------------------
HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
------------------
Chapter 5: The Joy of Serialization
Most Japanese manga artists have their studios in the suburbs of Tokyo.
It’s not just because manga artists make good money and can afford to live near the capital—it’s simply because most publishers are located right in the heart of Tokyo.
Manga creation is a true partnership between the editor and the artist.
They often meet face-to-face, brainstorming together to decide the direction of the story.
So it wasn’t all that strange when an editor came personally to meet the mysterious foreign artist who suddenly appeared like a comet and unexpectedly won the Newcomer Award.
Of course...
“Ah, so you’re the one who drew D Note…”
“Yes, that’s me.”
“Not this guardian here…”
“That’s me.”
“......”
What happened next was truly bizarre, though.
＊ ＊ ＊
A neatly dressed man in a suit.
He looked to be in his mid-to-late twenties, with faint dark circles under his eyes.
The man seemed a bit awkward in this unfamiliar Korean household and hesitated slightly as he offered a sleekly designed business card.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Matsuda, the one who called earlier.”
He handed one card each to Jung Junhyuk and his father.
In Matsuda’s eyes, there was still some lingering doubt whether this young kid was truly the artist, but he didn’t ignore him.
Rather than simply suspecting the kid’s authenticity, Matsuda was cautious and wanted to carefully assess the situation first.
Just as Matsuda was about to open his mouth and continue the conversation—
“You doubt whether I’m really the artist, don’t you?”
Matsuda hesitated, but Junhyuk quickly added—
“That’s totally fine. I get why you’d be suspicious, and honestly, I’m not offended. So please don’t worry about it.”
Putting aside his remarkably fluent Japanese, Matsuda was stunned by the polite tone and respectful language Junhyuk used.
“I thought about it a lot before you came here. If I’m to prove that I’m truly the one who drew D Note, then there’s only one way—I have to show you.”
Without any sign of nervousness, Junhyuk calmly took out a pen and paper and began sketching something.
“...Huh...”
Seeing this, Matsuda couldn’t help but let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding.
Good drawing skills? Among manga artists, there are plenty of people who can draw well.
Though impressive, Matsuda had seen so many exceptional artists that mere skill alone didn’t cause such a reaction.
What made Matsuda exhale was...
'He’s fast. Like, insanely fast.'
Weekly serialization is a race against time.
Producing 19 pages of consistent-quality manga within one week is no easy task.
Story, direction, art—finishing it all solo in a week is practically impossible.
That’s why artists hire assistants to share the most time-consuming parts of drawing.
So speed is a precious talent for a weekly manga artist.
'Still, there are limits…'
Junhyuk sketched people in complicated backgrounds without using any rough under-sketches.
Yet, the drawing remained solid and well-constructed.
Fast artists often have their own tricks to make the art look polished despite the speed, masking any roughness.
But this kid — no, this artist — kept the drawing sturdy and finished it in an instant.
Like a machine locked away somewhere for decades, drawing nonstop.
After some time, Junhyuk looked up from the paper and met Matsuda’s gaze.
“How is it? Would this be enough proof that I’m the one who drew D Note?”
“Ah… yes. Absolutely.”
Without realizing it, Matsuda admitted his earlier doubts, though he was too shocked at the moment to think clearly.
“Even though you won the Newcomer Award, you came all the way from a foreign country to meet us in person… Should I be hopeful?”
Hope. A vague word, yet loaded with meaning.
Matsuda had long since discarded any notion of Junhyuk being a mere elementary schooler and now regarded him as a true artist.
“In truth, there have been quite conflicting opinions within the editorial department. But you can take that as a sign of great interest.”
“That’s because my work differs from the direction the magazine aims for, right?”
Junhyuk hit the nail on the head so precisely that Matsuda flinched slightly.
The magazine is a commercial publication.
So the manga it features are, naturally, commercial manga.
The most important thing in commercial manga is popularity and sales.
But if you get too obsessed with that, the quality suffers—so editors encourage free creativity but make sure the commercial side is properly represented.
Of course, clashes between artists and editors at these extremes are common.
From that perspective, it was very grateful that this artist himself understood the editor’s viewpoint.
“Yes, that’s true.”
Matsuda didn’t bother sugarcoating it anymore, knowing Junhyuk had already read the room.
“Do you understand how the serialization process works?”
“Yes, I do. Award-winning artists submit serialization storyboards, and through editorial meetings, they decide which works get published… right?”
“That’s right. As I mentioned earlier, your D Note differs somewhat from the magazine’s usual direction. But even considering that, it’s an appealing work.”
Matsuda rummaged through his briefcase and placed a thick volume of the magazine on the table.
“This is last week’s issue. We announced the Newcomer Award winners and, unusually, held a reader survey on the winners.”
Jump slips postcards into the magazine so readers can vote for their favorite series.
Usually this is only for ongoing series, but this time the newcomers were included as well.
“The result? Contrary to the editorial department’s concerns, ‘D Note’ took first place by a landslide.”
Matsuda took a sip of coffee and continued, his serious expression revealing his determination to convey an important fact.
“We want to bring ‘D Note’ up in the serialization meeting. The editor-in-chief believes your current skills are ready to prepare for serialization rather than just a short story. If you agree, please start working on the serialization storyboards.”
Serialization storyboards. Normally, a newcomer winning one award wouldn’t get such an immediate offer.
This showed how high the editorial department’s expectations were.
Judging by Junhyuk’s understanding of the industry, he must know how huge this opportunity was.
When Matsuda looked up, imagining the joy on Junhyuk’s face,
“Here.”
A thick stack of papers was suddenly placed right in front of him, filling his view.
“…? What’s this?”
“Serialization storyboards.”
“?”
Matsuda tilted his head, confused by what he’d just heard.
Junhyuk must have thought he didn’t hear properly, so he kindly repeated the same thing.
“Storyboards for chapters 1 through 4.”
“…What?”
“You said you wanted me to draw them. So I already did.”
“Uh…?”
＊ ＊ ＊
“Hmm…”
I sat quietly, glancing at the empty chair where Editor Matsuda had just been, feeling a strange wave of sentimentality wash over me.
“The world’s really small. Maybe there really is something called fate.”
I muttered to myself the name printed on the business card I’d just received—Matsuda Junpei.
Matsuda Junpei.
The man who, in my past life, was my fan—someone who told me that no matter how long it took, he hoped I’d pick up the pen again instead of giving up on being a manga artist.
He was also the first editor to ever take charge of my manga.
“…Dad…”
My voice sank a little as I called out to my dad, who was busy bustling around beside me.
He didn’t notice my mood at all, absorbed in preparing fireworks and cake.
“Sigh…”
A long breath escaped me.
“Just light those fireworks already! Announce to the world that my time has come!”
Seriously, how could he be so clueless about how pumped I was?
With my shout, Dad and Jinhee set off the fireworks.
Matsuda, now my editor, was so talented he was on track to become chief editor someday.
“Woohoo!”
And contrary to the worries I’d had—wondering if ‘D Note,’ which I’d worked so hard on, would be well received—it had scored overwhelming votes in the reader survey.
“Super lucky!”
My excitement spilled out in words I rarely said aloud.
“Excuse me, I think I left my business card wallet…”
“……”
“……”
“……”
Maybe it was because the front door was left wide open for some fresh air.
Or maybe it was because this was an era where leaving the front door open wasn’t weird but romantic.
Matsuda, bowing apologetically, suddenly froze on the spot.
I caught his eye while doing a tap dance on the dining table.
Dad was caught off guard too, covering his mouth in shock.
“Wanna try some cake?”
My little sister Jinhee, with her wild social energy that’s honestly criminal for her age, offered the cake to Matsuda.
The scene was, without a doubt, pure chaos.
------------------
HELIO SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
------------------
