By Ichiro Sakaki and Yuugen. Released in Japan by Kodansha. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Kevin Steinbach.

The general thought behind my giving almost all light novels full reviews (as opposed to manga, where most series find their way into Bookshelf Briefs as they go on) is that the length of the book is such that I can always find something to talk about for 500+ words. Admittedly, there are times when that theory is tested, and this is one of those times. It doesn’t help that this is the second shortest light novel in my digital library, and easily the shortest in the series to date. But the other problem is that it’s mostly the 2nd half to a book where most of the plot and character beats were in Part 1. There are more cool action sequences, there’s a touching farewell to Shinichi’s family, and there’s a certain sense that we will not be returning to Japan anytime soon in this series. And there are a few more hints in the romantic resolution, if any, that this series will have. So let’s see what we can discuss.

The author straight-up admits that Shizuki was written as the series did not have a classic “tsundere” type. Petralka comes closest, but she’s too much of a softie. It’s a reminder that these series really do tend to be written around tropes and cliches, especially if you’re an author that’s been around as long as Sakaki has. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the series, we’re not allowed to develop that beyond “my brother is not as much of a loser as I thought” and see the love and affection that led to her renouncing him in the first place. Myusel praising him to the skies likely helped. Speaking of Myusel, she’s still front-runner in the “will the romance be resolved?” sweepstakes. Shinichi’s dad asks if there are harems in Eldant, and unfortunately for Shinichi, the answer is “no”, so something is going to have to be done – though of course “resolve nothing” is always an option, and one that’s more popular these days with authors, if not with fans. Still, Myusel really loves Shinichi.

As for the international intrigue part of the book, I will admit that the beginning of the book, with Minori being threatened by multiple copies of Putin (sorry, Pu**n) and the ultimate torture of having a pairing she loves reverse the ‘seme/uke’ positions was very funny, and welcome in a book that otherwise is mercifully light on fanservice. In reality, of course, Minori is merely tied up in a room somewhere, and rescuing her is the easiest part of things. Unfortunately, our heroes all then proceed to become absolute fools, as blithely getting onto a bus to return to Eldant and not realizing that there would be even more attempts to capture them was so shortsighted it counts as a flaw in the book. Fortunately, the day is actually saved by the JSDF – and how often can you type that in an anime/manga review?

The author seems to be up in the air about what to do next, but it will definitely be back in Eldant. Till then, this book is slight but enjoyable.

By Ichiro Sakaki and Yuugen. Released in Japan by Kodansha. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Kevin Steinbach.

Honestly, returning to Japan for a visit was an obvious plotline. So obvious, in fact, that the anime (which I haven’t seen) apparently also used it in an original story. This time Shinichi hears that his light novel author dad is hospitalized and worries, so he asks if he can return to Japan, despite the fact that the Japanese government recently tried to kill him. But there’s been a regime change since the series began, and maybe he’s not quite as wanted? So he returns, with Minori as his guard, Myusel and Elvia also has his bodyguards (and disguised), and Petralka hiding in the luggage so she can come too. Fortunately, his dad is fine. Unfortunately, that leaked soccer game footage has led to everyone in it being wanted by most major world governments. As a result, Minori is captured by the Russians, while Shinichi and the others are menaced by Chinese and Americans. And worst of all, his sister has turned into a tsundere!

The first three-quarters of this book is set up for comedy, and it’s decent comedy, with only one of two instances of “dur… boobs!” from our hero. Shinichi’s parents are just as over the top as they were in the first novel, and his dad in particular is amusing and reminds me very much of Shinichi himself. As for the little sister, you can see why she’s frustrated with her entire family, but also why “Shinichi’s gone to India to find himself” did not really fly. Not sure how much more we’ll see of her, but she’s cute. The sections in Akiba are also fun, with Petralkas getting lured in by gatcha games, Myusel maid fangirling, and Elvia really REALLY wanting some expensive artbooks. It’s only as they get surrounded by more and more people who recognize them that you realize how foolish it was to return (and really, Minori should have realized this would happen) and things get very serious very fast.

We are unlikely to see more Outbreak Company animated, which is a shame, as the car chase that is towards the end of the book is top tier, and shows Elvia, Myusel and Shinichi all being pretty damn badass. The book ends on a cliffhanger as, having returned home for lack of other safe havens, they are surrounded by more bad guys. There are also a few other odd hints here and there that Japan and Eldant may be meshing together a bit as, while magic mostly does not seem to work here as it does there, there are moments where that does not seem to be the case – in particular, moments where the girls who can’t speak Japanese are acting like action heroes. Also, how much of an international incident is everyone going to make of this? And is Minori OK? We never saw her after she was captured. It’s a good thing this series is light-heated in nature…

Outbreak Company is a fast-paced comedy that also has some really good character beats. I still enjoy it.

By Ichiro Sakaki and Yuugen. Released in Japan by Kodansha. Released in North America by J-Novel Club. Translated by Kevin Steinbach.

After an up-and-down volume of short stories last time, we’re back to one plot for this volume, which I am very grateful for. The premise is that Petralka needs a body double for security reasons, and our heroes get the brilliant idea (it actually is pretty smart, given how magic works here) to construct a puppet Petralka, much like the puppet dragon we saw in previous volumes, and have the puppet stand in for Her Majesty. This will be controlled by Lauron, a young dwarf woman with an immense talent for controlling such things. There are, however, two problems. First, magic has been occasionally vanishing and coming back in the kingdom, and they’re trying to figure out the reason. Secondly, Lauron may be fantastic at manipulating puppets but she has underlying emotional issues that may lead to everything falling apart. Oh yes, and there’s the fact that Shinichi is being accused of “adding to his harem”, which baffles him but merely makes everyone else sigh.

Honestly, for a book with a premise like this, you’d expect more deconstruction of tropes, but frequently the author just decides to write things as they are. As such, Shinichi really is the dense harem protagonist, with not only no idea that a lot of young women have fallen in love with him but no idea that he even has much worth at all. It takes several people to point out that it’s his influence and words that have led so many others in Eldant to grow and change, and even after having it pointed out he still doesn’t quite get it. This does not stop him from figuring out Lauron, an overly serious dwarf who had an incident in her past that led to her being incredibly precise about following rules to the point where breaking ANY rule leads her to become an emotional mess. This is not the subtlest of plots, but I enjoyed it nonetheless, and will be interested in seeing how Lauron factors into the cast.

As for the magic part of the plot, it’s almost an Outbreak Company version of Sharknado, as a giant twister is sucking up all the magic in Eldant, and it’s centered on the portal between the fantasy kingdom and Eldant. This leads Shinichi and Minori to briefly realize that fixing this could lead to their being stranded here forever, but fortunately it’s dealt with before that happens, by the fantasy equivalent of hurling a nuclear bomb at it – a bomb that Shinichi and Lauron are able to walk into the castle, gab, and take off, thanks to the crisis and also (it has to be said) really inept security. Shinichi being lectured about not stealing any more nukes amused me, but I was more intrigued by the revelation that some magic has leaked out onto the Japan side of the portal. We haven’t actually been back to Japan proper in the series yet, and I wonder if future books may actually see that happen, if only to stop magical girls from becoming real.

This was a surprisingly strong volume of Outbreak Company, and even had a low quotient of Shinichi leering at boobs. Definitely recommended for fans of the series.