The Hero King, Reincarnate to Master the Art of War (LN) - Volume 11 - Chapter Aft

Afterword

First, thank you very much for picking up this book! So, that’s the eleventh volume of Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire ♀. I hope you enjoyed it.

This volume really fills a lot in, but from an author’s perspective, I was addressing previously undefined events and deciding which way to go with them. Up until now, I’d been talking big, but now I’ve done my best to clarify things. Once it’s officially in print, there’s no turning back, so I’m a little worried about how some parts will turn out.

I’m the kind of person who likes to leave things vague, if possible, and leave room to tweak them later, so I get nervous when I have to definitively state details before I proceed. However, I’m working on a long series, so I think this has been a valuable experience. Thank you for sticking through it. There were a lot of things which needed to be set up properly before moving on.

I’d certainly like to keep doing my best, but honestly, this volume drew such a clear line that as I write this afterword, I don’t really have any idea how volume 12 will go, but I’m sure I’ll figure it out when I get there! I’m feeling good, so I am raring to go!

As I wrote in my profile, I’ve been working out every day and trying to keep myself under fifteen hundred calories for the past three months. Mentally, it’s kind of like a challenge run in a game, except it’s IRL. I’m down ten or fifteen pounds now, and during it all, I’ve reliably been pumping out twelve hundred words a day. It really has made clear how much my writing condition depends on my physical condition, so it’s a habit I’d like to keep going. I’ve been posting about my daily life on X (formerly Twitter), so check it out if you’re interested.

If I had to pin down what made me start, it’s that I went to Okinawa with my family last summer, and when I looked around at the hotel pool or the private beach, I got embarrassed about my physique when compared to all the other dads. I’m glad I went, because it gave me the impetus to change.

In any case, since my writing stamina’s gone up, I’d like to branch out from this and my other series Sword Saint Adel’s Second Chance to do even more! I’d like to push myself to my limits before my time as a writer ends. I’m sure someday this career will no longer be practical for me, so I want to make the most of this time. I’d love to still be writing as a grandpa, but we live in a world where if there’s no demand for your art, you can’t keep doing it. I’m not letting my guard down even one bit, and I don’t have time to get carried away. That’s also why it’s so fun and super rewarding. Compared to my time at a real sweatshop when I was younger, as well as when I was a part-time writer after my day job, the hours are still shorter. I’d like to keep going like this for a while.

Finally, I’d like to thank my editor N, the illustrator Nagu, and everyone else involved for their hard work and dedication. Goodbye for now!