By Fujino Omori and Kiyotaka Haimura. Released in Japan as “Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatte Iru Darou ka? Gaiden – Sword Oratoria” by GA Bunko. Released in North America by Yen On. Translated by Dale DeLucia.

This series, as well as the main one it’s spun off from, really requires the reader to remember who everyone is, which is tricky as there are eleventy billion characters in it. So you either get a spreadsheet going or you hope that the series comes out every three months like it used to. Well, bad news and good news on that front. The bad news is that it’s been a year since the last Sword Oratoria, and even worse, that was a prequel. The good news is that Japan had a “year of Danmachi” a while back, with books galore, and we are starting to see the output of all that over here. We had the main series volume two months ago, which ended with the same cliffhanger we see here, only from Bell’s side. And now we get to find out what led to that cliffhanger… well, after half a volume of comparative fluff. The author has to save the pain for the end.

Loki Familia are headed back into the Dungeon, down to the 60th floor to take care of the plot that’s been driving this spinoff once and for all. They know that they’re plenty strong, but are they strong ENOUGH? So they grab Tsubaki, and a powerful healer, and even some Freya Familia folks who reluctantly come along, mostly to protect Riveria. Notably absent is Bell, who they want to take along but the plot of the main Book 20 will explain why he doesn’t. They head on down, and the second half of the book is basically pure horror – and I mean that literally. There’s spider monsters who do some nasty things to two of the party members, there’s souls trapped in anguish, there’s souls fractured into multiple pieces. And there’s the corrupted spirit, who has one goal and one goal only: Aiz.

This series has ping-ponged back and forth with its central character. Lefiya was so much a parallel to Bell that it was hard for the author to resist. The Big Three of the Loki Familia all get to be very cool. And frankly it’s more fun to write the comedic, air-headed side of Aiz, which works better when she’s not the focus. But this spinoff is meant to be about her, and so when the big danger comes Aiz is the one who has to take the brunt of it. Along with, well, most everyone else. And that leaves, oddly, Raul. He’s been a supporting presence throughout this series, being the guy who’s always scared – of adventuring, of expectations, of confessing to his best friend – and now that cowardice is his best weapon… and I hope that everyone eventually realizes that, because boy, everyone in Orario really really hates him right about now.

So yeah, things are VERY VERY bad right now. Fortunately, the next book in the main series should help, and it’s out in 5 months. Also fortunately, the spinoffs keep coming! Did you enjoy Astraea Record? Did you wish there were more novelizations of that game? Do you like the Bell/Lefiya crack pairing but wish it was also incest? Great news on all counts! See you in a month.