Full-time comic artist

Everyone's eyes immediately turned to him, their expressions filled with surprise and uncertainty. "It can't be that bad, can it?"

He asked, puzzled, "Huh? Doesn't anyone else have this thought?"

"No, no," the person shook their head repeatedly.

“Don’t do anything reckless,” a burly man said. “I don’t want Torikino to go on hiatus.”

"That's right, that's right."

……

Hibiki Higashino sat in the chair, feeling the anger of many people.

If he had a negative energy system, he might have a great harvest.

If I die, what will Toriyama and the others think?

Or……

Without even a moment's mourning for the death of Akino Tori, Hirohiko Araki rushed to the scene.

"Teacher, calm down," Yoshida whispered. "I looked carefully, and only one in ten people want to beat you up."

Oh, so that means there are a thousand people here who want to beat me up?

Wouldn't that mean being beaten into mincemeat?

Higashino Hibiki only breathed a sigh of relief when he was surrounded by security personnel.

At ten o'clock, the organizers announced that the autograph session had officially begun.

……

Readers lined up, handing their copies of "Little Circle" to Koji Yoshida, who then passed them on to Hibiki Higashino.

Ten minutes passed, and everything was going smoothly; there seemed to be no problems.

Higashino Hibiki also breathed a sigh of relief.

That's right, it's just a comic book, there's no need to break the law.

Readers also really like "Puella Magi Madoka Magica". Although it is a tragedy and it is no wonder that it makes people sad and cry, these aspects are also indispensable to "Puella Magi Madoka Magica".

They like "Puella Magi Madoka Magica" and can accept the increasingly depressing plot.

The underlying tone of the work was already established from the time of Mami Tomoe's death.

"Teacher, please give Sayaka a happy ending."

Higashino Hibiki heard someone say in a deep voice.

Unlike the Slam Dunk book signing event, this time, readers didn't excitedly tell Hibiki Higashino which characters or storylines they liked.

Instead, he remained silent, took the autograph, and left.

It's terribly oppressive.

When someone spoke up, Higashino Hibiki breathed a sigh of relief.

He looked up at the reader, "This plot was decided when I was drawing 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica'..."

"I'm sorry," he apologized, "I've put you in a difficult position."

……

After that, people started speaking one after another.

"Tori Akino, you must have a crush on Naoko Takeuchi, otherwise you wouldn't have drawn magical girls in such a dark and gruesome way."

Physical attacks are not allowed, but some people resort to psychological attacks.

"You drew Sailor Moon when you were serializing Slam Dunk, and now you're even drawing magical girl manga. It's as clear as day."

"I dare not confess my feelings, so I can only express them in my works."

"How pitiful."

Hibiki Higashino felt as if he had become Jiangnan, the author of "Dragon Raja".

Readers were angry because of the poor ending of "Dragon Raja" and the lack of growth in Lu Mingfei, so they used Jiang Nan's unrequited love for his senior to tease and joke about Jiang Nan.

But Tori Akino Mirai's crime doesn't warrant this.

That's to say, Jiangnan is real.

The claim that Akino Mirai likes Naoko Takeuchi is completely baseless rumor.

Higashino Hibiki knew that the readers knew the whole story and just wanted to use this to annoy himself.

……

"Teacher, please be sure to continue drawing like this."

Some people will encourage and support Higashino Hibiki.

"If you modify the work because of external pressure, then it won't be 'Little Circle' anymore. Please continue drawing according to your own ideas."

"Yes, thank you," Higashino Hibiki said, looking up.

"Teacher, you draw very well."

"I really like Madoka. Although everyone says she's cowardly, can't do anything, and is slow to become a magical girl, I think Madoka is the last hope for this manga. If she's defeated by reality and becomes a magical girl, then that last hope will be gone."

"I really like your work, teacher. You've worked so hard for so long."

"Keep up the good work!"

This made Higashino Hibiki feel much better.

Those who criticize themselves are a minority; the majority of people support themselves.

"I'm on the teacher's side."

A cute voice rang out, and Higashino Hibiki looked up to find it was Hoshino Katsura.

"Hello, Hoshino-sensei."

“Teacher,” Hoshino Katsura pursed her lips, “Although I am very sad, about Sayaka’s story, about Sakura Kyoko’s story… I like you very much, so I can’t be angry.”

Reading Akino Mirai's manga has become a habit for Hoshino Katsura.

Before meeting Akino Tori, she was already studying the manga techniques from "Hikaru no Go" and "Slam Dunk".

That was also her spiritual nourishment during her student days.

"Thank you, I appreciate it," Higashino Hibiki said with a smile. "But please don't say things like that in front of my wife, she loves me quite a bit."

“It’s that kind of liking for a teacher,” Hoshino Katsura stomped her foot.

“I was just kidding,” Hibiki Higashino handed her the manga, “Remember to get some rest.”

"I know."

Katsura Hoshino waved goodbye to Hibiki Higashino.

……

"Because of my teacher, I'm also drawing magical girl stories."

This question really bothered Hibiki Higashino. "Are you... Mr. Kobayashi Jin?"

"Huh?" Kobayashi exclaimed in surprise, his eyes widening in disbelief. "The teacher knows me too!"

"You're the author of 'School Rumble,' right? I really like that manga."

"This really caught me off guard," Kobayashi said, rubbing his cheek. "It hurts."

"I must not be dreaming. My idolized teacher actually likes my comics."

Hibiki Higashino said, "Because the characters in School Rumble are so vivid and the plot is so funny."

"Which character does the teacher like?" Kobayashi leaned closer to Higashino and asked in a low voice.

“Sawachika Airi,” Higashino Hibiki said, “The young lady is very charming, with a very girlish heart.”

"Understood." Kobayashi nodded.

"So?" Hibiki Higashino asked in surprise, "Can Sawachika Airi be made the female lead?"

"Of course not," Kobayashi Jin said. "We can't just do that!"

Yoshida, who was listening in, nodded. Sure enough, manga artists take their work very seriously.

“What I mean is,” Kobayashi said, squinting, “that Teacher’s ‘Little Circle’ made me feel very uncomfortable, and I have to do something to repay you.”

Yoshida nearly fell over upon hearing this.

Kobayashi laughed heartily and left.

"What a weirdo," Yoshida remarked.

“Yoshida-kun,” Hibiki Higashino smiled slightly, seemingly confident, “Actually, my favorite character is Tsukamoto Yakumo.”

"Teacher, you're a child too!"

……

Lunch break.

While eating lunch, Yoshida was thinking about the sequel to "Puella Magi Madoka Magica" and felt a mix of emotions.

"Teacher, everyone really likes 'Little Circle'."

Whether they were encouraging Akino Mirai or hurling insults, Yoshida understood from their expressions that these people were all completely immersed in the story of "Puella Magi Madoka Magica" and couldn't extricate themselves.

I genuinely love the works created by Tori Akino.

But after "Little Circle"...

It's getting darker and darker.

Can these people withstand it?

"Is this a green pepper? Ugh, it tastes awful." Higashino Hibiki picked through the vegetables in his bento box. "It has a bitter taste. I'll make it for my future wife."

"teacher!"

"Ok?"