In the countryside in the northern suburbs of Kyoto, Japan, there are beautiful mountains and rivers, surrounded by forests, quiet trails, fragrant birds and flowers, children come and play on the country roads, and old people drink tea in the courtyards of each house.
In an old Japanese-style villa, a man in his fifties who has just entered old age is holding a pen and drawing original paintings one after another on manuscript paper. Beside him, there are assistants on standby. some were doing the backgrounds, paints, posts in his InstaGang profile, all kinds of social media, and manner of things.
In the huge studio, nearly ten people work with each other, except for the sound of various art tools colliding on the paper, there is no other sound, silent and harmonious, with the background sound of traditional Japanese music playing in the background. At this time, an assistant ran in from the outside panting and was so anxious that he forgot to knock on the door.
The assistants working in the studio glanced at him with some dissatisfaction, while the old man did not stop the pen in his hand, but said lightly:
"Masumi-san, what's the matter? why are you running?"
"I'm so sorry!" The assistant named Masumi held the door frame tightly, he took a quick breath, and after adjusting his state, the man then looked at the old man with a very complicated look.
"Sensei! Tochigi! He's back!"
" Tochigi is dead, that's not possible, it's probably some rerun of old series he had"
" No! he's really back! look!"
Masumi showed his phone and the username Tochigi, the artwork was new but that was definitely Tochigi's artwork. It even evolved and became much cleaner, the art reminded him of the western Comic style fashion with an Asian Manga aesthetic sense. Hearing the words of Tochigi, the old man's hand paused for a moment, the brush in his hand was not grasped properly, the ink splattered and scattered, destroying a piece of manuscript paper that had just been drawn on the paper. But the old man didn't care. That name bears a heavy state on his heart.
" Is he really back? or is this an imposter? I need to find out"
..........
In an underground studio in downtown Tokyo, sketches were scattered on the ground. A man was lying on the table. The pen in his hand slid quickly on the manuscript paper. After each sketch was slightly formed, the man fell to the ground. The more he draws, the happier he is! The more you draw, the more excited he becomes! He doesn't know how long he hasn't felt this excited! Probably a long time!
The pen in his hand is getting faster and faster, his drawing technique is getting crazier and crazier, and the manuscript paper under his hand, at this moment, seems to be a tool for a man to express his emotions, Finally, he could no longer hold back the emotion in his heart, wiped the sketch on the table, and raised the sketch in his hand in this scattered studio as he laughs maniacally like an insane man.
"Hahaha! The dead is alive again! Hey Tochigi! are you really back right now? I didn't know you had a kid! hahaha!" The man's eyes gleamed coldly,
"If I can't defeat you? fine, your kid is as good of a target as any other! "
The phone on the ground cracked the screen, but on the lit screen, Alex's manga was on full display under the pen name
"Tochigi"
...........
Under a dark location in the basement studio. When Kamedamura saw that Alex's book was occupying first place in the ranking of the manga Oneshot section of GinoGuniya Bookstore, he felt extremely depressed, not to mention he used the name Tochigi as he debuted.
"Oh, No one else knows this, But I know! With your damn injured hands! Damn kid, first it was the father, now this!! as if I'll let this lying down! Let's see how you can keep up with that damn injury of yours!"
The man threw the smartphone into the wall and smashes it, feeling angry at this flawless debut of the kid,
" I've worked too hard for some punk who doesn't even have pubic hair yet to rise before me!"
.....
"Lilian are you free? Come and have a look at this new manga from the "My World " project"
A professional woman with glasses and a black suit hands her phone to a pretty woman. The girl named Lilian was wearing a long pink lady's dress and sat upright on the chair. Her pebble-like face showed the ruddy face of a peculiar girl, and her long cherry pink hair reached her waist. She has a graceful figure.
A pair of slender fingers are currently pinching the eraser to create shadows in her artwork, she is simply painting it quietly and calmly as if playing a ballad.
"You're asking me to read a manga Miss Editor? I thought my dateline was up."
Stopping the digital pen in her hand, the girl pulled her hair from her ear,
"Right now, I just don't have the time to..."
"Are you sure you don't want to read that? the name on the manga was under a pen name called Tochigi."
The girl simply swiped the phone away and start reading profusely. Her giggling was infectious as she read through the blurb and scanned the manga,
" Oh my-! Tochigi-san doing NSFW stuff? this isn't him at all, who is he? Didn't he pass away? I was at the funeral ya know? a copycat? Nah..he's style is too similar"
Mary, the Editor could only look at her sharply as she point out the name under the Author's name in the credit. the name of the Editor in charge was Aya Gozen, Lilian quickly took notice and smiled wonderfully, it's been a while since she smile like that
" So she found her muse huh? how fitting, Whoever this person is, I guess that person is probably related to Hiro-san somehow, I want to meet this new "Tochigi".
Mary just nodded and took out her phone
" I'll find out soon enough"
...
On this day, a book was circulated wildly in the ACG circle...
The Tankabon uses some ordinary tropes and blank point method in telling its story, Coupled with the author's superb skill in his artwork, it can be said that it is a rare Oneshot manga that hasn't come in a very long time. However, compared to the novel plot and amazing painting skills of the book, what is even more surprising to people in the industry is the author's signature. In the fierce competition of the Manga industry, even if you have great achievements, Most people will forget your name after a few years, only the greats like Akira Moriyama on Fragonbollz or works such as Doraebon byDodio M Mujiko.
But for people in the industry and the bigwigs who have been in the ACG circle for many years, the word "Tochigi" has not been forgotten, This manga is more like an announcement... announcing the return of a person, or at least someone acknowledged by that person, his true heir that showed the same genius as he was.
...............
Of course, Alex didn't know anything about all of this, Until now. He was simply ignoring his manga being sold right now and instead is at the Open reading section where a little girl was reading out loud about the story of snow-white.
"Once upon a time...a beautiful Snow White came, and the Queen said...she said mirror on the wall, who's the ugliest of them all"
The day was spent peacefully with his sister and Miss Ueno as they went for dinner in Pizza Gut and went back home. After sending his sister to bed, Alex immediately went back to his room and sit in his single room studio. a sound was made suddenly, it was the system
"Congratulations to the host for completing the current task.
physical fitness +0.5,
and the "Kyoto Ghoul" Manga is unlocked,
the system mall will be opened for service"
Um? okay? that was rather blunt? What's a system mall?
He truly didn't expect it. It's been a while after all since his system hasn't done a single thing. Did he really increase his reputation in such a short time? Alex of course didn't know what transpired behind the scenes, his father left a lasting impression on this worlds comic industry, and so, when using the same Pen name, he would, of course, use the same influence, Alex of course did not know anything at all about this.
This was all done by Aya Gozen. When he found out, he wanted to change it but Aya was adamant that he needed to bring a big splash into the industry, especially after seeing what he could really do with a one-shot, Now if only he could debut with a proper series for serialization, that would immediately cement his reputation as his father's protege, even if Alex never actually tutored under him, from his memories inherited from the previous Alex, all he did was observing his artwork on his day off and play video games most of the time,
Alex finds out that the kid is interested in some form of programming, like python and C+, he's actually not bad at it. Alex thinks he could use those talents in the future, the anime and games industry does work hand in hand and complement each other, but that matter will be food for thought for the future.
For now, Alex can only be regarded as a beginner without any reputation, relying on the quality of his manga, it will take a week to have some influence, but it has only been a day, What sort of influence can be done with a single day? Alex was simply puzzled by this.
Just when he was wondering what was going on with the system prompt, a pulse was felt within his body and he dropped down as his body felt an electrical shock all around body. Alex just realized that this warm current seemed to be able to rejuvenate his body. He closed his eyes and used his consciousness to try to control the warm current to gradually flow to his right hand. If this current can rejuvenate his right dominant hand, it would be much better.
The warm current swirled around the injury on Alex's right hand, and after a few seconds, all his hand injuries were healed! When he moved his right hand, He felt an unprecedented sense of ease, and there was no more pain and heaviness. His right hand was somewhat unburdened. It doesn't hurt as much anymore. His right hand could now twist and turn far more naturally than before, especially around the wrist.
The next moment, deep in my memory, the manga of "Kyoto Ghoul" was embedded in his mind"
Countless scenes replayed in Alex's mind right now, and these scenes were all the processes of Illustrating, from sketching to brush strokes and penning of"Kyoto Ghoul" He went through the process of the Original owner of Kyoto Ghoul Suey Ishida, serialized in the seinen manga in his world Shuishark in the weekly JAMP"
The way of sketching when making the first draft, the brushwork when drawing the anti-hero protagonist Gen Geneki, the tools used when sketching, the method used when drawing the manga, etc.! All are unreservedly engraved in Alex's mind right now! in his mind He is Suey Ishida, the author, his thought processes his ideas his creed, and professionalism, Everything he knew was embedded into him.
Three minutes later, Alex completely mastered everything about " Kyoto Ghoul". Now if Alex wanted to draw it, he could! Then his pen doesn't need to stop for a moment, it's time to use the system to its fullest! It seems that it is time for the world to experience the fear of being dominated by ghouls.
" Kyoto Ghoul draft works 101"
Alex smiled at the next project he is about to debut. The uniqueness is definitely the coloring, for damn sure Alex can't wait to try the water coloring effect in this artform. more so than the actual art. Ishida the original author and Creator is a genius, He can draw in a different style compared to his in-manga works "cover style" and "manga-style". By "manga style," I mean how he just draws people on pages of the manga. But maybe his additions are really in his watercolor artwork, but there is another, his masterful brushstrokes and Aggressive style.
There's another title for Ishida san back in his old world .something he has already forgotten, but it is why he is called Pierrot Studio undisputed Manga King in the Dark Fantasy Genre, and now? Alex is about to unleash that into this new world.
" Shall I stir the ACG world with this? I can't wait! let's just do it"
With a smile on his face, he started to draw. His excitement can barely contain the brush on this A4 canvas. He started..with the main Character Gen Ganeki and the tale of the One-eyed ghoul and a certain ghoulish girl named Touga. a human turned ghoul who falls in love with a ghoul girl, your typical shoujo romance story, except it's a lot different.
The pen falls, and the art is being created.
.............................
Aya Gozen was sitting before the head CEO of Satelight Enterprise, a subsidiary of JAMP Magazine, she's sitting in the office discussing the matter and success of "My World" with her boss and how it was a boon that Alex decided to send his manuscript here in Satelight instead of Gonzo Publications.
"He has the skills just like his father, This I can attest"
"The bald man was the President of Satelight Enterprise and Satelight entertainment. A malleable old man and amicable, with a kind and warm face, bald is an understatement since he does have hair, but only from the side, he doesn't hide his baldness unlike most old men, He doesn't feel the need to show up appearance and keep up face like most Japanese and Asians do.
"Have you decided?"
Aya Gozen kept quiet for a moment and answered him truthfully
" I...don't know yet, only if he's the real deal, the previous work might be a fluke,"
The bald man could only rub his temple at what she's insinuating, Just like her mother all those years. This President knew her mother, they went to the same school together, headstrong just like her, Her father never approved of it, As her Uncle, he could only nod helplessly as her niece wanted to do something stupid later.
" My Niece, think carefully alright? don't rush into things just because you feel like it, Throwing down your career for a mere Mangaka Artist can be considered career suicide, at least here in Japan, You are after all qualified to work in JAMP Headquarters in Tokyo as a Lead Editor of a Region"
Aya could only balk back at her Uncle
"Uncle Soujiro! I know what I'm doing! that's why I'm not rushing into things! not just yet"
The old man could only shake his head when he saw the profile of this mangaka, he was just a kid, barely any name to his reputation, sure he knew his father, Hiro Kenichi was a rare talent in the manga industry, but then again even he didn't reach the top of the ladder and quit to focus on his family, In his opinion, the man is just ordinary, while he does have a cult following and some niche fans, what mangaka doesn't?
" I can't tell you what to do little girl, you do what you must, My Satelight will forever be the pillars of this nation, If you ever need me, you know where to find me"
Aya got up and bowed
" Thank you for your time, then with your permission, I would like to submit a new name for the Kokusai Manga Shou Comic Awards under the penname Tochigi"
The old man took a pen and signed it.
" Okay, Our quota is full then, he will be the last spot on our list, I hope I don't regret this, You did say he has an injured hand? do be careful then, If you say he's as talented as he is, maybe I could pay for his medical fees first"
Aya Gozen's eyes almost teared up at the magnanimity of his uncle, she always knew he was a good guy, but not this good, She respected his uncle a lot. It is why she worked here and not in JAMP, she even refuse his father's plea to work in his Newspaper Company or inherit his business, His Uncle was the real deal, a champion for manga artists, He sheltered and helped many struggling new artists just like this without any return, which is why she wants to be bet on Alex talent. If he wins this competition, Satelight would be in a much better light in the manga publishing Industry among their competitors, it's the least she could do for him.
She shakes her head and refuses him
"Alex said he will handle it, I have faith in him, if he can't even do that, then perhaps it's better to quit, till then, I will take up that offer Uncle"
His uncle looks at his niece with worry, She's too docile, where is that Icy niece of her? he hasn't even seen that persona since the beginning.
" Are you sure? Aya, do you like this kid? you do know you're already thirty-"
"T-That's, not it!! I really like his artwork okay!"
His uncle could only shrug as he look at her niece's face red as a tomato trying to deny her feelings like a teenager. she's a grown woman, a grown Japanese woman at a marriageable age. He can't help but worry about this niece of hers. This closet otaku girl.
"I mean, your mother and your father's age is as far as 10 years apart, marrying a younger kid doesn't seem too bad, after all, society is getting more progressive these days, and-"
Aya simply left and took the document and slammed the door shut, she doesn't want to deal with it.
His uncle could only stare at his office door and look at it blankly.
"Such a tsundere, just like her mother..sigh*"
The uncle just looks at the document before him, Alex Kenichi, with a cutout Kodak photo and his prior experience, Such a young and skinny little kid, His resume is quite ordinary.No club activities no prior experience or social status and discernable traits. The man could only sigh at one thing, the boy is simply too pretty for a high school kid.
.
Is this what passes off as handsome these days?
He thought to himself.
he tosses the document on his desk and lie back on his reclining chair smiling like an old fool.
"Poor kid, I hope he knows what he's getting at here, my niece can be a handful"
.