North x Northwest
Chapter 102.5 RECAP

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Hi guys!

As promised, we wrote a recap for volume 3. We hope it helps to refresh your memories before we dive into volume 4.

Happy reading and see you Monday!

Love,

Pru and Formidable

Vol. 3

We start this volume back in Marchand, where Sagastar from the Western Navy is interrogating the Southern Navy about the sighting of their disguised Admiral. After hearing that Ed was abducted by some criminals, the Navy goes into a state of disarray and begins a large search party. In the meantime, Ed and Cesar are bickering with one another about contacting the fleet to prevent a disaster. In addition, Cesar stole Ed’s medicine to gain the upper hand in their deal and give off a threat to stay away from Lil, as he is seriously suspecting Ed has feelings for her. Cesar is also trying to convince Lil to quit the pirate life and settle down with him.

Eventually, Lil, unable to refute Cesar, agrees and visits the League hideout to announce her retirement with an aching heart. The melancholy that comes with this loss drives Lil to drink. Ed replaces her in her drunken state and they have a more honest conversation on the beach as Lil’s guard is down, this is when Ed realises the loneliness and sorrow Lil is feeling. It’s also the first opportunity for Ed to inspect her necklace more closely.

The Bell Rock sets sail to Serlio the next day. Part of the deal with the League, to ensure they have a safe retirement instead of being chased for the rest of their lives, is for Lil and Cesar to hand over all their gold stored in the bank, and the Bell Rock. To accomplish this they need to replace a bank and have enough crew for their journey, with Marchand being monitored by the Western Navy, the Bell Rock heads to Serlio, an island more Northeast.

On their voyage, they encounter a suspicious ship, the Marian. A small battle occurred and the Bell Rock came on top as the winner, but not without Lil getting injured. After everything settles down, Cesar replaces a tank on the ship, but contrary to the previous one, this one wasn’t empty. Lil and Cesar discover a female mermaid in the tank. Lil then investigates the captain’s room and interrogates the captain, Jacques Poussin. From this conversation, they learn that the Garni association is carrying out expeditions in the hope to catch mermaids. Lil wants to immediately free the mermaid, but Cesar wasn’t really in the mood to help her. With his conservative beliefs, he doesn’t see a reason to free the mermaid in the first place. So Lil has no other choice but to go to Ed, with his help she manages to communicate with the mermaid and in the end free it. In a way to express its gratitude, the mermaid, named Bellus, leads them into the sea to show a part of its world.

Back on the ship, Cesar’s sensitive state results in another fight between him and Lil. Lil felt wronged by his suspicion that something is happening between her and Ed. Cesar acknowledges that his behaviour towards her wasn’t fair, but does notice a change in her reactions. After reconciling, Cesar pays Ed a visit. Their discussion about Lil gives Ed a bit of a hint about what’s going on between them. He concludes that Cesar’s conservative mindset will eventually be the downfall of their relationship.

This volume ends when Ed pays a visit to Lil. As he gives her some treatment for her wounds, he notices that the necklace Lil is wearing stopped working. Suddenly Lil wasn’t in the shape of a man anymore but in that of a woman. In a panic Ed searched for Lil’s necklace, only to see that she was still wearing it…

Some quick and important trivia:

– The oil used to attract messenger pigeons was among the medicines Cesar took from Ed.

– The necklace Lil’s wearing probably belongs to Forma, the goddess of beauty.

– The wearer of the necklace doesn’t get to see the change. So it’s unknown if Ed indeed changed or not.

– Most of the pirates of the League don’t like Lil too much, due to her being of mixed blood and they look down on her because she rules without the whip.

– Lil didn’t become a captain through the traditional means (votation), but because she already had a ship of her own.

– Throughout the whole volume, cracks in the relationship between Lil and Cesar become more visible. Their fights are mostly about their different beliefs.

– Before boarding the ship, Cesar informs Courant that he suspects that one of the sailors keeps sneaking into his cabin to search for something. After this, Courant treats Ed with utmost hostility.

– Mermaids have silvery bluish skin and blue hair. Their eyes are black with blue irises and their eyebrows contain 3 thick sensory hairs. They have human-like features but they’re less sharp. Also for them to be able to see in the dark, mermaids have the ability to emit light.

– Mermaids communicate with sign language and Goe.

– Mermaids and humans can have children together. The mermaid gene is in this exchange the most dominant one, so the children will be born in the shape of a mermaid with more human-like features.

– Bell Rock is the most popular mermaid known to men. She’s of mixed blood.

– Ed learned to speak the ancient language and sign language in the Clairaut.

– Duke Mireille intends to capture mermaids to boast his status within the empire and strengthen his relationship with the emperor.

– Venua Obernyu puts pressure on Mireille to replace Liloa.

New characters in this volume:

Bellus;

– Female mermaid freed by Lil and Ed.

The Southern League:

Jarles and Valtano;

– Captains within the League.

Garni Association:

Jacques Poussin;

– Captain of the Marian, hired by the Duke.

Places:

Serlio Islands;

– Imperial outpost in the Northeast with a bank.

Loti;

– Principality where Cesar and Lil are planning to settle down.

Wind-free zone;

– Area on the sea where there is close to no wind, it lays somewhere Southwest of Serlio and is the home to the mermaids.

Others:

Goe;

– Goe is a language spoken in ancient times.

Translators point of view:

Dynamics explained:

– In this volume, we see the progression of Lil’s view towards Ed. The very first trace of her trust towards him was when he caught a bullet for her, leading her to finally talk to him openly for the first time in the Panichi beach, during sunset and at the middle of the night. The way Ed helped Lil free the mermaid also made her fully trust him now, as she no longer jerks her body whenever he treats her.

– Lil sees Ed as a companion she’s met for the first time in her life. It seems that for the longest time, she felt like she’s the only one who understands herself, but having met and talked to Ed openly made her feel she’s not alone anymore. She even felt upset about it, thinking about once she joins Cesar in the duchy, her journey with such a companion like Ed would be short-lived.

– Ed is equally worried about the truth he’s keeping from Lil. While he does his best to win her trust, there are 2 critical things he hasn’t disclosed yet. The fact that he’s the Admiral and the fact that the Duke of Mireille requested him to retrieve Liloa (but the latter one had made it clear that he won’t comply). Ed impulsively joined Bell Rock with the intent of confirming if the Liloa he met before is still the same Liloa now, one with vigour and vitality. He has no backup plans if Liloa replaces out his secrets.

– Contrary to Lil’s and Ed’s growing bond, we see the relationship between Lil and Cesar deteriorating. Despite all the action, this really was a volume where we were able to take a look into everybody’s heads and see their true thoughts and feelings. The key reason why Lil and Cesar seemed to be growing apart from each is due to their different beliefs. And those beliefs are starting to clash more and more with each other. Lil strives for equality and freedom, for both slaves and women, whereas Cesar is stuck with his conservative ideas. For Cesar, men and women aren’t on equal grounds with each other, even though he still treats women nicely, they will never be given the same respect he has for his fellow men. The hard thing here is that Cesar doesn’t know that he is at fault, if you can even say that someone is at fault here. Cesar is following the norms and values taught to him by day today life, Lil is actually the odd one with her rebellion against what’s considered normal. In Cesar’s eyes, he is already extremely lenient with Lil, considering the current dynamics between a man and a woman. What isn’t helping is that Cesar appears to be missing a sense of empathy for Lil, as he doesn’t see the chain he has fastened around her neck. And therefore her inability to leave or refute him. Or he just doesn’t want to see it…

Theories:

– So, did anyone notice the sudden rain fall after days/weeks of drought? Wouldn’t it be amazing if it’s all due to Bellus’ blessing? (“Orsayus sit tibi praesidium.” = “May Orsay be your protection.”)

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November 20, 2022NxNWEnter your comment here…

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