Kazama Yuu looked at the woman standing in front of him—Ishigami Rina—and his memories finally settled into place.
To everyone else, she was gentle, patient, endlessly understanding.
To him, she had always been… different.
They had been classmates in high school. Back then, Kazama had accidentally discovered Ishigami's hidden side—an explosive, sharp-tongued version of herself that never appeared in public. She had warned him, very calmly, to never tell a soul.
And he hadn't.
Even after graduation, even after university, even after fate somehow paired them together again as editor and mangaka.
Which raised an uncomfortable question.
If I'm the one who knows her secret… why do I feel like the one being threatened?
This wasn't how things were supposed to go.
Shouldn't it be something like—
"You wouldn't want others to know about this, would you?"
Instead—
"Even if you don't care about yourself," Ishigami said sharply, "at least think about me! You were the first mangaka I ever handled. If your contract gets cut, that stain stays on my résumé forever!"
She finally released his collar, her expression tight with disappointment.
Her hand—slender, pale, meticulously groomed—fell away. For some reason, Kazama felt an irrational sense of loss.
"…Sorry," he said without thinking.
"What's the point of apologizing now?!" Ishigami snapped. "Seriously! You need to think about what you're going to do next. There's no way you can stay at Weekly Shōnen Sunday."
She crossed her arms.
"And that bald creep telling you to enter the New Generation Original Works Award? Ridiculous. Completely ridiculous!"
She ranted openly about Editor-in-Chief Nagasaki, clearly holding back nothing now.
Then she suddenly stopped, reached into her bag, and pulled out an envelope.
"Here," she said. "It's not much, but it should cover next month's rent and food. Consider it thanks—for keeping my secret all these years."
Kazama stiffened.
"Find a job as soon as possible," she continued. "And if you still insist on drawing manga, then change how you think. Being unique doesn't matter if you can't survive."
Her voice softened, but her words didn't.
"You've got no safety net. No leverage. Keep being this stubborn, and you'll starve. That's all I have to say."
She hesitated.
"…Goodbye, Kazama."
"Sorry," he said again, then shook his head. "I can't take this."
She stared at him.
"…What?"
"If I take your money, what then?" Kazama said quietly. "Two weeks? Half a month? That's all it buys."
"You're joking, right?" Ishigami said incredulously. "Even if you get a job right now, your first paycheck won't come in time!"
"I'll figure something out."
His tone wasn't loud, but it was firm.
If he really ended up starving, so be it—but not like this. Not now.
"You're unbelievable," she muttered. "Fine. If you're really about to collapse, come find me. I'll at least make sure you don't die."
She turned, heels clicking sharply against the floor, worry lingering between her brows as she left.
The door closed.
Ding.
A clear, mechanical voice echoed in Kazama Yuu's mind.
Congratulations, Host. You have refused Ishigami Rina's financial assistance.
The Strongest Anime Master System has been activated.
Kazama froze.
This system contains anime data from the Host's original world.
Its purpose is to assist the Host in becoming an Anime Master.
Popularity Points serve as the system's sole currency.
They may be exchanged for money, artistic skill improvement, creative data, or physical recovery.
"…So now you show up," Kazama muttered.
Until a moment ago, he had already decided to give up manga—at least temporarily. Even with solid drawing fundamentals, it meant nothing without storytelling. He had seen masterpieces in his past life, but remembering that they were good wasn't enough.
Miss the details, miss the emotion—and the work collapses.
At best, it wouldn't save him.
But the system changed everything.
"System," he said calmly, "open the status panel."
Name: Kazama Yuu
Age: 22
Remaining Lifespan: 2 months
Kazama's heart skipped.
"…What?"
Drawing Skill: 80
Mastered Art Styles: 1
Scriptwriting Ability: 5
Composing Ability: 10
Drawing Speed: 2 pages/day (12 hours)
Popularity Points: 125
He didn't even notice the high drawing skill.
All he could see was two months of life remaining.
Fragments of memory surfaced.
The original Kazama Yuu had known he was terminally ill. That was why he had forced himself to draw—to leave something behind. Not for fame. Not for money.
Just proof that he had existed.
And yet, his scriptwriting ability was atrocious.
He hadn't been drawing manga because he loved it.
He'd been drawing out of sheer desperation.
"…And why does an Anime Master system even need composing ability?" Kazama muttered.
The memories trickled in awkwardly, half-finished, like a faucet that refused to fully open.
"System," he said, focusing. "You said physical recovery?"
Confirmed.
Kazama finally exhaled.
"Then where's my beginner reward?"
Newbie Reward Distributed.
Anime, manga, and novel data: 5 Centimeters per Second.
Kazama's eyes widened.
Based on his memories of Weekly Shōnen Sunday, Ishigami had been right. Current romance manga skipped emotional buildup entirely—pretty faces, fast payoff, zero depth.
But compared to the original Kazama's scripts?
Even those looked refined.
He didn't waste time mourning his canceled series.
If the battlefield demanded blood—
Then Five Centimeters per Second would answer.
Kazama grabbed his flip phone, scrolled to Ishigami Rina's contact, and dialed.
"Editor Ishigami," he said calmly, "I want to enter the New Generation Original Works Award."