Afterword
Hello, dear readers. This is your author speaking.
Officially counting only the stories I've fully completed, this is my third work: I Fell into the Highest-Difficulty Dungeon, which has now come to an end at chapter 194. Wow—— *clap clap clap clap*—— haha... I'm happy, but I also feel kinda empty about it.
Especially with this one—the overall vibe was so heavy and brutal that even I struggled a lot while writing it. If I felt that way, I can only imagine how drained you readers must have been. You all worked so hard. Thank you.
To those few readers who asked midway if it would be a happy ending, I can finally tell you now. Yes. Truth is, I prefer happy endings. So some of you might not be satisfied. It was brutal, sure, but in the end, everyone survives and keeps going. That's why it feels like I put them through the wringer even more. If you're gonna save them anyway, shouldn't they suffer a ton first? It's the highest-difficulty dungeon, after all.
Hmm... I have a lot to say, but when I actually try to write it down, the words just stick in my throat. Let me wrap this up with a little Q&A-style rambling.
1. Side stories? - I figure some of you are curious about the protagonist's group's future or stories about Sestia and Ar. It might not be a bad idea to expand on that a bit. But how many or when? Still TBD.
2. Why stick to turn-based combat? - It was a core setting from the start. I love turn-based games and wanted to try writing one. Of course, I quickly learned there's a world of difference between thinking it up in your head and actually implementing it in writing. I wanted to quit more than once or twice along the way, but I stuck it out to the end since I'd started. Won't do it again next time. (The calculations gave me such a headache. Just the memo pads and HWP files I made for it—countless.)
3. Uh... I think that's it. I'll stop here.
If you have any questions, leave a comment. You all worked hard. Thank you.
— IX7