Rejected by Haruno, Shizuka was feeling a little troubled. Looks like she could only ask Sonoko out.
Being an older single woman on weekends was really lonely. She also wanted a man to spend the weekend shamelessly together with.
"Sonoko, do you have time today? Let's drink!"
"Sure! I just happen to be free today."
As expected, there was resonance between older single women, Shizuka successfully asked Sonoko out.
The two older single women were so bored they didn't even want to wait until the evening. They ran off to a coffee shop in the afternoon to chat, preparing early for the night's drinking binge.
"Sonoko, congratulations on your promotion!"
Going straight from an intern editor to chief editor, without a doubt, it was a huge step. Shizuka was genuinely happy for Sonoko.
'Even if you couldn't find a man, having money wasn't bad either!'
"Getting promoted is nice, but the pressure is really high now."
Sonoko sighed. Her smile was happy but with a hint of bitterness. Her ability wasn't a problem, being the chief editor for Undead River was something she was fully qualified for, but the current workload was just too intense.
With the Suotome family's investment and resources, Undead River Bunko had a promising future.
Suddenly, Sonoko's phone rang. She glanced at the caller ID, and her expression changed immediately.
"Sorry, Shizuka, I need to take this call."
Shizuka nodded. She had no objections.
Sonoko answered the call. After chatting for a bit, her expression changed again, like she wanted to say something but didn't dare. She could only keep nodding.
"Okay, I'll definitely inform her. I understand clearly."
After hanging up, Sonoko looked somewhat conflicted.
"What's wrong?"
"The company's asking me to have one of my authors change their plot. I actually thought she had real potential."
"Why suddenly ask her to change the plot?"
"I don't know either. Maybe it's just a rich person's weird quirk…"
"I need to make another call."
———
Meanwhile, Kasumigaoka Utaha, who was madly typing on her laptop at home, was interrupted by the ringtone. Seeing it was from her editor, she immediately picked it up.
"Hello? Is this Editor Machida?"
"It's me. Utaha, do you have time?"
"Of course, I'm free right now."
It's here? Was her novel finally about to be published? Kasumigaoka Utaha's light novel had easily won the newcomer gold prize based on its plot and characters.
"The publishing side has decided to publish it, and a large amount of resources will be allocated, but…"
"But the parent company demands that you heavily revise the story. It must be changed according to their request."
"Why so sudden? Didn't it already win the gold prize?"
"…Utaha, do you know the Suotome family?"
Kasumigaoka Utaha's eyes widened. She understood what this was.
'It's over. The boss had come knocking!'
'Emergency! A character who hasn't even appeared in the novel is coming after me! I'm done for!'
"I know. What's the matter?"
"They're demanding that you revise your plot, and even insert a completely new female lead."
Sonoko felt a bit awkward saying it. For most creators, being forced to revise their stories was unacceptable.
After all, each work was the creator's heartfelt effort, no different from their own child.
"No problem! Of course, no problem! Whatever the client wants me to change, I'll change it! Even turning it into a single-female-lead story is fine!"
"Huh?"
Sonoko didn't expect Utaha to agree so quickly. 'Where's your creative pride as a writer?'
What she didn't know was, Kasumigaoka Utaha had based this novel on the people around her to begin with. There was no way she'd dare defy Ai Suotome's orders.
"Alright then. Since you're willing, that's good. I'll send over the plot change requests."
"Okay. I'll revise it as soon as possible."
"Once it's revised, the company will use its largest resources for promotion. Please take this seriously, Utaha."
After hanging up, Kasumigaoka Utaha let out a sigh of relief. If she'd known this would happen, she'd never have made Shin-chan the male lead.
She checked the plot change request Sonoko sent over and fell silent.
'Sorry, Eriri, Yukino, Megumi, and Sayuka, I was forced. I have no choice but to fulfill that young lady's twisted desires.'
In the newly revised plot, a yandere ojou-sama who was madly in love with the male lead had appeared, and all the other female characters were turned into her playthings…
'This had way too much déjà vu. Don't tell me this is going to become reality?' Thankfully, the one in the book was Sayuka and not herself, Kasumigaoka Utaha.
In reality, isn't she already rewriting her story based on that ojou-sama's wishes? Isn't that the first step toward becoming a plaything too?
'All I wanted was to write light novels! How did I end up in this brutal love war?!'
———
"Didn't expect today's youth to be so cooperative. I thought she'd resist."
"Making money is just normal."
Shizuka listened in on the general situation and understood what was going on.
"Sonoko, I have a friend… she's fallen for a much younger boy. What do you think she should do?"
"…"
Sonoko didn't expect the topic to shift that suddenly. Do you really have a friend like that?
"Younger guys are better! Youthful bodies, full of energy. If it's true love, she should boldly speak her mind."
As expected of older single women, their focus was just different.
"But my friend and the boy she likes have a huge status gap. It would never be accepted by society."
"…"
Sonoko's expression turned strange.
"Shizuka… don't tell me you've fallen for one of your students? That's a crime! Even if he's grown up, it's still wrong!"
"I already said it! It's my friend! Not me!!!"
A helpless, pale blue explanation. Sonoko's expression grew more complicated.
Should she seriously consider going on blind dates now? Shizuka's current state was kind of scary. She didn't want to stay single so long that she ended up on the road to criminal behavior.
"If it's your friend, then why are you so worried? Let your friend be the one stressing out."
"But Shizuka, if it's true love, then she can wait a few more years."
"I'm just worried for my friend!"
If she'd known it would go this way, she wouldn't have confided in Sonoko. It was giving her a headache.
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