Chapter 79

AFTERWORD Has everyone been well? Tokiwa here. I recently became aware of a thing called basal metabolism when I failed to shrink back to my original size after pigging out. I’d been living a decadent lifestyle that didn’t require much muscle, but since everything I read and everyone I ask keep telling me basal metabolism is muscle, these days I’m eating my boiled chicken and muttering “muscle, muscle” (stop eating and exercise already!). Anyhow, enough about my nonexistent muscles. On to Volume 4 of The Holy Grail of Eris. Um, right, the afterword to Volume 4. As you know, I fully intended to wrap everything up in three volumes, and I shed tears while bidding my readers farewell in the afterword last time. But to my immense gratitude, I’ve been given the opportunity to publish a fourth volume. I write that like it’s nothing, but I was probably more shocked about it than anyone, and I’m still shocked now. This fortunate turn of events was entirely due to the support of my wonderful readers. Each word I receive from you is overflowing with love and good taste. It’s food for my soul, like a real-life spirit bomb. I don’t have many opportunities to express my appreciation, so let me take this moment to shout at the top of my lungs: Thank you, everyone, from the bottom of my heart! In the previous volume, Scarlett achieved her revenge in a sense. But strictly speaking, she wasn’t done. To borrow her words, she still needed to spend eighty-four more years without regrets (and she wouldn’t take no for an answer when it came to bringing her accomplice along for the ride). If the previous three volumes were about making peace with the past, then maybe this one is where her true revenge—that is, the story of her future—begins. There’s just one problem. What does it really mean to live without regrets anyway? The whole time I was writing Volume 4, I kept muttering, “What does it mean, what does it mean?” but here I am at the afterword, and I still haven’t come up with a good answer. Nevertheless, while I haven’t answered the question of what a life without regrets means for Scarlett (and ultimately, the answer may be up to her), for me at least, this volume has been an opportunity to think about the decisions Scarlett’s mother, Aliénore, and her ancestor Cornelia Faris made in their lives, and how those decisions impacted the future. After all, Scarlett exists because of them, and perhaps some answers about Scarlett’s revenge can be found in their lives. Or maybe not—I’m not sure. But even if their lives were difficult, and even if they had regrets, I hope that what remains of those lives will bring light to someone living right now. I’ve actually never written a novel within a set timeframe before, and at first I didn’t know what to do. But my editor was right there by my side as usual, and I managed to take off from the starting line. Speaking of my editor, I think the reason I reached my goal at all was because each time I was about to run off in some crazy direction, they gave me the right advice to get back on track. I also very much appreciate the help of my new editor, who kindly guided me all the way to the end of Volume 4. Once again, Yu-nagi created transcendently beautiful illustrations for this volume. Each one is so wonderful, I could easily spend an hour talking about it. But to mention just the cover, I love that you can tell at a glance that Connie and Randolph are on vacation. The blueness of the sky and the brightness of the sunshine are perfect, and so is the way Connie is holding Randolph’s arm completely naturally, so you know right away that they’ve grown closer since the end of the last book. Also, everyone’s face is just so adorable. Outstandingly adorable. Scarlett’s smug expression and Connie’s smile, and even Randolph. I almost fainted at the fabulous frontispiece illustrations, and the picture of the three girls is so precious, I got down on my knees in gratitude when I saw it. Finally, I want to say that I could have never completed this marathon of the last few months on my own. The reason I’ve had the privilege of writing this fourth volume is because of every one of you who reads the series as well as all the people who have supported me (Momoyama’s comic version is also terrific and always inspiring). Traveling abroad is still difficult these days, but in my mind, at least, I’m at the center of the world, crying out my thanks. Thank you so, so much. So good-bye for now, and I hope we meet again one day. Kujira Tokiwa