Title: Hero Without a Class, Who Even Needs Skills? Vol. 1
Author: Kuzu Shichio (Story), Ueda Yumehito (Story), Nanae Akio (Adaptation)
Publisher: One Peace Books
Language: English
Format: Digital
Pages: 179
Genre: Fantasy
Publication Date: September 17, 2024
The Story
In this world, priests will judge children at a young age and by word of the goddess, have their skills read to them. Arel; however, when blessed is determined not to have a skill at all, despite being the child of two advanced skill class parents with his mother being a swordsman and his father being a mage. This; however, does not deter Arel from trying to become the best. Thanks to his sparring with his mother from an early age, he has taken up an affinity for the blade. He vows to train and hone his swordsmanship skills to prove that he can use the same skills as those in the swordsman class.
After sparring and winning against those in the swordsman class, he hears of a city named Bresgia where swordsmen gather. It’s nicknamed The City of Swords for a reason. After a five-year time skip, Arel travels to this city where he looks to join the same guild that his mother used to be a member of. When he finds the guild, it’s nothing that he expected it to be. As a member, the girl who recruited him, Lilia, signs them up for a competition. Together with their other member, Reiner, they battle against the city’s top guild.
Once the dust settles, Arel decides to stick with his guild, Dragon Fang, to not only help them regain their notoriety but to learn as many skills as possible. Before he can do that, though, he needs to train and there is a certain dungeon that might just be the perfect spot for someone like him!
Characters
First up, we have our main character Arel. Unfortunately, Arel doesn’t have much of a personality and comes off rather blandly. If there is one thing about his character that stands out is that he’s very determined. Not having a class doesn’t phase him one bit. Instead, it motivates him to become as strong, if not stronger, than people who do have a class assigned to them by the goddess. That determination builds a high level of discipline in him but it also causes him to be very lax about his strength. He’s the type of character who is overconfident while not being cocky or arrogant… just someone who comes off as bored even when facing someone who is supposed to be stronger than him. This caused him to be rather dull and uninteresting as a character.
Lilia is lively but comes off as particular. Then again, part of that is desperation to help save her guild so she’s willing to take just about anyone with a heartbeat to increase Dragon Fang’s members. Her personality is very clingy and outspoken but not in a harsh way. She’s not afraid to say embarrassing things like wanting to marry Arel or even offer him a massage. As soon as you read her dialogue, you can instantly tell that if this were an anime, her seiyuu would have a high voice with a lot of energy. Some people enjoy those types but they’re not my cup of tea.
Reiner, on the other hand, that’s more of my cup of tea. She’s serious but not overly serious. She has tomboy characteristics and values her swordsmanship. She’s always looking to improve but she’s not the type to be egotistical about her abilities. When she is bested, she doesn’t come off as someone who can’t admit defeat but rather realizes that there is still room to grow. She has a bit of bite to her attitude which balances her out. Out of the three main characters, she is by far my favorite!
Final Thoughts
Hero Without a Class, Who Even Needs Skills? Is a pure fantasy story which is a breath of fresh air because, for once, it’s not an isekai. However, the issue is that it follows a lot of the generic isekai/shounen-style tropes, almost as if the series is going down the universal checklist. We have a main character with a disability but is still overpowered, we have a tournament arc (and a rather short one) where the main character displays their overpowered skills, followed by training to get stronger.
Despite that, there wasn’t much in the way of excitement. The main character was never put into any sort of peril. They didn’t suffer any major setbacks to instill any drama. All we did as readers was watch Arel coast through each situation put in front of him and I would suspect that the dungeon arc starting in the second volume will be no different.
While the series isn’t poorly written (the dialogue was fine and the characters’ personalities shined through very well), the series didn’t do a single thing to make it stand out or feel unique. Because this is a Shounen-style fantasy, it played it too safe and didn’t take many risks. While the manga isn’t bad by any means, I can’t say that it was great and a must-read either.
I think it’ll be perfect for someone who just wants a story to satisfy their fantasy itch, especially if you enjoy shounen-style stories, but if you’re looking for something unique, with lots of drama, twists, turns, and something that will draw and immerse you into a fantasy setting, then you’ll probably have to look elsewhere.
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This item was provided for review by One Peace Books
