Born from the Death March Experience? Interview with Hiro Aichichi, author of "Death March kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyousoukyoku!

The popular winter anime "Death March Kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyousoukyoku" has finally started airing.

Death March Kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyousoukyoku" was published on the novel submission site "Shosetsu-ka Naro" (*"Shosetsu-ka Naro" is a registered trademark of Hina Project Inc.) (*"Shosetsu-ka-aro" is a registered trademark of Hina Project, Inc.), a website for submitting novels, with a PV of over 500 million and a total of over 2 million copies of the novel and manga series in circulation. The main character, "Satu," who wandered into another world and happened to acquire the most powerful power and treasures, sets off on a dreamlike journey of rescuing girls, dating, sightseeing, and eating delicious food (......). The story is a heartwarming account of sightseeing in a different world.

To commemorate the start of the anime broadcast, we asked the original author, Hiro Aichichi, to give us the inside story behind the writing of this work!

Read this and you will surely be able to enjoy the anime even more!

The roots of this work lie in reading books and TRPGs!

--Death March Kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyousoukyoku" ("Death March") started its anime in January of this year. The original is a popular work that began serialization in March 2013 on the novel submission site "Shosetsu-ka Naro" (Novelist's Letter). Please tell us why you started writing this work.

Hiro Aishichi (Aishichi): I had never even heard of "Novelist's Alert" until around 2012, but I became interested when I learned about "The Lesser Students of Magical High School" and "The Ideal Pimp Life" (both popular serialized works from the same site), and that's when I visited the site. Then I started reading the submissions as a reader, and little by little, I began to accumulate frustrations and concerns, such as "This setting would be more interesting if it were developed in this way," or "I wish the characters would act in this way if they thought in this way.

But it's easy to complain, so I thought why not try writing it myself, and that's how I started writing "Desma".

--In the afterword to the original "1-1," you write, "This is my first attempt at writing a novel." I had always wanted to be a novelist. So you didn't always aspire to be a novelist?

Aishichi: I have always enjoyed reading books, especially light novels. I used to read foreign SF and Taku Baimura's short stories. As for novels, when I was a university student, I once tried to write a kind of replay novel of a TRPG I was playing at the time, but I couldn't write it after a few pages (laugh).

--I see that you were playing TRPGs.

Aishichi: It all started with game books. From there, I saw replays in the magazines "Comptiq" and "LOGIN" and learned about "Dungeons & Dragons" (D&D), which at the time had not yet been published in Japanese. ...... After I entered university, I gathered a group of friends and we would have sessions every week.

--The variety of skills in "Death March Kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyousoukyoku" suggests that you are quite an avid gamer.

Aishichi: I used to be a game master (GM) of TRPGs, so I think that experience has helped me a lot. What would it be like to make a creature out of a houseplant? And so on. But I haven't played any TRPGs since I graduated from college and my friends scattered all over the country.

Other games I have been into, such as "Wizardry," "Ultima Online," and "Final Fantasy XI," have served as references for my works in various ways.

--Do you work out the settings of the games in great detail in advance?

Aishichi: I like making settings, but because I like it so much, once I start making them, I can't stop. ...... That's why I started "Desma" with the idea of not creating a setting at the start as much as possible so that my libido would not dissipate there (smiles).

So, in order not to spend time thinking about the wording of the spells, I set it up so that the main character, Satu, cannot chant them. That's why the director of the anime, Mr. Shin Onuma, said, "It's very hard to figure out how to do the chanting. When I first started writing the story, I thought that if I were to do a media mix, it would be a comic book, and I would be happy if the final goal was a drama CD, but I guess that was a bad idea (laughs). (Laughs.) I thought, "There will never be an anime version, so I'll just draw it without worrying about it! I thought.

--I thought, "I'm never going to get an anime, so I'll just draw it without worrying about it!

Aishichi: I think I am basically an otaku, but there are times when I know deeply and times when I am away from it. When I was a college student, I used to watch "Nadia of the Mysterious Sea" and "Aim for the Top! and so on when I was a college student. I also got into "Fate/stay night" and ....... However, since I started working as a programmer for a game company, I haven't had much time to watch them.

Writing started as a programmer and a writer

--So you were a programmer at a game company?　So, at the beginning of the story, does the description of the main character, Satu, in this life reflect your own experience?

Aishichi: The scene at the beginning of "Desma" is based on my own experience, and I adapted it.

--What kind of games were you working on?　Also, did you have experience in game planning?

Aishichi: I made a wide range of games, including action shooters, RPGs, and fighting games. However, I was not involved in any planning work, and I was only a programmer.

--So - then, writing novels was completely a private hobby. The original "Death Star" is a lengthy work, currently reaching 16 chapters.

Aishichi: At the beginning, I started this work as a complete study, so I was planning to complete the story in about 13 episodes. I thought that if there were three stories, each with its own beginning, middle, and end, and one epilogue at the end, it would be 13 episodes. (In the case of anime, a one-cour season usually consists of 13 episodes, right? However, I was not so naive (laugh). I had never written a novel before, so I didn't know how to estimate the number of episodes. 3 or 4 episodes in, I realized that I would never be able to finish it in 13 episodes. ......

-- "Desma" was updated daily at the beginning of the serialization. Did you write quite a lot before publishing it?

Aishichi: When I first submitted the story, I think I had about seven episodes written. Also, when I was writing the fourth episode, I wrote the final episode of "Death Summa. I was talking about who the last boss would be and what skills and fighting style Satu and his friends would use to settle the score. So now I am writing the story in between the last installment. But that part is getting more and more complicated (laughs).

(laughs) -- At what point did you realize that your work was gaining popularity?

Aishichi I remember being surprised by the sudden increase in the daily ranking of "Novelists' Letters" on the 6th day after I started posting every day.

But the reason I was posting every day was that I was looking at the site as a reader and knew that the more frequently I updated the site, the more popular it would be. So, I decided to post every day as long as I could. Eventually, after about six months, it became physically difficult, and I reduced the number of updates to a weekly basis. After that, I was asked to write a book about it, so it was a good thing that I decided to update my work on a weekly basis (considering the pace of publication, etc.) (laughs).

--By the way, how did you decide on the title "Death March Kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyousoukyoku"?　There are no "death march" elements except for the beginning. ......?

Aishichi: It is often called "title fraud," but it does start with a "death march" (laughs). Actually, it is connected to the last epilogue I mentioned earlier,...... but that, well, is still a secret (laughs). (laughs) For now, I decided to include the word "death march" in the title, as well as "another world," which was the standard "Naro" style at the time.

As for "Rhapsody," it was influenced by a game I was playing at the time, "High Mobility Fantasy: Gun Parade March. During my vacation, I got back a copy of "Gunpare" that I had lent to an acquaintance, and while playing it for the first time in a while, I was writing the idea for the novel. I got the idea from the "fantasy" and "fat music" of "Ganpare".

--The "march" itself has the meaning of a march. Like the title, I think this work belongs to the so-called "Naro novel" genre. There have been many popular works in this genre, but how do you yourself view the current state of "Naro novels"?

Aishichi: Basically, I love stories that are just like the typical ones. The inspiration for "Death Star" came from reading other works and thinking, "If it were me, I would write it this way. That's why I love "Ore-Tueee" type stories and "Strong New Game" type stories. I added my originality to these works by reflecting my knowledge of TRPGs and other things I used to do.

--In that sense, would "Death Star" have been born without "Shosetsu-kaerou"?

Aishichi: It definitely would not have been born. Besides, if the "Noro" boom had not been born, "Death Star" would never have been published as a book.

I was so happy to see it become an anime!

--What was your honest impression when the anime adaptation was actually decided?

Aishichi: I was like, "Wow, that's great" (laughs). No, I talked with the editor in charge at the time when "Death Star" was starting to sell well, and he told me that the number of anime adaptations of novels was already on the decline. Moreover, the content of "Death Star" was not really suitable for anime, with slaves appearing in it and so on. So I thought that I would not be approached for an anime adaptation. So at first I couldn't believe it and didn't know how to react, so I answered the question as if it were somewhat of a stranger. But inwardly, I was so happy I was rolling on the floor (laughs).

--What would you like people who are new to "Death Star" to enjoy about the anime?

Aishichi: I would like people to enjoy the main character, Satu, and his friends' heartwarming sightseeing in the otherworldly atmosphere. There is a battle at the beginning, but that is just a flavor (laughs). (Laughs.) I put a big battle at the beginning to get the audience's attention and to show that "the main character is this strong, so he can wander around in a harsh world without worry.

--The main character is strong, so you can go sightseeing with no worries" (laughs). (Laughs.) Who is your favorite character, Aishichi?

Aishichi: My favorite character is Arisa. Since Satu is a rather calm character, Alisa is the most attractive character when I make him do hot moves and nerdy things. That's why I enjoy writing her.

But it's just too much fun, and if you're not careful, you can end up being in too many ....... If I'm not careful, they come out as much as Satu, so it's hard to adjust my cues (laughs). (Laughs.) In the process of creating a detailed plot, I think about what other characters should be shown, and sometimes I replace a character who appears in the story with a character who is better suited for the story than Alisa.

--Have you had a chance to see any footage or postrecording of the anime adaptation? (The interview was conducted in late December)

Aishichi: I was able to observe the postrecording of the first episode. The voices were really good.

--If there is an episode in the anime that you would like people to pay attention to, please let us know.

Aishichi: I would like people to watch the episode about the magician Zen. Actually, I added a lot to Zen's episode in the book version. So I hope that people will see how it is expressed in the anime.

--Lastly, do you have a message for "Death Star" fans?

Aishichi: The voice actors put a lot of effort into the anime adaptation. Also, the director and the animation staff have worked very hard, so please enjoy the moving Satu and his friends!　I'll enjoy it too!

(Interview and text by Michi Sugahara)