Kizuna, send us back!
Calm down, Naofumi! That's just what that Kyo guy wants!
I don't give a shit!
I'd rather fall for whatever trap he's set than leave Raphtalia there alone!
It's no good. They've shut it off on their side.
That piece of shit!
Naofumi-san?
Naofumi, I know someone here who's really good at finding people.
If we ask him for help, I'm sure he'll find her right away.
So... calm down okay?
Kizuna-sama?
It's Kizuna-sama!
Don't worry. They're from Sikul!
They're on our side!
Welcome home, Kizuna-sama!
I'm home.
Sorry, can you go get Ethnobalt for me?
Come on!
No! Let me go!
Let me go!
Damn it. The rain's driven away all my customers.
Shut up!
I was lucky enough to find a mutant like you.
You're going to make me a lot of money tomorrow!
The Rising of the Shield Hero
Episode 9 Humming Fairy
They locked our nation's Cardinal Hero, Kizuna-sama, in the Infinite Labyrinth?
This is a serious act of hostility!
We will lodge an official complaint with Mikakage immediately!
Yeah, go do that.
But how did you escape from the Infinite Labyrinth?
It's thanks to them!
I see!
We can't thank you enough for saving our hero!
Um, no, it was nothing...
That's Rishia-san.
And this is Iwatani Naofumi.
He's a Cardinal Hero just like me!
From another world, though.
What's wrong, everyone?
Kizuna-sama, get away from him.
Call the guards!
He's come to destroy our world.
Naofumi's here to destroy the world?
That makes no sense!
Naofumi saved my life! How can you say that?
Naofumi-san!
Naofumi!
Oh, and where might you be going?
Ethnobalt!
It's been a long, long time, Kizuna.
I keep trying to find you, but I was too slow to find where you were.
Who the hell are you?
Are you the one who wants me to find someone,
Cardinal Hero from another world?
I am Ethnobalt, wielder of the Boat Vassal Weapon.
Kizuna, first, take this.
He missed you.
Thank you! So you held on to him for me, huh?
Yes. Glass was keeping him at first, but she's been busy.
Chris!
I'm happy to see you again!
K-Kizuna-san, what's that?
Sorry. This is my shikigami, Chris!
Shikigami?
Yup.
Glass and I made him.
About four days ago, Chris started going crazy.
Thinking back, that must have been when you escaped the Infinite Labyrinth.
Yes.
He'll tell us where Glass is, too.
I see! That's perfect for finding people!
But how do we find Raphtalia-san and Filo-chan?
Well, I'll have Naofumi make one, too.
How?
You need the blood of the owner and something to function as a shikigami catalyst.
For instance, a single strand of her hair.
Her hair?
I absorbed some into my shield once.
Raphtalia's hair. This is it.
That's Raphtalia-san's hair?
And then your blood, Naofumi.
Let us begin the ritual to create the shikigami, then.
I wish for something to protect them, and give them power.
The creation of that which serves as servant and as fragment of their magic.
Let a servant that gives protection be born!
This is...
Wh-What's going on?
Nothing... It's manifesting faster than I imagined.
To whom does this catalyst belong?
Shikigami Shield
Shikigami Shield?
This is a shikigami?
That's right! Nice work, Naofumi!
I was worried for a moment. I'm glad it worked, though.
Raphtalia?
Cheer up a bit!
If it worked, that means the person the catalyst belongs to is still alive!
Then...
Raphtalia-chan is safe!
Whew...
I-It's cute!
But we don't know how long she'll stay safe for.
We need to hurry.
Yeah, I know.
But it's not just Raphtalia. There's Filo, too.
We'll find them both.
Right!
Ethnobalt, right?
Thank you for creating my shikigami.
Not at all. I hope you find your friend soon.
Are you human?
You can tell? You're amazing, Naofumi.
No, something just felt off.
A rabbit?
Ethnobalt is a descendant of a species of monsters
that have protected this world for generations.
A descendant of monsters that protect this world?
So that's it.
You don't usually show your true form to people just after meeting them, though.
Strangely, it felt safe to let him see me this way.
Maybe animals just like him?
So, it's not just because you can make shikigami
that you're supposedly good at finding people, right?
Naofumi...
That's just who Naofumi-san is, though.
Of course, that's not all.
Ethnobalt is the Boat Vassal Weapon's wielder.
His boat will take us to where the person you're looking for is.
You can't use the Return Dragon Vein yet?
No, I can take us anywhere that's not locked off.
But his skill is way more amazing than that!
But it's just a ship, right?
Let's go someplace else.
I-It's floating!
The "boat" was the thing he was standing on?
Where is Raphtalia?
Naofumi, you're not going to name it?
A name? Yeah, eventually.
Now, tell me where Raphtalia is.
Hurry up and pick one, okay?
Chris, do you know where Glass is?
That's...
They're in the same place?
That's not good.
What do you mean?
Raybul.
They're allied with Mikakage, the ones that locked me in the Infinite Labyrinth.
And Kazuki, that "genius mage," is from there, too.
An enemy country, then?
You have a lot of those.
I do!
The whole world's been on edge for a while.
A war could start at any time.
If they're still there, that means...
It's likely they were captured.
Even if it's a trap, we have to go.
I hope Filo's there, too.
I'll warp the ship, then.
You can use portals?
We can travel fast by riding along the connections between the dragon hourglasses.
And we don't have to register with the hourglass first,
or be transported right in front of it.
If the hourglass was right in their headquarters, that'd be really dangerous.
It's a big improvement over Return Dragon Vein.
It's all I can do, though.
No, it's more than enough.
Yup! I'm really grateful to Ethnobalt!
It was worth waiting for her return.
I can finally be of use to her.
Wow!
Look!
Move your wings! Your wings!
Now sing! Sing!
Master!
If we showed up right in the sky above them, they'd find us immediately.
Let's land outside town and sneak inside.
I'll wait for word from you!
Stay safe!
It looks like Mikakage, but it's a bit more modern.
The sun's setting.
What should we do? We can stay at an inn.
We know what direction she's in.
We'll walk all night if we have to.
I agree.
I'll do my best, even if I'm sleepy!
I almost forgot! What's this about Naofumi destroying the world?
What the people at the castle said...
Drat. I was going to ask Ethnobalt.
He said Glass seemed busy, too.
What was she doing in your world?
What's wrong?
I can hear it.
Naofumi!
Th-That's the wrong way!
It's not Raphtalia. But that voice...
Is it... Is it...?
What's gotten into you?
It's the celestial maiden who's come down from the heavens!
We're closed for today, but come see her tomorrow!
The celestial maiden...
...who's come down from the heavens?
Is that what he said?
Is that...
No! Help me!
Rishia-oneechan!
Raphtalia-oneechan!
It just makes me feel sick.
Master!
Yeah.
Enough! Take her away!
Is that "singing"? I don't know what she's saying, but it sounds like she's crying.
I feel bad for her.
Filo...
Filo!
No, Naofumi-san!
That's right!
You can't cause a fuss right now!
Let me go. I'm going to go murder that shithead where he stands.
I want to kill him, too!
But calm down!
Let's sneak in under cover of night and save her!
You're too loud!
I don't think they can understand what she's saying, at least.
Yeah. Our priority is to get Filo back unharmed.
Is this another trap of Kyo's?
I don't give a shit. I'm sick of this.
We can torture that guy until he tells us the truth.
At least say you'll question him.
Is there a difference?
No, um...
Let's go.
Those two are kinda scary.
It feels like breaking and entering is all I do lately.
It's not like the laws mean anything here.
Filo-chan, where are you?
Birds?
That's a humming fairy chick.
They're bird monsters that are said to be able to sing.
It doesn't look like a filolial. Let's look somewhere else—
No... Filo!
But it's not a filolial...
It's you, right, Filo? Right, Filo?
It's really Filo-chan?
What's wrong? You can't transform?
Those look like talismans!
Servant talismans.
You usually put one on the monster itself.
He put them on the cage, too, to keep her monster crest from working?
How awful!
Kizuna, can you cut open the cage?
I can, but I don't know what will happen if we destroy the talismans.
If I can use the monster crest...
Filo, hang in there just a little more!
Kizuna, now!
On it!
Master!
Filo-chan... I'm so glad... I'm so glad.
But how did you know that humming fairy was her?
She's my dear companion... How could I mistake her for anything else?
What's all this noise?
You think you can steal my golden goose, do you? Criminal!
Who's the criminal here?
Now you're in for it!
Sing.
Get moving!
Sing for us!
That shield's power is amazing.
After he confessed everything, it kind of... broke him.
His mind, I mean.
So he was just the son of a noble, making some money off a sideshow?
He said his dad found Filo-chan unconscious.
It may have been Kyo who gave her to his father.
He really is a piece of shit.
How could he do that to a cute little crybaby like her?
She's normally full of energy and never cries.
But she's a... filolial, was it?
Why did she become a humming fairy in this world?
If filolial don't exist in this world,
she may have been assigned a similar race.
The reason she was still able to transform into a human
might be that she has a unique power as a future filolial queen.
Master?
What?
You won't disappear again, will you?
I won't. I'm with both of you forever.
No!
Master is my master!
She's gotten better, but now, she's not leaving Naofumi's side.
She must've been really scared.
Master, who's this?
Smells like Raphtalia-oneechan...
It's a shikigami made from Raphtalia's hair.
It's been here since yesterday.
You can be Raph-chan, then!
Raph-chan?
Well, if it's okay with that.
Hey. I've been here since yesterday, too.
I'm Kazayama Kizuna!
This is Chris, my shikigami!
Kizuna-oneechan and Chris!
Onee-chan...
Naofumi, Filo-chan's a good girl, isn't she?
"Kizuna-chan" should be good enough, right?
Naofumi...
You're not safe anywhere these days.
People might already be talking about what happened yesterday.
Filo, hide.
What does it say?
It's about Filo.
It was too dark for them to make out any real description of us, though.
Lucky she was able to become smaller.
It also says...
This one looks worse.
The Wielder of the Katana Vassal Weapon was found, but escaped.
The nation's doing everything it can to find them.
Katana Vassal Weapon Wielder?
What does it matter if—
What?
What's wrong?
No...
Raphtalia's stats disappeared!
Why?
I don't know.
Something suddenly felt "wrong," and then...
No...
Could Kyo have...
If this thing's still here, then...
Raphtalia-chan should still be safe!
Then why is the slave crest...
Raphtalia...
Hurry up, and get out.
Naofumi-sama...
This way!
Katana Hero