It's not just a "charitable reading". Do ya'll even know what story you're already reading?
The land is already owned by the one ruling over it, they don't "own" the village.
The intention to buy is just to move it from one lord to another lord.

And how did the first lord come to own the land? Are they ethnically Mulai, or a foreigner that conquered the place with violence?

Alaska is already owned by Russia, the natives don't "own" the village.
Louisiana is already owned by France, the Indians don't "own" the village.
The intention to buy is just to move it from one lord to another lord.

Because the line between exploitation and business can be very thin. Ultimately that's who Hesha and Jolene are, they're businesswomen

Hesha and Jolene are aware of the real value of the product, and they know the villagers aren't, so they immediately decided to take advantage of it. That's exploitation. In my book "business" implies a fair trade between peers.

For me, if the villagers looked and dressed the same as Hesha or Jolene, without changing any of the plot or writing, I could easily see this kind of thing taking place between any number of European countries back in the day.

Yeah, that's my issue with it. The author could have decided to portray the villagers as poor citizens that had to resort to banditry to get by. But instead decided to portray them as foreign "savages".

I'm not accusing just yet the author of portraying colonialism in a positive light, I'll wait to see how the story unfolds and to see if Hesha and Jolene get a change of heart. But these are the vibes I'm getting for now, and it's uncomfortable.

So…are we supposed to root for KellyxDiana? Really cannot bring myself to like Diana in any way for how psychotic she’s been.

Hesha was also a psychopathic spoiled noble at the beginning of the story, trust the process.

last edited at Sep 4, 2026 7:11AM

gg former illustrator. thanks for everything

I dont know about other people, but I'm loving how truly evil and manipulative some of these characters (who we're supposed to root for btw) can be. Im really looking forward to Diana's arc and seeing how Kelly changes her for the better. Hesha x Jolene are great and I love them but Irene and Diana are such interesting characters because they feel like antagonists in the protag role. Theyre both ruthless but at the same time I understand why they do their business in such ways, with the kind of world/times they live in. There's just as much fluff as there is cruelty and I find this story fun, even tho I can see how it may turn others off.

Aside from the fact that I don’t even care the whole colonialism arc right now (as is very common in these types of scenarios, I know what it is and let it go) I think is very funny how people see colonialism as this very closed and strict concept when we even have moderns terms like neo-colonialism (and neo-imperialism) because they are more of a system than destruction by force to take lands and natural resources, It’s an english forum so I assume most people are from the west and not the global south but maybe if colonialism looked like this back in the day, most people wouldn’t see why it’s bad and just see it as business.
Either way, I really liked the drawings in this chapter more than any other one lol So seeing the artist go was cold water in my face. I hope she gets better.

last edited at Sep 7, 2026 8:34AM

I dont know about other people, but I'm loving how truly evil and manipulative some of these characters (who we're supposed to root for btw) can be. Im really looking forward to Diana's arc and seeing how Kelly changes her for the better. Hesha x Jolene are great and I love them but Irene and Diana are such interesting characters because they feel like antagonists in the protag role. Theyre both ruthless but at the same time I understand why they do their business in such ways, with the kind of world/times they live in. There's just as much fluff as there is cruelty and I find this story fun, even tho I can see how it may turn others off.

You get it!!

I dont know about other people, but I'm loving how truly evil and manipulative some of these characters (who we're supposed to root for btw) can be. Im really looking forward to Diana's arc and seeing how Kelly changes her for the better. Hesha x Jolene are great and I love them but Irene and Diana are such interesting characters because they feel like antagonists in the protag role. Theyre both ruthless but at the same time I understand why they do their business in such ways, with the kind of world/times they live in. There's just as much fluff as there is cruelty and I find this story fun, even tho I can see how it may turn others off.

It does make me wonder if there will be a "turnabout" moment for Diana wherein she finds herself on the "other side", as it were. Something like a Fall Arc, except in the sense that she starts off a haughty royal with power and seemingly little empathy for anyone she considers beneath her station--and then at some point in her particular arc within the story stumbles hard on some narrative moment that renders her initial status and power moot, and/or encounters challenges that force her to adapt, moving away from this "my way or the highway/I'm powerful and can do what I want" mindset & demeanor and becoming more humble as she gains some awareness and understanding of the perspectives of others not like her.
Because I agree that Kelly is being set up as her counterpart and that Diana will be changed for the better. But her behavior and depiction seems to be one of considerable repugnance; she's royalty, sure, but she also seemingly wants to move away from her mother/"the old way" of doing things (which mirrors the other kingdom where H&J reside). So I'm mostly wondering if Diana will be forcefully humbled and made to reckon with the consequences of her behavior, or if she'll get a much more gentle transformation, that sees her insulated from the treatment she's been bestowing upon others.
And I wonder that in particular, because she's rather unsympathetic and lacking in empathy toward those "beneath" her. Forcing her to "learn" empathy by subjecting her to the sort of stuff she's putting others through--in any sort of corresponding capacity--is one path toward changing her mindset and expanding her worldview, and doing it in a dramatic fashion would mirror her outward treatment of others.
And we have similar notes already played, in the form of Jolene and Hesha's relationship, even, so it wouldn't even feel out of place if she had a fall from grace that saw her having to reassess herself and her ways in order to persevere.