"But why did Kaori suddenly collapse? When I saw the hospital scene, I thought the mangaka was about to hit us with a plot twist!"
"Same here, could this be the PTSD from 'Warriors of Love and Hope'?"
"Given the mangaka's past works, I'm pretty sure there's more plot twists coming!"
"Wait, really? Don't scare me!"
"Ahem, just joking! Some difficulties in a healing manga are pretty normal, right?"
"Though, the mangaka never claimed Your Lie In April is a healing manga, right?"
"Eh? You're doubting that, even though it's so obvious?"
"No, no, no, I'm fine with others thinking that, but the mangaka's style has been clear from the start!"
"If it wasn't for the word 'again' in that hospital scene, I'd be fine with this. Now I have to stay cautious!"
"I think you're all overthinking it! The mangaka already gave us a clear answer with the New Year's gift?"
"Isn't it normal for a healing story to have some setbacks along the way? I think it's pretty typical."
"Well, until the outcome is clear, I think all guesses are valid! After all, it's up to the mangaka how they choose to write the story."
"I don't care whether it's a healing story or a depressing one, as long as the manga is good, I'll keep reading it!"
"Exactly! I'm definitely sticking with Your Lie In April for the long haul!"
"I didn't manage to buy the book, so I'm just here, reading your discussions, and shedding tears of envy."
"Tears of envy +1"
""
In disbelief, Eriri couldn't help but exclaim, "Your works are always like this!"
"As soon as they're released, there's so much discussion about them!"
The envy of those who couldn't get the book was clearly written on Eriri's face.
"I believe you'll be able to do the same, Eriri," Mashiro said with a small smile, offering some encouragement.
Eriri blushed, the normally proud girl feeling a rare moment of shyness.
She scratched her cheek, then shyly said, "Well, who knows about the future?"
But, honestly, catching up to this person seemed impossible.
Thinking about it, Eriri couldn't help but sigh inwardly, her thoughts scattering.
"When did it become such an effort just to watch Mugi's back?" The girl's eyes seemed filled with confusion.
Just a day after the release, the first and second volumes of Your Lie In April had been getting rave reviews.
The pacing of a healing story is crucial, and the slow, steady storytelling style had made the readers feel completely at ease.
And even though it was a healing story, it wasn't without its intense moments.
The scene of the two playing together on stage was truly shocking.
Just through the visuals, they could feel the kind of beauty and impact that was supposed to be conveyed through music!
All of this made the fans praise the work nonstop.
Akifumi looked at the incoming call from Mihari and couldn't help but sigh.
He picked up the phone and said first, "Is this about Your Lie In April' sales again?"
Mihari was momentarily stunned. Her excitement got caught in her throat, almost causing her to choke on it.
Then, with a hint of grievance, she said, "Next time, can you let me speak first?"
"Well, after all these times, I thought you'd be used to it by now," Akifumi said nonchalantly.
Mihari, unwilling to back down, replied, "Such good news, no matter how many times it happens, it still excites me!"
"Or maybe, you'd rather hear bad news than good news?" she teased.
"That's not it," Akifumi said with a slight pause. "But if there's a sudden drop in sales one day, I might get a bit emotional."
"Tsk," Mihari muttered.
Was he implying his works would never fail?
But, on second thought, from the very beginning of his career, every one of his works had been a huge success!
It had been almost half a year, and Madoka Magica's two volumes had already reached nearly a million copies sold!
For a single short story, that was an impressive number...
Just thinking about it made Mihari dizzy, as if she were seeing a pile of small bills flying around in front of her.
She cleared her throat. "You've made me all worked up now."
Akifumi chuckled. "So, what were the first-day sales of Your Lie In April?"
"Volume 1: 28,000 copies, Volume 2: 33,000," Mihari replied.
She paused before adding, "Although it's still quite a bit lower than Madoka Magica, the main reason is that our production capacity couldn't keep up."
"Also, releasing it on January 20th wasn't the best timing."
Akifumi shook his head with a smile. "No need to explain. I'm very satisfied with these numbers."
Having been in the industry for almost a year now, Akifumi had gained more understanding of the business.
For any new release, breaking 10,000 copies in the first day was already a hit.
For his works, it was always several tens of thousands right from the start.
What was there to be dissatisfied about?
Moreover, he often chose to release his works at the end of the month, while others usually went for the beginning.
Even so, his first-day sales were sometimes even higher than those of books released 10 or 20 days earlier.
With this comparison, the difference was clear.
At this point, Akifumi's name alone could guarantee sales!
On the other end, Mihari continued, "Besides informing you about the sales, I also wanted to ask when the third volume of Your Lie In April will be released."
"Eh?" Akifumi was surprised. "That's not usually your style."
"We've been working together long enough that we know your habits by now," Mihari said with a tired tone.
"As long as the first few volumes are released, the rest will follow soon enough, right?"
"Rather than wait for you to bring it up, we figured we should be proactive."
Akifumi chuckled. "Otosuna-san."
"Hmm?"
"Do you remember the title of this manga?"
Although confused, Mihari replied, "It's Your Lie In April."
Akifumi smiled slightly as he reminded the editor to always remember the title.
Even when she was still a rookie, she never made such mistakes, and now, with the experience she had gained, it was second nature.
"So, if I were to finish this work in April, that would make for a great symbolic ending, wouldn't it?"
Mihari froze, her smile freezing as she heard this.
Finish 'Your Lie In April' in April?
But the manga was barely even starting its serialization!
Why would he be talking about finishing it already?!
But...
'Finishing it on 'April is Your Lie' in April?' It had a very fitting ring to it.
It almost felt perfect!
But...
"Let me ask, how many volumes are you planning to release to finish Your Lie In April?"
Mihari had already seen volumes 1 and 2 before they were published, and from her professional perspective, there was no sign that the story was wrapping up anytime soon.
This was clearly a long series.
"I'm thinking around 9 to 13 volumes," Akifumi said, purposely vague.
"..." Mihari paused before she couldn't help but analyze further.
"Even with the minimum of 9 volumes, that means there are 7 left to be released! And it's only 3 months until April!"
"So, you're planning to release 2 to 3 volumes a month?"
She was able to stay calm and analyze this because of Akifumi's past speed in creating works.
It seemed possible. If it were anyone else, she would have dismissed it as crazy.
Akifumi responded calmly, "I don't think releasing 2 to 3 volumes is feasible. Let's go with 3 volumes per month."
"Three volumes a month??"
"Heh heh heh."
"I must still be half-asleep today," Mihari muttered.
"Otherwise, how could I be hearing such crazy things?"
[152] No Turning Back!
Three volumes next month?
Considering each volume has 180 pages, that adds up to 540 pages per month!!
Normally, with the help of assistants, the maximum one could manage in a month is around 120-140 pages (with extra pages saved for later).
If you slack off a bit, it could drop to just 60 or 80 pages.
In other words, a whole month's worth of work would equal the workload of six months for most others. This isn't just about competingthis is about crushing other manga artists underfoot!
Mihari swallowed nervously and asked, her voice trembling a bit, "Akifumi-sensei, are you serious?"
'You really need to think this through!'
You've got Your Lie In April and WorldEnd in the works, not to mention Steins;Gate as the scriptwriter and everything else you've got on your plate!
And don't forget school...
If she weren't so rude, she probably would've just asked outright, "Are you even human anymore?"
Though they were speaking over the phone, Akifumi could easily imagine the expression on Mihari's face.
"Of course, I'm serious," Akifumi said, his voice no longer lighthearted but rather stern.
"I know this sounds insane."
"But..."
"I want Your Lie In April to have a perfect ending in April!"
A perfect ending in April?
Mihari couldn't help but smile, then sighed helplessly.
"Sensei, you've really never changed."
"But I can feel your determination," she said.
"I'll talk to Editor-in-Chief Minano about this. If she senses your determination, I'm sure she'll help you out!"
"Thank you," Akifumi said seriously.
"Don't thank me yet," Mihari replied, "Let's wait until things are confirmed. Then we'll talk."
"Well, if it doesn't work out, it's not the end of the world," Akifumi said. He knew that much.
He was simply going after the goal with everything he had!
'At least I'll know I tried my best. Even if I fail, I won't regret it,' he thought to himself.
Mihari shook her head and, half-joking, replied, "You've made so much money over the past half year, so why not just take it easy like everyone else?"
She meant, why push yourself this hard?
Even if he slowed down, the fans wouldn't complain.
It's like when the New Year's greetings come, a simple illustration, and no one says anything.
Or like the never-ending serializationearly releases and finished works, then taking a break. That's the usual cycle.
But that's not how it works for Akifumi! He's always pushing forward, never stopping, always producing great work.
"I need money," Akifumi said, half-jokingly.
Mihari rolled her eyes.
'If you're really that broke, there are easier ways to make money, you know? Why not just work on the sequel to Madoka Magica instead?'
"Yeah, yeah, I know. You're really broke," she replied. "I'll talk to Minano-san first thing when I get to the office tomorrow and let you know how it goes."
"Thanks you"
After hanging up, Akifumi sighed. "Well, I've said my piece. Now it's up to the company."
Releasing three volumes in one month?
That's a huge amount of pressure, and the company faces the same issues.
With so little preparation time, if one thing goes wrong, it could cause major losses.
The company would have to handle it flawlessly, but that's no easy task.
There's significant risk involved!
"Whatever," Akifumi shook his head, pushing those thoughts aside. "I've done what I can. Now, I just need to be prepared for the opportunity, just in case."
If the company gives the green light and then I can't deliver all three volumes on time that would be a disaster.
Monday
Even though Mihari had worked over the weekend and hadn't slept well the night before because of the "surprise" from Akifumi, she still managed to show up at the office on time.
With dark circles under her eyes, she greeted her coworkers and sat at her desk.
She sighed, feeling anxious.
"I'm such an idiot. Why did I agree to this on the spot?"
Even after thinking it over all night, Mihari still hadn't figured out how to bring it up with Editor-in-Chief Minano.
She had been working at the publisher for nearly a year, and she knew the process for releasing a book inside and out.
The usual procedure is to bring up a single volume in meetings well in advance.
But Akifumi's situation is unique, and with Minano's influence, everyone's used to things being done out of order.
Still, this time it's not just one volumeit's three!
Mihari sighed heavily. She could already imagine the printing department's resentful glares.
After all, they'd be stuck with overtime because of this last-minute task!
On top of that, releasing three volumes could also affect sales.
Students have limited spending money each month, and even though the previous volume had great sales, next month would be a different story.
It's January 22nd now, and even if the three volumes are released next month, they'd have to be in the second half of the month.
With New Year's behind us, there wouldn't be any more "lucky money" to help with purchases.
Three volumes? It's a headache!
She sighed again, already half an hour into her workday.
"I really shouldn't have agreed to this. Even if Minano-san is going to yell at me, I have to tell her."
With that thought, Mihari walked over to Minano's office and knocked on the door.
"Come in," Minano's voice called from inside.
Mihari walked in, and Minano, sipping her coffee, glanced up briefly before focusing back on her documents.
"Is there something you need?"
"Well last night, I talked to Akifumi-san about Your Lie In April's first-day sales," she started.
"Hmm, Akifumi-san probably doesn't care much about the sales," Minano said without looking up.
"For him, it's more about the honor than the money."
As expected, Minano knew exactly what was going on.
"So, did Akifumi-san come up with another challenge for you?" she asked.
"Like releasing the third volume of Your Lie In April next month?"
Mihari froze.
A bitter smile appeared on her face.
"Minano-san really understands Akifumi-sensei"
"Not so much understanding, just a small guess based on Akifumi-sensei personality, and seeing you, Mihari-chan? "
"Coming here early in the morning looking like you want to say something but can't quite bring yourself to do it," said Minano, standing up and gesturing for Mihari to sit on the couch.
She handed two cups of coffee to Mihari.
"I didn't have time to boil water, so it's just coffee for now. Hope you don't mind."
Mihari, a little flustered, hurriedly took the cup while muttering, "You're making me do these small things!"
"It's no big deal, what's the problem?" Minano chuckled, sitting on the other side of the couch.
She glanced at Mihari, and then asked, "Looks like I was wrong about this. What's going on with Akifumi-sensei? You look so troubled."
