Naofumi, Raphtalia and Filo are fleeing Motoyasu’s grossness when they’re suddenly ambushed on the road by two randos … who are apparently the most powerful bandits they’ve ever faced? One of them makes a dig at the Heroes’ tendency to form harems, while repeatedly cackles with what I’d describe to be a “extremely punchable voice.”
In less than five minutes, Raph’s strength is sapped, Filo’s kick is dodged with one hand, and all of Naofumi’s shields and buffs are rendered ueseless as a massive meteor crashes down on all three of them. Thus ends Rise of the Shield Hero, with the abrupt deaths of its three main protagonists. I hope you enjoyed watching!
Oh … wait … they don’t all die? Oh, okay. Naofumi’s Shield Prison just manages to hold out, while dispelling Raphtalia’s buffs also dispelled a curse that sapped her speed. Even so, they probably survive another meteor, so it’s a good thing S’yne steps in to save them with her giant scissors.
The bandits refer to her as a “vassal weapon wielder from a destroyed world” but she and Raph cut down both of them. Rather than bleed like humans, they glow with blue light from within before crumbling. The show’s back on, folks! And as Naofumi still ponders what S’yne’s deal is, her growling stomach takes precedence.
They bring her back to Luroluna where she eats her fill, and explains that she was tracking Naofumi with a needle she planted on him back in the coliseum. The bandits worked for the Heroes who destroyed her world, which is different from the other world Naofumi & Co. visited, so there’s at least three worlds and likely many more.
Naofumi is understandably weary of this stylish yet inscrutable clown girl with the glitchy speech. After all, he’s no longer a loner, but is responsible for a whole village full of innocents in addition to his party members. But so far she seems genuine in her desire to prevent more wielders like him from being killed off or their worlds meeting the same fate as hers.
S’yne quickly makes friends by manipulating sewn dolls to the delight of the youngsters, while Eclair and Rishia return from a training session with Keel and some other novices. Many have reached Level 40, so Naofumi agrees to take the kids to the capital to Class Up. Meanwhile, Pedoyasu finds a Filo feather and continues his pursuit.
In town, Naofumi impresses upon the youngins the pros and cons of classing up, and that they should think carefully about what they want to do, because he doesn’t want them to simply default to fighting classes. Keel is gung-ho about fighting, but another kid likes cooking, while one of the mole kids becomes an apprentice with Elhart, whom he already knows.
Back in the village, Naofumi observes Elrasla and Rishia training the tykes, among them Fohl and Atla. Not only is Atla looking much stronger and surer on her feet, but she’s got quite the martial arts moves and is a quick learner now that she’s been given the chance.
Naofumi decides to bring the white tiger siblings with him on the hunting trip, along with Keel, Eclair, Filo, Raphtalia, and Raph-chan. Defense of the village in his absence falls to Sadeena, Elrasla, and the newcomer S’yne, which seems sufficient this time.
Reports from Eclair’s investigation of the surrounding lands indicates that the survivors of a prison razed by the Spirit Tortoise could be a concern, as well as a group of extremely cautious bandits who only attack people who are alone. To that end, Naofumi has everyone buddy up in pairs or trios.
He proceeds accompanied only by Raph-chan, in hopes he’ll be the most enticing target for the opportunistic bandits. But to his surprise, the first people he meets in the forest aren’t bandits, but the Spear and Sword Heroes. A surprisingly focused Motoyasu is either sparring or battling Ren, who is now sporting a sinister black mask for some reason.
That’s a random end to what at times was a pretty random episode, but I’m giving it high marks because S’yne is a cool new addition to the fam, and I had a lot of fun watching the nuts-and-bolts development of the youngsters. Keel, Fohl, Atla and the others are uniformly charming and easy to root for, and I’m looking forward to seeing them strut their stuff, even if I’m far less enthused about continued interactions with Motoyasu and Ren.
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