Romantic Troubles of Duanmu-kun

“Tachiki-sensei, you seem to be in high spirits today. Did something good happen?”

“Hmm~”

The young man hummed a tune unconsciously while his fingers lightly flipped through the menu. This surprised the woman who had only ever seen him either drowsy and lethargic or frowning in displeasure.

“I’ll have this new bitter melon ice cream,” he said, handing the menu to the server. The Novelist smiled and replied, “Ah, it’s nothing worth mentioning. Perhaps I’m just feeling more relaxed lately.”

Indeed, that was all there was to it.

Long live peace!

Peace & Love!

Several weeks had passed since that chase across the entire Kanto region. He deeply felt the genuine happiness that could only come from a peaceful life.

“…You really are different today. I thought you only ordered carbonated drinks at restaurants, sensei.”

The editor recalled their previous dining experiences and let out a small sigh.

On the table lay an unopened book. The spine read Twilight’s Minerva with the author name “Tachiki Ryo.” This was the pen name the Novelist had created by splitting his real name after his official debut.

“Perhaps you’ll be able to accept this. Though I suppose it doesn’t matter if you don’t.”

Sitting across from him was a professional-looking woman with short hair and a sharp demeanor. The ID card hanging from her chest read “Utsunomiya Kei.”

Two blocks away from this family restaurant stood the headquarters of Gakutan Publishing, a subsidiary of the Bunkyou Publishing Group, where Utsunomiya Kei worked.

Gakutan Publishing was one of Japan’s most renowned and long-established publishing houses, which had published all of the Novelist’s previous works.

Utsunomiya Kei was the editor in charge of his works, and they had been friends for several years, maintaining a good relationship. The Novelist detected a note of displeasure in her tone and couldn’t help but worry.

“The publishing house has already decided to proceed with printing. These are the samples.”

“I’ve looked them over. There’s no problem. What’s wrong?”

“…The release date needs to be postponed.”

“Postponed? Why?”

“The promotional work conflicts with another new book that’s about to hit the market. Since the other author has sales in the millions…”

The Novelist couldn’t help but frown.

When he had signed the contract with Gakutan Publishing, there had actually been an agreement about this. The publishing house had promised to keep the release date clear and arrange for promotion.

“Can’t they be released together?”

“It seems the other side is unwilling. They probably think it would affect the promotional impact. Besides, the higher-ups have already agreed to this on their own. I’m really sorry, Tachiki-sensei. Though something like this has happened before…”

This decision had been made not only because of that person’s strong stance (even going so far as to threaten to “transfer the publishing rights to another publisher”), but also because Tachiki Ryo himself had previously willingly agreed to make way for a certain newcomer author’s debut work.

However, Utsunomiya Kei, who truly understood the Novelist’s personality, wasn’t so optimistic.

“Ah, if it were an excellent author like Shikiba-sensei, I’d have no problem at all. In fact, I was the one who suggested it back then, wasn’t I?”

The Novelist smiled.

“Come to think of it, it’s been a while since I’ve seen any new works from Shikiba-sensei… By the way, could I ask who this author with the upcoming book is?”

Utsunomiya Kei fell silent for a moment, then spoke with slight hesitation.

“…It’s Yazaki-san.”

The Novelist’s expression quickly darkened.

The editor noticed the atmosphere becoming tense and was about to say something when—

“Yazaki-san… you mean Yazaki Akira… that toilet paper manufacturer?”

And there it was—maximum toxicity right out of the gate!

“Um, well… Tachiki-sensei, isn’t that a bit harsh?” Utsunomiya-san said with a forced laugh.

“Yazaki-sensei’s novels are very popular with everyone, they don’t deserve to be degraded to…”

“What nonsense is this? If anything, toilet paper is more popular than books, but no matter how many people use it daily, its essential nature doesn’t change—it’s still garbage that gets flushed down the drain after use.”

“But… but there’s no need to rank novels like that…”

“Utsunomiya-san, you should understand this, shouldn’t you? Authors have always had different levels of skill, and the quality of their works varies too. Otherwise, there wouldn’t have been distinctions between ‘masterpieces’ and ‘mediocre works’ from the beginning, right?”

The Novelist glared at her with displeasure.

“The path of writing is essentially like an RPG game—it’s a process of constantly challenging monsters stronger than yourself and gaining experience and growth. Of course, if someone wants to simply enjoy themselves and stop halfway, no one will interfere.”

“But those cowards who are afraid of the monsters and dare not move forward somehow gather together and start arbitrarily mocking the heroes who journey alone to defeat the Demon King. Such people are absolutely worthless—”

“Enough! That’s enough!”

Thunk! The Novelist’s head received a blow from Utsunomiya-san.

“You’re going too far with these personal attacks! Besides, if words like these got out, it wouldn’t look good. Yazaki-san’s reader base is terrifyingly large, you know.”

“Hmph, they’re just a bunch of people who flock wherever the crowd goes— Ow ow!”

Another hit.

“Show some restraint. What authors want to write and what readers want to read are inherently contradictory. Facing reality and trying to sell more copies of your books wouldn’t hurt you.”

Then she changed the subject.

“By the way, Tachiki-sensei, do you have any ideas for your next work?”

“…”

The Novelist silently shook his head.

Come to think of it, Twilight’s Minerva had only been completed because of his encounter with Miyagi-san.

He thought about Yazaki Akira. Even if he disliked him and belittled his talent, he had to admit that the guy really knew how to write books that attracted attention.

This time, should I also try to learn how to write works that will be popular? The desire to have more people read their works is authors’ most fundamental wish.

As dusk approached, the Novelist returned to Amazu Manor. With a manuscript wrapped in brown paper in his right hand, he used his key to open his room’s door.

The sight that greeted his eyes made his expression turn peculiar.

For some unknown reason, Miyagi-san and Yayoi were intimately embracing each other while wrapped in a blanket, rolling back and forth across the tatami floor. They quickly rolled to the Novelist’s feet.