what's a king?
what king must to do?
for what sake a king must fight?
what the price of a king must pay for his dream?

this is heavy story, complex and twisted
with full meaning how to be a king
even must fought his fellow
to be alone and no one understand

even when you see the one who hunt him (yes at first the main hero is an anti-hero)
always blabber about lost his love one

still, are you grieving for lost one, that's cute
the hell he come and gone is greater than you imagine
and the hell itself what make him a GREAT king



Recommend to read from start to finish
good, heartwarming, and full of mystery
but the mystery is unravel
the conclusion is shocking

yet one of the biggest mistake is the ending
because the grieve must continue
the story is ending
and forgiven has been given

A manga where the boring parts are the fighting and action scenes, a manga where you beg for flashback and explanation. The premise begin quite simple, then you get a relatively good twist 1/4 in, then a relatively BAD twist immediately after. Then you get a couple more but by that point you most likely would've caught on before it happen because the pattern/trick/style of the author is kind of noticeable once you know what to look for. And the end shouldn't come as a surprise.

Although, there are lots of questions skimmed over by the author hoping the audience don't ask (because it's hard coming up with a perfect story as you write it in a serialized format such as manga). Which is a shame because here we have this greater-than-life "hero" who has been through hell in trying to achieve what he thinks is for the greater good (very Lelouch-esque for Code Geass reference) between human and vampires, but the premise given to us sometime feels flimsy and unpolished which served basically as plot device even though it warrants a backstory that we never get before the story ended.

I have a feeling at a certain point the author wrote himself into a corner where inevitably the premise given will lead to the conclusion we see. While it's "fine", it tries to do the "poetically tragic" thing but for those who notice the problem within the premise one can't help but to feel "what the, really?" instead of what the author is going for which is: "fate is a cruel mistress."

It actually took me a while to "really" read this manga; intermittently trying to read it the last 4-5 years, but the the first chapters seemed to always throw me off in a maelstrom of boredom and maybe a tad too close to shoujo-type manga (nothing against shoujo/josei - considering I do like some - but generally they tend to be not my cup of tea).

No spoilers, but... I am at loss for words... started and finished every chapters in the last 3 days... I am in awe before the brainchild of a mastermind. This work touches so many facets of the human condition even though this was a fantastic story. The levels of half-truths and depth of realities experienced/reminisced by every single character keeps shattering our grasp of the storyline and leave us in a fog of anticipation and amertume.

Only for the art am I keeping myself from giving a 10. Nonetheless, this manga somewhat reminds me of Rourouni Kenshin, also a great manga that I love dearly.

In any case, I'm generally the type to go for the Action/Adventure/Comedy trifecta, yet I'd be lying if I said Akabara and his "opponents" left me apathetic to their plight.

... Last updated on December 4th, 2012, 12:50am

This isn't a bad manga, but this is just so so to me.
There are lots of mysteries and questions, and I love that fact. Well....really. It IS good, but when the author changed...eh...revealed that this story isn't actually about a vampire king trying to rescue his beloved queen, I got disappointed. Yes, this is still a love story, in all its elegance but it isn't romantic the least bit. What a shame...

If you read this manga,you will suerly find moments when you want to cry. And well because of this feeling people forgot about the plot. They rated the plot masterpiece but didnt even thought about it logically.
The plot is total bullshit and unrealistic. Ofcourse I know its fiction and they are bound to be unrealistic,but this manga have crossed the limit.
The reactions showned by the lead when he suffered the tragedy,by his wife and by his lover....they were totally unrealistic and fucked up.
If you think about the plot events,they are same....The plot is dumb.
Well you can read this if you want some heartbreaking manga,but please dont expect clever/intelligent plot. There is a large probability you will call its masterpiece just because of its tragic elements though not because of plot.

... Last updated on November 5th, 2012, 12:46am

This manga is simply breathtaking. Beware though, that almost everything you think you know (when you have the feeling "I finally know the truth") turns out to be false as you progress through the story. I loved the way it unfolded, like many layers of cloth covered your eyes and now that they are removed so you can see. I enjoyed almost every minute of reading it. This also is the first and ONLY manga I have ever cried for though.

This is one of those manga that I think one has to read it in their lifetimes. Because, it teaches you something. It teaches how much selfless you can be.
The premesis it started was a bit cliche. But, the 'plot twists' it had more than made up for it. From there, it turns from a King Searching for a Bride to something that no one can imagine. The philosophy it lays down is simply top class. And there is never a bit of exaggeration even with exaggerated characters, this is the beauty here.
The main character is perfect in every imaginable way. While most manga's fail to utilize this concept, this manga has truly succeeded in fully extracting its potential. It shows the flaws of a flawless character so much that you feel heavy with the characters choices and their tragedy.
In the corrupt and corporate world that we live in, we need more like these kind of manga's to stimulate youth. Being an adult myself, I think this sets up a great example for all the readers. So, I highly recommend you read this flawed flawless masterpiece

Rating: Excellent

What I loved most about this were the twists; you HAVE to appreciate a perfectly done twist, and this series just keeps lobbing them at you out of the blue.
Most authors give you obvious hints about things leading up the revelation, and I hate that. But this didn't, and every sudden turn just had me staring slack-jawed in awe.

SHIRODAIRA Kyou is truly a master of deep plots and those perfect twists, resulting in series you just can't put down.

Without giving anything away, I will say that if someone gave me a full synopsis (the description of the series given here is only the very initial premise) just off-handedly, I'd toss it in the crack manga pile and never look at it again. But somehow this manga did not feel ridiculous at any point, which is an amazing accomplishment. I will say I felt a little betrayed that it ended up not being about what I initially thought, but I got over it quickly.

This does seriously tug at your heartstrings, as stated in other comments.

But the reason this is not a perfect ten is the art. The art is what I would describe as passable; it doesn't add or subtract from the story. The character designs are original enough and are well-done, but the artist has trouble with anatomy, especially hands.
Again, this doesn't detract from the amazing story, but a perfect ten has everything.

I love sad stories but... this one was just a little bit too much. I read it some time ago and the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about it is an overwhelming feeling. It made me tired but I won't deny that it is beautiful just too sad. For me it lacked any optimism and I think no one could take all of that like the main hero and still manage to keep his sanity... it's just too much.