"Forget it, Kato-chan. Since she doesn't believe it, there's no need to force her. Let's go."
Shiro Sakamaki put down his coffee cup, gently took gumi Kato's hand, and left the café after paying the bill.
As they walked down the crowded street, gumi's face flushed slightly, but she didn't pull her hand away. Her quiet acceptance was answer enough.
An ice cream truck passed by them just as they turned a corner.
"Kato-chan, want so ice cream?" Shiro asked, pointing at the truck.
"Mm."
After getting their ice cream, they found a bench nearby and sat down. Only then did gumi speak.
"Shiro-kun, did Kasumigaoka-senpai really experience sothing supernatural?"
Shiro casually took a bite of his cone. "Yeah. But it's nothing too powerful."
"But if we just ignore it... sothing could happen to her, right?"
Shiro rolled his eyes. "What could possibly happen? It's just a newly awakened supernatural entity. I could destroy it with a breath."
"At least for the next few days, she'll only suffer from nightmares and fatigue. It won't be anything fatal—yet."
gumi nodded thoughtfully, focusing on her rapidly lting ice cream. The heat wasn't kind to sweet treats today.
"Kato-chan, do you know the na Kasumi Utaha?"
"Kasumi Utaha?"
"That's Kasumigaoka-senpai's pen na."
"Oh... she's really famous at our school. Everyone knows who she is."
Shiro thought about it and smiled. Kasumigaoka Utaha—along with Eriri—was one of the two most admired girls at Shuchiin Academy.
With her alluring figure, long black hair, sharp crimson eyes, and top-tier grades, she had a literary aura that drew everyone's attention. Her charm was unmistakable.
Her black stockings were iconic—just like Eriri's twin-tails and golden hair.
"It's a pity, really," Shiro mused. "She'll probably be showing up to school with panda eyes for a while. If you're curious, Kato-chan, you could check in on her."
gumi shot him a side glance. "I'm not into watching other people suffer."
"Alright, alright," Shiro grinned, popping the rest of his ice cream into his mouth. "I'm heading to the Fushikawa Fantastic Bunko next. Wanna co?"
gumi thought for a mont, then nodded. "Okay."
As the afternoon drew closer to rush hour, the roads beca congested. Shiro looked at the traffic and sighed.
"Taxi's a no-go. Let's take the tram—it'll be faster."
They bought tickets and waited at the tram stop. Before long, a tram screeched to a halt in front of them.
The crowd surged forward. Shiro used his tall fra to shield gumi, carving out a little space for her in the packed tram.
Even so, it was cramped. gumi ended up pressed lightly against Shiro's chest. She could hear his steady breathing and feel the warmth radiating from him, making her usually calm heart beat faster than usual.
When they finally disembarked, gumi let out a relieved sigh and patted her chest. "Phew... why was it so crowded today? It's not usually like this."
"It's the business district," Shiro replied as he wiped the sweat from her forehead. "The crowd here's a whole different beast."
They arrived at the Immortal River Library. Shiro, already familiar with the place, led the way upstairs to the editorial departnt.
Learning that Machida Sonoko was in a eting, they took a seat to wait.
After a while, Shiro grew curious and peeked into the eting room through the glass.
To his surprise, the person across from Machida wasn't another editor—it was Mitaka Jin from Sakurasou!
Shiro blinked. Didn't he write scripts? What's he doing at a light novel publisher?
Roughly thirty minutes later, the eting ended. Mitaka walked out looking deflated, a thick manuscript in his hand.
Shiro figured his work must've been rejected.
Their eyes t briefly. Mitaka scowled, clearly recalling the night Misaki hadn't co ho—sothing he apparently blad Shiro for.
But before either could say anything, Machida Sonoko lit up as she noticed Shiro.
"Teacher Sakamaki! You're here—co in!"
Shiro and gumi passed Mitaka at the door without a word.
Machida didn't even notice gumi was with him—her quiet presence as undetectable as ever.
The mont they sat down, Machida pulled out a contract, though her smile was tinged with faint irritation—likely the result of Yukinoshita Haruno's pressure. Shiro ntally gave Haruno a thumbs-up.
He skimd the contract quickly. He'd retain the rights to any future ani adaptations, and revenue would be distributed via sales dividends.
Editors could make suggestions, but creative control remained his. And then...
He paused.
The profit split was 60-40—with him getting the 60%.
How in the world...? Shiro didn't know what Haruno had pulled behind the scenes, but he wasn't about to complain.
He signed the contract with a contented grin.
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