My girlfriend is Saiki Kusunoki

Looking at Qi Mu's father like this, you should know pretty much that it is true, vampires are currently receiving great acclaim in JUMP.

Not only that, it became the absolute number one in the newly published manga, not only leaving Ashirogi Muto's "The Second Earth" in second place by more than double the number of votes, but even those long-established serialized manga couldn't compete with it.

The only work that surpassed the vampires was a manga that was just adapted into an anime last week. It was this advantage that allowed them to narrowly defeat the vampires. (While there are popular works like Naruto, Bleach, and One Piece in the Bakuman universe, they are generally considered nonexistent due to their exceptional nature.)

The fact that a new comic can achieve such outstanding results, beating out a host of others, is nothing short of a miracle. Such a work is hard to find even once in a decade. This time, they've truly struck gold.

Although it's only the first episode, the story is packed with plot, has outstanding art style, and is very appealing. The suspense left unresolved has led to high praise for the vampires, with many eager to see what happens next.

"Wow, I really didn't expect that! I was so close to being number one this week. What a pity!"

Although he was secretly overjoyed, Qi Mu's father still pretended to look regretful.

The other editors who had already received their report cards were furious when they heard what Qi Mu's father said.

Such results are truly a wonderful start. He can practically be called the strongest rookie.

This guy actually looked dissatisfied! He's asking for it!

Even with all the envy, jealousy, and hatred, everyone still couldn't do anything about Saiki's father.

Who can blame him when Qi Mu's father has such seniority? Apart from the editor-in-chief and deputy editor, he is the most senior. If either the editor-in-chief or deputy editor were to leave, coupled with his achievement of discovering Naoto, he would probably be able to take over immediately.

So even though Qi Mu's father had become so petty and smug, everyone still dared not speak out against him.

"Senior Guochun! The editor-in-chief wants to see you in his office!"

"Oh, here it comes!"

Upon hearing the editor-in-chief call him, Qi Mu's father hummed a song and skipped into the office.

A while later, Naoto, who was deep in sleep, was woken up by a cell phone ringing.

"Hmm? Uncle Guochun, is there something you need?"

When he saw that it was Saiki's father calling, Naoto was still in a daze, but he still picked up the phone and asked him questions.

"Sorry, Naoto, I have some bad news for you."

At that moment, on the other end of the phone, Qi Mu's father spoke to Naoto with great regret.

Upon hearing this unusual tone, Naoto instantly snapped out of his daze.

"Um, Uncle Guochun, could it be that it's my comic book...?"

At this moment, even the most resilient person would feel a jolt in their heart.

Good grief, you've already made all that boasting, are you really going to let him fail miserably?

Although he had anticipated such consequences, Naoto felt his life suddenly turn gloomy when they actually happened.

"Um, I'm sorry Naoto, I couldn't get you the next JUMP cover."

Just when Naoto thought his manga had been rejected, Saiki's father on the other side of the table suddenly changed the subject, leaving Naoto dumbfounded.

"Hey? Naoto, are you listening? Hey!"

"Oh, yes, Uncle Guochun, are you talking about... the cover of the next issue of JUMP?"

At this moment, Naoto thought he had misheard. How could something like the JUMP cover have anything to do with him? Isn't that for serialized manga artists?

"Oh, right, you didn't know that? Your manga 'Bloodline' was a huge success, even beating out a whole bunch of other serialized manga artists. But unfortunately, you ran into a manga that was just adapted into an anime, and you only came in second place. Otherwise, the cover of the next issue of JUMP would have been yours."

Naoto pinched his face in disbelief, and after confirming that he wasn't dreaming, he was even more confused.

What do you mean by "merely coming in second place"?

No, should this kind of thing be described in just two words?

Why does Saiki's dad on the other side look a little regretful?

This doesn't seem right!

Even after hanging up the phone, Naoto was still staring at the ceiling of his home in disbelief.

Holy crap, the comic book I just drew has already climbed to second place on the charts.

What's the difference between this and a novel that becomes the second most-read book after only one chapter is written?

Now, the serialization is definitely underway! I've become a serialized manga artist so easily? I've become a JUMP serialized manga artist, something many manga professionals dream of becoming?!

An hour later, Naoto finally came to his senses and realized that he was not dreaming.

Okay, now I can be sure that my family crisis has indeed been resolved.

Chapter Thirteen: A Bizarre Reward

After learning that his manga had been confirmed for serialization, Naoto felt relieved.

In Japan, being a JUMP serialized manga artist is considered a true high-income earner.

Even without considering other tiers, at around 8,000 yuan per comic strip, that's 160,000 yuan a week in royalties, which translates to nearly 8,000 yuan in China. That's over 30,000 yuan a month. That's a high salary anywhere.

With this job, Naoto's inner pressure temporarily disappeared. At least, as long as he could keep writing his serial, it would be enough to support himself and his sister. For the time being, he would have to worry about money.

On this day, Naoto's class was having an art class.

Although it was supposed to be an art class, most of the students were drowsy and sleepy.

After all, people who aren't very interested in this kind of specialized knowledge won't understand it anyway. The kind of attentive lectures that you see in anime, where the teacher just talks and everyone listens attentively, really only happens in anime.

Moreover, even a straight person like me couldn't help but feel sleepy as I watched the art teacher constantly explaining the basics of sketching.

There was nothing he could do. Putting aside the fact that he had been listening to this kind of thing for three years, Naoto himself wasn't very interested in sketching.

While his hard skills are undeniable, when it comes to theoretical knowledge, he's not much better than the average student.

In his own words, he is a true practitioner.

Just then, a pleasant ringing sound suddenly woke Naoto.

In the classroom where only the teacher's voice could be heard, the ringing of the cell phone sounded particularly jarring.

Hearing the familiar ringtone, Naoto immediately woke up, then pulled the phone out of his pocket and hung up. He then looked at his art teacher with an embarrassed expression.

Although the art teacher was displeased after being interrupted, she didn't say much.

Actually, it's the same in China. In art classes, as long as you don't go too far, the teacher won't bother you.

After glancing at Naoto, the art teacher continued to lecture the students on those dull and uninteresting facts.

Just as Naoto was wondering who would call him at this time, his phone suddenly rang again.

At that moment, Naoto felt like he had suffered a heart attack and almost passed out.

Without saying a word, he opened the back cover of the phone and, with lightning speed, removed the battery.

His proficiency was astonishing—this was achieved after Naoto accidentally forgot to mute his phone while playing in class.

"Private Marseille! Red bean paste private Marseille!"

Seeing that the art teacher was about to explode, Naoto had no choice but to stand up and then display the utmost humility towards the art teacher. He also took the opportunity to curse the idiot who had called him for eighteen generations.

Just as the art teacher was about to tell Naoto to get out, suddenly, the door to the art teacher's room was opened.

At that moment, Ms. Matsuzaki was seen frantically leaning against the door, looking as if she had just run a kilometer. She was completely out of breath.

"Matsuzaki-sensei, what's going on?"

Even the art teacher was stunned when Matsuzaki-sensei burst in. What happened? What could have made Matsuzaki-sensei so nervous?

"Naoto?! Oh no! Your work just won the Ichiban Prize! They're even calling the school!"

"Ichiban Kuji? What Ichiban Kuji?"

Upon hearing Matsuzaki-sensei's words, Naoto's first reaction was bewilderment. After all, even if his manga won an award, it couldn't happen so quickly. And there was no reason for Matsuzaki-sensei to be so nervous.

Suddenly, Naoto seemed to realize something and stared blankly at Matsuzaki-sensei.

"Matsuzaki-sensei, you're not talking about... the National High School Art Competition, are you?!"

It was only then that the art teacher realized what was happening. The news that someone from Ms. Matsuzaki's class had participated in the competition had already spread throughout the entire office.

If there is anything that can win an award, then this is it.

At that moment, the way all the students looked at Naoto changed.

No, we just wanted to find someone to sacrifice and embarrass ourselves. Good grief, you took the first prize! You're really trying to get ahead of yourself!

At this moment, Naoto also remembered the phone number that had called him earlier, and found that the number on it was indeed from the Art Association.

This is interesting. I was just there to make up the numbers, but I inexplicably received a reward. This must be a joke.

"Naoto, hurry over there, it should still be in time."

"Is this okay?"

"It's alright, I'll drive you there! You'd better get ready, you'll be going on stage to receive an award soon!"

"Well then, Professor Ueno, shall I head out now?"

"Go ahead, and remember to bring the prize to the school so I can see it."

Upon hearing that Naoto had won first place in the national high school art competition, the art teacher's expression immediately changed, completely losing his previous anger.

And so, Naoto was immediately taken by Matsuzaki-sensei to the Tokyo Art Association venue, while inside the classroom, all the students were in an uproar.

"Wow! Yamashita is amazing! He won the National High School Art Ichiban Prize! Even professional art academy students can't get that."

"Not only that, I also saw that his comic strip, Vampire Clan, has been approved for serialization! Now he can be called a serialized comic artist."

"Does this mean I'll have to call Naoto 'Teacher Naoto' from now on? No way, how old is he?"

"No matter what, who would have thought that guy would be so amazing? Not only is his manga strong, but he can even win the Ichiban Prize for his oil paintings. Is he cheating?"

"Sigh, Naoto's really going to take off now. He'll probably be able to choose any of the top art schools in Tokyo without any problems."

"More than that, they're serialized comic artists. They don't need to go to university, they still live a comfortable life, right? Serialized comic artists can earn hundreds of thousands every month."

"Yes, if I could become a professional cartoonist, I would go home and draw comics right now."

Just as the students in the classroom were having a heated discussion, Nanzi had a bad feeling.

Previously, when Naoto was drawing, he would never tell her what he was drawing.

Remembering what Naoto had said that night about what he wanted to draw, Nanko suddenly felt a pang of anxiety.