Wistoria: Wand and Sword Volume 6 Review

Wistoria: Wand and Sword Volume 5 saw Will and his group safely return from the dungeon just before our protagonist takes his final exam. And then we were left with a twist, leaving readers wondering how the future looks now to our main character. With Volume 6 in hand let’s find out more. 

At the end of Volume 5, we saw Will fail Professor Edward’s final exam, meaning he’s unable to continue with his dream of climbing the Tower and becoming a Magia Vander where his childhood friend Elfie is waiting for him. Devastated, Will runs away from the dorms and his friends start searching for him as they worry about his mental state. 

Meanwhile, the school and the surrounding town prepare to ring in the new year with the Terminalia festival. At the end of a year, the five Magia Vander get together to renew the Great Barrier, which has protected the world for 500 years. Should they fail, the world will fall to ruin. 

The spell to renew the Great Barrier is very intensive, so after it has been cast the Magia Vander are unable to fight. And it just so happens this year that the festival is targeted by a group of evildoers who teleport in powerful monsters from the dungeon!

With the Magia Vander unable to fight, due to fear of being killed (in which case the Great Barrier is at risk), the students of Regarden Magical Academy are left to fend for themselves as they desperately try to protect the townspeople and themselves. With only the instructors for backup, things don’t look good. When Will hears about the commotion, he rushes to the scene, but what can a failure like him do against such powerful foes? 

In the afterword for this volume, artist Toshi Aoi talks about how we’ve passed the halfway point of the story, which I was surprised to read. It certainly felt like this would be a very long-lived series, particularly with author Fujino Omori behind it who’s still writing DanMachi now as it nears a twentieth volume (and it’s well past that if we count the side content). 

However, in some ways, I think it’s better we readers have some reassurance that there is an end in sight. After all, this is in a crowded market surrounded by similar shonen series but those tend to run for a lot of volumes so if you can slip in as something both good and short, you’re more likely to grab readers. At least that’s certainly true of ‘battle shonen’ like this one. 

And maybe it’s because we’ve hit this turning point that Wistoria: Wand and Sword has upped the dramatics once more, not just in having failed Will out of the academy but also in the festival being attacked. As we’ve come to expect from the series, there are some thrilling action scenes contained within these chapters but there’s also a surprising amount of worldbuilding.

 I’ve always found that Wistoria struggles when it comes to balancing action and developing the setting so I’m pleased that there was a good mixture this time around. Particularly as the barrier and the Magia Vander are such important parts of the background, so to better understand them gives us a better understanding of the world. Combine that with another nail-biting cliffhanger and you’ve got an instalment that impresses and will leave you eager for more.

Wistoria: Wand and Sword Volume 6 comes to the West thanks to Kodansha and continues to be translated by Athena and Alethea Nibley. The translation reads well as always with no problems to note. Volume #7 is currently scheduled for an English release in March, so the schedule is slowing down now we’re more or less caught up with Japan but at least it’s not too much of a wait at this point!

Overall, Wistoria: Wand and Sword Volume 6 is a solid instalment in the series so far. While I was surprised to learn we’re already past the halfway point, I think in many ways that makes me confident about the future of the story as it prepares to wrap itself up. If you’ve been enjoying this one, then #6 won’t disappoint. 

Our review copy from Kodansha was supplied by Diamond Book Distributors UK.