I’d almost figured that the Kakuriyo manga had either been stalled indefinitely or cancelled; it’s been about a year I think since the current volume was out (#6) but I saw recently that there’s volume 7 coming; I liked the anime version of the story so I’m hoping that the written version continues, although it so far is nearly the same as the animated.
The basic premise is that college student Aoi inherited the ability to see ghosts and spirits from her grandad who took her in after she was abandoned (?) by her mother. She finds out not long after his death that her grandad owed a massive debt to a traditional inn of the high-class variety in the spirit world, and the owner now wants to collect; his offer is either marriage (to him, an ogre) or death. Aoi chooses neither; she gets the Odanna to agree that if she can manage it by herself, she will be allowed to work off the debt. Cue various shenanigans with a touch of romantic tension.
Volume 6 has Aoi on the verge of success with her little restaurant (turns out grandpa taught her to cook to supernatural tastes, and she’s pretty good at it), and shopping for some important incoming guests. But she is spirited away (ie- kidnapped) and wakes up in a room which is starting to fill with water. Obviously she’s rescued and the culprits identified, but then she has to figure out how to fix a mela for her important clients without hardly any prep time.
So far this is light romantically-tinged adventure, with a hint or two of mystery (Genji the friendly nine-tailed fox seems to know something about her past he isn’t saying, and apparently Aoi has some dreams that relate to that), but the ending of this volume annoyed me slightly. Aoi pulls off her challenge but then suddenly goes all weak damsel and faints from the strain and a probable cold brought on by being almost drowned. This sort of thing really undercuts the fun feisty heroine presentation of the character, and forces her into a place where all the men around her can dote and fuss in worry. Eye-roll.
