Tags: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Comedy, Romance, Harem, School Life, Isekai

Sub-Tags: OP, Strong Lead, Slapstick, Dungeons

A Game of Dungeons and Demons!

Continuing to ascend from the realms of humanity, the eighth instalment of The Fruit of Evolution sees the return of an evil cult and an introduction to some slithery foes.

Picking up where the previous volume left off, the latest release finds the Kingdom of Wimburg embroiled in a battle against The Cult of the Wicked One. A hard-fought affair, the kingdom’s most valiant heroes face down fearsome foes. Luckily, their salvation might be around the corner as an unexpected group joins the fray. Meanwhile, Seiichi faces foes of his own. Asked to scope out a new dungeon, he and his friends come face to face with monsters, traps and a sentient dungeon?! 

The Cult Returns

Returning to Terbelle for the novel’s first half, the plot finds the nation under attack during an important peace negotiation. With Seiichi noticeably absent from the action, this part of the story allows others to share in the spotlight for a little bit.

Making themselves the MVPs of the performance, the underworld heroes prove themselves to be every bit as overpowered as Seiichi. Moreover, this part of the novel provides some excellent moments as Saria’s parents are introduced to the series, and they are exactly as strange as you’d expect them to be.

Seiichi’s only role in this section is as a saviour to the demon king’s daughter. Known as Routier, even she’s not immune to Seiichi’s secret skill of harem king.

A Slithering Dungeon

The latter half of the novel finds Seiichi and his companions in their element as they go dungeon diving. A well-put-together segment, it plays to the strengths of the series – comedy and absurdism.

Putting the whole gang back together was a great idea. There’s nothing more crazy to the series than when all their quirks work together in perfect harmony. Constantly setting off traps and getting friendly with the enemy, they cause headache after headache for Seiichi, much to my personal glee.

This dungeon dive also sees the return of the tragic dungeon boss’ tale. All about an accidental medusa, it differs from others in the series by having a happy ending. Unlike the others, Zora is alive and has a fully fixable problem, which means zany solutions and another member added to the harem.

The Fruit of Evolution’s eighth instalment proves to be yet another strong entry into the series. Featuring a hilarious dungeon dive with all the main characters and a battle that highlights some of the lesser-developed side characters, it shows promise for the series as it heads into its final stretch.