In late May, Aki Tomoya's body had a slight issue. To avoid infecting others, he later even wore a mask.
The sky was gray, and it was drizzling.
He did not stop his daily tutoring at the cram school because of his health.
The excessive concern from the people around him made Aki Tomoya flattered and helpless at the same time.
It wasn't a big problem in itself. He had been resting well recently and taking his medicine on time, so he wasn't pushing himself as hard as others thought.
However, when his body had an issue, Aki Tomoya suddenly realized that in the eyes of others, he seemed to have become an existence immune to all poisons and indestructible.
Perhaps no one expected him to have any problems, which is why people around him were so surprised when he was unwell.
He focused on preparing for the next mock exam. During this time, Furuhashi Fumino was still temporarily staying with Harumi Junko.
In Harumi Junko's words: "Unreasonable! He even gave me money! Is this why I'm taking care of Furuhashi Fumino?! Sit down properly and talk clearly with your own daughter!"
Is a University Professor very impressive?
Harumi Junko's Father graduated from Tokyo University, and her Mother is also from a prestigious private family. Her home is in a genuine wealthy area.
It's not that she looks down on that money, it's Furuhashi Fumino's Father's attitude that annoyed her.
At first, they could use the excuse that neither of them had calmed down yet, but two weeks have passed, it's already late May. He really just gave living expenses first and asked a Teacher to help take care of her!
Regarding giving money, Harumi Junko could see that the person still cared about Furuhashi Fumino, but if he was really worried, he should talk to her properly. It concerns the Father-daughter relationship, it concerns the daughter's future, so sit down properly and discuss to reach a conclusion!
In short, recently, what Aki Tomoya heard most from Harumi Junko was complaints.
Harumi Junko herself also learned a lot about the situation from Furuhashi Fumino during this time. After hearing that her Mother had passed away and she was slapped by her Father, Harumi Junko felt empathy.
On the day she failed to get into Tokyo University, when she told her Mother the news with a forced smile, Harumi Junko also received a slap.
"Choosing to avoid his own daughter, acting indifferent for so many years, is he still a competent Father?"
Harumi Junko's relationship with her Mother was not as exaggerated as Furuhashi Fumino's with her Father, but she also understood the pain of not being able to understand each other.
So, she decided that if Furuhashi Fumino's Father was so at ease, after the second mock exam ended, she would take the results and Furuhashi Fumino to find that person.
Next time it won't be a three-way meeting between the school, student, and parent. She decided to participate from the cram school's perspective and hold a four-way meeting.
"There are ten days left until the next mock exam. Everyone, please do your best!"
Because of Furuhashi Fumino's matter, the Teachers at the cram school seemed to have been ignited.
For the last two days of May, everyone was giving their all, sprinting towards the second mock exam.
...
At the end of the month, the busy people weren't just the students preparing for the mock exam.
For example, Machida Sonoko, at this point, really wanted to grab a knife and see which little brat was slacking off, and if they should be thrown into a dark room.
"Xia Shizi Teacher, you must submit your manuscript before the 10th of next month. We've already agreed, the new volume will be released next month!"
Inviting the author and the artist to the editorial department together, Machida Sonoko reminded them earnestly.
Slow work produces fine products, good things definitely take time.
But you must also pay attention to the time!
"I'm writing."
"How much?"
"Quite a bit."
"So, how much is it?"
"Anyway, it's quite a bit!"
Don't ask, if you ask, it means I'm writing!
Kasumigaoka Utaha didn't dare tell Machida Sonoko that she had actually only written the title.
She actually really wanted to start writing, but every time she put her hands on the keyboard, she felt like something was missing.
She also had the outline for the new volume and knew how to write it, but she was missing that little bit of feeling. She needed to cultivate it properly...
Machida Sonoko didn't want to ask any more questions. Actually, if it were possible, it would be great to prepare a dark room for all authors.
How great would it be if, besides sleeping and eating, all twenty-four hours were spent writing.
But that's not right, that's imprisonment, that's oppression!
She originally planned to remind them a couple of things, but just as Machida Sonoko was about to speak, she was called away for a meeting.
The entire editorial department suddenly became empty. Kasumigaoka Utaha and Eriri stayed bored in Machida Sonoko's office.
"Really, no matter how much you rush, a good work can't just come out instantly. Besides, I'm quite busy at University."
"Yeah, I just went to a hot spring last week."
"Writing still requires relaxing your mind."
Eriri smiled upon hearing this. Slacking is slacking, what's there to say?
However, from the perspective of a fellow creator, Eriri still strongly agreed with the situation where you couldn't start writing because you were missing that tiny bit of feeling before putting pen to paper.
"Speaking of which, you seem to be slacking off more than me, right?"
Kasumigaoka Utaha changed the subject.
"What do you mean by that? I'm very diligent. I've changed everything you asked me to change. According to you, weren't the illustrations for the color and black-and-white pages very satisfactory? On the contrary, why hasn't the main text come out from your end?"
She wasn't slacking off at all. Recently, besides drawing, she was just drawing. She drew at school, she drew at home, she was very diligent.
Looking at Eriri, who was proudly holding her head up, Kasumigaoka Utaha pretended to be calm and explained: "Once I'm ready, I can finish it in just one week!"
"Yes, yes, yes, what Xia Shizi Teacher says is absolutely right..."
Eriri replied perfunctorily, then lay on the table with a bored expression.
While Kasumigaoka Utaha had no way to deal with her, Eriri had already started thinking about other things: "It's been a week, and Aki Tomoya's body still hasn't fully recovered. Is he really okay?"
Her mumbling drifted into Kasumigaoka Utaha's ears. The latter asked: "Did you infect him with your foolishness?"
The other party's sentence made Eriri instinctively roll her eyes.
Eriri thought for a moment, then replied in a calm tone: "The girl you mentioned who wants to get into Keio, is she Furuhashi Fumino from Ichinose Academy? He said that person is more capable than you."
"...I don't know what you're talking about."
Kasumigaoka Utaha frowned slightly. The name Furuhashi Fumino wasn't unfamiliar, but she had only heard it before.
She knew Eriri wasn't talking about the same person as her, but she also didn't want to admit that her ability was inferior to others. Kasumigaoka Utaha couldn't help but retort: "Is there really? And are you mistaken about something? I was just telling you to be careful, I didn't mean anything else."
"Aren't you the one who's very concerned? The Sleeping Beauty of the Literary Forest, Ichinose Academy is much more valuable than our Toyosaki Academy."
"No, you're clearly trying to drag me down!"
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