Time flew by, and soon it was Thursday.
As the lunch bell rang, Alex left school, taking advantage of the brief window when students were allowed to go out.
He headed straight to the nearest bookstore.
At the entrance, three large promotional posters and their accompanying taglines caught his eye:
"Miracles aren't free. If you wish for hope, you must also be prepared to spread equal despair." — Puella Magi Madoka Magica
"I have known the meaning of flowers, but never their names. When I see them bloom again, my tears fall like rain." — Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day
"The moment I met him, my life changed. Everything I saw, felt, and experienced became colorful. The whole world began to shine!" — Your Lie in April
Staring at the beautifully illustrated covers and the deeply meaningful taglines, Alex found himself in a dilemma.
After much internal debate, he finally reached for Puella Magi Madoka Magica.
"Even if I don't end up liking it, I can always give it to my sister as a birthday gift."
Genius move—one purchase, two uses!
Grabbing a takeaway on the way back, Alex returned to his dormitory.
His roommates were either still at the cafeteria or busy elsewhere, leaving the room empty.
After quickly finishing his meal, he tore off the plastic wrap and climbed onto his upper bunk, book in hand.
"Over 200 pages?"
No wonder it was so expensive!
One volume had cost him 10$—equivalent to his entire day's meal budget!
Still, since it doubled as a gift for his sister later, the sting of the expense faded quickly.
Flipping through the pages, he admired the exquisite artwork but couldn't help but feel puzzled.
"How did a magical girl series manage to sell over a million copies in Japan?"
If it had appealing characters and fan service, he could understand it selling well in Japan, given the sheer amount of the market around them.
Time passed unknowingly, and soon, the afternoon class bell rang.
"Alex, class is starting! Get up already!"
His roommate's voice called out, and Alex lazily responded, "Yeah, yeah, I know. You go first, I'll be right there."
"Don't be late!"
Once his roommate left, Alex quickly flipped through the last few pages.
Staring at the cover, where a cheerful blonde girl smiled brightly, his expression turned complicated.
"She just... died like that?!"
"What about the other girls? What fate awaits them?"
With a lingering glance at the cover, he knew he couldn't afford to dawdle any longer. He left the dorm, making a firm decision in his heart:
'After class, I'm buying the next volume no matter what!'
"That means an extra 10$ spent today..."
Hiss.
Alex sucked in a sharp breath.
That was hard-earned money he had been saving up!
But the thought of knowing the story's continuation made his heart itch with anticipation.
In the battle between financial pain and the urge to finish the book, the latter won.
The afternoon classes felt like an eternity.
As soon as the dismissal bell rang, Alex bolted out of the school.
Only to be met with a cruel reality...
"Sold out?!"
Alex stared in shock.
The bookstore owner shrugged helplessly. "I didn't expect it to be this popular either."
"They were all gone before the first afternoon class even started."
"But don't worry, I'll restock soon. Check back next week."
'No way...'
He had finally worked up the resolve, spent the whole afternoon looking forward to it—and now he had to wait an entire week for the ending?!
This was even worse than dropping out of the top ten in his grade!
But no matter how frustrated he felt, he had no choice but to accept it. Dejected, he left the bookstore.
As time passed, something unexpected happened.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Anohana, and Your Lie in April were sold out in bookstores nationwide!
A trending topic exploded on social media: "Top-Selling Light Novel and Mangas Completely Out of Stock!"
Below the post, countless frustrated readers shared their grievances:
"I just finished Volume 1 of Madoka Magica and went to buy the second one—only to be told it's out of stock. My heart is shattered."
"That's exactly how I felt when I couldn't find the next volume of Anohana!"
"You guys are lucky. At least your series will be restocked next week. I just finished Volume 6 of Your Lie in April, and who knows when the remaining five will even be released?!"
"These bookstores are ridiculous! Why stock so little of such good titles? Don't they want to make money?!"
"Glad I bought the whole set. My weekend is booked!"
"As someone who already read the raw versions, let me warn you: If you've only finished Volume 1, do yourself a favor—don't read the next volume. Trust me!"
"Nonsense! The later volumes are where the real masterpiece begins!"
"If you don't read the next volume, you're missing out on the essence of all three series!"
"If you love this mangaka's work, check out The Witch's House on Steam. It's his latest project!"
"Wait... are you serious?!"
"Damn, even Satan would bow to you for this recommendation!"
"Isn't Steam a gaming platform? What does it have to do with this manga author?"
"Some of you might not know this, but the creator, Warrior of Love and Hope, originally debuted as a manga artist. However, his works span multiple fields, from light novels to anime screenwriting and even indie game development. The Witch's House was his first-ever game, and it's fantastic!"
"Yeah, fantastic... I only played for five hours."
"I played for seven."
"You guys are monsters!"
"..."
At the same time, the online fan communities for these three series exploded. Originally small, each fan forum quickly surged past 100,000 members, with no signs of stopping.
Short video platforms like TikTok and Youtube were flooded with clips analyzing and celebrating the stories.
With such widespread attention, the sales numbers skyrocketed!
Even The Witch's House, which had stagnated in popularity, saw a massive resurgence in sales thanks to organic fan hype.
These works had officially broken into a new market and experienced a second wave of explosive popularity!
And with it, the name Warrior of Love and Hope became widely known!
...