Lullaby at Dawn

Lullaby at Dawn (暁の子守唄) is the fourth episode of The Rising of the Shield Hero anime.

Synopsis
A celebration is being held to honor the success of the Heroes in subjugating the Waves. Motoyasu came to know of Raphtalia being a slave of Naofumi and challenges him to a duel for her freedom. Naofumi is forced to participate in the Duel.

How can the Shield Hero win with only defense alone? Will he be able to keep Raphtalia as his comrade? Or will Raphtalia part away from the Shield Hero?

Plot
Following the events of the Second Wave, the Kingdom of Melromarc celebrates. At the royal castle, The Heroes and their companions are being thrown an elaborate victory celebration, where the King personally congratulates them on a job well done. Or more accurately, he congratulates the Bow, Sword, and Spear heroes. Naofumi (who is sitting on his own) curses being there but notes he has no choice if he wants to get his promised payment. With everyone ignoring him, the Shield Hero scrolls through his help menu and learns of a teleporting feature for registered members to the Wave, which he considers could be useful for the Next Wave. Naofumi also spots the Knight Captain bragging to some young noblewomen about defeating a huge monster when in reality he deserted Naofumi and arrived too late to help any of the other heroes. The crowd of noble-people meanwhile discuss the Heroes' success for limiting the casualties to one digit.

Motoyasu, for his part, is surrounded by noble-women, some of whom inquire him about his love life, which is quickly interrupted by a jealous Myne. Motoyasu suddenly spots Raphtalia walking through the crowd and tries to talk to her, but Myne stops him. Unnoticed by Raphtalia or Naofumi, Myne proceeds to whisper something into Motoyasu's ear. Raphtalia, meanwhile, is trying to get Naofumi to eat some of the food but he claims he's not hungry, (not seeing much point in eating delicious food when he can't taste it), and focuses on reading the help menu to fight the next Wave.

Despite Naofumi's objection, Raphtalia brings over some cake and persuades him to try some. Upon seeing this, a seething Motoyasu takes off one of his gloves and throws it at Naofumi's feet - challenging him to a Duel. The entire room falls silent at this, but Naofumi is unprovoked. Motoyasu tells him he knows that Raphtalia is his slave, which he believes is morally wrong and demands Raphtalia's freedom if he wins. Naofumi calls the Spear Hero out on this, stating that it is only Motoyasu's opinion and that slavery is permitted in Melromarc. Motoyasu maintains that since they are people from another world, it is morally wrong for someone, especially a Hero, to take a slave. The other heroes, Ren and Itsuki, are also shocked to learn that Naofumi has a slave as a party member and are disgusted with him.

When Naofumi asks what he will get in return if he wins, Motoyasu answers (after a pause) that he could keep things as it is. Naofumi, however, isn't interested in taking part in a duel where he gets nothing in return for winning. He attempts to leave with Raphtalia, but a guard stops him. A 'disgusted' and definitely not biased (sarcasm) King Aultcary appears... Having overheard everything, he declares Naofumi is rotten to his very core and orders him to take part anyway. When Raphtalia tries to explain that she follows Naofumi of her own free will, she is seized, bound, gagged and dragged away by the Melromarc soldiers. The King reasons that Raphtalia has simply been forced to defend her master by the Slave Crest.

Outraged Naofumi tries to take Raphtalia back by force, only to be surrounded by numerous guards, who draw their swords on him. Left with no choice, Naofumi reluctantly accepts the duel but declares that they better hand Raphtalia back when he wins. Thus prompts Myne to taunt the Shield Hero, reminding Naofumi (and everyone else) that the Shield Hero can't attack, which makes the sneering crowd laugh at Naofumi's expense. With the crowd clearly favoring Motoyasu, and after getting another painful reminder that he can't use any other weapons, Naofumi is escorted to the courtyard where he meets the Spear Hero.

Motoyasu (who is twenty-two levels above Naofumi) proceeds to mock his adversary with the tale about the all-penetrating Spear and the unbreakable Shield and wonders which one is stronger. When Naofumi ignores Motoyasu's offer to surrender gracefully, the later charges. Despite the drawbacks from his weapon, Naofumi quickly proves his metal. He blocks all the incoming strikes with his relative ease using his Light Metal Shield and declares that Motoyasu lost the moment he couldn't penetrate his shield. When the Spear Hero uses his powerful attack, Chaos Spear, it has little effect and when it's cooldown time kicks in (which renders him helpless as he has to wait for the second attack skill) Naofumi takes advantage of the situation and attacks.

Using the Balloon monsters on his person as weapons, and the various Shields he unlocked, Naofumi beats Motoyasu into a corner. The Spear Hero calls him out for using the monster, ordering him to fight fairly, but when he retaliates is suddenly attacked by The Dog Demon Shield. Knocking the Spear Hero down with Air Strike Shield, Naofumi sics several more Balloons on his winded opponent and locks them within the confined metal sphere of a Shield Prison, so that the monsters can devour Motoyasu.

The King, Melromarc's Nobles, and Myne are clearly shocked by The Shield Hero's resilience and ability to hold his own. Although Ren and Itsuki seem genuinely surprised at this unexpected development, several of the nobles call out Naofumi's dirty, underhanded tactics. The atmosphere in the courtyard is suddenly very tense. Things are not going the way they were expecting, and everyone knows that if things carry on like this, then there is the distinct possibility that Motoyasu is going to lose!

Then, as Naofumi readies another attack, standing on the cusp of victory, he is suddenly blown away by Wind magic fired by Myne and Motoyasu (his cooldown time having ended) unleashes a savage attack, Lightning Spear, beating Naofumi down. Drained and clearly exhausted, Motoyasu scornfully declares that he has won. Naofumi tries to call out on the obvious cheating and asked for witness from the audience. No one answers to his claims. All he gets is Motoyasu and the audience calling him a sore loser, whilst Myne and King Aultcray reminding everyone that Naofumi is scum, and not to listen to him.

Declaring the fight in Motoyasu's favor, the King makes his way down to the arena. Myne meanwhile stands alongside the man she betrayed and framed. She gleefully taunts him that now he will have to fight alone again, before laughing cruelly at his misfortune. The King congratulates the Spear Hero on a job well done and declares that his daughter chose her companion wisely; revealing to Naofumi that Myne's real name is Princess Malty Melromarc.

Myne immediately rushes over to join her father, falsely claiming that it is her intention to help save the world. The Spear Hero is tended to by a mage who heals him, whilst completely ignoring the Shield Hero.

Not that Naofumi cares about this, for he has other things on his mind. The moment the King made this proclamation, the Shield Hero hit upon a cruel revelation. With this last, vital piece of information, everything falls into place and finally makes sense to him. His eyes now wide with shock, Naofumi realizes the terrible truth behind his predicament: he had been set up from the very beginning, his downfall having been planned before he was even summoned!

Myne Sophia, no, Princess Malty Melromarc never had any intention of being his companion. Instead, she used Naofumi, taking advantage of his naivety and kindness to set him back financially. Once she had gotten what she wanted, she took everything from Naofumi in order to leave him with nothing. She not only framed him to turn everybody against him, but to win favor with her real chosen hero, Motoyasu.

As for King Aultcray, he is not the ignorant, justice driven fool that Naofumi believed he was. He is Malty's father and was fully aware about his daughters malicious schemes and intentions. Instead of stopping her, he deliberately used his power and position to cover Malty's tracks. This explains why there was no real investigation or inquiry into Malty's accusations and why the ordinary people so willingly believed it. Since the accusation came from the monarchy, nobody would question it or willingly show their support for Naofumi, even if they had believed him

This duel with Motoyasu was nothing but another set-up, rigged entirely by the crown. All Myne had to do to kick start things was to appeal to Motoyasu's ego. She no doubt told Motoyasu that Naofumi had enslaved Raphtalia against her will and was using his powers to abuse the poor girl. She knew full well that Motoyasu would believe her and try to save "the poor girl." None of this was for Raphtalia's sake. It was just another spiteful move from by the vile King and Princess, who intended to deprive the already broken Naofumi of his one true ally and support!

A dark mist begins to emanate from Naofumi's shield, as the Shield Hero sinks further into depression, reflecting on the unfairness of his situation. He did not come to this world willingly. He did not ask to be a hero, those situations were both forced upon him. Nor has he done anything to warrant such unfair treatment, so why are the people of Melromarc so determined to make him suffer?

As one of Aultcray's ministers declares that Motoyasu has now freed Raphtalia, the callous audience start to openly demean the Shield Hero. Calling him a criminal and scum, saying they don't need or want him. One person even demands that Naofumi just be executed. Hearing all of these unjustified insults, Naofumi snaps! A deep, intense, festering rage takes over him, as he drops to all fours, slamming the ground in frustration a thick black mist surrounding him.

He watches on helpless as Raphtalia (seeing her in her child form) has her Slave Crest forcefully removed. Naofumi, under the Shield's influence, hallucinates the child Raphtalia abandoning him like everyone else, by walking away with Myne. Crying out in despair, Naofumi imagines himself trying to toss the Shield away but is unable to run away from it, as the Shield automatically re-attaches itself to his arm. Having reached his lowest point, The Shield Hero declares venomously that he has had enough.

He desires nothing more than to let this unjust world, and all of the foul people within it, die! As a result of his hallucinations, and negative emotion, something called the Curse Series begins to activate as Naofumi's Shield responds to his rage, unlocking this new, evidently dark series.

Blinded by his emotions and the Shields power, Naofumi does not pay any attention to his surroundings. As such, he fails to notice that things are not going the way his enemies had intended. With a loud "SMACK" which echoes throughout the entire arena, Motoyasu is sent reeling backwards. There is a look of pain on his face and a big red mark on the Spear Hero's left cheek.

Far from being grateful, the only thing that the newly-freed Raphtalia gives her so-called "saviour" is a massive slap to the face. As the citizens of Melromarc stare on in complete shock, she then labels him a cheater (in the English dub, she called him a liar and a cheat), Taken aback, Malty demands to know what the hell Raphtalia thinks she is doing? Assuming an aggressive stance, the tanuki calls Motoyasu out on his selfishness, angrily declaring that she never wanted him to free her in the first place.

This leads to a verbal confrontation between the Demi-Human and the Spear Hero. The spectators watch on in complete bewilderment as Motoyasu tries to defend himself, only for Raphtalia to counter each and every one of ever-increasing feeble excuses with solid facts. Shaken by Raphtalia's lack of gratitude, Motoyasu insists that he had to act because Raphtalia was a slave. He then seeks confirmation that Naofumi had been abusing and misusing her. This shows that he only took Raphtalia's status at face value, without investigating it or asking about the real nature of their relationship. Raphtalia declares that if that is what he thinks, then Motoyasu clearly doesn't know anything about Naofumi's character. Whilst she might be a slave, Naofumi has never mistreated or misused her. He never makes her do anything that she doesn't want to do and had only ever activated the slave curse when she wouldn't fight.

Slamming his spear firmly on the ground, Motoyasu retaliates that that's the problem; nobody should be forced to fight against their will. Whilst this may have been a solid argument in any other situation, in this case, it is nothing short of hypocritical. All four of the Cardinal Heroes were originally summoned to do just that. Not only that, Motoyasu himself forced Naofumi into what was supposed to be a one-sided bout. The Shield Hero made it very clear that he did not want to fight, but was made to because of the King, who forced his hand. The Demi-Human immediately counters, reminding The Spear Hero that because of the Shields limitations, Naofumi cannot use any other weapons besides his shield. If he is to stand any chance of surviving the waves and other obstacles, the Naofumi needs people to fight for him.

Motoyasu pathetically tries to say that it doesn't need to be Raphtalia. He insists that Naofumi will continue to misuse her until she is of no further use to him before disposing of her. Again, this is hypocritical on his part. Motoyasu does not know anything about Naofumi's character. He is basing all of this, upon things that Myne told him. Not only that, it is also thanks partially to Motoyasu's actions that Naofumi cannot find anybody willing to fight alongside him in Melromarc. Raphtalia once again calls Motoyasu out on his lack of knowledge about hers and Naofumi's relationship. Ever since he purchased her, the Shield Hero has treated Raphtalia like an equal, (unlike the citizens of Melromarc who regard Demi-Humans as filth and use them as slaves). He has looked after and protected her since day one. In return for that, she helps to defend him.

Hearing this, Motoyasu's resolve falters. All he can do is to feebly claim that; "No, he isn't that kind of guy!" Once again the Spear Hero is basing this off of assumptions rather than solid evidence. Having immediately accepted Myne's accusations, he never gave Naofumi any sort of chance to prove himself. Having cornered him, Raphtalia demands to know whether or not Motoyasu is capable of such kindness? Despite being poor, with limited finances and practically no support, Naofumi took Raphtalia in, a sickly Demi-Human on death's door. He saved her, fed her properly, bought her decent clothes and personally made her medicine to combat her illness when nobody else in the country even cared about her. When she asks if he is capable of such feats, Motoyasu hesitantly insists that yes, of course, he is ... only for Raphtalia to immediately point out that if that was true, why does he not have a slave, freed or otherwise in his party?

With this declaration, Raphtalia completely trounces Motoyasu's argument. For all his claims about slavery being wrong since coming to Melromarc, The Spear Hero has done nothing to help anybody in Raphtalia's position until now. Despite all his boasting about being a hero, access to better finances and his close ties to the crown, it was Naofumi, the outcast hero with no support that rescued the sickly young slave girl. Now in front of Melromarc's aristocracy, priest-hood, and royal family, Raphtalia, a Demi-Human, lowest of the low within Melromarc's society has called out the countries most prestigious hero. Instead of being grateful as anticipated, she has laid the Spear Hero's villainy to bear and effectively told him right to his face (along with the citizens of Melromarc) - You are a lying hypocrite. You do not care one bit about me. The only reason you took offence to this matter is because I am Naofumi's slave and companion. You are the real villain here. You are the one trying to separate me from my true saviour!

Rattled to his very core, Motoyasu barely manages to get two words out before Malty interrupts him. Since her original outburst, the Princess has been standing idly beside Motoyasu this entire time. Watching her plan unravel before her eyes, Malty now yells at Raphtalia, telling her to shut up. The Princess openly demeans Raphtalia for being a Demi-Human, unintentionally proving Naofumi's assumption that she did not care about the tanuki's well-being. Raising her own hand, Malty prepares to strike the Shield Hero's defiant companion.

Before she can, however, a man in the audience notices movement at the edge of the arena. Myne does a double take and freezes up as new two people march onto the scene. It is Ren and Itsuki. As the Bow and Sword Heroes march purposefully towards the spectacle, the confused audience members whisper to one another, wondering what the heck is going on?

Standing next to Raphtalia, a clearly vexed Itsuki demands to know why Myne illegally interfered with the duel? Although the Princess immediately feigns ignorance, Motoyasu is left confused by Itsuki's statement. To Raphtalia's astonishment, Ren then tells Motoyasu, quite bluntly, that the duel was his loss. He informs his stunned comrade that he did not win with his own strength as he believes and everybody else is saying. The only reason Motoyasu "won" is because one of his companions shot Naofumi in the back with wind magic, just like the Shield Hero claimed they did.

Whilst the Sword Hero doesn't name names, he glares straight at Myne, making it very clear whom he is referring to. Shocked, the confused Spear Hero turns to look at Myne. With an "innocent smile" on her face, Malty tries to insinuate that that can't possibly be the case. Surely the Bow and Sword Heroes are mistaken, after all, nobody else in the audience saw it otherwise they would have surely pointed it out.

Itsuki angrily shoots this argument down, making it very clear that everyone in the audience saw it, including himself and Ren. The only reason that no one has said anything is because the King ordered them not to. Aultcray's declaration at the end of the duel was not just a false proclamation of Motoyasu's victory, it was an unveiled threat. The King was telling his subjects either stay quiet about Myne's intervention or face the consequences. Itsuki rounds off his argument by saying that one look at the audience members faces will tell you that they are clearly concealing the truth. Glaring at the King and Myne, Ren expresses his disgust that the royal family (and by extension the citizens of Melromarc) would willingly debase a Sacred Duel in such a disrespectful manner.

With their deception exposed, King Aultcray glares off to the side, no longer able to look any of the Heroes in the eye. Motoyasu and Myne likewise both fall silent, their joy and triumph having completely disintegrated. In the stands, the citizens of Melromarc, having just been effectively reprimanded for their deception, whisper to one another anxiously, taken aback by the Bow and Sword Heroes actions. For some reason, the representatives of the Church, including the High Priest seem especially concerned.

Point proven and with nothing more to say, Raphtalia storms past Myne, Motoyasu, and Aultcray, much to the Spear hero's confusion. She does not look at any of them, thank Ren or Itsuki or demonstrate any semblance of respect for their stations. After making it past her false saviours, the young Demi-Human illustrates that her concerns lie elsewhere.

Silence falls once again, as Raphtalia cautiously approaches the now barely responsive Shield Hero. Wallowing in despair, Naofumi has not heard Raphtalia defend him, continuing to rage against the world and his Shield. When Raphtalia warily calls out to him, Naofumi refuses to listen to her. Believing that she is about to desert and betray him, like everybody else, Naofumi calls her a "traitor," whilst sarcastically asking if she has come over to gloat, before ordering her to go away.

Nervously, Raphtalia tentatively admits that she has heard the rumours circulating about him and his alleged crime. As she feared, this declaration only angers the Shield Hero even further, so that when Raphtalia tries to say that she does not believe he would do such a thing, Naofumi doesn't even give her a chance to finish. Screaming in frustration, Naofumi roars at her and the rest of the audience that he did not do it! As far as he is concerned though this declaration does not matter. Nobody believed Naofumi when he said he was innocent; so why would they start to believe him now?

When Raphtalia approaches, Naofumi rebuffs her, even pushing her away when she tries to comfort him. Still despairing at the unfairness of his situation, Naofumi reminds her that she is free, and asks if she is only there just to taunt him. Thanks to the effects of the Curse Series, Naofumi can only see Raphtalia as a child and doesn't realize that she is trying to comfort or express her belief in him. Thinking that this is nothing more than a cruel trick, similar to the one Malty played on him, a despairing Naofumi demands to know what else the citizens of Melromarc are going to take from him?

Having had enough of his situation, Naofumi tries to rip the Shield from his body. Raphtalia, however, places her hand on the Shield and reminds him that the Shield had saved her life and that during the Wave, he did what no one else would - defended many others, despite not being able to fight. When he admits that he is not a nice guy and saw her as nothing more than a useful instrument to start off with, Raphtalia ignores this declaration, declaring he saved her!

When Naofumi tries to argue against this, the tanuki-girl reaches forward and embraces him. Raphtalia then declares it doesn't matter what anyone else says, she knows he is kind and better than anyone else in Melromarc. In a clear declaration of loyalty, Raphtalia tells Naofumi, (and everyone else) that no matter what happens or is said about the Shield Hero - she intends to stand by him, to take his side! She will stand by the man that saved her, and who helped her find meaning and purpose again.

Releasing him from her embrace, Raphtalia appears as a teenager and promises to be Naofumi's sword, who will follow him to the very end. Throughout all of this, the power of the Curse Series wanes, and as Raphtalia said the words that he always wanted to hear, Naofumi becomes emotional, realizing just how much he took his partner and her previous declaration for granted. Finally, the Curse Series gets neutralized and the mist that engulfed him clears off.

Naofumi is confused to see a now fully grown Raphtalia in front of him and asks who she is, as he always saw her as a child. After answering his question, the tanuki Demi-Human once again promises that even if she might be a burden, she wants to stay with him. Hearing this proclamation, Naofumi breaks down. Finally, after being forced to endure three weeks of ridicule, harassment, and false accusations, the Shield Hero has found somebody that he can truly call his ally. Raphtalia, his slave, no, his companion, has heard the rumours and truly believes that he is innocent, making her somebody that he can truly depend on. As the tears begin to pour from Naofumi's eyes, Raphtalia reaches forwards and embraces him. With her devotion proven, Raphtalia further demonstrates her compassion, by comforting the Shield Hero.

The focus shifts to King Aultcray and Princess Malty Melromarc, the instigators of this whole fiasco. From their expressions, it is clear that neither of them have been moved by Raphtalia's dedication in the slightest. On the contrary, the King glares at the pair coldly, whilst Myne looks on with a mixture of disgust and disbelief. The villains do not say anything, nor do they need to, both of them have undoubtedly realized that their latest scheme to hurt and hinder the Shield Hero has failed. Dozens of bystanders saw the removal of Raphtalia's slave crests. Those same spectators also happened to witness Raphtalia's subsequent declarations and actions. As such every single one of them, will know that the tanuki's proclamation of loyalty was made entirely of her own free will. Raphtalia has shown beyond any doubt that she is truly loyal to Naofumi.

Recognising that there is nothing either of them can do about it now, King Aultcray simply turns away and marches out of the arena. He is followed almost immediately by an equally disappointed Malty. The other Cardinal Heroes linger but up in the stands, the citizens of Melromarc (Pope, Knights, Priests, Nobles, Adventurers, and Mages) take the hint: the spectacle is over. From their equally silent reaction, it is clear that things have not turned out the way they expected. They came here today to see the villainous Shield Hero receive a small measure of comeuppance, and to falsely claim that the Spear Hero had performed another valiant deed. Instead, the Demi-Human girl snubbed their "efforts to save her", whilst insulting the Spear Hero and praising the Shield Hero. On top of all that, the spectators themselves were effectively told off by the Bow and Sword Heroes for not coming to Naofumi's defence. Knowing that there isn't anything more for them to see here, the people follow their leader's example and begin to file out, clearly dissatisfied with the results.

As the arena empties around them, Motoyasu clutches his spear for support. With this final display, the Spear Hero is left completely humiliated. Motoyasu still insists that he did not do anything wrong, showing that he cannot understand how or why things have turned out this way. From his point of view, he was trying to save Raphtalia from a life of misery, only for her to throw it all back in his face literally. Ignoring everything that Raphtalia has just said to him, Motoyasu tries to defend his "heroic" actions with his own principles. Kitamura makes it clear that he still considers Naofumi to be the evil one in this whole piece, standing by his conviction that a Hero should not own slaves. Refusing to believe that anybody would willingly work alongside a known criminal like Naofumi, he instead tries to insinuate that Raphtalia must be brainwashed or something.

Ren and Itsuki however are not convinced and immediately call him out on this. They state quite firmly that this is clearly not the case and that you only have to look at Naofumi and Raphtalia to realize that they genuinely care about each other. Ignoring all of this, Naofumi continues to cry. A narration comment reveals that he fell asleep on Raphtalia's lap and that the pair of them stayed in the empty courtyard for the rest of the night.

The next morning, Naofumi wakes up and realizes that Raphtalia was indeed an adult and asks her about it. Raphtalia explains that Demi-Humans share a unique biological quirk with monsters: Demi-Human children rapidly age in proportion to their level, and this is one of the main reasons why they're considered the same as monsters and discriminated against in Melromarc. Raphtalia scrounges together some leftovers of the feast from the kitchen, making sandwiches for the two of them. Naofumi takes one bite and is visibly marveled, realizing that he can taste the food once again. Raphtalia once again reassures Naofumi that they will go through everything together.

Light Novel & Manga Differences
Information to be added later on.

Trivia

 * The levels of Naofumi, Motoyasu, and their party members were shown.
 * The causalities of the waves were revealed to be of in the single digit.
 * Naofumi uses Balloon monsters as his weapons in his fight against Motoyasu.
 * Magic exists in this world as Myne used a spell during the duel.
 * Myne's affinity for magic is revealed to be Wind magic.
 * Demi-Humans age to their primes as they level, because of which they are seen as monsters by Humans.

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