Afterword
HELLO, I’m Makino Maebaru. Thank you so much for picking up the long-awaited second volume of The Inconvenient Life of an Arousing Priestess!
Within this past year or so, the wonderful Yamato Fujimine’s comic adaptation of this novel finally began serialization and the English edition was published too. Such exciting developments for the Arousing Priestess. This volume focused on her return to the Kingdom of Kophe. It isn’t about conquest or annexation… Probably.
Monica, who finally realizes she’s in love, and Richard, straining in more ways than one as he destroys his magical stones. The two of them lead his knights into the Kingdom and establish supremacy… No, wait, they provide support and while doing so, they start understanding each other more and more. That’s what this story is about. I have another rescue tale planned for Monica too.
She constantly undervalues her own abilities despite her outstanding record of achievements. She’s the type of girl who doesn’t like to stand out and will let others take the spotlight with a smile. No matter the situation, she just can’t prioritize herself. I feel it isn’t too much to say that I write my works to make heroines like her as happy as possible. Monica is at peace because she has Richard by her side. Speaking of Richard, he’s the sort of man who will just shrug casually if the Empire falls or a meteorite hits and respond with, “Don’t worry, Miss Monica. I’ll handle it, one way or another.♡” And that’s exactly what he does.
I think the new character who stood out the most this time is probably Xenu Eugenie. His existence was hinted at in the first volume, but I doubt anyone predicted how he actually turned out. That’s what I’d like to think anyway. Isn’t Hachi Uehara’s illustration of him sublime? It perfectly captures his shadiness and beauty! This ladykiller with a devious smile has a different perspective on life than Richard. I hope you’re excited to see what he’s up to next!
The last thing I’d like to do is acknowledge everyone involved in the publication of this book. All the readers who read the first volume, the web version, the comic adaptation, and the English edition. It made me so happy to see you so excited and impatient for the second volume. The artist Hachi Uehara, for drawing Xenu as such a gorgeous and dubious man. My editor and proofreader who I depend on from the bottom of my heart. The designer who made the cover so happy and colorful. To the artist, Yamato Fujimine for the incredible comic adaptation that makes me keep changing my definition of incredible. The booksellers in bookshops all over the world, the distributors, and everyone else involved in this work. Truly, thank you so very much. Without every last one of you, the Arousing Priestess wouldn’t exist. Finally, I give my thanks to my friends, family, and grandmother for always supporting me.
Thank you very much for reading. Please don’t hesitate to send your thoughts and comments to SHUFU TO SEIKATSU SHA CO., LTD for the Japanese version and to Cross Infinite World for the English version.
I hope we can meet again soon!
Makino Maebaru
August 2023