"Hiss."
Izumi Chihiro's expression suddenly changed.
He didn't know where she learned her technique; although her strength wasn't great, it made his shoulders feel tingly and numb.
"I often massage my grandma's shoulders at home, so I'm a professional at this, Izumi-dono doesn't need to worry... This can also be considered 'thanking' you for yesterday's matter."
Seemingly knowing what he wanted to ask, Takasago Tomoe explained the reason.
'Women are truly terrifying; they can do such cruel things without changing their expression!'
Izumi Chihiro endured the pain while thinking to himself.
However, as soon as he thought of what happened yesterday, he suddenly understood the girl's feelings.
The famous scene in the second volume of puella magi madoka magica was indeed a bit too stimulating for some avid readers, so it was understandable to have a little emotional reaction; they weren't robots reading a book.
Just from the online condemnations, Izumi Chihiro already understood that if he revealed his identity, 'wonderful' things would definitely happen.
Of course, it certainly wouldn't be as exaggerated as those readers who saw the Dragon Knight plot back then.
What happened today gave him another lesson.
That is, those who do many unrighteous deeds will...
Ah, no.
It's that the fewer people who know about his identity as a writer, the better!
...
"Not bad, it loosened up."
Izumi Chihiro shook his shoulders, feeling much lighter in an instant.
It seemed Takasago-douchi hadn't lied; she was indeed very professional at this skill.
Although it was for a small revenge, she actually helped him out a little.
Because of his previous high-intensity typing work, his shoulders were a bit tired, but now they were much better, so this time he didn't really lose out.
Nishikino Maki secretly watched for a long time, but regarding their actions and conversation, she only felt a bit strange and couldn't discern any useful information.
"Imi wa ganai."
She shook her head and shifted her attention.
During the lunch break.
Nishikino Maki looked at the expansive sky, then took out her bento from her desk drawer.
After lunch.
Nishikino Maki suddenly became concerned about something.
"Izumi-dono, when will the game you mentioned finally be completed?"
"Oh, is Nishikino also interested in games?"
Izumi Chihiro's expression became intriguing.
"No, not really."
Nishikino Maki denied it.
"I... I just think it would be such a shame if such beautiful songs were wasted."
She paused for a long time before speaking her true feelings.
"Nishikino, don't underestimate me. The game I'm making certainly deserves these two songs... In fact, these two songs were originally created for that game. If you don't believe me, once it's finished, I can let Nishikino-senpai play it first."
Izumi Chihiro said with a firm tone.
"There's no need for that, I don't play games..."
Nishikino Maki waved her hand.
"Then you're really missing out on a lot of fun in life."
He smiled slightly.
...
Meanwhile, his daily life continued, but the influence of the second volume of puella magi madoka magica was rapidly expanding, forming two distinct camps.
One camp simply thought that this kind of 'dark fairy tale' was not suitable for a magical girl work, so they were very dissatisfied. They also felt that he was just riding on the coattails of popularity and wasn't writing according to their preferred ideas.
However, another group of people felt that there was no problem with this. If an old genre wanted to rejuvenate, it needed to incorporate new elements. Only then could it attract more people.
Izumi Chihiro also paid attention to this issue and would log on to the website periodically to watch their online arguments.
It was clear that most of the people in the first camp had never seen puella magi madoka magica. They only joined in after the debate grew in popularity and they saw others posting about famous scenes.
They had a bit of a clickbait feel.
But Izumi Chihiro remained calm and collected, with no intention of coming out to 'clarify' anything.
After all, it all served to increase the popularity of his work. The good or bad defined in their hearts was simply not important to him.
He believed that after puella magi madoka magica concluded, such voices would surely diminish greatly.
At this time, some unwilling individuals, seeking support and recognition, posted this matter on the Twitter accounts or blogs of relevant people.
The debate about magical girl instantly became a hot topic in the light novel world, and even the ACG world.
Although many people were just watching for the spectacle and had no intention of actually reading the full novel, it still provided him with considerable popularity.
With fame, sales would naturally also see a certain degree of increase.
This was truly a marketing success that came about inexplicably.
["This is a blasphemy against magical girls!"]
"What this person wrote is not a magical girl at all!"
["He's just a show-off."]
["This kind of work will corrupt children."]
Some professionals joined in the condemnation of Izumi Masamune.
Of course, more people chose to stand by and watch, with no intention of taking a stance.
This kind of verbal battle actually had some use, and the criticisms gradually increased.
At the same time, it also sparked everyone's thinking: What exactly is the definition of a magical girl?
As the matter escalated further, what was originally just a quarrel on the Fujikawa Bunko official website forum gradually extended to other places, clearly becoming an increasingly intense situation.
Just at this moment.
"Interesting, interesting, truly too interesting... I didn't expect people in this day and age to still be discussing such things."
Inside the closed room, the cute girl with chestnut wavy hair had just woken up. After opening the webpage, she suddenly saw some strange news. She immediately adjusted her glasses, looked closely, and her expression was quite spectacular.
"Let me add some fuel to the fire!"
Aoi Makina said playfully.
As the scriptwriter of 'Little Witch of the Stars ☆ meruru', the creator of the hottest magical girl anime, her opinion could certainly sway the tide of the battle.
But she was not the kind of person who would casually take sides; she prioritized her own preferences.
So, she decided to first see what interesting content this so-called puella magi madoka magica actually contained, that it could spark such a public discussion.
One should know that works of this genre were no longer new. Even if they maintained a certain viewership, in terms of discussion, it was mostly self-contained within their niche. No one would care about such an old-fashioned and outdated anime, and the people who engaged with it were mostly young girls and children.