In the Midst of Turmoil

In the Midst of Turmoil (混迷の中で) is the tenth episode of The Rising of the Shield Hero anime.

Synopsis
Nafoumi coldly rejects Melty, after learning her royal lineage to Melromarc. Later, Nafoumi and his gang are preparing for the next Wave. He conditionally accepts the cooperation from a few Juvenile Knights cooperation but was still given unreasonable hindrance by the monarch.

Will Nafoumi and his party able to succeed the next coming Wave? Or will they wither away in the Calamity?

Plot
Naofumi Iwatani flatly informs Melty that he won't trust her, for the simple reason that she is a royal of this nation, and thus orders her to leave at once. As it so happens, Melty 's father is requesting her presence immediately. As Melty heads back to the Castle, she recalls a mission given to her by her mother The Queen, who asks her to return to the Capital and reprimand her father for his unfair treatment of the Shield Hero. The Queen couldn't do it by herself, as her hands are tied up at the moment.

Meanwhile, Naofumi forbids Filo from playing with or seeing Melty again, causing Filo to run off in tears as Naofumi remembers what the King and Malty have done to him. A group consisting of a few young Knights and a couple of demi-human sorcerers enter the shop. They ask to be made part of Naofumi's party, at least to fight in the next Wave.

They want to join only Naofumi and not with other Heroes or to fight alone because all of them hail from the Village of Riyute, the site of the last Wave. Naofumi also recognizes the leader of the group as the young guard who was chasing him previously, and one of the guards who fought along with him during the last Wave. They seem to have had the same train of thought as Naofumi, if the army is part of the Heroes parties then they will be transported to the Wave location with them.

Naofumi agrees to let them join, but under a condition: by bringing up an accessory he crafted, he demands one hundred and fifty silvers for both it and the right to join his party. They promise to return after making the money. Finally looking into the reason for visiting the shop in the first place, Naofumi has his and Raphtalia's armor upgraded by Erhard. While at it, Naofumi asks him about the stars that have appeared next to Filo's and Raphtalia's names in his status screen.

Erhard explains that they've hit a level cap and need to get a class upgrade at the Red Hourglass of the Dragon’s Era in order to keep leveling. Naofumi discusses the idea of the class upgrade with his two companions, Raphtalia is fine with whatever Naofumi chooses for her; the Shield Hero, however, informs her that this is a major life decision, one that needs to take into account what she'll need after he returns to his world. His revelation shocks Raphtalia.

At the Church, Naofumi was asked to buy a class upgrade for an outrageous sum of fifteen gold, each. Noticing the Nun's smirk, Naofumi decides to go with the farce and hands the money for Raphtalia's class-up. But another Nun shows up explaining that they made a mistake and that Naofumi and his party member have been banned by the King from getting a class upgrade, showing the royal decree. Enraged, Nafoumi storms off.

Nafoumi confronts Beloukas, who was making profits in his business, and also had gained a lot of fame because of the good quality slaves he had recently sold to the Shield Hero. Naofumi demands to know how he managed to get class upgrades for his slaves. Beloukas explains that though he can't offer class up, there are other countries which might. Nafoumi's party can get a class upgrade from other countries which also had the Dragon Hourglass, such as Zeltoble, Siltvelt, or Shieldfreeden. Beloukas recommends the latter, but Nafoumi won't get there in time for the next Wave.

Beloukas recommends a sale of wyvern claws for Filo to increase her fighting power. Beloukas can't let Filo kill his monsters to test her new weapon, but he has caught wind of monsters living in Melromarc's sewers that need dealing with. The group easily crushes the crocodile-like monster in the sewer of the capital town, before resting for the night. While Raphtalia was treated for the curse, she asks to go along with Naofumi to his own world after the Waves, but they're interrupted by Filo. Since Raphtalia and Filo can't level up, Naofumi wants to focus on preparing for the Wave, chiefly by stockpiling medicines and scouting possible locations for the Wave.

While making with his merchant routine, Naofumi comes across a town in the North, where he was demanded toll fee despite his merchant pass. There, he is mobbed by refugees from a neighboring country, who were begging with everything they own in exchange for some food. Apparently, Melromarc had sent a group of adventurers to help the resistance to depose the King of their country, who was levying heavy taxes. Now, the problem appears to have only worsened.

Naofumi feeds the people before heading back to the Castle Town with just over a day before the next Wave hits. While in a restaurant getting their supper, Naofumi's group overhears Ren Amaki and Itsuki Kawasumi as they discuss someone scooping up their requests and rewards. Itsuki receives a quest from the guild about a lord in the North, who is overtaxing his people beyond the limit of the country and using the funds to hire mercenaries to subjugate the people who raise questions, leading Itsuki to conclude that the lord in question needs a lesson.

Itsuki's conversation causes Naofumi to do a spit-take of his drink, getting his attention in the process. Itsuki assumes that it's Naofumi who has been running around pretending to be them, so Naofumi takes the liberty of scolding both Itsuki and Ren. The people of the country that Itsuki had apparently saved have resorted to sneaking into other countries just to feed themselves, since the resistance actually raised the taxes even further, as running a country is a rather expensive endeavor and the previous King did it with some consideration.

As for Ren, rather than grumbling about stealing his job, he should thank Naofumi for cleaning up the mess he made when the dragon he killed created a plague. The people who died as a result of Ren's and Itsuki's actions rest mostly on their heads, Ren is further guilt-ridden when he sees Raphtalia's injuries and realizes what caused them. With all said and done, Naofumi leaves while ordering the two Heroes to stop causing problems. Itsuki refuses to believe Naofumi's words while Ren accepts Naofumi's criticism.

Naofumi returns to the Weapon Shop to get his upgraded armor, now with the core of the Zombie Dragon lodged in his chestplate and a new auto-repair function built in. At the same time, Ake's group catches up with Naofumi, explaining they've pulled together the funds needed to join his party. Naofumi gives them the accessory and tells them to use the funds to buy better equipment and holds a strategy meeting for what they'll do during the Wave.

Meanwhile, the Queen is shown talking to her Shadows at the far away region. The Shadow explains that Melty made contact with Naofumi, but as expected, reconciliation with the Shield Hero will be difficult. The Queen realizes the situation she puts Melty through, but as Melromarc's ruler, the Princess had to face it. She asks the Shadow to keep an eye on things and hopes that the Heroes are ready to face the Calamity Wave. Meanwhile, the Wave has begun, under the lead of a woman in a dark kimono who holds a pair of hand fans.

Trivia

 * It was Itsuki who led the resistance in the Northern country, as the previous rumor heard.
 * Class-up is to break the level cap beyond Level 40.
 * The Queen and Second Princess of Melromarc want to assist Naofumi, but he refuses to hear Melty out.

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