Tokyo: Oreimo

For some reason, she felt that she and the other person had a hard time getting along. Even a casual joke from Ryosuke could make her unhappy.

Why do you insist on seeing my original manuscript?

Once on the tram, Ling Nai couldn't help but ask a question.

"Don't ask unnecessary questions. I will tell you after I have looked into it."

Ryosuke gave a casual, perfunctory reply.

This guy!

Remembering that she still had something to ask of him, Ling Nai suppressed her anger for the time being.

The two got along peacefully on the way, and the tram soon arrived at the station.

Sakae-cho Station.

Ryosuke had already confirmed the address of Lingnai's studio with her before leaving.

It is located in an apartment near Sakae-cho Station.

As for why I chose this place, besides the cheap rent, the proximity to the property was also a factor.

It's a place that can be reached in about fifteen minutes by bike.

Led by Ling Nai, Ryosuke quickly arrived at the entrance of her studio.

Insert the key, and the apartment door opens.

Ling Nai stepped inside first, and before Liang Jie could enter, the door was closed.

"Wait at the door for a moment, I need to tidy up."

Even Ruri Aragaki had never been to this place; to her, it was a top secret.

Ryosuke had no interest in prying into other people's privacy, so he waited at the door for a while.

About ten minutes later, the studio door opened.

Ling Nai poked her head in. "Come in."

As soon as Ryosuke entered, he looked around with curiosity. Whether in his past life or this one, this was the first time he had ever visited a manga artist's studio.

But Ling Nai's secret base was nothing like what he had imagined.

Waste paper was piled up everywhere, and there were two rows of display shelves that looked like bookshelves, covered with a thick black cloth.

There was no dust on them, and Ryosuke guessed that Ling Nai had been tidying up inside to cover up the bookshelves.

At the far end of the studio is a sloping table.

He had seen this kind of facility on the internet; it was a cartoonist's workbench.

"Here, this is my latest manuscript, the latest chapter. Be careful when you read it, or I'll kill you!"

Takashiro Ryou handed over a thick stack of original manuscripts, which had not yet been affixed with stickers and had only reached the tracing stage.

Ryosuke picked it up and casually flipped through a few pages.

"That's really well drawn; you're very talented."

This was a genuine compliment from him.

Ling Nai was taken aback by the sudden praise.

My heart suddenly started pounding. This was the first time I'd been praised to my face, apart from Editor Iori.

This caused her to stammer a little, "What, why are you suddenly saying such things... I'm a bestselling author! Isn't it only natural that I draw well?"

"As far as I know, 'Moon Witch Transformation' should be ending soon, right? What are your plans for a new project?"

Ryosuke suddenly spoke up and asked.

Takashiro Ryouno was taken aback by what he said, then shook her head.

"I don't have any new ideas yet. Come to think of it, this comic seems to have used up all my inspiration..."

This is also a source of her trouble.

Although it's impressive that her debut work became a huge hit, only she, as the author, knows how grueling the serialization process was.

The fact that she drew the Moon Witch's transformation to this extent is already the result of her racking her brains.

Until later on, the painting process involved almost constant repetition of the template.

The story follows the protagonist, the Moon Witch, from her confused daily life to discovering a crisis, then her fear and retreat, and finally, her battle.

It was also out of this consideration that Ling Nai subconsciously pushed the work toward its conclusion.

Because she felt the story was starting to get boring.

As for new stories, she simply didn't have the time to come up with ideas, let alone create artwork.

"is it?"

Ryosuke handed the manuscript back to Ayano.

"How about we collaborate?"

"What do you mean? What exactly do you want to do?"

Takashiro Ryou looked at her older brother standing in front of her with some confusion.

"The prerequisite for tutoring you is that I hope you can create a comic with me. I will be responsible for the production of the NAME, and you will be responsible for the original artwork. We will split the profits 50/50."

Ryosuke Takagi leaned against the workbench, took a dip pen from the pen holder, and wrote five words on a piece of paper.

He handed the paper to his sister, who was looking completely bewildered.

Ling Nai looked at the words above and subconsciously read them aloud.

"Cardcaptor Sakura?"

Chapter 15 Preparations

"Judging from the name, is it also a magical girl theme, like Moon Witch Transformation?"

"Wait a minute, do you even know anything about comics? Not just any work can be serialized. Where do you get your confidence from?"

Ling Nai looked over with a hint of doubt.

Although Ryosuke has excellent grades, studying and drawing manga are two different things. There are plenty of smart people, but not everyone can become a manga artist.

Even a draft like a name requires the ability to write a story.

As someone directly involved, Ling Nai knew all too well how difficult it was to serialize a manga; it wasn't something anyone could do casually.

Indeed, "Moon Witch Transformation" is a huge success, but even she herself is not confident that her next work will be approved.

Even if a manuscript is approved, maintaining a stable serialization without being canceled is an extremely difficult task.

For Ling Nai, the success of this work is almost impossible to replicate. It's not that no one has tried to imitate her and debut, but works of the same genre have all ended up failing miserably.

Ryosuke didn't answer Ayano's question directly. He couldn't very well tell her that his work had already been validated by the market in another world, could he?

"I will provide you with the NAME draft for the first ten chapters in a few days. If you feel it is not suitable, you can refuse me. The tutoring I promised you will still be effective."

What? Just playing around?

Ryoko Takashiro raised an eyebrow. As a manga artist, she was very familiar with all the popular and best-selling manga, which was a basic skill of hers.

This has also cultivated a basic aesthetic sense; whether a name is acceptable or not, you can tell after looking at it.

Even a poorly drawn masterpiece can still captivate the viewer.

Ling Nai absolutely did not mean to name any specific works.

"That's what you said!"

She nodded in agreement.

If that's the case, she could reject Ryosuke's work before the official artwork is even finished.

Wouldn't that mean we could get benefits for free?

Takagi Ryouno didn't take the five words Ryosuke wrote on the paper seriously at all.

"That's right, it's settled then."

Ryosuke extended his hand. "It's a pleasure doing business with you."

Takashiro Ryouko slapped his hand away with obvious disdain. "Let's talk about it after you produce the NAME. My standards are very high."

"Oh."

Ryosuke shrugged and didn't say anything more.

.....

When I got home from the studio, it was almost dinnertime.

Ryosuke didn't forget the important matter and even took Ryo to the bookstore to buy a whole set of review materials.

Entrance exams are nothing more than a matter of doing practice questions.

Ryosuke had already compiled the question bank for Chiba Prefecture last year, and he bought the latest version to make sure there would be no changes.

"You don't expect me to finish all these review questions, do you? You might as well just sentence me to death."

Ling Nai held the thick study materials that almost reached her chin, her face looking extremely pale.

What a joke! If she had the time and patience to do so many questions, how could her grades be this bad?

Ryosuke, standing to the side, was also carrying two stacks of books. Including the ones Ling Nai was carrying, the amount of exercises was enough for a normal student to work on for a week without sleep.

"Don't worry, these are just questions I bought to compile a question bank for tutoring you; there isn't that much of them."

Even if Ling Naizhen could concentrate on these questions, Ryosuke wouldn't have enough energy to answer them all.

A smart person won't try to teach a fool how to solve a problem.

All he needed to do was condense the essence of it, select the questions that might appear on the entrance exam, and train her repeatedly.

"It would be best if it were the same as what you said."

Ling Nai glared at him but didn't say anything more.