— Although That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime will continue with side stories, are there any developments you want fans to look forward to?
Fuse:
As long as people keep supporting it, I’d like to keep going—that’s more or less how I see it. That said, the material that remains on the web has drifted quite far from the original early settings, so it can’t be used as-is. Everything needs to be completely restructured, so no matter what, it’s going to take time.
In terms of story direction, I’m thinking of episodes where different characters take the role of protagonist. At the moment, I’m considering Satoru Mikami, Diablo, and Rain. I don’t know how many people would actually want to read that, but if I can write it partly as a passion project, I think that would be fine.
— Choosing Satoru instead of Rimuru is unexpected. What kind of story would that be?
Fuse:
I’ve said before that I’d like to write Satoru’s story in a modern-day setting. The anime director told me that’s actually the one they’d most like to read. Realistically, it probably wouldn’t turn into a big battle-heavy story, so I’m not sure how much demand there really is for that. That’s why I’m thinking I’ll write it and release it when the timing feels right… it’s still pretty vague at this point.
— Satoru did appear briefly in volume 23, and Shizu was mentioned as well.
Fuse:
While writing that, it hit me that Shizu was probably around fifty years old at the time of her death. So I started thinking it might be better to treat it as a world similar to ours, but not exactly the same, and maybe shift the release year of a certain famous RPG by ten years or so… Why did I write it like that in the first place… If only I hadn’t been so pressed for time…!!
Honestly, the lack of time is to blame for everything—and I’ll also blame the editor who set the deadlines and kept pushing me. I think I’ll go with that mindset (laughs).
Everyone: (laughter)
— Are there any plans for other Slime spin-offs, or completely new works outside of Slime?
Fuse:
There’s one thing I’d really like to try as an original manga project. If I’m lucky and the proposal gets approved, that would be great—but for now, it’s still undecided. As for That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: The Ways of the Monster Nation, I’d like to properly bring it to a close someday, even if it’s just through a short story.
— Finally, could you give a message to the readers who have stayed with the series all the way to the final volume?
Fuse:
Thank you so much for supporting the series for over ten years. It’s not really the end yet—we’re still continuing from here on out—so if you’d like to keep supporting us, I’d be very happy.
."
