Lin Mu quickly decided on the theme for his story.
He wasn't planning to just straight-up plagiarize, but he could borrow some settings, plots, and storylines from excellent works.
After all, none of those works existed in this world, so becoming a Frankenstein mash-up to make some money wouldn't get him reported.
Lin Mu spent two hours writing an opening, then reluctantly stopped, still itching to continue.
The title of his book was: "The Romantic Comedy of Childhood Sweethearts and Senpai Is Problem-Free."
Heh heh, it was basically using Eriri's hidden identity as an erotic manga artist and Kasumi no Oka Shiyu's setup as a beautiful light novel senpai.
Then, the two beautiful girls form a game-making club at the male protagonist's request, competing with each other around him in a stock-trading romance comedy.
For a bit of twisted fun at the end, the protagonist ends up with a sudden random side character, turning the two heroines into losers who unexpectedly develop feelings for each other and go yuri from then on.
Uh... the more he thought about it, the weirder it seemed?
This would definitely get him flamed.
But black-and-red buzz was still buzz. He'd write the sour-sweet romance comedy first, make some money, and worry about the rest later.
As for that cheeky twist at the end, he'd save it for the final volume.
Besides, even if he wrote it, it might not get published—the editor's approval was another hurdle.
With the plot figured out, he didn't care if Eriri or the senpai would die of embarrassment seeing similar experiences and identities.
Next up: the author's name.
What to call himself?
Got it!
"How about Mu Se Tianqiong?"
There was no special reason for the name; it mainly came from being deeply moved while playing that game called Blazing Sky Dome.
Since this world lacked those famous works, it was time to use his memories to shake up the literary world.
Of course, his main goal was to shock beautiful girls, get close to them, and find opportunities to form contracts, increasing his familiars.
Right now, he only had one way to add familiars.
That was to get the other party to agree to let him do anything to them.
And that night, in her moment of self-abandonment, Shiina Mahiru had indeed agreed, so she became his familiar.
If it was just forced, the contract wouldn't take effect.
So, to add familiars, the best approach was a two-pronged attack on body and mind.
The Demon Cultivation Panel for familiars even had a hint.
By resolving Shiina Mahiru's little angel's heart knot and promoting harmony in the back garden, his Super Recovery Ability could improve again.
This pointed directly to his future growth path: he was destined to be a man of broad love!
While Lin Mu was scribbling away, preparing to shock the literary world...
Shiina Mahiru had just finished dinner.
After eating, the girl lay on her bed, looking at her phone.
Her contacts list only had two names.
One was her homeroom teacher, Kirisu Mafuyu's number.
The other was Auntie Yukino, the maid's.
She used to have her parents' numbers too.
But she'd deleted them.
They were useless; those two had never called her first.
Even when she called them, all she got was "I'm working" or "I'm busy."
They wouldn't chat with her for even a minute.
Her repeated hopes, her repeated disappointments—her heart, pretending to be strong, was already riddled with holes.
And yesterday, learning the truth about why her parents were cold to her had shattered her completely.
She'd started to give up on herself.
Shiina Mahiru felt like she was just an extra in that family. No matter how hard she tried to excel, in her parents' eyes, she was just an eyesore.
Since that was the case, she didn't want to go back to that home anymore.
But should she stay here?
She'd been living here fairly peacefully until now.
But thinking of the jerk next door, she showed a hint of conflicted expression.
Her feelings toward Lin Mu were complicated.
On one hand, she was annoyed at how he'd taken advantage of her vulnerability, claiming her while her mind was in shambles.
On the other hand, she inexplicably felt a sense of closeness to him.
Why was that?
"Was it because he said he cared about me back then?"
Thinking of that rogue's unusually passionate kiss, Shiina Mahiru's delicate little face heated up again.
The blush spread all the way to the roots of her ears, making her red-cheeked appearance even cuter.
"Pah, don't think about him! He's just a pervert!"
A normal high schooler, seeing a beautiful girl like her lost and sitting on a swing in the rain, would probably just hand her an umbrella.
But Lin Mu? He'd deliberately coaxed her into saying discouraging things, then without a word, carried her to his room and used her.
The more she thought about it, the more she saw him as a total jerk, her cheeks puffing up in frustration.
Since she'd taken the day off and skipped school, Shiina Mahiru spent a long, long time spacing out in her room.
Unknowingly, night had fallen again.
Lin Mu stretched lazily; he'd finally knocked out today's task.
The romance comedy with the tsundere golden-haired twin-tails and the black-stocking senpai was a third done. He'd continue the rest tomorrow.
He took a sip of water to moisten his throat, then went to Shiina Mahiru's door and knocked.
"Shiina, are you asleep?"
"..."
"Mahiru, are you asleep?" When she didn't answer, he switched to a more intimate address.
The next second, the door cracked open with a snap, and the girl appeared before him, cheeks puffed in anger.
"We aren't close enough for you to call me by my name yet, are we, Mr. Perverted Opportunist?"
Stung by her retort, Lin Mu chuckled awkwardly. "I thought you might've fallen asleep."
"Hmph, spit it out if you have something to say. I want to rest!" Shiina Mahiru only cracked the door, ready to slam it shut at any moment, clearly guarding against him bursting in.
"I can't sleep. I want to sleep with you..."
"Get lost! Pervert, I'm calling the cops!"
Shiina Mahiru shot back without mercy, her face flushing red as she quickly shut the door.
This jerk—bullying her that morning wasn't enough? Now he was harassing her at night too.
She hated him so much.
She had to move out. She absolutely had to!
Rejected at the door, Lin Mu wasn't upset.
Because Shiina Mahiru was already his familiar.
This bond could only be broken by one side's death.
So in his mind, Shiina Mahiru was already his future-wife material.
Being shut out by his wife? No big deal.
Her over-the-top reaction actually showed she cared a lot about the fact that they'd slept together.
That was a good sign.
Some things always started with a first time, then turned into countless times.
...