After getting attacked by in the middle of the night, Makoto is given a choice: die then and there, fully dissatisfied with his life, or, start a brand new life as a vampire.
You can check out chapter one of this series for yourself below!
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Official Synopsis (Kodansha)
Nothing interesting is happening in Makoto Ozaki’s first year of high school. His life is a series of quiet humiliations: low-grade bullies, unreliable friends, and the constant frustration of his adolescent lust. But one night, a pale, thin girl knocks him to the ground in an alley and offers him a choice. Now everything is different. Daylight is searingly bright. Food tastes awful. And worse than anything is the terrible, consuming thirst. The tiny shames of his old life have been replaced by two towering horrors: the truth of what will slake his awful craving and high school itself.
My thoughts on this volume (Slight Spoilers!)
I found Makoto to be a rather interesting protagonist! At school, he’s found himself the target of some light bullying. Despite this, we never see him get all that angry about the situation he’s found himself in. Instead, he tries to get through it quickly without complaint. In comparison, we see his friend constantly wish death and misfortune upon the classmates that boss Makoto around. It quickly paints a contrast between the two—Makoto is clearly a pacifist, while his friend wants justice.
It seems like Makoto doesn’t want to stoop down to the bully’s level, but it’s not as though he enjoys being bossed around and being made fun of either. He’s in a rather awkward spot—the bullying consists of some light teasing, and requests for him to buy lunch for the bullies group. I found myself wondering if he was bearing through it because he wanted to join in the group one day. It’s clear that he has an interest in at least one member of the group, so I wonder if she’s the reason he bears through it. I really hope I’m wrong though…
Then, suddenly, the vampire attack happens.
The first big change we see in Makoto is him punching his bully in the face—something he would never have done before the attack. Makoto himself knows this, and seems to be rather terrified of how quickly his temperament is changing. Again, he never wanted to stoop down to his level! Now that he has, his social standing has shifted—it’s unclear if it’s for the better or for the worse.
Of course there are quite a few other changes happening to Makoto, all of which are classic vampire tropes. Notably, we see him develop an aversion to sunlight, and the smell of blood makes him deliriously thirsty. I enjoyed how much of an emphasis the author put on the horror aspect of turning into a vampire, while still keeping it a coming-of-age story. Makoto is just a young high schooler who is discovering who he wants to be, and now he has to figure out how to live in the world as a vampire on top of that.
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