moon led journey to another world season 2

Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2 Release Date, Cast, Director, Trailer And More Details

Most heroes of isekai anime  find themselves transported to a fantasy world with some sort of blessing from the gods. When it comes to the protagonist of the anime "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy," however, the opposite could not be more true. The fact that the show's main character is actually despised by a god makes him unique among isekai protagonists, even as his story of traveling to another world falls into many tropes of the isekai genre of anime .

Nevertheless, this 2021 anime proved popular enough that a second season was greenlit. Based on the light novel series of the same name by Kei Azumi, the show's website describes it as an "alternate-world social reform fantasy." The unique concept of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" has been enough to capture the attention of anime fans both in Japan and around the world. Here is what we know so far about the release date, characters, and plot of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" Season 2.

When will Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2 be released?

The wait is almost over: Crunchyroll has confirmed that "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" Season 2 will premiere on January 8, 2024. The second season was confirmed right after the first one came to a close in September 2022, with a basic teaser and key visual released alongside the announcement. The reveal was met with excitement by fans of the series, but the teaser was only 15 seconds long and didn't include a release date, leaving fans to make guesses about when Season 2 might come out.

The first season was made by the anime studio C2C. For context, C2C's previous series "Wandering Witch — The Journey of Elaina" came out around a year after its initial announcement in October 2019. This led fans to expect that "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" Season 2 would experience a similar production cycle. In other words, fans believed they were likely to see the show resume airing sometime in late 2022 or early 2023. This never came to pass, but 2023 did bring some new details about Season 2, including more information on the planned release date.

In July 2023, it was revealed that "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" would be airing as part of the Winter 2024 season in Japan, with a premiere set for January of that year. It was also confirmed that the show would be airing in two back-to-back cours, meaning that Season 2 is likely to have around 24 episodes. This will be music to the ears of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" fans, especially as the first season only contained 12 episodes.

What is the plot of Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2?

Light novel spoilers ahead.

In the finale of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" Season 1, Makoto encounters and defeats Sofia Bulga, a powerful adventurer, and Mitsurugi, a dragon. The two have elected to join the demon army's quest to destroy humanity. However, Makoto prevents this, possibly playing directly into the hands of the unkind goddess who first summons him. It's unclear exactly what her plans are, but given that she is beginning to view Makoto as a rival for his increased power, it likely does not bode well for our hero.

Nevertheless, Makoto continues doing what he does best, growing the community of villagers, traders, and adventurers that he has helped build within Tomoe's personal dimension. At the same time, he wants to connect more with the humans of this world, something which the goddess has done her utmost to prevent. Whether or not Makoto achieves any of these goals will be revealed when "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" Season 2 is released. If you want to know the main plot points of Season 2, you can check out the source material.

"Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" is based on a light novel series by Kei Azumi, and the first season of the anime roughly covers the first four volumes. If Season 2 is based on the next four chapters, then it will see Makoto enroll as a student at the academy in Rotsgard, where he is surprised to discover that he's good enough to become a teacher himself. He doesn't get along with his students to begin with due to his hard, combat-focused lessons, but they eventually come to respect and admire him. A big event in Volume 7 of the light novels is the school festival, in which Makoto's students compete in a fighting tournament. There's a good chance we'll see this play out on screen in the second season of the anime.

Who is starring in Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2?

Protagonist Makoto Misumi is voiced by Natsuki Hanae, best known for playing Tanjiro Kamado in  the popular "Demon Slayer" series . In the English dub, Makoto is voiced by anime veteran Dallas Reid, who has plied his trade on such well-known shows as "One Piece" and "Attack on Titan." Makoto has a few allies in the fantasy world he finds himself in, mainly Tomoe and Mio, who are voiced by Ayane Sakura and Akari Kitou, respectively. Sakura has worked on a number of hit shows over the years, though she's perhaps best known for playing Ochaco Uraraka in "My Hero Academia." Kitou, meanwhile, is famous for voicing "Demon Slayer" deuteragonist Nezuko Kamado, the cursed sister of Tanjiro.

In the English dub, Tomoe is voiced by Monica Rial, who has famously played Bulma in the "Dragon Ball" franchise for decades. The English version of Mio is played by Kara Edwards, who will also be known to "Dragon Ball" fans — she's the voice of both Goten and Vidal. It's been confirmed that the main Japanese voice cast are reprising their roles for Season 2, and it's expected that the English dub cast will also be back.

New additions for Season 2 include Ai Kakuma as Hibiki, Ami Koshimizu as Naval, Yuji Murai as Woody, Chiharu Sawashiro as Verda, Nao Tamura as Chiya, Ryohei Arai as Tomoki, Mai Nakahara as Lily, Sayumi Watabe as Ginebia, Ami Tsukishiro as Mora, Natsue Sasamoto as Yukinatsu, Yuki Shin as Jin Rohan, Yurie Kozakai as Abelia Hopleys, Kento Ito as Ilumgand Hopleys, Shinsuke Sugawara as Misra Cazper, Tatsumaru Tachibana as Izumi Ikusabe, Tomohiro Yamaguchi as Daena Severus, Yumiri Hanamori as Sif Rembrandt, Nene Hieda as Yuno Rembrandt, Yukiyo Fujii as Rona, and Taiten Kusunoki as Io. Shiori Izawa and Yuki Hirose have also been cast as Eva and Luria, respectively.

Is there a trailer for Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2?

The first teaser trailer for "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" Season 2 was as big of a tease as you can get: It's really a small promotional clip and doesn't give anything away regarding the plot. However, in July 2023, a more detailed teaser for Season 2 dropped on YouTube, giving viewers their first real look at the sophomore season. It went down well with fans, who shared their enthusiasm in the comments section. "Animation is looking great," @iknowtech7181 said, while user @qhayiyadantile3208 was happy with the portions of Makoto's story that Season 2 will evidently adapt, writing, "They're gonna cover everything that happened between his preparation to head to Rotsgard and the events that involve Trashmoki and Hibiki." In October 2023, the first full-length trailer was released online, upping the excitement levels even further.

The trailer is far more focused on the action side of Season 2 compared to the teasers, and it confirms that the story will have a wider scope this time out. "Finally we get to see the other 2 heroes background, their fights, also Hibiki meeting Mio and Tomoki meeting Tomoe," said Redditor u/quinonesjames96 . Fellow fan u/Cryten0 was equally pleased about the new footage. "Heroes confirmed! I am glad," they wrote. "My most looked forward to scene: Seeing Tomoki get mocked by Tomoe." The second full-length trailer , while still full of action, also showcases the sillier side of the show: From the look of it, there's going to be plenty of fun moments between Makoto and his new students.

Which studio is making Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2?

The first season of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" was animated by the studio C2C, best known for adapting light novels such as "Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina" and "Reincarnated as a Sword" into anime. Their animators did a great job on "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" Season 1, and fans assumed that the studio would be handling Season 2. However, when the first trailer for Season 2 dropped in July 2023, it was confirmed that a new studio was handling the sophomore outing, the well-established anime house J.C. Staff.

Founded in 1986 by former Tatsunoko Production producer Tomoyuki Miyata, J.C. Staff has made over 200 animated works across the decades, including some beloved anime shows. The studio is behind the likes of "Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma," "A Certain Magical Index," "Toradora!," "Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?," "The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.," "The Familiar of Zero," "Revolutionary Girl Utena," and "Bakuman," to name but a few.

However, despite all this experience, some "Tsukimichi" fans were understandably nervous about their favorite show switching studios. On the My Anime List forums, some people pointed out that J.C. Staff's output over the last few years hasn't been quite as impressive as years gone by. However, the core staff who worked on the first season for C2C will be making the jump to J.C. Staff to oversee Season 2. This should make for a smooth transition, and some fans think that this showed in  the first teaser trailer . "It looks JUST like when C2C did S1," YouTube user @lesliekilgore648 said.

Who is directing Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2?

Fans will be pleased to learn that Shinji Ishihira is returning to helm the second season of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy." An experienced storyboard artist and director with dozens of titles to his name, Ishihira is mainly known for his work on "Fairy Tail" and "Log Horizon" — he directed the first two seasons of the latter show, totaling 50 episodes. In more recent years, he's become known for the likes of "The Seven Heavenly Virtues," "Edens Zero," "Sasaki to Miyano," and the C2C show "Reincarnated as a Sword." Just like many fans of the show, Ishihira was drawn to the project (based on Yuu Tanaka's light novel of the same name) after hearing the name of the books.

"For 'Reincarnated as a Sword,' I decided [to do it] right at the moment I heard the title," Ishihira told Anime Herald . "It was so intriguing! I do a lot of fantasy work. Just by hearing that title, I decided that 'Oh, this is a work I want to do.'" Of course, "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" is also based on a light novel. Ishihira went on to reveal that, whenever he gets the chance to adapt a light novel into an anime, he will always go out of his way to familiarize himself with the books. "With light novels, I'll read the source material quite seriously. If I get a definite idea 'Oh, I can make this happen this way!' then I'll decide to join the animation production."

Ishihira isn't the only member of the creative team coming back for Season 2 of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy." Kenta Ihara ("Saga of Tanya the Evil") is overseeing series composition; Yukie Suzuki ("Fight League: Gear Gadget Generators") has designed the characters; and Yasuharu Takanashi (who worked with Ishihira on both "Fairy Tail" and "Log Horizon") is once again composing the music.

What have the voice actors said about Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2?

The official  Season 2 announcement on the show's website was accompanied by some interesting comments from the main Japanese voice cast, who are clearly very excited to continue the story. "It is exciting to see the scale of the show expanding," said Natsuki Hanae, who voices protagonist Makoto, adding that he wants fans to still "pay attention to the story that will unfold." Hanae also said that his character's "full potential" will be reached in the upcoming second season, adding, "I hope to be able to show off my inner strength and cuteness that is appropriate for my age!"

Tomoe voice actor Ayane Sakura is a fan of the source material and was keen to see more of it adapted for the screen. "I am very grateful for the opportunity to play the role of Tomoe again," she said. "I will do my best to fully express the charm of Tomoe, who has a playful innocence and a tight-knit attitude." Sakura added that Season 2 will be "full of excitement, with various incidents happening and new characters added."

Akari Kitou is also a fan and she's looking forward to more adventures with her "Wakasama" (meaning "young master"), Mio's nickname for Makoto. "I will do my best to convey to my fans the charm of the strong and lovely Mio," she said. "In the second season, the number of characters increases dramatically, the environment surrounding Mio and her friends expands, and the story becomes more epic." If one thing's clear from these comments, it's that the scope of the story is going to increase dramatically in the sophomore season.

Who performs the opening theme of Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy Season 2?

The first season of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" had a memorable opening song in Syudou's "Gambling,​" and the second season is going to follow suit. The second full-length trailer for "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" Season 2 previews the season's opening theme song: The track is called "Utopia," and it's performed by Keina Suda, a name that anime fans may already be aware of. Suda has contributed music to several anime shows in recent years and made waves with his track "Veil," which was used as the first ending theme of the hit show "Fire Force."

In the comments section under the second Season 2 trailer, fans of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" are already raving about the new opening song. Even those who weren't sure if they were going to watch the second season of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" have been swayed by the catchy track. "Goddamnit now I gotta watch this so I can see the Keina Suda opening," YouTube user @kopjevla said. The second trailer also confirmed that the ending theme is being performed by new cast member Kento Ito (Ilumgand Hopleys). It's called "My Factor," and it marks Ito's first time making a song for an anime.

Where to stream Season 1 of Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy

Right now, Crunchyroll is the only place where you can stream the first season of "Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy" in the United States. The renowned anime streamer has all 12 episodes of the first season, which run about 23 minutes apiece. There are a few different dubbed versions on Crunchyroll, with viewers able to watch the show in English, Latin American Spanish, and Brazilian Portuguese at the time of this writing. If you prefer to watch your anime in Japanese with subtitles, there are also plenty of options on Crunchyroll, which has subs in English, German, Spanish (both Latin American and European), French, Italian, Portuguese (Brazilian), Russian, and Arabic.

Crunchyroll is always free for users, but you will need a subscription if you want to avoid those pesky ads. For new users, you can test out the premium access feature for 14 days for free but will have to pay when time is up. Crunchyroll offers three tiers of membership to its United States subscribers for $7.99 a month (Fan), $9.99 a month (Mega Fan), and $14.99 a month (Ultimate Fan). All three include ad-free streaming, but the more you pay, the more perks you get. For example, the top-end subscription comes with "an annual Ultimate Fan member swag bag, member-only access to the purchase of exclusive merch, and a special benefit for the Crunchyroll Store that provides $25 off a purchase of $100 every three months," the company confirmed when it introduced the tiers back in 2020.

Tsukimichi Moonlit Fantasy Season 2 release date and time, where to watch, and more

T he first episode of Tsukimichi Moonlit Fantasy Season 2, aka Tsuki ga Michibiku Isekai Douchuu or Moon-led Journey Across Another World , is set to premiere on Monday, January 8, 2024. This anime adaptation is based on the renowned light novel of the same name, written by Kei Azumi and illustrated by Mitsuaki Matsumoto. The series has also extended its influence with a manga adaptation featuring Kotora Kino's art, serialized online on AlphaPolis' website.

Upon its debut in 2021, the series' first season gained widespread acclaim in the anime world. As such, fans are now eagerly looking forward to the second season. With the release date of this Winter 2024 anime approaching, the fanbase is keen to find out the exact date and time of the season 2 premiere, as well as where to stream the show.

Tsukimichi Moonlit Fantasy Season 2 Episode 1 release date and time

The first episode of Tsukimichi Moonlit Fantasy Season 2 is scheduled to be released on Monday, January 8, 2024, at 11 pm JST on Tokyo MX, MBS, and BS NTV. International fans can access the English subtitled version of the debut episode earlier, on Monday, January 8, 2024.

The timings for the release of this anime in different parts of the world are as follows:

Where to watch Tsukimichi Moonlit Fantasy Season 2 Episode 1

Crunchyroll has secured the streaming rights for Tsukimichi Moonlit Fantasy Season 2 outside of Asia. This means that viewers worldwide, excluding those in Asia, can enjoy the anime's first episode on Crunchyroll.

For fans in South Asia and Southeast Asia, Medialink has obtained the broadcasting rights for this Winter 2024 anime . Therefore, anime enthusiasts can catch the show on their YouTube channel, Ani-One, in most parts.

However, it's crucial to note that the series is exclusively accessible through their Ani-One Ultra Membership scheme.

Casting and staff of the anime

While Studio C2C handled the animation for the initial season, the second season of the series will be overseen by Studio J.C.Staff, with the same cast members as the debut installment. The teaser and trailer videos for season 2 showcase the remarkable animation and production quality.

The anime boasts a highly skilled team of cast and staff members, directed by Shinji Ishihira, with composition by Kenta Ihara and character design overseen by Yukie Suzuki.

The series also features a stellar cast of talented voice actors, including Hanae Natsuki in the role of the protagonist, Misumi Makoto, Sakura Ayane as Tomoe, Kitou Akari as Mio, and Tsuda Kenjirou as Shiki, among other notable talents.

The music is overseen and composed by Yasuharu Takanashi. The opening song, titled Utopia, is performed by the talented musician and singer, Keina Suda, while the ending song titled My Factor is delivered by singer and artist, Kento Itō.

Narrative synopsis and what to expect in season 2

Tsukimichi Moonlit Fantasy Season 2 is set to span two consecutive cours, hinting at an anticipated episode count of more than 20. The storyline of this isekai anime will continue to explore the extraordinary journey of the main character, Misumi Makoto, in the fantasy land of another world.

Placed in the farthest corner from human civilization, Makoto's adventures unfold amidst demihumans and mythical beings. Viewers have expressed concerns about the pacing of the first season and the omission of certain source material events, which led to perceptions of the season being rushed compared to the manga's narrative.

Season 2 is anticipated to address and rectify these issues. There is an expectation that the second season will align more closely with the storyline presented in the manga.

Stay tuned for more anime updates , news , and manga updates in 2024.

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Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy (2021)

Tsuki ga Michibiku Isekai Douchuu / 月が導く異世界道中

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• Synonyms: En Route on an Alternate World Guided by the Moon, Moon-led Journey Across Another World , Tsukimichi: Moonlight Fantasy

Description

• Alternative World
• Celestial Being
• Swords & Co
• Episode 01 23:51 Youtube
• 01:30 Youtube
• 01:25 Youtube
• 01:45 Youtube

Images (60 Screenshots)

• Makoto MISUMI 11 ❤
• Goddess 1 ❤
• Patrick REMBRANDT
• TV-Series, 25 (2024) Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy - Season 2 J.C.STAFF Co., Ltd. Sequel Adventure
• Light Novel, 18+/? (2013) Tsukimichi: Moonlit Fantasy AlphaPolis Co., Ltd. Original Work Adventure
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Literature / TSUKIMICHI -Moonlit Fantasy-

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"Things don't quite work out, in the way I'd like them to, over in this world (Haiku)." —Makoto

TSUKIMICHI -Moonlit Fantasy- ( 月が導く異世界道中 , Tsuki ga Michibiku Isekai Dōchū , lit. "Moon-led Journey Across Another World"), is a Japanese web/light novel series written by Azumi Kei. It was first released online in 2012 on the website Shousetsuka ni Narou , later moving to Alphapolis in 2016.

Ordinary High-School Student and archery hobbyist Makoto Misumi is called into a fantasy world by the god Tsukuyomi, in order to be a hero due to a promise his parents made in the past. However, the Goddess of this world isn't as thrilled to have him there due to his looks , and kicks him to the edge of the world to fend for himself. Now, with his ridiculous amount of Mana and ability to understand every language except the one used by the other world's humans , it's up to Makoto to find his own way!

The novel has been adapted into a series of Light Novels illustrated by Matsumoto Mitsuaki, and a manga illustrated by Kino Kotora; both are published by Alphapolis . It later received a July 2021 Anime by C2C . In March 2024, Hanashi Media announced they had licensed the light novels for English release, with the first volume releasing digitally on March 30, 2024.

TSUKIMICHI -Moonlit Fantasy- contains examples of:

• Absurdly Sharp Blade : Makoto's short sword, can become a lot sharper with his Realm/Sakai . Tomoe's katanas are another example.
• Action Girl : Tomoe and Mio, as well as many other female adventurers and demi-humans, are extremely powerful combatants.
• We later meet the Guildmaster, Falz a.k.a Root, the supreme dragon of Myriad Colors, who powers the entire magical network themselves , who reveals a dark twist to this trope. The guild wasn't founded to empower hyumans, but rather to manage and restrict them, as Root feared that the Goddess's excessive favoritism towards hyumans would lead to the collapse of the world's balance. The "benefits" are traps designed to attract those would be consumed by their greed , who would inevitably die at the hands of a threat that they couldn't handle in order to feed their amibitions and desires. While some do manage to survive and become extremely successful and wealthy, Root views this as a positive as it provides further motivation for the greedy to strive (and perish) for their goals.
• All Myths Are True : Pretty much all mythological gods appear to exist, including Tsukuyomi and others such as Susanoo, Shiva/Daikokuten, Yatagarasu, Athena, the Fates (Clotho, Lachesis and Atropos), Poseidon , and so on.
• Makoto. Level 1 adventurer in a universe where even small children are usually double digits or more. A clueless merchant running a small general store in a universe where the merchant guild system specifically is designed to prevent general stores from working. A somewhat ugly looking, spindly teenager wearing what amounts to noble clothes. And a Person of Mass Destruction who can effortlessly destroy armies, countries, and the landscape around him by accident if he's not careful.
• Tsukuyomi also qualifies because it's revealed later in the story that he was helping literally every other Deity on Earth with their duties, and now that he's out of commission by sending Makoto to The Bug's world all the other Gods are struggling to do their own jobs, despite, you know, only having their own duties to do and not, what is likely, about 100 or so at once like Tsukuyomi had to.
• Artifact of Death : If anyone else besides Makoto were to wear one of his mana suppression rings or robe, the item would immediately suck their mana dry, and thus killing them.
• Artifact of Doom : After one of Makoto's rings has been filled with his mana, it doubles as a very powerful bomb that can go off accidentally if not handled properly.
• Attempted Rape : Both Tomoe and Mio after "rescuing" Makoto from a prostitute. Both of them are upset by him not making any moves on either of them, yet seemed eager to sleep with a prostitute. Then both start stripping and binding him down, and he barely escapes them by casting an ice spell and simultaneously teleporting out of the inn.
• Badass Adorable : Komoe, Tomoe's kid sized clone that's still just as superhumanly strong and dangerous as the original.
• Badass Crew : Makoto, Tomoe, Mio, and Shiki: a teenager who went through the magical equivalent of Training from Hell by living on Earth, a world without any magic; an ancient giant dragon with Mind Manipulation powers and a Everything's Better with Samurai hobby; a giant spider with a near infinite Healing Factor that used to be considered a living natural disaster ; and a centuries old Lich and magic expert.
• Badass Teacher : Makoto and Shiki become temporary teachers in Academy Town. They are incredibly successful in training a small group of students in actual combat, as opposed to the theoretical combat the Academy teaches; their students are considered uncouth for doing things like "moving" or "dodging" during combat.
• Battle Couple : In the backstory, Makoto's parents.
• The Beautiful Elite : Humans of this world are all extremely attractive much in the same way elves are considered in other fantasy settings, due to the ridiculously high standard of beauty of the local goddess. Mio even admits that by the human standards of this world Makoto is quite ugly, though that's not the reason they run from him.
• Big Eater : Mio started as a huge and ravenous spider monster; even after assuming human form, she can still pack away the snacks handily.
• Princess Lily and Tomoki, upon encountering Tomoe for the first time . Tomoki attempts to steal her katana , openly gobsmacked that he cannot even draw it from its sheath despite his Goddess granted ability to "use all weapons", while their Dragon Tamer tries to enslave Tomoe . After this doesn't work, Tomoki tries to use his mind control on Tomoe with Lily's permission , which similarly fails.
• This happens repeatedly to Makoto. Notable examples include Sophia attempting to kill him, thinking he was working for the Goddess, resulting in Makoto's final attack from about ten miles up, where Sophia transported him, hitting the ground like a magical nuke and the creation of a new lake , the Church extorting his recipe for healing potions out of him , but the biggest may be when the Merchant Guild Leader, Zara, tries to crush Makoto's fledgling company at the request of several powerful politicians and companies. This includes demanding 90% of Makoto's profits, knowledge of Makoto's techniques for moving materials around, et cetera. It is only later that week, during the Variant Crisis, that Zara realizes just how much danger he could have been in, had Makoto been less shocked and more angry.
• Call to Adventure : The gods summoned many individuals from Earth to be heroes in other worlds. Subverted with Makoto as he is chosen by Tsukuyomi but rejected by the local Goddess. Played straight with two others who have been chosen by the Goddess.
• Calling Your Attack : Justified, since it's the nature of magic through magical incantation. Magic can be used without an incantation, but it makes it weaker.
• Cast from Hit Points : Several abilities explicitly exchange lifespan for power. The Rose Sign is one of them, burning out the caster's remaining life for a giant burst of magic and power; As are the drugs that Lily researched and has been giving Tomoki and his allies.
• Chainmail Bikini : The blessing Physical Beauty allows a warrior to become more powerful, the more revealing their armor is. This blessing is averted with the Hunk since the Goddess tends to favor androgynous looks, meaning it is played straight with Bishōnen , who tend to be more exposed.
• Chekhov's Gunman : The Goddess mentions she already chose a hero from her own world. They did not appear until chapter 23.
• Clingy Jealous Girl : Tomoe and Mio become rather violent when anyone threatens Makoto and will regularly fight with each other over who gets to spend time with him.
• Closest Thing We Got : The quest from Rembrandt Company. Mr. Rembrandt actually needs some Ambrosia flowers for the potions but because going after those are dangerous, he must settle for eyes of the strayed insects which mostly consume Ambrosia, which is considered the less dangerous option. It is fit to compare the former by many swarms of middle level monsters and their respective Mooks in an area and latter as just one swarm of a middle level monster Mook Lieutenant and its mooks.
• Cold-Blooded Torture : This when we first see Rembrandt's name uttered by his enemy (in that case, the shaman) and we get to whom or why it happens later.
• Combat Pragmatist : Makoto, in spades, due to his near sociopathically emotionless nature. This comes back to bite him when he idly kills 3 brainwashed assassins, and said 3 assassins had friends who were trying to help them recover.
• Common Tongue : Justified. The language all hyumans use is not learnt but given by the goddess at some sort of baptism, so all hyumans speak one "hyuman language". Non-hyumans can learn it with time. Makoto, who's only been there a few months at most, only learns the grammar, spelling, and words but his pronunciation is off.
• Crapsack World : A world overseen by a flawed Goddess who values looks over ability or character, racial discrimination, Hyumans (humans) and humanoids are preferred by the Goddess and she neglects everyone else, many communities are fighting for "better land" (read: not an arid desert or frozen wasteland) especially the Demon race who even consider a frozen wasteland filled with monsters as better than their previous home , and a war between the Hyuman and Demon race with many people trapped as bystanders.
• When Makoto takes on some bandits attacking a remote village, he first silences the encampment so no one can make or hear a sound, ambushes them with arrows, and then launches a fire spell to take out the rest. Only the leader tries any resistence by throwing a sword at him. It breaks on Makoto's armor.
• One example of this is the fight with the Variants in Academy Town. After it is established that the local government needs small platoons of troops to take out a single one, Makoto and his friends casually kill 15 of them without breaking a sweat while walking down the street.
• Makoto vs Tomoki. The latter is extremely rude to everyone he meets, and gets the former alone. He demands that Makoto sell him Tomoe, offering him 3 brainwashed maids in exchange. Upon being refused, Tomoki has the girls pull weapons on Makoto, explaining that he can tell Makoto is weak and just happened to brainwash his 3 strong retainers. Wrong. The latter quietly uses magic to lock the door, enhance the soundproofing of the room, and puts all the witnesses to sleep. Makoto then proceeds to beat Tomoki against the wall, punching him more times than he could count, bashing his face in every time he tried to speak, until he got bored. He then heals Tomoki and walks away. Sadly, this event is just what Princess Lily needs to manipulate him into seeking more, dangerous power. Specifically, the refinement of his mind control skill into a form of drug that can be used remotely.
• Curse : An enemy of Rembrandt placed a curse on his wife and daughters which gradually turns them into berserking monsters. Left untreated, it would eventually kill them.
• Cute Monster Girl : Tomoe / Komoe, Mio, and Shiki start out as an ancient dragon, a giant spider and decrepit lich , only to become highly attractive humans after becoming Makoto's Subordinates. To some extent, Ema and the other female Orcs, who tend to look more like cute pig Funny Animals in dresses and so forth than the more standard monstrous portrayals, also fit the description.
• Deconstruction : Of the typical Story-Breaker Power protagonist that isekai light novels use. Everyone who fully understands how strong Makoto is treats him as a living Doomsday Device , one that absolutely must be kept as far away from politics and taking sides in conflicts as possible, lest he start wiping entire civilizations out. Fortunately for the world, he's more interested in being a merchant... which he's decidedly less than talented at. We even get to see some Alternate Timelines where Makoto does start taking sides, all of which have led to The End of the World as We Know It . Thus, a running theme through the story instead becomes about the consequences of giving teenagers ultimate power itself, rather than how they derail existing plot lines.
• Deal with the Devil : More like Deal with Jerkass God , but still applies as basically sending their kid to a Crapsack World . Makoto's parents, when cornered by danger 20 years before, made a deal with the goddess presiding over their homeworld to grant their wish; she moved them to Earth's Japan. In return, she wants one of their kids to be sent to the parents' homeworld. Tsukuyomi (another god) chose Makoto.
• Death World : Earth is regarded as one due to its extremely low mana, which largely prevents the blessings of the gods from affecting people and its high gravity. Basically all Terran Humans are the equivalent of John Carter of Mars on other worlds, making them superstrong and magically powerful even without the blessing of a deity. This is one of the reasons why other worlds tend to summon Earthlings as Heroes.
• Do Not Call Me Sir : Makoto has this reaction when called by honorifics initially. He wants to object the residents of Asora calling him Waka (Young Master) but decided not to after seeing everyone's enthusiasm.
• Dirty Coward : When a demon general uses a magic item to temporarily erase the blessings of the chosen heroes within an area of effect, despite having the best equipment and party at the time, Tomoki chooses to retreat as his blessings (which include immortality at night) are nullified, meaning he's vulnerable. He would rather see both hyuman armies (and the other summoned hero) die than risk fighting in a battle if there's any chance of losing.
• The Dragon Slayer : Sofia Brago's title, as she killed 4 Supreme Dragons .
• Tomoe is one of the 7 superior dragons known as the "Invincible" and the second highest level adventurer .
• Mio is known as "Black Calamity Spider" and is the highest level adventurer.
• Makoto earned the title "Devil" by accidentally destroying both an entire hyuman and demon army, the aftermath of which created a lake , though almost no one knows that it was him that did it. Most only know it was someone who was summoned by the Goddess. After effortlessly dealing with Io, it makes the Demon Lord Zef, his children and the 4 Demon Generals terrified of him especially and Kuzunoha in general . Further, his unconsciously overflowing magic aura is able to terrify a bunch of adventurers when not suppressed. Tomoe compares it to a bunch of Demon Lords appearing out of the blue.
• The leader of the Lorel Union, having grasped just how powerful Makoto is , quickly goes from interested to worried to openly terrified as she realizes the implications of having Makoto running around free , able to react to untold number of Political, Racial, Religious and Financial factions who don't understand his strength and thus might provoke a reaction by accident.
• The Water Dragon, Waterfall, is openly polite and nice to Makoto when they meet, up to and including offering Makoto magic books on Interdimensional Summoning and Travel . However, the second he leaves the room, Waterfall turns to Hibiki and begs her to find some way to seal Makoto away, because he's so powerful that nothing in the world — not even the Goddess — can stop him. The Interdimensional Summoning and Travel spellbooks are part of this plot, with the hope that Makoto will simply send himself back to Japan and no longer be a threat due to no longer having magic.
• Ethical Slut : Falz, the guild leader of the Adventurer's guild, aka Root, the Supreme Dragon of Myriad Colors, the native Crystal Dragon Jesus . As an immortal shapeshifter , he has been married 10 times, to both men and women; he prefers having sex as a woman but thinks love between men is superior. He also has a fetish for otherworlders, his 10 husbands and wives having been otherworlders and openly wants to get Makoto into bed. That said, Falz wants to woo Makoto and doesn't try to coerce him into a relationship.
• Everything's Better with Samurai : Tomoe being a self-proclaimed samurai, having become obsessed with them based on watching old Samurai and Detective movies in Makoto's memories.
• Extremely Easy Exam : Makoto is told that the Merchant Guild test is extremely hard and barely anyone passes on their first try. He finishes in seconds and scores an unprecedented perfect score. Since the Goddess of the world prioritizes physical beauty above all else, the education level is terrible. Makoto compares the questions to grade school math problems.
• Extreme Omnivore : Mio and the Arkes were insatiable Big Eater Extreme Omnivore monsters with little sanity. Thanks to Makoto's mana they regained their sanity and self-control. In return they swore an Undying Loyalty to him.
• Failed a Spot Check : Makoto receives a few intelligence reports from Lime but fails to realize he is talking to Lime without the needs of his signs to be understood. It is a few days later when Makoto puts this together and then learns Tomoe has made Lime a half-human half-dragon hybrid .
• Mills Ace for Zetsuya. The public knows him as the highest level adventurer in there and someone heroic, but in reality, he is the leader of a local crime organization and faked his level.
• In a variation, Tomoki, despite given various luxuries and indulgences to keep him pliant, is considered by Princess Lily and Gritonia as little more than a Human Weapon to serve their ambitions to wipe out the demons and expand their empire, with him experimented on multiple times to the point he will likely die young. Whatever respect he does have is due to widespread propaganda and exploiting his charm skill.
• Makoto's magic attack which wiped out 2 armies and created a lake. Specifically, it was one ungodly huge ice spell that froze everything in a very large radius, shattering it all into component atoms, and then melted, filling the resultant crater and connecting several rivers. Only a handful of people survived on both sides, and the lingering mana from the spell drives monsters away for miles around.
• One of the heroes, Tomoki, has one too, actually called "Nuke." It literally summons a nuclear blast, complete with radiation aftereffects, which Tomoki can ignore due to his immortality blessing at night — but as a status effect, it can be simply cured away with magic.
• Makoto eventually figures out how to use the material his rings are made out of as ammunition, causing huge explosions whenever he does.
• Fantastic Racism : The Goddess and Hyumans towards demi-humans. Makoto simply not grasping how racist the Hyumans are bites him on multiple occasions.
• Field Power Effect : Makoto's Realm can apply all sorts of effects, from increasing his power, hiding his magic power, healing others, negating magic, and can expand to let him see and hear anyone within it. Sadly, he's restricted by how many things he can do at the same time, and he has to use a good portion of it to restrain his own mana.
• Hibiki is a female take on the Stock Light-Novel Hero . A natural Genius Bruiser who found nothing at all challenging in her homeworld, Hibiki nevertheless remains essentially The Paladin even after being brought to this world. Noble, courageous and skilled, Hibiki seeks to enact social change for the better gradually through progressive reform. Her party is very conventional being a Damager, Healer, Tank combination of a White Magician Girl , a Black Mage , a Stone Wall fighter and a Lightning Bruiser warrior. A member of the Limian royal family secretly fights within Hibiki's party out of love for her. Hibiki fights as part of the vanguard in her party but is versatile enough to drop into any role that is required in battle.
• Tomoki is a deconstruction of the Stock Light-Novel Hero . He is chosen solely for his good looks. He lacks any special skills and has been bullied heavily throughout his life. Unlike Hibiki who was transferred "as is", Tomoki was radically transfigured by the Goddess into a blonde, older form. A Dirty Coward who ran away the moment his life was even at the slight hint of danger, Tomoki rapidly slides into evil under the machinations of his party members. Tomoki basically seeks to use his charm powers to rule Gritonia as his personal harem and treasury without any heed for the welfare of the people. Tomoki's party consists mainly of people with rare and unconventional classes. Aside from an Imperial Guardsman to serve as a tank, the rest of his party are a Gadgeteer Genius who fights using golems and a Dragon Summoner. The member of the royal family in Tomoki's party is openly affiliated with it but does not fight on the front lines serving as The Strategist and logistician. Tomoki in battle is basically a one trick pony, blasting the enemy with high level firepower.
• Makoto is functionally a Heroic Neutral more interested in cooperation and harmony between the various races. In chapters set in the Lorel Union, we learn that many other Japanese Otherworlders also held similar beliefs. This implies that Makoto acts more in accordance to how most Japanese would act as opposed to the heroism of Hibiki or the hedonism of Tomoki. In addition, while Hibiki and Tomoki's struggle involves gaining strength for their purposes, Makoto's trouble lies in controlling and restraining his massive amount of mana, lest he frighten or hurt people by accident . Finally, Makoto's "party" is made up of his servants, non-humans (given a human appearance due to the effects of the servant contract ) who are individually strong or skilled enough to be the Final Boss (or at least Elite Mooks ) in another story, including the would-be samurai / Master of Illusion Tomoe, the former Black Spider of Calamity Mio and the knowledgable lich Shiki.
• In general, when two individuals make a contract, the weaker contractor will always assume the image of the stronger contractor's race. Tomoe, Mio, and Shiki assume hyuman form when they made a servant contract with Makoto.
• Mio's Arkes gradually learn to disguise themselves as hyumans.
• From Bad to Worse : The Goddess transporting Makoto in the middle of a battle where the hyuman army is retreating from the demons had the effect of causing the destruction of both.
• From Nobody to Nightmare : Makoto in spades. He starts off as an Ordinary High-School Student with very plain looks and some talent at Archery. By the time he lands in the new world, he's such an overwhelming magical force of nature that he has to wear special clothing and jewelry to suppress his aura, lest adventurers instinctively recognize him as a threat and attack. He just gets more powerful from there, to the point that a major plot point is that he can't interfere with world events or he'll accidentally cause The End of the World as We Know It .
• Getting Smilies Painted on Your Soul : The ultimate fate of Sofia . Root destroys her memories, leaving her as a happy, if somewhat innocent, young adventurer.
• Giant Spider : Mio, before gaining a human form, and the Arkeys were all large arachnids.
• The Lorel Union is a secretive country that respects, supports, if not outright worships lost otherworlders that end up in their world, who they call "The Wise." They are also of the opinion that The Wise should only be in Lorel, and are not opposed to using manipulation to imprison them there.
• Sairitz, their leader, recognizes Makoto as a Wise after he uses Kanji in his sign, and confirms it later during the Variant Crisis when he uses absurdly powerful magic. Her immediate thought is that she needs to convince him to go to Lorel, where they can properly restrain him via emotional blackmail into staying there forever. Shortly thereafter, she starts reasoning how strong he is, the reactions of politicians and racial groups to him and his company, and the very bad things that would occur if things went sideways when Makoto is involved.
• Giving Someone the Pointer Finger : The anime opening for the second half of season 2 has two sets of opposing forces doing this to each other represeting their upcoming conflicts in this half of the season. The first set are Makoto's students and Ilumgand's team pointing at each other as they will face each other in the upcoming tournament. The second sets are the hyuman leaders of various nations and the church pointing at the upper leadership of the demons referencing the conflict between the factions continuing to grow.
• God Is Flawed : The Goddess hands down. She is a vain, petty, vindictive, callous bitch. She is capricious in her favors and only cares if people are beautiful. Anything that fails to meet her standards of beauty are to be shunned or destroyed.
• Green-Eyed Monster : Tomoe and Mio fit this trope when someone gets too close to Makoto.
• Half-Human Hybrid : Averted. Hyumans are noted to be incapable of breeding with other species, like Greater Dragons. However, as Makoto is human due to how he was raised on Earth, he is capable of breeding with Tomoe. Root confirms to her as Root once bore the child of her first human lover centuries ago .
• Happiness in Slavery : Tomoe, Mio, Shiki, and Tamaki make a servant contract with Makoto and are content with it.
• Hard Work Hardly Works : On a national scale. Human armies can pray for the Goddess' Blessing before any battle. The side favoured by the Goddess due to their good looks gets their strength doubled while the opposing side gets their strength halved. This four fold change in combat ability pretty much determines the winner before any engagement. This means that logistics, training, strategy, tactics and equipment are all invalidated in warfare involving human nations; regardless of how much demihumans may develop their military, overcoming this gap is simply unrealistic.
• Hate Sink : The hyuman supremacists, their leader Elaine in particular. They were a trio of hyuman adventurers that tricked Makoto into taking them to the Illusionary City so they could steal some of the weaponry there. They not only attack an orc child just for seeing them, their recklessness causes one of the Draupnir meant to be disposed of to detonate, killing Hayato and Tomoe's fragment, as well as near fatally injuring Hokuto. While two of them are likewise killed in the explosion, Elaine manages to escape, not caring her comrades perished and more focused on the equipment. She then tries berating the clearly unhinged Makoto when he finds her, and has the gall to beg for mercy right before Makoto kills her. Safe to say, the only tears shed at their deaths were Makoto's own, not because he felt remorse, but because his body had been conditioned to cry at death.
• Hero's Slave Harem : Downplayed with Makoto's main love interests, Tomoe and Mio, who formed 80/20 "servant" magical contracts with the massively-overpowered Makoto to mutually-benefit from the power the contract provides, and both are extremely eager to service him sexually . However, exactly how bound to the servant contract they are is hazy, considering that Tomoe and Mio both regularly ignore Makoto's will or outright coerce him into going along with their whims instead. Makoto also gains additional servants like Shiki and Tamaki who are not romantically interested in him at all.
• Heroic Lineage : Played with. Makoto's parents are indeed something special. However it was not him who was groomed to assume their legacy and fulfill their bargain with the Goddess ; it was his elder sister.
• Hidden Depths : Mio turns out to be quite the foodie, not surprising given her original nature as a gluttonous eldritch abomination; this translates into her being an incredible chef as well. Hibiki helped teach her about Japanese food, which Mio finds infinitely more admirable and interesting than Hibiki being one of the two heroes.
• Hollywood Homely : In universe example as most humanoids fall under this. Justified because the goddess is a Jerkass who dislikes ugly things. So she definitely put some influences to "brush off" humanoids who don't meet her beauty standard.
• Identical Stranger : Hasegawa in Japan and Toa the adventurer look very similar despite living worlds apart.
• Improbable Weapon User : Mio uses a fan in battle.
• Irony : Shiki is a Lich who specializes in healing magic.
• The Goddess whom Makoto saw before "landing" to the new world is one. She insulted him, threw him at the wasteland, and gave him the ability to speak with non-humans but not the ability to speak Common Tongue which she gives to any other hyuman .
• Later, when forced to give him the ability to speak Common , she does so via brute force, basically hammering it into his soul. This is a problem because the combination of both equates to a high divine tier, "speak to anything with a mind" blessing , and a mortal soul can barely contain a blessing that powerful without self destructing. It's to the point that the other Earth gods can't give him a blessing because of it, and openly instruct him to use his Zen Meditation trick to power up as fast as possible before his soul explodes.
• Katanas Are Just Better : Not really a katana but a curved one-edged blade is what Tomoe prefers to use to complement with her samurai identity. It was made by the best craftsmen around obviously.
• Kidnapped by the Call : Makoto was scooped up and dropped into this adventure with little time to pack up and think it over. His choices were: He goes, or, one of his sisters must take his place. He's then promptly abandoned by a Jerkass God who promptly kidnaps two other people instead .
• Kill the Cutie : The death of Tomoe's first offshoot. Particularly brutal, as the explosion didn't even leave a corpse to be buried .
• The Klutz : Hazal is unbelievably clumsy, regularly tripping over his own two feet and accidentally injuring himself when collecting loot from monster drops. Ties into him being the Butt-Monkey of Toa's party.
• Language Barrier : Makoto is able to understand and speak to any non-hyuman beings but is unable speak and understand the common (hyuman) language though he manages to get through understanding only. He later bargains the Hyuman language from the Goddess.
• Language of Magic : Magic is worked through a system known as Ancient Language.
• Lizard Folk : Tomoe brings a tribe of reptilian humanoids to the demiplane, the Mistio Lizardmen.
• Loads and Loads of Races : It's fantasy so this is bound to happen. The main one that matters is the "Hyumans," which are distinctly NOT Humans, being incredibly attractive but generally weaker and more attuned to magic than the outrageously physically strong humans. They're cheap knockoffs created by the local sociopathic deity. Others include the local native demi-humans, which due to influence of the local goddess, are openly oppressed, as well as the local Demons, which are in open rebellion to the Goddess (and thus, her hyumans). It's later revealed that the demons is just the term for demi-humans who are the target of genocide from the Goddess / Hyumanity.
• Magical Incantation : Known as arias and they come in different varieties, depending on which language they are spoken in.
• Manipulative Bastard : Princess Lily, full stop, who has Tomoki wrapped around her finger with promises of power and glory. She has no intention of letting him live past the wars she plans on using him to win.
• Meaningful Rename : Makoto renames Shin as Tomoe and the Calamity Spider as Mio after they became his subordinates.
• Meditation Powerup : A more permanent variant than normal for this trope. By using the meditation technique he was taught for Zen Archery, Makoto is able to increase his already ridiculous amount of power past 'multiple demon lords' to 'just shy of a god'. Each time he does it he also causes Aurora to grow and warp to become more like Japan. Allowing the growth of Japanese foods. He didn't even realize he was doing it until his companions caught him in the act. It is hinted that his growth was exponential or geometrical , which means a single additional meditation session would have easily put him above the Goddess in terms of pure magical ability, which Tomoe and Mio were worried would result in her immediately attempting to kill him. Given that he's Unskilled, but Strong , he would not have been able to fight her off at that time.
• Miko : Included with the Shrines and Temples that were gifted by the 3 gods; one of them was Touda who later on becomes Makoto's subordinate and is renamed as Tamaki.
• My God, What Have I Done? : The reaction of anyone who is released from Tomoki's mind control. It is explicitly compared to a drug addiction that results in its victims having betrayed friends, families, loved ones, and their morals and beliefs in their single minded devotion to Tomoki. To the point that the most common reaction after coming to their senses is suicide.
• My Greatest Failure : Root's reaction to Sophia deciding to absorb the other dragons. He specifically points out that this was one of his plans that he tossed aside after getting married to Sophia's ancestor, so he feels some serious remorse over it.
• Official Couple : Come chapter 305, Makoto finally takes the Adventurers of Origin advice to be honest with the people he loves about how he feels about them, and finally confesses to and starts an honest-to-goodness relationship with Mio and Tomoe.
• Only Known by Their Nickname : So far in the manga and novel, the goddess's name hasn't been revealed yet. So the characters and readers call her "The Goddess". It is implied it is a name the reader would know.
• Orbital Bombardment : Makoto's ultimate spell, Moon. He summons, by asking the Moon for assistance using his blessing that allows him to talk to anyone and anything, an infinite number of flaming, homing meteors that explode as miniature nukes.
• Makoto and Tomoe. The former for having books, games, things on his hard drive, and watching so many period dramas. The latter for actually becoming Makoto's subordinate so she can watch his memories of above and record the projections for later viewing.
• Later, Mio became a fan (preferring Anime and Westerns to Tomoe's Samurai and Detective stories) after Tomoe lent a copy of Makoto's memory recordings of Japanese media. She and Tomoe then fight over watching them.
• Our Dragons Are Different : The Supreme Dragons are closer to incredibly powerful spirits or low-level gods, with the capability to shift forms, control entire elements, never age , and reincarnate even after their physical bodies are destroyed. Tomoe is a large Eastern Dragon who has the ability to read peoples mind, create mists of illusions, can create an empty pocket dimension, and is into Japanese period dramas. Root is considered by most to be an equal to the Goddess, can make massive magical networks like the Adventurer system, and can shift between a giant golden dragon, a woman, and a man at will.
• Our Dwarves Are All the Same : Short stature, powerful facial hair, talented craftsdwarfs, you know the drill. The manga currently has one group of Elder Dwarves who join "Asora" and a named dwarven adventurer.
• Our Elves Are Different : They're supposedly descended from an older group called the Forest Ogres (who are themselves still around and fit elvish stereotypes of being secretive and isolationist). The manga currently has one named elven adventurer.
• Our Liches Are Different : Admittedly not that different in form, but markedly so in skillset. While still an undead spellcaster, the resident lich Shiki specializes in earth magic and healing magic instead of the more harmful kind. He also gets awful pretty after forming a contract with Makoto.
• Our Orcs Are Different : The local orcs are boar-like , and more peaceably agrarian than one might expect from a High Fantasy setting. The tribe Makoto encounters early on is primarily concerned with not getting wiped off the map.
• Makoto, as a deconstruction of the trope. He is capable of reforming the landscape or wiping out entire armies or countries with ease — and the people who realize this are all openly terrified of him.
• Mio and Tomoe as well. They leveled Zetsuya to the ground in an evening in a strength contest.
• Playing with Fire : Fire Magic, natch. Makoto in particular has summoned a bow made of flames, and fought Mio in their first fateful encounter by firing off a series fireballs like a rotary cannon.
• Pocket Dimension : The mist town Asora , which is its own little universe contained outside the worlds of the Goddess or our Earth, though it's only the size of a town and later a small countryside.
• The Power of Language : When Makoto gives new Names to then Shen and the Black Spider of Calamity as a sign of their contracts, his Naming empowers them further. Tomoe even says after receiving her name there is a unique Name for each individual which he could bestow on that will max out the Named one's power. Mio refuses to give what hers would be as she wants something personal to Makoto.
• Makoto has so much mana that he is unconsciously leaking it out at all times, to the point that people witnessing this instinctively recognize him as a lethal threat - a monster in human form. (Described as "like seeing a group of demon lords appearing all at the same time.") This becomes a hindrance to him, as he has to use his Realm powers constantly to restrain his mana, meaning he can't use it for other things like detecting things or defending himself.
• The Three Gods who arrive to deal with the Goddess wish to give Makoto their own blessings, but realize due to him stopping his Zen Archery Meditation he is dangerously close to a Super-Power Meltdown ; due to the Goddess having shoved another, overpowered blessing in without any care to his safety .
• Redemption Quest : During the Rotsgard Academy arc, Lisa Rembrandt meets with her daughters Shifu and Yona. She explains to her daughters she is displeased with their arrogance and haughty behavior at the school before they were all cursed into horrible forms. As such, Lisa expects them to make up for their many misdeeds and rehabilitate their images before they graduate, or they will suffer her wrath. The daughters are very scared of what it will mean to fail .
• Reformed, but Rejected : Ilumgand regains his sanity after being destroyed, his Hyuman body reforming — with superpowers, but deformed — in the core of the Variant that he became. Unfortunately, Mio was the only one to notice, and despite his stated goal of surrendering his life to support Hibiki and make up for what he did, Mio casually slaughters and eats him for the crime of upsetting Makoto.
• Reports of My Death Were Greatly Exaggerated : The strongest hyuman adventurer is Sofia Bulga who earned the epitaph of "Dragon Slayer" for killing a Greater Dragon. It turns out, Lancer, her supposed victim, isn't dead. He is now her comrade and they are fighting against the Goddess' agents .
• Restraining Bolt : The Goddess is given one in the form of a choker or collar by the other gods. Makoto is warned that if they ever do fight, he must not damage it , because it restricts her divine abilities.
• Retired Badass : Makoto's parents were former adventurers, but in Japan, they became a children's storybook writer and illustrator.
• Royals Who Actually Do Something : Lily, the third princess of the kingdom of Gritonia, became an adventurer to help the kingdom's Hero, Tomoki. Note that this does not, in any way, make her GOOD. She is a manipulative sociopath, openly hoping to use Tomoki to deal with the Demons and then manipulate him into killing her rivals and taking over the world.
• RPG Mechanics 'Verse : The Adventurer's Guild has a level based EXP system and a rank system, as is typical of isekai novels; however, this one is explained as Root, the local Crystal Dragon Jesus , having decided to implement the system as a way to organize — and restrain — the Hyumans, based on his first husband being a video game fan from Japan who loved role playing games. A major reoccurring plot point is that the levels are just that — a number — and have nothing to do with skill, talent, or the like. It is implied that the Adventurer Guild system has other benefits for rank, such as unlockable skills, titles, and the like, but Makoto and his allies are completely and utterly uninterested in looking into any of it.
• Ilumgand, due to the influence of the Demon Army's cursed drugs. His side of things is shown in a POV chapter, including that Makoto jumping in to "save" Ruria before Ilumgand could recover emotionally from discovering she wasn't dead destroyed his life. He recovers, in the end, but sadly is not able to redeem himself.
• Everyone who recovers from Tomoki's mind control has this general reaction to the things they were forced to do, usually ending in suicide.
• Self-Made Man : Rembrandt started as a small merchant and clawed his way up to where he is now.
• The dungeon sprites are all sprites... that are cosplaying as 2D video game characters. I.e., Sprites. The first one Makoto encounters is dressed up ... in red. With overalls. And a mustache. Which looks really weird on the very female sprite.
• The dungeon sprite's final attack is to teleport Makoto into a wall. This is a reference to an infamous total party kill permadeath in the Wizardry series of games — if you teleport into a wall , your characters are all instantly dead and the game immediately saves, preventing you from recovering them.
• Shrines and Temples : A Shinto shrine, a Buddhist temple, and a Pantheon were gifted to Makoto by the 3 gods that visited Asora.
• Small, Secluded World : The mist town Asora isn't that much secluded as per se since Makoto, Tomoe, and eventually Mio and Shiki can create a mist gate that leads to the outside world which lets them enter and exit the mist town whenever they want.
• The Stoic : The most unnerving part about Makoto isn't his absurd power, it's when one finally realizes that he is, for the most part, completely and utterly dead emotionally. He takes no thrill or joy in combat, seeing it as nothing more than a chore — and having no more an emotional reaction to killing someone who is attacking him than he would cleaning off a countertop. This, combined with his power, is what makes him The Dreaded . He could kill everyone he meets: nobles, warriors, heroes, anyone — and wouldn't feel even the slightest bit of distress at doing it, if he felt the situation called for it.
• Story-Breaker Power : Makoto and his party. Makoto especially could single-handedly end the hyuman-demon war if he wanted to, but ultimately decides not to get involved with it at all and just wants to live as how he sees fit. Daikokuten actually temporarily gives Makoto the ability to see Alternate Timelines where he did stop the wars by taking various sides. It ends poorly in every single instance.
• Token Mini-Moe : Komoe, a child-sized clone of Tomoe that helps manage Asora. All the other main characters are least teenagers in appearance.
• Tomboy and Girly Girl : In their human forms, Tomoe acts and dresses as a samurai, and loves her name because it comes from a female samurai in Japanese folklore . Mio wears a more feminine kimono and is a Yamato Nadeshiko . Mio also attempts to be a good housewife by learning to cook meals for Makoto, though this is hampered by her Extreme Omnivore nature making it hard to tell what other people can actually eat.
• Trapped in Another World : Played straight and inverted. Makoto is the former, his parents is latter as they were ones trapped in Earth. See Deal with the Devil for more info.
• Undying Loyalty : Tomoe, Mio, Shiki, Tamaki, and those of Asora are extremely loyal to Makoto to the point that they would kill anyone who would disrespect and/or hurt him.
• Unskilled, but Strong : Makoto, having a stupidly strong body and near infinite magical power... doesn't understand much more than the most basic of concepts of magic, tactics, combat, et cetera. His most common tactics are "cast the most basic spell at it," "punch it using magic," and "shoot it with his bow," in order of annoyance.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist : Many adventurers of Tsige become tools of a conspiracy after Rembrandt made a group who takes every single low-ranked quest. Low ranked adventurers have no choice but to take quests which are above their ability, which given that Tsige is on the border of the wasteland, leaves them without any options to earn a living. Compounding this is that most adventurers are from orphanages or otherwise destitute, and have no life skills other than adventuring.
• Wizarding School : Academy Town teaches magic, in addition to swordplay and general education topics.
• Daikokuten gives Makoto dreams of what he could have done and its effects on the world if some things had happened differently. Daikokuten, when talking to the other gods, mentions parallel worlds, so these may be visions of what might have actually occurred in other timelines .
• "What if Makoto actually goes after the Goddess?" He becomes a revenge obsessed sociopath who murders in cold blood; the Heroes try to stop him and fail, utterly .
• "What if Makoto had gone south instead of north when landing in the world?" He is found by the kingdom of Gritonia and their hero, Tomoki — and Lily, who manipulates him into being the third hero. After genociding the demon race, he turns on humanity .
• "What if Makoto allied with the Demons?" In this timeline, he never recruited Shiki, and the Heroes, Mio, and Tomoe are all killed during Makoto's rise to power .
• "What if [UNKNOWN]?" We aren't given any specifics on this timeline, other than it was apparently very close to the current one. Rather than see what the other Makoto sees, he feels the other Makoto's emotions and hears his Motive Rant ... as the other Makoto, an Omnicidal Maniac , decides to kill all life in the universe .
• Who Wants to Live Forever? : Makoto's reaction to Apple , the group of Immortal Japanese Adventurers hiding in a dungeon. This is also his reaction when offered a Golden Apple from the realm of the dead, which if eaten in the realm of the living, would grant eternal life. He is absolutely disgusted by the idea of immortality. Root also is very clear that making a mortal live too long leads to nothing but tragedy. It's one of the few times he's seen not happy go lucky and flirty in the series.
• World of Technicolor Hair : Differently colored hair is common in the Goddess' world. Tomoe is depicted with blue hair on the Light Novel cover, as befitting her water elemental alignment. She wishes it was black like a Japanese samurai.

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News A Journey Through Another World: Raising Kids While Adventuring Anime Premieres on July 8

Atsushi Nigorikawa ( Love Tyrant , A Destructive God Sits Next to Me , Beast Tamer ) is directing the anime at EMT Squared , with Bros. Bird, Inc credited for production cooperation. Atsushi Maekawa is overseeing the series scripts, Yūki Nakano is designing the characters, and Akinari Suzuki is composing the music. GENCO is producing the anime. Tebasaki Sensation is performing the opening theme song "Yururing Travel Days" and GOHOBI is performing the ending theme song "MAKUAKE."

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Due to a mistake by a god, Takumi Kayano loses his life and is reincarnated. Bestowed with various skills, he finds himself transported to another world—a perilous forest infested with monsters. In that forest, Takumi discovers what appears to be twin young boys and girls, whom he names Allen and Elena, and takes them under his protection. Despite being surprised by the two effortlessly defeating monsters with their martial arts skills, Takumi eventually reaches a town and registers with the adventurer's guild to make a living. Thus begins a laid-back adventurer's life as Takumi watches over the growth of Allen and Elena!

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The Government Takes On Ticketmaster

Explaining a case that could reshape the multibillion-dollar live entertainment industry..

This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email [email protected] with any questions.

Hi, everybody, it’s Sabrina. Before we start today, we wanted to invite you to something special. The Tribeca Festival is starting a brand new annual gala to celebrate excellence in audio. For this, the inaugural year, they’ve chosen to celebrate “The Daily.” We know you, our incredible audience, live all over the world, but we’d like to invite you to join us.

The gala is in New York, on June 9, at 5:00 pm. You can get all the details and buy tickets at tribecafil.com/thedaily. That’s tribecafilm.com/thedaily. I’ll be there, Michael too, along with a bunch of us from the show. Mo Rocca is going to host it. So if you’re in the area or you’re visiting, we’d love to see you there. OK, on with today’s show. From “The New York Times,” I’m Sabrina Tavernise. And this is “The Daily.”

I have got a bone to pick, as usual, with Ticketmaster.

The biggest problem that I have right now is not getting tickets to the Era Tour.

Loading, loading, loading. Want them so bad. Want them so bad. Want them so bad. Nope.

I looked at my account and the tickets are gone.

Over the past few years, few companies have provoked as much anger —

I cannot afford $1,500 tickets.

— among music fans.

Oh, my god.

— as Ticketmaster.

I literally hate Ticketmaster. Like, there is no company I think I hate more than Ticketmaster.

Ticketmaster ought to look in the mirror and say, I’m the problem. It’s me.

Last week, the Department of Justice announced it was taking the company to court. Today, my colleague David McCabe, on how the government’s case could reshape America’s multi-billion dollar live music industry.

It’s Thursday, May 30.

So, David, good to have you back. You have become a beloved guest at “The Daily,” because the government keeps bringing these huge antitrust cases and we keep turning to you to explain them.

Well, it’s a pleasure to be back. And today I have a question for you, which is, what was the first concert you ever went to?

Oh, my gosh. The first concert I ever went to? Oh, my god, I think it was Van Halen in the 1980s, which maybe is before you were born.

You know, no comment, but that’s a pretty good first concert.

And the case that we’re here to talk about today is actually all about shows like a Van Halen concert in 1980.

OK, I’m ready. So let’s get into it. This case, as you and I both know, is about Ticketmaster. So tell us about this case.

So anyone who attends concerts regularly or even irregularly probably knows about Ticketmaster. It’s kind of the ubiquitous digital box office. And those people are probably also familiar with the ubiquitous fan complaints about Ticketmaster — that the company puts high fees that they don’t entirely explain onto tickets, that tickets will sell out really fast during these sort of frantic pre-sales for tours, and that the website doesn’t always work very well.

And probably the most infamous Ticketmaster incident in recent memory was a couple of years ago when the pre-sale began for Taylor Swift’s massive Eras Tour. And fans got locked out, couldn’t get tickets and were absolutely furious. And it really put in the spotlight the power of this company over the ability to buy a ticket to a live music event.

So the DOJ is pointing the finger at this company for all this consumer angst at Ticketmaster.

Well, and when you say this company, it’s not just Ticketmaster. It’s the company that owns Ticketmaster, a company called Live Nation Entertainment. We’ll say Live Nation for short. And it’s a giant company. And to think about just how gigantic and how expansive Live Nation is, I think it’s helpful to think about the fan experience of going to a concert.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

It starts with buying a ticket. And maybe you buy a group of tickets for you and your friends. And then one of your friends can’t make it. They’ve got other plans. You resell their tickets so you can make your money back. And then the day of the show you go, it’s this big production. It’s at a venue. Someone has booked the artist to appear. You go, you buy a beer, you have a good time.

Live Nation is involved in many parts of that process, and that starts with being a major concert promoter. They’re the one putting it on, arranging the event. They’re also selling the tickets through Ticketmaster. Sometimes they’re also involved in reselling the tickets when your friend can’t make it.

And not only that, they actually sometimes manage the artists. And they own or operate the venues where the show is happening. So even down to that beer you’re drinking to enjoy with the show, they might be involved in picking the person who sells that beer to you.

So, basically, they’re everywhere.

They’re everywhere. And the Justice Department says that’s a big part of the problem, that its power is bad for fans.

Good morning. Earlier today, the Department of Justice —

And we really heard that come through at the press conference last week that the Justice Department held to announce this case —

People always remember the first time that they were transformed by live music.

— where Merrick Garland, the Attorney General, really personalized this issue.

I still remember, as a senior in college, going to a Bonnie Raitt concert and seeing a —

He told this story about going to a Bonnie Raitt concert in college.

Merrick Garland did?

Yeah, Merrick Garland did.

I don’t think of Merrick Garland and Bonnie Raitt together in the same sentence.

Well, apparently, in college he attended a Bonnie Raitt show. And the thing he highlighted was that the opener was a young Bruce Springsteen.

We all knew that we had just seen the future of rock and roll.

And in that story, the attorney general seems to be getting at two important threads of this case. The first is that concerts are formative for the people who attend them. And the second is that concerts are an important way that artists reach their fans. That young Bruce Springsteen went on to now be one of the biggest touring artists in the world.

The Justice Department filed this lawsuit on behalf of fans who should be able to go to concerts without a monopoly standing in their way. We have filed this lawsuit on behalf of artists who should be able —

And so the Justice Department is responding here to a feeling that Live Nation, this giant company, has become a gatekeeper for both artists and fans. And that has allowed it to pay artists less sometimes, but also charge fans those fees that they’re so mad about.

It is time for fans and artists to stop paying the price for Live Nation’s monopoly. Thank you.

So help us understand how things have gotten to this point, where Live Nation is so powerful that the DOJ feels the need to sue them.

Well, this company has a long history of tangling with the Justice Department. And that really starts in 2009, when Live Nation and Ticketmaster announced that they were going to merge. And this merger, this big corporate deal, will marry Live Nation’s concert promotion business, the business of putting on shows, with Ticketmaster’s experience as an online ticketing platform.

And the Justice Department — a big part of its job is looking at corporate mergers to figure out if they will substantially lessen competition in the economy. So the Justice Department reviews this merger, and in 2010 decides we will let this merger go through. But we do have some concerns that it might reduce competition in the industry of ticketing. And so we’re going to reach a legal settlement with Live Nation and Ticketmaster that puts conditions on the deal, that requires the company to sell some assets to kind of lessen its footprint. And so the merger goes through. And that creates the sort of modern day Live Nation, Ticketmaster combination.

So the government ultimately actually just lets it happen.

That’s right. They put conditions on the merger, but ultimately they let it go through. And the company continues to tangle with the Justice Department over the next 15 or so years. But mostly they keep getting bigger. They keep growing their footprint across this ecosystem that creates some of the biggest concert tours in the country.

So just how big has the company actually become? Give me some numbers.

Well, let’s start here. Every year, they sell about 600 million tickets.

600 million tickets? That’s more than the number of people in the United States of America.

Yeah. And that is a global number, but it’s a lot of tickets. Right? The Department of Justice estimates that in the United states, Live Nation controls about percent of ticketing to major venue concerts.

So that’s a big percentage. They also own or control, like, in excess of 250 venues, including a big percentage, the Justice Department says, of major amphitheaters, the kind of big outdoor concert venues that are ultimately kind of in between a nightclub and the size of a big football stadium. And they manage hundreds of artists. They have this direct relationship with artists. And so this company is wide and it is deep into this industry.

So ultimately, the Justice Department says that — and I’m going to quote here — it’s the, quote, “gatekeeper for delivery of nearly all live music in America today.”

OK, it’s big. But as we know from other DOJ cases — and this is something that you have taught me, David — the cases against Apple and Google, just being big is not in and of itself a problem.

That’s right. Where companies run afoul of the law is when they use their power as a monopoly against their competitors in order to stay powerful or get more powerful.

And the Justice Department says that Live Nation has built a complex machine to do just that.

We’ll be right back.

So what does the DOJ say that Live Nation is able to do because it is so big? How does it use its bigness?

So the most prominent allegation is that Live Nation uses its power as a concert promoter to entrench its power in ticketing. As a reminder, when you put together a concert, a promoter works with an artist to book the show. They book the show at a venue. And that venue, for all of its shows, has to choose a ticketing provider, a digital box office where people can buy their way into the shows.

And what the Justice Department is arguing here is that Live Nation is able to wield its big artists, the tours that it promotes, as a cudgel to force venues to use Ticketmaster, its ticketing service. So the Justice Department says that in an instance in which a venue switched away from using Ticketmaster, that Live Nation routed tours around that venue, which of course means less money for that venue and a problem for their business.

Interesting. So basically, Live Nation is saying, look, if you want Taylor Swift in your little amphitheater over there, you’re going to have to use Ticketmaster. It’s Ticketmaster or no Taylor Swift.

That is effectively the behavior the Justice Department is arguing has happened here. They’re saying that Live Nation does this in veiled ways and that, more importantly, it’s really understood by venues throughout the industry that if you don’t use Ticketmaster, that you really risk out on losing important Live Nation managed tours. And then once these venues do choose Ticketmaster, Live Nation locks them into these long, exclusive ticketing contracts, which can last for as long as 14 years.

14 years? That’s pretty long. What else is DOJ alleging that Live Nation has done?

Another thing the Justice Department says that Live Nation does is use its power as an owner of venues to get away with paying artists less money for their tours.

So how does that work?

Basically, the argument is that because Live Nation controls so many of certain types of venues, that there are instances in which an artist’s tour might largely be dominated by Live Nation owned venues. And the Justice Department is saying that Live Nation knows that artists don’t have a lot of other options for where to play their concerts and, as a result, is able to pay those artists less. Because there’s not competitive pressure when they’re booking those tours.

That seems pretty unfair to artists who would really benefit from other venues owned by other people competing for them.

And that’s exactly what the Justice Department is saying, that artists lose out, not just fans. And there’s a striking story in the complaint that I think crystallizes how the Justice Department sees these streams of power coming together.

And it concerns a concert, which the lawsuit doesn’t name, in 2021. My colleague Ben Sisario has reported that it was a Kanye West concert featuring Drake. It was a benefit show, and it was taking place at the LA Coliseum in Los Angeles.

One of the companies involved in putting on this show was a firm called TEG. They do promotion and ticketing of the kind that Live Nation does. And the government says that Live Nation saw this as a threat, that they saw this company TEG involved in this show, and they were worried about what it would mean for them, and that they then undertook steps to put pressure on TEG and make their life difficult in a couple of ways.

The first was that TEG had reached a deal to sell some tickets, according to the complaint, through StubHub. StubHub is a secondary resale market. You can buy tickets to shows when people aren’t going to use them.

Right, and competitor to Ticketmaster, right?

And competitor to Ticketmaster. And the Justice Department says that Live Nation found out about that and said, well, we have the exclusive ticketing contract for this venue. And so we will make sure that if you bought your ticket on StubHub, you won’t be allowed to come in to this show.

Really? Like, they couldn’t come into the concert?

Well, and ultimately, the complaint says that StubHub had to work with Ticketmaster to fulfill the tickets that had already been sold, that they stopped selling new tickets, and that hundreds of people who bought their tickets on StubHub didn’t get into the show.

That seems very unfair. Like, they bought a ticket.

Well, and according to the Justice Department, it didn’t stop there, that Live Nation used its industry connections to pressure an investor in TEG, this company that it viewed as a threat, and that it pushed that investor to pull back from its relationship with TEG, which obviously would have weakened this potential competitor.

So these are very strong armed tactics. What is the DOJ saying is the result of all of this? What does all of this amount to?

It says that all of this adds up to higher fees for consumers and a worse product, a worse quality ticketing experience when fans go to buy. Because Live Nation doesn’t have to compete with anyone. It doesn’t have to innovate in response to competitors. So, among other things, the Justice Department wants to break this company up, at the very least by separating Ticketmaster, the ticketing unit, the box office unit, from the rest of Live Nation that does all these other things — promotes concerts, owns venues, et cetera.

So in other words, go back to the way it was in the beginning.

Yeah, or as much as you can.

And why does that fix the problem?

Well, the Justice Department doesn’t say a lot on this point. But it’s clear that what they want to do with this lawsuit is disrupt this cycle where Live Nation’s power reinforces itself again, and again, and again.

And what does Live Nation say in response? I imagine they disagree with all of this.

They do. They’ve said a lot. And they start out by saying something that will be familiar to you, because other companies that have been accused of antitrust violations say it as well, which is that they don’t fit the profile of a monopoly, that their overall profit margins are lower than those of companies like Meta, or Apple, or Google, and that even if you look at Ticketmaster specifically, they take a smaller percentage of every sale than a lot of other digital platforms. So they say basically the numbers show that we don’t have the kind of power you would normally associate with a monopoly.

And then they say, listen, we know that there are things that fans don’t like about the ticketing experience. There may be fixes to those. But largely, it’s not Live Nation’s fault, they say. They say that artists generally set the prices they want people to pay for tickets.

Really? So artists themselves do it.

Right, that artists sign off on how much a ticket will cost to their shows.

And they also say that demand sometimes drives ticket prices up. If there are more people who want to see a show than there are seats or standing room to see that show, the prices will be higher. And finally, they say that there’s this kind of pernicious outside force of scalpers, people who resell tickets, that use bots to hoover up way more tickets than they could possibly use and then resell them at a higher price. And so they say that all of these things may contribute to a fan experience that people don’t like, but that it’s not necessarily Live Nation’s fault.

I mean, to me, this makes certain sense. I guess if you think of a Taylor Swift show and lots of people trying to buy tickets, one reason why those tickets are expensive is not necessarily because there’s something nefarious going on, but because lots of people want to buy tickets. And there’s a market, and supply and demand has a role here.

Well, and a clear question here that I have, that other people have asked, is how much does the Justice Department think ticket prices have gone up because of this alleged Live Nation monopoly? And the Justice Department hasn’t answered that question.

They haven’t disentangled it with all of the other stuff that’s around — market forces, everything?

That’s right. And there’s another element of Live Nation’s response that we should mention, which is that the company basically says this lawsuit is politically motivated, that this administration, the Biden administration, is bringing lawsuits that don’t hold a lot of water but are anti-business. That’s what Live Nation is saying.

I mean, it does sort of ring true in some sense. Right? This has been the tilt of this administration toward cracking down on big companies. The DOJ has changed in this respect. They’re filing a lawsuit to break up a merger that a previous DOJ had actually approved.

Well, you’re right. This Department of Justice, this administration more broadly, has a different view about antitrust. They think that antitrust law can be a more expansive tool to address problems in the economy. And they’ve put that into practice. They’ve sued Google for violating anti-monopoly laws. They’ve sued Apple for violating anti-monopoly laws.

But I think ultimately what they believe is that they’re responding to a change in the economy, that these companies have gotten much bigger, that they have gotten more powerful. And they are responding to the way the companies broke the law on their way to becoming that big.

So, David, when you and I talked about Google and Apple — you referenced them here — you know, we talked about how there were broad repercussions for the future on American society. What would you say the implications are in this case?

This case ultimately, for the Justice Department, is about the market for culture and creativity. You know, a few years ago, the Justice Department successfully blocked Penguin Random House, a big publisher, from buying Simon and Schuster, another publisher. And they said that one problem with this merger was that it would reduce how much authors got paid, and that it would create a market where fewer books and fewer types of stories broke through.

This Justice Department is embracing an idea that the more concentrated the economy gets, the more it stifles creative expression, the ability of artists to make art and get it to the public and the ability of the public to consume it. And that, they say, is a central question of democracy. Because things like music are how we talk about big social issues or big political issues. So that is, they say, what’s at the heart of this case, that it is not just about the fees, it’s not just about how much an artist gets paid. But it’s about whether or not there is a fair marketplace for ideas, and whether or not consumers are able to access it.

David, thank you.

Thank you. [MUSIC PLAYING]

Here’s what else you should know today. On Wednesday, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito declined to recuse himself from two cases arising from the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol after “The Times” reported that flags displayed outside his houses appeared to support the Stop the Steal movement. In letters to Democratic members of Congress who had demanded his recusal, Justice Alito said that the flags, at his home in Virginia and a beach house in New Jersey, were flown by his wife, Martha Ann, and that he had had nothing to do with it.

And a group of 12 New York jurors deliberated for more than four hours in the final stretch of the criminal trial of Donald Trump, in which the former president is accused of falsifying business records. The jurors asked for portions of the testimony from two witnesses to be read back to them, as well as the judge’s instructions. They were then dismissed for the day and will resume deliberations today.

Today’s episode was produced by Will Reid, Rob Szypko and Rachelle Bonja. It was edited by Michael Benoit and Brendan Klinkenberg, contains original music by Marion Lozano, Dan Powell, and Will Reid, and was engineered by Alyssa Moxley. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly.

That’s it for “The Daily.” I’m Sabrina Tavernise. See you tomorrow.

• June 5, 2024   •   30:42 Biden’s Push to End the War in Gaza
• June 4, 2024   •   29:17 A Conversation With President Zelensky
• June 3, 2024   •   32:07 How Trump’s Conviction Could Reshape the Election
• May 31, 2024   •   31:29 Guilty
• May 30, 2024   •   25:21 The Government Takes On Ticketmaster
• May 29, 2024   •   29:46 The Closing Arguments in the Trump Trial
• May 28, 2024   •   25:56 The Alitos and Their Flags
• May 24, 2024   •   25:18 Whales Have an Alphabet
• May 23, 2024   •   34:24 I.C.C. Prosecutor Requests Warrants for Israeli and Hamas Leaders
• May 22, 2024   •   23:20 Biden’s Open War on Hidden Fees
• May 21, 2024   •   24:14 The Crypto Comeback
• May 20, 2024   •   31:51 Was the 401(k) a Mistake?

Hosted by Sabrina Tavernise

Featuring David McCabe

Produced by Will Reid ,  Rob Szypko and Rachelle Bonja

Edited by Brendan Klinkenberg and Michael Benoist

Original music by Marion Lozano ,  Dan Powell and Will Reid

Engineered by Alyssa Moxley

Listen and follow The Daily Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | YouTube

Over recent years, few companies have provoked more anger among music fans than Ticketmaster. Last week, the Department of Justice announced it was taking the business to court.

David McCabe, who covers technology policy for The Times, explains how the case could reshape America’s multibillion-dollar live music industry.

On today’s episode

David McCabe , a technology policy correspondent for The New York Times.

Background reading

The government is accusing Ticketmaster’s corporate parent, Live Nation Entertainment, of violating antitrust laws .

Here’s a guide to the emails at the heart of the government’s case .

There are a lot of ways to listen to The Daily. Here’s how.

We aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. You can find them at the top of the page.

The Daily is made by Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Sydney Harper, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman, Will Reid, Carlos Prieto, Ben Calhoun, Susan Lee, Lexie Diao, Mary Wilson, Alex Stern, Sophia Lanman, Shannon Lin, Diane Wong, Devon Taylor, Alyssa Moxley, Summer Thomad, Olivia Natt, Daniel Ramirez and Brendan Klinkenberg.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Lisa Tobin, Larissa Anderson, Julia Simon, Sofia Milan, Mahima Chablani, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli, Maddy Masiello, Isabella Anderson, Nina Lassam and Nick Pitman.

David McCabe covers tech policy. He joined The Times from Axios in 2019. More about David McCabe

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Makoto Misumi

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Makoto Misumi ( 深 ( み ) 澄 ( すみ ) 真 ( まこと ) , Misumi Makoto ) is the main protagonist of this series. He is one of the three World Travelers who was summoned to the Goddess' World .

Originally meant to be the only person to be sent to the other world as per the contract between his parents and the Goddess , but because of her own preferences in beauty standards, she abandons and throws Makoto to the edge of her world into the Wasteland, while secretly kidnapping two other people from Earth and sending them to her world as Heroes. Tsukuyomi , the Moon God of Earth who worked as the middleman for the completion of the contract, helped Makoto and provided him with his blessing and told him to be free and live as he wishes to.

In the Goddess' World, he is also known by the alias " Raidou Kuzunoha " (in WN/LN) or " Makoto Kuzunoha " (in Manga/Anime), a powerful merchant and skilled teacher.

• 1 Appearance
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• 4 Equipment
• 7 References

Appearance [ ]

Makoto is a short (160 cm) and young teenager with black mid-length hair and eyes. His facial features are average in appearance but to those of the Goddess' world, he is considered ugly and/or being mistaken as a demi-human of some kind.

When his mana is not kept in check by his mana absorbing rings, his mana overflows and is said to look like an ominous desert haze and gives off an aura that can be seen as great power that others respond to in different ways. He is in no way negatively affected by this ominous desert haze as he is unaware of its presence and even less when he uses Sakai .

He can look at someone in a disinterested way when he's in an emotional state that can be quite dangerous, it is most visible when his eyelets darken around his eyes.

Personality [ ]

Like many other students his age, Makoto is quite naïve. In sports and his studies he is barely on average. Thus he is in no way considered special. He uses target practice as a way to relieve emotional and social stress. It's been shown when he can't target practice he has trouble regulating his emotions.

According to his elder sister (Extra chapter 5), in his perspective of love, he always ended up seeing the girls who confessed to him to the status of "family" and "friends." According to Tsukuyomi, Misumi's earnest and humble personality has led to many girls take a liking towards him, which is especially obvious for his Archery club president and a club activities kohai.

As the middle child, Makoto tends to adore his little and older sister, but in the past and currently, he has shown to have a dark streak of sociopathic tendencies. His eyes tend to become serious, lifeless and scary in this state, his voice calm but filled with a cold tone. In this state he tends to try and remain in control of his emotions, but it's very likely he would destroy a nation to save those close to him. He can take a lot of abuse from friends and enemies alike, but he has a strong sense of justice for those younger then him, he disdains bullies, and will protect his friends and adoptive family by any means necessary. When he killed his first Hyuman, it was in response to the adventurers he sent to his "illusionary city" he acted coldly, unforgiving and pursued the surviving adventurer, only after thinking of the reason he behaved this way did he realize he was suppose to feel guilt and remorse. Because of this he broke down in tears, lamenting that he must have lost his humanity. Thinking he was some sort or spider/dragon/undead/human hybrid because of the weird monsters he contracted with; namely Mio, Tomoe, and Shiki. Once Tomoe explained that the reverse of his worry was true, that the three of them became more Human because he was the dominant one in the contract of control, and other then accessing his servant's unique abilities in times of crisis or heightened emotional turmoil. In all his humanity was in tact much to his relief, but he still seemed unaware of his dark personality traits. Though to friends and allies he has a natural charisma and kind nature that makes them question if he is some sort of hero, though his motivations have always been for selfish reasons.

According to Hibiki Otonashi , Makoto has developed a thought process where he unconsciously discriminates against the Hyumans. It is to be expected, from the first thirty seconds of being summoned to this world, he has met the delusional, obsessed with all things beautiful ruling goddess. Who bestow onto him to be able to speak with all the "failed" humanoid and monster creations of hers; But not her favored hyumans. Then stating he would be at home among the ugly orcs and goblins and thrusting him to the farthest reaches of the Wastelands. So he couldn't understand Common, which is a further insult to him. Even Mio could speak it, the hungry spider disaster...Upon meeting his first hyumans at the frontier of the Wasteland they treated him like some Demi-Human Demon-Lord. It was most other races that accepted him, or given him a chance, without criticizing his looks to the point of ignoring him or brushing him off. The first hyuman adventuring party he invited into the Demi-Plane showed intolerable amounts of racism, entitlement and a sense of being better then anything not hyuman. He doesn't treat all hyumans with this unconscious discrimination, only those that act exactly like the goddess who he gave up his home for.

He has the tendency to unconsciously smile when fighting. That face of his was seen for the first time by his followers Tomoe and Shiki. It was seen in the incident where he was fighting the self proclaimed god Samal, when he insulted his parents whom he loved deeply. Makoto became ridiculously angry after hearing his insults. Then, Makoto attacked him with his bow and arrow as a declaration of war.

As a ruler, he models the Asora as a beautiful paradise fit to be called heaven. He provides asylum and protection to almost only the most strongest races that desire this, because he feels empathy towards individuals who are looked upon less favorably in the Goddess’ world as is the case of demi-humans, monsters and demons. So he has no qualms about helping them selflessly, even if that generates bad opinions of him among the Hyuman society. He will grant a place from the Wasteland and suffering, granted they can get along with other races, In Asora discrimination is not included in his rule. He is seen as a humble leader by everyone in the Asora. His merchant alias: Kuzunoha, catches the attention of many nations and factions. His followers are vigilant of migration to The Demi-Plane and since he considers it necessary for the races who wish to migrate to have an amiable personality and to not discriminate other races, they make sure of it. Makoto himself barely has an impact on the process, and doesn't do any careful vetting at the start of the story. The very first adventurers he invited into the Demi-Plane caused a incident that has changed the way Makoto views Hyumans. Tomoe is trying and working on giving Makoto a heads up about his new racism, since technically he himself is also a hyuman, and the first hyumans he befriended proves that not all of them have such selfish personalities.

He tries to make all of his citizens of different races prosper. News of the Asora being paradise begins to spread along the wasteland. Migration proposals begin arriving for the Mirage town in the wasteland. In the final interview for accepting a race into the Asora, he shows great respect and is very humble. He is seen not as a landlord but as a god who gives shelter and commodities to his subjects. He accumulates many believers who worship him at the shrine in the Asora and offer their prayers. When Misumi hears that, he finds it very uncomfortable to be seen as something great like a God. He asks Tamaki to convince the people to stop worshiping him as he does not consider himself a God. He has difficulty dealing with people who are good at hiding their true intentions under a fake smile. It makes him very uneasy and difficult to trust them. He naively tries to classify people as either friend or foe. He tries not to over-think it and feels it is a lot easier to punish or kill his foes while maintain an amiable relationship with his friends.

Just as before coming to this world, he still has difficulty dealing with women who have feelings for him and is especially oblivious to certain types of feelings towards him. He is seen as a late-bloomer by many as he refuses the advances of many women. When Mio was given a choice to ask for anything she wants for defeating a greater number of mutants in the Academy Town, she asks that he sleep with her but quickly hesitates and changes the request. But Misumi, who at that moment is drunk, thinks it is not too far-fetched and that he wouldn't mind sleeping with her.

He doesn't really think about long-term problems that could arise from killing because of his normal response to being attacked or angered. As a result, when he is attacked by the three Shadowless class Assassins during his stay in Lorel Union, he effortlessly murders them when he remembers that these girls were sent by the hero Tomoki. This causes him to be on bad terms with Pione and Picnic Rose Garden as a whole as she is close friends with one of the three assassins who had her head brutally crushed by Misumi. His reasoning is that when someone tries to take your life or endanger you and those you care for, it’s only natural to kill them.

Etymology [ ]

His given name, "Makoto" using the Kanji 「真」, means “truth/reality”, which is ironic because he was born on the 1st of April, which is April Fools Day. This has caused his older sister Yukiko to question their parent's naming sense, since she too has an oddity relating to her and her sisters name as well.

As for the surname "Misumi" 「深澄」, the first kanji means "deep" while the second means "transparent". This surname was given by the Goddess to Makoto's parents, when they decided to leave her world and move to a different world (which by Goddess' choice was Earth (The Origin World)). The origin of the name is based on the meaning of Makoto's parents real name in Goddess World's common language, with "Io" meaning "deep" and "Tort" meaning "transparent".

Equipment [ ]

• Short Sword : Given as a gift by the Highland Orcs. Upon finding out that the sword was Toya's family treasure he gives it back to her as a show of compassion.
• Dwarf-made ceremonial dress
• Clothes that extract mana and uses it for various ability settings.
• Draupnir : Magical rings that absorb and compresses the wearers mana. It glows red when the storage capacity reaches its limit. Draupnir(s) can suppress the tremendous quantity of Makoto's magic power. They absorb his magic power to the limit. However because Makoto’s magic power only increases with his bow training and new servants, he needs to change them regularly and wears more of them to the point that there are an immense amount of used rings with Makoto's magic power stored in them. When some humans try to steal some objects like weapons or Draupnir in the unprotected workshop of the Elder Dwarves, a large explosion occurs killing two humans (The ones that attempted to steal), Tomoe's fragment ( Mini Tomoe ), a Highland Orc, and mortally wounding the Alke's Hokuto , who would have died if not for Makoto treating the Alke's injuries. Since this incident, the rings are carefully put in a sealed treasure box. Later, it was discovered that this rings can produce energy but they need to be used like magic bombs in order to be used as an energy producer.
• Azusa : "Azusa Yumi" is a special long bow created by the elder dwarves. It has the same proprieties as Draupnir as it stores mana and then converts it into magical power when he shoots an arrow. It glows red like Draupnir when the storage capacity reaches its limit. When the arrow is shot, the power is unleashed in one instant and releases a deadly explosion, even more so in close range.
• Silver Arms : Gauntlets that Makoto made through his own power of Creation. They are made through a complex method. They are made with the idea to break any magical attack like the shooting of Root or the portal of Samal. "…Now then, you can do it, right? Crush any kind of attacks; that’s what I envisioned in you when I created you. If you are truly my Creation, you should be able to rip up this closed space.” (Makoto) WN 221.
• Bow Youkyuu : It is used when teaching/training the students. It's similar to a toy bow, even the arrows are harmless, but with the power and accuracy of Makoto (even with a skill that reduces his power) the students say that it's like they died each time they are hit.
• Einkaref (given to Iroha) (エインカリフ): A talking sword that once belonged to Muramatsu Iori. It is a long and thin cylindrical shaped sword that calls itself “The sword of a Dragon Slayer”.

(Makoto to Students): As a teacher the lessons of Kuzunoha-sensei have a somewhat similar policy of the Academy it is probably even more difficult because of that. The policy of the main academy is to demand a minimum level of skill in set areas from all the students.

(Makoto to Iroha): "Wise huh. I just can’t get used to that way of calling. Also, the Japanese that were here were mostly fooling around, and frankly speaking, being placed in the same category as them would make me so embarrassed I wouldn’t be able to walk outside.”

• Makoto used to wear glasses when he was on Earth.
• He is constantly powering up and is already able to land a solid blow on a Goddess (Athena).
• His older sister is mostly hyuman because when she was born his parents had not fully adapted. His little sister is mostly human because of the same logic.
• Since the name "Raidou Kuzunoha" is licensed by Atlas, it has not been used in either the Manga or the Anime adaptation of this Series.
• He had sex with Mio and Tomoe . [1]

References [ ]

• ↑ MLF Chapter 305- Day of the Union
• 1 Makoto Misumi
• 2 Hibiki Otonashi
• 3 Sofia Bulga