Hello, it’s nice to meet you. My name is Usagi Hoshimi.
Thank you so much for reading Engaging with the Plot: A Former Cat’s Attempt to Save Her Now Temporary Fiancé.
As I mentioned in the blurb I wrote for the book flaps, although my name, Usagi, means “rabbit,” I’m very much a cat lover at heart. I adore cats with every fiber of my being. In fact, I once told a veteran author, “When I’m tired, I pretend to pet an imaginary cat.” They proceeded to buy me a cat plushie—one of the semirealistic ones with a good weight and flexibility to it!
By the way, the reason I don’t have my own cat at home is because my self-employed parents have cats at their workplace. Everyone in my family loves cats, and thanks to that, all of ours are spoiled rotten. I thought they’d be happier in an environment where they have human companionship most of the time as well as other cat friends to play with, so I couldn’t bring one home with me.
This story was inspired by my love of cats.
“Cats are cute even when they’re doing nothing but breathing.”
“Cats are definitely aware that they’re cute.”
“And that’s part of what makes them so cute.”
“Cats are whimsical and free-spirited. Some of them only act nice when they want food, but that’s great too.”
“When a cat steps on my foot, it fills me with joy to the point where I want to thank it.”
Basically, cats are cute no matter what they do.
What if a cat became human? They’d be the cutest person in the world, with extremely high self-esteem and oodles of charm.
That’s how Lucille was born.
By the way, have you ever heard that cats can tell whether someone is a cat person or not?
Some years ago, a friend and I were driving to the beach at night. After arriving at the waterfront park, I was talking through the car’s rolled-down window to my friend outside.
Suddenly, my friend shouted, “Ah!”
Before I knew it, a cat had jumped in through the open window. It wandered around a bit before curling up in my lap and falling asleep, as if it were the natural thing to do.
I was surprised. Why did the cat come inside the car instead of approaching my friend outside?
As it turned out, my friend didn’t like cats. We suspected that the cat had sensed that.
According to my friend, the cat had been circling around the car while we were talking. It seemed to be looking for where my voice was coming from. In other words, it was more interested in an invisible cat lover than a nearby person who wasn’t comfortable around cats.
That was how I came to believe the theory that cats can identify cat lovers. If anyone reading this afterword has had a similar experience, I’d love to hear your story.
Now, although I just spent a long time talking about cats, I also hope that those who don’t like them will still enjoy reading this story. I love cats, but I won’t deny the feelings of those who aren’t fans. “Everyone has their own tastes, after all!”
The illustrations in this book were drawn by Qi234-sensei! I was so excited to see all of the stunning artwork that I sent lengthy emails fangirling over them to my editor. Looking at them while writing made my heart flutter the entire time.
Lucille is adorable to the max, Felix looks super cool with a hint of gloom, Maouldoth and Lilybell are just too sweet, Master Alys is irresistibly gorgeous... I could go on about them forever! And while the illustrations themselves are wonderful, aren’t the character designs brilliant too? All of them are breathtaking, but I especially love Master Alys. Every time I look at the back cover, I get so emotional that I literally shed tears.
Also, have you noticed? If you look closely at Lucille’s and Lilybell’s eyes, there are pawprints hidden in them! Please check for yourself. I almost died from cuteness overload when I spotted them.
Qi234-sensei, thank you so, so much for the wonderful illustrations!
Lastly, I’d like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the illustrator Qi234-sensei, my extremely helpful editor, everyone else who was involved in the creation of this book, and all of the readers who picked up a copy.
Thank you all so much. I’m very happy to be able to release the story I wrote in volume form. I hope you’ll enjoy it, and I hope I’ll be able to continue bringing you Lucille’s story.
I pray we’ll meet again.
Usagi Hoshimi