Michiya Gōshin dragged his slightly heavy steps back to the apartment. Opening the door, he was greeted by an expected silence.
At the entryway, that pair of creamy-white soft-soled slippers belonging to Kurokawa Akane were neatly arranged, yet the beauty herself was nowhere to be seen.
The air was filled with the clean scent of the apartment itself. She had sent a message in advance, informing him that the theater troupe was conducting a long, closed-door dress rehearsal for an upcoming important performance tonight, and it likely wouldn't end until late at night.
Michiya Gōshin took off his coat, which still carried the slight chill of the outdoors, and carefully hung it in the coatroom.
He rubbed his temples, which felt a bit swollen, and exercised his facial muscles, stiff from maintaining a stage smile for so long.
The dense schedule had already begun to operate at high speed, allowing him no respite. Two days later, there was another promotional event in a major domestic city. A week later, he would have to cross the ocean to travel to Shanghai in Xia Country for overseas promotion.
Interspersed within this period were pre-scheduled magazine cover shoots, high-end brand endorsement activities, and the initial affairs regarding the future development of [Star Engine] that he had to distract himself to handle.
This kind of high-intensity operation was the ultimate test of a person's energy and time management capabilities.
Walking to the open kitchen, Michiya Gōshin poured himself a glass of warm water and leaned against the counter, sipping it slowly.
After a moment of emptying his mind, Michiya Gōshin walked into the study.
He sat down at the large desk, the ergonomic chair making a slight sound as it bore his weight. He pressed the computer's power button, and the screen lit up. The faint blue light reflected on his chiseled face, revealing a trace of exhaustion, yet highlighting his focus even more.
He first glanced at his System Panel.
[Production Queue 1: Arrangement Mastery (Green)]
[Experience: 55/100]
[Production Queue 2: Advanced Research]
[Experience: 78/100]
Because he had become lovers with Kurokawa Akane and had also generated quite a few entanglements with Sakurajima Mai, the Entry Experience for [Advanced Research] was almost full.
[Junior Novelist (Green)] + [Tireless Writer (Green)] + [Advanced Research (Green)] = [Bestselling Author (Purple)]
Once he successfully obtained the [Bestselling Author (Purple)] Entry, it would be time to polish the story of The Wind Rises and then prepare for its publication sales.
Next, he clicked open another folder marked with an asterisk.
These were the lyrics for Zenzenzense, the theme song Michiya Gōshin was preparing for the animated movie Your Name.
[Are you finally awake?]
[Then why don't you make eye contact with me?]
[You angrily complained 'It's too late,' but I have run here with all my might to reach your side.]
[My heart arrived in front of you even faster than my body.]
[Just seeing the tips of your hair and your eyes makes my chest ache faintly.]
[I want to breathe in the same space-time as you, unwilling to be separated.]
[Hearing that voice I've known by heart since the distant past.]
[For the first time in my life, what should I say?]
[I have been searching for you since your previous-previous-previous life.]
[Chasing your clumsy smile, I finally found you.]
[Even if you disappear and turn into fragments.]
[I will not be lost; I will start searching again from scratch.]
[Or rather, let's reset the entire universe to zero and set off again!]
Michiya Gōshin repeatedly read these lyrics flowing from the bottom of his heart in silence, his fingertips unconsciously tapping a rhythm lightly on the desk surface.
Although the lyrics were done, for the arrangement, he had to wait to acquire the [Arrangement Mastery] Entry. After all, that was the true key.
Just then, a somewhat hurried knocking sound, yet one carrying a certain unique rhythmic sense—knock knock knock—rang out, breaking the silence of the apartment and interrupting his train of thought.
Michiya Gōshin frowned slightly. At this point in time, who could it be?
Akane had a key, and she should still be at rehearsal.
He stood up and walked to the entryway. He didn't open the door immediately but habitually looked out through the peephole. He discovered that the person standing outside was actually Kasumigaoka Utaha, whom he hadn't seen for a long time.
Michiya Gōshin suppressed the surprise in his heart, turned the doorknob, and opened the door.
Kasumigaoka Utaha's state outside the door truly startled him.
She was still wearing a long black dress, with a beige cashmere cardigan—which looked soft in texture but slightly oversized—draped casually over it to ward off the night's chill.
Kasumigaoka Utaha's long black hair, usually combed meticulously, appeared somewhat frizzy and fluffy at this moment. Several disobedient strands stuck up casually or clung to her cheeks, carrying a kind of lazy, messy beauty.
On that beautiful face of hers, which usually carried a hint of languor, heavy fatigue now dominated. The dark circles under her eyes were as rich as splashed ink, and her complexion lacked color, presenting a pallor bordering on transparency.
However, the most striking thing was her pair of beautiful crimson eyes, which were unusually bright at this moment, forming a stark contrast with her physical exhaustion.
She was tightly hugging a printed stack of manuscripts in her arms, as if holding some rare treasure. Her embracing arms caused her knuckles to turn slightly white from the force.
"Good evening, Michiya-kun."
Kasumigaoka Utaha spoke. Her voice carried the hoarseness and dryness of long-term sleep deprivation, but her tone revealed a peculiar high spirits mixed with the collapse after completing a magnum opus.
"I finished the first draft of Crying Out Love, in the Center of the World. Do you want to take a look?"
Michiya Gōshin turned sideways to let her in, his brows knitting even tighter. "Kasumigaoka-san, you..."
He closed the door, his tone carrying unconcealed concern.
"Did you stay up all night? The way you look right now, you're almost like a soul leaving its body."
Kasumigaoka Utaha waved her hand indifferently. She walked straight to the living room and slammed that heavy stack of manuscripts onto the glass coffee table with a thud, making a crisp sound.
Subsequently, the girl herself seemed to finally unload a burden of a thousand pounds, or perhaps she had used up her last sliver of battery power. She slumped into that soft, spacious sofa, letting out a long sigh.
"It's okay. Still a little bit away from soul projection."
She raised her hand to forcefully rub her stinging temples. Her tone carried a sense of collapse, yet strangely mixed with high excitement.
"For these past ten-plus days, I've basically been holding on by relying on convenience store coffee, energy drinks, and willpower that was about to snap."
"Hmm... on average, I probably slept about... three to four hours a day? I can't remember clearly."
As Michiya Gōshin listened to her description of a creative state bordering on self-abuse, he couldn't help but feel a shiver in his heart.
He knew deeply the state of selflessness where one forgets food and sleep when a creator enters a state of flow. He had experienced a similar phase himself when writing Love Letter.
However, for Kasumigaoka Utaha to sustain such extreme intensity in creation for nearly half a month still shocked him, and brought a trace of genuine worry.
This was completely harming her own body.
"This is too reckless! You are simply squandering your health!"
Michiya Gōshin's tone became serious, carrying an insistence that allowed no doubt, even taking on a slightly rebuking tone.
"Kasumigaoka-san, talent requires a healthy body as a vessel! The most urgent thing you need right now is absolutely not to discuss the manuscript immediately, but to rest! Right now, immediately!"
He spoke decisively, simultaneously pointing in the direction of the door, his attitude clear.
"You go back first, take a good hot bath, blow-dry your hair, and then get into bed and sleep. Guarantee at least eight hours of deep sleep."
"Leave the manuscript here with me. I will read it carefully. Once you have rested thoroughly and recovered your vitality, we can discuss it in detail and depth."
"Either I come to your house to find you personally, or you come again; either works. What do you think?"
Hearing this, Kasumigaoka Utaha lifted her heavy eyelids to glance at him. A flash of anxiety passed through her crimson eyes.
"Michiya-kun, when did you become so fussy... I'm fine, really. My spirit is still very hyped right now."
She tried to struggle to sit up straight to express that she was fine, but the physical fatigue was real. Even such a simple movement made her feel a wave of dizziness, her eyelids as heavy as if filled with lead.
"No!"
Michiya Gōshin's attitude was unusually firm, leaving no room for negotiation. He even took a step forward, making a gesture to take the stack of manuscripts on the coffee table.
"Look at your own state. Creation is a marathon, not a hundred-meter sprint!"
"Inspiration exchanged by overdrawing health will have its value discounted itself. Be obedient, go back and rest first. This is for your own sake, and also for the good of this work."
His gaze was serious and concerned, carrying a sincerity that was hard to refuse.
Perhaps Michiya Gōshin's rare tough attitude took effect. Kasumigaoka Utaha looked at that unquestionable insistence and deep-seated worry in his eyes, and finally, like a deflated ball, she curled her bloodless lips and mumbled with a bit of reluctance.
"...Understood."
She stood up slowly, walking toward the door with unsteady steps, as if every step was treading on cotton.
"Then after you finish reading, remember to tell me your true impressions immediately. No perfunctory answers allowed."
She turned back, adding an uneasy exhortation, her eyes filled with concern for the fate of her work.
"Rest assured, I promise. Go back quickly and rest."
Michiya Gōshin walked her to the door. Watching her stumble slightly as she walked toward her door, he shook his head helplessly and closed the door, his heart filled with even more curiosity and anticipation for that manuscript.
However, he evidently underestimated Kasumigaoka Utaha's degree of attachment to this work into which she had poured her heart's blood, as well as her writer's nature of being unusually stubborn once a goal was set, not resting until the goal was achieved.
He had originally thought she would at least obediently rest for a few hours, or even sleep until dawn.
Unexpectedly, only about fifteen minutes later, the crisp doorbell rang out stubbornly again, breaking the silence that had just been restored in the apartment not long ago.
With even greater confusion, Michiya Gōshin opened the door again. He saw Kasumigaoka Utaha still standing outside. Her hair was draped over her shoulders, wet, the tips still dripping water droplets, emitting the fresh scent of the same shampoo found in his bathroom. She had evidently just finished a shower.
She had changed into grey loungewear printed with cartoon cats, but the fatigue on her face had not diminished much due to the hot bath. Instead, due to the steam, it revealed an unhealthy flush.
Those crimson eyes were still shining stubbornly and brilliantly, staring tightly at him.
"I showered, and I changed clothes."
She declared righteously. Without waiting for Michiya Gōshin to make any reaction, she squeezed in past his side again, bringing in a gust of slightly cool, moist air.
"I really couldn't fall asleep. The thoughts in my brain are still churning; I can't calm down at all. Rather than wasting time in bed, it's better to wait here and hear your reading feedback immediately, Michiya-kun."
Michiya Gōshin looked at her appearance—clearly an arrow at the end of its flight yet still trying to tough it out—and truly felt both exasperated and amused.
He understood that for a creator who viewed works as life, when the work they had poured their heart and soul into was about to accept the most important peer review, that complex mood mixed with anticipation, anxiety, excitement, and unease was indeed enough to overwhelm physiological fatigue and disperse all sleepiness.
"...Really can't do anything with you."
Michiya Gōshin could ultimately only turn it into a helpless sigh. He knew that trying to persuade her to go back and rest again would be futile and might instead make her even more anxious.
"Fine. Since you're here, you rest on the sofa for a while first. Closing your eyes to rest your mind is fine too; try to relax. I'll start reading the manuscript right now and give you feedback as soon as possible."
Kasumigaoka Utaha didn't retort again this time. As if she had achieved a milestone goal, she walked obediently to the sofa and curled up to lie down like a lazy cat, finding a relatively comfortable position and hugging a soft throw pillow behind her head.
"Michiya-kun, why is there a woman's scent in your apartment?"
"Don't disturb me first, I still have to read the manuscript."
"Okay."
Michiya Gōshin rolled his eyes at her, then took that heavy manuscript and sat at the small round table in the living room, solemnly opening the first page.
He knew that this was not only Kasumigaoka Utaha's sleepless half-month but also the embryo of a story on which he had placed high hopes, a tragic love story that could move countless hearts.
Michiya Gōshin was quickly immersed.
Crying Out Love, in the Center of the World.
Kasumigaoka Utaha's writing style leaned toward the aesthetic. Her literary talent was very good. The story unfolded slowly with a calm and slightly sentimental tone, like an old photo yellowing with age, carrying the temperature and traces of time.
The story employed a dual narrative. One thread was the adult male protagonist Sakutaro's life in reality, and the other was the unforgettable events of his youth unfolded through memories.
From the perspective of the protagonist Sakutaro, it interwovenly told the tragic love stories of two generations.
The high school era Sakutaro was introverted and sensitive. He fell in love with the top student Aki, who was as dazzling as a campus idol, lively and cheerful.
Their romance was like most youth stories, full of pure beauty. They studied together in the library, shared a pair of earphones to listen to music, played on the beach in summer, and shared each other's secrets and dreams.
Kasumigaoka Utaha used delicate and gentle strokes to depict these daily fragments as picturesquely as poetry, constructing an almost flawless youthful utopia.
However, the cruelty of fate arrived abruptly.
Aki was diagnosed with leukemia. This bad news was like a thunderbolt from a clear sky, instantly shattering all peace and beauty.
The story also interspersed the past events of Sakutaro's grandfather: Fifty years ago, the grandfather went to Tokyo and worked desperately to earn money to marry his lover who suffered from tuberculosis.
When he returned with the money, his lover had recovered thanks to the advent of streptomycin, but she was married off to someone else by her parents because his "business was not honest."
Ten years later, Sakutaro revisited the old place with his fiancée. He had once scattered Aki's ashes on the light brown grasslands of Australia with her parents, but secretly kept a small bottle.
Finally, under the cherry blossom tree on the campus where the two had studied, Sakutaro scattered Aki's ashes into the evening sky. The ashes merged with the falling cherry blossom petals and dissipated.
In the story, the pure love outlined by Kasumigaoka Utaha's gentle strokes was very beautiful. It discarded complex plot entanglements and focused on capturing the authentic details of first love.
When Sakutaro watched the smoke from burning Aki rise into the sky, that silence where "no human speech is heard, no bird song is heard" concretized the pain of losing a true love, enough to make people truly feel the heaviness of lost love.
And the grandfather's love line echoed wonderfully with the main line, forming an emotional resonance across time and space.
Both generations lost their true loves due to the tricks of fate, yet both held fast to deep affection in their own unique ways. The grandfather's clumsy persistence and Sakutaro's restrained attachment in keeping Aki's ashes verified the eternal power of true love in time.
This kind of inheritance not only deepened the thickness of love but also made the story transcend personal joy and sorrow.
Michiya Gōshin turned the pages one by one, his breathing involuntarily lightening, completely immersed in the world meticulously constructed by Kasumigaoka Utaha with words.
More than an hour passed, and he finally finished reading.
"Truly a remarkable work. It seems she really has the talent for writing traditional novels."
Michiya Gōshin put down the last page of the manuscript and let out a long sigh of relief. He turned his head, wanting to share his reading feelings with Kasumigaoka Utaha immediately.
However, when he looked toward the sofa, he found that Kasumigaoka Utaha had fallen into a deep sleep curled up on the sofa at some point.
The girl lay on her side, her wet black hair spread over the sofa cushion.
Her breathing was even and long. That beautiful face which usually carried a bit of aggressiveness appeared unusually quiet and soft in deep sleep, even revealing a sense of fragility. Her long eyelashes cast faint shadows under her eyelids, and the heavy dark circles looked more like medals of fatigue at this moment.
Looking at her defenseless sleeping face, a surge of complex emotions rose in Michiya Gōshin's heart.
"Really, what are you trying to prove by pushing yourself so hard?"
Michiya Gōshin stood up gently, went to the bedroom, and took a light and soft wool blanket.
His movements were extremely gentle as he covered Kasumigaoka Utaha's body with the blanket and carefully tucked in the corners.
After doing all this, he retreated a few steps, sat back at the desk, and his gaze fell on that thick stack of manuscript papers again.
Just then...
The sound of the door being unlocked by a key came from the entryway.
Michiya Gōshin subconsciously looked up at the wall clock, only realizing that the time was already approaching 1:00 AM. Kurokawa Akane's stage play rehearsal must have ended.
The apartment door was pushed open gently. Kurokawa Akane walked in, carrying a bit of fatigue after the rehearsal, but mostly a relaxed expression of returning home.
While lowering her head to change into her slippers, she spoke softly out of habit.
"Yu-kun, I'm back. Rehearsal ended earlier than expected..."
Before her voice fell, she raised her head, her gaze sweeping naturally across the living room.
The next second, her voice stopped abruptly.
Kurokawa Akane's line of sight froze precisely on the strange female figure curled up on the living room sofa, covered by a blanket that obviously belonged to Michiya Gōshin.
In an instant, the relaxed smile on her face solidified.
________________________________________
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