Fresh off his promotion to iron rank, Loren takes on a request from an old friend, Claes. A supply run to a nearby village needs security, which Loren and Lapis can happily provide. However, to reach the village, they must pass through a dangerous forest that devours everyone who dares to enter it. All too soon, Loren suspects they've identified the culprit behind these disappearances—the dark god Gula Gluttonia. But Gula isn't the only threat lurking in the night, and her hunger isn't the only one threatening to spiral out of control.
Not as good as the prior books. As another reviewer noticed, there is a certain pattern one sees in the plots at this point. A new party member gets introduced at the end of this novel, and I hope that adds some good dynamics to the following volumes.
The first half of the novel was pretty boring. Things don't become interesting until our heroes take on an additional quest. Then, the action is as good as usual.
Didn’t meet the level of the past volumes, and it felt blurry the whole time. Like the story wasn’t as cohesive as usual.
Loren’s “power-up” wasn’t even a power-up? Confusing. A lot of r-rated happenings, and a predictable distraction Leads this volume to being rather lackluster in content.
Volume 6 reads somewhat similar to earlier books in the series. Loren and Lapis are hired for a relatively easy mission which turns into an over-the-top violent adventure that leaves a village or two decimated. It makes me wonder whether there are any common humans left in the world, but since I like the characters and their interaction with each other such wonderings do not detract too much from the enjoyment. The book was short and seemed more of a setup to an arc then a stand-alone story like earlier volumes.
The main reason for 3 stars, besides the story getting a bit repetitive, was how the Dark of God of Lust is depicted. The whole setup in itself was cringy (Lapis wanting to run away because the opponents are naked because she is an innocent 'maiden'?), having the dark god being a man is fine (and makes more sense than the female succubus trope), but why go for the effeminate muscle guy and why is it so scary that a offers permanent mental scars to "maidens"? Why always depict those characters as gross and/or evil?
Still, an enjoyable quick read with a few eyeroll moments.
Another great volume with a cool adventure and story. A seemingly easy quest turns out in one of the most challenging, spiritually speaking, adventures the party has face so far. Action and fun moments, a well paced story, good dialogue and the charming personality of each one of the characters makes this seria a recommended read.