Lily Baker, a young English girl, decides to go to an arcade on Valentine's Day. She is determined to win a stuffed animal from a claw machine; but even after attempting it for hours, she is unable to get her hands on the prize. Just as she is about to give up, arcade employee Renji Kusakabe steps in and wins the prize for her as a present to celebrate the special day. Due to her cultural background, however, Lily mistakes his action as a declaration of love! With Lily returning to the same arcade in the hopes of seeing Renji again, the two begin exchanging a notebook to learn more about each other and their respective cultures. This marks the start of a friendship filled with gaming, but that is not enough for Lily, as she swears to make Renji fall in love with her!

Aiming to protect Raphtalia from the assassins of Q'ten Lo, Naofumi Iwatani travels with his friends to the eastern isolationist kingdom. On his way, Naofumi stops over in Siltvelt, a kingdom built by a former shield hero, where he is revered as a god and is offered a chance to rule the country. Naofumi is unwilling to accept the position, preferring to continue his journey before the next wave of monsters threatens to destroy the world. Nevertheless, he finds himself embroiled in local political feuds. After he escapes from an assassination attempt, Naofumi decides to confront the leaders of Siltvelt, and this time, he is determined to show that old grudges and petty ambitions are nothing compared to his resolve to save the world.

Through their combined effort, the members of PathTLIVE have made it to the Virtual Grid Awards at ADEN Academy. Miracle, Chris, Quan, Riz, and Noelle—along with several other top virtual artists—will compete in the main event of the ceremony: a Unit Battle, where participants enter as a team to compete for a spot in the main event's concert. As the competition heats up, PathTLIVE reviews their competitors who have made it to the main event and evaluates if they have what it takes to win. But when the girls begin to lose confidence, they look inward to see how they can improve themselves to prepare for the Unit Battle. Through collaborations with other top performers, each girl explores new facets of what it means to be a virtual artist.

Though he has successfully repelled the latest Wave of Catastrophe, Naofumi Iwatani—the Shield Hero—has no time to rest. Naofumi is spurred back into action when Queen Mirelia Q Melromarc tells him that the three other Cardinal Heroes have disappeared without a trace, and she tasks him with finding them. With no clues regarding their whereabouts, Naofumi tackles a more pressing issue: the worsening slave trade of demi-humans. Determined to right this injustice, he and his friends find their way to Zeltoble, the country of mercenaries, where the illegal sale of demi-humans has become a lucrative business. To gather money to free the slaves, Naofumi and his comrades disguise themselves and take part in underground coliseum brawls, purposely throwing matches to manipulate the odds and eventually secure an enormous payout. However, with the threat of another Wave of Catastrophe looming on the horizon, the Shield Hero must stick to his mission of finding the missing heroes if he wants to protect those he loves.