I was Thrown into an Unfamiliar Manga

After we finished lunch, just as he’d promised, Kishimoto-sensei showed me his studio.
There were anatomical references, various collections of East Asian paintings, stacks of manga volumes, and tablets.
Seeing in person the kind of workspace I’d only ever seen in photos left a deep impression on me.

“At home, I usually just work on storyboards. When it comes to actually drawing manga, I head to a studio I rent in the neighboring district. I’m the type who finds it hard to focus at home.”
He said this with a hearty laugh, arms crossed.
But honestly, just being able to see the studio of a manga artist I admired was more than enough for me—I didn’t want anything more than that.

“Ah, Sensei, would you mind giving me an autograph?”
“That’s no problem at all.”
Hearing that, I pulled out my full set of Golden Samurai from my bag.

All 28 volumes, worn from multiple readings, bore the signs of use.
Kishimoto-sensei signed the inside covers one by one.
After getting all 28 volumes signed, and a final signature on a special autograph board, I bowed deeply, overwhelmed with joy.

“Thank you so much, Sensei! I’ll treasure these for the rest of my life!”
But Kishimoto-sensei simply waved a hand and smiled modestly.
“Haha, it’s just the autograph of someone like me. Just keep getting along with my daughter.”

“Yes, sir!”
After the tour of the studio, Rika pulled me by the hand and led me upstairs.
“Tada! This is my room!”

It was… a little surprising, actually.
The overall tone of her room was calm and neutral.
There were some cute little decorations here and there, but the room had such a modern feel that it was hard to believe it belonged to a seventeen-year-old girl.
'Is this her mother’s influence?'

That thought crossed my mind as I stepped inside—and then froze at the sight of an entire wall filled with manga.
“Hehe, does it ruin the image a bit? My other friends had the exact same reaction the first time they came over.”
I’d thought Rika only liked shounen manga a little.

But this wasn’t “a little”—she really liked them.
Well-known titles lined up neatly, organized by genre, filling bookshelf after bookshelf. It was honestly breathtaking.
Anyone would mistake this for a private library, not a bedroom.

“Okay, sit here and wait a bit. I’ll go get tea and snacks.”
At her suggestion, I sat down on the cushion in front of the low table.
It was my first time ever being in a girl’s room, but unexpectedly, it felt comfortable.

Probably because of all the shounen manga. It felt more like visiting a friend’s place.
Just as Rika was about to leave the room for the kitchen, she paused, glanced back, and said,
“Don’t touch anything while I’m gone, okay? If I catch you, I’m seriously gonna get mad.”

“Got it.”
She was probably just being cautious—understandable for someone our age, sensitive about privacy. Once I nodded, she finally left the room, saying she’d be back soon.
“Hm…”

Once I was alone in the room, it started to hit me—this was actually happening.
Visiting a girl’s house on a weekend? In the past, I wouldn’t even have dreamed of something so social.
It wasn’t like I harbored any particular feelings for Rika, but still… being left alone in a girl’s room gave me a strange sensation.

Maybe it was just in my head, but it felt like the room had a nice fragrance.
My room mostly smelled like sweat…
To distract myself, I decided to kill time with a mobile game until Rika got back.

That was the plan—right up until I launched the app.
“Hellooo~”
Suddenly, Rika’s mother walked into the room.

“Ah, Ma’am?”
I stood up awkwardly in surprise, but Rika’s mother smiled and told me to relax as she quietly closed the door behind her.
“Calling me ‘Ma’am’ makes me sound so old. Just call me Maria.”

…Can I really call a friend’s mom that?
I hesitated for a second, but with her urging me on, I gave in and said, “Maria-san.”
“So, Maria-san, um… what brings you up here?”

I had assumed she’d be downstairs.
After all, Rika had gone down to the kitchen to get refreshments.
But at my question, Maria-san gave a mischievous smile and said playfully,

“Oh, nothing much~ I just came to show you my daughter’s dark past~”
“Her… dark past?”
I blinked, not quite understanding.

Still grinning, Maria-san revealed what she’d been hiding behind her back.
“Tada! This is a photo album of Rika’s growth over the years. Aren’t you curious, as her friend?”
Looking through a childhood photo album at a friend’s house—such a classic situation, but one I’d always wanted to experience as a devoted reader of Jump.

Eventually, I gave in and nodded shyly. Maria-san sat down across from me and opened the special album.
The album recording Rika’s growth started, as expected, with photos from her infancy.
“This one’s Rika at one year old, this is her at two, and here she is at three—this photo was taken when we went to England together.”

Maria-san pointed at each picture with her finger, sharing anecdotes as she reminisced over the faded memories.
“Oh, this one’s from her school play. She drew the role of ‘Tree’ and came home sulking—it was so cute.”
Chuckling softly at the memory, Maria-san turned the page.

“Ah, this brings back memories. This was when we went to Comiket together for the first time.”
…Excuse me?
I instinctively tilted my head at the unexpected comment.

In the photo were a blonde mother and daughter, both in black cosplay outfits with twin tails and modern-style magic staffs, striking poses.
They were dressed as rival characters from a magical girl anime that had been popular around ten years ago.
I hadn’t seen it myself, but Kim Yu-seong’s memories had retained the information.

As I stared at Maria-san with a stunned expression, she smiled proudly and said,
“I used to be part of the first generation of cosplayers. It was my dream to cosplay with my daughter ever since I was young.”
She casually revealed her past profession and continued flipping through the album.

“Oh, this one’s from C73. This one was taken by my husband at C78.”
In the photos, Maria-san was using her advantage as a blonde foreigner to cosplay a wide range of non-Japanese characters.
And next to her in every photo was Rika.

“Fufu, isn’t our daughter so cute? She had a real talent for cosplay—just like me.”
Honestly, the fact that she raised her daughter on cosplay from such an early age was, in its own way, a major culture shock.
So this was the “dark past” she was talking about?

I was nodding slowly, trying to come to terms with it, when—
“Ah, found it at last. My daughter’s real dark past.”
“…There’s more?!”

I was completely taken aback that there was something even more embarrassing.
At this point, I couldn’t help but be curious.
Maria-san, clearly pleased by my reaction, nodded and showed me a photo from the album.

In the picture: middle school-aged Rika in black gothic lolita fashion, an eye patch over her right eye, striking a dramatic pose with red contact lenses—
“Mama!!”

A sharp voice rang out behind me. I quickly slammed the album shut.
“Oh my, you’re already back?”
Maria-san greeted Rika with a nonchalant smile.

Rika stomped across the room, her face flushed red, and slammed the tray she was carrying down on the table.
“Don’t tell me… you showed him?!”
Maria-san simply gave her a loving smile and nodded.

“Mm-hm.”
“KYAAAAAAAH!!”
Rika screamed in pure shame, overwhelmed.

It wasn’t her usual bright, mischievous self—this was genuine embarrassment.
Understandably so. If a classmate saw photos from your peak eighth-grade syndrome phase, anyone would react that way.
If it had been me, I’d have been looking for the nearest hole to crawl into.

I stood there, unsure how to console her, and Rika, on the verge of tears, said,
“I don’t cosplay anymore, okay?! Seriously! That was just… [N O V E L I G H T] just a mistake I made in my stormy youth!”
“Y-Yeah. I believe you.”

As I nodded, trying to reassure her, Rika somehow looked even more pained.
This… this must be the agony of having your dark past exposed.
Maria-san, watching her daughter suffer with amusement, tucked the album under her arm and waved gently.

“Well then, Mama will be on her way. You two have fun~”
Rika jumped up from the bed and shouted at her retreating back.
“Don’t ever come into my room again!”

But Maria-san didn’t respond. She simply closed the door behind her.
Still seething, Rika turned to me, eyes watery, and asked,
“You’ll keep this a secret, right?”

I gave her a wry smile and nodded.
“It’s not like I have anyone to tell anyway.”