Chapter 85

AFTERWORD So, while writing this, I encountered a bit of neck pain, and so one day, I went and sat in the café with a brace around my neck. When I did, the following exchange occurred: “Oh no, sir! Did you have an accident?!” “Ah, no. I just…” “How awful. Here, have a seat on the couch and put your feet up. That’s better. I’ll put your things here. Can I get you a coffee?” “That’d be great, thanks.” “I gave you two stamps on your loyalty card there. Take care of yourself. I’ll get you your coffee now.” I received excellent service. It was the same café I usually frequented, so at that time I thought, “You know, it’s not all bad having people recognize you.” However, from then on, I became known as “neck-brace guy” and “accident guy,” so, you know…everything with a grain of salt. It almost seems like a parody of modern life to see a man in a neck brace sitting in a café typing away on his laptop. Perhaps they were feeling sorry for me. With that boring anecdote out of the way, we’re finally at the end of the third volume. It’s a deeply emotional experience for me. On top of the success of the first and second books, I feel like I’m on my way up a tall mountain. (Not that I’ve ever been mountain climbing before, but I imagine it’s the same thing.) The theme for this book was a struggle with the past, but by the end of it, I found that I’d exhausted my own past completely. When I started writing Sabikui Bisco for that contest all those months ago, my plan for the story comprised about a napkin’s worth of notes, all of which have been explored as of this volume. When I first came up with the ending to this three-book arc, I envisioned the two boys falling through Earth’s atmosphere like a meteor after they narrowly averted disaster, closing their eyes in eternal sleep, becoming lost in the blazing heat, and eventually falling to Earth in some form or another. “How’s this? I think it’s quite a dramatic finale…,” I suggested, handing the plot outline to my editor, who said: “Wait, so do the two of them die?” “Erm… I suppose?” I replied. “It depends on how you want to look at it…” “They can’t die! What about the sequel?!” And so, with the blessings of my editors, and of course the support of all its readers, it seems Sabikui Bisco shall continue. I, for one, am overjoyed to be allowed to pen their next adventure. Thank you ever so much. In any case, I’ve a daunting task ahead of me. Hope’s final lines, “The walls of the past have come tumbling down, and all that remains is a vast, infinite future!” apply to me as well. I should think myself free of the chains that have bound me and create a whole new world! Now that’s putting it theatrically, even for me. But it’s time to break my own rules (and I can hear you now—“You had rules?!”—but believe me, I did). I must avoid falling into stereotypes and allow Bisco and Milo to embark on a new adventure, free of all the baggage they’ve carried with them so far. I wonder how they will react to that? I can’t wait to see. And so Bisco and friends settled the score with the ghosts of the past. This marks an end to a large portion of their story. But it is not the end, no. Next time, they must…well… We’ll just have to wait and see, won’t we? (Shit, I have to come up with something?) To finish off, I want to thank all readers on behalf of the production team for your support in making Sabikui Bisco a reality, and also I hope you will continue to bestow upon my colleagues the respect that they so deeply deserve. With that, I shall see you next time. —Shinji Cobkubo