bethejudge want to read (All 113)
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does anyone know a crime thriller manhwa about hikers who got trapped in a snowstorm and committed cannibalism unknowingly. there's this girl from their group who'd pretend to hunt animals, when she was actually butchering the bodies of their dead companions, and bringing them into their cave to cook and eat.
you know what, guys? I agree, to hell with love triangles ʘ‿ʘ
the start was so slow, but the art's so beautiful, so I gave it a chance. it bothers me that only Aciel has a (possible) motivation/reason for acting differently from the way he did in the first timeline(his nightmares), the duke and Michael do not. though Michael's can probably be explained since he's young, the duke's affection on the other hand feels so off considering how he treated her in the past. it's not clear whether he's trying to atone or what, but with his lack of context he just seems like a powerful duke who decided to dote on an orphan one day. I even thought that maybe she's his secret child that's why he acts that way. 70 chapters in, and to no avail. even the head maid's character is still confusing. not enough info, not even hints, on whether they were just infected by a spirit in the first timeline. blah blah.
tldr, the narration feels so over the place, but art so pretty.
It’s clear that the entire family has changed a lot from the first life, but the story laid out valid reasons for it.
1. All of the Nacht family have experienced various degrees of resonance with their past memories
They have nightmares of events from the past life, unexplained emotions that they recognize as coming out of nowhere, and at times it seems like there are brief moments where their former self takes over. This has sparked feelings of guilt and protectiveness towards Sienna, as well as instinctive wariness of Lorena. This subtle difference in thought/instinct is also why she was adopted earlier than the first timeline and separately from Lorena. The Duke was immediately drawn to her in spite of her misbehaving and minimizing her abilities
2. The shadows were purged from Nacht
Sienna’s presence and later efforts as a terraformer purged the dark energy that is constantly present in Nacht, making it less likely for the family or staff to become poisoned with negative thoughts/emotions/intentions fueled by corruptive forces. Now everyone in Nacht is constantly able to avoid and undo corruption, which without a terraformer in the previous life would have just accumulated.
3. Lorena has no influence over Nacht
Lorena has mind control powers and is in league with demonic forces. In the first life she was able to gain immense power by stealing Sienna’s magic, which surely made it easier to corrupt and brainwash the people around her, especially since Nacht is innately vulnerable to corruption. While it hasn’t been explicitly shown until recently, it’s very clear that Lorena used dark magic and manipulation to sculpt their derision towards Sienna.
I think a lot of their mistreatment of Sienna in the first timeline will end up being traced back to an accumulation of corruption and Lorena’s long term mind control. The way they are behaving now is likely far more accurate to their natural treatment of their ward than the first time. To me it makes sense because we learned that there were magical forces tampering with their minds before
now that fills in what the narration failed to deliver. 'cause while I was aware that the three of them has had nightmares of the first timeline, it wasn't expounded/explored except Aciel's. as a result, it felt like the duke had so much screentime without having any screentime at all. like, we see him acting differently, but there's no emotional context that anchors that change. maybe, if they had explained the pomegranate rite properly when it was introduced, the whole transition of Sienna to the dukedom wouldn't have felt that rushed, even awkward. that scene had so much potential, yet it lacked emotional payoff. it felt nothing more than a (creepy)plot device, tbh.
There have been a few scenes where the Duke had vivid dreams about things from the first life, just that he forgets the detail upon waking but has intense instincts as a result. When he was injured he had a dream about the past and when he woke up he made sure to refuse healing from Lorena even if his life was at risk. I think Michael has the least influence from the second life so far, but there are moments.
I actually liked the pomegranate scene because it illustrated the disparity between Sienna and Nacht. The ritual actually helps guests be less affected by the spirits in Nacht, so it would usually be a deeply meaningful way of welcoming a new family member. I think it was an example of their attachment to her and genuine lack of awareness, so they didn’t understand why someone would be upset about it.
The fact that she didn’t know this ritual even existed until now only highlighted how little they cared for her in the first timeline. In that life something like this would be her dream, but that time has passed. She is fixated on one day escaping Nacht, so learning that the ritual permanently tied her to it was very distressing.
It’s was just another moment where the casual actions of Nacht harmed her in some way, just not deliberately this time. It’s purpose was to highlight exactly how much of an unwanted outsider she was the first time and how much her perception of them has changed