Chapter 44 - 44

After reviewing the rewards given by the system, Haruki withdrew from the system space. Although he had won a B-level prize in the lucky draw, Haruki wasn't planning to use it right away. These days, even Rurouni Kenshin had only reached the halfway point of its serialization, and if another project were added to his plate, he was worried he wouldn't get a moment to rest! Taking a deep breath, Haruki gazed at the dark sky outside the window. He wasn't sleepy anymore, but now he was feeling hungry. ... At half past six in the morning, Kotone woke up on time. The circadian rhythm she had developed over the years made it impossible for her to sleep past this hour. Next to her, Sora was still warm and half-asleep, clinging to her like an octopus. Perhaps Kotone's movement stirred Sora, and she groggily sat up. Sora glanced at the still-dark sky outside. Though she wanted to fall back asleep, she felt too embarrassed to sleep in when even Kotone was already awake. When they opened the door, they were surprised to find that Haruki had gotten up earlier than them. A pot of steaming porridge was already on the table, and he was now sitting at the work desk, putting the final touches on Chapter 9 of Rurouni Kenshin. "Morning. You're up already?" Haruki glanced at them. Kotone's expression remained as cold as ever, while Sora looked clearly still half-asleep. "I got hungry earlier, so I made some porridge. There's plenty left — help yourselves if you're hungry." ... Half an hour later, after finishing their breakfast and cleaning up, the two noticed that Haruki had also finished his work. Lately, Haruki and Kotone had become more in sync, and their manga creation speed had picked up significantly. If it hadn't been for Sora and her celebratory drink the previous night, Chapter 9 of Rurouni Kenshin would've been completed by then. But it wasn't too late — after all, Sora wouldn't submit the manuscript to Kurokawa until Monday, and it was only Saturday. Once he finished his work, Haruki handed it to Sora. This time, instead of just glancing over it like usual, Sora read the ninth chapter carefully. Though the combination of Haruki and Kotone was the most reliable partnership Sora had ever worked with in her career, she was still a bit worried. They'd never had a delay due to a lack of creative inspiration, and Haruki never needed to negotiate with her about plot direction. How to make the story more exciting, or how to make the panels more tense, was second nature to him. Haruki was simply a natural-born genius. But this story was different. For the first eight chapters, Sora had known the plot from the serialization meeting. After all, she had seen the outline of the manga early on. However, from this point on, she was in the dark. She had no idea where the story was heading. So, she read on, carefully. After a long pause, Sora let out a sigh of relief. To be honest, Haruki's handling of Tomoe's character had kept her on edge for the past two months. The plot had ended just before Tomoe's fiancé died, and Sora, with her vivid imagination, had instantly suspected the killer... Kenshin. And she was right! In Chapter 9, Tomoe's brother found her, and through their conversation and some foreshadowing from earlier chapters, Tomoe finally revealed to Kenshin how her fiancé had died. The scene tied back to the first chapter, where a samurai, killed with a sword through his throat, had uttered "Tomoe" before he died. The truth was now clear: Kenshin had been the executioner who killed Tomoe's fiancé. But now, with the two of them pretending to be husband and wife — and a real bond growing between them — where would the story go next? Just as one emotional chapter ended, another even heavier one began. Every scene in this work, every line, struck with devastating beauty. Sora looked at Haruki. Was this his talent? Not only was the manga beautifully drawn, but the story was brilliantly told, too. After reading the chapter, Sora finally relaxed. At first, she had worried that the plot might lose its quality, but on the contrary... She could feel that the story was about to reach its peak. Now, in the first week of January, Rurouni Kenshin: Remembrance had entered its third quarter, with the story of the Little Mountain Village beginning. January's serialization would focus on the four episodes in the Little Mountain Village arc. Just yesterday, with Chapter 7, Rurouni Kenshin had hit a new high, reaching the top of the manga rankings. But if Haruki wanted to qualify for the Aurora Manga Award, he needed to secure first place in the upcoming popular votes. This month, he needed two first-place wins in the next three weeks. Without a strong showing in these next few weeks, his chances of winning the award would be slim. If only one first-place win was achieved, with Celestial Book not posing a real threat, Hidden Girl and Demon Realm would likely take the first place twice in three weeks, giving them the edge. With Rurouni Kenshin still a contender, Haruki needed to secure strong votes in the upcoming weeks to ensure his qualification. The quality of his future chapters would be key. The eighth episode, due in the next star issue, as well as Chapters 9 and 10 in the following weeks, needed to be top-notch. No filler. No transitional episodes. Only exciting, high-quality material. But Sora didn't seem too worried anymore. "Haruki, do you have any ideas for Chapter 10's title?" Kotone asked. It was the weekend, and as usual, the two of them hadn't planned to work on their manga for two full days. Half of their work week had always been completed over the weekends. "Forget it. I won't work this weekend," Haruki shook his head. "It's been almost two months since Rurouni Kenshin started serialization. We haven't had a single day off. We go to school every day, and on weekends, we're always working on the manga. I think we deserve a break. Let's talk about it in a couple of days. We can start again next week," Haruki said, looking at Kotone. "You must be tired, too." "I..." Kotone hesitated for a moment before nodding. Though she didn't mind the work, she hadn't spent time with her grandmother in a while. "Well then..." Kotone said. (TL:- if you want even more content, check out p-atreon.com/Alioth23 for 50+ advanced chapters)