The winter ani season was beginning to settle into a clear hierarchy. Frozen Witch remained the most anticipated title, but 5 Centiters per Second had risen fast—its average view count had now exceeded 3 million per episode, placing it firmly in the top tier.
Titles like City of Echoes and the two isekai shows were doing well too, but it was clear they'd fallen behind the pack led by 5 Centiters per Second and Frozen Witch.
Whatever people in the industry were saying, the truth was that 5 Centiters per Second had caught fire. Its art direction, emotional resonance, and haunting soundtrack made it the breakout underdog of the season.
In just two weeks, it had climbed from obscurity into the top two shows of winter.
The performances of the leads—Sumida and Akari, voiced by Ryuko i—had also earned high praise and brought them a new wave of fans.
Kazuya was quick to brag to his industry contacts about the project's success.
anwhile, over on Mizushiro's fend account, fans of three different series were glued to his updates—Natsu, Initial D, and now 5 Centiters per Second. All three works were ongoing, and fans were constantly begging for new chapters and episode.
For readers, it should've been three tis the joy.
But for Mizushiro, it was more like three tis the pressure.
Not that he seed to mind.
After the hectic work of launching both 5 Centiters per Second and Voices of a Distant Star, he finally took a break and returned to sothing he hadn't touched in weeks: driving school.
...Which didn't last long.
Before he knew it, Ryuko and Airi had dragged him back to the local net café for another round of League.
He'd said no at first, but between their grins and insistence, Haruki gave in. The three of them ended up playing until late, just like old tis.
He couldn't believe how fast Ryuko had improved. It hadn't even been that long since he introduced her to the ga, yet now she was dominating Iron and Bronze lobbies with terrifying ease. In nearly every match, she shut down the opposing jungler and racked up over twenty kills without breaking a sweat.
Under her guidance, even he and Airi had finally escaped the pit of Iron and made it into Bronze.
Not an easy feat.
"By the way," Airi said suddenly, eyes sparkling with curiosity. "The final episode of 5 Centiters per Second airs tomorrow, right? What happens in the third chapter? Tell !"
"No way," Haruki replied flatly. "You'll see for yourself tomorrow."
He hated spoilers. Whether watching or making a series, he believed in preserving the experience.
"Tch, fine. Ryuko, you tell !" Airi turned to her with hopeful eyes.
Ryuko smiled apologetically. "I'd love to, but… I signed an NDA. And the boss is sitting right here."
Airi groaned in defeat. "Knew it…"
Eventually, the three left the café late into the night. Haruki and Ryuko made sure Airi got ho first, then shared a taxi back toward their own apartnts.
But in the cab, Ryuko seed distracted. She glanced at Haruki a few tis, lips parting like she wanted to say sothing—then closing again.
Only when they pulled up near her dorm did she finally speak.
"Hey… are you free on the 23rd?"
Mizushiro blinked. "The 23rd? Why?"
"I, um… I have two tickets to the amusent park," she said, clearly nervous. "They're hosting a special League of Legends event two pro teams are doing a live match at the park. You can use the ticket to play all the rides, too. I just thought, maybe… if you're interested, we could go?"
"Which teams?"
"SL versus PX."
Haruki's eyes lit up. "SL's playing?!"
Ryuko nodded, already knowing that was his favorite team.
He didn't even hesitate. "Yeah, I'm in!"
"Then it's a date—I an, settled!" Ryuko bead, eyes curving into a happy crescent.
She had been anxious the whole ride over, afraid he'd turn her down. But things had gone smoother than she'd ever imagined.
"Sure, sounds fun," Haruki said casually.
From start to finish, his brain had been focused on the SL team. He didn't realize at all that Ryuko had just invited him on a date.
—
The next day, Sunday, January 16.
The final episode of 5 Centiters per Second premiered online.
Across the web, thousands of fans hit play bracing for whatever Mizushiro had planned.
[TL:-Sorry I couldn't upload the chapter yesterday—my laptop had so internet issues, and since my Webnovel account is linked to it, I couldn't even inform everyone. I planned to release today's chapter as well, but I couldn't finish it in ti. If I have ti on Sunday, I'll see what I can do to make it up. Thanks for your patience!]
Shout out to Jorge Rodriguez, benhurt rivera, erald rush, NovaPumpkin for joining my p-atreon! your support ans everything to .
(TL:- if you want even more content, check out p-atreon/Alioth23 for 60 advanced chapters)
Reviews
All reviews (0)