Sugar Apple Fairy Tale Season 2

Episode 19

So, let me get this straight – Hugh (the Silver Sugar Viscount) and Kat were aware of the structural deficiencies of Holly Leaf Castle, and neither warned the Paige Workshop? On the surface, that looks like a garbage thing to do; it means that they were aware that the church was essentially setting Anne and her fellow artisans up to fail by housing them in a building unfit for maintaining the integrity of silver sugar. But before I hop right on the blame train (and since I don't trust Hugh at all, that's difficult), it may say more about the power the official religion of Highland has than about Hugh or Kat's integrity. Most of the men in charge of making the selection of their sponsored silver sugar workshop looked elderly, or at least old, and that means that they very likely remember the falling out that led to the Paige Workshop's refusal to participate in the competition years ago. That opens the door to the genuine possibility that using Holly Leaf Castle was simply a jerk move on the part of the church, seeking to punish someone who defied them at one point and that their power is such that not even the Silver Sugar Viscount, who answers directly to the king, can go against them.

If that is, in fact, the case, Hugh's actions make more sense here. His immediate offer of support from his students and the Mercury Workshop isn't a move to indebt Anne to him, but a genuine offer meant to prove something to the church and allow the selection winners to do their chosen job. It may not be a selfless move, but it might be better than Hugh's past behavior would suggest. Of course, he's still holding something over Kat, and he appears to fully expect Anne to turn around when she asks the solitary silver sugar master for his help. The speed with which he agrees to Anne's bargain says a lot, as does the fact that he lets her think she thought of it when Hugh suggested it all along. He's still shady as all get out but may not be entirely reprehensible.

What's more concerning is Gladus and his relationship with Bridget. Anne and everyone else are indeed overlooking the fact that they really could ask Bridget to help grind the silver sugar again – it's not as skilled labor as the rest of the process, and even if she were slow, she'd still be contributing. That could make her a valuable asset and ally, and what's alarming is that Gladus immediately sees that Bridget wants to be asked and plays that up to her, feeding her “oh, woe is me” attitude. While I doubt that Bridget wants to see the Paige Workshop fail, I also worry that Gladus has a keen understanding of her issues and is willing to use them to get whatever he wants. That could be more of a problem than a slow sugar grinder.

Of course, Anne could get herself into serious trouble all on her own. It's not surprising that she decided to make the Chamber family crest for her competition with Hugh, and honestly, that may be what he's combing the forbidden texts for as well. But if he isn't, and if he decides to put his duty to the crown above all else, he could get Anne into significant trouble by reporting her, not the least because while Noah will be thrilled to get it, he may be so happy that he's unwilling to eat it, just so that he can look at it again. It's a tense ending full of dangerous possibilities for what's to come, and we'll have to wait until next week to see where everything goes.

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Sugar Apple Fairy Tale is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.