The episode opens with Warrant Officer Deinkun challenging Torway to a sword battle, but Yatori convinces him to try a chess match instead, since Torway is somewhat formidable at chess but useless with a blade. Warrant Officer Deinkun loses, and as he leaves the hall in a huff, he knocks over a dehydrated Ikta.
When Ikta is revived, he manages to piss off Princess Chamille and Yatori gives him some snacks she’d saved. Haro asks her if she’d saved them for Ikta, which Yatori denies, but we all know she’s lying. ^_~
Later Yatori and the other troops, escorted by Major Toakk, set out with a supply train on a mission to a village in the Alafatra mountain range. When Kanna and 
the other troops arrive, Ikta climbs out from one of the supply carts, and after a brief arguement with Kanna he drags her off with him to sightsee around town.
En route to a well they are gifted some sugarcane from one of the locals. As Ikta and Kanna walk together, Ikta asks her some questions about how the leadership of the Northern Garrison is run, and Kanna reveals that Major Toakk generally runs the show unless the Sinack natives are involved, in which case Lieutenant General Safida gives orders himself. Hmmm…
Ikta flashes back to the secret he uncovered in the dungeon – the cell he’d discovered was full of hundreds of the Sinack’s wind and fire spirits, locked up motionless in a cell where light can’t get to them (light is what allows them to move). This is called spirit abuse, and it’s strictly forbidden, but Lt. General Safida has used this tactic because he’s trying to break the spirit of the Sinack people. Ikta knows that the opposite will most likely prove to be true – losing their spirits will be what motivates the Sinack people to go to war. And as we see soon enough, Ikta will be proven correct.
Kanna asks Ikta some questions about the book she was reading in the previous episode, “Great Alfatra Survey Records”, and the two get into a deep theological debate about God (Alderamin) and how they contrast with the beliefs of the Sinack. Kanna reaches an important conclusion nearly on her own, and Ikta is thoroughly impressed with her. So impressed that he suddenly breaks into dance and starts spinning Kanna around in a very hyperactive manner. o_o
Elsewhere in the village, Major Toakk tells Yatori to go explore the visit for a bit while he and the other troops leave for a prescheduled meeting. When Major Toakk and his men enter the compound, they see why the messenger who was supposed to meet them had never shown up – he’s dead. A group of Sinack is waiting inside the room, and they advance upon Major Toakk and his men.
Suddenly gunshots ring out, which Yatori, Ikta and Kanna overhear. Yatori is the first to arrive, and she bursts into the room in time to see Major Toakk being impaled by a machete. Yatori quickly takes out one of the Sinack and the others flee, with Yatori chasing after them.
Ikta and Kanna arrive moments later, and they slowly explore the rest of the building. Anyone who had been in there is now dead. Ikta finds a pile of Alderan pilgrimage clothes, but he doesn’t understand what the Sinack would want with them.
Out in the mountains Yatori is leading several troops on a chase to catch the Sinack. However they have to stop short because the Sinack have an ambush waiting for them. A standoff follows, with Yatori asking the Sinack what they want. It turns out the Hahashiku mentioned in the previous episode are the spirits which Ikta saw down in the dungeon. Nanaku Daru proclaims that the Sinack are announcing a holy war against the people of the Northern Garrison.
When Ikta, Yatori and their friends sit down later to discuss recent events, Ikta feels that something isn’t quite right with Nanaku Daru’s proclamation of holy war. To him it feels like someone is feeding the Sinack excuses to go to war. Maybe Lt. General Safida? Or someone else higher up the totem pole?
There is to be a mission at 6am the following day, meant to be a punishment for the Sinack people. Princess Chamille is escorted away from the Northern Garrison so she will be safe, but given that this punitive mission has been thrown together so quickly, Ikta theorizes (correctly) that Lt. General Safida hasn’t yet reported on Major Toakk’s death to his boss, and Safida’s trying to sneak in a battle before he has to send a report.
Later Torway finds Ikta sitting quietly in a dark room, and Ikta shows him a hidden crate of rifles, saying Torway should get used to them now because they’ll probably be needed later on.
My thoughts: Another show that hit the halfway mark and then suffered a small decrease in animation quality… is this typical? I know it has happened even in older shows (Escaflowne comes to mind), but still. Or am I just too picky?
Princess Chamille’s monologue at the end of the episode has me wondering how many episodes this battle will span. I personally hope it’s not too long, but given that we know Ikta will become an important military leader by the end of the series (thereabouts), I’m also curious about future events because I want to see how Ikta and Yatori come through it.