"A day and a half... nothin' to eat." "To my name... 180 yen." "Six months past, not a day of work." "Over 20, never been laid." "Here I stand... lost in the road..." "What the hell." "Even for me... the rain falls." "Or is it..." "Shit?" "!" "I shoulda used oil paint." "Talk about rainy day planning." "Rock!" "Good rock." "Your finger!" "It's OK..." "Maybe." "Rule 1!" "Sorry, but I'm in a hurry." "Rock... rock... rock." "Bread." "Take my bread." "M-map..." "I gave it to you so..." "M-map... m-m-m." "Map, my map..." "Owch." "That's what I call a hunk." "Rule 1!" "As sensible adults at Tsugino Happy Inc... our "customer service and trust" motto makes... every day, a "happy" day!" "We're happy." "How happy?" "Very happy!" "Like we really could be." "You!" "Part-timer." "Late on your first day, eh?" "You've got some nerve." "I got hurt... and bandaged myself." "Not one iota!" "Huh?" "In the labor code about injury to part-timers." "And your poor boy face?" "I can't help it." "I'm poor." "Cover your shabbiness before answering, punk." "I ain't paying you to smile." "Get to the warehouse." "Underground!" "Hide in your hometown of Poorsville." "Part-timer..." "Your welcoming party is tonight." "Get your mug in a "welcoming" condition." "TROUBLE MAKER" "Rule 1!" "Let me introduce myself." "You still reek of poverty!" "Who'd welcome a face like yours?" "Endure it." "You gotta eat." "He's not with it." "The name's Aoki Mon." "Occupation... manga artisan." "A comic writer?" "Manga artisan." "What sort of comics?" "Rocks." "Where's... that rock?" "Rock manga." "Is the hero a rock?" "I draw manga with rocks." "I get it." "You don't have to pretend you understand my art." "Art needs no explanation." "Enough fawning, you poser." "Sit your ass down." "Your time's up!" "Ao-oni, right?" "Ao-ki." "You've succumbed to substituting the word "art" for "failure"." "If you were a success, you wouldn't be here." "But you are and it's killing you." "I'm no failure." "I'm just not selling." "That's called failure." "Get with the program." "POOR = FAILURE" "You alcoholic pig." "The idea that selling equals success..." "We average folks apologize for being part of the equation." "We won't deny the banality of your "not selling" excuse." "But your strutting around..." "How's it feel not reaching a consensus with us ten?" "Your tinge of shyness is a hope we'll pay lip service to your art." "Right Aka-oni?" "The name's Aoki!" "Gotta get a new job... again." "What's a quibbling bitch... doing with punch like that?" "You said it." " Uh..." " Uh..." " Loan me cab fare." " Wanna drink at my place?" "I'm Koino." "Akashi Koino." "I..." "Could I... have lost my virginity?" "What?" "What?" "Why?" "It's so you!" "Of all the guys..." "you're the cat's pajamas." "I thought you were Yunsung when I first saw you." "Yu-yunsung?" "Now pose." "What?" "What the hell?" "No moving!" "Here we go!" "Now pose." "Pose." "Like this." "See." "What the hell?" "Now with some blood." "And this... is the girl who made me a man." "Stop!" "Stop it!" "It tastes sweet." "Huh." "I thought you drew manga?" "He's a way popular game character." "Game?" "First time?" "I only played Donjara." "Donjara?" "Fun, huh?" "It'll wash out." "It's nothing to get depressed" "Handmade was it?" "I put my heart into that character." "Three weeks of hard work... only to be barfed on." "For that..." "That... amazingly wonderful costume, three whole weeks." "I'm not worthy." "I'm... no better than that quibbler." "You have your own important world." "And I pretended like..." "I knew it." "The costume's not weird." "It's... it's okay." "Don't freak on me." "Don't freak." "Okay?" "How can you ever forgive me?" "Ms. Akashi." "Okay then." "Start by using my first name, okay?" "Uh..." "Funano?" "Koino." "Koino." "Koino." "Will this do?" "Not so fast buster." "You're right." "Of course." "Gimme a sober kiss." "Nobody does Yunsung cosplay like he does." "Is this the first installment on a payment plan to love?" "But he's... not much of a kisser." "W-w-w-wait." "Mon." "Koino..." "Koino." "Last night." "We were drunk so we got hot and heavy but..." "But this is too fast." "You understand, right?" "Down boy..." "Mr. Happy!" "We'll hurt her feelings again." "Better wait." "Your time may come." "I'll go change." "We can only joke around in these." "You said it." "Mr. Happy... thanks." "He didn't push himself on me." "Like the others." "You got a compress?" "Compress?" "I think I hurt my neck bowing down." "See the closet behind King Seiki?" "King Seiki?" "Get real." "Abe Seiki." "There's a first aid kit inside." "Ani-son King." "Ani-son?" "Anime song." "You don't know jack." "You really do love manga." "I can't tell people at work." "They're so ordinary." "Overly ordinary." "You collect lots of thin manga." "Clueless about "fan manga" too?" "Humdrum." "Both inside and out." "I drew this one." "No-i-ko" "Y-you draw manga too?" "It's been my hobby since childhood." "I envied you when you said your occupation was a comic writer." "For me... it's just a dream." "Some dream?" "How much did it cost to make?" "600 copies for 150,000 yen or so." "150... 150..." "One hundred fifty thousand yen." "Cup noodles, three meals a day for over a year." "All that money, for this frivolous..." "I sold 800 copies at Comiket netting 1 million yen." "I've published 17 so I guess I'm 10 million yen in the black." "He ran." "He fled." "An adult, the same." "To:" "Aoki Mon From:" "Your Father" "What's with the bath towel?" "Loser." "Big loser." "Hey, it's a cool bath towel." "More expensive than my pants!" "Run!" "Loser." "Bath towel loser!" "My rock?" "My rock." "Some sardine can, huh?" "The size doesn't bother me." "How can I put this?" "It's very eccentric." "You think so?" "The plumber called it "Haunted Mantion"." "Whatever gave him..." "Thanks for my pants." "No problem." "I wanted mine back too." "And the rock too." "Did you find all these?" "Yep." "You draw with them, right?" "I wanna see your work." "You already are, in a way." "I mean, you're in my art." "What?" "Rocks express a gathering of particles in the cosmos." "Each rock is a metaphor for the cosmos and its own work." "Their placement has special meaning." "So this room itself is art." "I get it." "Is someone playing along so funny?" "She's heartfully pretending you know." "For example, here's a planet..." "Manga." "I wanna see manga." "What in blazes." "He's watching me." "His pure face is asking for my opinion." "He's sexy." "What do I do now?" "Where do I start with this manga?" "It doesn't look like manga." "Whatta ya think?" "I knew it." "As a manga creator like me..." "I'd like your opinion." "Like you?" "Scratch that." "Find something nice to say." "Sorry." "Is my work that frightening?" "No..." "That rock looks like... my dead grandma's face." "Oh, really." "But she was a nice grandma." "Grew organic veggies." "Sponge cucumbers" "Forget it." "I know my work is hard to appreciate." "You and your popular comics are more legit." "But someone out there understands my work." "One day, I'll make everyone appreciate it!" "You okay?" "We better get to work." "No." "Koino." "We... we..." "Not yet." "We haven't had sex." "Oh no!" "Giba Ranger is on!" "This Giba punches like a brick" "With these tusks turned fangs" "The universe rests on my shoulders" "I'm not a happy enough person to sleep with someone I just met." "After a proper date and getting to know each other, we'll..." "So..." "I'm... still..." "Testicle foreplay was the weak point of our sex last night... right?" "Maybe it's time we rethought our routine sex style." "We're at that phase." "What phase?" "Phase?" "What the fuck!" "I want you to get to know me." "So wanna take a trip with me?" "If I go, will I really understand you better?" "It's a true getaway." "A 'screw' getaway?" "A 'true' getaway." "That night will decide... whether I can honestly date him." "Anime Image Club Honey 'Ho" "If I was a chick..." "Daily Pay: 28,000 yen." "Play Charge: 8,000 yen / 60 mins." "Hang on." "King Seiki's Abalone Tour - 28,000 yen" "For one fuck..." "Either way it's cosplay." "And 20,000 yen to boot!" "Do I just want Koino's body... or want to date her?" "Nothing in common?" "We draw manga." "Big long shot." "Or a cosmic connection?" "But... she's damn cute." "I gotta give her that." "Hey buddy." "Could you do your worrying someplace else?" "You're scaring me." "Either way..." "I need money." "This is the one." "HELP WANTED" "My precious." "Welcome." "Wow... amazing." "Manga galore." "Yeah, it's a manga bar." "100... 100,000 yen." "The writer sets the price." "I only lend the space." ""Atomic Buddha" by Aoki Mon 28,000 yen" "A 'screw' getaway." "Aren't you in the wrong establishment?" "No, far from it." "What will you have?" "No, I'm not a customer." "Oh, the job, huh?" "No." "I'd like to show my work here." "You a comic writer?" "Manga artisan." "Are you now?" "Get Rich Quick!" "Can that money I borrowed wait till Friday?" "Oh, sure." "No problem." "I'm tapped this month." "Don't worry." "My parents can help out." "I envy you." "Being born with a silver spoon." "It's not that silver." "You moron." "Unlike me, you can draw." "Be dad's understudy and learn Japanese painting." "Your status is guaranteed." "I don't approve of your scribbling." "Well, I don't think you're an artist." "Clinging to your low ranking art guild.." "drawing pretty stuff we've seen before." "You call that painting?" "Mon." "I'm gonna create my own art form." "And it'll make me famous." "In one year." "No... give me two years." "You got a girl?" "Huh?" "I'm asking if you're dating anyone." "A highly... probably... candidate exists." "More than highly... nearly a sure thing." "If you really love her then quit making this stupid stuff and find a real job." "This..." "Put this by the doorstep of someone you don't like and run." "Use it for that." "You!" "This guy's a crack-up." "Self-destruction?" "Based on that anger, this ain't the first time you've been told so." "Running away..." "Stonehenge?" "The name's not Stonehenge." "You want money, right?" "Or were you using this to get that rock?" "Tear this up and promise me you'll make your girl happy." "Then." "I'll hire you." "I'll throw in the rock too." "No way!" "I won't give up my manga or my girlfriend." "Damn, I said girlfriend." "What the fuck?" "Damn compress." "Hey!" "Take this creepy shit home." "No matter how seeing him reminds you of your past... tread moderately with him otherwise he'll burn your bar down." "If he does as he pleases.." "then I'll do as I please." "There's no need to please Mr. Please." "My second escape today." "How pathetic." "Jesus." "Aoki-san." "You forgot this." "The bar girl, huh?" "How'd you know my name?" "It's on your work." "By the way." "I'm a regular at that place." "Oh..." "Sorry about this." "I'm Sono Kimari, an artist." "Just like you." "I see." "Thanks." "It really moved me." "Your work or manga as you call it." "My work?" "I like." "Yep, simply love it." "If you desire my critique..." "give me a bell soon." "And Marimoda left you a message." "Show up for work tomorrow." "Marimoda?" "Oh, the boss?" "SEE THE WORLD" "Well... good night." "I almost forgot." "What you said was cool." ""I won't give up love or manga!" Your straight shooting youth... but in a good way, really rocked my womb." "W-womb?" "Bye baby." "B-bye baby." "A girl came by with a letter." "It's opened!" "That it is." "Drop by my booth at Comiket next week if you can." "Comiket?" "Co, Comi, Comiket?" "P.S. I think I Iove you, Koino" "Stop your bitchin!" "You've probably never been in love, you virgin otaku." "That'll shut her up!" "LATE PAYMENT FINAL NOTICE" "Nobody does cosplay like this guy." "I gotta make him mine before the trip." "Hello." "Hi there." "Hi." "Noiko, you're late!" "Hi Kiyase-san." "OK." "Open the doors." "Don't run please." "OK." "Thank you." "Guess he's a no show." "Sagara... san?" "What?" "If you're buying, then buy." "That's it." "I'm no longer your follower." "You're washed up." "I don't see the love in your work anymore." "Zero appeal." "Lame." "Lame." "Double lame." "So lame." "No gift for reckless plot twists." "You've done come and went." "Sorry you feel that way." "Listen hon, romance ain't more than hormones and brain synapses." "Stop bragging on the BBS and put that soul into your manga." "Get the fact that plenty of virgins are writing better work." "What's with her?" "What's wrong, Koino?" "Mon honey." "What happened?" "Huh?" "Your face." "This?" "I started working at a bar, a weird place you can read manga." "Last night, some drunk punched me." "He did?" "But it doesn't hurt so I'm fine." "You made Koippy cry." "Daddy." "We won't tolerate that." "Mommy." "What the" "Nice flying act." "Sorry but you didn't look like Koino's boyfriend." "You and your crying." "This follower named Sagara upset me." "A 'follower'?" "My fan." "We call them that." "She's been stalking me with strange BBS messages." "When I refused her calls, she got pissy." "Someone you love to hate, huh?" "But she said she's no longer my fan so I'll be fine I guess." "Are... you and your wife costume lovers?" "Do you mind?" "The term is cosplayers." "We've been to Comiket for 20 years now." "We're Ideon's Cosmo and Kitty." "Rivaling the hippies were the days." "The Harajuku boogie-woogie days." "We've got many booths to see so we're off." "And Mon." "Yes?" "Koippy's not as tough as she looks." "Protect her for me." "If you make her cry, I'll punch you." ""Real Men, Real Fashion" 8,000 yen" "Uh..." "Mon?" "What?" "Selling your work here is fine but..." "Uh-huh." "How about lowering the price?" "My work is one of a kind." "Priced for my needs." "And that's the price of the work." "I made 20,000 yen at my job." "If I get 8,000 more..." "We can go on the King Seiki Abalone Tour, right?" "A mere 8,000 yen?" "I'll lend you it." "Oh... sorry." "Thank you." "Can I bum your phone?" "Oh, boss." "I quit." "He compromised." "I'm happy." "He's so down-hearted." "I'll give you the cash later." "I forgot." "I wanted to lend you this." "A King Seiki book." "You'd best prepare or you might be overwhelmed." "That's vintage!" "Out-of-print and goes for... 15,000 yen on Yahoo Auctions." "I want pay back!" "My stomach felt upset." "I felt sick." "No way." "I'll never buy your haunted manga." "I don't draw haunted" "I thought I told you!" "Yeah!" "Boss, please let me keep my job." "No luck selling, eh?" "I'll try changing the coloring." "The coloring ain't the problem." "It's the rocks." "Aoki, right?" "Here's a rudimentary hint." "Try drawing with a pen and paper." "If it's promising, I could recommend you for the new talent contest I'm judging." "New talent contest?" "Didn't I tell you?" "I used to be Marimoda's editor." "Mr. Noro." "Editor?" "So you're..." "An ex-comic writer." "Didn't I tell you?" "He was the hottest writer during Shonen Chop's hottest period." "That's old news." "If you were so popular, why then?" "My hand went lazy on me." "Huh?" "Don't be making fun of my hand!" "When your hand goes, you'll know." "How much do you need for your date?" "I don't wanna say." "I'll give you a week's pay." "Your emotions turn on a dime man." "But, give up the rocks and draw manga that sells." "Wh-wh-what?" "You said it yourself." "You won't give up on love or manga." "Here's your chance waiting for you." "Thanks for coming to Seiki's Catch and Eat Abalone Tour." "Enjoy the full two days to your heart's content." "That was a super-duper banquet." "The tops." "The tops!" "I thought that Evil Baron cast a spell for rain." "But the gods have answered Count Estrogen's request." "The tops." "The tops." "And the abalone at Ikaho hot springs is the tops." "The tops." "Abalone galore." "Ready or not... here we come!" "Gobbledygook." "Giba-giba-giba-ban Giba Ranger" "Giba-ban-ban Giba Ranger" "This Giba punches like a brick" "This is so great!" "He's so cool, huh?" "Yeah, he's..." "I'm going insane." "real lively." " Don-don-don" " Giba beam!" " Non-no-no" " My vitals!" "Father's super-tinplated fake leather" "Punches like a brick" "Metal machine bully Giba Ranger" "And now what we've all been waiting for... the ADR contest." "The part of Mescaline Overdrive will be chosen at random." "Come on stage when your number is called." "Who will the lucky lamb be?" "0-1-0-8..." "S-s-s-seven!" "Damn." "Damn it!" "No way." "Mon!" "Here!" "Here." "Oh it's a boy lamb..." "Well, rules are rules." "Get on up here." "Shake a leg now." "I don't wanna." "You get to read Estrogen's lines!" "Hurry up." "Seiki's gonna get a hard on." "Oh, Estrogen..." "No!" "Ha-happy..." "Thinking... of you..." "D-d-die" "Nooooo!" "Noooo!" "Nooooo!" "Noooo!" "Noooooooooooo!" "Mon hon." "I'm sorry." "I know it was tough paying for this." "Uh-huh." "And forcing you to do the voice." "No worries." "But, you were so cool." "Huh?" "Poor baby." "Too much stress I guess." "Sorry for pushing my hobbies on you." "But..." "I love rocks." "I love you because you love rocks." "This is fun." "Rock!" "So fun." "Here it comes." "Wow!" "Oh, wow." "Rocks are the tops!" "Thanks." "That'd never happen." "I still don't get it." "Maybe we won't work out." "You surprised me." "Don't peek." "Drawing flowers, huh?" "Scattering them by the heroine is a romantic comedy standard." "Take that." "And that." "It's not popular now but it's a habit." "Besides, I like flowers." "You must really love manga to bring it on a trip with you." "Someday I'll take it to a publisher." "But, I'm an amateur." "A pro wouldn't do this on vacation." "For petals... if you do like this.." "you'll get more dimensionality." "You're right." "I tried copying your strokes." "Hey... you can draw." "Great." "You should draw normal manga." "Not now..." "Sorry for all the trouble..." "Mr. Happy." "Oh..." "Say that line." "Say Estrogen's line." "Huh?" "Please." ""I'm happy..." "Thinking of you as I die."" ""I won't let you." "I won't."" "Nooooo!" "No." "Come on." "The tops." "Mon honey." "I don't approve." "Failure." "Give it up." "Con-concentrate." "What's wrong?" "My G spot." "Mon?" "Concentrate." "Concentrate." "Concentrate." "Concentrate." "Concentrate." "Abalone galore." "Don't sweat it." "Sure." "Why?" "I'm going traveling, Mon." "Wow!" "Why me?" "Lovely!" "Is it the mountains or you?" "Stop it." "You're one with nature." "Why do you love me?" "Celebrate the body electric." "Stop it." "That was fun." "But why?" "A shutter chance." "Some shutter chance." "Look." "Tree goblin." "What?" "Goblin." "Tree goblin." "Get real!" "Ah!" "Sorry!" "Sorry." "Life imitates... kid's stories." "After that, Mon vanished from me." "From that day, everything went haywire." "Actually, it started earlier." "In hidden places, it all went mad." "Now I could see it clearly." "Don't be dining and ditching on me!" "I'll pay with my art!" "It'll be valuable one day!" "You fuckin' with me?" "Get over here." "Get your ass in gear." "Over here!" "Ouch." "You asshole!" "I'm sorry." "Get over here boy." "Let me go!" "I can't stand freeloaders." "If you don't work, you don't eat." "Got it?" "Only risk-takers get to eat." "Free food is the origin of crimes disrupting our eco-system." "You'll learn that the hard way." "I ain't gay you know." "Pay up." "Money, money." "Let me down." "Hey!" "Why am I hanging here?" "Mon hon?" "No, it's dad." "Something's happened." "Come in." "Thanks for helping me out." "No worries." "You can help me out." "Don't take that." "Wait." "No..." "No..." "No." "At least leave the wigs." "This isn't happening." "This isn't happening." "Help me, Mon." "Help me, help me." "Let the good times roll." "So this is the manga bar." "We're not open yet." "Excuse me, is Aoki Mon here?" "He split taking the money I lent him." "Did he leave a message?" "You're!" "Are you Aoki's" "I remembered." "You're Den Marimoda, author of Maido Puttsun, right?" "Do you know me?" "Maido Puttsun" "Ouch." "Yo." "No. 15." "W-w-w-w..." "W-w-what the?" "Oh." "Kingo." "He lives in there." "Is he yours?" "That's for certain." "But the father is uncertain." "What's No. 15?" "Nice meeting ya, Pops." "I had a smoke." "Felt like the thing to do." "What a blast from the past." "I loved Puttsun." "Wow, the first edition." "I recognized you from this photo." "You're a manga otaku, huh?" "Can I ask you something?" "Shoot." "Why did you stop writing?" "My hand went lazy on me." "Hand?" "No... actually, the person who I wanted to read my manga vanished before me." "Basically..." "I want to read your manga again." "I write fan manga under the name Noiko." "I'm sure you've never heard of me but..." "This?" "No way." "Collecting rocks ain't helping, No. 15." "Yeah." "You're right." "I wonder what Koino's doing." "That's enough." "For you, I'll draw manga again." "Give me the courage to rediscover love and manga once more." "Check this interesting message." "Hi." "It's Kimari." "A performance artist in Amsterdam invited me over and I'll be gone a year." "Take care of Kingo while I'm gone." "What's with this chick?" "Hello?" "Sorry, but can you turn the sign over." "Kimari?" "I'm her sister." "Oh, Mejina." "How've you been?" "Don't confuse me space cadet Kimari." "I can't keep you two straight." "You look alike." "There was a guy here named Aoki, right?" "Yeah." "Aoki?" "Who're you?" "His girl... friend." "That beer was delicious." "Yeah, real tasty." "Do you know what futility is?" "Shut up." "Can you draw like this?" "Here." "What's the big idea?" "What the hell?" "Draw like this." "Then I'll approve of you." "Target the youth." "Once you're popular." "then be artistic." "Give it up!" "I quit." "Don't quit." "Don't pay attention to what kids say." "I'm only telling you this because you're the best out of all 15." "Don't make me scream." "It makes me hungry." "You!" "Some trip?" "!" "You haven't moved an inch." "Wait!" "Hey Kingo." "Come over to my house." "Mom." "Cut the jokes." "It ain't funny." "It's Mejina, not mom." "Stop your running Mon." "Why are you running?" "Stop it." "Stupid!" "I'll never let you go." "On my trip, I made this." "Here." "And the other half?" "I'm wearing it." "Mon hon." "Yeah?" "Let's live together." "I can't be careless anymore." "Draw for me, Marimoda." "Draw." "What the?" "Were you reading your manga?" "Nope." "Yes, you were." "No, I wasn't." "Were too." "Was not." "Were too." "Was not." "You were." "Ok, so I was." "You nosy geek!" "The new talent contest started." "The Grand Prix is 2 million yen." "How about sending in your work under another name?" "We'll split the prize 50/50." "I'm exhausted from waiting at home for you every day." "Aoki..." "Even if your manga sells, can you keep your love?" "This time, you're mine." "Finally... at long last." "If this were a romantic comedy, the phone would ring about now." "My bad." "Iz 'e her?" "His right side is totally paralyzed." "And your foot?" "I sprained it." "How?" "We'll tell you later." "Now look!" "Still... my father, the painter, with those uneven lines..." "He's still drawing." "Still trying to draw." "Can you do something with this line?" "What happened that day..." "I take to my grave, Dad." "Hours earlier, it was hard bone." "Was that what he meant?" "Mon, take a look." "A rock?" "Yes, a rock." "This rock is made up of tiny little particles." "And these particles are the same as what we're made of." "If you look closely, even two different things... are made up the same." "I guess you're too young..." "What a time for memory lane." "Three years later and I still haven't seen your manga." "Mom probably wrote to forgive you but I haven't." "Don't come home, you idiot." "Either way spells "idiot"." "You sure you don't need your rocks?" "No problem." "I gave up caring." "With your dad just passing away, we can't." "There's no better time." "Koino..." "Koino." "I love you." "I love you!" "Finally... the calm... came visiting." "Hey!" "Oh no." "Oh no." "What am I gonna do?" "What's wrong, Koino?" "Pull yourself together." "I have to move out." "Huh?" "My dad's company is in trouble." "I bought this place with his assets." "And the bank is coming." "So rent another apartment." "Oh, no, no." "What am I gonna do?" "Calm down." "Relax." "I got fired yesterday." "You what?" "With Comiket and looking for you, my sales figures dropped." "Your resignation makes us... very happy!" "Fine, be happy then." "What?" "You hate me, huh?" "Happy are you?" "Well, fuck off." "You've got savings, right?" "Oh... yeah." "Yeah." "Here you go." "Oh, no, no." "I'm screwed." "What's this shit?" "I'm in debt." "I ran up huge credit card bills." "And lately, I'm not popular." "Wanna see the fan manga BBS?" "Die, die." "D-I-E!" "You suck." "No way." "I thought you were popular." "I lied." "Only my first volume sold." "Why?" "Why lie?" "Vanity." "But not the cute kind that normal people talk about." "Buying that lie is even crueler." "And this water?" "Net business." "I heard I could make a fortune and cashed in my savings." "Ghandi Water." "It's rotten!" "Rancid, huh?" "It even looks fishy." "Didn't you learn anything in college?" "So it's fishy." "But were you around to tell me different?" "What's wrong?" "You look pale." "Did you think I'd be a free meal?" "So you thought moving in would be easy." "Okay, so you're disappointed." "I can read you like a book!" "Move in with me." "I threw away most of my rocks so... it's more spacious." "Wow, so roomy." "Your manga ain't helping." "Without these, I have no value." "How much do you owe?" "2 million yen." "You dingbat." "You think?" "But there's still one more thing I haven't told him." "I'm" "Forget it." "Get changed." "Nice timing." "Play rehearsal starts soon and I was worried about my shift." "You!" "Hold on." "I'm her twin, Mejina." "Huh?" "Really?" "Hmm..." "Old school art but the story's edgy." "I never thought you'd really do it." "Marimoda's entering the contest." "Top prize is 2 million yen." "I'll back you all the way." "If you win, we split the cash." "That's a scam." "Forget the cash." "I don't want to miss my chance to write again." "2 million yen." "Somebody lit a fire under me." "I'll write too." "And on paper." "The deadline's a week away." "I'll be tough to beat with my ally." "Just entering is no fun." "Wanna wager something?" "Huh?" "How about the loser has to obey the winner no matter what?" "Now you're talking." "Risk gets me in the spirit." "I'm game." "Name your price, Marimoda." "If I win..." "Koino is mine." "What?" "What!" "If you win, take back what is mine." "Hold on!" "Since when's this been going on?" "You bragged about not giving up on love or manga." "Beat me and claim both." "If you ain't prepared to do that, then quit!" "But you've got an ally, right?" "Marimoda!" "He's... dead." "Huh?" "You can pay your debts if I win!" "You're whacked!" "How could you?" "White slavery!" "That's what this is." "I won't lose." "I heard this sells big." "And I can draw this." "Who says so?" "Kingo!" "A seven year old named Kingo." "It's over." "I'm done." "For you, I'll draw manga again." "Give me the courage to rediscover love and manga once more." "Hello?" "If I hadn't seen Mon on that day, I was deviously close to..." "It's settled." "I'll draw too." "If I win, no harm done." "Koino." "I wanna try one last time." "But if I win, you'll do exactly as I say." "Get used to... cosplay forever." "Holy shit." "I feel so good." "I feel so good." "I feel so good." "Yes, baby." "Yes." "Yes." "Yes." "Yeah, baby." "Y-E-S!" "THE END" "I can't wait to see who won." "I don't have any confidence." "I know I don't have your originality or Marimoda's frames." "Formula romantic comedy... is all I can write." "That's not... entirely not true." "But, mediocrity has its place." "If I win, it'd be the best, but..." "Even if I lose, I'm fine." "But if you lose, it'd be horrible." "The worst." "And then, the best and the worst came calling." "Top Prize" " Don Nishiko "Sailor Suit Detective Meggy"" "Runner Up" " Marimoda Den "Maharaja Shonen Goro"" "Honorable Mention" " Aoki Mon "Kill Dad"" "What gives?" "I'll bust you." "Koino is mine." "Why'd that have to happen?" "Rocks, scissors, paper." "Ready... go." "Open season on sluts." "Felt like the thing to do." "Oh no!" "Giba Ranger is on!" "This Giba will punch you like a brick" "With these tusks turned fangs The universe rests on his shoulders" "Mescaline Overdrive." " Don-don-don" " Giba beam!" " Non-no-no" " My vitals!" "Father's super-tinplated fake leather" "Punch you like a brick" "Metal machine bully Giba Ranger" "Since when?" "!" "When?" "!" "For ages, forever." "I couldn't live like that working for that cheap ass company." "I have to make a living." "I have to increase my collections." "Sorry, I'm sick." "You think so?" "Certifiable." "I'm sick." "Do these Johns make you happy?" "Well pardon me!" "I need to do cosplay." "Without it, I can't do this job." "I'd have helped." "You'd have left me." "You'd have run." "Look who's talking?" "You're here... right?" "You're as guilty as me." "And two times now!" "Fuck it." "It don't matter." "Either way, you're Marimoda's." "Marimoda w-w-won?" "Oh, no, no, no, no, no." "See for yourself." "This." "I lost every damn thing." "You, my manga... so what if I came here." "Mon... hold on." "I..." "Top Prize" " Don Nishiko "Sailor Suit Detective Meggy"" "I wasn't talented at love or manga." "You escaping?" "I win." "Nope." "We both lost." "Don Nishiko is Koino's pen name." "Here's... your rock back." "SEE THE WORLD" "Why does it always end this way?" "This ain't a freak show!" "Yesterday was mistakes galore" "Tomorrow too may be the same" "Taking out this insurance... people walk ahead fumbling in the dark" "But wish upon a star" "Love is always extraterritoriality" "I'm crazy, busted up in love" "An addiction to love makes you happy" "For the time being... now... cry all you want but..." "Open up to love's magic" "Open your door to love" "Open up to love's magic" "Open your door to love" "Or something like that." "Thank you." "After that, I got a loan off the money, paid my debts and got a place." "Marimoda returned to his job." "Everything was back to normal." "Except for Mon being gone." "Two weeks passed by like one year." "I'm Akashi Koino's father." "Welcome to the after party for the 9th Annual Sudan Manga Awards." "According to the winner's wishes, this is a cosplay party." "I'm Maetel." "I'm the Conductor." "Koino, I'm gonna get back on track." "Nothing's gonna stop me." "Congratulations." "I got a job at a sushi shop." "Take a look." "Amazing." "I found some old pictures of you in the move." "Looky." "Hey..." "It's Reversal Judge." "Your Honor, I object." "It's been a while." "My dad, mom and friends." "They don't know that I'm not here." "If I smile and wave, everything passes." "Reality slips right on by." "Reality slips through me." "Hello..." "Goodbye." "It's just Mon whose gone." "Like some blessed invisible man my cosplay is empty." "I'm okay." "I'm fine." "I drank on an empty stomach." "Ms. Akashi." "I'm fine." "Please." "Here." "Take this." "Don't touch my girl, fat-ass!" "Mon." "After that, I studied up on romantic comedies." "The ex-boyfriend comes back with this kind of timing." "Wrong?" "Is that... cosplay?" "We promised, right?" "I arranged the rocks." "Looks heavy." "It calms me mentally." "But... not being able to ride the train was rough." "Mon, take a look." "A rock?" "Yes, a rock." "This rock is made up of tiny little particles." "And these particles are the same as what we're made of." "If you look closely, even two different things, are made up the same." "So..." "I can... meet you half-way." "A gift for reckless plot twists." "That's the true Noiko." "Koino!" "Shit." "Koino!" "Wait, wait." "This hill is dangerous." "Wait." "Go away." "Wait." "Please stop." "No, no." "Wait, Koino." "You're supposed to chase me!" "Don't go breaking up on me." "It's cracked." "All of a sudden." "But Mon, look." "If we do this..." "Wow." "A-A-A-A-m-a-a-a-a-zing!" ""Kill Dad" by Aoki Mon" "It's a rip-off." "Don't rip thaaat!" "You too, you adult!" "Fuckin' shoplifter!"