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CHAPTER 83: A PROSPECTIVE REUNION
(Thanks to shrimpy for the translation! The pictures are from the Chinese raw.)
The Island
…unless it’s on purpose Yagi doesn’t know how to make islands look natural.
(Thanks to shrimpy for the translation! The pictures are from the Chinese raw.)
The Island
…unless it’s on purpose Yagi doesn’t know how to make islands look natural.
Clare’s group is traveling West and Cynthia gives us an explanation about the Claymore island and the way the Organization divides the forces there. The land is divided into four parts, with an X in the middle. Three of them (West, North and South) belong to Abyssals and the fourth belongs to the Organization. The top three Claymores and most of the lower ranks are put in the center to shorten the time needed to get to those four parts. However, the inhabitants divide the island differently. They see it as a great cross with a square in the middle. This central square is called Toulouse and Rabona is located in its center. Judging by Cynthia’s comment, Clare’s group must be on the borderline of the Western part, called Lautrec.
Miria’s Strategy
Miria put a leash around Clare’s neck. It’s a cute and smiling leash, but still. Cynthia is not only faster than Clare but has more stamina. She is able to track her over long distances. However, her purpose isn’t to make Clare’s search more difficult. Clare can go anywhere she wishes…as long as she doesn’t go alone. Also, the freedom Miria gave the Ghosts when they split is reinforced here by Cynthia. If Clare wants to stay with Raki, she and Yuma will leave.
The Village
After the discussion the girls go into the village where they sensed the presence of an Awakened. In the square they see three Claymores and two Organization members who are looking for someone. They are probably talking about Renee. While they are talking, the Awakened attacks trying to take them by surprise. It almost succeeds, but Clare and Cynthia are faster. They kill it with the help of Yuma who also dispatches both the Claymores and the Black Coats in a matter of seconds. But right after they congratulate themselves on the fact that no one saw their faces, Rubel steps from the crowd calling Clare ‘old friend’ and offering explanations.
Cynthia
Before this chapter I thought of Cynthia as ‘the-Claymore-with-two-ponytails-instead-of-one’ to tell her apart from Tabitha, but those times are over! We finally get a glimpse into her character and her motives. Cynthia was sent on the Northern Campaign not because she was a troublemaker or half-awakened. It was because she is a bit too committed to her tasks. She feels she is obligated to hunt youma, and it’s probable that while she was in the Organization she killed youma even if the village didn’t have the money to pay.
Also, I was always curious about her abilities. Because she was treated as a background character I always assumed that she has to be rather weak. I was genuinely surprised when I reread some chapters and realized that she’s the former number 14. We know that Helen and Deneve are very strong, so Cynthia should be a force to reckon with. In this chapter, she says that she is faster than Clare and has more stamina. I’m not sure if she says that she’s generally faster or simply faster on long distances. If she was faster on short distances it would mean that she’s a speed demon. Moreover, it seems like she is very good at reading youki; she says that she could follow Clare even if she managed to escape.
Finally, the one thing that sets her apart from other Claymores is her cheerful personality. I’m used to thinking about Claymores as victims with a deep trauma. But Cynthia either doesn’t have a traumatic past or has such a strong character that she managed to retain her optimism despite of that.
Yuma
…so awesome
Yuma, former number 40, fights like a single digit. She can knock out a Claymore with a single kick. Going with my gut feeling I would put her somewhere between number 9 and 6 of Clare’s time (between Jean and Miria), so she’s in good company. Looking at her I’m wondering if she really is that much weaker than the rest or she simply has low self-esteem. She might not be the strongest among Ghosts but it’s likely that she made the greatest progress.Rubel
Rubel has the guts to show his face to Clare. He is risking his life. Sure, he saw that the Ghosts didn’t kill his colleagues but they didn’t get to see Ghosts’ faces. Why is he doing this?! If they didn’t sense him, he should quietly retreat, come back to the Organization and report what he saw. But here he is, showing his face to the deserters and offering information. The only explanation I can think of is that he really is betraying the Organization. My crazy theory is that he’s a spy from ‘the other mainland force’ allied with the Descendants of Dragons. Also, the theory that he is Miria’s informant looks more and more plausible.
Conclusion
Even though Rubel’s appearance is the main attraction of this chapter, the best part for me is the character development for Cynthia and Yuma. Now the only Ghost whose personality is difficult to figure out is Tabitha.
I have a feeling that in the next chapter we won't get to hear what Rubel has to say and we will move to Helen and Deneve or back to Rabona.
Finally, have a Yuma shot!
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