Baccano! - Volume 22 - Chapter Aft

AFTERWORD

It’s been a while; this is Narita. Seriously, it’s really been a while.

So this was the first Baccano! in about three years—and I’m so sorry. In a previous afterword, I’d said this might end up being five volumes long, and that prediction was accurate: The arc will conclude with the next volume, End & Epilogue!

I was actually planning to make this volume a total brick and wind things up here, but it’s been three years since I last wrote a Baccano! book. I’ve forgotten this and that, and my feel for things has slipped a bit in places. I decided the ending was going to be pretty weak if I forced it to happen here, and so I’ll be wrapping things up with one more book. To those of you who were looking forward to the finale, I’m really sorry.

I imagine some of you are thinking, Hey, c’mon, are you gonna keep us waiting another three years, then?! …Well, don’t worry about that. I’ve talked it over with the Dengeki editorial department, and we’ve gotten my schedule for the next six months nailed down.

My upcoming schedule for Dengeki Bunko has Applaud with Izaya Orihara in autumn, Fate/strange Fake, Vol. 4, in winter, and after that (the end of winter, or some point in spring?), Baccano! 1935—End & Epilogue!

In the meantime, it’s likely that various other jobs will come in, including some from other publishers. Still, this is how it’s going to go at Dengeki Bunko, so thank you for your understanding!

By the way, the original plan and progression have changed over the past three years, too. There were changes to the plot as well. For example, Cookie was originally supposed to rampage night after night and attack mafia men…! But in light of recent reports of bear attacks, I decided to shelve that part. That said, it’s dangerous to get all buddy-buddy with a bear the way Isaac and Miria do, so please steer clear of them in your everyday lives!

Still, three years… They say it takes three years for peach and chestnut seeds to bear fruit, and eight for persimmon trees; in the time it takes to grow peaches, all sorts of things have happened. I developed this disease called anaphylactoid purpura (I’m currently recovered), spent eighteen months straight working on bonus novels for the DRRR!! DVDs, started my new series Fate/strange Fake, did the writing for the manga Stealth Symphony, and took my first crack at writing the script for a game called Heaven x Inferno… A whole lot of things. From here on out, I’d like to adjust my mind a bit and write in a balanced way that includes Baccano! If I get the chance, I’d love to fit in some Vamp! and Etsusa Bridge volumes, too!

So after that long blank, what got me psyched up to write Baccano!?! It was Shinta Fujimoto’s Baccano! manga, the one that’s running in Young GanGan!

I never dreamed the first book of this series, which I wrote thirteen years ago, would get more multimedia projects…! Fujimoto practically knows more about Baccano! than I do; he’ll put little jokes in the corners of panels and things, and I look forward to every chapter!

The incident I mention in this book—Keith’s kidnapping by the Phantom Father—is a story in the prequel volume, a complete manga original. I’d love it if fans of the original picked up the Young GanGan Baccano! as well!

*And now for the usual thank-yous.

To my supervising editor, Wada (Papio), and the rest of the Dengeki Bunko editorial department. To all the copy editors, for whom I always cause trouble by working too slowly, every single time. To the staff in all the departments at ASCII Media Works. This time, I really can’t apologize enough…!

To the people who are constantly taking care of me: my family and friends, and other writers and illustrators. And to Katsumi Enami, who produced even more appealing drawings of all these characters, even though it had been three years. The character picture posts on Enami’s Twitter are a must-see!

…And to everyone who read this book.

All the people I’ve just mentioned have my deepest gratitude. Thank you very much!

July 2016, while frolicking with a flower in Undertale—Ryohgo Narita

Also, check it out! There’s a special bonus on the next page! Shinta Fujimoto, first you draw the preview manga for Dengeki Bunko MAGAZINE, and now this… Thank you so much!