After all, this time they were working on Puella Magi Madoka Magica. Haruki and Kazuya had pooled together a total of ¥300 million for production. With that kind of budget, Kazuya had naturally rented another office building near the university as the new base for the animation team.
Thanks to the success of 5 Centimeters per Second and Voices of a Distant Star, both Haruki and Kazuya had become well-known in the animation industry. Many freelancers and former staff from other studios people currently between projects were more than willing to join their production. If they could work on something with the same level of acclaim as Haruki's past two projects, it would only help their own careers.
Meanwhile, the release date of the Initial D manga volumes was fast approaching.
The anime adaptation had already been discussed months ago with Echo Shroud Publishing. Peppo Animation Studio was commissioned for the anime, as Initial D had become the breakout series of the magazine, with the highest potential for mass appeal. Naturally, the studio had to deliver a high-quality adaptation.
Given the time needed to assemble staff, schedule production, and ensure high standards, the anime was scheduled for a January release next year.
The manga volumes, however, had a much faster turnaround. Echo Shroud had already locked in the release date: the first Wednesday of June.
Initial D was already fifty chapters into serialization. Just like with Natsume's Book of Friends, Echo Shroud compiled the first thirty chapters into three volumes and pushed the promotion heavily across major cities. Posters, teasers, online banners—it was everywhere.
Haruka even suggested Haruki do a signing tour in nearby regions.
But Haruki had learned his lesson from last time. He politely declined.
In his view, most people who go to signing events are hardcore fans who'll buy the books anyway. The events were mainly for press exposure or community engagement. At his current level of recognition, a local event wouldn't meaningfully affect sales or fan loyalty. Even readers unfamiliar with Echo Shroud knew Initial D, Dream world, and Natsume's Book of Friends were their top three series. Each was now competing at the highest tier, alongside major titles from the other publishing giants.
So whether or not Haruki spent time traveling and shaking hands, it didn't change much.
Haruka understood his reasoning but his lack of interest still drove her nuts. It wasn't like he had a legitimate scheduling conflict. When she asked, his excuse was basically: "I'd rather stay home and play games."
That was too much even for her. She insisted on a compromise: at the very least, Haruki had to attend the signing event in Tokyo.
After all, he lived there. The author of the magazine's biggest hit couldn't just sit it out entirely.
With everything ramping up again, he could already feel his laid-back schedule slipping away.
Still, the day after Ryuko's birthday party, he had a rare break. No classes. Nothing urgent. But all day, he had the odd feeling that he'd forgotten something.
He found out what it was the next morning.
As he arrived on campus and approached his department building, he noticed a crowd larger than usual gathered at the entrance. Mixed among the students were reporters holding cameras and equipment.
Then someone in the crowd shouted, "There! That's him! He looks exactly like those photos of Mizushiro online he's really a student here?!"
And just like that, everyone swarmed.
Haruki's heart dropped. He'd been through fan encounters before at events, in studio but never . Not outside his own school building.
That's when it clicked: at Ryuko's birthday, two of his classmates, Yuzuki and Miyu, had also been there.
It had only been two days. How had they managed to leak this to so many people?
"Sensei Mizushiro! Can you sign my book?"
"I'm a huge fan can I get a selfie?"
"Excuse me! I'm with Kabane News. What made you choose animation as a major? Are you planning to work in animation or stick to manga?"
"I'm sorry, I have class please ask later!" Haruki said quickly, keeping his head down as he pushed through.
Luckily, school security had been notified. Guards began filtering the crowd and keeping non-students outside. Haruki made it through the building entrance but just barely.
Inside, he thought he was in the clear. But once he entered the lobby, he was met with more stares.
Dozens of students his upperclassmen, underclassmen, classmates were already there, waiting for lectures or loitering around. Most of them had heard the rumors by now: Mizushiro, the acclaimed manga artist and screenwriter, was one of them.
A peer. A fellow animation student.
To many of them, it felt like finding out your quiet classmate was secretly a celebrity.
The crowd didn't mob him like the one outside. A few asked for signatures, a couple tried to start small talk, but most just watched him in awe like spotting an endangered species.
Haruki didn't linger. He went straight to class.
Inside, someone whispered, "There he is."
Another said, "Dude, did you see that scene downstairs? So it is him after all."
"I kept thinking Mizushiro and Haruki just had the same name. But the resemblance... wow."
Haruki dropped into his seat and sighed.
So much for keeping a low profile.
(TL:- if you want even more content, check out p-atreon.com/Alioth23 for 60+ advanced chapters)