AFTERWORD

Did you enjoy Volume 16, the Yotsuba Succession arc of The Irregular at Magic High School? This Yotsuba Succession arc is a turning point for the series, and beginning with the next volume, the story will be going in a new direction. It might have seemed like Irregular was heading toward its conclusion, but things aren’t going to wrap up that easily, as I imagine you can tell from the final sentences—which weren’t very “final” at all.

In this volume, I introduced some new characters who are either in college or beginning their professional careers. Because this story has a magic high school for its setting half the time, there hasn’t been much opportunity for the non–high school students to show their stuff—alumni functions notwithstanding. So here in the afterword, I’d like to touch on some of these new characters.

First, Yuuka Tsukuba. She’s five foot three and is a bit underweight at 105 pounds. She’s twenty-two years old and is a senior at the Magic University. When she attended First High, she was the vice president of the student council, coming in just as Mayumi’s generation was on their way out. Her straight hair is cropped to shoulder length and parted on the right. Her ears are pierced. As a magician, she specializes in mental interference magic.

Next we have Katsushige Shibata. He’s six foot two and weighs 175 pounds. He keeps his straight hair cut in a short, professional cut. He’s twenty-three years old and, since graduation from the Magic University, works for the Ministry of Defense. He does administrative work but possesses the combat magic abilities one would expect a man of his build to have. He specializes in the convergent magic discipline of density manipulation and by normal metrics is an excellent magician.

Third is Kotona Tsutsumi. She’s five foot three and weighs 125 pounds. Her chestnut-brown hair is medium long and set in loose, soft curls. She’s twenty-four years old and at a glance looks sort of like a “popular girl” type. In her professional life, she works as Katsushige’s Guardian. She is one of the second-generation Bard series of engineered magicians and possesses a high facility for sound-manipulation magic.

Finally, there’s Kanata Tsutsumi. He’s five foot seven and 135 pounds, with shaggy chestnut hair. At twenty years old, he’s a junior at the Magic University. He’s also a semiprofessional musician who plays live shows regularly, but his main job is as Katsushige’s Guardian. He’s Kotona’s biological younger brother, and like her, he specializes in sound-manipulation magic.

Each of these characters has more side stories to them than I could possibly fit here, but it is undetermined whether they’ll ever be properly told.

Thank you all again for following this story for so long. The next volume will see a return to magic high school as the main setting. What will be the repercussions of the Yotsuba succession among Tatsuya’s and Miyuki’s classmates and friends? And what will be the leading ten families’ next move?

The next volume, 17, will be part one of the Master Clans Conference arc. I hope you’ll look forward to it.

Tsutomu Sato