It was late at night and Aiko was too hot to sleep.
He was about to get up and drink a glass of water, but he was surprised to find that the light in the next room was still on.
"Why is this child still awake?" asked Aiko, curious, and looked inside through the crack in the door.
Takumi Sato was sitting at the desk, quickly moving the pen on the paper.
Aiko opened her eyes wide. Was he really reviewing? He looked at the ground; Textbooks and notes were scattered everywhere. I had never seen Takumi review with such intensity; It had really changed.
Aiko smiled as she walked stealthily into the ward.
"Give him an extra egg for breakfast tomorrow."
In the room, what Takumi wrote with great enthusiasm were not review questions, but comic books.
He flipped through history books and various newspapers in the room, and came to the conclusion that there were no classic comics like "Dragon Ball" and "Naruto" in this world, nor classic online novels like "Heavenly Battle" and "The Avatar of the King."
Novels and comics became Takumi's first choice for making money, and the first choice, of course, was novels that required less effort. However, the novel industry in this world is highly developed. The rise of online novels occurred ten years earlier than in his previous life. The entire market is a red ocean of fierce competition.
In contrast, the market for the original comic is a blue ocean.
The original comics appeared after the novels. Due to the development of the novelistic market, the comic book industry gradually emerged to expand the benefits of copyright. The characters in the comics are vivid, easy to understand, and suitable for all ages. The whole industry is like a snowball that grows bigger and bigger, and now it has spread all over the world.
However, in its beginnings it was limited by two decisive factors. One of them is the lack of professional training in comics and the shortage of talent. In addition, they are all hired by large companies to adapt popular novels, and the production of original comics is very scarce. The second is that there are problems with the marketing model and the attention that comic magazines receive is ignored.
The current comic book market is dominated by adapted novels. The biggest limitation is that readers know the plot, and comic book companies don't dare modify the original works at will. Readers who know the plot won't follow it every week. They are more willing to buy single volumes.
This has created a strange phenomenon: sales of comic magazines and newspapers are abysmal, while single volumes are extremely popular. This phenomenon is very beneficial for Takumi, as it means that as long as you can publish great content in the form of comics, you will be able to stand out.
Novels and comics are closely related. Many people can write novels, but few can draw comics. Takumi has dedicated most of his life to these things. His writing and painting skills are extraordinary, and he should have a promising future.
You can start with original comics and move into other industries little by little.
"Alright, the base is still there!" Takumi put down the pen and breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of the dozens of comics on the table. Time travel hadn't brought his abilities back to their original point. Whether it was calligraphy, style, or drawing, they were not much different from those of his previous life. With practice, he could recover.
As long as he had strength, Takumi was not afraid of anything.
"But it's really strange..." He picked up the comic, frowned, and read it: "It's too fluid. After all, drawing comics always requires rethinking the storyboard. Why don't I even have to think about the storyboard?"
The so-called storyboard is a comic book term. The layout of comics should be designed on paper, and then the manuscript can be drawn according to it. This process is like sketching and structure. Takumi is surprised that he can draw the manuscript without storyboards, as if he has known it for a long time.
"Forget it, don't think about it."
Takumi stretched out, picked up the history book next to him, and read it as if it were a novel. Soon after, however, a strange sensation came over his mind: he seemed to know the contents of the next page, and in which line and word the key point began.
"Impossible..."
Takumi had flipped through it indifferently before, how could he remember it so clearly? He immediately moved on to the next page, and the content displayed was exactly the same as he had in mind!
An absurd idea came to mind.
Takumi pulled out the Japanese-language textbook and quickly went through more than a dozen pages, then closed it. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and began to remember. Slowly, the entire textbook opened up like a 3D image, and the directory, text, notes, and even crumpled page numbers were clear.
"Never forget everything I see!" He jumped excitedly: "No, it's impossible... But my memory of my previous life is also very clear. The twelfth sentence of the first chapter of Journey to the West seems to be the words of Shao Kangjie: 'In the middle of the winter solstice, the center of the sky remains unchanged. When the yang begins to move, not everything has been born yet.' Fuck, I'm shocked!"
Takumi actually has a photographic memory. Not only this life, but also the things of the previous life are clear. Did time travel open his brain? As long as he has this ability, he can perfectly reproduce the comics of his previous life. Why worry about not making money?
But that way, you don't have to go to school to waste your time.
"No, since I can remember everything I see, why don't I go to school?" If you can find a school with an easy academic level, Takumi's diploma is like giving it away.
Strength is the key. Strong students are popular wherever they go. Takumi looked at the high school textbooks on the table and thought that there would be no problem in taking the entrance exam. She could prepare comics while revising, which would also make her mother feel calm.
After a busy night, Takumi asked his mother not to go to school after dawn.
"Anyway, classes are over and I can't concentrate on revising if I go. It's better to stay at home," he explained.
Aiko wanted to refuse, but hesitated as she remembered how hard Takumi worked the night before. There was no computer at home and no money for the boy to play with, so he better agreed:
"Okay, I'll call your professor."
He asked permission for Takumi. Ishida-sensei was angry about yesterday. Upon hearing the request, he replied:
"If you don't come, forget it," and hung up the phone.
"What did you do at school?" asked Aiko, full of doubts.
Takumi blinked innocently:
"I didn't do anything. I was in a hurry to pick you up."
Aiko was stunned and a little annoyed.
"Really, this teacher... what kind of attitude does he have? If the child doesn't do well, just teach him well. Why does he keep complaining after a day?"
She was so glad Takumi had gone to pick her up yesterday.
"Then I go to work. You stay at home and study hard. There are leftovers in the fridge for you to eat at noon."
"Okay!" Takumi said goodbye to his mother with a smile and slept until noon. After eating, he began to review.
At 10:30 p.m., Aiko didn't run home, but knocked on her neighbor's door.
"Takumi? I don't think it came out today." The neighbor's response relieved her. When she opened the door, Aiko was stunned. He saw that the lights in the room were on and a large bowl of hot egg fried rice was on the table.
"Mom, welcome! That's the rice I just heated. Eat it while it's hot."
Takumi's voice came from the room. Aiko's eyes reddened. This was Takumi's first time preparing food for him.
"Kid, didn't I tell you that the factory made dinner?" asked Aiko, wiping the corners of her eyes and devouring the fried rice with egg with joy.
He put away the plates and chopsticks, showered, and knocked on Takumi's door before going to bed.
"Takumi-kun, don't watch TV too late or you'll hurt yourself."
"I know."
After getting the answer, Aiko went to sleep peacefully.
Time passed in the simple interaction between mother and child. Takumi spent two weeks memorizing all the elementary and middle school textbooks. I didn't need to review anymore. The high school entrance exam was still more than ten days away, and Takumi rushed to prepare comics.
The choice of the first comic was crucial. Takumi did not directly adapt the novel of his previous life into a comic book. He did not dare to take risks and prioritized works that were originally comics.
"Dragon Ball" was the first candidate. This is a classic comic that has been serialized for over ten years. However, its early success was not particularly popular until the author added the theme of the "quest for power" to the story.
Then came "Bleach," "Naruto" and "One Piece," three popular comics, but Takumi still couldn't decide. The reason is that the style and worldview of these three comics are relatively special. I wanted a more realistic and youthful comic to begin with.
After two days of screening, Takumi fell in love with "Detective Conan." This is a typical comic that appeals to both boys and girls. It's realistic and full of suspense. It has a very good start and its performance is not inferior to other comics.
Takumi began drawing "Detective Conan" with concentration. After a few days of practice, his drawing skills returned to their previous best.
Drawing comics is a complex task. Although Takumi significantly reduced the drawing time without storyboards, it took him four days to complete the first chapter, which consisted of more than 20 pages. Amazing speed!
"Good, only the last one is missing!"
Takumi stretched and prepared to draw the last image. This image only gets one chance and should be very easy to draw.
However, just as the brush fell onto the paper, a bright light suddenly flashed. A wonderful image appeared in Takumi's mind: a crescent moon hung in the sky and a child sitting on the grass. He looked like he had just woken up from a coma and was dressed disastrously. A gust of wind whipped her bangs, revealing her large, perplexed eyes.
"Huh?"
Takumi suddenly woke up and stopped drawing with the brush. His pupils shrank, and he was surprised to find that he had completed the last image: the same scene that had just passed through his mind was drawn on the paper, preventing people from looking away.
This is not a common caricature. The seemingly simple image reveals a touch of elegance. The whole painting, in fact, shows a sense of superimposition, as if it were ink and wash, like a Japanese painting full of life. Takumi senses a strong oriental charm.
"Amazing..."
He put down his pen trembling; His wrist hurt a little, which showed that the painting was indeed his work.
The clock on the desk marked the time.
Takumi turned her head to look at him, who had turned around. Time was thirty minutes faster than before the image appeared in his mind, but it only left him with a moment of excitement. Takumi realized that he had just entered a state of fascination and couldn't tell the time, and in that state, he easily drew the scene in his mind.
Thinking about photographic memory, Takumi intuited that it could also be a skill acquired through time travel.
"A flash of inspiration, call it a flash of inspiration!"
Temporarily, he gave his new skill an easy-to-understand name: comics drawn with this skill don't look like comic books, and the quality far exceeds the original. If he could take full advantage of it, wouldn't he be invincible in the world?
He has stayed at home reviewing.