Hakaze prepares to transport back to the past to investigate Aika’s murder and report back. Her findings will determine against whom Mahiro exacts his revenge, even if Hakaze herself turns out to be the murderer. She transports her flesh to the skeleton on the island and uses magic to travel to Aika’s hometown. She runs into her on the street just after she arrives four hours before she meets her end, but it’s no coincidence. Aika follows Hakaze to a rooftop and introduces herself as the true Mage of Exodus, then draws a massive magic sword.
Aha…of course Aika is the real Mage of Exodus! Without going into excessive detail (or resorting to whiteboard diagrams), it makes sense after everything we’ve seen. Aika always seemed to possess an aura of wisdom and sageiness beyond her years, and being the mage explains that. If she wants to confront her Genesis counterpart (no, not Collins), it also explains why Hakaze would fall for Yoshino. The desire to determine the truth for the man she loves led her right into Aika’s burdock-like clutches. The moment they cross paths is filled with tension, and that’s before Aika tells Hakaze who she really is.
As soon as Hakaze announced she was going back in time, the gears in our heads started to turn. That decision leads to a course of action that leads to her confrontation with and, at least in the first go-round, eventual killing of Aika, which results in the present timeline these past twenty episodes inhabited. It’s a chicken-and-egg paradox: Hakaze becomes the very person she was looking for: Aika’s killer. She needs to die as she did before if the timeline is to be preserved…but judging from the size of that sword, killing her won’t be easy, assuming that’s what Hakaze intends to do.
Rating: 9 (Superior)
P.S. Samon finds another opportunity to demonstrate his singular wit – that wig joke was GOLD.
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