"What genius manga artist?! This is how a 'genius' makes manga?"
"Why did it have to be this sad? Wouldn't it have been better to let the story stay gentle and peaceful?"
"My stomach literally hurts. I sat frozen on my sofa for ten minutes before remembering to open the official site."
"Shirogane-sensei, is your heart made of steel? 5cm/s was already painful, but tonight goes even further!"
"This chapter made me cry so hard."
"I feel sick from how sad it was."
"Shirogane-sensei, why did you write the plot like this?! Couldn't it have been a warm family story?"
"But honestly, we can't blame Shirogane-sensei completely. Looking back, the setup was there from chapter 1. Even the title hinted at it. None of us wanted to think in that direction."
"Who would imagine something like this?! Tōru's mother had congenital heart disease and it's hereditary, who besides a med student would jump to that conclusion?"
"I am a med student, and yeah, I suspected it when chapter 4 mentioned congenital heart disease. But since Shirogane-sensei is a high schooler, I assumed she wouldn't use a setup this complicated, so I kept quiet. Turns out she really planned it."
"It's killing me. I can't even eat right now."
"Is there any chance of a twist later?"
"A twist? After a funeral chapter? Be serious."
"Then what happens next? How do you continue a romance manga when the male lead is dead?"
"Who knows what Shirogane-sensei is thinking anymore."
"Hey, who was it that said 5cm/s would remain Shirogane-sensei's saddest work forever? Whoever said that, come out."
"So next week the story goes back to chapter 1's timeline, right? Maori's condition improves and she starts remembering?"
"Is the rest of the manga going to be about Maori slowly regaining memories of Tōru?"
"Oh no, that's even more painful."
Since the Journal was released early this morning, the number of reader discussion posts about tonight on the official forum was significantly higher than for other manga.
Misaki kept scrolling through the forum
The thread count discussing tonight was several times higher than any other series in the issue.
But as she scrolled;
"None."
"None."
"None…"
Dozens of posts. And not a single complaint aimed at: the story, the pacing, Maori Hino, Tōru Kamiya, or the manga's structure
Every bit of anger was directed only at the author, Shirogane.
Readers said the plot was sad, painful, heartbreaking…
But NOT that the manga was bad.
Which meant, readers accepted the story.
They were grieving, but they weren't rejecting the work.
Misaki's tension slowly faded.
This was good. Very good.
Tōru's death had been foreshadowed everywhere: chapter 1's disappearance, hereditary illness, his mother's identical fate, his pre-recorded message.
Readers weren't angry because the plot was unreasonable, they were angry because it hurt them.
The best kind of anger a romance manga can generate.
All resentment landed on Shirogane, not the manga.
Which meant: No popularity collapse.
In fact, emotional shock often increased reader votes.
That afternoon, after Rei returned from school, he refreshed the Ametsukage Weekly forum.
Criticism of "Shirogane-sensei" filled the site from top to bottom.
He smiled faintly.
He had expected this.
Even in his previous life, when he read the original version of tonight, Even If the World Disappears Tomorrow, the author had been cursed online for this.
But what happened after the storm of criticism?
People still loved the work.
There are countless fans who curse Gen Urobuchi, yet who would ever hate Madoka Magica or Fate/Zero just because the writer is "cruel"?
Yoshihiro Togashi has been cursed for twenty years, but the moment Hunter × Hunter updates, every one of those people comes running back.
Rei understood this very well.
Those who scolded him the most fiercely were, in truth, the readers who cared the deepest. Their anger meant they were emotionally invested.
That was why Misaki feared a potential collapse in popularity after Chapter 8 of Even If This Love Disappears Tonight, while Rei remained completely calm.
Creating a "controversial" romance twist is always a gamble. A tightrope, with the abyss beneath.
But Rei wasn't gambling blindly.
He already knew that in his previous world, this story had been accepted by audiences. He had big-data validation from another lifetime backing him up.
This was why Rei, a sixteen-year-old newcomer, could remain calmer than Misaki, a veteran editor.
And the results proved him right.
The new poll results of Even If This Love Disappears Tonight came out.
And the number was even higher than last week's nine thousand.
10,368 votes.
Still in 3rd place, but, only 700 votes behind Youth Rhythm (11,025 votes)
About 2,200 votes behind Labyrinth Detective Agency, the #1 series (12,652 votes)
It became the third series in Ametsukage Weekly to break 10,000 votes this year.
Once these results were posted internally, the entire editorial floor of Hoshimori Publishing Group was stirred.
Not because the result itself was world-shattering, but because of the author.
Most readers didn't know who Shirogane was.
But everyone in the editorial department did:
Rei Kirishima.
Age: 16.
Second-year high school student.
A true "wild" newcomer, not scouted, not trained, who had never even entered a rookie contest.
And his manga had held a top-three position for two straight weeks.
The editors suddenly started to whisper:
"Isn't this insane for someone his age?"
"Give him time, and he might surpass other young stars…"
"Hoshimori hasn't produced a major young manga star in years, aybe this is it."
Indeed, Hoshimori Publishing had not developed a breakout young talent in a long time. The industry had mocked them for years, calling them "a company living off its aging legends."
But now, with Rei's results, that might change.
That afternoon, Han Esumi, the editor-in-chief of Hoshimori's manga division, the same man who worked with Misaki's late mother for twelve years, called Misaki directly.
He skipped all pleasantries.
His deep, steady voice came through the line:
"Misaki, this manga artist publishing as 'Shirogane', what is his situation?"
...
Read 30+ chapters ahead at [email protected]/c/Ashnoir