Chiaki Kobayashi is cast as Hakura in the Heir to a Monstermancer TV anime and as a new cast member in The Salty Koharu Has a Soft Spot for Me anime, both announced in late June and early July 2026.
Chiaki Kobayashi appears in two upcoming television anime adaptations announced within a week of each other in mid-2026. In The Salty Koharu Has a Soft Spot for Me, Kobayashi is one of six new cast members revealed alongside the show's October 2026 premiere date. The romantic comedy adaptation is directed by Fumihiro Yoshimura at Tezuka Productions.
Days later, Hakuhodo DY Music & Pictures announced the Heir to a Monstermancer television anime, with Kobayashi voicing Hakura. The role is a reprisal from a voice drama released with the first novel volume in 2024. Manaka Iwami and Akio Ōtsuka also reprise their voice drama roles. The series is directed by Chihiro Kumano at Project No.9.
The two announcements establish Kobayashi in lead and supporting roles across different studios and genres, with both projects moving toward broadcast in the second half of 2026.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the cited Yomimono stories below, each itself
sourced, then editorially reviewed. Every
fact links the story it came from.
Jul 3
Hakuhodo DY Music & Pictures announced on Friday that Damu Amato and Shirabii's novel series Heir to a Monstermancer is receiving a television anime adaptation. The announcement included a teaser visual and the main cast and staff. Manaka Iwami voices Leen, Chiaki Kobayashi voices Hakura, and Akio Ōtsuka voices Ao; all three reprise their roles from a voice drama released with the first novel volume in 2024. Chihiro Kumano directs at Project No.9, with Satoru Sugizawa handling series scripts and Akane Kasasagi designing the characters. The series won the grand prize in the 2nd Drecom Media Awards. Amato originally posted the story on the Shōsetsuka ni Narō website from 2016 to 2024. J-Novel Club publishes the novels in English. A manga adaptation by Yū Satō will launch on Drecom's Drecomi+ manga website in September. Drecom will publish the third novel volume on July 10. A promotional webtoon adaptation was produced by MITA, Gudan, and Red Seven.
Jun 27
The anime adaptation of Kazami Sawatari and Aitiki's light novel series The Salty Koharu Has a Soft Spot for Me will premiere in October 2026. A promotional video and key visual were released, along with six new cast members including Miyu Tomita and Chiaki Kobayashi. The series is directed by Fumihiro Yoshimura at Tezuka Productions.