Tensions are high after another kidnapping has occurred. With no one knowing who they can trust, will the agents be able to come together and rescue their ally?
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My thoughts on this volume (Slight Spoilers!)
If you’re looking to read a poetic fairy tale that isn’t afraid to touch on some dark topics, I cannot recommend Agents of the Four Seasons enough.
It is written in such a beautifully poetic way that it took me a moment to get fully immersed in the story, but once I was in, it was difficult to put down. The author does a fantastic job of painting a vivid picture of all of the trauma and heartbreak the various characters go through. Although we follow several groups of characters going through different turmoils throughout the volume, there was never a moment I felt like one group’s arc was given less importance than another’s. While Spring does take the spotlight as it’s part two of their story, they do not cast a shadow on any of the other seasons.
Usually when I read a story with multiple characters in the spotlight, I find myself really only resonating with one, maybe two characters. I’m not sure what kind of magic the author embedded into this story, but I found myself thoroughly enjoying each and every character’s journey in a separate way.
Personally, I most enjoyed the themes of friendship and romance found in this volume. While there are many more themes to be found, I only want to highlight my absolute favourites (otherwise we’ll be here all day).
We see the romantic themes during the Spring and Winter scenes. All throughout the volume, we see Hinagiku wishing to be reunited with Rosei, and the Winter group racing to get to Spring’s side. I really love the relationship between Spring and Winter, as we have the Spring girls dealing with worry of acceptance (Hinagiku) and grief and anger (Sakura) pointed towards the Winter boys. While both of them clearly have romantic feelings towards Winter, they are complex and tangled with a variety of negative emotions—especially with Sakura.
I found Hinagiku’s feelings to be more pure and childlike, something very on par for her character arc these past two volumes. While Sakura’s feelings felt much more complex and overwhelmed by her grief of losing Hinagiku. The explanation that all of the love she had once felt towards Itecho turned into equally strong hatred when they slowed the search for Hinagiku down felt just so incredibly raw and realistic. I was rooting for the girls to get their happy ending from the moment I started reading this volume.
On the Winter side, we don’t get as vivid a picture just yet—I’m sure it’s coming soon! While Rosei has been pining over Hinagiku since the day she was kidnapped, Itecho’s feelings stay in a state of confused limbo. I wonder if it’s because he and Sakura have a bit of an age gap, but he seemed to treat her more like a little sister than anything prior to her running away. This of course starts changing once everyone is reunited.
I just adore the way the author is allowing their relationships to progress naturally, with nothing sped up. Once they are finally reunited, it’s essentially like they are all meeting for the first time. They take their time to slowly rebuild their relationships and get over all the trauma together. There’s no insta-love to be found here!
The Autumn and Summer groups develop a lovely friendship in this volume. After everything they go through together, it would be strange if they didn’t grow at least a little fond of each other. While we got a glimpse into the lives of the Summer sisters in the previous volume, we get to see a new side of both girls in this one. They really do feel like Summer personified—fun and bubbly, and just a little intense.
Their friendship with Rindo starts surprisingly quickly, with both of them amazed at just how much of a gentleman he is. I loved getting a look inside Rindo’s head as he allowed his facade to fade when he finally came to terms with just how much he cares for Nadeshiko. I think him behaving in tune with how he feels for the first time is what allowed him to befriend Summer so quickly, and is why they did much more than they were obligated to.
Their entire arc together almost had me in tears by the end, but it was such a beautiful story that I was perfectly okay with it.
Maddies Manga 
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