Engage Kiss – 09

「流す涙の意味を知らずに」 (Nagasu Namida no Imi o Shirazu ni)
“Without Understanding the Tears Shed”

Geeze going all in on the twists and reveals now aren’t we? From having Miles be the big bad demon to Shuu losing arguably his first major memory to, well, who honestly didn’t see something like this coming? Except it’s mommy dearest and not the father, because damn that hit hard. And the best part? We haven’t hit the best part yet.

Getting the big twist out of the way, yes Shuu’s family is still alive and Shuu himself isn’t what you call exactly human. His mother being Asmodeus (Japan’s genderbending knows no bounds), while itself a shock, makes sense since such a twist was coming: Shuu’s sister after all is still alive, we were missing the impossible choice for Shuu to have to make – i.e. just how many memories is he willing to sacrifice after knowing the truth? – and the big bad had yet to make their appearance. Well, if Asmodeus is even his mother; some hints that Shuu is only a half-brother and is only tangentially related to what’s upcoming certainly came out. While I’m just a tad disappointed this reveal came out of left field and via a flashback (they’re usually trotted out during fights because climax), it does establish what’s coming over the next few weeks. One way or another, we have a serious showdown brewing.

The second half of this is what Shuu is putting himself through to finally learn the truth – a truth we now know some have a very clear understanding of. I admit, I didn’t expect Mikhail to actually know about the current state of Shuu’s sister and mother (this scene is enough to verify he does), but like Shuu’s family status in terms of Bayron City this was an inevitable twist given how its central resource was involved in demonic presence – funnily enough itself now also confirmed. The one outstanding question is just what relationship Bayron’s government has with Asmodeus, because you know full well after the knowledge Mikhail is aware of Shuu’s family status that mayor and related family both have some sort of agreement with the literal devil. Is it a partnership of profit (most likely)? One of ideology? Or simple tomfoolery gone wrong because previous mayor screwed up in some capacity? That is the question, because how the boundaries of this knowledge pan out will determine just which enemies Shuu and company must face off to finally put this mystery to bed.

As for whether or not Shuu can survive the encounter courtesy of yet more intentional memory loss your guess is as good as mine, but rest assured we haven’t seen the last of this in action. When it finally comes out to all characters involved who Asmodeus is Shuu will need to make a serious choice of just who to sacrifice. Will he mentally neuter himself for the sake of vengeance and a sister who is near likely not related by blood? Or will he, just like with Miles, deliberately – and personally – kill off yet another part of himself for the sake of achieving his objectives?

For all the predictability at work, I for one cannot wait to find out just what the outcome of this conundrum is going to be.

Preview