Manga Bookshelf

Discussion, Resources, Roundtables, & Reviews

Blog

High School DxD: Hellcat of the Underworld Training Camp

by

By Ichiei Ishibumi and Miyama-Zero. Released in Japan by Fujimi Fantasia Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Haydn Trowell.

(with apologies to Professor Peter Schickele)

Each time I read a new volume of High School DxD I am filled with this feeling of anticipation, a feeling of exultation, a feeling that… this new volume can’t possibly be as horny as the last one. But so far… Yeah, I know, shut up, Sean, you’re yelling at a series for 13-year-old teenage boys for talking about tits too much, and I get it. I try to recalibrate my standards for these books. Heck, the hot springs scene was even mildly amusing once those standards are recalibrated. But God Almighty, the way that Issei levels up or gets more powerful in this series makes your jaw drop. Leaving aside that the key to unlocking his new super move is to poke Rias’ nipples, there is everything about the climax of the book, where a dying Issei suddenly attains the zen-like ability to hear women’s breasts talking as separate personalities. I… what was the author on when he came up with this? I can’t even say “Oh, Japan” here. WHAT?!?!

Koneko’s on the cover, and actually gets some backstory here, though she gets less to do than I’d like. Our main cast travel to the underworld to train at Rias’ vast estate, meet her parents, and end up fighting a new Rating Game against Sona and Saji, the student council faction. Sona wants to make demon society less class-based, and is being ridiculed for the very idea, so naturally her team wants to win badly here. That said, our heroes are the protagonists. Can they be powerful enough to get past Sona’s cleverness? Maybe, but it’ll take Issei having to fight a dragon everyday, as well as Koneko having to confront her past… literally, in the form of her sister. And of course there’s Saji, who is to Sona what Issei is to Rias. He has a dream of being a teacher… and is very pissed that Issei has groped more boobs than he has.

If you leave out the tits, this is a very normal shonen battle manga. Issei is told that unlocking his Balance Breaker is the sort of thing that’s usually done in a crisis position with strong emotions behind it. We then get what is obviously meant to be just that, with Koneko’s sister attacking her and Koneko feeling tremendous self-hatred. If Issei were in Strike the Blood, this would be where he would talk about “:this is my fight!” and level up. But Issei is in High School DxD, so it’s not enough to be feeling righteous fury, he also has to be getting super horny. Hence the nipple poking. The fight between Issei and Saji is the best part of the book, pure shonen manliness and shouting about each other’s dreams… then Issei gains the ability to hear women’s breasts talking, and any drama and excitement drains out of the body.

As for why I’m still reading this, I’m not really sure. I want to actually see what happens next? Unfortunately, what happens next will likely involve more ridiculousness. But as long as it also has cool fights and some romance that isn’t pure sex, I’ll probably get the next one.

My Friend’s Little Sister Has It In for Me!, Vol. 4

by

By mikawaghost and tomari. Released in Japan as “Tomodachi no Imouto ga Ore ni dake Uzai” by GA Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Alexandra Owen-Burns.

Despite the presence of some of the worst metaphors in the world, this is a better volume than the previous one, mostly because it doesn’t keep hammering on Sumire’s love of young boys. It essentially wraps up the plot from the previous book in the first half, leaving the 2nd half to delve deeper into one of the characters who we’ve been waiting to hear more about: our narrator, Akiteru. Well, sorry to break it to you, but we still don’t learn all that much about him. That said, it’s a good examination of his mindset and how he views himself compared to the others in the group, and a reminder that sometimes middle management really *is* the best skill to have. And of course there’s romance – Akiteru may be slowly (very, very slowly) catching on to what love actually feels like, and iroha reminds the other two heroines that she is still Best Girl round these parts.

Of course, given that Iroha has been on the cover of every volume to date, the idea that this is an ‘equal harem’ series is ridiculous. We start off where we left off, with Akiteru and Iroha in the shrine of love. Unfortunately, the shrine of love does not come with a toilet, so any deep sexual yearnings will have to wait. And, in any case, the real issue resolved here is Sumire’s desire to be an artist warring with her desire to be a teacher. It helps that, in the best Japanese tradition, her stern, unyielding grandfather turns out to be quite yielding after all. Then our heroes finally get a beach vacation, at Canary’s private beach house. Of course, there’s a catch. While brainstorming a new character, Canary essentially comes up with it herself. And also is better at forcing Sumire to work. And their “ghost” writer too. Is… is there anything for Akiteru left to do?

The main reason to read this series is still the two leads, who are the best thing about it. Akiteru may talk a good game about being logical and pragmatic, but he’s repressing an awful lot, and seeing how well Canary can seemingly do what he does every day gets him depressed and jealous. And, of course, it’s up to Iroha to do something about this. I like how her pep talk does help to cheer him up, but it’s not the actual solution – the solution is that Akiteru really *is* better at managing a bunch of eccentrics, as Canary finds out to her horror. (That said, she was doing this to test him anyway.) We’re also seeing secret identieis out in the open – Sumire now knows who Mashiro really is, and Ozuma has figured out who the “secret voice actress” is as well. This sort of series can’t resolve too quickly, but it’s nice to see it determined to move forward a plot point of two each volume.

There’s a cliffhanger that suggests the next book might be a bit more uncomfortable for Akiteru. Till then, this is a decent high school romcom with likeable characters, except for Sumire sometimes, and great dialogue, except for Sumire all the time. Seriously, “the dick in my heart won’t get hard”? That’s the metaphor you go with?

Can Someone Please Explain What’s Going On?! ~The Contract Couple’s Happily Ever After~, Vol. 7

by

By Tsuredurebana and Rin Hagiwara. Released in Japan as “Dareka Kono Joukyou wo Setsumei Shite Kudasai! ~Keiyaku Kara Hajimaru Wedding~” by ArianRose. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Tara Quinn.

It’s all change for this 7th volume of Can Someone Please Explain What’s Going On?!. As you can see, there’s a new subtitle (sorry that I can’t find the Japanese romanji equivalent) that basically is the equivalent of “After Story” – the main story has ended, our couple are living happily ever after, now what? There’s a new translator (the series’ third). And, most importantly there’s a new narrative focus, which means that sadly we don’t get much at all of Viola as the narrator here. Given that at the end of my last review, which kind of tore the series apart, I said that I would keep reading because I loved Viola’s narrative charm, that’s quite a blow. Thankfully, the series also seem s to have backed off on most of the other things that I disliked in the last volume. It’s a lot fluffier and sillier than previous volumes, but that’s not a bad thing in this case. These are “extra” stories, they don’t have to try hard.

Don’t let the cover fool you, our happy main couple and their child are definitely supporting players in this – indeed, the child only shows up in a side story, as most of this takes place only a short time after the previous volume. The actual protagonists are the couple behind them – this is the story of Corydalis, Cercis’ best friend and adjutant, and Stellaria, Viola’s replacement chief maid after her regular maid takes maternity leave. They fall in love. It’s really quite cute… mostly. (I’ll get to that.) Despite the occasional seeming obstacle, everyone approves of the two of them. Both are very mature. There is no need to worry about contract marriages or mistresses here. It would be somewhat dull were it not for the back half, which features a hostage situation and the World’s Dumbest Bandits.

There’s always a ‘but’ with this series. This time there’s no fat jokes, Viola is not kept in the dark, and we don’t have “yay, another victory for white rich people!’. But we do have the book’s running gag, which is that Cercis starts a rumor that Corydalis is avoiding getting married as he’s gay, and the rest of the book has, every 4-5 pages, Cory having to say “I’M NOT GAY!’ in anger as everyone around him laughs. It’s meant to be funny and teasing, but it just reads poorly in this day and age. Other than that, this was a good return to form. As I said, this couple can be defined by their down to earth feel, and we also get some nice observations from the two of them of the events in this book, particularly the first volume where Cercis is still very much all contract, no marriage.

So yes, I’ll read the next bunch of After Stories, which looks like they’ll do what I thought this one would – tell the story of how Lettie Cercis and Viola’s daughter, came to pass. Nice save, though I’m still watching you with a weathered eye.

Turning the Tables on the Seatmate Killer, Vol. 1

by

By Aresanzui and Sabimizore. Released in Japan as “Tonari no Seki ni Natta Bishoujo ga Hore Saseyou to Karakatte Kuruga Itsunomanika Kaeriuchi ni Shite Ita” by Monster Bunko. Released in North America by Tentai Books. Translated by Noor Hamdan.

Everyone talks a lot about how much they detest clichés, but a lot of the time they don’t really seem to mean it. What they detest are boring clichés. You really do enjoy seeing the seemingly stoic and grumpy guy or the bubbly and somewhat clumsy girl provided they’re written well. They’re types we love. The trouble is that most authors don’t know how to make those clichés come alive, and so you get a series of light novel protagonists that have been dubbed “potatoes” by fans. Replace them with a potato, and the story would be the same. Fortunately, it doesn’t require much to clear this low bar. Just… add a dash of realism to your cliché. Make them seem like a person who could exist in the real world. Doing this solves many issues. Fortunately, Seatmate Killer manages to do this quite well. I was surprised to find myself increasingly gripped by the characters.

The Seatmate Killer is Yui, a cute and popular high school girl who has had a lot of guys sit next to her, fall in love with her, confess… and get rejected. Every changing of seats brings a new guy and a new rejection. That said, if this IS deliberate she has a tough nut to crack when Yuuki sits next to her. A seemingly stoic man who doesn’t react to any of her overtures of conversation, he has no interest in her at all, and is puzzled that she keeps trying to get under his skin and get closer to him. Of course, Yui is not particularly doing this because she’s a tease, she has a very good reason for it. What’s more, Yuuki’s attitude also comes from a realistic place, and also involves his little sister, who manages to be weirder than he is.

As you can see, the two leads are types. The supporting characters also fit that bill. Mina is the classic little sister with an older brother complex, but she’s also fragile and emotionally devastated, and she and Yui have a lot more in common than you’d think. Maki, Yui’s older sister, is the classic teasing oneesama type, but also clearly cares and worries about Yui, and doesn’t want to see her hurt. As the book goes on we get deeper into Yuuki and Mina’s past, and Yuuki’s tendency to smile and go along with things unemotionally is put under the microscope. That, more than any banter at their shared classroom desks, is what allows the two to get closer. That said, this book is still relatively lighthearted, and there’s a lot of humor to be found in Yui’s freaking out about things or Yuuki’s po-faced reactions to her jokes and attempts at conversation. I would also like to note that if THIS is the Seatmate Killer, the other guys in their classroom are all the easiest of chumps. Sheesh.

I said on Twitter I think Tentai Books has a nice niche in sugary sweet romcoms, and this book certainly helps to add to that impression. I’ll be getting another volume. It’s clichéd… but in the right way.

Manga the Week of 11/10/21

by , , and Leave a Comment

SEAN: It’s so hard to hold a manga in the cold November rain…

We start with Yen On, which has a new light novel debut: I Kept Pressing the 100-Million-Year Button and Came Out on Top (Ichiokunen Button o Rendashita Ore wa, Kidzuitara Saikyou ni Natteita ~Rakudai Kenshi no Gakuin Musou~). The story of a failure of a swordsman who gets one of the cheatiest cheats ever, though he comes to regret it.

There’s also new releases from many of Yen On’s biggest titles. We see Accel World 25, Re: ZERO -Starting Life in Another World- 17, Sword Art Online 23, Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online 10, and That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime 12.

Yen Press’s debut is a spinoff: So I’m a Spider, So What? The Daily Lives of the Kumoko Sisters, a gag manga spinoff that runs in Young Ace UP!, featuring the four parallel minds of our spider heroine.

Yen also has Cirque du Freak Omnibus 4, The Elder Sister-Like One 5, the 10th and final volume of Happy Sugar Life, Hazure Skill: The Guild Member with a Worthless Skill Is Actually a Legendary Assassin 2, I’m a Behemoth, an S-Ranked Monster, but Mistaken for a Cat, I Live as an Elf Girl’s Pet 3, Konosuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World! 12, Sasaki and Miyano 4, and Sex Ed 120% 2.

MICHELLE: Out of all of this, only Sasaki and Miyano is my sort of thing.

ASH: I think I’m likely of a similar mind, though I do vaguely remember Cirque du Freak being something I meant to check out way back when it was first being released.

SEAN: Viz has two new debuts. Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End (Sousou no Frieren) is a Shonen Sunday title. Our hero’s party has defeated the demon king. Now what? This is something the near immortal elf of the party, who is going to watch the other members age and die, wants to find out. This one is award winning and everyone seems to love it. Can’t wait.

MICHELLE: Interesting!

ANNA: This sounds intriguing. I’m always curious about Shonen Sunday titles.

ASH: I am likewise intrigued! And I do like a good story about (near) immortals.

SEAN: The other debut is Pokémon Journeys, which is, well, a Pokemon manga. For fans of the genre.

And if you missed Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba when it came out, we have the Demon Slayer Complete Box Set for you.

ASH: That’ll be nice to see!

SEAN: Also from Viz: Fly Me to the Moon 8, Mao 2, and Splatoon: Squid Kids Comedy Show 5.

MICHELLE: I still need to check out Mao.

ASH: I have the first volume! But haven’t actually read it yet…

SEAN: SuBLime has Birds of Shangri-La 2.

ASH: The artwork in this series is appealing, but I’m not completely sold on the story, yet.

SEAN: No debuts for Seven Seas proper (but see later on). We do get: Classmates 4, The Dangers in My Heart 3, Drugstore in Another World: The Slow Life of a Cheat Pharmacist 3, Gal Gohan 9, The Hidden Dungeon Only I Can Enter 4, How Heavy Are the Dumbbells You Lift? 8, I Got Caught Up In a Hero Summons, but the Other World was at Peace! 2, The Invincible Shovel 2, and My Wife Has No Emotion 2.

MICHELLE: I really will get caught up on Classmates this time.

ASH: It’s good; I’m really glad we got to see this series in English.

SEAN: One Peace has I Belong to the Baddest Girl at School 2.

ASH: I finally got my hands on the first volume and am looking forward to giving it a read.

SEAN: Kodansha debuts Ciguatera, a manga by the legendary Minoru Furuya, author of Ping Pong Club. This ran in Young Magazine, and is about the pain and struggle (and tiny joys) of high school life. For fans of Inio Asano.

MICHELLE: Well, that last sentence is foreboding, but I’ll still probably check this out!

ANNA: I’m not sure how much I feel like being super depressed but I’m sure this is very good and critically acclaimed.

SEAN: And we get a spinoff debut, Rent-A-(Really Shy!)-Girlfriend (Kanojo, Hitomishirimasu), a Magazine Pocket title that focuses on Sumi.

There’s also the 2nd and final volume of Codename Sailor V: Eternal Edition, a rerelease of Junji Ito’s Cat Diary: Yon & Mu in a Collector’s Edition, and the 5th Shaman King omnibus.

ASH: I greatly enjoyed (and enjoy) Cat Diary.

SEAN: Digitally, get ready for ANOTHER Cells at Work spinoff. Cells at Work! White Brigade (Hataraku Saibou White) is from Shonen Sirius, and, well, focuses on the White Blood Cells.

ASH: I’ve lost track of all of the spinoffs, but I do like franchise.

SEAN: There’s also Ace of the Diamond 35, Police in a Pod 6, Shangri-La Frontier 4, Tokyo Revengers 23, The Witch and the Beast 7, and Yamaguchi-kun Isn’t So Bad 4.

MICHELLE: I will never fail to be happy about sports manga!

ANNA: Wish there was more in print!

SEAN: J-Novel Club graces us with By the Grace of the Gods 9, Chillin’ in Another World with Level 2 Super Cheat Powers 2, The Ideal Sponger Life 5, Invaders of the Rokujouma!? 38, Jessica Bannister 3, and Tearmoon Empire 6, the most important of these.

Ghost Ship debuts Cat in a Hot Girls’ Dorm (Joshi Ryou Neko no Tama-san) from Manga Goraku. A women’s dorm adopts a cat, and the cat has a cat’s eye view of all their sexy goings-on!

MICHELLE: …

ANNA: No thank you!

SEAN: Also from Ghost Ship: Booty Royale: Never Go Down Without a Fight! Vol. 3-4, Parallel Paradise 7, and Welcome to Succubus High! 3.

Dark Horse has the 9th deluxe hardcover for Berserk.

ASH: That one’s for me!

Airship has a bunch of print titles. We get Accomplishments of the Duke’s Daughter 3, Adachi and Shimamura 7, Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation 13, and She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man 2.

And in early digital we get Failure Frame: I Became the Strongest and Annihilated Everything With Low-Level Spells 3.

What manga are you sobbing over in the rain?

The Saint’s Magic Power Is Omnipotent, Vol. 4

by

By Yuka Tachibana and Yasuyuki Syuri. Released in Japan as “Seijo no Maryoku wa Bannou desu” by Kadokawa Books. Released in North America by Seven Seas. Translated by Julie Goniwich.

It’s been a long time since the 3rd volume, likely due to the ongoing issues with printing books the world has been having. That also means that we’ve seen the anime series come and go since I last reviewed it. the anime got decent reviews, and everyone seemed to find it pleasant. It also adapted through this volume, meaning that I’ve actually seen the anime first in this particular case. I try not to do this too often, and after reading this book I reinforced why: I think that a lot of these scenes work a bit better animated. Sei is, with the exception of her embarrassing love for Albert, a fairly mild, low-key hero, which is good, but it does mean that when it comes to exciting battle scenes they can sometimes seem a bit lacking. I was waiting for the big final battle in this book, and realized as I got past it that I’d missed it in the lack of excitement.

We’re still in Klausner’s Domain, trying to get rid of the monsters that are destroying its valuable plants and herbs. There are fewer monsters at the edges since Sei is around and she’s the Saint, but they do have to deal with a great deal of slimes – not, as she explicitly notes, the cute Level-1 slimes from Japanese RPGs, but a far more dangerous kind of slime. They need more mages and fewer knights. Fortunately, Yuri and Aira show up, happening to be passing through by pure coincidence. (Note: it was not pure coincidence.) And even if they do manage to kill off the monster that’s causing all the blight upon the landf, the land is still dead, right? Sei is going to have to finally stop being the Saint in secret if she wants to solve this mess.

There’s some good stuff here, though I will admit that I find the 2nd Knight brigade more creepy than funny, as does Sei. I get that they’re worshiping her because she literally healed their missing arms and legs, but they come across like idol fans more than anything else. Yuri is slightly better, his shtick basically being research uber alles, but he too can also be a bit offputting, especially when he’s right in Sei’s face trying to see how her magic works. Fortunately, Sei’s relationship with Aira is great, and we see the two of them cooking and chatting together. What’s more, Sei’s way of thinking may be changing the mature of magic in this world – Yuri is now able to make ice cubes after seeing Sei’s power of imagination, and it’s implied other discoveries may also be possible. I wonder if we’ll get a lot more research in he next book. Oh yes, and Sei and Albert are the same as they’ve ever been – this relationship is not upgrading anytime soon.

So a decent volume, but it lacks a bit compared to its animated counterpart. Still worth a read.

Knight of the Ice, Vol 7

by

Knight of the Ice Volume 7 by Yayoi Ogawa

We don’t get a ton of josei series translated, so I do cherish the ones that come out in print like Knight of the Ice which has a winning combination of figure skating drama combined with Ogawa’s quirky sense of humor. While many of the plot points of the series center around Kokoro’s difficulties training and winning competitions, this volume opens with Chitose dealing with her heart condition. Kokoro’s hard-nosed manager Moriyama visits Chitose in the hospital, and it is great to see how much she cares even though she goes to great lengths to hide her emotions. Chitose doesn’t want to derail Kokoro’s concentration by having him worry about her, so she decides to both postpone having surgery and wants to keep her condition a secret.

Knight of the Ice 7

For the rest of the volume, Kokoro is vaguely uneasy as he trains for his latest competitions, as he can tell that Chitose is hiding something but he isn’t sure what it is. He’s dealing with his ongoing issues of pushing his technical abilities but sometimes struggling to be artistic and expressive enough in his skating. “Yayoi Ogawa” shows up to dash off a sketch for an inspiring new costume. Ogawa’s dynamic and expressive art makes the skating competitions compelling, as all the skaters are dealing with their own struggles. Kokoro has some triumphs and setbacks, and has still not yet reached his full potential. I’m enjoying seeing the story in Knight of the Ice unfold.

Ascendance of a Bookworm: I’ll Do Anything to Become a Librarian!, Part 4: Founder of the Royal Academy’s So-Called Library Committee, Vol. 3

by

By Miya Kazuki and You Shiina. Released in Japan as “Honzuki no Gekokujou: Shisho ni Naru Tame ni wa Shudan wo Erandeiraremasen” by TO Books. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by quof.

Ominous-looking cover, isn’t it? I feel like being the grandfather in The Princess Bride, reassuring the son that no one is eaten by any aquatic creatures. That said, each arc of Ascendance of a Bookworm is practically its own separate series, and Rozemyne has been moving farther and farther away from the childhood she had long ago. She’s a noble now, and her main concerns have to be a noble’s concerns – even though she also has to be the champion of the commoners, because really if you leave that to the other nobles bad things will happen. She has a lot on her plate, basically. And so the instance in this book where she’s told point-blank that her old coping strategies are going to be unavailable going forward is somewhat devastating to her, and to the reader. Let’s face it, I think a lot of readers would be quite happy if Myne had stayed in the commoner town making books. But that’s not what this series is anymore.

Despite doing her absolute best to try to talk and think like a noble, it’s rapidly becoming clear that Rozemyne in social settings like like a ticking timebomb. As such, certain precautions have to be taken in this volume. Justus is made her main attendant (even if this will involve him cross-dressing), and gets a first-hand look at how Rozemyne is 90% correct and 10% HIDEOUSLY WRONG. More importantly, she is of an age where arranged marriages need to be set up, if only for political reasons. Even Angelica is now engaged, though she seems to regard romance as something that’s about 7th on her list after swords, swords, and more swords. And so it’s fine to engage Rozemyne to another noble… even if this means that some meetings that she had in the temple previously will now have to be ended.

The narrative is quick to point out that Rozemyne will keep seeing Benno, Lutz and Tulli on occasion. But going into the hidden room, hugging Lutz, and acting as a commoner girl like Myne did… that’s dead and gone. It’s brought home in a beautifully tragic nightmare she has about all her old family and friends getting farther and farther away while she can’t keep up. The rest of the book consists of fun Academy scenes, though it has a very serious ending as one of Rosemyne’s attendants is being abused and she has to figure out what to do about it without overstepping her bounds. She’s also engaged. The engagement partner makes sense and works politically and socially, and I (and most readers) have no doubt whatsoever it’s never gonna happen. But given she still looks about 8 years old, I’m fine with kicking this can down the road.

Life is only getting harder for Rozemyne from now on, and not even endless furniture metaphors can protect her. Fortunately, we can read about her tribulations, and this is another excellent volume.

Pick of the Week: Scary Classmates and King’s Beasts

by , , , , and Leave a Comment

SEAN: A lot of Viz, as usual for the first week of the month, and my eye is drawn to the My Hero Academia: Ultra Analysis book, because I am a nerd. But I think I will go with No Matter What You Say, Furi-san Is Scary!, which is a genre (misunderstood girl everyone thinks is scary but isn’t) I really like.

MICHELLE: There’s not really one particular title screaming out to me this week. Moreso, it’s the prospect of catching up on some Shojo Beat series I’ve fallen woefully behind on. For the sake of choosing something, I’ll go with volume four of The King’s Beast. I really enjoyed Dawn of the Arcana and The Water Dragon’s Bride by this mangaka, and I have no doubt that trend will continue.

KATE: Not much caught my eye this week, so I’m going off-list to remind everyone that there’s a new installment of Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson’s awesome Beasts of Burden series arriving in stores this week. If you ever thought that Stranger Things would be more entertaining if its protagonists were house pets, this is the series for you! It’s funny, unnerving, and proof that talking animals aren’t just for kids.

ASH: This week I’m going to join Sean in picking No Matter What You Say, Furi-san Is Scary! since it’s the debut that I’m most interested in. But as for ongoing manga, the new edition of Blade of the Immortal is probably the best way to experience the series.

ANNA: I’m with Michelle this week, I think The King’s Beast is the most intriguing thing coming out this week.

MJ: I’m not enormously drawn to anything this week, but if I must make a choice, I’ll go along with Sean and Ash. I think No Matter What You Say, Furi-san Is Scary! sounds potentially fun, and sometimes that’s enough!

Reincarnated as the Piggy Duke: This Time I’m Gonna Tell Her How I Feel!, Vol. 3

by

By Rhythm Aida and nauribon. Released in Japan as “Buta Koushaku ni Tensei shita kara, Kondo wa Kimi ni Suki to Iitai” by Fujimi Fantasia Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Zihan Gao.

One argument that I’ve gotten into a few times is whether it’s a good thing to always tell the truth 100% of the time or not. I’d say no, myself, as I’ve seen the truth used as a very cruel weapon at times. That said, I can see the opposing view, and the idea comes up a lot in this book. Charlotte has been hiding her identity as the lost Princess for years now, and the impact on her has been great. Not only is she getting somewhat crushed with worry and doubt about lying to Slowe, as well as worrying that if she does reveal herself it will start a war, but there’s also the fact that the spirits who inhabit this world are angry with her for lying and won’t help her with magic. Combine this with the PTSD she still has around monsters, and this really is not a great book for Charlotte’s psyche. Fortunately, we have a dragon.

There’s a new dungeon right near the academy, and the students are all preparing to go into it and get some loot… erm, kill some monsters. Meanwhile, Princess Carina has arrived at the academy as well, supposedly to see if the dungeon can produce a legendary dragon to protect her, much the same way Charlotte’s old country USED to have. Slowe is charged with being her guide around the campus… and comes to find that the polite and affable princess presented to the public is a front for a girl who would rather lie around in her underwear and eat snacks. Frankly, it’s exhausting. Unfortunately, that also means that he’s quite far from campus when the worst case scenario happens – a monster clears the dungeon before the humans do, gains the core, and becomes super powerful. And is the dragon of Huzak really gone?

The book balances itself almost precisely between a funny first half and a far more serious second half. Princess Carina is a lot of fun, essentially being an introvert forced by circumstance to present herself as an extrovert, and getting so much attention all the time (especially towards her chest) is exhausting. Slowe, of course, is perfect at dealing with her because, while he is not immune to her physical charms, for the most part he’s not going to be swayed by her trying to whine her way out of things. The second half, on the other hand, is far more harrowing, as the entire school essentially experiences a siege. The terror of the students is portrayed very well, including those who manage to fight anyway. Charlotte also seems to find her resolve, and she and Slowe at last are honest with each other. (I think. There’s some vagueness at the climax that makes me suspicious.)

The books have been improving with each one, and I’m definitely looking forward to the fourth one. A good read for those who like fantasy with an engaging protagonist.