Saying the entire next year would belong to this series was not an exaggeration.
Just the thought of it made them excited.
The last to finish reading was the elderly Marukawa Masato.
"Phew..."
He exhaled deeply, setting the script down with a complex expression.
Then, looking at Minano Matome, he said sincerely, "Minano-san, thank you for bringing us such an incredible piece of work."
Minano shook her head. "It's all for the company."
Marukawa turned toward Yoshikuma, who now sat with his head lowered in silence.
"Misaki, do you still think this script is garbage?"
"..."
Yoshikuma clenched his teeth, his face burning with humiliation.
Finally, he muttered, "I sincerely apologize, Minano-san."
"I was wrong to judge before finishing it."
"Please forgive me."
There was no denying the script's excellence.
The twist at episode 12 was a masterstroke, taking the series to new heights.
The early foreshadowing, once overlooked, now appeared as a work of sheer genius.
At this point, denying its brilliance would only make him look like a foolworse, it would call his professional judgment into question.
He had no choice but to admit his mistake.
Marukawa glanced at Minano, leaving the decision to her.
She gave Yoshikuma a brief look but said nothing about his apology.
Instead, she simply stated, "Let's not waste everyone's time on trivial matters."
Her meaning was clearshe had no intention of forgiving him so easily.
Being kind didn't mean letting people walk all over her.
Especially when they had dared to question the work of one of her top writers.
Marukawa nodded, showing no further sympathy.
They were all adults. Actions had consequences.
"Marukawa-san, I'd like to hear your thoughts on this project."
Marukawa took a deep breath before responding with conviction, "Miss Minano, please entrust this work to us. We will handle it with the utmost care."
Minano nodded. "Since you've accepted it, I have one condition."
"The first twelve episodes must be released together. After that, the series can follow a standard weekly release schedule."
Marukawa froze.
Twelve episodes released at once?!
While multi-episode releases weren't unheard of, an entire cour at once was highly unusual.
"Marukawa-san," Minano's tone sharpened. "I'm not asking if you can do it."
"I'm saying if you want this script, you will do it."
"If you can't, then find a way."
Marukawa shivered. Without hesitation, he nodded fervently.
"We can do it! Absolutely!"
Minano smiled. "Then I leave it in your hands."
"I won't be staying for the rest of the meeting. Please continue without me."
With that, she rose to leave.
Marukawa immediately stood to see her off.
"No need," she waved him off, then added, "Oh, and the character designs will be delivered in a few days."
Character designs, too?!
Marukawa's face lit up.
"When will the project be ready?" she asked.
"Fo"
Seeing Minano frown, he immediately corrected himself, "No, three months! Mid-March!"
"As soon as we have the designs, we'll begin production immediately!"
"Mid-March?" Minano considered before nodding.
"Speed is important, but don't compromise quality."
"Of course!" Marukawa assured her. "Leave it to us!"
Satisfied, Minano gave a slight nod before glancing at the silent Yoshikuma one last time.
"Phew..."
She looked young, but the pressure she exuded was immense.
"Guess I'm getting old," Marukawa muttered, then turned to the others.
"You all heard me! 'Steins;Gate' will be completed by mid-March, no matter what it takes! This is our top priority!"
"Understood?!"
"Understood!"
Masato Marukawa nodded and said, "Then let's begin today's meeting."
"Considering the excellence of Steins;Gate, making it into the top three or even first place isn't impossible, but this is an insurance policy."
"We also need to demonstrate our strength!"
Akifumi was unaware of this little side story sparked by Steins;Gate.
At the moment, he couldn't help but sigh.
"It feels like the holidays just started, and now school is already beginning tomorrow!"
January 8th.
The last day of winter break.
The next break wouldn't come until the end of February.
Having a month off every other month was nice, but the day before school resumed always felt particularly melancholic.
"I don't want to go back to school..."
Mashiro, half-buried under the kotatsu with her upper body sprawled over the table, nodded her little head in agreement.
Even though the room had the heater on, she still instinctively wanted to curl up under the kotatsuperhaps it had become an unshakable habit.
"Want some peeled persimmon?" Smiling, Mahiru offered the fruit she had peeled.
The two each took half.
"Thanks." x2
"By the way, don't you guys have work today?" Mahiru asked, curious.
Since the start of the break, these two had been diligently drawing for at least twelve hours a day.
"Don't mention work while we're resting, Mahiru!!"
".....Mmn" Mashiro nodded in agreement.
"It's the last day of break. If we spent it all working, wouldn't that be even more miserable than school?"
"Even worse than school!"
Watching the two echo each other, Mahiru smiled helplessly and suggested, "Then how about going out for a bit?"
"Eh, but we just went out on January 1st..."
Recalling the overwhelming crowds during their shrine visit, Akifumi, a self-proclaimed introvert, shuddered.
"Yeah, we just went out on January 1st!"
Mashiro nodded in agreement but then mumbled softly, "But we're almost out of Baumkuchen at home..."
Akifumi rolled his eyes at this little glutton.
"It's fine."
"The New Year is over. Mashiro should go back to her normal quota of three Baumkuchen per week."
"The ones we have left should last two more weeks."
Mashiro froze.
She slumped onto the table, utterly defeated.
"..." Mahiru gave a helpless smile.
Mugiho-kun was great in every way, but his reluctance to leave the house was a real headache!
She sighed inwardly.
"Oh, right, isn't Eriri coming over today?"
"Nah, she said she's rushing to meet a deadline..."
"I see." Mahiru nodded, then murmured to herself, "What should I make for lunch..."
Since it was the last day of break, she decided to make something extra delicious!
With a plan in mind, Mahiru rested her head on the table, enjoying the peaceful moment.
For every student, this day was filled with a special kind of melancholy.
Tanaka was no exception.
But...
"I can't miss sensei's new chapter of Your Lie In April on this final day!"
Since he had plans to hang out with friends in the afternoon, he decided to spend the morning reading manga.
Armed with the latest issue of Weekly Shonen Jump, he picked up some snacks and drinks on the way home.
The perfect morning was already playing out in his mind:
Snuggled under the kotatsu, surrounded by fruit, snacks, and drinks.
Just imagining it was bliss!
Most importantly, his parents were at work.
He could indulge without fear of being nagged!
Double the bliss!!
Back home, he arranged his fruit and snacks, then eagerly dove under the kotatsu and flipped open the magazine.
One hand fed him snacks while the other turned the pages.
A perfect day. Not even a god could tempt him away!
Wataru Ryota: "So what?"
"It's normal for the girl you like to have someone she loves."
"It's precisely because of love that she shines so brightly."
"That's why peoplehopelesslyfall in love!"
Arima Kousei: "But... it's impossible for me."
Ryota was right.
But when I came to my senses, the fiery sunset sky... the black curtain behind my eyelids replayed the same scene.
The manga panels depicted a girl passionately performing on stage.
Over and over, endlessly...
Every time, my heartthe part of me that my mother had left behindseemed to be swept away like the wind.
I wanted to hear it again, but I also didn't.
I wanted to see her again, but I also didn't.
She stood under the cherry blossom tree, backpack in hand.
A breathtaking, dramatic scene.
How could one describe this feeling?
How could one put this emotion into words?
She, radiant among the outstanding.
The girl extended her hand, speaking those deceptively simple wordsFriend A.
Seeing the exquisitely drawn panel, Tanaka's heart, lonely for over ten years, stirred slightly.
But...
"Damn it! How could it end here?!"
Tanaka was furious.
Just when the protagonist was about to start playing the piano, the chapter cut off?!
"Sensei's cliffhanger skills are god-tier!"
No matter how frustrated he was, an ending was an ending.
He had no choice but to wait for next week.
"I miss last year's format where they released the volume before serializing!"
That way, he wouldn't have to suffer through weekly updates!
Online, under Akifumi's SNS posts, fans flooded the comments after reading the latest chapter:
"Your Lie In April is amazing! I love Sensei's style!"
"That scene with Kaori under the cherry blossoms felt like a romance moment!"
"'Friend A' is such an interesting name!"
"Kousei is finally going to play the piano! I can't wait!"
"Sensei, please release the volume first! Weekly updates are torture!"
"Begging for a volume release!!"
Initially, fans discussed the plot, but soon, the entire comment section was filled with demands for a volume release.
Had Akifumi seen this, he would've been speechless.
Unexpectedly, that evening...
"You're suggesting we release the volume first?!"
Hearing the proposal over the phone, Akifumi was surprised.
He had considered it before but put it off due to his busy schedule and the new project.
Now that the publisher was suggesting it, he was tempted.
"Actually," the editor explained, "we received many requests for this, but we didn't bring it up before since we knew you were busy."
"But now, with fans' demand rising, we wanted to see if you'd be interested."
Looking at Akifumi's past works, he have Madoka Magica, which was adapted into a manga from the original anime, Anohana, which was exclusively an anime in the original to a manga.
But Your Lie In April?
It stands out as the most "make over" of them all.
'Your Lie In April' manga consists of 44 chapters, each spanning over 40 pages.
If we publish them as volumes with around 180 pages each, that means the full series will be completed in 11 volumes.
In Weekly Shonen Jump, manga chapters are serialized in 20-page increments, and as of now, the series is only up to Chapter 5halfway through what would be the third chapter of the original story.
That leaves just four more chapters before Volume 1 is complete.
So
"I'm more than happy to have the series published as a collected volume," Akifumi said with a smile.
Editor Mihari let out a small sigh of reliefuntil Akifumi continued:
"But just releasing Volume 1 alone feels a little underwhelming, don't you think?"
Akifumi may have only had one completed chapter in reserve, but it wasn't for finishing Volume 1.
Many might forget, but serialized manga artists usually keep a three-chapter buffer to account for unexpected delays.
What Mihari was suggestingpublishing the first volumeactually meant dipping into that reserve.
However, for Akifumi, that "buffer" didn't count as a real stockpile.
What he had in mind?
Was Volume 2.
"Huh!?" Mihari froze for a moment before her brain caught up. Her voice involuntarily rose.
"Wait are you saying?!"
"Well, we've done this before, haven't we?"
"A simultaneous two-volume release again?" Mihari let out a resigned chuckle.
The last time he pulled this stunt was with Anohana, wasn't it?
But back then, Volume 1 had already finished serialization in the magazine, so they were only rushing to put together Volume 2.
This time?
They were aiming for a two-volume release from the start.
This was nuts.
Shaking her head, Mihari muttered, "I'll have to run this by Chief Editor Minano."
"After all, I'm just a lowly editorI can't make this call."
Of course, given how much Minano doted on Akifumi, she'd probably approve it without a second thought.
Still, procedures were procedures.
"I'll leave it in your hands, Editor-san."
[149] Volumes Release for Your Lie In April?!
After hanging up the call, Akifumi exhaled.
"The pressure's really on now"
If Mihari hadn't brought up the collected volume, he might've forgotten his initial plan when starting Your Lie In April.
'Since it's Your Lie In April, wouldn't it be fitting to finish in April?'
Though the main storyline never explicitly mentioned the time of year, the cherry blossoms in the background suggested that Arima Kousei and Miyazono Kaori's fateful reunion took place in April.
And at the very end
"Spring is coming soon, but you won't be here."
Kaori passed away on February 28 of the following year.
"Releasing the final volume in April just makes too much sense!"
Of course, this was just a rough idea for now.
With only two volumes completed so far, the remaining nine still felt like a distant goal.
Right now, it was January 8.
"Three volumes per month is that even possible?"
Just thinking about it was enough to send his stress levels through the roof.
And it wasn't just his stressthis would be a massive strain on the publishing house too.
But if he focused solely on this project for the next few months
Maybe.
"Besides, it'd make for a perfect New Year's gift for the fans."
With that thought in mind, Akifumi's expression turned serious. He picked up his pen and continued drawing.
Sure, today was supposed to be a rest day.
But after lazing around all morning, pushing a little harder at night wouldn't hurt, right?
January 9 — Back to School
"Yo, Kato. Happy New Year."
"Kato-san, happy New Year!"
"Happy New Year, Akifumi, Shiina."
Since it was the first day back, even Kato seemed visibly unmotivated.
"I don't wanna be here" she muttered, her face blank.
Akifumi raised an eyebrow, hesitating for a moment before quipping:
"Kato, are you sick?"
"No, I was just saying what I thought you might say."
Beside them, Mahiru giggled, covering her mouth.
"..."
Would I really say something like that?
Thinking it over yeah, maybe.
