Summary:

As she moves through the sewers with Lawrence, Horo hears the sounds of their Medio pursuers coming after them. When the Medio men release some dogs, Horo scares the animals away with a wolf cry that echoes through the tunnels. She and Lawrence then nearly run into a group of Medio men, and as they try to take a different path, another Medio man attacks them with a knife. Lawrence is able to knock this guy out with Horo’s help, but a second man suddenly appears and stabs Lawrence in the arm. Despite the injury, Lawrence still manages to take this man out with a swift kick to the groin, however Lawrence now has a harder time escaping. He blacks out at one point, and when he wakes back up, Horo tells him that she smelled light, meaning that there might be a way back above ground. This turns out to be true, but the problem is that the opening is too high up for them to reach, and there’s no ladder. The two are then found and cornered by Medio company men, and with them is Chloe.

After seeing Chloe, Lawrence quickly is able to connect what she is doing with Count Ehrendot, the abolition of the wheat tariff, and business deals involving wheat. Chloe wants him to turn over Horo so that they can hand Horo over to the church and crush the Milone company. More importantly, she thinks that abolishing the tariff will reap enormous profits for her village, and she then makes an appeal to Lawrence to open a shop here in the city with her. This is indeed Lawrence’s dream, but he reveals that he has a promise to keep, and that’s to accompany Horo to the north. With no other choice, Chloe gives her men permission to kill Lawrence, though she wants Horo captured alive. Lawrence is ready to take them all on with only his dagger, however before he can fight, Horo throws him to the ground and gets on top of him. To his surprise, she bites on and sucks blood from his arm wound, and after asking him not to look, she changes into her wolf form.

The Milone men all run away in fear at the sight of the enormous wolf, but Horo chases down and knocks out each of them. She eventually returns for Chloe and scares the girl to tears, though Horo doesn’t actually hurt Chloe and only causes her to faint. Horo then turns towards a frightened Lawrence to pick up the bag of wheat that came off of her during the transformation. When she starts to walk away, Lawrence tries to stop her by citing how much the clothes she tore up in her transformation cost. He claims to want compensation for it and promises to follow her all the way north to get it, but Horo appears to disregard him and continues walking down the dark sewer tunnel. Lawrence loses consciousness soon after, and when he wakes up again, he finds himself in a room back above ground with Marlhait. It seems that the Milone company had found Lawrence being guarded by Horo, and she had refused to hand Lawrence over unless Marlhait was personally there. After making sure that Lawrence got to the Milone company safely, Horo had left without saying where she was going.

As for the Milone company’s business, they got all the privileges from the king that Medio wanted, but they only made 240 coins in profit out of that, half of which goes to Lawrence. On the plus side, their dealings with Medio went well, adding another 1000 coins, and Lawrence decides that he wants to be paid in pepper. His reasoning is that since winter is coming, more meat will be cooked, and that requires pepper. After agreeing to this deal with Marlhait, Lawrence then receives a bill with some trades that he doesn’t remember doing. As he reads the list which includes a robe, a silk belt, traveling shoes, a tortoise shell comb, and a large number of apples, it suddenly occurs to him what this is connected to, and so he runs out to the cargo unloading area. Just as he suspected, it was Horo who bought all of that, and she promises to pay him back when she reaches her home up north. Looking at Lawrence and Horo together now makes Marlhait comment on how it is wolf and spice.

 
 
 

I think this was easily the most exciting episode so far (unless you find silver coin economics exciting) if for no other reason than Horo finally turning into her wolf form and kicking some ass. Heck, I even got Claymore vibes during this scene because of the teeth. I also liked how they finally explained the title of the show, though it feels a little weird that it’s coming at roughly the halfway point of the series instead of more towards the beginning or the very end. As for the story, now that so many people know about Horo’s true identity, she and Lawrence will likely be running from the church all the way on their journey north. I suspect this probably isn’t the last we’ve seen of Chloe either – she’s not evil, but she is definitely an antagonist, and it doesn’t feel like the writers are done yet with her involvement.

54 Comments

  1. I hope chloe get what she deserves but she probably would be saved and those damn church freaks are finally gonna get their nasty hands on horo!!! And the anime also depicts of the history between horo and other wolfs and the church…
    Damn you gotta love horo!!! lets go horo!! Kill the pope or atleast someone from the church

    john sekori
  2. FLEAS don´t simple FLEE from nothing!!!
    that´s why SHE came back!!!
    ** pool of the day:

    After this anime do you see your pets with another eyes????

    [] YES
    [] NO
    [] I don´t care about their feeling that´s why I fu…ck them anyway!!!

    😀 tanoshi toki by tensai momments!!!

    Tensai Otaku
  3. ok i just watched it snd i have to say..:

    This is the first anime that made me think soo friken hard to keep up and I do economics in school XD
    Tooo make it worst I count romance as my specialty meaning I can sense it before its even coming… And I couldnt tell normal conversation from the actual “Lovers Quarrel” itself XD then there were times in this episode when I have to pause and say “Does she friken like him or not cause i cant tell if shes teazing from when shes trying to gain his attention…”

    Well ecxept from the part when she states how cute she is then he agrees and she fights off a blush and says shes happy then tops it off to say ” I think your are cute aswell” or something to that effect…

    any one wanna help me understand go right ahead im waiting….( is only up to chapter 4 of the manga)

    Ryunatta
  4. But when Chloe-chan saw the wolf she felt frightened. She had nearly forgotten her grandmother, but she did not think she had been so ugly.

    “Grandmother,” she said, “what a great nose you have.”

    [URL=”https://randomc.net/image/Spice%20and%20Wolf/Spice%20and%20Wolf%20-%2006%20-%20Large%2017.jpg”]https://randomc.net/image/Spice%20and%20Wolf/Spice%20and%20Wolf%20-%2006%20-%20Large%2017.jpg[/URL]

    “All the better to smell with, my dear,” said the wolf.

    “And, grandmother, what large ears you have.”

    “All the better to hear with, my dear.”

    “Ah! grandmother, and what large eyes you have.”

    “All the better to see with, my dear,” said the wolf, showing his teeth, for he longed to eat the child up.

    “Oh, grandmother, and what great teeth you have!” said Chloe-chan.

    [URL=”https://randomc.net/image/Spice%20and%20Wolf/Spice%20and%20Wolf%20-%2006%20-%20Large%2021.jpg”]https://randomc.net/image/Spice%20and%20Wolf/Spice%20and%20Wolf%20-%2006%20-%20Large%2021.jpg[/URL]

    “All the better to eat you up with,” growled the wolf.

    bearzerger
  5. Some troll is trotting their personal demons out again.

    Focusing on the *story* itself, nicely packaged summation of the “first adventure. Now we’ll get to see the shepherd girl’s story. The episodic nature of the adventures means they could take this several seasons if the popularity continues. Putting the series out between “massive hit” seasons certainly helped but I’m observing some of the best developed stories seem to be coming from light novels recently.

    vexx
  6. Haha go Horo! She really took it to those guys this time. Plus Chloe learned a valuable lesson in that you just don’t mess with the wolf. Lucky she got out of there alive really.

    Should be interesting to watch us go into the next story volume. Really do hope they make more seasons for this one down the road.

    FlareKnight
  7. @Vexx
    Agree with the light novels. Actualy I think the boom started with Shakugan no Shana, then we got Suzumiya Haruhi, then Zero no Tsukaima..

    As for the episode itself: Nice to see they got reunited in the end. Horo SURE likes apple, she bought them all dammit 😀

  8. **VEXX
    I know you don´t care about their feeling that´s why you …er….fool them anyway!!!

    😀 (T_T)you are almost like a vishinu in indian god mode…with your pets veneration!!!!

    SORE WA SONANI KIMOTI???
    @_@ -> ^_^

    Tensai Otaku
  9. See, T.O., I figure that you’re personally attracted to this fantasy character Horo. This upsets you to no end because you have such simplistic ideas so you project those horrors onto anyone who enjoys the series 🙂 Basically sad for you (unless of course, you’re purely trolling for flame… 🙂 )
    By your posted pre-school minded definitions, Spock’s parents were engaging in bestiality (actually most of the characters in Star Trek engaged in inter-species romance). See, the rest of us *get* that this is a fantasy story – but that if we did eventually encounter a species that we could treat as equals in the same way we treat each other, then this situation might actually play out for some.
    So you continue to make a fool of yourself while the rest of us keep pushing your credibility meter to zero. 🙂

    vexx
  10. decent adaptation I guess, though they cut out my favorite line from Horo in the novel during the tunnel encounter(which was way too compressed IMO).

    @john sekori: no need to worry about Chloe, her part of the story is over now.

    @Ryunatta: Horo is obviously very playful, esp. in the original novel (IMO they didn’t really convey that very well in the anime given the time constrain). The part where she blushed after Lawrence said she was cute was actually intentional. Lawrence agreed that Horo was cute was his attempt to surprise Horo, think of it as… a match of wits of sorts. Of course, Horo being the smart one, went with the flow and started to blush intentionally, which caught Lawrence by surprise, ’til he realized he’s been had when Horo said what a cute boy he is.

    of course, the anime version didn’t convey that very well 😛 the relationship between the two of them stayed mostly around that kind of ambiguous flirting back and forth, until novel 3 and 4, where some, not much, progress starts to show 😛

    but anyway, onward to Nola! (and hopefully Diana in the future, if they make season 2 :3 )

    Mike
  11. aye, thats the problem with adapting from a novel…. what to leave out.
    If they convey the spirit of what is going on and then you get to enjoy MORE of the story in the novel – they’ve succeeded (because the viewers bought the novel). I’ve written a few of the American publishers, asking them to keep an eye on this light novel and manga.

    There’s a translation effort for the novels just starting up, so perhaps more viewers might be able to enjoy the novels in some form for now.

    vexx
  12. @vexx:

    Agreed. There’s just not much you can do when faced with a 25 min. limit, especially when you have such limited number of episodes to work with.

    It’s especially true for stories like Spice and Wolf, which deals largely in subtle character interactions/relations that are accompanied by large amount of narrations and explanations in the novel. The anime adaptation doesn’t have that luxury, and have to depend solely on the screen-writing, which can often leaves things unexplained.

    Mike
  13. Does anyone here knows a website from a guy that posts news about Spice and Wolf releases? About the novel, manga and anime. I think I got a link here at the comments but I just can’t find it anymore.

    Ookami
  14. Okay, after Horo kills everyone at the underground Lawrence just complains about his clothes she was wearing? What happend to him? Is he gonna chase her to eternity just because of the expensive clothes?

    Lawrence-san
  15. @Lawrence-san:

    This is a perfect example of what I said earlier about how the anime adaptation can leave too many things unexplained, and yours is a good example.

    but what happened there basically was this(in the novel):

    After Horo finished pwning everyone, she asked Lawrence to give her the bag of wheat, and Lawrence asked her why. After a slight pause Horo suddenly moved one of her leg forward toward Lawrence, and he instinctively ducked away. Horo then said “That’s the answer, give me the wheat”

    Horo hates being revered by humans as a goddess, by the same token she also hate it when people are scared of her because of what she is, and you can say that Lawrence stepped on a land mine with his reaction, though it’s understandable.

    Yet, despite being afraid, Lawrence still wants Horo to stay. He knows that she’ll never believe him even if he said that he’s not afraid of her, afterall, he’s still shaking. That’s why he came up with the clothes. He knows that Horo will not stay no matter how much he begs her to, so instead of telling her to stay, he basically told her that even if she leaves, he’ll come after her. Afterall, he is a merchant, and he’ll get his money one way or another. So basically he had the brilliant idea of telling Horo if she leaves he’s gonna go all collection agency on her ass 😛

    but hey, it worked 🙂 Too bad it’s kinda hard to see all that in the anime version 😛

    Mike
  16. Lawrence has to reconcile the idea that the delightful person he has spent so much time with recently is also the Destroyer he just witnessed, even though she did it for him.
    Having someone near you with that much power, most humans would feel a bit edgy.

    Their conversation when she starts to leave is a bit of a game in itself. She doesn’t really want to leave, but she hates the feelings of him being frightened of her. He’s scared to death but wants her to stay. The “fiction” of the issue of the clothes was sufficient to allow each some wiggle room. I mean think about it…. like he could *actually* ever get his money back from her? 🙂

    It is unfortunate the series is crammed into 12 episodes given the depth of the material. That tells me that the producers were really unsure that such a relationship with two relatively complex characters would be a hit with the otaku crowd in Japan.

    vexx
  17. my god, that first guy she killed, I swear he got flung like ten feet into the ceiling. Now that’s just amazing.

    It might be just me, but at the end when Lawrence was running down the halls to get to Horo, I just kept imagining the next scene going like, “OI! What the hell? Billing me for all this stuff?! Pay for your own damn apples!!!”

    vespariderXephon-01
  18. It seems like all girls who could transform into something else always tell the person they like to not look. Just one of many other intense scenes for showing the signs of love. Great series so far. I can’t wait for next episode!

    Dando008
  19. Those who had watch the episode mind explain the deal to me, I don’t understand how it go with the final deal, they were saying tariff, tax, contract fee all that then 350,000 turn to 120 then 1000. What really happen with the deal, all these fees and number are too confusing.

    John
  20. @John: don’t worry, their explanations are just a mess. I’m a business major and I find it confusing also. Apparently there were two separate deals, one is with the silver coins and the other is with securing mining/other rights from the king and reselling them to the rival company. After everyone takes their share, Lawrence profits 120 from the coins deal and 1000 from the grants sale. I’m still not quite sure how they profited from the coins, the explanations were a bit sketchy or maybe I’m not paying enough attention.

    Actually the whole economics here is a bit make-believe/hand-waving. Why couldn’t the rival company go directly to the king for the grants? Why did Lawrence get 1000 coins for doing nothing (it was his idea but that’s hardly enough is it)? I’m starting to think that the author of the novels has a light grasp on economics (and a number of other things related to medieval times).

    lightbringer
  21. Its more like… the anime has a rough time communicating what is going on in a limited time budget. Another instance of 12 episodes kind of sucking for conveying either the relationship drama or the economic battle stories.

    vexx
  22. To some degree I think they’re playing the same trick to get past rough points that Star Trek was fond of — “say it fast and use a sliver of technobabble amongst the actual physics to smooth over the holes.”

    If the viewer came away thinking “wow, they pulled some cool chess move business tricks – wheels within wheels!” FTW… if the viewer listens carefully and looks it up — its stil a win 🙂

    vexx

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