Chapter 230: Temporary Assistant
Oosaka Taiga's picky eating was much more severe than Eriri's. Although she currently realized the seriousness of the problem and desperately ate all the vegetables on her plate during lunch, neither Kaede nor Eriri believed she would be able to keep it up for long.
There's no helping it; even if one understands the problem of picky eating, changing habits still requires great perseverance.
As for Oosaka Taiga... they would have to wait and see.
After lunch, and having a cup of tea to aid digestion, Oosaka Taiga sat contentedly on the sofa and sighed, "Warm, home-cooked food is the best..."
Eriri sat beside Oosaka Taiga and said with a smile, "With Takasu gone to work, it sounds like your life has become quite miserable, Taiga."
"It's actually alright. I had already moved out on my own for a while before high school started," Oosaka Taiga said casually, leaning back on the sofa. "Aside from the hassle of cleaning the house and eating, everything else is much freer than before."
After her parents divorced and each remarried, given Oosaka Taiga's personality, it was naturally impossible for her to easily integrate into a new family.
Although moving out would be difficult, it was an easier choice for her.
And her luck was good; whether it was Kushieda Minori, Takasu Ryuji, or friends like Eriri and Kaede, they all made Oosaka Taiga's life colorful.
After resting for a while, Eriri and Kaede should start their afternoon work.
Oosaka Taiga knew they spent a lot of time drawing manga, so she asked, "Is there anything I can help with?"
Although she had paid for her meals, Oosaka Taiga felt she should find other ways to repay them.
Looking at Oosaka Taiga, Eriri surprisingly said, "You want to help, Taiga? With the manga?"
"Yes, yes!" Oosaka Taiga nodded, "Although I'm not good at drawing, if it's simple, highly repetitive work, I can try! Anyway, I have nothing to do this afternoon, so it would be great if I could help you guys!"
Eriri listened and looked at Kaede, wanting to get his opinion.
Kaede smiled and said, "Of course, I have no objection. There are quite a few simple processes in the background that she can do, which can improve efficiency.
We have extra computers and drawing tablets, so let her try. It won't waste much time."
Seeing Kaede agree, Eriri also went along with it.
Just as Kaede said, guiding Oosaka Taiga wouldn't take much time.
Having taken art classes in school and visited the Art Club a few times to learn some basics, Oosaka Taiga at least had some foundation.
After Eriri's guidance and familiarizing herself with the drawing tablet's operation, she was eagerly preparing to be a manga assistant today, which was a very new experience for her.
Originally, when Kaede and Eriri worked, Kaede would first research the storyboards with Eriri.
After completion, Eriri would draw the main parts, and then hand it over to Kaede to fill in the final backgrounds and minor details.
Now that Oosaka Taiga had joined, although her movements were still clumsy, she didn't cause trouble and was surprisingly serious.
Even if her speed was a bit slow, it actually freed up some of Kaede's energy, allowing him to draw more storyboards.
It was Oosaka Taiga's first time drawing with a digital tablet, and she felt it was very different from the art classes she had in school.
But after studying seriously for a while, she gradually got used to it, though her speed was still slow.
"So the steps to drawing manga are so complicated."
She had been following the Nurarihyon no Mago manga, but today was her first time experiencing the process of drawing it.
While drawing the characters, Eriri said, "It's still pretty good now.
Digital drawing can save a lot of time, and some areas can be more efficient.
But in the past, it was mostly paper drawing, which would be even more tiring throughout the day.
Even now, many manga artists still use paper drawing."
"Then you guys haven't thought about it?"
"Of course, we have thought about it," Eriri nodded, "but we also have to consider efficiency.
After all, I don't draw for more than ten hours a day, so there's always a trade-off.
But it's fine; now, with digital tablets, the final effect is getting closer and closer to paper drawing.
Ultimately, it still depends on the artist's skill.
Hehe, speaking of which, it reminds me of One-Punch Man again."
Even Oosaka Taiga, who didn't read much manga, knew about the art style of One-Punch Man and couldn't help but laugh.
Then, her little hand trembled, and the line accidentally went crooked.
"Ah! Oh no!"
She quickly undid the change.
Seeing this, Eriri knew Oosaka Taiga hadn't completely gotten the hang of it yet, so she stopped talking and focused on her work.
While drawing the storyboards, Kaede took a moment to look at Oosaka Taiga's side and couldn't help but feel a little surprised.
He had originally thought that Oosaka Taiga was just helping out on a whim and would surely find it boring after a while and want to give up.
But to his surprise, after more than half an hour, almost an hour, Oosaka Taiga was still drawing very seriously, showing no signs of relaxing.
Moreover, the completion of her work was quite good; apart from a few individual places, he basically didn't need to make any final revisions.
"This isn't bad at all. After all, working quietly like this can help her adjust her usually boisterous personality."
Oosaka Taiga's serious attitude continued until evening, only returning to her usual state after the afternoon's work ended.
"Phew~~~ It's finally over!"
Rubbing her eyes, Oosaka Taiga said, "You guys work so hard drawing every day."
Kaede saved the files, looked at her, and said with a smile, "You did very well today.
How about it, would you consider applying to be our manga assistant?"
Oosaka Taiga quickly shook her head, "No, no, this one afternoon has already exhausted me.
If I had to do this as a job, I really couldn't keep it up!
I'll pass, but aren't you guys planning to hire a few assistants?
I've seen some interviews, and many manga artists have two or three assistants."
Eriri and Kaede exchanged glances and explained, "Because we don't feel it's necessary.
We can manage drawing ourselves, and our working hours, besides weekends, are only in the evenings, so it's not easy to arrange for assistants.
It's pretty good as it is now."
There was also an unspoken point: Eriri and Kaede both hoped that their usual two-person world wouldn't be disturbed by several assistants.