Every year, countless newcomers submit their work to major manga magazines, but very few actually pass the review and debut as Manga Artists.
And among those lucky enough to become Manga Artists, those who eventually become famous are equally few and far between.
In this process, some quit, some choose to change careers, and some struggle to persevere, but the best-case scenario is often just serializing niche works in obscure publications.
This is the true portrayal of the vast majority of people in this industry.
"..."
Hayato and Shota were clearly moved by Daisuke's words, their expressions thoughtful as they pondered something, and the atmosphere fell into silence once again.
Akira had nothing to say to this either.
If it were his past life, he might have had some right to speak, perhaps joining in the lamentation, complaining about how the industry was doomed, or dispensing some "poisonous chicken soup" for the soul.
But now, as a "cheater" with an unfair advantage, it didn't seem appropriate for him to say anything.
Thus, lunchtime passed in such a strange atmosphere.
After finishing their meal and returning to the studio, Hayato and Shota resumed their work state and continued their tasks.
At this moment, Akira pulled Daisuke aside and asked him a question that had suddenly occurred to him and piqued his curiosity—
"By the way, Tanaka-san. Regarding the finished manuscript for Chapter 4, how long do you estimate it will take to complete?"
"Uh... well..."
Daisuke couldn't help but be slightly stunned; this question truly stumped him.
Because he had never encountered this kind of situation before.
According to a typical Manga Artist's serialization schedule, the first three days are for brainstorming the plot and drawing Storyboards, while the next three to four days involve drafting, Line Art, backgrounds, inking, and other tasks performed simultaneously.
If everything goes smoothly, a manga chapter might be completed in five to six days.
At this point, the spare day of rest might be used for relaxation, or it might be invested into the next chapter's work to make the schedule more comfortable;
if things don't go well, it might mean pulling all-nighters, pushing one's physical limits to rush the manuscript, and then immediately starting the next chapter's serialization without a break.
In reality, the former case rarely happens; the latter is the industry norm.
Realizing this, one could understand how terrifying Akira's existence was and immediately see how relaxed their current situation was.
Although assistants pull all-nighters with the Manga Artist, in reality, they can only start working sequentially after the artist finishes a page.
Often, after finishing a page, the assistants find that the artist hasn't finished the next one yet, so they just have to sit and wait.
This is true even when pulling all-nighters.
In other words, the assistants' effective working time isn't actually that long.
But now, Akira had handed them all the Line Art at once, which meant that all their working time from now on would be effective time!
Under these conditions, even with a relatively ideal three-day limit, the time was far more abundant than usual.
Therefore, Daisuke could only perform a rough simulation and calculation, arriving at a result that surprised even himself.
"Even by a conservative estimate, it should be completed within 12 hours."
Of course, this referred to pure working time—working for 12 hours straight without eating or drinking.
But even taking those breaks into account, it would only take pulling most of an all-nighter to finish!
Wait a minute.
Suddenly realizing something, Daisuke's expression changed slightly.
Does that mean they only work one day a week here with Akira?!
How should the remaining gap be scheduled?
"Twelve hours..."
Akira didn't know what the other was thinking; upon hearing this news, he smiled and said:
"In that case, it can be finished before work ends tomorrow. That's quite fast."
"Before work ends tomorrow? Shouldn't it be finished tonight?"
"Huh?"
Both were very surprised by each other's words. After exchanging a look, they realized there seemed to be a discrepancy in their thinking.
Akira was thinking in terms of a normal job, while Daisuke was thinking in terms of a typical manga studio.
At this point, Akira said somewhat uncertainly:
"Since time is relatively abundant, we can just proceed according to normal working hours, right?"
In his mind, it should be like this.
But since Daisuke was a veteran Manga Assistant, Tsuna was also a bit unsure.
Perhaps there were some special rules in the industry regarding this?
Normal working hours...
Such an unfamiliar term.
Meanwhile, Daisuke was momentarily dazed by what he heard.
According to the contract, assistants do indeed have normal working hours, similar to those of ordinary employees, with the standard being eight hours.
However, in reality, within the industry, these prescribed hours are almost impossible to achieve due to various practical reasons.
Sometimes, forget about leaving on time; finishing work before midnight is considered early.
"...Tanaka-san?"
"Ah, sorry, I spaced out for a moment."
Hearing Akira's call, Daisuke finally snapped back to his senses and said with emotion:
"It's just that proceeding according to normal working hours is truly a rare occurrence in this industry. I don't even know what to say."
"Is that so?"
Hearing this, Akira also felt somewhat moved.
How do the people in the manga industry endure such hardship every day?
Is it really just powered by love?
Anyway, once the work schedule was set, they told Hayato and Shota. Their reactions were even more exaggerated than Daisuke's.
"Leaving on time? For real?!"
"With such treatment, are we really working as Manga Assistants...?"
What kind of studio is this?!
At this moment, the two, who had previously been somewhat in awe of Akira, looked at him with eyes full of pure worship.
They wanted to seriously correct their previous misconceptions.
He wasn't some manga monster; in their eyes, Mochizuki-sensei was the true God of Manga!
He's so good he's practically glowing!
"Alright, alright, don't exaggerate."
Akira waved his hand with a chuckle, fearing that if they kept this up, they would find a blanket to drape over him.
Ah, unfortunately, it seemed that people in Japan didn't understand that meme.
"However, it's a bit of a pity."
Just then, Daisuke joked with a half-serious smile:
"Because Mochizuki-sensei's efficiency is so high, we can only work here two days a week."
Indeed.
Hayato and Shota deeply agreed.
It was incredible; for the first time in their lives, they felt regret and pity because they couldn't work more.
However—
"I don't think that's a problem."
Then, Akira smiled and said:
"By the time you finish Chapter 4, I should have mostly finished the Line Art for Chapter 5."
"..."
Everyone fell silent instantly.
While it was good to be able to continue working, Mochizuki-sensei's overflowing talent and terrifying drawing efficiency...
It must be said, it was truly demoralizing.