Starting as a Manga Editor

Chapter 1: A Grand Return

“I’ve interviewed with over twenty companies.”“For no reason at all, I just kept throwing myself at it, no matter how people looked at me.”“But… I failed them all!”“Don’t smile while saying something that tragic, okay…”

Tang Yao listened to the headache-inducing comments and looked at the applicant sitting across from her, a little helplessly. She couldn’t help but say, “Besides graphic design, most of your work experience is related to gaming, right? You even made fan games back in school… The gaming industry is booming lately. Compared to working as a manga editor, I honestly think you’d have a better future in gaming.”

“Tried that already. No one wanted me.”

Sitting across from Tang Yao, a disheveled, melancholic, balding man let out a long sigh… If they weren’t indoors, he probably would’ve pulled out a cigarette by now.—Anyway, it's all just a story.

“……”All of them?

Tang Yao heard the way he emphasized that “all,” so full of untold stories, and couldn’t help but scrutinize the man in front of her more carefully.

The man, Kang Ming, was starting to lose his composure under her gaze, and his weathered face flushed slightly.

Honestly, judging from his borderline self-destructive statements earlier, it was clear this guy wasn’t exactly thin-skinned.But… he really couldn’t handle how stunning the woman in front of him was.

In fact, the publishing house where Tang Yao worked was located in the bustling heart of the city. It wasn’t lacking in fashionable and elegant women—far from it. He’d already passed quite a few on the way here.

Compared to them, Tang Yao’s makeup and outfit were practically lazy.She had on barely-there makeup—maybe none at all—and wore a simple white button-down shirt with black straight-leg pants. Totally plain, nothing flashy. If you ignored her figure, face, and overall vibe, she’d be nothing special.But the problem was… he couldn’t ignore those facts.

That flawless, porcelain-like face… those lively, beautiful eyes… that sweet aura balanced perfectly between maturity and youth… Normally, when God opens one door, He closes another, right?But this girl wasn’t just pretty—her figure was insane, too. That curve? Straight-up illegal.

So, like… which door did God not close?

Kang Ming was still trying to figure that out.In any case, even though he was technically here for an interview, sitting across from her made him feel like he was polluting the air with his presence.

Meanwhile—

Tang Yao stared at the applicant for a moment. After a short silence, she said again, “Other small studios…”

Kang Ming let out a sigh, sounding totally defeated. “I’ve basically tried every game company out there. No one wants me.”

“So now you’re just taking a shot in the dark with us?”

“……”

Yeah, okay.

Tang Yao finally understood how he’d managed to rack up more than twenty interviews.

Shaking her head, she picked up the resume on the table again, scanned through it, then hesitated. “Honestly, your resume is pretty solid. You don’t have direct experience, but HR already cleared you, so… if you really want to give it a shot, I could…” “……”

Kang Ming, who had basically given up hope, suddenly looked up in surprise.Wait, is this girl an angel?

“Hold on, don’t get too excited. I don’t have the final say…” Tang Yao raised her fair hand to calm him down, and added, “Most of the team’s out right now, and the chief editor had to attend a major meeting. I’m just filling in for him.”

She added, “So whether it works out or not still depends on the chief editor reviewing your file. But I’ll try to write up a nice evaluation for you.”

“…Thank you.”

Kang Ming froze for a second, then lowered his head again. He seemed a bit disappointed, but still thanked her like someone who’d already gotten used to rejection. “So I’ll just wait to hear back?”

“Yeah. Take care on your way out. I’m about to head out too…”

Tang Yao gave him a definite answer and stood up.

But instead of leaving right away, she reached into the pen holder on her desk and pulled out a pair of box cutters. Holding them in one hand, she gave them a light swing, her expression full of murderous intent—like she was off to stab someone.

“???”

Kang Ming, who was still young but already had the hairstyle of a seasoned veteran, was stunned.What the heck?Is this part of the interview?

He stared at the beautiful girl waving the cutter lightly, her lovely peach blossom eyes tinged with cold intent, utterly confused. “Uh, what’s this?”

“Don’t worry… it’s not for you.”

Tang Yao snapped back to reality, smiled sweetly while holding the cutter, dimples showing. The kind of smile that bloomed like a cornflower—charming and radiant. “I’m just getting my weapon ready… for chasing down deadlines. Relax.”

Oh, chasing deadlines… wait, what?! That still sounds sketchy as hell!

Kang Ming started sweating. “D-Deadline weapon?”

“Yup. I originally wanted to get a kitchen knife, but it’s not exactly easy to carry.”

“…Are all manga editors like this?”

“Depends on the person.”

“Oh… good to know.”

“The editor I know usually carries a kitchen knife.”

“!!!!!!!”

“……”

Kang Ming was not okay. He looked at the scary girl, then glanced at his resume again, suddenly very tempted to snatch it back and bolt.

Honestly, maybe trying those game companies again wouldn’t be so bad.

Too bad.

After choosing her “weapon,” Tang Yao picked up the resume and walked straight out of the meeting room.

…

Tang Yao stepped out of the meeting room with the resume in hand. She dropped it off at her desk, grabbed two file folders, and headed out.

She hadn’t been joking. She really was going to chase someone down for a deadline.

She didn’t want to go at all, but it couldn’t be helped… She left the office, walked to the street, and waved down a taxi.

Soon, a cab pulled over.

Tang Yao opened the back door, politely said, “Thank you,” and gave the address of a high-end residential complex not far from the city center.

But the driver didn’t move right away. The middle-aged man, who had been driving cabs for years, stared at her through the rearview mirror for about five seconds before finally starting the engine.

Even after they were on the road, he kept sneaking glances at her in the mirror.

“……”

Tang Yao sighed and shifted toward the window, letting the seat block his view.

Only then did the driver look away, though the amazement still lingered on his face.

“…Seriously, what the h*ll.”

Tang Yao stared out the window, fuming, especially after remembering the driver’s looks. She leaned forward, resting her forehead against the back of the seat, and muttered softly, “Why is this even happening…”

She’d been here for a week now, but honestly, she still didn’t fully understand her situation.

Rebirth? Didn’t feel like it—her gender didn’t even match.Transmigration? Kinda, but everything around her was oddly familiar.So maybe it was a parallel world?

But this parallel world was weird.

Mobile internet was just about to explode.Online gaming was taking off.Things were still super underdeveloped in some ways.At the same time, the domestic anime industry was complete.Print magazines still weren’t dead, even with the digital age looming.

Oh—and the country itself had this massive landmass that covered most of Asia…

Tang Yao couldn’t make sense of it, but she was definitely shocked.

Yep.

She didn’t belong to this world. At least, her soul didn’t.

When she first arrived, she resisted, complained, spiraled.But after going through the four stages—shock, denial, anger, and depression—she accepted it.She had to. Because if she didn’t work, she’d starve.

So she went and got a job.

Her position? Manga editor!

A job that hadn’t been well-known in her past life, and one she’d never done before.

After a week of painful adjustment and digging through the original body’s memories, she more or less figured out what the job required.

Then she realized: the job was actually pretty decent—

If only she didn’t want to die every day doing it. Because the job sucked.

She was a workhorse in her past life, and now she was a workhorse in this one too.

So… what was the point of transmigrating?

Tang Yao was already planning her resignation and escape.

But before that, she still had to finish this job.

No choice. Poverty forced her to swallow her pride.

Even if she didn’t want to, she had to walk out of that building.

Honestly, this whole situation was what bothered her the most.So much so that even her internal crisis over her gender seemed trivial compared to the hellish job of a manga editor.

And as for why she was so unhappy with it…

“Young lady, we’re here.”

The driver’s voice snapped her out of it.

Tang Yao sighed deeply, paid the fare, and got out.

She looked up at the high-end complex in the heart of the city and sighed again, then dragged her feet toward the entrance.

Ten minutes later.

Tang Yao arrived at Building C, 20th floor, the center of the entire complex, and rang the doorbell.

Even though she didn’t want to be here and her mood was heavy…

The moment she pressed the bell, she wiped the expression from her face and tried to look more confident.

Not that it worked.

Soon, with the sound of footsteps, the door opened.A man in his thirties, wearing round glasses and looking kind of stiff, appeared in the doorway.

The moment he saw Tang Yao, his eyes lit up. “Editor Tang!”

“…Assistant Li, sorry to bother you. Is Teacher Ou in?”

Tang Yao greeted him politely, then looked past him and got straight to the point. “I’m here to go over this issue’s storyboard.”

“……”

Assistant Li’s face changed the moment he heard that, his excited expression fading.

He turned around reflexively—

And immediately, a cranky voice came from inside.

“Li Jiang! Is it that female editor? If it is, tell her to get lost! I’ve eaten more salt than she’s eaten rice! What does she know about character development? Or storytelling? Or drawing!? She’s a damn outsider! Where does she get off, telling me my work isn’t good enough!?Tell her to scram, as far as possible!”

The angry voice wasn’t quiet.

Li Jiang heard every word.So did Tang Yao.

“……”

Li Jiang turned back around, clearly embarrassed, and looked at Tang Yao awkwardly, as if he wanted to say something but didn’t know how.

Tang Yao’s face was blank.

Yep.This was one of the reasons she wanted to quit.