Speaking of manga, Toujou Nozomi unconsciously looked towards Yoshino, who was still lecturing Shiina, but she didn't think Yoshino could win an argument against Shiina.
In the world of "Love Live!", Yoshino, to avoid adding pressure to Toujou Nozomi's life, once debuted as a manga artist. Her manga, "Gosick," was being read by many people at school until she came to this world.
Toujou Nozomi even found many online writers creating their own manga based on Yoshino's manga settings. However, these were mostly manga with chaotic settings. At most, they could be used for entertainment and were not qualified for publication.
She remembered that Ayaka, the editor-in-chief of Weekly Shonen Jump, who was specifically in charge of Yoshino's manga, once told her: this manga, due to its novel subject matter and involvement in some historical cases, was very popular across many age groups.
However, the most popular age group was young men between eighteen and thirty years old, also including some men over thirty. Why was it most popular among this age group of men? Because these people also had a universally recognized collective term, and that was... loli con.
A lolicon primarily refers to individuals (mostly male) who have a strong protective and approaching desire for Little Girls aged 5-12. However, Toujou Nozomi believes age is not the key, as she learned about the existence of 'legal lolis' in this world after meeting Tsukuyomi Moon-Meng. For those people, as long as it's a petite and cute Little Loli, they will be obsessed.
She even found a news report online about an adult attacking a loli. After multiple family members sued the criminal suspect, the culprit showed no remorse for his actions in court. After being sentenced, as he was being pulled away by the police officer, he loudly told reporters, "Three years is a huge profit, death penalty is not a loss," and similar remarks, which spread across the entire network via live broadcast.
Even after the incident was blocked, many netizens saved the video and anonymously posted it online. After seeing this news, everyone in Muse now personally escorts Yazawa Nico home, regardless of any complaints she might have, leaving no room for discussion.
"Yes, you could say I'm a professional manga artist. Before, I used to forget to eat when drawing, and when I went out to eat, I'd feel like the Earth's gravity was really strong."
"You must have fainted from hunger then, Sister Niya. Your situation is not good. Don't professional manga artists have assistants? Why don't you find an assistant who can take care of you and help you?"
"Hmm~ Generally speaking, that's how it is." She folded her arms across her chest and nodded in agreement. "But for me, I usually do it all by myself. Well~ it's more relaxing to draw alone, but sometimes it can be exhausting, though."
She remembered how sometimes her mind would suddenly go blank, and before finishing her manuscript, she'd get lost in games and anime. The result was her hellish days when the editor came to rush her for the manuscript.
To be honest, she was already a Spirit at that time. But the aura emanating from the editor actually made her feel scared. If it weren't for the fact that the other person had no spiritual power, she would have thought the editor was a Spirit.
Thinking of her dark past, Honjou Nia sadly returned to bed, hoping the comfortable blankets would soothe her currently bleak heart.
"I think that's the fatal flaw." I had a manuscript cheat, so I never experienced writer's block. Yoshino was generally quite free in "Love Live!". After helping Ayase Eli with student council work and having free time at home, she would use it to draw manga. So she never experienced being rushed for a manuscript.
"Then you must have been on hiatus for five years by now. As a professional manga artist, going five years without updating is inexcusable to your fans, isn't it?" This kind of hiatus is the most hated thing for readers.
You know, the manga I like, even with weekly updates, is already a bit urgent; I wish the author could change from weekly to daily updates. Now, the manga I like suddenly stops updating, becoming a 'waiting for a lifetime' series. This is no longer something that can be solved by simply sending angry messages. This is a rhythm of mutual destruction.
"Yah~ I know that too. I'm also very glad that I chose the pen name Honjou Souji back then." She said, patting her chest with a look of lingering fear. But no matter how much you pat, there's nothing there, young lady.
"Honjou Souji? Isn't that a male name?"
"So, female manga artists using male pen names to draw shonen manga are also quite common. And this behavior is also a form of self-protection for the author."
Honjou Nia smiled slightly and continued.
"And there are also famous shojo manga artists who debuted successfully using shojo pen names who might actually be men. I know of one famous shojo manga artist with the pen name Yumeno Sakiko who is actually an expressionless male high school student. He sometimes goes to school covered in injuries; those who don't know might think he got into a fight with someone, but it's actually because the deadline is approaching, and he works hard to meet it, causing all sorts of problems. Those who don't know might think he's a delinquent."
"Eh? Is that so?" Minami Kotori's eyes widened in disbelief upon hearing this news. She often found inspiration for her clothing designs in shojo manga. It was a bit hard to accept that some of those manga were drawn by men.
"That's right, that's right. A very cute girl next to him told me that when she first discovered his identity, she didn't believe it at all. You know, Yumeno Sakiko is a popular author known for her meticulous psychological descriptions and gorgeous artwork, and her heartfelt portrayal of a girl's psyche earned her the title of 'spokesperson for girls' among her female fans. But that guy hasn't even had his first love. That kid told me at the time that he was completely a roughneck; the imagination and the reality were completely different, and her fantasy shattered in that instant."
The few people who received this astonishing insider information from the manga artist couldn't help but widen their eyes. However, Toujou Nozomi had already found other things.
"Wait!? I found online that Honjou Souji-sensei's work, "SILVER BULLET," had been serialized for seven or eight years before its hiatus, but your debut work should have been even earlier."
Toujou Nozomi carefully scrutinized Honjou Nia's appearance. She looked only eighteen or nineteen, and as a Spirit, she didn't need makeup. But she had debuted at least ten years ago and had been captured by DEM for five years. Calculating this... Toujou Nozomi's face began to sweat coldly. These two points alone were already close to her own age. So Honjou Nia's true age should be... "Um, Sister Nozomi. Sister Niya is the second confirmed Spirit in the world. After becoming a Spirit, her body stopped growing and has remained at seventeen years old."
Yoshino, who was on the side, explained the confusion to Toujou Nozomi. Honjou Nia tried to stop her from revealing her secret, but she was held back by Minami Kotori, Hoshizora Rin, and Tokisaki Kurumi, unable to move a single step forward.
"She became a Spirit twenty-seven years ago, at the age of seventeen. That means Sister Niya's current age is approximately forty-five..." She looked up at the shocked crowd and Honjou Nia, who had lost all strength and collapsed to the ground.
Seemingly realizing she had done something wrong, she quickly searched for a solution in her mind. Seeing Honjou Nia's kind demeanor, her eyes lit up. A light bulb almost appeared above her head.
"Even if Sister Niya is forty-five now, it doesn't matter. You know, Sister Niya is still a beautiful girl. A forty-five-year-old youthful beautiful girl isn't a big deal, is it?"
"Crack!" The instantly petrified Honjou Nia slowly developed cracks upon hearing Yoshino's 'comforting' words, and she collapsed powerlessly to the ground. She kept repeating "a forty-five-year-old youthful beautiful girl" over and over, leaving Yoshino flustered.
"That's not comforting, Yoshino." Toujou Nozomi could tell that Yoshino didn't mean any harm and said that to comfort Honjou Nia. She just didn't realize that those words were even more hurtful.
'It seems this stuffed rabbit will corrupt Yoshino at any time.'
Looking at Shiina, who was covering her mouth and snickering, Toujou Nozomi thought that all of this was the fault of this stuffed rabbit, and had nothing to do with Yoshino.
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