article 2 — september 8th, 2025
room no. 9 artbook

left: daichi — right: seiji

this was my first ever time placing an order through the proxy site, japanrabbit. initially, i had placed the order for the artbook in august, yet i only confirmed the shipping in very early september because of my unfamiliarity with proxy services and their warehouses (；´∀｀)

forgetting about my order for some time as i let it process, i mistakenly missed the initial processing notification for the shipment. it sat there in the warehouse for another TWO WEEKS until i checked in again and found it available to be shipped. cool, great job will. i blame my adhd.

somehow, i had also blissfully forgotten the effects of tarrifs in the US and my eyes nearly popped out of my skull when i saw the international shipping price.

luckily, i was able to opt for "printed matter" airmail, which was the way nicer option of $21.88 usd.

i then patiently waited for my precious yaoi to arrive, making sure to check back in on my order as to not make the same mistake twice. the night before it arrived (september 7th), i actually felt myself get a little bit worried about how long it was taking. i tend to be a chronic overthinker, which definitely does not help when it comes to the uncertainty of packages arriving in a timely manner. on top of it, i was simply too excited to have my hands on this book, which likely added to my impatientness.

luckily for me, though, it came in the very next day (september 8th) along with another package i had ordered from mercari -- two official corpse party keychains and a mini acrylic standee.
i am simply in autism heaven.

i can't stop winning!!!

the book itself greets you with a stunning glossy cover sleeve of daichi and seiji. just having this book in my hands made me so unbelievably giddy. it is actually a LOT larger than i anticipated- just slightly smaller than my arcane artbook! i was so worried to crease the soft spine as i flipped through the pages.

i truly wish i knew japanese so i could better understand the contents of this book. what i lack in understanding makes up for in visuals, however. there are SO many beautiful pieces of artwork, sketches, progress photos, and little comics. it was so cool to flip through and analyze the different pieces and composition of each work.

the art style of room no. 9 is what drew me to the vn in the first place, along with the exploration of dark themes and the heartbreaking relationship between childhood friends daichi and seiji.

i have plans to someday go through and painstakingly translate the mini comics they have littered throughout. will the translations be chopped? absolutely. i did not claim to be anything but an amateur. it's just me and deepL against the otaku world sometimes.

seriously, just look at them. ♡