By Bokuto Uno and Miyuki Ruria. Released in Japan as “Nanatsu no Maken ga Shihai suru” by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Andrew Cunningham.

First of all, the big news regarding this 4th volume in the series is that it actually manages to come to a logical conclusion that feels like the end of a volume, as opposed to the last two volumes, where the ending was just “finish the page you’re writing now and we’ll send a courier to pick it up”. That said, the events of the first three books are not forgotten, and have great impact on the 4th, as our heroes start their second year at Kimberly. Everyone is also growing up; our second years are sixteen, and there is a lot of discussion of sex here, why and how it should happen, and who to watch out for. It’s considered as a rite of passage rather than a shameful act. That said, events from the previous book also leave Oliver a bit… pent-up, shall we say. Fortunately, one of his friends notices this and helps him out in a scene that is actually really well written and well characterized. Further, deponent sayeth not.

Aside from talk of sex and relief from sex-based spells, there’s a lot of magical academy stuff going on here as well. We get new teachers, including one with the improbable name of Ted Williams, who stuns the entire cast by being a reasonable, normal instructor. Nanao excels in her broom-riding sport, so much so that she’s promoted to the upper-year senior league… where she finds, for once, someone she can’t blow her way past with natural talent. The kids all go out to the local town, something that takes up the back half of the book, where they get into fights with rival schools, experience the terror of British food, and deal with a mysterious man who keeps assaulting magicians. With all this going on, will Oliver finally find time to get around to why he’s actually there?

On Twitter I posted a poll asking how everyone thought the books would end: with the main cast in a polycule, or with the main cast all dead? Unsurprisingly, the poll was almost dead even, because really both options seem likely. Leaving aside Oliver and Nanao’s deep chemistry, and Nanao’s desire to want to fight him to the death (I’m hoping for redefining death in a future book), it’s pretty clear that Chela also likes Oliver a lot. Pete, of course, is also falling for Oliver. Guy and Katie have that vague R*n and H*rmoine vibe, but honestly that feels like one of the least likely, at least until Guy gets his act together. As for the death part, well, come on, look at the school. If nothing else, I’m fairly certain Oliver’s plan is not going to go swimmingly all the way to the end. Especially since his next target has taken a special interest in Pete…

I haven’t even mentioned half the things going on here – these books are very dense, and there’s a lot going on. If you enjoy magical academy stories and don’t mind them being darker and more adult than the typical light novel fare, this is still a must read.

By Bokuto Uno and Miyuki Ruria. Released in Japan as “Nanatsu no Maken ga Shihai suru” by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Alex Keller-Nelson.

The third volume in this series is very much “Part 2” of the second volume, as we ended with a nasty cliffhanger last time. Pete is in the hands of Ophelia, along with several other boys from the school, and is not expected to be found alive. Our heroes need to go after him, but the labyrinth is not off limits for no good reason, and there are also upper-year students also searching for them. Still, Nanao, Oliver and Chela are actually good enough to survive it, and are joined by a former enemy who turns out to be helping them… though not necessarily out of the goodness of her heart. While this is happening, we get the tragic backstory for Ophelia, who is a succubus whose scent can inflame male passions, and therefore not only had trouble making friends when she first got to school, but was slut-shamed to the point where it drove her to… well, bad actions. Can she be saved? Can she at least have a remotely peaceful death?

It was mentioned to me on Twitter that this series probably would work better in animated form than it does as prose, and I can certainly see why. There are an awful lot of cool battles here, and while they are definitely cool enough being described to us they cry out to be seen. Each of our six protagonists gets something to do… though Katie and Guy can only help in indirect ways, and Pete, of course, has to do something about their own kidnapped situation. Pete’s reversi nature is rapidly becomeing a far more well-known secret, which I suspect might have consequences in future volumes, especially given the fate of one of their support mechanisms here. And yes, Oliver is clever, Chela is clever, and Nanao is… well, NOT clever, but she’s very battle savvy, and her not cleverness can provide some of the few light moments in this book.

Those who have read my previous reviews know that I have been studiously avoiding mentioning a certain other well-known fantasy series that Seven Spellblades reminds everyone of, and that comes into play here as well, as a lot of what Ophelia goes through is reminiscent of another group in that series. That said, Ophelia’s is far darker and more tragic. Her backstory is welcome mostly as it shows us that she was once also a first-year who was slowly drawn into a group of friends, just like our heroes at the start of the first book. It shows us that we should not get too comfortable, and that any of of them could easily be sharing an equally tragic fate in the next few books. My money, in fact, is on Oliver, who may be the main character but also has far too many weak sports.

The main weak spot of this book is the ending, as the book simply stops like a Target Doctor Who paperback that has reached Page 128. I’m not sure if the author was trying to set a somber, downbeat book with that or was working to a pagecount, but either way, I think an epilogue would have been better here. That said, it’s still another strong volume in the series, and I eagerly await the fourth book, where apparently our heroes move up a year.

Also, love Milihand, and I really hope she sticks around as a regular character, or at least a mascot.

By Bokuto Uno and Miyuki Ruria. Released in Japan as “Nanatsu no Maken ga Shihai suru” by Dengeki Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Alex Keller-Nelson.

Much to my surprise, after a humdinger of a reveal towards the end of the first book, the second book in the series does not build on that reveal beyond a few ominous scenes. Instead, this book proves to be 100% magical academy adventures. This is not a flaw, as the author is really excellent at writing magical academy adventures. We get broom lore, epic sword and magic duels, wacky classwork, terrifying classwork, and more of The Labyrinth, which is likely going to take up more and more of the books as the series goes on. Here our group of six decides to make a home base inside it, the better to do all the little things they really don’t want others to find out about. Unfortunately, our kids are all Very Special People, and as such have attracted the attention of others. This means even more battles, more secrets revealed, and more magical sword battles. Unfortunately, it also means a nasty cliffhanger.

While Oliver and Nanao continue to be the “protagonists” part of the group of six, the others are getting development, and in this book it’;s Pete and Chela who get it. While I will try not to spoil too much, Pete’s plotline in particular is quite well done, and I liked the fact that everyone was understanding and that he was immediately introduced to a support group of people with similarities. And if it also feels like a “fuck you” to a certain other magical academy book writer, well, all for the better. As for Chela, her plot is tied into her family history and the way magical families work in particular. In my last review I compared her to Rin Tohsaka, and that comparison holds up very well here, even including a younger sister that she’s unable to publicly acknowledge. She continues to be my favorite of the six.

As for others, I am hoping Guy gets a book of his own soon, as he’s currently “the other one”. Katie builds nicely on the first book, and I appreciate her discovery that even groups that supposedly share the same belief as she does are not the sort of groups she wants to be involved with. This society is complex, and changing ingrown prejudices is not going to be as easy as a well-timed lecture to the head. The minor villains in the book include an arrogant not-Italian kid (in the same way Nanao is not-Japanese) who tries to show Oliver why learning the basics is bad, the aforementioned younger sister and her servant/best friend, and another guy who acts the part of an arrogant asshole because he was essentially traumatized into it. In this book, both good and bad guys have a rich characterization to them. Well, except Guy. Sorry, Guy.

The cliffhanger makes me want to read the next in the series right now, but we’ll have to wait a bit. In the meantime,l please read this, it’s one of the best light novel debuts from 2020, and 2021 proves it was not a fluke.