Impression – Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Darou ka, Episode 10

Episode 10 – “Pass Parade: Procession of Monsters”

It’s the 10th episode, and I feel like we’ve entered the final mini-arc of the series, though I can’t help but feel like Welf’s screen time was shortchanged a bit especially compared to the 3 or so episodes that we got devoted to Lili’s story. After the last episode, I didn’t think too much of it because I figured we’d get more Welf exposition like we did with Lili, but the story jumped straight into the next event which has its pros and cons. It’s bad because it makes the overall character development feel slightly imbalanced, but it’s good that we keep the action rolling.

It also helps that this next arc feels really interesting, particularly in how exciting and tense it is. We even get an entire new handful of characters, under the wing of the god Takemikazuchi, as well as the weird wandering Hermes and his stalwart compatriot Asfi. While we’ve had brief glimpses at other Familia, like the incredibly strong team led by Aiz, this is the first time we’ve really experienced events through the eyes of another guild. What’s especially refreshing is that Takemikazuchi’s guild doesn’t seem as invincible as Aiz’s squad, and in fact they run into a bit of trouble in the dungeon.

In a choice between life and death, the guild decides to throw their enemies onto another unsuspecting party, and I don’t think I can blame them much at all. In a game, I wouldn’t hesitate to replicate what they did. Though, I suppose in real life it’d be a little different, but you’re about to die, you don’t really have too much time to reflect upon moral incongruities. This reminds me of a moment in Etrian Odyssey IV, where I was tasked with finding a missing soldier in a dungeon. When I came upon his location, the game told me that he was screaming and being attacked by monsters. I proceeded to exit the dungeon and rest for an in-game day, before finally returning to his aid. He turned out just fine.