Season 2 of The Rising of the Shield Hero began with the news that the first of the Guardian Beasts, known as the Spirit Tortoise, had been reawakened.
Naofumi, accompanied by the mysterious woman, Ost Hourai, along with Raphtalia, Filo, and Rishia, try to kill the Tortoise, but the Beast seems to keep coming back to life.
The Spirit Tortoise had been defeated once before and sealed away by the previous 4 Legendary Heroes. But now, someone has lifted the seal and reawakened it, causing widescale rampage and death.
In episode 5, it is revealed that it is Kyo Ethnina, the Book Hero, who broke the protective seal and revived the Spirit Tortoise. He gains control of the Beast and using its power, his own become magnified.
1. Why does Kyo Lift the Seal of the Beast?
Kyo lifts the seal of the Spirit Tortoise simply to become more powerful and win the “game.” In episode 6, Kyo says that his real goal in assuming control of the Spirit Tortoise is to use the power of the souls harvested by the Tortoise’s familiars.
The Spirit Tortoise can kill and convert the souls of thousands of people to manifest a barrier to protect the world from the Waves of Calamity.
Kyo waited for the familiars to collect the souls. He then lets the body of the Guardian Beast turn the souls into usable energy, which he wishes to use for his own selfish purposes.
Kyo, being a genius researcher and trickster, managed to gain control over a Guardian Beast as well as a Vassal Weapon against its will. He is also able to defeat 3 Legendary Heroes.
He captures Motoyasu Kitamura, Itsuki Kawasumi, and Ren Amaki and imprisons them within the Spirit Tortoise so they can be used as a power source for it.
Through the Beast, Kyo gains the ability of crossing between dimensions as he pleases. He can also control and manipulate gravity, in conjunction with his own abilities.
2. Can the Spirit Tortoise be Defeated?
The Spirit Tortoise can be defeated only if its core is destroyed. Cutting off its head will only cause it to grow back, and killing the heart will cause it to multiply. The head and the true heart/core need to be simultaneously severed to defeat the Spirit Tortoise.
Alternatively, as Kyo taunts Naofumi and his party, if they would have killed Ost, the Spirit Tortoise itself would be destroyed.
3. Is Ost Hourai the Spirit Tortoise?
Ost Hourai is the manifestation of the will of the Spirit Tortoise. She is its soul, in humanoid form.
Killing the essence or core of the Guardian Beast means killing her. This is why, when Naofumi and party decapitate the Beast, or when L’Arc and party destroy the fake heart, Ost does not disappear. Ost only fades away when the Spirit Tortoise is killed by its core.
Earlier, everyone believed Ost to be the Tortoise’s human familiar, but as Kyo points out, she wasn’t under his control like the bat, monkey, and yeti familiars.
Scenes of the mysterious woman appearing to Naofumi all make sense when Kyo reveals Ost’s true identity.
When Ost had manifested before Naofumi, she had told him to kill her. If he had done that, the Spirit Tortoise would’ve been annihilated too.
4. How is the Spirit Tortoise defeated?
In episode 6, Queen Fitoria decapitates the Spirit Tortoise’s several heads, while Naofumi, with the help of his newly activated Spirit Tortoise Heart Shield, destroys the core at the same time. This results in the defeat of the Tortoise.
Fitoria, Queen of the Filolials, arrives just in time as reinforcement to help Naofumi’s party, L’Arc’s group, and Queen Mirellia’s defense force.
She puts up barrier spells to protect the Allied Forces from the Tortoise’s crystal attacks, while the others fight Kyo within the belly of the Beast.
I have to mention Rishia here, who goes from the weakest member to one of the strongest. Seeing Itsuki being used as a power source seems to trigger her. She transforms into a defiant warrior and calls Kyo a coward.
She is able to dodge Kyo’s attacks and also resists the Gravity Magic that Kyo directs at her.
As Fitoria damages the Tortoise’s neck, Filo, Therese, Glass, and L’Arc try and destroy the core. But Kyo puts a barrier around the core, which is the true heart and life force of the Tortoise. This cage also encompasses the 3 Heroes.
Naofumi activates his Wrath Shield and instructs Raphtalia to complete the task. But Naofumi soon realizes that he doesn’t have enough hatred and rage towards Kyo to unleash the Wrath Series on him.
Thinking he has won, Kyo begins laughing like a maniac, only to be cut short, when Naofumi’s shield unlocks the Spirit Tortoise Heart Shield.
It is Ost who helps him do this, and Naofumi is successfully able to destroy the core.
With both, the true heart and the true brain sliced off, the Spirit Tortoise – and Ost – die.
5. Does Naofumi Capture Kyo?
After Ost falls to the ground with no signs of life, Kyo is technically defeated, but he has larger plans. Kyo uses the Tortoise’s energy to escape through a portal into his own world.
When the Spirit Tortoise’s core was destroyed, Kyo took the power of the souls the Tortoise had harvested, and reserved it inside himself.
Thinking the Heroes wouldn’t be able to follow him, he goes back to his world, which is Glass’s world.
Unfortunately for him, due to Ost’s gift, the Legendary Heroes can now travel between worlds. Naofumi reassembles his party which now includes Rishia, and the group follows L’Arc, Therese, and Glass into their world to chase down Kyo.
Things are about to get difficult for Kyo. One does not simply revive a Guardian Beast and get away with it.
6. About The Rising of the Shield Hero
Tate no Yusha no Nariagari or The Rising of the Shield Hero is an isekai light novel series written by Aneko Yusagi. It was initially published as a web novel on the Shosetsuka ni Naro website from 2012 to 2015.
In August 2013, Media Factory started publishing the light novel series with an expanded storyline featuring illustrations by Seira Minami.
Later on, Kinema Citrus adapted the light novel into an anime television series. The first episode aired on 9 January 2019.
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