Title: The King’s Beast Vol. 7
Author: Rei Toma
Publisher: Viz Media
Language: English
Format: Paperback
Pages: 169
Genre: Romance, Fantasy
Publication Date: August 2, 2022
The Story
Rangetsu finally gets a robe to wear; however, the celebration turns serious when Boku and Prince Kougai show up with news that carried over from the last volume’s cliffhanger. Boku isn’t 100% sure but he has a pretty good idea of who killed Sougetsu. After Boku explains everything, Rangetsu is about to go confront the suspected murderer; however, Boku also reveals another possibility that has everyone shocked.
In order to test this theory, Prince Kougai makes Rangetsu drink a special potion. When nothing happens, it becomes quite obvious just what Rangetsu’s true power is. In order to test it, he asks Boku to perform a certain act. When it’s all said and done, Rangetsu’s power is now confirmed, and because as such, Boku’s wild theory now has a ton of merit to it.
The volume then shifts back to the romance side of things. After Rangetsu’s power is revealed and/or awakened, she takes off running but Tenyou gives chase. Unable to hold back his emotions any longer, Tenyou kisses Rangetsu and confesses his feelings for her (or him as Tenyou still believes). Realizing he was too forward, he wonders if Rangetsu would answer his feelings. The volume ends with Rangetsu’s answer.
Characters
Our main character took center stage in this volume. From discovering what her true powers are to the answer she gives Tenyou, this is one of the biggest steps forward for her character and it’s juxtaposed with one of the biggest steps forward for the plot as well. Her character development served as the second half of a one-two punch that made this an incredible volume to read. Now that so many truths have been revealed, it’s time to shift to, what I can perceive to be, the end of the series. While this may sound like a final thought more than a character thought, it kind of bleeds together. Rangetsu’s development in this volume was a major catalyst to set up the endpoint of the series. What we believed before has now completely changed. It’s not very often that a character’s development marks such a dramatic shift in tone and purpose for a story but Rangetsu’s did just that. Absolutely brilliant!
Tenyou also received development in the form of his love confession. I don’t buy the fact that he believes Rangetsu is a guy. I honestly think that deep down inside, he knows she’s a girl but he’s opting to hide it out of respect. If he doesn’t, he’s truly inept. How can so many other characters around him know that Rangetsu is a girl and Tenyou, the person that she’s closest to at all times has no clue? It’s a very simple explanation if they want to go with it. Simply just have Tenyou show his love by respecting her wishes and doing his best to help her keep the secret. Even if he secretly knows, honoring her wish and playing the part would be the best sign of love and respect that he could give at this point. It wouldn’t surprise me if this was the case… otherwise… Tenyou is just going to come off as the biggest idiot and someone that stupid shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near the throne… at least, in my opinion.
Prince Kougai is once again playing the tough hero. Forcing Rangetsu to drink that potion and not mincing words is exactly his style. I would liken him to chaotic good on the alignment chart as he’s always acting in rogue-ish ways with good intentions. If it wasn’t for his forceful plan, we wouldn’t have had Rangetsu’s stellar transformation as a character. He played the role of supporting character perfectly in this volume.
Final Thoughts
What can I say? Hands down the best volume of The King’s Beast I’ve read to date. While the last volume left us on a cliffhanger, this volume delivered upon it big time. Most cliffhangers get blown off at the start of the next volume but this volume took the time to build off the hype and it didn’t hold anything back. I’m not sure how many volumes this series has but I do know that this seems like a major turning point that’s going to send the series straight towards the ending but… I don’t think it’s going to happen soon as there is a lot of ground yet left to cover.
We still have the games which are meant to thrust a royal candidate to the forefront but now… after the things that were revealed here, we have to wonder if those games are just all smoke and mirrors. There really isn’t a point to having them which means that something will happen during the games to possibly break those proverbial mirrors.
We also have the culprit behind Sougetsu’s murder to deal with, the aspirations of Tenyou taking the throne, the romance between Rangetsu and Tenyou, and so much more to get through. There could also be lots of twists and turns along the way and one thing this book is setting up is something between Ririn and Prince Kougai/Boku. While the backstory with them in this volume was appreciated, it felt a bit random and out of place. There’s no way it wasn’t included there weren’t going to be payoffs for it later.
If I were to hazard a guess… Tenyou takes the throne, decrees Ajin equal to humans and Ririn gets her wish as Boku becomes her “servant” or, more plausible, “friend/boyfriend” while still remaining at Prince Kougai’s side.
Look at me… projecting predictions on an epilogue for a series that only feels half over. Let’s see if it can come true! On to volume 8!
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This item was provided for review by Viz Media
