J-Novel Club Adds 3 New Light Novels, 1 New Manga

ANN's coverage of Anime NYC 2024 sponsored by Yen Press and Ize Press!

J-Novel Club announced during its Anime NYC panel on Sunday that it has licensed three new light novel titles and one new manga title.

The light novel titles include:

Title: The Dorky NPC Mercenary Knows His Place (Kimo Ota Mob Yōhei wa, Mi no Hodo o Wakimaeru)
Author(s): Toryuu (writer), hamm (illustrator)
Release Date: Launches today with Parts 1 and 2 of Volume 1
Summary: As a mercenary, John Ouzos is no stranger to the battlefield, but he's never fought for glory. To pay off his father's debts (from purchasing a farm) and to afford his own hobbies (anime), John grudgingly pilots his ramshackle ship (the Patchwork) wherever the money leads him as long as the mission doesn't seem like too much of a hassle. As far as he's concerned, trouble always follows the protagonist in a story—so he's making sure he's not even a side character. He's gonna be just an NPC.

Despite his short, portly frame, swarms of beautiful, strong, statuesque women approach John as he drifts through the galaxy. They're only interested in working with or dueling him, though, and only because he happens to be one of the best pilots out there. John does his best to avoid the women and stay under the radar. After all, more attention means more trouble!

Pirates hiding in asteroids, space opera pastiche, and humorous misunderstandings abound in this high-flying series!

Title: The Trials and Tribulations of My Next Life as a Noblewoman (Tensei Reijo to Sūki na Jinsei o)
Author(s): Kamihara (writer), Shiro46 (illustrator)
Release Date: Launches today with Parts 1 and 2 of Volume 1 (a J-Novel Heart title)
Summary: Karen is reborn in another world, but she's entirely ordinary—no powers, no special skills, and no grand mission to accomplish. Fortunately, life is easy as a rich noble.

Karen lives the good life until her mother completely forgets everything about her. When it's discovered that Karen is actually the child of an affair, she's banished from the family and forced to live on her own as a fourteen-year-old commoner! However, two years later, her family presents her with a chance to rejoin the ranks of the nobility under one condition: she must marry either the elderly, widowed margrave who lives on the frontier, or the dashing soldier who's seemingly destined for greatness. Which will she choose?

Title: Dimension Wave
Author(s): Aneko Yusagi (writer), Ryō Ueda (illustrator)
Release Date: Launches today with Parts 1 and 2 of Volume 1
Summary: Dimension Wave—a super popular VRMMO game where players can experience several years of fantasy in just twenty-four hours of real time.

Enticed by the entry ticket his sisters won, a young man takes part in the project's Second Wave. However, as soon as he enters the world of the game, he finds that his sisters have played a trick: he's been transformed into a girl with the cringy name Kizuna†Exceed.

But instead of letting it get to him, he decides to chill and take this new life as it comes. Without sparing a fraction of a second deciding, Kizuna immediately chooses to fish rather than fight on the front lines in this fantasy world. Alongside his sisters, Kanade and Tsumugi, a Japanese-style beauty named Shouko, Yamikage the fake ninja, and other quirky comrades, he works to enjoy his second lifeto the fullest.

J-Novel Club's new manga license includes:

Title: From Villainess to Healer: I Know the Cheat to Change My Fate (Kaifukushoku no Akuyaku Reijō)
Author(s): Namura Katamura, based on Puni-chan's original light novel series
Release Date: Launches today with Chapter 1 of Volume 1
Summary: In the world of “Reas Love,” a spinoff otome game, the villainess Charlotte Cocoriara's engagement to the prince of Farblume Kingdom is suddenly broken off. The reason? The Prince finds her job as Dark Mage ill-suited for his future queen. He'd rather be with a Healer, and there is no such thing as a job change. But Charlotte has a secret...memories of her past life playing “Reas Life Online,” the original MMORPG!

Armed with her cheat knowledge, Charlotte immediately takes off to the Sacred Land of Erenzi where she uses information no one else in “Reas Love” knows to change her job—to a Healer! Except she has no intention of going back to the Prince. What she really wants is to see the world and live a life full of adventure!

Sources: Press release, J-Novel panel at Anime NYC (Marion Peña)

Disclosure: Kadokawa World Entertainment (KWE), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, is the majority owner of Anime News Network, LLC. Yen Press, BookWalker Global, and J-Novel Club are subsidiaries of KWE.