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I'm Not the Hero #5
Crucible of Sundered Loyalties: An Isekai LitRPG
In the fifth book of this fantasy adventure, the journey's not over just because a big boss battle is won.
Renowned as total ass-kickers in their new, game-inspired world, best friends Orrin and Daniel have done the impossible. They've gathered a loyal fellowship, earned a slew of skills and high-level powers, united the realms to finally take down the dreaded Demon Lord, and grown and developed as individuals. Their quest is complete, and now the pair can finally concentrate on their primary getting back home. Or so they think.
Unfortunately, winning a war doesn't mean instant peace. The various kingdoms of the realm are still playing politics, maneuvering for position and power, and Orrin and his friends are caught up in the chaos. Even worse is the surprising destruction of dungeons across the land, which presents a new obstacle....
Orrin and Daniel need some serious power to get home, the kind usually found in dungeons. But someone has been clearing the hidden places of power ahead of them for reasons unknown. And unless Orrin and Daniel can beat the baddie to the punch—or rather, the stab, slash, and hack—they aren't going anywhere.
The fifth volume of the hit LitRPG fantasy series―with more than 600,000 views on Royal Road―now available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook!
Tropes zero to hero, role reversal, unlikely hero, frenemies, and secret enemy.
Renowned as total ass-kickers in their new, game-inspired world, best friends Orrin and Daniel have done the impossible. They've gathered a loyal fellowship, earned a slew of skills and high-level powers, united the realms to finally take down the dreaded Demon Lord, and grown and developed as individuals. Their quest is complete, and now the pair can finally concentrate on their primary getting back home. Or so they think.
Unfortunately, winning a war doesn't mean instant peace. The various kingdoms of the realm are still playing politics, maneuvering for position and power, and Orrin and his friends are caught up in the chaos. Even worse is the surprising destruction of dungeons across the land, which presents a new obstacle....
Orrin and Daniel need some serious power to get home, the kind usually found in dungeons. But someone has been clearing the hidden places of power ahead of them for reasons unknown. And unless Orrin and Daniel can beat the baddie to the punch—or rather, the stab, slash, and hack—they aren't going anywhere.
The fifth volume of the hit LitRPG fantasy series―with more than 600,000 views on Royal Road―now available in paperback, ebook, and audiobook!
Tropes zero to hero, role reversal, unlikely hero, frenemies, and secret enemy.
480 pages, Paperback
Published August 4, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
August 12, 2026
The 'twist' that has been painfully foreshadowed since the first chapter in the first book, finally played out. Look, I think I fall squarely on the average side when it comes to figuring out the twists and turns. I realized he was dead all along in the Sixth Sense precisely when the director wanted me to (right as the wife dropped the ring). So I am not trying to make some kind of humble brag here about knowing what was coming. I think it was pretty obvious.
While I was glad that plot point finally got addressed, I was surprised that we barely moved the needle on how we ended the prior book. It certainly shapes the narrative, but in terms of decisions and progress, this was all planning and discussion.
This series grew on me from books two onward to the point where I was a little disappointed that I had finished the fourth book and had to wait for book five. While this book was perfectly fine, I think my enjoyment tempered a bit. In short, this was good but we had a peak at the end of the last book and you should anticipate what some generally refer to as a 'gap book'. We are positioning and getting into the background lore. There are still fights to be had, dungeons to crawl, but overall, this was mostly a giant info dump to set up the later plot points.
While I was glad that plot point finally got addressed, I was surprised that we barely moved the needle on how we ended the prior book. It certainly shapes the narrative, but in terms of decisions and progress, this was all planning and discussion.
This series grew on me from books two onward to the point where I was a little disappointed that I had finished the fourth book and had to wait for book five. While this book was perfectly fine, I think my enjoyment tempered a bit. In short, this was good but we had a peak at the end of the last book and you should anticipate what some generally refer to as a 'gap book'. We are positioning and getting into the background lore. There are still fights to be had, dungeons to crawl, but overall, this was mostly a giant info dump to set up the later plot points.
August 4, 2026
Ahhh!!!!!! Some twists in this one I didn't expect!! Read it and then weep as we all wait for book 6...
May 2, 2026
Another excellent addition to an amazing series. If you thought defeating the demon king and destroying the demon hoard was going to be difficult for Oren and Daniel; you haven’t seen anything yet! Despite how far they’ve come neither Oren or Daniel are anywhere near ready to face the enemy coming for them next!
August 8, 2026
The fourth book in this series was a bit of a rough one. Lots of really tense moments. Big fights, big drama. I was happy with the way it went and how it was going but I wasn’t unhappy that as I finished it and clicked on the next one, that the next one wasn’t out yet. I wasn’t sure where things were going to go and if I was ready go to there yet. Book for was kind of finally, big end battle and such.
I was a bit surprised when my kindle auto-dowloaded it. Not because it was unexpected, I did pre-order it but I wasn’t tracking dates but even that wasn’t the surprise. The surprise was that instead of going back into the book that I was reading, which was kind of in the middle of a fight sequence, I just jumped right into I’m not the hero, and read the whole darned thing in a day. Something about these characters really makes me love them. I’m hyper engaged in them. I want to know their story.
This book is a fitting continuation from the last. The demons are mostly not a problem now that the demon lord has been defeated but there’s a new problem. Someone is breaking dungeons. Dungeons are the necessary training ground for adventurers in our world to level. This causes some major concerns. The Hospital is back at its shenanigans and Orrin goes on a date. What great fun is this!
Honestly, I was simply enthralled by this book once again. Kerper simply writes brilliant characters that I love and I would read a book of them being maids in a motel. There is a great big shocking part of the book that you’ve never guessed and that really kicks you back on your arse. Well worth the read. (obviously, not a stand
alone)
I was a bit surprised when my kindle auto-dowloaded it. Not because it was unexpected, I did pre-order it but I wasn’t tracking dates but even that wasn’t the surprise. The surprise was that instead of going back into the book that I was reading, which was kind of in the middle of a fight sequence, I just jumped right into I’m not the hero, and read the whole darned thing in a day. Something about these characters really makes me love them. I’m hyper engaged in them. I want to know their story.
This book is a fitting continuation from the last. The demons are mostly not a problem now that the demon lord has been defeated but there’s a new problem. Someone is breaking dungeons. Dungeons are the necessary training ground for adventurers in our world to level. This causes some major concerns. The Hospital is back at its shenanigans and Orrin goes on a date. What great fun is this!
Honestly, I was simply enthralled by this book once again. Kerper simply writes brilliant characters that I love and I would read a book of them being maids in a motel. There is a great big shocking part of the book that you’ve never guessed and that really kicks you back on your arse. Well worth the read. (obviously, not a stand
alone)
August 11, 2026
This book is fantastic. You actually feel like this is a real isekai and it fixes a lot of the problems the last book had.
Most of this book is in dungeons. The politics are mostly gone and all the mental stuff is out the window for the most part. This is pure dungeon crawl fantasy and so much better than what has been written up to this point.
The character interactions are still very good and the story actually has a plot that makes sense and isn't some ridiculous high stakes nonsense. Most secrets come out in the open and you start to see where the author actually wanted to take this story. I'd imagine they didn't want to do it too early and I agree with the decision.
I fear the next book will most likely suffer the same problems that the beginning books faced but I'll give the author the benefit of the doubt.
Most of this book is in dungeons. The politics are mostly gone and all the mental stuff is out the window for the most part. This is pure dungeon crawl fantasy and so much better than what has been written up to this point.
The character interactions are still very good and the story actually has a plot that makes sense and isn't some ridiculous high stakes nonsense. Most secrets come out in the open and you start to see where the author actually wanted to take this story. I'd imagine they didn't want to do it too early and I agree with the decision.
I fear the next book will most likely suffer the same problems that the beginning books faced but I'll give the author the benefit of the doubt.
August 18, 2026
so much fun … until this one.
August 23, 2026
I missed these characters. I'll be needing the next one please.☺️
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews