Chapter 23: Secret Base
"What a fool! He is a mangaka! Although he isn't famous, he is still a real mangaka. What if he finds out you're drawing adult manga? Aren't you still trying to enter the shonen manga world?"
As an adult mangaka, Hakuseki Shimizu couldn't expose his true identity to other mangaka’s. Otherwise, it would be very difficult for him to draw shonen manga in the future. Everyone would look down on him.
"Well, that's a problem, but don't be so sensitive. He doesn't know that I'm Beauty Baijie, and he may not have even read my manga before. You shouldn't think too much about it. By the way, I came to you this time because of a rental problem."
Shimizu Hakuseki told her the conversation between Ida Shinji and himself.
"So, you want to rent another room?"
"Yes."
"Hmm…" Ayase touched her chin and thought.
"Is there any problems?"
"No, no problem, but I have a better idea."
"I'm listening."
"There's no empty room now, but I can free up the storage room. It can also be a place for sleeping."
"Storage room? Would it be a little too much?"
"For mangaka’s, it's natural to be poor, so don't be too picky about the bedroom."
…You're right!
"Well, since this problem has been solved, I should leave now." Hakuseki Shimizu turned to leave.
"Wait! Come back, don't rush away…"
"Anything else?"
"This problem hasn't been solved yet. Where are you going to work?"
"Of course, in my room."
"Your room is so small, that it's not much bigger than the storage room. Wouldn't it be crowded with two people and a workbench? And I will also come occasionally to your room to discuss stories. There will be no place for three people to turn around in during that time!"
"Do you have any solutions?"
"In my view, now that you have recruited an assistant and the manga you are going to draw later can't be seen by any other people, then why don't we clean out the attic? You can work there so that you don't need to fear that anyone will find out your true identity."
"How about the rent for the attic?"
"No rent."
"Oh? Why?"
"We can make the attic our secret base, and I will also put my workbench there as well, so that I can move all my treasures there and have a safe place to store those erotic novels."
"Senpai, you are so kind to me, and I can’t do anything to repay your kindness."
"Don’t worry, you can repay me."
"Repay you with my body and virginity?"
"Ha ha, don't be a fool," Kasannoin Ayase ignored Hakuseki Shimizu's disappointed look and continued, "I just want you to nominate me as the leader of the Manga & Literature Research Club at the next meeting."
"So, you're bribing me!"
"Tsk-tsk, don't be saying that. How can it be called 'bribery'? It's just a helping hand between two friends," said Kasannoin Ayase, "Look, I helped you, don't you feel grateful? Don't you want to repay me?"
"Senpai, I really want to repay you, but I won't choose you to be the new leader."
"Why?"
"Because I don't want to sell my soul."
"So it’s okay to sell your body?"
"Yes, you can get my body, but you can never obtain my heart."
Kasannoin Ayase looked up and down at Shimizu Hakuseki for a while, and said with heat, "Well, it seems that we need to calculate the rent of the attic properly."
Ultimately, the attic only cost Hakuseki Shimizu a little more money. They spent a whole Sunday cleaning the attic and storage room and adding some old furniture in the attic, which made the attic look more like a place for work now. By the time Sunday had passed, the month had quietly come to October.
Tokyo had cooled down in October and people had put on thick clothes.
After school, Shimizu Hakuseki didn't delay in leaving the school, because he had to go home early to meet Kitahara Shimomura.
Ida Shinji would come to meet him at his house together with Kitahara Shimomura tonight, and Hakuseki Shimizu would have a talk with Kitahara Shimomura. If there were no other problems, they would start to work together from tonight on.
Although he didn't have too much money now, he needed to buy tea cakes for them. If he was still unprepared when Ida Shinji and Kitahara Shimomura came, it would be too impolite.
In the days before, Shimizu Hakuseki never considered these problems. If he was still working alone, it was okay to go on like this, but since he had decided to form a team and work together with his assistant, he had to pay attention to these things now.
However, he just arrived at the school gate and he was stopped by two hoodlums.
Shimizu Hakuseki looked at them and they felt somewhat familiar, he remembered that they were two of the bad students in the school.
One of them stopped in front of him and said, "Come this way, please. We have something we need to say to you."
The other hoodlum bowed and said, "This way, please."
Shimizu Hakuseki shrugged his shoulders and followed them to an alley.
When they reached the end of the alley and were sure that no one was around, the two hoodlums stood in front of Shimizu Hakuseki and bowed respectfully, "Aniki Shimizu!" (PS: Aniki means "big brother" in Japanese)
"Hey, hey, come on, what are guys you doing?!"
One of the hoodlums said with tears, "Aniki, we are here to repay our gratitude."
"Hum?" Shimizu Hakuseki thought for a moment, "Oh, you mean about that thing that happened in Shibuya?"
"Yes, yes, thank you for helping us at that time."
"If it wasn't because of Aniki Shimizu, we would’ve been kidnapped by the Yakuza and gone fishing for tuna at sea." (Ed. Note: Another way of saying “going swimming with concrete over boots”)
Shimizu Hakuseki waved his hand and said, "Please! It wasn't as exaggerated as you have said."
