AFTERWORD

A Sight for Sore Eyes

Hello. JIN speaking.

How did you like Kagerou Daze 3: The Children Reason?

As always, the story is set in the dead of summer. This volume, though, makes an effort to propel the plot further into the future, introducing new characters and new situations for them to lose themselves in.

By the way, the release of this third volume (in Japan) happened to occur exactly one year after the first one came out…but, wow, the schedule’s grown astoundingly more frenetic since then.

Writing something like this all the time will probably lead to reactions like “Oh, God, he’s whining about how busy he is again?” if I keep on doing it. But the difficulty level does seem to rise just that bit more with each new volume. A little help would be nice.

I am cutting it so close timewise, in fact, that for the past few days, I’ve been shut into my room, leaving only to bathe myself and visit my erstwhile pal Mr. Crapper.

When I started on this volume, this room was very well kept—you could call it nice smelling, even—but somewhere along the line, mountains of plastic bento trays and bottles have sprouted up from the floor. I’m surrounded by them on both sides even as I craft this afterword.

Sigh…And once I’m done with it, I suppose we’ll have to say our good-byes to each other before long.

Someone from the office will come along and cruelly whisk it all way, no doubt. (Don’t ask me why I’m not doing it myself. Personal reasons.)

When I was deep in the trenches of writing, facing looming deadlines and a desperate, lingering sense of doom, it was these piles of garbage who cheered me up, giving me a hearty thumbs-up and a friendly “Hang in there, kiddo!”

Thanks, guys. It’s been nice.

Working in conditions like these naturally means that I have food delivered here pretty often. By the end, though, this got seriously awkward.

Whenever the bell rang and I opened the door, the delivery guy would look at me and make a face like “…oh.”

If you were greeted by a gaunt, unhealthy-looking gentleman in a stained hoodie, you’d probably do the same thing. It made me want to claw my eyes out sometimes.

The worst was always when I ordered in food two days in a row, and the same person showed up each time.

Me: (while paying) “Uhhh…mmmmm…Thanks for coming by all the time. I work a lot out of the home these days, so blah blah blah…”

Female restaurant driver: “Oh, is that so? How inn-teresting. Well, thanks as always!” (*slam*)

Me: “…Welp, time for dinner.”

Every time.

This is what I have to deal with.

It makes a man feel lonely, undeniably. Chewing on a slice of pizza by yourself in your room. Painful stuff.

So it should come as little surprise that once I’m done writing, I’m rarin’ to hit the road!

I haven’t had real time off in a dog’s age, so I figure I’ve earned that much.

Someplace out in the countryside would be nice. I was born in what’s pretty much a one-stoplight town, so living in the big city can really be exhausting for me sometimes.

And while I’m making wishes here, once I arrive at my little country villa, I wish there was a fetching lady there I could spend some time with.

Come on, God. Give me half a chance already. I’m honestly a bit miffed.

Seriously, when my editor suddenly knocked on my door and said:

Editor: “You’ll submit Volume 3 on this date.”

Me: “Eeeeggaaaaahhhh!!”

—I began to consider preparing my last will and testament for a while, but somehow I made it over every obstacle presented to me. It’s a huge relief.

I had to work through a lot of crap to make it here.

And I think I’ll have a much more relaxed schedule for the next volume, so I’m looking forward to taking it a little easy for a change.

Surely my editor won’t materialize before me and tell me to start writing Volume 4 immediately. I think I’m reasonably safe for at least a little while.

My editor isn’t that much of a demon, after all. By the time you read this, I’ll probably be enjoying a nice, relaxing vacation in—

Oh? Hang on. There’s someone at the door. I wonder what anyone would want this late at night.

I’m starting to have a bad feeling about this. Better wrap this up before anything else. Until the next volume, I’ll see you around.

JIN (Shizen no Teki-P)