Lin Mu quickly decided on the theme he was going to write about.
He didn't plan to be a direct plagiarist, but he could borrow the settings, situations, and plots of some excellent works. Since those works didn't exist in this world anyway, he wasn't afraid of being called out for creating a "Frankenstein's monster" of a story just to make some money.
Lin Mu spent two hours writing an opening before stopping, still feeling unsatisfied.
The title of the book he was writing was: "There's No Problem with My Childhood Friend and Senpai's Love Story."
Heh heh, it was a mashup using the secret identity of the ero-manga artist from Eriri's background and the beautiful light novelist senpai from Utaha Kasumigaoka's. Then, at the male lead's request, the two beautiful girls establish a club to create a game, starting a romantic comedy where they compete over him, sparking a "shipping war."
To add a devilish twist at the end, the male lead would end up with a suddenly-appearing side character, turning both main heroines into "losing dogs." They would then find solace in each other's company and end up in a yuri relationship.
Er... why does this sound weirder the more I think about it?
Writing it this way would definitely get him flamed.
However, infamy is still a form of fame. For now, he would just write a sweet-and-sour romantic comedy to make some money. As for the wild plot twist at the end, he'd save that for the final volume. Besides, even if he wrote it, there was no guarantee it would get published; he still had to get past the editor.
Having decided on the plot, he didn't care if Eriri and the senpai would die from social embarrassment upon seeing the similar experiences and character settings.
Next up was the author's name.
What should he call himself?
Got it!
"I'll just go with 'Mu Se Tian Qiong' (穹蒼慕色 - Azure Sky's Admired Hues)."
There was no particular reason for choosing this name, other than being incredibly moved when he previously played a game called Heaven Burns Red (炽焰天穹).
Since those famous works didn't exist in this world, it was time for him to use his memories to deliver a shock to this world's literary scene.
Of course, his main objective was to shock the beautiful girls, create opportunities to get close to them, and find chances to form contracts and increase his number of familiars.
Currently, he only had one method of gaining familiars.
And that was to get the other person to agree to let him do anything he wanted.
That night, Shiina Mahiru, in her despair, had truly agreed to his terms, which was why she became his familiar. If it was just a matter of using force, the contract would not have taken effect.
Therefore, to increase his number of familiars, it was best to use a two-pronged approach, targeting both the body and the mind.
There was also a hint in his demon development familiar panel.
Only by resolving Little Angel Shiina Mahiru's inner turmoil and promoting a harmonious backyard harem could his Super-Recovery ability be upgraded again.
This clearly laid out his future path of growth. He was destined to be a man of universal love!
While Lin Mu was writing furiously, preparing to shake the literary world, Shiina Mahiru had just finished her meal.
After eating, the girl lay on her bed, looking at her phone.
Her contact list only had two names.
One was her homeroom teacher, Kirisu Mafuyu's phone number. The other belonged to her maid, Auntie Koyuki.
Her father's and mother's numbers used to be there.
She had deleted them.
There was no point in keeping them. Those two had never once taken the initiative to call her. Even when she called them, all she got was a reply of "I'm working," or "I'm busy." They wouldn't spare a single extra word for her.
Her expectations were dashed time and time again, and her heart, which pretended to be strong, was already riddled with holes. Learning the truth behind her parents' indifference yesterday had caused her to break down completely and give up on herself.
Shiina Mahiru felt like she was a superfluous presence in that house. It turned out that no matter how hard she tried to be outstanding, she was still an eyesore in her parents' eyes.
Since that was the case, she didn't want to go back to that home anymore.
But, should she stay here?
Originally, her life here had been quite peaceful. But thinking of the scoundrel next door, a conflicted expression appeared on her face.
Her feelings for Lin Mu were very complicated.
On one hand, she was furious at him for taking advantage of her vulnerability, for taking her when her mind was shattered.
On the other hand, she felt an inexplicable sense of intimacy towards him.
Why was that?
"Is it because he said he cared about me back then?"
Thinking of that scoundrel and his unusually fiery kiss, Shiina Mahiru's delicate little face grew hot again. A crimson blush spread all the way to the roots of her ears, making the red-cheeked Shiina Mahiru look even cuter.
"Pah, I forbid myself from thinking about him! He's just a pervert!"
A normal high school student, upon seeing a beautiful girl like her sitting dejectedly on a swing in the rain, would probably have offered her an umbrella.
But Lin Mu?
He deliberately lured her into saying words of despair, and then, without another word, carried her to his room and used her.
The more she thought about it, the more Shiina Mahiru felt he was a scoundrel, and her cheeks couldn't help but puff up.
Since she had taken the day off and didn't go to school, Shiina Mahiru spent a long, long time just spacing out in her room. Before she knew it, night had fallen again.
Lin Mu stretched his back, having finally completed his task for the day. He had written a third of the romantic comedy about the tsundere blonde with pigtails and the black-stockinged senpai. The rest could wait until tomorrow.
After getting a drink of water to soothe his throat, Lin Mu went to Shiina Mahiru's door again and knocked.
"Shiina-san, are you asleep?"
"..."
"Mahiru, are you asleep?" When she didn't answer, he brazenly switched to a more intimate form of address.
The next second, the door cracked open with a pa, and the girl appeared before him, puffing her cheeks in anger.
"I don't think we're close enough to be on a first-name basis, Mr. Perverted-Opportunistic-Man."
Being rebuked like that, Lin Mu gave an awkward smile. "I thought you were asleep."
"Hmph, if you have something to say, say it quickly. I'm going to rest!" Shiina Mahiru only kept the door open a crack, clearly ready to slam it shut at any moment to prevent him from suddenly barging in.
"I can't sleep, I want to sleep with you..."
"Get lost! You pervert, I'm calling the police!"
Shiina Mahiru rebuffed him without a shred of courtesy, her face beet red as she immediately slammed the door shut.
That jerk! Bullying her like that in the morning wasn't enough, and now he was harassing her at night. He was the absolute worst.
I have to move. I absolutely must move!
Being shut out didn't anger Lin Mu.
Because Shiina Mahiru was already his familiar. This was a relationship that could only be broken if one of them died. So, in his heart, Shiina Mahiru was already his future-wife-material wife. Being shut out by his wife was not a big deal.
The fact that she reacted so strongly actually proved that she cared a lot about having slept with him.
This was a good thing.
Some things in life always follow the pattern of a first time, and then countless more times after.