lol Swallowtail isn't trans, he's a eunuch
Oh rly? Is that confirmed
yes, it's mentioned that he's a eunuch within the comic
chapter 22
Uhh no it doesn’t lol? That other guy assumes he’s a eunuch which makes Swallowtail surprised. I got the impression he was amused he’d sooner jump to the conclusion that he was a eunuch rather than trans. He also specifically says “you think you need the RIGHT parts” vs “you think you need X to be a man?” Implying Swallowtail has different parts. Then they talk about “open mindedness” which is clearly a cheeky jab at people IRL.
In addition the artist has made gay main characters in the past so I’m prone to believe that him being trans is a large possibility. Maybe he’s a eunuch but nothing that’s happened in chapter 22 makes me think that over him being trans
Yes, the artist has made gay characters before. However, with context clues within the scene in chapter 22 we can gather that Swallowtail is indeed a eunuch. During the time period this is based in, although fictional, he would not be intact while also being Yuhua's personal servant.
The jab about open mindedness was definitely for the readers for sure, due to what Leng Feng had just said about him not having all his parts anymore. Since it was rude to assume just because he had his removed he's no longer a man, and that even without them anyone could be a man if that is what they identify as.
Linguistically it makes more sense that he’s trans. He talks about having “correct” equipment not about having any equipment in general. Open-mindedness is also usually a nod to taking a more progressive stance on political issues. If the only real argument (so far) for him being a eunuch, is that this is a historical piece that’s a fairly weak one since this is already pretty inaccurate: women holding positions of power, etc.
It COULD go either way but I think it’s much likelier that the author is just suspending belief in order to include a trans character.
He rhetorically asked Leng Feng that question, so he's not going to outright mention that he no longer has his anymore. As for historical accuracy (and I am no historian by any stretch), I do believe women did hold some positions of power, but like I said before this is fictional AND a fantasy so I don't know what liberties she's taking on the history aspect.
But I do agree with you that it could go either way. We'll just have to wait and see if Velinxi actually says it out loud.
SWALLOWTAIL TRANS KING??