Chapter 481: Masterpiece
Right after school ended, Shishio and Shiina walked out together to the Wagnaria.
Frankly, it had been a while since they were in Wagnaria since they mostly ate at the house. Still, they also missed the taste of the parfait in this family restaurant since they often ordered it whenever they came.
"Welcome!"
Yachiyo Todoroki welcomed them.
"...."
Still, while Yachiyo's smile was perfect and her attitude toward the guests followed the (standard operational procedure), the katana on her side could only make Shishio and Shiina stand in silence.
"Ah, it's you. It's been a while." Yachiyo knew Shishio, and she was surprised to see him. After all, it had been a while since he came to the Wagnaria.
"Do you have a table for three?" Shishio asked.
"Yes." Yachiyo nodded. "Please follow me." She guided them to the empty table, but secretly she observed the two, wondering how Shishio had always come with different girls. She was confused and felt quite curious, especially when they seemed to be intimate. However, she knew her place as a waitress, so she didn't say anything, guided them, and asked what they wanted to order.
As expected, Shishio and Shiina ordered a parfait.
While Shishio chose a mango parfait, Shiiina ordered a chocolate parfait. Still, just ordering sweets was quite lonely, so he also ordered french fries for a salty taste.
"Please wait for a moment." Yachiyo bowed her head and left.
Shishio and Shiina then continued to talk to each other while waiting for someone. It wasn't until their parfait came that the person they had been waiting for arrived.
"Sorry, sorry, Shiina-sensei, Oga-sensei, the road is so busy today!" Ayano Iida came hurriedly before sitting on the opposite side of Shiina and Shishio naturally. She looked at the parfait in front of them and then also ordered the same while also picking up the french fries.
However, Shishio stopped her hand and said, "Just say what you want first?" While he didn't mind having a long talk, he didn't want to waste his time on Ayano Iida. His time was precious, and it was better to spend his time with his girls.
Ayano pouted, making Shishio wonder how this 35-year-old woman could show such a gesture in front of him. He wondered what her husband would think when he knew what Ayano did to him now.
"Did you think something rude about me?" Ayano asked with a frown.
"No," Shishio said plainly.
"..."
The two stared at each other for a moment before Shiina said, "Shishio, can I try your mango parfait?"
"....." Shishio and Ayano.
Shishio took a tissue and wiped the ice cream on the corner of her mouth. "Sure."
Shiina nodded with a smile.
Ayano sighed and said, "By the way, congratulations for getting the 1st position continuously!"
In the weekly manga magazine, there were 18 to 20 manga updates every week. Once they are published, the customers would give their vote for their favorite manga. The manga with the most votes would become the ranking one, and the manga with the least vote would have a danger of being canceled.
The "5 Cm Per Seconds" created by Shishio and Shiina had been updated over the past few weeks. It had always maintained the 1st rank among the weekly manga magazines.
It was happy news, and Shishio and Shiina should be crying happily in nine clouds.
However...
Shishio and Shiina didn't say much and talked about the taste of the parfait, which was good.
"...."
Ayano could only watch this scene in silence, and her lips twitched. Then, she took the french fries and dipped them in ketchup before eating them with force as if they were her nemesis!
"Can you show me some of your reactions? Can you show me if you're happy?!" Ayano couldn't handle it anymore and complained.
Shishio looked at Ayano and said plainly, "Yay..."
Shiina looked at Shishio for a moment and also mimicked him. "Yay..."
Their voices were plain and lacked emotion.
"....." Ayano.
Ayano let out a long sigh and understood why they were called geniuses. In their minds, this manga was probably just something they did in their free time. It was something they did during their youth, not their dreams or even the means of their income.
However, it was also this reason Ayano needed to keep them well since she knew as long as they were bored, they would stop drawing manga, and her career would be in peril.
Shiina was one thing since she was known as the angel of the art world.
On the other hand, Ayano could also see that Shishio came from a rich family.
If they didn't do a manga, Ayano could see the two could be successful in different types of careers.
Ayano let out a long sigh, thinking this was a genius. However, she couldn't let them end their career as mangaka since her career was at stake!
Still, before that, Ayano wanted to ask the two of them something. "I just want to ask you if you really have to end this manga with just two volumes of a book?" She had seen the ending of the "5 Cm Per Second" since Shishio had made the novel version.
When the manga ended, without a doubt, the novel version would be published, giving Shishio, Shiina, and the publishing house a win-win situation. Once the popularity reached a high, it wouldn't be impossible to create a movie or anime, making it into a profitable franchise.
Still, when something was profitable, it was impossible to end something, and the businessman would keep that profitable thing until they couldn't get anything from it.
If Shishio had to give an example, it was like Detective Conan.
How long has Conan been a child?
More than 20 years!
However, there was no sign Conan would become an adult soon, or the manga would end soon.
Conan would stay as a first-grader in elementary school as long as it was profitable.
Even the mangaka also didn't say anything about it since he got the money.
Ayano also thought the same and wondered whether Shishio and Shiina could make their manga a little longer!
After all, the longer it was, the more profitable it was.
However, the answer of Shishio and Shiina was obvious. "No." They wanted to make a masterpiece, not a money cow.
"Masterpiece..." Ayano murmured while smiling bitterly. She realized how dirty she had become, especially when she was on the nine clouds for the past few weeks. She might have gotten ahead of herself and thought she had to calm down. Instead, she realized what Shishio and Shiina wanted to do, and when she thought about it, she would also feel happy when she thought she would be part of this masterpiece.
"Okay, okay, I'll help you." Ayano let out a long sigh and asked, "What are you doing after that? Will you make a new story?"
Shishio and Shiina looked at each other for a moment before he asked, "Do you want to draw a manga again, Mashiro?"
"Um." Shiina nodded and said, "I want to draw a manga again." She clutched Shishio's sleeve and asked, "Will you write a story for me, Shishio?"
Shishio smiled and nodded. "Why not?"
"OOOOOHH!!!"
Ayano was excited when she heard their answer.
However, her voice caused everyone to look in their direction.
While Shishio was speechless, Ayano quickly apologized, then quickly looked at Shishio and asked, "What kind of story will you write after the "5 Cm Per Second"?"
After all, the story of the "5 Cm Per Second" had finished, and Ayano thought it would be nice if Shishio could think of a story before the end of the "5 Cm Per Second."
Shishio thought for a moment and said, "You know, I have been writing a romance story, so I want to try other genres."
"Other genres?" 2x
Shiina and Ayano were attracted, especially Shiina, since she knew Shishio had always been writing a romance story, but this time, he was going to challenge a different genre which made her anticipate.
"What kind?" Ayano asked curiously.
"I have thought of three stories, and each of them is different," Shishio said.
"Shishio, tell me," Shiina asked in excitement.
"The three are horror, a career, and mystery."
"Horror, a career, a mystery?" Ayano was dumbfounded, but then she asked, "Leave aside the horror and mystery. What kind of story can you write with a career?"
"I thought about writing a story about either a banker or a lawyer," Shishio said.
"A banker? A lawyer?" Ayano's lips twitched, and she asked, "Can you make an interesting story from those careers?" She didn't say much about horror or even mystery, but she didn't understand how Shishio would think about making an exciting story about a banker or a lawyer. She didn't have an idea, but she would be lying if she wasn't curious.
"Well, I haven't written them, so let's wait until the manga of the "5 Cm Per Second" is about to end," Shishio said.
While Ayano and Shiina were quite unsatisfied since they wanted to ask what kind of story Shishio would write, his following words attracted their attention quickly. "I thought to create a song for the "5 Cm Per Second."
"Song?" 2x
Shishio nodded and said, "After all, if there's a movie in the future, it also needs the soundtrack song, right? Also, with the popularity of "5 Cm Per Second," as long as the song is good enough, it can be sold quite well. I heard your publishing house also has a subsidiary music publishing company, right?"
"Well, that's true, but why so suddenly? Also, can you make a good song?" Ayano asked speechlessly. However, when she looked at Shishio's profile...
"..."
Ayano felt this guy could become a popular singer instantly. After all, his face was so nice. Even if she had a husband, sometimes, she was quite tempted by Shishio. However, she had her husband, so she would refuse Shishio without hesitation.
Still, if her company had a good song, and Shishio could sing it, then without a doubt, the popularity of the "5 Cm Per Second" it would make this work even more popular.
Manga, novels, songs, movies, and many other things!
Shishio, Shiina, and the publishing house would be loaded with money!
Everyone was happy, and it was a win-win situation!
Ayano fell silent until Shiina said, "Shishio can make a song." She looked at Shiina and knew while this girl lacked common sense, her artistry taste was real. She then looked at Shishio and said, "Then, I'll wait for you to make a song for it. Also, I'll talk with the chief editor about it to prepare everything, so can you tell me when the song is ready?"
Shishio thought for a moment and said, "After the mid-term exam."
"....."
Ayano slapped her forehead and said, "I almost forgot you two are high school students. Okay, do your best in your study too, and I'll prepare everything to support you!"
The three continued to discuss each other and sword to make this manga a masterpiece!