Long time no see, everybody. Unless some of you are here for the first time. It’s me, Rei Ayatsuki.
Thank you very much for picking up the second volume of Hero Syndrome. Welcome to my afterword.
It was only after the first volume was released that I realized that people expect entertainment in the afterwords to books as well. For this afterword, I would like to talk about the idea of afterwords themselves.
Apparently, an afterword is “words appended to the end of a piece of writing or book,” although some also consider it to be a letter to the reader.
But I started to wonder, why do afterwords exist at all? Why isn’t just the novel good enough? I considered what I was looking for when reading the afterword to a light novel, and the purpose started to become clear. Of course, it was another form of entertainment. Maybe.
…In any case, I figured I might as well write about some of the characters’ favorite foods.
First, the protagonist, Kaguya Shinohara. She eats like a horse, and her favorite foods are pretty much everything. The one thing she hates is carbonated beverages. As a kid, she tried to act all grown up and take a big swig, but it rushed up her nose and she’s hated carbonation ever since.
Yuuri Azuma. Azuma doesn’t eat that much. He tends to choose his foods based on nutritional value, which is why he likes eggs. He’s the type who eats things even when they’re a day or two past their best-by date. He doesn’t really mind.
Koyuki Asaharu. In true girly fashion, she likes foods and drinks that are cutesy and fun. She could eat an endless stack of pancakes. She’s also a sucker for limited-time specials, and takes tons of photos before she eats.
Rindou Yumeura. His favorite food is energy bars. He tends not to eat properly. In general, he’s not the type to take much of an interest in day-to-day living. He doesn’t own many things.
As for the new character appearing in this volume, she loves sour things. She’s also a fan of gross and bizarre foods, and is the type to put way, way too much soy sauce on things.
Mari Ezakura. Of all the characters, she is the one with the most mature palate. She also knows how to cook for herself. She likes Japanese food, but tends to eat Western food with Kaguya when they get lunch. The Director only eats when she remembers to, and sometimes she even gives herself an IV instead. Major Mirai is the proper, three-meals-a-day type.
Now onto the acknowledgments!!
To my editors M and N, sorry for all the trouble I caused. To riichu, who handled character design for Hero Syndrome, Kaguya is as cute as ever. To GEKIDAN INU CURRY Doroinu, who participated in the role of creature design, the heroes are incredible! You really blew my socks off this time.
To everyone in the editing department, everyone else involved, and the readers who have picked this work up, I can never truly be grateful enough. Thank you.