afterword

Hello Reader,

If you're here, it's either because you've

a) skipped all the way to the back, or

b) made it through to the end after all this time.

No matter which cohort you fall into, I'm glad you're here.

Mirror Girl (Kagami no Shoujo) is a series I intend to keep writing until the end of time. Volume One closes on a massive cliffhanger, but at the same time it sets up a spring-loaded launchpad into the world of Epithar.

When I wrote Mirror Girl, I wanted to establish Keizo’s humble beginnings: a school kid living a somewhat unconventional life alone at home. A boy going through the motions day by day. He’s a gamer, a math-and-numbers guy, and most importantly, a strategist.

Eventually, that routine gets shattered by a massive crater in the form of a girl from another world.

I thought carefully about how to introduce Izumi to both the reader and to Keizo himself. I considered traditional isekai. I considered reverse isekai. But nothing felt more appropriate than a mirror connecting the two worlds together.

We all look into mirrors every day, but usually we only see ourselves.

What if that changed one day?

What if the mirror never fogged over, and something else blinked back at you — wishing and waiting for you to acknowledge it?

That was Keizo’s dilemma in a shellnut.

I forced him out of his comfort zone and made him confront the reality that the girl in his mirror had latched onto him, and that their bond was beginning to reach levels he had never thought possible.

I hope reading this has given you high expectations for Volume Two, and I encourage you to continue Keizo and Izumi’s journey through the sprawling world of Epithar.

This book is dedicated to CJ. Thank you for being with me every step of the way throughout the insane number of years this IP spent in development. I’m really happy it finally became something tangible, and it’s all thanks to you choosing to open a message that started off with 'ok so basically'. 

Forever grateful and blessed to have you, roomie.

1love 4all,

Rubo Mirukawa