Due to residing and evolving in a Parallel World reminiscent of medieval Europe but filled with unimaginable creatures and various phenomenon beyond belief of those originating from Earth, the local sentient races, both human and otherwise, had developed cultures sporting much variance from the familiar modern world. While some aspects look similar to those commonly seen in role-playing games, others seem outright alien or absurd to natives of Earth, and in addition there are those that were imported by Japanese reincarnates.
As a result of cultivating from such a different environment and history, the cultural works of the otherworldly people, no matter if they are tangible or intangible, incorporate styles, themes, ideas, and concepts which can appear familiar but at the same time be totally insane.
Lexicon[]
The language spoken and written by the native inhabitants is said to be much different from Japanese, therefore when the deceased from Japan are reincarnated over, they will get the knowledge of the other world's language magically downloaded into their heads, though there is a considerable risk of this process overloading their minds and turning their brains into mush.[1]
The visual portrayals of the locals' written language vary depending on the media, and in the manga will also vary depending on the artist or are outright replaced by the script's Japanese translation. A standardised system is utilised in the anime, where each numeral and roman alphabet has at least two otherworldly counterparts designed for it in several fonts, following which they are arranged to form either English words or Japanese sentences similar to how the Romaji format is typed.
-Konosuba-【このすば】「この素晴らしい世界に祝福を！」アニメ1話・2話文字解読！ Read all the Konosuba Characters!
Konosuba【このすば】「この素晴らしい世界に祝福を！」アニメ3・4・5話文字解読！ Read all the Konosuba Characters!
Konosuba【このすば】「この素晴らしい世界に祝福を！」アニメ7・8話文字解読！ Read all the Konosuba Characters!
Konosuba【このすば】「この素晴らしい世界に祝福を！」アニメ9・10・11話文字解読！ Read all the Konosuba Characters!
Like Japan, there are entertainment novels in the Parallel World, and although they are more expensive than the ones in Japan, they are one of the few indoor entertainments of the Parallel World.[2]
The first volume of a novel series collected in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school that Megumin and Yunyun are both avid readers of, it is a parody of The Unfettered Shogun. The book tells the story of an old resigned lord, who after developing dementia, took his two caretakers on journeys around his lands for the purpose of "righting the world's wrongs". One time, some villagers who discovered his identity came protesting about the wrongdoings of a wicked governor, who not only denied the accusations but instead called the villagers liars. The old lord, however, hacked at both sides as punishment for engaging in a quarrel, so the villagers and the governor joined forces to drive him away. Infuriated, the old lord yelled about razing that land, but eventually got soothed by his two caretakers into returning home for dinner. Afterwards, the villagers and the governor who had fought alongside one another put aside their differences for the sake of wondrous unity, which ended with them establishing an enormous metropolis.
The Unfettered Lord, Volume 2 (暴れん坊ロード二巻)[4] The second volume of a novel series collected in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school that Megumin and Yunyun are both avid readers of. One of its chapters is called The Party of the Fake Lord Appears! (ニセ君主一行現る！), at the ending of which the old lord goes on a journey with the escorts of his imposter.
Yours name is (貴殿の名前は)[5] A popular romance novel written by a deceased Japanese reincarnate, who claimed it to be his original work despite having clearly ripped off from Your name.
Avoiding Brother-in-law in the Centre of the Devil Realm (魔界の中心で義兄を避ける)[5] A popular romance novel written by a deceased Japanese reincarnate, who claimed it to be his original work despite having clearly ripped off from Crying Out Love in the Centre of the World.
I Want to Eat You and Intestines (君とモツを食べたい)[5] A popular romance novel written by a deceased Japanese reincarnate, who claimed it to be his original work despite having clearly ripped off from I Want to Eat Your Pancreas.
Non-Fictional Books[]
Forbidden Magic Tome which simply upon Reading can Allow Someone to Make Friends (読むだけで友達ができる禁断の魔導書)[3] A book in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school that Yunyun had studied.
Book that lets even River Snails become Sociable (タニシですら社交的になれる本)[3] A book in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school that Yunyun had studied.
Secrets of the Crimson Demons' Genesis (紅魔族誕生秘話)[3] A book in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school.
Until the Great Magic Item Nation's Destruction (魔道技術大国が滅ぶまで)[3] A book in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school.
Duke of Hell Series, Volume 4: The All-Seeing Devil (地獄の公爵シリーズ第四弾 見通す悪魔)[3] A book in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school.
Truth about the Rumour saying that there are Inhabitants from Another World (異世界からの居住者がいるとの噂の真相)[3] A book in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school.
The Usefulness of Explosion Magic (爆裂魔法の有用性)[3] A book in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school that Megumin had studied, though it turned out to focus on listing the various disadvantages of learning Explosion Magic, such as it being highly difficult to learn as well as the tendency of its wielders getting rejected from adventurer parties.
A book in the library of the Crimson Demon Village's school that Yunyun had studied, which claims of Cacti having feelings and thus able to become friends.[4]
Gathering Friends by Binding them with Curses (呪術で縛る友達集め)[7] A book in the Crimson Demon Village's school that Yunyun had studied.
A Certain Necro's Note (とある死霊の禁書ノート)[8] A book of nonsense in a parody of A Certain Magical Index and Death Note that was written by Bukkororii when he was bored, and detailed a forbidden dark ritual for obtaining powerful magic through doing squats while carrying a heavy bucket of water until the sun sets over the period of a year.
A Hundred Select Techniques for Fooling Women (女を騙すテクニック百選)[9] A book put on sale at the general store frequented by Dust that the delinquent had studied.
Vocabulary of the Affluent that even Goblins can Understand (ゴブリンでも分かるセレブ用語)[10] A book that Aqua had studied.
The First Party, A Manuel For Beginners (初めてのパーティー、初心者マニュアル)[11] A book that Yunyun had studied.
Ways to Casually Converse with People (気軽に人と話す方法)[11] A book that Yunyun had studied.
The Complete Guide to Elves (エルフ 完全考察読本)[12] A encyclopedia about Elves tribes, as well their relationship between themselves and the reincarnated japanese.
Professor Burton's Biology for Dopes (バートン教授のマリモでも分かる生物学)[13] A series of best-seller guidebooks about monster biology that Professor Burton had authored after gaining fame.
Tales[]
The Devil King's Fairy Tale[14][15] A fairy tale adapted into children's picture books, that tells the story about a young Hero centuries ago. Claiming of how he didn't need companions because he had a cheat, this Hero quested as solo-party in order to claim all rewards by himself. Over time he defeated the Devil King's subordinates one by one, making the Devil King realise that the hero could beat him in a direct confrontation. The Devil King's generals thus attempt to convince the Hero into join them, only to have him refuse before he eventually he came face to face with the Devil King. But rather than a 1 on 1 duel, the Devil King's minions, who mocked the Hero for being friendless and lonely, protected their master of their own will. In the end though, the Hero defeated them all and became the new Devil King. As a result of this well-known tale which teaches the importance of adventurers having companions, in addition to inspiring the chieftain trial of the Crimson Demons.
Heroic Tales of the Crimson Demons (紅魔族英雄伝) An ongoing saga written by Arue, which talks about the Crimson Demons and utilises the names of real life people. The first chapter ends with Soketto foretelling the inevitable destruction of the Crimson Demon Village and the annihilation of the clan by the Devil King's army, with Yunyun being the sole survivor. Her prophecy goes on to tell how Yunyun went training at the Town of Beginners, where she met an unremarkable and weak man who would become her spouse, and between the two of them they had a son fated to be the one for avenging the clan through defeating the Devil King.[16]Arue had also penned a second chapter in which the Crimson Demon Village was razed, though upon presentation the manuscript got torn up by Kazuma.[17]
The Tortoise and the Hare (ウサギとカメ)[12] A dark fable about a Lovely Rabbit and a Fortress Tortoise who raced each other, but since it was a one week race, the Fortress Tortoise took the lead while the Rabbit was left to die. It is based on the popular The Tortoise and the Hare fable.
The Ugly Little Orc (みにくいオークの子)[12] A tale about an orc child persecuted for being "ugly", but who was actually an ogre. After growing up, he began a journey searching for revenge. It is based in the popular The Ugly Duckling fable.
Theatre[]
Punchin' Potemkin Brawls to Victory (殴って解決ポチョムキン)[18] A theatrical performance highlighting the exploits of Baron Potemkin. One of the scenes tell of the time he smashed an heirloom urn he was ordered to retrieve so that the brothers fighting over it will stop their quarrel, followed by him punching down the princess who was the mastermind behind it all. Another was Potemkin beating up and capturing the mighty Yamata no Unagi before using its meat to relieve a famine, in addition to resolving his province's financial difficulty with the reward money.
The Unfettered Lord (暴れん坊ロード)[19] A theatrical adaptation of the novel series of the same name, a scene of which appears to talk about how the lord upon hearing that the people had no bread to eat during a famine suggested to let them eat monsters, thus breaking the taboo over eating monsters and inspiring a wave of specialty monster dishes in many towns.
Return of Baron Potemkin (帰ってきたポチョムキン男爵)[19] Another theatrical performance highlighting the exploits of Baron Potemkin.
Artworks[]
Exploding Man amongst the Glittering Sunset[20] A painting created by Gilbert Klein that possibly depicts a man in an explosion.
Goddess Playing (女神の戯れ)[21] A fountain statue of a divinely woman from the hands of which water flows out, created by a sculptor after he passed by a petrified Aqua casting Nature's Beauty.
Transforming Combining Dendro Maiden (変形合体デンドロメイデン)[22] A model robot with a name inspired by the Dendrobium, which Aqua using milk cartons built for Megumin to replace the Titan Golem destroyed by the party on their earlier quest.Aqua may later promise to build a Transforming Combining Dendro Maiden Number 2 (変形合体デンドロメイデン２号) for Megumin, who was heartbroken when their party had to destroy Gun Falcon BX.[23]
Goddess Transformer Eris (変形合体エリス神)[24] A figure of Eris that Aqua folded out of paper napkins as a gift for Mitsurugi, with its chest having interchangeable parts of three different sizes.
Games[]
Imitation Chess (チェスもどき)[25] A term coined by Kazuma to describe the boardgame superficially similar to chess, but also incorporates rules from shogi as well as elements unique to the Parallel World, resulting in a variety of mind-boggling rules. Therefore, some game pieces can get designated with various adventurer classes, such as King, Swordmaster, Crusader, Archer, Wizard, Arch Wizard, Orc Soldier and Adventurer (the weakest piece). Those pieces are capable of moves that reflect the skills or magic utilised by that class, for example an Adventurer is capable of switching classes, and an Arch Wizard can teleport pieces including the king to safety outside the board. The race or status of the player can also qualify for certain moves, such as Crimson Demons being allowed usage of Explosion once per day to outright flip the board.[26]
Young Grandchild (マゴ抜き)[27] A card game that despite having a name and basic rules similar to Old Maid, also heavily incorporates elements of battle card games. The players can buy starter packs with the basic cards and boaster packs in hopes to getting powerful rare cards. A tournament is hosted in Elroad, which cards banned in Japan are accepted.
Festivals[]
Eris Appreciation Festival (女神エリス感謝祭)[28] An annual summer festival hosted by the Eris Order that expresses gratitude to Eris for allowing people to make it through another year alive, during which people dress up as their patron goddess. During the Festival, there are fireworks, which are a signal to go to war against the insect monsters.
Immortal Festival (不死祭)[29] A summer festival similar to the Bon Odori. It's the day the Parallel World and Heaven are closest, allowing souls to visit their alive relatives in the cemeteries. It's hosted by Wiz, and became the reason why Aqua was scolded in Heaven every year for allowing some souls to escape to the living world.
Harvest Festival (豊年祭)[30] A feared and rare event, which there is a bumper harvest. It's the adventurers' duty harvest all those vegetal, that don't offer much XP and won't be bought by a high price by the Guild.
Culinary[]
Fried Frogs (カエルの唐揚げ)[31] A common dish made from the deep-fried meat of Giant Toads, and is considered a surprisingly tasty as well as nutritious delicacy.
Bubbly (シュワシュワ)[32] An alcoholic beverage similar to beer, with its bubbles caused by dissolved Neroids, and in the light novels is known as Fizzizz (シャワシャワ).[33]
Arcan Manju (アルカン饅頭)[34] A tasty bun sold exclusively in Arcanletia that is popular among tourists, and most likely a parody of the karukan manju.
Stew with the Blessing of the Dark God (暗黒神の加護を受けしシチュー)[3] A vegetable stew with an overblown name that is served at the Crimson Demon Village's cafe.
Spicy Spaghetti in the Style of Lava Dragons' Breath (溶岩竜の吐息風カラシスパゲティ)[3] A spicy spaghetti with an overblown name that is served with chilies on top at the Crimson Demon Village's cafe.
Sandwich of Lamb sacrificed to the Demon God (魔神に捧げられし子羊肉のサンドイッチ)[3] A lamb sandwich with an overblown name that is served at the Crimson Demon Village's cafe.
Bloodstained Watermelon of Purgatory (煉獄の血塗られたスイカ)[35] Watermelons with an overblown name that are grown exclusively in the Crimson Demon Village's fields, and alleged by Megumin to contain bright red flesh due to sucking the blood of sinners.
Ogre Killer (オーガ殺し)[36] A powerful alcoholic drink brewed by Ogres that is considered a rare spirit, and most likely a parody of the sake Oni Killer.
