<P> The Seven Deadly Sins were once an active group of knights in the region of Britannia (ブリタニア, Buritania), who disbanded after they supposedly plotted to overthrow the Liones Kingdom (リオネス 王国, Rionesu Ōkoku). Their supposed defeat came at the hands of the Holy Knights, but rumors continued to persist that they were still alive . Ten years later, the Holy Knights staged a coup d'état and captured the king, becoming the new, tyrannical rulers of the kingdom . The third princess, Elizabeth, then starts out on a journey to find the Seven Deadly Sins and enlist their help in taking back the kingdom . </P> <P> Written and illustrated by Nakaba Suzuki, The Seven Deadly Sins began as a one - shot pilot chapter published on November 22, 2011 in Weekly Shōnen Magazine's 52 issue of the year . The manga started serialization in the magazine's 45 issue of 2012, released on October 10, 2012 . The chapters have been collected into 29 tankōbon volumes as of January 17, 2018 . The first of three planned story arcs was completed with chapter 100 and Suzuki has projected that the series will run for 20 to 30 volumes . The series is licensed for English language release in North America by Kodansha USA, who published the first volume on March 11, 2014 . As the series is published in Japan, it is also released simultaneously in English digitally by Crunchyroll in over 170 countries . </P> <P> A special issue of Weekly Shōnen Magazine, published on October 19, 2013, featured a small crossover between The Seven Deadly Sins and Hiro Mashima's Fairy Tail, where each artist drew a yonkoma (four - panel comic) of the other's series . An actual crossover chapter between the two ran in the magazine's combined 4 / 5 issue of 2014, which was released on December 25, 2013 . Nakaba wrote a one - shot for the November 2014 issue of the shōjo manga magazine Nakayoshi, released on October 3, 2014 . He also created a comedic one - shot depicting how Meliodas and Hawk first met that ran in the October 20, 2014 issue of Magazine Special . From February 24 to May 10, 2015, two more spin - off manga by Nakaba were available on the smartphone and tablet application Manga Box . Naku na, Tomo yo (泣く な 友よ, "Do Not Cry, My Friend") is about Hendrickson and Dreyfus' younger years, while Gilthunder no Shinjitsu (ギル サンダー の 真実, "Gilthunder's Truth") is set after the Vaizel Fight Festival arc and follows Gilthunder . </P> <P> A comedic spinoff series by Juichi Yamaki, titled Mayoe! The Seven Deadly Sins Academy! (迷え! 七 つの 大罪 学園!, Mayoe! Nanatsu no Taizai Gakuen!) and imagining the characters as high school students, ran in Bessatsu Shōnen Magazine from August 9, 2014 to October 8, 2016 . It was collected into four tankōbon volumes . The Seven Deadly Sins Production (七 つの 大罪 プロダクション, Nanatsu no Taizai Purodakushon), a comedic spin - off by Chiemi Sakamoto that imagines the characters as actors performing in a live - action TV show, ran in Aria from November 28, 2015 to October 28, 2017 . It was collected into four tankōbon volumes . </P>

Who came up with the seven deadly sins and when