To The Abandoned Sacred Beasts

During a protacted civil war that pitted the North against the South, the outnumbered Northerners used dark magic to create monsterous super-soldiers called Incarnates. Now that the war has ended, those Sacred Beasts must learn to make their way in a peaceful society, or face death at the hands of a Beast Hunter. Nancy Schaal Bancroft, the daughter of an Incarnate, turns to hunting the hunter herself. But once she catches up with her quarry, she discovers hard truths about the lives of these Sacred Beasts.

Schaal and Hank travel to Whitechurch, where Hank hopes to find Cain Madhouse, the man who “loosed the Beasts upon the world.” As Hank reveals his complicated relationship with Cain, the journeying duo stumble across a second Beast lurking in Whitechurch that is wreaking havoc among the city’s slums out of a twisted sense of justice…

One year after the incident at Whitechurch, Cain Madhouse leads a band of Incarnates and rouses disgruntled citizens to create a rebel nation called New Patria. Schall returns to Rivulet Wood to pay her respects to her father’s grave. A new military unit whose sole mission is to wipe out the remaining Incarnates hunts for Hank, who has gone to ground while on his own mission to put his former Incarnate subordinates to peace…

Schaal travels with Liza and Coup de Grace, as she searches for the missing Hank. But along the journey, Major Claude announces that Hank is the next target for extermination by his corps. Meanwhile, Hank is locked in a battle to the death with his former subordinate, the Incarnate Garmr, who urges Hank to give up his human form entirely so they can fight each other as true Beasts…

Hank has decided to team up with Claude’s Incarnate extermination unit, Coup de Grace, for the time being. Their next target is Centaurus, guardian of the fortress at Bold Creek, whose regenerative abilities make him nigh immortal. And there have been rumors that Claude’s brother (and Hank’s sworn enemy) Cain Madhouse is at the fortress…Hank’s original goal is to defeat Centaurus, but he ends up working with the government forces to capture the fortress at Bold Creek. In the final moments of battle, a devastating new weapon is deployed…

The Incarcate Centaurus was felled, but with a most unsavory method. The fort at Bold Creek was captured, but the townsfolk nearby suffer an unimaginable fate, and the occupying forces are faced with a terrible choice. Meanwhile, Hank and Schaal, after deserting from the army, come across a small logging village, totally deserted except for a kindly ex-soldier who has forgotten his role in the war. And Cain Madhouse is conducting some dark experiments of his own…

“Over and over our bodies were transformed. Back and forth between human and beast… Bodies and spirits alike shattered… Only the ones who retained their human forms and minds until the end were dubbed Incarnates…” Hank travels back to École, the place where the Incarnates were made, along with Liza and Schaal. There they encounter old phantoms that invite them back into the past…

Schaal passes out after she hears the Voice of God at the Incarnate research facility École. Hank stays at her bedside until she wakes up. There was once another woman who similarly heard the Voice of God—the genius who created the Incarnates, Elaine. When Schaal asks Hank about his relationship with Elaine, Hank resolves to tell her the truth, and the story shifts into his past with Elaine…

As their happy time as students of the Church comes to an end, Hank, Cain and Elaine start out on separate paths. Elaine struggles with doubts regarding her lonely research into somnium. To add fuel to the fire, she received word from Hank that he will be deployed to the front lines. As the war intensifies, the “voice of God” ceaselessly beckons. What future lies ahead for both Hank and Elaine?

Hank and Schaal arrive at the small mining town of Coalwalls, situated within the borders of New Patria. Cain has made the town a Divine Protectorate under the aegis of the Incarnate Griffin, whom Hank has come to kill. But once in Coalwalls they encounter Faun, daughter of the former mine owner and leader of a gang of roughnecks who are fighting to take back what New Patria has stolen from them. This is a hard place, where no one can live on kindness alone ... How far will Faun go to regain what was taken from her? And will she side with the man who has come to kill the Incarnate Griffin—who was once her father, Francis Wells?

Intent on stopping Cain Madhouse, Hank and Schaal continue their journey toward New Patria. Along the way, however, they have an unexpected meeting with Arachne. She claims to be acting alone, but her message raises more questions than it answers… Meanwhile, Cain has a reunion with the one man who knows the truth behind the Incarnate project. He holds the key to the Incarnate creation process, which has remained stubbornly beyond Cain’s grasp. What are Cain’s true ambitions? And are Hank’s goals really so different? Those whose fates were upended by the Incarnate project assemble in New Patria for a bloody showdown…

Cain, convinced that Schaal would replace Elaine as the “holy virgin,” has taken Schaal and left Hank gravely injured… While in captivity, Schaal learns of Cain’s true motives. Are they headed down a road of destruction…?

Hank travels in search of Cain, who proceeds with the Incarnate research that Elaine left unfinished. Schaal, held captive by Cain, learns about her power and must choose whether to sacrifice herself for the future of the Incarnates. Meanwhile, Claude searches for his own way to protect the nation and its people as the Northern Union of Patria prepares for war. Each of their paths comes winding back together as the story heads for its grand finale...

The long-anticipated war between New Patria and the Northern Union of Patria has begun. Cain marches with the Incarnates, and Claude strikes back. Meanwhile, Hank treads down a dark path of his own. He’ll continue hunting—and killing—his former comrades until he has fulfilled Elaine’s dying wish. What lies beyond the bloodshed and violence?

“Farewell, my dear friend Hank Henriette.” The capital, Newfort, is engulfed in fire, and there is now no turning back. Enemies, allies, and Incarnates alike lay down their lives for what they believe in. What will become of the fate of the Incarnates at the end of this deadly war? The dark fantasy masterpiece, created by the editors behind Attack on Titan and Flowers of Evil, twirls towards its dramatic finale!