Afterword
First and foremost, thank you for picking up Volume 5 of The Story of How a Beautiful Foreign Student Who Lives Next Door Started to Visit My House After I Helped a Lost Little Girl.
Also, to everyone involved in the creation of Volume 5, thank you so much for your constant support.
Thanks to all of you, we were able to release Volume 5 like this.
I truly believe that reaching five volumes for Otonari asobi is thanks to the efforts of so many people.
I’ve said this before, but the current state of Otonari asobi exists because my editor listened to my selfish requests about the content and gave me advice, and because Midorikawa-sensei draws such stunning illustrations every time.
I’m sure many of you picked up Otonari asobi because you were captivated by the cuteness of Charlotte-san and Emma-chan drawn by Midorikawa-sensei.
I’m always overjoyed to receive beautiful cover art, frontispieces, and inserts, but the bride Charl on the cover of Volume 5 was just too perfect…!
Thank you so much, as always!
The designer always creates wonderful title and obi designs, making the covers so appealing.
Otonari asobi has a long title, and with Charlotte-san and Emma-chan often paired on the covers, arranging the title must have been a struggle every time.
Yet, they always manage to create gorgeous covers, and I can’t thank them enough.
Beyond that, we’ve made it to Volume 5 thanks to the efforts of everyone working behind the scenes for Otonari asobi and the bookstores promoting it.
Thank you so much.
Moving forward, I’ll keep working hard to ensure the efforts of everyone involved aren’t wasted and to make this a popular series.
Now, I’d like to touch on the contents of Volume 5, but honestly, I’m feeling (Finally, we’ve made it this far…!)
As Nekokuro, I often plant foreshadowing for future developments starting from the beginning (Volume 1), and there were quite a few seeds sown for this Volume 5 arc.
I’m glad I was able to properly tie those up—or rather, make them bloom.
Of course, even though Akihito’s family issues are resolved and he’s engaged to Charl, there’s still a lot left to do.
So, I want to keep writing more.
In particular, Volume 6 will include Christmas, where the two of them will grow into adults.
Because of that, I’m hoping we can release Volume 6.
Christmas is also Charl’s birthday, so I want Akihito to step up.
…Though there’s a chance Charl might make the first move again (lol).
Will Charl act first, or will Akihito show his manliness? I hope you’ll look forward to finding out.
That is, if we get to release Volume 6…!
From now on, Sophia-san, Kanon, and Kaguya will also be living together, so it’ll be tough for Charl.
Even if they don’t mean to, I can only see a future where Charl gets super jealous (lol).
I’d be happy if you could also pay attention to those interactions, as well as Karin, Kaede, and Arisa, going forward.
Of course, Charl and Emma-chan are a given, but I’d be thrilled if you found other favorite characters too.
I write all the girls in this series because I love them, so I’d be happy if you all came to love them too.
With winter break coming up, I’m sure these girls will get their moments.
After all, they’re all the type to stick close to Akihito or Charl.
So, I hope you’ll continue enjoying Otonari asobi!
Here’s hoping for Volume 6!
This is a bit about me, but moving forward, I want to work on releasing even more books.
Recently, I started a new serialization on a web novel site for the first time in about two years (?).
Of course, I’m doing rom-coms, but I’m also working on high fantasy separately.
I think it’s been about three years since I last tried high fantasy.
I’ve only written it maybe three times before.
Yeah, I’ve mostly avoided high or low fantasy and stuck to writing rom-coms.
Since my first success as a writer came from a rom-com, I kept focusing on those.
I had ideas I wanted to write for high fantasy, but while preparing for them, I’d come up with interesting rom-com ideas, and after debating which to write, I’d pick the rom-com since it was more likely to succeed.
That led to some works becoming published books, so I think it was the right choice.
But since I became a full-time writer last year, I decided to broaden my horizons and try genres I hadn’t touched before.
Every time Nekokuro writes something new, I try to challenge myself with something different, so I guess I’ve finally reached the stage of tackling new genres.
Well, the biggest reason is that I now have the leeway to write more.
I’ll keep writing rom-coms and want to release new works too.
I’ve already posted a new rom-com on the web, after all.
I plan to keep challenging myself with all sorts of things going forward.
I believe that’ll lead to creating works that entertain readers.
Recently, I’ve been active as a Vtuber, and I want to incorporate that experience into my writing.
Maybe I’ll write something about Vtubers or game streaming someday.
Personally, I’ve loved sports manga—especially ones with rom-com elements—since my student days, and I used to buy and read those almost exclusively.
So, someday I want to write a story that focuses on sports but includes rom-com elements.
I think making that enjoyable as a novel requires even more ingenuity than a manga, so I’m still brainstorming.
Eventually, I want to create a sports novel that even people uninterested in sports can enjoy.
—I’ve rambled on, but I think creating new works, trying completely different genres, and my current experiences could be applied to Otonari asobi.
I want to use those to make Otonari asobi even more enjoyable.
I believe a manga adaptation will start someday, and I’d be thrilled if even more people read it.
Please continue supporting Next Door Story moving forward.
I’d be grateful if you recommended it to your friends too.
Once again, thank you for reading Volume 5 of Otonari asobi!
I hope we can meet again in Volume 6!
Author Introduction
Nekokuro (ネコクロ)
I’ve been happy to write a lot of novels lately!
I hope I can release tons more books going forward.
I hope you enjoy Volume 5 of Otonari asobi too.
Illustration
Midorikawa You (緑川葉)
Congratulations on your marriage, Charlotte-san!!
…Wait, what?!?!?!?!?!
Dash X Bunko DIGITAL
The Story of How a Beautiful Foreign Student Who Lives Next Door Started to Visit My House After I Helped a Lost Little Girl 5
Author: Nekokuro
© NEKOKURO 2023
Published October 31, 2023
This e-book is based on the first printing of Dash X Bunko’s The Story of How a Beautiful Foreign Student Who Lives Next Door Started to Visit My House After I Helped a Lost Little Girl 5, published October 30, 2023.
Publisher: Yoshihisa Heishi
Published by: Shueisha Inc.
i. 101-8050
ii. 2-5-10 Hitotsubashi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
iii. 03-3230-6080 (Reader Support)
Editorial Assistance: Toru Kajiwara
Production: ICE Inc.
