"Good morning, Eriri~"
Seeing the familiar person in the familiar spot, Shirai Mio greeted Eriri with a bright smile.
Eriri glanced at her and said, "You seem to be here a little earlier than usual today."
"We only ever happen to run into each other here by coincidence every day, so why would Eriri think I'm early today?"
Shirai Mio's words made Eriri realize that she had apparently let something slip. Her face reddened as she stammered for a while before finally saying, "Um, because I came early today. I thought I wouldn't run into you, but somehow I still did. Maybe this is what people call an ill-fated connection."
Faced with such a flimsy excuse, Shirai Mio merely chuckled and did not call her out on it.
But when Eriri saw the smile on Shirai Mio's face, she realized Mio had already seen straight through her excuse.
Since Shirai Mio did not say anything, Eriri simply pretended she knew nothing and decisively changed the subject. "By the way, your novel goes on sale today, right?"
"I think so?" Shirai Mio answered with some uncertainty. Then she rubbed her chin and thought seriously for a moment before finally nodding with confidence.
Shirai Mio's reaction left Eriri speechless. Had this white-haired little bitch seriously forgotten the release date of her own novel?
"I remember saying I'd give you a copy before. Let's go buy one together after school this afternoon."
"Didn't your editor send you any copies?"
"They did, but I haven't received them yet. Besides, since the novel is finally on sale, I want to go to a bookstore and see how it's doing."
Just then, Shiina Mashiro tugged at the hem of Shirai Mio's clothes and said, "I want to go too."
"No problem."
Looking at Shiina Mashiro pressed close against Shirai Mio, Eriri pursed her lips in displeasure. It would have been nice if it could be just her and Shirai Mio again like yesterday.
It was not that she wanted to spend time alone with Shirai Mio. She simply wanted to discuss some doujinshi-related topics with her, that was all.
With Shiina Mashiro there, Eriri could not talk about that kind of thing at all.
Mm. Exactly. That was all.
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That afternoon, after club activities ended.
Shirai Mio, Shiina Mashiro, and Eriri left school together and headed straight for a nearby bookstore.
Before long, the three reached the entrance. They had not even gone inside yet, but Shirai Mio had already spotted a poster for Honkai displayed by the door.
Eriri naturally noticed the poster as well.
"Fight for All That Is Beautiful in the World!" Eriri repeated the slogan on the poster. Then she looked at the Main Trio pictured there. She honestly could not tell what kind of story the novel was supposed to be, though the poster Shirai Mio had drawn was quite pretty.
"So what kind of story is your novel actually about?"
"Don't rush. You're already here. Once you read it, you'll know."
Hearing that, Eriri nodded lightly and went into the bookstore first.
Perhaps because it was a new release, Honkai had been placed on a very prominent shelf, and quite a few people were gathered nearby.
After all, it was a work that had previously been entered for a major award, so having some existing fans was only natural.
Shirai Mio walked up to the shelf and picked up five copies. Three were for herself, and she handed one each to the two girls beside her, padding her own sales a little.
After paying, Shirai Mio handed one of the copies to Eriri with a smile.
Taking Shirai Mio's novel, Eriri felt that Mio's smile looked somehow different from usual. There was a little less of her usual infuriatingly bitchy air and a little more unmistakable schadenfreude.
Although it felt a bit strange, Eriri did not dwell on it. Right now, she only wanted to get home as soon as possible and see exactly what kind of story Shirai Mio had written.
Before long, the three reached the area near the Sawamura Residence. Shirai Mio waved to Eriri and said, "Then I'll head home first. Remember to tell me what you think after you finish it."
"Got it."
Eriri casually waved back, then turned and went home.
Her mother still had not returned today. Eriri made herself some instant noodles, then took out Shirai Mio's novel and started reading.
Before she knew it, it was eleven at night.
Eriri closed the novel and gently rubbed her eyes.
She had carefully finished the first volume of Honkai. At first glance, nothing seemed particularly strange about it. It felt like a classic story about beautiful girls saving the world.
There were also plenty of Yuri Elements. She had to admit that the novel handled emotions with remarkable delicacy. Even Eriri found herself completely absorbed, and she reread some scenes several times.
It was just that the massive worldbuilding and all the foreshadowing gave Eriri an ominous premonition.
Still, if the story followed the usual formula, there should not be any problems… right?
Meanwhile, at Shirai Mio's home.
She had also finished reading the novel she wrote. After all, she had written it based on her memories from before transmigrating. Even with the System's boost, there were still inevitably some differences compared with the original. Shirai Mio had really wanted to add some heartbreaking developments to the first volume, but doing so would have left the emotional buildup insufficient.
So in the first volume, Shirai Mio focused on establishing the world and laying the emotional groundwork, along with planting plenty of future hooks.
In fact, Shirai Mio had already written the second volume. She simply had not finished polishing all the details yet, so she could not hand it over to her editor.
Besides, there were still a few things she needed to prepare.
Pulling her wandering thoughts back, Shirai Mio stood up and stretched lazily before turning and leaving her room.
When she reached Shiina Mashiro's room, she immediately saw Mashiro lying on her stomach on the bed reading the novel, idly kicking her pale little feet up and down behind her. It was obvious that she was in a very good mood.
Noticing Shirai Mio approach, Shiina Mashiro finally shifted her gaze away from the novel and looked at her.
"Stop reading. It's time for bed."
"Almost… finished." After seeing Shirai Mio sit down beside her, Shiina Mashiro propped herself up, kissed Mio on the cheek, and then turned her attention back to the novel.
Caught off guard by the sudden kiss, Shirai Mio blinked, then smiled helplessly and simply lay down on Shiina Mashiro's bed. At this point, she no longer felt like lecturing her. Besides, she rather liked this kind of thing herself.
The only question was… was it really okay for things to keep going like this?
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