Am I missing something or did Misa come down with a sudden case of amnesia? Why would Io call her and beg Misa to help her and then run out all haggard in a hoodie while visibly on the verge of breaking down if she was cheating? Io was audibly struggling on the phone, and Misa even talked to Hase and literally said "Isn't this the opposite of protecting Io?!"

Honestly, after this chapter I'm kinda hoping Io winds up cutting off both of them and walks away. The story was going fine and then Misa has this sudden brain aneurysm upon finding Io in the alleyway. Misa was morally dubious and kinda toxic in a sexy way before, but she supposedly cared about Io in some way. What just happened however was nonsense IMO.

I hope the author can walk it back with the next chapter and give us some insight cuz this chapter was kinda like finding a fly in my formerly delicious drink. I wanna eat my words here, please Flowerchild.

last edited at Oct 14, 2024 11:28AM

If Ersrs is from a country that handled it relatively better and then went to Japan where they handled it relatively worse, it makes sense to me Ersrs would associate it with Japanese culture. And culture can have negative or destructive elements to it that necessitate culturally specific criticism in order to change.

This implies the existence of a country where Misa's reaction to what happened to Io would be unthinkable, and that country does not actually exist.

If you were to adapt this story to be at in America the only thing you'd need to change is Misa's job from "Hostess" to something like "exotic dancer" or "escort". None of my characterization or plot would need to change to be believable for American characters.

last edited at Oct 14, 2024 11:42AM

everyone here seems to have forgotten that misa sexually assaulted io in her sleep on their like, first meeting. misa is not some paragon of consensual bdsm safety. whats more, io then told misa that she liked what she did and wanted her to do more of it. regardless of them getting a little closer as they went on, misa's relationship with io has very much formed around that basis. this is the natural progression of that dynamic, where clear boundaries were never talked about. of course its not a good thing, but it was never a healthy relationship to start with.

also if anyone has read this author's other works this shouldn't be surprising at all.

This 100%. Idk, this has been perfectly in line with not only what I expect from this author but also the unfolding of Misa and Io's relationship from the very beginning.

Am I missing something or did Misa come down with a sudden case of amnesia? Why would Io call her and beg Misa to help her and then run out all haggard in a hoodie while visibly on the verge of breaking down if she was cheating? Io was audibly struggling on the phone, and Misa even talked to Hase and literally said "Isn't this the opposite of protecting Io?!"

Exactly. The idea that she could think this was cheating and call it "jealousy" is a large stretch. Io literally begged to be saved. They also treat the situation as though the manager just slightly overstepped, as though the issue is just about the manager not allowing Io freedom. Is that what's supposed to be taken from this whole thing?

When Misa gets off the phone her thoughts are about that lack of freedom rather than the assault she could clearly hear on the phone. That just seems like a narrative oversight rather than the story's being toxic. I have no issue with complex relationships whatsoever. I'm sure Misa will take care of her next chapter but that doesn't change this weird interaction.

last edited at Oct 14, 2024 12:31PM

If Ersrs is from a country that handled it relatively better and then went to Japan where they handled it relatively worse, it makes sense to me Ersrs would associate it with Japanese culture. And culture can have negative or destructive elements to it that necessitate culturally specific criticism in order to change.

This implies the existence of a country where Misa's reaction to what happened to Io would be unthinkable, and that country does not actually exist.

If you were to adapt this story to be at in America the only thing you'd need to change is Misa's job from "Hostess" to something like "exotic dancer" or "escort". None of my characterization or plot would need to change to be believable for American characters.

I agree about the US, though I would not assume Ersrs is from the US just because we are talking in English. People tend to use English forums to discuss manga because there are not big discussion sites in every language.

Anyway, my previously stated position is that Misa doesn't actually blame Io, but is frustrated by Io's passivity as well as Misa's own inability to protect her. Therefore, I see this as unrelated to Japanese culture and more about their individual dynamic.

Am I missing something or did Misa come down with a sudden case of amnesia? Why would Io call her and beg Misa to help her and then run out all haggard in a hoodie while visibly on the verge of breaking down if she was cheating? Io was audibly struggling on the phone, and Misa even talked to Hase and literally said "Isn't this the opposite of protecting Io?!"

Exactly. The idea that she could think this was cheating and call it "jealousy" is a large stretch. Io literally begged to be saved. They also treat the situation as though the manager just slightly overstepped, as though the issue is just about the manager not allowing Io freedom.

When Misa gets off the phone her thoughts are about that lack of freedom rather than the assault she could clearly hear on the phone. That just seems like a narrative oversight rather than the story just being toxic. I have no issue with complex relationships. I'm sure Misa will take care of her next chapter but that doesn't change this weird interaction.

Someone pointed out earlier that the Spanish version used "traitor" instead of "cheater" and that makes more sense. Misa doesn't think Io actively cheated, they didn't even have an exclusive relationship, but rather is doing the kind of misattribution of Io's feelings that some people in this thread did after the most recent chapter, interpreting Io following Hase's orders as Io's subby nature tempting her to go along with Hase rather than understanding that Io was scared and looking for an out but not feeling like she could just outright stand up to Hase. Misa thinks Io almost gave in to temptation and snapped out of it, enraging Hase, rather than the situation being nonconsensual from the start.
At least, that's my interpretation after sitting on it for a day and rereading it. The next chapter after this one is sure to be interesting on way or another, as Misa will presumably hear the full story and a) feel guilty over her presumption and b) very angry at Hase, perhaps to the point of acting against her.

last edited at Oct 14, 2024 12:38PM

Someone pointed out earlier that the Spanish version used "traitor" instead of "cheater" and that makes more sense. Misa doesn't think Io actively cheated, they didn't even have an exclusive relationship, but rather is doing the kind of misattribution of Io's feelings that some people in this thread did after the most recent chapter, interpreting Io following Hase's orders as Io's subby nature tempting her to go along with Hase rather than understanding that Io was scared and looking for an out but not feeling like she could just outright stand up to Hase. Misa thinks Io almost gave in to temptation and snapped out of it, enraging Hase, rather than the situation being nonconsensual from the start.
At least, that's my interpretation after sitting on it for a day and rereading it. The next chapter after this one is sure to be interesting on way or another, as Misa will presumably hear the full story and a) feel guilty over her presumption and b) very angry at Hase, perhaps to the point of acting against her.

I like this interpretation. I think she also understands Io is passive in general and would have a hard time sticking up for herself when she doesn't like something, but that's the logical part of her brain that gets shelved when it comes to Io. Feelings like jealousy, frustration, etc as well as finding comfort in her own budding sadist inclinations were really driving her decisions this chapter. She wants to be exclusive at least when it comes to the dom/sub relationship, so someone appearing to encroach on that would upset her.

Edit: I would guess also, since Io is the only one she's consciously had sadist feelings towards, it would be very scary to her if she was replaceable to Io and another dom would be fine. That's why whether or not this is the case was one of the first pieces of information she verified after finding Io.

last edited at Oct 14, 2024 1:48PM

Disclaimer: i am totally fine with this direction and the so-called "toxic yuri" but damn Misa's lightning-speed "jealousy" toward Io after her speech about protectiveness with Hase over the phone was hilarious, somehow. Actually if Flowechild took a little bit more time to draw out Misa's inner conflict (and maybe adding a little hypocrisy to it) it would have been better imo.

Now that's wild

Flowerchild keep cooking though

Am I missing something or did Misa come down with a sudden case of amnesia? Why would Io call her and beg Misa to help her and then run out all haggard in a hoodie while visibly on the verge of breaking down if she was cheating? Io was audibly struggling on the phone, and Misa even talked to Hase and literally said "Isn't this the opposite of protecting Io?!"

Exactly. The idea that she could think this was cheating and call it "jealousy" is a large stretch. Io literally begged to be saved. They also treat the situation as though the manager just slightly overstepped, as though the issue is just about the manager not allowing Io freedom.

When Misa gets off the phone her thoughts are about that lack of freedom rather than the assault she could clearly hear on the phone. That just seems like a narrative oversight rather than the story just being toxic. I have no issue with complex relationships. I'm sure Misa will take care of her next chapter but that doesn't change this weird interaction.

Someone pointed out earlier that the Spanish version used "traitor" instead of "cheater" and that makes more sense. Misa doesn't think Io actively cheated, they didn't even have an exclusive relationship, but rather is doing the kind of misattribution of Io's feelings that some people in this thread did after the most recent chapter, interpreting Io following Hase's orders as Io's subby nature tempting her to go along with Hase rather than understanding that Io was scared and looking for an out but not feeling like she could just outright stand up to Hase. Misa thinks Io almost gave in to temptation and snapped out of it, enraging Hase, rather than the situation being nonconsensual from the start.
At least, that's my interpretation after sitting on it for a day and rereading it. The next chapter after this one is sure to be interesting on way or another, as Misa will presumably hear the full story and a) feel guilty over her presumption and b) very angry at Hase, perhaps to the point of acting against her.

I’m REALLY hoping it’s just Misa thinking Io let it happen and it’s all a dumbass understanding that is hopefully resolved before sex right after

…

Upon rereading, in not hopeful of anything. Maybe it’s a mistranslation, but the “IF YOU HAVE THE GUTS TO GET AWAY FROM HER, DON'T GIVE HER AN OPENING IN THE FIRST PLACE!” Is a pretty damning line, I’d like to see other TL’s or maybe like… a breakdown of the wording cuz fuck, that is so fuckin harsh. Assuming she liked it cuz she’s a masochist is so fuckin harsh. :/

Thought it was pretty clear upon reading it that Misa knows Io was assaulted against her will, but just doesn't know/manage any other way to deal with it. Doesn't really matter if she genuinely considers it "cheating," the situation made her angry, from feeling powerless in particular I surmise, and this was simply the way she ended up reacted to it. To take her anger out on Io in the only form she knows.

On a sidenote, as comandeering and abhorrently awful Misa's reaction was, it doesn't feel "forced" in the same way it did from Hasa. She bosses her around, humiliates her, but she doesn't physically force her. Io still complies.

Like someone mentioned, I can imagine we get to see Misa feeling bad about it all afterwards, but also Io probably not being as angry about her reaction as she ought to.

Misa is kinda acting out of character, what's up with the hyper emotional reaction?

Maybe I missed something? I thought she was pretty grounded and rational till this point.