bush, so please forgive my bluntness. In your line of work, you are prone to come into contact with infections and even sexually transmitted diseases."

Such a statement caused some amount of worry and fear among the girls, each of them looking at one another.

"While there is the chance that you are relatively healthy," Naofumi continued, "There is the chance that one of you carries something that would be a detriment to not only your health, but to the health of your clients as well, which is why I'm here. I'm here to make sure that you are all healthy and, if I find anything, cured."

The girls showed their relief and happiness at that, which made Naofumi's worry lower.

"Tonight, I'll be giving each of you private check-ups while Madame Cresswell supervises," Naofumi said. "But, I also have to, apparently, show my face, which I'll save for later."

That got every girl's undivided attention, what did he look like underneath that mask?

For his first patient, it was the fox girl from earlier, who sported a cute little pout from Naofumi's prank a couple minutes prior.

"Oh, don't be like that," Naofumi said. "I was just messing with you. Is it really that bad to have a sense of humor?"

The fox girl, who was apparently named Grace, still pouted, "Jerk," was her only reply.

Naofumi grinned underneath his mask, but still, he had a job to do. Leading Grace to an empty room with a chair and table, Naofumi guided Grace to the chair.

"Before we begin, I'd like to ask you some questions, keep in mind however that I'm sworn to secrecy as per patient-doctor confidentiality," he told her and she nodded in affirmative.

He pulled out a booklet, this one empty, and started asking her for basic information while noting down her answers.

Name: Grace Reyna

Age: 22

Height: 165 cm

Weight: 64 kg

He mentally calculated her BMI (Body Mass Index), finding it to be 24.2, just within the "normal weight" parameters, but that might be because of her toned body, her profession did demand constant movement after all.

Past medical history: Unknown to the patient.

Drinking: Occasionally.

Smoking: No.

Chronic drug/potion use: None.

No sign of visible deformities.

He nodded as he finished then started sifting through his bag to retrieve some medical equipment that Grace wasn't familiar with. One being an object with one end having a silver disc while the other two ends had small rubber pieces (a stethoscope), a small, black cylindrical object with a glossy and reflective surface on one end (flashlight), and another being a type of object that actually looked to be partially made from the remains of a Balloon monster (blood pressure cuff).

"What're those?" Grace asked, genuinely curious.

"Well, the first thing I'm going to do is to monitor your blood pressure, which is what this device is for," Naofumi replied, showing the blood pressure cuff. "I'm going to place this cuff on your bicep while you keep your arm relaxed. The cuff will then inflate and tighten around your arm. Now don't worry, this is perfectly safe and there will be no pain."

Grace blinked owlishly before nodding.

Naofumi proceeded to tie the strap to Grace's bicep while she relaxed her whole arm. Squeezing the small fake Balloon monster on the other end, Grace felt the strap tighten, making her bicep ache only slightly due to the temporary lack of blood flow.

Letting go of the tension, Naofumi listened closely for the distinct sound of blood filling the passageways in Grace's arm. While not as accurate as a machine, Naofumi's experiences in the field and his above-average hearing made up for this.

"Your blood pressure is relatively normal," Naofumi said to Grace's relief. "Next will be the palpation test, or measurement of your heartbeat and that's where this stethoscope is for. Now I ask that you try to keep calm and to take deep breaths for a steady heartbeat."

Naofumi picked up the stethoscope, placed the rubber ends to his ears, and then placed the silver disc to the area just below Grace's collarbone but just above her left breast. Grace found herself shuddering slightly from the cold touch, though she did as the Doctor instructed and tried to keep her heartbeat at a steady pace by taking a few deep breaths.

Naofumi kept it up for a minute, changing the stethoscope's target from her front to her back, he started lightly hitting spots in these areas with two of his fingers, much to her confusion.

Naofumi was counting the beats then making mental calculations to measure Grace's average heart rate, then doing a secondary test to determine whether there was any fluid in her torso.

"You have a strong and healthy heart, and thankfully, nothing seems to be wrong with your lungs" Naofumi said, once again, to Grace's relief, but also slight disappointment that she couldn't tease him for "copping a feel."

Naofumi moved on from her torso to her abdomen, looking for any "swishing" sounds of blood through the arteries near the stomach (such as the aorta), or abnormal bowel sounds that could indicate digestive problems, he found none and no fluid accumulation and made a note.

Removing the stethoscope, Naofumi placed the instrument in his tote bag. He then picked up the flashlight that he brought with him from his old world. The flashlight had enough battery to last the week before becoming completely useless. He'd have to find some kind of alternative.

"Next is to check your pupil's reaction," Naofumi said, much to Grace's confusion. "In case you don't know, the pupil of the human, or in your case demi-human, eyeball narrows and expands in response to the amount of light in the environment."

"So it narrows because of more light and expands when there's not enough light?" Grace asked.

Naofumi raised his brows, "Yes, precisely! This next test is to see if your pupils are functioning as they should be," Naofumi said before he elaborated. "There are some times when the pupil doesn't work properly and that can be dangerous whenever you're exposed to very bright flashes of light or can be a symptom of cases like head trauma, poisoning, strokes, or other neurological problems." He rambled on before catching himself, seeing as his patient wasn't following with him.

Grace nodded, understanding the first part, before Naofumi flicked on the small flashlight and held each eye open with his fingers as he passed the light over them. Grace willed her eyes to stay focused on the bright light while Naofumi moved the light at certain angles. The Doctor noticed that her pupils reacted much more sensitively than human ones, but that might be because of her different physiology, canines like foxes were nocturnal and thus their pupils could widen much more than a human's could. It was no issue however, since the pupils seemed symmetrical and reacted correctly.

"Now I want you to follow the light without moving your head," Naofumi instructed. Moving the flashlight at more angles, Grace's eyes followed the light perfectly.

"Pupils are working normally," Naofumi concluded.

"Okay, what's next?" Grace asked.

"Before I begin, I'll remind you that this is a serious issue and I don't want to hear any jokes about it" He stated firmly.

"Okay?" Grace asked but her ears flickered in anticipation.

"I'm going to have you open your mouth and stick your tongue out then say 'Aah,' I'll be checking your gag reflex," Naofumi grimaced at the look in her eyes. "Not like that! I'll be using one of these." The Doctor gestured to a wooden tongue pick, he had crafted a bunch of them from a wooden log earlier today.

The fox girl nodded but her eyes promised all kinds of mischief and the Doctor knew he was going to regret this, he sighed and asked her to do as ordered.

"Aaaahnnnn!"

Only for Grace to whip out what sounded like the mother of all moans, her eyes telling him she was internally cackling and waiting for his reaction.

Madame Cresswell, who was supervising the whole ordeal as Naofumi said she would, keeled over and howled in laughter. Tears welled in her eyes as she doubled over onto a lone table with one hand while another slapped against her knee.

He expected this, he really did, but the man still almost choked on his own saliva in surprise at the sheer intensity. But nonetheless, he fixed her with a deadpan stare underneath the lenses of his goggles, cutting her amusement short and continuing his job. He checked for any sign of viral or bacterial infections and any trace of inflammation or swelling in her throat.

"Ohohoooo, you just wait for what comes next," Naofumi warned as his lenses practically shined a bright, menacing crimson.

Grace found herself shivering under the intensity of Naofumi's stare.

Ten minutes later, the fox girl was regretting ever messing with the good Doctor while Madame Cresswell opted to simply blush in embarrassment for her poor employee. Who knew Naofumi could be so cruel?

Naofumi had pulled all stops, he calmly asked her to take off her clothes which she did very reluctantly but only because her employer was there to stop anything untoward from occurring. She almost screamed at him when he asked her to lie down and spread her legs. But he calmly answered her worries, telling her that all he'll be doing is a vaginal examination. He was no gynecologist but he had used his years of isolation wisely, reading through every medical book he could find and perfecting his art on the hundreds of patients he had encountered. Madame Cresswell fired off a series of questions, she had an idea of why the Doctor was doing this, but she wanted to make sure he was being genuine with his actions and wasn't satisfying some sick fetish of his.

Naofumi wasn't bothered. He had dealt with this sort of thing before with worried mothers, partners and the like.

"This is the most important part of the check-up and everyone else will be going through the same thing," Naofumi answered the Matron calmly. "In this line of work, your employees are constantly exposed to various diseases and are prone to receiving debilitating afflictions that can be or only be passed on through sexual interaction of any kind, most prominently through the female and male genitalia. It's why my home world put an emphasis on the importance of using preservatives and other safety precautions."

Naofumi finished with his reasoning behind his actions, gauging the woman's reaction. He was satisfied to note that she had followed him through the entire conversation and nodded in understanding, motioning for him to continue.

He did so and Grace had to hide her face behind her hands to avoid looking at both the Doctor and her Madame while her face sported an intense blush. Naofumi went through the basic procedure and checked for any abnormalities or any extra growth, he was once again pleasantly surprised to find none. Either the girl before him was extremely lucky, or this world simply didn't have such diseases which would make his job a lot easier in the future.

People ask me if I enjoy my chosen career path and I say yes… barring certain circumstances.

Before wrapping everything up, he asked to perform one last test, using a small rubber coated mallet he had on hand. Naofumi tapped her knees to ensure she had good reflexes there and thus no visible neurological problems.

Soon enough the door of the room opened and a blushing Grace exited through it, just as Naofumi called for the next girl to enter.

It went on similarly for the rest, he was once again pleasantly surprised to find no afflictions affecting the girls but that might be because of this world's access to magic. One of the girls, the one that Madame Cresswell mentioned had come down with something, was suffering from a fever, it had led to some extended observation, prodding and deliberation within his mind to narrow down the possible cause. He asked her some questions, about feeling any pain, bowel problems, having a runny nose, or a dry throat, and many more.

'She doesn't have any fluid or mucus built-up in her lungs and trachea or a problem in her digestive tract, she does however have a fever, one that has lowered slightly in the last few days, her nose is running and her throat aches, she has minor difficulty breathing, some fatigue and feels dehydrated. By process of elimination, this is definitely an acute respiratory infection, a viral one at that. The only course of action is a symptomatic treatment' he rattled off in his mind.

The good news was that a viral infection should clear up on it's own in a few days, the patient would need to drink plenty of fluids, rest, and take some cough and antipyretic medicine (maybe a potion?) to lower her fever and relax her symptoms. The bad news was that Naofumi still didn't know if this world even had sexually transmitted diseases. Did they exist? And if so, was there any recorded documentation? Was there any way for Naofumi to find materials? And what of the STDs that can't be cured? Could Overhaul assist him in that endeavor?

But what excited Naofumi were the questions he had on Demi-Human physiology, the fact this world contained an intelligent humanoid species different from regular humans was exhilarating for the young Doctor. Oh the possibilities! But even then...

Worries for another day...

To say Madame Elizabeth Cresswell was impressed with the Shield Hero would be an understatement. While she hadn't bought into the rumors these stuffy Nobles had, she had expected him to be little more than an immature brat with little experience and a huge ego to back him up. She certainly did not expect someone who looked like a veteran, a cold calculative professional. Maybe she'll have a chance at poking his mind a little more later when they were both alone for her part of the deal, now however?

As per the terms and conditions of Naofumi and Madame Cresswell's agreement, Naofumi stood in the middle of the Matron's bedroom, the entirety of the staff standing in front of him and gazing at him with curiosity. He slowly placed his fingers upon the ivory surface of his beaked, raven-esque mask, undid the straps and dug his fingers under it.

Each girl and even Madame Cresswell felt themselves shiver in anticipation. Just what hid underneath that mask? In fact, what was the purpose of such a mask? To hide his identity? No, he had already given away his name and his Legendary Shield didn't help much in that regard. Perhaps it was to hide a nasty scar? A deformity? Perhaps it was more psychological and he was more confidant when wearing something to protect his face?

Grasping his mask and wide-brimmed hat, Naofumi slipped both off of his head before finally removing the secondary black surgical mask.

These actions revealed a face that every girl in the room, and even Madame Cresswell, would be absolutely thrilled to sit on.

A chiseled and mature face, spiked black hair, and deep emerald eyes which watched each and every one of them like a hawk. Naofumi did have some defaults, uneven stubble on his chin and visible bags denouncing fatigue under his eyes (Jeez, they could hide a body in those). What was mostly attractive to them was the sheer experience his visage, especially his eyes, spoke of. Someone who had survived countless obstacles and crawled his way to the top. There was no blush on his face, as he kept his expression and his intentions as professional as possible.

After a minute, the Matron ushered her workers out of the room so that she could fulfill her part of the deal with the Doctor. Situating themselves on opposing sides of Madame Cresswell's desk, the woman took that as her cue to start.

"So, societal, religious, and political state of this kingdom?" Cresswell asked behind her fan.

Naofumi nodded, still bereft of his mask which he placed on the desk, "Yes."

"Right, well the first thing that you should know is that this kingdom is a matriarchy," Cresswell said.

"So I'm guessing the Queen is the ultimate authority?" Naofumi asked. He had yet to actually see the Queen and was quite curious about her absence. Did that mean that Aultcray was just a king by proxy? Married into royalty eh? Heh...

Cresswell smiled, "Indeed, in fact, Queen Mirellia is a good friend of mine," Cresswell boasted. "You have her, then her husband Aultcray, and then her two daughters."

Naofumi rolled his eyes, "Oh yeah, I'm familiar with one of them, she tried to con me and then when that failed, tried to make off with my stuff when she thought I was asleep just a couple hours ago."

Much to Naofumi's surprise, Madame Cresswell actually groaned, "Let me guess, Malty?"

"Malty."

Madame Cresswell let out a heavy sigh, "Oh Lord, who art in Heaven, fucking kill me," Cresswell groaned as she massaged her temples in clear frustration.

"Jeez, she's that bad?" Naofumi asked.

"Yes," Cresswell said without hesitation. "Malty S. Melromarc? She's a pathological liar and a rotten spoiled brat. It's why Mirellia decided to give the younger sister, Melty Q. Melromarc, all rights to the throne."

"Do you believe she'll try and pull something on me? I didn't exactly... leave her with the best impression of myself," Naofumi asked.

And for one time in his life, Naofumi felt a twinge of apprehension as Madame Cresswell removed her glasses with a solemn look on her face. As she opened her eyes, Naofumi felt the sheer intensity of her gaze.

"Malty S. Melromarc has ruined the lives of countless men and women, many of which had given her their full trust before being fed to the wolves, she mostly did that when her mother was absent, since she has her father wrapped around her finger. It's gotten to the point Mirellia sent the little bitch off to Faubley to be disciplined... Fat lotta good that did," Cresswell spat with such hatred, such spite, that Naofumi felt a shiver down his spine. "And considering our kingdom's religion already despises you and calls you the Devil, it'll be pretty easy for Malty to cast some kind of blame on you and paint you in a bad light."

Naofumi narrowed his eyes. The kingdom's religion despised him? "Why does the religion despise me so?"

"Well, several years ago, the human kingdom of Melromarc had declared war on the demi-human kingdom of Siltvelt, and you know why?" Cresswell asked.

Naofumi rolled his eyes in pure irritation, "Human prejudice?"

Cresswell shook her head, "You're only partially correct," Cresswell replied. "Melromarc is a human-supremacist society, even going so far as to enslave demi-humans legally. This is more prevalent in most of the nobility and even the Royal Court, although Mirellia has been trying to make things better for both humans and demi-humans."

"Okay, so how does this lead back to me? Hell, is this why the King seems to have a hate boner for me?" Naofumi asked. The idea of enslaving another race made him sick to his stomach.

Cresswell snickered a little behind her fan, but she continued with her explanation. Hate boner! Hahaha!

"The previous Shield Heroes had tried to establish a peaceful coexistence between both races in order to avoid any more unnecessary bloodshed, which is why Siltvelt and Shieldfreeden worship the Shield Hero as their Lord and Savior," Cresswell said. "But Melromarc saw this as an affront to their human-supremacist ideals, thus they cast the Shield Hero from their religion and labeled him and all others as the Devil. As for Aultcray, the man probably hates you for a more personal reason. From what Mirellia told me, he had lost his sister in the previous war with Siltvelt. Because of his grief and desire for revenge, the King became an easy target for the church to use."

"That's..." Naofumi wasn't really as surprised as he thought he should be. Humans were the same wherever you went, prejudice was simply part of their nature and it was only natural that he'd find it expressed in ignorant environments and societies (a medieval one fit the description). "... displeasing to know." Naofumi finished, seemingly disappointed but also understanding.

As much as he hated it, people who lost family and loved ones would be easier to control through their hatred. While Naofumi did expect to oppose this country's royalty, the fact that even the national religion opposed him put him at a severe disadvantage.

"As much as I and many others agree with you, it would take a miracle to change that," Cresswell said. The woman then raised a brow at him. "You mentioned leaving a bad impression on the brat... what exactly did you do?"

His eyes gleamed with a menacing light, "Hmm, well let's just say, I gave her a very... impactful warning," Naofumi curtly replied, his voice promising untold amounts of retribution to whoever crossed him.

Cresswell grimaced, "Malty will most likely weave some sort of story, make herself to be the victim and try to ruin you in some way, she's petty like that."

Now it was Naofumi's turn to grimace, "Is there anything we can do to prevent that?"

"Sadly not, and unfortunately, while your service and company have both been impeccable," Cresswell said. "All I can do is vouch for you if anyone ever asks, I can't do much because of the church. I'm already an enemy of theirs for directing a 'sinful' establishment and the only thing saving me is the Queen's protection. Now that she isn't here, any misstep I make could bring their agents here and risk the lives of my girls. Publicly supporting the 'Shield Devil' would do that."

Naofumi frowned, so he had nothing, the entire system was against him and he had already slighted one of his "enemies."

Shit... I'll have to bullshit my way through this.

The two continued to discuss, exchanging some more information, before the talk devolved to pleasantries. The woman had at one point even propositioned the Doctor but was kindly rebuked, as the man did not have the time nor was in the state of mind for these activities. He did however, offer his own services again if he were to ever come back, he'd negotiate a discount of course, the woman had already offered him more than he expected and thus a partnership was born.

Just as dawn was breaking out, one could see Naofumi exiting the brothel, satisfied with his deal and with his mind working a mile a minute towards his next challenge. His notebook had some additional entries as well as corrections to previous ones, he opened it to check on them again.

- Time between each wave: check with the red hourglass at the church.

- Same church that despises me and considers me a devil.

- Siltvelt and Melromarc have a bloody history, one is a Demi-human supremacy while the second is the opposite: Slavery is very legal (barbaric).

- Siltvelt worships the Shield but has a dark history with the previous heroes: Not favorable.

- Shieldfreeden also does the same but without the racial supremacy: favorable.

- Faubley is the most advanced nation, with technology that seems equal to Earth's 19th century.

- Zeltoble is a nation of mercenaries, neutral disposition: Favorable (if I have money).

- Her Majesty is off on a diplomatic mission, time of return: Unknown.

- Her Majesty commands Shadow Units, a sort of "Secret Service."

- The Shadow organization is not monolithic.

- The church has a lot of influence, possibly amongst the military and isn't far fetched to believe that they have Shadows working for them and even Nobles under their influence.

There were some additional tidbits of information, mostly locations for known dungeons, information on the guild and its system and some more political intricacies.

My main problem now is Malty, I couldn't have killed her but leaving her alive also puts me in an awkward position. If she pulls something later on, it won't matter what I say since the entire system is against me. So my only hope is to get the heroes to trust me, enough to cooperate at least. My second problem will be the church, I can't fight it directly as I lack both the manpower and the means to do so. Plus, you can't exactly fight ideology... ugh... I'll leave this for later.

The view seemed to close up on Naofumi's determined face, the man decided on his next step and smirked, "Oh yeah, it's all coming together."