Chapter 107 Eriri's Hobby
Man... manga?
Everyone was a bit confused, including the president.
Because in their original impression, Eriri wasn't someone who would have a huge interest in manga; at most, she was like Usami, reading a bit of shojo manga or something.
But who would have thought that as soon as she arrived at the Art Club today, she would drop such a big bombshell on them.
And then, Eriri completely let go of her embarrassment and explained to the three: "Well, actually, I've always liked otaku culture, but because I'm a girl, I've always restrained myself from showing it in front of others."
The president listened, then unexpectedly stroked his chin and said, "That's really surprising information. So, this time you're saying it because you want to draw manga in the Art Club?"
Eriri nodded and said awkwardly, "I didn't want to say it at first, but drawing manga takes too much time, and everyone in the Art Club can be trusted, so I chose to say it!"
Saying that, Eriri also let out a breath: "Phew, I feel much better after saying it. Every time Uchimaki-san and Kaede-kun talk about manga and games, I want to join in but always feel too shy."
And Uchimaki Subaru... he was completely stiff at this moment.
It wasn't until Usami next to him nudged him that he came back to his senses, taking a sharp breath and saying, "I didn't expect Sawamura-san to be one of us too, I really didn't!"
"Uh... strictly speaking, whether it's games, manga, or anime, I dabble in all of them, but I can't really be considered 'one of us' like you, Uchimaki-san, who likes 2d waifu."
"Well, it doesn't matter, it's pretty much the same, hahaha!"
Scratching his head, Uchimaki Subaru looked at Kaede in surprise: "So, Asakura, you and Sawamura-san were able to start dating so quickly, and there were factors related to this aspect involved?"
Kaede and Eriri exchanged a glance, then nodded and said, "You could say that. After Eriri's hobby was revealed to me, our relationship did get closer little by little, and then almost every weekend, we would play games together or something."
After Usami heard this, her mouth slightly agape, the long-standing confusion in her heart was finally resolved.
She thought, when they were at school, Usami knew most of the people Eriri interacted with. How could Kaede have won her over just two months into high school? The two of them didn't have much extra interaction at school.
So, that was the reason!
And an idea also appeared in Usami's mind.
Could it be that the best way to date a guy or girl with otaku hobbies is to cater to their interests and have common topics to discuss and exchange?
Glancing at Uchimaki Subaru next to her, Usami couldn't help but blush a little, wondering if she should find some manga and light novels that Uchimaki Subaru liked to read later to increase their topics of conversation.
After Eriri revealed her secret, she felt completely relieved, and the result was indeed as Kaede had said: the three members of the Art Club showed no unusual reactions, only surprise.
In Usami's words, it was:
"Even a person like Uchimaki-san, who only knows how to draw 2d waifu, exists, so Eriri being like this is no big deal at all, and manga is super cool, okay?"
Although not a hardcore otaku, anyone living in this country would be hard-pressed to say they hadn't read a few manga since childhood. Not to mention the extremely famous mangaka; even if you're not an enthusiast in the field, you generally know about them.
Facing Usami's praise, Eriri awkwardly scratched her cheek and said, "It's not that amazing at all. I drew some on my own before and submitted them to Jump, but they didn't pass. This time, it's a collaboration with Kaede-kun that makes me feel hopeful. If it were just me, I'd probably have to work hard for a long time!"
"Oh! I see!"
Uchimaki Subaru suddenly exclaimed, drawing everyone's attention, and then said, "Before, Asakura, you were looking at those yokai legends and writing and drawing. Was it actually not for your new book, but rather a collaboration with Sawamura-san? Was it a manga script?"
Kaede looked at Uchimaki Subaru in surprise and admitted with a smile, "Uchimaki, your sensitivity in this area is surprisingly high. Indeed, Eriri told me before that her success rate for submitting on her own wasn't high, so she only planned to accumulate some experience first. So I thought of writing a script to see if Eriri would be willing to collaborate or something."
"Ah~ that's so nice!"
Listening to Usami's exclamation, Eriri couldn't help but blush and quickly opened her laptop, connecting her drawing tablet to prepare for drawing.
"So, you're going to draw a yokai-themed manga?"
The president looked at their actions and asked.
"That's right." Kaede stretched his fingers and said, "As for the specific script, please allow us to keep it a secret. Once it's accepted for serialization, you'll be able to see it."
Usami listened, then came over and looked at Eriri's storyboard for the first chapter, but she was completely confused and couldn't make out any specific story content. She could only go back to her seat to finish the final touches on her artwork for the competition.
Watching the four people in the Art Club all start to get busy, the president sighed softly, "How nice, everyone has their own things to do."
As for Kaede and Eriri using Art Club activity time to draw manga, the president wouldn't object at all. This was the Art Club, not the Oil Painting Club. There was never a rule that they could only paint oil paintings, was there?
And as for himself, of course, he would continue sleeping. A full day of classes was very tiring!
Today was the first day of officially drawing manga, and Kaede and Eriri were not in a hurry. Instead, they were slowly adjusting the character designs. Kaede had already written the main storyline of the story very clearly, and the detailed script for the first part was also ready. Eriri had read it all, so she didn't need to worry much about this aspect.
As for the character designs, Eriri also needed to add her own style to them, such as the protagonist Nura Rikuo.
Because Kaede had modified the memory settings, Nura Rikuo's age was changed from a 13-year-old middle school student to a 16-year-old high school student. His character no longer appeared so young, but more handsome. 13 years old was indeed a bit too young and didn't quite fit Kaede's desired protagonist setting.
As for his appearance after demonization, it naturally had to be more mature and elegant, reflecting the demeanor of the new generation's Nura Clan leader. In this aspect, Eriri could naturally do better than Kaede.
After spending nearly two hours, they finally revised the characters, which could serve as a basis to begin drawing the first chapter.
However, today's club activity time was also up; it was time to leave school.