Both series follow protagonists who visit other worlds

Yen Press announced on Friday that it has licensed Natsume Akatsuki's Konosuba (Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku o! or KonoSuba – God's blessing on this wonderful world!!) light novel series and Hiro Ainana's Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody (Death March Kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyōsōkyoku) light novel series, as well as their respective manga adaptations.

The Konosuba light novel series centers around Kazuma Satō, a hikikomori (shut-in) die-hard fan of games, anime, and manga. A traffic accident brings his disappointingly brief life to an end … or it should have, but he wakes up and sees a beautiful girl who introduces herself as a goddess. "Hey, I have some good news — would you like to go to an alternate world? You may only bring one thing you like with you."

He responds, "…So, I'll bring you." With that, he is transported to another world and his great adventure subjugating the demon king begins … but first the hard work of finding food, clothing, and shelter begins. Kazuma wants to live in peace, but the goddess raises one problem after another, and then the demon king's army has its eyes set on him.

Akatsuki launched the light novel series with illustrations by Kurone Mishima (The Devil is a Part-Timer! High School! (manga) in 2013, and Kadokawa published the ninth volume in June. Masahito Watari launched the manga adaptation of the original novels in Kadokawa's Monthly Dragon Age magazine in September 2014. Kadokawa shipped the third compiled volume of the manga in March.

The series inspired an anime adaptation this past winter, and a second season is in the works The limited edition ninth volume of the novels will include an original Blu-ray Disc.

The story of Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody follows 29-year-old programmer who is on a "death march," but one day he wakes up in another world after a nap. From a meteor shower he happens to gain vast riches, and he decides to go sightseeing. So begins his "heartwarming, occasionally serious, and harem" adventure in another world.

Ainana initially began posting the series online in 2013, and Kadokawa published the first volume with illustrations by shri in in March 2014. The seventh book in the series shipped last month.