Chapter 114

Hello. I’m Yuka-ako Kabei (what kind of character is this?). ……Okay, the thing is, because of how the volume ended, I really struggled with how to connect the afterword to it, and so I ended up with this weird hyperactive vibe that just destroys any lingering aftertones of the story that you may be savoring…I-I’m sorry. Right, so I’ve managed to present you with the eighth volume of Kieli. This volume is a little bit different from the previous volumes. What’s different, you ask? There are different characters on the cover. Taue-san put a lot of spirit into it. And what with one thing and another, somewhere along the way this volume ended up featuring Joachim as the shadow protagonist. And now the next volume will be the final one. The Kieli series is set to total out at nine volumes, just like my wishful thinking in the last volume’s afterword. Um, I think it would be tasteless to talk at length about the content of the story at this point…so let’s consider this particular afterword a “special episode.” I’d like to take this time to answer the most frequently asked questions in the letters my fine readers have sent me. Look, my pretty much running out of stuff to talk about in the afterwords is, uh…not what’s happening here, okay? And now, let the Q&A fest begin. Q. Can’t I listen to the radio drama you wrote about in Volume VI’s afterword anymore? A. Unfortunately, the radio drama broadcast is over, but it’s been released as a drama CD, with everything from the broadcast plus a bonus track. It also comes with a bonus short story, and it’s chock-full of original illustrations by Taue-san, so I’d love for you to give it a listen. As of now (February 2006), I think it’s in stock at Animates nationwide and at Dengeki’s online shop (www.dengekiya.com). Q. Did you really handwrite the message on the postcard reply to my fan letter, Ms. Kabei? A. Absolutely! Incidentally, when I asked someone living with me, “Don’t you think my handwriting is a little too messy to show other people?” they answered, “Your writing is beyond the dimension of ‘good handwriting’ or ‘bad handwriting’ and into chicken-scratch territory.” I’m sorry my messages are always chicken-scratching…Also, I always write my draft manuscripts on five-millimeter graph paper and cram in the words really tight, so my lettering is super-tiny… Q. Where does the accent go in Harvey’s name? A. I was surprised by how many people asked this question (you see, I never had any doubts about pronouncing it…). I think you can tell how it goes if you listen to the drama CD, but, um, it’s difficult to explain on paper…It’s the same accent pattern as when you shout “mambo [sunfish]!” (What kind of example is that?) Or “senbei [rice cracker]” or “mocho [appendix],” or “Kancho [Captain]!” in response to “I’ll go down with the ship” or something. Q. Please tell us the Corporal’s real name. A. That’s a secret. ……… Listen, it’s not that I never decided on a name, okay? ……… Q. Please tell us your dog’s name. A. It’s “Yukichi.” You see, I like the sound “yu.” A lot of my characters have “ya” or “yu” or “yo” in their names, too. Q. Reading Volume V and Volume VI, I started to like Joachim. A. Thank you. *grins broadly* As the writer, he was a favorite of mine, too, because I found it very easy to write his subtle insanity. Q. I’d like to be a novelist someday. Do you have any advice? A. Urk…I go through a trial-and-error process writing each book, so I can’t give anything worth calling “advice”…Well, I think one way of training yourself is to just write the whole thing to the end and not chuck it partway through. Because you realize very different things from getting sick of it and quitting with it half-done versus using every ounce of tenacity you’ve got to power through to that last scene. Other than that, I think having plenty of fun with your friends and absorbing lots of things outside the realm of novels is the most valuable thing…though now that I’ve graduated, I regret having spent my school days goofing off…I hope I’ll have the pleasure of meeting you as a colleague one day. Give it your best! (I-I’d better give it my best, too, so that I can keep my career as a novelist until then.) Q. Won’t Kieli be made into a manga or anime? A. It recently got a manga adaptation! It’s been running in Akita Shoten’s manga magazine Mystery Bonita (which comes out on the 6th of each month) since December 2005. The manga artist, Shiori Teshirogi, draws wonderful art that’s a bit different in style from Taue-san’s (plus she’s got a fetish for old abandoned buildings, just like me, so we’re kindred spirits!). I highly encourage you check out this other Kieli world. Q. Please keep writing Kieli forever! A. Many people have been kind enough to say things like that. Thank you all very much. But you see, I think stories really ought to have endings…If you follow this story all this way to its final volume, that will be the greatest happiness I could ask for. All right, I hope to be able to see you again in The Dead Sleep Eternally in the Wilderness, Part 2. Yukako Kabei