Thank you very much for continuing to read Traveling to Other Worlds.
I wanted to take this opportunity to share something I've been working on lately.
Over the past few weeks, I've been putting together a series of notes on the story's important characters, gathering information about their personalities, relationships, abilities, and, most importantly, my own thoughts and plans for each of them.
I actually started creating these profiles for myself, hoping to better organize my ideas and make sure I wouldn't overlook important details as the story progresses. However, I also thought it would be interesting to share them as bonus content for my patrons, especially since they include my personal thoughts on the characters and some of the decisions I've made while writing the story.
My plan is to usually publish these notes after finishing each world or following a particularly important event. And, as I've done with other bonus content in the past, the first one will be publicly available to anyone interested in reading it.
This time, I decided to make an exception and share Hans's profile earlier than planned, partly as a way to show you what I've been spending some of my time on.
Aside from some personal matters, preparing these notes has also been one of the reasons behind the delays between chapters. I've been working on similar material for all the important characters, trying to properly establish their characteristics, relationships, and possible future developments.
And, to be sincere, I think I should have done this from the very beginning of the story. While preparing these profiles, I realized that having all this information organized beforehand would probably have helped me improve some of the scenes and events I've already written.
But well, better late than never.
There's also a reason why I wanted to dedicate time to this work right now. Starting with Chapter 63, we'll be entering what I consider the most important part of Traveling to Other Worlds within the world of Death March.
I'm actually feeling quite nervous about what's coming. There are many things I want to develop, and I hope I can give them the attention they deserve. That's why I've wanted to use this time to organize my ideas before continuing.
As for this week's chapter, I'll be posting it tomorrow, so you won't have to wait much longer. Thank you for your patience!
Anyway, for now, I'm sharing the notes I've prepared about Hans. I hope you find them interesting and that they give you a little more insight into how I've been developing the characters in this story.
Thank you once again for reading and for all your support. I hope you enjoy the upcoming chapters of Traveling to Other Worlds.
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1. Identity and Origin
Hans is a Hanzo, one of the mercenary NPCs from YGGDRASIL in Overlord. Satoru summoned him using the [Scroll of the Shadowed Oath] while preparing to enter Seiryuu City. Initially, he needed an agent capable of gathering intelligence and carrying out covert operations, but Hans eventually became one of his closest subordinates.
The [Scroll of the Shadowed Oath] is something I came up with. When I wrote his summoning, I knew that mercenary monsters existed in YGGDRASIL and that summoning them required resources, but I hadn't found enough information about the exact process. That's why I decided to use a scroll. Overlord mentions books containing mercenary data and the use of gold to summon them, but for Traveling to Other Worlds, I chose the scroll instead.
When Satoru assigned Hanzo to train the three demi-human girls, he mentioned Liza as though the ninja already knew who she was. His subordinate's question made him realize that, although he already recognized the three as individuals in his mind and knew them by their names, he had never actually given them those names. This also made him reconsider how he viewed Hanzo himself, whom he had previously treated primarily as a summoned unit that followed his orders. For the first time, he acknowledged him as an individual. That change in perspective led him to give the ninja a personal name, "Hans," which he gratefully accepted, considering it a great honor to receive a name from his lord.
2. Appearance and Physical Condition
Hans has the appearance of a Hanzo from Overlord: a dark ninja outfit, light protective armor, and a mask covering his face. As far as I remember, I haven't given him any physical characteristics in Traveling to Other Worlds that distinguish him from other Hanzos.
When Hans first appeared in the story, the fourth season of the Overlord anime had not yet aired, and I wasn't familiar with his canonical design. Therefore, if any descriptions I used back then conflict with his official appearance, I prefer to give priority to the latter.
I'm considering giving him a red scarf. Hans may change his equipment in the future, and I thought that a piece of clothing he keeps wearing could help distinguish him from other Hanzos.
As for his face, he may never show it.
3. Personality and Psychology
Hans is calm, reserved, and observant. I would say he has fairly high emotional intelligence, mainly because of his work as a watcher. Although Hans doesn't appear very often in the story, he's almost always somewhere in the shadows near Satoru, observing him. This has allowed him to become quite familiar with his lord's habits and notice things that Satoru himself may not have recognized yet.
However, Hans understands his place as Satoru's shadow. Even when he has an opinion about one of his master's personal matters, he usually considers it wiser to keep it to himself until he's asked or believes that intervening is truly necessary. He has a mind of his own, but he doesn't believe that gives him the right to interfere in his lord's personal life.
If we use Overlord's karma system, I would place Hans at 0, or perhaps −50. My reasoning comes from what it means to be a ninja: someone trained to assassinate, obtain information by whatever means are necessary, and act as a tool that carries out orders. Hans can have his own thoughts, but he doesn't allow them to interfere with his duties. He has no problem participating in cruel acts if Satoru orders him to, although he doesn't enjoy making others suffer for entertainment either. He also places great value on honor and despises betrayal; he wouldn't hesitate to eliminate a traitor.
I also like to imagine that Hans developed an interest in romance novels after witnessing Satoru's slow-moving love life. He spends so much time by his side that he's ended up witnessing a good portion of that romantic drama, so he reads romance stories whenever he has some free time. That doesn't mean he's interested in experiencing romance himself. I still find it amusing to imagine someone with his profession entertaining himself with other people's romantic entanglements.
4. Behavior and Interactions
Hans's work primarily involves gathering intelligence and conducting covert operations for Satoru. He can rely on various agents, such as [Shadow Demons] and [Bone Vultures]. His freedom to act depends on the orders he receives: if Satoru forbids him from intervening, he won't intervene; if he's given free rein to complete a mission, Hans decides for himself how to accomplish it.
He also handles less visible tasks, such as locating criminals for Satoru's magical experiments. During their stay in Muno, he assists with research into negative energy and the distribution of collection crystals, coordinating with Zen when necessary.
As for Liza, Tama, and Pochi, Hans is primarily responsible for preparing their training plans and occasionally reviewing their progress. He tries to balance each girl's natural talents with what she wants to achieve. Tama has extraordinary aptitude and is interested in ninjas, making stealth a natural direction for her. Pochi is less talented, but she wants to protect others, so her training focuses on defense. Liza already had a clear path with the spear; in her case, the goal is mainly to strengthen her existing skills and address her weaknesses.
There's something Hans does outside his responsibilities that I consider important to his relationship with the three girls. Every now and then, he secretly visits them, without any orders or threats requiring him to do so, simply to see how they're doing. He checks whether something is troubling them, whether they're feeling unwell, or whether they need anything. He even pays attention to whether they want to ask Satoru for something but are too hesitant to do so. It's a habit that comes from the affection he's developed for them.
5. Abilities and Resources
Essentially, Hans possesses the abilities of an ordinary Hanzo from Overlord, along with the resources he has acquired in Traveling to Other Worlds. Since the original work provides relatively few detailed demonstrations of the Hanzos' powers, I've relied on my own interpretations to develop some of his techniques. Hans is above level 80 and possesses the high-tier Ninja class, which belongs to the thief or rogue class line. His build is typical of a mercenary NPC of this type, without a particularly optimized class distribution.
His specialties are stealth and assassination. He can conceal himself and move through shadows, infiltrate locations, overcome obstacles that would normally require a thief's skills, and use various ninja weapons. He's particularly dangerous when he catches an enemy off guard, as his sneak attacks can inflict considerably more damage. Conversely, a combatant of the same level who specializes in direct confrontation would have the advantage if Hans couldn't make use of his ambush techniques.
Among the abilities I use in the story is [Multi-Shadow Clone]. His copies are weaker than he is and remain active for a limited time, but they allow him to cover multiple locations or missions without personally being present at all of them. Hans also has his own dimensional storage space for equipment, has understood the Shiga language since his summoning, and can detect certain magical activities or examine illusory barriers. Up to Chapter 62, the greatest threat he has faced was Mito after she received her power boost; in a one-on-one battle, she would have been capable of defeating him.
I also decided to make him quite skilled at handicrafts. As a ninja, Hans needs to pay close attention to details, so it seemed natural to me that this precision would extend to artistic activities such as drawing, sewing, knitting, and making toys. It was a characteristic I found amusing to add. In the story, he ends up making dolls of Liza, Tama, and Pochi, and Satoru is surprised by how well they turn out.
His basic equipment is that of an ordinary Hanzo. In Traveling to Other Worlds, Satoru has given him two black daggers imbued with magical fire as a reward for his discoveries in the Abandoned Tower, along with some potions. Hans also keeps the rest of the equipment recovered from Mito, with the exception of her sacred sword. He guarded it for a while, but it is now stored in Satoru's [Item Box].
6. Personal Relationships
Hans maintains absolute loyalty toward Satoru, whom he recognizes as his lord. However, after the crisis caused by Akon's seal, that loyalty developed into a more personal bond. He now sees Satoru more as a "young master": someone he serves and respects, but also someone he cares about and whose personal growth he watches with pride. Seeing Satoru lose control and suffer because of his new condition changed the way Hans understands him.
Satoru also shares a special bond with Hans. Hans usually appears whenever he's needed, carries out tasks that others couldn't handle, and remains nearby without demanding attention. I believe this constant presence helps explain the sense of security Satoru feels when he knows he can count on him. Sometimes the strongest relationships are reflected precisely in the things a character takes for granted.
At first, Hans viewed Liza, Tama, and Pochi primarily as resources Satoru had added to his group. That began to change when Satoru gave them names, but the decisive moment came after Akon's seal. Satoru lost control of his emotions and released an aura so dangerous that Tama and Pochi fell unconscious. Hans felt fear in the face of his own lord's uncontrolled power and froze, unable to decide what to do.
At that moment, he felt that his fear had overcome his loyalty.
Liza was equally terrified, but she managed to approach Satoru and hold him. Hans never forgot what she did, and since then, he has respected her in a different way.
His relationship with Liza eventually became similar to that of a senpai and kohai. Hans treats her with greater patience, helps her with her training, and acknowledges her determination to serve Satoru. For her part, Liza sees him as someone she hopes to measure up to someday, although she hasn't told him that directly. He has also grown fond of Tama and Pochi. Besides checking on their well-being, he occasionally makes toys for them, a habit that began with the dolls he created for the three girls.
Because he spends so much time beside Satoru, Hans has observed how his relationships with Liza and Karina have developed. He wishes his lord could be more honest with himself and with them, enjoy the company of those close to him, and lead a more peaceful life. He doesn't particularly mind whether Satoru ends up marrying Liza, Karina, or both, although he personally leans more toward Liza. What matters to him is that his lord is happy.
That's why one of the futures Hans imagines is Satoru married and living with his family, with Tama and Pochi as his adopted daughters, while Hans continues serving him as his butler. If his lord can enjoy a good life and Hans can remain by his side as his faithful servant, that would be enough for him.
7. Motivations and Goals
Hans's primary goal remains serving Satoru. He wants to be a shadow his lord can rely on, someone who carries out his orders efficiently and anticipates problems whenever possible. This includes protecting Liza, Tama, and Pochi, both because he has grown personally attached to them and because he understands how important they are to Satoru. His concept of loyalty doesn't depend on whether all of his lord's decisions would be considered kind by others.
After the crisis with Akon, Hans also began taking an interest in Satoru's personal well-being. He can admire his power and recognize his authority while still noticing that there are emotional matters his lord is trying to understand. He accompanies him from his usual position, discreetly, without attempting to make decisions for him.
8. Author's Notes and Trivia
In the early ideas for Traveling to Other Worlds, I considered giving Hans a partner, or more precisely, a harem. Nano and her seven sisters would eventually surrender to Satoru, who would leave them in Hans's care. The surprise would come when it was revealed that Hans had ended up in relationships with all of them.
I found it funny to imagine that, while Satoru's romance was progressing slowly, Hans would already have his own harem. However, Nano and her sisters contributed very little to the story, and writing so many additional characters would have complicated things, so I ultimately discarded the idea.
Another possibility I considered early on was a rivalry between Hans and Liza, something resembling a friendship between rivals. The two would compete to become Satoru's right-hand subordinate or prove who was his most loyal servant. But after reconsidering Liza's personality, Hans's power, and their respective responsibilities, the idea stopped appealing to me. It seemed unnecessary, and I preferred having them develop a relationship closer to that of a senpai and kohai.