I'm the Villainess Episode 11: [SPOILER] Turns on Aileen at the Evening Ball

The following contains spoilers for Episode 11 of I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss, “The Villainess Always Gets Condemned,” now streaming on Crunchyroll.

I’m the Villainess, So I’m Taming the Final Boss is an otome isekai anime of the Fall 2022 anime season where betrayal is shockingly common. Protagonist Aileen d’Autriche has smooth social skills and a cunning mind to cultivate many allies, but in each story arc, someone turns against her. This time, it’s the sorcerer Elephas Levi who’s stabbing her in the back.

First, it was Lilia Rainworth who turned on Aileen as a scheming antagonist, and then Selena Gilbert, a would-be otome protagonist, became Aileen’s problem as well. Elephas, meanwhile, has a cunning plan that puts Selena’s own scheme to shame, and he makes it a public affair, too. Now Aileen must do what Elephas says in front of everyone, or Almond the demon crow will pay for it.

How Elephas Publicly Drove a Wedge Between Aileen & Claude

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In previous I’m the Villainess episodes, Aileen already knew that her fellow isekai guest and nemesis, Lilia, meant to do her harm. Lilia thinks it’s an amusing game to toy with this otome game’s characters and manipulate them since they’re not “real” people, and to that end, Lilia turned Aileen and Claude against one another. Lilia sent an agent to wipe out Claude’s memories, threatening Claude and Aileen’s loving relationship. Now Lilia takes things to the next level with her newest pawn, Elephas the sorcerer.

If not yet explicit, this is what’s heavily implied in Episode 11. Elephas doesn’t identify Lilia by name when he turns on Aileen for his mistress, but it’s easy to deduce, and Lilia doesn’t deny a thing. It was bad enough to wipe Claude’s memories, but now Elephas, likely acting on Lilia’s orders, frames Aileen and publicly demands that she renounce her relationship with him. Elephas convinces everyone that Aileen is using demon incense to provoke Claude’s monster side, and that alone condemns Aileen to execution in the royal couple’s eyes. Worse yet, Elephas takes Almond hostage to pressure Aileen into breaking up with Claude.

Aileen cannot stand it, but she has a good heart and cannot bear to see innocent demons like Almond harmed. So, she reluctantly says what she must, only for Almond to intervene and suffer harm. This provokes Claude and reawakens his memories, and things get even messier from there. Aileen is now a wanted criminal on the run from practically everyone, and she flees with Isaac and Claude’s other allies. This is a bigger mess than anything Aileen has faced before, all thanks to Elephas and his likely alliance with Lilia. However, the Villainess anime is reaching its climax, so a high-stakes battle like this is to be expected. Given the anime’s aggressive pacing, this messy situation is bound to be resolved in Episode 12, and Aileen will probably mend her relationship with Claude at any cost.

What This Means for Elephas Levi & the Sorcerers

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This chaotic plot twist has serious consequences for Aileen and Claude, but it also has implications for Elephas himself. Elephas explained earlier that his sorcerer family is always held hostage, and the sorcerers’ survival depends on Elephas being a loyal servant of the Empire. With that in mind, he obeys Lilia’s commands while setting himself up as a noble hero who’s saving the Empire from Aileen’s schemes. If Elephas can stop Aileen from awakening Claude’s monster side via demon incense, then surely he will make a good impression and perhaps earn some favor for his mistrusted sorcerer family. That may be his primary motive, and he decided that helping Lilia at Aileen’s expense is the best way to go about it.

However, this is liable to backfire on Elephas. By now, Villainess fans know that the crafty Aileen can easily unravel any villainous plot and bring ruin to anyone who messes with her, as Selena Gilbert can attest to. It’s not yet clear what Aileen will do to foil Elephas’ back-stabbing plan, but even so, Villainess fans have faith in Aileen. No matter what happens and no matter how thin her plot armor is, Aileen will find a way, and petty antagonists like Elephas always pay the price for their misdeeds in anime like this one. Elephas thinks he has Aileen cornered, but he has no idea who he’s messing with.