Chapter 100 – Rivalry Consciousness
“This week’s magazine marks the start of serialization?”
“Yes, it comes out tomorrow.”
Yu-ra answered with her back straight in response to Jung-an’s question.
Jung-an smiled warmly, the corners of her mouth lifting in satisfaction.
“That’s amazing, Yu-ra. Debuting in Jump Comics at such a young age—you’re going to make a lot of people jealous.”
“Is there anything you’d like to say to me?”
“Something I’d like to say? What kind do you mean?”
“You’re my senior, after all. You serialized in Jump Comics too.”
The moment she heard that, Jung-an scratched her forehead.
“Ahhh, you mean in that sense? Haha, well, just make sure you meet deadlines on time, don’t fight with the editors, and that’s about it. Serialization isn’t anything special. Oh, but you do have to take care of your back and wrists. Do you stretch regularly, Yu-ra?”
“No, not really.”
“Then make sure to do it every break time. You don’t feel it when you’re young, but once you get a little older, your whole body starts aching. If you want to draw comics for a long time, you have to take care of yourself from a young age.”
“…….”
For some reason, Choi Jung-an started talking more and more.
Then Han Yu-ra spoke.
“I really enjoyed it. Hello.”
“Hm?”
“You finished it not long ago, teacher’s comic.”
“Ah, right. Haha, so you knew.”
“I thought the way you carried the emotions through the work was incredible. I’m…… not very good at that kind of thing.”
An awkward expression appeared on Jung-an’s face.
Hearing such words from a student felt somehow embarrassing.
Perhaps because she was struggling so much with her next work, it hit even harder.
“……No, it’s nothing that great.”
Then Yu-ra shook her head and continued in the most serious tone.
“No, it was great. Especially the final scene—before leaving the village, the protagonist strokes the cat and walks away indifferently. I thought that was incredible. It connected back to the very first scene of the work and completed the protagonist’s emotions, right? And the way a can gets kicked by his foot as he walks away too.”
“Ah…….”
Jung-an’s pupils dilated slightly.
Honestly, she was surprised.
What Yu-ra had just said was exactly what she had intended in the final scene of Hello.
It wasn’t the kind of comment someone would make just from casually reading the work.
“I want to learn from you, teacher. That kind of emotional expression, those kinds of details.”
“…….”
Choi Jung-an’s expression hardened slightly.
She could feel that the girl in front of her was speaking from genuine sincerity, not joking.
‘She really is a pro.’
She was newly impressed.
She had thought of her as just a child overflowing with talent, raised in the environment of a father called a genius artist.
But for a high school freshman to carry this kind of attitude and passion inside her.
In that case, what the teacher should do was obvious.
“Alright, I’ll teach you. Whenever you’re curious about something, ask me anytime.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Matching the sincerity and passion the other person showed with an equally appropriate response.
When Han Yu-ra lifted the corners of her mouth ever so slightly, Jung-an waved her hand, shedding the seriousness as she spoke.
“Okay okay, the mood got a little heavy. Let’s stop here and get to the real talk. Yu-ra, can you handle the assignments while serializing?”
“What do you mean by that?”
“You know how many assignments our school has. I’m asking if you can manage both serialization and all this at the same time. If it’s too hard to juggle, I can talk to the teachers and get your assignments exempted. What do you think?”
“…….”
It was a natural suggestion.
The goal of AniGo and the comic creation department was to maximize the ‘creativity’ of the students who entered this school.
No matter how excellent the curriculum here was, no matter how hard they prepared……
Nothing would help more than actually serializing a comic in real life.
Han Yu-ra let out a deep breath, then looked straight at Choi Jung-an and asked.
“But Kang Min-hyuk is handling both serialization and all the assignments, isn’t he?”
In an instant, Choi Jung-an’s eyes widened before blinking rapidly.
The fact that those words came out of her mouth meant……
“You already knew?”
“Yes, I found out somehow. That Kang Min-hyuk is the artist ‘David’.”
“Ah, that…….”
Jung-an scratched her forehead and answered briefly.
“Yeah, Min-hyuk is managing manuscripts too. And he’s handling school events and assignments without missing anything. But that doesn’t mean it has to be the standard for everyone. You don’t need to worry about keeping up with him…….”
“If Kang Min-hyuk can do it, so can I.”
“Uh, r-really?”
“Yes. If I want to become the best…… I can’t afford to lose to someone like Kang Min-hyuk, can I?”
‘Even so, Min-hyuk isn’t exactly an ordinary case…… ha, haha.’
Our Yu-ra turns out to be a kid with ambition as big as Min-hyuk’s.
A smile mixed with admiration and bewilderment appeared on Choi Jung-an’s face.
“So you’re saying you’ll handle assignments and school life…… exactly the same as the other kids?”
“Yes.”
“Well, if Yu-ra is that determined, I can’t stop you. But if it gets too hard, tell me anytime.”
“That won’t happen.”
“Very confident, aren’t you.”
“Yes.”
Choi Jung-an slowly closed her eyes and opened them again before speaking calmly.
“Then shall we end the counseling session here?”
“Yes. I’ll be going now.”
Yu-ra bowed politely and left the counseling room.
Then……
A long sigh escaped from Choi Jung-an’s lips.
“Haaa, I can’t keep up, I really can’t. Kids these days are scary.”
I need to work harder too. For real.
She scratched her head roughly, straightened her posture, and opened her sketchbook again.
***
Jump Comics editorial department, inside the conference room.
“Huuu, this year isn’t going to be easy, Director-nim.”
“……Did we ever think New Chance would come this far?”
Director Oh Han-cheol and his right-hand man, Deputy Kim Min-yong, were letting out heavy sighs.
The reason their faces were filled with worry was simple.
- Wait, New Chance is catching up in sales? Does that even make sense?
- Well…… this time Yang Jae-han artist and David artist both hit home runs back-to-back.
- Is that an excuse? It just means we haven’t produced works that good! And we have popular titles too! Shouldn’t we at least think about proper marketing or ways to actually sell them—think!
Recently, their competitor New Chance had shown noticeable results, and because of that, they had been severely reprimanded by the president.
Honestly, from Oh Han-cheol’s perspective, it felt unfair.
To begin with, no one had expected Yang Jae-han—who had already declared retirement from the industry—to suddenly make a comeback (they had even contacted him first!), and who could have predicted that a rookie named David would explode like this out of nowhere.
Moreover, with both works performing so well, the problem had become even more serious.
“New Chance did a great job turning it into a rivalry issue. Damn it…… it’s probably Manager Song Mi-hyeon’s work, no doubt.”
“Haaaa, that’s underhanded.”
“It’s skill.”
Oh Han-cheol, arms crossed, furrowed his brow deeply.
Well, they hadn’t been sitting idle either.
They too had discovered a high school student genius named Han Yu-ra through their rookie contest.
Incredible talent, and as a high schooler, her appearance was also quite striking.
In Oh Han-cheol’s eyes, Han Yu-ra was a diamond in the rough.
With company-level character building and just a bit of marketing…… she was an incredible gem that would one day shine brilliantly.
But……
‘She still needs more time.’
For a gem to reveal its true beauty, it requires time to be carefully cut, polished, and refined.
Right now, Han Yu-ra’s new comic alone couldn’t possibly compete with Yang Jae-han or David.
But with pressure coming from the president, they had to buy time until then no matter what.
Still, a big event to help with that was coming soon.
Han-cheol tapped the conference table with his fingers and said.
“We need to produce some kind of result in this awards season. Absolutely.”
Our Comics Awards and Bucheon Comic Awards.
Currently the two biggest comic award ceremonies in the Korean market.
Depending on what results the magazine’s works achieve here, the direction and intensity of marketing would change, and sales volumes would shift noticeably……
If they could achieve meaningful results here, they could pull the industry’s attention back from New Chance.
Kim Min-yong spoke with a troubled expression.
“Huuu, will it be easy? Both Our Comics Awards and Bucheon Comic Awards are no pushovers…….”
Through Oh Han-cheol’s connections, they had already gathered all the information.
This year, New Chance was sending Yang Jae-han’s work to Our Comics Awards and David’s to Bucheon Comic Awards.
It was a bold move that threw away any sense of decency, aiming to catch both rabbits at once.
But they had no intention of staying quiet either.
“Don’t worry too much. That’s why we’re calling in ‘that artist-nim’ today.”
“Ughhh. Will it go well?”
“It will. Absolutely. You think I’ve only been in this industry for a day or two?”
“……I’ll trust only you, Director-nim.”
Just as Kim Min-yong nodded with a sigh.
Knock knock!
“Director-nim, Writer Shin Yo-seop has arrived.”
“Ah, tell him to come right in.”
“Yes. Writer-nim, this way please.”
The door swung wide open, and one person stepped inside.
A gaunt, elongated frame, skin so pale it looked almost ghostly.
Narrow straight eyes with an expressionless face that gave nothing away—no hint of what he was thinking—an appearance that, in the worst sense, resembled a doll.
Shin Yo-seop.
He was currently the author of Jump Comics’ flagship work, Crow King.
Throughout its serialization, he had constantly been treated as Yang Jae-han artist’s rival (more precisely, the number two), and when Aureka concluded, it seemed he would finally claim the undisputed top spot……
Only for the mutant called Brave King to appear and once again relegate him to the shadows—an unfortunate writer.
Yet, in terms of pure skill and comic sense, he was overwhelmingly regarded as the number one within Jump Comics.
Anyway.
Shin Yo-seop sat down, crossed his legs, and spoke calmly.
“Director-nim, why did you call me? My manuscript isn’t even finished yet.”
His characteristic androgynous voice, sharp as a blade…… laced with sensitivity.
Oh Han-cheol stroked his chin with a serious expression and replied.
“Writer-nim. For Crow King this year, let’s go with the Bucheon Comic Awards.”
“……What is that supposed to mean all of a sudden?”
Until now, Crow King had mostly been submitted to Our Comics Awards.
Even though both awards were currently called the ‘two major comic awards,’ Our Comics Awards still held a slight edge in prestige……
And given the nature of Crow King’s work, it had been judged to fit Our Comics Awards better than Bucheon.
The problem was that Crow King’s results had been disappointing year after year.
- Ughhh, what a shame, writer-nim. Aureka was just too strong.
- ……Didn’t you say you’d put in some effort this year?
- Haha, I did try every possible way, but it’s not that easy.
Grand Prize: Yang Jae-han artist’s Aureka.
Excellence Award: Crow King.
Throughout serialization, Shin Yo-seop had never once surpassed Yang Jae-han’s overwhelming dominance and remained firmly in second place.
And now they were saying not to submit to Our Comics Awards at all?
To tuck tail and run without even fighting?
Shin Yo-seop’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Why? Are you worried I’ll lose to Yang Jae-han artist-nim again this year?”
“……Yes. Probably a very high chance of losing.”
“Director-nim!”
“School of Deadline is, from the start, a work with extremely strong timeliness and thematic consciousness. Even more so than the previous Aureka.”
Shin Yo-seop’s body trembled slightly.
But he couldn’t bring himself to refute it.
Because he understood exactly what those words meant.
Our Comics Awards fundamentally tended to favor works with timeliness, political themes, or the author’s own clear message and consciousness.
Paradoxically, the fact that Aureka—which emphasized pure entertainment—had won Our Comics Awards multiple times was itself an anomaly.
It was also proof of just how monstrous Yang Jae-han truly was……
“And as you know well. School of Deadline has recently gained tremendous topicality due to its rivalry with Brave King. A head-on fight would put us at a disadvantage.”
“Huuu, let’s say Director Oh Han-cheol is right.”
“Yes. Well, because I am right.”
When Han-cheol spoke with full conviction, Shin Yo-seop asked back with a face full of displeasure.
“……So what meaning is there in winning the Bucheon Comic Awards? Or rather, are you saying that if I enter, I’ll win the grand prize for sure?”
A very fundamental and principled question.
Han-cheol closed his eyes tightly and opened them again before answering.
“The advantages are very big.”
“Big, you say?”
“Yes. I recently obtained some very…… interesting information.”
A wicked smile slowly spread across Han-cheol’s face.
**************
TL Note:
You can read 52 additional chapters of this novel right now on Patreon via the Premium Tier
For this novel specifically, check the collection under “Comic Artist”
Link: https://www.patreon.com/cw/Vritratls
If you join Premium, you’ll get:
🔓 52+ advance chapters instantly
🚀 Up to 9 chapters per week
📖 Access to the advance chapters of my 5 other novels as well
**************