I mean, even in book 4 Ronin already goes through notable changes. Like how they’re way more compassionate, willingly help people in need, and even giving speeches. I think it safe to assume that Ronin we will play in next books will be more empathetic.
That what I wonder too, will they see them a someone who changed for better or someone who is broken? 
I definitely looking forward to meeting them again.
I think the dynamic of book 5 will be very interesting, considering how things were left. Masa wasn’t in a good state, they basically passed out and the ronin much worse after all the physical and emotional pain suffered in a very short span of time.
If I remember correctly we were found by the followers of the silent lady already and I assume by her too? (I need to read the books again) I can’t imagine a good reaction from the ronin upon coming face to face with her, considering once again, what they went through just now and the feelings they must face when recalling the history they have together (if our ronin has the romance thingy with Momoko) plus the loss of Jun/ko . I imagine they’ll probably be just numb to everything and most of the people they’re gonna be with at the very beggining of book 5.
I’m so looking forward to everything that’s to come!
Yeah, and from what understand, my ronin might be pregnant. I want to see where it goes.
And as the story must be finish in less than a year…
aaa I kinda want Satsuma to become a romance option
You are weird
Do you think there might be an ongoing parallel between Momoko and Junko?
Rereading the end of Book 1 when Momoko is trying to recover the notes of Matsuyo Fuji from Shiroyama’s burning estate, her studently and almost filial devotion reminds the Ronin of Junko’s strong regard for Gensai.
Both Junko and Momoko are masters of their craft but were denied the recognition they sought. Both play directly opposing roles early into Book 2 when Junko mortally wounds the Ronin and Momoko saves their life. Both have their own romantic feelings for the Ronin and are potential ROs. Both are driven to become a ‘demon’ (temporarily for Junko) in part because of those feelings.
Then the path to redemption starts and this is where Momoko arguably becomes the most tragic character in the series.
Junko develops quite positively through Book 4 with highlights of saving Aime from the Uesgei, overcoming Izo’s spirit and later playing a key role in defeating Ichiro and his plan to set off an apocalypse. These could be considered redemptive developments that change them for the better even though redemption wasn’t their goal when they set out on their journey in Book 4.
Momoko left the group in Book 2 with the proactive goal of undoing the damage her opium caused in Book 1. Not long after she ends up beaten, mutilated, left for dead and alone with fear and regret. Her only option to live and make a difference for the better involves accepting Sakiko which changes her into the inhuman Silent Lady, surrendering her will in exchange for great power which is similar to Junko’s dark transformation seen briefly during Books 3 and 4.
But unlike Junko it seems unlikely Momoko will revert to normal. The end of her segment in Book 4 implies some part of her has already died and exorcising Sakiko will probably kill her. Her heart no longer beats and she is as cold as a corpse.
This raises the question: did Momoko fail at finding redemption where Junko had more success?
While she continues to help those in medical need from Shiroyama’s rebuilt base, it is clearly a means to secure support for overthrowing the Emperor. Perhaps a mutual compromise between Momoko and Sakiko’s desires though it won’t be surprising for the former to lose herself entirely.
Junko might be somewhat of an anti-hero by the end of Book 4 whereas Momoko is shaping into an anti-villain.
The Emperor and Ronin do have an interesting relationship. I like the mutual respect the two have for each other despite the significant social class difference. The Ronin is still a clandestine means to eliminate external threats to the Emperor, though as of Book 4 they may have unwittingly become a rising rival themselves.
I still wonder why the Emperor told the Ronin never to bow again. Could it have been an acknowledgement of equal reliance between the two to carry out their goals?
I do wonder if Hatch will be able to fulfill his pacifist ideal to carry a katana and not use it despite his position as the new General Shatao and the war in the North. He also wanted to become the Ronin’s equal so an outstanding achievement of some sort seems likely on his part. It will be interesting if he is the one to save Momoko given his unrequited love.
Interesting observation on the parallel between Momoko and Junko! There’s also an interesting subversion - while both are masters of their craft, Junko’s death-dealing skills are ultimately used for good in his/her redemptive arc, whereas Momoko’s healing skills appear to be set up to be used for nefarious purposes.
I’m looking forward to more character development for Hatch in Book 5, given Momoko’s central role and the romantic interest between them. He reminds me of Sagara Sanosuke fron Rurouni Kenshin, which is unsurprising given that he probably is based on that character in the first place.
I won’t give up all hope that she’s unredeemable tbh. Previously in book 3 it were shown and implied that Junk transform into some kind of Jigoku monsters and slaughters those samurais, like there no comeback point for them.
Yet in book 4, we got a whole redemption arc for Junk. Sure, it at the price of their right arm that used to wield their katana, but if even someone like them can be goes through such drastic changes I don’t see why Momoko can’t too.
I have a feeling that tosh will be presented with the choice : MC or Satsuma(i have my suspension about this guy) in a very climactic scene
Suppose for the ultimate benefit of tosh lovers tosh will be made to be conflicted at the end. But tosh imo tosh doesn’t deserve the ronin.
Tbh I don’t think tosh is that bad, sure they lied and tried to manipulate the ronin before but I don’t think they’ll do it again especially since they confessed and also try seeing from tosh’s point of view: your best friend since childhood sent you with a complete stranger to an adventure and your mission is to make sure the stranger do the job and to report back to your best friend, will you really care for this stranger more than your childhood bff?. After all they’re an RO, it’s a part of their character development like (from loyalty to the emperor----> loyalty to the MC) kinda thing and it’s emotionally hard especially if it came into choosing one of the two.
There is another observation from Book 4 that I might be misinterpreting but does seem to be a prominent idea - filial piety and more broadly the danger of unbalanced devotion leading to a shallow and self-destructive reverence.
Gensai, Ichiro and Kiyoshi collectively comprise a chain of filial reverence that ended with disastrous consequences when the latter two blindly dedicated their lives to some one-sided aspect of their respective predecessors. All three were a slave to some ideal of superiority that backfired and reduced them to shells of their former selves.
Gensai is the start - a legendary samurai from a romanticized period of conflict known as the Golden Era whose fierce and singular pursuit of the sword above all else led him to cannibalize an unknown infant as a means to manifest the mystical power of the Jigoku that he sought for the sake of supreme swordsmanship.
But towards the end of his life the effects of armed conflict and perhaps the Jigoku itself (as we know from Junko it has the power to contort the body in unnatural angles) amplified his mental and physical decline into old age, over which he despaired. While Gensai presumably remained undefeated in his lifetime with the Jigoku’s power he would eventually lose the ability along with his natural skill and had nothing left afterwards.
There is an understated tragedy to the unrepentant monster that is Ichiro. As the son and original heir of Gensai, a young Ichiro would have struggled under the titanic shadow of his father. It is known that Gensai disowned him at some point, stemming from his disappointment towards his son’s percieved weakness and lacking the innate potential for the Jigoku.
But we know from passages in Book 4 that Ichiro’s own skill was substantial.
His quick-draw technique was second only to his father and Junko, surpassing the Ronin. He was able to deduce Junko’s injuries from a seemingly perfect stance which even a genius like the Ronin couldn’t tell. At the silk factory he was able to maintain a solid defence against a berserking Ronin who had lost themselves to the Jigoku.
Ichiro idolized his father to a detrimental degree and could not accept what he naturally lacked. The moral cost of human lives for a dark and damaging power of questionable constructive worth did not impede his desire to live up to and surpass his father’s bloodstained legacy. His blind devotion to attaining the Jigoku over valuing the good he could have done with his own potential led to the mass murder of his own supporters at Hokusei and the death of his equally devoted foster son.
The apotheosis of his ambition is also his downfall - he obtains the Jigoku in a terrifying new form but his will is subsumed and he is a slave to the power he coveted from his father, driven purely through murderous instinct and swiftly defeated by better trained opponents. His blind devotion to Gensai was ultimately futile and only resulted in madness, massacre and eternal torment at his failure.
Kiyoshi was similarly a slave to Ichiro. While far less morally compromised his fatal flaw was evident from the start in how he would proudly proclaim his adoptive father’s virtues in a manner that bordered on pretentious preaching. His belief in Ichiro was fanatic and he sought only to be a useful tool as a means to be validated as a son by the man he admired above all , which echoes Ichiro’s own desire to be of worth to Gensai.
In the end Kiyoshi is reduced to a pathetic pawn that blindly carries out Ichiro’s bidding towards a catastrophe that he does not seem to comprehend. His final fate is literally to serve as nourishment to grow Ichiro’s power, fitting for failing to recognize an obvious evil and continue serving it in the aftermath of the ritual sacrifice. He never recieves the acknowledgment he desires and thus his filial devotion is also rendered futile upon Ichiro’s defeat.
Kiyoshi’s shallow reverence failed to recognize Ichiro’s true nature even when it became apparent and focused only on the man’s plastic facade rather than realizing his foster father’s flaws. He wholeheartedly submitted his will to the false paragon and was destroyed for it.
Gensai’s pursuit of the Jigoku led to three generations of senseless suffering but it is through the Ronin that the cycle is broken and his legacy is potentially redeemed. Towards the end of Book 4 the Ronin grows beyond their rigid resentmnent of Gensai and arrive at a more nuanced perspective that doesn’t absolve the abuse but still recognizes their humanity, allowing them to move on from Gensai’s once purely demonic shadow.
Gensai for his part recognizes the Ronin’s special strength not bound to the Jigoku and encourages his heir to make use of his teachings whilst still following their own path. Their final encounter helps steer the Ronin off the perilous path of Ichiro and Kiyoshi and gives hope that the Jigoku Itto Ryu can be used in a better way.
Filial piety is still integral to the Ronin’s relationship with Gensai who they come to respect and recognize as having saved them from orphanhood and for teaching them the sword. They do not revere or revile him but develop a balanced respect, not repeating Kiyoshi’s dangerous devotion to Ichiro.
The Ronin regains the Jigoku but will not let themselves be consumed by it and acknowledge their responsibility towards the orphans sacrificed for it, not repeating Ichiro’s idealization of Gensai’s power without regard for any life but his own.
Book 4 might be warning against placing people on a pedastal or dedicating subservience towards another without exercising your own judgement and the destructive folly of pursuing self-exceptionalism that fails to account for human fallibility and interdependency.
This is random and really not important, I am rereading SOH 4 and during the first scene with Amy the ronin said they felt a presence behind their back like a rabbit so I was wandering if Amy’s spirit animal is a rabbit, it really suit her tbh 
she’s very cute and prescious. Also what’s kohaku, Nishi and daisuk’s spirit animals? 
I feel like Nishi’s could be a shark or a tiger
And daisuk’s could be some kind of dog or a bear.
I think the confession might be part of the deceit. I think the damage tosh has done to the ronin is comparable to what jun/ko did. The difference is when put into context Tosh is far more malicious, Jun/ko’s worst acts were influenced by jigoku induced insanity, tosh roped the ronin into this whole thing and has been playing them horribly, the sad part is the ronin hasn’t even realized it yet.
I am not convinced Tosh feelings for the ronin are genuine, anything they say on the subject means nothing to me.
weeks ago, @ghost3337, I would have entertained the same doubts about Tosh. But the author recently released a Tosh-perspective short story on Patreon that clarifies a great deal! I no longer doubt.
My heart is more broken when thinking of Tosh seeing us sticking with Jun
Can you please link me to it
You’ll have to become a supporter to unlock it but here ya go - https://www.patreon.com/posts/side-story-25-40208095
^ This is Toshie’s ^
Toshio’s is posted minutes after on the same page
It’s so tempting to get it right now. Reading all the short stories about Tosh makes me skeptical of what ghost was theorizing even though they have valid points.
Chapter 18 of SoH 4 broke my heart. I wonder if I am ready for this short story and Book 5. I could feel it will be Tosh development arc.
Wasn’t quite sure where to put this: but would it be possible to add text size changes for the Book 1 and 2?
Edit: This would be for the Steam version.
I think you should email at support@choiceofgames.com for that.