The Sword and The Shadow - Afterword

Author's afterword:

Phew, it's finally over.

Well, perhaps some of you readers will be surprised by the sudden end and think I ended the story abruptly because I no longer wanted to write. However, let me say for the record that the ending of the story had been planned since the very beginning. This novel has officially ended.

With that, I'd like to thank all you readers for reading my story!

The initial reason I started writing was I had some time to burn and boredom to kill during college days. As TS2 developed, I grew attached to it. That's why I've emphasized many times over the time I wrote this story that I won't stop halfway through. However, many issues cropped up later, such as graduation, so my schedule was a mess during a good part for a year or two. While I promised I would continue writing during February or March, I had to delay it to a year from then to be able to fulfill my promise of completing the story. I do apologize for that.

Let's talk more about the story.

As I have said, TS2 has ended in full. But if you read the ending, you'll notice that it is the book that has ended, but not the story. In fact, I've been planning out the second book during my college days, and in it, Leguna and a few others will play a supportive role in the plot.

Regrettably, I had overestimated my own perseverance and endurance. Finishing TS2 alone has made me less of a complete man, so, I still don't have concrete plans to write up the second book.

However, I did write a little in my free time during work, so if you're so inclined, feel free to check out 'Tale of Twin Souls'. It's a sequel story set after the events of TS2. But let me first stress that there's a good chance the book won't ever see completion. The things I've been uploading are merely a stockpile I've built up over the past few months, and I have no plans to continue writing them in the near future. In other words, reader beware!

While TS2 didn't do really well as a novel, it holds a special meaning to me. Now that it's finally over, I finally lived up to my promise to myself. Well, that's all I have to say.

Once again, thank you for reading!

--Author: Hometown Moon March 2017.

Translator's afterword:

Dear readers, we've reached the end of the novel! It's been a rather long and tumultuous journey translating TS2, especially with how different it usually is from the other kinds of kingdom-building, war-related novels I translate, though I must say it has its perks nonetheless, especially with the more down-to-earth characters that are much easier to relate to.

I must thank Volare and Wuxiaworld for giving me this opportunity to translate on their sites and helping me out with the various bumps along the way. Also, I want you, the readers and sponsors, to know that your support and readership played a huge part in maintaining my passion for translation. I am honored to have siphoned away the many hours of your life (especially those of you who read till the very end) and hope it has made life in this charming, yet grating world just a little bit more bearable.

Thank you all for your enduring support.

--Translator: Ryogawa

P.S.

Regarding Tale of Twin Souls (双魂物语) mentioned above, the author has stopped updating that novel around two years ago and vanished completely. There are around 130 chapters out there somewhere on the internet, so those who can read it with some searching (and MTLing, perhaps). We won't be doing it since it's no longer an active project, but on the off chance that it does come back one day, we'll look into it. It's a distant sequel anyway that doesn't continue directly from the plot with the same cast as the protagonists, so it isn't compulsory reading.

Also, if you liked Prince and my work, feel free to check out Black Iron's Glory on veratales.com! It's a story about warfare set in a world with minor magic and firearms! The story is for those looking for more complex plot threads like politics, strategies and technological development.

Editor's afterword:

It's quite unbelievable. To have finally finished a project, after over a year and a half's work. It's been a rollercoaster of a ride, and it feels strange to have it all behind us. Work continues on, of course, there is always another project, but there is rarely an equal to the first truly completed project. We can only hope that you will accompany us on the next great adventure.

--Editor: Prince