"If I stop working for five years, I'll starve after five years."
It sounds exaggerated, but that's the brutal reality for short-term creators in that world.
Even top-tier works face struggles.
So you can imagine how tough it is for those who dream of becoming mangaka.
Even though this world's market is better, if you can create a blockbuster like Death Note, you can live off form it for half your life.
But with that comes even fiercer competition.
As Akifumi explained, Shizuka's brows furrowed.
When he finally finished, she asked,
"You know so much about this industry, and you're telling me you don't want to be a mangaka?"
"Well," Akifumi shrugged.
"Even if it's just a hobby, I should at least understand the market, right?"
With a mature demeanor, Akifumi understood she was worried about him.
"If I had to choose a career, I actually have plenty of options."
"I could go for a master's or Ph.D. and follow in my parents' footsteps, or apply to Tokyo University and become a politician, lawyer, or researcher."
He wasn't just making things up to brush her off.
These were conclusions he'd come to after careful thought.
Compared to others, his greatest advantage was having memories from his past life.
If he could recall those classic works, living as a "content thief" sounded pretty ideal.
If not, he'd just have to work a bit harder.
Sticking to one path is the dumbest decision anyway.
"Tokyo University, huh?"
To most students, that's the ultimate challenge. But this kid made it sound so easy to get in.
Then again, it's true.
A whole year of being first in the grade speaks for itself.
As long as he didn't choose the crazy science track, getting into Tokyo University wouldn't be hard at all.
"Being able to think so comprehensively... no wonder you're recognized as a top student," Hiratsuka thought to herself.
"As long as you're clear about what you want, that's what matters."
But it's such a pity.
No way to recruit this guy for the Service Club now, huh?
"Oh well, I'll try again later. I did my best."
Pushing those thoughts aside, Shizuka casually asked,
"You've been working hard for a long time. Got any finished works? Mind showing me?"
She wasn't doubting himjust curious.
Akifumi scratched his cheek, a little embarrassed.
"I do have some works, but my early ones are so rough they're basically doodlesnot worth showing."
"Do you even read manga, sensei?"
"Dragon Ball, One PieceI read those back in school," she admitted.
Akifumi sighed.
"Comparing me to those giants, sensei, you're giving me way too much credit."
Even in this parallel world, those famous works still existed.
What a surprise.
"Don't overthink it," Hiratsuka said.
"Even though I know almost nothing about manga, I don't expect my student to debut with a masterpiece."
Rolling her eyes, she added, "I was just answering your initial question."
"Got it." Akifumi nodded.
Looks like he understood her intentions.
"If that's the case, sensei definitely wouldn't enjoy my work! Class is about to start, so I'll head out now."
As he stood up to leave, a hand clamped down on his shoulder, and a chilling voice whispered in his ear.
"Hey, Akifumi..."
"You weren't lying about drawing manga, were you?"
The sound of knuckles cracking followed.
"How does simply clenching a fist make such an ominous sound?! Isn't this supposed to be a normal world?!"
"Of course not!" Akifumi immediately sat back down, glancing at Shizuka's slender, fair fingers.
Yep, they're really pretty!
Hiratsuka didn't notice his subtle look.
She tapped her pen on the desk in place of her usual cigarette.
"You can't show your manga to others?"
"No," Akifumi shook his head.
After all, if you create something, it's meant to be seen.
"Then why won't you show me?"
Letting a teacher read it is different from showing it to regular readers, right?!
Especially when it involves magical girl content...
Just thinking about it was mortifying.
What kind of torture is this?!
"As students, we need to boldly say 'no' to unreasonable demands!"
Crack, crack, crack
Someone's fists clenched harder.
Akifumi calmly assessed the situation.
With a deep, magnetic voice tinged with composure, he said,
"Sensei, are you trying to get free content from me?"
[009] Who would want to go to that kind of place with you?!
Case solved!
Her hands are beautiful, and the pain from her punches is just as intense!
No wonder her iron fist is famous, truly lives up to the reputation!!
After leaving the teacher's office, Akifumi Mugiho rubbed his head with a grimace but was smiling.
"Finally, I escaped this disaster!"
The moment this thought popped into his head, Akifumi Mugiho's smile froze.
Wait a minute!
"What am I so happy about by myself for?!"
That woman knows everything now!
Once the Shueisha Tezuka Award list is announced, a simple search will reveal it, right?
Wait.
The Shueisha Tezuka Award list? Is it about to be released?
"Hah... I'm getting a bit cocky."
What made me think that the first episode of Puella Magi Madoka Magica could actually win the Tezuka Award?!
"Now that I think about it, as long as I don't win, Hiratsuka-sensei won't see it!"
Damn it!
On one hand, winning means a prize, a bonus, and a chance to be featured in the weekly magazinebut the price is social death with Hiratsuka-sensei.
On the other hand, if I don't win, I won't have to worry about social death, but no bonus either.
"Haah...."
Akifumi Mugiho sighed.
"Forget it, I'll just deal with it when the results come out."
After all, the moment I sent that email, fate was already out of my hands!
Walking down the empty corridor, Akifumi Mugiho quickly arrived at his classroom doorClass 2-C.
He knocked and opened the door.
"Akifumi, you're back, go back to your seat."
The little old man at the podium, with graying hair and round glasses, smiled warmly.
Then his expression shifted, and the chalk in his hand shot across the room like a bullet, hitting the third person from the right in the third-to-last row on the head.
[TL Note — Damn, is every teacher in this school a freaking sniper recon?]
"No whispering in class."
Tsk.
The annoying privilege of being an honor student.
Akifumi Mugiho shot a sympathetic glance at the unlucky boy.
His seat is at the back row by the window.
Returning to his seat, Kato glanced at him curiously.
"Are you okay?"
Akifumi Mugiho smiled and shook his head.
Kato then turned her attention elsewhere, sitting up straight and looking every bit the model student.
Student life was easy and uneventful.
Time passed quickly.
Before long, it was the last class of the afternoon.
As the bell rang, the teacher paused his lecture.
"Class dismissed."
He packed up his books and left the classroom without a second thought.
The quiet atmosphere, no longer being controlled by authority, became as noisy as a market.
Classmates gathered in groups, happily chatting about where to go shopping, study at a nearby family restaurant, or hit up the new KTV.
"Ah, youth!"
Watching the scene, Akifumi Mugiho couldn't help but feel a little dazed.
"Well then..."
"Akifumi, see you tomorrow."
After packing her things, Kato pushed her chair in, grabbed her bag with both hands, nodded at him, and walked away with light steps.
Akifumi Mugiho's thoughts were interrupted by her brief words.
"Heh."
He gave a self-deprecating smile. "We're all adults, and yet my mindset is worse than a little girl's."
Humans are social creatures, and feeling down about not having friends is completely normal.
But thinking it over, can people who pretend to agree just because they have nothing in common really be called friends?
He wasn't sure about others, but at least to him, those weren't real friends.
So...
"Feeling down about something like this is really embarrassing."
Shaking his head, Akifumi Mugiho smiled again.
"See you tomorrow."
He muttered to himself as he packed up and left the classroom.
Just as he stepped out of the classroom, a flash of golden hair passed by, and a small figure grabbed his sleeve and pulled him forward.
Akifumi Mugiho was momentarily stunned, but then he smiled.
He didn't resist, letting her lead him left and right, until they arrived at an empty multifunctional classroom.
"Haa, ha.. haaa."
It was obvious the girl wasn't used to exercise.
In just a short time, she was already out of breath, her chest rising and falling with each breath.
Akifumi Mugiho found it amusing and patted her on the back.
"A lot of people saw that just now. Maybe tomorrow rumors will spread 'The untold story of Sawamura Spencer Eriri, one of the three beauties of the private school, and Akifumi-kun'?"
"Huh? Who cares about that kind of thing?"
Eriri caught her breath and shot an annoyed glance at Akifumi Mugiho, who was obviously enjoying the moment.
Under her blue sweater, she wore a white long-sleeve shirt that outlined her slender figure. The noticeable curve made people take a second glance.
Her skirt was a bit shorter than usual, clearly altered in a special way. If this were anywhere else, Akifumi Mugiho would be sure he wouldn't have noticed the difference.
But here, in this exclusive space for the girls, he couldn't help but notice.
Unlike the other school beauty, Kasumigaoka Utaha, whose thighs in black stockings were full and voluptuous, Eriri often wore long socks, but the way the black and white intersected created a mysterious allure that made people want to explore further.
Her pale, straight legs were a rare gem for anyone who loved legs.
It was clear that people had sharp eyes.
Apart from being too thin, there was nothing else to find fault with.
Lost in these random thoughts, Akifumi Mugiho didn't hesitate to reply:
"So Eriri isn't someone who cares about this kind of thing! How about coming with me to a hotel?"
Go with this guy?
Suddenly, her pale skin flushed red, and her eyes grew panicked.
"Who... who would want to go to a place like that with you?!"
[010] As expected of me, I really know how to play!
?
Why is this girl reacting so strongly!?
Akifumi Mugiho, the person involved, was a little stunned for a moment. After a quick mental search, he realized what was happening.
"Wow, didn't expect that from you. With your thick eyebrows and big eyes, I never would've guessed you were the kind of person to take a girl to see Egoistic lily-sensei's special work."
Wait, it's me? Okay, then.
Flashback
It was probably during the first semester of junior high, on a weekend, when he randomly ran into her on the street.
After a bit of chatting, he invited her to his secret hideout, pulling out his treasured collection that he'd kept for years.
The result? Pretty predictable.
Not only did he bring a girl to see that kind of thing, but it turned out to be her own work.
Thinking about it from her perspective, just imagining it makes him cringe.
The only good news? At that time, Akifumi Mugiho didn't know that fact.
But, with the way their relationship was, it didn't take long for that secret to be discovered.
In short...
"As expected of me, I really know how to down play it!"
Even though he was misunderstood, Akifumi Mugiho didn't feel the need to explain.
He wiped the smile off his face and asked seriously, "So, Eriri, did you need something from me today?"
How should I put it...
Their relationship was a bit complicated.
It's like how the flap of a butterfly's wings can trigger a storm, and this world, where everyday life mixes with anime and comics, made things even more unpredictable.
Even if no one interfered, the plot probably wouldn't continue like the original.
And with Akifumi Mugiho's presence as a wildcard, anything could happen.
Like I said before, Akifumi's parents had some recognition in their field.
Before leaving Tokyo, they were invited to a party by Eriri's father, and that's where he met Eriri and they became friends.
But, unfortunately
Later, when Akifumi moved to Kanagawa, they lost touch.
It wasn't until he moved back to Tokyo in the first year of junior high that they reconnected when she turned out to be in his class.
But it was clear that things weren't the same as when they were kids.
"Looking back at it, Eriri was probably still mad about me disappearing back then."
"That's probably why she was so cold to me in junior high."
It was childish, but that's just how Eriri was.
"I heard you had an accident last week, so I came to check how you're doing."
If she was saying something like that, it was obvious Eriri wasn't entirely thinking straight due to a high fever.
But today, she seemed totally fine.
At Akifumi Mugiho's question, Eriri crossed her arms in front of her chest, and her posture made her chest more noticeable than usual.
She looked away, her face turning a little pink, and her voice had a slight tremor.
"You think you're something special, huh?! I didn't come here for you!!"
As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted them.
Logically, if she wasn't here for a reason, she wouldn't have dragged him over here, right?
"I'm such an idiot!"
If it had been before, she might've believed her own words.
But with her over-the-top acting, it was clear she didn't mean it.
Akifumi Mugiho chuckled inwardly and casually nodded. "Yeah, yeah."
"So, Eriri, is there anything else? If not, I'm heading home."
Eriri let out a relieved sigh, her nervousness easing a bit.
"You seem fine. You were even joking around just now, so I guess everything's okay!"
Thinking back to what she'd seen last week on her way to school, Eriri unconsciously pressed her lips together.
Though she didn't know the person who'd been involved in the accident, just the basic empathy made her feel a little sad.
Maybe it was because of Akifumi Mugiho's interference, but Eriri didn't know about the situation with Tomoya.
"Not to mention, that guy's a close friend of the person involved. He must've been really upset recently."
With that thought, Eriri's eyes softened, though her tone remained steady.
"Mom wants you to come over for dinner on Saturday."
"Huh? Really?"
Akifumi Mugiho was caught off guardhe hadn't expected her to have something important to say.
