On the way back, we didn't encounter Motoyasu. I figured he'd be out searching for me in a rage, but it turned out to be an unfounded worry.
After unloading the cargo in the village and heading back, I found that
"You doing okay?"
"Yes. That was... that was really fast," the woodcutter said, surprised at how quickly we'd returned.
"This one's got legs," I replied, patting
"Gwah!"
Filo answered energetically. Yeah, you really are fast.
"Alright, let's get serious about exploring the forest."
"Yes."
"Take it easy on the way back, okay?"
"Gwah!"
Crack...
What was that sound? She should've finished growing by now.
It was coming from Filo. I hoped it wasn't some weird illness.
That day's haul was impressive. Raphtalia performed well, but Filo's speed and attack power were truly remarkable. Honestly, her speed and the strength of her single strikes might even surpass Raphtalia's.
Naofumi: Lv.26 Raphtalia: Lv.29 Filo: Lv.19 White Usapill Shield conditions unlocked. Dark Yamaarashi Shield conditions unlocked. Usapill Bone Shield conditions unlocked. Yamaarashi Bone Shield conditions unlocked.
White Usapill Shield Ability locked... Equipment Bonus: Defense +2 Dark Yamaarashi Shield Ability locked... Equipment Bonus: Agility +2 Usapill Bone Shield Ability locked... Equipment Bonus: Stamina Up (Small) Yamaaarashi Bone Shield Ability locked... Equipment Bonus: SP Up (Small) Every single one was a status-boost type. If I could find a more efficient spot, I'd just equip higher-performance shields, but I didn't know any place that was good for both gold and experience. I had no choice but to unlock abilities the slow way and raise the floor across all my shields.
How many total unlocked abilities had I accumulated by now? There were so many I'd lost count. I hadn't even used the Orange Small Shield or other low-tier equipment since unlocking them. At best, I only pulled out shields like the Whetstone Shield when I needed their unique effects. Non-unique shields could be used with all of them, anyway. At the very least, the four I'd found today would never see use again after being unlocked.
As the sun began to set, we walked at a leisurely pace back to Ryuto Village. Raphtalia needed training to get used to the cart. She'd felt nauseous a few times along the way, so we took breaks and pushed on. As a result, we arrived after the sun had nearly gone down entirely.
"I'm so sorry."
"Don't worry about it. You'll get used to it little by little."
I said this despite the fact that I never got motion sickness—an almost unnaturally so. But that didn't mean I thought others were lacking in willpower. I'd heard that motion sickness could be overcome with practice. That was why I wanted Raphtalia to adjust to the cart as quickly as possible. Although, really, Filo's tendency to bolt off at full speed whenever something spooked her was the bigger problem.
"Gwah!"
At that point, the change had already begun. Well, to be precise, it had probably started well before that, but we just hadn't noticed. No—we had noticed, but we'd been ignoring it.
The next morning.
Even I couldn't ignore the change any longer, and Raphtalia, likewise, stood in deep thought.
"Gwaaah!"
When I poked my head into the stable, the transformation had already reached its extreme.
Filo had... there was no other way to put it—she had grown far beyond the average for a Filolial.
The average height of a Filolial was around 230 centimeters, roughly the same as an ostrich. However, Filolials had sturdier builds and larger heads and necks. And yet... Filo had reached 280 centimeters. When she stood up, the top of her head touched the stable's ceiling.
"Am I sure I was given a Filolial egg? I'm starting to wonder if I bought something else entirely."
"Yes... I think so too."
"Gwah!"
Filo gulped something down. Looking closer, the chimera meat I'd hung up in the stable was gone. There should've been enough for about two cows' worth—now it had vanished without a trace. Was that last morsel she'd just eaten?
"I was wondering if she'd lost her appetite, but..."
"She was eating it the whole time!"
"Gwahh!"
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"
"This isn't funny!"
What to do, what to do... For now, I could play it off as just being unusually large for her species. ...But then— Crack...
The growth sound echoed yet again.
"The sound's still going!"
"Um, could it be that this growth is caused by Naofumi's shield power?"
"That's entirely possible. The Monster Tamer's Shield III had a Growth Correction (Medium) bonus."
"N-Naofumi... I'm pretty sure there was a Slave's Shield too, wasn't there?"
"Yeah. There's a shield called the Slave Trader's Shield with a similar bonus."
"So... that power is affecting me?"
"Yeah. It's been unlocked for a while now. Raphtalia, you've been affected a little too."
"Noooooo!"
Raphtalia screamed and bolted from the stable.
"R-Raphtalia?!"
"I've been thinking my body felt lighter lately! So it was your fault, Naofumi!"
"C-Calm down!"
"Am I going to grow as big as Filo?! That's terrifying!"
"You're not giving off any growth sounds!"
"Now that you mention it, you're right! Oh thank goodness, seriously!"
...The situation was still far from reassuring, though.
I imagined Raphtalia growing into a hulking muscle-bound warrior, then turned my gaze to Filo.
"Aren't you thinking something rude right now?"
"...What should we do about this?"
Ignoring Raphtalia's suspicion, I continued the conversation.
"I think we should go back to that tent and have them look into this."
"Yeah. I guess we have no choice." I didn't want to return to
"Gwah!"
With that spirited cry, and with worry for both Filo pulling the cart and Raphtalia battling her motion sickness, we left Ryuto Village behind.
Along the way, Filo complained of hunger, so I fed her, fought off some monsters, and arrived at Castle Town just past noon.
"Hey..."
I noticed that Filo's appearance had changed yet again. Her legs and neck had gradually shortened, and before I knew it, she'd taken on a squat, elongated body shape like some kind of owl. Despite this, she still loved pulling the cart, and she gripped the reins just as she always had.
But the way she pulled it had changed dramatically. Before, she'd been tied to the cart by a rope. Now, she used her hand-like wings to deftly grasp the cart's handle and pull it along.
"Queh!"
Even her cry had changed. And she'd turned completely white.
"Hmm?"
I hopped down from the cart and eyeballed Filo's height.
She'd shrunk? She was back down to around 230 centimeters, but she'd broadened considerably, and she might have actually looked more intimidating than before. To put it unkindly, she looked like an unnaturally obese theme park mascot.
"Queh?"
"No, it's nothing."
Did Filo realize she'd changed? By now, I had no idea what kind of creature she even was.
"Well, well... I came as soon as I heard, and I'm at a complete loss for words. Indeed."
The slave merchant wiped beads of cold sweat from his brow over and over as he stared at Filo with wide eyes.
"Queh?"
Filo, now fat both vertically and horizontally, looked like nothing more than some owl-like monster. The friendly ostrich-like creature she'd once been was nowhere to be seen.
"So, I want a straight answer. This thing hatched from the egg I bought from you. What kind of egg did you sell me?"
Depending on his answer...
I snapped my fingers, and Filo immediately tensed, ready to lunge.
"Queeeeh!"
The slave merchant panicked, frantically checking what looked like official documents over and over.
"I-I don't understand! The slip we provided clearly states that the egg purchased by the Hero was indeed a Filolial!"
"This looks like a Filolial to you?"
"Queeeh!"
I tossed a fairly large piece of feed, and Filo deftly caught it in her mouth and gulped it down.
"Umm..."
Come to think of it, the growth sound had stopped coming from Filo a while ago. Did that mean she'd finally reached physical adulthood?
"But to think she'd grow this much in only a few days—truly, as expected of the Hero. I salute you."
"Save the flattery. Just tell me what kind of egg you gave me."
"So, um... was this monster always in this form from the start?"
"No." I gave the slave merchant the full account of Filo's growth from birth to the present.
"So she really was a proper Filolial up until a certain point?"
"Yeah. Now I have no idea what she is."
"Queh?"
Filo tilted her head and struck a vaguely adorable pose. It mildly irritated me. Whose fault was it that we had to go through all this?
"Queeh."
She rubbed her entire body against me, purring. With wings this large, being hugged meant being pressed against a wall of heat—her bird metabolism kept her body temperature high.
"Mm..."
Raphtalia furrowed her brow, took my hand, and squeezed it.
"Queh?"
Somehow, Raphtalia and Filo were staring each other down.
"What's going on, you two?"
"Nothing at all."
"Queh, queh."
Both of them shook their heads in denial. What was that all about?
"So? What's the verdict?"
"Well, you see..."
The slave merchant looked completely stumped. He dealt in monsters, yet he didn't know how this one would grow?
"For the time being, I'll have a specialist come take a look on short notice. Would you mind letting me keep her until then? Indeed."
"Just don't tell me you're going to crack her open to find out and then kill her."
"Queh?!"
"Of course not! It's just that the specialist will need a little time to arrive. Indeed."
"...Fine. I'll leave her with you. If anything happens, I'll be demanding compensation."
"Queeeh?!"
Filo flapped her wings in protest at my answer. However, the slave merchant's subordinate put a collar on Filo and led her into a cage. Perhaps because I was nearby, she went surprisingly quietly.
"Right then. I'll come pick her up tomorrow. Have an answer for me by then."
I nailed down that point one last time, then took Raphtalia and left the tent.
"Queeeeeeeh!"
Filo's enormous voice followed us even after we'd left.
That evening... while staying at the inn, the innkeeper suddenly called me over.
"Um, Hero?"
"Hm? What is it?"
"A guest is asking to see you."
Wondering who it could be, I went to the counter where the innkeeper had left them waiting. A man I didn't recognize was standing there.
"What do you want?"
"Well, I'm... a messenger from the monster merchant."
The monster merchant... ah, the slave merchant. Of course—he couldn't exactly introduce himself by his real title publicly.
"What's the matter?"
"My master asked me to return the monster you left in our care."
"Huh?!"
Only a few hours had passed since then... What was going on?
I took Raphtalia and headed back to the tent, where Filo's cries still echoed.
"Oh my, I do apologize for the late hour. Indeed."
The slave merchant, looking somewhat haggard, greeted us at the entrance.
"What's this all about? You were supposed to keep her until tomorrow."
"That was the intention, but your monster has proven to be somewhat problematic."
"Queeeeeeh!"
Filo thrashed wildly in her cage, but the moment she spotted us, she finally settled down.
"She destroyed approximately three iron cages, sent five of my subordinates to the hospital while they tried to restrain her, and critically injured three of my working monsters. Indeed."
"I'm not paying for that."
"To think there's a Hero who puts money first even in a situation like this—I'm truly impressed. Indeed."
Is this guy a masochist?
"So what happened? Did you figure it out?"
"Not exactly... but I did find a report of a sighting of an individual resembling a Filolial King."
"A king?"
"To be precise, the report says that Filolial flocks are governed by a leader. It's fairly well-known among adventurers."
The slave merchant had apparently been scouring his information network for anything that might shed light on the situation. He'd found a story about wild Filolial flocks that existed in large groups, ruled by a king. The speculation was that Filo might be this Filolial leader—a king that rarely appeared before humans.
"Hmm."
Secondhand info, huh? If I released her Demon Crest and let the shield absorb something from her, I might be able to confirm the truth—but that would mean killing Filo. And even if I absorbed feathers or blood, since she was my monster, only the Monster Tamer's Shield ever lit up, so it didn't help narrow things down. Required level and tree progression were both insufficient.
I stared hard at Filo.
"...Queh?"
Companion monsters didn't show their species name through Status Magic, did they? If they were hostile, I could see it, but for allies it was useless.
"So what's this leader called?"
"A Filolial King—or rather, a Queen."
"Filo's female, so a Queen, then."
"Y-yes... The thing is, she's grown this attached to you, Hero. If I try to sell her in this condition, it'll be quite the problem for me."
She'd been crying and thrashing, destroying three iron cages. Tch! Every plan kept falling apart! I hadn't intended to sell her, but still...
"...shujin-sama."
"Hm? Did I just hear a voice I didn't recognize?"
"Now that you mention it, I think I heard something too."
"A-ah..."
Raphtalia covered her mouth with one hand and pointed toward Filo's cage. The slave merchant's subordinate was pointing in the same direction, mouth agape.
I and the slave merchant exchanged confused looks, then turned around.
"Goshujin-samaaaa."
There, bathed in a faint residual glow, stood a white-winged girl—completely naked—reaching her hand toward me through the bars of the cage.
Just as I'd expected.