Tokyo: Earth Online Manga Artist.

The conference room fell silent for a split second.

Then several editors simultaneously turned to look at Masaya Sakurai.

Masaya Sakurai sat in a chair, holding a pen, and wrote the number "9" next to "Attack on Titan" in his notebook.

He appeared calm, but in reality, he hesitated somewhat when he put pen to paper.

Ninth place...

Attack on Titan squeezed out To Love-Ru, and with Hunter x Hunter going on a long hiatus again, a spot in the top ten became vacant.

In fact, the popularity of the giants has been increasing rapidly.

In the first episode, it was only thirteenth, but by the fourth episode, it had risen to eleventh in the popularity poll, and by the fifth episode, which was released this week, it had squeezed into ninth place.

Its potential is clearly visible.

Compared to the other two new serializations released at the same time, "Hitomi no Katobelas" and "Belmonde Le Visiter", Attack on Titan is worlds apart.

Those two manga have been at the bottom of the popularity charts for three consecutive weeks. If it weren't for the fact that they were new series, according to JUMP's rules, they would have already been decided whether to cancel them.

However, because it is a new work, Shueisha gave a minimum deadline of "guaranteeing that the first ten chapters will not be canceled", which can be regarded as giving the new manga artist a buffer opportunity.

But it will happen soon... If they remain in the same rankings this week, they will really face elimination.

Unlike these two unfortunate companions, Attack on Titan's popularity has never declined; on the contrary, it has been steadily rising.

From thirteenth place, to twelfth place, then to eleventh place, and now to ninth place.

Every week we're moving upwards, and every step we take is very steady.

Especially considering its popularity has already squeezed into the top ten, entering the top ten in the first five chapters of Weekly Shonen Jump is enough to prove a lot.

It's even a bit... outrageous.

Because the top ten of Weekly Shonen Jump are all works that have built their popularity year after year.

How can a new work like Attack on Titan, which hasn't even had a single volume yet, squeeze into the top ten?

But thinking about it carefully... from the perspective of the plot and Eri Aragaki, Attack on Titan is known for its explosive early plot, with one bombshell after another and one twist after another, making the early plot of Attack on Titan feel like a whirlwind.

Therefore, it's understandable that Attack on Titan was able to squeeze into the top ten based on just the first five chapters.

However, it was somewhat due to luck, as this entry into the top ten was just a slow climb. The key factor was that the plot of "To Love-Ru" had recently started, and "Hunter x Hunter" had gone on hiatus again.

Regardless, making it into the top ten of Weekly Shonen Jump's popularity rankings already proves its immense potential.

"These are the rankings for this period."

Ibaraki Masahiko placed the statistics table on the table, glanced at the editors present, and said, "The editors of the bottom-ranked works should communicate with their teachers as soon as possible to adjust the direction. Meeting adjourned."

"yes!"

The editors stood up one after another.

The chair legs dragged on the floor with a series of thuds. Some people went to get water, some walked straight out, and some huddled next to their colleagues to whisper about the rankings.

Lin Shiping walked over from the side, patted Sakurai Masaya on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Masaya, congratulations, Attack on Titan has made it into the top ten."

Another editor chimed in, saying, "For a new author's serial to break into the top ten so quickly, Sakurai, you've really struck gold this time."

Sakurai Masaya closed his notebook, shook his head, and said, "This is all thanks to the efforts of Ms. Fuchiriko herself."

He wasn't just being polite.

He genuinely believed that.

Anyway, he hasn't been of much help lately, except for offering some minor suggestions when he initially thought there were problems with Eri Aragaki's storyboarding at the beginning...

After that, he was basically no longer of any help.

Because Eri Aragaki's storyboarding and plot were so good, they gave him a feeling of being impeccable.

What he didn't know was that after Eri Aragaki was reminded by him that there was a problem with the beginning of Attack on Titan, she tried using that super creation.

Eri Aragaki is a little addicted to it.

The Super Creation skill is so addictive that it makes her feel like she can transform into Hajime Isayama himself and draw Attack on Titan, or even more so.

Given that she's a plagiarist to begin with, coupled with her super creative talent, the subsequent plot and artwork will be even less of a problem.

But in Masaya Sakurai's eyes, that was... genius!

A truly genius manga artist born for manga!

Even from the moment he submitted his work for the Tezuka Award, he felt that this newcomer was different.

The artist's drawing skills are solid, the paneling is skillful, and the pacing of the plot is just right, but these alone are not enough.

What truly impressed him was the quality of Eri Aragaki's subsequent submissions.

Apart from that one instance where the manuscript almost fell through, all subsequent manuscripts were delivered on time every week, sometimes even ahead of schedule.

Moreover, the quality has always been consistent, and the standards have not been lowered due to time constraints.

For a newly debuted comic artist, this kind of self-discipline and stability is more valuable than talent.

He recalled how pale and bloodless Eri Aragaki looked when he went to collect the manuscript that time.

Then... later he realized that he had misunderstood the newcomer, thinking that she was late with her work because she was playful or lazy.

Looking back now... she was probably feeling unwell and rushing to finish her manuscript during that period, which caused the delay.

This kind of thing is very common among cartoonists, especially newcomers who are not yet used to the pace of weekly serialization, and it is common for them to have some health problems.

His feelings have become even stronger now that the Giants' popularity has soared.

This is similar to how teachers view good students in school.

If a high-achieving student doesn't hand in their homework once, the teacher will probably think... "Maybe something's wrong or they're not feeling well." Even if the student doesn't say anything, the teacher will be understanding.

However, if a poor student dares to miss handing in homework even once, it's because of laziness or being playful.

There's no real logic to it; it's just a matter of first impressions.

Eri Aragaki has a very high opinion of him now.

And now, the good students are achieving excellent results again...

That deserves a big compliment!

After returning to his seat, Masaya Sakurai picked up the phone on the table, found Eri Aragaki's number in his contacts, and dialed it.

The phone rang a few times.

"Moshi moshi, Mr. Sakurai? This is Eri Aragaki!"

Eri Aragaki's voice came from the other end of the phone.

She sounds much more energetic this time, like a vibrant young girl.

"Ms. Aragaki, this is Sakurai."

Masaya Sakurai was very friendly, saying, "The results of this week's popularity poll are in, and you're ninth... Attack on Titan made it into the top ten this time, congratulations!"