The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick up Trash - Volume 4 - Chapter Aft

Afterword

Hello, everyone, it’s been a while. Honobonoru500 here. Thank you for getting this copy of The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash, Volume 4. And, Nama-sama, thank you for giving me yet another collection of beautiful illustrations for this volume. What do you know—this is the fourth time I’m writing an afterword! You all made it possible. And on April 15th, 2021, the manga version went on sale. I am filled with gratitude. Also, Volumes 1–3 have had a second printing! I really am so, so thankful.

Volume 4 was filled with new relationships and new departures. The part that made me struggle the most was Druid’s relationship with his family. Truth be told, the shopkeeper whom Ivy first bought rice from wasn’t originally going to be Druid’s father, but I felt that for Druid to be able to move on with his life, he needed to make peace with his family, so I made a snap decision and changed the shopkeeper to be his father. This change greatly affected the flow of the story, but it enabled me to write about Druid evolving while interacting with his family, so I think it was all for the best. I ­enjoyed displaying the unique array of personalities in his family, too.

My next big struggle was making peace—whether Druid should forgive his brothers right away or not when they apologize. I really agonized over that a lot. I figured he would need to patch things up with his family if he was going to move on with his life. But then I thought about how I would react if I were in his shoes…and I realized I wouldn’t be able to do it. So, in Volume 4, I had his brothers apologize, but Druid didn’t forgive them. I’m deeply invested in how their relationship unfolds in the future.

Ivy’s companions had plenty of time in the spotlight this time, too. I had to be careful not to overdo it in the scenes where Sora and Flame got new powers, but I really wanted to write them doing extraordinary things so casually during an average day. And I guess I was successful? I hope so.

Thank you again, everyone at TO Books. And my apologies to my editor, K-sama, for whom I once again caused a great deal of grief. Volume 4 wouldn’t exist without all of you, and I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart. I look forward to working on the rest of this series with you all, and I’ll do everything I can to ensure it’s a long relationship!

Lastly, I would like to thank you with all my heart for reading this book. Also, I have some news. Since so many people have bought these books, there will be a Volume 5! I hope you’ll read it along with the manga. May we meet again in this “Isekai’ed into a world…where proper waste disposal rules!” light novel and manga series.

Honobonoru500

April 2021