Afterword

Afterword

Thank you so much for picking Dungeon Busters up and reading it. Half a year after volume 1 went on sale, here we are with volume 2 already. I have no words to express how touched I feel.

This volume only covers up to halfway through the second arc of the web novel version, cutting off right where the Holy See’s Dungeon Crusaders make their appearance. The original text has seen multiple revisions and elaborations all throughout, such that both those who are reading it for the first time and those who previously enjoyed the web novel version can equally enjoy this final product.

The time period covered in this volume corresponds to roughly January to March of 2020. However, real life is stranger than fiction, as the saying goes. Unfortunately, it had been beyond my abilities to predict the global catastrophe that has shaken our entire world this year, and so it has not been depicted within this work. I ask for your kind understanding in regards to scenes where characters are depicted being in close proximity without performing appropriate distancing measures.

To be honest, if I really was to incorporate what happened this year into the story, the very foundation would be completely overturned and the entire plot would fall apart. As such, please consider the setting of this work as a parallel world in which no global epidemic occurred.

Dungeon Busters is a low fantasy work. At a surface level, works based on the setting of “what if dungeons appeared in our modern world?” may seem to be quite common. To my knowledge, however, there aren’t all that many that really attempt to wrestle with all the political, economic, and religious aspects of such a monumental event. Here in volume 2, I had the opportunity to get into more detail regarding the movements of other countries within the bigger global scene. If dungeons truly did emerge in real life, they would definitely be an issue shared by all humanity that would consequently require discussions on the United Nations level. Personally, I consider writing low fantasy—with its need to be grounded in reality—as a sort of restriction. Due to this, I have focused less on the members of Dungeon Busters fighting with swords and magic and instead spent more time fleshing out the various characters whose fates are tied together through the dungeons.

We did get a glimpse at the “man in a destitute country” within this volume. He is a character who will be playing a very important role later on down the road. At the moment, however, he is still just a nameless man. If dungeons appear in this world, how would developing countries and countries at odds with America react? Just as Ezoe Kazuhiko, the protagonist, said, humans just might be the greatest enemy after all, as is often the case in low fantasy works. If I get the opportunity to publish a volume 3, I would very much love to delve more in-depth into these countries.

Inside this volume, there were mentions of Sapporo, Sendai, and Kanazawa. The places where the protagonist ate at are all real establishments, even though the names have been altered slightly. What’s more, I did my best keeping place names and the locations of buildings and landmarks as faithful to reality as possible. There might be readers who recognize some of these places. It would make me happy if the mention brings a grin to your face and makes you go “Oh, that place!” as you read along.

The year 2020 is almost over. Although it feels like we are living out the plot of a light novel with this global epidemic, I earnestly hope that everyone takes good care of themselves. And with that, may everyone have a wonderful New Year!

Written from a family restaurant in front of Mizue Station,

Toma Shinozaki