chap 13+13

“Ahihihiiii! Heehah! Ehihiohohohohohoh! Gyahahahahbyohohogyuheheeh!”
“...Kejiman?”
“Doppooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo...!” The octopus legs retracted, then extended quickly, and the creature sprang. Kejiman did.
No, was it Kejiman? The face looked like Kejiman. Like, they were two peas in a pod. It was just like Kejiman.
The creature hadn’t just jumped straight up. In other words, it wasn’t a vertical leap; it was coming this way. It was jumping at him, wasn’t it? If he didn’t get out of the way, it was going to hit him head-on, wasn’t it?
Naturally, Haruhiro wasn’t empty-headed enough to sit still in a situation like this. The spot where he expected the human-octopusspider that looked like Kejiman to land and Haruhiro’s current position were one and the same, so he could avoid trouble by moving.
Instead of backing away, yeah, he was better to move up. If this were a place where he had freedom of movement, he’d have done a forward roll, but he couldn’t disturb the flower garden, so he ran down the narrow path with his posture kept low.
Kejiman soared over Haruhiro’s head.
No, he didn’t know for sure it was Kejiman, though.
There was a weird, wet landing sound behind him. When he did an about-face, the human-octopus-spider that looked like Kejiman was turning around, and he saw Alice racing towards them from the other side.
“Hey, don’t step on the flowers!” Alice shouted.
Alice probably wasn’t saying that to Haruhiro, but to the humanoctopus-spider that looked like Kejiman. He had to question whether it could understand what they were saying, but it was kind of too late.
Letting out a “Shaaaaaaaa...” or some other sound, the humanoctopus-spider that looked like Kejiman turned in his direction. Its octopus legs were outside the walkway,cruelly trampling the pure white flowers.
“Haruharuharuharuharuharuharuhirorororororororororororooooooo o...”
“No, man...” Haruhiro mumbled.
This thing was Kejiman. Or it had originally been Kejiman, at least.
He wanted to cry. There weren’t many guys who could be this much of a nuisance, you know? Also, the way its tongue moved while going “Rororororororororororo” was exceedingly gross.
Hold on, it was stepping on the flowers. Now what?
“How could you...!” Alice sprang at the ex-Kejiman.
The shovel had peeled, and tens of blackish belts of skin wrapped around the ex-Kejiman. It went without saying, but those things weren’t just skin. They had protected Alice and Haruhiro from the whirling maelstrom of debris. They were tough, but also sharp.
Tens of those blackish belts of skin sliced the ex-Kejiman into ribbons. Even just being brushed by the belts, they easily cut through the ex-Kejiman like it was made of jelly.
“Uwah...” Haruhiro stepped back despite himself.
The ex-Kejiman’s torso was like a massive spider, and the legs were like an octopus’s. Kejiman’s head was jutting out from the top of the torso section. The belts of skin wildly slashed not just the torso, or just the legs, but all of him without any mercy. It wouldn’t be long before Kejiman’s head was snipped off.
But, right before it could be...
...Kejiman slipped free.
As if he had just been launched out of the torso, a naked Kejiman went flying.
It looked kind of like Kejiman had just been born out of an octopusspider.
“Eek! Eeeeeeeek!” Kejiman screamed.
Having fallen on the narrow path, the man was now crawling this way.
Haruhiro backed off even further. The guy was naked, after all. He was also covered all over in mucus, and was sticky and slimy. Even if he hadn’t been all of those things, this wasn’t a man Haruhiro ever wanted to get close to.
“Haruhirororororo!” Kejiman wailed.
“Haruhirorororororororororoooo! Rorororororororororororo!”
“No! Stay away!”
“That’s awfully cold of youuuu...”
Kejiman stood up. The octopus-spider had already fallen to pieces, and was scattered all over.
Alice jumped over the remains, shovel at the ready. “A human came out of a dream monster? What is that guy? Haruhiro, is he a friend of yours?”
“No, he’s not my friend...”
“If we ain’t friends, what are weee, Haruhiro?” Kejiman whined. “Say my naaaaaaame.”
“It’s Kejiman, right?”
“I’m Kejimananan? Whuhwhawhawhawhawhat? Whawhawhawhawhahwahwhawhawha.”
His tongue was thrust out, moving back and forth at incredible speed. Kejiman’s eyes were spinning rapidly round and round in their sockets. His blood vessels were all raised, and pulsating. He was clearly not in any normal state. He was done for.
It might be heartless, but they had to finish him. Whether he was a half-monster or something else that Haruhiro didn’t know, Kejiman had become some sort of monster.
But it was questionable if Haruhiro could do it. He had no confidence.
“A-Alice...”
He was sorry to do it, but he’d have to turn to Alice for help. Though, even if Haruhiro hadn’t asked, the shovel in Alice’s hands was already peeling.
Farewell, Kejiman, he thought. May we never meet again. I mean, if I’d never met you in the first place, we wouldn’t even be in this mess.
“ΩΩΩΩχχχχχχχχΩΩΩχχχχχχχΩΩχχχχχχχχΩΩΩχχχχχχχχχΩΩΩχχχχχχχχχ ΩΩχχχχχχχχχΩΩΩχχχχχχχΩΩχχχχχχχχχχχΩΩΩΩΩχχχχχχχΩΩΩΩχχχχχχχ χ...!”
Haruhiro staggered. Was that a sound? It was ultrasonic, or an ultravibration, or something. There was a pain in his ears, but it also threw off his equilibrium, making him stumble around badly.
It wasn’t just Haruhiro. The naked Kejiman was clutching its head, and even Alice was partially cowering.
Alice shouted “...name!” or something like that.
...name...
...name...
Haname, huh. The master of Bayard Garden. A trickster.
You mustn’t step on the flowers in this place, Haruhiro remembered.
Kejiman had broken that taboo. He had incurred the wrath of Haname. Was this the result?
From the edge of the land, something gradually spread across the sky. It grew larger and larger, painting over the polka dot sky, expanding, occupying it. It wasn’t a simple color, and it was hard to say what colors it was. The coloration changed moment to moment, and it was shining, too, almost like an aurora. However, it was clearly different from a phenomenon involving electrical discharge. It was there as a solid object.
Was it an object, or, since it was moving, was it a creature? It was so big that “huge” didn’t begin to cover it. It was like a bird, or a butterfly, or a moth, or something had its wings spread, and was trying to blot out the sky.
Could it be... that was her?
“...Haname?” Haruhiro whispered.
Nah, couldn’t be. It was clearly way too big for that. It probably wasn’t Haname herself, but a phenomenon being brought about by Haname’s power. That was probably a better way to think of it.
Naturally, it was still amazing enough that he wanted to pray this was some sort of mistake. What was going to happen now? He couldn’t imagine, but Haname, or the thing that was Haname’s power, which was trying to fill the sky, appeared to be forming waves. If it were some sort of massive butterfly or moth, it might have been trying to beat its wings.
He felt a wind. It wasn’t sweet. Up and up, the atmosphere was being sucked.
“Uhoh! Uhoh! Uhoh! Uhohoh! Uhohohohohoh!” Kejiman was on allfours, clinging to the ground.
“Ah!” Haruhiro’s body was lifted up.
Oh, crap.
He was flying.
Hold on, they were flying away.
The flowers.
The flowers of Bayard Garden, countless petals of red, yellow, orange, purple, blue, white, and pink were being swept up.
“No! Hold on?!” Haruhiro flailed desperately, trying to return to the ground.
But he was floating.
Haruhiro was already in the air.
Maybe there was nothing he could—
“Haruhiro!” Right beneath him, Alice had the shovel thrust into the ground.
The shovel peeled, and the blackish belts of skin reached for Haruhiro. Perhaps Alice was trying to save him. But wouldn’t this cut him? Was it safe?
The blackish belts of skin embraced and wrapped around Haruhiro with a surprising tenderness.
Having pulled Haruhiro down, Alice forced him to the ground.
“Kyaaaaaaaa!” Kejiman wailed. “Kyuuuuuuuu! Kyoooooooooooo...?!”
The naked Kejiman was sucked up into the sky. Hold on, why was he swimming? Well, even if he’d turned into a monster, he couldn’t swim through the sky. He was just moving his arms and legs like that to give the impression of swimming.
Alice deployed the shovel’s skin like a tent. In no time, tens of those skins were stuck tightly together, leaving not even the slightest gap. Alice cut off the outside from the inside, sealing it away. The violent air currents outside could blow as wildly as they wanted, but only the sound of wind reached inside.
“Here’s hoping this is enough to quell her anger,” Alice said. “I’m not counting on it, though.”
“Don’t tell me,” Haruhiro gulped. “That big thing, that’s Haname?”
“She’s not always like that. She looks like a beautiful woman. No face, though.”
“Oh... I see, so she has no face...”
“This is all because that gross thing stepped on the flowers.”
“If anything, it’s Haname herself who’s the one messing them up...”
“When she gets mad, she loses control, but as far as tricksters go, she’s one of the better ones.” One of the better ones.
That was one of the better ones?
Seriously? Tricksters were scary. He didn’t want to have anything to do with them.
“Haruhiro,” said Alice.
“...Yes?”
“I bet it’s a mystery to you why I came all the way to Haname’s place.”
“Well... yeah, it is, honestly.”
“Even if she’s an incredibly troublesome connection, she’s better than nothing,” Alice said. “If you think you can get by in life without getting involved with people, you’re wrong.”
Suddenly, Ranta’s face flashed through his mind. Even if the guy was an ass, if he were here now, it would be a little—no, very— reassuring. He’d meant to search for his comrades alone, but that resolution was already wavering.
Should he do something about this unbearable weakness, try to cast it aside somehow? Or did he have to accept his weak self, and continue to get by somehow?
When he was with his comrades, Haruhiro’s role was clear, choosing goals was simple, and he just had to push towards them. When he was alone, he couldn’t stick to the things he did manage to decide, and he quickly wavered.
“That’s who you are, I suppose,” Alice suddenly whispered. Right hand still holding the bare shovel, Alice grabbed Haruhiro by the collar with the left hand. “Get up.”
“Huh?”
Obeying Alice’s order, even though he was dubious about it, Haruhiro was shocked when Alice put a hand around his waist.
“...Huh? What? Why...? Huh?”
“I thought something was weird. I could feel it,” Alice said. “Using magic is fairly tiring, but when I’m next to you, my body feels light somehow. Basically, my magic is stronger.”
The bare shovel was flickering a faint red. If Alice took off the mask, what would Alice look like?
Maybe Alice could tell what he was thinking.
“It’s okay,” Alice said in a whisper. “My mask, you can take it off. You want to see, right?”
His hands trembled. They didn’t hesitate. Haruhiro shifted Alice’s mask down below the chin.
“I’m pretty normal,” said Alice. “Disappointed?”
“...Nah.”
“The search for your comrades,” Alice told him. “Let me help you with it, Haruhiro. If you can help me with your magic, that is.”
“My... magic?”
“There are four types of magic. I told you that, didn’t I?”
“Philia, narci, doppel... I’ve only heard about three.”
“That’s because it’s my first time seeing the fourth. Resonance.”
“...That’s what mine is?”
“Yep. The thing about resonance, it makes other people’s magic stronger. That’s all.”
“So basically... I can’t do anything on my own?”
“Perfect for you, huh,” Alice said with a faint smile.
His heart had been racing for a while now. He didn’t want that to get noticed. But Alice already knew for sure.
I’m not ugly, Alice had said.
That took some gall. This went well beyond not being ugly.
There was a female elf named Lilia in the party of Soma, who led the Daybreakers. Being an elf, her facial structure was fundamentally different from humans’, giving her an otherworldly beauty.
If he were forced to describe it, Alice was like Lilia. Not quite comparable to other humans. The nose, the eyes, the lips... was it strange that those shapes, those sizes, was able to make him think Parano wasn’t so bad, after all?
It was as if some creator god had carefully perfected Alice’s face at the micron level. Like the slightest breath might make it all crumble, but it was far too valuable to destroy.
Alice had talked about being badly bullied. Whether physically or mentally, he couldn’t understand what those hurting Alice had been thinking.
If it were Haruhiro, he’d likely have been too terrified to even approach. If possible, he didn’t want to be anywhere close. To just see it occasionally from a distance was enough.
Was Alice actually real?
Was this a dream, after all?
Even after this, Haruhiro would go on to think that many times.
He would also think this:
If only it could all be a dream.







It didn’t really make sense, but Kuzaku wasn’t in bad shape. His whole body was full of energy. It was no exaggeration to say he was in peak condition.
The fact of the matter was, his muscles were pumped up, and his armor was tight. Thanks to that, though it felt a bit cramped, his body was feeling more than sharp enough to compensate for that. He’d never felt so sharp before—which was all well and good, but...
He raised his voice to call his comrade’s name. “Shihoru-san!”
The voice that came out was really big, and it even surprised him. He was in a forest where the ground, the trees, and everything else was jet black, despite it not even being night, facing her down with his large katana in hand.
“Wake up already! You’re not that kind of girl, Shihoru-san!” “Whyyyy?” Shihoru wailed.
Her body was covered here and there with something that looked like sparkling spider webs. Not on her clothes, on her bare flesh.
It was like he could almost see but couldn’t, or almost couldn’t see but could, but basically she was more or less naked.
Also, had her hair always been that long? Her lips were awfully glossy, puffy, and her eyes were sleepy, and slightly moist.
What in the world had happened to cause this? Was it like that?
All Kuzaku could say was, Stuff happened.
Well, not that he knew what most of that stuff was. In the end, he could use all the words he wanted; and he still wouldn’t have been able to describe it.
“I’m not that kind of girl?” Shihoru cried. “I’m not what kind of girl?
How can you say I’m not that kind of girl, Kuzaku-kun? Huh? How?”
“No, but... Shihoru-san, you and I are comrades! We’ve been together all this time! We’ve shared good times and bad times! But the way you look now...”
“You don’t want to see?”
She started fondling her own breasts. She was gasping.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, wh-wh-what was she doing? Kuzaku nearly averted his eyes, but stopped himself.
It wasn’t that he wanted to see. No? If he said he didn’t want to see, would that be a lie? No. It wasn’t about wanting to see or not.
“This is crazy, Shihoru-san!” he cried. “You’re acting crazy!”
“Maybe I am. I feel like I’m going crazy.”
“No, not that’s not it! Damn it! We need to be searching for Haruhiro, and Merry-san, and Setora-san, and even Kiichi, but I can’t even talk to you!”
“Forget talk,” said Shihoru. “I don’t care about that.”
Out of nowhere, she started crying. But the sparkling tears that overflowed from her eyes, poring out, were not liquid. In fact, the spiderweb-like material covering her naked body... it was her tears.
The way she looked as she cried was strikingly beautiful, but he couldn’t afford to just keep looking.
The tears overflowed without end, wrapping around her, like diamond accessories, perhaps making her even more beautiful. In addition, they ran down her legs as they glittered, pooling at her feet.
“What’s going on, seriously?!” Kuzaku lowered his hips, large katana at the ready.
His body was moving really well. How many of those weird monsters had he killed on the way here?
The more he killed, the more muscle he built, and the sharper his skills as a swordsman became. His muscles became healthier, tougher, making Kuzaku stronger in a straightforward manner. The way things were going, he’d live to three hundred. Thanks to that, he’d been able to cut down one monster that attacked after another.
“The truth is, I don’t care.” While crying, Shihoru raised her right arm. In time with her motion, the spiderweb-like stuff pooled at her feet, her jewel-like tears, danced towards Kuzaku. Those tears were bad news.
“Nuwahhh...!” Kuzaku swung with all his might. No matter what he did, he couldn’t cut through her tears. And so he swung his large katana, pushing them away with the wind.
When her tears were scattered by his sword pressure, they hit the black ground and trees nearby, those parts sparkled brightly, and they were plainly crushed.
Was that possible? Really? It was scary. What was going on there? Kuzaku had no idea.
“What happened to you, Shihoru-san?!” he yelled.
She was still crying in anguish, and her brutal tears were pressing towards him.
Kuzaku backed away one step, then two as he swung, blocking the tears at the last moment, but it was weird that he could block them at all.
This power, it was kind of not normal, wasn’t it?
Is this some sort of nightmare? he wondered repeatedly.
All jokes aside, he wanted this to be a dream.
 


Now then, Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash is on its 13th volume now.
Writing it, there were times I went, Oh, I see, so that’s what’s going to happen, but I wonder how the next one will turn out.
That’s one thing I just can’t know until I write it. I’m hoping what happens afterwards isn’t too terrible, because no matter what it is, I’m the one who has to write it, after all.
By the way, there was a special version of this book with a drama CD that released at the same time, and I wrote the script for it.
From the beginning, I wanted to have Director Ryosuke Nakamura of the Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash anime be the audio director for it, so I made it a story that took both the anime and novel into consideration.
Director Nakamura’s Grimgar really distilled the essence of Grimgar, and I felt, “This is Grimgar,” watching it, but there were also parts that were different from my Grimgar.
Director Nakamura has the sense, technique, and talent that I lack, and he portrayed a Grimgar I couldn’t have in the anime.
I wanted to try writing a script that took advantage of that, and I personally had a great desire to hear a drama CD directed by Director Nakamura and featuring the cast of the anime.
While writing this afterword, I’ve yet to hear the final product, but I was able to be there for recording, so I have a vision of what it will sound like. Without a doubt, it will be something incredible. The members of the cast were really enjoying their acting, and they told me the script was good.
I think they weren’t just being polite, probably. If you’re interested, please listen to it. For fans of the anime in particular, you’ll be missing out if you don’t.
Ever since getting involved in production of the anime, I’ve had more opportunities to work together with many people to create something together. I like the work of a novelist, in which I can create a nearly complete work all by myself, but this showed me once again how I have only been able to continue doing that because of the support of a variety of people.
These days where, by borrowing the power of others, I can climb mountains I couldn’t have otherwise, and see new vistas, are highly stimulating.
I think I will be able to use this experience in my main profession as an author, so look forward to the next volume, when Haruhiro and the others go wild... or maybe don’t... in the other world.
To my editor, Harada-san, to Eiri Shirai-san, to the designers of
KOMEWORKS among others, to everyone involved in production and sales of this book, and finally to all of you people now holding this book, I offer my heartfelt appreciation and all of my love. Now, I lay down my pen for today.
I hope we will meet again.
Ao Jyumonji




Ranta sighed with his head down on his desk. “I dunno...”
“Wh-What’s up, Ranta-kun?” Monzo asked from the seat beside him, but Ranta stayed quiet for a moment.
Monzo started mumbling. “U-Umm...”
Tired of keeping his mouth shut, Ranta turned to Monzo. “Listen, man...”
“Huh? Uh, sure.”
“Don’t you have something?”
“Wh-What?”
“Like a clever saying, or a little story that’ll grab my attention. Or you could play stupid, so I can be the straight man.”
“Oh, no... I’m not good at that kind of stuff...”
“Yeah, that figures. You’re kind of boring, man. But a good guy. It pisses me off that your cousin, your childhood friend, and even your little sister are all cute, though.”
“Hm? Hmm, well, uh, my sister doesn’t look like me, so I guess she is cute...”
“Now you’re bragging?!”
“Huh? No, she’s my little sister. I may be seeing her in a better light because of that...”
“Nah, you’ve got it right. I think she’s plenty cute. Your sister, I mean. Like, isn’t she gonna get even cuter? When she grows up a bit, those boobs’ll grow, too.”
“...I’ll kill you.”
“Huh?”
“If you look at my sister funny, friend or not, you’re dead!”
Monzo was shouting awfully loudly. No, it wasn’t just his voice. Monzo’s face was a mask of rage.
The classroom was silent. Well, of course it was. People thought of Monzo as a quiet guy. Ranta, too. Monzo sometimes got oddly worked up about food, but he was by and large a gentle giant.
Who knew he’d be so scary if you got him mad?
Ranta swallowed. “You made me piss myself a bit there.”
“O-Ohhh! S-Sorry. Wh-When it comes to my sister, I lose my senses a bit.”
“You made me piss myself! I’m not sure how that’s just ‘a bit’! You really lost it!”
“You really... wet yourself?”
“Just a little, okay?!”
“O-Oh... Do you have a change of underwear?”
“I told you, it’s just a little! Less than a milliliter, I’ll bet! Look, man, we’re weirding everyone out, okay?! This is your fault, Moguzo!”
“S-Sorry...” Monzo shrunk into himself as if trying to make his big body as small as possible. No, even doing that, he still wasn’t small.
“Pfft...” Ranta burst out laughing despite himself.
“Huh?! Wh-What?!”
“Nah, it’s nothing.”
“B-But you laughed...”
“It was just a little funny. Tickled my funny bone just a bit. Not hard, mind you. Listen, man, if you could just pull off the funny man act a little more naturally...”
“F-Funny man? Like, in a comedy routine?”
“That’s it. That’s the one I’m talking about. Okay? Lately, I’ve been thinking. I wanna live as fun a life as I can. So, the natural conclusion is that I should be a celebrity, right? Girls dig celebrities.”
“They... do?”
“If I were famous, with my looks, they’d be all over me. It’d be something else. Seriously, seriously.”
“Uh, yeah... Well, I g-guess... Maybe...”
“You’re not up to it, though. You can’t be the funny man or the straight man. I mean, I’m obviously the straight man. So my partner needs to be a funny man. The natural dunce type, the weirdo who doesn’t fit into society, or the clever guy who can play the fool... I’m gonna go hit the washroom. Gotta check out the state of my pants, after all.”
“Oh. S-See you later...”
Ranta left the classroom and headed for the washroom. Focusing on his somewhat damp crotch as he walked, he almost bumped into someone.
“Whoa, sorr—” He started to apologize, but when he saw who he’d nearly walked into, they were tall, with silver hair. “Eep!” “Huh?” the guy asked.
“Ohhhh, no, no, no! I-I-I-I-I-It’s nothing! Forgive me!”
Ranta was about to perform a kowtow, but if he did, he had the feeling the guy would stomp the back of his head, killing him instantly. He took off running.
“Th-That was Renji! Damn, he’s scary!”
Why did I have to run into Tanaka Renji, the terror of the school, of all people? Like, wasn’t it bizarre that guy was the same age as them with the aura he gave off? He had to be over twenty. He had way too much of an intensity that transcended his age.
“Aw, crap. I think I wet myself again!”
At this point, neither of them could ever have predicted that, one day, they would form the comedy duo “Curly and Silver.”

It happened one day after school, not long after they were first admitted.
“Hey, hold on, Tanaka,” their homeroom teacher called on him, apparently with something to discuss.
Renji sensed it was a rude way of addressing him. But he couldn’t snap at the guy. He just responded to rude with rude. That was all. “Yeah?”
“Uh... No... It’s... nothing... I’m sorry.” The teacher sounded more and more hesitant, and then finally he vanished on his own, beating a hasty retreat.
The lively classroom fell into an uneasy silence. When Renji looked around, people looked tense, and his classmates recoiled from him. Even Renji got irritated by this.
What’s their problem? he thought. Then, despite himself, he clicked his tongue. One of the girls started to cry.
Deep down, Renji was surprised, but he knew asking her “What’s wrong?” would backfire. He hadn’t done anything that merited an apology, either, as far as he was concerned. So Renji left the classroom.
From then on, as it had always been, Tanaka Renji was alone.
It wasn’t that Renji favored solitude; he simply didn’t abhor it. He hated fools. More than anything, he couldn’t stand those who got in his way. If he had to force himself to fit in, he’d rather be by himself.
He wasn’t going out of his way to intimidate others. He just wouldn’t butter people up, pander to them, or try to ingratiate himself to them.
He did not abhor solitude.
However, he was aware that his heart was frayed.
Why am I so frustrated? he wondered.
If he took out his anger on something, that might be a temporary solution, but the ugliness of that act would leave him sore. The memory of having done something so foolish would follow and torment Renji.
While he was feeling depressed, a path opened in front of Renji. Whenever Renji walked the halls, the students parted left and right to clear his way.
“Am I Moses now...?” he whispered.
Those words tickled his funny bone in a weird way, and he nearly burst out laughing despite himself. They came back to him again and again in class, and every time, he came close to laughing.
Damn, it was annoying. If he started laughing in the middle of class because he remembered something, he’d look like a total weirdo. He managed to hold it in somehow, but he reached his limit once he was back home and alone in his room.
He laughed so hard that his face became a mess of snot and tears, and his sides felt like they were about to burst.
When the impulse to laugh finally faded, he felt better than he ever had before.
“Is this it?” he wondered. “What I was looking for?” Laughter.
No, comedy.
From that day on, he spent a lot of time searching the web for manzai comedy and comedic skits. He checked out all the comedy programs on TV. If he caught wind that a comedian on his radar was doing a live show, he got tickets and transportation to go see it. He even started working harder at his part-time job to do it. When something struck him as funny, he’d jot it down, and read it over and over. He only read the lines out loud at first, but eventually he started doing imitations, as well.
“I could write my own material, couldn’t I?” Renji wondered.
Renji had no end of respect for the comedians who were able to repeatedly hit his funny bone. That was why he wasn’t conceited enough to think he could write funnier stuff than they had. However, he didn’t just want to enjoy the work of others, he wanted to analyze it. To see what was funny, why, and how. As he did that, he naturally came to his own theory of comedy. Was it right, though? He wanted to test it.
Renji wrote material. Skits and manzai. He swore to himself he’d write at least one thing a day, and sometimes even stayed up all night writing.
It felt right. He might not be on the level of the comedians he admired, but it was still decently funny stuff. At the very least, he thought his own jokes were funny. Even if it was him performing them, they were funny. But would they get a laugh out of others? He wanted to test it. But how? Was he going to perform on the street? That would be embarrassing. Intensely. Still, though.
I want to try it.
He couldn’t deny he had that desire. If he went to a faraway town, one where he was unlikely to encounter his classmates, family, or relatives, just maybe...
There was one problem.
The majority of the comedians he respected were duos, so all of Renji’s material was meant to be performed with a partner. There was no way he could play both the funny man and straight man.
“A partner...” he murmured.
Renji Tanaka’s journey had only just begun.
 


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