— After waking up, I found myself in a burning wasteland.
There must have been a huge fire.
The streets I was used to had turned into ruins, just like the war-torn sites seen in movies, and there were many people around who had been reduced to charred remains.
In this area, I was the only one alive.
Even a child as small as me would think so — this scene is a veritable hell.
The opening panel of the manga shows a burning city in ruins.
Accompanied by the narration, a young boy appears in the center of the panel, lying in the burning ruins with hollow eyes; it is truly a scene like hell.
However, immediately following this, an adult man appears in the panel.
His eyes are strangely drawn without highlights, but as he looks at the young boy who is still alive amidst it all, he shows an expression as if he has found salvation.
The next panel shifts to a hospital ward, where the adult man asks to adopt the boy and receives the boy's consent.
Just like that, the boy acquires the name "Emiya Shirou."
At the same time, the adult man seems to say a rather important line —
"Let me say this first, your uncle here is a magus, okay?"
...
— Senpai, are you awake?
The scene shifts again. In a close-up half-body shot, a beautiful girl with a gentle expression tilts her head slightly, smiling, her gaze directed at the reader outside the panel, as if she were truly calling out to them.
A young man sits up from the floor, establishing the scene.
Although he has grown up, one can still tell that this young man is the same little boy who was in the sea of fire at the beginning.
What follows is a warm and mundane daily life sequence, at which point Sasaki Hisashi is finally able to detach himself from the immersive reading and begin to examine the plot from a professional perspective.
It must be said that this opening design is excellent.
First, it presents an impactful scene, then returns to a mundane daily life.
Although the world-building hasn't been fully explained yet, it has already piqued the reader's curiosity while conveying an important piece of information —
This world is by no means as calm as it appears on the surface.
Furthermore, stepping outside the plot itself, he has gained a new understanding of Akira's drawing skills so far: beautiful and clean.
"Beautiful" refers to the characters in the manga, especially the depiction of the female characters.
Compared to mainstream art styles that prefer to highlight a girl's docile and soft temperament, the female characters drawn by Akira, while still gentle, possess a very unique, aloof, and cool temperament, a one-of-a-kind art style belonging to him.
And "clean" refers to the overall artwork of the manga, which looks very comfortable and can even be said to be pleasing to the eye.
Although many authors' artwork can be called "clean," most of this "cleanliness" is achieved through negative space or even by deliberately reducing the drawing workload.
For example, omitting backgrounds during dialogue.
Of course, appropriate negative space not only keeps the page clean but can sometimes add a bit of charm to the story.
But if there is too much negative space, it is not just a matter of the author being lazy, it also makes the whole page look too empty and boring.
Therefore, the valuable aspect of Akira's "cleanliness" is that it is achieved through his own exquisite drawing skills.
Akira's lines are very smooth and delicate, with almost no shaking or burrs to be seen, and at the same time, there are almost no meaningless, messy lines in the panels; this is the greatest source of this "cleanliness."
To achieve this level, one must possess superior pen control and planning ability.
What incredible drawing skills!
With a unique character art style combined with clean, comfortable, and high-quality artwork, even the relatively mundane daily plot does not feel boring to read; instead, there is a sense of comfortable and pleasing satisfaction.
He has really struck gold this time!
Based on this drawing skill alone, no matter how bad the story he draws might be, he could never let him go.
"Hikaru no Go," written by Hotta Yumi and illustrated by Obata Takeshi, began serialization in issue 2/3 of this year.
Although its performance so far cannot be called flagship-level, it is undoubtedly a masterpiece.
Furthermore, in the 21st issue released two weeks ago, "Hikaru no Go" even achieved first place in the rankings for the second time.
Given Akira's drawing skills, if he can be paired with an author who excels at storytelling for his debut, he might even be able to create an excellent work comparable to, or even surpassing, "Hikaru no Go"!
And if his storytelling level can also match his drawing skills...
Phew —
Sasaki Hisashi lets out a long breath, temporarily suppressing the excitement in his heart, and continues reading.
Because of the foreshadowing at the beginning, it is quite easy to spot the unusual aspects while reading the subsequent daily plot.
For example, while eating breakfast, the newspaper Fujimura Taiga is holding and the television playing nearby both mention an incident where a gas leak caused people to fall into a coma;
encountering police cordons on the way to school;
Fujimura Taiga notifying students during the morning assembly not to stay out late at night;
learning from classmates about a nearby murder case involving a family of four;
at the same time, the protagonist Emiya Shirou clearly demonstrates the existence of superpowers while helping a friend repair a heater, further indicating that this world is extraordinary.
Although it is a calm campus daily life, there is clearly a feeling of an approaching storm, making it impossible to relax.
Additionally, the mysterious beautiful girl Tohsaka Rin, who has a brief encounter with Emiya Shirou at school, and another student, Mato Shinji, who seems both like a friend of the protagonist and a villain, are also quite intriguing.
The time comes to the afternoon of the next day.
Emiya Shirou, who was originally planning to go home after school, is stopped by Mato Shinji, who asks him to help clean the kyudo club.
By the time Emiya Shirou finishes cleaning, it is already night.
Just then, Emiya Shirou suddenly hears a strange, loud noise.
He follows the sound all the way to the school playground, and what enters his field of vision is a scene like something out of ancient mythology — the originally clean and flat ground is completely ruined, as if it had been bombed, turning into a pitted wasteland.
On top of the ruins, two men in strange outfits are fighting fiercely.
Sparks fly between their clashing weapons, and the air pressure generated by their collisions even distorts the surrounding air.
In the UBW anime, there is a battle between Artoria and Sasaki Kojiro on a staircase.
Because the staircase beneath them is not damaged by even a single brick despite their intense fight, it is jokingly called the "Supreme Staircase" by fans.
By the way, this also doubles as a pun on the staircase that caused Kuina's death in "One Piece."
Anyway, considering this, when drawing the battle between Archer and Lancer, Akira deliberately increases the level of environmental destruction.
At the same time, he adds flashy special effects, making the battle more impactful and highlighting their strength even further.
The effect is obvious.
Jumping suddenly from calm daily life to a high-intensity battle takes only two panels, and the sudden sensory shift immediately grabs Sasaki Hisashi's attention.
However, the battle panels do not last long.
Soon, the two separate again and enter a standoff.
Emiya Shirou, peeking from the side, is shocked and confused by what he sees, unable to understand what is happening.
Just then, one of the men holding a long spear notices him, turns sharply, and reveals a blood-curdling smile.
At the end of the first chapter, the panel freezes on a close-up of the spear-wielding man's expression and Emiya Shirou's realization that something is wrong.
Beautiful!
Sasaki Hisashi exclaims in his heart once again.
To end the first chapter at such a frustratingly suspenseful point, this kind of handling is truly too seasoned.
He cannot help but wonder again: is the other party really a new author?
However, looking at Akira's handsome and exceptionally young face, he can only dismiss his doubts and admit that a genius is simply unreasonable.
That said, although the first chapter ends at a tantalizing point, it has no effect on him.
Because he still has the second chapter to read.
The second chapter begins with a chase, showcasing the spear-wielding man hunting Emiya Shirou.
At the same time, Emiya Shirou's ability is demonstrated; it seems he can strengthen the durability of objects.
But he is far too weak compared to his opponent, making it less of a fight and more of a cat-and-mouse game.
As Emiya Shirou is pushed to the brink, Sasaki Hisashi begins to wonder how the protagonist will be saved.
Will the other man from earlier come to the rescue?
However —
"Pfft."
"How unlucky, kid. Since you've seen me, I'll have to ask you to die."
The spear pierces Emiya Shirou's heart.
The man speaks with a regretful tone before turning to leave, leaving Shirou lying in the corridor, blood spreading beneath him as his eyes lose their light.
At that moment, a girl's silhouette appears, walking toward his body.
The figure emerging from the shadows is none other than Tohsaka Rin.
"...Spare me."
"Why, of all people, you...!"
The second chapter ends on Rin's expression of disbelief.
What a cliffhanger!
Sasaki Hisashi feels his curiosity grow even stronger, wondering how Emiya Shirou will be saved.
But what he does not expect is that the third chapter shifts perspective to Tohsaka Rin, rewinding time to the previous day and revealing things Shirou did not know while also answering some earlier questions.
Although there is no battle in this chapter, when night falls, Tohsaka Rin stands before a summoning circle and declares —
"Heed my summons! My life is yours, and your sword is mine. If you follow the Holy Grail's command, if you submit to this intent and this truth, then answer me..."
The circle glows, accompanied by dramatic poses, yet nothing happens.
At that moment, a loud crash suddenly comes from upstairs.
Tohsaka Rin quickly runs up.
In a double-page spread, the man from earlier sits coolly atop a pile of broken furniture.
"Damn it, I forgot the house clock was an hour fast today!"
"I messed up again...!"
Seeing Rin fall into self-pity, the man shows a helpless expression.
"It seems I've encountered another incredible Master. Talk about bad luck."
...
...
"...Eh? It's gone?"
Seeing the manuscript return to the first page, Sasaki Hisashi is stunned.
He suddenly feels that being too good at cliffhangers might not be a good thing.