THANK you for waiting for this volume! It’s a pleasure to greet new and old fans here. I’m the author, Tsukasa Yamazaki, and I am pleased to present you with I Became the Secretary of a Hero Volume 3!
What did you think of the Barrier Arc covered in this volume?
After returning from the Ancient Ruins and the events of Volume 2, each member of the Hero Party must come to terms with their respective issues with the help of their friends, allowing them to set out on a brand new journey.
This volume was an especially pivotal growth arc for Elias.
In the previous volume, he sustained a traumatic mental blow after nearly taking the lives of the very friends and lover he swore to protect because he let the Goddess take over his mind. This is extra hard on him because he views himself as the protector of the world, not someone who hurts others for his gain.
Learning the truth of what he did filled him with fear that this unfathomable power would someday cause him to destroy everyone he holds dear. This is what leads him to separate from his friends to save them from himself.
It’s Leo, Elias’s best friend and love rival, who’s the unsung hero of this arc for getting Elias out of his funk!
Even though he has made his feelings for Aki clear, he still mediates between her and Elias to help them make up, and he even wipes out the horde of monsters that attack Port City with a single, powerful spell. Leo saved the day on both the mental and the physical battlefronts!
In future volumes, his mysterious origin story and why he has bottomless magic will be revealed! I think you will find it’s a surprising twist! I would be delighted if you tried to figure out what his true identity is!
And then we have Johann who manages to save the day at the last minute and grows into even more of a reliable, nice guy! He is steadily opening up to his friends, and that has only helped to improve his barbed word choice! The plan is for him to continue being our trusty info-dumper (haha!) as he gradually grows more powerful and ready to become the next Pope in charge of Sanctuary.
Then there’s Dark Lord and Nako who took a break from this volume, but will have starring roles during the Dark Lord Castle Arc coming in Volume 4! Please look forward to seeing how Hero Elias and the Dark Lord clash! Sutcliff will also have a big role in the next volume now that he has joined the Hero Party!
Last but not least we have Mina and Louis! We saw a glimpse of Mina’s past as an Adventurer and why she has always wanted to join the Hero Party. In my mind, Aki is the reason why Mina wants to trust people again, and it is because she has become such an important friend to Mina that she is willing to do anything to protect her. Aki also views Mina as her one and only girlfriend in this world, and the person she can tell anything. I’m pretty sure these two ladies will continue to lead the men of the Hero Party by the nose!
Meanwhile, Louis harbors secrets of his own—he’s more than just a wandering Minstrel. I plan to go into more detail on his background in the upcoming volumes!
Now that I’m finished discussing how the characters grew in this third volume, I want to extend my thanks to Kiyu Kanae for drawing the beautiful cover and internal art again! To me, Kiyu’s art breathes life into my characters, and she is an irreplaceable partner to the creation of this world! I hope to continue collaborating with her in the future!
I also want to thank Charis Messier for bringing the story to life in English! Thank you for always supporting my ideas! I’m really looking forward to what turns of phrase she uses in the translation this time around!
Finally, I want to thank all of you who have continued to support this series from Volume 1! You have my deepest gratitude for picking up a copy of Volume 3 as well!
Every time I see readers talking about how much they enjoy the story and are looking forward to the next arc, I’m so encouraged! Please continue to support me!
I would be delighted if you sent in fan letters or fanart for your favorite characters!
Thank you for reading this far. I hope we meet again in Volume 4.
Now, let’s go on an adventurous journey to save the world!
03.20
From my home in Japan in early spring
Tsukasa Yamazaki