Title: The World After the Fall Vol. 4
Author: singNsong (Original Story), S-Cynan (Adaption), Undead Gamja
Publisher: Ize Press
Language: English
Format: Paperback
Pages: 304
Genre: Fantasy, Action
Publication Date: November 21, 2023
The Story
Jaehwon defeats the monster that had possessed the ruler of Gorgon. Before he completely perished, he gave Jaehwon a mark which made him the new Castle Lord of Gorgon! Now with an entire part of Chaos to govern, plans to head to the Abyss have been put on hold for now… or so we thought. In his speech, Jaehwon declared that people are not too happy that he’s the Castle Lord and neither is he. That is why he is stating that anyone who wishes to defeat him can have his title; however, if they lose, they must join him on the Abyss expedition.
The first to lose to Jaehwon was Yunyong, Head of the Thunder God Sect, the second was Kanghwang, Head of the Fire King Sect, and the third, who threw his match on purpose, was Caiman, Head of the Southern Sea Sect. While Caiman and Yunyong are more than willing to follow Jaehwon, Kanghwang isn’t as eager and wants Jaehwon to prove himself first; however, Jaehwon wants Kanghwong to prove himself as well… therefore, a tournament is being set up. If they make it to the quarterfinals, he will accept them but it also is a means for Jaehwon to gather more members for hit Abyss Expedition.
In the middle of all of this, Yunyong admits that the Thunder God Sect was destroyed and he’s the last remaining member. He gets scolded for looking for a place to take him in; however, when they dig deeper into why his sect got destroyed and the news didn’t reach anyone, they put the pieces together and put the blame on the Golden Sky Sect, the same sect that used the former Castle Lord and took over Manticore Fortress. They suspect that they have help as it was inconceivable how the lowest-ranked of the 10 sects could destroy three others and capture one of the four fortresses.
This brings us to meeting the Head of the Golden Sky Sect, Jinhong. He has a grand plan and the first target in his sights is Gorgon… right in the middle of the tournament!
Characters
We have several new characters in this volume, too.
First off, Yunyong. As the head of the now defeated Thunder God Sect, he’s a bit hot-headed but not in a tempered way. He’s more or less an idiot who has too much pride, and yet, quickly becomes humbled when confronted. He’s obviously there for comic relief but he is quite strong… even if he got completely destroyed by Jaehwon. Of course, he didn’t want anyone to know he got defeated so easily so he spread a lie that he just barely got beaten in order to lure stronger fighters to confront Jaehwon. At least his defeat was useful! Of the new characters, he’s already my favorite!
Next is Kanghwang. Despite being associated with fire, he’s the most level-headed of the three. He’s the only one who questions Jaehwon and doesn’t fully trust him just yet. It shows that he is cautious in everything that he does, something that’s unbecoming of a character who is normally associated with the fire element. I kind of like him as he has a certain maturity about him that makes you want to trust him.
Next is Caiman. He was a bit deceptive but had a good reason. He knew the previous Castle Lord and was there on the failed Abyss Expedition several hundred years ago. Ever since then, he was looking for a way to get back there and when Jaehwon said that anyone who lost against him would join his, he threw his match as he saw the perfect opportunity. Despite that, Jaehwon noted that he could sense great power from him so it’s not as if he’s weak. He played his cards right and because of such, he gets his wish to go back… for now.
During the later part of the book, we meet Aisa, Castle Lord of Dryad. He’s keeping a watchful eye on things and is the first to sense Jinhong’s plan. He looks to warn Gorgon of the impending attack and… that’s all there is so far. At least he has a heart that’s in the right place.
During the tournament, we also met Myeong, Head of the Forest School Sect. While he falls to Jaehwon in combat, he pulls out a trump card and says that Jaehwon never mentioned how they had to fight. He challenges him to a game of strategy, his specialty. He’s pretty full of himself and overconfident, though. Whether or not that will lead him to victory remains to be seen.
Lastly, there’s Jinhong, Head of the Golden Sky Sect. He’s your typical wide-eyed insane madman who finds joy and fun in the chaos that he causes. If anything, I’d say he’s possessed or at least appears to be from his looks. Coupled with the suspicion that the Golden Sky Sect has a benefactor, this could very well be the case. In any way, it seems we have a new main antagonist to deal with.
Final Thoughts
The previous Castle Lord passing on the duties to Jaehwon was a nice turn. For a moment, I thought that he was receiving a new special power. This came right after he mentioned how Stab wasn’t going to get him very far and that he needed to get stronger. That was a clever misdirection so I applaud them for swerving me like that. Again, Jaehwon tried to find a way to weasel out of being a Castle Lord but figured that if he couldn’t, he might as well use that to his advantage to further his plans for the Abyss Expedition.
This led us to a nice bit of lore about the ten sects, four houses, and the hierarchy of Chaos itself. It makes everything seem as if one grand plot is coming together. Earlier, I mentioned that Jinhong is the new antagonist we have to deal with but it seems more and more that he is the main antagonist for this series… or at least a pawn for the true main antagonist.
My only complaint here is the tournament. Wow, it was rushed! It only took a few pages to get straight into the quarterfinals. There wasn’t any build-up to it either. They literally announced the tournament and then said “Oh, it starts at 6 today.” I had hoped for a proper tournament arc where things could have been built up and played out a bit more but it is what it is. At least we know that there is an impending attack on the horizon that we will most likely contend with in the next volume.
Outside of the rush job, another very solid volume! Things are starting to fall into place and I like how everything is coming together on a grander scale!
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This item was provided for review by Ize Press
