My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

Page 273

Izana has been stopping by my house less often lately, and she doesn't spend as much time in the library after school anymore. The reason is clear: she's busy drawing.

Since her trip to Kobe, Isana has become even more enthusiastic about drawing. Consequently, she hasn't had as much time to hang out with me, and lately we've only been chatting on our phones.

Did you draw any more diagrams after that?

"I've drawn some sketches, just some random things... Do you want to see them?"

"If you don't mind."

Izana handed me the tablet on the table. Several image files were neatly displayed on the screen.

"No, don't look at strange files!"

"...What strange file?"

"Well... it contains a lot of photos like the ones we just saw..."

"........."

I will be careful.

I was sitting cross-legged on the floor with my tablet. Izana first sat on the edge of the bed, but then seemed to suddenly remember something and sat up in a W-shape on the floor. She probably thought I'd see her underwear from that height. She should have thought of that before she sat down!

I quickly browsed through the illustration files. They were called illustrations, but almost all of them seemed to be sketches, some just blurry outlines of figures—probably what are called "guideline drawings." There were also a few line drawings, but none of them were colored.

"Why haven't you finished drawing even one?"

"Yeah, I feel like none of them quite capture the right feeling..."

Is this what they call hitting a creative block...? I was drawing so well before...

"What about the sketches you drew on the way back from Kobe?"

"Ah! That's finished! Put it in another folder."

She held out her hand and said, "Let me borrow it for a moment." So I handed the tablet back to her. It seemed she really didn't want me to use it freely.

"You'll definitely fall in love with me after seeing this."

As she spoke, Isana used her knees to walk over and sit down next to me.

Then, I saw the screen on the tablet she showed me from the side, and my eyes were immediately drawn to it.

It's a drawing of a girl with a sorrowful expression, her smile tinged with tears—

With my limited vocabulary, this is the simplest way I can describe it. But this illustration seems to imbue the characters with warmth. Although there are no lines or descriptions, every subtle movement of the characters, the way the hair sways, and every use of color exudes a rich backstory.

Even compared to those illustrations that went viral on social media, it doesn't seem inferior to them in my opinion.

Of course, compared to illustrations by professional painters, it's still too rough, especially the coloring techniques, which still give the impression of having the will but not the skill...

"I always feel that sketches are more appropriate... Well, actually, it happens quite often."

"No, I think it's already very well drawn. It's completely different from the level of the drawings you showed me before."

"R-Really? Hehehe..."

It's frustrating not being able to find the right adjective. This illustration is more than just well-drawn. It's not a technique that can be learned through practice; it showcases a taste that can be described as "aesthetic sense."

Even I, a complete novice, can see it at a glance. I'm certain Isana possesses a talent capable of moving the masses. And with more practice, she can catch up with her ideas… wait, although she doesn't seem entirely satisfied, this illustration is certainly enough to win over the public, isn't it?

What are your thoughts on this illustration?

"what?"

Isana tilted her head blankly.

What kind of reaction is that?

"No, I'm asking for your evaluation..."

"Uh, it should be considered... pretty good, right? After all, Mizuto just praised it..."

"Um?"

"what?"

I frowned in surprise.

Could it be that……

"...By the way, where do you usually publish your work? Twitter?"

"Huh? I didn't post anything."

"........."

I was right.

"I did think about giving it a try—but I gave up on it in the end... so I can only show it to Mizuto-kun."

How can someone paint so many pictures like that? That's quite a talent.

But now I understand.

"I think that's why you always only finish half of your drawings, right?"

"Huh... what does that mean?"

"In short, there is no finish line. Since there is no finish line, giving up halfway is not considered a failure. If you leave a marathon halfway through, you will be disqualified, but if you go home halfway through a jog, you won't be scolded, right? The principle is the same. Because it's not considered a failure—there is no risk, so you can easily give up halfway."

"Oh, oh... I see... It's true that honest advice is hard to swallow..."

Izana covered both ears tightly. I pulled one of her hands away to expose her ear and said:

"I want you to upload this illustration to the website."

"What!"

Izana was so startled she almost jumped up.

"Are you trying to kill me?! I don't know how to post funny memes on Twitter, nor can I take high-quality photos of desserts!"

"Forget all that, just upload illustrations. There are even social media sites specifically designed for this. If you're still worried, I can manage your account for you. After all, I don't want to see you get bombarded with insults for saying random things online."

"Mizuto, why are you so persistent...? You're not getting paid!"

"This is because..."

I hesitated a little, but now is not the time to be shy.

Because at this very moment, the fate of the genius Izana Higashito is probably in my hands.

"Your talent has captivated me."

"Huh?"

I looked directly at Izana, who had a blank expression, and said it firmly.

"Izana, you have talent, and you're exceptionally gifted. I don't know how it happened, but I was the first to discover your genius. So I have a mission to properly nurture your talent and make a name for you in the world. I believe I can risk my life for this mission—"

"Wait, wait! Pause! Pause first!"

Izana blushed and pushed my shoulder away, interrupting my impatient explanation.

"What's wrong?"

"You're flattering me way too much... I appreciate your kindness, but what talent do I have? You're exaggerating so much..."

"No, you are. If you don't realize it, then I'll tell you again and again. Higashito Isana—you are absolutely a genius."

"…………Waaah…………"

Isana lowered her head silently, fiddling with her bangs with her fingertips. She always does this when she's shy. It's actually quite embarrassing for me to say this, but it would all be for nothing if even I started to feel shy.

I stared intently at Isana's face for a long time. Isana's gaze darted left and right, trying to escape. I fixed my gaze on her, not letting her get away.

"...Okay, fine..."

Finally, Izana resigned herself to her fate and said so.

"The condition is that Mizuto-kun has to handle everything for me... Anyway, I was already somewhat interested..."

"Okay. Let's decide what to draw next right away."

"Next?"

"Are you planning to end your career as an illustrator with this one painting? You need to practice a lot to improve at anything. You must be feeling anxious, right? You keep thinking, 'If only I could draw like this,' but you don't know how to actually do it—your painting made me deeply understand that feeling."

"Is Mizuto a psychic...?"

I'm just a book lover. I'm confident in my reading abilities.

I picked up my tablet and carefully selected from the illustration sketches I had just looked at.

"...Let's finish this sketch."

"This one?"

"You can't just draw anything. You have to put in all your effort and rack your brains to make it look like what you want... But you have one week to finish it."

"What?! There's still a deadline?!"

"Otherwise, I bet you'll never finish drawing it."

"Hmm—" Isana pouted and looked at the sketch I had specified.

"This... ..."

"You don't like this one?"

"Because there's no sex involved."

"How can you allow underage girls to draw erotic images and upload them to websites...?"

It's one thing if you draw in private.

"Okay then."

"Um?"

"This sketch is indeed not erotic. The figures are dressed very tightly, and the scene has no sexual innuendo whatsoever... So how about you use this completely non-erotic sketch to create a finished piece that looks a bit erotic? That way you won't break the law, and you'll also have the motivation to be creative."

"……oh?"

Izana's eyes changed.

Let me state upfront that this is not based on personal experience: humans often unleash boundless primal energy when it comes to sexual matters. In fact, most erotic illustrators or manga artists are top-notch. Izana, for example, can stare at the erotic illustrations at the beginning of light novels for over ten minutes at a time, so I think we can start from that point.

"Mizuto-kun, I'm starting to get motivated! Naughty things are more interesting when they're subtly hinted at, right? Like how a doujinshi with nipples isn't as exciting as an official body pillowcase without them!"

"These are completely different things."

Fine, as long as she's motivated, I won't nag her anymore.

Although I hadn't expected this situation at all, I've surprisingly become very motivated. Perhaps this is the first time in my life that I've felt so "dedicated" to something. Without even having to rack my brains, I already have several ideas swirling in my head about what title to give this soon-to-be-released, highly commemorative illustration of heartbreak.

"...Oh, right, Mizuto-kun."

Isana looked up at me with a restrained expression and said:

"If I obediently adhere to the deadline... will there be... a reward?"

...That's really greedy. The deadline was clearly set for your own good.

I smiled and said:

"Okay, think it over first."

"Yay!"

Izana sat bouncing up and down like a child. Then she yelled, "Awooo!" and frantically pressed her hands against her bulging breasts. It seems she shook herself too violently and hurt herself. What an idiot.

Now that the decision has been made, let's create a new account on social media immediately. The first step is to register and get a free email address—

"Sigh, what pen name should I use?"

"Ah, right. What should I choose...something easy to remember, okay?"

"But it's also troublesome if something is too easy to remember and can't be searched online."

Just like how some illustrators occasionally use common nouns as pen names.

While we were discussing...

"—Hey~~Izana~"

First, they heard this sound, then the door clicked open as the eldest brother rudely opened it.