Chapter 229: Was It For Me?
Chapter 229: Was It For Me?
When Himekoji asked for Iida Ayano’s number, Machida Sonoko on the other end reacted instinctively.
“What? Why do you want Ayano’s number? Don’t tell me the beautiful editors in our light novel department can’t satisfy a big pervert like you anymore, so you’re setting your sights on the department next door?”
“……”
Himekoji was speechless.
Was this some kind of competition between departments?
Additionally, when Sonoko said “beautiful editors of the light novel department,” could she possibly mean herself?
He shook his head, rolled his eyes, and snapped at her grumpily.
“Stop joking around! Sonoko-nee, what kind of image do you even have of me in your mind?”
“A pervert.”
Well, alright then. Couldn’t argue with that statement.
Himekoji coughed lightly twice, brushing past the comment.
“I just wanted to ask about the results of the manga department’s Newcomer Award selection. Ms. Iida told my friend that her work was at least guaranteed an Honorable Mention. But in the end, she wasn’t selected.”
“And your friend is…?”
“Shiina. Shiina Mashiro.”
“Oh, it’s her……”
Machida Sonoko sounded slightly surprised over the phone.
“Huh? Sonoko-nee, do you know Shiina too?”
“Of course. She’s quite famous in our editorial department. After all, she’s that genius hailed as a world-class painter. Honestly, we were all shocked when someone like her suddenly submitted a manga entry.”
Sonoko seemed to recall something, pausing briefly before continuing.
“Mmm… I saw some of her submitted work this time too. It really was good. Her drawing skill is among the top… no, even at the peak of the entire manga industry among the entries. It’s just that her storytelling ability still felt a bit raw. But she should have won an award without any problem.”
“Then why wasn’t she selected?”
Iida Ayano had told Mashiro she’d get at least an Honorable Mention. Now even Sonoko admitted the work was award-worthy. Himekoji was even more confused.
“Well… apparently it’s because some bizarre entry popped up midway through judging. Pushed her down at the last minute…”
“A bizarre entry?”
“I think the submitted work was called ‘One-Punch Man’? Yeah, yeah! ‘One-Punch Man’! That’s it! We were all seriously freaked out by its crazy art style! Left quite an impression!”
Even through the receiver, you could hear the shock that title evoked in Sonoko.
“Huh? ‘One-Punch Man’?”
“Yeah. What about it? Have you seen it too? Oh, right. That entry only joined the judging midway through because a bunch of readers petitioned for it. They say the author’s super mysterious. No public appearances, just a weekly update. Pfft, actually, sounds quite like you. A reclusive, deadbeat author who sticks to themselves, ignores the outside world, never interacts with readers.”
“……”
Himekoji didn’t know what to say.
Learning the truth, his feelings became subtle and complicated.
Seriously, what kind of mess was this!
“Can an award-winning author voluntarily withdraw?”
“I don’t really know the manga award rules on that. But in our light novel awards, it’s technically possible, though we’ve never actually had an idiot who won and just gave it up… Wait, why are you asking this?”
Sonoko sounded genuinely curious over the phone.
“N-nothing! Forget it! Anyway, thanks so much for today, Sonoko-nee. Gotta go!”
“No need to tha…”
beep beep beep…
Sonoko was still talking when Himekoji hastily hung up on her.
……
If you could withdraw from the light novel Newcomer Award, the manga version must allow it too!
Besides, he never wanted to enter in the first place.
Mashiro needed that award far more than he did.
Winning meant she could debut.
After crossing oceans to return to Japan, abandoning all the achievements and honor she’d earned in oil painting… wasn’t this exactly what Mashiro had come for?
Without hesitation, Himekoji dialed Iida Ayano’s number.
Because of their previous unpleasantness, the conversation felt stiff and formal —
“You want to withdraw your entry? Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Alright.”
“Um… just asking. If an award spot opens up, does the entry ranked after it just move up?”
“By the rules, yes.”
“Then… the work ranked sixth before, was it ‘The Pervert in Love’?”
“Mmm. After you withdraw, it moves up to fifth. Receives the Honorable Mention.”
“Alright. Good.”
Himekoji thanked her, and the call ended.
……
……
Himekoji gently, carefully, pushed open the door to Mashiro’s bedroom.
The room that greeted him was nothing like he’d imagined.
He expected darkness.
His mind pictured Mashiro curled up on the bed, hugging her knees, despondent.
He imagined her tear-swollen eyes, something unbearable to see.
But all these simple-minded assumptions were wrong.
What Himekoji saw were even more sketch papers scattered across the floor… and Mashiro herself, sitting at her drawing tablet, working even harder.
That was all.
As if she hadn’t suffered any setback at all.
Of course.
He’d forgotten the most crucial thing —
This was Shiina Mashiro!
A fierce predator cloaked in the guise of a small, fragile creature.
A beast who had resolved to stand on her own feet, move forward by her own strength, and seize what she desired with her own hands. That was the only way she knew how to survive.
She came alone across vast oceans to a strange city.
She kept nothing in her mind except drawing.
Someone like her, even if hurt, would always get back up. No matter how many times.
She began striving from the moment she was born, before she even learned to cry or smile. Shiina Mashiro knew better than anyone: only through relentless, continuous effort could she firmly grasp what she truly wanted.
Mashiro rejected, Himekoji winning… if that really was the final outcome, then this world was far too unfair.
He felt like a ridiculous thief.
Stealing another’s effort, results, glory, and prize.
The one who tries hard loses, while a pervert like him wins? What kind of sense did that make?
……
“Shiina. Someone who won in the Newcomer Award selection withdrew. An Honorable Mention spot just opened up. I called and checked; the entry filling the slot? Turns out it’s yours. ‘The Pervert in Love’.”
“Hah… so, congratulations! You debuted!”
Himekoji offered his congratulations with a smile, but somehow, his expression seemed unnatural.
Was he feeling self-conscious standing before Mashiro, who was striving so tirelessly towards her goal?
He didn’t know.
“I gave it up too.”
Yet, Mashiro responded to Himekoji with calm words.
The content surprised him.
“Huh?”
“Ayano called earlier and told me.”
“Oh… oh. But… no! Then why did you give it up? Haven’t you been waiting for this moment to debut for so long? Giving up now… What was all that effort you put in before even for?”
Himekoji’s eyes widened. He couldn’t understand at all.
“Because Akito gave it up too?”
“Me?”
“The work that won the Gold Prize… wasn’t it Akito’s ‘One-Punch Man’? The one who withdrew, quit the judging… wasn’t it Akito’s ‘One-Punch Man’ either?”
She knew? He had hoped to keep it from her.
“I had… special circumstances.”
Himekoji tried to explain.
“Was that ‘special circumstance’… me?”
Mashiro suddenly turned her head, looking straight at him with her gaze.
Himekoji felt inexplicably flustered under her stare.
“The r-reason doesn’t matter anymore! What matters now is the Newcomer Award! You idiot! Hurry up and tell your editor you take it back! There’s still time…”
“No. It matters. More than the Newcomer Award.”
Mashiro spoke, each word deliberate and earnest.
Their gazes met directly.
……
……