WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Episode 22 of Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon, "The Stolen Seal," now streaming on Crunchyroll, Funimation, Animelab and Hulu.
After several episodes of lurking in the background, the mysterious and beautiful Zero finally makes her play in Episode 22 of Yashahime. Throughout "The Stolen Seal," we get a lot more information about just who Zero is and what she's capable of. Most importantly, we learn her connection to Kirinmaru: she's his older sister.
Her relationship to him seems distant, however; after seeing the cut on his cheek left by Towa, she comments on how Kirinmaru would be in even greater danger if he faced off against the Half-Demon sisters in their full Demon forms. A good sister would make sure that never happens, but what does Zero do in this episode? She sets out to unleash Setsuna's Full Demon potential, of course.
It is likely that Zero had feelings for the Great Dog Demon, and this is what's spurring her on. In the last episode, she cried when she heard he died, and at the start of this one, they exchange some cheeky banter in a flashback. This would explain why she is potentially moving against her brother -- if she blamed him for the death of her beloved Great Dog Demon, then it makes sense that she'd want to put Kirinmaru down.
Zero sets out to remove Setsuna's protective seal and succeeds handily. Then, she traps Miroku and forces the magic words that control the seal out of him. Miroku quickly detects her power but also notes that he doesn't sense Demon energy. Despite this, it seems like Zero's magic isn't coming from anywhere good, so it'll be interesting to learn more about it.
For the next step of her plan, Zero enchants Towa into restraining Setsuna. Towa, it turns out, is vulnerable to Zero's magic without her Rainbow Pearl, casting another shadow on the Towa-Riku relationship. Just how aware was Riku of the danger he was putting Towa in? Either way, with Towa captured and Moroha ready to attack, Zero reveals that those tied magically to her will die if she is harmed. This is an important moment, as the scene flashes to show Rin, asleep in the Tree of Ages. It would appear that her magic sleep is also Zero's doing.
Finally, Zero removes the seal on Setsuna and flees just before Setsuna goes berserk in one of Yashahime's best action scenes. As Setsuna grows demon butterfly wings and flies away, Moroha figures the only way to take her down is with her own Demon power and turns into Beniyasha, but even then she is no match for Setsuna. A Quarter-Demon just can't hang with a Half-Demon in terms of power, it seems -- something Zero alluded to earlier in her conversation with Kirinmaru. The fight is vicious and short, with Moroha getting beat like a toy drum.
In the end, Towa is forced to take a leaf out of Shiori's book and uses her close relationship with Setsuna to calm her down. A deep emotional bond seems to be the only non-magical thing that can snap Setsuna out of this trance, and fortunately, it works here. However, this time the Demon energy does not completely recede, and Setsuna is not put entirely back to normal. She furiously promises revenge on Zero -- something that's likely easier said than done, given how powerful the "Devilish Woman" really is.
And it would seem that Zero isn't done with them either, as she happily states to Riku, with the seal on Setsuna gone, all she needs to do is lay down the finishing touches on Towa. Just what these touches are, we don't yet know, but if her plan is to unleash the full Demonic potential of the already strong Towa, it will certainly have dire consequences.
There is one final reveal in "The Stolen Seal." Back in the present day, Towa's old teacher, Osamu Kirin, watches the Grim Comet on its course through the sky and is vaguely surprised that it's still around in this era. With a name like Kirin, and similar long hair to Kirinmaru, it seems obvious that there is some big connection between the two. Given we've only seen Kirinmaru with a mask, it's likely they might even be the one and the same. This is a potentially big reveal -- after all if Kirinmaru is still alive in the 2000s, what does that mean for the Feudal era?
There are only two episodes left in this season of Yashahime, and the preview for next week promises some big reveals. For a show that's been accused of spinning its wheels, things are certainly moving along now, with our Half-Demon Princesses in very real danger.
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