Hey. As usual, it’s time for the useless afterword…or that’s what I’d usually say, but maybe not this time. That’s because, unlike when I just scribble down whatever comes to mind, I actually have something to write about! And not just one thing, but two! Hurray. I’m ready to tackle a nine-page afterword…! So, instead of randomly including a short story at the end, I’m going to write a proper, serious afterword this time… (The following has been omitted for brevity.)
You’ve been completely poiso—trained by me like one of Pavlov’s dogs! Heh! Anyway, as you’ve probably guessed, the topic is none other than the anime adaptation of Feelings in Russian, which will begin airing in April 2024.
Oh, and by the way, my editor told me, “Following industry standards, the newest volume should be released to coincide with the anime, so Volume 8 should be released in April.” But…since I didn’t want to make readers wait an extra two months for no reason, I decided to release Volume 8 in February. Isn’t that thoughtful of me? Heh. A novelist who cares about their readers! But honestly, I just couldn’t handle a sudden two-month gap myself… (The following has been omitted for brevity.)
But, well, my mental state is like shape-memory alloy—no matter how bent out of shape I get, a good night’s sleep fixes everything. Anyway, I seem to have gotten off track. Let’s get back to the main topic of what to write about in the afterword. The first topic is…Anime Festival Asia, or AFA for short, which was held in Singapore!
I can’t believe it, but I, Sunsunsun, the author of Feelings in Russian, was invited to the Anime Festival Asia stage event held back in late November! Ha-ha-ha-ha! I’ve heard stories about authors being sent to hot springs by their publishers to write in seclusion, but I never thought I’d be going on an overseas business trip at the publisher’s expense. Apparently, it’s quite rare for KADOKAWA to hold an event like this before the anime airs, so I’m really grateful for all the effort they’re putting into promoting the anime.
With a deep sense of gratitude, I embarked on my first-ever overseas trip… Yes, it was my first time going abroad. I even had to get a passport for this. When I told the KADOKAWA staff member who accompanied me, he was like, “You wrote Feelings in Russian without ever going abroad?!” But I mean, if you think about it, writers of isekai fantasy (probably) haven’t been to another world either. (The following has been omitted for brevity.) So what’s the big deal if I write Feelings in Russian without ever going abroad! Ha-ha. I’m just trying to justify that I’m just more of an (extremely) indoors-kind-of-guy.
That’s right. I’m super introverted. I basically don’t want to go outside on my days off. For me, it’s not a day off unless I’m at home. Because of this personality, I’ve never much been interested in domestic travel, let alone international travel. But the trip to Singapore was incredibly fun. Even though I can’t speak English at all (basically, all I said was yes, no, thank you, okay, and sorry), the KADOKAWA staff members showed me around and helped me every step of the way, so it was a very comfortable, nice trip. Out of everyone who accompanied me on this trip, I had only met my editor and the producer for the anime before, but the members of the promotion department were also very friendly and kind… I guess people who work in promotions are naturally good at socializing. Also, Sumire Uesaka, her hair stylist, and her manager were all very friendly and easy to talk to.
…Yep. I was already surprised, but on this trip, I was on the same flight from Haneda Airport as Sumire Uesaka, the voice actress for Alya in the anime. She was incredibly beautiful, just like the real Alya. I was really surprised. I knew we were going to appear on stage together at the AFA event, but I thought, “We’ll probably be traveling separately and meet up at the venue on the day of the event.” But no, we were on the same flight. And guess what? I found out later that the person sitting two seats away from me was also a female voice actress who was going to appear at AFA. I only found out about it later from Sumire Uesaka herself.
You know, this was the first time I’ve ever met a celebrity who’d appeared on TV. And a super famous voice actress that I met on my first trip overseas to boot. Total insanity, right? I landed in Singapore while thinking, “You never know what life will throw at you.”
But seriously, Singapore was amazing, especially the architecture. Every building was so avant-garde, and even ordinary apartments had unique colors and shapes, making me think that architects must flat-out refuse to create generic buildings here. And even though the buildings were so full of style, nature was still well-preserved. The street trees were much taller than those in Japan, and the whole city felt like a perfect fusion of nature and technology. It was amazing.
And then, when the AFA stage event started, I found myself surprised yet again. So many of the audience members could understand Japanese. Before the interpreter could translate anything into English, about thirty percent of the people would react. And they were so enthusiastic. My editor had told me, “A shirt and jacket would be too formal for the stage outfit!” So I wore a T-shirt with a big print of Alya (I think it was Taiwanese merchandise), and the Singaporean audience laughed. They were so kind.
And then, after the stage event, I did a signing session with Sumire Uesaka…and I was completely blown away… Her English skill level was about the same as mine, but she was sooo good at engaging with the audience. She’d even notice what the fans were wearing or carrying, and would talk about those shows and about her fellow voice actors, even inserting catchphrases from the characters she’s played while signing autographs. Meanwhile, I was so impressed by her amazing will to please the fans and talent that I just stood there quietly signing autographs as I turned into air. In fact, I’m still wondering if it should even be legal to have my terrible signature right next to Sumire Uesaka’s. So anyway, that’s basically what happened. The event wrapped up as I marveled at the greatness of top-tier voice actors and the kindness of the people in Singapore. And later that night, I even visited a casino. A real casino!
This is what traveling abroad is all about! There weren’t any bunny girls, though! Tsk! Why not?! Where else could you find bunny girls if not a casino? Are they an endangered species? Or is it just a Japanese stereotype that they are standard in casinos? Or maybe you can find them in Las Vegas? Where the heck are all the bunny girls?! What am I supposed to do at a casino without any bunny girls…?! Anyway, that’s what was going through my mind as I lost all my money (about six thousand yen) playing roulette.
The Sunsunsun Desire and Conspiracy Casino Arc, Fin!!
So, all in all, I had a really valuable experience. Thank you again to everyone involved. If the anime becomes a hit, please take me to Las Vegas next time. I want to see a real bunny girl! My adventure is far from over. I—okay, I’ll stop.