Episode 44: Akun Me Chai
Summary:
As Erin and the others travel to Lazal, Kiriku recalls their conversation from the night before. He told her she’d have some degree of freedom if she followed Damiya’s orders. Erin responded with how she had hoped to raise Lilan and the others as if they were in the wild; however, now she can’t do anything for them and is taking away their freedom. Kiriku stated people are powerless, and that it’s not sinful to abide by one’s fate. Erin asked him whether the things she did with Lilan were wrong, and, at the same time, accidentally dropped a knife. He asked her about it, but she had said that if things came down to it, she would take responsibility to prevent another disaster from happening.
The scene shifts to Ake, down in the Touda grotto. Wadan is hurrying everyone to make sure things are ready for the Grand Duke, and an older Chok makes a sly comment about him acting like Chief since Hasson is bedridden. Near Soyon’s execution site, Saju and her daughter pay their respects to the presumed deceased Erin and her mother. She’s asked why there’s a grave here when a proper cemetery is at the village; her daughter also wonders if it’s because they’re “Akun Me Chai,” a term she learned from Wadan. Saju tells her not to call Erin that, saying she was her childhood friend. Chok then arrives and pays his respects along with them.
Rain falls overhead as Erin reaches the palace. She is left alone with Damiya. He asks about her injury, and Erin tells him it no longer hurts as he locks the door. Damiya marvels at her courage to not use the mute whistle despite the event; however, Erin states that her and Lilan’s friendship no longer exists. Damiya says the most important thing is that they obey her words, something he is envious of. They have a seat, and he updates her on the situation regarding Shunan and the Queen. He claims that Shunan will have the Queen devoured if the miracle doesn’t happen and she doesn’t marry him. Erin tells him to get to the point, and he orders her to make an army of beast-lords. He thinks it would be an amazing balance of having the beast-lords against the Grand Duke’s Touda.
Back with Saju, her daughter asks her about Erin, and she tells her how she was kind and smart, still in disbelief over her “death.” Things shift back to the palace, where Damiya explains how the country’s distortion began because the sides were not balanced; thus, one side will be crushed and soon fall apart. However, with an army of beast-lords, they can restore that balance. He claims this is his only desire, and that once this is done, a civil war isn’t necessary. His words remind her of King Ophalon, who contributed to the tragedy. Erin is fully aware she’s being taken advantage of. Damiya mentions her origin, which gets her thinking. She tells him it’s impossible to form a beast-lord army, for she is the only one who can control them. Erin brings up the phrase, “Akun Me Chai,” which stands for a child born from an untraditional union. She explains her parents’ backgrounds, and contributes her “powers” to control beast-lords from her mother’s origin. Damiya doesn’t believe her, but Erin confidently says she can prove it, which injures his skepticism.
Erin stays the rainy night in the shed, with Lilan’s family. In the morning, she approaches Damiya, Ouri, and others, harp in hand. Ouri mentions her peculiarity for staying with the beast-lords all night. Erin prepares to demonstrate her “power,” noting that if anyone could do it, then all it would take is to repeat the same tune. She offers Ouri the chance to disprove her theory, and he reluctantly accepts.
Erin then approaches the largest beast-lord. It becomes hostile when she enters its sensitive area: its shadow. Gazing directly into its eyes, she plays her harp, discarding the same fear of when she was attacked by Lilan. To everyone’s surprise, it eventually stops growling and lowers itself to the ground in front of her. Ouri is then taught how to play the same tune. She tells him to immediately retreat if he senses danger, and that she’ll back him up with the mute whistle. Despite his melody, the beast-lord remains hostile, and lashes out when a frustrated Ouri steps forward. Erin fortunately blows the mute whistle in time. Hence, Damiya’s skepticism is fully broken.
Back in his room, Damiya tells Erin he won’t give up on his dream. He thinks there may be other ways, but realizes it would take too long. For now, he believes having her ride alone on Lilan to depict a miracle at Tahai Aze would suffice. She questions whether the Grand Duke would be foolish enough to believe it, and asserts that the country’s plague won’t go away with a single miracle. Damiya argues otherwise, for Shunan has promised a pledge of eternal loyalty on a single miracle. Because of his earnest personality, Shunan will definitely honor his word.
Erin still plans to refuse, but Damiya reveals his ace: the taking of Kazalm. She asks him what he plans to do, and he tells her it depends on her answer. Damiya threatens to go after Yuuyan, and wonders how she’ll feel seeing their execution. Should Erin agree to his proposal, she would save both herself and her friends. Also, he will not permit her an audience with the Queen this time. With these cards on the table, he asks her to think carefully. Damiya goes on to say that if the Grand Duke became the country’s King, then the skills to control beast-lords would be sealed away. Unbeknownst to Damiya, these words actually provide Erin with a hopeful possibility to save Lilan and her family.
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My Thoughts:
I wonder how Erin managed to calm a beast-lord she had just met? My only theory is that having her eyes fixated on it while carefully managing its personal space were factors. It looked like Ouri got ahead of himself and rushed in, hence causing the immediate backlash. One thing to note is that Erin didn’t hesitate to the blow the mute whistle. I’m curious to see how she and Lilan will get along at Lazal, but unfortunately Lilan did a lot of sleeping this episode. I’m surprised Eku didn’t start pounding the cage since they were in a different place, but I guess he’s okay as long as his family is with him.
I thought (or was hoping) Erin was going to use the knife on Damiya at some point. I want her to drop those suicidal thoughts. She needs to find another way other than death. Although, I guess in this type of situation one has to be prepared for the worst. Maybe Kiriku will finally step in and lend a hand; he’s thinking about her a lot nowadays.
Erin’s play on her origin was clever. Way to take advantage of everyone’s ignorance! That’s what they get for making assumptions. It also looks like Erin is straying close to Shunan’s goal, but for different reasons. If the Grand Duke becomes King, then beast-lords won’t have to be used for war, thus preventing the tragedy. I’m not sure how she’ll contribute to that happening, though. Maybe she’ll fly over all the Touda and have a talk with Shunan? Also, wouldn’t he get suspicious if he saw someone other than the Queen riding on a beast-lord? Maybe the idea is to have Erin fly high enough to be obfuscated, but characters in this series have good sight (e.g. soldiers spotted King Ophalon on a beast-lord).
I still don’t get what Damiya is trying to do. He claims he’s trying to restore the balance of their country (obviously he could be lying since he’s telling Erin), but simply raising Touda to counter-balance the Grand Duke’s healthy supply is silly. Also, why would he need to assassinate the Queen? I’m sure he just wants to be in control.
Uh oh! Kazalm is in the hands of the enemy. I wondered if those guards were Sezan, but based on the preview, I assume they’re not. The new guards are probably the masked guys.
Lastly, and probably the person I was looking forward to most this episode: Saju! We got to see Wadan, too, who looks about the same with a similar personality. Chok looks like an average joe. Most surprising was seeing Saju already have a walking and talking kid with Chok. That’s pretty quick! Sounds like Hasson, the Chief, is still around, too. One thing to note is that everyone thinks Erin is dead. I hope she and Saju reunite by the end. It would be a nice touch.
This episode’s title, “Akun Me Chai,” had me scratching my head until I saw the episode. They certainly have some interesting names for things. In any case, it looks like next episode’s focus is more Ial-related, where things are heating up internally at the palace. Damiya assigning new guards should raise red flags for all, so hopefully Ial and his buddies will do something. I’m curious if Seimiya knows about the personnel change? We’ll have to see it, next time, on Kemono no Souja Erin: “Bird in a Cage!”
Tags: anime, drama, fantasy, Kemono no Souja Erin
