The official website for the anime adaptation of The Apothecary Diaries (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto) by Natsu Hyūga and Touko Shino announced on Thursday that Natsumi Fujiwara will voice Kyō-u in the second season, debuting in Episode 41 this Friday, May 2.
Fujiwara began her voice acting career in 2015 and quickly rose to prominence with her debut lead role as Chihiro Komiya in Shōnen Maid in 2016. Fujiwara excels in voicing tomboyish characters and young male roles, leveraging her naturally low vocal range, as seen in performances like Damian Desmond in SPY x FAMILY, Daigo Shigeno in Major 2nd, and Giorno Giovanna in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind. Kyō-u’s introduction comes at a pivotal moment in the series, as Maomao’s journey takes her to the enigmatic Fox Village, a setting teased in the Episode 41 trailer, which you can watch below:
The casting announcement follows other recent additions to the The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 roster, including Asami Seto as the maid Shisui, and Lynn and Yumi Hara as the foreign envoys Ayla and Aylin, respectively. These new characters add further depth to the series’ expansive cast, which continues to explore the political and personal dynamics of the imperial court.
Here's the official trailer for the second cour of The Apothecary Diaries Season 2:
TOHO Animation and OLM studios returned to produce the second cour of The Apothecary Diaries Season 2. Norihiro Naganuma, who directed the first season, is directing Season 2 with the same main staff, which includes Akimi Fudesaka as a director, and Wataru Nakagawa as assistant director, and Yukiko Nakatani as the character designer. The talented trio of Kevin Penkin, Arisa Okehazama, and Satoru Kosaki are in charge of the anime's music.
What is The Apothecary Diaries about?
The Apothecary Diaries (Kusuriya no Hitorigoto) anime is based on the mystery romance light novel series written by Natsu Hyuga and illustrated by Toko Shino. Since 2011, the drama series has been serialized on the Shōsetsuka ni Narō website before it was acquired by Shufunotomo, who initially published it as a novel with a single volume in 2012 and then as a light novel series in 2014.
The series also received a couple of manga adaptations in 2017: one published by Shogakukan in Monthly Sunday Gene-X, and the other published by Square Enix in Monthly Big Gangan. J-Novel Club licensed the light novel series digitally in North America, and Square Enix licensed it in print. Square Enix also licensed the manga illustrated by Nekokurage.
Crunchyroll's description of The Apothecary Diaries reads:
Maomao lived a peaceful life with her apothecary father. Until one day, she’s sold as a lowly servant to the emperor’s palace. But she wasn’t meant for a compliant life among royalty. So when imperial heirs fall ill, she decides to step in and find a cure! This catches the eye of Jinshi, a handsome palace official who promotes her. Now, she’s making a name for herself solving medical mysteries!
Source: Official website and X account of The Apothecary Diaries / Mainichi Shimbun's Mantan Web
