The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 7

Maybe I Was Wrong About Veronica

Like most of this series, The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 7 was fine. There were some interesting parts. But, Mahoyome doesn’t usually do anything that stands out. It’s not like it has great animation, characters, or story.

I know there are going to be some Mahoyome fans out there who don’t want to hear that. But, it’s the truth. If you want complex characters and relationships, there are plenty of better anime. However, an uninteresting character isn’t the same as a predictable character. And it seems like my predictions about Veronica may have been wrong.

I assumed Veronica would be a spoiled rich girl. She’s from the Rickenbacker family, one of the Seven Shields. And she has an entourage following her around. Philomela is a member of this entourage. And based on what we’ve seen of them so far, she seems to be subservient to Veronica.

It now seems like Veronica isn’t actually the problem. She’s probably still proud to be a member of the Rickenbacker family. But, I no longer get the feeling that this makes her spoiled or that she’s a controlling person. Instead, Philomela is the problem.

Whenever we see Philomela, she seems depressed and beaten down. But, we got to see Veronica interacting with her in this episode. And I didn’t get the impression that Veronica is making Philomela feel this way. Veronica actually appeared to be encouraging Philomela to make friends — notably Chise.

Additionally, we learned that Veronica is the reason Philomela is at the college. And the implication wasn’t that Veronica wanted Philomela there to serve her. The implication was that Veronica wanted Philomela to attend the college as a student — as her equal. Based on all this, Veronica views Philomela as a friend.

I Wish I Could Smell Philomela’s Soul

So, what did I mean when I said that Philomela is the problem? Well, I mean that Philomela’s the one twisting her relationship with Veronica. She’s the one pushing this whole master-servant relationship in which she’s the servant. It’s not Veronica’s doing.

Just because Philomela is the problem doesn’t mean she’s at fault, though. We need to think about why Philomela acts this way. And it’s pretty clear that she acts like this due to her upbringing. She was raised to be an expendable servant for higher-class sorcerers.

In Episode 7, we also see how the woman Philomela calls “Grandmother” abuses her. She both verbally and physically abuses Philomela. And I shouldn’t need to point this out, but that likely contributes to how Philomela views herself. She believes she’s not worthy of being on the same level as her peers.

With all that said, Philomela is still very competent. She might not value herself as a person. But, she recognizes that her abilities are exceptional. That’s why she was so surprised when Chise was able to sense her presence in the garden. That’s not something even most sorcerers can do.

However, Philomela’s attendant, Alcyone, explains how Chise may have noticed Philomela’s presence. Philomela can hide herself in a variety of ways. But, something she can’t hide is the scent of her soul. According to Alcyone, mages are sensitive to the emotions of others. And she believes it’s likely that Chise picked up on Philomela’s emotions.

What this all actually means, though, is that Chise has the power of friendship on her side. Since she can sense the emotions of others, she can connect with them on an emotional level, as well. This is how she’s going to befriend Philomela in the end.

Bushcraft With Lucy

At the end of Episode 7, we see Chise and her classmates preparing to go on a camping trip. The logic behind this is that sorcerers need to be resourceful and able to fend for themselves. That’s also why they have many different gym classes.

Remember, the Seven Shields families founded the college to protect magic knowledge. They feared that the war would result in the eradication of sorcerers and mages. So, it makes sense that the college would teach young sorcerers to protect themselves. If things go downhill, they can always flee into the wilderness and survive.

What’s most important to sorcerers is that their knowledge gets passed down. And, I want to assume the same is true for mages. But, that might actually not be the case. Mages aren’t human. They may have been human at one point. But, their use of magic changes them.

Also, I guess I should explain the whole “magic changes them” thing. Magic can also change sorcerers — the blob teacher who spoke to Alice in this episode is one example. A magic experiment gone wrong turned his skin and flesh into jelly. But, that’s only a physical change.

Magic changes mages at a fundamental level. Look at Rahab, Lindel, and Adolf (I think he’s a mage). Rahab and Lindel seem like they’re immortal. And Rahab lives in a dimension disconnected from time itself. Adolf is said to have not aged in a while, so he may be in a similar situation.

And, if we ignore Adolf (because I don’t know if he is a mage) mages don’t typically interact with society. We know Rahab doesn’t. And Lindel is off in the Land of Dragons, or wherever. Elias is the exception among mages and that’s really only thanks to Chise.

Conclusion

What do you think of The Ancient Magus’ Bride Season 2 Episode 7? Has your impression of Veronica changed after this episode? What do you think Philomela’s soul smells like? And do you think mages are concerned with preserving knowledge for future generations? Let me know in the comments.

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My review of Episode 8 is available now.