Apr. 23rd, 2026 07:48 pm
Reading Black Butler chapters 13-16
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givemeyourhonorA lot happened during this read through
-chapter 13
Ciel goes all out for Madam Red’s funeral and we also have a convo where Lau mentions how Ciel always forces himself to respond with dignity and is becoming even more mired in the mud. Ciel mentions how the Chinese population will have a hard time once the crack down on opium begins and Lau is pretty nonchalant about it. Honestly not sure how I feel about this part since it’s making me raise my eyebrows a little.
Ciel talks about how he let both the final victim and his aunt die and says that it doesn’t matter because Jack the Ripper is no more and I’ll be honest, I think he’s kind of dumb, because I think Ciel did have choices here and just went with the easiest one.
Undertaker notes that Queen Victoria kind of sucks, since the only problem she has with the Ripper case is the hit to her reputation. Also that Ciel’s duty to her is a chain. He also tells Ciel not to hang himself with that chain and he seems really unsettled about that. \
Ciel and Sebastian have a long convo about the morality of Ciel not shooting Madam Red when he had the chance. And Ciel states he doesn’t need to when he has a Sebastian to do the work for him. He’s a tool and Ciel will use him. And Sebastian will stand by his side.
-chapter 14
Sebastian gets greeted with a gun when he wakes Ciel this morning! He takes it very well! But the big news is that Lizzie is coming with her mom and Ciel is scared to disappoint Aunt Frances. And I don’t blame him. She has an entirely different vibe from Lizzie and calls the boys lecherous for not having their hair swept back!
She is also very much a warrior and exudes an almost militaristic discipline towards others. The attempts to show her the manor go wrong due to the staff being well… the staff. Fortunately, she is impressed with Ciel’s horse and says they should go hunting so she can see if Ciel is a worthy man for Lizzie. They go out and Lizzie is riding double with Ciel which is so cute. Frances asks if Sebastian is Ciel’s hound with how he is leading them and Ciel says he sort of is.
Lizzie is forced to dismount as Ciel goes to participate in the hunting game leaving her with Sebastian. She notes that Ciel seems to be feeling better, indicating she was worried due to how much Aunt An loved him. She notes that she always tries to cheer him up in how own way but just seems to irritate him, so she’s relieved. Sebastian comforts her which is sweet.
They take a lunch break and Ciel and Frances are at a draw which leaves Frances dissatisfied. Sebastian suggests another round in the afternoon and when Frances notes they’ve over hunted the area, he says there are big game animals elsewhere on the estate. As if the emphasize this, a bear appears. Ciel protects Lizzie from the bear and Frances shoots. Ciel congratulates his aunt on the win and she thanks him for protecting Lizzie. Satisfied with Ciel’s bravery, Frances declares the game over.
As they leave, she hands Sebastian the knife he had used on the bear, noting he was the one who secretly struck it down. She asks why Sebastian let her win when it’s his duty to save face for Ciel. He notes that because Ciel is already good at games, it’s important for him to lose and learn humility. He also says that Frances should serve as an exmaple to Ciel. Ciel is a child, yet also the head of his family, so he needs someone who can be strict with him like Frances. Frances notes how untrustworthy he seems.
They come back to the servants having made a mess in order to organize a party for Ciel, something that Frances was in on since it is Ciel’s thirteenth birthday.
Sebastian steps off to the side and we see him sigh that the cake he made Ciel is unnecessary. He takes a bite and wonders why humans think this would taste good.
We end the chapter with two foreign visitors marveling at the snow and leave off there.
-chapter 15
We start off right away with a disturbing series events where British men with ties to India are being stripped and hung upside down with hateful letters attached to them. We find out that Scotland Yard doesn’t like Ciel at all due to him stealing cases from them. Ciel also doesn’t feel a lot of sympathy for the victims, who are wealthy, entitled idlers.
Ciel goes to visit Lau who would know the underworld and the whole scene and setting smacks of a Orientalism. We go into the slums and the whole scene is just… uncomfortable in ways I don’t think Toboso thought about. The Indian men in the slums are treated as mindless thugs despite legitimate grievances. Things are interrupted for a minute when the two visitors from the last chapter appear and decide to join the brawl with their countrymen. The young prince has his servant, Agni, step into the fray. Sebastian and Agni fight with Agni noticing his moves have no effect on Sebastian. When the prince realizes his countrymen started the fight, they quickly switch sides and make short work of the group.
The two then leave, with Agni addressing the young prince as Soma. We end the strange encounter with Ciel having made no progress in the investigation. And to everyone’s surprise, Soma and Agni have invited themselves to stay with Ciel.
-chapter 16
At the start of this chapter, Agni seems to have taken over all the household chores. He wakes up Ciel with no fear whatsoever and already took care of the rest of the house with flawless perfection. Sebastian is deeply moved when Agni says he is "merely a butler," and demands the other servants bow to him.
They discuss Soma’s goal in coming to Britain which is to find a servant girl named Mina. Unfortunately, Soma is not an artist and the picture he drew of her isn't’ very good. When asked why Mina left, Agni and Soma start praying to Kali and explain the goddess's story to the gang. When Soma demands that Ciel come searching with him, Sebastian says that Ciel has a full schedule he must attend to first, including his studies.
Unfortunately, Soma and Agni keep getting in the way. Ciel gets fed up with them during fencing and challenges Soma to a fight. At first Soma seems like he will lose, but Agni ends up interfering on reflex, disabling Ciel’s arm. Sebastian notes it’s Ciel’s fault for taking advantage of Soma’s ignorance and ends up taking Ciel’s place against Agni.
And that’s where we end for this week! There’s some things I find a little questionable in some of these chapters, even though there’s a lot I like outside of that. I do feel like the woobiness of Ciel is a little overboard as well. But I’m interested to find out what happened to Mina and how that connects to the crimes at the start of this story arc.
-chapter 13
Ciel goes all out for Madam Red’s funeral and we also have a convo where Lau mentions how Ciel always forces himself to respond with dignity and is becoming even more mired in the mud. Ciel mentions how the Chinese population will have a hard time once the crack down on opium begins and Lau is pretty nonchalant about it. Honestly not sure how I feel about this part since it’s making me raise my eyebrows a little.
Ciel talks about how he let both the final victim and his aunt die and says that it doesn’t matter because Jack the Ripper is no more and I’ll be honest, I think he’s kind of dumb, because I think Ciel did have choices here and just went with the easiest one.
Undertaker notes that Queen Victoria kind of sucks, since the only problem she has with the Ripper case is the hit to her reputation. Also that Ciel’s duty to her is a chain. He also tells Ciel not to hang himself with that chain and he seems really unsettled about that. \
Ciel and Sebastian have a long convo about the morality of Ciel not shooting Madam Red when he had the chance. And Ciel states he doesn’t need to when he has a Sebastian to do the work for him. He’s a tool and Ciel will use him. And Sebastian will stand by his side.
-chapter 14
Sebastian gets greeted with a gun when he wakes Ciel this morning! He takes it very well! But the big news is that Lizzie is coming with her mom and Ciel is scared to disappoint Aunt Frances. And I don’t blame him. She has an entirely different vibe from Lizzie and calls the boys lecherous for not having their hair swept back!
She is also very much a warrior and exudes an almost militaristic discipline towards others. The attempts to show her the manor go wrong due to the staff being well… the staff. Fortunately, she is impressed with Ciel’s horse and says they should go hunting so she can see if Ciel is a worthy man for Lizzie. They go out and Lizzie is riding double with Ciel which is so cute. Frances asks if Sebastian is Ciel’s hound with how he is leading them and Ciel says he sort of is.
Lizzie is forced to dismount as Ciel goes to participate in the hunting game leaving her with Sebastian. She notes that Ciel seems to be feeling better, indicating she was worried due to how much Aunt An loved him. She notes that she always tries to cheer him up in how own way but just seems to irritate him, so she’s relieved. Sebastian comforts her which is sweet.
They take a lunch break and Ciel and Frances are at a draw which leaves Frances dissatisfied. Sebastian suggests another round in the afternoon and when Frances notes they’ve over hunted the area, he says there are big game animals elsewhere on the estate. As if the emphasize this, a bear appears. Ciel protects Lizzie from the bear and Frances shoots. Ciel congratulates his aunt on the win and she thanks him for protecting Lizzie. Satisfied with Ciel’s bravery, Frances declares the game over.
As they leave, she hands Sebastian the knife he had used on the bear, noting he was the one who secretly struck it down. She asks why Sebastian let her win when it’s his duty to save face for Ciel. He notes that because Ciel is already good at games, it’s important for him to lose and learn humility. He also says that Frances should serve as an exmaple to Ciel. Ciel is a child, yet also the head of his family, so he needs someone who can be strict with him like Frances. Frances notes how untrustworthy he seems.
They come back to the servants having made a mess in order to organize a party for Ciel, something that Frances was in on since it is Ciel’s thirteenth birthday.
Sebastian steps off to the side and we see him sigh that the cake he made Ciel is unnecessary. He takes a bite and wonders why humans think this would taste good.
We end the chapter with two foreign visitors marveling at the snow and leave off there.
-chapter 15
We start off right away with a disturbing series events where British men with ties to India are being stripped and hung upside down with hateful letters attached to them. We find out that Scotland Yard doesn’t like Ciel at all due to him stealing cases from them. Ciel also doesn’t feel a lot of sympathy for the victims, who are wealthy, entitled idlers.
Ciel goes to visit Lau who would know the underworld and the whole scene and setting smacks of a Orientalism. We go into the slums and the whole scene is just… uncomfortable in ways I don’t think Toboso thought about. The Indian men in the slums are treated as mindless thugs despite legitimate grievances. Things are interrupted for a minute when the two visitors from the last chapter appear and decide to join the brawl with their countrymen. The young prince has his servant, Agni, step into the fray. Sebastian and Agni fight with Agni noticing his moves have no effect on Sebastian. When the prince realizes his countrymen started the fight, they quickly switch sides and make short work of the group.
The two then leave, with Agni addressing the young prince as Soma. We end the strange encounter with Ciel having made no progress in the investigation. And to everyone’s surprise, Soma and Agni have invited themselves to stay with Ciel.
-chapter 16
At the start of this chapter, Agni seems to have taken over all the household chores. He wakes up Ciel with no fear whatsoever and already took care of the rest of the house with flawless perfection. Sebastian is deeply moved when Agni says he is "merely a butler," and demands the other servants bow to him.
They discuss Soma’s goal in coming to Britain which is to find a servant girl named Mina. Unfortunately, Soma is not an artist and the picture he drew of her isn't’ very good. When asked why Mina left, Agni and Soma start praying to Kali and explain the goddess's story to the gang. When Soma demands that Ciel come searching with him, Sebastian says that Ciel has a full schedule he must attend to first, including his studies.
Unfortunately, Soma and Agni keep getting in the way. Ciel gets fed up with them during fencing and challenges Soma to a fight. At first Soma seems like he will lose, but Agni ends up interfering on reflex, disabling Ciel’s arm. Sebastian notes it’s Ciel’s fault for taking advantage of Soma’s ignorance and ends up taking Ciel’s place against Agni.
And that’s where we end for this week! There’s some things I find a little questionable in some of these chapters, even though there’s a lot I like outside of that. I do feel like the woobiness of Ciel is a little overboard as well. But I’m interested to find out what happened to Mina and how that connects to the crimes at the start of this story arc.
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