Afterword
Hello, this is Hiro Ainana.
Thank you for picking up the eleventh volume of Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody!
Before we discuss this volume, let’s talk about the anime adaptation for a moment.
As you may have already heard, I was able to visit SILVER LINK., the company producing the Death March anime. There, I got to meet Director Oonuma, the production committee, and many other staff members.
I spoke primarily with the director and scenario writers, and we had some great discussions about the setting and important aspects of the series.
I also got to join in a lot of meetings about the direction of the work, the backgrounds, the animation, and so on, which was surprising and very educational.
Not long before I wrote this afterword, I even got to listen in on the tape auditions for Satou and Arisa.
There were two surprising things about this.
One: Around 140 voice actors applied for the roles.
It was incredibly inspiring to hear so many talented voices acting out my characters.
And two:
Damn, voice actors have so many layers!
It might be rude to say this to a pro, but every one of them was so amazingly good!
From famous voice actors who you often hear in anime to fresh newcomers, every single one played Satou or Arisa beautifully.
I’d never heard my work read aloud before, so I was so happy that I wound up flailing around like a fool.
Honestly, I wanted to say, Let’s hire them all!
But no matter how hard it was to choose among them, since they’re tape auditions, selections must be made.
I was told before we started that it would be tough, but I had no idea how hard the choices would actually be.
While I knew that the original author’s selections were just to help narrow down the options before the studio auditions, I carefully listened to every one of them over and over, out of respect for the talented voice actors who took their roles so seriously.
I took notes on who suited the character, who sounded the way I’d imagined them, who was likely to play the characters’ other scenes well, and so on. By the end, the names were all blending together, but I managed to narrow it down to a chosen few.
In the near future, I also plan to attend the studio auditions, so I think I’ll report about that on social media or in the next volume. Please look forward to it.
Well, I went on about the anime for a bit too long. Let’s dig in to the main points of this volume.
This is part two of the Labyrinth City arc.
Like the previous volume, the story arc is somewhat similar to the web version, but there are new characters, different events, and so on. The twists and the ending have also changed a great deal from the web version, so I’m confident that even readers of that version will find plenty to enjoy.
A certain “indeed” fellow, a previously defeated villain who makes a comeback, and all kinds of other story elements all come together in the end.
When you’ve finished this volume, please go back and reread from Volume 10 again.
I’m sure that the knowledge of what happens will reveal a lot of the meaning and reasons behind a certain mysterious person’s actions.
Of course, side stories are one of the selling points of Death March, and this volume makes no exception!
It’s jam-packed with Satou’s monster-part crafting, interactions with kids at the soup kitchen and the orphanage, and all kinds of new characters.
And there are battle scenes, too, of course!
Even Satou, who normally works in the shadows, spends this volume facing dangers that threaten the existence of Labyrinth City itself with his fairy sword in hand.
What unexpected allies will he fight alongside?
If I told you here, it’d be a spoiler, so please first read this volume and find out.
Before I say thank-yous, I’d like to make one announcement.
Volume 5 of Aya Megumu’s comic adaptation of Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody should be on sale at the same time as this volume.
It’s full of lovely townscapes, wonderful expressions, and touching portrayals of the characters. If you haven’t read it yet, I’d love for you to check it out.
As a bonus, you even get to see characters who aren’t illustrated in the novels!
And now for the thank-yous.
Excellent advice and suggestions from A and K in the editorial department made many scenes far more readable and realistic. I owe them a lot for pointing out so many small details that I could easily miss as the author.
I hope you’ll continue supporting and guiding me in the future.
As always, I can never thank shri-san enough for the illustrations that fill the world of Death March with vivid color and light.
The main star of this volume’s art is Tifaleeza!
…Although, to be honest, my personal favorite might be the cute Neru, with the cowlick in her hair and her protruding fang.
She didn’t show up much in the second half of this volume, but I was so charmed by the illustration of her that I wound up hastily shoving out other characters to bring her back in the end, and now she even shows up in the next volume. (She wasn’t supposed to.)
Of course, I have to thank the Kadokawa Books editorial department and everyone else who was involved in the development, creation, promotion, and sale of this book.
Finally, the biggest thanks of all to you, the readers!!
Thank you so much for reading this book all the way to the end!
I’ll see you next time for the Labyrinth City arc part three!
Hiro Ainana
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