Warning: The following contains spoilers for The Eminence in Shadow, Episode 27, "Something Precious," now available to stream on HIDIVE.

In the Eminence in Shadow, John Smith and Yukime's plan to collapse the system of credit and steal all the profits has been in the planning phase for a while now. However, in the latest episode of the Eminence in Shadow, their plan has been fully executed. After printing lots of fake bills, Yukime's Snow Fox Corporation exchanges the counterfeit bills for gold coins, depleting the Major Corporate Alliance's reserve.

With rumors of fake bills flying across the capital, the public notices this and begins to withdraw their money; however, as the money in circulation is way more than what is in the bank, various branches of the Major Corporate Alliance close, and Mitsugoshi is expected to follow suit and eventually crash. With John Smith (Shadow) revealed to be the actual mastermind behind the fake bills, how will Mitsugoshi weather the storm, and has their master forsaken them?

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The Eminence in Shadow: John Smith vs. Shadow Garden

Now that John Smith, the masked man, has apparently run into Shadow Garden, his next step is crucial.

Shadow Betrays Shadow Garden?

As the public rages about their inability to redeem their banknotes for gold coins at various branches of the Major Corporate Alliance, Gettan and Garter face a great deal of pressure. While Garter cannot pinpoint the factory that's printing the notes, he's figured out that Yukime is behind it. Shocked, Gettan confronts Yukime as he senses her in the surroundings.

Meanwhile, Alpha is downtrodden about recent events, as Shadow seems to have cast Shadow Garden away. While Gamma tries to convince her that the case may be different from what they think, she explains that the fall of the Major Corporate Alliance is inevitable, and Mitsugoshi will not survive past the next few days. While trying to be optimistic, Gamma also breaks down as Alpha makes her realize that all that is currently happening is as Shadow wants, and so what they do doesn't matter.

As Alpha and Gamma think Shadow has forsaken them, Nu comes in, telling them they have found evidence that Gettan has ties to the Cult of Diablos and that he planned to circulate fake bills like John Smith. Considering Gettan has not yet put his plan into action, a new plot that suggests Shadow saw through everything and decided to strike first unfolds. Confirming their thoughts, Beta enters and proclaims that the code that Shadow gave them has been cracked, and it says that Shadow forsook them to save them. Moreover, the location of the money exchanged for the fake bills is revealed. As this money would help them survive the credit collapse, Alpha and the upper-echelon members of Shadow Garden are overwhelmed with happiness. However, as fans know, that was different from what Shadow wrote; it heavily suggests that Shadow relies on luck, and many wonder if his luck will ever run out.

John Smith's Treasure Goes Missing

While Alpha and the upper-echelon members of Shadow Garden revel in their new revelation, Shadow (John Smith) himself is oblivious to all this. He happily works overtime and takes care of all the bad guys because, as Yukime said, she's not executing their plan for money; he gets to keep it all to himself. However, on getting to where his money is supposed to be, he finds nothing. In a rage, John Smith comes to the conclusion that Gettan must be behind the disappearance of his gold coins and goes to confront him.

Meanwhile, Gettan and Yukime enter a battle, and Yukime promptly disposes of Gettan with her immense power. Proving no match for Yukime, Gettan is on the losing end, but Yukime decides to spare him as she cannot ignore that he once saved her and her family.

The Fall Of Gettan

Despite already being given a way out of the mess, Gettan decided to swallow a pill from the cult for immense power. He then promptly stabs Yukime after she has spared him, as he claims he should've killed her when he killed her mother. Right before he kills Yukime, John Smith appears and stops him. John Smith proclaims that he has come to retrieve something precious to him. While he talks about the gold coins, Gettan and Yukime misunderstand and think he's talking about Yukime.

Enraged, Gettan puts his all into battling John Smith but is eventually overwhelmed. John Smith continually beats him to a pulp, telling him that he must have something to say. During this entire battle, John Smith, Gettan, and Yukime have different priorities, but none thinks that John Smith's priority is money. Gettan then points toward Yukime as he dies and mentions her name. As Yukime means snow, John Smith is oblivious and thinks the gold coins are buried beneath the snow.

The End Of A Plot

As Gettan dies and Yukime leaves, John Smith remains behind to dig for his coins. Meanwhile, Iris Midgar storms into the Major Corporate Alliance's coffers and discovers that they're empty. This means they do not have money and have swindled the people. Because of this, Garter is arrested. Meanwhile, Mitsugoshi is expected to follow suit and crash; however, thanks to the money that they retrieved from the hideout, they make a display of abundant gold coins, and the public's opinion of them is solidified as a trustworthy company and bank.

Meanwhile, Alpha explains the situation to Yukime and has her join as an ally. She explains that the Cult of Diablos, Shadow Garden's archenemy, was behind Gettan's erratic behavior. As John Smith is oblivious to all this, he continually digs with Delta as they look for the gold coins Gettan supposedly buried. After digging for a while, John Smith decides to leave for a while so that Alpha and the rest of Shadow Garden will forgive him. He plans to let time solve the problem he has caused and come back nonchalantly.

In the end, Shadow sums up his situation beautifully: while he is the victor in the end, he is simultaneously the loser, as his plans do not bear fruit for the purpose he intended. He then walks off on a journey of self-discovery.

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