Alice in Borderland Season 3 Episode 2 Recap

Episode 2 of Alice in Borderland Season 3 picks up at Hikawa Shrine, where Arisu and a group of confused players are forced into a deadly new challenge called Sacred Fortunes. Each participant must draw ten fortune slips, deciphering them correctly to survive. The twist: they have only one minute per draw and no second chances.

A drugged-out player named Tetsu pulls “great fortunes,” which seems like a lucky draw, while others face math-based puzzles ranging from percentages to multiple-choice questions. Each wrong answer brings fire arrows raining from the sky—the difference between the correct and incorrect answer determines how many fall. Teamwork becomes essential, but mistakes are costly. At one point, 448 arrows descend at once, killing several players.

The trauma jolts Arisu’s memories of Borderland, flooding back with every horrific round. When he finally draws his “extreme bad luck” slip, the challenge is estimating the world’s population—with a staggering 100 million margin of error. That means 100 million arrows are set to fall. Realizing that the fortunes contained directional hints, Arisu deduces the arrows strike from the unlucky directions. Since northwest hasn’t appeared yet, he rallies the players to escape in that direction.

Their gamble works—Arisu uncovers an underground tunnel, and the survivors dive in as the sky turns orange with fire. Not all make it, but those who do successfully clear the game. Yet there’s no respite. Without visas this time, the players are forced to continue straight into the next round. Each survivor recalls being recruited by Banda with a Joker card, suggesting they’ve all played before. As fragments of memory return, the next deadly game begins.

This new round is called Zombie Hunt. Each participant receives seven playing cards and faces one-on-one battles across multiple tables. The player with the higher total wins, collecting a card from the loser. However, three special cards shift the balance of power. The Zombie Card trumps all, instantly infecting the loser with zombie status and adding another Zombie Card to their hand. The Shotgun Card kills zombies but also dooms its holder if they encounter a Zombie. Finally, the Vaccine Card, distributed randomly, can cancel out a Zombie Card—though it can’t be used on oneself.

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The game runs for 20 rounds, ending with either the Zombies or Humans holding the majority. The losing faction is wiped out. With four groups spread across the facility and four Zombie Cards in play, Arisu quickly recognizes the importance of identifying who holds the rare Vaccine cards—likely hidden among rival teams.

Arisu is desperate to reunite with Usagi, though there’s a strong chance they’ll be forced to face off in this twisted tournament. Drawing from his experience in Season 2’s face card games, Arisu uses his ability to read people, pinpointing one woman’s evasive behavior as proof she’s infected.

While some advocate for direct elimination, Arisu pushes for strategy—forming alliances through information. The infected are asked to reveal who turned them, effectively sacrificing themselves as bargaining chips. Rei, a cheerful blue-haired player, champions this “Trust Barricade” method, betting on cooperation and vaccine cards to keep humanity ahead.

Not everyone agrees. Impulsive players like Ikeno prefer a brutal approach, pushing to use Shotguns. Former Yakuza member Mr. Kazuya even executes a Zombie holder, sparking rebellion and chaos. With trust broken, the Zombies retaliate, aggressively spreading infection. Shockingly, Rei welcomes this shift, admitting she finds the escalating chaos more entertaining—leaving Arisu stunned as alliances start to collapse.

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