I really enjoyed this volume! I love how much self-reflecting Violette is doing; it really shows how much a person can change and gain insight into themselves when they reflect on their past actions. Again, it would have been nice to have seen Violette in her "villainess" phase rather than be told or shown flashbacks, but I still like seeing the contrast between her past and present self.

This volume also doles out a lot of backstory regarding Violette's upbringing and while it doesn't excuse her actions, it most definitely explains them. Violette's mother is definitely in the to 20 list of Bad Manga Parents because WOW, the shit she put Violette through it would have been a miracle if Violette became a functional member of society. I also really liked seeing Yulan's backstory (some of it, at least) and thought it was sweet how close he was to Violette as well as how much he admired her. I'm praying the end up together, I am 120% down for this ship.

I went into this series with relatively low expectations, but I'm really enjoying it. I hope it keeps getting better!