Master of the Machete Style Manga

Chapter 80: Want to sleep with him?
In the morning, Natsume Mio went to a beauty salon next to Shueisha to get her hair done.

She received a shampoo, haircut, perm, and coloring. The beautician also massaged her shoulders, neck, arms, and forearms, providing exceptionally refined service.

If it's the store she used to frequent, the one closest to home, and she has her mother's membership card, the price for such a set would be around 15000 yen.

She checked the prices at this shop today, and a full haircut, perm, and coloring package would cost 50,000 yuan!

Even if there are some discounts for members, it's still super expensive. She definitely wouldn't come here to spend money herself.

But it really is beautiful!

The mixed color is exactly the same as the hair color in the color page drawn by A-Jian. It shines under the light but does not look greasy. It looks as natural as if the hair is this color by itself.

At noon, I ate lunch with editor Kaji at the office, and then I started getting my makeup done until the filming began.

She was dressed in a Machima uniform, striking a queen-like pose, holding a sample book with a formal cover but a blank interior, and giving a recommendation to the camera.

The entire shoot went smoothly, and it was approved in three takes. Now we can just wait to see the video on JUMP's various official accounts.

According to editor Jia Zhi, if Chainsaw Man's popularity continues to rise, and the initial print run is high enough, it may be possible to place advertisements on television.

So I'm someone who's been on TV!

Natsume Mio was in a great mood today and didn't even bother to remove her makeup before going home.

She ran excitedly to the living room, twirled in front of her mother, Natsume Chiho, her braids swinging behind her.

"Mom! Look at my new hairstyle!"

Her pink hair shimmered under the light, making her look like a heroine straight out of a comic book.

Natsume Chiho looked her daughter over carefully, a smile of satisfaction spreading across her face: "She's so beautiful, I almost didn't recognize our Mio."

"Hehe, it's for a promotional video for Ken's work, and I did the styling specifically for it," Natsume Mio said.

"Is it the boy you like?"

"Ok!"

"That's amazing! Mio, keep it up! Writers are very popular," Natsume Chiho said.

Natsume Mio sat down next to her mother and said, "I brought him a bento box over the weekend, and he really liked it."

"Oh?" Natsume Chiho asked, "What was his reaction? Did he eat it without hesitation?"

"And she even praised my bento box for being delicious," Natsume Mio said.

"Hmm...not bad." Natsume Chiho nodded in satisfaction and said, "Then Mom thinks you can try to take it a step further next."

"Go further?"

"For example... holding hands? Or hugging," Natsume Chiho coaxed gently.

"Huh? Is it okay now?" Natsume Mio's voice suddenly became much softer.

Chiho Natsume keenly caught the meaning in her daughter's words: "You've already done it?"

Natsume Mio's face flushed instantly, but she still nodded slightly and made a barely audible "Mmm".

"I just... hugged her," Natsume Mio said softly.

"Did you take the initiative?"

Mio Natsume nodded again.

"From the front or the back?" Mom's questions became increasingly specific.

"...The back." "And his reaction?" This was the question Natsume Chiho was most concerned about.

Natsume Mio recalled the scene and described it softly, "It was a little... hard..."

"Ok?"

Natsume Chiho's eyes widened instantly, staring intently at Natsume Mio.

Natsume Mio was startled by her mother's reaction and hurriedly waved her hands, explaining in a flustered manner, "Ah! No, no! Mom, what I mean is, when I picked him up, he was a little stiff, his body was very tense..."

Hearing this explanation, Natsume Chiho breathed a long sigh of relief, then smiled knowingly: "I see... That means Ken is very naive. Could it be that he's never been in a relationship before?"

"Yeah, they probably haven't talked about it." Natsume Mio was certain of this, since they had always been in the same class and she had always been paying attention to him.

“Oh…” Natsume Chiho nodded thoughtfully, “That’s quite rare, Mio, you should cherish it.”

"I will!" Natsume Mio chuckled and nodded vigorously.

“Now that you’re involved in his work, that’s great. It means you’re becoming part of his business,” Natsume Chiho continued, sharing her experience. “Also, you mentioned last time that his editor is a woman, right? If you have the chance, you should definitely try to win her over, become friends with her, and chat with her a lot. Maybe she can give you a boost.”

“Editor-san… I’m very close to her,” Natsume Mio said. “She’s been teaching me about things in the industry, and I’ve been learning a lot lately.”

Natsume Mio carefully wrote down every word her mother said, feeling that her romantic skills were rapidly improving.

"By the way, Mio, I wanted to ask you, you're not thinking about sleeping with him, are you?" Natsume Chiho said.

"Huh? No, no! No, no!" Natsume Mio waved her hands repeatedly.

“Although boys like erotic things, if you rush things, the relationship won’t be stable. You have to take it slow.” Natsume Chiho thought for a moment and then added, “Of course, it’s hard to say. You’ve come this far, and I’ve given you all the advice I can. Now it’s up to you to do your best.”

"Ok!"

“By the way, Mio, you just had your hair styled like the heroine in his manga, and your makeup looks great too. Actually, this would be the perfect time to go see him, even if it's just for a quick meeting,” Natsume Chiho said. “After all, you probably don’t usually do your makeup this meticulously on your own.”

“That’s right, it would be such a waste to put on this makeup and just stay at home!” Natsume Mio agreed with her mother.

“However,” Natsume Chiho’s expression suddenly turned serious, “Mom wants to remind you, you must be careful.”

She paused, then looked at her daughter with a knowing look: "If you run out, you can ask Mom for more."

Natsume Mio paused for two seconds before realizing what her mother meant. Her face instantly turned red, but thankfully she was wearing makeup, so her blushing wasn't noticeable.

"Mom! What are you thinking..."

She quickly got up, ran upstairs, and returned to her room.

Natsume Mio leaned against the door, her heart still pounding.

She sat on the chair for a while, rubbing her slightly flushed face, and it took her a while to calm down.

It's decided. I'll head to A-Jian's house right away; he's probably working on his manuscript there.

If the bento wasn't prepared in advance, then delivering bento is not an acceptable excuse...

No, no, don't overthink it!
What's wrong with just going to see Ah Jian? There's no need to make up an excuse.

Natsume Mio opened her shoulder bag, rummaged through it, and took out the small square box from the innermost compartment.

It was given to her secretly by her mother last time.

Let alone using it, I've never even taken it out...

After looking it over carefully, she put the box back into the inner compartment of her backpack.

(End of this chapter)