This is one of those stories where you can see the highs and lows of its tempo:

+ Diplomatic deception, battles of wits and flashy, climactic over-the-top spectacles is the narrative's strong suit by a large margin.

+ Each character is distinctive enough to stand out, some well enough that you can pick them out from dialogue alone. The Villains themselves are no pushovers either, with one technically winning in an arc.

+ There are real moments of curiosity where the you question 'how' the protagonist and his harem might solve the current crisis approaching them, particularly in the later arcs. 

+ Speaking of the harem, the MC is genuine with them so far. There might be initial moments of deceptive practice (on both ends), but the narrative shows the reasoning behind those and trends toward reconciliation and cooperation in the end.

- On the other hand, the slower moments, like descriptive emotional connections or deeper reflections, tend to feel a bit hollow in comparison, as if they're being sacrificed for the overall pacing. This seems to get a bit better in the latest arc (4), so this is more for the earlier ones.

- The biggest criminal in my opinion is the rather in your face foreshadowing at times that simultaneously spell out the obvious and spoil many surprises. This tends to remove the tension, as the reader becomes aware of the outcome, and strips the potential of the narrative itself to generate more impact when the moment arrives in real time.

Going to tid-bits of the story itself, the natives of the world seem to run on the MtG-like element system, even down to a point that said elements can help reflect one's personality, virtues and vices. This can be a hit or miss depending on your preference, but I didn't mind it myself.

The grammar was okay. There was nothing particularly egregious that made me stop in my tracks and it flowed good enough to be immersive.

In the end, if you're looking for a traditional battle harem that has a higher focus on climactic spectacle, genuinely dangerous villains and witty resolutions, this might be up your alley.

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Actual rating: 4 due to over use of multiple POVs and tense/plurisation errors due to author with English as a second language

However the author is improving with their grammar, I loved the plot and the characters, love that there is progression with the MC and harem members, the dialogue is good and I'm looking forward to what's happening next. 

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