• Ascendance of a Bookworm
• Death March to a parallel world rhapsody
• Didn’t I say to make my abilities average

Honourable mentions:

• So I’m a Spider so What? - As much as the ending is butchered and the story can get sidetracked I still very much enjoy the MC
• In the Land of Leadale - An enjoyable comfy story
• Making Magic - Another enjoyable comfy story

I haven’t been reading much recently but this may be the week to pull me back with Death March.

Death March - Been waiting for the next one, I am 1 book behind so may end up going through both.

Secrets of the silent witch - I still want to know what’s up with the cat!

Saving 80,000 - The 1 FUNA series I haven’t started yet

Babel - sounds interesting

Always commit to it, especially if the prank is getting you to find something.

You can either stay and work, or take the day walking around going to all the shops to buy a long weight, tartan paint, left handed screwdriver or spirit level bubbles.

::: spoiler Ending (Retold by my poor memory)

Both sides win?

Ariel’s team beats Dustin’s to the conjuring but instead of destroying it they end up fighting Evil god D. If they win she will use her own energy to save the world, if they lose she will take the remaining energy and destroy the world? (I can’t remember exactly what happens)

In the End the mc manages to beat Evil god D so she uses her energy to save the world. Sariel and Ariel get a year together before they both die due to the end of the conjuring. Dustin retires and eventually dies (He had a skill from the conjuring causing him to retain his memories each time he dies, since it’s destroyed he is free).

As part of the deal to save the world White the mc is taken by Evil god D to serve her as a maid and to repay the energy she used to save the world.

:::

So I’m a Spider So What?

So I’m a spider so what? Has multiple grey characters. But personally I am on Ariel’s side.

::: spoiler Required Backstory (Spoilers for later novels)

The world the mc has been isekaied to has had its energy taken from it and is on the brink of destruction. To keep the world alive a massive conjuring (magic) has been created to harvest energy from the peoples souls when they die to keep the world alive. The people’s souls are then forcefully reincarnated to the same world to be harvested again slowly destroying their souls. Only a few powerful individuals and those who have maxed out the Taboo skill are aware of this knowledge.

The energy of the world has become so low because a person called Potimas found a way to harvest the energy and decided to use it and spread its use even though the dragons who inhabited the world and Sariel warned him it was destroying the world. Once its use was so wide spread that the world was going to be destroyed the dragons took what they could and left the planet to be destroyed.

To save the world Sariel (A lost Angel), Administrator GuliGuli (a dragon who became friends with Sariel and feels guilty for what his species did) and Dustin (The prime minister at the time) approached Evil god D to ask her to save the world. To save the world Sariel was sacrificed as the core of the conjuring that would harvest energy from the people of the world on their deaths.

:::

::: spoiler Grey Character - Demon Lord Ariel (Spoilers for later novels)

Ariel wants to destroy the conjuring keeping the world alive to save Sariel who is at the centre of the conjuring and is slowing being destroyed as her energy is used to run it.

To do this she is forcing the demons to fight the humans to increase the energy in the system so that it can be used to free Sariel.

:::

::: spoiler Grey Character - Dustin [Word of God Pontiff] (Spoilers for later novels)

Dustin wants to keep the conjuring going as he wants to save the world and the people in it. He wants to sacrifice Sariel so that the world can continue.

:::

::: spoiler The Speeches from each side regarding their motives (Volume 15)

<World quest sequence 3. Each side’s representative shall give a speech. Demon Lord Ariel.> “Huh?!” So when the Word of God suddenly rings out, I let out a startled yelp. It’s even more surprising, since I was mentioned by name. And then, my own weird yelp echoes in my head. “Huh? What’s going on?” My confused mutter also echoes in my head. “I can hear your voice in my head, Miss Ariel.” “What? So it’s not just me who’s hearing this?” “Right.” Wrath nods. I look at Sophia, and she nods, too. Uh-oh. I have a veeeery bad feeling about this. “Huh? I’m not, like, broadcasting live to all mankind or something, am I?” Thus far, the world quest sequences have affected all living humanoids. That doesn’t mean…that they’re hearing all of this right now, too…does it? They heard everything, including that weird yelp?! “Nn…gaaaaaah!” When that possibility occurs to me, I accidentally let out an even more embarrassing whine. Even knowing that everyone in the world might have heard that whine, too…  “Uhh… okay! Got off on the wrong foot there, but try to forget you heard that part. Please.” “Well, then. So what’s the idea again? A speech?” “A speech. A speech, huh…” “Okay, but honestly, I don’t really have anything to say.” “I mean, I’m not exactly expecting much out of humanity.” “Can you blame me? Why would I hold out any hope for people who lived such carefree lives until we got into this situation?” “Lady Sariel put her life on the line to keep this world going, but humans forgot about that generosity until right this very moment.” “How many years do you think it’s been since then? You should get some idea if you look at the logs in the Taboo menu.” “Although I guess it didn’t help that a certain someone has deliberately erased that history to make sure everyone forgets.” “But still, since I’ve been watching all this time, I’ve gone past anger and gone straight to disappointment.” “It kills me to think that Lady Sariel sacrificed herself to save such idiots.” “All those years ago, mankind made a choice to sacrifice her to save themselves. So it’s pretty obvious that you’re going to choose the same thing this time, too.” “So I’m not expecting anything good, and I can’t be bothered to try and convince you.” “But I will say this much.” “We’re the ones who will win in the end.” “If no one—not even Lady Sariel herself, in fact—is going to try to save her, then I’ll save her myself.” “Even if I have to sacrifice more than half of humanity to do it.” “If you people are planning to sacrifice Lady Sariel again, you better be prepared to be sacrificed yourselves, right?” “So I’ll say this loud and clear.” “I am Ariel, the Second Demon Lord.” “Leader of the demons, and a true Demon Lord, not like the fakes who’ve been appointed by the system.” “In order to free Lady Sariel, I will carry out the dying wish of the First Demon Lord Foduey, who aimed to erase humanity. I am declaring war on all of you.” “Humans, please die for the sake of your goddess.”

<Pontiff of the Word of God, Dustin.> My name is called. When Ariel was called upon first, I suspected this might happen. There is no human better suited to represent our faction than yours truly. Thus, it was inevitable that I would be called next. From the moment I predicted this outcome, I began preparing a speech in my mind. But all of that was wiped clean from my mind by Lady Ariel’s speech. She made no effort to collect votes, nor to curry favor. She simply declared that she and her comrades would win through their own strength alone. Then she even declared war on all of humanity and told them to die for the goddess. Her confidence is, quite frankly, resplendent. “……” I am sure my voice is already being broadcast to all of humanity now. But I can no longer open my mouth. For a few minutes, I remain silent. “…We have been through many long years of hardship.” When I finally manage to force the words out, my voice sounds terribly faint. “There is so much…that we have built up in that time…” I remember when I worked alongside my comrades to overcome the period of chaos after the system was first put into place. When the first Demon Lord, Foduey, bared his fangs at us, and humanity was genuinely in danger of extinction. When I fought alongside the first hero, and we prevailed over that danger together. When my first life ended, and during my second life, I saw the times begin to change with my own eyes. When I felt the loneliness of being left behind as a new generation took over, and fewer and fewer people knew of the world before the system. When I created the organization called the Word of God, in order to give the masses something to turn to in their time of despair. In each of these times, I always did what I truly thought was best. But when I look back, I feel enormous regret, wondering if I could have made things better. I’ve been reminded countless times that I am only one mere human. Over and over again. Try as I might to do what is best, I perpetually fall short. But I keep moving forward, step by step. I have built up so much. Good deeds, evil deeds, and everything in between. It was all for the sake of saving humanity. “I believe in what I have built up all this time. And so…there is no need to say too much.” Surely I could have given a better speech. After the speech Lady Ariel gave, it would have been child’s play to use her words to turn more people’s hearts and minds toward my aims. And yet I could not bring myself to say such things. “I am Dustin, the last president of Daztrudia, and the first pontiff of the Word of God religion. All this time, I have shamelessly repaid our debt of gratitude toward Lady Sariel the Goddess with only hateful deeds and words.” The rational part of my brain warns me that if I say such things, people will turn against me. And yet in this final hour, I wished to express my true feelings without ostentation. It has been so painful all this time. I felt that my name should live in infamy for eternity. …Yes, it is true. I myself despised my own actions. “And yet I made my choice. That I would save humanity, even if it meant returning a favor with spite. Which is precisely why I have a responsibility to see my role through to the very end.” Since I made my choice, I must see it through, even if I hate myself for it. “I will save humanity. No matter what it takes. And so…” I take a deep breath. These last words are heavy indeed. “Gods, please die for the sake of humanity.” An opposite declaration to Lady Ariel’s speech. Surely there was a better speech I could have given. But this is what I chose. Now that I have said it, I cannot take it back. Nor would I. I will save humanity, all of mankind, even if I must sacrifice gods to do it. <This concludes the speeches from each side.>

:::

I was going to accuse you of advertising your own YouTube, but there’s not enough LNs in their videos.

It was interesting to see what other people think and comparing it to the anime. I still can’t wait for the next season, I get to see how bad my name pronunciations are.

I think I asked NineSwords to ask this question but I haven’t actually had any real crossover between the LNs I have read and Mangas.

The only one I have read is the first Manga volume of So Im a Spider, So What?. So I guess for me that is the best and worst adaption I have seen.

My domain is my name so I am not too worried about that, but for the address I use a PO Box and the domain registrars domain privacy service to hide the details.

I have never been a big reader so my book list is limited.

But these are the authors of some of the audiobooks I have enjoyed:

1. HG Wells (The First Men in the Moon)
2. PG Woodhouse (The Inevitable Jeeves)
3. Phillip K Dick (Second Variety)
4. Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes)

Sometimes I just want to know what happens next or if I’m in a hurry I end up just reading the text. I notice the pictures but they don’t register properly so I have to go back and look at them again.

Didn’t I Say to make my Abilities Average - Volume 9 to 11

Over the last month I have slowly continued my reread of Average Abilities.

Other

Since the boss NineSwords has broken the rules about non Light Novels topics I will do the same and mention I have been reading some manga as well so haven’t read as many LNs. I still haven’t got the hang of reading them, reading the panels in the wrong order or treating it like a novel and ignoring the drawings.

I always thought I would make a good cult member.

I thought you were the cult leader? Isn’t this the Bookworm LN Cult?

Statistically speaking a peasant in a random kingdom is the most likely option. So I am aiming for a world where peasants aren’t abused, or at least not abused as much.

What about the riskiest worlds?

1 - So I’m a Spider so What?

1. The protagonists were reincarnated as the being that most suited their soul. There is a real possibility I could be reincarnated as a slug or worm
2. The world is ruthless. The MC was reincarnated as a spider in a dungeon about to get eaten by their mother

2 - Ascendance of a Bookworm

1. If you are born with the devouring and not a Nobel there is a high chance you will die.
2. If you are not a Nobel and upset one you could be killed.

3 - Death March to another world rhapsody

1. There are lots of stong monsters
2. Demons seem to pop up regularly

Here are the top ones based on the LNs I have read.

1 - Making Magic

Pros:

1. Before and After Chise is reincarnated the world is mostly at peace. There are monsters and criminal gangs but they are not as common as in other worlds.
2. When Chise is reincarnated she is given creation magic as a gift from the gods and is able to gain skills.
3. Commoners seem to be treated fairly ok and are not abused.
4. It seems to be fairly easy to generate money so living should not be too hard.

Cons:

1. I can’t think of any major Cons

2 - In the land of Leadale

Pros:

1. Before and After Cayna the is reincarnated the world is mostly at peace. There are monsters and criminal gangs but they are not as common as in other worlds.
2. There are other players who may be able to relate / help
3. Commoners seem to be treated fairly ok and are not abused.
4. It seems to be fairly easy to generate money so living should not be too hard.

Cons:

1. If you didn’t have skills in the game you don’t have them after reincarnating
2. You are unable to gain any new skills
3. Opusketten-Shultheimer exists in the world

3 - Log Horizon (Based on Anime, I haven’t read the LN)

Pros:

1. You are not alone - There are lots of other people with you
2. It looks like you can still level up but things have changed compared to the game
3. The world is changing - It is evolving with the flavour text becoming real and people becoming the Avatar, this opens the possibility for positive paths
4. There are a lot of smart people working on solutions
5. You respawn if you die

Cons:

1. You respawn if you die - There is no escape
2. You lose memories if you die
3. There are Factions, hostages, unknown variables

I read the first volume then picked up another series instead. Maybe I will give it another try.

Favourite Parts:

• Myne interacting with her friends and family like a normal child
• Myne doing weird and odd things
• The world building
• side character POV at the end of the novels

Least Favourite Parts:

• Battle for Ehrenfest (I enjoyed parts of it but it just didn’t resonate with me)
• Ferdinand x Myne

Characters

1. Myne - The Lovable Gremlin
2. Justus - The Man of Many Face
3. Hannelore - The Quiet Dunkelfelger
4. Benno - The Menacing Merchant
5. Bonifatius - The Boisterous Grandfather
6. Angelica - The Dim Dedicated Guard Knight
7. Harmut - The Brainwasher
8. Rihyarda - The Dependable Retainer

I think it's unfortunate that the friendship between Myne and Frieda (granddaughter of Merchant's Guild guildmaster) didn't pan out. I wonder what happened to her.

I agree, I was hoping to see more of her. Myne only survived because of her but she got relegated to restaurant duty. I was hoping she might be saved from marrying a Nobel by Myne now she has more authority.

Lutz x Tuuli is another pairing I wish I knew more of. It feels like there is an untold story there and I would absolutely love to see a spinoff novel to see their point of view.

Yeah, again I would have liked to see more of the lower city in the later volumes. What are Mynes family doing while she at school?, what is Benno planning?, what is Heidi up to?, What do people think is happening with the nobels?

One of my least favorite points in the entire story was when the whole Rozemyne x Ferdinand thing started to crystalize. The thought alone made me feel icky.

Yeah, I can see the familiar love but romantic love just seems wrong. Also did you get an obsessive love from Ferdinand when he was saying how he views Myne at the start of the final volume? It sounded like he was obsessed with Myne rather than in love with her.

Ascendance of a Bookworm - Part 5: Vol.12

Bookworm has come to an end. It ended better than I thought, the loose ends were wrapped up and it ended at a good point. I would still like to know what happens after that and what happens to all the people she meet along the way. It looks like there are side stories to come and possible an extension to the main story so there is hope.

I knew I would get someone with Number 1.

I thought Number 2 would be easy if you have seen the anime or read the LN up to meeting the character. It’s quite a unique position.