Afterword
THANK you for making it all the way to the end of volume five! Hello, I’m the author, Fuurou.
This series was originally serialized on a website called Shōsetsuka ni Narō, a Japanese novel self-publishing website, but I’ve added quite a lot of new scenes in the published version starting from volume four. That applies to volume five as well. I didn’t just add new scenes, I’ve also cut parts that I felt were unnecessary. Though I was the one who wrote it myself, when I reread my work, I would come across parts that feel like fillers or are a bit dull. That’s why I made this decision.
It’s probably especially evident during the transition between the last two chapters—I’ve removed all the scenes during their stay in the hotel while the house is undergoing renovations. The entire section was originally somewhat like a travel journal, but this hotel and the area around the hotel don’t ever show up in the story again, nor are they significant in any way. And…sadly, it wasn’t that interesting either.
Because of this, starting from volume five, you might come across many original chapters and arcs in the published version… I’m sorry for any inconvenience or confusion I might have caused.
Now then, onto the topic of summer.
To me, summer in the countryside basically summed up my summer holidays during my childhood. I think I’ve written this in a previous afterword as well, but I would always remember how I went to visit my great grandmother’s house during the summer holidays whenever the heat starts settling in.
If you walked roughly five minutes from her house, you would arrive at a beach where you could go fishing. But if you walked in the opposite direction for ten minutes, you would find a mountain where you could go insect hunting. All kinds of strange insects and creatures, which you can only find in the countryside, sauntered inside and outside the house. All the food was gorgeous without exception… Even now, I remember it as a paradise for children.
My experience and memories from back then are still a part of my life. I’m picky about my food and ingredients, I go out fishing once a week, and I test out all kinds of recipes, trying to reproduce the taste of my great grandmother’s cooking. That house and my grandmother has truly left a lasting mark on me.
These fond memories have also left their imprint on this work. If you can detect even a subtle hint of their presence, I would be delighted.
If there’s going to be a volume six, we will dive headfirst into making umeboshi at last. It wouldn’t be Japanese summer without umeboshi—it’s that iconic, and it’s also a preserve. I hope I can capture the wonderful atmosphere of Japanese summer and convey it to you through my work.
That’s all from me!
Fuurou
Spring, 2024