Aihara Eriko is a poor girl who dreams of going to art school and becoming a wealthy artist. She always loved drawing as a child and when she realized you could earn money by it, she made becoming an artist her life’s ambition. Things aren’t all that easy for her though. Eriko’s stepfather died and debtors came knocking and taking all of their possessions and money. Eriko’s mother had some money secreted away and gave it to her daughter to start a new life at university in Tokyo. Eriko moves there where she encounters exacting professors, con artists, and rich students who just don’t understand what it means to be poor. Can Eriko survive this new environment or will she give up on her dream?