Naofumi Iwatani/Chronology

Volume 1
Naofumi would occasionally visit the bookstore or the library when he wanted to save money. On that fateful day, Naofumi found an old-looking book called The Record of the Four Holy Weapons in the library. The book contains a fantasy world where heroes summoned from another world would fend off waves of calamity. When the book went to describe the Shield Hero all the pages were blank and it was then where Naofumi started to lose consciousness.

When Naofumi awoke he found himself in a different room, below him laid an alter which glowed. Besides him stood 3 other people who each possessed a different weapon sword, spear, and bow. Naofumi noticed on his right arm laid a shield which he couldn't remove. He would later learn he was summoned with the three other people as Legendary Heroes from another world.

The robe figures before them asked and begged for the heroes to save them. The three other heroes ignored their question and asked their own questions like asking why they were summoned. One of the heroes wielding the sword even threaten them by pointing his weapon towards them. However, Naofumi knew that the three other heroes were actually leaping of joy on the inside from being summoned to another world.

The heroes were lead to the throne room where they would meet the ruler of the country. On the throne sat an old man, who later introduced himself as Aultcray Melromarc XXXII king of Melromarc. He talked about the prophecy of the waves and the reason behind the heroes summoning. Shortly after that, he asked for the heroes to introduce themselves.

The order of the introduction was as follows: Ren Amaki the Sword Hero, Motoyasu Kitamura the Spear Hero, Itsuki Kawasumi the Bow Hero, and lastly Naofumi Iwatani, the Shield Hero. The King later acknowledges the heroes' names except that of Naofumi's which he later corrected and apologized about when pointed out.

The King later went on about the fundamentals of Status Magic and Legendary Weapons each of the heroes possessed. The King ensured them that he'll secure adventurers to join the Legendary Hero's cause. The heroes were later escorted to their chambers.

When the heroes arrived at their chambers, they started discussing how the world they were summoned to seemed like a game. Each hero besides Naofumi had a personal idea on which game, from their old world, this new world was based on. Motoyasu said it was based on a famous online game called Emerald Online, while Itsuki disagreed and said it was based on a console game called Dimension Waves, Ren later interjected saying they were both wrong and that it was based on a VRMMO called Brave Star Online.

Each of the heroes considered themselves massive Otaku, however, none of them had heard of the games the others named. On a hunch, they all agreed to name the current president of Japan which ended up with them all saying different names. Not convinced, they started shouting other random questions and in the end, they all concluded that they all came from Alternative Japans.

After their discovery, the other heroes were quick to point out comments about Naofumi's legendary weapon and his class. Motoyasu explained how the Shielder class in his game was the weakest class which later became obsolete, Ren's and Itsuki's answer were also more or less the same. This came to a shock to Naofumi, but despite all that, he still had held a positive outlook of being summoned to another world. They later all went to sleep in different chambers after dinner was prepared for them.

The next day the king said that he had prepared many adventures to join the heroes and their cause. Though instead of the heroes choosing the adventurers, the adventurers had to choose the heroes they wanted to team up with by standing behind their chosen hero.

After all the adventurers had chosen, Ren ended up with 5 people, Motoyasu with 4 people, Itsuki with 3 people and Naofumi with no one. Shocked and surprised by the results Naofumi asked in this order for Ren, Motoyasu, and Itsuki if they could spare him some adventures to join his party but no one from the ranks of adventurers in each of the heroes parties wanted to swap over.

The reason as to why no adventurers joined Naofumi's party was later discovered and explained by the King. Rumors about Naofumi had spread throughout the kingdom that the Shield Hero was weak and had no knowledge of the world. Motoyasu later whispered to Naofumi that someone probably had eased dropped on their conversation last night.

Thinking all hope was lost, someone from Motoyasu's party decided to join Naofumi party, a red-headed female adventures. She was asked by Motoyasu whether she was sure about her decision and she replied with a simple "yes". Since Naofumi had the least amount of members compared to the other three heroes the King provided Naofumi with 800 pieces of silvers while the other heroes only started with 600 silvers.

Naofumi gladly accepted the money and started his very first journey with his very first companion in another world. The female adventures later introduced herself as Myne Suphia. While Naofumi would refer to her first name, Myne would only refer to Naofumi as Mr. Hero.

After having exited the castle, Myne brought Naofumi to a Weapon Shop that was well known throughout Melromarc. When the Weapon Shop Owner saw Myne entering the shop he asked her if he had seen her somewhere before. Myne, however, shook off the question by answering she was a returning customer.

Naofumi's first objective was to get himself a weapon so that he could have a way of attacking. While trying to pick up a weapon in the store her discovers that his Legendary Weapon restricted him from equipping other weapons except for his assigned weapon, his shield. He ends up deciding to buy a set of Chainmail for himself which he got a discount for at the price of 120 silver.

Upon exiting the castle walls, they came up a valley that was full of grass. While walking through the valley Naofumi encountered a Monster called an Orange Balloon, when the Balloon bit Naofumi he felt no pain due to the Legendary Shield emitting a defensive barrier around him. It took Naofumi 5 minutes to defeat a single balloon by himself which only earned him 1exp. He later looks over in the distance to see Ren swiftly defeating 3 Balloons in one swing.

Naofumi ends up discovering that he can use the monster loot from the Orange Balloon to absorb into the shield. And for the rest of the day, Myne helped Naofumi defeat monsters out in the valley.

When evening hit both Naofumi and Myne returned to the Weapon Shop to obtain Myne new gear. While Myne was searching for new gear, Naofumi and the Weapon Shop started haggling with each other. When Myne returned with her chosen set of equipment that she wanted, Naofumi asked whether she could downgrade since it was a bit too experience but Myne used her feminine charms to manipulate Naofumi into purchasing the equipment. However, the Weapon Shop Owners kindly gave Naofumi a discount.

Naofumi made his way to an Inn and purchased two rooms for himself and Myne. Before heading to bed both Naofumi and Myne stayed downstairs planning for their next day. During their conversation, Myne asked of Naofumi to join her in drinking. Naofumi naturally refused to due to his dislike of alcohol since he had a high tolerance. Myne tried to push on the topic but Naofumi refused to drink and after letting it go Naofumi went to his room to sleep. Before going to sleep Naofumi slips off his chainmail and laid it on the back of the chair and slipped 30 silvers into his shield. While at it he reckons that he saw Itsuki and Motoyasu enter the tavern outside his window.

While in his sleep, Naofumi could hear someone whispering "Heh, heh, men are fools. So easily tricked.... Can't wait until tomorrow." Naofumi woke up in the morning to see all of his possessions that he had left inside of his room stolen, he went to the Inn hallway and headed to Myne's room to tell her the bad news but there was no reply on the other side of the door.

Knights eventually filled the hallways and surrounded Naofumi, they ignored Naofumi's plead for help and asked whether he was the Shield Hero and after confirming it, the knights forcibly grabbed and dragged Naofumi out of the inn all the way to the castle in nothing but his undergarments.

After Naofumi arrives at the castle dragged, he is surrounded by the castle knights holding him in a lock with their spears. When he saw Myne he instinctively called out her name but she hid behind Motoyasu while glaring daggers at Naofumi. Motoyasu was wearing the chainmail which belonged to Naofumi and when he called out Motoyasu for it he brushed it off.

Naofumi and Motoyasu quarrel were interrupted by an announcement which stated that they were now going to hear the charges against the Shield Hero. Myne started falsely accusing Naofumi of sexually assaulting her and how she had escaped from Naofumi and ran to Motoyasu afterward.

While watching her Naofumi couldn't make sense of what she was talking about, he even felt bad towards Myne while watching her cry. Naofumi tried to plead that he was innocent, but he was interrupted by Motoyasu calling Naofumi a liar. Naofumi asked him why he was speaking for Myne and asked where Motoyasu had gotten his chainmail from, Motoyasu replied that it was a present he had gotten from Myne.

Naofumi decided that talking to Motoyasu was getting him nowhere so he started pleading to the king about his missing money, clothes, and equipment but was interrupted by the King and silenced after being called a scoundrel. In a desperate attempt for help, he looked towards the direction where Myne was standing and it was at that moment that he saw Myne sticking her tongue out to mock Naofumi.

It was then that Naofumi fully understood the situation he was in and how he was played like a fool and used by Myne. And at that very moment, Naofumi's personality transformed bitter. Naofumi concluded that Myne and Motoyasu had planned this from the beginning to not only take his equipment and money but to better their standings in society and look better. Naofumi showed no sign of holding his anger and called out the two of them for tricking him, after ignoring Naofumi outburst Ren and Itsuki came to the conclusion that Naofumi was guilty.

Fed up from being treated like a criminal by everyone around him, he couldn't find the strength in him to care anymore and asked the King to send him back home and summon a new Shield Hero. The King stated that he wanted nothing more but to send Naofumi home but he explained that the waves didn't allow the heroes to return home and that all four of the heroes will need to die in order to summon new heroes.

Ren, Itsuki, and Motoyasu did not hide their shock to the King's explanation. In a fit of anger, Naofumi broke out of the lock that the Castle Knights had him in. Naofumi then asked the King what his punishment was going to be. The King replied that Naofumi had a job of defending the waves and that his crimes would become well known around his kingdom.

After sarcastically thanking the King Naofumi headed towards the exit. Before walking out he removed the last 30 pieces of silver he had and forcefully threw them towards Motoyasu. Naofumi had lost respect, trust, and money before his adventure had begun. Naofumi mentions upon exiting the castle that the whole world looked awful and hideous to him.

A week passed since Naofumi's false rape charges and while passing by the Weapon Store he was hostility greeted by the Weapon Shop Owner believing that charges and rumors about him were true. He asked him if he could punch Naofumi in the face but he quickly realized that Naofumi was innocent of his crimes.

Before Naofumi could exit the town gate he was stopped by the Weapon Shop Owner who tossed him a small bag containing cheap clothing and a cape, Naofumi accepts the bag and promises to pay him back in full.

Naofumi ends up spending most of the day fighting balloons until he reached level 2 where he unlocked two new shields the Orange Shield and Yellow Shield. He heads back into town to sell the monster loot he obtained from defeating Balloons all day, he was offered  1 bronze piece for every 10 balloon skins by the shop owner despite the fact that a previous customer was offered 1 bronze piece for every 2 balloon skins. The shop owner pretended that he had forgotten and brushed the topic away when Naofumi brought it up. Naofumi then grabbed him by the collar and revealed an Orange Balloon that he had hidden under his cape and threatened the shop owner to give him a fair price which he finally agreed to. After receiving his payment Naofumi went back to the Weapon Shop and paid back the owner for the clothes.

It was later discovered that Naofumi had lost his ability to taste anything.

The next day Naofumi unlocked the Leaf Shield that was later discovered to increase the quality of herbs he then spent the rest of the day collecting herbs and selling them to the Medicinal Shop Owner for a higher price than what he could get from Balloon Skins.

While eating at the tavern he was later greeted by a trio of ruffians that made fun and pretending to be interested in joining his party asking him to buy equipment for them. Naofumi made quick work of them by scaring them off with Orange Balloons he still had hidden under his cape. Naofumi kept repeating the pattern of collecting materials and selling them until he manages to save a little money.

In the span of two weeks, Naofumi manages to save up to 40 pieces and level up to level 4. During that time span, Naofumi went deeper in the forest where he encounters a Red Balloon he spent around 30 minutes trying to kill it but no matter how long he pummeled the Balloon it wouldn't die. The Red Balloon at the meantime was chewing Naofumi's arm while he walks down an alleyway.

Naofumi was greeted by a strange man who would be later referred as the Slave Trader he asked if Naofumi was interested in purchasing a slave which were put under a powerful curse where they cannot lie and betray their masters. Naofumi interested by his offer was lead by the Slave Trader to a Circus Tent where the Slave Trader stored all his slaves, he explained to Naofumi the how Demi-humans and Beast-man were discriminated in Melromarc because of their animal features and often are sold in slavery.

The Slave Trader demonstrated the Slave Curse Seal on a beast-man where at a snap of a finger he could cause the Werewolf to grovel in pain, he purposely showed Naofumi his best slave which cost 15 gold afterward they continued on what slave Naofumi was interested in, the Slave Trader thought Naofumi was interested in sex slaves when Naofumi instantly denied his offer by saying he didn't do it while the Slave Trader laughed and replied I guess the rumors weren't true.

The Slave Trader offered Naofumi three of his cheapest slaves each individually in their own cage. On the right side a rabbit demi-human with a disorder, the left a mixed breed lizardman and in the middle a raccoon demi-human suffering from panic attacks.

Naofumi chose the raccoon demi-human because of his distorted thoughts at the time, he wanted to control her thinking that if it'll grant him some satisfaction even if it was very little. The Slave Trader and his assistants applied the Curse Slave Seal with Naofumi's blood which he paid the Slave Trader 30 silver and extra so he wouldn't charged for the Curse Seal payment. Upon exiting the Tent he asked for the slave's name which the slave replied after being shocked by the Slave Seal after ignoring his question, she answered Raphtalia.

After purchasing Raphtalia, Naofumi made his way to the Weapon Store where he bought Raphtalia a knife around 6 pieces of silver while the Weapon Shop Owner generously threw in some clothing for Raphtalia for free. After Raphtalia was finished changing and equipped the new knife, Naofumi ordered her to kill the Orange and Red Balloons both which granted Naofumi and herself 1exp each.

Feeling hungry and hearing Raphtalia's rumbling stomach he visited a nearby Tavern to eat. While Naofumi entered the tavern he saw Raphtalia eyeing a kid with kids' meals which he later proceeded to buy Raphtalia one. Raphtalia questioned why Naofumi was treating her after asking permission to eat her meal she starting eating the meal with her hands due to the lack of table manners, Naofumi asked if the meal was good which she proceeded with answering, it's great.

Naofumi and Raphtalia spent the rest of the day hunting in the forest, they encountered Red Balloons and different variety of Loomush after calling it a day Raphtalia was level 5 while Naofumi was level 3. When evening fell Naofumi set up camp along the river, he tried his luck with compounding which he ended up making different varieties of medicine one of which was effective against colds that he gave to Raphtalia.

Naofumi stayed up late to compound medicine while Raphtalia reluctantly went to sleep. Naofumi was startled by Raphtalia panic attack she was having a nightmare while calling out her mother and father. Naofumi calmed her down by holding her close while repeatedly telling her that everything was going to be okay, during the night she had multiple panic attacks causing Naofumi to barely get any sleep.

In the morning Naofumi went into town to sell the medicine he worked on compounding last night, the Medicinal Shop Owner also threw in old compounding tools when Naofumi requested them. He later sold more Balloons Skins and bought Raphtalia a ball made from the Balloons Skins after watching her look envious of other kids playing with the same type of ball. They later went back into the forest to go hunting and leveling encountering a new type of monster called an Eggug which their materials helped Naofumi unlock more shields and also sold for a good price.

Because of the lack of sleep last night, Naofumi rented a room in town and went to have a nap and gave Raphtalia permission to play with her Ball outside, while Raphtalia was playing outside she was picked on by kids in the neighborhood and was being forced to give them her ball hearing the commotion Naofumi scared off the kids with the Orange Balloons underneath his cape, Raphtalia later thanked Naofumi for helping her.

Naofumi decided to treat Raphtalia by ordering them both meals which cost more than the usual. Before going to sleep Naofumi gave Raphtalia a haircut after noticing that her hair was out of control which made Raphtalia extremely happy, without her noticing Naofumi absorbed Raphtalia's hair into his shield. Raphtalia went to sleep while Naofumi stayed up compounding medicine later joining Raphtalia after calling it a night.

In the morning Naofumi found Raphtalia curled up in a ball in the corner of the room constantly saying she was sorry because she wet the bed, Naofumi later comforts Raphtalia that it was okay. He later explained the situation to the inn managers, paid for the sheet and kept the blanket for himself which he later washed, dried and tuck away into his bag.

While walking through the forest they encountered a Usapil the first animal looking monster they have encountered so far. Naofumi blocked and held onto the Usapil after it tried to attack Raphtalia. When Naofumi ordered Raphtalia to attack she explained to him that she was afraid of blood but eventually reluctantly killing the Usapil looking pale after seeing all the blood. Another Usapil appears which Naofumi deflected before it reached Raphtalia. Naofumi apologized to Raphtalia explaining that he needed to be stronger to fend off the waves and if she couldn't fight he would have to let her go. Raphtalia's pale expression faded away and washed over with determination after listening to Naofumi and cleanly stabbed the Usapil.

After Raphtalia killed the Usapil she was about to dissect it but Naofumi stopped her from doing so telling her that was his job. They later set up camp for the night and cooked the Usapil for dinner, Naofumi describes the Usapil flavor as eating tasteless rubber but he noticed Raphtalia was eating the Usapil like it was the most delicious thing in the world.

In the morning they made their way to the Weapon Store after Raphtalia's knife broke while hunting. Naofumi bought Raphtalia an iron sword and a beat up breastplate. The Weapon Shop Owner happily agreed to teach Raphtalia the basic of swordsmanship in the Weapon Store while Naofumi went out of the store to buy Raphtalia food after hearing her stomach rumble before leaving the Weapon Shop Owner explained to Naofumi that demi-humans grows differently to how Humans do and they require more food.

Upon returning to the Weapon Store the Weapon Shop Owner was almost finish teaching Raphtalia all the basics. After finishing up the Weapon Shop Owner gave Naofumi a block of whetstone which is used to sharpening and maintain swords but after noticing the shield was reacting to the whetstone Naofumi let the shield absorb the whetstone unlocking a new shield called Sharpening shield. At first, the Weapon Shop Owner was shocked to see Naofumi's shield absorb the whetstone and change his shield into a different form. After Naofumi finished reading the special effects of the shield he explained that it automatically sharpened weapons upon hearing this the Weapon Shop Owner slit a rusty sword into one of the shield' sharpening holes and told him he could have it for free.

They later visited a village called Riyute Village to sell his wares. Naofumi later found that everything sold for less here than at Castle Town which annoyed him he asked one of the merchants which he was selling his wares to where he could make some quick money. The merchant told Naofumi about the coal mine where he could obtain valuable ores but warned him that they're dangerous monster were inhabiting the place after the events of the First Wave

The coal mine was near the mountain upon the entrance of the coal mine they looted an old rest station there he found a map of the layout of the coal mine and old mining tools a pickaxe and rope which he absorbed into the shield which one the shield unlocked an ability called Air Strike Shield.

They later entered the cave which leads to a naturally made open cave. Following the map detailing where the ores can be found they headed for the top of the waterfall inside of the cave.

Reaching the top they were attacked by a Two-Headed Black Dog. After noticing that Raphtalia was too scared to attack he threw himself and Raphtalia off the waterfall landing in the water below. Upon reaching the shore, Raphtalia started talking about her past where her village was attacked by the first wave, her parents were killed by Cerberus a Three-Headed Dog before they could attack Raphtalia her parents pushed her off of the cliff into the ocean. When Raphtalia reached shore she returned to the cliff to see massive blood of blood with leftover bones, she was later sold into slavery.

The Two-Head Dog had returned and attacked them both but Naofumi blocked the Two-Headed Dog's attacks. Raphtalia still too scared to attack, Naofumi apologized to Raphtalia telling her that he needed to be stronger but all he could do is defend and that he needs someone to attack for him, he told her that he couldn't bring her parents back but can stop other children suffering from the same fate Raphtalia did in the past.

Naofumi decided to sacrifice himself in order to let Raphalia escape. But Raphtalia refused to let Naofumi die allowing her to overcome her past Turma and stabbed the Two-Headed Dog with her knife. She eventually killed the dog with a final strike to the heart after being defended by one of Naofumi's skills Air Strike Shield.

She later cried to Naofumi not to die and asked for his name which he then replied with Naofumi Iwatani. he later absorbed the Two-Headed Dog into his shield, collected some ores called Light Metal which he also absorbed into his shield.

A week and one day had passed by since the events of the coal mine. Naofumi had unlocked numerous amounts of shields and abilities by absorbing various amounts of material. He was caught off guard by a porcupine and received a brutal attack from it, after trapping he porcupine in a Sheild Prison, Raphtalia killed it swiftly and let Naofumi absorb it into his shield. Raphtalia complained that Naofumi defense was lacking and that he needed to buy new equipment, Naofumi reluctantly agrees after finally being persuaded by Raphtalia.

Upon entering the weapon store the Weapon Shop Owner was surprised by Raphtalia's growth and complimented her on how she looked like a fine lady while Naofumi stared at them at confusion. Raphtalia told the Weapon Shop Owner that they were after new armor for new Naofumi. The Weapon Shop Owner first recommended a chainmail set but later retracted it after seeing Naofumi's even bitter attitude towards because of his past experience.

They later agreed on making a custom order where the name of the armor he was making was called Barbarian Armor. Raphtalia handed in the material needed for the order and later the iron and bronze after collecting it from other stores. While collecting the iron and bronze he thought the Weapon Shop Owner's friend were lolicons after they started complimented on Raphtalia's appearance, when he brought the topic up to the Weapon Shop Owner, the Shop Owner asked if he seriously didn't notice about Raphtalia's change in appearance but to Naofumi she still looked like a 10-year-old.

Before exiting the weapon and making their way to a tavern to eat, Naofumi bought Raphtalia a new sword made of magic iron and later said thank you to the Weapon Shop Owner after all he has done for him. In the tavern, he ordered a cheap set for himself and a kid set for Raphtalia which made Raphtalia burst out on him and asked the waitress to also order her a cheap set and told Naofumi that she wasn't a kid anymore while Naofumi looked at her with confusion.

The next day Naofumi visited the weapon store to collect his custom order. He wasn't too fond of the Armor but Raphtalia, on the other hand, thought it suited him well. Naofumi next stop was the Clock Tower which resembled a church after hearing from the Weapon Shop Owner that the Dragon Hourglass counted down the arrival of the next wave.

Arriving at the Clock Tower they were greeted by a nun and escorted to the Dragon Hourglass after confirming Naofumi was the Shield Hero. Naofumi's shield reacted to the Dragon Hourglass and displayed the remaining time until the next wave in his vision counting down by minutes. At the same time Motoyasu and his party arrived at the Dragon Hourglass and a short time later Itsuki and Ren showed up as well. Motoyasu made fun of Naofumi's armor and even flirted with Raphtalia by flirtatiously introducing himself as one of the heroes. He was surprised when Raphtalia mentioned that she was in a with Naofumi's party. Naofumi left the clock tower bitterly with Raphtalia.

Upon exiting the tower Naofumi headed straight for the field where he would lash out his anger towards one of the balloons. After calming down he settled down rooms in the inn. Raphtalia was concerned about Naofumi and asked what was his relationship with the other heroes, Naofumi said he didn't want to talk about because he believed that if he told her the truth she wouldn't believe him like everyone else. Raphtalia decided to drop the subject and sleep instead.

Minutes before the waves started, castle knight and adventures were preparing themselves for the waves. Before the waves started Raphtalia wanted to express to Naofumi her gratitude for saving her life and the opportunity to fight the wave, she told Naofumi that she was his sword and she'll always stay by his side.

Once the countdown reached zero, Naofumi and Raphtalia were transported by Naofumi's legendary weapon to where the waves will occur. Above them, deep red cracks formed in the sky and monster poured out near Riyute Village. Naofumi noticed the other three heroes went for the source of the waves instead of the village and shot a flare in the sky. Instead of heading the same direction Naofumi and Raphtalia headed for the village to protect them from the incoming wave.

Upon reaching the village Raphtalia and Naofumi agreed to split up. Raphtalia would help the villagers evacuate while Naofumi would distract the monsters away from the villagers. Naofumi would defend and leave an opening for villagers to escape from the monster using various skills such as Air Strike Shield and Shield Prison. While drawing the monster to chase after him he started questioning why he was defending them from the waves.

After seeing Naofumi heroic effort a number of villagers returned to help Naofumi fight against the monsters. While Naofumi calls them idiots he let them help him push back the mob of monsters back. While pushing back a giant zombie appeared which started causing problems for Naofumi but he was quickly back on his feet when Raphtalia returned in the nick of time to help defeat the giant zombie. Having Raphtalia returned he didn't have any use for the villagers and told them to evacuate.

After the villagers evacuated from the site. The knight around them started raining down fire around Naofumi and Raphtalia. Naofumi defended and protected Raphtalia by covering her up with his cape. The fire set ablaze to all the monster around them killing them. The leader of the knights intrigued that Naofumi was still alive after taking a direct hit with the skill this caused Raphtalia to lash out at him with her sword trying to even kill him. The knights were later forced to cooperate with Naofumi after a pack of monsters appears behind them.

Once the wave ended the villagers returned to Naofumi to thank him for saving their lives even bowing to him. Raphtalia was also grateful towards Naofumi expressing that she stopped children from becoming orphans and killed a lot of monsters, Naofumi praised her by rubbing her head.

Evening came around and the king was holding a feast for the heroes succession against the waves. The only reason Naofumi came to the party was because of the rewards he would receive after the party. He sat in the corner checking the help system while Raphtalia was indulging herself in the food.

Motoyasu made his way to Naofumi with an annoyed expression and challenged Naofumi to a duel by throwing his glove after hearing that Raphtalia was actually a slave. Naofumi didn't have anything to gain from this one on one duel and refused to accept his duel but overhearing the conversation the King forced Naofumi to accept the duel while retraining and gagging Raphtalia from having any say in the duel. The king announces to everyone that the duel between the Shield Hero and the Spear Hero will be held in the castle garden.

Naofumi was forced into a duel with Motoyasu. During the first half of the duel, all Naofumi could do against Motoyasu was defend and dodge his attacks but Naofumi quickly took control of the battle using Balloons and Eggugs to attack Motoyasu and whenever Motoyasu attacked Naofumi he would use the Dog Shield to launch a counter-attack on him.

Naofumi used a combination of Air Strike Shield and Shield Prison while launching Balloons and Eggug to attack him in a tight space. Once the Shield Prison disappeared he told Motoyasu to give up and let him win but it was then Myne illegal interrupted the duel by launching wind-based magic toward Naofumi making him lose his footing. Motoyasu used this to his advantage to pin Naofumi to the ground thus winning the duel.

No one believed Naofumi when he told that someone had interrupted their duel and the King announced Motoyasu as the victor. After the duel he learned that Myne was actually the daughter of the King and her true name was Malty Melromarc. Learning this new piece of information everything clicked inside of Naofumi's mind he finally understood that Malty used himself as a stepping stone to get closer with Motoyasu and used the King to her advantage. Naofumi had nothing but hatred toward Malty and unlocked the condition of the Curse Series.

When they removed Raphtalia's curse mark in front of everyone, everything in Naofumi vision seems dark and repulsive. After Raphtalia was freed from the slave mark she slapped Motoyasu in the face. She told Motoyasu off and said she never wanted his help and defended Naofumi when Motoyasu was spewing negative thing about him.

After finishing her argument with Motoyasu she walked over to Naofumi to return and comfort him. After her curse mark disappeared Naofumi couldn't bring himself to believe Raphtalia and pushed her away but Raphtalia kept pushing toward Naofumi and caressed him and told him the words he finally wanted to hear "I believe you."

All the darkness that was shrouded Naofumi vision disappeared to revealing Raphtalia. In Naofumi eyes Raphtalia was always a young girl but there in front of him stood a young-adult that resembled Raphtalia in the confusion he asked who she was which she replied Raphtalia. She explained to Naofumi that demi-human grew different and promised that it was Raphatalia.

Naofumi couldn't help but start crying while Raphtalia held him close. Ren and Itsuki appeared to tell that Motoyasu had lost the duel because of Malty's interference. Motoyasu said he wasn't fair and that Raphtalia was obviously brainwashed but Ren and Itsuki were not convinced and said how could he say that after witnessing them. Naofumi cried himself to sleep on Raphtalia's lap after everyone left the garden.

Awaking up Naofumi found himself in one of the servant rooms inside of the castle. The first thing he did was give the King and Malty nicknames which were Trash and Bitch. Naofumi also regains his sense of taste after Raphtalia has given him a sandwich as a token of his gratitude he leaned over and kissed Raphtalia on the cheeks which caused her to fluster which Naofumi apologized after seeing her reaction but she said she didn't actually mind it. But instead, they decided to hold each other hands to comfort one another.

Volume 2
In the aftermath of the second wave, the four heroes are summoned to the throne room to get their reward. While the other heroes receive around 4.000 silver coins, Naofumi only gets 500. Frustrated, Naofumi leave the castle. After leaving, Raphtalia insists that they reapply the slave crest to ensure that Naofumi can trust her. He also buys a lottery egg from the slave trader.

When in town, Naofumi is directed to the magic shop owner and the medicine shop owner who are both thankful for saving their families during the last wave in Riyute Village. As their way of thanks, Naofumi gets books on compounding and magic. He also has his magic assessed which reveals that he can cast healing and support magic.

When Naofumi went back to Riyute Village, the egg hatched into a filolial he named Filo. Soon after, Motoyasu arrived as the new lord of Riyute Village with an extremely heavy toll. Naofumi points out that the price is unfair and that Motoyasu doesn't know the value of money. He is then challenged to a mounted race. Naofumi reluctantly agrees and wins with Filo despite interference from Melty and Melromarc soldiers. As his reward, the village elder provides him with a carriage and commercial bill of passage his aid his future peddling enterprise.

After getting clothes for Filo (who had become a filolial queen), Naofumi starts his peddling operation while learning to read, cast magic and compounding on the road. Hiding his identity, he gains a reputation as "Saint with the Bird-god". At first he has difficulty with the "feel" of magic, but during his travels he helps an accessory dealer who teaches him how to use magic and create accessories. Along the way, he is also forced to fix problems created by the other heroes "helping" by stopping a BioPlant infestation caused by Motoyasu and cleaning up a Zombie Dragon created from the corpse of a slain dragon which Ren had left behind.

While fighting against the Zombie Dragon, Naofumi was deceived into thinking Filo was killed. In his rage, he uses his wrath curse series shield for the first time. However, he learns of the dangers which come with great power as he inflicts Raphtalia with cursed burns in the process.

Volume 3
In order to cure Raphtalia's curse, his party head back to Melromarc and meet a girl named Melty on the way. Expecting a reward, Naofumi agrees to escort her back to Melromarc's Castle Town. When they arrive at the town, they are able to get holy water to treat Raphtalia. However, they are soon confronted by Motoyasu in the middle of the town. Melty then reveals and uses her authority as first in line to the Melromarc throne to stop the fight. Realizing that he has been helping the royal family which has been persecuting him, Naofumi feels betrayed and bans any help or future interaction from his party.

By the time the third wave had started, Naofumi's good deeds (like saving Riyute Village) had inspired other people to follow his despite his horrible reputation compared to the other heroes. Both Ake's team and Elrasla fought with him during the third wave. It also became clear that the other heroes are falling behind the difficulty curve since they required Naofumi's help to find and defeat the Soul Eater as the third wave boss.

However, during the third wave, a mysterious woman who calls her self Glass appeared and challenged Naofumi to the death. She easily survived Naofumi's most powerful curse series skill Iron Maiden but was forced to flee as the timer for the wave ran out of time.

After the wave, King Aultcray demanded to know Naofumi's source of power. Naofumi agrees with the condition that the king bows down to him. The King refuses and ejects Naofumi out of the castle. As Naofumi's team starts their travels, they are met by Melty who asks Naofumi to try to talk with the King again. However, at the same time her guards attempt to assassinate her. After Naofumi saves her, he is labelled as a fugitive for kidnapping Princess Melty. It is only thanks to various shadows loyal to Queen Mirellia that Naofumi's party is able to escape the Melromarc soldiers and the other heroes. Naofumi is convinced to change directions in order to parlay with this mysterious Queen Mirellia.

Volume 4
Naofumi and his party continue their travels to escape Melromarc with the army and other heroes trying to track him down. However, as they stay in a friendly noble's residence, a malevolent noble (Raphtalia's previous master) storms the manor searching for them. Both the friendly noble and Melty sacrifice themselves in order to prevent Naofumi's party from getting captured. Naofumi also learned that the malevolent noble - Idol Rabier - was Raphtalia's previous master and a terrible man. Together, they decide to storm the Rabier manor to save Melty and the friendly noble.

Upon confrontation, Raphtalia is able to defeat her previous master and the group save Melty, the friendly noble and the slaves kept in the underground dungeon. However, in his last breaths, Idol Rabier unseals the Tyrant Dragon Rex in an attempt of revenge. Naofumi and his party lead it away from the town where they are saved by Fitoria - the Queen of the filolials. She warns Naofumi about the dangers about using curse series weapons and then transports the group to her territory for rest and discussion. The next day, Fitoria tests Filo and crowns her as the next queen of the filolials. Afterwards, Fitoria warns Naofumi that if he doesn't reunite the heroes, she will have to kill them to summon a new, more unified set of heroes. Naofumi promises to try and Fitoria transports his group to the nearest Hero.

The hero Fitoria transported Naofumi to turned out to be Motoyasu. Upon seeing Naofumi, the Spear Hero falls into a rage, claiming that Naofumi killed Ren and Itsuki. Naofumi's party is able to hold back Motoyasu's party when they are both attacked by an incredibly powerful pillar of light. The pope reveals himself as the one who "killed" Ren and Itsuki and declares his intent to kill both Naofumi and Motoyasu so he can maintain his influence. The two heroes fight against the pope and are reinforced by Ren and Itsuki who were revealed to survive their assassination attempt thanks to the queen's shadows. Together, with Queen Mirellia and Naofumi's curse series skill, they are able to defeat the pope. However, Naofumi is cursed from using his skill and his stats are reduced by 30%.

A few days later when Naofumi wakes up from his injuries, he meets the queen who apologizes for her husband and daughter's actions. She holds a trial where all of their false claims on Naofumi are publicly revealed. Malty and King Aultcray are stripped of their royalty, The Church of the Three Heroes is disbanded, and Naofumi becomes a free man again. Malty and King Aultcray are sentenced to death but Naofumi feels that death isn't a proper punishment and decides to humiliate them for the rest of their lives by legally changing their names. The Queen asks Naofumi to forgive the kingdom of Melromarc for all of their misgivings and Naofumi agrees to stay with them at least a little longer.

Volume 5
With The Church of the Three Heroes disbanded and Naofumi's reputation cleared, he is finally able to class-up Raphtalia and Filo and break the level-40 limit. Afterwards, Queen Mirellia called a conference between all four heroes to exchange information. It was clear that the other heroes were frustrated at Naofumi's apparent power through the curse series and called him a cheater. However, when they discussed their own power-up methods each hero had a unique method and disagreed about which ones worked. Naofumi took note of them all before the meeting disrupted into chaos.

Later that night, Naofumi attempted to try out the other heroes' power-up methods. and learned that he could use all of them as long as he believed that they worked. He then powered-up his shield as much as he could and tell the others about his experiment but the other heroes would not listen to him. During the previous meeting the Queen had mentioned about an experience-gain event at the Cal Mira Archipelago so Naofumi and the other heroes travel there. During that time, Naofumi and his party nearly double their level and become friends with two adventurers named L'Arc and Therese.

After defeating a surprise wave at the archipelago, L'Arc and Therese reluctantly attempt to kill Naofumi for the sake of their own world. The other heroes are immediately knocked out of battle while Glass joins L'Arc and Therese. The otherworldly heroes are repelled due to quick thinking from Rishia and Queen Mirellia

Volume 6
After seeing Naofumi's power compared to the other heroes, the queen calls another conference. Naofumi tries to explain that all of their power-up methods work together. However, the other heroes ignore his advice and just call him a cheater instead. After the conference, Naofumi noticed Rishia crying after being framed by Itsuki's party for something she didn't do. For her own safety, he invites her into his party.

Later on, the queen had arranged combat advisors for all of the heroes including Eclair to teach swordsmanship and Elrasla to teach Hengen Muso. Naofumi and his party are the only ones who don't try to skip out on this training. With the help of the medicine shop owner, Naofumi discovers a revolutionary way to feel the life energy or "chi" needed to utilize Hengen Muso. After the other three heroes escape Melromarc and their training, Queen Mirellia asks Naofumi to try to find them. He finds that the beast they were looking for is the Guardian Beast called the Spirit Tortoise. His party successfully beheads the disaster called the Spirit Tortoise and his party are celebrated as heroes. Despite the Spirit Tortoise being defeated, the other heroes are nowhere to be seen.

Volume 7
As Naofumi looks for the other heroes, he is met with a mysterious woman called Ost who warns him that the Spirit Tortoise had not actually been defeated. Upon discussion between himself, Ost and Queen Mirellia, they learn that the Spirit Tortoise has been revived in a new, terrible form and is heading towards Melromarc. Naofumi and his party fight the Spirit Tortoise as much as they can to stop or slow it down but it is no use. However, Fitoria arrives and Naofumi leads an invasion force inside the Spirit Tortoise. With Naofumi's investigation, they were able to find a way to stop it for good.

After being successful, Naofumi's party heads further into the Spirit Tortoise. They find the other three heroes captured and being drained of energy by an enemy called Kyo. With the help of the otherworldly heroes and Ost's sacrifice, they are able to defeat him and repel him back to his own world. As Ost starts fading away, she tasks Naofumi with returning the Spirit Tortoise's energy back to Raphtalia's World. Naofumi agrees and his party travel through the dimensional portal.

Volume 8
As Naofumi's party travels through Kyo's portal, they activate a trap and are separated. Also, upon entering another world, their level is reset back to level 1 and many of Naofumi's shields are no longer available. Naofumi and Rishia meet Kizuna, a Legendary Hero from Glass' World - who reveals that they are all stuck in the Infinite Labyrinth. They end up joining forces and Naofumi uses his gaming knowledge to break the magic keeping them inside.

As they leave, they find themselves in enemy territory. Undercover, Naofumi uses his peddling skills to provide money for equipment and their travels. They sneak to the country's dragon hourglass and teleport to Kizuna's home country.

Naofumi is met with suspicion since he is a hero from another world but Kizuna vouches for him. She then introduces Naofumi to Ethnobalt who tries to help Naofumi find Raphtalia. Using his blood and Raphtalia's hair, Naofumi creates a shikigami named Raph-chan. Using his connection with Raphtalia, Raph-chan then guides Naofumi and his group towards Raphtalia. After a long journey, Naofumi finds Raphtalia (along with L'Arc, Glass and Therese) on the run from a tyrant. The two are incredibly relieved to find each other okay and together, they fight off the "genius" whom Naofumi nicknamed Trash II.

Volume 9
With Naofumi's party finally reunited, they join forces with Kizuna and the otherworldly heroes to fight Kyo. During the last battle, Naofumi cast All Sacrifice Aura on himself, Raphtalia and Filo. This provided an incredible stat boost which allowed them to defeat Kyo. However, as a result, they were all cursed and their stats were significantly reduced. This curse would take roughly 2-3 month to fully cure. Naofumi then recovered the Spirit Tortoise energy from Kyo's lab and said his goodbyes to the otherworldly heroes.

Volume 10
Arriving back in Raphtalia's World, Naofumi returns the Spirit Tortoise energy and then meets with Queen Mirellia for an update. As a reward for his efforts, Naofumi secretly chooses to become lord of the Seaetto territory - a territory which includes Raphtalia's village. He then oversees the reconstruction efforts of Raphtalia's village (Lurolona Village).

As part of his reconstruction efforts, Naofumi decides to buy all Lurolona villagers who were forced into slavery. However, this mission causes the price of Lurolona slaves to skyrocket. As a result, Naofumi decides to go to Zeltoble which is the world's leader in slave trading. To fund the buying of Lurolona slaves, he decides to enter into the coliseum fights with Filo and Raphtalia. With the help of Sadeena they are able to win the tournament and bring many slaves back to their home of Lurolona Village.

Volume 11
While Naofumi has mostly recovered and prospering since being framed as a criminal, the other heroes have declined in popularity - especially since losing their parties in the Spirit Tortoise incident. During his travels, Naofumi comes across both Ren and Motoyasu who are each near their mental breaking point. Naofumi attempts to try to help Ren, but Malty steps in and deceives Ren before Naofumi is able to finish their conversation.

When Motoyasu finally breaks, Naofumi and Filo try to comfort him. However, the broken Motoyasu starts becoming obsessed with Filo which annoys Naofumi and forces him to run away. Eventually, with the help of Eclair and Motoyasu, Naofumi is able to defeat the rampant Ren and talk to him. Realizing his mistakes, Ren becomes the first Legendary Hero to join Naofumi. Motoyasu, on the other hand, runs away before Naofumi can talk to him.

Volume 12
As Naofumi's influence spread, many visitors and gifts start to arrive at his village. Naofumi decides to hatch a dragon egg he was given and called the dragon Gaelion. One day, the mischievous dragon ate the demon dragon emperor dragon core and became possessed. This dragon fed off Naofumi's shield of wrath and improved it significantly before it was eventually defeated.

After defeating the dragon, Naofumi came across Itsuki in the Zeltoble coliseum. Similar to Ren and Motoyasu, he had approached a breaking point which Malty had used to control him. With the help of Rishia, Naofumi was able to convince Itsuki to join his side. Ituski became the second hero to join Naofumi and his village.

Sadeena and Gaelion then taught Naofumi how to use Way of the Dragon Vein magic. Afterwards, Sadeena also asked Naofumi what his intention was with Raphtalia and warned that she was royalty. Near the end of the day, Erhard had arrived to Naofumi's village with the miko dress for Raphtalia. Naofumi had custom-ordered this dress because he really liked when she wore one in Glass' World. However, the nation of Q'ten Lo saw this as a declaration of intention for the throne and attacked. Naofumi's village were able to repel the attackers but Naofumi decided to stop the attacks from their source.

Volume 13
On the way to Q'ten Lo, Naofumi's party passes through Siltvelt - a demi-human country which worships the Shield Hero as their deity. However, while Naofumi is given utmost respect, he is treated as a political tool. Naofumi is able to repel the women trying to have children with him but the last straw is when he and his party are nearly poisoned by Jaralis and his co-conspirators. Eventually, Naofumi is able to defeat the enemy and prove his authority through Fohl and Atla which allow them to continue their way towards Q'ten Lo.

With the help of the Water Dragon, Naofumi and a few select members of his party are able to bypass the barrier surrounding Q'ten Lo. He meets the revolutionaries and decides to make Raphtalia the new "heavenly emperor" of Q'ten Lo. With the revolutionaries' help, he is able to gain control of the barrier over Q'ten Lo and starts taking over the nation.

Volume 14
During his conquest of Q'ten Lo, Naofumi finds a magical inscription which tells him 3 of the 4 power-up methods for the Legendary Shield. Up until now, he had been relying on the power-up methods from the other weapons. During this time, Naofumi also finally starts to see and understand the essence of life force and Hengen Muso. With the help of S'yne, Naofumi is able to learn the lost defensive applications of life force.

Eventually, Naofumi and the revolution are able to defeat the enemies in their path - including the corrupt Makina. Naofumi then falsifies Ruft's death and places Raphtalia and the throne in his place.

Volume 14.5
On the way back from Q'ten Lo, Naofumi passes through Siltvelt again. While there, Raphtalia forces him to fulfill his position as Siltvelt's lord. He reluctantly parades around Siltvelt. During his travels he eventually meets the Vassal Claw Hero named Rhubaldt. However, Raphtalia discovers that this Vassal Hero is actually an enemy under an illusion. They chase off the fox woman but this warns Naofumi of weapon wielders and foreign powers who are preparing a war against him.

Volume 15
Returning to his village, Naofumi conducts the class-up ceremony and creates the Raph species with Raph-chan's help. He also finally confronts Motoyasu - the last renegade Legendary Hero. After learning how to cast Liberation-class magic, Naofumi able to defeat Motoyasu in a challenge. He then uses Filo to convinced Motoyasu to join Naofumi and the others at his village. With all four heroes together, they have a conference to discuss what they know - this is the first time all four heroes are able to talk together in peace.

With the Phoenix about to be unsealed, Naofumi prepares his village to fight along the rest of the defense force. When the fight starts, it looks as if they were going to win, but an outside force causes one of the phoenix birds to detonate in a devastating explosion. Naofumi is nearly killed trying to defend everyone but Atla sacrifices her life to save him and everyone else. Naofumi is devastated but this act of sacrifice unlocks the Blessed Series shield called the Shield of Compassion. This shield removes the curse placed on Naofumi when he first used the Curse Series shields which unsuppresses his emotions and empathy. For the first time since his duel with Motoyasu, Naofumi is able to feel the full depths of his emotions and cries in grief.

Volume 16
In the aftermath of Atla's death, Naofumi fell into great grief and was emotionally unstable the the release on his emotions. Trying to keep his promise with Atla to think about other people's desires, Naofumi tries to experiment and fulfill what he mistakenly believed what other people wanted from him. Thankfully, Sadeena corrects him and his companions protects him and the people around him before any harm is done. Being awaken from his stupor, he declares that he is serious about getting more powerful and for the first time in a long while - dedicates time to levelling up and getting stronger.

After talking with Queen Mirellia about the Vassal Heroes, Naofumi decides to organize a diplomatic trip to Faubrey. However, their meeting turned out to be an ambush by a false hero named Takt. During the confrontation, Takt had stolen the Legendary Shield from Naofumi and him dealt a mortal blow before Naofumi and his party could escape. As Naofumi teetered on the edge of death, he communed with the Spirit of the Legendary Shield for the first time who then offered to send him back to the world he was summoned from. Naofumi refused for the time being so the shield then warned him about a dangerous enemy he would have to face.

After Naofumi woke up, he and his party are able to confront and defeat Takt. Naofumi is able to reclaim the Legendary Shield and used his authority as a Holy Hero to strip Takt of all of the Vassal Weapons he had stolen so they could return to their rightful owner.

Volume 17
During Takt's ambush which nearly killed Naofumi, he also killed Queen Mirellia in the same strike. Being first in line to the throne, Melty was then coronated as queen. of Melromarc. After the ceremony, Naofumi teased her about her responsibility so Melty bestowed Naofumi the highest title possible - the title of archduke. The unintended consequence is that the two may be considered politically engaged until Melty becomes engaged with someone else.

During Takt's campaign to take other the world, Raphtalia was forced-transported by the Vassal Katana to Glass' World. With Ethnobalt's help, Naofumi is able to go back and joyfully reunites with Raphtalia. While in Glass' World he learns that Kizuna had been kidnapped and some of the Vassal Weapons had been stolen. Naofumi then joins to effort to save Kizuna.

During the fight against Miyaji to get Kizuna back, S'yne's Sister activates an experiment which suppresses the Legendary Shield. Naofumi and Itsuki are nearly killed until the Vassal Mirror selects Naofumi to be its new wielder. During this fight Naofumi also learns that Malty had joined the enemy behind the waves. Eventually, Miyaji is defeated and Kizuna is saved.

Volume 18
The Vassal Mirror's power-up method turns out to be related to eating food so Naofumi starts try to improve his craft. He eventually goes up against a Vanguard of the Wave named Seya in a cooking competition and wins due to his expert cooking skills.

After multiple battles against enemies who can nullify support magic, Naofumi and his party decide to look for source of magic which can repel nullification magic.

Volume 19
In efforts to find a way to stop nullification magic, Glass leads the Heroes to her country. Within the Holy Tool Grotto at the Vassal Fan temple are various weapons which seem to work - including the Okitsu Kagami: Hetsu Kagami mirror.

Some time later, the Harpoon Reincarnator led a battle in two location against the heroes. Naofumi and some of his partners decided to defend the Demon Dragon's castle where they were met by Malty, S'yne's Sister and two Reincarnated Individuals. However, during the fight one of Malty's companions literally stabbed her in the back and revealed herself to be Rino - now employed as a spy for Melromarc. Unfortunately, Malty's soul is spared by the organization behind the waves. S'yne's Sister warns Naofumi that since they "killed" Malty, the enemy organization will try to destroy Naofumi's new home.

Volume 20
Taking heed to S'yne's Sister's warning, Naofumi and his party return to Raphtalia's World. However, just as they are settling back in, their village is targeted by an experimental weapon by the organization behind the waves and are sent back in time. Naofumi meets the previous Shield Hero named Mamoru Shirono. The two then work together to save the proto-Siltvelt country named Siltran.