Long time no see, everyone. Udon Kamono here. It’s been nine months since the last volume, so I changed up my salutation to reflect that. I’m very sorry for the wait. As I mentioned last time, these afterwords have been following the light novel production process, and I’d like to keep going with that.
When publishing a light novel, the author normally receives complimentary copies of the final product. The exact number varies from publisher to publisher, but for Overlap Bunko, it’s ten. Indeed, I receive ten copies! Supposing I keep a copy for myself, that leaves nine more. I’ve never told my family that I’m writing this series, and none of my friends know I’m a light novel author. In other words, I have nine spare copies. What should I do with them? I have nine for each volume that’s been published. They’ve taken over the space in the top of my closet, leaving me no room for storage. If anyone reading this decides to become a light novel author, I recommend you make nine friends you can share your work with.
Next, the acknowledgments. To Shizuki the illustrator, thank you for another volume of beautiful and captivating artwork. The cover with all of the Arrivers, the opening image of the heated battle, the opening image of the majestic prayer scene, and the ten insert illustrations were all wonderful. To Editor Soyama, I’m sorry for being so late with my deadline this time. As a light novel author always aiming to be punctual, I felt very bad about this.
Lastly, to my readers, Mapping: The Trash-Tier Skill That Got Me Into a Top-Tier Party will be ending with this volume. I am full of gratitude for those of you who’ve followed it across all eight volumes. This story has had a huge influence on my life. While this is my debut work, it’s also a product of the emotions and actions of the characters that move outside of my control. The words come from so deep within me that it’s hard to believe it’s my own creation.
I’ve received courage from all kinds of sources, sometimes being hurt in the process. It’s been a long four years since I started writing. I’ve only gotten this far thanks to everyone’s support. Thank you all so much.
This will be farewell to most of you reading this, but for those interested, Shujinkō ni Narenai Bokura no Dakyō Kara Hajimeru Koibito Seikatsu from Overlap Bunko will be going on sale the same day as this. If you’re interested in another story written by me, please check it out. It’s a school romcom, so there naturally won’t be any battle scenes, but there’ll be some other Kamono-esque developments and a side of me that just might surprise you.
Anyway, that’s all for now. Let’s meet again somewhere.
-Udon Kamono