Episode 23

THE UNWAVERING PATH (MISSION: 23　揺るがぬ軌道) is the twenty-third episode of the SPY x FAMILY TV anime series and the eleventh episode of the second cour.

Synopsis
The underground tennis tournament is finally heading to the final match. The Campbell siblings that Loid and Fiona are up against are playing dirty, as they have altered tennis rackets as well as the staff helping them out. But the spy pair from WISE overcome one obstacle after another and Loid deals the final blow! But right after the match, the State Security Service finds out about the dossier and infiltrates the tournament...

Summary
A floor tile sinks to the ground next to Loid Forger, but he jumps over it and returns the ball, scoring a point. Carrol Campbell tries hitting the ball in another sunken tile and bouncing it back in his direction, but Fiona Frost intercepts the ball and slams it to their side, scoring another point. Carrol decides to change plans: manipulating the net's height. He signals to the staff, and they comply. Loid and Fiona notice the changes and opt to work around them. When the Campbells realize their tricks are not working, they try using more against the Foneys, from gusts of wind to coating the ball with stink spray. However, their schemes only amounted to little more than slight annoyances to the Foneys, who win the set and tie the scores.

Loid praises Fiona and her abilities, which she likes. As the final set begins, Fiona thinks about how she wants the match to last forever. She wonders if she could do it by extending it with an indefinite series of tiebreakers but backs down, realizing she might lose Loid’s respect and that he has finally found his groove again. Loid sees how focused Fiona looks and is glad she is finally under control. Meanwhile, the Campbell siblings decide to “call in the big guns.” The game begins, and Loid sees no tricks used and wonders if the siblings have given up on them. As Fiona is about to make her return, Loid sees Carrol signaling with his tongue, then spots a glint at the ducts behind him. Inside, a sniper prepares to make his shot, aiming for Fiona. Loid moves quickly, grabbing Fiona as he takes the bullet and tumbles to the ground, surprising everyone, including Fiona.

As the commentators relay the events, Fiona asks if Loid is alright. Loid confirms this, then shows the bullet to Fiona, telling her that it is rubber and where the sniper is hiding. Fiona apologizes for letting this happen, but Loid reveals he anticipated this and wore a bulletproof vest under his shirt, and Fiona is amazed. Carrol is also amazed to see Loid get up and walk off getting shot. Fiona says this is going too far, even for Campbelldon, and suggests penalizing the staff for interference. Loid doubts this, as most of the tournament staff seem to be in Campbell’s pocket and that any disruption to their match could risk their chances of getting the painting. However, the bullets are low-velocity, and the agents can try throwing off the sniper’s aim by baiting shots, as long as they can spot the signals. The line judge asks if Loid is alright, and Loid says he is suffering from a hangover.

The game resumes, and Loid makes his serve. He sees Carrol make another signal and realizes they will target him mid-serve. Loid staggers around before finishing his serve, surprising everyone. The sniper radios to the "court interference squad" for assistance, telling them to do whatever it takes to ensure the siblings' victory. Their tricks do not work on the agents, who predict their moves and move around them. The sniper then calls in the ball boys to make their move. As Team Foney prepares to return a serve, Loid spots one of the ball boys pointing their wrist in his direction. The ball boy shoots a hidden bullet at Loid, who parries the shot, and the commentator sees Loid swinging at nothing. Fiona notes that they now have two more things to worry about, but Loid says that, unlike the sniper, the ball boys are much easier to read and will not do much harm. Loid resolves to finish the match, and the crowd is shocked by the team's bizarre movements while they play.

A frustrated Cavi Campbell yells at his children to get it together and beat their opponents, knowing he bet a lot on this match. The ball and a bullet shoot at Loid, who returns them with a wide swing. The parried bullet hits Carrol in the stomach, staggering him. The line judge asks if Carrol is okay, and Carrol says he had too much milk in the morning and now has stomach cramps. Seeing that both teams appear impaired in the final stretch, the commentator calls the match a battle of sheer will as the audience cheers. While they play, Carrol thinks about how he does not want to lose, but sees that he is no match for Loid. Loid jumps up in front of Carrol and slams the ball under the boy’s legs. With that, the Foneys win the championship match, and the men betting on them stand up and cheer while Cavi sinks into his seat in astonishment.

Caroll approaches Loid, realizing that despite being aware of the tricks, the Foneys still won. Carrol tears up and confesses that this is the first time he is disappointed in himself. Loid encourages Carrol, saying that he is young and talented, and by working hard to hone his skills, can become a great player one day. Carrol swears to Loid that he will train hard, and Loid cheers him on. Fiona thinks to herself that Loid does not only strive to complete his missions but also reform his enemies, which is why she loves him. Kim Campbell sees this and thinks about how lame this is. Cavi tears up, saying that despite losing, he gained something after seeing how much his son has grown, while a member points out how much money he just lost. One of Cavi’s men interrupts him and whispers a message to him, which Loid notices.

After the game, the Foneys go through a catalogue filled with all the art from Cavi’s collection. Fiona picks Lady in the Sun, but Cavi appears to tell them he cannot give it to them. stating it is due to circumstances beyond his control. However, Cavi promises any other item and will even give them an extra as an apology. Fiona and Loid whisper to each other, realizing that Cavi received a call from the SSS, who must have gotten the same intel and must be on their way to pick it up as they speak. Cavi speaks up, asking if they will take his offer, and Fiona asks to see the collection in person. Granting her request, Fiona is taken to a private room full of Cavi’s art. Cavi asks where Loid is, and Fiona says he left to sleep off his hangover and not to worry about him. She then glances at Lady in the Sun and sees it in the room. Fiona asks Cavi for a recommendation for her choice and if she can leave her bag on a nearby counter, which he allows.

Cavi's butler approaches Cavi about Lady in the Sun, and Cavi tells him that the SSS will arrive in 10 minutes and to prepare it for them in the lobby. As the butler prepares the painting at the counter, one of the men tells him to hurry it up. When the SSS arrives, they retrieve the painting and thank Cavi for cooperating before leaving. Cavi has his butler see Fiona out, who asks the butler if WISE will let them moonlight as tennis pros. The butler removes his face mask, revealing himself to be Loid and says he has had enough of tennis for a while. As they leave, Loid asks Fiona what she picked for their prize, and she shows him an odd pot Cavi recommended, along with some garish rings he threw in. The agents then agree to gift them to Handler as a souvenir. On the drive home, Loid admits to panicking a little when Cavi refused to give them Lady in the Sun but reveals that they successfully obtained it. Having planned, Loid brought a forgery of the painting and swapped it with the original while disguised as the butler, sneaking the original inside Fiona's bag. With this, the SSS will be left to scour the forgery for a secret code that does not exist. Seeing the secret code on the painting, Loid and Fiona decide to bring it to HQ for analysis and high-five each other over completing the mission. Nearing the Forger's neighborhood, Fiona offers to drive Loid all the way to his home, wanting to spend more time with him. Loid removes his mask and reminds her that he is a happily married man that does not want anyone getting the wrong idea if they see him leaving a young lady's car, and adds that people get reported to the SSS all the time for infidelity. Fiona’s heart beats, and in her thoughts, she asks if Loid acknowledges her skills, which would make her a more suitable wife and partner. Loid gets dropped off at a park, and before he can say goodbye to Fiona, he is interrupted by Yor Forger calling for Anya and Bond to go home.

Loid notices that his family were still playing at the park, while Fiona steps out of her car and greets Yor, who gets surprised by her presence. Loid also walks over to greet them and explains that Fiona gave him a ride home while she thought to stop by and say hello. Fiona looks at Yor’s racket and asks if Yor plays tennis. Yor explains that she and Anya practiced with Loid the other day, and Anya proudly states that she hit many home runs. Loid thanks them for their help, and Fiona scoffs them in her thoughts. Fiona believes Yor to be presumptuous for believing Loid, saying that she herself would have helped Loid achieve further greatness. Fiona proceeds to challenge Yor to a game. Loid asks what Fiona is doing, and she explains in code that she wants to make sure Yor is prepared for the physical rigors of Operation Strix. In her thoughts, Fiona plans to crush Yor and have her relinquish her role as the mother. Loid tells Yor that she does not have to accept, but Yor believes if she declines or loses, Loid will report her to the SSS for being a weak tennis player and replace her with Fiona, thus she accepts the challenge. Reading both of their minds, Anya can feel the tension between the women and flashes back to Becky Blackbell excitedly telling her about the latest episode from Berlint in Love, where the main character’s fiancé encounters his childhood friend, but Anya could not sympathize as she prefers cartoons. Relating this to the current situation, Anya claims to understand what Becky was talking about, saying she likes action battles too. Before starting their game, Fiona tells Yor to come at her with everything she has. Loid tries warning Fiona but gets told to step back. Yor agrees with Fiona’s statement and decides to go all out, making a powerful swing as she serves. However, Yor appears to have missed her shot, and the ball drops to the ground.

Fiona scoffs at this but sees the ball suddenly slice up into small pieces. Yor thinks about how she always cuts through the ball when she swings too hard and decides to hold back a little if she wants to hit the ball. Yor calls Anya for another ball, and Anya gets Bond to bring one over. Yor then tells a stunned Fiona that she is going to try again. While Fiona tries to process what just happened, Yor swings the ball, which moves faster than sound and in a perfectly straight line. Fiona tries her best to return the ball but struggles to push it forward. She thinks about how her love for Twilight cannot lose to Yor, who stands in the way of her ambition. Fiona ultimately fails, and the ball breaks through her racket. Fiona falls to the ground, shocked by her defeat. Yor rushes to Fiona, asking if she is okay, while Loid thinks about how he warned Fiona. Fiona declares Yor the victor for now but will one day challenge her to a revenge match. Fiona tells Yor to enjoy her life until then before driving off and, in tears, declares that she will never give up. Yor wonders if she upset Fiona somehow, but Loid says Fiona is very passionate about tennis, and Anya thinks about how energetic she is. Loid hopes Fiona did not give Yor the wrong idea, but because of their sham marriage, cannot imagine Yor being affected by her. His thoughts are interrupted by Yor, who enthusiastically exclaims her victory. Loid affirms Yor's victory, and she walks back home. Loid starts feeling exhausted, and as night approaches, Anya says she is hungry, and he decides to get something delivered.

The next day, Loid meets with Sylvia Sherwood, who tells him Fiona went up to the mountains to train her swing speed. Sylvia proceeds to brief their findings from the secret code and hands Loid the "Zacharis Dossier," in the form of Erik Zacharis' diary. Reading it, Loid learns that the threat Zacharis hid was his collection of starlet photos. Zacharis liked theater and bought postcards to support the actresses, but his wife disapproved of them and told him to get rid of them. Unable to part with them, he locked away his collection lest it reignited the flames of strife between him and his wife. Astounded at the revelation, Loid asks how the dossier rumors started. A WISE Agent tells him that before the war's end, Zacharis hosted Western diplomats at a musical performance and made them swear to secrecy so his wife would not find out. Over the years, the story got embellished into the current rumor.

Realizing that he went through all that trouble for some postcards, Loid tries to find a greater mystery behind it, but Sylvia assures him that there was no bombshell to reignite the war and considers it a victory. Loid sees a picture of Zacharis smiling with his wife and daughter and contemplates how any lie is justified in the name of peace. On his way home, Loid goes to a bakery and orders an apple tart and a slice of caramel nut cake for Yor and Anya, respectively. Back at home, Anya plays with Bond in the living room while Yor sits on the couch with a dazed expression.

Meanwhile, Fiona trains in the mountains with a large rock tied to a stick, roaring while the wildlife watches from the side in fear.

Anime Notes

 * In the manga, after Yor tells Loid she won the match against Fiona, she walks off proud of her victory. However, in the anime, she pauses for a second and then walks off looking sad/frustrated - as if she wanted Loid to praise her and be elated that she won. This ties into her solemn face at the end of the episode, as well as the next episode.