I am not the shield hero

It was late evening of the second day on the road. So far, they hadn't come across anyone looking to stop them. Well, not anyone actually effective. They did get stopped by a bandit group earlier that day, but they were so laughably weak that they were hardly worth mentioning.

It did, however, give them a chance to practice. And the interruption did give Dante a break from his thoughts.

He had spent a lot of time trying to figure out the various schemes going on in the kingdom. The church's was the one he was most confident about. They wanted Dante to kill Malty so they could then kill him with justification. From their viewpoint, he had a good reason to kill her. To encourage him further, they could make it look like she was trying to torment him. That would line up with what that knight he tortured said. From what he saw at the banquet, it did look like Malty was instigating the fight when she talked with her father, but that might have been an optics thing.

The king's plan was at about the same level of understanding to Dante. He believed the Shield Hero raped his daughter, so he wanted to punish him. However, the amount of involvement from Aultcray was arguable. It looked like it was royal knights that went around threatening shopkeepers to not deal with Dante, as far as he could tell. It may have been on the king's orders, the knights were actually devoted to the church and followed their orders, they worked for Malty and followed her orders, or they were acting independently. The only things Dante knew for sure were the forced duel and the attempted retraction of funds, and only because Aultcray did as much right in front of Dante.

Malty was the biggest enigma. Dante tried looking at it as if he didn't have any knowledge about this world. The morning after she agreed to join his party, she falsely accused him of rape. Afterwards, she joined Motoyasu's party. His next real interaction with her was through Motoyasu, who claimed she wanted the heroes to work together, and, of course, that she was the daughter of the king. Looking at it like that, Dante had fewer answers than he'd like. At most, it could be said it was politically advantageous for her to frame him, given the country's religion.

However, most other things he thought he knew about her were more speculation. It was confirmed through Eclair that Malty was no longer first in line for the throne. However, no real reason was given for that. Malty didn't contest it either, according to Eclair. Perhaps the queen had something on her that Malty didn't want exposed, and the queen couldn't just let it out for some reason. Maybe it would put Mirellia in a bad light too. He had no real knowledge of Malty's relationship to the church, aside from one knight who may not have truly known. Malty was more cunning and cautious, that much Dante was sure of. At the very least, she should be looking at the church as a potential ally or enemy.

With the introduction of Melty, another wrinkle in his thoughts occurred. He recalled that the king of Faubrey wanted Malty for his pleasures, in both the web novel and light novel. She was to be sent off to him, but she was able to postpone that by becoming a hero's companion, if he remembered right. That was the wrinkle. It was possible that Melty didn't want Dante to go to Faubrey because everyone might hear about how he was treated—however justly some may think it—but it seemed more likely it was to protect her older sister from the king there. After all, she seemed very poised and collected until he mentioned Faubrey. She was more worried about that than Siltvelt. Then again, if Melty knew Faubrey's king wanted Malty, and being in a hero's party prevented that, why wouldn't she question the rape accusation? Certainly that wouldn't be as bad as being a toy for the Pig King. Perhaps Melty didn't fully understand what that meant. Or, maybe the king of Faubrey wasn't that bad.

That also led him to wonder about Mirellia. She seemed to understand her older daughter's true nature. Whether or not she would be willing to give her to Faubrey's king was another thing, but still unlikely. She didn't want Malty or Aultcray to be killed after the incident with the pope, so there was less reason for her to allow King Faubrey to take her oldest daughter. Then again, maybe her personality was different too. After all, she couldn't convince Melty of Malty's cruelty. She may even entertain the idea that Dante did rape Malty, and she might be pregnant. That would be good for Melromarc-Siltvelt relations, from a certain point of view, and keep Faubrey's king from taking a woman pregnant with a hero's child.

There was the chance, however slim, that Malty didn't want any further conflict with Dante. If her main goal was to stay safe from both the church and Faubrey's king, securing her position with Motoyasu was a good plan. Regaining her place as next in line could come next, perhaps after dealing with the church. Maybe her plan was to use the four heroes to fight the church, then leave the blame for any damage to Dante.

Or she might just be an idiot savant when it comes to screwing with people, and I'm way overthinking this.

However, without any more information, Dante wasn't going to figure anything out.

"Okay, JoJo, let's stop for the day. Pull off over there." Sadeena called from the front of the carriage.

"Got it!" JoJo pulled the carriages over into the nearby forest, keeping it slightly out of view from the road.

Sadeena had been spending time with Keel to teach him more spells from his water tome. Dante didn't get many crystal ball drops, so learning from the book was important. He put that into practice himself by reading the Zweite fire tome with Rifana.

Learning these spells was much harder than the Faust spells before. If Dante had to compare the two levels, Zweite felt more like he was reading a foreign language—which he basically was—but it had bad grammar and used a lot of slang or possibly leet speak. Currently, Rifana sat in his lap and held up the Zweite fire tome for the both of them to read. It was easy enough to do, since she was in her therianthrope form. Aside from his own thoughts, Dante tried not to distract the both of them by petting her in this form. Of course, that was easier said than done.

When the carriages were parked, the pair hopped out. Rifana was still getting used to her therianthrope form. It was something Dante told her to do, since it provided quite the stat boost to her. She wasn't really opposed to it, given her happy hums whenever she was being pet by Dante. Keel was already used to his therianthrope form. He almost never changed back.

That just left one more demi-human.

Raphtalia slowly made her way out of the second carriage. With her size, and lack of familiarity with her therianthrope form, she had to basically crawl out of the back of the carriage. Eclair came out after her, having kept her company during their traveling.

"Dante…" Raphtalia looked over at him as she picked herself off the ground. "When can I change back?"

"After you've fully gotten used to being in that form." Dante answered. It was the same case for Rifana, though she actually enjoyed her therianthrope form.

"How am I supposed to do that in the back of a carriage?" She asked.

"By simply being in that form." Dante said as he dropped a seed from his shield. It fell into a small hole he quickly made with his boot before covering it again. "Even if you aren't moving around, you can still get a feel for being in a larger body. Stretch out a little, lift your arms and legs, that sort of thing. We moved things around in the carriages for exactly that purpose."

More specifically, they switched the fuller rear carriage to the lead one and moved everything into it. Only three people would be in it at any given moment anyway.

"Just obtain oneness with your form." Dante added, pouring a bit of water from his waterskin onto the seed.

"You're just making this up as you go, aren't you?" Raphtalia deadpanned.

"Could be." Dante gave her a smirk. "In any case, once we're done traveling for the day, you can move about more and do some practice fighting. That'll help you even more."

It's what they did the previous day, though Dante only had the two of them transform once they stopped for the evening. Neither one changed back into their demi-human form since, not even to sleep.

"Why don't I just stay in this form at the end of the day?" She asked.

"Because then this form will be more like something you become instead of something you just are." Dante countered.

"But I don't want to become this!" Raphtalia declared.

"That's why you need to just be it." Dante said.

"You really are just making this up as you go!"

"No, I'm just not good at being poetic." Dante shook his head. The modified bioplant had just popped a bulb out of the ground and started growing rapidly.

Raphtalia crossed her arms. "What if I just change back anyway?"

Dante, in turn, put his hand on his hip. "You mean, aside from going against what the Shield Hero requested of you? A request that, in addition to helping you become more accustomed to another aspect of yourself, will improve your combat potential and, thus, help keep innocent people safe from the waves?"

Raphtalia held his gaze for a moment before turning hers down. She knew he was right, given her stat increases in this form. With her abilities, she was one of the heaviest hitters in the group now.

"Well, if you don't want to stay in your therianthrope form, I can't force you." Dante admitted. "However, as the party cook, I won't let you eat anything I make. You'll just have to settle for bioplant fruits."

"What?!" Raphtalia yelled. That certainly got her attention.

"Sir MacRory, isn't that a bit much?" Eclair asked. "There's no need for Raphtalia to remain like she is all the time."

"No need, but it'll be much quicker this way. Speed is the name of the current game." Dante said. That was why he had Dio and JoJo switch out to keep on the move. It didn't seem like they were being followed—aside from the constant surveillance by Q'ten Lo—but that could always change.

"…Okay." Raphtalia murmured. "Then…how will we determine when I'm used to this form?"

"When you can wrestle me to the ground and pin me." Dante answered.

"I see…" Raphtalia adjusted her footing on the ground and brought up her hands. "Let's do that now."

"Oh~?" Dante's smile grew wider as he moved away from the bioplant, which had already sprouted fruit. "You think you're ready?"

"I know how much my stats have grown." Raphtalia said, digging her clawed feet into the ground.

"Alright then." Dante changed to one of his better shields and dropped into a fighting stance. "Whenever you're ready."

Without a moment's hesitation, Raphtalia launched forward. She sped forward at a rate unbecoming of someone her size. Her arms were out and poised to grab hold of Dante.

Then…

"How!?" She yelled from her position on the ground. She found herself on her stomach, arm twisted behind her back with Dante's boot on her shoulder.

"Whoa! Papa's so fast!" Dio excitedly said, clapping.

"How did you do that?!" Raphtalia barked up at him. The whole fight, from the moment she rushed him, lasted under 10 seconds. "You barely lowered your level at all!"

That was true. While using the Whip's power on him could be beneficial, other methods were currently better. That being, of course, unlocking shields. Having a higher level sped up the unlocking time. He also only reduced his level to verify he could still use skills he unlocked but since lowered his level below that shield's level requirement, which he found to be true.

That also tied in with something else he learned about his stat growth. From what he learned from Sadeena and Eclair, both having gained levels before and after getting growth bonuses, his stat growth was comparable to an average or above average adventurer. The stat equip bonuses from his shield unlocks were what set him apart. Besides, of course, the easily learned skills, special effects from various shields, the power up methods, and every other feature a holy weapon offered.

"Two big reasons." Dante told Raphtalia. "First, I know how much both of our stats have grown." And that his defense, strength, and agility were all far higher than hers. "Second, you've been in that form for less than two days total, while I've learned to fight with one arm over the course of a whole month."

He released her arm and stepped off of her, allowing her to stand again.

"Besides," Dante continued, "is being in that form really so bad?"

"It's uncomfortable." Raphtalia slid one arm across her waist to grab the other. "My clothes don't fit right and it feels like I keep getting looked at."

Huh. That might be the Q'ten Lo shadows. Can she sense them? Or, maybe she's just insecure about her appearance.

"Raphtalia, you're eight feet tall, rolling in muscle, and look absolutely stunning." Dante said. "You look like an amazon warrior. And if that didn't translate, you look like you come from a race of warrior women."

His previous thoughts of her Roman-esque attire came to mind. Perhaps Greek armor was more accurate. She didn't have the sculpted bronze chest piece that looked like ab muscles. She had that already in this form, thanks in no small part to her physical training.

Raphtalia sighed. "Not everyone shares your tastes, Dante."

"No duh." Dante laughed. "All of you liked how my gaudy armor looks. Rolf is the only person I know who didn't love it, aside from people who hate me." He did remember the looks of disapproval at the banquet.

"I don't think that's the right way to look at it." Raphtalia lamented.

"Fair enough." It was a bit strange. It seemed as though someone like Rolf—or rather, Reiko—would have found the armor looking amazing. Dante was sure if he saw armor made from Doom demons as a kid, he'd absolutely love it. But, to each their own.

"In any case," Dante went on, "if I could transform into an eight-foot-tall warrior, I'd do it in a heartbeat."

"Even if you became a woman?" Keel asked, joining the conversation.

"Yeah. Wouldn't you?" Dante asked in turn.

"H-Huh?" Keel stuttered.

"If you could grow to be eight feet, but become a woman in the process, would you?"

"That's…" Keel trailed off. It wasn't really that surprising. That didn't seem like a thing that really happened here. To Dante, however, it wasn't a big deal. With everything he went through in his life, and after his death, losing his dick and growing a pair of breasts would be pretty low on his problem priority list.

"Well, to each their own." Dante said. "All I know is, if I had a more powerful form based on my race that I could turn into, I know I would. I'm thinking it'd be a gorilla. I'd wear a red tie and everything."

"Hmm~?" Sadeena looked over at him. "I don't know why you'd become a gorilla therianthrope, but it sounds like you're referencing something."

Oh, so there are gorilla therianthropes here? Neat.

"Just a well-known character from my world. Now I can't wait to check in with Rolf." Aside from learning what other games Rolf played in his past life, Dante wanted to see what the boy would do with all the new bodies. Not just the knights from the village, but also the ones that tried to seize the carriages.

After that, the conversations stayed light. Raphtalia stayed in her therianthrope form, as agreed. They all ate their supper of bioplant fruit and dried meat from previous hunts. With the time they made, they'd make it to the border wall by mid-day tomorrow. The sooner they reached the border, the better. A few days in a small country and then they'd be in Zeltoble's controlled area.

~The Wrong Hero~

The next morning, Dante awoke next to three sleeping therianthropes. On either side of him was Keel and Rifana, and behind him was Raphtalia. Behind her was as transformed Dio, and Eclair ended up sleeping on the other side of Dio. It was something Dante wanted to try, see if having more therianthropes sleep next to him did anything for his eyes. He didn't feel any different, but it was worth a try.

"Alright, everyone, it's morning." Dante said, rousing the others. After a quick breakfast, they would be making it across the border.

"Oh, good morning, Dante~." Sadeena walked over as the others were getting up.

"Morning." He greeted her. "Do I look any different?"

She held his head in her hands, tilting it from side to side. "Hm~. You look the same." She said, giving him a quick kiss.

"Maybe I'm cured." Dante said with a laugh. "I wouldn't bet on it, though."

It wasn't as if positive things like that would just randomly happen. That said, since it was largely inconsequential, there was a chance.

"Hey, who's this guy?" Keel asked.

He was pointing at a man with his arms and feet bound by rope. The man sat with his back next to one of the fallen logs they used as chairs the evening before, JoJo standing next to him with his pole-hammer at the ready.

"Aw, you ruined the surprise~!" Sadeena said dramatically, spinning around and walking over to the man.

Dante walked over too, looking the man over. He didn't seem familiar, not from the list of knights and slavers or anyone else they met.

"I found him watching us during the night." Sadeena informed everyone. "He had these with him." She produced a shortsword and a set of throwing knives. The man himself didn't have any armor on, and there wasn't any around him either.

"I see." Dante stood before the bound man. "Am I to assume you are a shadow? Or, are you just an assassin?"

The man didn't say anything. He didn't even look up at Dante. Looking at the man with his appraisal, Dante saw he was level 52. It wasn't what Dante expected from a shadow, but he truly didn't know.

"It would be in your best interest if you answered me." Dante said. "I'm well aware that, as the Shield Hero, I'm a person of interest in this country. And, I don't recall pissing off too many people on a personal level to warrant having me killed, so your list of employers is really small."

Again, the man simply sat there, giving no indication that he even heard Dante at all.

"Hmm." Dante looked around at the others. "Any ideas here?" Waking up to a problem like this wasn't what Dante wanted to deal with, especially with what it may imply.

"I don't think there's anything we can do." Eclair said, shaking her head. "I remember hearing once that, should a shadow be captured, they'll take what information they have to the grave."

It wasn't as if Dante hadn't heard that before. Usually, it came from the people themselves, saying Dante wouldn't get any information out of them. Most, however, would talk.

"I suppose we could still try torture." Dante said evenly.

"Sir MacRory—"

"If we had the time." Dante stopped Eclair's protest. If he was being honest, he didn't think it was possible for him to break a shadow, assuming the man was one. He knew a few techniques, but he wasn't a professional in that field.

"Then what do we do with him?" Rifana asked.

Dante sighed and lowered himself to the man. "Look, depending on who you work for, we might be able to let you go. Maybe you're an assassin, maybe you're a shadow, I don't know. Give me something here, yeah?"

Dante wasn't above killing someone with no means of fighting back. Still, he'd rather not have to do that in front of the people with him now. Maybe he'd give some indication of who he worked for, or some piece of useful information.

The man slowly lifted his head. He looked Dante in the eyes.

"Do what you have to do."

It wasn't what Dante wanted to hear. Not by a long shot. Still, it left him with little choice. He stood back up held out his shield to Eclair, dropping a seed in her hands.

"Get breakfast ready with the others." Dante told her. "Sadeena and I will join you shortly."

Eclair gave him a nod and led the others away towards the carriages. Dante looked back down at the bound man.

"This is your last chance." He told the man. Of course, he said nothing back. "Okay then."

"I'll make it quick." Sadeena said, pulling her harpoon from her back.

"No." Dante held out his hand. "I'll do it. You don't have to do that anymore."

"…Okay." Sadeena nodded. Dante dragged the bound man away from their camp and into a clearing.

Dante had picked up a couple things in the weeks leading up to the wave. Combo skills was one of those things. It was simple enough to combine a skill of his with a spell from someone in his party. To help his understanding of magic, he and Sadeena also practiced cooperative magic, though he wasn't actually able to cast any with her.

What he also learned was that he could use a combo skill…by himself.

It wasn't easy to do. When casting a spell, the caster could halt the chant part way through and finish it later, assuming they were somewhat proficient. They could go through the entire incantation and hold on to the spell for a few minutes before completing it. A combo skill cast by himself, however, couldn't be interrupted. He couldn't stop the chant, nor move around, and then start up again. Even bringing up his shield to defend himself would likely break the chant, something he found he could do while casting a normal spell.

But, against an unmoving target, with no other enemies around?

"Faust Fire Blast V! Combo Skill, Shield Explosion!"

Orange shields surrounded the bound man, forming a barrier around him. The shields pulsed, red cracks spreading from their centers. A few seconds later, the shields exploded, scattering in all directions. Only ashes remained of the man.

With Faust Fire Blast empowered by the Staff and Shield Prison empowered by the Gauntlets, as well as both being improved by the Claw, the unarmored man stood no chance.

Dante absorbed his remains and went with Sadeena for breakfast.

~The Wrong Hero~

Even with the small delay that morning, they made good time traveling. Mid-day came soon enough and the border wall came into view. Once it did, they came to the second problem of the day.

"That's a lot of knights…" Dante observed the walls from within the carriage. The plan was to have Rifana at the reins as a therianthrope and Dio in her average filolial form. Then, Raphtalia would cast her spell and make everyone inside invisible. They had everyone in the front carriage ready for that. It wasn't a perfect plan, and they might get caught, but then it wouldn't be any different from going across the border normally.

With the large amount of knights, however, that plan was shelved.

"That's not normal at all." Eclair said next to him, confirming his fears. It seemed someone sent knights to watch the border wall. Whether they knew where Dante was going or just increased security on all borders was unknown.

"What's the plan?" Raphtalia asked, in her demi-human form to save room.

"South would be our best option." Dante said, indicating to Rifana.

Going north would bring them in the direction of Faubrey and Siltvelt. While the end goal was to go to Siltvelt, border security was likely to be even higher there. The border towards Zeltoble should be the lowest, outside of going in the opposite direction altogether, but perhaps Shieldfreeden's border would be lighter.

That was Dante's thinking, at any rate. In a couple of hours, those thoughts were thrown out.

"It's getting worse." Dante watched the walls steadily get more and more filled with knights as they checked sporadically. They kept far enough away to not draw suspicion from any onlookers.

"What now?" Rifana asked, having Dio stop.

"Good question." Dante sat back in the carriage, with Rifana joining everyone else. They didn't have a lot of good options. There weren't really any breaks in the wall, except for a single river. It flowed into Melromarc, was only about 20 feet wide, and it was covered by a metal gate where the wall went over it.

"Could we force our way through?" Keel asked.

"Not likely." Dante responded. "If what I think is right, they'll have people there capable of using ceremonial magic. My Spellcobalt Shield is pretty enhanced, but I don't think even I could hold off a casting of Judgement yet."

That likely was a step too far. After all, Naofumi had the Shield of Rage and Second Shield. While he wasn't sure of the stats, he remembered Motoyasu had a problem fighting Naofumi, even while being a higher level and using his own power up methods against none from Naofumi. Air Strike Shield, and its second and third extensions, was stronger than Shooting Star Shield, if less mobile.

Of course, Dante had most of the power up methods at his disposal, and a shield that was practically designed to repel magic. However, he recalled his thoughts about his defense, about how it was likely weaker than Naofumi's. More so, without getting much closer, Dante couldn't tell the levels of the knights, nor how many others may be hidden. If they started making a commotion at one of the heavily guarded gatehouses, he wasn't sure if they could win. They also didn't have the means to break through the wall itself, at least not quickly.

"I'm starting to think it wasn't a good idea to tell Melty we were going to Faubrey." Dante admitted. He thought a misdirection would make it easier, but it looked like that backfired.

"You think the king is responsible for this?" Eclair asked.

"Him or the church. It could be either one, honestly." He had no idea how much Aultcray involved himself in these things.

"I can understand the church taking these actions, but I don't think the king would go this far." Eclair argued.

Dante switched to his humming shield. "The king would march an army to war with Siltvelt during the waves."

"More of your old world knowledge?" Eclair shook her head. "You've admitted that hasn't been reliable lately."

"True, but a good amount is, and I'm willing to bet Aultcray's history with Siltvelt is too."

Eclair turned her head away. "So, you even know about that."

"Yeah." Dante nodded. "Having your family killed by fanatics to then lose your blind sister years later—"

"Huh?" Eclair looked up at him. "What are you talking about?"

"What?" It was Dante's turn to look confused. "Are you saying that didn't happen?"

Eclair shook her head. "I wouldn't know. What I do know about His Majesty's past is he quickly went up the ranks in the army, obtained the Seven Star Staff, and defeated the Claw Hero, a hakuko named Tyran."

"Ah, right." Dante nodded. "You're talking about when Siltvelt tried to conquer the world, right? I remember bits of that. Tyran was the leader of Siltvelt, right? But, wait, what did you think I was talking about?"

Eclair grimaced. "If you don't know…I feel like I shouldn't say. Please don't ask me to."

That was a bit of a strange thing. Dante wondered what could possibly be something he shouldn't know about involving the king. He knew about his dead family, so what else could…

"Oh." Dante realized what Eclair meant. "His son."

"Yes…" Eclair slowly nodded.

That was something Dante remembered from the spinoff. Aultcray and Mirellia had a son, the middle child between Malty and Melty. He died before Melty was even born, something around five years old at the time.

"From what I heard, the king watched his son drink poison right in front of him." Eclair lowered her head. "I can't imagine him recovering from that easily."

"He didn't, apparently." Dante said. "Instead, he took his anger out on uninvolved people, like a belligerent idiot."

"Sir MacRory!" Eclair yelled. "I know this situation is bad, but that's entirely uncalled for." It seemed that, despite all that she'd been through, she still had respect for the king.

"Maybe, but it's true. Melty was able to act reasonable, despite what she believes I did to her sister. Aultcray blames all demi-humans—even his own subjects—for the actions of, what, a single race? The nobility? It's hard to believe he ever held the title of Wise King."

"How can you say such things?" Eclair demanded, facing him fully. "Do you know what's it's like to lose a child like that?"

"I know exactly what it's like!" Dante yelled back at her. "Why do you think I'm…" His words died in his throat. He turned away from her, but a hand on his shoulder brought him back.

Sadeena looked at him and nodded. She wanted him to tell the others this part of himself.

He didn't want to, but he went and let himself get this worked up.

"…Two weeks before I was summoned, I lost my family in an intentional explosion. A friend who was like a brother, his wife, and their daughter." Dante started. "After that, I went after the people responsible. Then, I went for the other people in their group of associates. After those people…I killed anyone with any sort of connection at all, even if they never hurt another person in their lives. Some of them may have been good people, innocent people. I killed them all the same."

It wasn't an easy thing to admit, but he knew the truth about those two weeks.

"If I could do it all again, knowing where I'd end up, I know I'd try to kill even more. So, yes, I know what it's like to lose a child like that, and to be a belligerent idiot that got himself killed."

The reactions from everyone wasn't what he thought they'd have. He thought they'd be horrified, even enraged. Instead, what he found was…fear, disappointment, even understanding. It wasn't what he expected, and he was sure this wasn't what they expected from the Shield Hero, or their savior.

"I would do that, Dad." JoJo broke the silence. "If someone took you away from us…I think I would do the same thing."

Dante looked at his son, a frown on his face. "I wish you wouldn't, but…I don't think I can tell you not to." After all, that would imply that he wouldn't do the same if the positions were reversed. He knew that wasn't the case at all.

"Hey, Papa?" Dio called from the front. She'd changed back to her queen form to speak. "I, uh, I would too. But…there's someone out here."

"What!?" Dante rushed to the front of the carriage and looked around, changing his shield for battle. Dio was already pointing a wing in the right direction. However, instead of a person, he saw a light brown filolial.

"Gweh!" The filolial squawked.

"Oh." Dante sighed in relief. "I was worried for a…oh." He realized what this probably meant.

"He said we should follow him." Dio said.

"Right, well…" Dante sat at the front of the carriage. He looked at those in the back. "Tell him to lead the way."

It wasn't good to leave things how they were, but it seemed like he was going to talk with someone he wasn't expecting to for some time.