Chapter 273 – Eriri Wants to "Come Ashore"!
The front door closed.
Outside, the sound of a car engine starting could be heard.
Yukima Azuma gently rubbed his forehead.
All that could be said was—Saguga Sayuri.
This kind of "Mommy Support" move was probably something only Eriri ever got to enjoy.
After changing shoes,
Yukima Azuma didn't head upstairs right away, but instead turned into the kitchen first.
He casually opened the fridge to take a look.
He took out some cold cuts, then two eggs, and a bit of flour.
At this hour, Eriri definitely hadn't had dinner yet.
As a true night owl, Eriri's dinners often landed somewhere between "dinner" and "midnight snack."
Not to mention, Sayuri had just gone out.
She'd probably end up ordering delivery later anyway.
Using the cold cuts to make broth,
Yukima Azuma started cooking ramen.
Before long, a steaming bowl of ramen sat ready.
He placed a perfectly round sunny-side-up egg on top, hiding the other egg at the bottom of the bowl.
Carrying the bowl of noodles, Yukima Azuma headed upstairs.
The light in Eriri's room was on.
He pushed the door open, and there was Eriri, tying a ribbon in her hair, sitting at her drawing desk wrestling with her digital tablet.
Hearing the door open—
Eriri turned around.
Thinking Sayuri had come back, but when she saw it was Yukima Azuma—
Her brows immediately relaxed, and her eyes lit up with joy.
(๑>◡<๑)
Even though her face couldn't hide how happy she was—
Those cherry-pink lips still blurted out some tsundere-laced words:
"Azuma, why are you here? Don't tell me you missed me so much you just had to come over!"
( ,,⩌'︿'⩌,,)
But Yukima Azuma nodded without hesitation.
"That's exactly it, I missed my Eriri too much!"
With her low attack and defense stats, Eriri was hit right in the heart by Yukima Azuma's straightforward strike.
Her cheeks instantly turned red.
(💢,,>﹏<,,) b-baka!
Azuma placed the bowl next to Eriri,
Then handed her the chopsticks.
Eriri gave a little sniff, and her sapphire-blue eyes lit up instantly—
Just like Shiratamaru when it spotted a cat snack stick.
She hugged the ramen bowl, unable to wait, and took a bite.
(∩❛ڡ❛∩)
But it was too hot, and she ended up sticking her tongue out, blowing frantically to cool it.
"Eat slower, no one's gonna steal it from you."
Yukima Azuma gave Eriri a light knock on the head.
Watching Eriri eat, Yukima Azuma felt a sense of contentment.
Even though Yukima Azuma didn't have the heart of a chef, even if others praised his cooking to the skies, he'd still remain calm.
But seeing the girl he liked happily enjoying a delicious meal...
Yukima Azuma felt joy from the depths of his heart.
(ෆ˙ᵕ˙ෆ)♡
...
After watching Eriri mukbang for a while,
Yukima Azuma's gaze shifted to Eriri's drawing tablet.
Normally, if Yukima Azuma so much as looked at Eriri's work—
She'd immediately leap over to stop him.
After all, the works of Kashiwagi Eri-sensei really weren't meant to be seen in public.
Though Eriri hadn't gone so far as to say, "I don't know anyone named Kashiwagi Eri,"
There was definitely a sense of embarrassment.
But today, Eriri didn't try to stop him.
She just looked a little bashful.
(,,¬﹏¬,,)
Yukima Azuma looked at the drawing.
To his surprise, this time Eriri wasn't drawing an R18 piece.
Oh shit, Kashiwagi Eri-sensei isn't drawing doujinshi anymore!
Yukima Azuma flipped through a few pages.
He realized it was a draft of a school romance manga.
And unlike the typical school romance setups...
Eriri's work clearly featured middle school students—possibly even elementary schoolers.
Most school romance stories are set in high school,
Because they allow for more extreme plot points.
And people are more accepting of that.
At a glance...
All he could say was—no wonder she's a doujinshi artist — Kawasaghi Eri-sensei.
Her grasp of the human body was perfectly on point.
Just looking at the artwork, it was extremely pleasant.
Especially since Eriri had drawn every kind of doujinshi out there, even pulling off ahegao expressions like it was nothing.
So when she switched to regular manga, her expression work packed serious power.
All he could say was, if Eriri could just hold back a little...
She'd definitely be a top-tier shoujo manga artist.
However, the issue still lies there.
Eriri's ability to build a plot was too weak.
If it were an artbook, it would definitely sell out like hotcakes.
But if it were a manga with such a weak plot, it would drag the art style down.
After finishing reading, Yukima Azuma put the drawing aside.
He curiously glanced at Eriri.
"So, why the sudden desire to 'come ashore'?"
Eriri blushed a bit at hearing the words "come ashore."
Had she even been in the sea?
૮₍ ˶>⤙<˶ ₎ა
It was Kashiwagi Eri who had gone to the sea, okay!?
"It's nothing, I just feel like drawing doujinshi isn't fun anymore, so I wanted to try something for all ages instead,"
(,,Ծ‸Ծ,, )
Eriri shyly said.
With Yukima Azuma's understanding of Eriri...
He, of course, knew there had to be another reason.
But if Eriri didn't want to talk about it, Yukima Azuma wouldn't press her.
It was just that, since they had just talked about the plot...
And seeing that Yukima Azuma didn't intend to ask further questions,
Eriri let out a small sigh of relief.
Actually, the reason she wanted to "come ashore" was simple.
Yukima Azuma had asked someone else to illustrate his light novel.
This made Eriri realize that even if the artist drew in a suggestive style, they still had to be a "proper" artist.
For a light novel illustration job like that, it just didn't feel right to have someone who wasn't "mainstream" doing it.
Even though she thought Eromanga-sensei was just a middle-aged uncle who wasn't worth her attention...
Eriri still wanted to be Yukima Azuma's one and only illustrator.
That's why she wanted to try "coming ashore."
"The plot really is weak,"
Yukima Azuma casually criticized.
Eriri, who was still drifting in some vague, improper thoughts...
Was struck by his words and her face turned as dark as a thundercloud.
"I know, I know! But I don't know how to write stories! What can I do about it?!"
ᕙ( ᗒᗣᗕ )ᕗ
Eriri, in a bit of a "screw it, I'll ruin it all" attitude, grumbled in frustration.
She really couldn't come up with any subtle plots.
As a half-British lady...
Eriri's experiences couldn't exactly resonate with an ordinary person.
Especially since Eriri was an otaku.
Her weak writing skills were the result of her lack of experiences—a true reflection of her lifestyle.
"Why not try adapting from your own experiences?"
Yukima Azuma suggested.
At that, a lightbulb seemed to flicker above Eriri's small blonde head.
(´⊙ω⊙`)!
That was a great idea.
If it was based on real-life experiences, wouldn't the plot no longer be an issue?
Moreover, if it were a school romance genre...
Wouldn't she and Yukima Azuma be a perfect match!?
But then, Eriri's small face fell as she thought about it.
"My fans are mostly all guys."
"If I really drew a manga from my own perspective, it'd definitely end up being a shoujo manga."
As a hentai artist, of course, Kashiwagi Eri's readers were predominantly male.
Moreover, what Eriri didn't say was...
She felt that if she made herself the female protagonist of the story...
She would probably get flamed.
It would probably come off as too pretentious, too showy!
Seeing Eriri's little pained expression,
Yukima Azuma really wanted to say:
"You do realize you're the tsundere type, right!?"
But seeing how utterly defeated Eriri looked at that moment...
Yukima Azuma just cleared his throat softly and came up with a solution:
"If it's a manga aimed at guys, then all you need to do is change the gender and tweak the character designs a bit, right?"
Hearing that, Eriri began to imagine the possibilities.
If Yukima Azuma-chan's character design was changed to female...
She could imagine a sweet, beautiful onee-san—strong yet gentle.
Maximum EQ, knowing how to pamper others.
Wow, that'd be the perfect girlfriend!
Azuma-chan: (❀´ ˘ `❀) <3