50books_poc | #18: The Twelve Kingdoms: The Vast Spread of the Sea by Fuyumi Ono

Two of the most popular characters in the Twelve Kingdoms franchise are Shoryu, the king of En, and Rokuta, known as Enki, his Kirin, who is permanently an adolescent boy. Very often, I don’t particularly get into fandom’s preferred hotties of choice, as more often than not, they don’t particularly interest me. Here, I actually fell for Shoryu and Rokuta and their bickering, snarky relationship before I fell for my beloved Yoko.

The Vast Spread of the Sea is set in the early years of Shoryu’s reign. En was all but destroyed by it’s last king, and while things are improving under Shoryu’s rule, many are concerned by the fact that Shoryu regularly disappears to go gambling and wenching and who knows what else, instead of actually staying in the palace and ruling. Rokuta himself hates kings and rulers, and struggles with the fact that he knew almost immediately that not only was Shoryu the right king for En, but also that he would one day destroy it. Meanwhile, in En’s Gen province the regent, Atsuyu, proposes a plan that will place him above the king. At his side is Koya, a young man raised by a demon, and who once met Rokuta as a child.

From the first two books (or the entire anime, take your pick) we already know that Shoryu eventually comes to be regarded as one of the world’s greatest kings, and that he turns En into the most prosperous and forward thinking of the kingdoms. We also know he hasn’t changed much. The focus of the book is the exploration of Rokuta and Shoryu as individuals, and Rokuta’s slow acceptance maybe this king, at least, isn’t a bad thing. In direct contrast to Shoryu and Rokuta and Rokuta’s reluctance to have faith in Shoryu possibly blinding him to Shoryu’s good qualities are Atsuyu and Koya, with Koya’s absolute trust and faith blinding him to Atsuyu’s ambitions, and the possibility that Atsuyu may not be as noble and selfless as he thinks, with both youths learning from all three others.

All three books in the Twelve Kingdoms series that have been published so far can be read in order (they’re actually published in reverse chronological order) or independently. The next book, however, should be a sequel to the first, Sea of Shadow, and returns to Yoko’s story. It’s actually my favorite of the four anime arcs, and it will break my heart if Tokyopop cancels the series before that. Even more so because all the books after that will be new material for me.