The launch of Mirai Manga caused no surprises. Readers rushed to buy it enthusiastically. After a few days, Takumi not only regained the advantage, but practically secured victory.
He breathed a sigh of relief, and Hinotori Publishing too. Only the launch of Detective Conan's single volume remained.
For this launch, Takumi drew several images that could be used as covers and took them to the Weekly Shōnen editorial office.
"Okay...".
Upon receiving the images, Kurosawa carefully put them away and smiled at Takumi: "The Detective's Son will be out next week. We'll publish it on the same day as them. Is there anything we should pay attention to?"
"No."
Takumi shook his head. It was the last competition, but he didn't know much about business. It would be better to leave the rest to experienced people.
Both Detective Conan and The Detective's Son are detective-themed. If we only look at magazines, the strength of both lies in "The Detective's Son" winning, but the latter's sales are largely due to the popularity of other manga.
If we exclude those secondary works and decide the winner with the individual volume, Takumi doesn't think "Detective Conan" will lose to "The Detective's Son", and he has prepared several illustrations for the individual volume, which is perfect.
Hinotori Publishing's staff will be more concerned about victory than he is. If Mirai-sensei fails, he will leave Japan, which would be a devastating blow to the company.
So this time the magazine is handed over to the company. They will formulate the best sales strategy and will never be careless.
"Well, we'll make good use of these illustrations of yours,"
Kurosawa nodded. The illustrations can be turned into small gifts. These beautiful illustrations, drawn by Mirai-sensei himself, will undoubtedly attract readers' attention. He seems to have seen the exciting scene of the individual volume.
"Then I'll go to the office..."
Takumi bid farewell to Kurosawa and walked towards the office. Alice hadn't contacted him during this time, and even asked other editors to pick up manuscripts, which worried Takumi greatly.
What happened to Alice? He doesn't know if it was an accident.
Upon entering the office with those thoughts, he was surprised to see that only one desk remained. Alice wasn't there!
"What happened?"
He took out his mobile phone and called Alice. The phone rang for a long time before Alice answered.
"Takumi? Sorry, I'm working. How can I help you?" Her voice was normal. Takumi was stunned for a moment and then said: "Oh, that... I'm in the office, why can't I see you?"
There was a silence on the microphone for two seconds.
"I moved away." Then, Alice smiled and said: "That office is a little far. It's not convenient for working, so I moved upstairs. It just so happens that the voice acting agency needs my help."
His and Takumi's office are next to the video game production department. This was the place chosen in the past to facilitate "Fate/Stay Night" production, but now the video game production department has no urgent work, so it's normal for Alice to move.
At least Takumi thought so, and he felt relieved.
After hanging up the phone, he checked Pokémon's game status and then went to the anime production department and "Bakuman" and "Ouran High School Host Club" studios. It was almost noon.
"Finally, I'll go see Alice...".
Takumi decided to go see her. He walked to the voice acting agency that was being created. The agency room was still undergoing renovations and the nameplate was not yet hung.
After searching for a long time, Takumi found Alice's office, which was in the back and very secluded.
"Why did you move to such a remote place?" After Alice opened the door, Takumi asked curiously: "This place isn't as good as my office!"
Alice, who opened the door, was obviously not mentally prepared. Takumi's appearance caught her by surprise. Her face changed several times, and then she pulled him into the office and poked her head out to look a couple of times.
"Do you want to kill me?"
Seeing no one outside, Alice closed the door and breathed a sigh of relief: "Luckily, I don't have to dub today, otherwise, if Shiori finds out you're here, she'll kill me!"
The real reason Alice moved offices was, of course, Shiori. Since the last incident, Shiori has been very wary of her. To reduce disputes, Alice moved here.
"Why does Shiori want to kill you?"
However, Takumi didn't know the truth and was a little confused.
"..." Alice didn't dare to answer. What happened that night was a secret, and she didn't dare to say it.
But seeing Takumi standing in front of her with a pure face, Alice still felt a strong sense of guilt. She didn't know what had happened that day, and she had acted that way by chance.
However, this impulse had been buried for a long time.
Takumi was a perfect object. After being together for so long, Alice couldn't help but be moved. She doesn't know when she started getting nervous around him, and his figure often appeared in her dreams.
Sometimes, when Takumi touched her, Alice's heart pounded so fast she couldn't stand it, like last time at the amusement park, Takumi simply ran with her on his back, but Alice was overwhelmed by desire. She couldn't stand it, so she got off early.
Perhaps she was too empty, Alice gradually lost control...
After Tomato's wedding banquet, her desire reached its peak. After impulsively asking Aika about her husband and children in the car, Alice decided she wanted to have a child with Takumi.
So she hid the potion in her bag, thinking she would find an opportunity to charm him and thus be able to do it without anyone noticing.
She knew this approach was very dangerous and extreme, but no one expected things to be so ingenious. Before her impulse calmed down, Takumi took the initiative to find her...
Although the purpose was different, Takumi's actions that day greatly excited her, because that day was her dangerous period, and there was no better time to get pregnant than that.
But in the end, when Alice saw Takumi's smiling face, she decided to be patient.
"He's still a child and he has Shiori."
Comforting herself like this, Alice went shopping uneasily. She thought everything was fine, but she didn't expect a car accident on the road, and Takumi fell asleep again.
Upon returning from witnessing the accident, Alice saw Takumi's sleeping face in the window. At that moment, all her defenses collapsed.
A dangerous period, falling into a trap, plus a night of togetherness and Takumi sleeping, Alice felt that God was helping her.
"It's not my fault, it's fate!"
That night, Alice thought that if she didn't seize the opportunity, she wouldn't have another, so...
"What's wrong with you?"
Takumi's voice woke her from her memories. She looked at Takumi and shook him: "It's okay, I'm sorry, do you want water?"
She apologized to Takumi, and her face quickly regained its calm.
But as she poured water, Alice thought of that night again, and she still had some unused pills in her bag.
"How dirty!"
Alice's heart skipped a beat, and she felt disgusted with herself. She poured Takumi a glass of water, chatted with him for a while, and then they parted ways.
After parting, Alice returned to the office and threw all the pills from her bag into the trash. She could not make the same mistake again.
At that moment, in distant Saitama, Anthony appeared.
"Takumi..."
He stood in front of the huge garden building, contemplating the ancient inscriptions above his head, and sighed slightly: "I never thought Mirai-sensei belonged to this family."
"Your Excellency the Duke, forgive me for not having investigated this in advance..."
The blonde maid bowed behind him, her face very scared.
Two months ago, Anthony returned to England, but this was a chess move that turned darkness into light.
He returned to England, but he scattered enough contacts in Osaka. By using Kanto to fight Mirai-sensei, those contacts played an important role, allowing Anthony to obtain sufficient information thousands of kilometers away.
Mirai-sensei's actions could not be hidden from his eyes. In fact, the confrontation was an evaluation, but it not only evaluated Mirai-sensei's manga skills, but also his life, character, personality, and other elements.
"Know the enemy and know yourself, and you can achieve numerous victories without danger," is an ancient Japanese saying that Anthony greatly appreciates. On the long road of life, he has gone through trials and has known for a long time that the best place to get information is the dark place that no one notices.
After investigating for so long, Anthony knew everything about Mirai-sensei. He thought it was time to act. However, before that, Anthony had to solve a problem.
The Yamada family; this place could be Mirai-sensei's family.
"Are you here?" Anthony saw the door slowly opening and people coming to greet him. He couldn't help but smile and say: "Madam Yamada, long time no see."
An old woman came out the door. Her steps were slow, but firm, and she was no less beautiful than Anthony.
Anthony's eyes gleamed with nostalgia, thinking of the official who was behind King Wu of Japan that year. King Wu of Japan was extremely handsome, but the female officials who served as his assistants were also beautiful.
Time flies, no matter how beautiful a beauty is, today, time has destroyed her.
"Duke Anthony, what an exceptional guest..."
The old woman walked a few meters in front of Anthony and did not advance: "You and I have left politics. Are you looking for me this time, not revenge?"
She narrowed her eyes slightly, her face was very calm.
"No... How can that be!"
Anthony immediately shook his head. He didn't want to offend the old woman. Although the economic war was over, those who had retired from the old imperial residence possessed astonishing wealth.
That wealth came from money earned with blood and sweat, plundering other countries. In the past, Anthony would undoubtedly have wanted to kill them, but now he would not destroy the hard-won peace.
"Madam..." He smiled: "I'm here for your grandson, I think... I can't hide it from you."