After Rudy tells Elinalise he has to go after all, she decides to accompany him. When he tells Shizuka, she shows him the secret locations of teleportation circles that could get him and Lize to Begaritt and back well before Sylphie gives birth.
Knowledge of this shortcut doesn’t make his goodbyes to Sylphie any easier, and while she puts on a brave face and assures him she’ll be fine, her trembling hands and tears upon watching him departing show that it will be rough, even with Aisha and Norn looking after her.
Cliff also promises to marry Lize and buy a house with her upon her return, proving she’s not just a youthful indiscretion to him.
Once Rudy and Lize depart from Sharia, it becomes a grand adventure outing in the best traditions of Mushoku Tensei. In a deep, foreboding forest they find a stone that, once unsealed, reveals the entrance to a dungeon that contains the teleportation circle.
They step through it together and end up on the other side. Lize tests to make sure they can return, and is gone a worryingly long time, indicating there’s a time lag. On the surface, a harsh desert environment awaits them, seething with heat bands.
On this journey Lize brought the chastity belt that reduces the effects of her sex curse, but it’s a backed-up Rudy who has a momentary breach of discretion. He’s able to resist Lize, but outside he finds a beautiful woman and walks toward her.
Of course, it isn’t a woman, but a succubus, and Rudy would have been dead meat if it weren’t for Lize’s quick thinking and quicker dispatch of said succubus. Afterwards, Rudy is still suffering the effects of the monster’s pheromones, and bonks him on the head, later teasing him for suggesting they “get dirty” while in his delirium.
Days consist of trudging through the seemingly endless sands, encountering strange new creatures and monsters, and eventually come upon an oasis with a bazaar and good food. When Rudy uses his stone conjuring to convey them to the top of a cliff, they encounter two ferocious gryphons, and demonstrate excellent teamwork in defeating them.
That night while dining on roast gryphon chops, Lize licks her fingers and is scolded by Rudy in a way that reminds her of Zenith, who was also sixteen when she first met her. Rudy mentions that Paul wanted to apologize to Lize; he stops short of asking her to tell him the sordid love drama that resulted in Lize to this day vowing she’d never forgive Paul.
By the end of the episode they’ve arrived at the town of Rapan, which is dramatically situated beneath the soaring ribcage of some ancient colossal critter (and also reminds me of Eren’s final Titan form). Within Rapan is the Labyrinth where he hopes to find Paul and Zenith.
As for this episode, it was some really solid adventurer slice-of-life in the desert, immersive world-building, and showed us just how much Rudy and Lize’s relationship has matured—all succubus-related bouts of horniness aside.
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