Tags: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Drama, Mystery, School Life, Isekai

Sub-Tags: Villain, Weak Lead, Dungeons, Video Games, Game Elements, Romantic Subplot

Piggy and the Cutthroat Dungeon World!

Piggy in the Game World

At first glance, Finding Avalon may remind you of another series featuring a titular Piggy protagonist. Other than an overweight villain facing doom, however, this series strikes its own path. Written by Akito Narusawa and illustrated by KeG, The Quest of a Chaosbringer provides a much more serious and darker tone to the genre.

The series’ plot finds its main protagonist reincarnated into the body of Piggy, one of Dungeon Explorer Chronicles’ doomed villains. Desperate to escape his fate and save his family, he develops a plan using his insider knowledge of the world’s dungeons to become stronger. Unfortunately, best-laid plans are never quite so simple. With his arrival, the plot begins to move forward and as he explores more of the world, a series of potentially deadly mysteries start coming to light. 

Concerning the first volume, the story finds Piggy starting out his new life in DEC, wherein he reveals his main goals to be steering clear of the game’s plot and keeping his new family safe. This sees two versions of Piggy come to life throughout the volume – the action-savvy family protector and the passive villain side character.

As the family protector, Piggy vows to become stronger. This part of the plot sees him become a fledgling dungeon explorer, using every possible trick from his past life to exploit the system and level up fast enough to weather any incoming storm.

Motivated by the continued survival of those he loves, the protagonist’s ingenuity is only matched by their determination as part of this persona.

As for his passive character as part of the game’s original plot, likely, controversiality among readers can quickly be put to rest given that it serves a purpose to his main goals. In a cruel world where you can never tell friend from foe, the reasons for Piggy’s inaction becomes understandable as anyone may want to exploit his skills. In the context of this volume, this is shown through the first major plot point of the game, where the hero comes face to face with elitist bullies. Whilst Piggy could solve the situation with ease, he chooses not to, given that he could draw their ire, and there’s evidence suggesting more than one reincarnate is in the world of DEC. 

Enemies, Allies and Family

Alongside clear-cut motivations, character dynamics is another strong suit of the series. Of the characters introduced in volume one, two stand out as the most important – Piggy’s sister, Kana, and his fiancé, Kaoru.

As Piggy’s sister, Kana provides a constant reminder of what he’s fighting for. Later, joining him on his dungeon quests, she differentiates herself from her brother by playing the role of the immature teenager. Decidedly reckless, she makes a good example of the dangers of becoming an adventurer, something not shown with Piggy due to his game knowledge.

Kaoru represents a more complex character dynamic within the series. As Piggy’s fiancée, she shares a sizeable past with the protagonist. Throughout the first volume, their relationship can best be described as strained. With little indication of the cause of the rift, we are left with both character’s actions in the present. With the protagonist clear in his wishes to steer clear of the obsessive allegations, it’s Kaoru who comes over as unnecessarily cruel. Her ideals of a past Piggy have clouded her vision, and when he fails to live up to her mark, she berates him. Moreover, she comes across as petty, with several instances of her spreading false rumours about the protagonist, likely in an attempt to lower his standing in class. 

Also of note in the series are the elitist bullies targeting Piggy’s class and the student council president. Whilst the bullies are the typical flavour of nasty, they do open up an underlying mystery regarding reincarnates. As for the student council president, she represents one of Piggy’s few allies outside of his family. Unwilling to believe in rumours, she’s one of the only characters to take a closer look at Piggy and see him and his skills for what they are. 

Overall, Finding Avalon’s opening instalment makes for an engaging start to the series. Where the series succeeds best is its focus on world-building and character dynamics.

Whilst the plot starts slow, the end result provides nothing but benefits for the series. Piece by piece, the world of DEC comes together, creating a cruel reality where only the powerful and ingenious can hope to survive. This, in turn, drives the understandable motivations of the protagonist, as well as sheds light on the variety of interactions he has throughout the volume.