Ugh, I'm beginning to think one of the requirements of becoming a mangaka is having a fetish for love triangles. They happen in virtually every fucking romance manga even though I've only seen it happen once in real life.
@Ohgodpleaseno It's actually something media publishers like to do in general. Authors get told ALL THE TIME that romance adds to the drama and draws people in. You even get this in the west where authors are even told to add in romance when there isn't one planned. So it's the norm to shove in romance drama. They think it sells. This author is probably thinking in a similar manner.
@Hitspark I don't mind the drama per se, but it seems like the only way authors achieve this (at least in this genre), is to introduce a new character solely for the purpose of creating a love triangle. There are plenty of other ways of creating dramatic tension to draw people in, especially when the readers are already invested in the existing relationship.
I think of all the romcoms where the MCs have a stagnant relationship, no progress over 100 chapters. That's where a love triangle is necessary! This...this one just hurts =_=