Many anime fans disliked it when devotees of certain works loudly declared them masterpieces. Because no matter how good a work was, it had its flaws. One could always find unsatisfactory points.
The same applied to Attack on Titan.
Whether it was Eren, Armin, or Commander Erwin, their schemes, viewed from a macro perspective, were fundamentally basic strategies without especially complex formations.
But the strength of Attack on Titan had never lain in strategic sophistication. It lay in the emotional development of its characters and the atmosphere that deepened as the plot progressed, carrying the audience upward with it. Even when the actual strategy was not complex, the anime could make viewers feel an extreme sense of shock simply through the depth of their immersion in the story.
This had been true from the first season to the last.
The day after the final episode of the Attack on Titan anime aired, the final chapter of the Attack on Titan manga was also serialised in Dream Comic. After a night of intense online reaction to the anime's conclusion, the manga's ending added further details, and Titan fans shifted into heated discussion around the manga material.
But regardless of everything.
The work Attack on Titan had come to an end. Both the manga and the anime. And in all likelihood, there would be no spin-off stories in the future.
After signing some cooperation contracts related to Attack on Titan at the company, Rei let out a long breath.
"It's over."
His heart felt lighter. There was also some melancholy.
Basically, after every work he had brought to Japan concluded, the same emotions followed. Rei only allowed himself to sit with that feeling for a moment. Then he turned his gaze to the other documents on his desk.
Setting aside the Bleach anime and manga scheduled to launch on Ion TV and Dream Comic in April, the second animated film of the Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc was releasing in less than a week. Over the next several days, Rei's schedule was packed. Starting that night, he would be taking planes to other cities for the film's pre-release promotional activities.
According to the itinerary, he could get back to Tokyo before 7:30 PM on New Year's Eve to have dinner with Miyu and Misaki.
In previous years, Rei had not felt particularly attached to New Year celebrations. But after getting married, and with Miyu currently pregnant, his feelings had completely changed.
That afternoon, after informing the company's senior staff of the general work arrangements for the coming week, Rei began preparing for the promotional tour.
Illumination Production Company and Shirogane Animation were not idle at this time either. Although Attack on Titan had just concluded and its momentum was still at its absolute peak, the final promotional trailer for the New Year holiday season films, a collaboration campaign between Attack on Titan and Demon Slayer, was released at eight o'clock that evening as planned.
The final arc of the Demon Slayer anime did not have much left to reveal in terms of world-building. The last two films of the Infinity Castle Arc would depict the origins of Upper Rank One and Upper Rank Two, the Demon King Muzan Kibutsuji's background, the reason the species of demons had come to exist, and the ceiling of combat power in the entire series. The past of Yoriichi Tsugikuni.
From a visual standpoint, it was fighting from the first frame to the last. From a plot standpoint, it was heartbreaking from the first frame to the last.
Most of the Hashira in the Demon Slayer Corps would be killed or badly wounded. Those who survived would either be left disabled or, having awakened their marks, would have only a few years left to live.
The tone was very similar to Attack on Titan. Fans would feel miserable if they did not finish the story. But after finishing the story, they would feel even more miserable.
The final promotional trailer, of course, did not reflect any of this. The version cut for Japan was energetic and full of youthful spirit. But Shirogane's fans were no longer so easily taken in.
"Just by looking at this trailer, I already know that after the second Infinity Castle Arc movie releases, it's going to be another round of tormenting the fans."
"I wonder how many people will die in the second part."
"In the first Infinity Castle Arc movie, the protagonists took down Upper Rank Six and Upper Rank Three. Nakime among the Upper Ranks seemed to have no real combat power, just providing god-tier target matching for the Demon Slayer Corps. So by the plot rhythm, the second part will be about defeating Upper Rank One Kokushibo and Upper Rank Two Doma."
"I checked the filing information online. The second Demon Slayer movie has a runtime of two hours and forty-one minutes. That's insane. It's almost as long as two ordinary films."
"It couldn't be helped. In the first Infinity Castle Arc, the manga version obviously had much more content than the movie version. But back then Shirogane-sensei wasn't as famous and his influence in the film industry wasn't enough, so the first part came in at just under two hours."
"Anyway, at two hours and forty minutes, if a cinema schedules Demon Slayer movies all day they might get two or three fewer screenings than a film that runs just over an hour. That's real money. I'm genuinely a little worried that cinemas won't give Demon Slayer as many screens because of the runtime."
"What are you thinking? With Shirogane-sensei's current draw, no theatre owner is going to be that short-sighted. The second Infinity Castle Arc movie is the clear favourite for the New Year holiday box office. Pre-sales are already approaching 2.8 billion yen, far ahead of everything else releasing in the same period."
"Ha, just kidding."
"That said, I'm still a little moved by Shirogane-sensei's approach. He clearly knows that making an animated film this long won't be favoured by market capital and will affect screen counts and earnings. He still did it for the sake of the film's completeness."
"I won't say anything more. I'm going to buy the complete Attack on Titan manga volumes over the next few days to catch up on the manga version. New Year's Day, see everyone at the cinema."
"See you at the cinema."
"The first Infinity Castle Arc movie had a global box office of over 100 billion yen. This time we have to break that record."
"Don't worry, it will definitely break the previous record. When the first Demon Slayer Infinity Castle movie was released, the anime had only been serialising for a little over a year and the work's overall popularity hadn't reached its peak. Now two years have passed. No one knows how many new anime fans worldwide have entered the Demon Slayer fandom through the manga volumes and TV reruns."
In the days following the conclusion of Attack on Titan, the only work that could break through the enormous momentum of the series' ending and sustain comparable levels of online discussion was Demon Slayer.
A final collaboration trailer with Demon Slayer, released at exactly the right moment, ignited all the enthusiasm of Japan's anime and film industries in mid-February.
Media within the anime industry ran dual coverage of Attack on Titan's conclusion and the Demon Slayer film. But for Japan's film industry media, the focus of essentially every article was on Demon Slayer.
After all, the first Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc film had been the third highest-grossing film in the history of Japan's domestic box office. Including global markets, it held the historical number one position among all films produced in Japan.
How could the release of a sequel to such a work not draw the full attention of the market?
No matter how envious the practitioners of Japan's live-action film industry were of Shirogane, the person who made animated films, four films combined, Mugen Train Arc, the first Infinity Castle film, Your Name, and Spirited Away, had jointly accumulated over 400 billion yen in global box office.
In terms of commercial performance alone, every screenwriter, director, investor, and practitioner in Japan's film industry had been ruthlessly outpaced by Shirogane. The media showed none of them any courtesy during this period.
Eye-catching headlines appeared without pause.
Five days remaining. The second Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc film will dominate this year's New Year holiday release window.
The strongest New Year holiday lineup in history. Also the least suspenseful. The producers of the second Demon Slayer film can already open the champagne to celebrate the New Year holiday box office champion title in advance.
On major ticketing platforms, Demon Slayer pre-sales lead the five other major films releasing in the same window by an enormous margin.
In terms of first-day screen allocation, Demon Slayer also leads all New Year holiday releases with a twenty-six percent share of first-day screenings.
Times have changed. Two years ago, when Shirogane's works were released in theatres, they were often looked down upon by the industry. Theatres would not grant the highest screen counts, and the best halls were rarely reserved for Shirogane's films. Now the situation has completely reversed. This year, who dares to look down on the "Produced by Shirogane" label? And who dares to look down on animated films?
Industry predictions suggest that in this year's New Year holiday window, the second Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc film may exceed 80 billion yen at the domestic box office. Total global box office may exceed 120 billion yen or more.
Last night, Shirogane held a film presentation in Osaka. Over ten thousand fans attended. Hundreds of security personnel and traffic officers did their best to manage the situation, but congestion resulted regardless.
February 12th.
Miyu got up, turned on her computer, and found the internet saturated with news about her husband.
Although she was pregnant, she had not fallen behind in her manga work. While Rei was away promoting the Demon Slayer film in other cities, she made a routine of checking for information about him online before settling into her own work each day.
"He's really popular." A trace of joy crossed her face, followed by helplessness.
She had just opened the forum for her own manga, Reincarnation. The number of fans discussing its plot was pitifully small. Everyone was enthusiastically discussing information about the upcoming Demon Slayer film instead.
She should have been happy that Rei's work was receiving this much attention.
But Rei, please don't let your Demon Slayer absorb all the traffic from her manga.
Her ranking on Dream Comic had been unstable. The gap between her second-place position and the third-place work beneath her was narrow. Miyu had been waiting for Attack on Titan to finish to see whether she could claim first place for a few issues while the top position was momentarily vacated.
A swirl of thoughts settled into a sigh.
She logged into her certified author account and posted an update on the forum.
I hope everyone will support Shirogane-sensei's new animated film at the cinema in four days. Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc Part Two.
After Miyu's post appeared, Shirogane fans found it immediately and began commenting.
How was Shirogane-sensei's health recently? Did the couple brainstorm chapter ideas for each other's manga? What was the secret to how Shirogane-sensei produced so much creative work? Some people even sent her private messages hoping she would share spoilers about the film's content.
Miyu did not know whether to laugh or be exasperated.
"Could you at least ask about me? I'm also Mangaka Saki. And a perfectly healthy individual. You'd rather have me remind Rei to sleep and wake up early, but nobody thinks to ask about my own condition?"
Although she was already a top-tier mangaka in Japan, her standing was in an entirely different dimension from Rei's.
"Sigh."
Miyu closed the computer. She began calculating the time.
It was now mid-February. Attack on Titan had just concluded. But the Bleach manga was launching in the first week of April.
"The time I have left to reach the top is only six weeks. In six weeks, whether it's my Reincarnation or the works currently ranked below me, we'll all be facing the direct threat of Rei's Bleach manga."
There was no time to waste.
Miyu walked into the study, picked up her pencil, and looked at the storyboards she had organised the previous night.
For several consecutive days, Rei promoted the Demon Slayer animated film in cities across Japan. While Miyu kept an eye on his activities, she was fully immersed in her own work.
Misaki had effectively been living at the company for days. There was too much to handle before the Demon Slayer film's release. The launch of the mobile game of the same name, which had been developed well in advance, the contract negotiations with copyright partners both domestic and international, and the distribution and inventory arrangements for the already-manufactured merchandise.
Shirogane Animation was under the same pressure. So was the Hoshimori Group.
The manga volumes covering the second part of the Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc would be released the day the animated film left theatres. But looking at Demon Slayer's sales history, which averaged over fifty million copies per volume, the film's release would inevitably drive another wave of purchasing for the previously released volumes alongside sales of the new material. After the New Year holiday season, the potential purchase volume of Demon Slayer manga in the market would amount to at least tens of millions of copies.
The Hoshimori Group had to finalise orders with partner printing factories. It was essential to have people managing related work even through the holiday period. Otherwise supply would definitively fall short of demand.
During this week when anime fans across the country were preparing for the New Year, many people in Japan's anime industry were buried in tasks connected to Rei's work.
New Year's Eve arrived.
Late at night, Rei left the airport looking travel-worn and got into the car Misaki had arranged for him in advance. Half an hour later, just before eight o'clock, Rei held an umbrella, shook off the light rain, and walked back through the front door of his home.
Pushing the door open, Misaki in a red dress and Miyu in a light white formal dress turned to look at him at the same time.
"Happy New Year." Miyu smiled.
"Happy... New Year."
Under the warm amber of the room's lighting, Rei sat down at the dining table. The New Year's Eve dinner, timed perfectly, was still steaming.
Eight or nine years since he had arrived in this world.
For the first time, Rei was spending the New Year with family.
"Sorry I'm late." Rei took a breath and smiled.
At midnight, fireworks broke across the sky. Rei and the two sisters stood together on the second floor of their home and looked up.
The fireworks marked the arrival of the New Year. They also marked something else.
In a few more hours, at ten o'clock that morning, the second Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc film would open before every cinema audience in Japan.