01x19 - The Four Cardinal Heroes

[bunniefuu]

[POPE laughing]

This farce has been entertaining, but that's enough.

[MELTY gasps]

The false Spear Hero and the Devil of the Shield,

who clings so desperately to life as if he were a cockroach,

shall be purified with Holy Judgment.

And this country...

...shall finally be given righteous order!

Be careful, Naofumi!

That sword's bad news!

[NAOFUMI gasps]

[NAOFUMI gasps, grunts]

[NAOFUMI grunts]

[NAOFUMI] So powerful!

The impact's making my arms go numb!

I must say, even for a devil, you are pretty tough.

[NAOFUMI pants]

But the time of testing has come to an end.

I look forward to exacting God's judgement.

[ALL gasping]

[MYNE gasps] What's he doing?

Is that a...

[NAOFUMI gasps]

W-Wait a second.

Did he just turn his sword into a spear?!

[MELTY] There's only one possibility.

it's... a replica of the Cardinal Weapons!

How can there be a replica?

Where'd he get it?

[MELTY] A long time ago,

someone tried to find a way to duplicate

the four weapons of the legendary heroes

for personal gain.

They wanted to make an ultimate w*apon

that could change forms between all four

to use the skills of each.

But I was taught that it had been lost centuries ago.

If he uses that w*apon, isn't that cheating?

Myne, tell me. Is this true?

Wha--how in the world should I know?

It's the stuff of legend.

Anyone familiar with the history of Melromarc or Church history

has heard the stories.

Finding it should've been big news.

[MYNE gasps]

[NAOFUMI] But the Three Heroes Church kept it a secret.

[MELTY] And if that's the case,

maybe it was never lost to begin with.

If you had a w*apon like that thing,

you wouldn't even need to summon the four heroes!

[MELTY] It's powerful,

but it requires a tremendous amount of mana

for anyone to use it.

Just taking that test swing earlier

must've drained dozens of his mages of all their energy.

It is no wonder to anyone

that you are first in line to take the throne, Princess Melty.

You've educated yourself well.

Too bad the same cannot be said for your conniving sister,

who was always far too busy with her conspiracies.

[MYNE growls]

[POPE] The mana required by this legendary w*apon

will be given willingly by all the believers

that have followed God here today.

My brethren, the w*r we wage now

is between our lord and the Devil of the Shield.

It is a holy crusade which we fight

in the name of the God of the ages.

Offer your prayers, all of you,

to the legendary w*apon imbued with divine power.

And we shall purge this world

of the false Spear Hero and the Devil of the Shield.

[CLERGY praying]

This won't be an easy fight.

Hey, Melty!

Isn't there something you can do to take out his "believers"?

Like put them to sleep?

I haven't learned how to use any magic

that affects the mind yet.

And besides!

With such a large mana pool,

their resistance would be extremely high.

Putting them all to sleep would be impossible.

There has to be something we can do.

[MOTOYASU grunts] I shall not stand for this!

You manipulate us for your own selfish goals,

and when you're finished, you cast us aside like refuse?!

The depths of your evil are fathomless!

As a Cardinal Hero, I must punish you for that!

He doesn't sound like he means any of this.

Spear guy's so annoying.

[MOTOYASU] Prepare yourself, Pope!

I will defeat you!

Today, Itsuki and Ren's lives shall be avenged!

Lightning Spear!

[POPE laughing]

What the...? Is that a barrier?!

[FILO] No fair!

[MELTY] We can't even scratch him through that force field.

We've got to figure out a way to bring it down!

Melty's got a good point.

We'll have to cut off the mana supply first.

I can't do it alone. Naofumi!

Huh?

[MOTOYASU] It's time for you and I

to work together to defeat him.

Let's go!

You are going to pay with your life

for the sin of turning against the next queen.

[ADVENTURER A, B] As source of thy power, I order thee.

As source of thy power and as the next queen, I order thee.

[MYNE, ADVENTURER A, B] Decipher the...

Oh, come on.

Wow, everybody in spear guy's party is annoying.

[MYNE] Zweit Fire!

[NAOFUMI] A combo skill?

This is the end for you!

Burst...

...Flare Lance!

That oughtta do it.

[NAOFUMI] Nope.

You're all a disgrace.

You refuse to gracefully accept God's merciful judgment,

and continue your futile resistance.

Then again, no mercy shall be granted to a devil.

[MOTOYASU growls]

We'll see just how futile our resistance really is!

[MOTOYASU] Meteor Thrust!

[MOTOYASU] Even that wasn't powerful enough?

[POPE] This magical barrier is no mere devil's shield.

It is utterly impregnable.

Too many believers are powering that thing.

They're pooling all their mana together,

creating an impossible magical barrier!

All right, then. If you're done, it's my turn to att*ck.

[ALL scream]

[NAOFUMI growls]

What do you think of that?

All it takes is a slight stroke of the wrist.

[MOTOYASU] Using a w*apon that can do stuff like that

is cheating!

Fight us fair and square!

It has so much power,

I could even use it to purify a devil.

[NAOFUMI] I don't know if my shield can hold up

against a full power att*ck from that thing.

And they've got a limitless pool of mana.

Multiple att*cks would k*ll us for sure.

What do we do?

It's time!

We must bestow God's merciful judgment on his enemies!

--[REN] Hundred Swords! --[ITSUKI] Meteor sh*t!

Huh?

[POPE gasps]

[NAOFUMI gasps]

[PRIEST A gasps] Your Holiness!

[grunts] It's not possible...

[gasps]

Looks like we got here at just the right time.

[NAOFUMI gasps]

[MYNE] Sir Itsuki! Sir Ren!

You came back from the dead?

--[ITSUKI grunts] --Don't you go k*lling us off.

[REN] Hundred Swords!

Dedicate half of our mages to keeping the barrier active

to hold off their att*cks.

Are you sure that's wise?

Reducing the number of mages

will delay mana supply to the w*apon.

[POPE] Our enemies will need a good deal of time, as well.

Time to recognize their sins

and realize they must pray for the mercy of God.

[PRIEST A] Yes, Your Excellency.

[ITSUKI grunts]

That forcefield's annoying.

Hey, wait, how are you guys even here?

I thought you were dead!

We very nearly were, but we're fine.

Their trap didn't do the job.

That's all there is to it.

So what happened to you?

[REN] Itsuki and I thought something was

strange about the Church,

so we quietly started investigating them.

We discovered a secret file

that had been hidden in the Cathedral archives.

[ITSUKI] It described a replica of the Cardinal Weapons

and where it had been hidden.

We decided it would be a good idea

to check it out for ourselves.

Clearly, they didn't like that very much.

We never found the replica because

the Three Heroes Church had lured us to a fake shrine,

where they tried to assassinate us.

[ITSUKI] We were saved by a group that said they

served the Queen.

They called themselves "Shadows."

We owe them our lives.

[NAOFUMI] "Shadows," huh?

They've been watching over Itsuki and Ren, too?

[ITSUKI] I think the Church stole my reward.

[NAOFUMI] Hm?

[ITSUKI] Back when I overthrew that despot.

[ITSUKI] I understand now that you were framed, Naofumi!

Huh?

[NAOFUMI] Framed?

These two were the ones who tried to

pin all the blame on me!

[MOTOYASU] Pinned that on you, too, huh?

You've got bad luck.

[NAOFUMI] Just a few moments ago

you were willing to k*ll me over a false charge like that.

'Kay, Ren, let's do this!

Yeah.

[REN grunts]

Meteor sh*t!

[REN] Meteor Slash!

[gasps]

[grunts, gasps]

[POPE] That consumed too much mana!

The pope's w*apon is depleted!

Can he defeat them?

[REN] The queen and her reinforcements

will be here soon.

[CLERGY gasp]

Wait, the queen?

Are you saying Mother's on her way?

Yes, she is.

One of the Shadows tipped us off.

Every one of you is a traitor to the crown.

Surrender now and I'm sure the queen will have mercy on you!

Drop your weapons and give up at once!

[ADHERENT A] Did he say the queen herself

was bringing reinforcements?

[ADHERENT B] What's happening?

[POPE] Do not lose your faith!

This is a battle between God and the Devil.

You knew it would be difficult from the beginning.

But do not despair!

For no matter the cost, our victory is inevitable.

We won't lose,

because God has given his blessing to all of us.

We've no reason to fear the forces

the queen is bringing against us.

And it matters not how many false heroes gather.

None can defeat us,

as long as we hold firmly to this legendary w*apon

and our faith in God!

His Holiness is right!

Your Excellency,

we'll follow you to the end to carry out God's will!

[CLERGY chattering]

What's wrong with these people?

Don't they realize we're the legendary heroes?

Looks like we have no choice but to teach them a lesson.

If they aren't willing to listen to reason,

then we'll have to fight.

Yeah. As much as I hate it, this is an emergency,

and we need all the help we can get.

Even yours.

The heroes, finally together...

I never expected to see that happen.

[NAOFUMI] Melty'll provide magic support.

No problem, you got it.

[REN] Naofumi. What are you doing?

I'm not gonna play along with you idiots.

[MOTOYASU] Hey! This isn't the time for the lone wolf act.

[NAOFUMI] I'm not helping the guy who tried to k*ll me

when I just wanted to talk.

Come on!

Our backs are against the wall here.

Surely you realize how selfish it is

for you to try to fight all by yourself!

He's right.

The only way we win this is together.

We can survive just fine without your help.

[MOTOYASU] No you can't! You don't stand a chance!

You'll die taking the blame for a crime you didn't commit!

Is that really what you want?

You of all people have no right to say that.

Huh--

Spear guy is really annoying.

You're the ones who let the Three Heroes Church

do what they wanted.

It's your fault it came to this.

Myne takes most of the blame,

because she fell for their schemes

and fed into them with her own conspiracies.

But honestly, you're just as guilty, Motoyasu.

She played you for a fool.

What? No!

How dare you accuse me of deceiving Sir Motoyasu!

I would never do such a thing!

You did, though, dear sister.

But it seems the Spear Hero had no idea

you were manipulating him.

[MYNE growls]

Hey, wait a minute!

There's nothing wrong with me trusting a member of my party!

You can't blame me for wanting--

[NAOFUMI] Trusting someone doesn't mean you

accept everything they say blindly

without thinking things through for yourself.

If you'd just used a tiny bit of brainpower,

none of this ever would've happened.

[REN] Naofumi's got a point, you know.

--[MOTOYASU growls] --Take it easy.

Motoyasu's sorry for what he did.

So let's put all this behind us and get to work.

[NAOFUMI] You two are no better than he is.

[REN, ITSUKI, MOTOYASU gasp]

[NAOFUMI] In case you forgot, Ren,

after you k*lled that dragon, its rotten carcass

poisoned the air and nearly wiped out an entire village.

[REN] That was an accident...

[NAOFUMI] In video games,

when you k*ll a monster, it just disappears.

Their corpses don't stick around to rot.

But this isn't a game.

You should've been smart enough to figure that out.

And Itsuki,

your vigilante adventure left that town in economic ruin,

forcing the people into abject poverty.

[ITSUKI] But if I hadn't taught that lord a lesson,

those people would've suffered under his rule forever!

[NAOFUMI] A hero can't solve every problem with brute force.

You could've used your standing to pressure the leadership

instead of replacing it with more of the same.

[ITSUKI] But...

[NAOFUMI] You should've taken a second to think about

what your actions would mean in the end.

[ITSUKI exhales]

[MELTY] Decipher the laws of nature

and grant my target extra protection with water.

Aqua Shield.

Cover Raphtalia and Filo.

Your thoughtless actions are why we're here today.

You paved the way for the Church to do whatever they wanted.

Well, if you're so smart,

what have you been doing all this time?

[RAPHTALIA] Cleaning up your messes.

Master complains about you all the time

because he's always having to straighten up after you.

So this is our fault.

Yeah, that's right!

You're both the reason we're in this mess!

You think you've got room to talk?

You're so thickheaded,

you still don't understand how much of this is your fault!

You wrapped yourself so tightly around

your girlfriend's little finger you didn't even realize it.

I was... just...

You leave the girls out of this, all right?

Let's just stay focused on what's really important for now,

specifically all the trouble you two have been causing Naofumi!

You caused plenty yourself.

How 'bout the time you decided to

pass out a seed that had been sealed up for years?

That entire village was overrun by those vines.

How's that for trouble?

[MOTOYASU] I--well...

I only did that because the villagers asked for my help!

[NAOFUMI] Of course, they should've known better

than to take it just because a hero gave it to them.

They had a legend that told them it was too dangerous.

[MOTOYASU] Exactly!

Which oughtta give you some idea

of how much trust people put in the heroes,

even though that should've been obvious to you.

[MOTOYASU gasps]

[NAOFUMI] You three let your hero's welcome go to your heads.

You've been doing whatever the hell you wanted.

And now look where we are!

Because of your egos,

you've just embarrassed yourselves,

when we could have been working together to fight the Waves.

Even before that Glass woman made us all look stupid,

you almost lost an easy fight against the Soul Eater

because you only thought of yourselves.

Well the Pope's got one thing right:

it's not surprising that the people are

sick of heroes like you.

I didn't follow much of that,

but I know this is all spear guy's fault.

[MOTOYASU gasps] But, Filo!

--[FILO gasps] --Don't say that!

I promise I was trying my hardest!

Uh...

Okay, if you say so,

but you know Master was working a lot harder.

[POPE] Dear me.

I can hardly bear to watch this.

You're fighting amongst yourselves in the face of death?

Nothing could better exemplify

the fact that our so-called heroes are utterly disgraceful.

Purifying you immediately is all too appropriate.

Fortunately, your squabble has given us time

to generate enough mana.

Farewell, false heroes!

Goodbye and good riddance to you, Devil of the Shield!

[MELTY] Oh, no! He's going to att*ck again!

[RAPHTALIA] Master Naofumi, watch out!

[NAOFUMI grunts]

[POPE] Brionac!

[NAOFUMI yells]

You're all the same.

[MOTOYASU, ITSUKI, REN gasp]

As far as I can see,

you three and the pope are no different.

You use people and walk all over them for your own benefit.

You talk about "justice"

while using your power with no concern for consequences.

And you see nothing wrong with that!

But more than anything...

...you keep trying to take from me the things I hold dear.

You people are disgusting.

[FITORIA] The heroes must stop fighting each other.

I guess I'll have to give it a sh*t,

but you shouldn't get your hopes up.

[FITORIA] Please...

Please, Shield Hero...

[NAOFUMI] Fine.

I'll work with you long enough to take him out

and get us out of here alive.

Naofumi...

Don't get the wrong idea.

I haven't forgiven you.

I just...

I made a promise to Fitoria.

The Four Cardinal Heroes finally do stand together!

Uh-huh.

Just try not to get in my way, all right, guys?

Don't get in mine.

[MOTOYASU gasps]

It's only until this battle's done.

I know. It's a great idea, by the way.

Let's do something about the Pope

so we can live long enough to support Mother

when she gets here.

Okay! I'll do my best!

Okay. Lend me your strength now, girls.

[MYNE, ADVENTURER A, B] Right.

We're here for you.

Let's go.

We finally fight as one!

Heroes unite!

Time to fight!

Filo, Melty, Raphtalia!

[RAPHTALIA, FILO, MELTY] Ready!

[POPE] Fighting with the Devil of the Shield?

A foolish decision befitting false heroes such as yourselves.

The only fate you deserve is to be purged completely,

and no trace of any of you shall remain.

[CLERGY] We pray to our God, the source of all power.

Decipher the laws of nature, bring about a miracle,

and protect the blessed ones!

And now for group defense magic of the highest level:

Cathedral!

[bell tolls]

[ALL gasp]

[ALL gasp]

[POPE laughing]

[NAOFUMI gasps, grunts]

[POPE] Welcome to my Cathedral sanctuary!

Time to make your peace,

as it will be your final resting place.

--[ITSUKI gasps] --[REN growls]

[MOTOYASU gasps] Final resting place?

[ALL gasp]