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Mushoku Tensei Author Comments on Series' Depiction of Slavery

In episode six of Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation II, Rudeus Greyrat purchases a child slave named Julie (voiced by Sumire Morohoshi) to make figures for Zanoba. The recent development ignited conversation about the series' use of questionable narrative development again after its previous season included discussion of sexual attraction to prepubescent girls.

Series author Rifujin na Magonote commented on slavery in his series on X (Twitter) on Sunday. Rifujin na Magonote wrote: "About Rudeus: He doesn't really have any feelings of hatred for slavery. He feels like, it's not necessarily the case that all slaves are universally unhappier as slaves than they were before becoming slaves. So while kidnapping is evil, he can't say with certainty that slavery itself is evil and doesn't want to impose his own sense of justice upon a culture he is unfamiliar with."

Rifujin na Magonote added additional details about his series in subsequent tweets on Sunday. He wrote that Rudeus' cousin Luke had his own share of problems while living in a women's dorm. Rifujin na Magonote is alluding to the fact that Fitz (Sylphiette, disguised as a man) lives in the women's dorm while fellow guard Luke's residence wasn't explicitly stated. In the tweet, Rifujin na Magonote confirms that Luke is in the same dorm and is known to enjoy women's company.

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation II will air for two cours (two quarters of a year). The first half premiered on July 2 and Crunchyroll is streaming the series as it airs in Japan. Rifujin na Magonote initially serialized the story on the Shōsetsuka ni Narō (Let's Become Novelists) website from 2012 to 2015. Kadokawa's MF Books imprint then began publishing a print version in 2014. The 26th volume shipped in November 2022.

The first part of the novels' first anime adaptation premiered in January 2021, and the second part premiered in October 2021, after a delay from that July.