Well, the lighthouse and its barrier are under our control.
We've lit the fire of rebellion, like you wanted.
But before we take any more action, I want to go over things.
First...
Wait.
What's wrong with you?
Aren't you trying to put Raphtalia at the head of your rebellion?
I'm so... sorry.
W-Water...
We should've stopped Sadeena-neesan
before she challenged them all to a drinking competition.
Huh?
Hmph. How sad.
Listen up, you hung-over drunks.
We're on a tight clock here.
So, where in Q'ten Lo is this "emperor"?
We can talk to them or we can kill them, but I don't want to spend a lot of time on this.
The current emperor is here, in the capital.
Oh? That's not where they lived when I was here.
The capital was moved when the current emperor took the throne.
I see.
The home of the old emperors is now called the "old capital."
I believe we should start our conquest there.
Huh. You've put some thought into this.
What do you mean?
The capital... or the old capital now, I guess,
is where the emperor takes the throne.
If Raphtalia-chan does the ritual there, she'll be able to use the blessings too.
I see.
And that'll be important in our future battles.
Leaving the old capital was a pretty bold decision.
It's all because of Makina, the emperor's advisor and the real ruler of Q'ten Lo.
Makina...
She's still around, huh?
She's pure evil.
Pure evil, huh?
Then she might come after us right away now that we've taken her lighthouse.
We need to be ready to deal with her.
Yes, sir!
Now, with that decided...
I guess we can have Raphtalia wear her miko outfit
and do a parade to raise the townspeople's spirits.
I guess we have to, huh?
Why would my miko outfit raise everyone's spirits?
Because you look good in it.
What?
The Rising of the Shield Hero
Episode 8: Orochi
An attack already?
Or did the party they're having in town get out of hand?
It didn't sound like either of those...
I feel a strange flow of energy.
What was that sound?
It was awfully loud.
Look!
That's where the old burial mound is.
What's going on?
Monsters!
I can't see it clearly in the dust, but...
It looks like multiple snake monsters!
Multiple snake monsters!
Hey, kid!
I guess the government's not holding back.
They're willing to release a monster from its seal to protect their position.
Its seal?
Do you know anything about this?
I don't answer questions from men!
What would be the point of telling someone who's too stupid to make a harem when he could?
This idiot...
Oh, would you tell me, then?
Yes, pretty lady.
I'll happily tell you.
That mountain has an old ruin
where a monster that once brought great harm to this country is sealed.
Officially, the legend is that the emperor defeated it.
But it wasn't defeated, just sealed?
I only ever heard it was defeated, too.
Well, considering its location...
Only a select few know about it.
You'd have to be someone important like me, the government's favorite blacksmith.
Why lie and say it was defeated?
They said it was sealed here to strengthen the barrier that separates Q'ten Lo
from the outside world.
A protective god, you could say.
There are ruins like that all over the country.
And the government revived one of them?
Yup.
And there's another problem...
This was a little while ago... when the current emperor, the little brat,
decided they really liked all the monsters and "wanted to reduce the strain on our protector gods,"
and granted them blessings and the Sakura Emperor's Stones.
Are they stupid?!
They strengthened a monster that brought disaster to their country, then revived it?
We could barely beat that bear guy from yesterday!
Naofumi-sama, what do we do?
It's a pain, but it's also an opportunity.
What happens if the new emperor, Raphtalia,
can defeat the monster the government revived before it can hurt the citizens,
and we make sure the whole country knows about it?
Do you mean...?
It'll make for a nice simple story about a government that hates its own people,
and a revolutionary army that fights for the people's sake.
Revolutionary army?
We're... a revolutionary army?
Which means we need to kill it before it reaches the town!
Gaelion!
Speed's our priority.
We'll split up and have Gaelion and Filo take us there.
Roger.
I don't know if Brother can help, but let's go!
Right!
Hey, Atla...?!
We'll form an army and follow you!
I won't let Gaelion beat me there!
Ladies!
If you get in trouble, feed that loser to the monsters and run away!
Master, cut it out.
A hydra?
Yes, that will be difficult to deal with.
Seven, eight...
It's not multiple monsters.
It's got eight heads... like Yamata-no-Orochi!
Holy ropes and the Sakura Emperor's Stone...
We can assume it's been blessed.
So they went out of their way to power it up...
With the Sakura Emperor's Stone barrier and the blessing
it'll weaken the hero's protection if we get close.
We need to destroy it before it reaches the town.
I feel draconic power.
The Water Dragon may be helping us.
Well, that's nice of him.
But...
It won't last, will it?
Naofumi-chan, let's finish this up.
Yup. I'll deploy the Sakura Sphere of Influence at the front.
Itsuki, you've got your Sakura Emperor's Stone weapon registered, right?
Yes!
Already done!
I can fight, too!
The blacksmith guys gave me this!
I see.
So this is making up for the hero stat buffs that were nullified.
Nice job, Elhart.
What?
Brother, give me that!
You got one too, right?
I didn't like the way that creep touched my hand, so I threw it away!
Atla, you stay back and help Itsuki, Rishia, and S'yne!
Got it?
Got it...
Got it!
Sakura Sphere of Influence! Attack Support!
Here I go!
It doesn't have much defense, it seems...
But Gaelion called it a hydra, so...
I knew it.
I'm not done yet!
I'm gonna make use of your speed!
Aim for the torso! I think that's the real target!
Okay!
It's strong!
It's absorbing part of the Dragon Vein.
We can't dispel it unless we cut off all eight heads that are generating the barrier at once!
What's the plan?
We don't have time to waste!
I know!
Listen up, everyone!
First, Raphtalia will destroy the Orochi's magical protection!
Then we'll chop off all its heads at once, destroy its barrier, and finish it off!
Got it?
Yes!
Sadeena, you do a choral magic spell with me!
Sure thing!
Go!
Supreme Ultimate: Slash of Destiny!
Filo, trigger the Orochi's barrier!
On it!
Looks like we've taken out the protection from the Sakura Emperor's Stone.
Okay!
Let's keep it up!
Summon Thunder God!
Finally it's my turn!
Eagle Piercing Shot!
Hengen Muso Secret Throwing Technique, Rolling Spin!
Critical wire!
Drifa Chain Lightning!
Now, Raphtalia!
Stardust Blade!
It was easier than I thought it would be.
Yeah.
Raphtalia-sama!
And the cavalry arrived late.
What?
It's strange, almost as if...
Get away from the Orochi! Now!
Meteor Shield!
The barrier...
This is bad...
Looks like our enemy is more formidable than we thought.
What?
It's back!
It's huge!
A different one than before?
Stand strong!
Both it and the one before aren't the real body.
Destroying the real body won't be easy.
For now, I'll stop it from advancing!
Me, too!
It seems a bit stronger.
Is there some way to deal with this?
It's a type of dragon, I'm sure of that.
And you know a little about dragons, right?
A core...
That explains why the last one didn't have one.
Which means the real one is inside that...
We need to keep those monsters from exploding while we steal the core?
Yes.
And then only the empty shells will be left.
What do we do with the core after we get it?
I, the weakest Dragon Emperor, will have to restrain it.
Can you?
If it's just the core, even the weakest of us can easily do it.
Incredible!
The Orochi is only going after Raphtalia.
It hates her because she reminds it of the emperor, maybe?
Somehow, I don't like that...
We could use her to lure it away, but...
Yeah. We can't nullify the protection without Raphtalia.
There's enough of us that we can handle it.
And we have a strong revolutionary army here to help, too.
Y-Yeah!
Good.
Raphtalia, Filo, Sadeena, Gaelion, Raph-chan, come with me to take out the main body!
The rest of you, try to pin that thing down!
Just buy time! Don't kill it!
Got it!
We can't kill it, got it!
If only I hadn't thrown away my weapon...
Atla, let me back you up!
We will support them!
I want one of you to go back to town and issue an evacuation order!
Yes, sir!
Here we go!
Zweit Thunder Burst!
Meteor Shot!
Are you okay, Raphtalia-chan?
Yes. Just barely...
It's not magic... but there's something terrible in the air here.
We can't stay long.
It's gradually taking over this "protective barrier."
If we don't hurry, the other seals may be broken, too.
Damn it!
The government here really is a bunch of idiots!
I can read this...
Is this the hero language?
How to strengthen the Cardinal Shield Weapon?!
I sense magic.
I'll read the rest.
"How to Strengthen the Cardinal Shield Weapon, Method 1.
Share the methods of getting stronger with the other Cardinal Weapons or vassal weapons…”
Share the methods of getting stronger with the other Cardinal Weapons or vassal weapons…
I already knew that.
This is worthless.
What does this mean?
If Ren or Itsuki read it, it might've said something different.
I'll bring them here when this is over.
Is it below this?
No! Everyone, get back up!
That was close...
What a waste of time!
Let me go!
No, look.
The real one is coming out.
The purple light at its base is the core.
So we'll have to repeat what we did before?
It's much stronger than the others.
And it's gradually absorbing the power that dispersed into the Dragon Veins to get stronger.
We can't hold this one back for much longer!
Okay, let's hurry it up.
Naofumi-chan likes things done fast and with a minimum of fuss.
You're not usually this into it.
Of course.
Eventually you're going to rule this country, Naofumi-chan.
I don't want it getting ruined.
No, it's not going to be me, it'll be...
Anyway, I'm going to work harder!
Yeah, we can talk about that later.
Grant your power to target and enable beast transformation?
Sadeena...
It looks like you can do a beast transformation, too.
Oh my!
Want to try?
Of course.
Is there any other choice?
Okay, let's go!
Sakura Sphere of Influence!
Amazing!
I can feel power flowing through my whole body!
Is this Naofumi-chan's love?
Is that what she looks like transformed?
I feel incredible power...
I think I can hear the Water Dragon's voice, too!
I feel like I could do anything right now!
Then hurry up and do something!
Right, right.
Oh? Is this how I say it?
Thunder God!
And Sea God!
This is the true form of the Water Dragon's miko?
A battle of the gods...
Let's finish this up, Raphtalia-chan!
Okay!
Supreme Ultimate: Slash of Destiny!
Okay, its protection's gone!
Finish it!
Kagura Dance of Sakura: First Formation: Blossom!
W-We can win this!
With them leading us,
we can defeat the emperor and their adviser Makina!
Everyone! Let loose the victory cry!
Looks like this is Orochi's core, but...
It's a sword...
The cursed blade of Ama-no-Murakumo...
Just touching it would be enough to get you cursed.
Cursed Blade Ama-no-Murakumo Quality: High Quality
But we can't leave it here.
What do we do?
Oh, looks like you got it.
Wow.
I heard your fights were crazy,
but I didn't think they'd be this crazy.
Thanks.
Well, this looks pretty sharp.
This is its real body, huh?
Wait!
Shut up. Stop making a fuss.
It's got a strong curse.
It'll be a while before we can use it.
You seem to be holding it just fine... are you okay?
I'm a blacksmith.
You can't be a blacksmith if you let weapons curse you.
That's my master!
Can you at least make sure it doesn't go out of control then?
Huh? Not my problem!
Are you sure?
If that monster comes back, many people will suffer.
Of course I'll help, young lady.
I'll be happy to be of service...
This guy...
Well, either way, Orochi's dead.
We just have to make sure the whole country knows
that the revolutionary army and their new emperor
destroyed the government's monster before it could hurt anyone.
So we're the good guys, huh?
It's just for show.
You don't actually have to be emperor.
You're... right, yes.
Um... I've been wondering since before the battle started.
Oh, she's actually a Filolial.
Yup! My name's Filo!
She gets special powers if a hero raises her.
I knew it.
That white form...
A Filolial with a sakura-colored pattern...
That might serve to our advantage even more.
Episode 9: Zodia