Saint? No! I’m Just a Passing Beast Tamer! Volumes 3 and 4 Review

Saint? No! I’m Just a Passing Beast Tamer! Volume 1 saw us reach the end of the first light novel’s material, which proved a good jumping-off point for readers. However, if you’re looking for more of Kanata’s quest to find the ultimate fluff, then you’re in luck since the manga continued on. What will our heroine encounter next? Let’s find out with Volumes 3 and 4!

With the royal capital having been saved, Kanata and Zaggy decide to set out on an adventure where Kanata can search for more fluff. And it doesn’t take long for Kanata to sense a nearby fuzzball in need. A puppy (who’s actually a Fenrir) is being carted off by a couple of goblins who are looking to make a meal out of him. Kanata rescues him and is delighted by how fluffy he is and his willingness to let her pet him.

But this is no ordinary puppy; this is actually the Spirit Wolf Fenrir (nicknamed Fen-Fen by Kanata). Currently, Fenrir is being held captive by the saint of the Holy City, who believes she needs him to follow her to prove she’s a true saint, just like the one he followed in the past. But Fenrir knows full well that her soul is not that of a saint, and splits off a small portion of his power and his consciousness into the small puppy-sized being that Kanata encounters in order to escape captivity.

He’s been awaiting the return of his beloved saint, and Kanata’s soul smells just like hers. Unfortunately, even if Kanata was that saint in a past life, she doesn’t remember. But Fen-Fen is undeterred and is more than happy to spend his life serving her. Zaggy, meanwhile, is unhappy to be sharing Kanata’s love and affection with another, but in the end, he also wants his master to be happy and begrudgingly puts up with Fen-Fen joining the party.

Now a party of three, they move onward toward Chestnut Village. On the way, Kanata encounters her hero and fellow Beast Tamer, Albert Molmo, who wrote The Bestiary – a book that teaches you all about being a Beast Tamer. He tells her all about how the goblins are causing trouble for his village, and Kanata readily agrees to help get to the bottom of it.

This storyline continues into Volume 4, where we see Kanata and Albert deal with the goblins before our heroine sets off for the Holy City. Fen-Fen desperately wants to keep her away from the church and the saint, but unfortunately for him, Kanata can sense Fen-Fen’s real body and is determined to get closer to it. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), Kanata can’t enter the church without first donating 100 gold coins, so she’s going to have to take on some quests to earn the cash!

Just like the first two volumes of Saint? No! it’s fun to watch over Kanata’s journey. And while she may be entirely oblivious to most of what’s going on around her, there’s quite a lot of depth to the story thanks to the various characters we meet. This is particularly true of what’s happening with Fen-Fen, the saint and the Holy City. There’s a lot of lore here, both about the saint, Beast Tamers, and what’s potentially one of Kanata’s past lives.

Of course, that’s of no concern to Kanata, but the author Inumajin still manages to weave it in neatly for the readers, ensuring that even if our oblivious heroine doesn’t care, her actions still cause the story to move along nicely. Fen-Fen has proven a great addition to the cast, and mangaka iidatoy continues to bring the world and its characters to life wonderfully through the artwork. Although I’ve read all the original light novels, I’m still enjoying reexperiencing the story through the manga thanks to iidatoy’s work. This is a series that’s incredibly cute and comedic, but iidatoy also does a good job of depicting the more serious scenes with the right level of intensity, and that’s one of the reasons it’s a good read even when you already know the story.

If I have any complaints here, it really comes down to the saint who appears to be largely evil for the sake of it. And in particular, her abuse of Fen-Fen’s original body isn’t excusable (she’s been trying to break him mentally so he’ll serve her). The story does try to justify why she’s ended up like this and her desperation, but for me, it just feels a little forced.

Saint? No! I’m Just a Passing Beast Tamer! Volumes 3 and 4 come to the West thanks to Yen Press and continue to be translated by Eleanor Summers with lettering by Caroline Hdz. Both releases read well and have colour pages at the beginning, which are a welcome addition.

The series is still ongoing in Japan, although there hasn’t been a new chapter since early 2025. Volume 5 is the most recent instalment to be released both there and here in English, which Yen Press released in January last year. So, it seems like we’ll be waiting a while for more, but #5 does appear to finish the Holy City arc at least.

Overall, Saint? No! I’m Just a Passing Beast Tamer! Volume 3 and 4 prove charming reads as they move us into a new arc and introduce the adorable Fen-Fen to the party. If you’ve been hoping for more fluffy adventures with Kanata, then these will certainly satisfy you.

Free previews of these volumes can be read on the Yen Press website
Our review copies from Yen Press were supplied by Diamond Book Distributors UK.