Fortunately, the art studio was spacious enough to accommodate the growing team. There were three large drafting tables set up, one for each person. Gali and Lorna were seated closer together, while Light's station was positioned slightly behind them.
The projection screens from the System were now hardened and distinct. Light had intentionally separated the interfaces, mapping the traces step-by-step according to the established plan for each artist.
Gali was vividly tracing the "gourd"—the outline of the characters—onto the drawing paper. She worked with a surprising amount of artistic flair. Her lack of artistic foundation actually worked in her favor for the simple, rounded style of Doraemon. If she didn't focus, the "Blue Raccoon" would look distorted, and she wouldn't be able to stand it.
She didn't watch TV anymore. Instead, she was gradually indulging in the storyline of the comics she was creating, acting as a commentator for Lorna.
"Lorna," Gali whispered, "look at this Nobita. He is really stupid. I really want a Doraemon."
Scritch-scratch.
Lorna rolled her eyes but sat upright, smiling happily. While her hand moved the brush, inking the lines, she occasionally reached into a bag of potato chips, munching quietly. "If you had a Doraemon, you'd probably just eat all his dorayaki."
Light walked into the room.
"Don't let me hear you slacking off," Light said in a mock-stern voice, rubbing Gali's head affectionately. "Remember, finish reading the chapter before you start drawing."
"I know, I know!" Gali grumbled, her pen moving rhythmically across the paper.
The sound of pens scratching against paper filled the room—a peaceful, productive hum.
Light chose a comic page and was inking it. Lorna, at this moment, was also deeply focused on a new chapter of Bleach. She had read the story in her heart, and both of them understood the narrative flow during the drawing process.
"Lorna, are you too fascinated? You didn't hear the sound?"
Light's voice suddenly came from right in front of her.
Lorna scratched her head in embarrassment and gave a shy hum. "I guess so."
After a while, Light's voice came from the side. Lorna brushed a stray hair from her face. Something was wrong. Light should be at the back table behind her. Why did his voice sound like it was coming from in front of her all of a sudden?
"It looks too fat."
"Who said that? He looks like this!" Gali argued.
Light walked backwards from Gali's desk. Lorna, who had him in her peripheral vision, didn't want to lift her head from the drawing.
Shuffle.
But then, there was an awkward sound coming from behind her. She couldn't help thinking about it. She reached out with her magnetic field sense.
"Oh, Gali, is your Doraemon's belly out of proportion? This line is off."
"Still two brushes?"
As soon as Lorna looked up, she saw Light standing at Gali's desk.
"I didn't mess it up!" Gali said, looking a little guilty and denying it instantly.
At this time, Lorna froze. Light was here, in front of her. So... what was going on behind her?
Was it the same trick she used? Manipulating the metal behind the painting to move? Judging from the thickness and length she felt in the magnetic field, it should be a brush.
She turned around, and she was stunned.
There was another Light sitting at the back desk, drawing.
Three Lights. All solid. All working at the same time.
"This..." Lorna looked suspiciously between them. "Light? What... what is going on?"
The three Lights looked at her simultaneously and smiled.
"This," the Light at the desk said, "is my new skill. Shadow Clone Jutsu."
A Few Minutes Later: The Living Room
The clones popped into smoke, their memories returning to the original body. Light lay on the sofa, his heart palpitating slightly from the fatigue, but he took a sip of coffee from the small table. He carefully squinted his eyes and watched the news in a leisurely manner.
"Welcome to the American Evening News. The following is today's report."
"Comic Book Craze: Experts are calling it a 'renaissance.' Marvel Comics has seen unprecedented sales figures this week. Long lines were reported outside comic shops across New York this morning. One of the new titles is suspected to involve mutant allegories, but the publishing company has not commented."
Light listened to the news. He didn't feel any contempt for the sensationalism, because it was normal. It was a life-saving straw for the industry.
"The share of related industries in the American entertainment market is really unsightly," Light mused. "A big-name cartoonist in this industry is not even as famous as an 18th-line singer."
He thought about the adult population on the New York streets. Few people knew about Shonen Jump. The comics only had an audience among young people, and even then, it was less than 20% of the demographic.
The TV news continued.
"Vigilante Sightings: Police are investigating reports of a new vigilante operating in Manhattan. Witnesses describe a small figure moving with high-speed wires and jets, similar to Spider-Man but armed with blades. The individual reportedly calls herself 'Titan Girl' or 'Super-Killer'."
"Mystery in Washington: DC Police found a body today—completely drained of blood, with puncture marks on the neck. Authorities are baffled."
"Queens Incident: Witnesses in Queens reported a bizarre altercation where a man allegedly used... playing cards as lethal weapons."
Light sat up.
"Playing cards?"
Memories resurfaced in his mind. Card games. Card duels.
"Wait," Light muttered. "If people are fighting with cards... that sounds like Gambit. Or maybe Bullseye?"
But then a different idea struck him. An idea for expansion.
The comic market in America was still relatively niche compared to the dominance of movies and TV. Even with his recent success, Light was only capturing a fraction of the potential audience.
How do you get people who don't read comics to care about your characters?
You give them a game.
In his past life, the anime and manga industry was supported by a massive ecosystem of merchandise and games. Pokemon started as a game. Yu-Gi-Oh! was literally about a card game.
"Naruto has games. Bleach has games," Light mused. "But developing a triple-A console game takes years and millions of dollars. I don't have the resources yet."
He needed something low-cost, high-impact, and easy to distribute.
"Cards," Light whispered, looking at the TV screen. "Card games."
Yu-Gi-Oh!
The trading card game (TCG) market was a goldmine. It was portable, social, and addictive. And he didn't need a game engine to make it. He just needed to print paper.
He picked up his phone and dialed Andy.
"Uncle Andy, it's me. I need you to set up a new department."
Andy hadn't fallen asleep yet. He was surprised when he heard the words. "A new department? Light, we just launched two magazines. Can we breathe for a second?"
"No time to breathe," Light said. "I'm going to serialize a new type of comic in the fourth issue of Shonen Jump. A game manga."
"A game manga?"
"I'll draw four chapters and send them to you later. You will understand. It involves card battles."
"Okay..." Andy sounded skeptical. "But what about the current buzz? Fans online are arguing about who would win in a fight: Naruto or Ichigo. It's getting heated. It's a full-on fandom war. 'Shinobi vs. Soul Reaper.'"
Light's eyes lit up. "They're fighting?"
"Yeah. It's intense."
"Perfect," Light grinned. "That gives me another idea. Andy, do we have anyone who can program software? Simple stuff. Flash games."
"Flash games? Yeah, we have a couple of guys in IT who dabble. Why?"
"I want to make a mini-game for the official website. Bleach vs. Naruto."
"What?"
"A simple 2D fighting game. Pixel art. Fast-paced. We put it on the website for free. It will drive traffic like crazy."
In his previous life, Bleach vs. Naruto was a legendary Flash game on sites like 4399 and Newgrounds. It was simple, accessible, and incredibly popular among kids who couldn't afford consoles.
"That... actually sounds brilliant," Andy admitted. "It would settle the debates. Or fuel them."
"Exactly. I'll send the design specs. Get it done."
Light hung up, feeling satisfied.
Light was a little disgusted with the company's official website. The interface above was too simple. Marvel was the backbone of the industry at any rate; having a bad website was too shameful.
He lay back on the sofa like a lazy king.
"Shadow Clones for drawing. Assistants for inking. Flash games for marketing. And soon... a Trading Card Game empire."
From the study, he heard Gali laughing as she played a game with Lorna.
"This," Light thought, closing his eyes, "is the life."
_______________________________
Word count: 1452
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