Berserk of Gluttony (LN) - Volume 4 - Chapter Aft

Afterword

HELLO, this is Isshiki Ichika. It’s been seven months since Volume Three, but Volume Four is finally here.

This volume focused on events after the defeat of the Divine Dragon. Fate, as usual, fought his way through some crazy stuff! But also, as I wrote this volume, I couldn’t help but wonder if readers would feel like Roxy didn’t have a big-enough part. I wanted to give her space in the second half of the book to really shine, and I’m happy as long as readers feel like the only one for Fate is Roxy.

This volume also saw the return of Aaron Barbatos, who first appeared in Volume Two. Back then, Aaron said he had something he wanted to tell Fate, and now we finally know what. Having seen Fate’s efforts to help free Hausen from the grip of monsters, Aaron decided to adopt him into his family.

As a writer, I was excited to write battles where the two could fight side by side again. I like the fiery passion of men fighting together in battle. And with each volume, Aaron keeps getting stronger. How much stronger will he get?

Fate also faced off against a fateful piece of his past: Rafale Vlerick. I thought a lot about what would happen when the two of them finally met again in Seifort, after Fate became the head of the Barbatos family.

Rafale is an awful, terrible human being, but there’s also a reason he ended up that way. I struggled a lot here. What would Fate feel when he found out about Rafale? How would he act? What would he do?

In the end, however, Fate devoured Rafale’s soul. In doing so, we got a hint as to what’s coming further down the line.

Then we have Memil, Rafale’s half-sister, who is going to be an important character for Fate in the future. At the end of Volume Four, Memil is officially adopted into the Barbatos family, making her Fate’s sister.

When I first started writing this story, I never could have thought that this would end up happening to Memil. I didn’t think of her as much more than a character who would eventually end up dead. But it’s surprising to think that it’s been two years since we started on the book version of Berserk of Gluttony. Sometimes, I really can’t believe so much time has passed! I guess it just goes to show that as you keep writing, your plans for characters can and will change.

Memil is a prime example of this. She was originally bound for the same fate as her brother, Rafale. But when I finished Volume Three, I had to rethink things. I wondered if that was really the best way forward. After all, Fate himself had changed. He risked his life to fight the Divine Dragon and was saved by the same young woman he had come to Galia to save. Through these experiences, Fate matured and grew. That was why he wrote his letter to Roxy, apologizing for all the mistakes he’d made. This Fate is a very different person from the Fate who left Seifort to follow Roxy so long ago.

When Fate faced off against Rafale, Rafale was already under the control of Shin. In order to stop the rampage, Fate had no choice but to kill him. However, how will this new Fate deal with Memil?

That’s one thing to look forward to in the next volume!

Another part of the story I agonized over was Myne’s departure. Myne is one of my favorite characters, and the idea of sending her somewhere far away…I was very conflicted about it. However, she has goals of her own. And in order to see them through, she has no choice but to leave Fate’s side.

I think it hit me the most when I actually wrote the scene where Myne first sheds tears in front of Fate. Wow, she’s really leaving, I thought. However, this is not where the story of Fate and Myne ends—it’s a base from which to grow and build things up again.

Myne is a stubborn one, and she’s still a ways from becoming kinder and more understanding. So, as the writer, my job is just to keep the story going so we can get to that time more quickly. I already know the lines for that moment, and I can’t wait to write them. I’m also looking forward to reuniting them so I can get back to writing their banter again.

I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank Daisuke Takino, who has adapted Berserk of Gluttony into a manga. It’s been one year since the manga was first published, and at the time of writing, there are now two volumes available. Takino makes Fate look really cool and Roxy really cute, and I’m always blown away when I get a chance to see the draft images in advance. The fact that Takino can further expand the world of Berserk of Gluttony is due to all the support from its readers. Thank you all so much.

The manga so far covers up to the end of the first volume, and it’s moving into the second. This means that finally we’ll get to see the entrance of Myne and her Wrath. I think things are only going to heat up from there. I’m really looking forward to seeing Myne and her black axe, Sloth, but of course, I’m still expecting big things from Fate and Greed too. Unfortunately, Roxy doesn’t play much of a role yet, but that’s because of how I constructed the story; she’ll be out of the picture until Galia. But I hope, if we’re lucky, that we might get to see her pop up in a flashback or memory somewhere.

Finally, I’d like to thank my editor for all the advice, fame for the lively and energetic illustrations, and everyone who helped make this fourth volume possible. The fifth volume will be available soon, and I look forward to writing to you all again then.