As on every Friday, Yuki woke up early, washed up, and headed to the nearby bookstore with anticipation.
As the group leader of three fan groups for mangaka Shirogane Sensei, and having organized numerous online campaigns against other manga artists' fans on rival magazines, her devotion to Shirogane and his work was beyond question.
She practically counted down the days until the release of Ametsukage Weekly.
Upon arriving at the bookstore, she snapped a photo of the latest issue's cover and sent it to the group chat via her phone.
The group chat quickly came alive.
"Envy! I'm still at work. I probably won't get to the bookstore until tonight."
"Being a student is so tough!"
"Can the group leader take photos of the manga pages and post them? I'll buy the issue later, but I can't get away from work right now."
"I envy those of you who don't have to work on Friday mornings."
"I only read Tonight in Ametsukage Weekly. When will the single-volume edition be released so I can collect it? The magazine paper quality is terrible!"
"The paper in Ametsukage Weekly is actually pretty good. You haven't seen other manga magazines—some of them feel like sandpaper!"
"Please, everyone who's read the latest chapter, absolutely no spoilers! I'll go crazy if you do."
Yuki smiled as she read the messages in the fan group chat.
While Shirogane wasn't a top-tier mangaka in the Japanese manga industry, the connection between a reader and a mangaka wasn't about objective ranking but about personal resonance.
Tonight wasn't a mainstream hit yet, but it was Yuki's favorite manga of the year. She was naturally drawn to Shirogane's art style and storytelling.
After paying for her copy, Yuki headed to a nearby park. Under the cool morning breeze, she opened the manga beneath a pavilion.
Chapter 4 picked up where the previous week's cliffhanger left off.
The heroine, Hino Maori, had grown too relaxed around the male lead, Kamiya Toru.
Every morning, she had to confront the reality of her illness. But in a moment of carelessness, she dozed off on the lawn under the morning sun.
That brief nap erased her memories again. She no longer recognized Kamiya Toru and fled in panic from the unfamiliar man.
Completely disoriented, Hino Maori called Izumi to ask what was happening.
I woke up in the park, next to a strange man!
Yuki had a premonition about this kind of plot development, but seeing Hino Maori's panicked expression still made her heart ache.
It was true—she remembered absolutely nothing. Even though just ten minutes earlier they had been chatting about everything under the sun, sharing details about their families and preferences, after just ten minutes of sleep, that memory existed only in Kamiya Toru's mind.
Hino Maori briefly explained her relationship with Kamiya Toru and asked for Yuki's advice.
From Izumi's perspective, her best friend had finally found someone she was willing to trust as a "fake boyfriend." She desperately didn't want Hino Maori to return to her former lonely state at school.
Even if it meant continuing to deceive Kamiya Toru.
Yuki's expression grew tense as she read this.
From her perspective, she wished the female lead would be honest. Before, there hadn't been an opportunity to reveal the truth, but now...
Why not just tell him the truth and let Kamiya Toru decide if he wants to stay with her?
If she really has feelings for him, she shouldn't hide something like this!
Having calmed down and understood everything, Hino Maori returned to the park. She used a photo on her phone to familiarize herself with Kamiya Toru's appearance.
Hino Maori walked nervously toward the young man.
I'm sorry, a tear slipped from the corner of her eye.
I have anterograde amnesia. Just now, I forgot you.
In the manga, the scene where Hino Maori explains her condition to Kamiya Toru simply cuts to a tense figure rushing toward the park.
When the perspective shifts to Kamiya Toru sitting silently in the park, Yuki could almost hear her own heart pounding with anxiety.
Love manga plots are usually quite predictable.
Unlike regular manga with their complex storylines, tropes, and world-building, love manga focuses on the daily lives of the male and female leads, with perhaps a third-party character thrown in for drama.
Yet despite this simplicity, fans of the genre are notoriously picky. They're so demanding that even a single wrong line from the male or female lead can cause the manga's popularity to plummet, with fans refusing to forgive the characters.
This was the manga's critical moment.
I'm sorry for making you go along with such an absurd thing, Hino Maori said with a tearful smile to the young man before her.
Absurd thing?
Pretending to be my boyfriend.
I was wrong to confess to you for such a selfish reason.
I'll only continue to cause you trouble in the future. So, let's end things here. Hino Maori's expression turned serious.
Yuki felt a pang of anxiety.
Could this be why Izumi hid her real diary in the first episode?
Kamiya Toru and Hino Maori parted ways here, so Izumi did this to spare her future self from heartache.
If you don't write about today in your diary, you'll forget it tomorrow, right? Then let's not write about falling asleep here, or about telling me you have amnesia. Kamiya Toru looked at Hino Maori.
I'm really happy when I'm with you. Besides, who wants to open their diary and only see their mistakes? Let's pretend today never happened and keep it a secret from tomorrow's you.
The manga showed close-ups of their faces at that moment.
The tension on Kamiya Toru's face.
The earnestness in Hino Maori's eyes.
Yuki couldn't tell what the two were thinking at that moment, but she felt deeply moved.
Kamiya Toru wasn't the type to be afraid of or disgusted by a female lead like Hino Maori!
That night, Hino Maori sat at her desk, staring at her diary, unable to bring herself to write.
The next day at school, Kamiya Toru looked visibly anxious.
He knew that if Hino Maori wanted to end their pretense of being a couple, she only needed to write a single sentence in her diary declaring their relationship over, or simply delete the entries about him.
Then, in Hino Maori's life, Kamiya Toru would be as if he had never existed.
But after school, the girl arrived as promised, repeatedly confirming she hadn't mistaken him for someone else, her usual smile on her face.
I had so much fun yesterday, Kamiya Toru.
Had she really not recorded it?
A sudden realization flashed through Yuki's mind.
No, she definitely recorded it. She just didn't want to end their relationship, so she was pretending not to remember it, hoping to continue interacting with Kamiya Toru as before.
The second half of Chapter 4 detailed their after-school meetings, weekend dates, sweet daily routines, the videos and photos they took together on their phones, and
On the final page of the manga, Kamiya Toru, his expression warm and smiling, continued speaking gently to Hino Maori:
What are you planning to do after school tomorrow?
Tomorrow?
Whatever you want. It's up to you.
Hino Maori raised her camera, capturing the resolute yet smiling expression on the boy's face as he spoke those words.
I'll make sure you have a happy tomorrow too.
A single tear, beyond Yuki's control, suddenly welled up in her eye.
The hardest part of creating a romance manga isn't making the male and female leads fall in love with each other.
The hardest part is making the audience fall in love with them.
At that moment, Yuki felt as if Shirogane Sensei's exquisitely drawn black-and-white manga pages had come to life. She felt as if she were standing right in front of the boy, and he was saying to her in that casual tone:
Tomorrow, I'll make you happy.
It doesn't matter if you don't remember what I did today. Forget it if you want.
All I need to do is repeat this every tomorrow, just to make you happy!
The manga's final panel showed Hino Maori's inner monologue:
This feeling... it's probably the first time I've felt this way. The despair I feel every morning feels fake now. Thank you, Kamiya Toru.
Yuki's fingers trembled slightly, almost involuntarily.
Though deeply moved and the scene was meant to be heartwarming, Yuki's eyes rimmed with red, tears welling up and threatening to spill over.
This type of work really depends on personal connection. Those who resonate with it can feel the characters' emotions through the simple dialogue, while others find the plot dry and uninteresting.
Yuki, clearly, was completely immersed.
"Shirogane Sensei, how did you come up with this story? It's just too..." Yuki had been struggling to articulate her feelings since finishing the chapter, unable to find the right words to describe the emotions it evoked.
Sweetness was certainly present, but only during the viewing experience.
The lingering feeling after finishing the chapter was more akin to sorrow.
The first chapter had made it clear: Kamiya Toru and Hino Maori would eventually forget each other completely, their paths never crossing again.
What could have happened to separate two people like that?
Was it a long-distance relationship like in 5 Centimeters Per Second?
Or perhaps Kamiya Toru's family opposed their relationship?
Or could it be that a massive misunderstanding drove them apart?
Yuki sat back on the park bench, gazing at the morning sunlight filtering through the gaps in the vines above the pavilion.
He was... no, he was deeply moved by this manga.
Oh, right! I need to manage the fan group and urge them to vote for Tonight immediately.
And the fans of other manga on the forum are probably stirring up trouble again. I need to rush over and support Shirogane Sensei.
That day, a massive number of Tonight fans emerged from their previously dormant state.
Japanese manga fans might be picky, but when they truly love a work, their support—measured by merchandise purchases and online engagement—far surpassed even the fervor Rei had witnessed in his previous life.
The forum buzzed with relentless discussion about the manga throughout the night.
By the next morning, many Tonight fans noticed that several manga reviewers were mentioning the series in their recommendation videos.
A flood of casual readers of Ametsukage Weekly became fans of the manga after reading this chapter, firmly remembering the name of the artist, Shirogane.
But most importantly...
At noon the following day, Rei received a call from Misaki.
"Rei, the latest rankings for Ametsukage Weekly are out. Tonight has jumped from seventh place last week to fifth!"
Rei could sense Misaki's excitement and joy through her voice.
Misaki usually maintained a cold and aloof demeanor, but when it came to manga, she was genuinely passionate.
Tonight's success made her even happier than Rei himself.
In fact, every Friday night before bed, she worried more than Rei about the manga's ranking potentially dropping the next day.
"Congratulations, Rei! If 'Tonight' can maintain this stability, you'll definitely be in the top three for this year's Newcomer Manga Award in Japan."
"An award?" Rei's interest was piqued.
"You didn't know?" Misaki's surprise deepened at his tone. "You're a manga artist, after all! How can you be so clueless about the Japanese manga industry?"
Because the original owner of this body didn't care about such things, and I've been drawing manga every day, leaving no time to learn about it!
But Misaki didn't notice Rei's silence. Instead, she began explaining the situation.
Japan has dozens of manga companies, both large and small, with varying degrees of recognition. Each year, a flood of new manga artists emerges from these companies.
For a newcomer like Rei, a high school student, it goes without saying that he's immersed in a vibrant manga culture. Many people work their entire lives, only to pick up their pens again after retiring at sixty and debut as manga artists, starting a whole new chapter in their lives.
Every year, numerous manga awards in Japan are sponsored by major corporations.
The annual Newcomer Manga Award is no exception. The ceremony will be broadcast live on Tokyo TV Station during prime time.
The criteria for these newcomer awards are quite straightforward: a combination of the work's content and its popularity.
Historically, a manga series with an average volume sales of over 700,000 to 800,000 copies, coupled with strong critical acclaim and public interest, stands a good chance of being nominated.
After all, these are newcomers—you can't be too demanding.
Out of ten nominees, three will ultimately win.
Misaki hadn't initially thought Rei stood a chance. She simply believed that after tonight's serialization, his manga would likely rank within the top ten of Ametsukage Weekly.
After just four weeks of serialization, the manga's popularity had skyrocketed into the top five of Ametsukage Weekly, far exceeding Misaki's expectations. Naturally, a flood of new considerations immediately flooded her mind.
"So you only think this manga has a chance of placing in the top three of the Newcomer Manga Award, not winning first place?" Rei asked.
"Mm, to be precise, it might only reach third place," Misaki paused before adding.
"In the first half of this year, two prodigious newcomers emerged in the Japanese manga industry. One is Fang Chenyu, a nineteen-year-old genius mangaka whose father is Fang Zhen, one of Japan's top manga artists. I won't bother introducing his father—his reputation in the manga world speaks for itself. His son's debut manga, serialized since the first half of the year, has already surpassed 1.5 million copies per volume. Of course, many critics have pointed out the familiar, déjà vu-like feel of Fang Chenyu's story, suspecting his father's guidance and influence. But such claims remain unproven."
"The other contender is Zhou Min, thirty-six years old, who, like you, debuted as a romance manga artist. His serialized work appears in Scarlet Sky, a second-tier magazine under the Crimson Scroll Group, one of the six major manga conglomerates. Three weeks ago, it climbed to the top spot in the magazine's rankings and has maintained that position ever since. The manga's collected volumes have also surpassed 1.2 million copies per volume."
"Although it's only October, the industry consensus is that the winner of this year's Newcomer Manga Award will be one of these two. Their works' achievements would have been overwhelmingly dominant in past years' award selections."
Misaki spoke, her ambition clear but grounded in reality.
"I know you're confident in your abilities, but you're younger, less experienced, and have been creating for a shorter time than them. If you can't surpass them in the final evaluation and secure third place, no one in the Japanese manga industry will underestimate you."
Rei paused, then chuckled.
"How would we know without trying? If I ever get nominated for this Newcomer Award, my goal will definitely be to win first place. We can talk about pessimism after they announce the results!"
Misaki fell silent.