"Master! Master!"
Early in the morning, Kiriko was woken up by the panicked cries of the Dogkin.
"What now?!"
Nobody would have a good attitude being disturbed from a deep sleep.
Kiriko opened her eyes to see both Lute and Raphtalia staring at her, their faces pale with astonishment, as if they'd witnessed something utterly unbelievable.
Last night, after hearing Raphtalia's story, they had all gone to bed separately.
Kiriko had stood watch for the first half of the night, waking the Dogkin later. Afterwards, she fell asleep next to Raphtalia.
Although Raphtalia hadn't had nightmares for a long while, and her body had grown into an adult's form, deep down she was still just a child.
Later, Gabriel, the fat bird who originally kept watch with Kiriko, had also squeezed in, pushing Raphtalia out of the spot entirely.
Filolials didn't stink exactly, but they did carry their own unique scent.
Still, Gabriel's body was so warm, like a furnace, that Kiriko quickly fell asleep in her embrace, sleeping soundly until Raphtalia and Lute rudely awakened her.
"T-t-t-t-t-this…this child—who is she?" Raphtalia's trembling finger pointed beside Kiriko.
Child?
Kiriko was stunned, suddenly realizing that she wasn't alone.
"What's wrong? It's so noisy…" A little blonde girl with two wings on her back slowly sat up from Kiriko's body.
Huh?
A little girl?
Waitwaitwaitwaitwaitwait—hold on, officer, please hear me out!
I'm innocent, I swear!
She had a pair of pure-white wings on her back, and long, silky golden hair cascading down her shoulders. Only now did Kiriko realize that she was completely…
Panicked, Kiriko quickly took off her black coat and threw it over Gabriel.
...
After the chaos finally subsided, they understood the truth.
This child was actually the Filolial Kiriko had bought earlier.
What the heck? Filolials can actually transform?
Kiriko wasn't particularly shocked by humanoid transformations, considering she'd literally been isekai'd—there really wasn't much left that could surprise her.
What truly unsettled her was: if even Filolials could turn into lolis, wouldn't that mean…
Oh god, let's not think too deeply about this.
However, the Dogkin's words soon dispelled Kiriko's concerns.
According to Lute, Filolials normally didn't possess transformation abilities.
Filolials were common beasts of burden in Melromarc and Siltvelt, mainly pulling carts. But nobody had ever heard of a Filolial becoming a little girl.
Raphtalia, too, had never heard of such a thing.
Then what on earth was happening here?
Kiriko glanced in confusion at Gabriel, who was now loudly complaining, "I'm hungryyyy!"
Forget it, she thought. If I can't figure it out now, I'll think about it later.
For now, let's just return to the royal capital first.
But since Gabriel had become humanoid, that meant their carriage was now…
Just as Kiriko was about to suggest they all walk back together, Gabriel transformed with a loud "poof," returning to her original plump bird form.
As for the black coat she'd been wearing—well, it was thoroughly obliterated.
What the hell, what kind of nonsense is this?
Apparently, Filolials could switch freely between forms.
The only problem was clothing…
Hopefully, there were clothes available in the capital that wouldn't tear apart upon transformation.
...
"Kiriko-san, isn't that Kiriko-san?"
On the grassland outskirts near the royal capital, Kiriko's group ran into Naofumi Iwatani's party, who also happened to be heading back toward the capital.
Naofumi's appearance was now dramatically different. Aside from his level having risen to 40, even his shield looked thicker and sturdier than before.
Kiriko knew this was because the Legendary Weapons could absorb materials to enhance themselves.
Additionally, Naofumi wore a heavy set of plate armor. Surprisingly, despite its weight, he carried it comfortably, even gracefully.
And Naofumi's companions were naturally the class of slaves she'd previously bought for him.
They too had grown visibly stronger. Moreover, the looks they gave Naofumi no longer reflected mere obedience enforced by their Slave Crests, but genuine trust.
Looks like you didn't disappoint me after all, Naofumi.
"Oh, right, Kiriko-san—this is for you."
Naofumi respectfully handed her a heavy money pouch.
Kiriko opened it briefly. It contained some silver coins, but mostly copper.
"It's only part of it. I can't repay my entire debt just yet, but I promise to fully repay you someday," Naofumi said sheepishly, scratching his head.
Kiriko didn't even bother counting it and simply tossed it into her Dimensional Bag.
"I trust you."
Recently, Naofumi and his followers had been leveling constantly. They'd tried to take commissions at the Adventurer's Guild, but oddly enough, every time Naofumi showed up, the receptionist claimed there weren't any quests suited for the Shield Hero.
Having no choice, Naofumi bypassed the guild entirely, completing tasks directly for villagers and townspeople around the royal capital.
They were returning now to check the Dragon Hourglass, something Naofumi had only recently learned about. Apparently, the Hourglass revealed the time remaining until the next Wave.
When the sand inside completely ran out, the Waves would begin, forcibly teleporting all Heroes and their followers to wherever the Wave occurred within this country.
Fuck!
Kiriko had originally considered abandoning the kingdom entirely after all the unjust treatment they'd received.
Let this ungrateful country summon heroes just to fail to appreciate them, only to be destroyed by the Waves—wouldn't that be fitting karma?
But she hadn't realized that even hiding wasn't an option.
"Kiriko-san, shall we head there together?"
"Yeah, let's go."
Kiriko did indeed have business with the Dragon Hourglass anyway.
After all, Raphtalia and Gabriel had already hit their Growth Limit, and advancing to the next class required visiting the Hourglass.
---
T/N: Uhhhhhhhhhhhhh i forgot what i was gonna say heres a pic of adult raphtalia and "gabriel" sorry no naofumi pics
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