My Stepsister is My Ex-Girlfriend - Volume 2 - Chapter Aft

Afterword: Happy Reiwa!

I remember seeing a commercial for a Japanese wedding information magazine called Zexy a while back. They had this catchphrase I heard a lot: “Even if we live in a time when people can find happiness without getting married, I want to get married to you.”

This book was supposed to come out on the first of May, with the change of the Heisei era to the Reiwa era. During the thirty-year Heisei period, birth rates continued to decline, the average age of marriage rose, and with that, certain values began to change. Just as Zexy said, marriage was no longer a required event, and not having a romantic partner wasn’t abnormal.

Even if you aren’t in a relationship, you can still hang out with friends. If you don’t have friends, you can just play games or read books. All of these are equivalent in value; none of them are higher or lower than the other. This is where the method of achieving happiness begins to differ for everyone. So, if everyone’s source of happiness is different, then it shouldn’t be a problem for a romantic-comedy heroine to be just a friend, right?

That is where the invincible heroine Isana Higashira comes in. What I mean by invincible is that even if she doesn’t succeed in her romance, she doesn’t actually lose. A broken heart isn’t that painful to her. In her mind, happiness is not determined by getting a boyfriend, getting married, becoming a wife, and being blessed with children. No, all she wants is to be able to have someone to talk about light novels with.

In a series where all the main characters have scars from their various relationships, she certainly has values that make them see her as an alien. Just as people from different worlds can bestow a different point of view on the main characters, her existence helps to influence the main characters around her.

Nowadays, being in a relationship isn’t nearly as special as it used to be. So, in that case, what kind of relationship leads to the most happiness? Just as happiness is becoming more diverse, so are human relations.

It’s a good question, though. Truth be told, I’m out of web stories.

Thank you so much to my editor. To the illustrator, Takaya-ki. To all the people who helped on this book. And of course, thanks to you, the reader. I’d like to take this small part of the book to truly thank all of you. Thanks to you, the first volume has been republished! All of you made this possible!

So with that, I’d like to conclude the second volume of My Stepmom’s Daughter is My Ex: “Even if We Aren’t Dating...” This has been the author, Kyosuke Kamishiro. See you in volume three!