Hello! I’m Shichio Kuzu, the author of this novel.
Thanks to a stroke of luck, I had the opportunity to publish this series under SQEX Novels, the new light novel label by Square Enix. They have been kind enough to support my manga work in the past, but this marks my first foray into novels with them. And to top it off, I’ve been given the incredible honor of being part of their very first launch lineup!
I thought, “Seriously? Are you sure about this? You’re putting me in the opening lineup?” I was shaking in my boots!
All jokes aside, the pressure was intense. I knew I couldn’t just phone it in, so I buckled down and put everything I had into revising, polishing, and adding content for this book release.
If you enjoyed any part of it, then it was worth it.
I’d like to give a few special shout-outs.
I’m so grateful to everyone who supported the web novel version. Thank you so much. It’s because of your support that I was able to bring this work into print.
To the amazing illustrator, Yasutaka Isegawa-sama: thank you for breathing life into these characters, who’d only ever existed in words until now. You made them feel real.
To my editor, I-san, and everyone else involved in the production of this novel: thank you so much for your help and guidance. I look forward to working with you again.
And in a bit of exciting news, this series is getting a manga adaptation! It’ll be illustrated by J1 Kaido, and I’ve already seen a few of the designs. They’re really fantastic, and I can’t wait to share them with you. So please keep an eye out for the manga as well!
Finally, to every reader who picked up this book: thank you from the bottom of my heart.
I hope we’ll meet again in the next volume! Until then, thanks so much for reading.
Shichio Kuzu