Listen, the cost of living crisis isn't just for our world; it's happening in Hyrule too. Have you seen the price of the Hylian Shield in Hyrule Castle Town? Who has 80 rupees going spare in this day and age, especially with Ganondorf's impending rise to power? And finding spiritual stones doesn't exactly pay a good wage, does it? Sure, you can cut the grass to find rupees, but if you can cut some corners and get stuff for free, then it's all much better.
There are two ways you can get the Hylian Shield: one with a discount, and the other for free.
Once you've met Princess Zelda and Impa has led you out of the castle, you need to head towards Kakariko Village. There's plenty to explore here, so take your time. But when you're ready to move on, head up to speak to the guard at the gate. He won't let you through until you've shown him the letter that Princess Zelda gave you, but once he's seen it and laughed at you a little bit, he'll open the gate to let you up into Death Mountain.
He'll also tell you that you need a Hylian Shield before you head up, and that if you speak to the owner of the Bazaar in Hyrule Castle Town, he'll give you a good discount. You'll get anywhere between 10 and 40 rupees discount on the shield if you show him the letter that Princess Zelda gave you, but bear in mind that if you don't show him the letter before you start the Happy Mask trading sequence, it will disappear.
Still, that means you've got to spend 40-70 rupees on the shield, and there's a way to get it for free that means you don't have to mess around cutting grass and picking up stones.
Head to the Graveyard in Kakariko Village. It's signposted, and you'll know its the graveyard because it's all dark and misty. You'll see a little cutscene if you haven't been in here before, and then you can start to roam.
N.B. - It needs to be dark before you can pull graves out; otherwise, the little boy who roams the graveyard in the day will shout at you for pulling back the graves. If you have the Sun's Song, then you can play it to make it nighttime.
Head up the ramps to the graves near the back of the graveyard and pull back the gravestone in the picture above. You'll hear the trademark Zelda noise that lets you know you've found a secret.
Jump down into the hole, and you'll see a chest being guarded by a ReDead. This thing will try to freeze you with its laser eyes and squeeze the life out of you, so try to avoid it at all costs.
Open up the chest, and you'll have your very first Hylian Shield, and completely for free too. Then jump back onto the flying leaf and get outta there!
Congratulations, it was that simple, and now you don't have to spend all of your cash on a shield. You can use it to buy items and cool stuff like Deku Nuts or Deku Stick... or just save it up for a rainy day.
Once you've equipped the Hylian Shield, you can head up into Death Mountain and not have to worry about your Deku Shield setting on fire. And when you do venture up Death Mountain, the Hylian Shield will protect you from any falling rocks too!
