Motoyasu Kitamura, also known as Hero of the Spear and Sir Motoyasu, the Spear Hero, went from supporting character to main antagonist in The Rising of the Shield Hero franchise. Motoyasu, who died in his home dimension, was summoned to the Melromarc Kingdom along with Naofumi Iwatani, Ren Amaki, and Itsuki Kawasumi. Together, the quartet became the Cardinal Heroes, legendary figures whose purpose was to protect this new world from a cataclysm called the Plague Wave. As his title suggests, Motoyasu is the world's new Spear Hero.
Motoyasu is not inherently evil, but served as one of the secondary antagonists in the early stages of the story. This was largely due to his own delusional beliefs and the manipulation of his "allies", especially Malty S. Melromarc, King Aultcray Melromarc, the Pope, and the Church of the Three Heroes. Once their manipulation was exposed, Motoyasu subsequently became a supporting player in the progress of the Spirit Tortoise Incident. However, he did not experience any true character growth until the events of Volume 11. His role then moved to that of a supporting protagonist, and in the following 23rd volume he returned as an antagonist. He later became the titular protagonist of "Reprise of the Spear." Hero spin-off series.
Outside of the books, Motoyasu appeared as an antagonist in the manga and anime version of The Rising of the Shield Hero. For Motoyasu's television appearances, Makoto Takahashi provided the voice of Motoyasu in the original Japanese version. In the English version, he is played by Xander Mauves. The Hero of the Spear will return for the third season of the anime.
Appearance[]
Motoyasu Kitamura is the tallest of the Cardinal Heroes, only slightly taller than Naofumi, but towering over Ren and Itsuki. Motoyasu has shoulder-length blond hair, with a few strands of his hair tied back. The spear hero's eyes are orange with red rims. Like other Cardinal Heroes, Motoyasu keeps a legendary weapon at hand and is never seen without it.
From Volume 1 to Volume 6, Motoyasu maintained a well-groomed appearance befitting a person of fame and status. Ditching the red hoodie, beige pants, and white vest, the Spear Hero's first armor was a chainmail vest that his companion Malty had "presented" to him. In fact, this equipment was originally owned by Naofumi, and was stolen before Mine betrayed him. When the Shield Hero next saw the Spear Hero in the Dragon's Hourglass, Motoyasu was wearing the finest gear money could buy. He wore a sleeveless red tunic trimmed with gold over his original chainmail, and wore silver pauldrons, gauntlets, and a set of woe. A pair of belts were wrapped around his waist and fastened with silver clasps, and his gloves appeared to be made of leather. Motoyasu maintained this image and equipment until the events of Volume 11.
However, after the Spirit Tortoise Incident, Motoyasu was forced to keep a low profile, initially hiding his true identity with a hooded robe. Motoyasu, who had become mentally ill due to the party's betrayal and desertion, changed his clothes. The Hero of the Spear kept his tunic and bought new gloves and boots made of red leather with gold trimmings. He now wears black pants and a red cloak lined with filamentous feathers. Overall, this new look gives Spear Heroes the look of an oversized philorial king.
Personality[]
Despite being a villain, Motoyasu has many saving qualities. He treats party members very well and is also the friendliest of the Cardinal heroes. Although he lives in a country of human supremacy, he does not discriminate against demi-humans or beastmen, and despises the concept of slavery. This leads him to try to rescue Naofumi's companions, Raphtalia and Filo, from the cruel treatment at the hands of the Shield Hero.
Unfortunately, these aspects are overshadowed by his not-so-pleasant qualities. Motoyasu is shown to be arrogant, hypocritical, cocky, impulsive, and extremely naive and gullible. Convinced that he is always right, the Hero of the Spear has demonstrated time and time again that he has selective perception and only sees things the way he wants to see them. He only realizes the truth when it is spelled out to him, usually by the villain himself. However, Motoyasu is very competitive, so he never admits his mistakes;
Like Ren and Itsuki, Motoyasu wants to become the strongest hero and initially believes this new world to be a video game. Due to the similarities between this new world and the video game world, Motoyasu thought he already knew everything there was to know about this world, from the creatures that existed in it to how to level up. Motoyasu refuses to share information with other heroes, thinking it will give him an advantage. Unfortunately, this misunderstanding led Motoyasu to make some hasty decisions ignoring the potential consequences, which damaged Motoyasu's reputation and overall effectiveness.
However, the Spear Hero's greatest weakness is women. Motoyasu, a notorious playboy, was an avowed polygamist and dated multiple women at the same time in the same dimension. Despite being killed by two of his lovers, Motoyasu professed that he intended to build a harem after coming to the New World. All his actions are done to get the attention of the women around him. Motoyasu follows his own desires, ignoring male allies and giving preferential treatment to women, pouring gifts and affection. As he himself admits, Motoyasu has a crush on angelic characters.
But at the same time, Motoyasu acts under the distorted belief that women are perfect angels, incapable of any wrongdoing or deception. He judges people by their appearance and believes anything a pretty woman says. Even if evidence to the contrary is put before him. This made it possible for manipulative people like Maine Sophia to take advantage of him. The only time Motoyasu doesn't listen is when he says something women don't want to hear or believe. A prime example of this was Malty's trial. Despite all the evidence against her, Motoyasu continued to insist that she was a good person, framed and framed. She is therefore the only person in the country who did not admit Naofumi's innocence.
However, after being betrayed in the events of Volume 11, Motoyasu lost many of his villainous traits. Although he was slightly bloodthirsty, he became less reckless and began to take his duties more seriously. He trained hard, using everything Naofumi had previously told him to improve his status and abilities. He became Naofumi's most devoted follower, treating his orders as if they were laws. The Hero of the Spear considered women to be anthropomorphic pigs, so he abandoned his many affairs and desires for a harem because he could no longer trust them.
Fighting Style[]
Motoyasu probably has the most versatile weapon of any cardinal hero. Although primarily used to engage enemies at a controlled distance, the spear can also be used as a magic staff or javelin. However, like other legendary weapons, the Cardinal's Spear does not allow Motoyasu to pick up or use other weapons, including shields. To get around this, spear heroes use a weapon copy system. This allows you to copy powerful spears that you find and unlock new skills, as well as easily increase your arsenal.
Motoyasu employs little strategy in battle, preferring to attack his enemies head-on and overwhelm them with powerful skills and endless attacks. This was easy for him, since the Hero of the Spear had already reached a fairly high level before the second wave began. Motoyasu did most of his fighting to boost his self-esteem and make himself look good, and the women in the party took a step back to cheer him on. The girls intervened only when necessary, using magical spells and powerful buffs to enhance the offensive capabilities of his weapons. This changed after volume 11, when Motoyasu's filial allies were willing to help him in his fights.
Despite these advantages, Motoyasu has some weaknesses. His high attack power comes at the cost of his poor defense. That was shown when Naofumi injured the level 43 Spear Hero, the weakest monster in all of Melromarc, with an orange balloon. Motoyasu's lack of strategy also worked against him, as did his accustomedness to defeating his opponents quickly. He struggles against enemies with high resilience, regenerative abilities, or years of combat training, such as Naofumi, Spirit Tortoise, Kraken in the Cal Mira Wave, and Glass. Since the spear is designed to push enemies away, Motoyasu is completely defenseless against close combat fighters if someone restrains the spear. This happened during the battle with Naofumi in Volume 4. But the Spear Hero's greatest weakness is his greatest weakness. arrogance and pride. Motoyasu never participates in battles other than those he believes he can win. Whenever he loses he doesn't take it well and always makes excuses as to why he lost.
Relationships[]
Allies[]
- Malty S. Melromarc/Myne Sophia
- Filo
- Elena Haven
- Lesty
- Rino
- Filolial Herd
- Aultcray Melromarc XXXII
Enemies[]
- Naofumi Iwatani
Others[]
- Raphtalia
- Melty Q. Melromarc
- Mirellia Q. Melromarc
- Citizens of Melromarc