Tokyo: Oreimo

"My Name has now finished its opening chapter. Are you reading it at home or outside?"

While Mieko was focused on cleaning the kitchen and not paying attention to them, Ryosuke winked at Ayano.

After all, the side business was a secret between the two of them, and if the mother heard about it, it would be almost the same as if the father knew.

"You can come to my room in a bit."

Did he actually make it? This guy really wastes his energy.

Ling Nai gave him a strange look, said something, then left the table and went upstairs first.

Anyway, a layman's draft can be glanced at and won't take much time, so there's no need to take him to the studio.

Ling Nai thought to herself.

.....

In the pink room, the brother and sister sat facing each other cross-legged.

Ryosuke handed a thick notebook to Ayano.

She casually flipped through the notes and found that they contained roughly a hundred pages of content.

"You're quite capable, you've done so much in three days?"

Ling Nai couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

"I've roughly completed about ten chapters, which should keep you busy for a while. I estimate the entire series will be 140 chapters, and I can finish it within a month after the winter break."

The 140 episodes that Ryosuke mentioned are a relatively accurate number derived from the adaptation of the anime version.

It includes all the main story content from the Cardcaptor Sakura TV series, including the 'Clow Card Arc' and its sequel, as well as the 'Sakura Card Arc'.

If he had followed the original manga, the content could have been condensed to seventy chapters, but he felt that would have been too thin, so he simply went with his own ideas.

"One hundred and forty chapters? What nonsense are you spouting?"

Looking at Ryosuke's confident expression, Ling Nai couldn't help but purse her lips.

What? This kind of blind confidence is simply irresistible.

It's as if they were absolutely certain that their work would be a huge hit, without ever considering the possibility that it would be canceled or even rejected by the editors.

Whether it has the value to be a comic book or not, you can probably tell after reading the first chapter, right?

Ling Nai, holding her breath, flipped to the first page of the notebook with considerable resentment.

When her gaze fell on the notebook, she paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"What kind of drawing is this? It's all crooked and messy. It's really funny."

Ryosuke smiled helplessly.

There was nothing he could do; he had done his best, but that was all he could manage, enough to make people barely understand what he was trying to express.

"Don't be too picky about the drawing skills for the draft. Just make do with it. Aren't you going to be in charge of the final artwork?"

"You sound so confident. Let me see. Don't blame me for being too sharp in my evaluation. I'm a bestselling comic artist!"

Ling Nai wrinkled her pink nose and gave a soft hum.

She began to focus her attention on the story itself.

The story of Cardcaptor Sakura begins with a dream of the protagonist, Sakura Kinomoto.

"A work aimed at women? This guy definitely has some strange fetishes."

Ling Nai glared at Ryosuke, then continued reading.

Sakura Kinomoto dreamt that she was standing on Tokyo Tower, surrounded by many cards.

After waking up in the morning, she hurriedly caught up with her brother Touya so that she could go to school with him and meet her crush, Yukito Tsukishiro.

"Is it a classic trope where the protagonist, an ordinary person, awakens a special power and begins an adventure?"

The plot of the first few pages was relatively bland, but in her opinion, there were no major errors or omissions, although Ryosuke's shoddy drawing skills made her feel a bit out of place.

She patiently continued reading.

The notes show a scene that shifts to after school when the student returns home.

Sakura heard a noise coming from the study in the basement. She mustered her courage and went down to investigate, where she discovered a book that was emitting a golden light.

She opened the book and found the card inside, with English words written on it.

Just like Sakura in the notebook, Ling Nai subconsciously read out the name of the first card upon seeing this scene.

"THE WINDY?"

Turn to the next page of your notes.

In the scene, a strong wind blows, and when Sakura comes to her senses, all the other cards in the book have scattered everywhere, leaving only the "Wind" card in her hand.

Immediately following, in the next section, an 'unnamed' creature appears, who calls itself the guardian of the magic book—the sealed beast Keroberos.

Seeing this, Ling Nai took a deep breath in surprise and looked at Ryosuke, who was dozing off to the side.

"This guy doesn't seem to be just joking around."

Chapter 18 Work

She has experience with serialization, but she is still a newcomer and cannot create artwork that actively caters to the market.

Therefore, as a standard of judgment, Ryouno examines Ryosuke's NAME from the perspective of only one reader.

But it is precisely because of this that Takashiro Ryōno was able to sense the difference.

When she subconsciously uttered the word 'THE WIND,' she was already unconsciously drawn into the story.

Is it really true that someone with a good brain can do anything?

Ling Nai suddenly felt a little discouraged.

She discovered that her only source of pride, her talent, seemed to be something that Ryosuke could surpass.

"Damn it, I'm so jealous!"

If I praise him to his face, he might laugh at me.

Takashiro Ryouno pouted and glared at Ryosuke with obvious displeasure.

At this moment, Ryosuke leaned against the cabinet in her room, and the warmth of the room made him doze off.

He was busy until very late last night, and he barely managed to get out of bed this morning. His belated biological instincts made him crave rest.

Takashiro Ryouno ignored him and continued turning the pages of the manga, her mind gradually sinking into it.

The first two episodes are not fast-paced, mainly focusing on the background, with the sealed beast Kero explaining the origin of the Clow Cards and Sakura's family background.

Because the 'Wind Card' scattered all the other cards, Sakura has the responsibility to gather them all back into the spellbook.

He then signed a contract with Xiao Ke and gained the ability to unlock the key seal.

Ling Nai paused for a moment at the end of the second chapter.

With the 'Flying Card' causing trouble, the main storyline quickly shifts, and the protagonist, Sakura Kinomoto, will directly reveal the core settings of the work.

The notebook contained a line of dialogue, and she could roughly make out that Kinomoto Sakura was holding a key in the scene depicted in the storyboard.

[Key that conceals the power of darkness, reveal your true power before me! Sakura, who made a promise to you, commands you: Release the seal!]

"Is it a setting where cards are used to cast spells via a magic wand? By the way, are these cards inspired by tarot cards?"

Ling Nai flipped through the notes more and more slowly, and her gaze lingered on the contents for much longer than at the beginning.

Sakura used the Wind Card to entangle 'Flying', which was trying to escape, and finally successfully sealed it away.

The new cards have fallen into Sakura's hands and can be used as a means for her to employ later.

"It's surprisingly interesting."

The girl sat cross-legged on the floor, her body seemingly restless.

After seeing Sakura activate the 'Flying' card in the notes and soar through the sky, the third episode officially ends.

Ling Nai let out a long sigh of relief and closed the notebook.

She stood up without a word, then stretched out her long right leg and kicked Ryosuke, who was dozing off to the side.

boom--

Ryosuke woke up with a start, feeling some pain in his shoulder.

He opened his eyes and saw Takashiro Ryouno standing beside him as if nothing had happened.

"Let's go to the studio. I'll try to draw some sketches for you."

"Hmm? So, you've approved of my NAME, right?"

"Humph."

Takashiro Ryouno tossed her head, her golden hair flying behind Ryosuke.

"You're still far from good enough, but you do have some talent. I'll reluctantly agree to work with you this once."

"Oh."

Ryosuke got up from the ground, chuckled, and then followed Ling Nai out of the room.

The quality of Cardcaptor Sakura needs no introduction; the creator has considerable confidence that its unique concept will easily attract attention in an era dominated by magical girls.

Moreover, the plot itself is coherent and well-paced.

How could such a work, which has been passed down for more than 20 years and has not been forgotten, really be as forced as Ling Nai said?

"By the way, you just kicked me, didn't you?"

"No, you had a nightmare."

"Oh."

.....

After greeting Mieko, the brother and sister took the tram and arrived at Takashiro Ryouno's secret base once again.

"How much would the rent be per month for this studio?"