Published at 11th of November 2020 10:39:52 AM
It’s Heart Pounding Isn’t It?
TL: PuffyPyjamas .
ED: Daemon .
“Let’s get started then . ”
Charlotte, who seemed to be a little nervous, presented a manga to me . The reason she is so nervous is probably because our faces are relatively close to each other . While two people try to read a manga together, it is a given that their faces would be close to a certain extent .
To be honest, I am extremely nervous as well . If the face of the person you have a crush on is in the immediate vicinity, I believe it’s natural to have such a reaction . In all honesty, it’s taking my all to maintain my composure and to not let my nervousness show on my face .
“So, what manga did yo—Eh…?”
I was baffled when I saw the manga that she was holding in her hands . If I were being recommended a manga by someone, I thought that it’d be some world-famous works like the pirate manga with the main character wearing a straw-hat, or the manga revolving around ninjas with the main character having a monster sealed inside his body . At least, I expected to be recommended a manga like that . [1]
However, she recommended a manga of less popular genre to me . To be more precise, it’s a genre that doesn’t seem to align with any of the more well-known works . [2]
“Are you surprised?”
Charlotte, who appears to have realized my confusion from my expression, laughs mischievously . What on earth is she planning?
“Aoyagi-kun expected me to recommend a world-famous work, right? At the very least, wasn’t I supposed to recommend a work of a more popular genre?”
Bullseye… What Charlotte just said is precisely what I was thinking .
“Yeah, that’s correct . Why are you—”
“Recommending a manga based around drawing a manga—right?”
I nodded at Charlotte, who stole the words right out of my mouth . The cover of the manga she recommended has an illustration of a boy holding a pen while facing the manuscript at his table . It can be seen that this boy is trying to draw manga, and as the cover picture depicts, it is a story centered around drawing manga .
If I remember correctly, this work was serialized in a popular shounen magazine that was released every Monday . It was a hot topic at the time, so even I, who doesn’t read manga at all, know a little about it .
“If I were to explain in detail, the story will be spoiled, so allow me to give you a brief summary . This is a story of two boys aiming to become mangakas . ” [3]
“What was your intention behind choosing this manga?”
I asked Charlotte, who had just explained the concept of the manga, the reason why she chose this manga in particular . There were several possible reasons .
However, she is the only one who knows the true answer . I wished to know Charlotte’s thoughts rather than about manga itself . Her mentality of taking actions that don’t apply to common sense .
“It’s a secret~”
However, Charlotte just placed her index finger on her lips and winked adorably, dodging the question . After all, this girl is very cute and mischievous . If she does something like this, I can’t ask any further…
“O-oh, is that so…?”
“Fufu, I’m sorry . Firstly, I would like you to go into it without any prior prejudice . Then, I will explain why I recommended this manga to Aoyagi-kun . ”
It seems that she has her own plans this time around . In that case, I will obediently leave it to her .
“—Somehow, I’m a little nervous . ”
When I flipped the cover, Charlotte shyly muttered . I looked at her, and her cheeks were dyed red . However, her face was bright and it seemed she was having fun .
I wondered if I could concentrate on the manga in this situation, but I started reading manga with Charlotte without any further consideration .
TN:
I know you guys know this, but the manga mentioned are One Piece and Naruto respectively . ‘Well-known works’ here refers to the actual manga, while the ‘genre’ is basically how shounen or action are comparatively more popular than, say, slice-of-life, which is the main genre of the manga that Charlotte brought . Again, the manga here is ‘Bakuman’, a pretty solid read if I do say so myself .