Come to think of it,
Having already signed his name on the contract, Akira belatedly confirmed with Hisashi:
"After signing, you will still be my editor, right?"
"Of course."
Hisashi nodded with a smile, confirming it.
Although the achievements Akira had attained so far had little to do with him, discovering him would definitely be a highlight in his future career resume.
Not to mention the future, but if anyone dared to try and steal Akira from him right now, he would definitely fight them to the death!
Back to the main topic.
Looking at Akira's signature on the contract, the weight finally lifted from Hisashi's heart.
He carefully placed the contract back into his briefcase, then stood up and bowed solemnly to Akira:
"Then, Teacher Mochizuki, I look forward to working with you!"
Seeing this, Akira quickly responded:
"Likewise, I look forward to working with you too."
The customary bowing concluded, and Hisashi did not leave, but instead began to discuss the next matter.
Having signed the contract meant that Akira had officially become a professional manga artist.
Now, it was time to discuss matters regarding the manga.
"Since 'Fate/stay night' has been approved for serialization, the next steps for serialization will be put on the agenda."
Hisashi said to him:
"The Editor-in-Chief's intention is to have it published by August at the latest. Therefore, we need to set up a studio as soon as possible."
"I understand."
Akira nodded in understanding and continued:
"However, I have no experience in setting up a studio..."
"Of course, if you have any questions in this regard, just ask me."
Hisashi smiled:
"Not only that, for authors serializing for the first time, Shonen Jump will provide 500,000 yen as startup capital, specifically for renting a studio, purchasing equipment, and other such matters."
"But if there are any excess costs, you will have to pay for them yourself."
"I understand."
Akira smiled and accepted readily.
Although he had mentioned standing long jumps earlier, in reality, after signing the contract, the only money he would receive immediately was the 2 million yen annual contract fee.
As for the manuscript fees for the first three chapters of 'Fate/stay night', he would have to wait until the day Shonen Jump distributed manuscript fees to receive them.
Royalties and such were still nowhere in sight.
Therefore, while this 500,000 yen special fund wasn't exactly a timely assistance in a crisis, it could still reduce quite a bit of his financial pressure.
"However, apart from that, specific tasks like renting a place or buying equipment will have to be solved by you."
"That goes without saying."
He nodded with a smile.
After all, he couldn't just be a man-child and expect the other party to arrange everything, right?
Before starting to set up the studio, Akira first bought himself a mobile phone, spending a total of over 30,000 yen to acquire it easily.
Although the functions on mobile phones in this era were still quite lacking, just the ability to make and receive calls at any time was already many times more convenient than a landline.
Furthermore, mobile phones in this era could actually access the internet.
It was said that just at the beginning of this year, the Japanese telecommunications operator NTT DoCoMo had just launched the i-mode service, which included a series of functions such as browsing text webpages, downloading images and ringtones, and browsing news and weather forecasts.
And the most popular feature of the i-mode service was the support for sending and receiving emails on mobile phones.
According to the shop assistant who sold him the phone, since the launch of the i-mode service, mobile phone sales had been rising very encouragingly during this period.
Although the 2G network currently used on mobile phones was painfully slow, it still surprised him, and he immediately signed up for the i-mode service without hesitation.
Do you know what a digital native is (hands on hips)?!
Since transmigrating over a month ago, he had almost gotten used to life without a mobile phone.
But—
Family, who gets this!
That feeling of emptiness whenever he wanted to check the time or make a call, subconsciously reaching into his pocket, only to find nothing but his "little brother"!
The moment he put the newly bought mobile phone back into his pants pocket, the long-lost familiar touch almost made him burst into tears.
He couldn't help but exclaim:
"The village of the future is back!"
After buying the phone, he gave his phone number to Rin, Hisashi, and Kayo.
At the same time, upon learning that Rin had also signed up for the i-mode service, they exchanged email addresses.
"Mochizuki-kun, are you looking for a place to live next?"
But besides these acquaintances, there were actually two other people he needed to give his phone number to, but...
Relying on the memories in his mind, he skillfully punched in a landline number on his phone, but with his finger on the call button, he hesitated and couldn't press it for a long time.
"...Sigh."
He sighed, feeling a massive headache.
The two people he mentioned who needed to be informed of his phone number were the Original Owner's parents, who logically were also his current parents.
Although the Original Owner had originally had a fight with his family and come to Tokyo by force, after getting a landline, he had still called home so his parents wouldn't worry.
Now that he had a new mobile phone, he naturally should do the same.
However...
"Alright, alright, what is there to hesitate about? It's just giving them a phone number and letting them know I'm safe."
"I don't want them to be unable to reach me at home and then call the police to report me missing; that would be ridiculous."
He muttered to himself to persuade himself, gritted his teeth, and pressed the call button.
Beep... beep... beep...
The ringing of the phone seemed to beat against his heart one after another; amidst the extremely anxious mood, the waiting time felt both short and long.
I don't know how long it had been, when suddenly the phone was answered, and soon a gentle voice that he felt was somewhat unfamiliar, yet seemed incredibly familiar, came from the other end:
"—This is the Mochizuki residence. May I ask who is calling?"
Upon hearing the voice, bits and pieces of memories of interacting with her surfaced in his mind involuntarily.
Although these were not his own memories, but those of the Original Owner, at this moment, it felt as if they were the past he had personally experienced.
And the words that he had imagined to be difficult to say now seemed not so hard after all.
In this rather strange state, he naturally spoke up:
"Mom, it's me."
"Ah! Is that Tsuna?!"
The Original Owner's mother, Mochizuki Kazuko, instantly recognized his voice, her tone turning surprised and joyful.
The next moment, before he could speak, her words of concern came first:
"Tsuna, how are you doing now? Is your health okay? Do you have enough money?..."
"Which question do you want me to answer first?"
Akira was a bit amused and exasperated, but the undisguised, eager concern in her words warmed his heart.
Since he had already spoken, the rest became simple.
So, he continued, smiling as he spoke:
"Please rest assured, I'm doing quite well now."
"Also, I have successfully signed a contract with Shonen Jump and have become a professional manga artist..."