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BlackMangaka001: The Dead Are the Greatest!
"Mm."
A muffled groan of pain echoed, as if his brain was about to burn out. It was a painful, suffocating sensation.
This abnormality lasted for nearly ten minutes before finally subsiding.
Moments later, the sweaty boy opened his eyes groggily. He looked around at the familiar room, and a wry smile appeared on his face.
"What a surprising result."
It had all begun with a car accident an hour ago.
Nakahara Hiroshi had witnessed the death of his close friend, Tomoya Aki, on the way to Toyonosaki Academy.
The scene was horrifying—red and white scattered across the ground in grotesque patterns. No words could fully describe it.
He had suppressed his grief, fear, and nausea long enough to call Tomoya's family. But then, he collapsed.
When he woke up, he found himself in the school's health room.
And then the inexplicable happened.
"Did I awaken memories of a past life because of the shock?"
What a bloody start.
Hiroshi sighed at the thought.
But...
"Other than the extra decades of memories, I don't feel any different."
After all, both identities were still him, so there was no need to fret about the body-transmigration or soul-transmigration theories people debated online in his past life.
His relationships over the past decade were also undeniably real.
Thinking of Tomoya—the friend who had helped him unlock his past-life memories—he sighed again, his feelings mixed.
"Life is so fragile."
Even in his past life, the internet had been full of opinions about characters like Midoriya.
But here, this was real life. Whatever people might have said, Tomoya had been a true friend.
So…
"The dead are the greatest."
There was no need to judge the choices Tomoya made in anime or anywhere else.
Besides, according to his past-life memories, the anime's plot hadn't even begun yet.
"Speaking of which..." Hiroshi muttered, "I didn't expect this to be such a world."
After recalling his past life, he realized this wasn't the Japan he remembered.
It was a world where various anime universes intertwined.
The realization hit him as he thought back:
"How many heroines have I met since childhood?"
By tracing those encounters back, he deduced the world combined elements from five different anime.
The good news? All five settings were grounded in ordinary, everyday life.
So…
"Even though this is a 'Everyday world,' there aren't terrorists casually stabbing the Earth-kun to death."
"Congratulations, congratulations," Hiroshi chuckled dryly.
As a middle-schooler, he too had fantasized about being a powerful protagonist who saved others.
But now, as a mature adult mentally, he found comfort in the fact that this world was peaceful.
Here, he was 16—the perfect age. He had inherited his parents' peerless good looks, and, with memories of his past life, he could easily make money, date beautiful girls, and enjoy life.
But for time travelers like him, making money wasn't exactly difficult.
The simplest way? Work in the same industry as before.
"Drawing manga."
Although he'd spent over a decade in the field and grown somewhat weary of it, it was still profitable.
What's more, he didn't even need to come up with original ideas. He could simply "borrow" masterpieces from his past life.
"Huh!?" Hiroshi's expression suddenly changed.
As someone familiar with countless excellent works, he realized something strange.
He couldn't remember specific details about them—just vague impressions.
"Cognitive impairment?!"
He cursed under his breath.
Could he not have a perfect start after all?
Disheartened, he was about to abandon the idea when suddenly, vivid images surfaced in his mind.
As the memories played out, his eyes brightened.
"It's like I just watched them. The storyboards and dialogue... crystal clear!"
So it wasn't cognitive impairment. It was a composition assignment—his brain had organized the knowledge.
"Well, as long as I can make money, I won't complain."
But which publisher should he submit to?
The three most famous ones—Kodansha, Shogakukan, and Shueisha—were similar to those in his past life.
Kodansha, with its Weekly Shonen Magazine, leaned toward passion, sports, romance, and mystery.
Shogakukan catered to younger audiences with its Shonen Sunday.
Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump was the most popular, aimed at teenagers.
Considering his options, Hiroshi muttered, "Shogakukan's style fits, but showing this to kids? That feels wrong."
He shook his head with a sigh. "Forget it. I'll decide later. Let's just draw for now."
With that, he picked up his phone and made a call.
"Beep... beep…"
The line connected.
"Hello, teacher? I'd like to take a few days off for health reasons."
"Thank you, teacher."
---
Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
Under dim curtains, the incandescent light illuminated the room like an eternal flame.
"Whew."
Hiroshi leaned back from his desk, stretching. A satisfied grin spread across his face.
"It's finally done!"
Storyboards, line art, backgrounds, shading—he had poured his soul into it for five days straight, taking breaks only to eat and sleep.
Though intense, it reminded him of his past life, and he felt a nostalgic sense of accomplishment.
The result?
The first chapter of Puella Magi Madoka Magica—29 pages—was complete!
Magical girls were typically associated with love and courage, fighting evil with dazzling transformations.
That genre had captivated audiences for decades, especially among younger viewers.
But Madoka Magica was different.
In his past life, the anime had started like any other magical-girl story—cute costumes, hopeful themes, and an adorable creature, Kyubey.
But by Episode 3, when a senior student was brutally decapitated, everything changed.
The audience realized the true horror: magical girls, symbols of hope, eventually fell into despair and became witches themselves.
From that moment, the genre was redefined forever.