I, who advocate giving up, feel like a disqualified person

Chapter 15: Polar Reversal!

I glanced out the window and saw that night had fallen quietly without me noticing. I looked at the desk again and saw it was covered with comics and novels. Homework was once again abandoned in the corner.

The notebook in front of him was still empty, with only traces of being torn.

"A comic about love..."

Although I have already agreed to Ye Hui... I know nothing about romance works, and I don't have any experience in love... Well, I can't say that I have no experience at all, but it would be stupid to just use my own experience.

"...Hmm...it's probably better to read other people's books and learn from their experience...Besides..."

I flipped out the promotional page about the Newcomer Award from the book... The requirement for short comics is a maximum of forty-six pages. In other words, even if the plot is very good, if it is too long and the comic cannot express it all, then it will fail.

I wonder if Ye Hui has considered this point, and I don’t think she knows much about storyboards and the like.

"Oh, it's troublesome no matter how you look at it."

I sighed, threw myself on the bed, and picked up my phone with the intention of calming down.

"..."

Wait, I seem to remember something... I quickly opened the app and found the book written by Aaliyah.

Yes, when it comes to books about romance, that guy is very good at it, even though he uses the setting of another world...but this kind of subject matter is almost the same routine.

Thinking of this, I continued reading the content from last time, hoping to get some inspiration.

. . . . . . . . . . .

"Ohhh, that looks great."

Teacher Ailiya... no, maybe it would be better to call her Kurumiya. Anyway, she became very excited when she saw the dessert she ordered being served.

"Don't get excited yet... Actually, I didn't ask you to come here to eat, but to discuss something."

"Oh...really?" She didn't seem to care much and answered me absentmindedly, then cut off a small piece of cake and put it in her mouth.

“Oh~ delicious…”

"Um, Teacher Alia!"

"Okay, okay, tell me what's the matter." She put down her fork and showed a serious expression.

"Well... I'm planning to enter the New Manga Artist Award. I've already found an assistant, but I'm still short of someone to handle the plot. Since you're good at writing novels, Alia-sensei, I'd like you to help me... what do you think?"

...I'm a little nervous...because although we had a good chat online, this is the second time we meet offline, and she has works to create...it's possible that she won't agree.

"Oh~ That's interesting. I agree."

However, without any hesitation, she agreed.

"Oh...really?"

"Well, of course, since you asked me like that, Xiaodie, I have no reason to refuse." She picked up the fork again, "and I think this is very interesting."

"Ah... that's good."

It seems like she's someone who acts on her own interests... It's a bit strange.

"So, have you decided on a subject?"

"Oh...about this..." I thought for a moment, "Well, before we talk about this, I want to ask, Mr. Ailiya, what do you know about comics?"

“I don’t understand at all.”

"..."

Wow, why is this happening.

.....................

"Um...uh..."

Erasing those alien world settings, I seem to have come to a conclusion... These love stories are actually not complicated, as long as they are simple and plain.

Although I'm not very good at it, but... after reading what Kurimoya wrote about the development of emotions, I think I can come up with such a plot, and it may even be better than hers.

"So... let's begin."

Think carefully about...the scene of ideal love.

.................

"It might sound a bit self-serving, but I think comics are better off focusing on satire."

"...Hmm...I don't quite understand."

Because she was eating cake, Aaliyah's pronunciation was not very clear...and I always felt that she didn't answer seriously.

"Huh... Actually, comics were originally single-paneled, using simple lines and exaggerated images to create humor. Their main function was to satirize the absurd phenomena and unfair things that appeared in society."

"Ah...that was quite unexpected."

Still no emotional response.

"Well...even though comics nowadays have become more focused on art and plot, I think for those that often rely on comedic romance, using satire is more likely to attract the judges' attention."

"...Hmm...So, what subject should I choose?"

"Because of the page limit... Although I think the battle of wits type is better, I'm going to change it to..."

"Do not."

"Hmm?" It seemed like... the words were interrupted.

"You said you wanted me to be in charge of the plot, right? So page limits and the like are not something you need to consider at all. Just tell me the subject you most want to create."

"......"

Why... Teacher Alia in front of me still has the same expression as before, but why do I feel that... she is really thinking about this matter seriously?

"Then let's choose the battle of wits type."

"Oh~ Actually, I really like this type of work." She took out her phone and said, "Look at this novel... The characters in it are really good at playing chess."

"Oh..." I knew which work it was from the moment I saw the cover. "I'm the one who illustrated this... and it's the work of 'Ling Cun She Ji', isn't it?"

"Yeah...I just took it out for you to see."

"..."

Do you think I'm that forgetful?

"Come to think of it, it was only when I read this book that I suddenly realized that light novels could be written this way..." She smiled. "The plot is so well-connected, and the plot design is flawless... Well, I admire it, but it's still a little behind my own book."

"Ah...well."

This kind of thing is fine no matter what.

"But... can you really write it?" I felt a little worried.

"I'm really upset when you say that. If someone can write this kind of article, it means I can write it too, and it's not necessarily worse than that guy."

This confidence... well, confidence is a good thing, but being overconfident...

"And the article about Sheji isn't perfect in my opinion either."

"Hey? So what did you just do..."

"I'm only objectively pointing out the book's strengths. The weaknesses are obvious, too." She took a sip of her juice, looking a little annoyed. "He obviously knew that a plot that intense alone would bore readers, so he added some romantic elements... But in my opinion, they're too superficial and not vivid at all! It really pissed me off! It's better not to have that plot at all. So, if I could meet him in person, I'd definitely give him a beating."

“…Ah…haha.”

This is the first time I see her so excited.

"Huh, forget it, let's talk about your business. I think the topic has gone off track. Sorry."

"It's okay, it's okay~ We were just chatting."

Small talk with a purpose... maybe.

"So, who do you want to satirize? What phenomenon? Or who?" she asked me.

"Ah...about this..." I took the phone from her hand, "Wait a minute, I'll show you."

I clicked on the app and was taken to the comments section.

"Hmm... I found it." I said, placing the phone in front of her. "It's to satirize those people who use malicious words to hurt others on the Internet."

“…”

She was stunned for a moment, then looked at me, her eyes full of excitement.

"What...what happened?"

I felt a little nervous at this look.

"Xiaodie, I think this topic... is very interesting!" She stood up and held my hand.

"Oh~?"

"You really are talented! Thanks to you, I'm getting a lot of ideas! Wow... Actually, I've had some complaints about these guys for a long time... I didn't expect you could express your dissatisfaction like this~"

"Actually...it's not about expressing dissatisfaction..."

"Anyway, I'll have the initial idea written down by this time tomorrow. Ahhh, this is going to be awesome! I really want to write now."

"Well...alright, alright, calm down for a moment~"

"Absolutely! I can't calm down!" She said as she picked up her schoolbag. "Sorry, Xiaodie, I have to excuse myself today. I have to go back and write the settings and plot. See you tomorrow!"

“Ah…ah…”

Before she could say goodbye, she had already walked out of the store and walked straight to the car parked at the intersection.

What an impatient guy... Well, I feel relieved since he's so proactive.

"So..."

I glanced at the untouched cake in front of me.

Well, let’s wait a while before going home.

Changing situation

When people have no hope, they will try hard to find hope...even though most of the time they will not get anything.

Rather than "searching," I think "taking a chance" is a more appropriate approach. However, can we rely on something as unpredictable as luck?

Well, never mind, let’s try it first.

...................

"Um, do you usually read comics?"

"Look. But why are you asking this all of a sudden?"

After class, I pretended to ask Liu Yan something casually. But now it seems that he seems a little...uncomfortable with my conversation.

Why... Is it because I haven't chatted with him recently...

"Hmm... well, I wonder if you've ever paid attention to romance comics when you read them? They're also known as girls' comics."

These two are probably of the same type.

"Ah, that one I see often... Uh, no... I see it often... Hey~"

This guy seemed to have accidentally revealed something, and was trying to get away with it by playing dumb.

"Okay, okay, I won't look down on your interests."

"That's not the point, and that's not really my interest... Master, don't you even believe me?"

Actually, it’s nothing. It’s normal to have a little girlish heart... Isn’t it normal?

"Ah...I believe you." This guy is really troublesome.

"Huh~ Then, Master, why did you suddenly ask this? Could it be that you've suddenly become interested in this as well?"

"No...it's just that someone wanted to draw a similar comic, but didn't know how to arrange the plot."

"Oh, that's easy." He seemed excited. "As far as I'm concerned, this type of relationship is exactly like this: two people meet by chance, then fall in love with each other but can't express it. Later, each of them has an admirer, and then there's a misunderstanding between the two... and then they go their separate ways."