Semelparous (Volume 2) – Black Souls and Revelations

Yorino has decided to continue as a Bulwark and is focused on ending the conflict so that the deaths stop, but then a close friend dies and she discovers that it was because of her. Kaminoi has a plan that might turn the tide!

Semelparous (Volume 2) – Black Souls and Revelations

What happened?

Kaminoi reflects on her path to becoming a Bulwark and how her sister’s death helped her make the connection between the Kaiju and the humans of this world. Even when faced with such a tragic occurrence, Kaminoi’s resolve held. She was determined to carry on and make sure that her sister’s death and that of every other human killed by stopping Kaiju were not wasted.

Yorino snapped her out of it when she woke beside her and confirmed that it felt nice having someone to share a bed with. Kaminoi loved that she was so honest whilst in her sleepy state. That seemed to make her like her even more. Meanwhile, Rina, one of Yorino’s classmates had completed her training and was joining the team. She too seemed to have a thing for Yorino and was keen to catch up with her.

On a rare weekend off, Yorino hung out with some friends from school and had a great time. It was just what she needed after the stress of constantly fighting Kaiju and the guilt of effectively killing a person each time. There was an emergency call out when a small Kaiju type emerged, forcing Kamonoi and Yorino to team up with Manabe and Rina. After a gruelling battle, Yorino landed the final blow. Relieved, she returned to school and discovered that one of her friends had died just as she killed the small Kaiju!

Semelparous Volume 2 Yorino kills a small Kaiju

What did you think?

This is still absolutely incredible. I wondered if Yorino was without a counter in the other world which made her that much more dangerous and I was technically correct. Of course, I didn’t get that she was from a race of creatures that existed in the Innerspace that came to her world and integrated with humanity. That gives her the ability to go beyond the far wall and enter the parallel world where she can kill Kaiju without hurting anyone back home! That’s quite the plan.

However, that wasn’t even my favourite part… and no, I’m not going to say that the shower scene was my favourite scene (although it certainly was up there). We learnt that someone is spying on Yorino and has been trying to get her out of the fight one way or another. They purposely selected the counter of Yorino’s friend so that it might disillusion her and force her to quit. This is some brilliantly devious plotting from the parallel world. I feel like there’s going to need to be some serious explanation as to how someone is spying on her. Could there have been some of the Innerspace race that went there as well?

One thing I feel like I need to question is the tone of the covers. The first one is distinctly post-apocalyptic with two girls with swords. Sounds harmless enough. The second cover is much more ecchi in nature and the third cover is practically hentai! Now, I don’t have a problem with any of those, but I was a little surprised when I picked up the copies I’d ordered from my local bookstore. You’ll see what I mean in the next post!