Edens Zero Chapter 153 – Rebecca VS Lyra: Cognitive Perspective

July 29, 2021 by Syphin 3 Comments

Despite the warped narrative dictating the Lost Card Game, Rebecca was successfully able to negate the influence Lyra had over the game by psychologically cornering her and shining light on her deceptive actions. In the face of Lyra’s intentions, Rebecca did manage to bring the game back to a battle of psychology to outwit and outplay Lyra. Accustomed to reactions of despair and hollow victories, Lyra intentionally conditioned herself to wholly rely on her Ether Gear to determine the outcome within the Lost Card Game. Unbeknownst to Lyra though, use of Ether Gear powers can go both ways. Rebecca’s Cat Leaper power allowed her the opportunity to test a theory and acquire evidence to corner Lyra as a cheater. After Lyra’s first lost to Nero, she should have known better than hubristically believing she was immune to losing. Alas, the cat is out of the bag so to speak and Rebecca has psychologically won the battle in the Lost Card Game.

The most surprisingly element to me within this chapter are the general Aoi Cosmos populace’s reaction to finding out Lyra cheated. Sure the audience called Lyra out for cheating but they seem largely unconcerned with proper fair play and treating official games/events with respect. Beyond that, they actually cheered Lyra on when she mentioned that she was done with the card game and moving onto the slaughter show i.e. physically attacking Rebecca? Why would the audience cheer on such a brutal option? Are they not aware what slaughter means or that Lyra seriously means those words? Are the general Aoi Cosmos inhabitants on Nero 66 so flippant? Could they care less if people’s lives were lost in the pursuit of their entertainment? Or have those Aoi Cosmos viewers become so accustomed with this type of scenery that it has degenerated into being a part of their social norms. It is honestly concerning how oblivious the audience are to recognising the darkness of the current ‘show’ on display. Nero has seemingly fostered an incredibly perverse disposition within the Aoi Cosmos society. Through such actions, it is becoming apparent why the Interstellar Union Army and the Oasis Rebellion seek the end of Nero’s rule within the Aoi Cosmos.

I love how Rebecca went about stringing Lyra up with her actions and lies. Thanks to the Cat Leaper power, Rebecca was able to gauge with certainty how Lyra would react to a certain placement of cards. And using that knowledge along with her deductions throughout the match, she psychologically led Lyra into a trap where proof of Lyra’s deception was laid bare. Contrary to what Lyra and the audience expected, it was in fact Lyra’s actions of deceit that were laid bare for all to see.

Lyra was outplayed and ultimately lost her battle against Rebecca within the Lost Card Game. Expectantly though, Lyra couldn’t bring herself to accept defeat and proceeded to physical attack Rebecca. The immaturity of the Oceans 6 have become the platforms on which they express their narrow-minded viewpoints from. They have made themselves roadblocks within their own paths and unfortunately turned themselves into their own enemies. I don’t view them being all bad. I suspect their past, insecurities and youth were exploited by Nero and leverage against them to make them more compliant to the delusional representation of the Nero Empire. Lyra may understand what the Nero Empire is (and more accurately what it isn’t) and she may not fight for Nero Empire but she has gotten comfortable within her current position. Only after the Oceans 6 are defeated and they are made aware of the weight of their actions through the sight of the consequences that resulted, will they understand the short-sightedness of their actions within the Nero Empire. Milani came to realise the error of her actions and will likely act to remedy what she failed to do earlier. Lyra, Nasseh and Callum may reach a similar end after we get some context surrounding their respective paths leading to the Nero Empire.

Turning to Shiki, his concern over Witch is completely justified after having met and conversed with Shura. Shiki understands what Shura is capable of and dreads leaving Witch alone in his hands for any amount of time. Shiki’s attention was never on Callum and always directly toward saving Witch and dealing with Shura when the time comes. Shiki now knows that Shura will only be stopped when he is defeated. There is no talking Shura out of activating All-Link, he will need to be forcefully prevented from activating it. What is curious is Shiki’s need for Rebecca. Sure Shiki could be detaching Rebecca from the battlefield to remove her from danger but it seems to be more than that. More than anyone else, Shiki feels most comfortable with Rebecca and likely realises on a subconscious level that Rebecca, even in presence alone, will assist in centering him. After all Rebecca was the first human Shiki met since arriving on Granbell and she was the one who opened up the rest of the cosmos to Shiki. Being in such an unstable state through his inability to keep his crew safe, Shiki may subconsciously be gravitating toward Rebecca as the one to center him in his frantic state. And in all likelihood, Rebecca will be the support Shiki has to bring him back from any instability after encountering Shura. What will be interesting is the state of Witch and if seeing her will awaken any unpleasant memories within Rebecca from her time in past timelines that she changed. The psychological implications of having experienced timelines that contained tragic events still remain within Rebecca even after changing them. I am also curious if the bomb around Rebecca’s neck can still be activated – it is still there right? Or was the bomb a bluff by Lyra?

I was not expecting Kris and Kleene to show up to take on Callum and Lyra but I welcome such a development with open arms. I assumed Kris and Kleene would continue to be kept outside the facility as they focus on the threats in the surrounding area i.e. the inevitable appearance of Ziggy and his Four Dark Stars. With Kris and Kleene appearing within the Nero 66 facility, I now expect Laguna to eventually make his way inside the facility as well and encounter Ijuna i.e. the Oasis Rebellion Princess. With Kris and Kleene, their bond as siblings may heighten how they apply their wind abilities to their attacks, so it will be fascinating to see them fight together. After the recent story on Foresta, Kris and Kleene have embraced their past more and are able to embrace their presence within the Edens Zero crew in certain terms now. Their first official battle as members of the Edens Zero will be against Callum and Lyra and I for one am excited for it. Kris can go Overdrive but I wonder if Kleene can to now after her training with Xenolith. Very much looking forward to the next chapter. Also Homura, don’t trust Creed!