With Ares gone, things can’t get any worse … or can they?
Creative Staff:
Original Story: Tsukikage
Illustrations By: bob
Translation: Caleb DeMarais
What They Say:
Next stop on the party’s quest to defeat the Demon Lord: Yutith’s Tomb, home to undead monsters. It’s a great place to level up a bunch of novices, but there’s just one problem – the hero is terrified of the undead! On the bright side, the party may have finally found a priest to join their quest. She’s an apprentice and can’t cast any spells, but that’s still better than nothing, right? In the meantime, the party’s previous priest, Ares, trails behind them, providing support in secret – and pulling a few strings – until they can defeat the Demon Lord once and for all.
Content (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
It was abundantly clear after the disastrous battle in the Forest of the Vale against vampire Zarpahn that Toudou and his party was not ready to face the Demon Lord, plus it made it was worse after he dismissed Ares due to the simple fact he was not a woman. After the crusader was forced to step in from his covert mission of watching over them to put down this menace, they now have no choice but to follow one of his last pieces of advice – find a new priest and the best place would be Golem Valley. Their lack of a divine power was the main reason they could not defeat such a low level follower of Kranos and even if Naotsugu was considered a Holy Warrior, he still did not have enough experience to wield techniques to ward off such nuisances. Therefore their only option to level up and find a new companion was to venture into this desolate location known for Yutith’s Tomb and the number of clergy who came here to hone their practical skills. If they could not find another healer here their mission was doomed to fail, but there was the other obvious reason this place was so important, it also played a role in banishing the fears of Naotsugu and Limis … the two were deathly afraid of the undead. How could either hope to face the Demon Lord if they could not defeat the lowliest of his minions without breaking out in a cold sweat and freezing in place from fright – this problem would have to be remedied.
Ares and Amelia had arrived in Purif before the rest of the party, this small hamlet was the frontline headquarters for any adventurers who dared to head into the region and due to the numerous undead the town also had three churches to serve various purposes. As such due to this heavy holy presence and constant influx of explorers, it unfortunately had its share of orphans from parents who went into Golem Valley and never returned, such as it was for a sickly girl named Spica Royale. She never knew her parents but from what she was told they too dared to venture into the Tomb and never came back, therefore her welfare was left to the good graces of the priests and she returned their tending with chores and cleaning the building. However it was that day all the children were summoned to the reception hall, in her twelve years of being in their care this was the first time she saw the area and after arriving they were lined up and presented to an unknown sister who promptly informed them she was looking for someone to complete a top-secret mission from God. After looking over all of the kids and promptly rejecting the boys this blue eyed woman settled for the one who stood did not stand out and announced Spica would be trained to become a priest. When the shy girl cautiously asked why she was chosen from all the others, the answer was simple … she was the cutest.
In Summary:
This volume tries to cast Ares in a new light by indirectly aiding Naotsugu in finding a replacement priest, but of course his unbridled ego and callous nature get in the way to create an awkwardness to the narrative which either amplifies your begrudging admiration or overt displeasure in the character. Although writer Tsukikage-sensei does attempt to allow Amelia to become a buffer for his rougher edges between others and the reader, you still cannot but be exposed to a caustic nature with biting remarks and condescending attitude all as he disguises his efforts to help the Holy Warrior and his party. This is made worse within this book when he uses a twelve-year-old girl to lure the group deeper into Yutith’s Tomb in order to get over their tangible fear of the undead, all while permitting Spica the chance to adjust to these same creatures so that she may level up and become a better acolyte; this two fold method may seem efficient but at the same time it only shows how much Church likes to use people all to serve his own means, namely training both sides simultaneously so as not to waste time with individual attention. While this coldness may seem harsh, it is nothing when compared to the unbridled fanaticism of the wild priest Gregorio – this man they call the Mad Eater is chilling when he shows his true nature in exterminating those who he sees as either unworthy or unneeded in the fight against demons; thus you have to wonder if Tsukikage-sensei created him to divert some of Ares’ patronizing personality onto someone who is worse by all aspects, even if he may be only temporary for this single book for now.
Defeating the Demon Lord’s a Cinch (If You’ve Got a Ringer) is attempting to mold the world into two sides of the same story: one with Ares begrudgingly trying to help the Holy Warrior to become a better adventurer and the other with Naotsugu valiantly trying to survive this crazy world, all as both sides become submerged within the bitterness of the crusader’s annoyance in doing something he does not want to do, but has no choice. And while we have Amelia serve as a sounding board for her callous boss to tone down the attitude, she projects a personality which seems detached from caring what happens to anyone as long as she is not caught up in the middle; however with someone like Ares always criticizing everything Naotsugu does or someone who does not meet up to his standards, you have to wonder how long it will be until this laid back priestess becomes just like him … which is a shame since she is the single refreshing oasis within this desolate wasteland of depression.
Content Grade: B
Art Grade: A
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: 13 & Up
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: November 27, 2018
MSRP: $14.00
