Chapter 85: Kapitel 78 Aeri – The Decision to Betray
Spoiler Notice
Spoiler Warning: This summary contains major plot points from Chapter 85 of Five Broken Blades - Verrat ist Pflicht. If you haven't read the chapter, proceed with caution.
Summary
Aeri waits in the royal loggia of the Yusan arena, her nerves frayed while judges debate a penalty flag that delays the final two minutes of the game. She observes Sora chatting with Bay Chin, and then Bay Chin, Sora, and Ty approach the king's loggia. Bay Chin orders Royo to stay behind, leaving Aeri alone and unprotected. As Aeri watches Bay Chin introduce Sora as the courtesan of the southern prince Seok, she realizes she no longer wants to pretend for her father or seek his approval. She decides to betray him and commit fully to the mission.
When fanfares announce the final two minutes, Bay Chin calls Aeri over. She seizes the opportunity. Using the time-freezing amulet she stole from the dead Prince Omin—a small yellow glass bell she always wears hidden beneath her clothes—Aeri stops time. In the frozen moment, she ages roughly a month in seconds, grabs King Joon's crown, and presses it into Mikail's hand. She releases time, and no one notices the theft, believing it a sleight‑of‑hand trick because etherium magic is thought extinct in Yusan. Aeri reflects on having used the amulet many times before, always paying the price in accelerated aging.
Key Events
- The game is paused due to a disputed penalty flag, extending Aeri's agonizing wait.
- Bay Chin, Sora, and Ty enter the king's loggia; Royo is ordered to remain behind.
- Bay Chin introduces Sora to King Joon as Seok's courtesan; they speak of her as an object.
- Aeri makes an internal decision to betray her father and embrace her chosen family.
- Fanfares signal the last two minutes of the game; Bay Chin calls Aeri closer.
- Aeri activates the Dragon Lord's amulet, freezing time for everyone but herself.
- She ages roughly one month in seconds while stealing the crown and giving it to Mikail.
- She releases time, and the theft goes undetected because etherium is unknown in Yusan.
Character Development
Aeri
Aeri undergoes a pivotal internal shift. At the chapter's start she is trembling, torn between duty and fear. Watching Sora perform her role as a courtesan forces Aeri to confront the life of pretense she would have led forever. Her resolve crystallises: she will not spend her life being someone else for her father. Instead she chooses Royo and the other broken blades, accepting that she belongs with liars and murderers. This decision brings immediate calm and certainty, allowing her to act decisively when the moment comes. Using the amulet again also deepens her acceptance of the physical cost—she now expects the aging and takes it as a necessary sacrifice for love and freedom.
Sora
Although Sora appears only briefly, her poised performance as a courtesan highlights her skill in the political game and subtly influences Aeri's choice. Sora smiles and curtsies while being compared to a rare bird or art object, demonstrating the mask all players of the royal court must wear.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Deception and Identity: Aeri watches Sora perform a false self and realizes she can no longer maintain her own mask. The entire mission depends on appearing harmless while executing a secret plot.
- Sacrifice and Aging: The amulet's price—one second of frozen time equals an accelerated aging—symbolizes the irreversible cost of using forbidden power. Aeri has visibly aged from nineteen to twenty-four.
- Found Family versus Blood: Aeri explicitly rejects her father's world and chooses the group who accept her as she is (Royo, Mikail, Sora, etc.). This chapter marks her full commitment to the "broken blades" as her true family.
- The Frozen Moment: Stopping time represents control over fate, but also isolation. Aeri acts alone in the stillness, a visual parallel to her earlier feelings of being trapped.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 85 is the climax of Aeri's personal arc within the heist storyline. It shows her actively choosing loyalty to the blades over duty to her father, a moral turning point that no longer leaves her torn. The theft of the crown is also the first open display of etherium magic in the Yusan arena, where magic is supposed to be dead. This act sets up potential exposure and consequences in later chapters. Finally, the aging cost raises the stakes: every use of the amulet steals years from Aeri's life, making her sacrifice tangible.
Study Questions and Answers
1. What internal change does Aeri experience when she decides to betray her father, and what triggers it?
Aeri shifts from paralyzing fear to calm certainty. The trigger is watching Sora be introduced as a courtesan—a polished performance that mirrors the life of pretense Aeri would have endured forever. Realising she no longer wants to be “vornehm” or earn her father’s approval, she chooses freedom and her new family.
2. How does the author use the amulet to illustrate the theme of sacrifice?
The amulet stops time but ages Aeri rapidly each time she uses it. In this chapter she ages roughly a month in seconds. This physical cost underscores that power comes at a personal price; Aeri is willing to shorten her lifespan for the success of the mission and for her loved ones.
3. Why does no one in the arena suspect that Aeri used magic to steal the crown?
The people of Yusan believe etherium magic has been extinguished. When the crown vanishes, witnesses assume it was a sleight‑of‑hand trick (a “Taschenspielertrick”). Because they cannot conceive of real magic, Aeri’s theft goes undetected, highlighting how belief systems can create blind spots.