With goblins in the area, Goblin Slayer heads off and meets up with Priestess and some of the other Silver ranked adventurers. The gang determines that the goblins are tunneling to the surface so Goblin Slayer leads most of the veterans underground to eliminate the majority of the horde. Heavy Warrior volunteers to stay behind to protect some of the defenseless trainees. Priestess suspects that the goblins’ real targets are the rookies that are heading home and are vulnerable to a surprise attack so she rallies the rookies we actually care about to find and protect them.
I was curious how Goblin Slayer would feel about seeing goblins lurk around in his old home again. The most we get however is a brief flashback. Other than that, it’s business as usual. I would’ve liked to see Goblin Slayer have a much stronger reaction to this development but it is rare for him to lose his cool. Last episode, it’s mentioned that Goblin Slayer is busying himself to avoid thinking about the village so we can assume that he’s doing the same here by focusing squarely on the threat and not his own feelings. One interesting move that the show does make for this plot is having Goblin Slayer drain the lake near the village to flood the tunnels. By doing that, Goblin Slayer is forced to move on from his attachment to the area. He can’t be mad about people building over the remains of his home when he himself makes a permanent change to it. Goblin Slayer making the call with no hesitation is a little weird but then again, he would choose killing goblins and saving lives over preserving the past.
Obviously, Priestess taking charge here is the breakthrough she needs to get a rank promotion (she’s now Rank 8: Steel). It does make more sense to have the rank up happen here as opposed to the last quest, which went south and had Priestess surrounded by Silver ranked adventurers. That said, Priestess doesn’t really do anything fancy here. She casts her Holy Light spell once, gives orders to the Porcelai0n ranked adventurers, and that’s about it. She doesn’t do an awful job, far from it, but there isn’t much that would challenge her capabilities either. That said, I still think the promotion is earned. You look at some of the past adventures in the series and you can make the argument that they wouldn’t have been a success without Priestess. Really, Priestess should’ve been promoted a while go.
Aside from Priestess’s promotion, this episode puts a bow on Wizard Boy’s arc. During the rescue operation, Wizard Boy takes some advice he got from Dwarf Shaman (Yuichi Nakamura) to heart and he uses a spell to deafen the goblins, forcing the goblins to flee. With how obnoxious this kid has been, it’s funny that his big moment would be him screaming as loud as he can. I’m kind of shocked to see someone not kill goblins, if only because that’s part of what I signed up for with this show, but it’s the right move for Wizard Boy to make. By prioritizing on protecting the others and not killing goblins, Wizard Boy realizes that the latter isn’t really what he wants to do as an adventurer.
With that realization, we see Wizard Boy depart on his own adventure. I wouldn’t mind a permanent sixth member to the main party but considering Wizard Boy’s personality, it’s for the best that the show limit his appearances. I like that Wizard Boy wants to slay a dragon now. I don’t know if he realizes that connection to his sister but it’s nice seeing him aim to fulfill his sister’s dream, even if inadvertently. Funny how Wizard Boy says he’d rather be caught dead than copy Goblin Slayer when that’s music to the latter’s ears. The last thing Goblin Slayer wants, apart from the goblins still being alive, is someone following the same dark path he’s taken. He’d rather have the newcomers aspire for something grander so he’s elated with Wizard Boy’s decision.
Rhea Fighter accompanying him is an odd move. I can see her personality being a fun contrast to Wizard Boy’s but these two barely interacted with each other so I don’t buy into this team-up. Judging by his reaction, I don’t think Wizard Boy does either. I guess this scene is worth it for Goblin Slayer’s reaction. I never thought I’d ever hear him laugh but here we are and to be fair, it is a very touching moment.
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