ORV books are like crack, honestly. I'm kind of mad at myself for starting the series from the beginning of the physical Yen Press release (and sticking to it), since there is just SO MUCH that happens in these books!

I'm also glad though, since it prevents me from bingeing the series and staying up late at night to keep reading. If I had multiple volumes to read, I would probably be finishing 1 book a day. It wouldn't even be that difficult, since each volume only contains roughly 50k words, which is on the shorter side for light novels.

After the events of the previous book, Dokja and company must now travel the subway and chase after Yu Junghyeok. Dokja intends to survive the trials to come by being on the same team as Junghyeok but that requires finding him first. 

They arrive at Chungmuro station, and are then immediately thrust into their next "Scenario", or quest that they need to overcome. They have to survive hordes of enemies while fighting against humans who have their own motives, many of whom are willing to screw them over. Of course, this requires some violent actions when necessary.

There is also the introduction of a dungeon and dungeon boss with a very cool concept that involves movies, which I really liked. Dokja also has to go out of his way to save Junghyeok at one point, which leads to a very funny misunderstanding that causes people to believe that they're a couple. Let the shipping begin! (I already had my shipper goggles on ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ )

It's also great to see some development of the side characters, such as Junghyeok's disciple. We also learn that Kim Dokja has been through some major trauma in his life, though he refuses to elaborate on what exactly that was. 

I'm sure we'll end up learning more, but it's clear that he really sees the "characters" in Three Ways to Survive the Apocalypse as actual people, and he wonders how he will cope with some of the sins that he's committed. Technically, everyone who has survived has had to kill somebody, so in some ways it's just out of need. I'm glad this is addressed. 

The side characters such as Sangah ,Hyeonseong, Gilyeong, and Huiwonhave really grown on me, and it's exciting to see their abilities continue to grow.

I'm reminded a lot of the Hunter x Hunter series, which had lots of "game" like scenarios and abilities that the characters had to overcome. This is such a fast paced series, and it even ended on a cliffhanger with another interesting "Scenario" quest to beat, this time in the form of capture the flag. Looks like Dokja will have to fight against some other scheming enemies, so I can't wait to find out how he ends up curb-stomping them (hopefully).

Volume 3 is out in March, and it'll be another long wait sigh. 

P.S:  Also, as an aside, since I'm reading the physical versions: I think the design with the cutout cover is really cool, but I also find it kind of annoying since I don't want to touch the inside illustration through the hole. While the design of the physical books is great, that's one unfortunate downside now that the novelty has worn off. 

Welcome to Monstrous Miss Sophie’s Enchanted Salon of Healing Volume 1 by Sachi Konzome, Illustration by Harenochihareta. Translated by Dawson Chen. Published by Cross Infinite World.

I don't know if I was particularly in a tearful mood when I read this book (it's very possible) but this book made me very emotional. 

The main character is a single mother in Japan who manages to raise her daughter with a skin condition (it's implied to be some sort of autoimmune psoriasis or eczema). Although they struggle due to poverty and social exclusion, eventually her daughter manages to study, becomes a doctor, and meets someone that she wants to marry. 

However, when her daughter leaves for her honeymoon, Mariko suffers a devastating stroke. Instead of calling for help, Mariko chooses not to call for help, and perishes in the process.

Unlike other isekai series that don't spend much time on the character's "past" life, this one spends extra time to characterize Mariko, and it pays off quite well. You truly understand why she makes the choices she makes in the beginning, such as choosing to die rather than force her daughter to care for her during her rehabilitation. Unlike other series, Mariko isn't young, and brings a different perspective.

Mariko reincarnates into Sophie Olzon, a girl who is distraught by her own skin condition. She eventually finds out that she has a weak healing magic that has the ability to heal other's skin. After hitting rock bottom, Sophie decides that she wants to help others and opens a "salon" where she offers her services for free for the 1st year. 

Salon in this sense is a noble salon, a room in an upper-class family's house where people meet to discuss, have tea, and socialize. For Sophie's purposes, her healing abilities are too weak to be of use to the government, so she is left to her own devices, for the most part. 

The series focuses on a "patient of the week" style, where you learn the stories of everyone who comes to seek treatment. Her patient's stories are emotional as well, and many of them deal with how their scars are a painful reminder of their past mistakes or obstacles to their future happiness. 

Through it all, Sophie heals others while struggling with her own condition, unable to find a solution. Although this series showcases something as "shallow" as skin, skin is the first thing that people see, and form their opinion of a person on. For young women, appearing youthful and beautiful is an expectation, and anything that impedes that might even reduce their job opportunities. Even for men, scars or tattoos can have negative connotations or become reminders of a previous life that no longer represents you.

If you want to see similar real-life examples of how physically and emotionally painful skin conditions can be, I suggest watching "Save My Skin" which features cases treated by dermatologist Dr. Emma Craythorne. 

It's hurtful to feel like you're ugly, a monster that shouldn't be viewed or loved by anyone. I appreciate that this series exists, and provides a view into how debilitating such conditions can be. I shed real tears at some of the stories, it was that emotionally moving. 

In this first volume, it mostly focused on Sophie's patients. I'm hopeful that the next (and last) volume will also focus on Sophie healing herself, whether emotionally or physically. There's a hint at a romance here, and I'm looking forward to seeing how that develops. 

One of the difficult things about giving my impressions on this series is that I genuinely don't know where it's going, or even what to compare it to. Since it's a long Korean webnovel (with at least 18 books of content), I know the story will only continue to build from here. But the content and tropes of the story don't fit into any story structures or overarching plots that I can identify right now. 

Cale Henituse is now well and truly past the point where his previous knowledge about the Birth of a Hero novels will help him navigate this world. However, he's navigating it well just with his "selfish" nature and scheming. We're aware that there will be a war in the future due to intelligence that the northern countries are building up their armed forces, so Cale has no choice but to help his country and his region build up defenses as well. 

Cale's main character ability (other than all the other random magic tools, skills, and ancient powers that he's picked up) must be persuasion, because he never falters in a single negotiation. The Prince of Rowoon, Albert, knows this, which is why he drags him in as part of his political entourage. As much as Cale hates this, he's really good at it!

Of course, people without knowledge of his internal thoughts continue to view him as a saintly nobleman who only cares about the good of his country (lol). He certainly cares about the people around him. His bleeding heart is obvious to everyone but him, especially when he can't ignore the two Saint twins of the Sun religion, one of whom was previously with the evil secret organization Arm, before defecting. We get their backstory, and Cale tries to help them out, even despite everyone else's misgivings. He also ends up helping the Tiger tribe and the Whale tribe get their revenge on Arm as well. 

Oh, I also can't forget about the other dragon that ends up joining Cale for the time being. He's just recruiting and adding people to his crew left and right, even when he doesn't want to. He's literally collecting weirdos in his family like Pokemon!

I've been enjoying the political machinations; it's still fun to see Cale prepare and then trounce people in negotiations. As much as I'm enjoying the various side quests that he chooses to take, I am curious about the bigger picture. 

Edit: I also forgot to add, we got a new cover artist this volume! I really like their style, Cale looks as regal as one would expect. 

Unfortunately, I have a lot to yap about before I get into my thoughts about this book, as usual. It's pretty much impossible to come at this with no biases whatsoever because I've already seen the anime, read a previous fan translation, and generally have positive feelings towards the series due to it's beautiful artwork, enough to have collected the artbooks by Akihiro Yamada-sensei. 

So it's pretty much impossible for me to give any fresh impressions on a book like this. If you're interested in this series, I highly recommend watching the anime first before reading the books. It's not absolutely necessary, but I think the slow burn of the plot is better able to be tolerated in anime form, which has other charms such as the music and voice acting. 

The book itself cuts to the chase fairly quickly. Youko, a goody-two-shoes doormat of a high-school girl, gets isekai'd (no trucks this time, this is the 1990s) by Keiki, a mysterious man with blonde hair, who proclaims himself a servant of Youko. He uses summoned beasts (which are often more like chimeras that can talk) to whisk Youko away to another world. However, they get separated in the process, and Youko is left to fend for herself, with only a magical sword and a creepy body-controlling demon that gives her martial abilities. 

Due to the age of this series and the author's pedigree, nothing about this series follows the regular tropes of isekai light novels as we know them today. Rather than a power fantasy, Youko is left practically helpless, lost in a new world. She spends the entirety of the first book fighting physical and mental anguish. Rather than wanting to help her, most people are trying to hunt her down for her perceived sins. 

It makes for a compelling first book, but it's also only half of the story. I dislike when English Publishers do this, splitting up volumes of a story that is meant to be read together. Japanese publishers will often release multiple volumes either on the same release day, or barely a month apart, like the original publication of Shadow of the Moon, Shadow of the Sea.

So this book ends with no clear "ending". Anybody who is used to light novels that were polished from webnovels will be familiar with this, but just a word of warning. Since I read this fairly late (I was in no hurry since I've already read it before), the 2nd part of Shadow of the Moon, Shadow of the Sea is out tomorrow. Anybody reading this should buy both volumes before starting this series!

It's hard for me to recommend this series based purely on the merits of the first book, but in some ways, it represents a unique time period and a unique author in the light novel space. Twelve Kingdoms is a prestige work with an award-winning author, and the character writing in the first book clearly shows it. Youko is in no way prepared for the harsh world that she's been thrust into, and her insecurities continue to plague her. However, in this volume, she slowly starts to fight her way through her struggles, and establish herself as the main character.

This is not an author who is pressed to get to the "good stuff" right away. She has a world to build, and a story to tell, and it's worth putting in the effort to consume. 

Extra Thoughts

I wanted to save the discussion of the translation for after the main impressions, since it's a bit tangential to the point. Tokyopop initially licensed the series for the U.S., and produced the most hamfisted localization you can imagine, courtesy of the early 2000s "jelly donuts" style. Generally, nobody likes this translation due to a myriad of weird choices. 

I think the Seven Seas translation by Kim Morrissy did a great job; it was snappy and to the point, and kept my attention while reading. While I can read some Japanese, I'm not fluent enough to judge how accurate or inaccurate this translation is. 

However, I do want to let readers know that there is an alternative to the current official version. In the years where Tokyopop went defunct, and nobody had the license or intent to republish the series, Eugene Woodbury took on the massive project of re-translating The Twelve Kingdoms and did a fantastic job at it. He finished translating up to the most recent book (Hills of Silver Ruins as of now), but he unfortunately passed away recently in January 2025. He never got to see the re-release of The Twelve Kingdoms, but I earnestly believe that his hard work is what led this series to get licensed again. 

Woodbury's translation contains notes and reference material about the particular historical and cultural aspects that Ono included in her work. I'm not sure how much of this is something that the average Japanese reader is supposed to be aware of, but I found it really helpful, and edifying. I don't want his hard work to disappear, he literally kept this fandom alive! But I also don't want his work to be a replacement for supporting Fuyumi Ono through official means. 

Please, if you're interested in reading this series, support the official release by Seven Seas (even by checking it out from the library!). Once you've read that, do consider checking out the Woodbury version for some interesting additional context and alternate interpretations of the source. 

This series was recommended to me when I asked for recs after finishing the Lord of Mysteries donghua, by my friend/mutual Geraineon, who also runs the Chinese Novels Dreamwidth community. I'm a lurker there, but my friend kindly gave me quite a few series to check out (which will probably end up on this blog if I'm being honest). 

The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System (SVSSS) was the first one that I was intrigued by, simply because the premise seems more light-hearted (which I needed after Lord of Mysteries). I've seen some fan content for this series, but due to the fact that I didn't really understand who the characters were, I don't think I'm really spoiled on plot from that perspective. My general impression was that this was quite the popular series, given that MXTX has three series on the NY Bestseller List. 

Right from the beginning, this is a series laden with in-jokes and self-deprecating humor when it comes to webnovels as a medium. The tropes it's referencing are well established. Even though I'm new to the xianxia genre, there were enough footnotes and context to get the gist of the jokes. It helps that I'm already well versed in light novel and fanfic communities, so I had equivalent tropes to compare to. 

Shen Yuan is an avid reader of the Proud Immortal Demon Way webnovel, except that he's quite the toxic fan. As soon as he finishes reading the series, he curses the author and series for it's ending, and ends up kicking the bucket because of it. Did he literally have an aneurysm from his hatred of the series? We don't really get specifics on that front, but it sets the tone for how ridiculous this main character is. 

Shen Yuan becomes Shen Qingqiu, the loser villain at the beginning of the series. The whole plot is about him desperately trying to ingratiate himself to Luo Binghe (the main protagonist) so he doesn't get horrifically killed for his misdeeds. He spends the entire time trying to go along with the "System", which is basically telling him to fix the novel himself, at "gunpoint" lol. 

This must be a trope in webnovels, since "reincarnating into a book as a villain" has been done in several series that I've read, most notably Lout of Count's Family (which is Korean), and even Despicable Duke Settles His Affairs (a BL light novel). 

This book was so funny, there were several scenes that had me laughing (and even giggling) at how unobservant Shen Yuan is. He does everything he can to look good in front of Luo Binghe, and then doesn't understand why Binghe naturally comes to have a crush on him. It's heartwarming and sweet, and it's painful to read when you realize that Shen Qingqiu has to betray Binghe at a critical juncture because it's a canon event. 

Shen Qingqiu also seems to not understand that he might have feelings for Luo Binghe as well. He harps on about how the ladies in Binghe's harem are abject beauties, but you can tell that he admires Binghe's looks the most, that he's going to grow up to be handsome for sure. He even talks about how much he didn't even like the fanservice in the original Proud Immortal Demon Way, and cared much more about the monster fights. Seems like the poor dude hasn't realized that he isn't straight yet haha. 

I had an excellent time reading this (you can read my liveblog of the series here). I'll also update my liveblog when I read future volumes, since I'm already grasping for the next one (eagerly waiting for my library hold to come up!). It feels weird to say that I'm glad this is a short series, at only 4 volumes. It's fully complete, which means I will be bingeing it!

Cale Henituse continues to believe that he's a selfish person who just wants to laze around. I think this volume makes it clear that this is just Kim Roksu's interpretation of himself, and that everyone else around him can see that he's honestly a softhearted person that attempts to help people whenever he can (that doesn't stop him from scamming people out of their money though). 

Raon Mir finally gets his revenge against his captors, in a pretty disturbing way. I'm glad the author didn't just decide to show violence for shock value, but actually showed why Benion Sten is a bastard who deserves everything that's coming to him. You can tell that Cale is infuriated by it, and will make life hell for anyone who harms his family. It's a hard scene to read, and it's the opener for this book.

That theme is even reiterated in the same volume when Cale goes out of his way to help Ron, the man who practically raised him. Poor Ron (the assassin and combat butler) comes back on the verge of death, and Cale takes his own revenge against the secret organization who did this to him in the most bombastic way possible. 

Luckily the rest of the book is pretty lighthearted. Cale manages to meet both the dark and light elves, and even adds someone to his party. There's a timeskip in this book, and the narration makes sure to let us know that Cale spent that entire time lazing around. Meanwhile, other people do the hard work of preparing alliances, building fortresses, ships, etc. 

Things are moving along, slowly.