Erhard, a man with a shaved head and a body full of scars, was sharpening a blade in the backroom of his shop. He gave off an aura of a seasoned adventurer, retired, and profiting quite well from his trade of trading weapons. The crude scraping sound of his weapon against the wet stone filled his ears. Even as the front door to the Weapon Shop was pushed open. After a few seconds, he heard the sound of feet piling in through the store's front door. "Hm?" Pausing his work, the blacksmith stood from his stool and placed the weapon back into the refurbishing pile. "Now, who could that be?" A smug grin rang slyly across his lips as he stepped out of the back room and into the area behind the counter.

"Hello there," Takehide spoke as he was observing a spear sticking out of a barrel along with various other polearms. The fingers of his right holding open a book that was near its end in his palm. His other hand outstretched to touch the weapons but stopped himself just a little off from making contact with the items.

Rino was smiling at his side, watching over the item he was once appraising with his eyes.

Elena, on the other hand, was padding on over to the selection of swords with Eclair not too far behind her. They were looking into the weapons to see if there was anything particularly cheap they could get their hands on.

Orson, out of all of them, remained by the front door of the shop with his swordstaff in hand. It was as if he was guarding the store against intruders. Truthfully, he just had no reason to venture any further into the shop. His eyes watched the leader of the party, contemplating what the next move will be that he'll want to make before he makes it.

Without much more thought, Takehide finally glanced to the side, decisively studying the blacksmith who now stood there with a face of surprise.

"You're another one of those heroes, aren't you?" Erhard brushed his hands off on his beige overalls, before crossing his arms over his off-white T-shirt. "You're friends with the Shield Hero?"

Closing one eye, Takehide simply smirked coyly in return, "Depends on whom it concerns."

"In that case, my name's Erhard," A grin returning to the store owner's lips as he spoke. Standing behind the counter he gave the other members of the stranger's party a once over. There was a burly man who had a similar style to himself, though there was a mustache with that facial hair of his. Erhard only had an Amish-styled beard, but no mustache. Then his eyes went over to the three girls in the party, his eyes centered on the mage for a few seconds, then over to the Noblewomen. "Quite the party you got there, I'm assuming you've come here in order to get some gear… Is there anything special you're looking for?"

"Some light armor, possibly half-plate, and a relatively good spear," he flexed his hand slightly as he used his interface in order to change his spear's form to the Healer's Spear.

"Whoa there! How did you do that?" Erhard blinked seeing the weapon change shape, never having seen something quite like it before. Though that didn't mean he was completely ignorant about the Vassal and Legendary Weapons.

"I can copy spear-like weapons simply by touching them, all heroes can," Takehide was telling him this as more of a warning of anyone who may try to steal his things.

"You're… Not going to go around stealing my work are you now, kiddo?" The smith kept his arms crossed though he didn't let that grin of his leave his face. From what he could see, Takehide was an honest fella.

"No, but I'll pay you a portion of the cost of anything I copy," Takehide shrugged his shoulders, "Considering you'd still be left with the merchandise even after I copy it."

"Fair enough," huffed the blacksmith as he heard the boy talk of how he was going to retain anything he copied. It meant he could quite literally copy his entire inventory of spears and all he'd be losing is the potential of the purchases the kid could have made like a normal person.

"Now the armors, You have anything between one hundred and two hundred silvers? I'm looking for something that can be overlayed," he gestured to his uniform that he was wearing.

"Hmm…" Looking over the otherworldly uniform the boy was wearing, he narrowed his gaze on the crested badge that decorated his chest. It was as if he was someone of authority from his previous world, and as his eyes moved along the other attachments to his uniform. Erhard quickly noted to himself that Takehide may as well have been part of a combative organization of some sort. "I think I have just the thing," his eyes rested on the girl with the dark hair, "Anything for the ladies?"

"Do you have any used items? Swords in particular?" Elena asked curiously as she raised a brow at the man.

"Er… Yeah, I should have some in the back. I'll bring a number of them out," his dark black eyes narrowed on the Green Mage who was scrutinizing a reinforced mage robe resting in the corner. "Hm, anything for the Mage?"

"My name is Rino," she looked over to the man with her head cocked to the side, her body shifting to rest against her staff. "Do you have any magic daggers?"

"I think I have a few magic iron daggers in the back, I'll bring them out with the rest of the items," the man then proceeded to retreat into the backroom. Erhard brushed his hand over a few short swords that were sturdy and had already been refurbished. "I could sell these for about fifty silver each…"

His middle-aged eyes narrowed on the spear that was hanging along the wall, its katana-like blade was a pearly white magical alloy with a gilded serpentine water dragon engraved upon it. This was an item that belonged to a friend he used to adventure with. A faint smile composed itself across his lips as his mind went back to the good ole' times when he had close friends to travel the world with. Reaching out, he pulled the weapon off of its display plaque and placed it on the table by the door. "I'll get a good deal with this one," He snickered as he began going through his light armor selection next.

Erhard put together a light armor set consisting of a long quilted reinforced padded-jacket, off-black in color with silvery studs that cut off just below the thighs. This was accompanied by a piece of skirted iron torso armor and a comparable blue pair of reinforced pants. For the arms, hands, and legs were armor tipped leather boots and a pair of armored glove-like sleeves which extended to the forearms.

After a short period of time, he had all of the items lined up on the counter. Together there were three daggers, two short swords, and the powerful spear that was engraved in his past. Next to those, separated, was the armor and clothing pieces to be examined by the man.

Elena didn't waste any time as she teetered on over to the counter and gave the items a look-see. Whilst the items were used, they were good for backup weapons. A smirk formed over her lips as she felt Rino brush up beside her to look at the magic daggers.

Without a doubt, Eclair had already picked up a Knightly sword. She knew that it was the right weapon the moment she grasped it and examined the blade. While it was slightly chipped, the weapon had the ability to serve just like any other.

"This dagger is nice," Rino reached forward and grasped the center dagger. It had a black hilt and a bluish-grey straight-edged blade, it appeared good for stabbing and slashing. Her eyes seemed to glimmer as she noticed it gave off a faint glow to it as she picked it up. "Hehehe…"

Elena, on the other hand, examined one of the short swords that had a blue fabric coiled around the grip of its hilt. The blade itself was a short slender and sharply-pointed two-edged blade, a rapier-like the one at her hip. "This would be a perfect backup weapon," she uttered to herself before looking to Takehide who was removing his belts.

Takehide placed the belt from his uniform as well as his badge on the counter in front of him. It didn't take him long to start putting on the armor which was reserved for him. He slipped the jacket over his uniform and fastened it onto his person, followed by the half-plate that surrounded his torso. A soft chuckle escaped his lips as he proceeded to put the belts back on over top of the armor.

"So far I like how it looks," this Spear-bearer chuckled to himself as he then applied the armored sleeves over the jacket. In a way, he appeared almost like a Samurai dressed in heavily westerner-influenced armor, clearly showing the mixed ethnicity of the armor's design. It made him wonder if there was another country that was just like Japan that followed such an aesthetic.

"It does seem to fit you rather well," Erhard scratched his chin, "That will be One hundred ninety silvers." His eyes trailed over to the pants and boots which were still on the counter. "So what is that badge for?" His eyes rested on the samurai-police insignia.

"I used to be a civil officer, where I was summoned from that is," Takehide replied as he placed the badge into his inventory. He then glanced over towards the Spear that Erhard then placed down in front of him from the other part of the counter.

"Your total will be two hundred and sixty silvers. Fairtrade?" The Blacksmith asked as he watched the man slip his black leather boots off and pull the reinforced pants on over his slacks.

Once he put the armor tipped boots on, he watched as a notification appeared and Takehide's eyes briefly narrowed.

[ Knightly Armor ]

[ Physical Defense +30 ]

[ Physical Strength Buff (Small) ]

[ Magic Resistance (Small) ]

[ Self-Repair Function (Medium) ]

"More than fair, my friend." Takehide nodded as he very much trusted the man due to his immediate friendliness and good business sense. Reaching out a hand, he grasped the spear, his eyes widening as the information appeared before him.

[ Kutenrou Dragon Tooth ]

[ Kutenrou Dragon Tooth (Mithril) ]

[ Mastery Level: 0/30 ]

[ Tier Rating: Rare ]

[ Special Abilities: Dragon's Breath, Dragon's Claw, Truth Sense ]

[ Bonus Abilities: ATK +30, AG +15, DEF +10, Fire Resistance Up 45% ]

"Th-this ought to be well over a gold coin in value!" The hero needlessly blurted out, assuming that a single gold coin was worth a thousand silver. His eyes shakily narrowed onto the Blacksmith who, in his mind, was grinning like the devil.

"The spear itself was never for sale," Erhard admitted as he retracted the weapon from the boy's grasp. "I had it on display in the back…" His eyes danced over the weapon favorably, "It reminds me of the good ole' days where every day was an adventure."

"Oh, isn't it still though?" Takehide seemed to have immediately calmed down as it seemed he wasn't going to be charged for the weapon. At least not as much as its actual cost. Though he was wondering what the blacksmith wanted for it, considering he already had him touch it. In a way, it felt like a trap, but at the same time, a favor.

"If you feel that way, then five hundred silvers the next time you come back," Erhard gave a hearty laugh, he was joking of course. "I look forward to your continued service, Ta-chan."

"T-Ta-ch-chan!?" Rino nearly exploded as the blacksmith gave the hero a nickname right off the bat. She was completely overwhelmed by a man playfully calling her leader by such a name.

"Rin-tan," Takehide glanced over towards Rino with a small grin across his lips.

"Cute, first full day in the world and you're already flirting with the natives," Erhard snickered.

With a mischievous glance towards the blacksmith, he continued to speak towards his companion, "It's alright. No need to get excited over a little nickname, let the old man have his fun."

Clinging to her staff, she nodded to the two men, before sharing a gaze with the floor, "Okay…" A faint smile kept her lips busy as she went along in thought.

"Oi, Ta-chan, I'm not that old." Erhard huffed in feigned annoyance.

"Then how old are you?" A clever gaze was placed on the blacksmith who returned the question with a soft glare of his own.

"That's none of your business, boy." Erhard crossed his arms over his chest before turning his eyes to look over the girls of Takehide's party once more. He seemed to be surrounded by a lovely lot. A soft chuckle escaped his lips before his sights matched that of Orson who was standing at the door and he raised a brow. "Wait… Don't I know you...?"

Orson nodded with a grunt, "I've bought arms from you before," he tapped the butt of his polearm against the wooden floor panels. "It is a pleasure to see you again, Erhard-san."

"... I see," Erhard shifted his head away to the side lightly. The total he had asked for was all there, had immediately expelled from the spear onto the counter before he collected the coins that Takehide intended to give to him. Not too long ago he remembered the man had come in a few weeks ago with two Demi-human girls in tow. Seeing them no longer by the man's side, made him understand what likely had happened before. A sigh escaped him, one he couldn't even hope to stifle. Walking over to the nearby barrel of maps, he retrieved one of them and placed it in Takehide's hand. "This one is on the house," he grinned down at the Hero, not wanting the lad to get lost for whatever reason.

Takehide snickered as he looked over the map that had been given to him by the esteemed blacksmith, and former adventurer. "Thank you, Sir."

Elena jabbed the new weapon she had been gifted by the Cardinal Hero, swiftly making use of it against the air. A smug look crossed her face as she admired the slender blade, how it had just enough spring with each lunge she made. "This is perfect for a substitute."

Rino bent her petite form over, lifting the brim of her robe and slipping her dagger into her left leather boot, hiding it from view with the skirting of her green mage robes. Standing straight up, she did a little jig with her feet before swaying to herself with the staff still in hand. A light hum of contentment emitted from her lips, reverberating in her throat, in such a comfortable manner.

"Anyways," Takehide watched as Erhard was putting his recent earnings into a lockbox, "the next time you see the Shield Hero, I want you to give him something." Placing the book that he had been reading earlier down on the counter, he slid the Japanese book across the counter to Erhard.

"What's this?" Erhard stared at the foreign Japanese characters that littered the front cover, "Some sort of spell book from another country?"

"It is something that might help Naofumi-san through what is coming," Takehide frowned knowing that he couldn't be seen actively helping the Shield without paying a price.

Erhard quickly caught on that the Spear Hero wasn't going to answer his second question, but simply nodded as he looked over the book again. "So, you plan to help your friend from the sideline?"

"If that is what keeps him alive," Takehide tipped his head to the man as he turned to walk towards the door as his companions flanked him at either side. "I trust the Heroes, and I trust my friends, and I believe I've found a friend in you. I can't see you disappointing me, Erhard-san."

"You flatter me," the scarred man snickered as he put his lockbox back into its hiding place, slipping the key to the box into his beige work clothes. He then placed the book on top of the box before standing up to witness Takehide reach the door. "I won't let you down," he winked with his strong calloused hands placed at his hips.

"Of course," Takehide responded with a thumbs-up as Orson pressed the door open, holding it as he and the rest of the members of the party left the shop. With less than four hundred silvers left, it was time to replenish their coin shortage.

As the door began to slowly close after Orson released its wooden form, Takehide turned his head to glance back into the shop. Erhard's eyes were still on him and his group. Only right before the door went to close did he hear the man venture into the backroom. After a few seconds of just standing there as the ambient sound of the world took hold, he could hear the song of metal grinding against a sharpening stone.

Turning his head to face forward, the young Hero looked to his party and gave a nod. Holding his spear idly at his side, using the Dragon Tooth form, he raised the weapon to the air before marching off in the direction of the other heroes.

At a brisk pace, Takehide's party moved through the fields of orange balloons.

His eyes followed the little red triangular symbols that appeared over hostiles heads. "So much like a game, but not a game…" He found himself muttering to himself as he shifted one foot behind the other.

Sounds of popping emanated from all directions. Heroes were grinding away at these little buggers that seemed to be of orange rubber-like balls for bodies and angry eyes along with sharp chomping jaws. Despite their visible ferocity, he doubted their strength, even in swarms. There was a curiosity to them, of how they had even evolved, where they had come from. Modern science most likely wouldn't even be able to explain their existence.

A chuckle escaped Takehide's lips at the thought of a dumbfounded scientist, "Perhaps I should've asked him for a bestiary along with the map…"

With a twist of his leg, he swung the blade of his polearm, slashing diagonally to wipe out three lunging monsters. His weapon was much faster and far more agile than he thought, the creatures popped soon after he swiped his weapon through their feeble forms.

He had taken them out in one hit, and golden numbers appeared in the form of experience.

[ +35 EXP ]

[ +32 EXP ]

[ +44 EXP ]

"Not bad…" His eyes traced over towards the other members of his party, seeing the numbers of experience they had gained as well. It was the same amount as himself, though Orson seemed to get a bit more due to his settings. A small grin formed over his lips at the sight. "Alright, let's get into formation and try to group the enemies together! Time to collect some Aggro..."

Elena stood beside Rino, her rapier sticking out in front of her grasped in one hand. Confidence warped her face in pride to some degree, ready to attack enemies that dare approached her charge.

Orson moved to stand beside Takehide in order to work alongside him."Time to get poppin' huh?" The old man made a dad joke, "Guess I'll show you what this old man is capable of!"

"Me first!" Rino butted in, raising her staff in the air horizontally with both hands, keeping them evenly spaced from one another as she recited a prepared spell. "Tzuvait Windpulse!"

A sudden gust of wind went in every direction. Soon enough he could hear them, bouncing on the dirt and gliding over the grass. Angry, a number of orange balls began to encircle them in swarms.

"So you had one of those kinds of spells on you, interesting…" Takehide snickered as she had taken the aggro of several creatures in a rather small area. "Nice intermediate spell, Rin-tan."

"Thank you, Takehide-sama," Rino flushed greatly to his compliment. "I will do my best."

Eclair grasped the hilt of her weapon as she chose this moment to draw her Knightly short sword. Its metallic form slipped from the scabbard smoothly, clipping against the edges as she stood between the spear using members of the party. The noble then took on a battle-ready stance, one leg bent forward and the other supporting in back. With a satisfied smirk, she rested the bobble of the hilt against her hip, keeping one hand on the grip to take down their weak foes.

Seeing all of the little red pings above the monsters made Takehide feel as if he couldn't be snuck up upon, at least not easily. As they came, he covered Eclair's flank while she covered the center. The monsters wanted to target the mage, but with Elena's quick footwork and use of the rapier, it only took a couple of jabs for the monsters to pop.

Experience rained upon them, and they continued this for hours. Leveling had become easy with a group this large. In the first couple of hours, they had gained several levels.

Systematically they had moved from patch to patch, luring these monsters to their previous positions and into their grasp. Once they were slain, they collected the numerous shredded remains that littered the grounds together as a unit.

"We have hundreds of these things, we'll probably get a silver or two out of this," Elena said as she held a piece of the sunny sky above, seeing through it ever so slightly.

Reaching over, Takehide inserted a handful of the orange pieces into the spear.

[ Orange Short Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Orange Short Spear ]

[ Equipment Bonus: Defense +2 ]

"Huh, not bad…" Takehide commented as he looked over the meager gaining from absorbing the item. The defense wasn't a bad perk, but it wasn't really as numerous as his previous gains prior.

Eventually, after having killed dozens upon dozens of the monstrous orange balls, they began to give looks toward the nearby forest. They had all gained at least five levels since they started. Only as they were beginning their trek towards the direction of their next 'harvest,' did they come to a stop as they heard the popping of other orange monsters; not of their doing.

Not too far away was Ren, his group was standing around and watching as he used his rather lacking sword skills to wipe the floor with the orange monsters. It was fascinating to see, even as his group cheered him on along with a group of peasants. However, it was rather dull as well since his party wasn't doing all that much, likely ordered by Ren himself.

"I suppose he probably ordered them to standby until he needed them," Takehide could recall from this morning that Ren had said he was more of a loner.

"Yeah, that does sound likely," Elena frowned as she sheathed her weapon.

Eclair simply shrugged at this, slipping her weapon back into its warm scabbard as if tucking it into bed. Her mannerisms and how she carried herself were far more elegant than Takehide had expected despite her noble status.

Kneeling down, he shoved his fingers into the soil and picked up a handful of dirt from the farmland they were standing in. Takehide then proceeded to feed the dirt to his spear until there was a sudden notification.

[ Rich Soil Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Rich Soil Short Spear ]

[ Bonus Ability: Soil Enrichment I ]

"Are… You going to keep feeding everything you see into your spear?" Asked Orson as he stared at the brown-colored edge of his weapon that now matched the dirt.

"I suppose," Takehide didn't care all that much what he placed in, but it helped him gain more abilities. The more he could do, the more he could be of use to his friends and to himself. A warrior needed these tools to continue to be loyal to his friends, whether or not they saw him as such yet.

Squatting on the spot, he kept one hand on his spear as he stared at a small collection of white mushrooms. Without thinking, he reached down and plucked them from the ground one at a time. Once his hand was full, he fed one at a time to his spear as he brought the jeweled end down to his level. He kept doing so until another notification appeared.

[ Short Mushroom Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Short Mushroom Spear ]

[ Bonus Ability: Plant Appraisal ]

"Now that's what I am talking about," Takehide grinned deviously to himself seeing now that he could appraise plants. This had the potential to make it easier to hunt for particular plants with properties that he wanted. Whilst he already had a poisonous blade he could use, there were plenty of other potent ones out there as he remembered plenty from his world. The main one on his mind was the Nightshade, a plant that belonged to the same family as potatoes. The ones that grow in a particular way above ground were poisonous, lethal to one's nervous systems, and could be used to create hallucinations. All of these were useful in the battle against a foe that strength alone had too much trouble defeating.

Standing up from where he was, he could see Naofumi off in the distance. Fighting beside him was the red-haired female with the emerald-colored eyes. A frown formed over his once grinning lips.

Takehide felt like a dog that felt the instinct to protect his friend, but he couldn't completely tell what he was wanting to protect him from. Myne, the woman, didn't seem like a physical threat. The way she wore her smile, the way she danced around with her sword, it didn't feel as if she had any bad intentions. It purely looked like she was enjoying herself.

"Takehide-sama," Rino knocked on the armor plating that covered his abdomen, "Let's go to the forest. I'm sure there are more things you can put in that spear of yours."

Chuckling at her words, Takehide returned to smiling, "Sounds like a good idea…"

The five of them turned towards the forest and began to move together. They kept within a few paces of one another at all times and didn't spread out too much.

Entering through the treeline, the group was gradually surrounded by trees, bushes and ferns. There wasn't a lot of running room, and there were plenty of roots waiting to trip anyone who dared to retreat from battle. Listening to their surroundings, they knew this place was teeming with life, even if they couldn't see it right away.

"So… Are we going to be looking for things to be absorbed into the spear?" Rino asked as she let her head delicately rest to the side, not yet upon her shoulder.

Kneeling down into the dirt as they all came to a stop, Takehide went out of his way to tear a thick tuft of grass out of the ground. Looking it over as well as the roots that came out along with it, he raised a brow. "Interesting…" The back of his mind went to Bamboo, considering it was related to grass. The number of things that grass could be used for was massive, at least in a modern world, so he wondered what he'd get from grass alone.

Feeding the thick tufts of grass to his spear, he watched as a notification appeared.

[ Leaf Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Leaf Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Absorption Ability I ]

"Was grass really worth putting into your Spear?" Eclair stared at him with a dull gaze.

"Yes, actually," Takehide looked up to her with a grin of his own. "It ate it and seems to have enhanced a valuable skill," he stood up as he glanced over the nearby tree with green leafy plants growing around it. "Though I am curious if there are some that enhance harvest and foraging…"

"Those are plants used for making healing potions and various medicines," Rino pointed out as her gaze followed him. "They'd be useful in the long-run, Takehide-sama."

"Thank you," Takehide didn't really need her to tell him about them, he already knew. As he walked over to the plants, he knelt down once more and began carefully picking them from the ground. So just as he had done with the grass only a few seconds ago, he started feeding them to his shield until suddenly another Spear was unlocked.

[ Medicine Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Medicine Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Potion Efficiency ]

Warmed by the notification, the Hero continued to pick the items in order to put them into his inventory. Making medicine and potions was something he wanted to try. Plus, making them by hand would allow him to absorb and copy his improved works.

Standing up from where he had knelt down, he turned to look at the other members of his party. Eclair, Elena, and Orson were looking at the nearby bushes as they were rustling about.

Rino, on the other hand, was just standing beside him, watching over everything he did. Personally he thought it was rather cute, but he knew she was doing more than just watching him. She was keeping tabs on the rest of the area, even if she wasn't necessarily using her eyes actively.

Tilting his spear downwards by a few degrees, he raised a brow and wandered on over to the bush his companions were all surrounding. Just as he stood beside Eclair, what appeared to be a rabbit monster came flying out of the bush directly at him. Leafs and sticks were sewn everywhere from the sudden leap, only for it to end with the sound of self-impalement.

Everyone gawked at the fluffball in disbelief. They hadn't even started hunting monsters and one just threw itself onto a spike. What luck is this!? Their gazes peeled away from the now crimson fluid covered, once pearly, white blade to rest upon the Spear Hero. With the spear moved back up to a fixed vertical position, the blood began trickling down the shaft and onto his hand.

"You have got to be kidding me, did that really just happen?" Takehide couldn't help but utter as he reached up with his free hand and pulled the corpse free. Resting it on the ground, he looked to Rino, "Can I see that dagger? It's the closest thing we got to a hunting knife."

Rino blinked and nodded, "Of course Takehide-sama," bending forwards he lifted her skirt and grasped the exposed hilt of the dagger. Unsheathing it from its hiding place, she handed the hero her weapon.

Laying the rabbit corpse onto its side, he began to shallowly cut into the layer between the skin and the fat. His fingers could feel the softness of the creature's pelt, a small smile resting uneasily on his lips. With a bisecting line going down its belly, he began to carefully skin the rabbit and within a short period of time, he held the pelt of fur to his spear.

Like all the rest of the times, the jewel lit up hungrily and as he fed it the disembodied coat of white fur just disappeared.

[ UsaHide Spear Unlocked! ]

[ UsaHide Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Agility +3 ]

With the rabbit now cut open, he could see the organs in that his spear had pierced which were the heart and lungs. He was thanking the maker that it hadn't been anything other than those particular organs. Clumsily, he moved his hand into the rabbit as he rested his spear at his side. Despite his unskilled hunting abilities, he carefully cut the spine with the magic dagger and removed it from the body, taking the attached organs with it.

At the sounds of breaking sticks, Takehide's eyes immediately shot up to see Orson with several pieces of roughly sharp sturdy-looking sticks. They were still green, which made the male snicker under his breath. "Good thinking," the Hero handed Orson pieces of the edible organs to skewer. He then disposed of the inedible bits by shallowly burying them in a ditch.

Orson gave a soft hum to himself, as he had gone hunting plenty of times to feed his family in the past. A warm shine met his eyes as he stood the skewers upon the forest floor, the fresh meat and organs suspended from touching the dirty ground.

Not too long after he was finished with that, Takehide continued to cut the rabbit apart. Without even an ounce of hesitation, he even went on to feed its bones and meat to the Spear as it hungrily accepted the offerings. It didn't devour the whole rabbit, but it took a nice chunk and gave a notification when it was full.

[ UsaMeat Spear Unlocked! ]

[ UsaMeat Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Dissection I ]

Giving it a bit more bones from the rabbit monster, he got another notification.

[ UsaBone Spear Unlocked! ]

[ UsaBone Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: ATK +5 ]

"I can get used to this," Takehide snickered to himself as he wiped his bloodied hands in the dirt after putting the rest of the rabbit in his inventory. His eyes fixed on the grass after a few seconds before he started putting that into his inventory as well, handfuls at a time.

"What are you doing, Takehide-sama?" Elena knelt down beside him curiously.

"Experimenting," he responded automatically without much thought before opening the crafting screen. There were a number of tools he could apparently make from the rabbit bones. Like a hunting knife with a plastic handle that enriched the meat of Usa-Monsters that were flayed with it. It combined the grass as ingredients, due to plastic being made from the classic green grain.

When he looked over the other tools, he found he could also make bone marrow paste and various other objects. There was even white dye. As he continued down there was some green ointment that could be made from the green leaves he had been picking earlier.

It seemed he needed to combine it with something else in order to make anything more. Thankfully after consuming certain objects back in the town, such as the potion and holy water, he had their recipes within his spear.

Holding the magic dagger by its blade, Takehide held the hilt of the weapon out for Rino to take, "Here you go Rin-tan, you can have this back."

Rino gave a likely disturbing smile, her eyes widened a bit, as she took hold of the hilt. The weapon was covered in the blood from the rabbit and wasn't the least bit appealing in the slightest. Nonetheless, she wiped the blood off on the nearby bush before concealing it within her boot again.

Takehide, all the while, used the crafting screen in order to create the hunting knife from the bones of the monstrously-sized Lagomorpha.

"Orson-san," Takehide turned his gaze towards the man, "I would like you and Eclair to work together in order to get more rabbits. This is practice for working in pairs," he said as he stood up.

"Yes, Master." Orson nodded to the man, a grin across his lips as he appeared to superficially recognize the Spear Hero as such.

"Do not call me Master," Takehide nearly cried.

"Young Master?" Orson asked with a stern voice.

"Just call me Takehide like the rest of the party, Orson-san." Takehide didn't want to be called Master despite its ego-tripping goodness.

"Takehide-sama," Eclair stepped toward the Spear Hero, her illusionary eyes piercing right through him. "May I ask how much martial training you've had?"

Takehide's gaze rested upon the Knight, a brow raised. "I'd have to say I started martial training when I was ten, so about eight years, if not nine. To say the least, a grotesque fighting spirit is popular with my family." Of course, he was talking about martial arts, nothing really related to military strategy. However, he did spend four years in the academy learning how much teamwork, loyalty, and cooperation was necessary for a successful operation.

Eclair smirked hearing that the hero was trained in the ways of fighting, though she still wondered just how prepared he was. It seemed she was going to find out in the days to come.

With his spear out in front of him, he used the crafting system to make the hunting knife. The next thing he knew, the tool was raising from the jeweled handle first. Grasping it as the item emerged, he drew it from the jewel and looked over its workmanship.

From what was seen, there was no indication that its durability was going to be very high. If anything the bones had a higher chance of being brittle. From closer inspection, the item even appeared to be modulated towards mass production in terms of quality. Just from that, Takehide knew it wasn't the best knife there was, but it was enough to get the job done. The one thing that stood out, however, was that his weapon had consumed all of the grass he had put into the spear.

Slipping the knife into his sleeve armor to be easily drawn when needed, he turned and glanced toward the direction of the Castle Town.

"Takehide-sama," Rino had reached over and tugged on the studded jacket of the Hero's.

"What is it?" His eyes traced over Rino, before looking over Elena as well who were both eagerly looking at him. Though Elena seemed a bit less eager to enter combat again, she seemed up to the challenge.

"What are we going to do?" Rino's eyes gleamed from the evening sun as she inquired, as a way to answer his question; her upper lip laxly overlapping the lower as she did.

"Foraging for anything that could be remotely useful, including alchemic ingredients. Refining and adding to my collection of spears is paramount." Takehide knew this much from the game that he had seen back in his world. It was incredibly similar, especially even the layout of the world. The screenshots though couldn't have given this place justice, making this place far more real than any virtual simulation he had ever seen. He was sure, though, that all of this was real and none of it was simulated or part of some sort of joke. Takehide had already ruled that out since he, for one, remembered dying.

"Before we all split up, I want to remind everyone to stay within sight of one another. While we're able to monitor each other's vitals, we cannot take the chance of getting hurt or lost." Takehide announced to the group, causing them all to nod to him.

Rino and Elena both turned on their heels and went looking around for just about anything that fit his parameters. Mushrooms, berries, flowers, insects; there was no end to it.

Rino and Elena both used the outer skirting of their attires to carry the things that they've collected. Around the same time, Orson and Eclair were tracking down rabbits in the area, as well as luring out other creatures that may be hiding in trees or their own burrows. Rabbits tended to live in colonies, so if there was one nearby, then there was a chance there were many others.

Takehide, on the other hand, was collecting sticks, broad branches, and rocks. Ultimately he was forming a pile of sticks in a pyramid-like structure. He surrounded it with the stones of varying sizes and made a small pit around it as well.

A couple of hours and several dead monsters later, a collection of plush blankets made of monster fur skins rested upon the ground. The party had all gained at least a level, at max two. On top of them were monster drops and the items found during scavenging: Blue, red, and green spotted mushrooms. An enigmatic looking flower with purple petals that gave an ominous glimmer. Then there were plenty of other things like a dead butterfly, cocoons, and a partially crushed giant spider. Next to those was a pile of quills from a porcupine, a dead snake with a big lump inside of it.

Orson appeared to have already deskinned the monsters, even gutted them for their organs, and wrapped the meats in large leaves found in the area. They were neatly packaged too, with handspun twine.

"Orson-san…" Takehide narrowed on the warrior.

"What is it, Takehide-sama?" Orson nearly snapped to attention when being addressed.

Takehide pointed to the meat and creased a brow, "Can you teach me how to make twine like that?" Finding that it could make some things easier when it came to crafting his own items.

"I don't see why not, Takehide-sama." Orson looked to Rino, who nodded in a soft giggle.

"Good," Takehide chuckled to himself before looking at Eclair who was looking over the fire pit he had put together.

"You seem to know how to make an adequate campfire," Eclair noted, "Are you used to sleeping outside?" She asked curiously as she let her eyes trace over the Japanese male's face.

"Yes, my father used to take me camping prior to the colder seasons. We often went fishing, come to think of it," Takehide smiled as he thought back to his family. He personally didn't want to know how they were taking his death, or if they had the chance to ever learn what happened.

Squatting down in front of the blankets now though, he peered over all of the unique objects that had been brought to him. For as far as his imagination went, it felt like these items were almost offerings to a god. The thought though quickly passed as he reached forward with the spear to scan over the objects. When the jewel lit up, like a metal detector, he picked the target up and fed it to his spear.

[ Butterfly Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Butterfly Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Paralysis Resistance I ]

[ Mandragora Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Mandragora Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Plant Analysis ]

[ Blue Mushroom Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Blue Mushroom Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Simple Recipe I ]

[ Green Mushroom Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Green Mushroom Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Apprenticeship Compounding ]

[ Red Mushroom Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Red Mushroom Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Foraging I ]

[ Egg Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Egg Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Cooking I ]

[ Animal NeedleSpear Unlocked! ]

[ Animal Needle Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: ATK +1 ]

[ Porcupine Bone Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Porcupine Bone Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: SP up (Small) ]

Swaying slightly to keep his balance, Takehidde narrowed his eyes on the spearhead as the jewel lit up over the sticks. "Well, that was probably to be expected…" Reaching over he grabbed a handful of the dry wood and fed them to the spear. After he did that, he was given a notification just as he was about to start feeding some curious-looking rocks to the eternally hungering gem.

[ Wood Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Wood Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Collection Skill I ]

[ Stone Spear Unlocked! ]

[ Stone Spear ]

[ Bonus Abilities: Apprentice Sculpting ]

"I suppose that will have to do…?" Takehide wore a conflicted expression as it seemed not everything could be placed within his spear. Especially as he was holding a handful of dead ants, there was no reaction from the spear. "At least now I know it isn't all-absorbing," his eyes narrowed on the insects in his hand. "Perhaps I can make protein supplements out of them."

Elena's face twisted at his words, disgusted by the idea of eating bugs.

Rino blinked at his ingenuity, however, knowing that protein was something good to have even if there was nothing to eat. "Rations?" She asked as she looked over the ants he was slipping into his inventory to craft later.

"I suppose you could put it that way, they'll definitely stop you from dying of starvation," Takehide snickered as Eclair nodded in agreement, even though he could only see her from the corner of his eye, he felt as if she was spacing out. "You seem to have something on your mind," he didn't look at her, "Want to talk about it?"

"Hm?" Eclair finally narrowed her gaze on the Hero as she had done times before, "It's nothing of importance, I assure you. Let's just get ourselves onto her feet."

Takehide nodded to her words, knowing exactly what she was thinking about now. Whilst she had gotten away with not getting a slave mark, he was sure she was thinking of how she could feasibly clear her name. He was all too aware that the church was the main thing that stood in her way, and the only possible way for her to survive was by surviving until its inevitable dissolution. For the most part, he knew how he wanted to destroy the Church. The only way to do so was to eliminate its financial support and those who endorse it. In order to do that though, he needed power and skill, but to also betray himself if he wished to survive and remain loyal to his friends… The other heroes and his party. The samurai grimaced at the thought that wounded his pride.

As the Spear Hero, he knew what he had to do. So then, Takahide went about collecting everything that was on the blankets, including the blankets themselves, into his inventory. Even going as far as collecting the neatly wrapped meat as well as the items for the firepit.

With everything packed away, the group made their way to the edge of the forest. There was nothing in their way, and as they peered to the sky they could see the sky was turning pink. Half of the sky had already surrendered to the night.

"T-Takehide-sama," Rino stuttered as if she had something else on her mind, "We should hurry up back to town. The monsters get more active at night..."

"Ah, Understood, then we should–" He stopped in his tracks after they had gotten several hundred paces outside of the forest. It felt as if someone was glaring at him? No, someone was glaring at Rino. Turning his head, his eyes were resting on a trio off to the right of his party.

Naofumi was with the girl with red hair, named Myne, but next to them was Lucy with the purple hair and scantily clad attire. Lucy's arm seemed to be hooked upon Naofumi's. Had she slithered into his good graces? Quickly though he could see the glistening of Lucy's gaze from the corner of her eye. She was looking at them with a smirk across her lips, and not a good one at that.

"Now if only the Dragon's Tooth had enhanced hearing…" Takehide mumbled under his breath as he could see they were talking. Myne was laughing and Lucy seemed like she was gossiping, subtly gesturing in their direction.

"I feel bad for him," Elena was nearly blue in the face as she knew who Myne was.

Eclair wasn't so happy either seeing what was going on, a powerful frown across her lips.

That was when Lucy and Myne both looked in their direction, this time directly. A scowl rapidly appeared on the redhead's face. The two of them quickly turned and started to march toward Takehide, initially leaving Naofumi behind before he decided to tag along behind them.

The Shield Hero seemed rather conflicted.

"What are they planning now…?" The Spear Hero and his party all remained still, just watching them approach at their own free will.

"You!" Myne called out, pointing directly at Takehide as if he had done something wrong.

Takehide raised a brow feigning surprise, pointing to himself as if it was unclear but he was just messing with her, "Me?"

"Give me back my money!" Lucy didn't hesitate to shove two fingers against his armor plate, but he didn't budge whatsoever. Even then her confidence didn't falter, even as his shadow overtook her.

"I never took any of your money," Takehide's eye twitched.

"H-He never took any of your money!" Rino squealed, backing him up.

Elena simply remained quiet, watching the duo.

"Haha! Very funny, my friend just told us you took her money and kicked her out of your party!" Myne scoffed at his denial of the charge, shoving her finger in his face. "You do know you and your party will be punished if you don't return her cash! Sir Shield, tell him!"

After a few seconds of just looking at everyone, Naofumi raised a brow, "Did you take their money?"

"No," Takehide didn't respond harshly, but his tone was almost robotic.

Eclair was unimpressed by Myne and Lucy's little show, crossing her arms and shaking her head.

"That is that then," Naofumi let his arms dangle at his side with a fragile smile across his lips, "He didn't steal your money. I have no reason not to trust him…" He said this with a light shrug.

"Sir Shield! How could you!" Lucy cried as if she had been betrayed, "Why are you taking his side?"

"Because he is another Hero, and he clearly has no reason to take your money…" He gestured towards the other members of the Spear Hero's group. "He could've just asked for more from the King if he was really in a tough spot."

Lucy scowled, seeing as the Shield Hero wasn't taking their side. "I bet you were in on it!" She pointed to Naofumi, immediately turning on him as she hadn't gotten her way.

Naofumi blinked in confusion, "I haven't seen him since this morning."

"I don't think that's possible Lucy," Myne clung to Naofumi's side, pressing herself into him as if siding with the Shield Hero. However, the smile she wore on her face said more than any words she had spilled out of her mouth.

"You remind me of someone I used to know," Takehide narrowed his eyes as he remembered a knife buried under his arm. Ghost pains tingled throughout his bodily structure, but on the outside, he showed no signs of them.

"Oh really?" Myne seemed to have liked what she heard, excitedly she turned her eyes to the Spear Hero. Her emerald eyes seemed to outcast all of those around him, placing her in his palm like a puppet. Yet in his mind-space, he had already cut the strings and smiled to her with a nod. "Yaaaaayyy!"

Rolling his eyes, Takehide let out a soft breath.

"I'm done with you guys!" Lucy announced, tears in her eyes as her arms were thrown down to her sides in a stringent manner. Quickly enough she was growling under her breath as she retreated alone back towards the fortress town.

Little did Takehide know, was that she was smirking with her back to them. By the time she readopted a more erect and proper posture, she was already outside of his line of sight.

"Hm… Since that is done and over with," Takehide's eyes stopped on Naofumi, "We'll be heading back to town now." Patting a hand on the Shield Hero's shoulder as they passed, Takehide and his party made themselves scarce.