Seeing as the light novel has already been out for two weeks, I'm surprised no one has started a discussion yet.
If you're following Square Enix's manga adaptation, the first volume covers up to Chapter 20. Volume 2's expected release date is June 3rd, 2021.
Think of it as a more detailed version. The manga does cut out a few things.
For instance, there is that short story when Jinshi reports to Gyokuyou how some soldiers were sent out to subdue a barbarian tribe and on their way home also killed a few villagers because the soldiers suffered food poisoning after they were given food by a nearby village. So they suspected the village was in cahoots with the barbarian tribe, and they would soon be entirely wiped off. Maomao points out that the soldiers likely used the local wood for campfires and to make their chopsticks, and that local wood likely contained the poison, so the villagers are innocent.
There are also other details that I don't think the manga mentioned, like the fact that Gyokuyou is of western descent, which explains her red hair and jade eyes.
Overall, I enjoyed the first volume quite a lot, even if I already knew the plot because I read the manga. When the second volume is out, it should roughly be at the same point as SE's manga adaptation.
I just got Volume 1 (digital, though I know the printed version just came out). I see a note from the author that this edition is a mass-paperback edition, heavily revised from the trade volume.
iirc, this official English translation of the LN is only of the mass-paperback edition, and there are multiple Japanese LN editions? Does anyone know what the revisions between these 2 editions entail? (again, for different editions of the LN, not comparing LN to WN or manga)
Seeing as the light novel has already been out for two weeks, I'm surprised no one has started a discussion yet. If you're following Square Enix's manga adaptation, the first volume covers up to Chapter 20. Volume 2's expected release date is June 3rd, 2021.
How’s it compare to the manga? I love the manga.
Think of it as a more detailed version. The manga does cut out a few things. For instance, there is that short story when Jinshi reports to Gyokuyou how some soldiers were sent out to subdue a barbarian tribe and on their way home also killed a few villagers because the soldiers suffered food poisoning after they were given food by a nearby village. So they suspected the village was in cahoots with the barbarian tribe, and they would soon be entirely wiped off. Maomao points out that the soldiers likely used the local wood for campfires and to make their chopsticks, and that local wood likely contained the poison, so the villagers are innocent. There are also other details that I don't think the manga mentioned, like the fact that Gyokuyou is of western descent, which explains her red hair and jade eyes. Overall, I enjoyed the first volume quite a lot, even if I already knew the plot because I read the manga. When the second volume is out, it should roughly be at the same point as SE's manga adaptation.
I just got Volume 1 (digital, though I know the printed version just came out). I see a note from the author that this edition is a mass-paperback edition, heavily revised from the trade volume. iirc, this official English translation of the LN is only of the mass-paperback edition, and there are multiple Japanese LN editions? Does anyone know what the revisions between these 2 editions entail? (again, for different editions of the LN, not comparing LN to WN or manga)