First Impressions / Log Horizon

「魔法使いの弟子」 (Mahoutsukainodeshi)
“Student of the Mage”

Day Two of the festival features paperwork, eating, lifting heavy things, disputes, more paperwork, a fashion show, and–an attack!?

The Love Triangle Finds Another Spoke

I have a conflicted history with love triangles and harem situations. Sometimes they’re done really, really well, and make a story more interesting for the conflict – I would point to my beloved Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo as one such example. Frequently though, harem-type situations are tacked onto shows that don’t need them, or are the basis of stories that are really just weak. So the more these elements creep into Log Horizon, the more conflicted I get.

Since I didn’t get to write last week’s post (thanks takkun!), I’ll briefly weigh in on the Akatsuki x Shiroe x Minori love triangle – I like it. It feels like a good love triangle where Minori’s feelings of admiration for Shiroe naturally blossomed into love, and where it’s more about her growth as a character through this life lesson than her being a serious contender for Shiroe’s heart – because let’s face it, Shiroe isn’t going for a literal middle schooler. With Henrietta stepping in as a contender though, I’m not sure.

From Henrietta’s point of view, I still like what I see. The two of them get along very well, they seem to complement each other in ways similar (but totally distinct) to how Shiroe and Akatsuki compliment each other. I also very much appreciate Henrietta’s worry that she’s only considering Shiroe because he’s the best guy she knows, which is not always the same as the best one for her. That’s very believable, and something I myself have confronted in the past. Like Minori’s jealousy and possessiveness of Shiroe last episode, this is a very understandable emotion.

Yet was miring Shiroe in the middle of a harem really necessary? Or past it being necessary, does it enhance the story? So far I’m tentatively on board, because it’s interesting while all the characters retain enough depth for it to Infinite Stratos-level vapidity. I’ll be watching with concern though, because while it’s ruined nothing yet, I prefer my stories to be of the mass OTP type (Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon, Sakurasou, etc.) as opposed to one big mess of a harem.

Other OTPs

Speaking of other couples, we had plenty of fun with the other couples-in-the-making this time! Let me run through them quickly:

  • Marielle x Naotsugu – I supremely enjoyed how Henrietta manipulated Marie into being good by bringing Naotsugu to help. That’s not really the reason, though – Henrietta’s real goal was obviously to help her friend. Many d’aaawwws were had at Marie’s reactions! Plus Naotsugu looked pretty slick in his casual clothes, so that was nice too.
  • Rudy x Isuzu – Rudy is still endearingly useless. I enjoyed how Isuzu called him a wanko (dog) when they had a werecat (Nyanta) sitting at the table. Rudy gets no respect! /rodneydangerfield
  • Nyanta x Serara – Their scene was really all about how Nyanta is a gentleman who stands up against bullies, but him taking Serara out was super nice. Truly he is a gentlenyan~ among boys!
  • Lenessia x Krusty – It was so predictable that Krusty would be right behind Lenessia when she was badmouthing him (trope!), but it was also reeeeally funny, so I don’t care! The highlight: How Lenessia smoothly scooted closer to Krusty, despite how much she was complaining and calling him a monster. That + the banquet being her idea…she really isn’t honest with herself, ufufu~
  • Minori x Paperwork – She’s totally the S in that relationship, just like her teacher. Poor paperwork didn’t know what hit it.

The Cursed Sword of Shiroe

I found Krusty and Isaac’s conversation about Shiroe to be interesting, even if I don’t feel like I grasped it all. (Not the show’s fault – I’m sick at the moment, so I’m not operating at full power. Bear with me here.) They talked about whether he’s a strategist or a gambler, how he’s a cursed sword, how–well, to quote Krusty:

I think Shiroe-kun is at his best when anything goes. I don’t think he’s a strategist at all. When the chips are down, and you have to do whatever it takes, and there’s nothing in it for him, he’s as strong as anyone you’ll ever see.

To echo the speech at the end of The Dark Knight, Shiroe is fascinating because he’s not a hero. We expect our protagonists to be the sword-wielding knight with upstanding morals who fights through adversity with the power of friendship and their destined power, or we expect them to be intensely conflicted brooding anti-heroes who will do whatever it takes to do the right thing. Shiroe is neither of these. Shiroe isn’t a brooding anti-hero because he doesn’t brood about his actions – brooding appears to be a default part of his personality, something he did even when Elder Tales was just a game. He’s willing to do whatever it takes, and he’ll use underhanded tactics to win, but he never sacrifices a pawn, or even thinks of people like that. He has so far managed to do the underhanded and the moral thing time and time again, and that’s what makes him fascinating.

As for the cursed sword bit, in that way Shiroe is more of a hero than many of the superheroes that dominate various media. While superheroes always seem to be patrolling, fighting to maintain the status quo, Shiroe is happy to bury himself in paperwork when he’s not needed, and to push society forward in the meantime. He’s proactive, not just reactive. It’s no surprise that he’s mistrusted for the tactics he uses, and it’s admirable that Minori wants to fix this, but perhaps it’s okay. Let Krusty be the face of the Round Table – Shiroe will be the invisible hand that guides them all.

Oh, and as for the question about whether he’s a strategist or a gambler? He’s both. True strategists are always gamblers, they just take such well-considered gambles that they don’t seem like them from the outside. They always are though, when you’re the one in the hot seat deciding whether to roll the dice or not.

Disputes with the People of the Land

Here’s where I have to admit that I was a little lost. The clash of cultures I got – when you mix the highly hierarchical culture of the People of the land with the egalitarian society of the adventurers of Akihabara, it’s not surprise that there would be friction between nobles who think commoners are disrespecting them and adventurers who think all of that is bullshit. Yet there being more of disputes than they expected, and Minori calling attention to all the minor errors in the paperwork…I don’t get it. What’s more, I don’t know how Akihabara can come under attack when it’s impossible for people to fight within the city, as Akatsuki’s spats with Naotsugu showed (though I’m not sure how she got away with kicking him in the end. Plot hole?).

I can think of two ways. First of all, attack can come in forms other than martial – whether economic, through a blockade, by devolving the currency or turning the surrounding countries against them or what, there are more ways to fight than with just sword and spell. The other option is that they could change the rules entirely. Shiroe has already demonstrated that it’s possible to create hitherto impossible spells, and at least one other person has pulled it off in Minami. It could be that this Lord Marves is exactly that person. Or that blonde woman who’s in Akiba now…?

Looking Ahead – The Strategist Fails, Counterattacks

With only two more episodes left (I know, right? It’s ending too soon ;_;), I expect Log Horizon to go out with a bang and make us dearly look forward to a Season 2. Hopefully Touno-sensei is getting plenty of peace and quiet so he can write more books, because I know I’m going to want to see more of this by the time it’s done!

tl;dr: @StiltsOutLoud – Paperwork, food, a fashion show, & daitos are the name of the game, but an attack looms that could screw it all up #loghorizon 23

Random thoughts:

  • Poor Akatsuki. I don’t think you’re going to get a compliment out of Shiroe that easily. He’s not dense exactly, but he’s not the type. Another failing of his, alas.
  • Henrietta soooo knows she’s contemplating stepping on Akatsuki’s love for Shiroe. Another interesting facet to the whole situation there, and one of the ones that’s liable to make Henrietta never make a move.
  • Way to go, meido-san! Nyahaha~
  • Is it just me, or is the Apprentice subclass totally abuse-able? Just level up your subclass by apprenticing for someone whose subclass is easy to level, then switch over to one of the harder ones when you’re done. Though knowing this era of MMOs, probably ALL of the subclasses are hard to level. I’ll tell ya, I’ve never been more religious than when I was trying to raise my tradeskills in EQ. Those last few skill points were brutal.

Check out my blog about storytelling and the fantasy novel I’m writing at stiltsoutloud.com. The last four posts: Combat scenes – Blocking & initiative order, Critical flaw, Sometimes, the fluff is everything, and Mental domination.

 

Preview

85 Comments

      1. It feels like the animators think that enemies need to have looks that make them obviously evil and dislikable.
        I don’t know why a fat old guy with “enough powder to make him look like a clown” isn’t evil-looking enough…

        Most of the changes the anime versions have made have been things that I have liked and that have strengthened the story, but this one is pretty pointless one… Though the guy gets bonus points for looking like Ryuk, even if I first thought he was half-Sahuagin or something.

        Anonymosity
        Reply

      1. …Stilts, do you remember that Chinese forum that translate your reviews? Quite a lot of people there had the suspicion that you either actually read the LN or is the Sherlock of story prediction & decoding.

        & with this comment I honestly can’t say I don’t agree with them.

        LGM
        Reply

      2. Ignoring that whole ripping & translating my reviews bit, I am a storyteller, so I approach these things as much from a what-would-I-do-if-I-were-the-writer as an in-universe point of view.

        In other words, I know storytelling, so unless someone can totally throw a curveball at me – which happens a fair amount of the time, ’cause I’m not nearly as good as I like to think I am – I can usually see what’s coming. Which is fun for me, as is hearing that people think I’m so good I must know what’s going to happen 😀

        Stilts
        Reply

      3. The Guards only intervene on actual damage though. You can apparently do a lot of things to people, c.f. Hamlin and Brigandia, so long as it doesn’t do hp the guards won’t intervene.

        Of course the Guards may be confused by the way the Adventurer’s have started acting more like people.

        Adam
        Reply

    1. Just merge already Log Horizon x Crescent Moon Alliance. The Crescent Moon Horizon would be a powerhouse of OTPs and strategy.

      (Or Log Alliance? It has a certain ring to it…)

      Stilts
      Reply

      2. Sure there is – everyone /gquits and the other guild takes them all in, or they create a new one and everyone joins that (though it’s almost always the former). My guilds absorbed others a few times in both EQ and WoW.

        Stilts
        Reply

      3. Bad idea. Yeah they get along great, but there can only be one guild master of a guild. Shiroe really needs to be guild master of his own guild to have the sort of freedom and control he needs, or he would have joined Crescent Moon in the first place.

        Similarly, he does not need to be saddle with the responsibility of the 40-50 members of Crescent Moon, many of whom are lower level players, and the higher leveled ones are accustomed to Maryelle being their guild master.

        Krono
        Reply

  5. Henrietta!! <3 <3

    Too bad cause your just 2nd in my list that I want to be w/ Shiroe ;c (3rd is akatsuki)

    Show Spoiler ▼

    And I loved that Cheerful Akatsuki

    Last two episode :C

    ricz
    Reply

  7. I don’t mind Shirou’s growing amount of love interests so far too much, really. If only because all his love interests are well-established characters already who don’t feel like they were merely written for the very purpose of being a love interest. They all make sense too, and they complement Shirou in their own ways (Akatsuki – right-hand woman, Henrietta – kindred spirit and fellow strategist, Minori – apprentice and fixer of his flaws). Not to mention all the other characters have love interests too (totally on board the Naotsugu and Marielle ship, and Lenessia + Krusty are my favourite couple in the show). That said, I do hope the show won’t start revolving around it too much, that’s not what I watch the show for.

    As for the problems arising right now, I think someone is trying to undermine Akihabara’s economy and public relations. Instead of attacking them direcly, someone is trying to pull the rug from underneath them. The exact method simply hasn’t been revealed yet (next episode, I’m guessing) but those false documents are probably a major clue. The city’s being poisoned and manipulated in someone’s bid to take control, is what I’m guessing. One of the other adventurer cities, perhaps?

    As for the apprentice subclass, the earlier levels of any progression are super easy to level anyway. It’s not until the higher ones where you start needing rare ingredients and whatnot, so that balances out this subclass, as they don’t have acces to that stuff in return.

    Dvalinn
    Reply

  9. Akatsuki got away with her kick because it’s not count as “in game attack”. just like back in ep9 when Naotsugu snap Hemerlin guild master finger. first 2 times the guard shows up because she about to use her sword.

    That'sLHBestGirl
    Reply

    1. To expand on this, the Guards only come out when things that the game registered as attacking were happening/about to happen.
      So skill usage and drawing weapons, mainly. This was actually hinted in the very first episode, the first time Akatsuki kicked Naptsugu.

      Anonymosity
      Reply

  10. The discussion of an “attack” is very likely to be World Class Magic, nothing else makes sense based upon what has been revealed. It’s not a physical attack directly, rather a form of domestic insubordination, barbarians inside the gates if you will. Simply have the People of the Land degrade the economic and societal foundations previously laid by manipulating their emotions. No better way to promote a change in leadership than by instilling fear in the citizenry that their safety (whether material or personal) may not be assured.

    The only thing which doesn’t make sense is the paperwork. It’s understandable if Minori has a understanding of World Class Magic, but she doesn’t, so how can she make the leap to something going wrong and likely being deliberate just based upon numbers? Even with access to Shiroe’s scribe abilities it seems a little strange. Unless of course the change in the People of the Land’s disposition has to do more with that earlier discussion of the Demon Gate event rather than world changing magic.

    As more the new antagonist Lord Marves, besides looking like Ryuk from Death Note I’m guessing he’s the front for whoever is actually pulling the strings rather than the mastermind. The one commonality among strategic-minded individuals is their disdain for the spotlight, even villains.

    Pancakes
    Reply

    1. I can’t really tell you this attack is related to World-class magic or not (because spoilers!) but what Minori found out from the paper works are not W-class magic related, she only relies that a lot of the paper works are purposely written wrongly & un-orderly. & that most of the bad forms came from PoTL.

      LGM
      Reply

    2. On the paperwork, I bet they purposefully used all sorts of different forms and made little mistakes to smuggle things into Akiba, counting on the fact that their subterfuge wouldn’t be discovered until it’s too late b/c the paperwork was too onerous. I only just thought of that while reading your comment, so thanks : )

      Stilts
      Reply

      1. On the other hand, I think that they were smuggling people or monsters. The different forms make it hard to spot the “errors”. Which means:
        a) The People of the Land are plotting to bring down Akihabara
        b) There are spies among the PotL
        c) The PotL are being manipulated

        They’re causing trouble in Akihabara to draw Shiroe and Co.’s attention away from their attack force coming by ship. Once they attack, the enemies possibly already smuggled in before hand will make their move.

        They’ll be able to attack in the city, because the invasion counts as an event(?) Or maybe the city’s guards won’t attack PotL, but just Adventurers?

        Even so, I don’t think that the PotL (or any other enemies) can win against the Adventurers in either numbers or strength. The tactics are just to divert attention and cause chaos in order to strike/sabotage a specific objective.

        Like, capture the city (½Prince style)? Sabotage/destroy Cathedral/Guild Hall? World Tree? The latest winter fashion clothing? Kidnap Princess Lenessia? Shiroe? Serara? Naotsugu’s food stamps? Or maybe the Crescent Moon Burgers? Maybe it’s Nyanta’s 11 Secret Herbs and Spices?

        Of course, I could just be (and most likely will be, considering there’s like, 1 or 2 eps left?) completely wrong. Still, it’s fun to imagine what they’re intentions are.

        ReverseTales
        Reply

    3. I think Minori’s Scribe Apprentice skill have little to do with her raw skill to spot mistakes in the document. In the chapter 1 of vol.5, in one the narration (or Shiroe’s monologue.. i forget T_T) it mentioned that Minori has aptitude in paperworks, but Shiroe forbade Minori to help because her level gap with Tohya will become wider if she stayed in guild assisting him. With the low level scribe skills, Minori can craft her own parchment and ink if she needs more, making and duplicate a low level document. It’s useful for her current mission.

      Felice
      Reply

    4. Looks to be an issue in creating suspense then that will probably be corrected next episode (one of the consequences of trying to properly pace multi-episode arcs). Likely just me over thinking that both Minori and Shiroe were both strangely on the same page.

      Didn’t think too much into what the incorrect order forms meant, but Stilts’ idea is probably the right interpretation. The interesting bit is what is being hidden in the order forms. Obviously something has been imported into Akihabara, just a question of what it is exactly. Personally I’m going to guess it has to do with food 😛

      Pancakes
      Reply

    5. The think the sloppy paperwork may have given Shiroe a clue that something was amiss with the people of the land. Remember when Shiroe and Nyanta we’re discussing the conflicts due to social hierarchy issues, Nyanta also mentioned that all of the PotL traders that were attending the festival are professionals while all the adventurers running shops were amateurs. Professional merchants would not make those errors which could mean a couple of things. The mistakes could have been deliberate as if someone was sabotaging the trade show (economic terrorism?) or that someone was controlling the PotL’s behavior from behind the scenes which is why their behavior was erratic and why they seem to be the one’s starting conflicts with the adventurers. Then there’s the possibility of a plotter in the shadows causing civil unrest around Akiba which would lead to a perfect opportunity for a takeover. LOL I may be over thinking this but this is what I really love about this show 🙂

      Also did you guys see the PK’ers apologizing to Touya and Minori? Nothing like a free bag of toys to to say you’re sorry right? 😛

      Zechan
      Reply

      1. No You’re not overthinking. There are information gaps everywhere and Shiroe didn’t know the real situation because he is outside the loop (the coordinator for this festival is Karashin). He already got some of the parts of the puzzle, and Minori gave him another. Now he’s waiting for the security report before taking action.

        Felice
        Reply

  12. I guess Akatsuki kicking Naotsugu and getting away from it can simply be summed up as Rule of Funny (that scene never appeared in the original novels by the way). As for the Apprentice subclass, I believe it was mentioned somewhere in the novels that it was only popular for Adventurers who plan to take up a hard-to-level subclass eventually like Blacksmith. There is not really a reason to be an apprentice to say, a Housekeeper for example when it has been shown to be fairly easy to level since the Apprentice subclass has a much more restricted skillset and highly dependent on the availability of master players to impart skills. And finally, just keep in mind that there are many forms of “attacks”. =)

    Glacierfairy
    Reply

  13. Henrietta soooo knows she’s contemplating stepping on Akatsuki’s love for Shiroe. Another interesting facet to the whole situation there, and one of the ones that’s liable to make Henrietta never make a move.

    Yeah, the anime didn’t show it clearly, but in the LN Henrietta had an inner lodge that say she like Shiroe but sadly she like Akatsuki too so that’s that.

    Here’s where I have to admit that I was a little lost…

    And here again its the problem for anime that the LN never had, in the LN a flip of a page & Shiroe would explain what kind of attack this it & all the details needed to understands who’s the freaky guy on the ship on the last scene. Here, anime-only fans would need to wait 1 week to know all that.

    LGM
    Reply

    1. Just shows that every anime adaptation of a Light Novel, or a game/manga/novel/etc., will always lack some information that was in the canon material. We should always expect this to happen, all the fucking time.

      Anyway at least its fun to know things what anime-only fans don’t: you get this satisfying feel that you want to spoil it. 😛

      TheMoondoggie
      Reply

      1. Oh man, you have no idea. It literally takes most of my willpower to not spoil what kind of attack this is & from who.

        It is even taxing to not spoil who’s the woman that knew what Shiroe did is.

        LGM
        Reply

    2. LGM: not really, I mean even if you said the person’s name (I’m not don’t worry) it wouldn’t change anything. But yeah, the unneccesary clifhanger is a bit annoying.

      Whites
      Reply

  15. Nothing could be more insidious and disastrous than rocking a society’s peace via economic sabotage and reputation damage. If the People of the Land claim to be abused in Akihabara, other nations would heighten their wariness and distrust, and with the economy messed up Akihabara is effectively under embargo.

    Paperwork is important, as highlighted by Minori, when you have different standards and even format and form of paperwork, it is administrative hell. This is something a scribe is well within his/her expertise to deduce. This also hints at how Shiroe’s work on Akihabara is far from complete, the need to standardise procedures and paperwork is essential in making sure different cities can work well together.

    Dude
    Reply

  17. Darn, Minori has gone ahead and made Shiroe her senpai. 😛

    Akatsuki as usual looks great.

    And it seems there’s an underlying sense of economic “attacks” going on by flooding the festival coordinators with work. I wonder who these unseen actors are.

    Also look for Maoyuu cameos in the background, much like the MWAM cameo few episodes back.

    Netto
    Reply

  18. The attack definitely feels like something to do with Minami’s world class spell. And you forget that when they rescued the kids, they could restrain and hurt someone without it being considered PK. The kicking probably belongs to that category. Something like, it will hurt, but won’t damage HP because its not part of the system (not an actual skill).

    ThatGuy
    Reply

  19. Shiroe is so oblivious. He did not notice how cute she was with her pin on.

    Also, I am looking forward to see what will happen next now that they learn that someone wants to invade Akihabara.

    Meiji era
    Reply

  20. “Yet there being more of disputes than they expected, and Minori calling attention to all the minor errors in the paperwork…I don’t get it.”

    My impression is that the point of the disputes is to spread a feeling of distrust and discontent between the adventurers and the people of the land.

    Think of it like breaking down a wall, you could take a hammer and just smash away with all of your might but you could also take a chisel and patiently tap at the weak points until cracks start to form it comes crashing down on its own. The disputes aren’t full on attacks but they help chip away at the relations between the people of the land and the adventurers.

    If a merchant sees someone claiming they’ve been ripped off they’ll start wondering if they’re getting ripped off too. If a high class person sees someone complaining about being disrespected then they’ll wonder if their position is being given enough respect as well.

    The clerical errors… could be a similar attempt but aimed more at the administrative side. Merchants could end up with fewer supplies than they require, inadequate space for their displays etc which could lend an air of unpreparedness and disorder to the festivities.

    qwert
    Reply

  21. Q: Is Naotsugu somewhat nerfed in the anime adaptation?

    I mean, in the credits his name is directly under Shiroe and above Akatsuki, but so far not much deban aside from the early episodes. ^^

    LGrey
    Reply

    1. Nope. Naotsugu mostly stays in the background after the 1st arc because he got his role as Tohya’s mentor and helping Shiroe runs the guild. But he didn’t got nerfed, he still the pervert Naotsugu, a great friend & advisor for everyone who needs help. If he got nerfed, Marielle definitely will be doomed in Choushi, and Minori’s guerilla plan will failed. He doesn’t need a bright spotlight to give a contribution for the story. It’s the same with Nyanta.

      Felice
      Reply

    2. Who are the “main characters” in this show really only tell part of the story, and isn’t very useful. In other shows you can tell who’s most important and who you’ll spend the most time with by who are noted to be the main characters, and when that changes – for example, in Nagi no Asukara – characters are actually added to the ranks of the main characters.

      Here, aside from Shiroe, it really doesn’t matter. Naotsugu is as main of a character as any because of his relation to Shiroe, but with Krusty and Lenessia and Minori and Rudy and many others getting more screentime, development, etc…

      Basically, just don’t focus on who the “main characters” are. It would be impossible to map out for his story, so it doesn’t really matter.

      Stilts
      Reply

    3. Actually I think its the other way around; He actually get buffed in the anime, since in the LN the part he talks to Akatsuki & his quest to eat everything never happened.

      LGM
      Reply

  22. I’m basing all this off of my thoughts on MMOs, but I’m going to guess that the kick that Akatsuki does is actually an emotion command. While emotion commands don’t really have any sort of effect in the game other than to do something for fun, it probably would work legitimately since you can target oth…ers… 🙁 Oh.

    Well, I see how we can now have problems in the future with players using the emotion commands to do horrible things and not have issues with the guards. Ugh. That wasn’t something I really wanted to contemplate or come to understand.

    Anyways, what is happening is an assault on Akiba’s entire reputation via the People of the Land. Minami likely is using espionage and sabotage as a start, while as was mentioned previously, smuggling to get weapons inside. Again, the guards of Akiba are there to stop player violence (thanks Akatsuki for the reminder), but I’m assuming nothing can happen with People of the Land on Adventurer violence. As that’s how the game originally was. So we’ll probably see People of the Land take up arms against them.

    If a Person of the Land attacks someone in Akiba, it would deteriorate the mild peace that the two sides have going right now. And even if it wasn’t the Lords’ fault, the Adventurers just saved the Lords, so quite a few wouldn’t take very kindly to being ‘backstabbed’ as it were.

    Since we’re talking about MMOs and foreshadowing, I’m going to go with the item(s) smuggled in being a cursed weapon (that was too brilliant a foreshadow with Shiroe to be passed on) and possibly be Minami’s World Magic. Since World Magic seems to alter the world in some fashion, having Minami’s World Magic be… Ack. I lost my track of thought… Um, say that all item text now reflects its true nature would be something pretty cool and world changing? There we go. It would explain why Minami is trying to smuggle stuff in. It would know that these items now function like this. Therefore, you could turn an normally ordinary item into something entirely dangerous.

    Now that would be an awesome World Magic and something to rival what Shiroe did. The more I think about this, the more I’m thinking it is probably what Minami did. Whoops. I’m sorry, I’ve gotten excited over the prospect of this being Minami’s World Magic and set out to explain. Back to where I was trying to head!

    With Akiba having to deal with the Person of the Land utilizing this, the guards that were hinted at with Akatsuki will likely either a) interfere or b) make it hard to contain him or c) both. What I likely see is that the system that utilizes the guards needing to be taken offline so that they can take care of this Person of the Land.

    It would be a calculated gamble by Minami that will likely pay off mostly. It will have the Adventurers and People disliking each other again, it’ll punch a hole in the defense of Akiba by taking the guards offline and allowing Minami to launch an attack (hence the ship), and finally (win or lose on the invasion) it’ll bring the Council’s leadership under question. Many people will probably ask for someone’s head over this, and since they’ll go after the person they deem the most “corrupt”, it would be Shiroe’s head they ask for.

    BTW, sorry for going hyper in my post. As a former writer, I tend to take an idea I think up of and write out the entire scenario I think of. 🙁 Which never turns out to be how the story goes. Which this sadly won’t. But I think this would be awesomely cool!

    🙁 Though I now realize there is no chance of this occurring because this needs to be wrapped up in 1 episode (its only 24, right?) and this scenario I just envisioned would need at least a few episodes to make work. *sigh*

    Dorian
    Reply

    2. Akatsuki’s kicks are the same thing we saw back with Hamelin with being able to grab people and twist their arm. Basically, the crimes the guard system is set up to detect are things that were possible crimes when Elder Tales was a game. Which is to say using offensive combat skills on other characters, or attacking them with their weapon. The game did not have unarmed combat, nor were any sexual actions possible. So those sorts of things do not trigger the guards. On the flip side, you probably can’t really reduce HP those ways, and if you did, or killed someone, it’d likely trigger the guard system.

      Krono
      Reply

      1. @ Viz – thanks. I’m glad something I’ve said likely was on target. Otherwise my whole thing would look silly and then I’d cry.

        @ Krono – that’s what emotion commands do. Is do things like that that don’t cause damage. I kind of botched saying that exactly, as I was getting overly excited about the prospects of my thinking. Its a very bad habit of mine. My apologizes!

        Dorian
        Reply

  24. Reaction face ranking:

    1. Lenessia – the princess remains the queen of reaction faces
    2. Marie – a close second, but she’s catching up
    3. Akatsuki – a staple of cute faces is enough for 3rd place
    4. Lord Marves – because his face is enough to elicit a reaction from all of us
    5. Serara – not enough diversity but has potential

    Kirito
    Reply

      1. Really? You didn’t notice? Then you should really go back to check them out 😀

        You’ll love it, they show up almost every episodes. Even on episode 1 & the various fresh-back scenes. I would say they are the “main” background characters.

        LGM
        Reply

      2. I don’t know if that’s truly the case, it’s just my interpretation of the scene since there was no dialogue between them. The rapid tear faced bowing for forgiveness is what makes me think this was the case.

        The_Green_One
        Reply

  27. I have a feeling, that this Attack is a Economy one. The People of the Land should buy all Wares with Fake Money, that Minori found out. So the owner of these “Bots” have a Wares monopole.

    Germanguy
    Reply

  30. Forget Shiroe, Naoutsugu’s the guy to be jealous of in this show! I’m glad that the love polygon situation doesn’t seem to be taking over the plot like I feared last week, ’twas a good episode and a setup for the next conflict.

    Hochmeister
    Reply

  31. Because I think it’s been shown in the anime back in the Hamelin/Round Table stage, I don’t think this is a spoiler: fighting and even pain is allowable in towns, under the condition that it causes no damage.

    Examples of this can be evidenced when Akatsuki is dealing with Shredder, or later when Naotsugu twists his arm.

    Rasen
    Reply

  32. I would like to share my thought about Minori’s action this episode. Please disregard her age gap for just a few minutes, and I think her action this episode is quite unlike other girl with a crush usually do. After realizing her feelings for Shiroe, instead of trying to charm her way to conquered Shiroe’s heart like most girl in a harem anime, she wants to win him over by being more helpful.

    Here is a passage from the translated novel Vol. 5 Ch. 3.

    ***********************

    (After all, I haven’t done anything yet.)

    Even though she worshiped Shiroe——and even had feelings for him——she had not taken any steps. The searing pain that Minori had felt when she had discovered this truth was still burning within her heart.

    Since it was like this, she needed do something about it.

    Since she had feelings for Shiroe, she wanted to do something for him.

    She was just an ordinary middle-schooler. But in order to meet these feelings of love head-on, Minori hoped that she would be able to offer something to Shiroe.

    This was the resolution that Minori had made after she overcame the agony that had seared in her heart on that particular night.

    Before, she just blindly worshiped him and chased after him, seeking to reach his level without any other consideration. But now, her heart held a new objective.

    Had she only wanted to follow in Shiroe’s footsteps, wanted to see the same scenery that he saw, then reaching his level would have been fine. But if she wanted to help him, she would have to acquire other abilities. Walking down his path but seeking to acquire a different set of abilities would definitely be hard, however the current Minori wished to move forward on such a path.

    ***********************

    In short, Minori is trying to make herself more useful to Shiroe, by 1.) improving his reputation and 2.) trying to learn something beside what Shiroe taught her.

    While I can appreciate her resolve, it’s a long shot with a very slim chance of success. If it’s trust, respect, and admiration she wants, I’m sure she will earn it, however, love is something I can hardly imagine she will succeed using this method. This may sound unfair, but scenario where a shy hardworking lady have her love interest snatched away by another lady who is more charming and aggressive in looks and personality which is not uncommon even IRL. Some female seems to have the idea that male thinks with his penis, and thus the fastest way to conquered men is by seducing them. But of course, not every guy is like that, but I think more guy tends to consider girls from looks and personality. Minori is a diligent and hardworking girl, and personally I respect her for that, but I also see that as a sign of someone independent which I wouldn’t consider her as a love interest if I were Shiroe. This is just my selfish opinion, being in love means you are somewhat emotionally dependent on the other person which is one of the reason why I don’t like “Minori Falling for Shiroe” development regardless of the age gap, since I want to see Minori grow up and able to stand on her own two feet. However, I do like the part where she wishes to not just walk the same path as Shiroe, but seeking to acquire a different set of abilities.

    Minori was fortunate one two occasions:

    1. So far the other girls in Shiroe’s harem, namely Akatsuki and Henrietta, aren’t making aggressive moves on Shiroe. Not yet.
    2. Shiroe doesn’t think with his penis. At least as of now, he hasn’t display any signs of interest in any girl in that sort of way. That may change depending on the plot.

    viss
    Reply

  33. Actually Henrietta could have been a very decent match for Shiroe, a sharp woman at the side of a sharp man.
    Plus she has perfect sense of style, see Akatsuki in casual clothing and hairstyle. <3
    And she is a good friend to Marielle, enough to push her into de-facto date with Naotsugu.

    Shiroe maybe found himself surprised, but this only allows us to see him at his best, in an unexpected emergency!

    As for the paperwork mess, this might just mean PEOPLE have been infiltrating Akiba in preparation for this attack. Like, false documents detected at airport might be a warning of impending terrorist attack…

    note: Guardian NPC showing up means for a split second Akatsuki had real (player) killing intention.

    ewok40k
    Reply

  34. Another great episode with lots of light stuff with dark stuff happening underneath.

    Earlier people were commenting on people not freaking out about the apocalypse. The players briefly were shown freaking fist episode but then it ended. My impression of the Japanese people is that freaking out or going woe is me in public is something that is rarely done. And on a personal level something like the Victorian British keep a stiff upper lip also is common in Japan. If I’m correct in this impression than the lack of characters going into funks and voicing complaints about missing people or wanting to go back to the real world not in there current world is a Japanese characteristic. I’m sure by now many would not go back even if possible as many are now doing jobs way more important and doing way more interesting things than in their past lives. This is also hurt by the main character not having the tight family ties or a lover before coming over and it seams that many of Shiro’s friends also fall into the type that rather don’t have strong real world ties or definitely not the type to pine about missing family and friends to anyone.

    It is true in realistic medieval society Minori would be way old enough to marry by law. But Minori is living in adventure area so I’m sure the players might take offense even if no one has thought to establish age of consent laws. But that is because like most of human history females had to have as many children as possible starting as soon as possible in order for the human race not to go extinct. In the time of Peter the Great even only one in four children lived to adulthood. But in a fantasy game there is magic so there might not be the same huge number of children deaths. Still the reason evolutionary girls can have children as young as they can is because for most of human history they had to.

    But this show is on a children friendly network and we no longer need girls Minori’s age to have children so society has opted to extend childhood way past the historical norm of ending at puberty. (teens were treated as immature adults not children in all ways, the term teenager did not even exist till 1920’s) So I see this story line as a perfectly fine girl falls in love with teacher story to learn a life lesson and there is nothing that logically could be argued about this story line unless Shiro actually returned her feelings now.

    I would think after a time skip that Nyanta x Serara or Shiro x Minori would be great as long as it was like Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon’s Juana x Felipe and the man resists a relationship till it clear the woman is fully grown and successful in her own right.

    Although we are waiting to long and not having enough children in many places, Japan is going on the way to not existing right now. A major cause of many childhood disorders seams to be age of the parents in many cases. Many people are unaware of the fact that every year older after puberty the chance of getting pregnant goes down and that they need to try to have all the children then want before 30 when the pregnancy rate starts dropping fast to less than 2% at 35 with the woman’s own eggs. (source 60 minutes backed with other sources)

    (note woman did not have to be oppressed and treated as second class citizens in the past (some exception to the rule cultures prove this) but the need for massive numbers of children did require most woman to stay home plus making everything from scratch required someone stay home to make the clothes and food. And the woman being pregnant more than half of the time made the division of labor logical. Be very glad you live in current times)

    RedRocket
    Reply

    1. Show Spoiler ▼

      Ungas123
      Reply

      1. Honestly? Being a LN fan, I think there’s a very good chance that the following 2 volumes of the novel after the anime might be OVAs or movies.

        I think this because Show Spoiler ▼

        LGM
        Reply

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