Is this mangaka crazy?

Wow! Ren's eyes lit up upon hearing the name.

This... Mr. Crocodile is here...

If Yuka hadn't said her pseudonym was Gotouge Koyoharu, he probably wouldn't have known there was a future big name here.

But Mr. Crocodile changed his place of registration directly in the parallel world... It doesn't matter.

"Ahem..." Ren said, "The pseudonyms... don't matter. What's important is that you have to prove your painting skills are sufficient to be my assistants!"

"You should be familiar with my painting style, and as my assistants, you won't need to complete character art or the story's plot," he continued. "But your work is mainly background painting, so..."

"Now, draw a sketch of Night City from Edgerunners and complete it in half an hour. If you can satisfy me, you'll pass," Ren looked at them and said.

Although Yuka and Akutami Yuta impressed him a bit upon hearing the pseudonyms Gotouge Koyoharu and Akutami Gege, he didn't settle on assistants just for that.

Anything is possible in a parallel world. What if those two people in that parallel world have poor business capabilities?

So he still needed to see for himself.

"Alright."

Yuka, Hiroki, and Akutami Yuta knew before coming that they had to demonstrate their business capabilities on the spot.

So they took out sketch paper and brushes from their backpacks and began to paint carefully.

Ren also waited slowly. While they waited, he and Ayumi tasted the coffee they were served.

He didn't talk to Ayumi so that Yuka, Hiroki, and Akutami Yuta could paint in peace.

Finally, half an hour passed.

Ren looked at his mobile phone, "Alright, time's up."

Yuka, Hiroki, and Akutami Yuta put down their brushes, although they had finished long ago.

But they were still adding lines, trying to make their sketches more three-dimensional and exquisite.

Then, they presented their finished drawings to Ren one by one.

The first thing Ren saw was Hiroki's drawing.

Not bad... Although it's not colored, the lines, composition, light, and shadow are very good.

Just from seeing his painting ability, this business skill is undoubtedly acceptable.

As Ren expected, Hiroki should be the type of mangaka who is very good at painting, but not so good at storytelling.

Next, he looked at Akutami Yuta's drawings.

They were also very good, and the style was more three-dimensional, not much worse than Hiroki's.

Then there were the drawings of the parallel world's Mr. Crocodile...

Well... They were a bit inferior to the previous two...

It seemed he wasn't very good at drawing in a cyberpunk urban style.

But the style was still delicate, and overall it was fine.

But if compared to Akutami Yuta and Hiroki... the difference is a bit obvious.

After all, the paintings Mr. Crocodile mastered in his previous life were not of a modern urban style...

"I'm sorry, Yuka."

Ren shook his head, looking at Yuka first. "Your paintings are very good, but..."

He showed her drawings and Hiroki's in front of Yuka.

Obviously, everyone could see the clear difference.

"I... I can study hard," Yuka said, obviously panicking. "Please, give me another chance, sensei...".

She didn't want to be eliminated just like that.

It was a good opportunity.

Ren was also a little troubled. After learning that the person in front of him was the parallel world's master crocodile, he also felt a certain admiration for the talent.

But like this, there was no justice for Hiroki.

"Forget it...".

Ren frowned.

Did he have to think so much?

Since Yuka, Hiroki, and Akutami Yuta had all shown good artistic skills, to be fair, why not hire them all? He's not a person without money now, so hiring one more assistant is no problem.

In general, it's nothing special for a famous mangaka to have three assistants.

"You are all very good, I'm very satisfied," Ren said after figuring it out. "Congratulations, you've all been accepted."

Yuka was stunned for a moment. She thought she had been eliminated.

But suddenly, Ren changed his mind and accepted them all.

Isn't that too sudden? Before she could say anything, Ren announced it directly.

Although the three of them were hired at the same time.

But no matter what, this is undoubtedly a cause for joy.

Yuka exclaimed with joy, "Thank you, sensei, for giving me the opportunity!"

Hiroki and Akutami Yuta were also filled with joy, "Thank you, sensei!".

Now they are all Ren's manga assistants! It's nice to be under a big tree. Ren is a new and excellent mangaka. When the time comes, they will be his assistants. They will undoubtedly learn something, right?

They also became Ren's assistants with the idea of learning in this way.

Many mangakas in the industry are like this. They started learning by working as assistants to renowned mangakas.

Until they felt they could stand on their own, they created their own works and submitted them.

Finally, they became famous overnight.

"If you're my manga assistant, I'll offer you 8,000 a month. When you have work, you can eat at my house," Ren said. "But I don't provide lodging. You can stay at my house for a night from time to time, but you can't live there permanently; you need a place to stay."

Besides being a mangaka, he now has an inheritance from his parents, as well as extra income, like manga royalties and video game dividends.

As for B Station... it can only be said that he currently only has investments, but no income.

Even so, he is still quite wealthy, and naturally, he won't skimp on a better deal.

He is not a person who values money very much.

Upon hearing the deal Ren offered, Yuka, Hiroki, and Akutami Yuta were all delighted.

This deal... even in the industry, is quite good!

After all, the average salary of a mangaka's assistant is only 4-6 thousand a month, not to mention Ren also provides meals.

"Thank you, sensei!" they replied happily.

There was nothing else to do, so Ayumi went back to prepare the contract, and Yuka, Hiroki, and Akutami Yuta would sign it formally later.

The employment relationship between Ren and them was finalized.

However, before signing the contract, Yuka, Hiroki, and Akutami Yuta strongly suggested that they go directly to Ren's apartment and start working as mangaka assistants.

- - - - - -

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