Morgan’s Monthly Manga Musings #6: “The Dragon’s Knight Beloved:”
Manga-ka Artist: Ritsu Aozaki
Manga-ka Author: Asagi Orikawa
Character Designer: Akito Ito
Translated by: Seven Seas
Rating: 13+
Genre: Fantasy, knights, dragons, medieval, romance
Cover Price: $12.99
Blurb: Melissa is a maid-in-training at the royal castle, where her greatest joy is caring for the majestic steeds of the royal Dragon Knights. Her coming-of-age ceremony is fast approaching, and with it comes the need to decide what path her future will take. Melissa shares a special bond of friendship with Commander Hubert, the handsome knight who rides the mightiest of dragons, but their relationship is about to get complicated. Newly returned from a dangerous mission, Hubert makes a shocking request: Would Melissa pretend to be his lover, and move to his country estate, where wild dragons roam?
Morgan’s Musings: I have stated in the past that I like fantasy, but not overly complex lore. This one did a great job of naturally integrating its unique world-building for the dragons, which are essential to this story. There is so beginning narration for the new reader, of course, but they are not drowned in it thankfully. Our main sweet lady, Melissa, will have conversations or inner thoughts that flow about more facts about these scaly steeds to help. And I adore the dragon lore so far! How once a dragon bonds with a knight, they can read each other’s thoughts and feelings and are forever connected, even if one were to die. But humans the dragons like can also be blessed by them. The dragons who are closer to the hues of the brilliant skies, like white or blue, are the most powerful. And it is precious how they love veggies and sweet fruit AND they collect shining things for their beds in the dragon house. The Commander worrying about forgetting a single gemstone when he and his dragon had to move because his dragon would be furious at him was funny!
Melissa is a charming village girl blessed by dragons, especially the most powerful known as White Queen. The knights and folks adore her and are saddened when they hear she plans to be transferred to another castle to work as a maid once she has her coming-of-age, 16, so she isn’t coddled and can learn a lot to return to her beloved home castle one day to apply for a head maid. Yet, when her friend, The Commander, comes back after a long six-month expedition, looking worn and stating he has to give up his dream of being the best Dragon Knight (which he already is) forever. The Commander’s brother, who was head of their acrostic family, suddenly dies of illness and he must take over. And he asks Michelle to come with him to be his maid and help him take care of all the wild dragons that visit the land, something most people could not handle. However, Michelle is thrilled!
But…there is one more catch… Michelle needs to pretend to be The now Lord’s lover because his brother’s fiance, who his dragon White Queen hates as much as him, states they must marry to unite their families and will NOT leave him alone!
The art is done beautifully and I am captivated by the story so far. The dragons are breathtaking and the bond between their knights makes me feel like the novels I enjoyed in middle school. There is something refreshing about a sweet maiden and her knight, right? I hope their potential romance takes new heights on the dragons’ wings.
Will I Continue the Series? Yes. ^_^ I want to learn more about this land of dragons, The Commander, and Miss Michelle. This series so far has six volumes.
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Keep reading! Stay geeky! 🙂
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Educator of young minds by day, super nerdy savior of justice, and cute things by night, Morgan Straughan Comnick has a love for turning the normal into something special without losing its essence. Morgan draws from real-life experiences and her ongoing imagination to spark her writing. In her spare time, she enjoys doing goofy voices, traveling to new worlds by turning pages, humming child-like songs, and forcing people to smile with her “bubbliness.” It is Morgan’s mission in life to spread the amazement of otaku/Japanese culture to the world and to stop bullying; she knows everyone shines brightly.
For more information about Morgan and her works, check out her website, which also has links to all her social medias: http://morganscomnick.com
