"Assassin, Erase My Past" V5 - Afterword
"Yo-ho! I wonder how many readers remembered me after reading this Afterword! Here comes Patricia, a.k.a. Pat, to present the end-of-book discussion!"
(Author) "... Come to think of it, its been an adventure... but to send you out? Well, you're the only one-shot heroine this time around, so it can't be helped."
"What do you mean 'it can't be helped'! I only look like this because you're the chairman of the Association for Lowering The Average Age of Characters!"
"Ahh, there she goes again, spouting off nonsense... Anyway, let's move on. Hi, I'm the author."
"Oh, yeah, you're the guy who delayed the book's release by a whole month."
"......"
"On top of that, you didn't even get the manuscript submitted with Dragon Magazine until the last minute, and have done so every month. You claimed your telephone and fax machine were downed by a lightning strike (and of course, the warranty wasn't valid anymore). Then you couldn't contact the editorial department, and buried them with faxes."
"......"
"And anyway, I've been worried about whether or not the release of this month's book would really be delayed by only a single month or not. You've been doing one book every four months up until now, and now that record is ruined. Five months is only one month short of taking half a year to finish it! Did you know that? You can't even write the story without taking a ton of time to do so."
"......"
"Besides, this book is getting kind of thick."
"Sorry, there's no excuse... (hangs head)"
"... Okay, well this time, let's be honest..."
"No, this time the delay was the result of something totally normal. I got in a conflict, but was able to throw some left hooks and fancy footwork. I scored a body drop in the fight, and made them faint with a triangle choke, only, the video recording was deleted without permission. Of course, then I pulled the bookmark out of the book I was reading. On top of that, I had to dish out some light retaliation against someone who was spreading mean rumors about me around my neighborhood."
"You'll really go that far..."
"This time it's indisputable, it's almost all true."
"Almost?"
"Lightning strikes aren't my fault."
"Is that really the only part that's up for debate...?"
"The rest is indisputable fact. Ahem."
"Don't get cocky, you idiot. Pfft."
"Well, let's cut the self-reflection and live a happier tomorrow."
"Pat thinks it'd be in your best interest to do some serious self-reflection."
"Nowadays, when the story is ramping up and getting more serious, and the postcards are piling up, there'll be times where it can't be helped."
"Nahh, I don't think that's the problem..."
(Ignoring Her) "Next time will be even more serious. I wonder what'll happen? Anyway, this author has his hands full trying to make sure that nobody dies."
"This guy, seriously..."
"In this series, nameless characters (and some others) die one after another. In this volume, there weren't so many, but even so... there are still some dead people. I don't know how its gotten to be this way when this particular author can't even kill a bug."
"I think the worst part is that you don't even understand why you're doing this."
"Well, I've been venting my frustration over the seriousness of the main story in Dragon Magazine. Heh. Anyway, a book summarizing the serialized story of Orphen is scheduled to be published early next year. It'll be printed through Fantasia Bunko♪ "
(Muttering) "Author sponsored ads..."
"......" (Frozen)
"...? That's strange behavior..."
"Combination from the left hook and a body drop following fancy footwork, finished by a triangle choke!"
"Whoa! Everyone, run away! Goodbye! Wait, no, 'Withdraw'!"
"Wait! Don't run away with the video proof!"
— September 1995 Yoshinobu Akita
Table of Contents
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| (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) |
The Usual Victim The Sudden Assassin The Melancholy Homecomer The Persistent Visitor The Night Walker The Seeker Confronted The Successor of Steel |