NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 19: Chapter 18
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Chapter 18: Eruption
After waking up, Eriri Spencer Sawamura—known in the doujin world as Eri Kashiwagi—immediately turned on her phone. Today marked the final day of the contest's voting period. Only a few precious hours remained before the deadline.
Eriri's first instinct was to check the ranking of Attack on Titan, the manga authored by her friend Lucien D. Blackthorn, who published under the pen name Whale.
But as she opened the official website of Weekly Shonen Magazine, she was stunned to find that Attack on Titan was no longer listed.
"Eh? What the hell? Is the site bugged again?"
A few days ago, there had been technical issues—the voting links were broken for hours. That incident already left Eriri with a sour impression of the contest organizers.
Now, faced with this new issue, her irritation surged.
Switching to the social platform, she opened her messages intending to contact the official account for clarification. But before she could even draft a message, she noticed her inbox was flooded.
[@KashiwagiEri-sensei, Whale's Attack on Titan got flagged for fraudulent voting and was taken down. Go check the official page!]
A cold shock gripped her heart. Her fingers trembled as she clicked the provided link.
The post on Weekly Shonen Magazine's official Twitter account confirmed the nightmare:
> "After verification, the data for two manga works, The King's Messenger and Attack on Titan, were found to be abnormal and suspected of fraudulent voting. The competition committee has decided to remove both works from the platform."
"No way... this can't be happening!"
Eriri leapt from her bed and rushed downstairs, phone in hand.
"Mom! You won't believe this! Attack on Titan got pulled from the contest! They say it's fraud!"
Sayuri Sawamura, already sipping her morning tea, frowned deeply. "That doesn't sound right. They didn't even contact Whale-kun? That's outrageous."
She quickly picked up her phone and dialed an old acquaintance who worked in the editorial department of Weekly Shonen Magazine.
A few minutes later, Sayuri hung up, her face clouded with disappointment.
"Mom, what did they say?"
"My friend Yoko told me that Attack on Titan had an unusually high vote-to-view ratio—3 to 1. Because of that, Editor-in-Chief Ryunosuke Jiumu personally ordered its removal."
Eriri clenched her fists. "That's absurd! The reason the vote rate is so high is because the manga is just that good! People read it and immediately voted! Isn't that a good thing?"
"I tried to explain that to her, but she said they're already under pressure from other participants complaining about unfair rankings. They've started a formal review process… but she warned me not to get my hopes up."
"Of course he wouldn't retract it... Jiumu Ryunosuke, huh?"
The name was infamous in manga circles. Though praised for discovering many talented artists, Ryunosuke Jiumu was also known as a tyrant—proud, inflexible, and ruthless.
He made arbitrary decisions, often ignoring feedback or fairness. Worse still, his influence extended beyond Weekly Shonen Magazine. To oppose him was to risk exile from the entire manga industry.
Eriri stood frozen, her lips trembling.
Sayuri placed a gentle hand on her daughter's shoulder. "I'll try reaching a few more people, but I'm not sure what good it'll do."
Eriri nodded wordlessly and trudged back to her room. She opened her laptop and scrolled through the forums and news threads related to the contest.
Then she noticed something strange.
The original tweet naming Attack on Titan had been deleted.
"Wait... did they change their mind?"
She refreshed the contest website. Attack on Titan was still gone.
Checking the official Twitter account again, she found a new announcement:
> "According to reader feedback, some entries were found with abnormal voting patterns and have been removed. The committee maintains zero tolerance for any improper voting behavior. Investigations are ongoing."
No names were mentioned this time. The responsibility was subtly shifted onto "reader feedback".
Eriri gritted her teeth.
So that was it. They were backpedaling, but still refusing to restore Whale's work.
She stared at the screen, tears brimming in her eyes.
Whale had poured his soul into Attack on Titan. She had watched Lucien struggle and fight against his own despair to complete it.
And now, everything had been brushed away like trash.
She wouldn't accept that.
"I won't let this stand!"
With a swift motion, she switched accounts and opened her official doujin artist Twitter profile: @KashiwagiEri.
Typing furiously, she posted a reply under the magazine's vague announcement:
> "I am the doujin artist Kashiwagi Eri. Attack on Titan is a manga created by my friend, Whale-sensei. He entrusted me with its publication. I vouch for its integrity with my name. There was NO vote manipulation."
It didn't take long before her post began to spread.
[Netizen A: Kashiwagi-sensei, we believe you!]
[Netizen B: Attack on Titan only had a little over 1,000 votes and wasn't even in the top rankings. How could that be considered vote fraud?!]
[Netizen C: So the original tweet got deleted, and now they post a vague message blaming "reader feedback"? Shady.]
[Netizen D: That Jiumu guy has always been power-tripping.]
[Netizen E: Whale-sensei should take his work elsewhere. There are plenty of other publishers that would welcome him!]
[Netizen F: Who's with me? Let's boycott Weekly Shonen Magazine!]
Though Eriri's heart still burned with frustration, she felt a sliver of warmth as readers came to their defense.
Lucien had not written Attack on Titan in vain.
The fight wasn't over.
And she would make sure of that.
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🎉 Big Congratulations to Xhaustedhero! 🎉
He just joined the second-highest tier on my Patreon!
Your support means the world and helps fuel the spicy stories I create 🔥
💫 Want early access to steamy, exclusive 18+ fanfics?
Join the journey and unlock chapters before anyone else!
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Support the lust. Live the fantasy.