Chapter 144

"You're not planning to renege on your debt, are you? If so, you'll have no choice but to pay it off with your body!"

Eriri changed into the slippers she had specially left there, and stepped lightly from the entryway into the living room. Suddenly, she turned around, her back to the front, and gave a teasing smile.

"Never mind then... I'll owe it for now and wait until I have a chance to make money."

He waved his hand.

Eriri smiled, seemingly pleased with the situation.

As a creditor, you can severely torture the debtor!

"You haven't forgotten about the anime convention in two days, have you?"

Suddenly, her gaze sharpened, and she revealed her true purpose.

"So Eriri, you did this just to remind me of this..."

Hasegawa Izumi suddenly realized.

"No, that's not it! I was just saying it casually. If you want to back out, I don't care."

She immediately denied it outright.

"Are you really not sure? Then I won't go."

He yawned.

"You dare! Izumi, you wouldn't want to know the consequences of breaking the agreement."

She immediately panicked and even made threatening remarks.

"Alright, I should give Miss Sawamura a polite invitation."

He chuckled for a moment, then thought of something else.

"By the way, Eriri, why is this year's Summer Comic a week later?"

35 A place where demons run rampant

"It seems there was some kind of accident? I don't know the specifics, but it shouldn't have a big impact. The exhibition has already issued a notice that it will proceed as scheduled."

Eriri spoke as she sat leisurely on the bed, her hands resting on it.

Suddenly, her gaze fell on a spot at the foot of the bed, and her eyes narrowed.

There was a single, long, thin hair.

"What is this? Could it be that a girl is spending the night here?"

She picked up the strand of hair with her fingers, held it in front of her, and asked expressionlessly.

"Let me think... Hmm, maybe it was left behind when the members of the Far East Magic Society came to visit before."

"Hasegawa Izumi thought for a moment and said..."

Although he kept the room clean and tidy, he didn't need to clean it every day and night, hence this oversight.

"Oh, they've come to visit."

Eriri's voice rose in pitch, giving it a slightly sarcastic tone.

Then she crossed her arms and said, "Actually, you don't need to explain. After all, boys have strong desires in that area during puberty, and you're so popular at school, it's normal that you can't help yourself. Just remember to take precautions. I don't want to hear rumors about someone being a scumbag at school in the future. I won't be able to explain it to my uncle and aunt then."

"As expected of Teacher Kashiwagi Eri, your imagination truly amazes me."

Hasegawa Izumi clapped enthusiastically.

This nonchalant attitude made the girl pout, feeling quite uncomfortable.

After so many years of Childhood Friend, he had long since figured out Eriri's personality.

"Snort."

Eriri snorted, said nothing, got up and walked to the bookshelf next to her, looking through comic books and novels.

"Your collection needs an update! You don't have the new volume of <Love Metronome> released last month, nor any of the latest up-and-coming comics! How are you going to spread this to others?!"

She muttered to herself as she flipped through the pages.

"Don't compare me to someone as rich as you. Updating your collection every few months is common sense."

Hasegawa Izumi raised her head.

"By the way, Eriri, what are your expectations for this Summer Comic?"

"You've hit the nail on the head!"

Upon hearing this question, Eriri immediately put down what she was holding and her expression turned cheerful.

"I feel that I will be a great success this time, and Kashiwagi Eri's reputation in the industry will reach new heights! Lately, I feel like I've gone back to when I first started learning to draw, and my progress is incredibly fast! If this continues for a while, my drawing skills will definitely undergo a complete transformation, and reaching the pinnacle of the art world will be no problem!"

Is it true?

"If you don't believe me, I'll draw it for you right now... It's a pity that the artwork for the club's doujin game has already been finalized, otherwise it could have sold very well."

As she spoke, she rummaged through the cabinet and found pencils that she could use for drawing.

The girl had been to this room countless times, so she was naturally very familiar with its layout.

Soon, she picked up a pencil and began sketching in her blank notebook. Her smooth and flowing drawing skills clearly surpassed her previous abilities.

Moreover, it's not just about speed.

The characters she created quickly took shape, featuring a cartoonish, otaku-style aesthetic: chubby, adorable faces, long blonde pigtails, making a horizontal peace sign with one eye showing, a slightly mischievous smile, and dressed in gothic lolita attire.

Of course, the only girl this cute is his younger Little Sister, Kōko.

"How is it? Much better looking, right?"

Eriri held the notebook up to his face, looking smug and expectant of praise.

"Indeed."

Hasegawa Izumi nodded.

It wasn't just flattery; he genuinely believed it.

The figures in the painting are much more lifelike than Eriri's previous works.

Why is this happening?

Perhaps it was because of the Seed of Spiritual Power planted earlier that Eriri broke through her bottleneck under the nourishment of spiritual power, making her paintings more spiritual.

"Right?"

Eriri looked satisfied, put down her notebook, stretched, and said, "Oh my~ I feel like if I had a good idea, becoming the 'Goddess of Manga' wouldn't be a problem... Some people, it'll be too late to curry favor with me later."

She opened one eye and closed the other, glancing to the side.

It's really floating around a lot.

However, it's understandable. For Eriri, her progress over the past six months has been incredibly slow, like a snail's pace. Now that she's suddenly on the fast track, she feels a sense of freedom, like she's been freed from a cage, just like she felt when she crossed the Day of Heavenly Change.

As an ordinary person, Eriri finds it even harder to suppress these emotions.

"Then I'll wait for that day."

He smiled and said.

Two days have passed.

It was another sunny day, and it was very hot early in the morning.

"Thud."

After closing the door, Hasegawa Izumi, dressed in a cool short-sleeved shirt and shorts, walked outside.

"Hurry up! At this rate, we won't be able to squeeze into the venue by the time we get there!"

At the iron railing, Eriri was waving and urging.

Today's girl's outfit has a classic, otaku vibe: a light pink short-sleeved shirt paired with denim overalls, along with black-rimmed glasses and an earthy-colored ivy baseball cap for disguise.

"Why not just use the dedicated lane? Shouldn't exhibitors have some special privileges?"

He answered as he walked over.

"You know I never use any special privileges..."

"Isn't that the kind of persona you only have in schools?"

"That's not a persona at all!"

"Oh, it must be hard for you, Miss Sawamura, to take the tram to school with the common people every day."

"It's not every day, I sometimes ride my bike... By the way, where's your bike? I haven't seen it in the yard. Did it get stolen, you idiot?"

"After running under overload, the Machine Spirit became displeased, so I simply released it."

"Release them? Hahahaha..."

The two walked side by side down the street, chatting and laughing as they boarded the tram.

For a time, life was peaceful and serene.

It's only at times like these that Hasegawa Izumi usually displays more facial expressions.

After a few stops...

As we approached the station where the event was to be held, the people who boarded the train gradually came up with distinct characteristics, some dressed as otaku, others as cosplayers.

The middle-aged and elderly people sitting in their seats were used to seeing such a chaotic scene.

"See? It's all your fault! The bus is already so crowded; it's going to be packed later!"

Eriri started rambling on and on.

"Instead of worrying about that, you should be concerned about whether the temperature will exceed 40 degrees Celsius today."

Hasegawa Izumi glanced at it from the side.

"40 degrees? Seriously, have mercy on me, this is truly 'Tokyo Heat' now..."

The girl immediately put on a look of utter despair and started making lewd remarks.

After arriving at the station.

The two quickly followed the flow of people to the vicinity of the venue.

At first glance, people looked like ants, gathered on the flat ground.

Fortunately, they were among the early arrivals; had they come any later, they probably would have had to squeeze in, one person at a time.

"Let's go, I'll stand in front."

Hasegawa Izumi led the way, exuding an aura that no one could resist.

Eriri followed closely behind, and looking at those not-so-broad shoulders, she felt a deep sense of security from the bottom of her heart.

But isn't this just like an adult taking care of a child?

She thought to herself, "What am I complaining about?"

The two first entered the hall where large circles and companies exhibited, including the doujin game circle egoistic-lily, centered around Eriri, which is considered to be of a relatively average level in the industry.

After all, it's just a doujin circle, and Kashiwagi Eri's reputation isn't actually that high yet.

"You're really popular! The line is already so long even though it hasn't been open for very long."

Hasegawa Izumi stopped and looked at the queue on the side.

"It's not that high; it's just because of the popularity of the doujin game itself..."

Eriri recognized it very clearly at this moment.

"Of course, after this Summer Comic, I believe everyone will have a completely new understanding of the name Kashiwagi Eri!"

She added another sentence.

Do you want me to queue up to buy your games?

He began to speak.

"I'll give it to you, I'm too lazy to wait that long..."

Eriri didn't have the patience to stand with him as punishment. She pressed down her hat, ran to the back to tell the club members, and then took the game disc.