Mercedes and the Waning Moon: January 2027 Release, Trailer & Cast

When is Mercedes and the Waning Moon coming out?

Mercedes and the Waning Moon, also known by the Japanese title Kaketa Tsuki no Mercedes, is scheduled to begin television broadcasting in January 2027. The official second promotional video and production website state that month. They do not establish a first broadcast day, weekly time or international simulcast schedule. A date more specific than January would go beyond the announcement.

The new update is the second PV and four additional Japanese cast members, announced on October 30, 2026. Anna Nagase remains the lead voice of Mercedes. This is a fuller introduction to the ensemble ahead of the winter television launch, rather than an announcement of a new season or a theatrical film. Our January anime guide provides a wider view of that release season. Related reading: The Moon on a Rainy Night Anime: 2027 Release, Trailer & Cast.

Watch the official second trailer

The production's movie page links the second PV hosted on Showgate's official YouTube channel. It is a 90-second promotional video. The same page retains the first PV, so readers can distinguish the newer numbered trailer from the earlier introduction instead of relying on an upload's thumbnail alone.

The original video metadata gives an upload timestamp of October 30, 2026 at 02:00:25 with the UTC−07:00 offset, equivalent to 18:00:25 JST. This is the second PV's publication time. It is not a broadcast time for episode one. The official October 30 news post independently identifies the release as PV number two and names the four new cast additions.

Who are the four newly announced cast members?

Kenta Miyake voices Benkei, Ryunosuke Watanuki voices Kuro, Junichi Suwabe voices Florian and Ai Kayano voices Lydia. Together with Anna Nagase as Mercedes, those credits identify the main group currently introduced on the production's character page. The October update adds both companions encountered through exploration and people connected to Mercedes's life beyond the dungeon.

Benkei is a six-armed Asura Ogre and one of Mercedes's familiars. Kuro is a wolf-like familiar whose profile emphasizes speed, strength and affection toward her. Florian works at the Seeker guild's reception desk in Blut, where he recognizes her promise while maintaining his professional responsibilities. Lydia Grunewald is Mercedes's mother, a loving presence whose position within an aristocratic household has not spared them poverty.

Those introductions explain the ensemble without requiring a summary of every encounter that brings it together. In particular, official character profiles can reveal outcomes beyond the opening premise. Viewers who want a less spoilery first watch can stop at the roles and voice credits, leaving the circumstances of each alliance for the episodes themselves.

What is the story about?

Mercedes was an office worker in modern Japan before being reincarnated as a vampire girl in an impoverished noble family. Her previous life ended without the sense of purpose she wanted. Determined to live differently, she chooses to become a Seeker and enter dungeons, hoping to escape poverty through her own efforts. The official introduction connects that ambition to dangerous monsters and a larger dungeon mystery.

That makes the vampire premise part of a reincarnation adventure rather than a contemporary vampire romance. The central decision is not simply whether Mercedes can become stronger. It is what she will do with another chance at life. Her aristocratic background and material insecurity also work against the easy assumption that a noble title means she begins with comfort or social power.

Our interpretation is that this combination gives the exploration a personal stake: progress matters because Mercedes wants agency over her future. That is a reading of the published premise, not confirmation of a particular ending. The anime has not announced a final manga chapter, novel volume or story arc for its television run, so the introduction should not be treated as an outline of the season's conclusion.

What does the new key visual show?

The official second main visual places the purple-haired Mercedes in front of Benkei and Kuro, with weapons and a dark stone setting emphasizing the adventure side of the adaptation. The image is reproduced above from the production website. Unlike a generic portrait, it connects the protagonist to two of the newly voiced characters and gives the cast announcement a useful visual reference.

Artwork can establish character designs and promotional emphasis, but it cannot establish the order of scenes or the amount of action in an episode. A composition assembled for advertising should not be read as evidence that the three characters occupy precisely the same location at a specific point in the story. For that reason, this guide keeps the visual description separate from plot claims.

Which studio and staff are confirmed?

Teddy is responsible for animation production. Kunihisa Sugishima directs, Jun Kumagai handles series composition and R・O・N and Shuhei Mutsuki compose the music. The original novel is credited to Firehead, with illustrations by KeG; Pochi Edoya is credited for the manga adaptation. The official staff page separates these source-material roles from the television production team.

The director's published comment draws attention to the challenge of expressing the source's world on screen and to the musical approach. That is an indication of the team's stated priorities, rather than an independent assessment of the finished series. We have not reviewed complete episodes. An appealing PV or established staff credit does not by itself demonstrate how consistently the broadcast production will perform.

Is it based on a novel or a manga?

Both formats exist. The production's books page lists the original novels and the manga separately: novel volumes one through five, with volumes four and five identified as digital editions, and manga volumes one through six. A volume number therefore needs a format attached to it. “Volume five” is not enough information to identify the same material across the two editions.

For a new reader, the practical choice is between the prose version and the illustrated adaptation. The official anime pages do not provide a conversion chart between chapters and novel volumes, nor an announced endpoint for the television adaptation. We cannot recommend a precise “read to this chapter before episode one” rule from the available production information.

The different credited creators are also significant when finding the books. Firehead is the original novelist, KeG provides the novel illustrations and Pochi Edoya draws the manga. Searching with the series title plus the relevant format or creator is more reliable than assuming every cover belongs to the same publication line. Consult the publisher's individual listing for edition and language availability.

Where English readers should start

J-Novel Club publishes English digital editions of both the light novel and the manga. Its catalogue uses the longer title Mercedes and the Waning Moon: The Dungeoneering Feats of a Discarded Vampire Aristocrat. The manga listing adds “Manga,” which is the simplest way to distinguish the editions when searching.

Choose the prose edition if you want to begin with Fire head's original novel, illustrated by KeG. Choose the manga if you prefer Pochi Edoya's sequential artwork. Both series pages offer a first-volume preview, so readers can sample the format before committing. This is a choice between editions of the story, not two books that must be read in a prescribed order before the anime.

The English publisher's opening description makes the family pressure especially clear: Mercedes expects that her father's choice of heir will leave her household without its current support. Dungeon work therefore has an immediate purpose alongside her larger desire to live meaningfully. Power can offer her a way out, but the need for that way out comes from an insecure position within the family.

That tension is what makes the aristocrat premise interesting. A title inherited at birth offers status without guaranteeing control over the future. Becoming a Seeker means trying to build something she can carry beyond that title. Read this as an interpretation of the published setup; it is not a claim about how the anime resolves the family conflict or where its first season ends.

Where will it stream, and what still needs confirmation?

The official material checked for this update confirms January 2027, the production team, five Japanese voice roles and the second PV. It does not name an international streaming service, country-by-country availability, subtitles or a dub release. Those arrangements require their own distributor announcement. The existence of English discussion around a Japanese trailer does not establish an English-language license.

The next practical additions to this guide will be an exact Japanese premiere date, broadcaster schedule, episode count and licensed viewing information. Until those are announced, the series belongs in the month-confirmed portion of the release calendar. Readers interested specifically in vampire anime can also see our Record of a Fallen Vampire guide, which covers a separate project with its own schedule.