The Fire Hunter

The Fire Hunter (火狩りの王, Hikari no Ō, "The Firecatcher Lord") is a Japanese fantasy novel series written by Rieko Hinata and illustrated by Akihiro Yamada. Holp Shuppan have published four volumes between December 2018 and September 2020. An anime television series adaptation by Signal.MD premiered in January 2023.

The Fire Hunter
First novel volume cover
火狩りの王
(Hikari no Ō)
GenreFantasy[1]
Novel series
Written byRieko Hinata
Illustrated byAkihiro Yamada
Published byHolp Shuppan
Original runDecember 20, 2018 – September 3, 2020
Volumes4
Anime television series
Directed byJunji Nishimura
Written byMamoru Oshii
Music byKenji Kawai
StudioSignal.MD
Licensed byCrunchyroll
Original networkWOWOW
Original run January 14, 2023 – present
Episodes3

Plot

In the distant future, a calamity has changed human physiology so that humans will instantly combust when in the presence of fire. As a result, human civilization collapsed until they discover an alternative fuel source derived from the blood of demonic Fire Fiends. As a result, the elite Fire Hunters are formed, whose sole purpose is to hunt down Fire Fiends and harvest their blood, fueling a new industrial revolution.

Touko, a young girl who lives in a remote village, wanders into the forest and stumbles into a battle between a Fire Hunter and a Fire Fiend. The Fire Hunter is mortally wounded saving Touko, with his last words telling her the name of his dog, Kanata. Due to being responsible for the Fire Hunter's death, Touko is tasked by her village to take Kanata and the slain Fire Hunter's belongings to the Capital and return them to his family. Feeling responsible as well, Touko embarks on the long and dangerous journey to the Capital to fulfill her duty.

Characters
Touko (灯子)
Voiced by: Misaki Kuno[2]
Koushi (煌四)
Voiced by: Shōya Ishige[2]
Akira (明楽)
Voiced by: Maaya Sakamoto[2]
Kira (綺羅)
Voiced by: Saori Hayami[2]
Roroku (炉六)
Voiced by: Yoshimasa Hosoya[2]
Hinako (緋名子)
Voiced by: Megumi Yamaguchi[2]
Kun (クン)
Voiced by: Sachi Kokuryu[3]
Shōzō (照三)
Voiced by: Chiaki Kobayashi[3]
Kaho (火穂)
Voiced by: Makoto Koichi[3]
Yuoshichi (油百七)
Voiced by: Kenta Miyake[3]
Hibana (火華)
Voiced by: Kaori Nazuka[3]
Takimi (焚三)
Voiced by: Mamoru Miyano[3]
Haijū (灰十)
Voiced by: Shin-ichiro Miki[3]
Benio (紅緒)
Voiced by: Yūko Hara[3]
Hotaru (ほたる)
Voiced by: Yume Miyamoto[3]
Sakuroku (炸六)
Voiced by: Shun'ichi Maki[3]
Enzen (炎千)
Voiced by: Yōji Ueda[3]
Hitō (火十)
Voiced by: Ryūnosuke Watanuki[3]
Hibari (ひばり)
Voiced by: Akira Ishida[3]
Yanagi (ヤナギ)
Voiced by: Sayaka Ohara[3]
Kiri (キリ)
Voiced by: Yū Shimamura[3]
Narrator (ナレーション, Narēshon)
Voiced by: Yoshiko Sakakibara[3]

Media

Novel
No. Release date ISBN
1 December 20, 2018[4]978-4-59-310022-4
2 May 20, 2019[5]978-4-59-310073-6
3 November 12, 2019[6]978-4-59-310074-3
4 September 3, 2020[7]978-4-59-310206-8

Anime

An anime television series adaptation produced by Signal.MD was announced on November 5, 2020.[1] The anime is directed by Junji Nishimura, with Mamoru Oshii supervising and writing the scripts, Takuya Saito designing the characters, and Kenji Kawai composing the music.[8][9] It premiered on January 14, 2023, on the television channel WOWOW.[10] The ending theme song is "Mada Tōku ni Iru" (まだ遠くにいる, "You are Still So Far Away") by Maaya Sakamoto.[11] Crunchyroll licensed the series outside of Asia.[12]

Episode list
No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"Departure"
Transcription: "Tabidachi" (Japanese: 旅立ち)		UnknownUnknownJanuary 14, 2023 (2023-01-14)
In the future, an unspecified calamity has changed human physiology so that humans instantly combust when in the presence of natural fire. This has forced humanity to adapt by harvesting the blood of Fire Fiends to use as an alternate fuel source called bottled lightning. Collecting this blood is the responsibility of the elite Fire Hunters. One day, a young girl named Touko wanders into the forest and is attacked by a Fire Fiend. A Fire Hunter named Haijuu intervenes and is mortally wounded saving her. The Fire Hunter entrusts his dog, Kanata, to Touko before dying. Touko's guardians then instruct her that it is her responsibility to return Kanata and the Fire Hunter's belongings to his family, meaning she has to travel to the capital. Touko hitches a ride with a traveling collection truck and begins her journey to the Capital. Meanwhile, at the Capital, a young man named Koushi mourns the death of his mother when he receives a mysterious letter from the wealthy Okibi family.
2"The Three Brides"
Transcription: "San-nin no Hanayome" (Japanese: 三人の花嫁)		TBATBAJanuary 21, 2023 (2023-01-21)
While riding the collection truck, Touko meets three other passengers: Hotaru, Benio, and Kaho who are traveling to other villages to be brides. They explain that they have effectively been banished from their respective villages in an attempt to get rid of perceived curses. Touko also learns that there is another Fire Hunter in the second collection truck. Meanwhile, in the Capital, Koushi travels to the Okibi estate and meets Youschichi Okibi, a wealthy factory owner and an old friend of Koushi's father Haijuu. With Koushi's mother dead and Haijuu having left the Capital on Fire Hunter business, Yuoshichi offers to house Koushi and his ill sister at his estate. In return, Koushi needs to research a way to enhance bottled lightning to harness the power of the extremely volatile skyfire, since Yuoshichi foresees the collapse of the current government and a powerful energy source will be needed to survive the resulting chaos. At the collection truck, the caravan makes a brief stop to refuel and allow the Fire Hunter to hunt. Kaho attempts to escape the truck and Touko tries to stop her, only for Kaho to be captured by a Fire Fiend. The Fire Hunter and Kanata intervene, killing the Fire Fiend and saving both girls. However, the chief of the truck warns Touko that she violated rules by exiting the truck without permission, so she will be forced off at the next village.
3"Fractions of the World"
Transcription: "Sekai no Kakera" (Japanese: 世界のかけら)		TBATBAJanuary 28, 2023 (2023-01-28)
While settling into the Okibi household, Koushi meets Youschichi's daughter Kira and wife Hibana. Meawnhile, Kouchi's sister Hinako is put under the care of the family doctor, Takimi. Youschichi then shows Koushi his secret workshop, and explains that he believes the nation will collapse since a rebel group called the Spiders plan attack the Capital. He also expresses his mistrust of the Divine Clans that rule them, as he suspects they were responsible for a deadly fire in the Capital in order to cull the population. Meanwhile, on the collection truck, Benio is able to convince one of the crew, Shouzou, to talk the captain into letting Touko stay on the truck. Hotaru is let off the truck at the next village the caravan continues on its way. The caravan then makes another stop for fuel, but is then attacked by a massive dragon-like creature.
4"Flickering Flame"
Transcription: "Yururu Hi" (Japanese: 揺るる火)		TBATBAFebruary 4, 2023 (2023-02-04)
The dragon attacks the train, forcing Touko, Kanata, Kaho, and Shouzou to flee into the forest while Benio and the rest of the caravan are killed in the attack. They manage to find refuge with the Tree People, who explain the dragon is actually the guardian deity of Kaho's Crystal Village, which has been driven mad due to interference from the Spiders. The Tree People promise to escort the group to the nearest village. In the Capital, Koushi continues his skyfire experiments and heads to the Central Archive to learn more. He learns of the history of the Fire Hunters, and how only their sickles are able slay fire fiends and fallbeasts. He also learns that humanity once launched a satellite into space called the "Flickering Flame", and it is prophesized that the person who can recover the Flickering Flame will be declared the Lord of Fire Hunters. Unable to learn anything more, Koushi decides to attend the Boat Festival with Kira and Hinako.
5"The Spider Child"
TBATBAFebruary 11, 2023 (2023-02-11)
Touko's group manages to reach the next village but they are ambushed by Spiders. The Spiders are chased off thanks to the intervention of a Fire Hunter named Akira and her hound Temari. Akira agrees to escort the trio to a Fire Hunter camp at the coast, where they can take a boat to the Capital. On the way there, they find a Spider child named Kun wandering the forest and capture him. At the Capital, Koushi has a nightmare of witnessing Hinako being killed by the volatile skyfire. He attends a dinner party hosted by the Okibis, where he meets a Fire Hunter named Roroku and his hound Mizore who specialize in hunting fallbeasts. Koushi tells Roroku that he wants to learn more about fallbeasts and skyfire, and Roroku offers to bring Koushi along on one of his hunts. At the coast, Touko's group are shocked to discover all of the Fire Hunters at the camp were killed by fire. Kun reveals that the Spiders let themselves be bitten by bugs whose venom protects them from fire, allowing them to weaponize it. Fiends then attack the group and Shouzou is badly injured while Touko is forced to use Haijuu's sickle to protect Kaho from a Fiend. The group manages to sail to sea, and Kun admits that he was abandoned by the Spiders since the bug venom didn't work on him. As the group sails for the Capital, they are followed by a massive whale.

References
  1. Antonio Pineda, Rafael (November 5, 2020). "WOWOW, Signal.MD Produce Anime of Rieko Hinata's Hikari no Ō Fantasy Novels". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  2. Dempsey, Liam (October 5, 2022). "Junji Nishimura and Mamoru Oshii's Hikari no Ou Anime Reveals Main Cast". Crunchyroll. Retrieved October 5, 2022.
  3. Mateo, Alex (October 26, 2022). "Junji Nishimura, Mamoru Oshii's Hikari no Ō Fantasy TV Anime Reveals 16 Cast Members". Anime News Network. Retrieved October 26, 2022.
  4. 火狩りの王〈一〉　春ノ火 1 (in Japanese). Holp Shuppan. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
  5. 火狩りの王〈二〉　影ノ火 2 (in Japanese). Holp Shuppan. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
  6. 火狩りの王〈三〉　牙ノ火 ３ (in Japanese). Holp Shuppan. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
  7. 火狩りの王〈四〉　星ノ火 (in Japanese). Holp Shuppan. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
  8. Loo, Egan (January 30, 2022). "Ranma ½'s Junji Nishimura Directs Hikari no Ō Fantasy TV Anime Scripted by Mamoru Oshii". Anime News Network. Retrieved January 30, 2022.
  9. Loo, Egan (September 21, 2022). "Junji Nishimura, Mamoru Oshii's Hikari no Ō Fantasy TV Anime Unveils More Staff, January Debut". Anime News Network. Retrieved September 21, 2022.
  10. Cayanan, Joanna (November 23, 2022). "Junji Nishimura, Mamoru Oshii's Hikari no Ō Fantasy TV Anime's 1st Full Video Unveils January 14 Debut". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  11. Hodgkins, Crystalyn (November 25, 2022). "Maaya Sakamoto Performs Ending Theme for Hikari no Ō Fantasy TV Anime". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
  12. Mateo, Alex (December 1, 2022). "Crunchyroll to Stream Bofuri Season 2, Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke's Mansion, A Galaxy Next Door, The Fire Hunter, My Clueless First Friend, More Anime". Anime News Network. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
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