Dungeon ni Deai o Motomeru no wa Machigatte Iru Darou ka - Volume 4 Chapter 7 Afterword

Ever since I was a child, I’ve thought of blacksmiths as “Strong!” “Austere!” “Cool!” just like in Dragon Quest! I knew right away that I wanted the hero’s partner to be a male blacksmith. Now, at long last, he’s in the story. It’s particularly moving for the character to be male because of the number and diversity of female characters that have already been introduced.
The blacksmith who appears in this story isn’t particularly strong or simple, nor can he make the Seikou Juuji Ken. He’s a struggling blacksmith covered in smoke who can’t sell anything. However, when I started writing the scene of the forge, I remember saying, “Uhooooo!” out loud as my fingers moved, trying to capture the images flowing into my mind. The character became a dedicated craftsman.
I get particularly excited when I visualize a blacksmith in a dimly lit workshop in front of the red-hot forge, the high-pitched sound of metal shaping metal as he or she pounds their heart and soul, hopes and fears into a weapon of their own design over and over. No matter how many works they complete, blacksmiths remain the physical embodiment of passion in my eyes.
I live for that moment they emerge from the workshop carrying a truly unique weapon in their arms and present it to their client. While I know this scene almost never happens in today’s world, I can’t help but be fascinated with it.
Since the fourth installment of this series was more of an interlude in terms of the overarching story, I included two short stories that were first published in GA Bunko Magazine. The first story, “Quest X Quest,” takes place in the middle of book three, between chapters two and three, while the second story,
“A Campanella to the Goddess,” takes place before the events of book one. I hope you enjoyed them.
The time has come for me to express my gratitude.
To Mr. Kotaki, this book would not have become a reality without your guidance. To Mr. Suzuhito Yasuda, thank you for always taking time out of your busy schedule to create beautiful artwork to bring this world to life. To Mr. Yuuji Yuuji, for agreeing to share part of his work with a smile. Your support made me very happy.
Also, I would like to thank the combined efforts of Mr. Kunieda and Mr. Kurebito Misaki for their beautiful work on the limited edition releases of this series. In addition, I’m extremely grateful to Young Gangan and Square Enix for their support of Mr. Kunieda’s work on the comic series based on my novels. I look forward to every new installment.
Lastly, I would like to thank everyone, including the readers who picked up this book, from the bottom of my heart.
I hope you’ll all be looking forward to the next volume.

Fujino Omori