- #1
Note: The current (completed) translations at c154 condense the novel (하얀 늑대들) into longer chapters, so the chapter number on NU doesn't reflect the translations. Side stories aren't translated.The beginning does read like comedy in terms of absurdity which ends up largely resolved later. For instance, how can he know what a bandit looks like, and why can he act the part of a captain? Maybe because he's addicted to stories about adventurers, knights, and dragons? His father surely isn't a simple farmer and didn't raise him like one either, though any more would be a spoiler. That said, the first ~20 chapters where he's forced to lie his way out of dying aren't a great measure of what this novel is actually about.Actually, compared to a lot of novels here on NU, it seems to unravel finely-crafted mysteries over the course of arcs which are maybe ~40 chapters long. One long mystery over 40 long chapters - it's to the point where I'm surprised that mystery isn't in the tags. The general concept seems to involve an outbreak of some undead/monster menace, a ragtag group of talented knights moving to assist, the appearance of a mysterious puppeteer inciting war and pulling the strings behind the curtain, and the knights' captain (MC) leaping into the center of all conflict - a farmer who struggles to accept that he actually has what it takes to lead everyone, but nevertheless makes all the right decisions when push comes to shove.It's not the best juxtaposition, but in many ways it's a nice parallel to Re:Zero. The MC is just as powerless as Subaru from Re:Zero, and he doesn't recognize his inner qualities and undervalues himself. However, Subaru is... mostly a loser who makes mistake after mistake until righting all his wrongs in one go at the end of the arc using time travel as a crutch. (This is not a diss to Re:Zero, I like that series.) Conversely, this MC has a much higher bottom line where he sometimes wanders and loses confidence in himself, but never makes those kinds of egregious mistakes, which is why he's acknowledged properly by the people around him (and not having anything as convenient as time travel probably helps).So it's kind of like comparing a rollercoaster with a general upward trajectory which eventually becomes exponential (Re:Zero) to a carriage rolling up a slope on very rough terrain (White Wolves). White Wolves is slower to get into the action and is written more like a traditional novel, but is probably more satisfying for that.If you want to compare it to traditional western fantasy, it's a decent work but generally speaking, most people seem to agree that it isn't exactly a masterpiece. For example, if you consider Kassel the MC, it so happens that his role becomes reduced during the later half of the novel, where he only really needs to be in the right place at the right time while fighting his personal demons. If you compare him to Frodo in The Lord of the Rings, Kassel's actions don't quite match up to his despite the weight of his duty being the same. He has similar achievements, but there are also many fateful or coincidental elements, and he has so many talented helpers that he isn't really comparable to Frodo.There's also a strong fatalistic element, like a prophecy which is pretty characteristic of high fantasy, in the sense that each person has a 'gider', a path one must follow in life and a fate which can be surpassed by one's will. However, it's expressed too vaguely for how important the concept should be, and really appears in the later half of the story.For that matter, I'm not sure if there are differences between how it's explained in the original and the republished versions. However, the reveal of the motivations for the overarching conflict is done practically at the end of the novel and with honestly little foreshadowing, which ruins the mystery a bit. But all in all, I do think this is a lot better than its current rating (4.1) on NU.