Slayers - Volume 15 - Chapter Aft

Afterword

Scene: The Author and L

Au: At last, we’ve reached the final book! With “The Demon Slayers,” the Slayers novel series comes to an end!

L: Starting this time next week, the emotional Dark Lord comedy “Tokidoki☆Konton Magical L-rin” begins—

Au: It will not. Never ever.

L: Grr! At least let me say the whole thing!

S: He’s terribly rude, isn’t he? He can’t treat you that way, L-sama.

Au: Er, what’s he doing here?

L: Well, since it’s the afterword of the finale, I decided to bring out Subordinate S.

S: Hahaha. L-sama, you’re so generous and beautiful.

Au: Um...

L: These Slayers novels wouldn’t have been possible without you, Subordinate S, so I thought I’d give you a chance to speak here at the end.

S: Thank you so much. But of course, I exist only at your radiant pleasure, L-sama! Thus I feel it is no exaggeration to say that you are the true protagonist of the Slayers novels! In fact, I think that could be their deepest, greatest moral truth!

Au: Um...

L: Gosh, you’re making me blush. That’s all so nice of you to say!

S: No need to be embarrassed! You deserve all the praise you get from the world!

Au: Can I ask something?

L: Eh? What is it?

S: It’s so rude to ask questions in the middle of singing someone’s praises. What is it?

Au: Well, I was wondering if the fact that Subordinate S wasn’t listed as a character in this scene under the “Afterword” heading, that weird-looking controller in your hand, and those strange electrode things sticking out of S’s head had anything to do with each other.

L: ...

Au: ...

L: Erk! Click.

S: Hahaha. What in the wORld are you talkING about? There’s noTHIng untoWArd going oN here. PuREly your imaGInation.

Au: What is he, a robot? Ah! Or did you alter his brain?!

L: Wh-What are you talking about?! Fiddle, fiddle. Click, click.

S: What rude things to say to L-sama! Grab!

Au: Hey! Did you input some kind of command? Let me go! And what’s with that syringe?!

L: Oh, um, you know. Nothing to worry about.

Au: I’m definitely worried! Erk...

[The sounds of surgery.]

L: Now, then. It’s been a long and hard struggle, but that’s the end of the novels.

Au (now with electrodes): Gosh, but the fact that the Slayers novels and short stories have lasted this long is surely thanks to all the readers who supported us, and L-sama, who took over these afterwords. Thank you so much.

L: I know this is what I wanted, but it’s still creepy having the author suck up to me... Maybe I’ll turn his thoughts back to normal mode.

Au: Ah!!! What did you do to me?!

L: Oh, nothing. Not a thing. Anyway, go on and wrap up the afterword.

Au: R-Right. This is the end of the Slayers novels. As for what happens to Lina and Gourry after this... I haven’t really decided yet. The games, TV shows, and comics are all treated as parallel part 3 stories, but there could be different futures for them as well. I wanted to finish the story in an open-ended way to give you lots of room to imagine. Now, readers, allow me to thank you for sticking with me all this way.

S: But as long as the Slayers short story afterwords continue, L-sama will never be far away!

L: So we hope you’ll continue picking up short story collections with titles like Select and Smash.

Au: You get it. At any rate, I hope we meet again someday.

Afterword: Over.