Spy X Family chapter 81: A new character’s entry sets up Loid vs Yuri as a new arc begins

Spy X Family chapter 81 was released in Shueisha’s online magazine Shonen Jump + on Monday, May 29, at 12 am JST. Continuing from the previous chapter, Mangaka Tatsuya Endo finally kicks off a new arc and introduces a new character who is likely to become vital in the coming arcs.

In the previous chapter, Yor and Loid go through a hilarious misunderstanding regarding their relationship, and Yuri’s interference causes Yor to follow Loid. However, both Loid and Yuri are soon informed of an Ostanian double agent who is on the run from WISE after stealing important information about many ongoing operations, including Operation Strix.

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Spy X Family chapter 81 introduces the Spy Winston Wheeler as WISE, SSS get ready for conflict

Wheeler escapes from WISE agents (Image via Tatsuya Endo/Shueisha)

Spy X Family chapter 81 begins by introducing Winston Wheeler, a former WISE communications officer who has been recently revealed to be an Ostanian sleeper agent whom Fiona spoke of in the previous chapter. Currently, Twilight and Nightfall are on their way to Shellbury in Northwest Ostania with two other WISE agents in order to foil the handover of the sensitive documents from Wheeler to the SSS.

The four WISE agents put on disguises and arrive at Shellbury. The SSS agents, along with Yuri Briar and his superior, also arrive at the town in disguise. Yuri finds it odd that they have to be so secretive in their own country, but he is informed that the government wants to keep everything under the radar so that they may claim plausible deniability if this blows up.

Spy X Family chapter 81 then cuts to Wheeler, who has changed his get-up and subsequently sniffed out the WISE agents who were following him.

Wheeler meets a disguised Yuri near a designated meeting spot and informs him that WISE agents are nearby. He changes the handover spot, and Yuri agrees to meet him there after confirmation from SSS higher-ups. At the new meeting spot, Wheeler is welcomed home by a man in a black coat who is presumably a high-ranking SSS officer.

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Final thoughts

Spy X Family chapter 81 heavily implies that the man who meets Wheeler at the part is Twilight in disguise, as he was seen changing into the same black coat earlier in the chapter. There is an equal chance of Wheeler being Twilight in disguise as well, given the similarities between their appearance. However, given that the manga has always used Twilight’s disguises as a deus ex machina for any situation, it would be refreshing if the spy solves this conflict in his own skin.

Further, Spy X Family chapter 81 explicitly mentions that Winston Wheeler is not only competent but also well-versed in WISE’s modus operandi. He easily detects the three WISE agents barring Twilight, and even recognizes Yuri as a green recruit before talking to him. If mangaka Endo makes Wheeler to be a recurring character, he can very well become a worthy adversary to Twilight and a seasoned mentor for Yuri.

Yuri Briar is not the chief obstacle in WISE’s way, but he is the only one with a personal connection to Loid on the SSS team. The SSS has clearly stated that their secondary objective in this mission is to capture Twilight, and no one has more motivation for this than Yuri, who is not only dedicated to his country but also hates Yor's husband with a vicious passion.

However, Yuri’s love for his sister can become the only deterrent between Twilight’s unmasking and his incarceration at the hands of the SSS, if Endo does indeed choose to take that route. Yuri’s dedication to his sister’s happiness may stall his hands against the man whom he suspects makes her happy.

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