The Shield Hero Naofumi and his allies have been caught up in a strange phenomenon and sent flying back into the past, village and all. Naofumi enters into an uneasy alliance with Mamoru, the Shield Hero of the past, but Naofumi remains unable to completely trust him, suspicious of his actions. One night, one of the orphans under Mamoru’s care comes to find Naofumi. The child proceeds to lead him to a chamber below Siltran Castle. “What kind of facility is this?” Just what has Mamoru been gathering up these orphans for? The action continues in the twenty-first volume of this still rising otherworld fantasy!
I'm not really digging the trapped in the past storyline. Although Foel suddenly grew a personality in this book and was pretty snarky, which was fun. The book does have some decently big revelations at the end, but I don't really think this one justified its own existence. I think it's probably a good thing that the author has taken an extended hiatus. She could use some time to recharge and plot out some sort of ending and how to get to it from here. The last few books have gotten pretty same-y, and that's usually a sign of burnout in the author.
Finally a break in the monotony. The stories starting to deviate from its formula and get interesting again. This arc has been a breath of fresh air so far and I could barely put this one down.