The Girl Who Bore the Flame Ring

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How long I’d been here, I couldn’t quite recall. From this sorry situation, I as always raised my eyes to the sky; a sky in which the great, massive sun was clad in levity. Sunlight poured gently upon all. What a blessing it would have been for the world if only the skies could remain clear. For tomorrow too, and for all days to come, I was to continue to pray for calm. To endure for those who cried, with desperation I remained in prayer.

And then, one freezing, forlorn, soulless, stagnant, drizzly day we died. Or so I thought…

Associated Names
One entry per line
A Girl Holding the Sun
Karin wo Idaita Shoujo
擁抱火輪的少女
火輪を抱いた少女
Related Series
The Girl Who Ate a Death God (Shared Universe)
Yuusha, Aruiwa Bakemono to Yobareta Shoujo (Shared Universe)
The Girl Who Fell from the Polar Star (Shared Universe)
The Girl Who Ate a Death God (LN) (Shared Universe)
Recommendations
The Girl Who Ate a Death God (3)
Akuyaku Tensei Dakedo Doushite Kou Natta. (2)
Katahane no Riku (2)
Queen of No.11 Agent 11 (1)
Ouroboros Record ~Circus of Oubeniel~ (1)
Recommendation Lists
  1. My Library Of Treasures
  2. The Goats
  3. My personal favourites
  4. Female Protagonist (No CP)
  5. JP FMC Novels

Latest Release

Date Group Release
05/05/18 PsychoBarcode... c46
04/20/18 PsychoBarcode... c45
04/06/18 PsychoBarcode... c44
03/23/18 PsychoBarcode... c43
03/09/18 PsychoBarcode... c42
02/24/18 PsychoBarcode... c41
02/10/18 PsychoBarcode... c40
01/26/18 PsychoBarcode... c39
01/13/18 PsychoBarcode... c38
12/24/17 PsychoBarcode... c37
12/24/17 PsychoBarcode... c36
12/24/17 PsychoBarcode... c35
12/24/17 PsychoBarcode... c34
12/24/17 PsychoBarcode... interlude 2
12/23/17 PsychoBarcode... c33
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Review
34 Reviews


PsychoBarcodeTranslations
PsychoBarcod
Apr 20, 2018
Status: c46
Low fantasy: magic is rare and mysterious. Set in a medieval world, the story follows a lighthearted and childish main character as she navigates her way through tumultuous times as an empire quakes.

She isn't naive, she isn't s*upid, she isn't a genius. She is, however, the single ray of sunshine in an otherwise grim world; at least as far as any reader is concerned.

This tale is very down-to-earth, generally makes sense, and touches on themes of taxation, the war on drugs, and disease. While it briefly touches on them, it... more>> does not dwell, and the lighthearted protagonist is the saving grace of this novel. It really rides on our main girl. War does take its toll on the cast, but the light of hope never fades.

Is it worth reading? I dedicated two years of my life to translate it. That ought to be answer enough. I've gone through ups and downs along side the characters in this novel, and they will always have a special place in my heart. <<less
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estelionsharluluasheelvinchancecelenalia
estelionshar
Mar 07, 2016
Status: --
Story

To be honest, the story never gets too deep. Essentially the story of one girl looking for the meaning of happiness, and climbing the ranks of a warring nation’s military as she does.

Battles and ‘Power Levels’

... more>> Noel, the protagonist, wins a lot of battles. She’s a supersoldier. But at the same time, she isn’t OP in the way that you might think. Although she has incredible physical prowess, most of the battles she wins, she does so through war strategy. The novel features more ‘Rakuin no Monshou’-esque type battles.

Characters

Charming, human, and relateable. Honestly, I love the protagonist. I don’t ever cry because of fiction, but I have to say my eyes did tear up in sympathy during the midway turning point.

Although the story becomes necessarily dark due to the nature of war, at the same time, it never approaches anything close to angsty or edgy, and part of the reason is because the protagonist Noel, is intelligent and aware of the way the world works, while at the same time retains a mostly bright and pure personality. She’s honestly quite a charming protagonist, and just like how I was charmed by her, the characters around her eventually gather to her side as well. <<less
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Dellphit
Dellphit
Apr 25, 2016
Status: --
This novel, along with overlord is what got rid of my bias against Japanese light novels. General light novels emphasize too much harems and characters are over powered from the start. This leaves very little room for any sort of character development. While the lead of this character also starts strong, the author does an amazing job in connecting us, the readers, the despair of continuous loss as those around the lead die one by one. Eventually, she begins to have little to no reaction to the concept of death... more>> which is truly saddening. One of the most important aspect of this novel that I love is the aspect of war. Too many novels romanticize war to the point that it seems just like a game. From Noel’s aspect, it is easy to see the true horrors (rape, looting, massacres, and etc) of war. <<less
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Pixeldrum
Pixeldrum
Apr 01, 2021
Status: Completed
After completing The Girl Who Ate Death, there's no way I could resist reading this novel written by the same author. And to be honest, these two novels are established in the same universe, and have similar plot and themes. Both are militaristic novels with innocuous but extremely strong girls that take command in armies.

However, The Girl Who Ate Death just fires on all cylinders, while The Girl Who Bore the Flame Ring leaves much to be satisfied.

The Girl Who Bore the Flame Ring's plot and characters are a lot... more>> more lighthearted in comparison to The Girl who Ate Death. I'm not unopposed to this change, as I too, am not looking for a carbon copy of the first novel. That being said, it's not executed well. The Girl Who Ate Death was good because of the macabre and solemn tones that always permeated throughout the novel. There were glimmers of hope here and there, but for the most part, it's an extremely serious novel that explores the cruelty of war. People die constantly. This morbid tone of the story gets communicated in all the brutalities that Schera goes through. Whether it be killing traitors, getting betrayed, having her soldiers defend to their last breath, or just taking the head of the commander, there's always a magnifying lens on how death is prevalent. This emphasis on death is exactly what establishes the tone of the story. The novel doesn't just describe how a fortress gets taken down, but provides meaningful and in depth depictions of all the men that died and how they died. It explores the themes of whether or not any war is ever justified, and that it's the winners that write history.

The Girl Who Bore the Flame Ring, on the other hand, reminds me of the JP OP protagonist trope when dealing with armies. Good side beats bad side, and everyone on the good side lives, while the bad side is definitely evil. While this is not exactly the case, and it's obvious that The Girl Who Bore the Flame Ring also puts some details how there's always death on the battlefield, it's de-emphasized and there is no morbid battles. Usually, Noel will win her battles with little to no casualties when completely destroying the enemy. There's no real depiction of much brutality and gruesomeness that was present in The Girl Who Ate Death. Rather, top level details are merely mentioned. "The enemy got routed." "his head got chopped off." Even the battles where Noel personally fights and kills her enemies has quite a less grim tone, and it's usually a quick confrontation that results in her more or less effortless victory.

Onto characters. Honestly, The Girl Who Ate Death did not emphasize character development. Schera, Katarina, Yalder, and a few other characters are extremely well made, but in the end, they were pretty simple. I love them, though, and they fit the story well. The Girl Who Bore the Flame Ring's characters are admittedly, more complex. Noel, Riglette, and Barbas especially are welcome personalities that I liked a a lot. Riglette is a spiritual successor to Katarina, and her character dynamic with Noel fits very well. Elgar turned out to be a great character as well. Birut, the Zoim villagers, etc also fit very well. Cynthia was the only character I didn't like at all. First of all, she gets pushed out of the spotlight in the final arcs of the story. Why was there so much emphasis on her in the first place then, shall I ask? Second of all, her "fluffy slice of life interactions" with Noel just feels so offputting and fake. Her relationship with Noel just didn't seem genuine compared to the other characters. There's an unnecessary amount of fluff and random slice of life interactions with Noel that take away from the story. Naturally, I think that Noel's personality with Cynthia just seemed a bit too "perfect." What I mean is that she behaves extremely strangely with Cynthia that does not befit her personality in order for there to be the slice of life "fluff" interactions.

However, what plagues this novel the most is definitely motivation. Other than Elgar, other characters have extremely shallow and unexplored motivations. Noel especially. Noel is looking for happiness, so why the hell is she fighting in the army? The plot basically gets justified because Noel made some arbitrary and flimsy promises with Cynthia and Elgar to what, "rise to the top?" Overall, the happiness theme never gets explored, and it's a macguffin. Overall, Noel's personality may be more complex than Schera's, but Noel doesn't make too much sense as a character. I get that the author wanted to make this novel about Noel being in the army, but this sad excuse for a motivation is really weak. Plus, what about Riglette? I think Riglette was a character that could have been greater than she already was. Why was it that the plot was such that Wilm absolutely hated Riglette and wanted her dead, so that Riglette's loyalty to Noel was to be expected. It would have been much more impactful if there was a resolution on Riglette to betray her father on her own will, with circumstances not so black and white. Barbas as well. Barbas and his army of 500 just get recrutied by Noel because he lost to her in a duel. This loyalty to Noel doesn't make any sense and it doesn't get explored at all. There should have been a large amount of time dedicated to Noel gaining the loyalty of Barbas, but it just doesn't happen. Schera's troops have undying loyalty to her because of her charisma in battle. Battle after battle, Schera led them to battle to victory, and her soldiers naturally got enthralled by her. She represents death, and her soldiers follow death. Sure, it's a bit simplified, but at the same time, it's not like any of one of her troops had much focus. Compare this with Barbas, who was a major character in this novel. Even Cynthia has really weak motivations, but I'll let it pass because at least it made sense.

Again, compare this with The Girl Who Ate the Death God. Schera's village got pillaged, burned, and destroyed by the liberation army. She has clear motivations for fighting and it's emphasized throughout the entire story that she wants to kill every single rebel. It's a recurring theme, and the novel always describes her killings of these rebels in great detail. Katarina eventually gains Schera's respect and loyalty for good reason. Vander's motivations makes him struggle between betrayal or to stay.

Pair this with also the exceedingly light hearted tone of the novel, and it doesn't mesh well. Again, just like with JP OP protagonist novels that lead armies, there's no sense of tension of battle present in a lot of situations. Usually, Noel's side crushes opposition without much fail, and the times where she does lose, it's briefly mentioned. Slice of life conversation and interactions are emphasized, and there just no sense of despair or macabre present at all in this novel. That's okay. Sure, it can be light hearted, but it's not executed well. This novel would have been much better if rather than force Noel into the army, she could have led mercenaries or just even led a revolution. Overall, this would have been a much better canvas for slice of life interactions. It could be that she leads a pack of mercenaries in search of happiness. Overall, I think that Noel's happiness seeking adventures could have been a good read. Instead, this search for happiness just doesn't matter in the end. Like I said, its' a macguffin. Instead, the plot focuses on Noel's overly eager and loyal exploits in the army. Yet, since it has a more light hearted tone and has slice of life interactions, the novel has this dissonance. On one hand, you have slice of life, and on the other, you have her going into "brutal battles" to kill the enemy. Again, if Noel wasn't stuck in the army and was just searching for happiness, this could have been avoided. Her motivations for staying in the army are just a plot device. It's sad. Another thing to point out is that if Schera's defining characteristic was her gluttonous appetite, then Noel's was her love for sunlight and hatefulness of rain. Then, out of nowhere, and off screen, she "stops hating the rain that much" and appreciates it. What???? Not only was this said in mere sentences, but it was completely unnecessary. There was no point in this, and it just destroys an essential characteristic of her personality for no reason. <<less
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YoriMei
YoriMei
Feb 10, 2020
Status: c46
Phew. As always with this author’s novels, they’re wordy, politics heavy and written with textbook like ancedotes. I will admit, the beginning of this novel is stronger than the ending, seeing Fraser and Kurt fall into vice so quickly was such a gut punch, I still have trouble forgotting that chapter. That said, overall the story was a very intriguing one and our MC’s scatterbrained but unparalleled when it comes to fighting. MC’s refreshing in that she never loses her childish demeanor nor her unsettling behavior.

just like Death God, our... more>> MC’s on the “losing” side, the side that would be the antagonist in a black and white shounen manga. Things are realistic and grim in this story, and there’s even less “magic” in this one than before. Heck, half the time you forget about the bident being unnaturally hot. This story is way more politics heavy so be warned if you’re looking for action. <<less
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Schwarz_Eins
Schwarz_Eins
Apr 08, 2020
Status: c45
Wow, I don't even know how to describe this novel, to put it simple it's one those novels that after you finish reading you just look to the ceiling on a daze, like if you just lost something important. It's a really strong novel that will surely make you feel a LOT of different emotions, from happiness to hate, from sadness to love. But well, "that's just the way of life"
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Aryzcw
Aryzcw
Oct 17, 2018
Status: Completed
The ending left me with few more questions that I wished the author elaborate on. The last chapter feels a little rushed

BUT, at the end of the day it is one of the greatest novel that I've read. The character feels human. The MC is not some sort of saint whose action is always right and the "Villain" is not evil either.

The plot is great. Although essentially categorized as "dark" novel, it doesn't left me depressed reading it. MC's cheerful personality really grew on me throughout the novel and I... more>> can take some value from the ever positive Noel

I would rate it 9.5/10 and place it in my top 10 of MUST READ novels! <<less
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Salexe
Salexe
Jan 19, 2018
Status: c38
The best Japanese novel I have read, probably ever.

I agree it starts out a little forced. But after 3-4 chapters you are hooked on the feeling of real human dileemas. Having tasted the sweet taste of power corrupts, valuing your image to much will cause you trouble, blind trust is a bad thing unless you are willing to die for that person. It feels gritty and real, with major setbacks. An OP MC that is balanced out by a few others being just as OP. Others s*upidity isnt caused by... more>> s*upidity alone but also traits, or more precisly flaws. This gives a feeling of a smart MC with her own flaws, being able to outwitt her opponents that arent s*upid, but simply flawed.

Of course there are some minor things that doesnt make sense, which only happens to further the plot. But these things only happen to the MC and her decision. Things like, why join the army? Why hide her past? Why is she having a different mentality? But these are small matters compared to how well this novel does human psychlogy.

Brilliant work. <<less
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General Tanya
General Tany
Aug 17, 2018
Status: --
It seems like there is still hope after all. It been awhile since I have read a good Jap WN. Most these days Jap WN are so ridiculous and silly that it only irritate me after reading it. Author did a good job creating the western setting with swords and nobles. It's pretty good with how human nature act in such situations during times of war and despair. The MC is very likable and interesting. Usually I am not a fan of a female MC but author manage to do... more>> such a good job that this novel is on my favorite list of female MC like 'Youjo Senki and I am a spider so what'. Story does have sad moments which is great. It's too bad the story is so short, but nevertheless it's a pretty good story. I have not much to say except that this is a great novel if you love war about swords full of tragedy. Doesn't have any complain the entire time I have read this novel. <<less
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miratap
miratap
Jul 21, 2018
Status: c14
*pardon my english*

I really recommended to read this if you like medieval war RPG game (example FF Tactics and Suikoden, since this novel has same vibes with those games)

I really like the MC, because I was charmed by her character (for me it's kinda hard to be charmed by a character), and the way of author's writing and how the translator's trying to present really made me feel like watching and playing my fav RPG game plot

But this story describes more than the game, more realistic to explain the... more>> darkness of war

Eventhough this novel revolves around war, there's more than that such as philosophical things like happiness, human relations, strategy, etc

Andd all hail and me thanking translator, editor for bringing this masterpiece from wonderful author (finally it's finished being translated yaaayyy) <<less
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whitetragedy
whitetragedy
Aug 26, 2016
Status: c11
If you loved the author's other series, The Girl Who Ate A Death God, then you'll love this.

Like before, the author combines comedic fluffiness and gory darkness to create a main character that stands out from the other cookie cutter web novels. The setting feels realistic with a bit of a mysterious fantasy vibe making it hard to predict how the story will turn out. Don't fear the low chapter amount or translation speed because each chapter is about long as a normal light novel chapter, similar to those of... more>> Overlord and the like. As far as translation quality goes, it is better than most out there, but there are parts where it is hard to understand who is talking. Knock on wood, I feel the translator is getting used to the novel and it's becoming easier to read. As of ch11, the actions is really starting to pick up. <<less
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Archerreborn2
Archerreborn
Mar 19, 2016
Status: --
Definitely a good read, a big step up in both quality of translation and material compared to most of the other stories being translated. I'd recommend everyone give the first two chapters a read to get a feel of the story.
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SaberWolf
SaberWolf
Mar 11, 2016
Status: --
Only two chapters released so far, but even, I absolutely love it! Just the first chapter alone was enough to draw me in, a fact both extremely rare (out of the dozens of novels I've read) and promising.

WARNING: When reading this, have tissues ready.
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touchoflemon
touchoflemon
Nov 26, 2019
Status: Completed
I'm a bit depressed now that I finished. I bit of my soul is gone now.

Some parts are a bit lackluster as far as visualization and some characters could have done with more development. All characters seemed to have a trademark quirk and obstinately carried out that whenever they appeared, which is a bit tiring. A bit of the plot is predictable but no less exciting.

Still an amazing read... I just now need a drink and some eyebleach or a lighter series.
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Eden1506
Eden1506
Oct 27, 2019
Status: Completed
A Beautiful Dark Novel.

A story that after you read it leaves you with an empty hole in your chest for more that will never come.

A grim world with the protagonist as its candle.
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Milanda
Milanda
Jul 11, 2019
Status: Completed
An absolutely amazing story I enjoyed fully. Her story was a great ride I would recommend to anyone who likes war based fantasy and stories of self discovery.
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Tombstone490
Tombstone490
Dec 13, 2018
Status: c46
Great story with a good strong female lead, it isn't too long and doesn't stretch uselessy. The character development is well done especially the introduction. Overall it is one of the best novels I've read so far.

EDIT: all 14 who rated 3 or less can just go and die
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whitespade
whitespade
Nov 13, 2018
Status: c46
This is quite a fun novel about a girl that will fight and fight. The military stuff is not hard to understand. Although some of them are not really 'realistic' and die hard otaku on military will disparage some instances, I think overall everything is still enjoyable.

Since its a Japanese novel, you cannot run away from some s*upid tsun girls and though I would love to drive a rusted saw through her, I just tolerate her and skip those useless paragraphs. Yes there are a lot of useless and painfully... more>> weak dialogues but you can skip them easily.

The ending is nice though not that poignant because to me the literary technique is not sophisticated enough to tug the heartstring. Maybe the reader feel seperated from the emotion of the protagonist as the protagonist herself is seperated from it.

Well its not bad so read it. <<less
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ArcaneFantasies
ArcaneFantas
Sep 05, 2018
Status: c16
I cant stand Cynthia. The most annoying type of character: s*upid, rash, arrogant, proud, keeps looking down on Noel despite always getting shown up and helped, always nagging.

i need to take a break. Shes giving me a headache.
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Kurokami-Sama
Kurokami-Sam
Jul 02, 2018
Status: Completed
I like how the author create a solid fantastic world and how it feels real thanks to the characters. The journey of Noel (similar to Schera 'journey) made me passed for a roller coaster of feelings, and I love how both stories achive that I as reader felt so fascinated and attached to the MCs.

Really worth of reading. 11/10!
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