manga artist Kirito

Page 254

Before he could even ask, Kiritani-kun swore.

On the right side, it's a good thing I didn't notice it before, but now it looks like the most terrifying haunted house in history—is it too late to leave? Is it too late to buy two wooden swords? Is it too late to find a real Unit-01?

So why the hell are there haunted houses in movie theaters? Just to make things convenient for couples? Screw you!

Life is so beautiful, don't be irritable, don't be irritable!

Let's get back to the movie.

But honestly, it's strange to go to the movies with four people, especially since three of them are women... Well, since it's not a date, the number of people doesn't really matter. Anyway, they're unlikely to do anything that couples would do. But I have a feeling that things are definitely not that simple.

He'd only ever been to the movies with a woman once, and it left a lasting impression. Now, it felt like a high-stakes game had suddenly begun, and all he could do was wait with bated breath for a peaceful future.

Choose a movie and buy tickets.

Akane Kosaka subtly discovers that the ticket Kiritani-kun has is somewhere between hers and Ichigo's—the so-called "beware of your best friend"?

Even though Akane Kosaka and Ichigo's relationship was far from that of best friends, she understood that Ichigo, the junior whom Kiritani had personally mentored, did indeed harbor special feelings for Kiritani. Therefore, when it was time to be vigilant, she couldn't let her guard down for a moment.

Although, letting things run wild always feels like inviting a wolf into the house.

Well, anyway, let's do something and declare our sovereignty, shall we?

After all, it's impossible to let go, nor can we allow others to take it away.

PS:

What's with the "py"? What's with the "Rome"? Now everyone's in Rome!

How about giving me a little something (like a knife or a tip)?

Oh right, I'm so happy that Kengshu's "Kato Megumi's Wish" has started updating! I highly recommend it!

One last stab—but it was too late; Kato Megumi had already transformed into Aki Tomoya's form.

521

[NO.512 Something subtle always seems to happen in the movie theater]

"The Literary Girl" is considered one of the three classic works, along with "Like a Blue Sky" and "Running Towards Tomorrow to Meet You".

This time, they were going to watch the film adaptation of "The Girl from Literature," which is said to be of quite good quality.

Of course, some people may not know these classic works, but if we had to pick something from "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time" that would make a strong impression, it would probably be—Kokoro, you probably don't understand!

"...Wow, wouldn't it be wonderful if our work could be shown on such a big screen someday?"

"As for strawberries, just think about it. The president and Fujiwara-senpai, if you want to, you have a chance."

"Hey! You can't do this to me, can't you just let me daydream for a little while?"

Indeed, if one's own work could be adapted into a movie of the same name and shown on such a big screen, regardless of how much money one could make, the fame of one's pen name would be raised by many levels. As for money... with enough fame, why worry about whether there is money?

Well, the pen names Fujiwara Echizen and Akane Akasaka are now well-known in the industry—a truly powerful combination!

Because they had booked their tickets in advance, they didn't have to wait too long. When they got their tickets, there were only ten minutes left before the movie started. After a brief discussion, Xu's team went to queue up to buy some drinks and snacks like popcorn.

When everyone gathered, the staff standing at the entrance of the screening room announced that we could enter. Since we were standing at the front, we didn't need to queue and went straight in. When the tickets were checked, everyone received a postcard, which was probably a small gift for watching the movie. It looked like a scene from the movie.

However, these kinds of items don't really have much collectible value. Even if you actually brought them home, they'd probably end up somewhere very soon. Of course, if they had the teacher's autograph, many people might be tempted to collect them—but that doesn't apply to me.

The screening room was quite crowded, mostly with couples—men and women, women and women, and of course, men and men. There were no exceptions like Kiritani-kun, who was a couple with a woman. The environment was somewhat dim, undoubtedly suitable for some lighthearted activities—watching movies in Japan is torture; you have to strictly adhere to silence, even suppressing laughter at certain funny parts—that's true, but it's not like that everywhere.

However, most of them will remain quiet and try not to disturb others.

As for those kinds of things in movies, like doing *that* in the theater... well, I've never seen it. In fact, I've never even seen anyone kiss in front of each other in a theater. There are plenty of people pulling out their phones though... I just think that's kind of annoying.

"This is our second time coming to see a movie."

"Well, this time it wasn't a horror movie, which is good."

Hearing this, Akane Kosaka's smile became even more helpless. If it were anyone else inviting her to a movie, she would probably want to watch a horror movie, as that would create an atmosphere that would be very favorable to the man. But when it comes to Kirito-kun, it's a different story... Is it true that doujinshi can't be Kirito's fate?

Before sitting down, Akane Kosaka gave Ayane a look, signaling her to keep an eye on the strawberries, and Ayane could only remain silent.

But to be honest, being caught in the middle is a bit uncomfortable. Lingyin knows that the chances of getting Ichigo are slim. Just from the fact that Kirito likes older men who can take care of people, she can easily draw that conclusion. However, Lingyin also understands that Kirito is not Akane's wall yet, so it's not like I can't dig Ichigo out from under the wall.

But when it comes to being asked to supervise someone—please, spare me that!

Of course, Lingyin could at least tell that Kiritani-kun favored Kousaka Akane. Regardless of who came first, in terms of maturity and understanding, Ichigo was no match for Kousaka Akane... Ah, why think so much? Just watch the movie and pretend you didn't see anything else.

Strawberry is a bit excited, after all, it's a rare opportunity to sit next to a senior while watching a movie.

However, during the movie screening, Kiritani-kun's attention was completely drawn to it.

Having been traumatized by the original film, Kiritani wanted to enjoy it properly. As long as it wasn't a horror movie or a mindless piece of trash, something somewhat interesting and not too much of a waste of time and money, that would be fine. Overall, this movie was pretty good.

Naturally, the film adaptation differed considerably from the original work. After all, not all plot points in the novel are suitable for adaptation, so some were deleted or altered. The plot remains largely the same, but the atmosphere created by the film's visuals surpasses that of the novel.

Just because Kiritani-kun can concentrate on watching a movie doesn't mean everyone else can. At least Ichigo can't. Although she didn't do anything strange and was very focused, her focus was on Kiritani-kun. She had a somewhat naive and innocent expression, intently watching Kiritani-kun's face with a slight upturn at the corners of her mouth.

More than ten minutes later, Strawberry smiled and looked away from Kirito's face. She casually placed the popcorn and drink next to Kirito and gently nudged him with her shoulder. "Senpai, here you go."

"Ah, thanks."

Instantly detached from the atmosphere created by the movie, Kiritani turned his head blankly and forced a smile... At this moment, their faces were less than ten centimeters apart, and in that instant, a thought flashed through Kiritani's mind—Ichigo is up to no good!

Calm down.

Kiritani-kun maintained his professional smile and reached out to take the strawberry from him.

Then, he realized... his right hand seemed to be held by Akane Kosaka, while his left hand could only hold a drink at most.

More importantly, when?

When did you hold it?

Why didn't I feel anything at all? And why didn't I notice any warning signs?

...These things are no longer important. What's important is that both of them seem to want to take this opportunity to do something.

Yes, this is not speculation, but a blatant fact; the signs couldn't be clearer.

...Really, I just wanted to watch a movie properly. It's not that I'm being pretentious or anything; in fact, I really hate the word "pretentious." But if I wanted to do something, couldn't I have gone somewhere else, at a different time?

gaze.

Strawberry gazed at Kiritani-kun with a smile.

"...Take one more bottle."

I put this bottle down first, then handed another bottle to Akane Kosaka, and then took the popcorn.

—If I could be even more clever, that would be even better.

Ps:

Strawberry is still too weak; its character development was never as good as Watermelon's.

522

[NO.513 Some assists always come unexpectedly]

To be honest, when you're being stared at during a movie, you can't really focus on the content. Even if the movie has a great atmosphere and some interesting parts, you just can't concentrate and end up thinking about other things. In this state, Kiritani-kun watched the movie end, waiting for the ending credits to finish and the credits to roll. He even watched the post-credits scene. The dimly lit theater was suddenly illuminated by bright lights, and the remaining guests packed up and left slowly through the side aisles.

"...Let's go too."

Turning his head to look at Akane Kosaka, Kiritani glanced almost imperceptibly at his right hand, which was still being held by Akane. Due to the long grip, Kiritani's palm was now sweaty, while Akane gave a natural smile and then released Kiritani's hand.

"The quality of this adaptation is quite good."

"Ah."

It is indeed very good. Even though Kirito only saw the middle part and couldn't concentrate on the later parts, the earlier parts alone were enough to prove its stability. However, the fact that Akane Kousaka said that made Kirito have some strange thoughts.

...Given this situation, it seems that if we propose a remake of that work, Xigua might not necessarily refuse or get angry.

Okay, I'll think about it some more and prepare more wording.

At this moment, Strawberry and Lingyin also stood up, obviously preparing to leave. However, Lingyin was talking about the highlights of the movie, while Strawberry smiled and nodded in agreement—in reality, Strawberry hadn't watched the movie much and was just going through the motions.

They left through the side door, threw their trash into a bin, and then walked out of the theater without lingering. Kiritani paused briefly, looking at the three women beside him, and asked, "Where are you going next?"

I had eaten before coming to the movie, and the movie was only 130 minutes long. There was still a long time before dinner and before the fireworks that could be seen at night, so I had to find something to do.

But soon, Kiritani regretted it.

This was because Strawberry and Lingyin had their eyes fixed on the side of the store entrance, which was touted as the scariest haunted house in history.

—So, is it too late for me to leave now?

"Want to take a look?"

Slightly taking the initiative, Akane Kosaka hugged Kiritani's arm and asked softly.

"...No!"

Kiritani's lips twitched. He was really bad at this kind of thing. Did you all really want to show off your feminine charm in front of me? No way!

"Please, please take me with you, senior."

With a hint of coquetry, Strawberry hugged Kiritani's other arm amidst Lingyin's soft gasp—the competitive atmosphere had truly intensified from this moment on.

Although Lingyin, standing at the far side, looked somewhat lost and helpless, she did resemble an abandoned girl, appearing rather pitiful.

But Lingyin wasn't thinking about whether she could find another way to hug Kirito at this moment. Instead, she was wondering if Ichigo, who usually seemed skilled at handling work, had actually been eyeing this area—the suspension bridge effect. What kind of effect would this have? Could there really be a possibility of something developing between them?

Lingyin raised her eyebrows slightly, then compared Kosaka Akane with Ichigo—well, there's probably no comparison, right? The president reportedly didn't feel much when he read "Tomie" with his seniors back then, or rather... the president has dabbled in horror manga before.

Dragged to the entrance of the haunted house, Kirito looked at the flickering images on the small screen, his expression gradually becoming indifferent. Lingyin naturally stepped forward to buy tickets. At this moment, Kirito forcefully broke free from the other two's grasp and asked the staff member with a blank expression, "Excuse me, do you have any props I can borrow?"

"...Sir, what kind of props do you need to borrow?"

"Wooden swords, preferably two."

"...Sir, please look here."

With a forced smile, the staff member pointed to the sign next to her, which clearly stated: "Please do not hit or kick the staff member playing the role of a ghost, and especially do not try to harass them. Thank you for your cooperation!" Yes, these words were repeated three times, which was enough to show their importance.

...But it's really strange, what exactly did the staff who play the ghosts here go through?

It seems like it's really not easy?

"Let's go, don't embarrass ourselves."

While Kirigaya was still staring at the girl with a complicated expression, he was pulled straight inside by Akane Kosaka. Ichigo and Ayane quickly followed, especially Ichigo, who immediately hugged Kirigaya's hand... Ayane silently clenched her fist. What am I going to do if I get scared? Who am I going to hug?!

Kiritani-kun has never been to a place like this before.

As soon as I stepped inside, I was greeted by darkness and coldness.

The background is slightly modern, with dim lighting drawing the eye to a mourning hall. As Kiritani looked over, the coffin placed in front of the hall trembled slightly, then a corner was lifted, and wisps of blue smoke billowed out, followed by what sounded like a howling wind.

Fear truly welled up in my heart.

Even if you understand that this is just a prop.

but……

Damn retarded!

Please don't pinch my arms and waist, it hurts so much!

And I'm fucking scared too!

Lingyin's left hand was being tortured by strawberries, and for some reason, she was also tugging at his clothes... To be precise, Lingyin's nails were already digging into Kiritani-kun's flesh.

His face began to contort at this moment.

"My dear mute, Kunei!"

"Oops, oops, oops!"

Nervous, nervous, nervous?

Amidst the crimson hues and darkness, one can hear screams that seem to come from near and far.

——Kuang Dang!

The rather crisp sound startled Kiritani, who immediately straightened up and clung tightly to Akane Kousaka, whose expression was obscured in the darkness. Ayane, however, went a little further, screaming and running away without a word. Ichigo, first startled by the noise and then by Ayane's reaction, completely snapped her composure, frantically darting about before disappearing into the darkness…

"Watermelon! Melon!"

"Yes, I am."

Akane Kousaka, who was holding Kirigaya tightly in her arms and whose expression was slightly uneasy, raised her hand and ruffled Kirigaya's hair. "It's okay, these are just ugly props."

"I...I'm in so much pain, and I'm so panicked!"