manga artist Kirito

Page 113

"Pants!"

"ok, ok, I got it."

…………

"Romantic comedies don't exist in reality—the world is all about looks, girls all like handsome guys, and they're all creatures who try to have improper relationships with handsome guys—except, of course, Asuna and Yoko."

Because they don't like handsome guys, but prefer my kind of fresh and clean-cut look that's pleasing to the eye over time—and if you say I'm cute, they'll kill me!

"So, Kiritani-kun, what are your complaints about your current life?"

After Asuna left, Haruno also caught up with Kiritani to have a deeper conversation about their feelings—how deep that conversation went was entirely up to personal preference.

"Enough of not being able to see reality! Wake up!"

"No, I'm just living in a dream. In the end, you still like my good looks and want to have sex with me."

Kiritani-kun glanced straight ahead, his gaze sweeping over her long, white legs. Sometimes legs without stockings are so beautiful... It's a pity she only has short hair.

Perhaps it's understandable why Haruno doesn't have a boyfriend; it's because her hair isn't long enough to reach her waist.

Jing Ke'ai's situation can also be explained, since her hair is long enough to be past her knees.

"Please make arrangements for me as much as possible. I want to take Xigua out to die on the 1st. Of course, that's on the condition that the doctor allows it."

257

【NO.254 Kirito's Daily Life】

Kirito is an incredibly talented artist, especially now, with his popularity soaring to unprecedented heights thanks to the new Sword Art Online series. In terms of achievements alone, no one at Rouge en rouge can compare to him except for Akane Kousaka, which is indeed the case. However, this does not mean that no one else in the vast Rouge en rouge company can shoulder the responsibility.

At least, during the time that Akane Kousaka was in the hospital, Kiritani-kun discovered two planners whose talents were wasted on being illustrators and a genius scriptwriter whose talents were wasted on being a programmer—a very subtle discovery, but it undoubtedly proves that Akane Kousaka's judgment can also be flawed at times.

With a mountain of tasks piled up, the matter of taking care of Akane Kousaka was temporarily handed over to Asuna. After waiting for Asuna at the hospital in the morning, Kiritani rushed to the club. The following morning meeting, the supervision of the progress of various projects, and the satisfaction with the visuals all required a lot of time.

After finally finishing this task, I have to start working on the original artwork for "Black Album"—although there is a foundation in the novel and the game, this is not a good thing, because it means that Kiritani-kun has to be very close to the original work in his creation. Otherwise, if Rouge en rouge really gets a bad anime adaptation, then no matter how well the company has done in the past, its reputation will drop significantly.

Fortunately, the presence of his two assistants, Ichigo and Ayane, made things a little easier for Kirito.

However, given the enormous workload, Kiritani-kun really doesn't want to mention this little bit of ease.

"Wow, Fujiwara-senpai is really amazing. The high intensity of his work is not only terrifyingly fast, but the quality of each drawing has not decreased at all."

"If we're talking about who can rival President Akasaka in terms of drawing speed, I reckon it's only Fujiwara-senpai."

"But is it really okay?"

"What could be the problem?"

"Think about the president... never mind, I'd better shut up."

This is probably the conversation I've heard the most these past few days.

Later, some other creators came to see the editor. When they saw the scene where it was so quiet that all they could hear was the sound of paintbrushes scratching on the paper, they felt even more ashamed of themselves. Good heavens, how did this person develop such incredible arms?

For Kirito, drawing speed and high image quality are the most basic requirements, because only in this way can he get out of the dark room prepared by Akane Kousaka more quickly, and only in this way can he have more time to play games. Without terrifying hand speed, he might not even be able to play games.

Needless to say, as long as he roughly reviews the story, the relevant scenes will appear in Kiritani's mind, which greatly improves his drawing speed—for no other reason than that he wrote the script.

Besides, drawing these sweet and sour love stories has always been his forte. Unless Kirito-kun's brain was damaged by those long, black-stockinged legs, he definitely wouldn't be slow... Well, if he were completely drained, that would indeed cause his speed to decrease.

But without a doubt, this kind of work mode is extremely energy-consuming. In just one morning, Kiritani-kun felt that his brain was not working properly and his arms were too tired to lift... It was similar to the feeling when he attended Asuna's autograph session.

Of course, if I had to say, he was more tired back then, but Asuna obviously needed his care at that time, so he couldn't easily show it even if he was tired.

At noon, Kiritani-kun originally planned to go to the hospital, but Ichigo had prepared a bento box and brought it over early in the morning. Machida, who shouldn't have been there, also came over.

So, Kiritani-kun could only hold his bento and chat with Machida for a few minutes.

It was basically a thank you to Kiritani-kun for his help to Kasumigaoka Utaha, and to her old classmate Kousaka Akane for her care, and then something else...

Because Kiritani-kun was very impolite, eating while listening to the lecture and thinking about the related stories, he only absorbed about a third of what Machida was saying. However, Kiritani-kun did see something very clearly—Machida was a bit too fond of Kasumigaoka Uta.

I really don't know how she became friends with Akane Kousaka. If Kasumigaoka Utaha were here, not only would Akane Kousaka have squeezed out all her remaining value, but she would probably be ruined—of course, she could still recover, it just would take time.

This clearly shows the difference between Machida and Akane Takasaka...

Hmm, if you think about it seriously, maybe that's why Machida and Akane Kosaka had a disagreement and didn't help Akane like Shizuka and Ayano Iida did.

But no matter what, these weren't what Kiritani was worried about, because Shizuka called again, this time to urge him to finish his manuscript... What a nightmare holiday!

Thankfully, it's not August yet, otherwise Kirito would definitely feel like the world is stuck in a state of "endless August"...

Come to think of it, this new artwork that I started preparing to draw more than half a month ago seems to be something I haven't even started yet...

Did I stand myself up?

Everything was ready, but it still hasn't started. All sorts of unexpected events have disrupted all the preparations and postponed everything.

This summer is really not something I like!

He shook his head slightly, his thoughts abruptly ceasing. Kiritani picked up his paintbrush again and resumed his endless work...

After a long while, Strawberry and Lingyin, who were acting as assistants, finally caught up with Kirigaya-kun's speed. Looking at the empty table, they put down their paintbrushes, rubbed their shoulders, and then planned to take the unfinished drawings from Kirigaya-kun to complete the final process. However, after turning around, Strawberry shook her head slightly, took off her short-sleeved jacket, and covered the boy who had fallen asleep on the table at some point.

Lingyin carefully removed the unfinished drawings from the table, afraid of disturbing the sleeping boy.

The wind at the end of July carried a hint of warmth. The curtains were slightly lifted, allowing the warm sunlight to stream into the quiet office, illuminating the boy's still somewhat immature face. The perfectly warm sunlight, combined with the gentle breeze, created a comfortable feeling that made the boy gently turn his head, adjust his posture slightly, and let out a drowsy whimper.

P.S.: Okay, this part of the story is finished for now. Next up is the endless August.

Long time no see, please vote and give me some criticism!

258

【NO.255 ​​Summer CM Day 1 (Part 1)】

Summer CM is an abbreviation for Summer COMIC MARKET, which is the largest doujinshi (fan-made comics) convention in Japan and even the world, organized by the COMIC MAEKET Preparatory Committee.

Generally speaking, the Summer CM is held in early August each year, lasting for three days, and is held at Tokyo Big Sight in Koto Ward, Tokyo. Since admission is completely free, the queues at the entrance of Tokyo Big Sight during the CM exhibition are almost comparable to those at train stations during the Spring Festival travel rush in the other country.

In addition, August is arguably the hottest time of the year, and otaku who come to participate in the exhibition often have to wait for several hours to get in, which is simply unbearable. If allowed, some people might even come a day in advance to wait for the event.

If Valentine's Day is the time for the FFF group's holy war, then the CM convention symbolizes the holy war day for otaku. For most otaku who never leave their homes, there are very few opportunities for them to go out, let alone in such a crowded place. Calling it a war wouldn't be wrong.

"...Ah, how I miss it!"

Looking at the sea of ​​people in front of him, Kiritani couldn't help but recall his first time attending a CM convention. He was so short that he couldn't even see the way. If it weren't for the special entry channels for creators, Fujiwara Echizen might not be a part of the industry today.

"Yeah, it does bring back fond memories. I read the original erotic comics you commissioned someone to sell for you right here, which is why I wanted to find you... Who knew you were the little devil hiding behind the erotic comics you were selling..."

Akane Kosaka rubbed her forehead, her tone equally wistful, but she seemed cautious this time, since she and Kiritani had snuck out, and the hospital might be in complete chaos by now.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with my health now, it's just that it's not time for me to be discharged from the hospital yet. In Akane Kosaka's words, these are just unscrupulous doctors trying to make more money. No one knows my health condition better than me.

Then, Kiritani kicked her and then led her out of the hospital.

"Well, for us creators, CM Expo is just so-so."

Kiritani glanced at Akane Kosaka and pursed his lips slightly. "But it's different for you. This is the best place to screen potential creators, but I don't really want you to spend too much time on it. Your life is more important."

"Hmph! If I hadn't taken this approach, you might not be Fujiwara Echizen right now."

Akane Kosaka hummed softly, expressing her dissatisfaction to Kiritani-kun.

"By the way, Eriri, aren't you hot?"

Kiritani turned his head to look at his side. Unlike the usual Sawamura-sama mode when she was out and about, or Riko-sama in her middle school tracksuit at home, Eriri was wearing very dowdy denim overalls today, with a white short-sleeved shirt on top. A large hat completely covered the upper half of her head, and her dazzling golden hair was also completely tucked in, with only a few loose strands left out. She was also wearing a pair of big, thick-rimmed glasses... If Eriri was originally a nine out of ten, now she was at most a three out of ten.

Incidentally, it's graded on a 100-point scale.

"Well, it's...it's alright. Going there directly would be too conspicuous."

Pushing up her wide-brimmed hat, Eriri stammered, "Plus, I was prepared, so it's not... very hot."

"Ms. Kashiwagi doesn't want people to recognize that this daughter of a British diplomat is actually an R-18 artist..."

Holding a parasol, Kasumigaoka Utaha slightly twitched her legs, her smile becoming increasingly subtle. "But, our Kashiwagi-sensei is still foolish. She completely failed to realize that having her parents, the father of the British diplomat, help sell doujinshi was her biggest blunder—did Kashiwagi-sensei think that people who knew Sawamura Spencer Eriri wouldn't know the British diplomat? Or did Kashiwagi-sensei think that people who knew the British diplomat wouldn't know what kind of person could persuade him to help sell doujinshi?"

"How...how could this be...?"

With her mouth slightly agape, Eriri looked at Kasumigaoka Utaha with disbelief on her face.

"Just think about it for a moment and you'll realize that the only person who could get a British diplomat couple to help sell doujinshi is undoubtedly their daughter!"

Seeing Eriri's increasingly shocked expression, Kasumigaoka Utaha felt very pleased. Although this was her first time attending the CM exhibition, she had heard about many things, not to mention the British diplomat's appearance at the CM exhibition.

"In other words, the identity you thought you were hiding so well was actually just something others were too lazy to expose! — Think about it this way: although the manga club room is at the very end of the teaching building and few people usually go there, do you really think that no one ever passes by our room? — What I'm trying to say is that you were exposed a long time ago, especially when you thought you weren't and were pretending to be... Hmm, that's kind of funny!"

"This...this...this..."

Her face flushed red, and Eriri could barely speak. But one thing was certain: she... seemed to have really been exposed.

"After that, not to mention that your outfit will only attract more attention—frankly, you'd be better off wearing your elementary school tracksuit and a pair of glasses."

Kasumigaoka Utaha cheerfully offered advice to Eriri.

Beside them, Kiritani-kun, Asuna, and Kousaka Akane were all secretly laughing. Looking at the golden-haired loser's twisted expression, which resembled a burnt porcelain doll, they all silently gave Kasumigaoka Utaha a thumbs up in their hearts.

Shiina Mashiro licked a milk-flavored popsicle, looking completely adorable.

"So, could you introduce this person to us? This one... looks like she escaped from the hospital, right?"

Kasumigaoka Utaha, like a caring older sister, gently patted Eriri's head. Before Eriri could react, she turned to look at Kousaka Akane and asked Kiritani a question.

"You mean her? She definitely ran away from the hospital."

Since everyone had only recently gathered and hadn't had a chance to be introduced yet, Eriri, Kasumigaoka Utaha, and Shiina Mashiro were unaware of Akane Kousaka's identity.

"Her pen name is Ibuki Suika, you can just call her by her nickname, Watermelon. She was hospitalized because she was working herself to the bone... Pfft!"

“The leader of the Red Saka of the Rouge en rouge company.”

Akane Kousaka watched as Asuna withdrew her fist from Kiritani's stomach, her lips twitching slightly; her movements weren't fast enough...

"Huh? Kousaka?"

"Benisaka Akane?"

259

【NO.256 Summer CM Day 1 (Part 2)】

The endless month of August begins...

Kasumigaoka Utaha and Eriri then encountered a god-level figure—Kousaka Akane!

Even if they didn't know much about Akane Akasaka's deeds, they had heard a lot about them beforehand. After all, they needed to know about the pen name Fujiwara Echizen first, and Akane Akasaka's deeds were naturally included in that. Now that they had met her, it would be a lie to say that they were not moved at all.

Well, there is one person who can remain completely unmoved, and that is Shiina Mashiro. Although she has already entered the industry, this girl, whose heart has only been slightly tainted, is still unaware of many things in the industry. She only knows that Kirito and Asuna are both super famous creators.

Well, now it seems that this woman who calls herself Akane Akasaka is more powerful.

Incidentally, Shiina Mashiro is unaware that Akane Akasaka is actually the president of the magazine she submitted her work to.

"Ignoring everything else and focusing solely on reading the Golden Lotus"... Oops, wrong number, it should be "focusing solely on reading the classics," referring to someone like Shiina Mashiro.

"Nice to meet you, new creator, Xia Shizi."

After calming her turbulent emotions slightly, Kasumigaoka Utaha introduced herself with feigned composure.

"Hello, nice to meet you, artist Eri Kashiwagi, please take good care of me."

Uh, something seems wrong with the grammar?

Slightly taken aback, Eriri introduced herself in this way.

As a renowned illustrator, Eriri had long known of Akane Kousaka's name, but she never expected to meet her in this situation.

"I've heard about you guys from others; you have great potential, and I hope you can continue to improve."

Akane Kosaka was naturally aware of the situation with these two, whether it was Kiritani-kun's recommendation or her own prior attention. However, their current performance was not enough to satisfy her, so the matter of discovering their potential was put on hold... Hmm, it is said that with Kazuto's help, the sales of Kasumi Utako's new volume have increased significantly?

Well, let's see how much Kashiwagi Eri has improved at this CM exhibition...

Akane Kousaka glanced at Kiritani-kun and narrowed her eyes slightly. She really didn't know if he was intentionally trying to introduce the two of them to her or if it was just a simple accident. But in any case, since they had met, she might as well spend some time getting to know each other.

...By the way, does Kasumi Shiko, who has a tutor, write screenplays?

Actually, compared to the two well-known creators, Eri Kashiwagi and Shizuko Kasumi, Akane Kousaka values ​​Hibiki Kawashiro, also known as Asuna, more. Compared to the still immature creations of the former two, the latter is much more mature, and the handling of details in many aspects is simply perfect. In fact, Akane Kousaka admits that she is not as good as her in some aspects. More importantly, Asuna is also quite good at writing scripts.

Unfortunately, Asuna is not someone who can be poached, nor is she the kind of creator she can manipulate.

"It's about time, let's go in through the special channel."

Kiritani switched the parasol in his hand, then took out his phone to check the time. "Even though it's still a weekday, the crowds are still terrifying. This year's CM Expo might be unexpectedly popular! -- Oh! Ichigo sent an email. It's the same booth as before."

Kiritani-kun's doujinshi about the CM convention was completed a long time ago and was delivered to the circle members for printing a few days ago. Various promotional methods, including Twitter and blogs, have also been quietly launched - yes, clearly telling many fans that Fujiwara Echizen has not actually gone ashore and is still sitting on the beach. If the waves get a little bigger, they can drag him back into the sea.