I just want to quietly draw manga Chapter 361

[Note:- I was thinking of releasing a double chapter at the same time, but I didn’t want to take another day’s break. So here’s one chapter now, and I’ll try to release the second chapter within the next 12 hours.]

The meeting hall had only a handful of people present, far fewer than the usual quarterly meeting where new serializations were decided. The long table felt almost too large for the number of editors seated around it.

Editor-in-Chief Amane opened the meeting. "Muzishiro has submitted a work to replace Fullmetal, which will end in June."

A few people nodded. No one looked surprised.

Editor Yamaguchi spoke after a short pause.

“Since Muzishiro joined us, we haven’t had to worry about replacements for his slots. If we suddenly had to find something to match that level, it wouldn’t be easy.”

Another editor added,

“And I can’t imagine Muzishiro not having a story ready. He’s made so many manga and written anime.”

Amane listened, then continued.

“But there’s a problem. What Muzishiro submitted isn’t his new manga.”

Scheduling Manager Fujimoto spoke immediately, his tone firm.

“No, Amane-san. We can’t give him another slot. Even temporarily.”

"I know," Amane replied calmly. "I'm not suggesting that."

She looked at Fujimoto.

“But Chief Strategy Officer Takeda-san said they’re very interested in this manga being serialized.”

That drew attention.

Deputy Editor Morita leaned forward.

“Have they read it already? And why was it shown to them first?”

“At the celebration, Takeda-san brought up the topic of serializing Code Geass as a manga,” Amane said.

“And Muzishiro wants to serialize it as manga to gather funds.”

The room went quiet.

Everyone started thinking. They couldn’t give him a fourth slot. That wasn’t possible. But Code Geass had created massive buzz worldwide. If they serialized it as a manga, they could gain even more momentum and keep the pace of gaining new readers, which had started to slow down.

Still, everyone had the same question in mind.

If they serialized Code Geass, what would happen to Muzishiro’s new manga?

No one wanted to say it out loud, but the answer was obvious.

Deputy Editor Morita turned to Haruka.

“Has Muzishiro said anything about his new manga? Is it ready? If it’s not ready yet, then we don’t need to worry.”

Haruka shook her head immediately.

“He has the manga ready. He was just waiting for Fullmetal Alchemist to near its end before starting serialization.”

That answer removed the last easy escape.

Amane folded her hands on the table.

“That’s why I called everyone here. We can’t give Muzishiro another slot.”

She let that sit for a moment before continuing.

“Which means we have to choose. Either we serialize Code Geass as a manga, or we serialize Muzishiro’s new work.”

No one rushed to respond.

Sales Manager Kawahara flipped open his folder, eyes scanning numbers he already knew by heart.

“If we have to choose,” he said, “I think we should go with Code Geass. Muzishiro’s new manga won’t bring in new readers the same way.”

Scheduling Manager Fujimoto responded more cautiously.

“We can’t only look at sales. We also have to consider our relationship with Muzishiro. If we choose like this, he might think we don’t trust him.”

Haruka spoke calmly, her tone steady.

“Muzishiro won’t think like that. He knows we can’t give him another slot.”

She paused briefly.

“This was him giving us the option to choose.”

Fujimoto still didn’t look convinced.

“What if we remove the JoJo slot and give it to Muzishiro’s new manga instead?”

Haruka replied immediately, without needing to think.

“Muzishiro won’t agree to removing JoJo’s slot.”

That ended that line of thought.

Deputy Manager Okabe let out a quiet sigh.

“Then we don’t have any option but to let one of his works go to another publishing house.”

Sales Manager Kawahara nodded.

“I’m afraid so.”

Amane spoke again.

“If I personally had full authority, I would choose Muzishiro’s new work. If we choose that, the Code Geass manga would go to another publisher as a one-time transaction. But whichever publisher gets his original manga would gain a long-term relationship.”

Okabe frowned slightly.

“But why does Takeda-san want the Code Geass manga?”

Kawahara answered.

“Takeda-san wants to expand Echo Shroud using the recent wave of Code Geass. We might lose some momentum domestically, but we’ll gain more international market share.”

Amane nodded.

“Takeda-san understands that. The international market is larger, and there’s nothing wrong with expanding there. We’re still serializing Muzishiro’s works.”

Okabe leaned back.

“All of this looks good on paper. But what guarantee do we have? If he starts publishing one manga with a different studio, what happens next? If it’s a smaller publisher, it won’t affect us much. But what if one of the top two makes a move?”

Amane replied honestly.

“I’ve thought about that. But this time, we have to let Muzishiro’s original work go. We don’t have a contract that binds him fully to Echo Shroud.”

Okabe said quietly,

“Then we should make a contract to bind Muzishiro to Echo Shroud.”

Fujimoto shook his head.

“This is not how Echo Shroud operates. And if we have to bind him, we’d have to give him something no other publishing house can offer. That isn’t in our power.”

Amane shook her head.

“I’ve considered that. This serialization will give us data. Which work goes where, how it performs. Then we’ll know how to handle Muzishiro moving forward.”

She looked at Haruka.

“Tell Muzishiro we’ll serialize Code Geass.”

After a brief pause, she added,

“Try to convince him to delay his new manga. I know he won’t agree. But try.”

Haruka nodded.

“I’ll try, Amane-san. But I can’t guarantee it.”

The meeting ended. The decision was final.

Next Day

Haruka sat across from Haruki at Evermark Studio.

“They chose Code Geass, didn’t they?” Haruki said.

Haruka nodded.

“It was a decision made by Takeda-san. The moment he learned that you submitted it, they locked it in.” She passed the contract across the desk.

Haruki read through it carefully.

Echo Shroud would not hold the IP. They would only handle serialization. Any changes would require Muzishiro’s direct approval. Muzishiro would receive a 25% share per volume. The first three volumes would be released immediately after enough chapters were serialized to make a volume. After that, the release schedule could be adjusted.

It was a good deal. Better than he’d expected. But it also meant his original manga would debut with a different publisher. That thought sat strangely. After three years with Echo Shroud, branching out felt unfamiliar, and uncertain.

He signed and handed it back.

“When will you be able to draw Code Geass?” Haruka asked.

“Kenta just started working on it,” Haruki replied.

“He’ll need about two weeks to adjust. After that, we can start serialization, or whenever Echo Shroud decides.”

Haruka nodded.

“And have you chosen which publishing house you’ll go with for your new manga?”

“I haven’t decided yet,” Haruki said.

“I didn’t expect Code Geass to be serialized as a manga. There are still three months before I start the new manga. I have time.”

“If you need help, let me know,” Haruka said.

“I will.”