The Rising of the Shield Hero

Naofumi Iwatani was an easygoing Japanese college student until he reads a book and gets summoned to another world. He is summoned with three other young men from alternate Japans to become the Cardinal Heroes. Each one is equipped with a Legendary Weapon that comes in the form of a sword, spear, bow, and shield. Naofumi has gifted with the Legendary Shield that's looked down upon by the kingdom and the other heroes. One person allies herself with him named Malty, but then his luck turns for the worse. She then turns out to be the Princess and falsely accuses him of an act most foul. His name tarnished and treated like a felon; he becomes incapable of trusting anyone but gains companions nonetheless. Naofumi learns how to survive in this new world while gaining allies and strength on his journey.

The Rising of the Shield Hero started as a web novel by Aneko Yusagi on Shōsetsuka ni Narō from 2012 to 2015. The light novel was illustrated by Minami Seira and began publishing on August 22, 2013, by Media Factory. The manga is published by the same company one February 5, 2014. A 25 episode anime has been produced by the studio Kinema Citrus and the first season premiered on January 9, 2019.


 * Actor Allusion: Ren's voice actor played a sword-wielding black-haired man who plays VRMMOS.
 * Alternate Universe: The Cardinal Heroes each comes from an alternate version of Japan.
 * Blind Idiot Translation: Erst Shield, one Naofumi's skills, got turned into Air Strike Shield instead of First Shield as the actual translation.
 * The Chosen Many: The Cardinal Heroes are the only ones who can wield the Legendary Weapons when they have been summoned.
 * Clingy MacGuffin: The Legendary Weapons have to be on their hero's person while they also can't wield any other weapons.
 * Combination Attack: Skills and magic can be used in combination of two or more people to create more potent attacks.
 * Evolving Weapon: The Legendary Weapons level up with their hero while also being able to absorb material from monsters and other objects. The absorption method unlocks new forms that come with new stats and skills.