Title: The World After the Fall Vol. 2
Author: singNsong (Original Story), S-Cynan (Adaption), Undead Gamja
Publisher: Ize Press
Language: English
Format: Paperback
Pages: 272
Genre: Fantasy, Action
Publication Date: April 18, 2023
The Story
Jaehwon is now in Chaos and he is accompanied by Mino, the so-called Witch of Destruction. After felling a five-horned beast, he is looking for a Dream Demon. He ends up in the town of Gorgon where Mino says that she might know of a place where he can find out. She brings him to a blacksmith but they inform him that the dream demon is gone and hasn’t been seen in a long time. Meanwhile, his apprentices want to take a stab at adding a gem socket to a four-horned beast dagger. They fail and that’s when Jaehwon takes a stab at it. Not only does he create the gem socket but he accidentally destroys the dagger!
He gives the blacksmith his horn from a five-horned demon as compensation but he also is awarded the use of the smithy as well. The first thing he wants is a scabbard created for his spirit sword. The blacksmith cannot do it but Jaehwon teaches him to neglect the system and see his skills through his human eyes instead. In the end, he gets his scabbard.
They return to where Claire is, who is a barmaid and an acquaintance of Mino’s. There, some people were looking for Jaehwon and were holding her captive. A fight breaks out and a black smoke is used during the battle. The problem is that Mino inhaled some of the smoke and her corruption level is rising! If something isn’t done soon, she will turn into a fiend!
Characters
Jaehwon is one of those characters that isn’t going to see much in the way of development because the way he is just fits his character perfectly. He’s still stubborn and wants to do things his way. He continues to reject the system and has the goal of destroying the entire world (well, not the real world but the world that houses Chaos). In that sense, Jaehwon truly is a stranger of paradise.
Mino is in love! At least, it’s painfully obvious that’s the case. Even though she can’t stand Jaehwon, she feels compelled to stay around him at all times. She’s not turning a blind eye to her feelings, though as she is actively questioning them along with herself. She’s wondering why she always gets so angry around him, yet, she cannot pry herself away. It’s pretty obvious that she has a crush on him but she still needs to figure out the reason why she does. Heck, she’s not even sure that she even likes him. It’s just that the flower of love has been planted and the sprout has not yet broken through the soil. In due time, though…
We do get a new character in Carlton… who is the most upstanding and respected inspector in all of Chaos. His rule is law because he holds the law at the highest standards. He has the power to use law as magic to shackle you if you get out of line and if, somehow, you are able to resist that high level of magic, he has an even more powerful binding method by using magical chains. Three guesses who were able to resist that magic and the first two easily don’t count. Carlton is your typical law nut. Nothing is above the law. The law is absolute! If you’ve seen one of those characters, you’ve seen them all… but… despite his undeniable loyalty to the law, he’s not unreasonable. He’s very tough but he is also very fair when the situation warrants it. Glad to know he’s not a complete and total law zealot.
Final Thoughts
The first volume seemed a little flat but the second volume had some more interesting premises to it. Once the story has settled into Chaos, we get some character development on Mino’s part, we get some much-needed world-building that we can relax and soak in, and we get some meaningful story progression. Jaehwon’s goal of destroying the world (of Chaos) isn’t exactly surprising but with the addition of Mino, it adds a nice moral component to the story. The fact that Jaehwon doesn’t see Chaos’ inhabitants as humans play a role here as Mino is desperately trying to drill it through his head that there are a lot of humans in Chaos.
That makes his goal a bit of a conflict just on moral grounds which is a nice element. Jaehwon hasn’t really let that nugget of reality sink in just yet but when he does, that’ll be his form of development. I don’t think we’ll see much of an attitude change with him… I just think his morals will undergo a bit of an alteration. When they do, I totally expect Mino to pull him into a back alley and ravage him! (I mean, it could happen, right?)
For now, we have to settle the matter of Mino turning into a fiend. Being a main character, I’m sure her plot armor will protect her, right?
….right?
We’ll see in Volume 3!
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This item was provided for review by Ize Press
