Level Eater Chapter 97 Discussion

When I read a JP novel, I want two things:

1. The MC is not a beta (beta = scared of girl cooties, self hatred, cowardice and/or suffers from JP moral deficiency that falsely equates killing and mu*der)
2. The plot is at least good enough to kill time with.

High standards for a JP isekai, I know, but this novel does deliver at least that.

Premise

The novel starts off when Tatsuro and his long-time girlfriend, Ai, is transported to a different world. Of course, they want to get back to Japan. So far nothing special. Wanting to go back to Japan has been done before (see e.g. Arifureta). Mildly interesting is that it's a couple that get's transported. It's usually a truck-kun casualty or an entire class gets transported.

What to expect

It's non-harem isekai. Typical of isekai, there are a lot of RPG elements, including levels, stats, etc. Up to this point it's mostly drama and slice-of life with some romance fluff and battles. Sometimes-funny jokes is usually mixed. In the first two arcs, it's exclusively monster battles. In the third arc, some plotting is revealed and there are some human antagonists. I expect that to continue. The pacing can be a bit slow at times, but that's a matter of taste. As far as I can tell, there isn't any plot holes. Don't expect the author to win the Nobel laureate for literature anytime soon, but as light reading it's not unsatisfying.

Characters

In general the two MCs are well rounded. Tatsuro is definitely the brains of the outfit while Ai can be a bit air-headed with the occasional flash of brilliance. Neither of them are betas. You're not going to find Tatsuro's nose exploding or running away to the next country at incredible speed when Ai proposes something naughty. Ai supports Tatsuro and he consults with her as any good couple should. Neither wants to kill people, but will if necessary. That's honestly refreshing when comparing with most JP novels - especially isekai.

Spoiler

After Tatsuro kills a bunch of bandits, Ai insists that they kill the leader together, which they do.

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The side characters is a bit flat, which is understandable since the interactions with them are limited. You get the feeling that they could be better developed if reintroduced.

Translation

Translation by Nocturne is excellent while that by Soafp is sub par to say the least. Note that both seems to have dropped the novel. I'm currently reading the raws.

Recommends

If, like me, you want JP fantasy with a non-beta MC, I'll give a few "turned into anime" that I liked:

• Arifureta - Naugumo Hajime (Isekai/Harem). MC is pretty ruthless. the characters are good.
• Mushoku Tensei - Rudeus Greyrat (Isekai/Harem). A classic. More plot than anything else.
• Black Summoner - Kelvin Celsius (Isekai/Harem). Battle junkie. Some things I don't like, but overall OK.
• The world's greatest assassin... - Lugh Tuathan-de/John Smith (Isekai/Harem). Ruthless MC, but he cares for the girls.
• Banished from the hero's party - Gideon/Red (Fantasy/Romance). Mostly drama/fluff/slice-of-life. Real imouto wants to turn it into a harem though :-)
• Konosuba - Kazuma Satou (Isekai/Comedy/Harem). Note the guy doesn't actually get anywhere with his "harem" and to be fair he really only goes after one 14 yo girl, so no wonder.
• Redo of Healer - Keyaru/Keyaruga (Fantasy/Harem). Not for everyone. The MC is a literally insane rapist with brainwashing power.

There are some more, but I'll stop here. Thanks for reading.