The morning session of the signing event proceeded in an orderly fashion. Hikigaya Hachiman had already signed more than three hundred books. He felt a slight soreness creeping into his arm, but he was confident he could hold out for a long time.
The attendees were, as predicted, mainly students. They were all remarkably polite and well-behaved, managing to restrain their excitement upon meeting their idol and causing no trouble for Hachiman.
After working non-stop for an hour and a half, Hachiman got his only short break of the morning.
"How are you holding up, Mr. Hachiman?" Naho Imamura asked, appearing at his side with a bottle of energy drink. "Can you still manage?"
"Don't worry, Editor Imamura," Hachiman replied, flexing his stiff fingers. "A man can't admit defeat."
"Sometimes, I really envy the physical fitness of young people like you," Imamura said with a sudden wave of emotion. "You're always so energetic, with endless possibilities."
"Speaking of which, Editor Imamura," Hachiman teased, "have you made any breakthroughs with your recent blind dates?" He knew her family had arranged several for her this year.
"I don't want to go on any more blind dates," she said with a distinct lack of interest. "They're all just a bunch of old guys, and none of them are anything like you, Mr. Hachiman."
Hachiman just shrugged, stood up, and stretched his body. He glanced out at the long queue of people and suddenly spotted a familiar figure. It was Hoshino Aqua, whom he had met a few days prior. He was talking to a girl behind him with the same bright, blond hair. That must be his sister, Hachiman thought.
He asked a staff member to invite the two of them over. Although Aqua looked a little surprised, he immediately followed the staff member, the girl in tow.
"Hello, Hoshino. We meet again," Hachiman greeted him with a smile.
"Hello, Hikigaya-san. This is my sister; you can just call her Hoshino Ruby. I brought her here to relax today," Aqua explained. When he looked at his sister, a hint of softness entered his eyes.
Oh, so he's got a sister complex, Hachiman complained silently in his head.
"Hello! Mr. Hachiman!" Ruby greeted him with boundless energy. "I'm Ruby Hoshino! I'll be attending the same high school as my brother this year!" Hachiman thought she had the perfect temperament for an idol. Considering Aqua's background, it was likely this Ruby was also heading into the entertainment industry.
"I have to get back to work soon," Hachiman told them. "If you two aren't busy today, you can wait in the lounge; the staff will take you there. At noon, I have something to discuss with you, Hoshino."
"Of course, no problem," Aqua agreed. "I actually came here today because I had something I wanted to ask you, Hikigaya-san. We'll excuse ourselves for now." He and his sister then followed the staff member toward the lounge.
Aqua's true purpose for coming today was to finally confirm Hikigaya Hachiman's identity. With that doubt eliminated, he had no more worries about securing the role of Watanabe Shuya. He wasn't lying about bringing his sister to relax, either. Through his own secret manipulations, his sister Ruby had failed an idol audition for another company and was currently quite depressed.
"I didn't expect that, brother," Ruby said with admiration as they walked. "It turns out you really do know Mr. Hachiman. I always thought you were just bragging to me." For those in the entertainment world, a content creator of Hikigaya Hachiman's level was highly respected.
"There's one more thing I didn't tell you because I couldn't completely confirm it before," Aqua confessed to his sister. "Now I can. Hikigaya, also known as writer Hachiman, once asked me if I would be interested in playing the role of Watanabe Shuya in Confessions."
At this, Ruby was shocked into silence.
"That," Aqua said finally, "is also the reason I ultimately chose to apply for the Performing Arts Department."
"So, have you decided to take the role, Hoshino?"
After finally ending the morning's autograph session, Hachiman invited Aqua out of the lounge to talk.
"I don't think any newcomer like me could refuse such an opportunity, and I'm no exception," Aqua admitted, a genuine smile finally appearing on his face. "I will go to the audition, Mr. Hachiman."
"Very good," Hachiman said. He gave Aqua a moment to think before continuing. "You should also know that Watanabe Shuya is the most important male character in Confessions, and also the most brilliant. If you can play him well, I think you'll even have a chance at winning a Best Supporting Actor award from a major film academy."
"However," Hachiman instructed, "you must make up for your lack of knowledge in acting and filming over the next few short months. After all, you'll be acting opposite some very famous people. I believe you have excellent talent, but you can't succeed in movies on talent alone." Considering Hoshino had claimed to have a high deviation score of 70, his ability to learn was undoubtedly very good.
"Thank you for your advice, Mr. Hachiman," Aqua promised firmly. "I will definitely improve myself. You can look forward to my performance."
"Hurry, hurry, it's five o'clock! The live broadcast is about to start! I heard there's going to be an important announcement at the venue today!"
"Why does Mr. Hachiman's book signing feel like a video game expo, complete with a new work announcement?"
"By the way, will Mr. Hachiman appear in the live broadcast?"
The chat in the live broadcast stream was buzzing with intense discussion.
Of course, Hikigaya Hachiman would not be appearing. He had just finished the last autograph and now stumbled into the lounge like a zombie.
"Please... find a way to carry me back home. I'm going to sleep first."
After saying this, Hachiman fell headfirst onto the sofa and instantly drifted into a sleep as deep as a baby's.
"Let's go out and watch the press conference first. We can let him sleep here alone for a while," Yukinoshita Yukino suggested. Everyone agreed and left the room.
Soon after, two familiar figures returned to the lounge, entering from two different directions.
"Is this the only sneaky thing you can do now, sister?" Yukinoshita Yukino asked coldly.
"Hehe, it seems we're the same in this regard, Yukino," Haruno said proudly, draping her coat over the sleeping Hikigaya Hachiman.
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