The Wave has ended, Naofumi and Raphtalia had saved the village and the Three Heroes have killed the Boss. Time for a celebration at the capital and the Shield Hero is invited! Unfortunately, Motoyasu challeges Naofumi to a duel for Raphtalia's freedom and he has no choice but to accept.
Tropes for this episode include:
- Alpha Bitch: Malty once again tries to hurt Naofumi for no apparent reason. Having previously succeeded in framing him for rape, this time she deliberately tries to have Raphtalia taken away from Naofumi so that he will be on his own again. Fortunately, on this occasion, her plan doesn't work!
- All for Nothing: This episode is a major one for the villains. Malty and Aultcray try to take Raphtalia away from Naofumi, by having Motoyasu defeat him in a rigged duel. Not only is Motoyasu ultimately made to forfeit the duel due to Myne's cheating, but even after being freed Raphtalia chooses to go back to Naofumi of her own free will.
- Armor-Piercing Question: After Raphtalia slaps Motoyasu and gives him a "Reason You Suck" Speech for forcefully freeing her, Motoyasu tries to argue that slavery is evil and Naofumi is evil for owning Raphtalia as a slave. Raphtalia retorts that Naofumi actually treated her illness, fed her healthy food, and helped her get stronger, asking Motoyasu if he’s capable of that same kindness. Motoyasu weakly claims that he would, only for Raphtalia to counter that he would have a rescued slave speaking on his behalf rather than a sycophantic princess if that were true, indirectly pointing out Motoyasu’s Bystander Syndrome and Horrible Judge of Character.
- Big "WHAT?!": Motoyasu genuinely cannot believe that Naofumi did all of the kind things Raphtalia says he has done. He also gasps audibly when Ren confirms that he lost the duel.
- The king, Malty and the audience are visibly shocked when Raphtalia slaps Motoyasu.
- Bitch Slap: With Motoyasu on the receiving end, followed shortly thereafter by a massive and well-deserved reason you suck speech, courtesy of Raphtalia.
- Blow You Away: Malty/Myne wins the battle for Motoyasu by using a wind spell.
- Bystander Syndrome: Raphtalia calls out Motoyasu on this with her Armor-Piercing Question, pointing out that Naofumi has done far more to help her than someone who claims slavery is evil yet blissfully ignores it in general.
- Cheaters Never Prosper: Motoyasu's so called "victory" over Naofumi lasts only five minutes. When Ren and Itsuki step forward, they confirm Naofumi's declarations about Myne cheating, state that everybody present (except Raphtalia) lied to the ignorant Motoyasu and openly declare him the real loser.
- Combat Pragmatist: Whilst Naofumi's offensive capabilities are next to non-existent without Raphtalia, he is still able to overwhelm Motoyasu and his Attack! Attack! Attack! strategy by attacking him with balloon monsters he keeps under his cape, as well as using his many different types of shields and hero techniques in a variety of creative ways to misdirect and disorient the Spear Hero. It is very clear that if it wasn't for Myne's interference, Naofumi would have won the duel.
- Double Standard: The episode is full of them.
- Motoyasu forces Naofumi into a fight that everybody knows the Shield Hero cannot possibly win. When the Spear Hero starts losing, he and the audience start whining. When the apparently defeated Naofumi calls out Malty's intervention, they mock him as a sore loser. Once the truth is revealed however, Motoyasu still refuses to admit that he was in the wrong.
- King Aultcray willingly ignores his country's laws and his daughter's cheating, just to deal Naofumi another crippling blow, all the while calling the Shield Hero "rotten to the core".
- The duels spectators likewise ignore Myne's intervention, call Naofumi a cheat and proceed to insult him once the match is "decided".
- Dramatically Missing the Point: Motoyasu tries to trash-talk Naofumi by citing a folk tale about "the irresistible spear and the immovable shield", only for Naofumi to point out that it was the shield that won that battle because the spear failed to pierce it.
- It happens again after Raphtalia finishes her sentimental speech. Even after hearing what the tanuki feels and with Naofumi now crying in the said Demi-Human's arms, Motoyasu still insists that he did not do anything wrong and has the nerve to accuse Naofumi of brainwashing Raphtalia.
- Everyone Has Standards: Motoyasu, Ren and Itsuki are all appalled to learn that Raphtalia is a slave, though Motoyasu is the only one to try and do something about it. After the duel, Ren and Itsuki do not hesitate to call Myne out as a cheat.
- The rest of the characters (i.e. the human supremacist King, Princess, Nobles, Clergy and Adventurers) avert this trope and are presented as lying hypocrites.
- Even Evil Has Standards:
- Played with. Motoyasu is not truly evil and in any other situation, his accusations would have been justified. However, he tries to take Raphtalia away from Naofumi, a man with no attack power and no other way of getting allies, in a one-sided fight, with the express purpose of leaving Naofumi with nothing. At no point does he ask Raphtalia about her own personal feelings or bother to check if she really is suffering as Myne claimed. To put it simply, Motoyasu comes across as a real jerk in this episode and seeing him get his well-deserved comeuppance made more than a few people cheer.
- Ren and Itsuki still believe that Naofumi is a criminal and are disgusted by Raphtalia's status. However, they are even more appalled by what Malty and the citizens of Melromarc did when Naofumi started winning the duel and they let everybody know it!
- Averted by Malty and her father, who prove that they will do anything to hurt the Shield Hero and keep him weak.
- Evil All Along: After hearing that Myne is actually Princess Malty, Naofumi realizes that Malty and her father planned to betray him before he was even summoned.
- This trope especially applies to King Aultcray Melromarc. Up until this point, it appeared as though he was an old man who, like everybody else, was deceived by the evil Princess and merely carried out his duty as the countries sovereign. Now however, we learn that isn't the case. Malty is his daughter, meaning that he had to have prior knowledge of her scheme. Thus, like her, he is a villain who is persecuting the Shield Hero for no apparent reason.
- Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: The reason Aultcray and Malty's plan to separate Naofumi from Raphtalia fell through is because they did not expect Naofumi to take genuine care of his companion, which in turn made her completely loyal to him. Thus, their plan was doomed from the start.
- Freeze frame bonus. If you look at Malty's reaction to Naofumi and Raphtalia's affection, it is clear that she really doesn't understand what is happening. Of course, since she is a sociopath it's easy to understand why she doesn't understand.
- Again, whilst he is not truly evil, Motoyasu refuses to see the writing on the wall.
- In fact, it could even be argued that this Trope applies to every single person in that arena besides Naofumi, Raphtalia, Ren and Itsuki, given that they permitted Malty's cheating and proceeded to slander Naofumi. Raphtalia's speech, coupled with Ren and Itsuki's Shaming the Mob was essentially a big Shut Up, Hannibal! to the whole lot of them. By the end of the spectacle, none of them can say anything, and they simply slink away.
- Fantastic Racism: After Raphtalia insults Malty, the Princess in turn calls her a "damn demihuman" like it was a slur.
- Raphtalia later explains that one of the factors behind humanity's discrimination against demihumans is that their ability to age quicker by levelling up makes them seem more like magical creatures than people and thus no different than monsters.
- Faux Affably Evil: While insulting Naofumi about his loss and then rubbing it in his face that he has to fight all by himself, Malty adopts a mockingly sympathetic tone.
- Foreshadowing: Myne will do anything to get what she wants.
- Also Naofumi wonders why the Pope is present.
- Blink and you'll miss it, but when Ren and Itsuki have finished calling out the apathetic audience some of the Pope's aides can be seen whispering anxiously to the High Priest.
- Also Naofumi wonders why the Pope is present.
- Happiness in Slavery: Even after Motoyasu "wins her freedom", Raphtalia still chooses to go back to Naofumi, having developed genuine loyalty to him after he took care of her and helped her grow strong.
- Heroic BSoD: With the reality that the King and his daughter have conspired to make his life a living Hell since the moment he came into their world, complete with trying to take Raphtalia away from him, Naofumi finally meets the requirements for the Curse Series. If Raphtalia hadn't come back to him and realized that she was still genuinely loyal to him, Naofumi would've crossed the point of no return.
- Hypocrite: Motoyasu and King Aultcray accuse Naofumi of besmirching his title of hero by owning a slave and taking away her agency and freedom of expression... and yet they refuse to listen to her when she contradicts their world-view and have her bound-and-gagged against her will, "freeing" her with no consideration for what she wants.
- King Aultcray decries that Slavery Is a Special Kind of Evil and that Naofumi "violated their customs" for practicing it, conveniently forgetting that slavery is still legal in his kingdom. Either he doesn't even know that it's legal in his own kingdom (unlikely) or he does and arbitrarily picks it as a reason to demonize the Shield Hero. It's made worse in hindsight, when we learn that the King either directly ordered the attack on Raphtalia's village or willingly turned a blind eye to what happened, meaning that he is responsible for Raphtalia being a slave in the first place!
- When Raphtalia calls Motoyasu out for freeing her against her will, one of the reasons Motoyasu insists that he had to free her is that nobody should be forced to fight against their will. This is coming from the man who (with the backing of the King) forced Naofumi to fight in what was supposed to be a one-sided match that the Shield Hero not only said he wanted no part of, but stood nothing to gain even if he won.
- Malty tricked Motoyasu into fighting Naofumi claiming that she wanted to help "save the poor Demi-Human enslaved by the Shield Hero". After Raphtalia has finished humiliating Motoyasu however, the irate Princess openly insults the supposed victim in an openly racist manner. This coupled with her attempt to strike Raphtalia, shows that Myne never actually cared about her at all.
- I Take Offense to That Last One: In the English Dub, Raphtalia calls Malty a "two-faced Princess". Myne does not take it well.
- Ignored Epiphany: Naofumi's detractors do not find it suspicious that whilst the Shield Hero fought honourably, Malty not only violated the rules of the match but openly lied when confronted over her actions. Although Ren and Itsuki do call her out on it, neither they or Motoyasu think to consider that she might have lied to them previously.
- In the Back: This is how Malty wins the duel for Motoyasu.
- Indulgent Fantasy Segue: Of the "Nightmare" variety. After discovering that the King and his daughter had orchestrated his downward spiral from day one, he briefly imagines himself angrily tearing his shield off of his arm and throwing it, the shield shattering as Raphtalia abandons him as soon as she is freed, only for the shield to reappear on his arm. Even as Raphtalia confesses that she believes him, he is too Blinded by Rage to really hear her, desperately trying to pry the shield off of his arm and denouncing it as a curse.
- Kick the Dog: After Myne cheats and secures Motoyasu's victory, she then rubs it in his face that he has to fight all by himself, punctuating it with a shrill Noblewoman's Laugh.
- The audience also does this by making it clear that they do not want Naofumi as their Hero.
- Knight in Sour Armor: Malty cheats when Motoyasu starts losing, then uses her position to make sure Naofumi loses. When Raphtalia throws her scheme back in her face, the Princess is irate and moves to strike the girl that she previously claimed she wanted to rescue.
- Motoyasu also counts. Thinking that he won the duel fairly, he calls Naofumi a sore loser when the latter protests about the cheating. When all is said and done however, he is the one who cannot accept that he lost.
- Laser-Guided Karma: After Myne secures Motoyasu's victory and forcibly frees Raphtalia in the process, all Motoyasu gets is a slap in the face, who points out that he didn't actually care about what she wanted and goes back to Naofumi willingly. Ren and Itsuki also call the citizens of Melromarc out for cheating, citing that the only reason why no one was defending Naofumi is because the king had ordered the crowd to stay silent.
- Loophole Abuse: Naofumi is able to legally fight using balloon monsters because they don't count as party members.
- Restored My Faith in Humanity: When Naofumi realizes that Raphtalia is still loyal to him after she regains her freedom, he breaks down crying in her arms. This also tempers his troubled mind, allowing him to see her as the woman that she is and regains his ability to trust.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: King Aultcray cannot stand the sight of Naofumi and Raphtalia's reunion. With his and Malty's plan to separate them in ruins anyway, he simply walks away disgusted. His subjects share this opinion.
- Shaming the Mob: Unintentional. Ren and Itsuki do not address the audience directly. Even so, they make it very clear that they are far from happy that the spectators allowed such blatant cheating.
- Slavery Is a Special Kind of Evil: Motoyasu starts a fight with Naofumi because he found out that Raphtalia was his slave, completely ignoring the fact that it isn't nearly as simple as that.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: There are several.
- Motoyasu shows us what can happen when you not only judge a book by its cover but charge blindly into a situation without gathering all the facts. He automatically assumed that Naofumi was mistreating Raphtalia, based solely on her status, Naofumi's own reputation as a criminal and what Myne told him. Once all was said and done however, things don't go the way he was expecting. Raphtalia scolds him for trying to interfere with her life, makes it clear that she never wanted his help, spells out that his information and all of his assumptions were wrong, before effectively calling him a jerk for having never once thought to ask what she wanted. Although it doesn't make him any less arrogant or unsympathetic, it should be noted that, unlike his girlfriend, the Spear Hero genuinely thought that he was helping Raphtalia.
- Motoyasu also shows us why somebody going into battle should never underestimate their opponent. Everybody present thought that the match between Motoyasu and Naofumi, would be a one-sided affair in the former's favour. However, during the match it became clear that Motoyasu's lack of strategy and overdependence on his skills would not work against Naofumi's defence. At the same time, the Shield Hero not only used his skills wisely, but also used monsters to make up for his lack of attack power. The end result was that Motoyasu ended up looking like a fool and had it not been for Myne's intervention, would have suffered an even more humiliating defeat.
- Malty's scheme was doomed to fail because, like Motoyasu, she never took Raphtalia's feelings into consideration or anticipated that the demi-human in question might have developed genuine loyalty to Naofumi.
- Just because Ren and Itsuki are Aultcray, Malty and Motoyasu's allies doesn't mean that they want to see Naofumi needlessly suffer. Appalled by what they saw, they call the princess, her father and their subjects out on their actions.
- On a dark note, Naofumi's despair is a very realistic portrayal of what can happen when somebody is pushed to their breaking point. Not only is Raphtalia apparently taken from him, he learns that the King and the Princess planned everything before he was even summoned and that the people he is supposed to save, don't just want him to suffer, but they want him to die! All of this is happening just because Naofumi was chosen to be the Shield Hero! After realising that he cannot escape from being the Shield Hero, Naofumi snaps. As the others argue around him, the Shield Hero is wallowing in despair. In his anger, he vows to take revenge on the world that has wronged him and very, very nearly unlocked a power that would have allowed him to take that revenge.
- A positive example, Raphtalia demonstrates what can happen, when you have the right person there to help you. Ignoring what everyone is saying, she tells Naofumi what he has needed to hear for a very long time; that she knows he is innocent. She also makes it clear that whatever his intentions might have been, Naofumi saved and that she knows he is a good man. At the end of her speech, the tanuki makes it clear that no matter what, she will be with him through hell and high water, whereupon Naofumi breaks down crying.
- Take That!: The episode is essentially a massive one to the villains, who fail in their mission to make the Shield Hero suffer.
- Take That, Audience!: The duel's spectators are perfectly willing to ignore Malty's cheating in order to make Naofumi suffer. Raphtalia, Ren and Itsuki quickly put them in their place and in the end, the crowd leaves the arena in silence.
- The Reveal: Naofumi discovers that Myne is actually the King's daughter Princess Malaty, realizing that the King and the Princess had both orchestrated his downward spiral the entire time.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Raphtalia gives Motoyasu a savage dressing down over how arrogantly and unfairly he treated Naofumi. Ren and Itsuki join in on the verbal takedown by pointing out that he only won the match by cheating. Then, after Raphtalia professes her loyalty to Naofumi, they are disgusted when the Spear Hero has the audacity to claim that it is all fake.
- Ren and Itsuki also chew out the King and Princess for deliberately ensuring that Naofumi would lose.
- King Aultcray and Motoyasu also do this to Naofumi at the start of the episode for owning a slave.
- Who's Laughing Now?: As mentioned previously, Malty takes the opportunity to taunt Naofumi, laughing cruelly after she and Motoyasu have "defeated him". Five minutes later however, the viewers are laughing at her.
- The Victim Must Be Confused: When Raphtalia tries explaining that whether she is his slave or not, she trusts Naofumi and that she is with him by choice, Motoyasu and King Aultcray accuse Naofumi of making her say that via her slave crest. When she still denies this, she is bound and gagged and tied to a chair so that she won't interfere with their battle. Even when she chooses to stay with Naofumi after her slave crest is removed, Motoyasu still insists she might have Stockholm Syndrome.
- Ungrateful Bastards: King Aultcray and his subjects are arguably the very definitions of this trope. Naofumi risked his life to save the citizens of Riyute village. In fact, it was mostly because of him and Raphtalia that the number of casualties from this particular wave was as low as it was. How do they repay him? They ignore both his presence and accomplishments, whilst lavishing praise upon the other three heroes, i.e. the ones who willingly left the citizens of the said village to an uncertain fate in order to fight the boss. They then reinforce the Spear Hero's demand for a duel, where the Shield Hero stands to lose everything. When Naofumi starts winning, they call him a cheat and then refuse to speak up when Myne illegally intervenes on Motoyasu's behalf. Once the duel is over, they proceed to insult Naofumi, with one man even demanding that the Shield Hero be put to death. If not for the ever-loyal Raphtalia and the honourable Ren and Itsuki, Naofumi would have crossed the Despair Event Horizon.
- You Are Better Than You Think You Are: Raphtalia gets through to a distraught Naofumi by citing that she knows that he is not the monster everyone else thinks he is, believing him when he cries out how he was innocent of the many crimes he is accused of.
