News

Orange Inc.'s e-Bookstore Service emaqi Adds Isekai Craftsman Manga in English

AI localization company Orange Inc. added Rin Tateyama's manga adaptation of Aroe and Neru Izumo's Isekai Craftsman: A Relaxing Tale of Chilling and Building from Scratch (Isekai Craft Gurashi: Jiyū Kimamana Seisan-shoku no Honobono Slow Life) light novel series to its "emaqi" e-bookstore service during the week of December 6.

The company describes the manga:

Miyabi, a "Crafter" who built his dream buildings in a VRMMO universe, suddenly finds himself transported to another world – with all of his in-game skills intact!

Determined to live out his dream of a creating cozy life in this vast natural landscape, Miyabi teams up with the adventurer Liz to punch some trees and gather materials! With his extraordinary crafting abilities, Miyabi sets out on a journey to craft a quiet and comfortable existence.

The manga launched on Futabasha's Gaugau Monster website in November 2021. Futabasha shipped the manga's sixth compiled volume on August 30.

Aroe launched the original light novel on self-publishing website Shōsetsuka ni Narō in January 2021. Futabasha published the second volume in March 2022.

---

Orange launched the emaqi service in the United States and Canada on September 3. The "emaqi" platform featured approximately 6,000 volumes of manga from 13 publishers in its launch, with plans to add at least one new title previously unpublished in English every week. Orange Inc. announced that it has secured translation, publishing, and distribution rights from publishers including Shonengahosha, Futabasha, and Akita Publishing. The company also acquired distribution rights from Kodansha USA Publishing.

The company's partnership with Shueisha to localize one-shot manga from Shonen Jump+ allows readers to read newly translated stories in English several times a week, for free. Both the emaqi and Shueisha's MANGA Plus services are simultaneously publishing the one-shot manga. MANGA Plus had also announced its new program to release all one-shots from the Shonen Jump+ service in English simultaneously.

Readers can create a free account on emaqi and access the platform's wide range of content. Each manga has a detailed synopsis, and sample chapters or previews that are available for readers to try out. Readers can buy individual volumes of a manga title, or subscribe to an ongoing series directly through the platform.

emaqi is web-based, and Orange is considering launching the service as a mobile app next year.

Source: E-mail correspondence