when it's a girl, she VERY EASILY become a Mary Sue
I understand your sentiment, but do not share it.
As far as I'm concerned, the biggest criterion for Mary-Sue-ism is that the character seems tailor-made to hog/steal the spotlight, to the detriment of other characters. This stands in immediate contrast with Firentia, because:
- This manhwa knows when to give other characters the spotlight. Off the top of my head:
- Firentia's grandfather owns every scene he's in
- Shananet has one of the most viscerally satisfying conclusions in the entire story
- Firentia's father standing up to his older brother was amazing
- Perez's scheming is very interesting
- Impegra (the old maid that worked at the palace) is a boss bitch, despite her venerable age and commoner status
- Tiliana (the young lady Firentia befriends) standing up to others' bullying just with her smile is precious
Even bit characters (such as the last two) get their moment in the spotlight, and it's glorious to see!
- Firentia's actions serve to benefit many more people than just herself. Her father, grandfather, aunt, doctor, clerk, and future boyfriend all have their lives dramatically improved by her.
With those things in mind, I personally wouldn't say that Firentia is a Mary Sue. She's close, only avoiding it by the skin of her teeth, but not quite there. I mean,
Nanige-san is a girl who is perfect at everything, and yet she's one of the most interesting characters I've ever seen.
Now, to be fair: Nanige-san has understandable insecurities, and also has no harem. Firentia doesn't really have the former, and appears to be developing the latter, so it's a close call. But ultimately, as far as I'm concerned, she's not a Mary Sue.
PS: Now that I think of it, though… there
is one thing on which we can agree: Firentia isn't a particularly interesting character, for all the reasons you mention. I mean, if I took the most interesting characters
of this manga alone, I'm not sure Firentia would make the top 5. It's the rest of them that really carry this story.