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Demons’ Crest, Vol. 1

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By Reki Kawahara and Yukiko Horiguchi. Released in Japan by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by James balzer.

I had heard, for some reason, that this was Reki Kawahara wanting to do something different, and if you look at this book superficially, you might laugh. It’s about a bunch of folks who get trapped in a gaming environment where they can actually be killed, and most of the battles and technical talk is straight from the gamer handbook. And we also have eye/ear tech that bonds with your body and is used by absolutely everyone in the real world, as this takes place about 10 years in the future. Fans of SAO and Accel World must be going hrm. And yes, it does feel sort of like an author of romance fics featuring the same couple deciding to do something different by doing a Pirate AU of that exact couple, but I do think this has a few things that really do make it different. First of all, these are 11 and 12-year-olds, meaning for once being immature jerks is actually not only tolerable but expected. Secondly, it’s clear that what Kawahara REALLY wanted to write is a Death Game. (Yes, yes, SAO, but…)

The kids of Yukihana Elementary School are excited. They get to try out a brand new, still in testing virtual reality game that feels just like real life!… well, mostly. They’re still working on smell and taste. We follow Yuuma Ashihara and his twin Sawa, as well as their childhood friend Nagi and Yuum’s best friend Kenji as they try to capture monsters, card-captor style, and defeat dungeon bosses. Then suddenly Yuuma finds himself back in the VR capsule… and when he gets out of it, he finds the class idol, Sumika, stumbling towards him, with her face blank except for a row of ravenous teeth and holding a severed arm, presumably of a classmate. Now he has to join up with his sister and best friend (childhood friend is missing) to try to figure out what’s going on and survive.

This does do some things well. The romance is kept to a 12-year-old level, which is a bit of a relief, frankly, especially as the body count starts to get higher. The action scenes are as good as you’d expect for this author. I admit I was a little annoyed with Sawa clearly putting off telling her twin brother (and the reader) what really happeneed till the cliffhanger ending, as it felt forced. There’s also a guy in here… I forget what his name in the book is, because I just called him “Monoma Neito” as soon as I read him, and anyone who’s read My Hero Academia will do the same. Only, unlike Monoma, this guy looks to be actually evil. Lastly, I did enjoy the fact that folks think about what will happen if they do escape this. The monsters are not all game-only, some are classmates or adults turned into monsters, and I don’t think “I killed them because it was a death game” will fly if they get back to reality and have to explain things.

Still, reality looks a long way away. Fortunately, there is a 2nd volume coming soon, which hopefully features Sawa actually talking. Till then, for fans of ‘trapped in a game’, death games, or this author.

Pick of the Week: Shonen, Josei, Yuri, and Harta

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MICHELLE: The final volume of Shonen Note: Boy Soprano gets my vote this week! Maybe I’ll also finally manage to read Our Dreams at Dusk at some point!

SEAN: Out of Yen Press’s many debuts this week, This Monster Wants to Eat Me is the one I want to read the most. Some yuri with a darker tinge.

ASH: I’m definitely interested in both of those, too, but I generally have very good luck with Harta manga and so will go with this week’s other mermaid manga A Sinner of the Deep Sea as my official pick.

ANNA: My pick is going to be both josei series coming out this week, Sweet for Sweets and Foreigners and Royal Tailor: Clothier to the Crown, because it is so rare to have multiple josei out in the same week!

An Archdemon’s Dilemma: How to Love Your Elf Bride, Vol. 17

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By Fuminori Teshima and COMTA. Released in Japan as “Maou no Ore ga Dorei Elf wo Yome ni Shitanda ga, Dou Medereba Ii?” by HJ Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Hikoki.

This series started off with very powerful characters, and it’s only been adding more and more of them as it goes on. Even the comedy relief crybaby girl is an incredibly powerful archangel, and there are all new archdemons, each of which are, when viewed apart from the story itself, utterly terrifying. As such, it’s rather refreshing that we spend a chunk of this story with Micca, the lowest-ranked archangel, who is on the team merely because the swords choose their owner, and thus still feels like a teenage boy struggling to provide for his lower-class family. He’s a nice kid, and will happily help the mysterious, robotic-sounding maid girl try to find her master despite being obviously suspicious. So of course this guy finds himself, at the climax of the book, to be the fifth person in a battle to the death between four of the most powerful people in the world. Some days you really should stay in bed.

All Zagan and Nephy want to do is have a cute ice cream sundae date, but things keep getting in the way. Well, mostly it’s Asmodeus, who wants to try to make a deal with a somewhat irritated Zagan because she knows that “throw demons at Zagan till he’s overrun” is indeed a strategy that could work. She’s also, like many villains in this series, slowly turning out to be not so bad after all. The same cannot be said for Glaysa-Labolas, who is definitely the villain this time around, as he finds the location of Forneus, an archdemon who might be able to help Zagan, as well as Shax and Kuroka, who are supposedly on their “honeymoon” but in reality are trying to gain his support. Unfortunately, Forneus also turns out to be the owner of the maid girl I mentioned above, so when she and the teenage archangel all arrive at the same tavern, everything gets very messy.

This series tends to run on “very powerful people who can destroy the world are useless dorks when it comes to love”, and no one has been a bigger dork in the past than Shax, who the reader has wanted to throttle many times. But eventually (I assume, the anime only adapted two volumes, meaning it could theoretically come back for 8 more cour) this series is going to have to end, meaning that some of these people are going to have to get their shit together at some point. And Shax and Kuroka look to be the closest to doing so, as Chastille and Barbatos are stuck in comedy relief land (I love that her “curse” is “no, you’re just that clumsy”) and Zagan and Nephy are stuck in Archie Comics-style romance. They both get several chances to be cool here, and there’s even some accidental kinky ear biting, showing, as with every other catgirl in Japan, the ears are an erogenous zone to Kuroka.

One complaint: if the text is going to describe a dead person as “diced”, don’t draw interior art showing them with a bit of blood loss. Beyond that, this was a decent Archdemon’s Dilemma, a series that really should wrap up soon, please.

Goodbye, Overtime! This Reincarnated Villainess Is Living for Her New Big Brother, Vol. 1

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By Chidori Hama and Wan Hachipisu. Released in Japan as “Akuyaku Reijō, Brocon ni Job Change Shimasu” by Kadokawa Beans Bunko. Released in North America by J-Novel Heart. Translated by Rymane Tsouria.

First of all, because I know it’s the first question on everyone’s mind, there’s no incest subtext in this book. OK, there’s no sexual incest subtext. There’s tons of Brocon/siscon stuff, and the usual “I’m never marrying anyone I’ll just stay with you” nonsense, but there is zero sexual attraction between the two leads beyond Ekaterina thinking her brother is hot. Which he is. Secondly, in the afterword, the author says they got the idea for this series after reading another villainess book. They don’t say which one, but if it’s not My Next Life As a Villainess, I’ll be very surprised. This, like quite a few villainess books, reads like someone wanted to write the same series only with the main character being less of a complete dipshit. And this not only includes Ekaterina trying hard to avoid her doom, but also includes her befriending the heroine, who seems to fall deeply in love with her. That said, this will likely be about as canon as Bakarina as well.

Rina Yukimura is an OL in a Black Company-type job, who ends up dying of overwork and exhaustion while playing an otome game she loves. Now she wakes up as… the game’s villainess! Ekaterina Yulnova is the sister of a duke, and spends most of the game bullying the heroine until she eventually gets her comeuppance. So Rina has several things she has to do. First, she and Ekaterina start off as very different people, and meshing their personalities (well, more like Rina takes over) takes a lot of energy. Secondly, she has to work hard to not be the villainess, which means actually study hard and also read up on her family history, which was not gone into in the game, and turns out to be a lot darker than she expected. This is all before she gets to school, and meets Lady, Flora, a commoner who is now the adopted daughter of a baroness…

If that summary made you roll your eyes a bit, I don’t blame you. It’s a bit boilerplate, yes. Ekaterina is fun, though. Having died from overwork in her past life, she sees her brother running the entire dukedom and panics that he’ll do the same thing… while remaining blissfully obvious that she’s fallen into her own overwork habits from before. Flora is a shyer, more reserved Maria Campbell, but they even bond over good food – in this case, potato and bacon crepes rather than sweets – and seems to hero worship Ekaterina just as much, and some other ladies also look smitten by the end of this volume. That said, she’s also gaining male followers. In addition to her brother, who reads like Keith Claes only without all the creepy, there’s the Prince, who reads a lot like Jeord but without all the creepy. Oh yes, and there’s also monster attacks, which Bakarina doesn’t do as much but does allow Ekaterina to help save the day with her “common” Earth magic… which again, feels like a comment on Katarina Claes and her Earth Bump.

If you like villainess books, this isn’t bad. If you want Bakarina with the serial numbers filed off, it’s also not bad. Just… expect the yuri to go the same way it’s going to go in Bakarina.

The Invisible Wallflower Marries an Upstart Aristocrat After Getting Dumped for Her Sister!, Vol. 2

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By Makino Maebaru and Murasaki Shido. Released in Japan as “Kon’yaku Haki Sareta “Kūki” na Watashi, Nariagari no Dan’na-sama ni Totsugimashita” by Mag Garden Novels. Released in North America by Cross Infinite World. Translated by piyo.

Last time I said that I enjoyed a romance with a few jagged edges, and this second volume provides. In fact, it provides a bit too much. This volume features sexual assault, threats of sexual assault, past histories of both sexual assault and murder, drug addiction, forced drug addition, kidnappings, and use of sexual language to degrade. And that’s all just Mikhail. It’s less “jagged edges” now and more “the floor is lava”. At its heart, though, like so many of this genre, the story is about examining the aristocracy, the power that they hold over the working class, and how it can be abused without anyone knowing or caring. Now, eventually they do care, trust me. But it takes a lot of evidence, and it also requires Iris to endure a large amount of the above, all for the sake of her husband, who people still don’t trust. It’s a lot.

When we last left Iris and Lucas, she had gotten a letter from her sister, who basically wrote (in nearly illiterate script), “come do everything for my engagement party because I demand it”, which causes Iris to briefly have a bit of a breakdown. After this, though, she resolves to not only return to her family to help with her sister’s engagement party, but to use this opportunity to cut things off with her family once and for all. Which, of course, is tricky because the first prince is still determined to ruin Lucas, and the easiest way to do that is through Lucas’ new wife. Iris also has her work cut out for her: her dad is drunk and gambling away all his money, her stepmother hates her, and her sister is a jealous spoiled brat who can’t even read or write well. Oh yes, and there’s her ex-fiancé, Mikhail. See above.

How much you like this volume may depend how much you can tolerate “I will stoically endure for the sake of my future happiness”. The scene at Mikhail’s mansion is harrowing, and this is even with Iris taking guards and maids just in case. Her family’s dissoluteness turns out to have been engineered, which does not make her sympathetic to them, but it does mean that at least we don’t long to see them die horribly like, say, we long to see happen to Mikhail. There’s also a fake ending, as I wondered if the main conflict would be wrapped up 3/4 of the way through the book and the series would end with a consummation at last. But no, this series turns out to be three volumes, not two, and the main villain escapes so he can once again kidnap, threaten, and exude his sexist fantasies at Iris. Worst of all, he’s not killed off (at least not on the page), so I suspect he’ll be back.

This is a good series, and Iris and Lucas’ romance is very well done. But man, there’s a lot of stuff to endure here. Jagged edges are best in moderation.

By a Twist of Fate, I’m Attending the Royal Academy in Disguise, Vol. 1

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By Ringo and Tsukasa Satsuki. Released in Japan as “Wake Atte, Hensō Shite Gakuen ni Sennyū Shiteimasu” by PASH! Books. Released in North America by Cross Infinite World. Translated by Alex Castor.

I had talked about artifact titles only a couple of days ago, and this is an even better example: after the first forty pages, the title becomes totally incorrect, as this book does not take place at the academy at all beyond that point. Which makes sense: like the best LaLa titles, this started off as a complete in 40 pages short story, which was then expanded, and is now a volume, with a second one on the way. Despite that… yeah, she’s still not attending the royal academy. Oh well, I’ll happily read it anyway, because I like the main couple. We have a heroine (and yes, for once it’s not a villainess or fallen noble but is playing the cliche straight) who is straightforward and blunt and also perhaps doesn’t care enough about her well-being, and a royal prince who is far more similar to her than he’d like. But she’s a commoner, so they can’t marry. Certainly not with everything getting in her way this volume, at least…

As the title suggests, Cesia is at the Royal Academy pretending to be Selene Diane, a noble lady who is a bit of a bitch, and doesn’t want to deal with the bullying she’ll get from being engaged to the handsome lothario Lord Raymond Chaser, so Cesia has been there the last two years in her place. A pile of money awaits her at graduation… unless she’s working for evil nobles. Oh, no, she’s working for evil nobles! So, after escaping from her imprisonment, she resolves to attend graduation to try and get some revenge… even if she has no idea what it is. Then she runs into Marcus, the second :Prince, who not only is here to help her with her revenge but also seems very familiar… After this, the rest of the book plays out, which basically involves Cesia working for the government and ending up in constant life-threatening danger.

There are several interesting aspects of this book, but my favorite is probably Maria. Maria was an acquaintance of Cesia’s at the academy… and also turns out to be Prince Marcus, who can disguise himself to magic to be a woman. Despite discovering this, Cesia continues to see Maria and Marcus separately. Part of this is likely due to the fact that Marcus is royal and it’s easier to be more casual with Maria, but a lot of it is simply subconscious, Cesia is more comfortable with Maria. Which makes Marcus… feel a bit ambiguous. The rest of the book is not all that original (jealous younger sister who turns out to be a total sweetie pie, decadent nobility taking drugs, Cesia almost dying like 4 times…) and ends with a nasty cliffhanger, but Cesia is fun, and really needs some self-esteem. Marcus calls her a “stray cat”, never wanting to settle down, and he’s not far off, but he’s also ignoring his own lack of self-regard, as he’s not the heir.

The second volume is coming out relatively quickly, which is good. For those who like a bit of thriller in their commoner/noble romance.

Manga the Week of 6/19/24

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SEAN: Despite various difficulties, Manga the Week of lives on!

ASH: Forward!

SEAN: We start with Airship, which has one print volume, Failure Frame: I Became the Strongest and Annihilated Everything With Low-Level Spells 10.

While early digital gives us Loner Life in Another World 9 and A Tale of the Secret Saint 6.

A debut for Dark Horse Comics, Danganronpa 2: Chiaki Nanami’s Goodbye Despair Quest (Super Danganronpa 2 – Nanami Chiaki no Sayonara Zetsubou Daibouken) is a retelling of the events of the second game from Chiaki’s point of view. It ran in Comic Blade.

Not Ghost Ship but mature, Seven Seas has a 6th volume of Love is an Illusion!.

No debuts for J-Novel Club next week, but we do see D-Genesis: Three Years after the Dungeons Appeared 6, Demon Lord, Retry! R 6, I Could Never Be a Succubus! 3, the 4th manga volume of I’ll Never Set Foot in That House Again!, My Magical Career at Court: Living the Dream After My Nightmare Boss Fired Me from the Mages’ Guild! 4, and RVing My Way into Exile with My Beloved Cat: This Villainess Is Trippin’ 2.

No debuts for Kodansha Manga either, but we do see, in print, I Was Reincarnated as the 7th Prince so I Can Take My Time Perfecting My Magical Ability 12, A Kingdom of Quartz 2, Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms 7, Ogami-san Can’t Keep It In 5, Pass the Monster Meat, Milady! 4, Peach Boy Riverside 14, Shonen Note: Boy Soprano 8 (the final volume), and Vinland Saga Deluxe 3.

MICHELLE: Well, I guess all of the procrastinating I did on Shonen Note means I now get to read the whole thing in one go.

ASH: Saaaaaame. Unrelated, those deluxe editions of Vinland Saga are gorgeous.

SEAN: And digitally we get The Beast Player 2, Gamaran 22 (the final volume, though see Gamaran: Shura), He’s Expecting 3 (the final volume), Issak 8, Mr. Bride 10 (the final volume), ONIMAI: I’m Now Your Sister! 8, Piano Duo for the Left Hand 9 (the final volume), Rent-A-Girlfriend 25 (the fin… no, no, it’s not, this series will never, ever end), Sayabito: Swords of Destiny 3, Undead Girl Murder Farce 6, WIND BREAKER 15, and Ya Boy Kongming! 16.

One Peace Books has the 3rd manga volume of Villainess Level 99: I May Be the Hidden Boss But I’m Not the Demon Lord.

Two debuts for Seven Seas: Chasing Spica (Spica o Tsukamaete) is from Comic Yuri Hime. A girl has been losing to her respectable rival all through high school. Now, in their final year… she gets some blackmail material. A love hotel? With another woman?

ASH: A bit different than Twin Spica, then.

SEAN: Royal Tailor: Clothier to the Crown (Royal Tailor: Oukyuu no Saihoushi) is a josei series from Comic Zero Sum. A young woman dreams of being a tailor, but unfortunately, she lives in a world that discriminates against humans. Will her fortunes turn around?

ANNA: Hooray for josei!

ASH: Indeed! I would totally read this.

SEAN: Also from Seven Seas: The Invincible Shovel 7 (the final volume), My Stepmother and Stepsisters Aren’t Wicked 4, Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn 18, Reborn as a Space Mercenary: I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship! 7, Reincarnated as a Sword: Another Wish 6 (the final volume), There’s No Freaking Way I’ll be Your Lover! Unless… 5, Tokyo Revengers 21-22, and The Tree of Death: Yomotsuhegui 2.

Square Enix has The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses 10.

The debut for Tokyopop is Sweet for Sweets and Foreigners (Koisuru Okashi to Etranger), a josei title from Comic Qurie. A woman who’s good at sales but bad at life meets a handsome Frenchman.

ANNA: Even more josei!

SEAN: They also have Cover My Scars With Your Kiss 2 and Mitsuka 3.

The debut from Viz is Fool Night, a seinen title from Big Comic Superior. This can be summed up as “if you lived in a hellish dystopia, would you fight back, or would you let yourself be turned into a plant? Or both?” For those who want social commentary in manga, this is excellent.

MICHELLE: Sounds potentially interesting!

ANNA: I’m team plant.

ASH: I am intrigued.

SEAN: Viz also has Gokurakugai 2, Insomniacs After School 6, Magilumiere Magical Girls Inc. 2, Mission: Yozakura Family 11, Rooster Fighter 6, Show-ha Shoten! 5, and the 23rd and final volume of YO-KAI WATCH.

MICHELLE: I should probably read Show-ha Shoten!.

ASH: Likewise.

SEAN: That leaves us with Yen. Yen On debuts Babel, a semi-sequel to Unnamed Memory, taking place centuries later. This new series is an isekai, though, as a Japanese girl is transported to the future fantasy land, and needs to find a way back home while teaching her own Japanese language to a handsome linguist.

ASH: A handsome linguist, you say.

SEAN: Demons’ Crest is a new series from the creator of Sword Art Online, as he jumps into a completely different genre. Twins enjoy playing a MMORPG, but it suddenly starts fusing with the real world, and also turning deadly! Yup. Totally different genre. (cough)

Playing Death Games to Put Food on the Table (Shibou Yuugi de Meshi wo Kuu) stars a young woman who wakes up trapped in a horrible death game. But that’s fine. That’s how she makes a living. I have been told this is better than it sounds.

ASH: Hmmm.

SEAN: Also from Yen On: The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten 7, Black Summoner 2 (in their J-Novel Club imprint), Date a Live 12, Days with My Stepsister 3, The Greatest Demon Lord Is Reborn as a Typical Nobody 10, I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in the Real World, Too 5, I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I’ll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time 3, The Kept Man of the Princess Knight 2, Kunon the Sorcerer Can See 3, Liar, Liar 4, Miss Savage Fang 2, The Other World’s Books Depend on the Bean Counter 2, Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire 3 (in their J-Novel Club imprint), Sugar Apple Fairy Tale 6, The Unimplemented Overlords Have Joined the Party! 2, The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess 7, and You Are My Regret 2.

And yes, that’s just light novels. Time for Yen Press. Apocalypse Bringer Mynoghra (Isekai Mokushiroku Mynoghra – Hametsu no Bunmei de Hajimeru Sekai Seifuku) is a manga adaptation of the light novel Cross Infinite World is releasing. The manga runs in Comic Walker. It’s the male version of In the Land of Leadale.

Senpai, This Can’t Be Love! (Senpai, Danjite Koi de wa!) is a BL title from Comic Fleur. The talented veteran is tasked to teach the new guy at their company, and is having trouble with his cool facade. The trouble is… the new guy is having trouble keeping the facade up.

A Sinner of the Deep Sea (Abyss Azure no Zainin) runs in Harta. A mermaid has to deal with the fact that her best friend has fallen for a human. The first of two mermaid debuts next week.

ASH: I’m curious about this one.

SEAN: Sister and Giant: A Young Lady Is Reborn in Another World (Onee-sama to Kyojin) is a fantasy title from Aokishi. A girl is reincarnated in another world, and chooses to bond with a giant. Unfortunately, guess what? Evil church.

ASH: Every time.

SEAN: Sword Art Online: Kiss and Fly is a manga adaptation of the short stories in this series. It runs in Dengeki Daioh.

This Monster Wants to Eat Me (Watashi o Tabetai, Hitodenashi) is a yuri series from Dengeki Maoh. A woman in a seaside town turns out to be delicious. A mermaid wants to eat her, but not till she’s older. So now she has to defend her from other supernatural beings who want a taste. I have heard good things about this, believe it or not.

ASH: I’m curious about this one, too.

SEAN: And there’s Visions 2023__Illustrators Book, the latest artbook.

Also from Yen Press: Adachi and Shimamura 5, Adults’ Picture Book: New Edition 2, Ako and Bambi 2, Assorted Entanglements 5, A Terrified Teacher at Ghoul School 14, Black Butler 33, Black Summoner 2 (in their J-Novel Club imprint), Bungo Stray Dogs: Dead Apple 4, A Certain Magical Index 28, Cheerful Amnesia 3, Chitose Is in the Ramune Bottle 6, Combatants Will Be Dispatched! 9, The Dark History of the Reincarnated Villainess 10, The Detective Is Already Dead 5, The Devil Is a Part-Timer! 21, Heterogenia Linguistico 5, Hi, I’m a Witch, and My Crush Wants Me to Make a Love Potion 4, I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I’ll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time 3, I Want to Be a Receptionist in This Magical World 4, I Want to Be a Wall 3 (the final volume), Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? On the Side: Sword Oratoria 23, Kowloon Generic Romance 7, My Dear, Curse-Casting Vampiress 4, No Matter How I Look at It, It’s You Guys’ Fault I’m Not Popular! 23, Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire 3 (from their J-Novel Club imprint), So I’m a Spider, So What? 13, Tsubaki-chou Lonely Planet 7, Unnamed Memory 5, The Witches’ Marriage 3 (the final volume), and Whoever Steals This Book 2.

ASH: Dang, that’s an impressive amount.

SEAN: What final volumes are you getting?

The Do-Over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor, Vol. 4

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By Sasara Nagase and Mitsuya Fuji. Released in Japan as “Yarinaoshi Reijō wa Ryūtei Heika o Kōryaku-chū” by Kadokawa Beans Bunko. Released in North America by Cross Infinite World. Translated by piyo.

I feel confident in saying that very few readers of this series will have gone through the same thing that Jill has. Which is good, really, because yikes, Jill once again goes through some stuff in this book. We’ve been reading the series from her perspective, and of course we know it’s a villainess-style “back in time” story, so we’re expecting a lot of fighting fate and never giving up, etc. The problem is that everyone else in the world does NOT have Jill’s perspective. And to them, this is absolute lunacy, and the Dragon Emperor is going to go mad, start a war, and destroy everything. Why on earth would they let this 11-year-old (yup, still, just assume I talked about it already) do whatever the hell she wants just because she says that the two of them are in love? Especially when that love is tested – again – and Jill is forced to once again fight for everything she’s achieved to date or else everything will be set back to the original track.

Jill and Hadis are headed off to get permission to marry from her parents, which requires essentially going through days of traps and dangerous travel because, unsurprisingly, Jill’s entire family are all as eccentric as she is. (It turns out she did the wrong test, too, because Jill is still not the brightest bulb.) Unfortunately, Jill has assumed this will mostly involve her dad saying “you can’t date my daughter, you cur!” and other wacky light novel cliches, forgetting that her family are, in fact, part of the kingdom of Kratos, and that it would be much, much easier, instead of agreeing to Jill and Hadis getting married, to start a war to get Jill away from him. Something which, to Jill’s horror, Hadis is 100% okay with.

Probably the best part of this book (aside from the ending, where Jill once again proves there’s no problem that cannot be solved by extreme violence) is how it ties back to the rest of the series. It’s paying close attention to its backstory, and has not forgotten about the other taboo subject in the series, with is Gerald and his sister starting the whole plot off with their incest. First of all, everything we’ve seen about Gerald in this new timeline makes that seems puzzling, as he just doesn’t seem the type. Then his father, who is a real piece of work, explains what’s actually going on to Natalie, who appears to be taking the role of Jill in this new timeline since Jill has abdicated. It’s not completely explained, but it’s certainly ominous, and is not helped by Faris, who appears to be about to go full evil. I also really liked the look we got at the past Dragon Consorts, and how they all tried to have a wonderful relationship with the Emperor only for it to fall apart. It weighed the tragedy and fate just right.

Assuming you kept reading past the basic premise, this is an excellent volume in the series, from an author who really knows how to make everything feel that the words “BAD END” will appear on the very next page.

Pick of the Week: Last Chance for Spring Picks

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SEAN: This week is about digital favorites hitting print for me, so my joint pick of the week is Ascendance of a Bookworm: Short Story Collection and the latest Tearmoon Empire.

MICHELLE: After reading Sean’s glowing praise of Sketchy‘s first volume, I am going to choose the second volume of same this week!

ASH: There are definitely a few really great ongoing series with new volumes this week, but my pick goes to The Untamed: The Official Artbook. One of the things that makes the live-action adaptation of Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation so great is its visuals, so this should be great, too.

KATE: Any week that gives us new installments of Even Though We’re Adults and Akane-banashi is a good one in my book!

ANNA: Picks are thin on the ground for me this week, but I will admit I am curious about True Love Fades Away When the Contract Ends – One Star in the Night Sky.

Third Loop: The Nameless Princess and the Cruel Emperor, Vol. 2

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By Iota AIUE and Misa Sazanami. Released in Japan as “Nanashi no Ōjo to Reikoku Kōtei: Shītagerareta Yōjo, Konse de wa Ryū to Mofumofu ni Dekiai Sarete Imasu” by M Novels f. Released in North America by Cross Infinite World. Translated by JCT.

I always enjoy it when a series with an “artifact title” manages to find a way to work it into future volumes regardless. An artifact title is when you title a book or a show after something that happens at the start that gets fixed, and you’re then left with that title even though it really doesn’t make sense anymore. See, for example, The Ideal Sponger Life. Third Loop was an obvious candidate, as the Nameless Princess gets a name at the end of the book: Angelina. As such, well, how is she nameless? This ssecond volume, though, comes up with something quite clever: people are calling her “the Polaris Princess”, but are seeing her as her title or her power rather than as a four-year-old girl. (To be fair, she’s mentally a lot older… well, kind of.) So she once again has o deal with enforcing her identity upon those who would deny it. Luckily, she has friends.

We’re coming up on a ten-day celebration and ritual for her older brother Kyril. Naturally, having won over everyone in the first book, Angelina will have a large role, despite being four years old. Indeed, one of the main parts of the ritual HAS to be done by her, as the Emperor, um, sort of killed off every other women in his family to ascend to the throne. As one does. That’s not the only issue she’s facing. The goddess of the Heavenly Sovereign Temple has descended for the ceremony, and she does Not Like Angelina At All. There’s also the issue of some wells in the commoner part of the kingdom freezing up… in high summer. Could this be related to the demon tribe that their nation has been at war with, who have arrived seemingly just to be jerks? And can Angelina really solve everything by gumption and cuteness?

Well, nearly. As I alluded to above, this series is not really very good at making Angelina act her age. This is not an uncommon problem with time loop or reincarnation stories that start with them as a baby – technically they should act like they’re in their thirties, but the reader wants to see her be an adorable kid who lisps when she gets stressed. But maybe that’s the way to keep her from being too OP, as it’s clear that Angelina being adorable and forthright solves almost every problem in this book. It’s how she gets gods on her side. It’s how she deals with introverted royalty, insecure priestesses, and her bodyguard and best friend. She’s weaponized being cute as a button. (Perhaps too much – I could have done without the standard “overprotective dad” joke where he worries his four-year-old girl is running away to get married.)

So yes, flawed. But honestly, if you’re hear for the cute? You can put up with a lot of flaws. And the gumption and forthrightness is also excellent.