— — — — — —
"Sis, why'd it take you so long to open the door? You promised you'd take me and Keika to the food stalls tonight. We're starving over here."
Taishi looked at Kawasaki with a pitiful expression.
Then, in an instant, he switched faces and beamed at Oikawa. "Oikawa-niisan, want to come with us? I heard there's a ramen stall there that's amazing. My sister's paying tonight. Free food is free food!"
Oikawa stared at the brat who had just ruined everything.
Then he glanced at Kawasaki, whose face was bright red.
Judging by her reaction, she'd probably prepared for this interruption before he even arrived.
Seriously. What happened to trust between people?
"H-He isn't coming. Let's go."
Kawasaki looked flustered, as if she was terrified Oikawa might keep her here. She immediately tried to make a retreat.
"Hold on. I'll grab a jacket and come with you. I'm suddenly hungry too." Oikawa spoke up without hesitation.
Taishi instantly brightened. "Great! Oikawa-niisan, I'll wait right here."
Kawasaki bit her lip and looked at him nervously. "W-Weren't you just eating?"
"I got hungry again, okay?" Oikawa snapped back. "After all that exercise today, am I not allowed to be hungry?"
"N-No..." Kawasaki lowered her head.
Oikawa went back into the room to grab his coat while Taishi quietly leaned toward his sister.
"Sis, did you two have a fight? He kinda looks mad."
"N-no. Don't make things up."
"Then why's your face so red, Sis? Do you have a fever?"
"N-no..."
Her voice grew softer and softer.
The lingering sensations still clinging to her body made her feel like her entire face was on fire.
"Jerk..." she muttered under her breath.
"Let's go." Oikawa came back out wearing his jacket.
As naturally as breathing, he reached for Kawasaki's hand.
She resisted for a moment, but eventually gave up and let him hold it.
Beside them, Taishi saw everything. The corners of his mouth twitched upward, but he wisely pretended not to notice.
Meanwhile, Kawasaki's head was practically hanging to the ground.
Tonight's moon didn't seem particularly round. Nor particularly bright. But the stars were everywhere, sparkling across the sky.
It was as if the moon had shattered into countless pieces and become those stars.
And Kawasaki... It felt like she had hidden herself among them.
...
..
After leaving home and picking up Keika, Oikawa headed to a nearby cluster of food stalls with the others.
Holding Keika's hand, he looked, from behind at least, like a doting father taking his daughter out for dinner.
"Keika-chan, what do you want to eat?" Once they arrived, Oikawa asked.
"I want takoyaki! And miso ramen!" Keika pointed excitedly at a takoyaki stall before looking up at him.
Oikawa smiled and nodded. "Okay. Go wait at the ramen stall first. I'll buy the takoyaki for you."
Then he turned to Taishi, "What about you?"
Taishi thought for a moment. "...Grilled chicken wings."
"Got it."
Finally, Oikawa looked at Kawasaki, who had been completely ignored ever since Keika arrived.
"I... I want chicken skewers."
"Copying me?"
"I am not. I just suddenly felt like eating it."
Oikawa chuckled and decided not to tease her any further.
He headed toward a nearby skewer stand alone.
"Here." Kawasaki hurried after him, holding out some money.
Oikawa lowered his voice. "The service fee from today was worth a lot more than this."
"I... I did that willingly." Kawasaki's face instantly turned red again.
"I'm doing this willingly too." Oikawa smiled, knowing she was referring to the food, not the kiss. Unlike him.
"...'
Kawasaki froze. Then, unable to think of anything to say, she fled back toward Taishi and Keika.
Keika frowned.
She looked at Oikawa.
Then at Kawasaki, whose face was still flushed.
Quietly, she asked Taishi, "Taishi-nii, did something happen between Saki-nee and Oikawa-niisan tonight?"
"Huh?" Taishi thought about it for a moment. "Did it? I don't think so."
"Idiot."
Keika clicked her tongue in annoyance, her frown deepening.
Something had obviously happened.
There was a certain sweetness around her. A strangely intimate atmosphere.
It was weird. Very weird.
Kyoka decided she would keep a close eye on things from the shadows.
She had watched plenty of Detective Conan episodes before—this kind of simple investigation was nothing for her. She was sure she could uncover the truth… and if needed, she could always just ask her mom.
...
..
The dreaded weekend finally arrived.
Oikawa got out of bed in despair. Got dressed in despair. Then went out for his morning run in despair.
After finishing ten kilometers, he returned home drenched in sweat. He rested for a bit, then took a shower.
Breakfast was chicken curry over rice, along with the pickled plums Kawasaki had brought over. They were unbelievably good and perfect with rice.
After breakfast, he tidied up the house.
Then he set off for Tokyo.
Today, he had to sign a full one thousand copies of the first volume of Clannad.
Without question, it was going to be a brutal task.
And after the signing session, he still had an interview with a video creator.
Fortunately, it would only be an audio interview. Oikawa had originally assumed he'd have to appear on camera, but Full-Drive Bunko had rejected that idea.
According to them, they wanted to preserve "Copycat-sensei" sense of mystery right up until the book signing event.
Oikawa had no objections. He didn't care whether his identity was revealed or not—it wasn't really important anymore.
...
When Oikawa arrived at Full-Drive Bunko's office building again, he made his way upstairs with practiced ease.
Chris Yamada had clearly been waiting for him.
"Oikawa-sensei, thank you for your hard work today. Once everything's finished, let's have dinner together. Then I'll arrange a car to take you back to Chiba."
Another company-funded expensive meal? Now that was a benefit worth appreciating.
Oikawa smiled and nodded. If there was corporate money to spend, he wasn't about to be shy about it.
After Chris led him into a reception room, Oikawa immediately began the endless signing marathon.
At an average speed of three books per minute, he worked through all one thousand copies of Clannad Volume One.
Not bad. Last time he'd managed only two books per minute.
His signing speed had improved considerably.
It wasn't that his hand speed was lacking. The real problem was that his pen name was a nightmare to write.
...
From eleven in the morning until nearly five in the afternoon, Oikawa signed nonstop.
When the final copy of Clannad in the room was finished, he collapsed into his chair.
That was it. No more signing for the rest of his life.
At least, that's how he felt.
Just thinking about the upcoming Clannad release event was enough to fill him with dread.
Looks like he'd need to start training his dominant arm even harder.
"Oikawa-sensei, thank you for your hard work." Chris walked in carrying some snacks. "Please take a break and have something to eat. We've already informed the interviewer and asked her to wait a little longer."
Sometimes being an author was genuinely exhausting.
"No need. Let's do the interview now. I don't like putting things off."
The sooner it was over, the sooner he could go home.
Right now, all Oikawa wanted was to complain to Kawasaki for a while and then get some rest.
"Understood. I'll make the arrangements." Chris nodded and stepped back out.
A few minutes later, an office lady entered alongside him.
Oikawa blinked.
He'd assumed the interview would be conducted online.
"Hello, Copycat-sensei. I'm Aono Madoka from 365 Days of Good Books. It's a pleasure to interview you, and thank you very much for taking the time."
Oikawa extended a hand and shook hers with a smile.
He had heard of 365 Days of Good Books before. Apparently it was backed by a major ACGN media company and had quite a large following.
"Hello. I'm Copycat Transmigrator. Nice to meet you."
Every time he introduced himself as "Copycat Transmigrator," it felt a little embarrassingly chuuni.
"If you're ready, Copycat-sensei, shall we begin the interview?" The woman was clearly professional. At the very least, she didn't waste time.
"Sure." Oikawa nodded.
"Then let's begin."
With a polite smile, Aono Madoka took out a voice recorder.
"Hello everyone, this is 365 Days of Good Books. Today, we're honored to welcome the rising new author Copycat-sensei for an exclusive interview."
"Copycat-sensei, would you like to say hello to everyone first?"
Oikawa wasn't nervous in the slightest. "Hello, everyone. I'm your favorite author of healing novels. I'm very happy to be here, and grateful for Miss Aono's interview. Aono, I can call you that, right?"
Aono Madoka froze for a moment before nodding. "Of course."
She had assumed Copycat-sensei would be shy and withdrawn, like most writers, requiring her to guide the conversation.
Apparently she'd misjudged him.
"First of all, congratulations, Copycat-sensei. According to incomplete statistics, the total sales of Your Lie in April have already exceeded one million copies, with each volume surpassing five hundred thousand copies sold."
"Which brings me to a question many readers are curious about. Copycat-sensei, why did you choose to leave Dengeki Bunko?"
That's a pretty aggressive opening question, isn't it?
Oikawa narrowed his eyes.
Outside the reception room, Chris frowned as well. That wasn't one of the agreed-upon questions.
Just as Chris was about to step in, Oikawa spoke first. "Life is a journey, isn't it? Dengeki was a beautiful stretch of scenery along that journey. It was the kind of place that made me want to stop and stay awhile. But no one can spend their whole life staring at a single view."
"The editors at Dengeki were wonderful to me. They looked after me, and they've never treated me the way some rumors online claim. I simply wanted to see a different landscape."
He paused, then smiled, "...Though maybe there was a little selfishness involved too. You know how writers are. We're a proud bunch. A lot of people in the industry think the success of Your Lie in April came from having a powerful publisher behind me."
"I just wanted to prove myself. That I'd succeed no matter where I went."
The smile on Aono Madoka's face deepened.
As someone in the industry, she knew perfectly well there had been friction between Dengeki Bunko and the young man sitting before her.
His answer had genuinely surprised her.
Perhaps... This was what people meant by grace.
Outside the room, Chris smiled as well.
The fact that Oikawa could answer like this in front of the media meant that even if he someday left Full-Drive Bunko, he wouldn't badmouth them either.
Talented writers were common enough. Talented writers with good character were much rarer.
"Alright, then let's move on to the question readers care about most. Is Clannad really a healing novel? I hope you'll answer honestly, Copycat-sensei. After all, thanks to certain past statements, readers aren't exactly known for trusting you these days."
Aono teased him playfully.
Recently, the internet had come up with a new nickname for him.
After "Old Bastard Copycat" came another title: "The Last Conscientious Author of the Healing Genre."
Needless to say, it was dripping with sarcasm.
"Of course, Clannad is a healing novel," Oikawa answered without hesitation.
"There are always two or three haters online claiming I lied to my readers. I admit it. Back then, I was immature."
"But now? I'm mature. Completely mature. I can place a hand on my conscience and tell every single reader that Clannad is a damn healing novel."
"I guarantee it with my conscience!"
Aono's smile became increasingly strained.
The more he insisted, the more it sounded like emotional devastation disguised as literature.
It was hard to believe this was the same calm, composed author from moments ago.
"Cough. Right... Well, readers should feel much more reassured now."
Several awkward minutes passed before she managed to continue.
If this had been a live broadcast, it would've counted as a serious on-air disaster.
Thankfully, it was only an audio recording.
She could always edit it later.
"..."
The interview continued.
Most of the remaining questions focused on writing and the creative process.
After all, 365 Days of Good Books wasn't aimed solely at readers. A fair number of aspiring authors listened as well.
Finally, the interview reached its conclusion.
Aono Madoka took a deep breath. This was the first time she'd ever felt so thoroughly led around by an interview subject.
Several times, Oikawa's bizarre train of thought had caught her completely off guard, making her forget entire sections of the questions she'd prepared.
"Then, one last question. I'd like to ask what kind of personal journey led you to become a writer."
She looked directly at him.
This was the question she was most interested in.
A seventeen-year-old high school junior. Why had he chosen the path of writing? And why had his debut been something as heartbreakingly emotional as Your Lie in April?
Could the rumors be true? Had Copycat-sensei suffered some kind of trauma? "The journey that led me to writing?"
Oikawa considered the question for a moment.
"Honestly, it's pretty simple. My original plan was to study hard, get into university, and live a normal life. Back then I stayed up late every night studying."
"Then one day I noticed an upperclassman. He spent all day messing around at school. Slept through class. Flirted with girls during breaks. Didn't care about grades at all. Later I found out he was a light novel author. His books sold fifty thousand copies per volume."
Oikawa sighed dramatically.
"At the time, I thought life was incredibly unfair. I was killing myself studying every day while that guy spent his time sleeping and chasing girls. I was jealous as hell."
"So I bought one of his books. Then I discovered it was terrible. Seriously awful. If writing that bad could sell fifty thousand copies a volume, I figured I could do it too."
"So I spent a month writing the opening of Your Lie in April. My plan was just to make some pocket money and enjoy life a little. Instead, I became famous overnight."
He spread his hands, "Tell me, isn't that infuriating?"
The moment he finished speaking, Aono Madoka completely lost her composure.
And outside the room, even Chris wore a strange expression.
After a long silence, he silently made a note to himself.
They should probably discuss this with the editing department later.
This answer absolutely could not be published.
He was genuinely worried that Oikawa might get mobbed by angry writers at his next signing event.
What they didn't know was that the truth would've made everything Oikawa just said sound tame in comparison. After all, one of the options he'd seriously considered before becoming a novelist was becoming a porn star…
Yeah, sometimes comparisons really do put things into perspective.
.
.
.