We finally find out what happened to Heronia. They had her locked up in a pretty cushy room, but for what exactly? Ah well, let’s go through the episode note by note. You could say Pii attacked the prince, but you can’t prove that Heronia made the light elemental do it. Other than that, Heronia simply made a scene. But this is a country where a king’s word is law, so I doubt it really matters whether or not Heronia has actually committed a crime.

— Even now, Heronia is delusional. Again, this would’ve been a better anime if both her and Bertia weren’t so slow on the uptake. It’s actually ironic in a way. You expect the characters from the otome game to be on rails — to lack the ability to grow and develop. You expect the isekai’d characters to be dynamic. Instead, we’ve flipped them completely. But since we’re near the end of the season, I suspect Heronia will finally realize the error of her ways.

— Could Cecil have tried to intervene a little earlier? Could he have tried to talk some sense into the girl? I’ve thought about that. He did try to talk to Bertia, and she stonewalled him every time. Maybe he could’ve tried to talk to Heronia, but he seemed to disgust her on a fundamental level. I also wonder if it would’ve mattered. Again, we have to consider what the author wants to do with this story, and I don’t think they ever wanted either Bertia or Heronia to wise up.

— Cecil then explains the obvious: he’s already human, Bertia was the one who did it, he wouldn’t have been happy with the original timeline, Heronia is nothing like her original character so this is all her fault, blah blah blah. Bertia and Heronia spent years trying to hook him up with the latter. Years. Not once did one of them consider talking things out with him. Again, selectively stupid for the plot. Don’t get me wrong, I like the premise of the show; it’s why I chose to cover it from start to finish. I like the idea of a character trying to live up to her villainess role but failing. I just think there’s untapped potential here. I just think she should’ve realized halfway through the season that things weren’t playing out the way she was expecting them to. But Bertia never wised up. Neither did Heronia. It’s so bizarre unless we just accept that they’re utterly stupid. The author did not go hard enough in exploring all the possibilities of the premise. They had a destination in mind from the start: villainess = good, heroine = bad.

— And sure, Cecil was always the main character. He could change and adapt. I know that. At the same time, however, why should this prevent anyone else from also changing and adapting to the circumstances?

— There’s something to be said about Heronia’s entitlement. She expected the world to just give her everything on a silver platter, which is why she stumbled. Sure. But again, this story spans several years. Not once did she ever reflect on her actions? Not once did she think, “Weird, I can charm the nobodies, but none of the important characters from the game seem to like me…”

— Cecil finally delivers the coup’d grace: Pii-chan is dead. Her only friend, really. Also delusional and static as a character. Literally sacrificed himself for her without even knowing if the gambit would work. Never once considered talking sense into Heronia. If he did, we certainly didn’t see it.

— Still, Heronia gets a consolation prize.

— Honestly, the whole cast is undercooked outside of Cecil.

— Like in a lot of shows with this setting, Heronia’s punishment is to live the rest of her days in a convent. There are some historical basis in this. Basically, if you fuck up, you’re encouraged to turn to religion. And that’s why Heronia isn’t headed to just any convent. Rather, Cecil suggests that she should pick the one to the far north, because it’s more closely aligned with the element of light? What’s the thought here? That Pii-chan could somehow come back through nothing more than fervent prayer?

— Bertia is such an airhead.

— Has Bertia really grown and changed over the course of this series? Or is she just redirecting her delusions?

— This is strangely ominous for such a happy ending. In fact, this does feel like an ending. Are we wrapping things up in just eleven episodes? Can’t be, right? I thought I saw somewhere that it’s meant to have the standard twelve. So what could we possibly cover in the final episode? Are we going to spend the entire wedding on it? Hell, we’re not even through with this one, and it already feels final.

— Later, Cecil has a heart-to-heart with his father, but like every other important conversation in this series, it feels like they should’ve had this talk a while ago. Only now does the king ask his son if he’s truly happy with Bertia. Bruh, you never thought to check up on the kid until now?

— They proceed to talk about the origins of their bloodline, and how the Hero King was just like Cecil: brilliant but easily obsessed. Basically, you need to direct their obsession towards something healthy, like loving one’s wife or whatever. I don’t find this revelation all that interesting, to be honest.

— My only question is… if they have the propensity to become utterly foolish kings (or just simply disappeared), how has this kingdom lasted for so long? How has this bloodline continued to this day? The king literally says that Bertia has the fate of the kingdom in her hands. You only need one self-destructive idiot to destroy a country. Trust me, it’s happening right now!

— Cecil decides that he won’t tell Bertia about any of this. He wants her to choose to be by his side out of love and not because she feels she has to. Hm… that’s noble of him, but if he truly means that, why did he kinda trick her into getting that “you’re forever mine” brand?

— Feels like both mom and dad should’ve been bigger characters in this show. Again, everyone’s undercooked other than Cecil.

— The episode tries to leave us on a cliffhanger. It looks like some kid wants to prevent the wedding. Judging by his hair, it has to be Bertia’s brother, right? So not a real antagonist or anything. Just a kid being a kid. Essentially, the twelfth and last episode is set to be a light-hearted victory lap. Ah well.