Episode 16 of Kusuriya no Hitorigoto , released on April 25, stands out as one of the best of the second season. Packed with revelations and potential clues, it surprises from start to finish. Furthermore, it becomes clear that the intrigues and mysteries developed throughout the plot are much deeper than we could have imagined.
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"Fomented Evil ," the title of episode 16, lives up to the discoveries presented throughout the story. At the beginning of the episode, Luomen, the apothecary's adoptive father and the Inner Palace's temporary physician, prepares a newsletter about the Palace's pressing issues.
The purpose of the leaflet is for ladies-in-waiting and servants to be aware of which substances are dangerous and to avoid using them, such as lead bleaching powder, which was the reason for Consort Lihua's illness in the first season.
Maomao then discovers that Luomen had been publishing the same leaflets when he was a doctor at the Palace, over twenty years ago. The girl sees this as a problem, because although her father's intention was simply to help, the information contained in the leaflet could teach people with bad intentions about the use of dangerous substances.
Kusuriya no Hitorigoto resumes the mystery from the beginning of the season
In the episode "The Crystal Palace, " Maomao discovered for the third time that Miss Shin, the former head of the Crystal Palace's ladies-in-waiting, had created an abortifacient to harm Consort Lihua. However, she lacked the necessary knowledge to create such a substance, leading Maomao to suspect that Shin had received help from someone experienced.
After learning about the pamphlets written by her father, Maomao concludes that the person who helped Shin is likely someone who has lived in the Palace for a long time. This reminds the apothecary of Shenlü, a servant who works at the Palace clinic. In case you don't remember, Shenlü is the lady who asked Maomao to find the sick servant in the episode "The Crystal Palace," for the third time . So, to try to understand what happened, Maomao visits the clinic and talks to her.
With this, Maomao gathers each piece of information and connects the dots. The girl realizes there's a good chance Shenlü is the one who asked the caravan traders for the abortifacient ingredients and helped Shin. However, since she has no proof, she decides to dismiss this suspicion. As Maomao is ready to leave, a voice catches her attention. Afterward, the protagonist discovers one of the episode's most surprising revelations.
The true identity of the new eunuch of the Inner Palace (episode spoiler)
The voice that catches her attention is known and described by Maomao as "A voice too high-pitched for a man, too deep for a woman." The one who appears and surprises the protagonist is Suirei, the servant who faked her death in the first season.
Thus, it is revealed that the new eunuch at the Imperial Palace, the one popular with the servants, is actually Suirei in disguise. All the events of the episode are proof that Kusuriya no Hitorigoto is very well constructed, as nothing is left behind. In the end, Suirei threatens Maomao and insists that she accompany her outside the Inner Palace.
In the first season, after the revelation that Suirei had faked her own death, both her motive and her whereabouts remained unclear—something the anime finally revisits now. Also, during her visit to the clinic, Maomao finds a book on insects, which contains an illustration of a species identical to the one used in Jinshi's introduction as the Moon Spirit.
With this, the apothecary concludes that the book belongs to Shisui, since, during a conversation between the two, the girl mentions that she learned about the insect through a book. This discovery makes Maomao suspicious of several things, such as Shisui, being a servant, owning such an expensive book.
Furthermore, the protagonist recalls that the girl has a notebook made of paper, an expensive and difficult-to-obtain material, and also knows how to read and write, something unusual among imperial servants. All this speculation about Maomao is a sign that the work Kusuriya no Hitorigoto will soon reveal something about Shisui.
The end of the episode brings something unexpected and reveals the return of a character
The revelations don't stop there; Kusuriya no Hitorigoto brings one surprise after another. At the end of the episode, Lakan, a high-ranking strategist, invites Ka Zuigetsu—the Emperor's younger brother—and Shishou for a conversation. During the meeting, Lakan mentions the weapon used in the assassination attempt on the Emperor's brother. He also asks how the men responsible obtained such a weapon.
Soon after, he says that whoever was interrogating one of the suspects overdid it, and now the person can't talk. Then, Lakan asks if Shishou knows anything about the assassination attempt, and he denies it, saying that if he did, he would have reported it already. However, there's an intriguing moment in the scene. As they're leaving, the strategist offers him grape juice and comments that the red color tends to be quite pronounced in a glass.
However, when the juice is served, everyone except Shishou notices that it's green. The man shows no reaction to the juice, suggesting he may be unable to differentiate between red and green, similar to the case explained in the episode " The Temple of Choice."
Furthermore, the final scene reveals that the person dressed as Ka Zuigetsu during the encounter with Lakan is actually Ah-Duo, the Emperor's former consort. And if you hadn't noticed the resemblance between her and the Jinshi until now, this episode proves it.
With so many revelations, Kusuriya no Hitorigoto delivered one of the best episodes of the second season. Beyond the standoff between Maomao and Suirei, there's the mystery surrounding Shisui and Shishou. The anime increasingly shows us that nothing is left behind, and that every detail is thoughtful and meaningful within the narrative. And it's precisely this, combined with incredible animation, that cemented the anime as one of the best of its season.
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