Waga Gyouyuu ni Furueyo Tenchi: Alexis Teikoku Kouryuuki

If you like historical epics this one is for you. While it does take place in a fictional world, there is 0 magic or fantasy elements, so you actually kinda feel that things like this could very well happen in the real world.

The genre is 100% pure senkimono, which means that it focuses on warfare. In this novel, there is a much larger focus on strategy and outwitting the enemy than fighting itself, so it's good if you prefer that kind of stuff.

The main character is definitely the kind of MC you're not supposed to self-insert in (the book is written in third person), so expect a pretty rough antisocial guy that's really good when it comes to fighting (it's pretty realistic in the sense that being OP means being able to fight 3-4 guys at once. Not wiping out an entire army). Although it weirded me out a little. He's supposedly 15 and already an incredibly skilled warrior that massacres his way through the battlefield? You would think that people twice with age and experience would be able to do something against him but no. Just found that a bit weird, bu t if you accept it as some natural talent or something I guess it works.

My favourite part was the antagonists. They were all really badass and smart, so their chapters were my favourite parts of the book.

I have some other stuff I would like to read now but there's a good chance I'll be getting the second volume somewhere in the future.

"What's this, the enemy army is advancing in a pike formation, you've got my interest! The pikes are a little short, but yo-"

"Oh so they're just going to charge at the protagonist one by one."

"Oh he's just going to cut fully armored men in half."

*

"I guess I shouldn't have expected too much from the action side of things, but the protagonist has a cool grizzled aunt who governed a border march and made it prosperous."

"Oh you're just planting death flags in her back like a colonial explorer."

"Oh and now she's dead and it's not even chapter four yet."

*

"Well maybe there will still be an interesting political situation that will-"

"Oh so the protagonist's reputation as a bloodthirsty coward willing to do anything to save his own skin doesn't even last two chapters."

"Oh everything bad can be blamed on a second born prince and his evil lackeys who hate commoners."

*

While my expectations were not high, this was nevertheless disappointing.