Kino no Tabi:Volume7 Author's Notes

Afterword in Color — Preface —

Hello everyone. Is this the author Keiichi Sigsawa? (Editor’s Note: Why are you asking?)

So far, I have written different kinds of afterwords, but this is my first time writing an afterword in color. In other words, it is ‘a new age for afterwords’. The new generation. The evolution —— It is not exaggeration to say that I persistently and desperately wrote the novel text all for the sake of bringing forth this renewed afterword —— Yes! That is to say, the main text was nothing but a chunk of characters written to make the afterword stand out. (Editor’s Note: We have to talk later.)

Now then, after this book’s publication on June 2003 AD, the first DVD volume of the anime which is currently being broadcasted, as well as the game must hit the shelves soon. That my debut work, ‘Kino no Tabi’ continues to receive love even after crossing genres, is something that really makes me happy from the bottom of my heart.

It was roughly ten years ago since I first came up with the final speech of the curator in the ‘Peaceful Country’ for the sample first volume. Sigsawa was still a student at the time.

Back then, I was still practicing typing; writing my diary every day with a word processor (by the way, I still do this even now). One day, I came up with ‘a collection of questions to ask myself ten years later’. I could still clearly remember the ambience in my dormitory room and my feelings as I tried to write something that I came up with out of the blue, out of my desire to play around.

The questions begin with ‘Are you still alive?’ (Ans. Somewhat), ‘Are you healthy?’ (Ans. Fairly well), ‘Have you graduated from university?’ (Ans. Miraculously), ‘Did you go out with her?’ (Ans. Leave me alone!), and so on —— Out of these was this question:

“Did your dream come true?”

—

Ten years from now. I would answer the questionnaire I borrowed from the last part of my afterword to my 2013 self.

“Yes, my dream ten years ago has come true. I have become the light novel author that I aspired to be back then, admired by many people. I am happy. —— And, how are you right now? The dreams you had back in 2003, have they come true?”

—

Editor: Oh? Then what’s your dream right now, Sigsawa?

Sigsawa: (Absentmindedly) To make an afterword anime…

Editor: It looks like I have to talk with you after all… (*smack*)

Sigsawa: Wha—. What are you doing—. Stop—. Let go—. I’m Sigsawa, you know—. (*Voice fades out *) Now, here’s the main text—

June 2003
Keiichi Sigsawa

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