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Chiyoda City - Inside a high-end apartment.
Utaha Kasumigaoka slumped on the couch, listlessly scrolling through light novel reader forums, hoping to find even the tiniest mention of Love Metronome.
Unfortunately… Nothing.
Just then, a message popped up. It was from her editor, Sonoko Machida.
"Utaha, don't be too upset. Poor first-day sales don't mean it'll stay that way."
Utaha only replied with a single word, "Mm."
She wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone right now.
Of course… there was one exception.
But today, Utaha had decided she wouldn't message first. Staring at the Oikawa avatar on her phone, she muttered stubbornly, "If you don't talk to me now, I'm never talking to you again."
The moment she said it, she laughed.
Ding!
Her phone chimed suddenly, and Utaha grabbed it at once.
A red notification badge had appeared over Oikawa's icon.
He'd sent something.
"Well… I guess I can talk to him today." Somehow, she didn't feel quite as depressed anymore.
She tapped the icon.
It was a video from Oikawa Toru.
When she opened it, the Reverse Psychology-Key & Peele comedy skit filled the screen. Her attention immediately locked onto the performance.
As the video played, Utaha couldn't stop laughing.
"So funny… Senpai really exceeded my expectations."
After it ended, she watched it again. This time, she noticed something different.
"It feels like… the girl next to Oikawa-Senpai had a weird look in her eyes."
Just then, another message arrived.
"Unfortunately, we only got third place. The first and second prizes were too strong this year. One was a symphony orchestra formed by alumni, and the other was our school's wind ensemble."
Utaha forgot her earlier suspicion and happily started chatting with him.
"That's already amazing. Your performance really lifted my mood. But I read in your interview that you were going to sign a contract with Dengeki Bunko yesterday. I get it now… you signed it without telling me, didn't you?"
Reading her reply, Oikawa could practically feel the killing intent.
This woman was a master at setting traps. A blade hidden behind a smile.
"I signed it online. I've been busy with the school anniversary stuff lately. Dengeki couldn't wait, so we just finalized an electronic contract."
The school festival preparations had indeed kept him swamped, so he signed online. The terms were already mostly negotiated anyway.
Just like he'd proposed earlier. If the second volume of Your Lie in April sold under one million copies: 6% royalties. Once sales exceeded one million: 25% royalties. Time limit: one year.
If the second volume really broke one million copies, then: 1,000,000 × 850 × 0.25 = 212,500,000 yen.
All or nothing. Go big or go home.
Oikawa had already started planning how to push the second volume past a million within a year.
It wouldn't be easy.
But that difficulty only made his blood pump faster.
"Senpai, I've always wanted to ask… what exactly happened between you and Dengeki Bunko? The first volume sold so well. Why wasn't there any promotion?"
Utaha was full of doubts.
"You'll know on release day."
Oikawa had no intention of revealing the answer now. There was only one week left until October 6. The real show was about to begin.
"Tch. So mysterious."
Utaha pouted. Just as she was about to tease him again, Sonoko Machida suddenly called.
After a brief hesitation, Utaha answered.
The moment the call connected, Sonoko's excited voice burst through the speaker.
"Utaha-chan, you actually know Oikawa-sensei?! Why didn't you tell me earlier? I've wanted his autograph forever! I bought several copies of Your Lie in April last time and still couldn't get a signed one! How can you be this heartless?"
Utaha froze.
Still, she instinctively denied it. "Sonoko-san, you must be mistaken. I don't know Oikawa-sensei."
She had no intention of telling anyone she knew Oikawa.
There was a long pause on the other end.
"…Utaha, why don't you check Oikawa-sensei's Twitter first?"
Utaha blinked, suddenly thinking of something.
She quickly hung up, opened Twitter, and tapped her notifications.
Soon, a new tweet appeared.
{"On my way home after school, I happened to find a sweet romance light novel at the bookstore. It's called Love Metronome. And the author's a very beautiful girl…"}
{"…Alright, no more pretending. I'll just say it."}
{"Massive shout-out to Love Metronome by 'Utako Kasumi'-sensei. Go buy it. If it's bad, you can roast me all you want after the second volume of Your Lie in April releases."}
Below it—
Hundreds of comments had already piled up.
["So Dengeki Bunko won't promote your Volume 2, and you're out here promoting someone else's new book?"]
["If it sucks, I'm coming for you."]
["Be honest. Did you make some shady backroom deal with this female author from Fujikawa Fantastic Bunko?"]
["Oikawa-sensei actually knows a Fujikawa author? Damn… I have a conspiracy theory."]
["Post her photo, Oikawa-sensei. I've seen plenty of beauties, I'll judge for you."]
Most of the comments were playful teasing directed at Oikawa, but quite a few readers also said they'd check out the romance novel Love Metronome.
As Utaha kept reading…
She didn't know why, but tears suddenly fell.
Was it the frustration from Fujikawa's lack of promotion?
Or the despair from seeing no one buying Love Metronome?
Or maybe… she was simply moved.
Or perhaps, it was because she liked him.
...
..
The autumn break finally arrived. But Oikawa was woken up early anyway.
Editor Ayame Kagurazaka was calling.
"Oi, oi, oiiiiii!"
"Oikawa-kun, I heard you're collaborating with Fujikawa? Tell me that's not true."
"Hello? Hey, say something—"
"Waaah, you can't abandon me! My first author with a shot at a million sales, my Oikawa-kun! You can't just take my heart and then heartlessly abandon me for someone else… awooo…"
Oikawa muted the call, and Kagurazaka's wailing instantly vanished.
Peace returned to the world.
A minute later, when he figured she'd vented enough, he turned the volume back on.
He yawned, then explained, "Nothing like that. That 'Utako Kasumi' is in the same online group as me. We've known each other for a while."
Even if he were to collaborate, Oikawa wouldn't pick Fujikawa.
Too small.
The entire Fujikawa label only had one author who'd broken a million copies, and that was thanks to a manga adaptation.
And judging from Utaha's experience, their financial backing wasn't particularly strong either.
"That's great, that's great!"
Kagurazaka let out a long sigh of relief.
When she saw all those rumors online, she really thought Oikawa was about to jump ship.
"Oikawa-kun, once Your Lie in April Volume 1 hits 500,000 copies, you can update your contract to a 10% royalty rate."
"And with your ability, as long as you perform normally, the title of top-tier author is right in front of you."
Hearing Kagurazaka paint such a rosy picture, Oikawa picked at his ear, unconvinced.
Wait until Volume 1 reaches 500,000 copies? By then, he'd probably have already written Overlord or some other novel.
And honestly, while the editor-in-chief's decision regarding Volume 2 was understandable, it still left a lingering discomfort in Oikawa's mind.
Sometimes, perspective changes everything.
From the editor-in-chief's standpoint, maximizing profit for Dengeki Bunko came first.
But Oikawa wanted them to trust him more.
Well, nothing in life is permanent. Oikawa had already started preparing to work with other publishers.
Several major ones were on his radar.
Fujimi Fantasia Bunko and Kadokawa Bunko were his top choices.
Backup options included FULLDRIVE Bunko and a few lesser-known publishers that had strong anime adaptation channels.
"Oikawa-kun."
Kagurazaka's tone turned serious. "For the release of Volume 2… you should prepare yourself. Readers probably won't hold back."
.
.
.