To the Abandoned Sacred Beasts

To the Abandoned Sacred Beasts (かつて神だった獣たちへ) is a Japanese dark fantasy manga series written and illustrated by Maybe. It was serialized in Kodansha's Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine from June 2014 to June 2023, with its chapters collected in fourteen volumes. The manga is licensed for English release in North America by Vertical. A 12-episode anime television series adaptation by MAPPA was broadcast from July to September 2019.

Plot
100 years after settlers on the continent of Patria established a democratic nation, The nation of Patria split between the industrial Northern Union and the mining towns of the Southern Confederation began fighting the war. While the South had greater numbers, the North had a secret weapon: The Incarnates, soldiers who could transform into giant mythical beasts and single-handedly destroy enemy emplacements. However, when the war ended and a peace treaty was negotiated, the Incarnates were supposed to be destroyed. With the war over, a forward Incarnate troop captain named Hank has made it his mission to hunt down the surviving Incarnates, assisted by a young woman named Nancy who blames him for killing her father.

Main

 * Hank Henriette (ハンク・ヘンリエット)
 * Former Captain of the Incarnates Force. He was once a good friend of Elaine and Kane, and was once liked by Elaine. He once led the troops to victory for the Northern Army. Two months after the end of the war, he became a Beast Hunter, hunting down all the Incarnates whose lost their humanity throughout Patria to prevent them from causing more destruction. He is capable of transforming into a werewolf under moonlight, and fights with a giant spear.
 * Former Captain of the Incarnates Force. He was once a good friend of Elaine and Kane, and was once liked by Elaine. He once led the troops to victory for the Northern Army. Two months after the end of the war, he became a Beast Hunter, hunting down all the Incarnates whose lost their humanity throughout Patria to prevent them from causing more destruction. He is capable of transforming into a werewolf under moonlight, and fights with a giant spear.


 * Nancy Schaal Bancroft (ナンシー・シャール・バンクロフト)
 * Daughter of John William Bancroft, The elephant gun in her hand is her father's legacy. At first, Nancy did not understand why Hank killed her father, but decided to follow him in order to find out the truth about the Incarnates and what caused them to lose their humanity.
 * Daughter of John William Bancroft, The elephant gun in her hand is her father's legacy. At first, Nancy did not understand why Hank killed her father, but decided to follow him in order to find out the truth about the Incarnates and what caused them to lose their humanity.


 * Cain Madhouse (ケイン・マッドハウス)
 * Formerly a nobleman named Cain Withers, he was Vice Captain of the Incarnates. He was once a good friend of Hank and Elaine, and once liked Elaine. He released all the avatars near the end of the war, and has a different opinion from Hank and others on why the Incarnates lost their humanity. He is called the vampire Incarnate, the immortal king of blood and the night.
 * Formerly a nobleman named Cain Withers, he was Vice Captain of the Incarnates. He was once a good friend of Hank and Elaine, and once liked Elaine. He released all the avatars near the end of the war, and has a different opinion from Hank and others on why the Incarnates lost their humanity. He is called the vampire Incarnate, the immortal king of blood and the night.


 * Elaine Bluelake (エレイン・ブルーレーク)
 * A doctor who created the Incarnates. She was once a friend of Hank and Cain, and once liked Hank. At that time, she created the Incarnates in order to end the war as soon as possible, but she felt responsible for the fate that all the Incarnates faced after the war.
 * A doctor who created the Incarnates. She was once a friend of Hank and Cain, and once liked Hank. At that time, she created the Incarnates in order to end the war as soon as possible, but she felt responsible for the fate that all the Incarnates faced after the war.


 * Claude Withers (クロード・ウィザース)
 * A human and the Captain of Coup de Grace, an Incarnate Extermination Squad authorized by the government. He takes his job seriously and swears he will not smile until he has killed every Incarnate beast. Unknown to most people, he is Cain's half younger brother. In order to find out the reason for his elder brother Cain's rebellion, he decided to hunt down all the Incarnates who have lost their humanity.
 * A human and the Captain of Coup de Grace, an Incarnate Extermination Squad authorized by the government. He takes his job seriously and swears he will not smile until he has killed every Incarnate beast. Unknown to most people, he is Cain's half younger brother. In order to find out the reason for his elder brother Cain's rebellion, he decided to hunt down all the Incarnates who have lost their humanity.


 * Liza Runecastle (ライザ・ルネキャッスル)
 * A spy from the Northern Union who feeds information to Hank about the Incarnates. She feels a sense of responsibility to look after Nancy and Claude, and is also concerned about Hank's actions alone.
 * A spy from the Northern Union who feeds information to Hank about the Incarnates. She feels a sense of responsibility to look after Nancy and Claude, and is also concerned about Hank's actions alone.


 * Miglieglia (ミリエリア)
 * A young white-haired girl with gold eyes and a black dress who stay with Cain. She is an Incarnate that appeared after the war. She has the ability to control the dead. Her true identity is Elaine's posthumous daughter.
 * A young white-haired girl with gold eyes and a black dress who stay with Cain. She is an Incarnate that appeared after the war. She has the ability to control the dead. Her true identity is Elaine's posthumous daughter.

Incarnate Soldiers

 * John William Bancroft (Nidhogg) (ウィリアム(ニーズヘッグ))
 * Nancy's father, who ran a local orphanage with his daughter. Even after the war, he returned to his Incarnate form and continued to take care of the children, but he began screaming in the middle of the night, scaring the local villagers and even hunting the village's livestock, causing Nancy to have to send the orphans to a safe place, so he voluntarily let Hank kill him for the sake of the villagers.
 * Nancy's father, who ran a local orphanage with his daughter. Even after the war, he returned to his Incarnate form and continued to take care of the children, but he began screaming in the middle of the night, scaring the local villagers and even hunting the village's livestock, causing Nancy to have to send the orphans to a safe place, so he voluntarily let Hank kill him for the sake of the villagers.


 * Edgar (Basilisk) (エドガー(バジリスク))
 * A former Incarnate soldier who used his power to rob people's house after the war is over, as well as killing people who lives there, he was the first Incarnate to be killed by Hank after took an oath.
 * A former Incarnate soldier who used his power to rob people's house after the war is over, as well as killing people who lives there, he was the first Incarnate to be killed by Hank after took an oath.


 * Daniel Price (Spriggan) (ダニエル(スプリガン))
 * A relatively easygoing young man. He attempted to return to a normal life in his hometown of Barn Wood, but Hank revealed that he was robbing nearby caravans to provide for his family.
 * A relatively easygoing young man. He attempted to return to a normal life in his hometown of Barn Wood, but Hank revealed that he was robbing nearby caravans to provide for his family.


 * Theodore Sherman (Minotaur) (セオドア (ミノタウロス))
 * A cowardly young man who joined the Northern Army before he was inspired by Hank. After returning home to Rogue Hill, he grew increasingly paranoid and turned the town into his personal labyrinthine fortress to defend himself from all perceived threats.
 * A cowardly young man who joined the Northern Army before he was inspired by Hank. After returning home to Rogue Hill, he grew increasingly paranoid and turned the town into his personal labyrinthine fortress to defend himself from all perceived threats.


 * Arthur Allston (Behemoth) (アーサー (ベヒモス))
 * A soft-spoken soldier who rarely talked about himself and followed orders without question. As the Behemoth, he wanders East for reasons unknown, while trying to avoid heavily-populated areas.
 * A soft-spoken soldier who rarely talked about himself and followed orders without question. As the Behemoth, he wanders East for reasons unknown, while trying to avoid heavily-populated areas.


 * Christopher Keynes (Gargoyle) (クリストファー・ケインズ (ガーゴイル))
 * A young man who often found solace in the teachings of the Church before joining the Army. in Gargoyle form, he metes out his own version of justice to the "sinners" of White Church.
 * A young man who often found solace in the teachings of the Church before joining the Army. in Gargoyle form, he metes out his own version of justice to the "sinners" of White Church.


 * Elizabeth Weezer (Arachne) (エリザベス)
 * A female Incarnate who stands with Cain after the war. She is very concerned about the hatred and conflict between Cain and Hank. She possesses spider-like abilities, being able to produce large amounts of silk to block and restrain the enemy's movements.
 * A female Incarnate who stands with Cain after the war. She is very concerned about the hatred and conflict between Cain and Hank. She possesses spider-like abilities, being able to produce large amounts of silk to block and restrain the enemy's movements.


 * Beatrice Serrault (Siren) (ベアトリス・セロー (セイレーン))
 * A former lounge singer. She decided to become an Incarnate to end the war as soon as possible so people could enjoy her songs again. Her ability puts people to sleep making them incapable of resisting. She is one of the few Incarnates who tried to avoid hurting humans after the war.
 * A former lounge singer. She decided to become an Incarnate to end the war as soon as possible so people could enjoy her songs again. Her ability puts people to sleep making them incapable of resisting. She is one of the few Incarnates who tried to avoid hurting humans after the war.


 * Rex Brock (Garmr) (ロイ (ガルム))
 * Commonly known as "Roy", he was formerly a field soldier for Northern Union of Patria on the front lines of the War where his platoon was wiped out with him as the only survivor. Sometime later, he met up with Cain and Hank where he became close friends with Hank as a fellow wolf Incarnate.
 * Commonly known as "Roy", he was formerly a field soldier for Northern Union of Patria on the front lines of the War where his platoon was wiped out with him as the only survivor. Sometime later, he met up with Cain and Hank where he became close friends with Hank as a fellow wolf Incarnate.


 * Miles Byron (Centaur) (マイルズ ・バイロン (ケンタウロス))
 * A former military doctor who treated soldiers on the battlefield; however, he realized that many of the soldiers he treated died again. This experience led him to transform into an Incarnate to prevent that more soldiers continue to die.
 * A former military doctor who treated soldiers on the battlefield; however, he realized that many of the soldiers he treated died again. This experience led him to transform into an Incarnate to prevent that more soldiers continue to die.

Manga
Written and illustrated by the duo Maybe, To the Abandoned Sacred Beasts started in Kodansha's manga magazine Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine on 9 June 2014. The series took a one-month break in August 2015 (it was not published in the September issue on 8 August) before resuming serialization in the October issue on 9 September 2015. The series is set to end on 9 May 2023. Kodansha has collected its chapters into individual volumes. The first volume was released on 9 December 2014. As of 7 October 2022, fourteen volumes have been released.

North American manga publisher Vertical announced their license to the series in August 2015. Before they selected the series' current title, Vertical was originally going to publish the manga as The Abandoned Sacred Beasts. The first volume was published on 17 May 2016.

Anime
An anime television series adaptation was announced on 5 February 2019. The series is animated by MAPPA and directed by Jun Shishido, with Shigeru Murakoshi handled the series composition, Daisuke Niinuma designed the characters, and Yoshihiro Ike composed the music. The series aired from 1 July to 16 September 2019 on Tokyo MX, BS11, and MBS. The opening theme song is "Sacrifice" (サクリファイス) by Mafumafu, while the ending theme song is "HHOOWWLL" by Gero×ARAKI. Crunchyroll streamed the series. It ran for 12 episodes. On 1 October 2019, Crunchyroll announced that the series would receive an English dub.

Reception
The first volume of the series reached 39th place on the weekly Oricon comics rankings, with 22,468 copies sold; the second volume reached 31st place, with 18,638 copies sold; the third volume reached 39th place, with 28,018 copies sold; and the fourth volume reached 24th place, with 32,728 copies sold.