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王の獣 [Ō no Kemono] #10

The King's Beast, Vol. 10

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Ajin boys who show signs of special abilities are conscripted to serve in the imperial palace as beast-servants—status symbols and shields for their royal masters, to be kept or discarded on a whim. When they were children, Rangetsu’s twin brother Sogetsu was ripped from her arms and sent to the palace to attend Prince Tenyou as a beast-servant, where he quickly fell victim to bloody dynastic intrigues. Now in a world that promises only bitterness, Rangetsu’s one hope at avenging her brother is to disguise herself as a man and find a way into the palace!

Sogetsu may have been released from the emperor’s cruelty, but he’s not yet completely free of his ordeal. In order to survive the experiments he suffered through, Sogetsu’s mind splintered into many personalities…and only one of them made it out of the inner palace. Now he is racked with guilt over being the wrong Sogetsu, and the agony of feeling unworthy of being rescued is pushing him into unexpected action!

168 pages, Paperback

First published June 24, 2022

23 people are currently reading
191 people want to read

About the author

Rei Tōma

67 books369 followers
Rei Tōma (Japanese: 藤間 麗,Tōma Rei) has been drawing since childhood, but she only began drawing manga because of her graduation project in design school. When she drew a short-story manga, "Help me dentist" (ヘルプ me デンティスト), it attracted a publisher's attention and she made her debut right away. Her magnificent art style became popular, and after she debuted as a manga artist, she became known as an illustrator for novels and video game character designs.

Dawn of the Arcana is her first long-running manga series, and it has been a hit in Japan, selling over a million copies.

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5 stars
306 (42%)
4 stars
273 (37%)
3 stars
127 (17%)
2 stars
19 (2%)
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3 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
Profile Image for Siobhan.
273 reviews1 follower
December 9, 2023
Sogetsu's mind is an interesting place. I didn't really understand what was going on for half the book. I'm not an expert on trauma and its effects on the mind. But overall good book. Hoping for more drama in the next book.

Also I thought it was a little weird Sogetsu and Rangetsu slept together. I mean I know it's kinda like a Luke and Leia situation (they've just found each other after quite a few years) but it's still a little odd. Maybe it's just my Western perspective.
Profile Image for Christina Close.
400 reviews4 followers
June 28, 2023
Ok, this book in the series pulled me back in with the trying to save the prince's first beast servant from their collar. I can't wait to see more of the relationship between the prince and the second beast servant that I don't think he realizes is a female not a male, since almost all beast servants are males.

I still really want to stop reading this series but of course there's another cliffhanger that I want to know how it gets solved.
Profile Image for Kaitlynne.
1,687 reviews53 followers
September 26, 2023
I forget just how beautiful this artwork is until I read a new volume... Also, I am just waiting on something heartbreaking to happen. Don't ask me why.
Profile Image for Mark.
2,862 reviews282 followers
May 18, 2023
Sogetsu’s back and none the worse for wear physically, but the steps he took for survival made lasting scars in other, less obvious places. And Rangetsu is trying to deal with all this along with navigating her own relationship with every male around her.

Be careful what you wish for, so very careful. I have always loved this series’ sense of humour, those little moments that gave it levity in the face of monstrous cruelty and scheming.

Now that the main plot is resolved, for the moment, it’s time to move the needle to some drama and lots of goofing around. Which I am not opposed to, but you cannot convince me that this is the strongest this story’s been.

Some of the gags are very, very good. Tenyou and his manservant choking back laughter over somebody’s badly written teenage emo poetry is absolutely killer and the gambling parlour sequence uses the manga format to very funny effect. The reveal of Tenyou’s new hand has a highly amusing fake-out too.

Which makes this a fun read with characters I’ve really come to care about - Tenyou is very serious about Rangetsu and the implications of that might finally be getting through the wall of hormones. The flashbacks to Sogetsu’s treatment are harrowing as well. But, speaking of Sogetsu…

Look, I am going to be blunt and make a bad pun at the same time - Sogetsu was way better as a corpse and the series has kind of defanged itself by having him actually be alive this whole time. It’s not like the story had previously pulled its punches, but that’s how it feels here.

Sogetsu’s dissociative identity disorder is a plot device that I don’t think is handled terribly, it does tend to manifest from extreme trauma after all, but no matter what you’re calling it, I’ve seen enough multiple personalities in fiction to last me (and me and me) a lifetime.

Sure, it makes for drama as everybody figures out what’s going on and we get the whole ‘who is the real me’ plot device to get us through the volume, but it’s not as compelling as the murder mystery was nor is it as interesting as the nature of the collar around Sogetsu’s neck.

I can see people eating it up, mind you. You get Tenyou being thirsty, he and Rangetsu being very cute, then Rangetsu goes into heat (literally) and I’m still not sure how I feel about that one in a story that was otherwise doing sort of well with its female empowerment. If this aspect of the story is your jam, well, bring the peanut butter.

It’s not like I want this to be the dour and sour hour either, but the balance has started to really wobble with these latest twists and turns and there’s plenty of good and lots of residual affection on my part, but I can’t look at this as the best of the series or anything.

And there’s practically nothing in terms of the main plot to focus on, so it makes it even more glaring that this has decided to turn into a rom-com for all intents and purposes this volume. It’s not like this story hasn’t shifted tone before, but this is a huge tilt in one direction.

4 stars - it’s good, but even I can tell that my opinion is based on what it was before and somewhat less on what it is now. There’s plenty of fun to be had in this volume, but it’s not what this manga’s been doing best.
Profile Image for MAG Scrittrice.
Author 17 books132 followers
March 4, 2025
Di nuovo con questo afrodisiaco... Non vedo più un buon equilibrio. Un attimo prima parliamo di un bambino torturato e di piedi mozzati e un attimo dopo dell'assistente che deve correre a farsi una s3ga. Per quanto ami argomenti inerenti alla psicologia e per quanto trovi ben sviluppata la questione delle personalità in seguito al trauma, la storia si è trasformata all'improvviso e non mi convince più come prima. Proverò a leggere il prossimo volume; se anche quello non mi convincerà, temo che sceglierò di abbandonare la serie.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Wioletta.
127 reviews1 follower
October 26, 2023
Everything gets 5 ★, the emperor showed himself here and this story is just SO GOOOOOD. I'm happy to see more Rangetsu and Tenyou romance scenes (๑>ᴗ<๑). This volume was humorous and the bonus scene at the end was great (๑˃́ꇴ˂̀).
Profile Image for Hoppipolla.
436 reviews6 followers
October 30, 2025
Precioso tomo, me encanta cómo avanza la relación de Tenyo y Rangetsu, y Sogetsu, que bonico todo. Ay.
Profile Image for eve._.lyn reads.
1,126 reviews21 followers
August 1, 2023
¸.·✩·.¸¸.·¯⍣✩ 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙺𝚒𝚗𝚐'𝚜 𝙱𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚝 ✩⍣¯·.¸¸.·✩·.¸
     1.5 Stars
     Kougai gifts Tenyou with a special aphrodisiac in hopes of bringing out Rangetsu's inner desires. Sogetsu alternates between personalities, yet the creator of his two alters, the Sogetsu Rangetsu knew all those years before, has yet to come out. He feels like an imposter, lying to everyone while knowing deep down that the original Sogetsu may never come out. Taihaku is caught in a messy situation as Rangetsu is unable to control herself when smelling the incense, and her desires lead to some startling realizations. What will these realizations mean when events unfold?

     "I'm sorry that I couldn't find you sooner. I'm sorry you suffered. To me . . . all of you are my beloved Sogetsu."
      -Rangetsu to Sogetsu
    The .5 is all for Sogetsu. Having read ten volumes out of this series, I am unsurprised to find that there is one that would break away from the four-four point five-star average and end up being my least favorite. Possibly one of my favorites covers contained a volume in which I found myself both pleased and disappointed. To begin with, the storyline has a very consistent switch in tone. One volume of fluffy romance, Tenyou and Rangetsu's desire. The next series is a heavy one with startling revelations and emotional tension—these result in my favorite volumes. While it isn't always one or another, as Rei Tōma adds a little bit of each tone.

    This volume utilizes a trope that I dislike. Again, we see Rangetsu get stimulated by the drug and go into a frenzy. She jumps onto Taihaku, getting close to him while grabbing him. This might be what some want to see, yet to me, it feels gimmicky. I hate it when tropes like these are used. I find myself disliking Kougai more and more. It's terrible to see how he frequently harasses Rangetsu against her will, yet she does nothing to stop it. Rangetsu is a beast servant, which means she has less power and influence than Kougai, as a prince, would have. Too often, moments like this happen when Rangetsu is rendered incapable of controlling herself, and it is often Kougai's fault in some way.

      Rather than taking things like sexual harassment and getting drugged seriously, certain moments almost feel like this is used for some laugh-out-loud moment, intended to further some random detail, or results in adding nothing at all. When reading, it felt cringy to see a moment like this happen, but I also knew that Kougai would not get punished for his actions. What a journey Rangetsu has been on, going from the untrusting, paranoid, and cold person she once was to a friendly, flustered, and shy person. The thing is, she seems almost indifferent to such harassment, getting shy or irritated at most. She seems almost like a completely different person. The story presented several themes, focusing on the cruel ways the Ajin are treated, Rangetsu's revenge, and Tenyou's hope to be the future emperor. Yet these elements of the story seem to be submerged or completely tossed away without much closure.

      Then there was Sogetsu's arc, which was masterfully done. The way his trauma is dealt with makes him both sensitive to the subject matter and careful to explore his emotions. Sogetsu has many characters at once, yet all have experienced a pain that bruises them deeply. His guilt is palpable, as is his fear, his past experiences, and his rage. Returning to how his life should have been and how it is now is harder for Sogetsu to do than expected.

I have a love for this series, which I will continue, and I'm glad that many readers enjoyed this volume.
⛔PLOT
🆗☑️CHARACTERS
☑️PLOT TWISTS


Profile Image for Blake Herondale.
334 reviews3 followers
September 20, 2025
Ya estaba deseando que saliera el siguiente tomo de este manga para leer como serían los hermanos juntos y es que me encanta su dinámica y el hecho de que el hermano tenga tres personalidades para poder protegerse a si mismo mientras lo torturaban me ha llamado mucho la atención y me ha encantado ver cómo se daba cuenta de que ahora está en una zona segura en la que no le harán daño en comparación al stupido del emperador que andaba buscando la forma de volverse inmortal a costa de las bestias sirvientes, aún más al encontrar a una que tiene la capacidad de regenerarse.

Pero bruh, hay una "pequeña" diferencia entre un humano y una bestia sirviente, pero se ve que al emperador no le da la neurona para darse cuenta de ese detalle bastante importante.

Lo de que Rangetsu sea de las pocas bestias que entra en celo me ha llamado mucho la atención, ojalá pudieran desarrollar un poco más como funciona eso en las bestias sirvientes y bueno, ver a Tenyo pensar aprovechar la oportunidad ha sido un poco un "estate quieto, chico". Pero por suerte su personaje aún no ha sido corrompido y da gusto ver como sigue evolucionando.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Ines Oliveira.
106 reviews
October 22, 2025
3.5 ⭐️

I appreciate how this genuinely feels like the story arc is coming to a close. While the focus was primarily on Sogetsu, I also felt that it wrapped up several other plotlines, such as Tenyou's injury, the stand-in for the Emperor, the removal of Sogetsu's collar, and the emerging conflicts beyond the Palace walls.

I particularly liked the authentic portrayal of Sogetsu’s trauma and his journey through it. We���re given insight into how he’s dealt with the Emperor’s past actions and how they shape his current mindset. His struggle and distance from Tenyou and Rangetsu after they learn about his personality disorder was also good to see - the mix of confusion, guilt, and concern he feels truly makes his desire to withdraw relatable. I loved how everything came together to allow him to reconnect and find peace in this new version of his reality.

On another note, I must admit that I wasn’t a fan of the jokes regarding Rangetsu's heat and body. While I expected it, I worry they’ll lean too much on that as 'comic relief' in future volumes.

Overall, though, it’s been an amazing journey. Can't wait to see where it goes next!
Profile Image for Mae Crowe.
306 reviews118 followers
January 12, 2024
Will Kougai and Reiun ever stop being creeps with horrible, predatory, antisocial senses of humor that Need To Be Stopped? No, no they will not. At least when they show up, though, I can go "Oh, what extremely fucked up and concerning thing are you going to do or say today?" and then nod sagely when they inevitably do or say the Extremely Fucked Up and Concerning Thing.

Tenyou is once again absolutely adorable throughout all of this; I don't think I've ever genuinely liked a male love interest (or hell, any love interest) quite so thoroughly. Even disconnected from the central romance, he's such a sweetheart. He's very real in terms of personality, probably the most grounded character and the one you most feel like you could know in real life.

And once again I must praise the art because I will never get over the facial expressions in this manga, they communicate so much and are perfectly applied for both soft moments and executing jokes.
Profile Image for Lily.
65 reviews3 followers
July 29, 2023
This is one of my favorite manga series to date, but this is the first volume I gave less than 5 stars. I had to knock a star off because I wasn't fond of Sogetsu suggesting Prince Tenyou have sex with his sister while she's in a vulnerable state. The first joke was fun and funny, but I didn't like his suggestion for Prince Tenyou to, "Have a go at her." Granted, hyper sexuality can be a trauma response. However, I wanted a possessive / overly protective Sogetsu when it comes to his sister. It would have been nice to see him protect her more fiercely when she was especially vulnerable. That's my personal opinion anyway.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for R..
2,148 reviews
September 25, 2023
Sogetsu himself seems to believe he has multiple personalities and can't identify which one is the real him, but it would seem, he's been himself all along, just relying on the appearance of these alternate personalities to protect himself from the pain he was forced to endure at the emperor's hand for so long. It's also interesting to learn Rangetsu is susceptible to heats, though none of the previous aphrodisiacs triggered it until now. Tenyou once again proves his own determination in protecting the twins when he steps in to help bring Sogetsu back home, which is clearly well timed given neither Rangetsu or Taihaku seem to be a match in the betting hall.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for ℂ ✧.
2,467 reviews
October 7, 2023
Un volum molt descafeïnat, massa centrat exclusivament en el personatge del Sogetsu i sense gaire sensació de progressió narrativa... continua la tensió sexual entre els protes, tocs d'humor ben trobats, però ens hem tornat a estancar amb l'acció. Entenc que l'objectiu és desfer-se del collar sense provocar una guerra entre nacions, però en aquest volum gairebé ni es planteja el tema. És una sèrie amb molts alts i baixos, composta per volums massa breus al meu parer i una trama que no té gaire clar el ritme ni per on avança... esperem que millori al proper!
Profile Image for The Book Dragon.
2,530 reviews39 followers
May 11, 2023
Kougai teases Tenyou about Rangetsu and even gives him some of the aphrodisiacal incense as a joke. And because reasons, Rangetsu gets super horny... again... and poor Taihaku gets caught in the middle of it. (Give the guy a break.)

Anyway, that sets things up for the real topic of this volume: Sogetsu's dissociative identity disorder and the fact that not even Sogetsu quite knows which one is his original self. So prepare for angst.
Profile Image for J-Lynn.
1,435 reviews4 followers
July 17, 2023
That’s so sad that he made a figment to protect himself from the trauma that he experienced at the hands of that monster! Anyway, this is a good volume to end on before having to wait for the next book because this didn’t feel like a cliff hanger. While there are issues that need to be resolved, this helped to settle the story about the brother (minus the collar issue).

Can’t wait for the next volume!
Profile Image for Momo.
582 reviews5 followers
December 28, 2023
I really wish this author would learn how to not use that troupe, the first half of this volume was UNBEARABLE. The second half alone would’ve been a 4.5 stars from me but there is no reason for sexual stuff (especially the kind this author loves) to be in a book for teens and really at all. I don’t know if I will be continuing it, despite how much I loved where we are going with her brothers character development. There was literally no plot reason for that to be done AGAIN.
Profile Image for Emylea.
184 reviews3 followers
June 8, 2023
OMG they did Rangetsu so bad in this! IYKYK. It was one of the funniest things I have ever read in my life.

On a more serious note I feel so bad for Sogetsu… the multiple personalities thing as a result of torture is so sad.

I CANT BELIEVE THE NEXT MANGA IN THE SERIES IS NOT OUT UNTIL OCTOBER😭😭😭

Profile Image for Bree Dawn.
193 reviews7 followers
July 22, 2023
The series is definitely getting better!

Content warnings: Blood, confinement, emotional abuse, injury/injury detail, medical trauma, mental illness (Sogetsu’s mine is splintered into different personalities, as a result of his abuse), physical abuse, sexual content (some sexual moments/innuendos, but nothing graphic or on-page), slavery, torture, and violence.
Profile Image for rondoravioli.
60 reviews
December 30, 2023
I'm enjoying Sogetsu's character, and the art is gorgeous, but I'm getting tired of Rangetsu being objectified all the time. I thought her set up was promising in the early volumes, and yet here we are. I hope she gets to do something other than go into heat or get subjected to aphrodisiacs in the next volume.
Profile Image for Vivienne Beloved.
533 reviews1 follower
January 25, 2025
Si va avanti con Rangetsu e il principe Tenyo che si avvicinano sempre di più, anche se quest'ultimo non ha ancora confessato il suo desiderio di diventare re per poter cambiare le leggi sugli ajin e poterla sposare.
Inoltre scopriamo che Sogetsu possiede 3 personalità diverse, nate per proteggersi mentalmente dalle torture subite dal re.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Barbara.
556 reviews43 followers
December 9, 2025
Rangetsu and Tenyou get closer,as she doesn't have to worry about her brother anymore.

Sogetsu feels insecure though, because of his split personality and tries to run away.

We also see Rangetsu going under a new for her physiological response and Tenyou tries to help her by getting her some medicine.
89 reviews
December 12, 2023
This volume was golden. I absolutely loved it and everything abt it. I’m so happy everything with Sogetsu was figured out. My poor baby went through sm. But I’m happy everything is good now. And he’s with people who love and accept him.
Profile Image for Natalia HW.
691 reviews1 follower
May 21, 2025
This series does have an excuse of a plot rather than a real one, has some elements of deeper themes, like social justice, but it's really more about pretty faces. The characters are all so handsome, it's just eye candy ...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews

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