86—EIGHTY-SIX, Vol. 11: Dies Passionis

86—EIGHTY-SIX Light Novel #11

by Asato Asato, Shirabii (Illustrator), I-IV (Mechanical Designer)

PRIDE BEFORE THE FALL

It happened all too quickly. A flash, a rumble, and then… silence. In an instant, an unprecedented Legion assault wrought untold destruction upon nations across the world. As humanity’s borders are sent into swift decline, Shin and Lena are tasked with a large-scale rescue operation that brings them back to Republic soil after what seems like a lifetime. Yet even with humanity on the brink of extinction, they find a country that hasn’t changed—one that cannot change. Many survivors view rescue by the Eighty-Six as the height of indignity. Similarly, many Eighty-Six are reluctant to lend aid to those who stripped away their humanity. But behind the cavernous, silver eyes of the mechanical ghosts lays a single, gruesome directive…

Genres: Light Novel, Science Fiction, Dystopia, Young Adult, Japanese Literature, Romance, Manga

288 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 10, 2022

About the author

安里アサト, Asato Asato, born 1985) is a female Japanese novelist. The pen name Asato Asato is a combination of her real name (Toru Asakura) and eighty-eight.
Asato started writing novels just before she entered junior high school.

She initially submitted her work to the Kadokawa Beans Bunko Rookie Award, but when in 2014 her manuscript made it to the third round of the 2014 21st Dengeki Novel Prize, Asato started thinking about writing a novel that was "Dengeki Novel-esque." This novel would become the start of the 86 -Eighty Six- series.

In 2016, 86 -Eighty Six- won the 23rd Dengeki Novel Prize.

Reviews

[sally ✿ · Rating 4 out of 5]

i had a feeling about the reveal at the end, but the confirmation still made me gasp.

lena is so cool. all hail queen lena, long may she reign

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lena being the baddest bitch is the highlight of this book.

[Serianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was as amazing as the other volumes. Seeing the second full scale legion attack and bits and pieces of the first one tying the way happened to Lena’s uncle at the end of his life was a huge shock. Their mission to help evacuate the republic’s citizens was intense. Seeing that most of the citizens still expected the 86 to protect them was infuriating. And seeing how the republic prioritized the nobles and military over the regular citizens just proved nothing has changed for them. Lena trying to become the villain to put the republic refugees in line was such a fun thing to see and then how much Shin cares and worries about her made my heart flutter. I absolutely love Shin and Lena’s relationship and how she wanted to go back home to the base with him. When Shin kind of went off on the republic refugee calling him out for not saving his sister felt nice in a way that he must have felt really pent up and just had to let it out and vent to Marcel. I loved how Lena felt jealous of Marcel since Shin vented to him a bit was cute. All in all I absolutely love this series and cannot wait for vol 12.

[Freeread · Rating 4 out of 5]

อพยพคนมีอำนาจ รวย ไปก่อน ตามด้วยทหาร แล้วคนจนต่อท้าย เจอพวกทหารไปก่อนก็จะประณามทหาร

ถึงพวกนั้นจะเลวร้าย แต่เราต้องไม่ทำเหมือนพวกมัน ทว่าบางคนก็ปล่อยวางไม่ได้ ยินยอมวอดวายไปด้วยกัน

ทำไมเอาแต่โทษทุกคนยกเว้นตัวเอง มีเวลาตั้งหลายปี ทำไมไม่รู้จักสู้เพื่อตัวเอง แค่ปกป้องตัวเองยังทำไม่ได้

[新新 Xin-Xin · Rating 4 out of 5]

恨意讓機械也瘋狂，但看到辛有在抱怨真是令人欣慰。

然後一點都不重要但本集券首拉頁的軍裝辛真是帥到令人忘記作者又大發便當的苦澀

[Sleepy Zirka · Rating 4 out of 5]

✧˖°.˗ˏˋ 86 ˊ˗˖°.✧
----- ----- ----- ----- -----

<<—————Did you think—————>>
<<—————that you would be able to escape us?>>>

----- ----- ----- ----- -----
Characters: ★★★★☆
World Building: ★★★★☆
Plot: ★★★★☆
Tension: ★★★☆☆
Writing style: ★★★☆☆
Entertainment: ★★★☆☆
Atmosphere: ★★★☆☆

Overall Score: ★ 3.6/5.0 ★ 7/10 ★
This was a rather light hearted (*caugh caugh* <- Liar *caugh*) snack between the end of November and Beginning of December... I am still anticipating Volume 14- I swear i cant rush through these last ones too fast.
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˗ˏˋ The Story ˊ˗

"This volume covers the seventh story arc of the series, depicting the Legion's second offensive and its repercussions. The Strike Package is forced to return to the Republic for the final time and carry out a mission which would save their oppressors."
-- Source: https://86-eighty-six.fandom.com/wiki... [03.12.2025]
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˗ˏˋ My Two Cents ˊ˗

...Uhh...Um... We doing process and the new legion model was cool to see in action. Although its mindset was... rather not so friendly? (*sweat sweat*) The 4th Story arc kicked off with the same tone we had in the beginning, much of the war, strategies and the factor of discriminations between the human factions and the 86. A return to the roots in the second last Arc, which entails trouble and sets up our characters for struggle! It really fuels the dread and the horrors of the battlefield after i was hung up on the sweet threads of Shin and Lena little relationship, which immediately got pulled into a yarnball and the story said: 'No. We go back to the cruel reality. The legion want you dead.'
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- Series ☆ 3.9/5 ☆ -
[ 86 Vol. 1 ] ★ 4/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 2 ] ★ 3/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 3 ] ★ 3/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 4 ] ★ 4/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 5 ] ★ 4/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 6 ] ★ 4/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 7 ] ★ 4/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 8 ] ★ 3/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 9 ] ★ 4/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 10 ] ★ 3/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 11 ] ★ 3.6/5.0 ★ 7/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 12 ] ★ x/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
[ 86 Vol. 13 ] ★ x/5.0 ★ x/10 ★
----- ----- ----- ----- -----

[Marta · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5. M'ha semblat fluixet, però a la gent sembla que el considera dels millors... Crec que és pel shock factor; aquest volum es caracteritza en gran part per ensenyar una massacre sense precedents, sobre la qual he de dir que porta una càrrega i un dilema ètic i moral bastant interessant, però... M'ha semblat que no quadrava gaire amb el fil de la història? Estava planejat des del principi, però no m'ha donat aquesta sensació en absolut. De sobte els fan embarcar-se en una operació que no sembla tenir cap alt nivell de prioritat en comptes de centrar-se en l'objectiu que tenien... No ho sé, no he acabat d'entendre què pintava ben bé tot això aquí. Estic contenta perquè s'ha confirmat una teoria que tenia des de feia un temps amb una única pista, però això és tot. També considero que el personatge principal feia coses una mica extranyes per ser ell? En conclusió: no he trobat coherència ni cohesió en aquest volum. Trist.

[Shirley · Rating 4 out of 5]

WELL THIS IS AN INTENSE VOLUME TO SAY THE LEAST, WOW the horror that keeps happening, we barely have crumbs of lighthearted moments at all in this book. I don't know what else to say, beside prepare your emotion for reading this book.

[len · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5
when you are in a competion for being the biggest yapper but your opponent is major general richard altner before he went to intercept the legion

[Adrienne Oliveri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lena is one of my all-time favorite leading ladies. That is all.

[booknerdmechi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you ever experienced that feeling when the story's about to reach its ending and everything's intense and heavy, like the thread of conclusion is already hanging in the air and now you're set to read a book that you know will not be an easy ride?

That's how I will describe this volume.

This volume made me realize how maybe in few more chapters, we will now reach the final battle and the author's already building it up. It's almost rude to left me hanging with this because...what's with that cliff hanger!? I need the next volume, like, RIGHT NOW!

Also, Lena's been always a badass but in this particular volume, I love her even more. Plus the fact that the Eight Six respects and treats her like their Queen is even more highlighted and I'm living for it, we love our Eighty Six Queen.

[Gyro · Rating 5 out of 5]

I feel the series was loosing a bit of steam with vol. 9 but vol. 10 was really good and this one is especially great

The power creep of the legion is done much better this time (the Halcyon was a bit too much on the nose in all honnesty), they still feel scarier than ever before, but in a more tangible and down to earth.
Also it does a great job at expressing the futility of war and all the ways it impacts people.

One of my favorite volume so far.

[kerrycat · Rating 5 out of 5]

this body count - damn.

as if this story wasn't brutal enough, Asato gives us a devastating twist - and the ending? still wondering if I read that right, because if I did . . .

Shin and Lena have so little time together, but when they do, they make the most of it, and every sweet stolen moment they share is so perfect. still one of my very favorite couples ever.

[二六 侯 · Rating 4 out of 5]

這集為大結局鋪墊接露謎底，但劇情走向是敗仗加難民黑暗面，讀者情緒曲線一路下探。

[inès · Rating 3 out of 5]

pas sure d’avoir tout compris tbh ????? surtout la fin y’a trop de persos sayez je suis perdue

[Coco · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decided against wasting time in this series. The anime was good but the story became repetitive and the translation clunky.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.75
*Review of Volumes 1-11*
Dang it this series is so good.
I watched the anime first, so I skipped that part of the light novel series. I absolutely adore Shin's characterization and his struggle with his life purpose. I also love Lena's character growth as well. She's definitely one of my top favorite fictional female characters ever. I will say that the beginning of the series feels severely more tragic than the later parts due to the high death rate coupled with Shin's slow downfall. Later, the stakes are technically still their lives, but there's less focus on casualties.
The romance between Lena and Shin was something that I didn't expect a huge focus on. I mean I'm a sucker for romance, no matter how trashy it may be. But they were like deer in headlights, just not acknowledging each other for so long. But dang it, those scenes were so romantic and adorable that I suppose it was well worth it. I do enjoy the equal power dynamic between them. Lena messes with Shin, Shin messes with Lena, both take turns being horribly awkward. I know this isn't a romance story, but some of this other stuff is much harder to get through, that I'm living for their relationship right now.
The combat stuff I really think is cool. But there's too much of it. I think I skimmed too much, and now I might have to go back and figure out what's happening. There was this whole thing with a spy that was speculated at some point, and was figured out so much later than I would have liked. I mean I kept waiting for a reveal and getting disappointed. I mean the robot designs are pretty cool, though. Maybe I missed some Legion lore, but I feel like they still don't have a solid plan against the Legion. I know they do, but Shin is being wishy washy with it, and who knows if or when he's going to change his mind about it. Regardless, they don't even have an alternative plan in place.
As for the influx of characters, I'm just not as attached to them as the earlier characters. I mean a lot of the 86 survivors are starting to go through the same questions that Shin went through already, in a slightly different manner, though not as impactful as Shin's whole ordeal. Maybe it's the anime that just fleshed out the earlier characters so well. I dunno, maybe it's just a me thing that I'm having trouble with shifting the focus away from Shin. Who knows, Theo seems like a big contender for some character growth.

[Karsen Maxey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Volume 11 hits like an absolute bomb. Without a doubt, it is the most emotionally devastating volume of the series so far. I’ve come to expect heartbreak from Asato Asato, but this installment shook me to my core—and yes, I cried a little.

The Alba massacre is written in such twisted, vivid detail that it felt less like reading and more like witnessing a tragedy unfold in real time. The brutality, the chaos, the panic, the raw horror of it all—it’s some of the most harrowing writing I’ve encountered in this series.
It's brutal but purposeful. Every detail is designed to haunt.

But what hit me even harder was the emotional and moral weight of what followed: the revelation that many of the 86 somewhat-willingly became Legion so they could annihilate their former oppressors. That choice felt terrifying, justified, tragic, and deeply human all at once. It threw me into a genuine moral conundrum:

How do you process vengeance so absolute, and yet kind of understandable?
How do you condemn someone for choosing the only power they were ever denied?
Can you blame them—or not blame them?

The fact that this volume makes you wrestle with those questions is what elevates it from war fiction to something far more profound. The moral ambiguity is handled with such nuance. No side feels entirely right or wrong—just painfully human.

Other volumes have dealt with trauma, survival, and grief. This one stares vengeance, complicity, and humanity dead in the eye. And it doesn’t blink.

If you’ve followed this series and think you’ve seen the darkest it can get—you haven’t. This is a volume that lingers in your mind long after the final page.

Highly, highly recommended—but brace yourself.

[&#x1d459;&#x1d44e;&#x1d451;&#x1d466; &#x1d456;&#x1d45b; &#x1d44f;&#x1d459;&#x1d462;&#x1d452; &#x1f98b; · Rating 5 out of 5]

"ขออุทิศแด่พัน โทชินเอ โนว์เซน" โดยวลาดิเลน่า มิรีเซ่ 😭👏🏻

ฉากชินกับเลน่าไม่มีอะไรน่าห่วงแล้ว ถือว่าโล่งใจไปเปราะนึง รักกันปานจะกลืนกินจริงๆ55555555 เลน่านี่ขี้หวงสุดๆ แต่ทำได้ดีมากค่ะเลน่า หวงมันให้หมดเลย อย่าไปยอม

ในส่วนของเนื้อเรื่องหลักน่าหดหู่มาก แต่พูดก็พูดเถอะ เล่มนี้แอบอ่านยากแล้วก็งงๆนิดหน่อยเพราะวันที่สลับกันไปมาระหว่างอดีตกับปัจจุบัน นข.เล่าว่าอยากเขียนแบบนี้มาตั้งแต่เล่ม 1 แล้ว แต่เราก็ไม่นึกว่าสุดท้ายมันจะมาเวย์นี้จริงๆ555555 ส่วนตัวคิดว่ามันดู.. เกินไปนิดไหมนะ สุดท้ายแล้วคนที่ตายไปนี่โดนเอาสมองไปกี่คนแล้ว อ่านไปก็เหนื่อนแทนตลคไป

ในส่วนที่อยากจะบ่นมากที่สุดเลยคือชาวสาธารณรัฐ มันบับ เอาจริงดิ 👁️👄👁️ ช่างเป็นสิ่งมีชีวิตที่มีระดับมันสมองต่ำที่สุดใน โลกเลย ขับเคลื่อนชีวิตด้วยการโทษชาวบ้าน คือตัวแม่ก็แคร์บ้าง ขนาดความตายอยู่ต่อหน้าแล้วยังจะโทษคนอื่น อยากทราบว่าสุดท้ายเขาจะใช้ชีวิตร่วมโลกกับมนุษย์คนอื่นยังไงคะ นข.จะหาทางลงให้คนพวกนี้ยังไง มันดูเกินจะเยียวยาไปรึเปล่า racist แล้ว racist อยู่ racist ต่อไป(....)

[Ami 乁⁠ ⁠˘⁠ ⁠o⁠ ⁠˘⁠ ⁠ㄏ (written by Jane Austen) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This volume picks up from where we left off at volume 9. The strike package is looking forward to some time off and the end of the war in the near future but... it all comes crashing down (literally), when the Legion attacks the homefront.

I gotta say though, this volume is a bit more infodump-y but somehow, it still works. We get to see the Eighty-Six battling their old fears and come out stronger but what's even more fulfilling is seeing how much they have grown up (and Lena as well). Of course, these moments of growth are followed closely by tumult and pain. The author really raises the stakes of the conflict between the Republic and the Eighty-Six and accordingly the reader is left to ponder, too, between right and wrong.

All in all, this was a pretty strong volume in spite of its slow start. And it also brings us one step closer to the endgame. I can't even begin to imagine what that will be...

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. It hurts me to rate an 86 book this low, because I love the anime so much.

My ratings so far of the light novel series have probably been inflated because of the emotional connection I feel to the characters and world from watching the anime. The writing (or possibly translation) of the light novels has always been a bit clunky, repetitive, and full of over-explaining (especially when it comes to the characters’ motivations). But this book was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back for me. I’m sad to say that I had a hard time getting through it, and I’m not sure if I’ll continue with the series at this point. I’m heartbroken, because these books could have been so good without all the repetition and “telling” instead of “showing”.

I still have hopes that the rest of the series will be adapted into more seasons of the anime and that they’ll fix the problems inherent in the author’s writing style. 🤞🏻

[Lauren B · Rating 5 out of 5]

D-Day indeed, bringing every country's military to revise their defenses. Then, a revisit to the Republic and see how our characters have developed so far in the series. Well written continuation of the story with a nice review of the Republic's view on the war situation. The people as a whole just baffle me in the cultural study of how stubbornly passive they are, and yet continue to be judgmental on others and fail to look at themselves. At the very least, it seems that events in this story awaken some to reflect on their individual behavior.

[van1998 · Rating 5 out of 5]

มันถูกแล้วหรือ ที่กล่าวโทษคนอื่นว่าช่วยครอบครัวตัวเองไม่ได้ ในขณะที่ตัวเองยังช่วยเหลือตัวเองแทบไม่ได้เลย

มนุษย์ล้วนเห็นแก่ตัว ตอนที่ป้องกันได้กลับเมินเฉย เอาแต่ใช้ชีวิตส่วนตัวมีความสุขไปวันๆ ตอนเกิดวิกฤติก็เอาความโกรธไปลงที่คนอื่น

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The formatting in this volume is significantly different from previous installments, but overall I liked it. The plot had its usual twists and turns, and I can’t wait for the next one after than reveal at the end!

[Mariana · Rating 5 out of 5]

6 Estrellas *o*

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! This volume was really good, and did not disappoint. That ending....I need more!

[Andy Febrico Bintoro · Rating 4 out of 5]

A destruction of another country, and it's time to be united. The legions became more and more bizzare.

[Asen Bukov · Rating 5 out of 5]

🥹

[Johnnie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Volume was absolutely fantastic. But also scary. It’s definitely the darkest of the series so far. I loved reading every second of it. I can’t wait to see what the 86 do going forward!

[slugbiscuit · Rating 5 out of 5]

This volume was good. Loved the darker turn from the Legion and the minimal appearance of railguns. Now if we could just get Shin and Lena to consummate their relationship.