Itās been a long time since volume twenty one was published. Itās Ishibumi Ichiei here. Fans may have thought that after volume twenty one and DX3, the story would soon progress into the final arc, and this is indeed the case for volume twenty two. The final arc will have a very lively style, similar to how it was in the first three arcs. The fourth arc was the beginning of the events involving the Three Factions, exposing the Underworld and the darkness of the Rating Games, so in comparison to the first three arcs which were brighter, the plot was somewhat more serious. Having said that, part of the reasoning behind Iseās promotion to a High-class Devil is because the respective problems that were brought up in the early stages of the story with the upper echelons of the Devils and the Three Factions had to be dealt with first. The final arc will use a similarly bright tone to deal with the heroines, and I feel that everything that has been saved up so far should be pierced through at once. The final arc (possibly) wonāt reach volume thirty. āBut there should be DX volumes in between, so I would be honoured if you can accompany me to the end. In summary, the final arc has finally begun. After the backbone of this story, Ise, rose to fame, all of the characters who have been introduced thus far are now participating in the International Rating Game, which has become the final open stage full of festivals. Following below are various individual topics.
Iseās promotion!
Finally! Ise has become a High-class Devil, and now stands on the starting line for his journey towards becoming a Harem King. Thinking back, this was the ambition that he held in the first volume, and it has finally progressed after twenty volumes. Iām sure many readers also feel deeply emotional about this. I was also burning up as I wrote the about the promotion ceremony. After the promotion, he immediately promised his future with Rias and Akeno as well. With his aim to become a Harem King, he made a public declaration that would make everyone happy. The decision on his relationships with the heroines is also a theme of the fifth arc. Please continue to pay attention to Iseās consciousness. Now, who will be the next to swear their future together with Ise, to become a member of his harem? Based on the present status quo, Iseās peerage includes his [Rook] Rossweisse, [Bishops] Asia and Ravel, as well as [Knight] Xenovia. Irina, Bova, and Bina are not part of his peerage, though they are his comrades and team members. Several other members of Iseās peerage are expected to appear in the final arc. The search for future peerage members is also one of the themes of this arc. However, the final arc probably wonāt be able to show all of his peerage. The reason that Rias has been separated from the team is to emphasise the fact that Ise has become a High-class Devil. Taking into account the relevance of opponents, and the activity of the late heroines at the same time ā especially Ravel and Rossweisse, whose roles in the fourth arc were rather inadequate, I chose to present them in such a way this time. The matches of Riasā team will also be mentioned throughout, so please rest assured. They will take the form of a separate description. After reading the volume, you will probably think that Ravel has a very active role in the final arc. Just as everyone saw, it would have been impossible to win in the tournament without Ravel. Ravel will have an important role to play in this final arc, so please witness her growth together with Ise as his manager.
The mysterious new characters
This time, the mysterious new characters of both Iseās and Riasā teams have appeared. The [Queen] of Iseās team, Bina Lessthan and the [Knight] of Riasā team, Lint Selzan. As for exactly who they are, please confirm this in the next volume or later. In this case, please also take notice of the mysterious [Pawn] on Riasā team. I think it will be interesting to see how the vacancies in Iseās peerage will develop in the future.
The competing groups for the International Rating Game Tournament
The world tournament has begun! Itās been a long time since I last wrote a Rating Game. Itās been around five years since a proper Rating Game like Sairaorgās (I did write about the rematch with Raiser in the first DX volume, but that is separate). Five yearsā¦five years!? What actually happened!? If a fan first started reading in middle school, itās actually been so long that they might think āIām going to graduate soonā! The Rating Games were obviously a major theme of this series, but they were put aside. What have I been doing these past five yearsā¦. Iām sorry, when I think about it, itās my fault. In summary, at the very end, the matchups that were announced were Ise versus Dulio, and Sairaorg versus Cao Cao. However, basically only Iseās (as well as Riasā and Valiās) matches will be written about. So aside from those matches, I will avoid making them too detailed unless it is a very important match. It is more or less impossible to write about every single match. But the editors would also like to see the match between Sairaorg and Cao Cao, so if possible, this match and some others may be published in Dragon Magazine. For the readers who are interested, please check out Dragon Magazine or the Fujimi Fantasia Bunko website. Perhaps some of the games will be finished in the DX volumes. The editor-in-charge would also like to see the matches aside from Iseās ones, so perhaps the matches of the world tournament will be made up for in some unexpected form. (But please forgive me if it doesnāt happen.) For comments or requests such as āI want to see this battle!ā, please be sure to mail the Fujimi Fantasia Bunko editorial department by all means if, as I would also be interested in writing other battles aside from Iseās one. Because it has been five years, Iām sure there are many wanted game matchups. But I will not write Iseās rematch against Sairaorg. For those two, I donāt think I could write anything better than the tenth volume. So I apologise for that. Now, about the competition of the world tournament. There may be some contradictions or loopholes in the special rules for this and future matches, I will give priority to atmosphere and form, and then do my best to make it reasonable. Regarding the content of the games, not all of the matches that Ise faces will be smooth-sailing. After all, there are some powerful rivals participating, so it will not be a simple or easy journey.
Shiva, and the Heavenly Emperor, itās finally time for the gods!
In the previous afterwordsā¦I have said that the last boss of the final arc may be Shiva. Just as I previously said, it will be closely related to Shiva. The Heavenly Emperor that has been mentioned in the background since the beginning of the third arc has finally appeared. Until now, there hasnāt been a character where you might think āIt feels like heās always so mightyā, but that will become more active from now on. And all of the foreshadowed characters will also make an appearance. A challenge to the many Gods is also a theme of this arc. The Gods who have appeared around Ise have gradually been introducing themselves, and he has finally become an existence that the Gods take notice of, and as the author, I also feel deeply emotional about this. This was not something I could have imagined at the time of the first volume.
Next are the acknowledgements. Miyama Zero-sama, I am grateful to you every time. While preparing volume twenty two, my editor-in-charge changed. I worked with the previous Editor H-shi for eight and a half years, through thick and thin for a long time. I take this occasion to thank you once again from the bottom of my heart. And for the newly appointed Editor T-sama, I look forward to working with you from now on. It is my first time working with an editor younger than myself, so Iām also a bit nervous. The upcoming twenty third volume includes Ise versus Dulio, a dream showdown. Various characters associated with the Church will also appear, and needless to say, the Church trio will have some great scenes. However, itās not just about the progression of the tournament, there are also people who are secretly watching Ise and the othersā¦?
There is some foreshadowing here to say that resolving the enemies is also a part of the final arc, so please look forward to this while you wait. āI originally wanted to talk a bit more about the contents of volume twenty three, but according to the publishing schedule, the next one is DX3. It will include the dreamlike short story of Xenovia and Irinaās first meeting [Cross Crisis]. I think this is a very valuable one, so if youāre a fan of Xenovia and Irina, itās a must-see. Thank you for that as well. Ah, in future, there may be something planned in regards to the final arc, so please also check out Dragon Magazine to see what happens.
Notes:
1. Council President and Club President respectively.
2. A multi-purpose squarish stadium in Tokyoās Bunkyo Ward, with a width of approximately 216m.
3. Åakra goes by various names, such as Indra, The Heavenly Emperor, and Taishakuten.
4. The romanised Japanese names and their meanings respectively: Jikoku-ten (he who upholds the realm), ZÅchÅ-ten (he who causes to grow), KÅmoku-ten (he who sees all), Bishamon-ten (he who hears everything).
5. āshi is a formal honorific used when the speaker is unfamiliar with the person that they are referring to.
6. Kanji was Holy Grail of the Secluded World.
7. Kanji was Chief Mournerās Crucified Stand of Purple Flame.
8. This is a reference to the short story entitled Woship ā Dragon-God-Girl from DX.2.
9. ākyo is an honorific similar to Sir. In this case, it would be something along the lines of Sir Gremory.
10. āsenshu is an honorific used to refer to a player or contestant.
11. Bento: Homemade lunchbox. Often meticulously detailed as a sign of love and care.
12. Tamagoyaki: A Japanese omelette, made by rolling together several layers of cooked egg.
13. This is commonly used by women to address their husband or lover, and would be similar to ādearā or ādarlingā in English.
14. Pronounced as Eguze, like a Windows executable program. When ExE is shown (lowercase x), it is pronounced as Eee Eee.
15. DĆD: Dragon of Dragon.
16. DxD: Diabolos Dragon.
17. Kanji reads as Purple Gold Lion King.
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