Lauvil's manga / #Slice of Life(134)

Meh. Kinda bland, no smut, stupid misunderstanding. And honestly, some of the things the MC's say to each other are huuuuuge red flags. Like, thank god they don't mean them, buy they don't know that about each other.

Laria Rosetree is a Korean woman who reincarnated into a novel, as the terminally ill daughter of count Rosetree. The girl just lost both her parents at the young age of 13, when a duke Icard shows up to take her in. He wants her to marry his son, to desperat rumours of him growing his power, and even though Laria knows she's being taken advantage of, she decides to go with it so she can live out her last days in luxury. However, the cure to her desease, which killed the original Laria in the novel, was conveniently revealed at her tombstone. And even more conveniently, the very rare fruit which holds the cure happens to grow in the duke's backyard. How convenient. Now all she needs to do is the fruit for 5 years, without anyone finding out, while convincing the duke she still has an expiration date and also make sure she can somehow live on after she's been cured. Less convenient. So far - 4 chapters in - it looks pretty decent. Not an astonishingly new or original plot, but it has pretty art, light hearted writing and cute characters. I'm counting on it to be a relaxing read - though I hope it won't be one of those series where the MC stays a child for endless chapters. I do want my dose of romance and I ain't got the patience to wait for it for 90 chapters.

Kana has a hard time with sex. She doesn't enjoy it, in fact it hurts most of the time, and because of it boyfriends keep dumping her (instead of learning how to please a woman). Every time this happens she'll go to the local bar to complain to her childhood friend and bartender, Mamoru. One evening after drinking and complaining over boys, Mamoru suddenly suggests to help her feel better during sex. At first she's surprised, and a little worried about the consequences it could have for their friendship, but she ultimately accepts. Together they will now explore each other's bodies with a healthy curiousity, that Kana had never allowed herself before... Both leads of the story are great. Kana is a straightforward young woman with a bubbly personality and endearing clumsiness. I just feel so bad for her that shitty, toxic boyfriends affected her self-esteem so much. Like, damn. I wanna beat them with a bat for how they treated her. Mamoru on the other hand, is just the best. He is so sweet, thoughtful and gentle. He takes initiative and pushes for what he wants but always makes sure not to cross any boundaries. Kana's comfort is still more important to him than his desires. *Chef's kiss* The smut is also really good. Safe and consensual, uncensored, detailed, and oh the facial expressions... Just, hot damn! So good! 10/10. The story itself is neither especially unique or exciting, but the characters are lively and the art is beautiful. 4.5/5 stars from me.

Olivia Verscay is the daughter of the count who rules the North, and a villainess who will cause the downfall of her family. Or, she would if Korean woman, Hanbi, had not possessed her. Since she knows what happens in the novel, she is determined not to follow that path. Instead she'll lose weight, stear away from the villainess path, and focus on managing her territory so she can live in peace. The fat-shaming is strong with this one. The very first panels where just fat-shaming where the MC complains about the weight of the body she possessed; pointing out all the flaws and comparing it to a boar. There was no sympathy or humanity and it was a VERY uncomfortable start to the manwha. The fat girl who suddenly looses weight when a thin girl possesses her, is my absolute LEAST favourite of all tropes. It's so condescending as it implies that fat people are only fat due to laziness. Which a biased, ableist and plain wrong assumption. Her being fat also doesn't serve any purpose in the story at all. So, it just feels like an offensive gimmick. Aside from that, the MC feels pretty flat and kind of a Mary Sue character. She's apparently good at everything she does and just generally flawless. Beyond also having a crush on a pretty boy, she appears to have no discernable personality. As for the ML, I guess it's Daniel? He's also veeeeeery bland. A good match for the MC i suppose, but it's exactly an exciting pairing and I don't see the plot coming from that angle. Lastly, the translation right now SUUUUCKS. I really hate all those sites like TeenManga and HaruManga and whatever they're called. Their translations are horrible and I always dread it when theirs make it onto here. And this time there doesn't appear to be an alternative source or a serious translation group working on it. Sigh... But I guess a bad story doesn't deserve a decent translation anyway. Dropped. 1/5 stars.

Vivian Louis, daughter of count Louis, fell in love with the young Grand Duke, Lennox Elphidion Glenn, at the tender age of 14. It's already been 7 years since then, and most of her hobbies evolve around her unrequited crush; From drawing him to writing her own series of fan-fiction about him. One day a friend of hers leave some magical artifacts in her possession and when curiosity gets the best of her and she takes a look at them, she accidentally shatters a mysterious marble that sends her into a trance. When she comes to, she's on top of the very guy she's been fantasising about for years. Believing she "kidnapped" him, she apologizes profusely, but contrary to expectations he's not mad at all. In fact he acts oddly loving towards her and even suggests they becomes lovers. For even though the duke is the most eligible bachelor, coveted by every single woman in high society for his looks, money, ability and social status, he has actually been in love with the mediocre Vivian for many years as well. Thus they silly, but fluffy romance insues! This is a very light hearted and fluffy romance story. One should not expect nail-biting tension or brain-wracking plothooks, but it's great for those rainy days when you just want something cute, light and easily-digestible. But even though that's the story's vibe, I can't help but to have a few critiques: My beef is not actually with the obvious trope where the mediocre, female MC getting with the unattainable pretty boy alone on the grounds of her quirky personality. Neither is it with the obviously cringy plot and one-dimensional characters. What really bothers me is how everyone infantalizes the MC. She's not even 15 or 17, like in many other aristocratic/romance/fantasy settings. She's 21. Yet most of the characters treat her like she's a prepubescent teen at best and at worst like a toddler - including the ML. She's a grown woman but her parents treat her like she can't make decisions for herself, her in-laws literally feed her like a baby and the ML only seems to love her for her immature, innocent and "cute" characteristics. And it really rubs me the wrong way, especially when the story has some sexual innuendo and the story's focus is on the two MC's immenent marriage. I know the story just wants to be cute, and that I'm probably overly critical. But...urgh... It just gives me grooming vibes... And I don't like that. But okay, it's not too bad. The characters are overall likeable and the story does the comedy and slice of life aspects pretty well. It's cute and easily digestible, and the art is pretty too. 3/5 stars.