The Eminence in Shadow (Volume 6) – What Beautiful Swordplay…
Cid is focused on his performances in the Bushin Festival as Mundane Mann. He keeps winning and no one can tell how. Cid is delighted with the way it’s going and is planning on ending it in a spectacular fashion too!
The Eminence in Shadow (Volume 6) – What Beautiful Swordplay…
What happened?
Mundane Mann finds himself facing Goldy, The Undefeated Legend thanks to his ability to completely mask his abilities. Goldy only faces opponents he’s sure he can defeat so Cid’s plan is working. He dodges Goldy’s first attack to everyone’s surprise and then ignores a clear opening. Goldy is furious and unleashes all of his power, however, Mundane sneezes and cuts him down where he stands. The crowd is stunned, although Annerose thinks she may have worked him out. After winning another match, Mundane is set to face Annerose in the main tournament. She tells him she knows how he’s winning, which delights Cid because it gives him a chance to take off his weighted cuffs to good effect.
Meanwhile, Rose Oriana is hiding in the tunnels beneath the city after attacking the man that is claiming to be her fiance and somehow controlling the King. There, she runs into Shadow playing the piano. He offers her some more power if she’s willing to fight for what she believes in. She accepts. Back at the tournament, Mundane Mann faces Iris Midgar and stuns her with his faints and confidence. He beats her easily, much to everyone’s shock, but then Rose enters the arena and approaches the Royal Box. She apologises to her father and asks his forgiveness. Even under Perv Asshat’s control, he forgives her. Then, she cuts him down and barely injures Perv. She places her blade against her throat and prepares to join her father. Then, Shadow reveals that he was Mundane Mann.
What did you think?
The Bushin Festival was my favourite arc in the anime and it’s just as much fun in the manga. I love the way Cid plays the fool as Mundane Mann, but he’s also ready to drop some incredible lines. The way he shocked Annerose with his weighted cuffs was amazing and I loved how Beatrix almost saw through his disguise. She even said that she thought Cid would be the strongest warrior there, much to everyone’s astonishment. The big difference between the anime and the manga in this volume was that Rose was going to kill herself after killing the King. That felt like an odd decision given that she failed to kill Perv Asshat too.
The next volume should have the fight between Shadow and Iris and Beatrix. That was another great scene so I’m looking forward to seeing how the manga handles that one. I’m also hoping that it will take things a little further than the anime. I have one more volume to read and then I’ll have to wait until the end of November before the next one is released. This series is so much fun and given the way things are going, I refuse to believe that Cid still doesn’t know much about the Cult of Diablos. Everything feels incredibly deliberate now. At some point, it’s going to have to tell us exactly what is going on. This is a very cool series.
Volume highlights
Other posts in the series
Series Information
| English Title | The Eminence in Shadow |
| Japanese Title | Kage no Jitsuryokusha ni Naritakute! |
| Author | Daisuke Aizawa |
| Artist | Anri Sakano |
| Genres | Action, Comedy, Fantasy, Isekai, Magic |
| Demographic | Seinen |
Anime
Season One
| Season | Season One |
| Released | Fall 2022 |
| Animation Studios | Nexus |
| Episodes | 20 |
Bonus Posts
| Analysis | How Much Does Cid Know? |
| Lists | Five Best Fights |
Season Two
| Season | Season Two |
| Released | Fall 2023 |
| Animation Studios | Nexus |
| Episodes | 12 |
| 21 | The Lawless City |
| 22 | The Haven |
| 23 | The Hour of Awakening |
| 24 | The Mask of Falsehood |
| 25 | He Who Pulls the Strings |
| 26 | John Smith |
| 27 | Something Precious |
| 28 | The Dragon’s Tears |
| 29 | The Key |
| 30 | Caged Bird |
| 31 | Determination |
| 32 | Highest |
Manga
| Volumes | Ongoing |
| 1 | We Lurk in the Darkness and Hunt Down Shadows |
| 2 | I Am Atomic! |
| 3 | Hidden Normie Technique |
| 4 | Battles Are Like a Conversation |
| 5 | A Memory I Never Want to Lose |
| 6 | What Beautiful Swordplay… |
| 7 | A Fancy Bandit Slayer |
| 8 | The True Aberration!!! |
| 9 | He Who Destroys All and Rebuilds it Anew! |
You might also like…
