The Rising of the Shield Hero is a grim but exciting isekai anime starring the unfortunate protagonist Iwatani Naofumi, the titular shield-bearing hero who must save the Melromarc kingdom from Waves of monsters. At first it seemed no one in the royal court was on Naofumi's side, but that soon changed when the queen showed up.
Naofumi had a terrible experience with King Aultclay XXXII and his daughter, Princess Malty, but Queen Mirellia Melromarc is a different story. Her worldview and policies differ greatly from her scheming husband's, and she played a much bigger role in the later sequences of Season 1. This may continue well into Season 2 of Shield Hero as well.
The Fair Rule Of Queen Mirellia Melromarc
Shield Hero's Melromarc kingdom is a matrilineal nation, meaning the royal bloodline is carried through the women while men such as Aultclay marry into the family. This means Queen Mirellia wields the most power in Melromarc, but when Naofumi arrived with the other three Cardinal Heroes, she was nowhere to be seen. This led to a bad start for Naofumi's adventure, since King Aultclay and Princess Malty were scheming with the Church of Three Heroes to tarnish the Shield Hero's name forever. This scheme could have been uncovered and dealt with much sooner had the queen been there, since she is a fair and honorable ruler who doesn't share her husband and elder daughter's hatred of the Shield Hero.
There's more than a personal difference between the queen, king and elder princess, however. The three royals are split because of international and race politics as well, all based on the presence of demi-humans in the Melromarc kingdom and the historic role of the Shield Hero. In previous eras, the Shield Hero was a symbol of hope for the demi-humans, and in the modern era, Mirellia is also sympathetic to both parties rather than being prejudiced against anyone.
This is why she accepted the tanuki-like Raphtalia as the Shield Hero's companion without complaint. Unlike the rest of the royal family, Mirellia -- and her younger daughter Melty -- seek to unite the four heroes and make use of the Shield Hero, rather than ostracize him because of race relations between humans and demi-humans. Queen Mirellia is a symbol of hope and tolerance in the eyes of demi-humans, which puts her at odds with her family and even the non-Shield heroes at times. But as Season 1 of Shield Hero showed, this all set her up as Naofumi's most powerful ally.
How Queen Mirellia Aided Naofumi In Shield Hero Season 1
Queen Mirellia didn't appear at first in The Rising of the Shield Hero, but did make some cameo appearances along with her Shadow agents until being formally introduced later on. Mirellia helped uncover the Church of Three Heroes' plot with the king, and personally oversaw the trial where King Aultclay and Princess Malty were found guilty of conspiracy.
Given Mirellia's influence and the quality of her investigation into the matter, this helped clear Naofumi's name beyond all about -- even the oafish Motoyasu was forced to recognize the Queen's words and turn against Malty. Mirellia was even prepared to execute the king and princess until Naofumi intervened and decided to punish them with humiliation and a loss of authority instead.
Mirellia came to Naofumi's aid soon after the would-be "beach episode" at the Cal Mira archipelago, when an unexpected Wave arrived. Unlike the previous Waves, this would be a naval battle, and Mirellia personally led a small fleet of warships and soldiers to aid the four Cardinal Heroes in battle against a series of sea monsters. The queen proved her worth as a leader of men in that battle, commanding her fleet with a steady hand as the Cardinal Heroes took the lead against the Wave's strongest monsters.
The battle was a success, and Queen Mirellia will continue to aid Naofumi however she can against future Waves and other quests in Season 2. With a further authority to mobilize the other three Cardinal Heroes to help, Mirella is now poised to take center stage alongside Naofumi as Shield Hero continues.