I Was Just Background Art in a Comic, but Now I'm in the Spotlight

Senuma Marina took part in a large-scale manga project, and the manga in question was this very world.

Senuma Marina's role was to be a background character who patched up the manga.

Background characters are the sort that appear in all kinds of manga and have so few distinguishing features that no one would notice even if they had the same face.

They exist solely to enrich the story.

Though insignificant, background characters are essential to keeping the manga going.

And Senuma Marina was one such character. She had to make sure the manga followed its normal course and fulfill her unique role as a background character.

By day, she was an utterly ordinary high school girl, one of many at Namimori Middle School.

At night, she was one of the employees who prowled the Port Mafia's premises.

Every now and then, she transformed into a sorcerer and worked in a world hidden from sight.

"If you think this sounds cool, you're completely wrong," the girl said expressionlessly.

In Namimori, she had to show up beside the protagonist at all times, playing Passerby A, who mocked him; Passerby B, who watched and exclaimed; and Passerby C, who covered up drawing mistakes.

In Yokohama, she had to play Useless Subordinate A, who couldn't even hit the target; Cowed Subordinate B, who got chewed out by the boss; and Subordinate C, who got hit and fell over.

In between, she had to play Expendable Sorcerer A, who accepted missions; Background Curse User B, who worked under the villains; and Assistant Supervisor C, who patched up the manga.

Senuma Marina barely got any sleep each day and often got caught in the crossfire. Between high-risk environments and the time she spent cutting back and forth between her various day jobs, she also had to make sure she stayed safe.

Then, on an ordinary day, Senuma Marina made a mistake...

The "protagonists" noticed her.

Being noticed by the "protagonists" meant being brought into focus by the "manga." She had officially entered everyone's field of vision.

A character abruptly dropping out of the story for no reason would push the manga to the brink of becoming a total flop. To avoid arousing suspicion, she could only cut her sleep even shorter and race between the different sets.

As her popularity grew...

By day, she was the mysterious beauty at school who kept her identity hidden and appeared whenever the young Tenth Vongola Boss felt down.

At dusk, she was the silent sorcerer inexplicably recruited by Jujutsu High, who never took the cardboard box off her head, no matter how much the Six Eyes teased her.

At night, she was the most promising new "boy" discovered by a Port Mafia executive, wearing a black face mask.

Having leaped from a background character to a "celebrity" in the circles of three main characters, and now under constant scrutiny on the forums, Senuma's sleep was squeezed down to almost nothing...

Expressionless Senuma Marina flipped off her face mask and cardboard box. "I'm done with this job! Running between three different sets in one day and still not getting a raise!"

1. Includes lots of forum posts and live comments.

Theme: Survival of the fittest.