Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4 (Manga Review)
Ascendance of a Bookworm: I’ll do anything to become a librarian! Part 2 (I’ll even join the temple to read books!)
Honzuki no Gekokujou: Part 2
本好きの下剋上~司書になるためには手段を選んでいられません~ 第二部 「本のためなら巫女になる! 」

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–> Buy Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4 from Amazon.com!

SPOILER Summary/Synopsis

Benno shoots down Myne’s idea to save all children with Devouring. The High Priest punishes Myne for going about without her attendants. However, this causes Myne to become very ill. At the same time, Lutz runs away from home due to his parent’s adamant opposition to his becoming a merchant. Benno wants to adopt Lutz, but cannot do so without Lutz’s parent’s consent.

The high priest forces Myne to reveal what has her depressed. As such, he orders Benno, Lutz and his parents to the temple for a discussion. After a very lengthy meeting, Lutz is allowed to become become Benno’s protégé. At the same time, he will remain at home with his family until a future time.

Later, Myne’s mother reveals she’s pregnant. Myne wants to make a picture book and requests Wilma as an attendant. Myne wants her to do the art for her picture book. At the same time, Myne knows that Wilma is perfect for working with the orphans. The high priest concedes also assigns her Rosina, because Myne needs musical training to be a noble. To back his point, the high priest plays a tune for Myne.

The Lutz Situation

The biggest event in Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4 is Lutz resolving things with his family.What’s weird is that most of the problem stemmed from Lutz’s dad not communicating properly. Apparently, he accepted Lutz’s career choice, but allowed things to fester withing the family. So while this family drama took up a lot of the volume, it ended up being much ado about nothing. But at least it is resolved now.

Despite the world of this manga’s setting is supposed to be some medieval European setting, it is still very Japanese at heart. I’ve previously mentioned the honorific usage in the Japanese (which is stripped from the official English). And there have been the Japanese joke poses throughout. But here, Lutz was forced to apologize in a very Japanese manner. That was something that stood out to me.

It isn’t a problem, but it is something common from Japanese writers. I often wish they would write things supposedly set in the West with an actual, Western cultural setting. Kazuki-sensei mostly does this well enough, but as I said, there are moments when “Japan with a Western coat of paint” come out.

Myne’s New Attendants

Myne gets two new attendants on Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4. We’d already seen Wilma in the previous volume. I really like how Myne plans to use her to do more artwork. Wilma likes that, so it is a good gig for her. At the same time, Wilma likes working with the orphans. So Wilma working the orphanage that Myne now runs is another good fit.

The other new attendant is Rosina, whom we’ve not met. (Or at least, I don’t remember her before this volume.) This was obviously a counterstrike from the high priest, who wants Myne to become musical for the nobility. It will be interesting to see what other roles she plays.

As to Myne’s original attendants, only Fran had any real screen time. So now, Myne has a staff of five people. Not only that, but she needs attendants around her all the time to do the things Myne isn’t supposed to do as a noble…like open a door for herself.

Omake

The omake manga chapter in Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4 is a continuation of the Lutz story with his family. The short story features Myne’s attendant Gil spending time with Lutz. The normal notes from Kazuki-sensei and Suzuka-sensei are there. The two, one-page manga strips deal with the high priest and events from the volume.

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

Let me wrap up my review with some final thoughts.

• We learn that the high priest’s name is Ferdinand. I’ll have to remember to start using the name.
• It kinda sucks that Myne cannot save those with the Devouring. On one hand, I understand that she cannot possibly know who has it and who doesn’t. On the other hand, at least Benno gave her clearance to save someone if she met them. I wonder if that’s setting something up for the future.
• I’ve always liked the Lutz and Myne relationship. It is sweet and wholesome. And yet, this volume gives us the stark view that Myne will either be forced to marry a noble, or to become a breeding thing due to her mana. Even though Myne doesn’t want to marry or have kids, she won’t have a choice. That also means that at some point, she’ll have to be separated from Lutz, unless the manga goes for the “secret lover” angle. We’ll see.

In the end, Ascendance of a Bookworm Part 2 Volume 4 is another good volume in the series.