Rangetsu's uncomfortable lessons in the fact that the world isn't as black-and-white as she wants it to be continue, and it's a testament to Rei Toma as a creator that this discovery is very much couched in her thirst for revenge against a system that damned her to a life she in no way wanted, because it makes the discovery that much stronger. It would have been easy for this series to be a surface-level moral drama, but instead Rangetsu is framed as someone who only gets stronger the more she understands, even as she doesn't like the lessons she's learning. Extra points for spot-on body language using her tail and ears - a lot of her reactions remind me of a Siberian husky I had who had been abused before I adopted her.

ehhh kind of losing my attention now, but it is hard not to want to know where the story will go. Still buying for the library and I plan on reading the next.

The latest volume in the series sees Rangetsu further commit to working with Prince Tenyou to find who murdered her brother. As they navigate the dangers and politics of the imperial household during their search for answers, Prince Tenyou gets closer to discovering the truth of Rangetsu's identity.

Things are heating up in The King’s Beast, a manga series based on the Dawn of the Arcana series that started as a story of revenge and has quickly turned into a lot of yearning. The King’s Beast Volume 3 is written and illustrated by Toma, and localized in English by VIZ Media, published through its Shojo Beat imprint, is translated and adapted by JN Productions, and features touch-up art and lettering by Monaliza De Asis.

Last volume, Rangetsu struggled to keep her cover when an Ajin was wrongly accused of murder. Instead of standing by and watching injustice unfold, she used her position within the castle to push towards justice. Oh, and someone found out that she’s actually a woman.

Now, in The King’s Beast Volume 3, Rangetsu has to find a way to balance the vengeance she so desperately has been seeking with her new life in the imperial palace. Instead of blaming Prince Tenyou, she’s fallen for him, seeing him as her light. But she doesn’t just know him from a yearning sense, she trusts him, and she is set on protecting him at all costs, even if it’s directly putting her life at risk.



In The King’s Beast Volume 3, Rangetsu becomes even more driven by her yearning for Tenyou. Yes, she still wants to avenge her brother, but when jealousy takes hold, we see the moment where her character has begun to switch her focus. While I appreciate Toma allowing Rengetsu to embrace the femininity that she’s pushed away, it doesn’t feel dynamic. The way that her love grows for Tenyou and the fact that it is now her only reason for growth, makes me scared for growth or lack there of in Volume 4.

I don’t want to see this capable fighter and woman driven by sibling love and grief turned into someone only driven by romantic love for a man, especially one she really hasn’t known that long. While this hasn’t happened yet, I worry that’s the path we’re going down, especially given the way that Rengetsu’s moment of jealousy unfolds. She gets drunk, she jumps to conclusions, and she doesn’t question Tenyou’s promise that he didn’t buy a female Ajin at the brothel.

The reason that this is an issue is because there is a note that brothels are like prisons for female Ajin, something that was also noted in the beginning of the series, but that doesn’t drive her. <- huh? It’s her jealousy over another woman being with Toma that seems to be her focus. But only time will tell where this will go.

Overall, The King’s Beast Volume 3 is a sharp change in Rengetsu’s identity and motive. It’ll land for some people and not for others. Beyond that though, we are finally slowly inching towards a romance, which is exciting. I just hope that Rengetsu doesn’t lose herself in it.

My enjoyment was a little less this volume with our protagonist feeling conflicted. There's a fine line in how it can be presented to stay within her character and this volume pushed that limit just a bit I think. Although it was nice to see Rangetsu interacting more with the other beast servants in this volume. However, I wonder just how Prince Tenyou will react when he finds out Rangetsu is a woman, their interactions are lovely but he treats her like a child. For example, towards the end of the book having her sit on his lap.
Overall, I look forward to the next volume regardless but something about this volume didn't pull me in as much.

In a world where the Ajin - human/animal hybrids - are treated like beasts, Rangetsu dresses like a boy to infiltrate the castle and discover who killed her brother. As she gets to know Prince Tenyou, she realizes that he may be the only hope for the Ajin people - and the cost of keeping him alive might just be her vengence.

This companion series to Dawn of the Arcana brings a new perspective to Toma's world building. I can't wait to dig deeper into the story.

This volume starts with Tenyou and Rangetsu are invited to dinner by Oushin and Teiga, which is being held at a brothel, oddly enough. This stirs misgivings in Rangetsu, who gets drunk with Teiga to drown her sorrows. Is this jealousy she feels? We get much court intrigue at an evaluation of the princes' beasts, where Rangetsu gets poisoned. During her recovery, Tenyou takes her to visit Sogetsu's grave, where the two talk, giving us a chance to get to know them better. Lots of secrets hinted at!
The art is still gorgeous, and the tension continues to build. Next volume please!


#TheKingsBeastVol3 #NetGalley

The King’s Beast Vol. 3 by Rei Toma is an excellent installment in this beautifully drawn series.

I can’t get over this art style! It’s honestly perfect in my eyes. I love Toma’s works and this is just another example of why.

This volume brings a little bit more insight into the political intrigue, as well as the disappearance of Sogetsu. But it actually moves plot! And doesn't feel like a filler! So I was much happier reading this than the last volume.

I’m still excited to see where it goes. I cannot wait for “the big reveal”. So I will wait patiently for the next book - and yes I will read as many of these books as I can. They’re interesting, easy, and fun to read. And all the characters are just so dang pretty!

Rangetsu still is on a mission to find the person behind her brothers death and will do everything she can to find out by staying by Prince Tenyou side.

I really enjoyed this next book in the series Rangetsu is so strong willed and will do everything she can to help Prince Tenyou I mean he's the only one willing to help her find out who was behind her death. Theres a couple of challenges Rangetsu is going to face and I really enjoyed seeing how they played out. There was interesting moments and some sweet moments and overall I really enjoyed this book can't wait to see what happens next.

As much as I’m enjoying this series overall, I felt like this volume wasn’t as good as the previous. A huge portion of the book was taken up by Rangetsu’s doubt; self-doubt, doubt of the prince, doubt about everything. While is part of her character building it became so much that I felt it conflicted with how she is presented in the previous stories. She has a mission and is consumed by this, she is strong, determined and kicks butt without much hesitation.

I like how Rangetsu was previously presented. Her personality and her belief system. A lot of this seemed to have been swallowed up but the doubt in this book so I’m not sure what her character is anymore.

The art and overall intrigue presented within the palace is definitely still holding my attention and I hope the next volume will be more like the first two books.

The King’s Beast Volume Three examines Rangetsu’s feelings for Prince Tenyou.

The King’s Beast Volume Three
Written by: Rei Toma
Publisher: Shogakukan
English Publisher: VIZ Media
Release Date: August 3, 2021

Volume Three opens with Prince Oushin inviting Prince Tenyou and Rangetsu to dinner. However, things get uncomfortable for Rangetsu when she sees that the dinner is taking place at a brothel. In this world, female Ajin work in the brothels, so this puts Rangetsu in an awkward position. It gets worse when she sees Prince Tenyou leave with one of the women who works there.

It’s at this point that we see Rangetsu’s confusion over her feelings toward Prince Tenyou. She doesn’t understand why she feels jealous over Prince Tenyou being with another woman, especially since Rangetsu has spent all this time trying to act like a man. Rangetsu’s confusion is a theme that runs throughout this volume.

During the time at the brothel, Rangetsu gets drunk and gets in a fight with Teiga. With some of the things that Rangetsu says during the fight, she comes close to exposing the truth about herself. But Rangetsu finds that she’s taken down easily by Teiga’s special ability, and this becomes a sore spot for her as well. She doesn’t have a special ability, which frustrates her, and being taken down easily by another Ajin’s special ability just pours more salt into the emotional wounds she’s already going through over her confusion about Prince Tenyou.

A plot thread that starts to run through The King’s Beast Volume Three is that His Imperial Majesty has yet to declare a crown prince among his 15 sons, and the princes are now entering a critical period where they will be assessed on how they complete specific assignments… and their Ajin are an important component for the assignments. The first one is a tea ceremony, where the Ajin have to make tea and their ability will reflect back on their respective prince. Rangetsu works hard to learn the skill, and then at the actual ceremony, she discovers someone has substituted poison in her ingredients. Through some quick thinking, Rangetsu finds a way to avoid poisoning the emperor… but the lack of tea being served by her is a mark against Prince Tenyou.

However, we learn than Prince Tenyou has no desire to become the emperor. Like Rangetsu, this surprised me, since Prince Tenyou has been adamant about wanting to change how things work in their world. But it makes sense when he says he doesn’t have to be emperor in order to change the world, and in fact, it would probably be harder for him to make the necessary changes if he was the emperor.

One of my favorite scenes in Volume Three is when Prince Tenyou takes Rangetsu to her brother’s grave. It’s a sweet gesture, but it also instigates a conversation that allows Rangetsu to talk to Prince Tenyou and unload some of the confusion that’s been bottled up inside. I thought that Toma executed this scene beautifully, both through the art and through the dialogue and actions that take place.

Right at the end of the volume, the stage is being set for the next task, which is a sports competition. Rangetsu and Prince Tenyou’s practice time is getting underway when the third prince’s Ajin appears and tries to bean Prince Tenyou with a ball. And that’s basically where this volume ends. My guess is that Volume Four will have a focus on this sports tournament and whatever acts of sabotage may or may not occur.

It’s becoming clearer that Rangetsu has some kind of romantic feelings for Prince Tenyou, even if she herself doesn’t pick up on it yet. While the romance angle is getting stronger hints, this manga is still focusing overall on Rangetsu and how she’s trying to protect Prince Tenyou and work with him on finding her brother’s killer. And with the introduction of the tasks, the stage seems to be set for more direct competition between Prince Tenyou and his brothers, as well as the potential for intrigue. I think the attempted poisoning is just the beginning, and that more attempts to sabotage Prince Tenyou will come about in future volumes. I’m also curious to see what other kinds of tasks the princes and their Ajin will be asked to do.

Readers who have enjoyed the previous two volumes of The King’s Beast will appreciate this volume as well. I know that I’m looking forward to Volume Four in order to find out how this story will continue.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
***
Rangetsu and Prince Tenyou are really no closer to finding out who had her brother Sogetsu killed when he arrived to be the Prince’s beast servant. Rangetsu is determined though to put her life on the line to protect the prince because she sees him as the best hope for the Ajin.
This volume saw a competition being put into play for the emperor to start narrowing down which of the princes are fit to take over the throne next which possibly gives Rangetsu and Tenyou a chance to see all the princes in action and start narrowing down their suspect list. A slightly slower volume action wise, Rangetsu spent a lot of time trying to come to terms with her decisions and choices she’s made, haunted by the brother she lost.
The art is still adorable and lovely as ever and the story certainly seems to be building to something, will be interesting to see how long this series will be and who the real threat is of the princes.

I'm loving this series, I'm a big fan of Rei Toma's artwork and her beast-servant Rangetsu is just so dang gorgeously drawn. In this volume Rangetsu's emotions and loyalties begin to waver as she tackles going to the brothel with Tenyou, a competition against the other heirs and their beast servants and a visit to Sogetsu's grave. A little less action in this one but a lot of good character development, especially between Rang & Ten, along with a little more in both the questions and answers departments of the palace intrigue angles. This is a great series and I highly recommend, not only for fans of Toma's The Water Dragon's Bride but also for fans of Yona of Dawn, Magi, Fushigi Yugi, and Kamisama Kiss.

I liked vol 3 as much as the first two. He has to know shes a girl though by now right? The sitting on his lap scene was a little weird. I wish she had shined a little more in this one. I love when she fights and immediately beats someone who appears too big or strong for her to win.

Fun and familiar. A tale of court intrigue, undying love, and courtly beauties. Great for monster lovers and anyone who can’t get enough romance or adventure.

Thank you to NetGalley, VIZ Media, and Rei Toma for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This volume is yet another excellent installment. Rangetsu learns or her brother's burial place and continues to aim coming to grips with the loss, still planning on getting revenge.

Things head up politically. Rangetsu may not know it yet, but she had feelings for the prince she must protect. When a series of events are to occur to help with the selection of the new emperor, someone sabotages Prince Tenyou's tea with poison, though not to kill. And when a game is set as the next event, Rangetsu is on the lookout for further sabotage.

Between politics and romance, this is an absolutely hot recommend. Rei Toma has both artistic and story-telling craft, and this is a shoujou series to be read!

This was a decent volume, and I enjoyed seeing some more development with Rangetsu, the protagonist, and within this world. I do feel like the relationship between Rangetsu and the prince she serves is a bit off for me, as it feels like something is missing (or maybe I just wanted to see more development in that area).

God this series.... these two characters... The amount of times I gripped my heart while reading this volume. MY HEART CANT TAKE IT

The progression of this series is amazing! The call out of racism within their culture is constant, and you see the entitled character learning and making progress for their behavior.
I can't get enough of this series!! I'm so excited for more!!!

Some quick thoughts on this installment of The King's Beast:
Kinda getting annoyed with Rangetsu's overly emotional behavior. It feels so contrived. She's badass, she has goals and plans and has been through a lot of really hard stuff. So to have her constantly weeping over whether or not the prince likes her and will be OK with her serving him is just getting ridiculous at this point. We're three books in and it's still happening. I understand how she still distrusts him. She's been through horrific abuse in her life, so it makes sense that it will take her a long time to trust, but it's the constant weeping and falling into his arms that makes me roll my eyes.

The plot has definitely waffled in this volume and the last one. It's much more slice of life than when it started and is a lot slower. The big moments of the volume are relatively small things compared to the other. There's a lot more romantic tension being built up between Rangetsu and the prince, and I'm honestly not buying it because it's pretty one sided and just feels a bit bland? I'm not sure how to describe it, but there's something off.

I think this was a solid installment in the series, but definitely not as great as volumes one and two, but definitely worth the read and for the upcoming drama in volume four.