Hmm, intriguing. Overall a good read that I'll keep a look out for

Personally, I am giving this a 5 star because the writing is good and the translation is well-done. The translation is one of the strong points for my praise as well. Its kind of quality you can find in official translated light novels. By that, the translator faithful translate the contents and reconstruct them to still convey the same intent and feelings the author wants to convey. Easy it seems but difficult to accomplish.

I'll add and point out... more>> that the combat scenes are executed nicely. There's even technical aspects of actual sword fighting baked into it. Not the kind of stuff that hand waves it but explains theory with practical execution; to be precise, it's HEMA and it helps to visualize the motions of the MC in fights later on. It's rare to find such details in webnovels. Another point is that the first 6 chapters has a good pacing to it. Not only that but how world building is introduced bit by bit without feeling forced is also another positive point as well.

As for the main character, Pastel is loveable, optimistic and totally ready to survive; truly cunning while being cute about it! The misunderstanding part... its entertaining so far. I won't explain since its easy to spot as soon as you get into it. <<less

Pastel is so adorable (╥﹏╥) Life is too easy, Pastel. Life is too hard, Pastel. Uwaah

Pastel LoveCraft is such an eccentric protagonist. She's not like the usual leads you get in stories like this. She's clever and cunning, but also has this airhead charm that keeps surprising you. That mix of traits makes her super engaging. One moment, she's outsmarting everyone like it's nothing, and the next, she's doing something completely random and unexpected, but somehow it totally fits her character.

The story itself has a lot going on and it's... more>> honestly pretty compelling. Watching Pastel struggle with the messy politics around her is interesting. There are tons of schemes and conspiracies, and the layers keep you guessing. What stood out the most is how Pastel doesn't stick to traditional methods. She's out there making deals with shady professors and underground crime bosses just to claw her way up. It's all morally gray, but that's what makes it so good. She's not afraid to get her hands dirty, and seeing how far she'll go is honestly fascinating.

The action scenes are another highlight. They're not just flashy fights for the sake of drama; they're grounded and detailed, making them feel realistic. You can tell the author put a lot of effort into researching technical swordplay as @Nekomimik mentioned, and it really adds to the world-building. It makes every fight feel meaningful, not just there for dramatic effect.

What I really liked was how the tone shifts throughout the story. There are lighthearted moments where Pastel's sharp humor and the absurd situations she finds herself in give you a breather from all the tension. But even during those moments, there's always this sense of darkness lurking in the background. The story doesn't really let you relax, and that balance between humor and despair is what makes it so addictive.

I'll admit, the pacing feels a bit slow at first, but it's definitely worth sticking with. As the story goes on, everything starts to come together, and the payoff is totally worth it. If you like morally complex protagonists, layered politics and schemes, and a story that expects you to pay attention to the details without overwhelming you, this one is definitely worth checking out.

PS: I don't usually mention this, but the translations are so good. I read the MTL version back in July, and I was really impressed. Big thanks to the translators for the amazing work 🙏 The onomatopoeias and occasional "Uwaah"s had me cracking up.

Characters :

Spoiler

•Pastel Love Craft - Bubbly, Playful, Energetic, Pinky Pink, Lack Common Sense, Sword Genius, Superhuman, Student Council, Pseudo-Human, Charming, Viscountess, Super Smart but also an airhead

•Demius (Mr. Demon) - Longsword, Mature, Pastel's Master/Guardian, Nanny, Surprisingly good at housework

•Ellie - Black hair and eyes, Student Council

•Melissa Camelot - Mage, Tsundere

•Leonard - Bully, Childish, Big Muscle

•Dustin Wilde - Lackey, Pitiful, Student Council

•Professor Horace - Shady Prof, Smuggling, "Benevolent"

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Pastel is so adorable.

She is the perfect blend of a smart and cunning protagonist and an airheaded protagonist. Currently, the story is very enjoyable.

Wow Wow, I'm looking forward to more chapters.

Star Rating: 5/5

1. Did not finish, do not recommend
2. Didn't like it for several reasons
3. Okay, satisfactory
4. Pretty good read
5. This is going on my lifetime favorites

Setting: 4/5

• In the beginning, the setting was a bit confusing for me. There isn't much context given because everything is seen through Pastel's warped perception of the world, and she's an incredibly unreliable narrator.
• From what I can tell, she's involved in a incredibly f*cked up noble household that's dabbling in demon magic, and she was intended to be used as a sacrifice for one of her parent's schemes. This scheme goes wrong and their household gets swarmed by monsters. Meeting a demon in the shape of a sword stuck in a cage, Pastel asks him for help escaping and they work together to fight through the swarm. Things take a wild turn after Pastel starts eating the dark energies of the monsters, thinking that it's some form of delicious pudding, and she gets tainted by the dark energy. Mr. Demon convinces her to go to the academy near the demon continent so that they can get a sustainable source of dark energy for her, since she can no longer eat normal food.
• The world building is honestly pretty great. There's so much happening in this fantasy world that it could be overwhelming, but the author really does a great job explaining everything through Pastel's warped lens. Incredibly interesting world, especially the sky whales!
• Overall, the world that the author created is fantastic, but I just took a while to understand what was going on in the beginning because of how f*cked up Pastel is, 4/5.

Main Characters: 5/5

• "I'm Pastel, for whom life is too easy! Wow wow."
• The main character, Pastel, is the star of the show. She steals the limelight with unrelenting force and everyone is a side character in Pastel's world. She starts her life spending the first dozen years in a dream-like state and when she finally gains her bearings, she's in her teens with not a single drop of maturity in her. She's spoiled, shameless, lazy, air-headed, arrogant, and competely psychotic. She's also lucky, a genius in combat, and incredibly intelligent - she just doesn't show it in the ways that one would expect.
• "Pastel is a child who’s good at studying!"
• "Me, super ultra genius, Pastel!"
• The main side character is Mr. Demon, who Pastel finds trapped in a cage in her residence. Mr. Demon takes pity on Pastel after realizing she was neglected, ab*sed, and wronged by her family. He teaches her how to fight, how to survive, and how to go about in day-to-day life. This dynamic slowly shifts from acting as her teacher to becoming her full-time caretaker, as she shamelessly ab*ses his good-will to make him do everything for her and takes credit for all his work. There are times where he tries to get Pastel to grow as a person, but all his efforts are futile.
• Overall, Pastel is an incredibly difficult character to hate, but also an incredibly difficult character to love. None of the other characters matter in this story, since Pastel is a walking natural disaster sweeping up everyone else in her pace. Incredible character writing, wow wow, 5/5.

Plot/Pacing: 4/5

• The plot is complete whack, though I haven't read too far. There isn't a clear goal that Pastel is aiming for, she's just looking for food and a means to acquire food constantly while trying her best to avoid any sort of work. This is a slice of life that follows Pastel as she shamelessly drags her "friends" along for her shenanigans.
• I'm interested to see what happens with her family background.
• Overall, the pacing is great and the plot has potential, 4/5.

Overall Writing: 5/5

• The writing quality isn't sophisticated, but because things are told through Pastel, it doesn't have to be sophisticated. It has to be whimsical and nonsensical, and I think the author does a perfect job portraying Pastel's personality through the writing style. Waaah, 5/5.

Enjoyability Factor: 5/5

• I'm honestly having a blast with this series, Pastel is a menace! I think Pastel is the most deranged MC I've ever read, but it's done really well. "Pastel grabbed her head. Waaah. Life is too hard, Pastel!" Overall, 5/5.

Hmmm, the protagonist is definitely not an idiot but definitely, absolutely childish and immature. True airheaded detached psychopath to its very essence. A chaotic innocent evil, a borderline psychopath, it's literally her. All of the reviews are right, but at the same time I kinda went in with wrong expectations, I thought she would be closer to that of a Deadpool, but she isn't. She's chaotic neutral in a sense but with a much more airheaded, very childish/immature aura. Borderline comedic, crazy, and annoying. When it's funny, it's really funny,... more>> but when it's annoying it's really annoying. The problem with the novel is definitely the pacing. Up to ch72 there are so many filler chapters or arc that aren't necessarily needed to be written, it feels like it's there just to be there. The beginnings (below 40 or something) are definitely amazing tho. But then it fluctuates... Ironically the same like the MC with her completely unpredictable, chaotic, careless, and childish nature.

Also, It's weirdly written like it's a SoL novel. IDK why like, it definitely has that Slice of Life feeling in it. Its like the plot doesn't really develop, progress, or goes anywhere (literally), unless for that one arc where Pastel is kidnapped by the cult (her father). Beside that, the plot never progress. But WHAT DO PROGRESS IS THE WORLD BUILDING, WHICH IS THE STRONGEST PART OF THIS NOVEL. Like for example, the politics behind the scene, the power and social dynamics between different characters, it helps developing the world itself, but as for the plot itself (the set course, series, or sequent of events happening throughout the story) never really grow anywhere. It feels like things happen because it just does–meaninglessly, but maybe that's what the author tryna aim for—the chaos.

Our MC doesn't really grow except for her strength / power either, and if she did grow, it's childishly written like, how do I describe it, like in a snap, she suddenly changed. It's not good at all. Change or development needs to be written gradually, thoroughly, and progressingly. Maybe the sudden change in her personality is one part of her chaotic charm, but if that's true, we would have to face the bad odds in the future that protagonist never really grow since the very start shes already lile that (unpredictable). Or maybe it's slow type of development in her character, idk man I just wish she would grow more matured, even just slightly, just a tiny bit. The mood/tonal shift is so abrupt and it's most of the times was all caused by her. Shes chaotic neutral, but I wouldn't be surprised if someone see her as a psychopathic careless evil since she's THAT shameless, I mean it, when I said, shameless, I mean shes absurdly shameless <<less