Tokyo: Earth Online Manga Artist

Chapter 77 Peace Warriors Don't Eat Pears

It has to be said that beauty, when combined with talent, still generates a lot of buzz.

Because of the leaked photos of Eri Aragaki, discussions about Attack on Titan have increased significantly this week.

In the past, the discussion surrounding Attack on Titan was just so-so, after all, Attack on Titan has never been adapted into an anime, although it ranked in the top ten in popularity in the magazine's reader survey.

But its popularity online is really just average.

Of course, those comics that rank outside the top ten in popularity, even lower than Attack on Titan, generate even less discussion.

But this week, photos of Eri Aragaki herself, and the topic of how the author of the Attack on Titan manga is actually a cute girl and a beautiful young woman, have emerged.

Comic fans and netizens certainly have something to say!

This has even led some to compare Eri Aragaki with other female manga artists in the industry, especially those who are also known for their beauty.

"No wonder... I felt something was off about the name 'Not Eats Pears' from the start, it sounded like a girl's name."

"It's a girl's name, 'Doesn't Eat Pears'... Naoko Takeuchi, look how similar it is!"

"That's true... Naoko Takeuchi was famous for her beauty when she was young."

(P.S.: Naoko Takeuchi, like her manga protagonists, was a famously beautiful young woman!)

"Naoko Takeuchi was a famous beauty and rich girl when she was young. What a despicable old scoundrel! What did he do to deserve marrying such a beauty as Naoko Takeuchi!"

"Old thief? Who are you talking about?"

"Yoshihiro Togashi! Don't you know that Naoko Takeuchi is that old scoundrel's wife?"

"I don't usually pay attention to cartoonists' private lives, so I really didn't know..."

"But I think she looks better without eating pears. She's so fair-skinned, her skin is practically glowing, and her features are so delicate. Is she mixed race?"

“She does look better without eating pears. She looks a lot like an actress or model on TV, especially her nose and face shape. I think she looks a bit like Ying Longhua.”

"Her eyes are quite similar to Erika's; she really has an innate sense of aloofness and sophistication."

……

In 2007, while beauty wasn't an absolute scarce resource, it wasn't so abundant that it became so cookie-cutter as it is today.

Especially top-tier beauty is extremely rare and precious.

Eri Aragaki's character model is top-notch, and she's even been compared to Erika Sawajiri, who became famous for her beauty in the Japanese drama "One Litre of Tears" two years ago.

Some people even started to fantasize.

"But after all, Naoko Takeuchi was a rich and beautiful woman when she was young, so if I had to choose, I would choose Naoko Takeuchi!"

"Wow! It turns out that she's a rich and beautiful girl who doesn't eat pears. Someone recognized her and said she was her former classmate."

"seriously?"

"There's even a graduation photo. She was in the same class as me in junior high. It turns out that she really is a rich and beautiful girl, and she also excelled in her studies and got into Tokyo Metropolitan University."

"Does getting into Tokyo Metropolitan University qualify someone as having excellent academic performance?"

"Huh? Now only universities like Tokyo University, Waseda University, and Keio University are considered to have good academic performance?"

"Those who can get into Tokyo Metropolitan University are considered top students, right? I heard that Bu Chi Li Zi even got into the Faculty of Business Administration. His deviation score is 62.5."

"It's a pity they don't eat pears. Apparently, there was some trouble in their family last year, and they incurred some debt..."

"Ah...that's so pitiful. Attack on Titan is releasing a new volume next week, right? I have to support it!"

"I already really like Attack on Titan, so I'll support it too!"

"I also really enjoyed the interview with 'Not Eating Pears' in the magazine. Is 'Attack on Titan' meant to promote love and peace?"

"Are the giants based on the Titans and giants of Greek and Norse mythology? Greek mythology is quite common, but I didn't expect someone who doesn't like pears to prefer such an obscure mythology as Norse mythology?"

"No... Attack on Titan promotes love and peace? If you don't eat pears, look at your comics, where is there any love and peace?"

"Why do I feel like this sounds a bit like Gen Urobuchi, the author of Fate/Zero, the warrior of love?"

"If Gen Urobuchi is the warrior of love, then someone who doesn't eat pears must be... a warrior of peace?"

……

What they didn't know was that their online discussions were soon seen by Eri Aragaki.

"Sister, it seems your identity has been discovered..."

Erina watched from the side, then said worriedly.

"There's no way around it... we live in the internet age now."

Eri Aragaki, on the contrary, accepted everything calmly, saying, "And so what if my identity is exposed? As long as I don't run into trouble, it's fine."

She saw that some of her former classmates had already posted their high school graduation photos online, and she quickly accepted it.

After all, she had thought of this from the beginning, which is why she was reluctant to expose her own photos.

She originally lived in Tokyo, and during her junior high school years, she was considered a star in her class, after all, she was a rich, beautiful, and successful woman.

It's hard not to become a star.

So it's easy for them to recognize me from my former classmates and teachers.

Then, it was all expected that his identity information and past experiences would be dug up.

Fortunately, the original owner had no dark history, excellent academic performance, and no history of bullying others. At most, she had a crush on a famous female celebrity and could be considered a semi-fan.

But ultimately, it was because studying was important, especially since the original owner's goal was actually to get Hayashi.

That would require a huge amount of effort, leaving little time or energy for following celebrities.

"And if that's the case, it can really increase the sales of Attack on Titan's collected volumes... then that's good."

Eri Aragaki said with hope.

"Definitely! My sister's comic is going to be a huge hit!"

Erina also clenched her fists, cheering on Eri Aragaki.

"Maybe."

However, at this moment, Eri Aragaki said sullenly.

After all, she knew very well that the real breakthrough for Attack on Titan came after its anime adaptation; as for before that... well, the results were just average.

Then, looking at the comments about her written interviews and the resulting nickname for her as a "peace fighter," she suddenly panicked...

Oh no... Will this title become her official title in the future?

……

And soon, a week had passed in the blink of an eye.

The first volume of Attack on Titan has also been officially released in major bookstores.

Unlike the treatment given to Attack on Titan during its first printing in its previous life, Weekly Shonen Jump is the industry leader after all, even though Attack on Titan is "only" the tenth most popular manga.

However, the initial edition was also larger than that of the giants of the previous life, with a total of 150,000 copies printed.

In its previous life, Attack on Titan was serialized in a monthly magazine, with an initial print run of only tens of thousands of copies, and its distribution in bookstores was far less extensive than it is this time.

This time, Shueisha utilized the nationwide distribution network under the JUMP system, covering almost all major bookstores from Hokkaido to Kyushu.

Chapter 78 Single Volume Available

On the first day of the release of the collected volumes, readers who love Attack on Titan also went to bookstores one after another to buy the collected volumes to show their support.

There was no such thing as selling out immediately upon release, or a massive hit that swept through the streets.

Ultimately, as the saying goes, without an anime adaptation, Attack on Titan's influence wouldn't be that great.

It's difficult to achieve the same level of popularity as One Piece back in the day, where everyone rushed to buy the newly released volumes, and bookstores in Tokyo even required reservations to purchase One Piece volumes.

This is not an exaggeration; One Piece was just that terrifying back then.

That's a terrifying product with an initial print run of 30 copies and 20 copies sold in its first week.

Attack on Titan is simply no match for it now.

However, even after Attack on Titan was released, people continued to come and buy it.

Some people walk into the bookstore with their backpacks after school, go straight to the new books section, pick up a book, flip through it, and then go to pay. Others stop by the bookstore on their way home from get off work, browse the JUMP section, and then take their volumes to the cashier to queue up.

On his way home from work that day, Masaya Sakurai made a special detour to the largest bookstore in Jimbocho.

He stood in casual clothes next to the comic book shelf, pretending to browse other books, while glancing at the Attack on Titan volumes out of the corner of his eye.

In about ten minutes, four or five people picked up the Attack on Titan manga. One of the older men flipped through a few pages, grabbed two copies, and then went to pay.

Then several other students watched and discussed with great curiosity...

"That's the manga by that shoujo manga artist, right?"

"Buy it?"

"Let's buy it, and then we can take turns looking at them together."

"Who will look at it first after we buy it?"

……

After chatting with several students for a long time, they finally bought a single volume out of strong curiosity.

Masaya Sakurai's suggestion that Eri Aragaki's strategy of marketing herself as a beautiful girl manga artist by releasing real photos actually worked.

He personally witnessed someone in the bookstore buying a book out of curiosity after seeing a picture of someone who didn't eat pears on a forum.

Placing real photos next to interviews allows readers to suddenly realize while flipping through the magazine that "the person who draws this kind of brutal battle comic is actually a beautiful young girl." This contrast itself is a form of viral marketing.

These online discussions have drawn more attention to the manga "Attack on Titan" among manga fans.

After all, people are naturally curious. Some people are genuinely curious about how well Eri Aragaki, this beautiful girl manga artist, draws her manga and what stories she tells, so they buy the collected volumes to read on.