天下制覇

 

Smooth Hyaweh. You’ve driven your woman to suicidal attacks.

Impressions:

What a strangely done episode. They constantly used profile cut-ins through the entire thing. Sometimes it was kind of a nice effect, like during Priecia’s confession to Hyaweh. Other times, they were just incomprehensible… like between Filia and Bridget in the APC. They mostly just made it hard to follow for me since suddenly all you’d be able to see are a pair of mouths. Hyaweh’s general cluelessness towards his seduction of Priecia remains somewhat irritating, but he at least seems to have come to the realization that she’s more important than others thanks a little berserker rage, and it only lasted two episodes really so it’s okay. I mean, really… the guy licked her. How was he expecting that to turn out? At best, she licks him and it gets left at that. I think Filia has spoiled him for other women.

God damn it. Now I have the image of Filia licking Hyaweh in my mind.

Moving back to a less disturbing train of thought… the pacing still confuses the living hell out of me. I mean, if this was a 24/26 episode series, I think we’d be more or less moving along at a decent clip. Hyaweh uses Ala Gladius for real for the first time, we kill an Angel, etc etc. We’ve still barely even seen Darkness Knight and Hell too. Those two aren’t even the final boss for Zeus’ sake. There were also more clues as to Fel’s… relation with the Angels this episode. Maybe the DVD releases are a lie. I no longer even know. The next episode preview features a Priecia with totally dead eyes and everybody else recovering in hospital beds, so it’ll probably be Hyaweh nursing her back to health or some such. At least there’s one shot of Theresa. FINALLY.

Rain falls on Windland. Bridget narrates a letter to Gerod. It’s not exactly filled with useful information though… to put it mildly.

Hyaweh and Filia are poking around an umbrella box. She berates him for not taking better care of herself, etc etc. Priecia and Kagura eventually show up. Kagura drags Filia off with her, and Priecia takes Hyaweh.

Later, on a sunny day, Litte gathers the students and staff in the courtyard and gives a very very long speech about their first official military action, taking the strategically importanty, but supposedly undefended, Grenzer Fortress back from Sablum.

Acty, Ein and Jung are off in their own little worlds while Litte drones on and on and on. They translate her stuff into layman’s speak, mostly.

Hyaweh remembers back to walking back with Priecia under the umbrella. He apologizes to Priecia for the other day. She wonders if he really understands. He tells her that it’s about the date. She’s still annoyed, but she tells him that she won’t let him forget it. He’s a bit elated, and she tells him that she likes him. Hyaweh is a bit surprised, and she goes on, saying that she might even love him (albeit somewhat angrily). He cries out in surprise. What a putz.

Back in the present, Karin takes over the peptalk and sends everybody off to their vehicles. The fan club waves everybody off and Kisarov stands on the roof and watches them scramble about as well. Hyaweh loses himself in thought as he’s walking up the ramp and Fel bumps into him. He was staring at Priecia. Fel pushes past him. Hyaweh thinks for a moment and asks Fel if she likes him. Fel’s surprised and stammers out something noncommital, but Hyaweh isn’t even paying attention to her as Priecia’s door slams shut.

En route, Filia is with Bridget. Bridg is quite sick and not doing too well. Filia tries to care for her, but Bridget goes on about how she needs to be around Hyaweh and Priecia in her usual rambling general nonsense.

Filia puts her forehead on Bridget’s to check her fever. Bridget becomes embarrassed and hops away. Filia excuses herself to go get something to help her.

In the command APC, Litte scribbles on a whiteboard while Karin watches the troops in the back of the cart. Everybody is napping in dark robes. Hyaweh remembers back to the rain again. Priecia wanted an answer to his feelings. He tried to tell her to wait, but she wanted to know his answer to this important thing. He tells her that this is the first time he’s been in a situation like this. He puts his hands on her’s and says that he really likes her, even if he can’t respond in kind.

Priecia gets pissed off at this and says that she understands. He can’t answer her feelings at all. In fact, if that’s how he feels about her, then she hates him. She slaps his hands away and storms off. Leaving him to watch her go.

In the APC, Hyaweh looks down at his hand. Litte announces that they’re approaching their destination and to prepare themselves for a fight. Everybody readies their Prisms.

Once there, everybody deploys. Fel staggers out and Hyaweh catches her. There’s something that’s giving her a horrible feeling that she can sense from the castle ahead and it’s affecting her.

Karin looks at the castle from the safety of her APC. Suddenly, a bloody hand slams on the window and one of the students collapses at her door. Sablum soldiers follow and attack, but Karin cuts them down. She tries to call on the radio to Kisarov that the mission is in danger since the Sablum army is already here, but there’s no answer. A dagger is through the broadcast equipment.

The Sablum army pours out of the castle. The students fight against them bravely, but they’re taken by surprise and really no match. Litte summons a stone wall to crush the soldiers attacking Acty and Ein. The battle continues all around. Bridget protects Filia from the fight, but Filia sees Hyaweh in battle with a soldier. Another tries to attack him from behind, but Bridget downs him with a thrown medkit.

Karin comes to their aid and slaughters the squad of Sablum soldiers. She explains the situation to them and tells them that it’s basically over already. Priecia argues with her that even though those are the orders, she can’t agree with them. Karin tells her that she has to, but Priecia refuses. Priecia tells her that her skills are for protecting and saving and what use are they if she can’t.

‘Fortunately’, something interrupts them. An Angel appears from the sky. Not just any Angel, a massive Phagiel. It aims at the Windland forces.

Fel goes into shock as the Phagiel charges its gun and screams. The Phagiel fires. A barrier barely protects Priecia’s group, but everybody else in range is decimated. Litte is amazed at the power it displayed and managed to protect her own group as well.

Kagura lowers the barrier and Priecia is thankful that Hyaweh and the others are alright. The Phagiel charges its gun and prepares to fire again. Priecia is shocked at the horrific power of it. Karin tells them that they have to retreat. Hyaweh tries to reach for Priecia, telling her they need to go, but she slaps his hand away, again saying that she hates him and won’t listen.

He calls her an idiot and says that they need to run away. Priecia tells him that it’s something he’d never understand. Hyaweh tries to say that winning is impossible, but Priecia holds up a hand and tells him that’s enough. He doesn’t understand her feelings at all. She turns and runs at the Phagiel.

It follows her and aims its gun at her. She leaps into the air, thinking that she no longer cares. She attacks with her Glow Rush and manages to hit the barrel as it fires. The shot disperses the beam and sends a rain of fire all over the place, one of them destroying the APC that was carrying Bridget and Filia. The Phagiel raises its gun and slams it downward on Priecia.

Hyaweh runs over and picks her up. The Phagiel points its gun point blank at the two. He puts her back down and draws his sword in rage. He attacks, the sword becoming a spear of light. Hyaweh flies into the head of the Phagiel, but is blasted backwards when he hits. The attacks still destroys the Angel.

Hyaweh reaches out to the fallen Priecia and collapses next to her. Bridget (safely with Filia) thinks happily that this sword is exactly the amazing thing that Gerod sent her to find. Litte recognizes the sword as “Ala Gladius,” The Angel Bane.