Sword Pilgrim

Description

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Callius von Jervain.

A character who dies no matter what he does. A character who falls into a forced choice route where he can only die, no matter his choices up to that point. However, there is a single route where the character can live and play the game.

And I have to carve out that route somehow.

Because I’ve become Callius von Jervain in the game.

Associated Names
One entry per line
검의 순례자
Related Series
N/A
Recommendations
A Villain’s Will to Survive (11)
I Obtained a Mythic Item (4)
Surviving the Game as a Barbarian (3)
Surviving a Shounen Manga (3)
The Regressed Demon Lord is Kind (2)
Never Die Extra (2)
Recommendation Lists
  1. readable/good or bad depends on you
  2. Things I've Read That Don't Suck (1)
  3. Basic Bi*ch
  4. Fantasy
  5. Peak Fantasy

Latest Release

Date Group Release
04/29/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c137
04/26/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c136
04/24/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c135
03/31/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c134
03/24/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c133
03/18/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c132
03/03/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c131
02/25/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c130
02/18/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c129
02/15/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c128
02/09/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c127
01/28/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c126
01/21/24 Ashen Clouds Translations c125
12/24/23 Ashen Clouds Translations c124
12/17/23 Ashen Clouds Translations c123
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60 Reviews sorted by


Jackmeher
Jackmeher rated it
December 20, 2021
Status: c11
This is one of those novels you will enjoy but only if you had the ability to turn yourself into an idiot at will. Other than the basic ability to string words into sentences and borrow from other novel premises, this has nothing done right. The characters are all flatter than my monitor screen. You know that moment where in every transmigrated into a fantasy/novel/game world has the protagonist confused or slowly adapting? Pfft, readers are tired of that! Why build their character from that moment onwards when you can... more>> just TIME SKIP THREE YEARS. Our MC is cool and pragmatic and....... uuuhhhhhhhh...... QUICK; DISTRACT THE READERS WITH RANDOM ACTION SET PIECES! (Side characters are so flat, I don't need to mention them besides the protagonist)

Random set pieces.... WHERE THE SETTING ISN'T DESCRIBED OR USED IN COMBAT AT ALL! (Yeah, this is the extent of the world-building basically)

Gotta love that one chapter where the author tries to get readers attached to Callius the original one but not develop the writer in his body properly as a character.
Spoiler

Mannnn, he is so empathetic and tragic when his loved one (unnamed) died but look at how he beats up a man or extorts the kid he saved

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! Wait, why did he do it? Oh, I dunno;maybe he's an amalgamation of korean novel tropes. At least my descriptions aren't that bad;when you have this novel beating you over the head THREE times ABOUT the DARK BLUE SWORD. If you were thinking: ''Oh it was just the one time the author wrote it like that'', I'd question if you were reading the same novel as me.

Frankly, I fail to see the ''originality'' described in other reviews. It borrows heavily from novels like The Novel's Extra in terms of tropes but executes them spectacularly terribly. Tho I find it worrying that a lot of reviews fail to pick up on these flaws.

Edit:September 17, 2022

Where, oh, where do I begin? This is a call-out. As for who, you know who you are.

Let's begin up the topic of maturity, since this will relate to most of what I say.

As a person who lives life, I realized that things happen because of factors and events that came before. This is the principle of causality. Why am I stating something so obvious in a novel review, you might ask. Because novels are not voids or space that is separate from reality. They are enjoyed by people in our world and written by people in our world with all their perspectives or life circumstances.

Therefore characterization is important for any reader to engage, unless they project their own life's desires, fantasies, or wishes upon a self-insert character. (We will get back to this later.)

Take Callius (the writer in his body) for example, he has known loss and tragedy according to his back story but then you wonder why he beats up a guy before extorting the kid he ''saved''. The inconsistent characterization is downright contradictory.

It doesn't feel like it flows or leads into each other well. I, however, can create an excuse for that.

Maybe as a game writer, he was always paid low wages in korean work culture->money means a lot to him->he extorts a kid for this reason in the game world->he might consider people in that world to be ''objects''. There we go, easy peasy characterization.

And yet, the author doesn't write that. Why? We don't get any moment where Callius thinks of the world and it's people as objects bc he timeskips three years despite interacting with the world for THREE YEARS.

Analyzing this objectively, his character has no foundation to stand on. Visualize this, characters or people are buildings. Over their life, the people they meet, and any events they encounter.

They have foundations added onto them which leads to another floor of the building being complete. Being characterized.

Callius is flat bc he has certain character traits without any in-universe reasons for why he acts the way he does. The author needs to state reasons, otherwise, the characters have no core motives.

Just as easily as I can write an excuse for his behavior, anyone can project their own interpretations onto it to defend the author and their story.

I, however, did not. I question why the characters acted the way they did without making excuses for or against the author.

So I must flip the script on you, and you know who you are

Am I the one being subjective OR are you?

Of course, the meta reason for why Callius is written that way is bc it's popular to have an as*hole protagonist who does and says things that nerds projecting onto them can't;in reality. (We all know this to be true, just look at the website you're reading this review on)

Characters are boring when flat because the author fails to make anyone who doesn't self-project care for the character.

Anyone who is analyzing realizes that characters have no basis to why they act the way they do. There is two measures of good characterization:life experience/introspection from the author and effort put in (hard and smart). There is barely any effort in the description bc author constantly ''tells''.

Callius is always right, cool-headed, cunning, and smurt! But why? Does his background make him a smart person? Hmmm, he was a writer for a game's story. Not a chance in hell. Did he have to navigate workplace politics? Doubt that applies to a fantasy world where he wanders about anyways.

Cliches or laughably, cliques as you call them are called the way they because they are over-used tropes. Either their impact was lost a long time ago or people who use the trope have stopped understanding why it's used.

So let's tear this apart. The abilities and systems at play are vastly different but the execution is lacking. Why? Because the systems are part of the world itself and therefore it should have effects on the people who live in that world. Not just on fights, but also how people live their lives. If you could pull a sword out of anyone in the world, how come some swords don't ;I dunno, fertilize soil for agriculture? If gods exist, why don't their blessings have different effects outside of pure combat alone? It'd be far more interesting to explore rather than a generic power system that can be replaced with any other power system. If it went my direction, it would explain why the countries in this world have not exterminated the wandering warmongers of the weapon churches. Or why those churches are still allowed to exist or even where they exist in the landscape.

Ironically, you also seem to have pin-pointed this in your own critique of someone else's review about xianxia. The originality lies not in the idea itself, but the way the idea is approached and used. That is why Eastern and Western Xianxias are the same. They have the same easy to understand realms and stages of power. And they are always about who can hit harder than the other guy. They are always generic power fantasies about how my main character is THE BESTEST, FIRSTEST, TALENTEST PERSON ALIVE. I wonder which novel we're talking about fits that exact description.... hmmm..a novel called sword pilgrim?

You get the picture. My critique about originality and how this novel does what other novels do but worse still stands.

You know what's original? My characterization of Callius, why was my execution of his character so different and far more compelling compared to the author?Because I actually gave reasons for why he acts the way he does. He isn't just a void that just walks around in a void with multiple names.

Because I am a person who realizes the concept of causality can be applied to stories because it applies to the people reading the stories. Stories, games, art, and movies do not exist in a vacuum.

The same goes for characters. They don't exist in a void but they exist in worlds. Those worlds have circumstances regarding politics and economics that affect the lives of characters living in them. This novel's ''world'' is just a void with different names.

Also your critique of another person's review is cute. You're literally defending the author from the rightful critique of ''show, don't tell''. I have covered what show, don't tell is in one of my other reviews on this site. I will not be repeating myself.

The hell is a straight-forward sword style? What about the footwork, amateur? What about wrist-turns? I ain't even a swordman and I know this. This is the issue with ''telling'', you use abstract words like ''straight-forward'' to describe a noun. How about describing the trajectory and hand movement instead?

''Callius's life blade drew a parabola arc away from [insert name]'s torso as a harvest of crimson bloomed from the abdomen. His hands twist back, blade in hand, jettisoning towards his opponent's ribs, intent on reaping more red wine.'' <-I wrote this in 2 minutes

Why are you defending the author for failing to write something so EASY. Even I did it.

Just as I very well could've never written my original review, you could've never written your review criticizing wrongly others. Ever heard of toxic positivity? It would be sooo good if we could all pretend there's nothing wrong at all in this world. But I do not fool myself like a clown.

God! I should never complain about anything bc someone else likes it! It's not as if complaining can result in beneficial outcomes like anything else in life! Man, my boss treats a lot of people like sh*t but nooo, I shouldn't point out his flaws because some like him! Even if those who like him are brown-nosers! I'm being sarcastic as f**k to get my point across.

Guess what? I didn't like this novel and posted a review! At least I spent TIME and EFFORT informing people about the flaws of this novel to save people some time. Especially if the 26 likes have anything to say about it. I can take solace in the fact that I spoke for the people who disliked this novel and that I might've gotten some to save time by not reading this pile of tr*sh.

Your critique is weak, you couldn't even pin-point the core motive and feelings behind the negative reviews. Your writing style isn't very compelling either. At least my review got my feelings of frustration across to so many who read it. Truthfully, no one gives a damn if something is subjective or not. All that matters is the emotion you can transmit. Leave the reviewing to those who know what they're talking about.

Damn, my writing style changed in almost a year. <<less
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Meloonseed
Meloonseed rated it
October 9, 2021
Status: c15
Just read it to c15. I see why it has such a high rating.

The protagonist is an interesting guy. He's cunning and isn't restrained by other people, doing what needs to be done, not taking care of his image but not being a greasy a**hole. He does what he wants but with a goal in mind. His personality is extremely likeable, especially to most male fantasy readers, and his personality isn't offensive to other audiences of readers. Basically, he's a very cool kind of protagonist.

The world setting is an interesting... more>> one. Basically, it's a world where if you worship a god you can turn dead people into weapons. Standard fantasy novel stuff with a bit of a twist. But there's an established goal that the protagonist is working at, he isn't just at it to grow stronger for the sake of it, or to get revenge for his family members of which we have no attachment to/whatever other done to death trope. The protagonist wants to take down the Empire which only allows their single religion and persecutes other religions. A pretty lofty goal with a lot of potential for the following story.

Since I'm only 15 chapters in, I don't really have anything else to say. But I can say that the first 15 chapters were pretty much perfect, and in the way that you just know it's going to be good for at least a hundred or two chapters. I haven't found this sort of novel on novelupdates for a while, and I'll just say I'm glad I scrolled through the dumpster fire of the daily recommended to find this gem.

I'll be watching this novel for a long time. <<less
29 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Daoist Ghoul
Daoist Ghoul rated it
September 24, 2021
Status: --
This novel basically tells the story of a writer who is transmigrated to the game he wrote when he was killed. He has to gain strength to survive and resurrect the God he serve so he could ask why he came into this world.

So far, the premise seems interesting, the story setting is good, the MC looks promising.

would recommend you to give this one a TRY !!! It's something DIFFERENT
26 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Asf
Asf rated it
November 3, 2021
Status: --
Honestly this korean novel reads almost like a Chinese xianxia novel just with korean fantasy settings.

The MC slaughter people at ease. Everyone and their mom wants to kill the MC. He's a genius at swordsmanship that gets a skill out of thin air when hes about to lose.

They never talk about face but it sure is hella important for the MC.

Well.. Its just not my cup of tea so I dropped it. But if you like that sort of edgy MC then go for it I say..
18 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
ErikHarrison
ErikHarrison rated it
October 11, 2021
Status: c149
I want to give the author a big wet kiss

Finally an Isekai novel that feels like it was written with an idea and passion.

The MC follows a religion similar to Witchers. People hate them but they serve a needed purpose.

Spoiler

So it didn't go in the direction I wanted (Lone misunderstood badass saving the world while being hated). The author took a safer/more generic path. It still holds up and is worth the read but I'd be lying if I wasn't upset by the tone shift after ch24

[collapse]
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Flux007
Flux007 rated it
October 13, 2021
Status: c18
I was looking for some good quality novels when I stumbled on this one this is gold. The search was worth it. I really like the narration of the story it gives a cool vibe. The translation is top notch.
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suckstosuck
suckstosuck rated it
August 8, 2024
Status: c137
The only downside to this novel is the slow translation speed. As of the date of this review, the most recent chapter was posted on April 29, 2024. There may be valid reasons for the delay, such as the translator dealing with health or family issues. However, it would be great if someone with strong translating skills could continue the work. Ashen Translations has done a fantastic job so far (respect) and I would hate for the quality of the translation to be degraded.

That being said, this novel stands out... more>> among all the others trending on NU. Compared to those, it's a total gem, and I highly recommend giving it a try. Its high rating speaks for itself, despite the critical reviews.

P.S. This is my first review! Ty for reading it. <<less
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SteelWasp
SteelWasp rated it
January 2, 2022
Status: c109
Updated: as of c109 (225 of 2023)

Amazing. One of the novels I come back to read a handful of out chapters, and it never disappoints. Very exciting indeed, my hat's off.

... more>> First review: as of c40 (2 of 2022)

This is interesting. I like the feeling of this novel, it's rather special.

It's too early to judge, but it looks good. The world is intriguing, the story is engaging, and the writing style is notable.

In a couple or more places the flow is a bit discordant. No big deal, it's rather common to see, even, but it makes me wonder if the author can handle the novel's growing complexity. <<less
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uchiru
uchiru rated it
October 31, 2021
Status: c149
I like how things go unexpectedly. A thug you think is just a cannon fodder destined to die by the MCs sword became his errand boy and manages to survive throughout the plot. A minor villain you think would have deep conspiracies suddenly dies in the next chapter. An enemy that is ambiguous will make you think that he will change side to MC still ended to be killed by MC in the end.
Spoiler

And the really unexpected things was his daughter. In other stories. When an MC meets someones who looks like from his family but with an unknown identity, it would usually be an illegitimate half-sibling or some cousin from a branch family. It was unexpected for MC to suddenly gain a blood-related daughter. The original Callius had her when he was just 14 yrs old. MC met her daughter when she was already 12 yrs. Old

[collapse]

Spoiler

This story has similarity with villain wants to live but just darker with religion theme. It has also things I hate which is Cliche in most novels where MCs is woman magnet. Group of Women who want to kill him because of the ruffian OGCallius still falls for him because he gained a trait called "pheromones" which makes him smell good which attract females.

Despite this he is also dense, an example would be flying in the sky carrying a woman (while hugging) he wonders why the woman's heart beats so fast. Another would be Touching the cheeks of the queen and saying that he would be nothing without her which is ambiguous but he actually meant that he will die without the kingdom but doesnt noticed that his word were suggestive.

There is also the cliche where OGCallius likes Esther (1st romantic interest) and bullied her when she was young then they meet during MCs journey then tries to kill MC thinks he's evil. MC barely defeated her and MC let her go due to her importance to storyline. Esther talks to her guardian and receives advice that MC probably likes her and trying to change leading to the misunderstanding that the MC change to have her heart. Harem members are one-sided for now. There are Pilgrim Esther, Queen, elf that is destined to be a hero in the OG game, Yandere princess from a Principality (Enemy). There are other girls but they are more like colleagues though they still are under the ambiguous kind

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di2857295
di2857295 rated it
January 29, 2023
Status: Completed
Well I finished it and can confidently say I agree with the authors afterword.

That is, the author was not capable of supporting this large of a premise. He states that after the first orc arc he never felt that he was able to bring out the story properly and it is accurate.

the whole middle of the story has some positive parts, but is mostly forgettable. The characters are supposed to have relationships but they're never managed properly. The ending is probably supposed to be this big impactful thing, but it... more>> got shoved into too few chapters, leaving so much unanswered and the reader unfulfilled for investing their time.

Tl:dr If you want a story like this that's worth your time, read Priest of Corruption. It's far superior to this middling mess.

-original chapter 57 review-

This novel can be summed up in two words. Unrealistic Coincidences.

Every time the MC is about to die, he always experiences a crazy sequence of 'coincidence' events that not only stop him from dying but also leave him massively overpowered from the experience.

It's lazy plot armor writing. Read Priest of Corruption instead. It's much better. <<less
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Bugai-sha
Bugai-sha rated it
May 23, 2022
Status: c54
The plot is full of inconsistencies that benefit the MC. The MC repeatedly claims he has not much talent for the sword, but he can still execute the most legendary sword style first try without any prior practice to defeat an enemy stronger than him. And such things happen multiple times.

The author doesn't know sh*t about war. The entire war sequence is written s*upidly such that despite both sides having people stronger than MC, the MCs side is completely useless without him and the MC single handedly changes the course... more>> of the battle (not because of any great strategy, but because of coincidence and the fact that the author decreases the enemy's IQ and strength when the MC appears on the scene).

Spoiler

Instead of following the nature author defined for the enemy orcs (fearless warriors looking for death on the battlefield), the enemies become pussies and start cowering from and losing to the much weaker humans that are also much fewer in number after the MC blocks their leader.

[collapse]

On top of all this, MC is given plot armor in the form of a skill. Each time the MC is about to die, the skill activates and permanently improves the MC's fighting ability by a huge amount, enough to easily defeat whatever enemy was about to kill the MC.

I'm giving it 2 stars because the start was interesting and I like the concept of sword pilgrims introduced by the author. Unfortunately, that's not enough to make the story enjoyable. I haven't read far enough, so maybe it gets better later? If it doesn't, I would rate it 1 star. <<less
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ErTucano
ErTucano
October 4, 2021
Status: --
The novel is good. And the world where the MC is resurrected is a typical middle age dark world. He is a "priest" of the God of the sword and when the novel starts he has already been reincarnated for 3 years. The plot is good, at least for me, and the novel has a lot of potential...
7 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Rewalos123
Rewalos123 rated it
April 8, 2024
Status: c134
I am writing a review so that this excellent novel gets its well deserved recognition in the Rankings. Such a brilliant story. The only flaw that I can say is that the update rate is painfully slow, but I am glad that there is an update nonetheless. I am on my second readthrough of this book (Since I kinda forgot the plot after not reading it for a long time).
6 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Andrwood
Andrwood rated it
October 12, 2021
Status: c18
It's too early to draw any big conclusions, but at the moment I like how this novel is developing. There are some confusing things, but it is quite possible that this will explain further. The story is interesting and unusual. I'm sure you won't regret it if you start reading.
6 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Plopthedog
Plopthedog rated it
October 6, 2021
Status: c13
Shaping up to be a great story. Feels nice to read something with a different tone for once.
6 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
ChillSir
ChillSir rated it
July 16, 2022
Status: c60
This is damn good, perhaps the main character is a bit flat at times but on the other hand, the plot threads are exquisitely woven and everything so far has connected and flowed well. Seemingly minor things from an earlier chapter suddenly make a play later on and I was sitting there like "oh sh*t why didnt I think this would be a thing".

Its something that also appeared in the novel "The Legendary Mechanic" and i've missed it.
5 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
bakaemon
bakaemon rated it
December 6, 2021
Status: c34
I can see another potential ranker of NU, which could rival top 10 novel of the list. I can't believe it's still not popular right now.

Just goddamn read it, never been before my picky taste is satisficed to such extend since Lord of Mysteries. Why too few chapter translated, why?
5 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Goldenxman33
Goldenxman33 rated it
October 20, 2021
Status: c20
Great story, totally classic and refined, going back to the roots were every story was creative although not original, and don't get me wrong too much originally actually destroy the story (the author with wild ideas will eventually ran out of ideas in the middle of the novel and turn it to a Harem story). If you pay to read you will get what you paid for, every chapter has a new descovery or event unlike other novels that will waste 10 chapters telling you how blue the sky... more>> is or how delicious raw meet from organic farms teaste like.

The MC is very likeable and relatable, not cruel but also not merciful, he has no friends or family to take care off, if he can he would have run away but he have to save the kingdom or he will die. <<less
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AstNaru
AstNaru rated it
October 12, 2021
Status: --
First of all, thank you for the translator (s) that picked up this novel. I really appreciate it.

Back to the novel.

This one is interesting at the start and I hope it would be like that even in the future chapters.

... more>> The MC is good and interesting as it seems to be to the readers other than myself. That goes as well to the plot (which seems very generic though...), world building, characters (which is very few at the moment...), and more...

Of course there were flaws in this novel as well but the quality of the novel overall offsets it.

PS: Btw... If possible for the translators, I hope you could update this 1 chap per day or 2 chap if possible <<less
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Dg2
Dg2 rated it
April 28, 2022
Status: c61
Story got a cool concept of turning the dead into weapons. The story is a bit more mature compared to other light novels and is rather entertaining.

However, this story suffers from over explanations and foreign memories influencing the MC. These two things are a burden but you can literally skip over it. Though, this leads to the biggest problem. You can skip whole chapters at a time and still know what is going on. Since the pacing is terribly slow once he gets to the Northern Lands.

Overall this is a... more>> solid 4/5 stars. <<less
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