Episode 8: This Isn't a Game

This Isn't a Game (こっちも遊びじゃねえんだよ, Kotchi mo Asobi ja nēn da yo) is the eighth episode of the The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs anime series.

Plot
Leon is roped into helping Clara with her Sky Pirate problem, which was all a trap set up by Clara's benefactor Stephanie. With no help whatsoever from the tag-alongs Brad and Greg, Leon single-handily defeats the pirates with his mech. On the other hand, Livia, who was also on board, feels self-conscious about what she learned from Stephanie.

Summary


Livia is visited by Carla, who tells her that she wants Livia to help her mediate the meeting between her and Leon. Although Livia wanted to refuse politely, Stephanie appears behind her and insists that she play along. Furthermore, Stephanie threatens and disparages Livia to do her bidding. At the same time, she also ridicules Angie's name and forces Carla to follow her orders or else her family will become ruined. Speaking up for Leon and Angie, Livia tries to defend her friend's names. However, Stephanie pulls on Livia's hair and discloses the "truth" of what both Leon and Angie think of her. Finishing her diatribe, Stephanie proclaims that Livia needs to be punished.

The following day, Leon informs Luxion about the Sky Pirates that Carla asked him to eliminate from her lands because of his past achievements. Leon also mentions that the pirates have one of the essential items for the protagonist to awaken her powers as a Saint. Those items are the Holy Bracelet, Holy Necklace, which the pirates have in their possession, and the Holy Staff. Usually, this event would occur two and a half years later, but it was sped up due to Stephanie's plot. It's said that Stephanie is jealous of Livia establishing herself despite her commoner background. On the other hand, Leon seems to have angered her first due to his past actions. Luxion asks if he's prioritizing too much in the game's events as there's little to benefit from all of that. To his admission, Leon notes that he's a Mob character and wants to avoid all events as much as possible while avoiding the warpath between The Prince's Entourage. Luxion then suggests that Livia accomplish the subjugation of the pirates, but Leon argues that she's not in the right state of mind and will handle it for her. Luxion then mentions that Leon would become Livia's love interest, but Leon denies that notion as he's a simple Mob Character. Internally, Luxion notes that Leon's overprotectiveness has robbed Livia's potential to grow.



Leon asks if their ship, the Partner, is ready by its docks, and Luxion confirms it. They're soon joined by Carla and Livia, who Leon notices that Livia is carrying Livia's luggage until they are in Leon's line of sight. Despite trying to hide that fact, Leon did see this and noticed the dour look on Livia's face and figures she failed to reconcile with Angie. Carla then reveals that she got help from two others to help them with their quest, those being Brad and Greg.

On the ship, a brief exchange occurs between Leon and both Brad and Greg, and as it turns out, Brad was once engaged to Carla, and he'll use the pirates' bounties to help Marie. Greg also joined because of the bounties to help Marie, and he hopes to steal an armored vessel from the pirates. This leads to a heated exchange between Brad and Greg, which Carla mediates.



In the academy, Angie had hoped to give Livia a present in good will, but finds that her dorm door was vandalized. She's then approached by Stephanie and her two cohorts, claiming that Angie was checking up on her "pet" as she's out hunting pirates. Realizing that Stephanie was the main culprit behind the pirate plot, Angie grabs her by the collar and threatens to end her. Then walking away from the scene, Angie plans to warn Leon and is concerned about Livia. Elsewhere, Julius talks with his mother Mylene about how Leon was currently going after pirates with Greg and Brad. Mylene refuses to allow Julius to help them, mainly due to his failure to understand why he's not allowed.

Returning to the ship, Leon wins a card game against Brad and Greg due to his cheating tactics, and he hopes to rob them of all of their money in exchange for them riding on his ship. Their conversation then shifts to how Stephanie became Brad's fiancee and her bad reputation. At that moment, Luxion notifies Leon about the two incoming pirate ships, and because both Brad and Greg are oblivious and unprepared, Leon volunteers himself to deal with them. Meanwhile, the pirates start their assault with four armored mechs, and out to greet them was Leon in his Arroganz. Leon reads up on the pirates, whose name is Winged Sharks, a low-level pirate group inside his mech. The pirate captain belittles Leon's Arroganz and thinks of it as an outdated model mech, but is left speechless when it defeats the vanguard team. Brad and Greg watch this in awe and realize that they're witnessing real-time warfare. Once the pirates fail to retreat after Leon's missiles destroy their barriers, they surrender.

With the pirates being restrained on the deck, Brad reflects on the warfare he witnessed and how he was a cocky kid, nothing of it. Within the cockpit of the Arroganz, Luxion asks Leon why he didn't simply kill the pirates, to which, he answers mentality for it. A frustrated Clara fails to contact the pirates inside her room. Not wanting to take the fall for the event, Clara had hoped to shift the blame from her to Livia so that she could save face in front of Bartfort.



Afterward, the group is held at gunpoint by a group of armed individuals, but the situation is mediated by Conrad Fou Wayne, Clara's father. Brad mentions that his daughter asked for their help with the Sky Pirates, but Clara shifts the blame over to Livia, who was too timid to speak for herself. Speaking on Livia's behalf, Leon reveals the truth of why they're there and of Clara's culpability, bringing her to tears.

Later on the ship, Luxion talks with Leon about the recent events involving the sky pirates. Despite the pirates being defeated, their main fleet remained, and they didn't acquire the Holy Necklace yet for Livia. He later meets with Livia, who unloads her thoughts and emotions into her that Stephanie planted.

Characters

 * Leon Fou Bartfort
 * Olivia
 * Angelica Rapha Redgrave
 * Luxion
 * Julius Rapha Holfort
 * Greg Fou Seberg
 * Brad Fou Field
 * Mylene Rapha Holfort
 * Carla Fou Wayne
 * Stephanie Fou Offrey
 * Conrad Fou Wayne
 * Marie Fou Lafan (Mentioned)