Afterword
THIS WORK STARTED as a short story I wrote for a project for a special November issue of Dengeki Bunko Magazine. It was to be a collaboration with the manga artist Shirou Tsunashima. The editor gave us the theme of “robots and girls,” and yes, I gave it my all. I’m sure you understand this if you’ve already read the story, but this work features nothing but robots and girls (at least from a certain point of view). If I do say so myself, I did some good work here. It’s not necessarily because of that, but I have a strange attachment to this story. Ever since I wrote it, I’ve hoped that I’d be able to make a full book out of it. And here we are!
We even got Shirou Tsunashima to keep doing the art. He’s a pro with serialized manga, so I wasn’t necessarily expecting to get illustrations within the text, but when I opened the box, there were opening illustrations, interior illustrations, and even bonus material! I’m so grateful he did so much for an author like me who had him design robots for the aforementioned theme of “robots and girls” and then told him not to use the robot designs after all (since it wouldn’t make sense for the main character to see them). Apparently, we might include those robot designs as a bonus at the end of the book. Honestly, I think I might be happier than the readers about all this. I’m so glad fate brought us together.
So, we have the three sections in this story:
“This and That About Marii” (published in the magazine as “Qualia the Purple”).
“Kiss Over One Billion.”
“If.”
Frankly, I did wonder whether two stories and an epilogue would be enough, but after seeing what the illustrator drew for the title pages, I was fully convinced that yes, these three sections were enough—anything more would be superfluous. Of course, you may be able to see what I’m talking about when you read it, but there’s an insurmountable difference between “You’ll see when you read it” and “You’ll understand when you see it,” which I’ve run into many times with other works. I’m envious of the at-a-glance persuasiveness visual art has.
(Prose does have its own strengths, but that’s an entirely different story.)
When we see something, unmistakably, we receive more information than meets the eye. We don’t even realize this. To be precise, it’s not that we’re not aware of it because it’s not necessary, but rather, things look like something to us because it’s necessary that they look like something.
This work is a drama that starts from that something.
Thus, what you have here is a funny little story that came into being by coincidence from an assignment. Qualia the Purple, saved by serendipity and opportunity—I now deliver it to you. Whether you’ve already read it or you’re going to read it now, I hope you’ll enjoy it.
With fondest regards,
Hisamitsu Ueo