Spoiler Alert!

It’s almost over…

This filth Orochi thinks he can kill all of humanity?

Hmph!

“I won’t be defeated by the likes of you,” says Orochi with calm contempt.

Its eyes then stare directly into yours, as if piercing your very soul.

“Kill Kusanagi and Yata…”

What?!

“…and smash the three sacred treasures, my child.”

Why the heck would…

!!

Numbing agony suddenly wracks your entire body and fury begins to fill your mind.

*cough* *choke* *cough *

…b-blood?

I-Is this…the “Riot of the Blood”?!

The rage within you builds…

“Gh…uh…gh…GGGAAAAAAAAAHHH!!”

All you can see is…red. Blood red.

You see…Kusanagi?

KUSANA…NO!!!

Orochi…this…KILL…MUST…

Toy with you, would he?! Let’s see how he likes his own life in another’s hands!

“Let’s finish this!”

…Kusa…nagi?

No. No. NO!

Orochi is yours to kill! YOURS!

“You intend to kill me along with this whelp?” Orochi calls out. “You’re sealing your own doom!”

“YAGAMIIII!”

So bright…so noisy…stop…screaming…

Oh, wait. That’s you.

This calm…peace…

Is this…death…? At least…the rage…will be no more…

The light gradually subsides and you open your eyes.

What…?

A forest…?

Where…are you?

“KIKIKIIIIIIIIIIII!”

The strange animal call from behind you breaks your reverie and you swivel around.

What are these…things?

Whatever they are, they definitely look like they want to tear you apart!

We’ll see about that!

You instinctively conjure a purple flame and cast it onto the ground. It streaks forward until it ignites two of the little critters.

The others halt with fearful hesitation on their faces.

So they do understand fear!

Their faces pinch with anger and they all rush you at once.

Trying to overwhelm you? Fools…

You conjure flames in both your hands and jump while spinning with your arms outstretched.

Charred bodies collapse on the ground around you.

Wretches…just lay down there and die…

Who’s th…?!

A girl? Who…

Uuunh…diz…zy…

…

The King of Fantasy: Iori Yagami’s Other World ~Remember When You See The Moon!~ (ザ・キング・オブ・ファンタジー 八神庵の異世界無双 ～月を見るたび思い出せ！～, The King of Fantasy: Yagami Iori no Isekai Musō ~Tsukio Miru Tabi Omoidase!~) is a light novel and manga written by Nobuhiko Tenkawa (天河 信彦, Tenkawa Nobuhiko).

About two millennia ago, the divine will of Earth, Orochi, arose to annihilate humanity for the destruction it had inflicted upon the planet for eons. The war between humanity and Orochi’s forces ended when the Kusanagi clan, the Yasakani clan and the Yata clan used three sacred treasures to seal away Orochi itself. In 1337, Orochi’s followers tricked the Yasakani Clan into making a blood pact with their master, granting them great power while cursing all of their descendants to eventually die young. The Yasakani also rename themselves the Yagami to distance themselves from their former allies.

On the 17th of September, 1997, Orochi is released by its followers and confronts the descendants of the clans that once banished him: Kyo Kusanagi, Iori Yagami and Chizuru Kagura. In the final moments of the fight, Iori throttles Orochi and a blinding flash of light ensues when Kyo delivers the final blow. After the light subsides, Iori finds himself attacked by several unfamiliar, ugly humanoids and dispatches them before he faints.

Upon regaining consciousness, Iori meets the young knight Althena Viktorias, who explains that he had just saved her from goblins. She also explains that they are now in the Principality of Esaga and that Iori appeared during a lunar eclipse, a time prophesized to be when the Demon King will appear, heralded by fire. Realizing that he is no longer on Earth, Iori follows Althena to Shisaga, Esaga’s capital, where they participate in a tournament that will determine who will challenge the Demon King. After Iori is declared the winner, Prince Midou commands Iori and Althena to hunt a dragon causing trouble in southern Esaga.

In the Higatsu Forest, Iori and Althena find the magician Lilili attempting to restore the magical academy she destroyed accidentally at her graduation! After Lilili joins the group and they rest at an inn, a passerby tells them about a dragon living at an abandoned mine in the mountains on the southwestern Esaga border. There, the trio find a horde of goblins, orcs and kobolds led by the passerby who is actually a mage! Prince Midou also reveals himself, for it was he who paid the mage to murder Althena. A huge melee begins.

After the mage casts an Explosion spell, a huge three-headed dragon appears and kills both the mage and the prince with its fiery breath. The dragon then introduces itself as Alighieri, the Dragon of Flame. Despite seemingly hopeless odds, the trio are able to overcome the dragon in a furious battle. Back in Shisaga, the king of Esaga listens to Althena’s report while grieving his son’s death. When Iori bluntly reveals that he arrived in the fantasy world during a lunar eclipse, the irate king believes him to be the Demon King and banishes him from Esaga. The three companions then travel south to the Magical Kingdom of Higatsumi.

Elsewhere, orcs declare Kyo Kusanagi to be the Demon King after he swiftly kills Durante, the Dragon of Ice…

Main Characters

Iori Yagami (八神 庵, Yagami Iori), 20-year old descendant of the ancient Yagami clan. Blunt, independent-minded, serious, sullen and unapologetic, his generally unpleasant demeanor conceals a grudging gentleness. Although Iori often seems bloodthirsty and sadistic when fighting, he is actually a pacifist and does not fight unless provoked. He also does not like to rely on others and has a poor opinion of those who would use their power to oppress those weaker than themselves. As the latest descendant of the Yagami clan, Iori is an expert of the martial arts style passed through his family for countless generations, which mostly uses claw strike techniques and pyrokinesis. Because of the Yagami clan’s blood pact with Orochi, Iori’s flames have a purplish hue and his body carries Orochi blood. Certain influences, such as Orochi’s presence, can cause Iori to undergo the Riot of the Blood (血の暴走, Chi no Bōsō), a state of near-mindless fury in which he becomes stronger and faster. In modern-day Japan, Iori is a band guitarist of some renown.

Althena Viktorias, 17-year old knight of the Principality of Esaga. Humble, outgoing, polite, responsible and virtuous, she is the only female knight of her country. Because she doesn’t openly flaunt her authority, she is well-liked by commoners but also scorned by several Esaga aristocrats including Prince Midou. Having spent most of her life training in the ways of war, Althena is a very capable swordswoman who enjoys fighting strong opponents. She is deeply attracted to Iori, who has demonstrated to be stronger than her and yet caring in his own way. Althena’s techniques include Blue Gale, a slashing wave, and Sword Accelerator, which increases the speed of her sword strikes. She also keeps a bag of magic potions for use in emergencies. As an aside, Althena is frightened of locusts and spiders.

Lilili, 15-year old magician. Exuberant, friendly, proud and talkative, she was the best student in her magic academy before she accidentally destroyed said academy during her graduation ceremony! In order to officially graduate as a magician, Lilili must fully restore the academy. As a result of extensive studies, she is very knowledgeable and is familiar with the concept of parallel worlds. To cast magic spells, Lilili must break open latinum (gems containing magical energy) and chant incantations. When doing so, she uses her mask as a focus. Lilili’s spells include Kou’en (a fireball), Fire, Fire Infusion (infuse a weapon with fire that slowly drains its wielder’s life), Heal and Protection (a magic shield). She is frightened of octopuses and bald heads.

Personal Thoughts

In this story, there are many references to the video games produced by the SNK Corporation, particularly the King of Fighters franchise which began in 1994. Chief among them is Iori Yagami, the “bad boy” rival to the main hero Kyo Kusanagi, and his unique combat moves. Althena Viktorias is based on the titular heroine of the 1986 arcade game Athena who was born in the Kingdom of Victory. Lilili is based on Yuri Sakazaki, a former damsel-in-distress from the Art of Fighting series who later became a martial artist in her own right. The fantasy world features several other lookalikes of various characters from the SNK fighting games. The goblins in the story have appearances similar to that of Genan Shiranui, a green-skinned character from the Samurai Shodown series.

The most interesting twist of The King of Fantasy is that both Iori and Kyo appeared in the fantasy world during a lunar eclipse. Since both of them are powerful martial artists who can conjure fire, both could conceivably be the prophesized “Demon King”. While he appears to be a stubborn, sullen villain at first glance, Iori has a strong, but well-hidden, moral code. At the same time, Kyo is a carefree, well-meaning young man with a strong sense of justice who happened to befriend orcs first. His fierce, heated rivalry with Iori is very personal.

Right and wrong often, but not always, become dependent on a person’s perspective. For example, in the aftermath of World War I, Germany was crippled by debt and unemployment as a result of the Treaty of Versailles. Because of this, many of Germany’s citizens grew to resent England and France and saw Adolf Hitler as a hero who restored their country’s dignity and strength. Life is much more complicated than what a simple good/evil belief might suggest. People often make hard decisions based on the challenges their lives give them, whether for the sake of survival, love, ambition, etc.

Moral

One’s perspective often decides right and wrong. Be understanding of others’ desires and situations.

Spoiler Alert!

“Mary? Blood…?”

Two people whom you consider your family have just collapsed, as though the strength in their legs simply vanished.

“Looks like it didn’t work out after all,” Blood says with tired resignation.

“We refused to give our souls to the Goddess of Undeath as we promised 200 years ago,” added Mary. “And our drive to defend the High King’s seal is gone.”

No, no…

You’ve just defeated an avatar of Stagnate, the Goddess of Undeath, herself! This shouldn’t be happening! It couldn’t!

“Th-this is a joke, right…?”

“The gods are already showing us mercy,” Mary answers in sad firmness. “You’re a smart boy. You understand, don’t you?”

“Is there…anything…we can do?”

“No,” Blood says. “Besides, it’s like you told Stagnate: Live well and die well. We just took 200 years longer than most people.”

“It’s natural for a parent to pass away before their child does,” Mary says with tenderness.

*sigh*

She’s right. But…

Tears flow from your eyes as you fall on your knees.

“No…no…I…I…d…don’t want you to die! I want to come back someday and spar with you again, Blood! I want to do chores with you again, Mary! I promised that I’d show you my children and grandchildren! I…I…How am I supposed to go on?!”

You feel two light knocks on your head.

Emotions rush through your mind and you cry even harder than before.

You feel a hand on your shoulder.

“William, there will still be people in this world even when we’re gone,” says Blood. “Go out there and make some friends…maybe even pick up a few chicks!”

“Don’t encourage him to do anything sacrilegious, Blood!”

“Fine, fine!”

“Love people and forgive sin, Will,” Mary continues. “You will find betrayal, despair and loss, but happiness, hope and other good things are here as well. May the gods be with you always.”

Yes.

Despite not being related by blood and them being undead, they are your family in every way.

…

That night, Blood and Mary lie in repose and you give them final blessings as they pass into the gentle caress of Gracefeel, the Goddess of the Cycle of Life and Death and your patron deity.

Watched over by the ghostly Gus, your only remaining family, you spend the night burying your foster family’s bodies at the top of the cliff overlooking the City of the Dead.

Despite your grief, you feel something else as you watch the sun rise.

Is this…hope?

The Faraway Paladin (最果てのパラディン Saihate no Paladin?) is a web novel, light novel, manga series and anime written by Kanata Yanagino (柳野 かなた, Yanagino Kanata).

One fateful day, the evil High King and a massive horde of demons attack the capital city of the continent of Southmark. Eventually, over a hundred heroes fight against the High King’s forces until only Blood (a warrior), Mary (a priestess of the Earth Mother Mater) and Augustus (a legendary sage) remain. Unable to vanquish the High King in battle, the three heroes instead magically seal the King beneath the earth. Despite this, the remnants of the demon horde threaten to overwhelm the heroes. At this moment, the goddess Stagnate arrives and offers the heroes a deal: her aid in destroying the demons and turning them into undead guardians of the High King’s seal in exchange for their souls at a later date. The desperate heroes quickly agree.

The Southmark continent is gradually abandoned by humanity and the now-ruined capital city becomes known as the City of the Dead, inhabited only by mindless undead and the three undead heroes guarding the High King’s seal. Almost 200 years later, the heroes find an abandoned human baby boy. They name the baby William and raise him with love and care while teaching him everything they know.

When William turns 15 years old (the age when a child becomes an adult), the heroes tell him their centuries-old tale and William reveals to them his greatest secret: he is a reincarnated shut-in from another world! Shortly afterwards, Stagnate’s avatar returns to collect her debt. Determined to save his surrogate family, William battles the avatar.  During this, he has a vision of Gracefeel, the goddess of the cycle of life and death, and pledges himself to her service. William manages to defeat Stagnate’s avatar, and the goddess of undeath furiously vows eternal vengeance. However, Blood and Mary pass on, having made peace with their lives. Will later makes his final preparations and leaves the City of the Dead for the first time in his life.

During his travels, William meets the half-elf hunter Melendor and prevents him from raiding a village out of desperation. William and Melen then travel together to Whitesails, the northernmost port city of Southmark. On the way, they meet and join up with the halfling troubadour Robina Goodfellow and the merchant Antonio. At Whitesails, William and Melen kill a wyvern attacking the city. As a result, William is appointed as a paladin by the Duke of Southmark. Deciding to tame the Southmark wildlands, William leads many expeditions to hunt demons and local beasts, making the land safer for settlement. He is eventually appointed as feudal lord of the newly-founded community of Torch Port, a restored town not far from the City of the Dead.

Main Characters

William Gus Maryblood, former shut-in, priest of the goddess Gracefeel, paladin of Southmark and lord of Torch Port. Benevolent, determined and forthright, he fights to protect others and make his world a better place. As a result of his upbringing, he is a skilled fighter, priest and wizard and possesses near-encyclopedic knowledge about many topics including geography, history, magic, mathematics, monster lore and religion. Having recently left his childhood home, William is still somewhat innocent, but he is slowly growing out of this as he gains real life experience and makes new friends. He carries both the dwarven magic spear “Pale Moon”, his main weapon, and the demon sword “Overeater”, a demonic weapon once used by the High King himself. William chose his middle and his last name to honor the three heroes who raised him.

Melendor (“Swift Eagle” in Elvish), a half-elf adventurer and hunter. Blunt, independent and somewhat reckless, he is a proud man who likes to tease others but doesn’t like showing his softer side. Born in the grasslands north of Southmark, Melen was born to an elven mother who passed away soon after his birth. Ostracized by the other elves, he took up adventuring and travelled through many lands for decades before arriving in Southmark. Melen is an expert archer and is skilled in wilderness survival. As a result of having elven blood, he has a strong connection to fairies and can call upon their wind magic to aid him. Because he has elven blood, he is far older than he looks and potentially has several centuries of life ahead of him. Melen often acts as the more worldly counterpart to the idealistic, intelligent William.

Robina Goodfellow, a halfling troubadour and poet. Cheerful, charming, curious and passionate, she spreads word of William’s deeds to encourage the gradual re-settlement of Southmark. Through her songs, Robina wants to ensure that heroes of the past and their deeds are never forgotten and inspire those who hope to become heroes themselves.

Antonio, a travelling merchant. Cautious and diligent, he travels Southmark in the hope of finding new opportunities in an untapped market. After William was appointed as lord of Torch Port, Antonio has worked to create supply routes to enable faster immigration throughout Southmark.

Personal Thoughts

This story focuses on empathetic growth in people and coming to terms with an imperfect world. Every character here faces their own problems and tragedies, but persist in order to improve their own lives and those of others. Examples include William’s wish to defend the helpless, Melen’s wish to make amends for nearly becoming a bandit, Robina’s wish to not let heroic deeds be forgotten and Antonio’s wish to build his business.

There are many life lessons in this story, particularly on how to live as a good person. The main character William is a representative of virtues such as compassion, cooperation, friendship, patience and wisdom, which befits the holy knight archetype of many fantasy stories.  This is tempered by his understanding that the world isn’t perfect and that he will face many, many hardships during his journey. Despite knowing this, William soldiers on in honor of both the family that raised him and Gracefeel’s creed on the cycle of life, death and rebirth. Whereas Stagnate, the Goddess of Undeath, believed that death is a horrible, tragic fate that must be avoided at all costs, Gracefeel and William believe that immortality just leads to life becoming merely existences void of meaning. Having lived his life on Earth as a depressed, listless shut-in, William feels that he must actually live his new life, not just survive it.

We all have parts of our lives that made us happy and comfortable, such as the times when we were carefree children with our beloved families or as newly graduated students with our careers ahead of us. It’s a simple fact of life that nothing lasts forever. This world has the very real capability of hurting us through many means such as human selfishness, financial distress, disease and natural disasters. Still, we must never let fear or cynicism overcome us because there are many good things in this world as well. Hobbies, video games, books, sports, careers and accomplishments that improve life are here as well! Writing this blog is one way I enjoy life because I hope to make a helpful difference to someone in my own way!

Moral

Life is more than just survival. Get out there and live it!

Spoiler Alert!

You’re a loner, plain and simple.

Most of your classmates play and talk with each other during break, but you’d rather enjoy a good book alone.

Many of your classmates have formed cliques such as the athletes and the honor students.

You’d rather not have anything to do with them, especially the delinquents and the mean girls over there!

Still, you occasionally talk with the otaku group about fantasy video games, so it’s not all bad.

*sigh*

Why are there so many nutjobs in this class?

Hmm?

Where’s this glow coming…from…?

Magic circles?!

That’s amaz…NO, WAIT! IT ISN’T!

Going to a different world always means trouble! You’re better off just reading about them!

No good…the doors are jammed and the windows can’t be broken! Is this magic?!

There’s only one thing left…

You clamber onto the closet in the corner of the classroom and go through a panel in the ceiling.

Made it! The attic should be safe…

No! That light!

Ngh!

Where…? What?

Huh? An old man? Is this a retirement home or something?

He suddenly spots you.

Did this guy have lunch yet?

The old man shouts, “I didn’t!”

HUH? How did…was he reading your mind?!

Ah ha! This geezer must be a god or something!

“I already sent your friends to the other world. I tried to summon all of you as a group, so why weren’t you with the others?”

Hmm? Could it be…?

The god cries, “Could it be what?!”

You’re a god and you missed the attic?!

“How would I know about that?! Gods aren’t omnipotent!”

He gives a deep sigh.

“Well, since you’re here anyway, you should get ready and join your friends. You can choose your Job Class and your Skills now…first come, first served, though.”

With a wave of his hands, the god call forth a giant stone slab from above. It’s covered with engraved writing.

“The glowing words here are the available Jobs and Skills.”

Alright, let’s see…

All the cool ones have been taken! What’s up with that?!

…

Shut-in?! NEET?! You’d lose your life before you lose your job!

Cane Arts? Healthy? Temperature? Packing? Uselessness?!

Is this seriously all there is?!

You turn back to the old god. He looks rather downcast.

“The most I’ve summoned before was 30 people,” he says somberly. “But…43 people came this time and you were left out…”

A moment later, he suddenly perks up.

All? What is he…

“You can have all of the remaining Skills! FAREWELL!”

Farewell?!

Without warning, the scenery around you suddenly changes into a lush, unfamiliar forest.

Loner Life in Another World (ひとりぼっちの異世界攻略, Hitoribocchi no Isekai Kouryaku) is a web novel, light novel series and manga written by Shoji Goji (五示 正司, Goji Shoji).

On a seemingly typical day, the floor of a high school classroom is engulfed by glowing magic circles. Quickly realizing that this potentially meant transportation to another world, the class loner Haruka tries to get out of the classroom by escaping into the attic above. Despite this, he is transported to a space of utter white where he meets a surprised elderly man, who tells the boy that he is a god who sent his classmates to another world some time ago. Apparently, Haruka’s attempt to get into the attic merely resulted him in arriving late by a week!

When he is given a list of Jobs and Skills to choose from, Haruka is disappointed to learn that his classmates have already taken all of the desirable choices. The god guiltily gives Haruka all the remaining Skills on the list and sends him to the world his classmates are on.

Wishing only to live the simple life of a loner, Haruka sets up a comfortable home in a cave and forages for fruit and mushrooms in the forest. At the same time, he tests his new abilities and trains against any monsters he comes across. A few days later, he is found by the class otaku, who tell him that the other students have recently gone their separate ways.

Soon afterwards, Haruka is found by the “mean girls” clique and the class president (“Prez”) herself. Wanting to get stronger, the girls train under the direction of Haruka and Prez. The students eventually travel to the forest outskirts, where Haruka and Prez save a caravan from a large pack of hungry green wolves. The grateful adventurers guarding the caravan escort the students to the town of Omui, where Prez and the girls join the adventurers’ guild and Haruka purchases many useful magic items.

A few days later, Haruka returns alone to the forest and finds the athletes from his class, badly wounded. After healing the athletes and telling them to flee to Omui, Haruka confronts their attacker, his classmate Tanaka. Believing that only he deserved to be the hero, the arrogant class genius no longer has any qualms about murdering his former classmates. After a bitter, hard-fought battle, Haruka defeats Tanaka and returns to Omui, where the reunited students joyfully welcome him.

Meanwhile, in the deepest depths of a labyrinth near Omui, an undead desperately clings to its last vestiges of humanity…

Main Characters

Haruka (遥, Haruka), a 16-year old adventurer and a former high school student whose hobby is reading. Despite being a self-professed easygoing loner, he is brave, clever and resolute when he has to be. He is at his happiest when there is no one to bother him, but he can be friendly to others, especially the class geeks and the class president, his childhood friend. Haruka’s tendency to tackle problems alone often results in him taking tremendous risks, which has resulted in the other students keeping an eye on him out of concern. Although he has no Job Class and average physical abilities, Haruka possesses many Skills and tremendous luck which allows consistent fortuitous events such as higher chances of inflicting mortal wounds on enemies and surviving situations that would normally kill him. He also prefers to use clever tactics, tricks and traps to fight monsters far stronger than him.

Class President (委員長, Iinchō), or “Prez”, a 16-year old adventurer and a former high school student whose favorite food is chestnuts. Diligent, kind, responsible and thoughtful, she is looked up to by the other students as their leader. Having known Haruka since elementary school, Prez is on affectionate terms with him and scolds him whenever he insists on doing things alone unnecessarily. Her chosen Skill is Plunder, which allows her to steal the skills of others. While she took this Skill to keep it away from the class delinquents at first, Prez now uses it to steal useful skills from monsters.

Shimazaki (島崎, Shimazaki), a 16-year old adventurer, a former high school student and the leader of the “mean girls” clique. A shallow, spoiled girl at first, the hardships of the new world have forced her to gradually mature as a person. Shimazaki now strives to help her fellow classmates in any way she can and has even befriended the otaku Oda.

Oda (小田, Oda), a 16-year old adventurer, a former high school student and one of the class otaku. He and the other otaku are counted among the most capable adventurers in their class because of their experience with fantasy manga and video games.

Personal Thoughts

Like many other isekai tales, this story uses a familiar rule system in the style of a fantasy role-playing game, complete with “Jobs”, “Skills” and “Magic”. At first, the main character Haruka seemed to get the short end of the stick when he receives all the special abilities that none of his classmates wanted. It’s almost like getting what’s left in a bargain bin after a big sale!

Instead of directly fighting his enemies, Haruka uses their weaknesses to defeat them with a minimum of effort. For example, he uses the light of small fireball to lure a swarm of giant moths before allowing the fireball to explode, killing many of the moths in one stroke. He also once used vinegar to confuse the sensitive noses of a two-headed dog, making the monster an easy target.

Haruka’s innovative solutions to fight monsters is similar to how there are several possible solutions to a problem or how several different plans can accomplish the same goal. If a possible plan or solution doesn’t work, we can try something else. For example, instead of insisting on traveling to another country for the summer, we can find something else occupy us. This could involve trying new hobbies such as making collections or taking online language lessons. There are times when being stubborn doesn’t really help us.

More importantly, Haruka also took the time and effort to master his acquired abilities so he could rely on them when he really needs them. With practice, he used Temperature to learn Fire Magic, Healthy to resist abnormal status (e.g., poison, instant death) and Packing to carry as many healing potions as he wants. Over time, he learns completely new abilities that rival those of his classmates. Due to almost constantly fighting monsters and learning from experience, Haruka is a far better fighter than many of his classmates despite the fact that their Levels are higher than his. It’s common logic that practice and experience enable one to be more capable at something. We study to do well in tests. We get better at jobs after doing the many tasks involved for years. People who play video games every day are more likely to well in e-sports!

Moral

If you want to do something well, put more effort into it!

Spoiler Alert!

“It’s so sweeeet!”, everyone says.

Ah ha! It worked! You’ll have to thank Masaharu for memorizing the method of making sugar from sugar beets!

“Sugar from squeezing and boiling worthless potatoes? You’re amazing, Baldr!”

You proudly place your hands on your hips.

Sugar cane and honey are rare on this continent, so fruit is the usual ingredient for making sweet foods. It’s an excellent opportunity to make a new market with sugar beets!

And this is just the beginning!

You want to make lots of money!

So much you’ll drown in it!

Money! Money! MONEY! MONEY!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

Hmm?

Oh, right!

You gather some of the crystallized sugar from the bottom of the pot and place it in a pouch.

“Alright, everyone,” you announce. “Remember to say nothing about this sugar to anyone! If you do, I will never make you my vassals!”

“Leave it to us, Lord Baldr!”

“Good! I’ll leave the harvesting to you guys!”

…

Minutes later in town, you walk into the offices of the Savaran Company.

“Still making money, Selina?” you ask.

“More or less.”

Selina eyes the pouch in your hand with a sly grin.

You place it on a table and open it.

“Try this.”

She takes a small chunk from the pouch and pops it into her mouth.

YES!

“I want to earn profit from this immediately,” you continue. “Before someone else learns how to make it.”

“So ya wanna to leave the marketing ta me?” asks Selina.

“More than that. I want to use your company’s name and let you handle the business while I manage the finances.”

“Whad’ya mean?”

“It’s simple. I decide what to buy or invest in. Meanwhile, you’d have a free hand in actually selling it.”

“What’s ma cut?”

“How does 10% sound?”

“I’m the one financing the entire venture! How about 15%?”

“Without me, yer dream’ll just be a pie in the sky! Besides, who else can ya ask? 30%!”

Rrgh!

Ah ha!

“Alright! I’ll give you 30%…if you let me touch your ears.”

Boy, you’ve never seen her so flustered before!

A moment later, she stutters nervously, “A-Alright, j-j-just a l-little…”

This sensation…it’s firm yet yielding. Words can do no justice to this wonderful feeling…!

You finally found the answer…to whether cat ears or dog ears are better!

Uproar from Reincarnation on Another World (異世界転生騒動記, Isekai Tensei Sōdō-ki) is a web novel, light novel series and manga written by Ryosen Takami (高見梁川, Takami Ryosen).

On another world, the souls of the samurai Sadatoshi Oka Sanai and the high school student Masaharu Oka suddenly find themselves sharing a body with Baldr Cornelius, the young heir of the Cornelius County within the Mauricia Kingdom.

At 11, Baldr secretly manages a hidden farm of sugar beets with the goal of creating a new source of sugar, a rare luxury on the continent. With the help of the local Savaran Company, Baldr sells the sugar and earns a small fortune for himself. The new sugar trade also helps to improve the economy within the Cornelius County, which upsets the plans of Marquis Selvi, a noble of the neighboring Haurelia Kingdom who desires to conquer Mauricia. The agents sent by the marquis to investigate are all killed by Baldr’s mercenaries. After hearing about this incident, Baldr’s father sends his son to the Royal Knight School at the Mauricia capital city of Cameron.

At 12, Baldr becomes the Royal Knight School’s youngest cadet and soon befriends two other cadets: William Mauricia, third prince of the Mauricia Kingdom, and Silk Randolph, heiress of the powerful Randolph family. With these connections, Baldr soon earns the attention of the king of the Mauricia Kingdom, Welkin V. One day, Princess Rachel, one of William’s older sisters, falls ill with cholera after returning from a tour of the neighboring Sanjuan Kingdom. Baldr uses oral rehydration therapy to enable Rachel’s recovery and recommends a quarantine to prevent a widespread cholera epidemic. As a result, many deaths are prevented in Mauricia while thousands die of cholera in Sanjuan. Impressed, King Welkin gives Baldr the rank of Baron and sends him to Sanjuan as a goodwill ambassador.

Accompanied by his childhood friend Teresa Bradford, Baldr learns that the Sanjuan Kingdom is in the midst of a succession crisis. With the kingdom’s crown prince recently dead from cholera, the surviving Princes Franco and Pedro are being used unwillingly as figureheads by factions within the Sanjuan government. Although both princes initially have no wish to become the next king, Franco changes his mind when he falls in love with Teresa. To give Franco the influence needed to become crown prince, Baldr wins the allegiance of Sanjuan’s navy by helping it fight against the pirates that have plagued the southern seas for years. He also enlists the help of Countess Urraca “Black Storm” de Parma, a legendary marine commander from the Majorca Kingdom.

After the pirates are defeated, Franco officially becomes Sanjuan’s new crown prince and the kingdom becomes a fast ally of Mauricia. Pleased with this success, King Welkin promotes Baldr to Viscount and gives him lordship over Mauricia’s Antrim Region, where the last war with Haurelia began 12 years ago.

How far will Baldr Cornelius’ meteoric rise go?

Main Characters

Baldr Cornelius, the eldest son and heir of the Cornelius family. An odd spiritual amalgam of three men, he is brave, eccentric, guileful, knowledgeable and shrewd. A wily opportunist, Baldr uses his combined experience and knowledge to rise swiftly to the top echelons of society.

Sadatoshi Oka Sanai (岡 左内 定俊, Oka Sanai Sadatoshi), one of Baldr’s souls and a samurai who once served the Uesugi Clan during the Warring States Period (戦国時代, Sengoku Jidai) in Japan. A veteran of countless battles, Sadatoshi’s only known achievements in history were a brief fight with the legendary Masamune Date (伊達 政宗, Date Masamune) and the large amount of wealth he accumulated before dying of old age. Much of Baldr’s considerable skill in battle comes from the old samurai, who retains his decades of experience in the ways of war and profit. A quirk Baldr inherited from Sadatoshi is his desire to bathe naked in large piles of gold coins!

Masaharu Oka (岡 雅晴, Oka Masaharu), one of Baldr’s souls and a Japanese high school student. An otaku, he deliberately memorized much of modern-day Earth’s practical knowledge and technology in the somewhat deluded anticipation of someday reincarnating on a fantasy world. His wish came true on the day of his university entrance exam when he jaywalked in front of an oncoming truck! Through Baldr, Masaharu introduced gold electroplating, handmade shampoo, mayonnaise, hand water pumps, compasses and other items to Mauricia, earning Baldr several fortunes on the patents. A quirk Baldr inherited from Masaharu is his obsession with the cute animal ears of beautiful beast girls!

Count Ignis Cornelius and Countess Magotte Cornelius, the rulers of the Cornelius County and Baldr’s parents. A lady-killer in his youth, Ignis is now the even-tempered, responsible ruler of his domain. By contrast, Magotte is a belligerent, fiery and powerful ex-mercenary once known as “Silver Light Magotte” and is feared by family, friends and foes alike, including her own son!

Seyruun, the young personal maid of Baldr and the daughter of Sero, a knight of the Cornelius County. Loyal and caring, she has looked after Baldr since childhood.

Selina Savaran, the beastwoman owner of the Savaran Company. Ambitious, bold and diligent, her partnership with Baldr has allowed her to extend the Savaran’s Company’s reach to much of Mauricia and beyond.

Personal Thoughts

“How will this benefit me?”

A decidedly ugly question, yet one we ask or are asked in one form or another, whether we realize it or not.

Baldr uses his many talents to build his fortunes and make himself useful to those around him. In return, most of his allies and his friends are willing to work for or cooperate with him for their own benefit. Baldr is someone who understands the basic selfishness of people and has the resources and skills to use that to his advantage. While he is an experienced fighter, Baldr is equally capable of using his negotiation skills, resources and trickery to fight enemies who seek to ruin him and his friends financially or politically. This often involves making allies of those who would also benefit from the downfall of said enemies.

We basically live in a world where most of us make mutual concessions in exchange for benefits. This is called “give-and-take”. We use our skills so that we get paid. People at job interviews have to advertise the benefits they can bring to a potential workplace such as experience and perseverance. Family members learn to cooperate with, or at least tolerate, each other so they can live in harmony. Businesses work with each other to earn more money than they individually could. A government could receive aid and better health services in exchange for more exclusive economic deals with another country. The list goes on and on!

In general, we are more likely to help those who help us.

Moral

We live in a world of give-and-take. Nothing in life is free.

Spoiler Alert!

Disgusting. Absolutely disgusting.

The man fooling around over there is your fiancé, Prince Ian Basilios.

In the novel The Man I Love, he supposedly hated you, the villainess Melissa Podebrat, despite being officially engaged to you. Before falling in love with the main heroine Yuri Elizabeth, Ian flirted with countless ladies and indulged himself in debauchery.

The lady giggles.

“Heehee! Are you teasing me? You’re such a beast, Ian!”

“If it’s you, who could resist becoming a beast?”

Are his eyes rotten or something?! You’re standing in front of them!

And those cheesy lines! Did he get them from reading trashy romance novels?!

The young woman finally looks up at you.

OF ALL THE…would a maid dress THIS well?!

“Just ignore her,” says Ian. “First, let’s take this off…”

You shiver. Is he a devil or something?

Ian is the one who sent you a summons to come to the palace and he’s the one making out with another woman when you arrived. From what you recall from Melissa’s original memories, he’s already done this several times already!

He’s nothing but…a dog. A dog who doesn’t deserve mercy.

“Is your highness…trash?”, you ask aloud.

The prince finally deigns to look at you!

Shock is written all over his face. Apparently, Melissa always had catfights with the ladies whenever she catches them with Ian, who just stood back and did nothing.

Well, you’re not that Melissa anymore!

“Have you…gone crazy?”, says Ian hesitantly.

“ME?! CRAZY?!”, you scream. “YOU’RE THE ONE WHO INVITED ME HERE TO WATCH A CHEATING REALITY SHOW!! Considering that I didn’t smash an ashtray onto your head the moment I saw this, I’d say I’m very sane.”

Honestly! Why did Melissa fall for this guy?

A moment later, Ian replies, “I know that you’ve always behaved badly, but I never thought you’d say such cruel words to me!”

“You seemed so good at kissing just now, so why don’t you make out with the floor? That would be a hit!”

Ian stumbles a bit.

He clenches his fists at his sides.

A moment later, he raises his head…

This…JERK. He has the nerve to cheat on his fiancée and he caves in after one rebuke?

“Fine!”, you say firmly. “Since you obviously despise me, what’s the point in marrying me? Let’s break up!”

“Y-You…YOU CAN’T!”

Huh? What is he thinking?!

Beware the Villainess! (그 악녀를 조심하세요!, Geu Agnyeoleul Josimhaseyo!) is a web novel, light novel series and web comic written by Mulberry Flavor Screw Bar (뽕따맛 스크류바, Ppongttamas Seukeulyuba).

In the clichéd story of The Man I Love, the main heroine is Yuri Elizabeth, a commoner born with tremendous magical talent. After being adopted by Baron Elizabeth, she is pursued by four handsome men: Ian Basilios (Crown Prince of the Basilios Empire), Jake Podebrat (sniper to the Basilios royal family), Jack Forton (champion of the Forton werewolf clan) and Peacock Melody (owner of the Peacock Company). The villainess of this particular story is Duchess Melissa Podebrat, Ian’s fiancée and Jake’s older sister.

The Man I Love is the favorite novel of a certain Korean college student. After she dies in a car accident and awakens as Melissa in the novel’s setting, she gradually learns, to her utter disappointment, that Yuri’s four potential suitors are all narcissists in their own ways. When Melissa tries to annul her engagement to the womanizing Ian, the Prince instead plans to officially announce their wedding at a royal ball.

Disgusted, Melissa takes in a dirty, tongueless but handsome stranger, Nine, from the streets and has him act as her partner for the ball. Afterwards, the Podebrat mansion is threatened when the antisocial Jake and the brash Jack fight until Melissa angrily talks them down. After quickly learning swordsmanship for a month and acquiring a magic sword, Melissa is able to humble Jack in a duel. The reason why Jack came to the mansion was because he was after Nine, now revealed to be a werewolf banished from the Forton clan.

Injured during her duel with Jack, Melissa goes with Nine and her maid Yona to the Elizabeth mansion in order to meet and get help from Yuri herself. After saving Yuri from bandits and being asleep for four days straight, Melissa learns that the twisted fourth suitor, Peacock, is harassing Yuri from the Elizabeth mansion’s front yard. To send him away, Melissa defeats Peacock in a quiz duel. Thankful to Melissa, Yuri gives her a medicine to restore Nine’s fangs and tongue.

Melissa decides to teach each of the four narcissistic suitors a lesson. At a summer festival, she beats Ian at every game stall and verbally threatens his position as Crown Prince. At a royal hunting competition, Melissa transforms Jake into a rabbit (with help from Yuri) and hunts him, giving him an idea of how Yuri feels when she is stalked by him. When Yuri is kidnapped by Migen, Nine’s sadistic twin brother, Melissa and her friends save her. Afterwards, she intimidates Migen (and Jack!) into peaceful compliance.

Unbeknownst to Melissa, someone is not happy that the story is being derailed…

Main Characters

Melissa Podebrat, the eldest daughter of the Podebrat family and a former Korean college student. Independent-minded, quick-tempered, responsible, sardonic and stubborn, she is fiercely determined to not let anyone dictate her life. Hilariously, Melissa has trouble keeping a straight face when she is angry, disgusted or fantasizing about hurting those she dislikes. While she prefers to live a quiet, carefree life, she is also very loyal to her friends and will hurt those who threaten them. To keep her sullen brother Jake at a distance, Melissa retains a dog, Liev, and a horse, Black Devil. She is a talented swordswoman but is almost unable to use magic. Melissa also carries a powerful magic sword that once belonged to the Basilios royal family.

Yuri Elizabeth, the adopted daughter of the Elizabeth family. Bright, energetic and wise, this beautiful wizard sees Melissa her only real friend. She also considers Nine her rival for Melissa’s attention. Yuri has apparently lived the events of The Man I Love countless times under the watch of a mysterious entity who ensures that she follows the “script”. Frustrated with her narcissistic “suitors” and the endless cycle of clichés, Yuri is invigorated by Melissa’s defiance of fate and quietly defies her overseer.

Nine Forton, Melissa’s personal butler and a werewolf. Gentle, polite, shy and studious, he is completely loyal to and in love with Melissa. As a child, Nine was constantly bullied by his brother Migen and the rest of the Forton clan for his utter lack of talent in fighting and sorcery. Years later, Nine saved the life of a girl who wandered into the clan’s forest. For this, the clan had his fangs and his tongue cut out and banished him. Meant to die a beggar in The Man I Love, Nine was spared this cruel fate when he was taken in by Melissa, who eventually got Yuri to restore his fangs and his tongue. Like all Forton werewolves, Nine can take on the form of a wolf.

Yona Whitefall, Melissa’s maid and the daughter of a fallen marquis. Clever, cynical, greedy, quiet and unflappable, she calmly weathers her mistress’ bad attitude and temper. Despite this, there is almost nothing Yona won’t do for money and she has gone along with Melissa’s zany schemes for very hefty raises! Having had a noble education, Yona is knowledgeable in the ways of the Imperial aristocracy.

Personal Thoughts

Thrust into a clichéd story dominated by narcissists and male chauvinism, the quick-tempered Melissa refuses to follow the role of a submissive lady dictated to her by her family and her peers. Instead, she takes a stand for her right to live her life as she pleases and will not hesitate to make her point aggressively if she has to. Melissa has no desire for meaningless love and will not tolerate unjust treatment for any reason. She has the strength to move forward and back herself up without help from others. In doing so, she also becomes a source of inspiration to others similarly dissatisfied with their lives.

This story reminds me of how those with narcissistic partners have to learn to stand up for themselves. Narcissists are people who desire to be seen as perfect in society, but their fragile egos and lack of empathy for others make them terrifying to those close to them. In private, narcissists are control freaks who see no one as their equal and become enraged when they are criticized for any reason, justly or otherwise. Since narcissists are unlikely to relate to others, the best way to deal with them is to ignore them and not depend on them.

Partners of narcissists often have to learn how to be strong and independent so that they won’t be at the mercy of said narcissists. This usually involves getting the ability to make money for themselves, since money is a favorite tool of narcissists to control others. It’s difficult to get out of the shadows of narcissists who would love to see the world revolve around them, but the rewards are very likely to be worth it. Former victims might even find strength and talents within them that they never knew about before!

Moral

The life you have belongs only to you.