Raphtalia

"Hello?"

Chuan Wenwu sat on the edge of the bed and greeted the Demi-Human girl, feeling rather unsure of himself.

He had originally been standing, but after waking up and losing the blanket that sheltered her like a "barrier," Raphtalia had shrunk fearfully into the corner of the bed nearest the wall. He had no choice but to sit on the bed to talk to her more easily.

Yet the terror in Raphtalia's little eyes made him question himself. Do I look that scary?

I'm so cheerful and friendly!

Puzzled, Chuan Wenwu followed Raphtalia's terrified gaze and spotted a dog's head with its mouth open, a huge tongue lolling out, and a goofy grin on its face. His expression darkened. "Bruce! Tone it down! Don't scare the kid!"

Perhaps because of his personality, Bruce had always been interested in the young of every species. Whether kittens, puppies, or human children, he adored them all. Naturally, the first Demi-Human child he had met since arriving in this other world fascinated him!

He had planned to follow his boss's lead, let the little one get used to him, and build a good relationship with her, but his efforts had crashed and burned before he had even gotten halfway. Had he really scared the child?

The hulking, eight-foot-tall dog-headed man wailed inwardly, but obediently moved away and squatted in the corner.

"There, I chased the bad guy away. You don't have to be scared."

Recalling how kindergarten teachers spoke, Chuan Wenwu tried to soften his voice and gently asked the frightened little creature on the bed, "You're finally awake. You were in pretty bad shape before, terribly frail, so I gave you some treatment. How do you feel now? Does anything still hurt or feel uncomfortable?"

Raphtalia remained silent, her dull, reddish-brown eyes fixed on Chuan Wenwu.

She could feel a connection between the faintly warm slave mark on her chest and the unfamiliar man before her... Had he taken her out of that slave cage while she was unconscious?

Was he... my new master?

"Eep-"

Her pupils abruptly contracted as she recalled the terrible torment she had suffered at her previous master's hands, and the fear in her eyes deepened.

"Hey..."

Chuan Wenwu's voice rang out again, bringing Raphtalia back to reality. She realized she seemed to have failed to answer her new master's question. She trembled all over, growing ever more uneasy as she dreaded whatever punishment might come next...

"You still don't look too well. You're shaking so much... are you cold?" Watching the little girl shiver in the corner, Chuan Wenwu felt rather helpless. To be honest, he really wasn't very good at looking after children, or comforting them.

He stood up, reached across half the bed, and lifted Raphtalia out of the corner where she had huddled.

Raphtalia stiffened at his touch. She wanted to resist, but didn't dare. All she could do was watch rigidly as Chuan Wenwu "moved" her to the outer edge of the bed, placing her in the sunlight slanting into the room before draping the sheet over her again.

"...?"

Confusion crept into Raphtalia's eyes. She didn't know why Chuan Wenwu was doing this, or why she still hadn't been punished. Before, by this point, she would have either been tormented by the curse or struck with a whip... She cautiously clutched the sheet covering her, drawing a little security from it, her eyes vacant and her thoughts unreadable.

"I... you..." She opened her mouth to say something, only to discover how hoarse her voice was, as though a dull knife had scraped her throat. She immediately closed her mouth again, afraid to speak.

"Don't be scared. Relax. You're safe now..." Chuan Wenwu slowly sat down beside Raphtalia, about a foot away, and reassured her softly. "I won't hurt you, and no one will hurt you again. You've left that awful place."

Raphtalia's shoulders still trembled slightly. Her reddish-brown eyes were those of a startled fawn, staring at the tips of Chuan Wenwu's shoes one moment, then darting toward Bruce, who was obediently squatting in the corner, the next.

She still didn't dare turn her head to look directly at the unfamiliar man sitting beside her, the man who was her master. She gripped the sheet so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

"Do you have a name?" Chuan Wenwu asked beside her.

A name...

Hearing Chuan Wenwu ask her name, Raphtalia's gaze grew distant. By now, all the family and friends who remembered her and knew her name must have been gone...

As she remained silent, the voice that was beginning to sound a little familiar reached her ears again.

"Looks like you're still a little scared. Then I'll introduce myself first. My name is Chuan Wenwu, just an ordinary guy who crossed over into another world... well, my job is the Shield Hero, forcibly summoned by this shitty Kingdom to save the world. That guy squatting over in the corner, facing the wall and reflecting on his mistakes, is my companion, Bruce."

"Woof!" Bruce still habitually answered with a bark.

The Shield... Hero...

At that familiar title, something changed in Raphtalia's dull eyes, and a little life returned to them.

She hesitantly turned her head and stared blankly at Chuan Wenwu's face, then tried to find something on him that would identify him as the Shield Hero.

Clang-

Noticing her gaze, Chuan Wenwu curled a finger and lightly tapped the Shield of the Hero on his arm to draw her attention, then made the shield change into several different forms before her eyes.

He really was the Shield Hero!!!

Raphtalia believed him now. An indefinable expression crossed her face, and glistening tears began to gather at the corners of her eyes.

"I was originally going to find a monster merchant to get Bruce some new equipment, but I didn't know my way around and ended up at that slave shop. Then some things happened, and I saw you there, barely alive. The slave trader said he was going to dispose of the slaves he couldn't sell, so I bought your freedom first, then cleaned you up, treated your injuries, and cured your illness... thank goodness you're all right and managed to recover. Though I imagine you're still feeling a little weak? The lingering effects of your illness won't go away overnight. You'll need time to recuperate. Once you're a bit stronger, I'll take you to have the slave mark removed. Your body was in such bad shape before that purifying the curse outright might have caused something bad to happen, so I'm sorry, but you'll have to bear the status of 'slave' for a little while."

"But don't worry. I won't actually treat you as a slave, or do anything against your wishes. Just focus on getting better... I hate slavery. It's even more backward than feudalism. It tramples on dignity, humiliates people, strips away freedom, and exploits them... I believe everyone is equal. Humans are people, Demi-Humans are people, and beastfolk are people too. Are humans really such troublesome beings? Different ethnic groups can unite. Here in this other world, different races can, and should, unite too. No one is above or below anyone else..."

Chuan Wenwu rambled on to the quiet Raphtalia, saying a great many things. Much of it had no logical connection; he simply said whatever came to mind and voiced whatever feelings struck him. All he wanted was to talk to her and thaw the heart that her past experiences might have frozen.

Raphtalia didn't really understand much of his long speech toward the end, but she could feel his sincerity and warmth.

"...After all that, I still don't know your name. Do you remember it? If you've forgotten, or don't have one, that could be a bit tricky. I'm pretty terrible at coming up with names..." Chuan Wenwu scratched his head, looking genuinely troubled.

"Raph... talia."

Tears spilled from her eyes. Raphtalia didn't know exactly what she was feeling. With tears in her eyes, she simply stared at this big brother, who seemed just like the Shield Hero her elders had described, and choked out:

"M-my name is... Raphtalia."

Heaven seemed to have played a joke on her that no one could laugh at. It had taken her parents, destroyed her village, wiped out the friends she knew, left her with nothing, and reduced her to slavery. Only when her very life hung by a thread had it sent a savior to her side...