Tokyo: Oreimo

This is a talented individual, judging from an artist's perspective.

Indeed, when it comes to drawing, having talent and not having talent are two completely different things.

Just like Ling Nai, without any professional instruction, she was able to master that exaggerated technique simply by figuring it out on her own.

The same goes for Horiuchi Ayumi, who is drawing purely out of interest, yet her work has already surpassed that of many artists.

“The shoulders are too narrow.” Ryosuke pointed to the image on the screen. “And the eyes, they should be tilted up a little.”

"You can even tell that?"

Ayumi looked up, somewhat surprised.

"I've seen too many drafts," Ryosuke casually brushed it off.

This wasn't entirely a lie. Ling Nai's studio was filled with the original manuscripts he had been studying, and over time, he had indeed become very perceptive about the details of the drawings.

"Next up is Kurogiri Mikiya."

Ryosuke continued, "He's male. His characteristic is that he's ordinary, yet extraordinary. He won't be noticed by anyone in a crowd; he's the kind of person who isn't aggressive at all."

"What kind of saying is that? It's ordinary yet extraordinary?"

Ayumi couldn't help but complain, "What kind of requirements are these?"

Is this something that humans can truly understand?

"In short, first draw the basic shape, then make adjustments..."

“…”

Ayumi could only follow her imagination and quickly completed the draft of Mikiya Kokutou.

After Ryosuke made numerous corrections and revisions in over a dozen places, the character finally took shape.

The entire scene was reconstructed, and Ayumi found her direction, began to fill in her imagination, and finally completed it.

"Well done," Ryosuke praised sincerely.

"Thank you for the compliment."

Ayumi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

For some reason, when she was drawing these figures, she felt an unprecedented sense of tension, as if an invisible hand was squeezing her basic drawing skills and pushing her toward the direction she imagined.

It felt like someone was teaching her how to draw, step by step.

That's so strange. Could it be that this newcomer is actually a very talented artist?

Otherwise, it doesn't make any sense at all, given that he clearly has such strong composition skills.

Looking at the final draft on the computer screen, the scene of the two protagonists' first encounter in the snow can almost instantly draw you into the story.

Did you really draw this yourself?

When did she acquire this skill level?

"Takashiro-kun."

Ayumi put down her pen.

Can you draw?

"I guess I can. Didn't I just show you?"

Ryosuke maintained a relaxed tone.

That can be considered a painting?

Horiuchi Ayumi's lips twitched.

The activity room was silent for about three seconds.

Horiuchi Ayumi glanced once more at the image of their first encounter on the snowy night on the computer screen, then shifted her gaze back to Ryosuke's face.

Her gaze was no longer simply one of curiosity, but rather one of scrutiny.

"Takashiro-kun."

"Ok?"

"You gave me about twenty suggestions for improvement on my drawing, and each one was so accurate that I couldn't refute them."

Ayumi put down the digital pen, crossed her arms, and leaned back in her chair.

“I’ve been drawing doujinshi for two years now, and I’ve collaborated with Tanaka several times. That guy would only say ‘it doesn’t feel right’ or ‘make it more handsome.’ He’s never been as precise as you, down to the character’s shoulder width and the angle of the corners of the eyes.”

Ryosuke picked up the kettle, took a sip, and his expression remained unchanged.

"You mean I'm too picky?"

"That's not what I meant. I wanted to ask, who exactly are you?"

Ayumi squinted, leaned forward, and lowered her voice, "A newbie? Don't be ridiculous. I may not be a genius artist, but I can at least tell the difference between amateurish directions and guidance from a true expert."

Her tone didn't sound like she was joking.

Looking at her serious expression, Ryosuke suddenly found it a little funny, but also a little gratifying.

The funny thing is that I came here to be a "normal college student", but I messed up my first club activity.

Reassuringly, this vice president does indeed have excellent observation skills; at least when it comes to painting, her intuition is very accurate.

"I really just have a knack for visuals." Ryosuke shrugged, trying to steer the conversation away from there. "You can't draw yourself, but you know what a good visual should look like. That's not too uncommon, is it?"

Horiuchi Ayumi became even more suspicious.

She glanced down at the simple sketch that Ryosuke had just pushed over; the human figure in the picture certainly showed no signs of any professional training whatsoever.

But it was precisely because the painting was so ugly that it created a stark contrast with the professionalism he displayed when speaking.

This person has contradictions about him.

"Never mind, everyone has their own secrets."

Ayumi finally sighed and picked up her digital pen again. "If you don't want to say, I won't press you, but I'll remember the favor you did for me by helping me revise the drawing."

Ryosuke blinked.

He actually wanted to ask, "Is this considered a favor?", but seeing Ayumi's serious expression, he felt that asking that might be a bit impolite to her.

So he simply nodded.

"So, are you going to continue writing? Or should you first take a look at the first draft of Ryougi Shiki and see if there are any adjustments needed?"

Ayumi turned the laptop toward Ryosuke. On the screen, a girl in a kimono and leather jacket stood in a snowy alley, a corpse lying at her feet, her gaze calmly fixed off-screen.

Ryosuke was silent for a few seconds, then nodded.

"There's nothing that needs adjusting; it's drawn very well."

This simple comment inexplicably relieved Ayumi Horiuchi.

Even though I am the vice president, I have the illusion that I am reporting to a senior.

This is truly bizarre.

Chapter 235 Idiot, What Girlfriend? (Combined Chapter)

The door to the activity room was suddenly pushed open from the outside, making such a loud noise that the whole room shook.

"Sorry I'm late!"

Tian Zhongxue stumbled in, carrying a brand-new graphics tablet in his arms; the corner of the packaging box almost hit the door frame.

"The cash register at that electronics store suddenly crashed. I waited there for almost twenty minutes. Then at the station, I saw someone handing out free drinks, but it turned out to be yogurt, and it even got my clothes dirty..."

He rambled on about why he was late, placed several boxes on the table, and only then did he notice that there were other people in the activity room.

"Oh! Takashiro-kun! You've arrived!"

"President, your voice is too loud."

Ayumi frowned and gave a reminder, but Tian Zhongxue didn't pay any attention; his gaze was already fixed on Ayumi's computer screen.

He leaned closer to the screen, tilted his head, looked at it for a few seconds, and then made a loud noise.

"Ayumi! What is this? Did you draw it? You've improved a lot lately! When did you draw this? I've never seen it before. Is it a new work?"

Tian Zhongxue was practically hunched over the screen, his nose almost touching the monitor.

"This composition, this atmosphere, and that gaze...it's amazing, isn't it?" He straightened up and announced in a tone as if he had discovered a new continent, "Ayumi, you've evolved! Have you been secretly training behind my back?"

"It's not special training, it's..."

"I knew you had potential! When you get serious, you're really amazing! This kimono and leather jacket combination is so striking! How did you come up with this combination? It's incredibly cool!"

Ayumi opened her mouth, glancing at Ryosuke instinctively, as if to explain.

But Tian Zhongxue didn't give her a chance to interrupt. He grabbed Ayumi's shoulder and shook her excitedly twice.

"Great! This will boost our club's fighting strength even further!"

"No, this picture is..."

"Oh right! I almost forgot the most important thing! Gao Cheng, are you free this weekend?"

Suddenly, Tanaka slapped his forehead, released Ayumi's shoulder, and turned to look at Ryosuke.

"weekend?"

Ryosuke thought back on his schedule.

Last week, I went over the script for the new work with Saori. Lingna is currently preparing for the next monthly test and will probably be dragged to the library by Ruri for tutoring, so she shouldn't be clinging to him.

"I should be free."

Ryosuke replied.

"Great! There's a small doujinshi festival in the Akihabara electronics district this weekend!"

Tian Zhongchu pulled a crumpled flyer from his bag, which read "Akihabara Electric Town Festival - Doujinshi Sale". "Although it's not as big as Comic Market, quite a few clubs are participating. Our manga club had some unsold doujinshi from last year, so we'll take this opportunity to put them up for sale again."

"What's left over from last year?"

"To be honest," Tian Zhongxue scratched his head and chuckled awkwardly, "Last winter, we printed over a hundred copies of fan fiction for COMI, but about twenty copies were left unsold and have been sitting in a cardboard box in the corner of the activity room."