Volume 4 Prologue

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♥

“This… isn’t good enough, Shirando-sensei.”

Staring at the eyes of my work colleague through the monitor screen, I chose the words carefully… however, the words weren’t the most comforting ones.

“The plot of the sixth volume… how to say, it’s very redundant and doesn’t seem at all like your style. You’re just repeating the same things you did in the previous volumes and the story doesn’t move at all.”

The person who I was talking with was Hakushi Shirando-sensei.

She’s a writer working for me who mainly writes light novels.

Originally, she was someone who posted her novels in a website, but 4 years ago, I contacted her and helped her debut as a novelist.

Since then, I’ve been her editor in chief.

We’ve worked together in several works and are currently publishing a romantic comedy titled “I want to be your childhood friend.”

The protagonist, a university student who lived a grim youth, suddenly obtains the ability to time travel one day. Using this ability, the protagonist tries to become childhood friends with a girl from his club, who he has an unrequited love with. Things don’t go as well as he planned and at the same time, he ends up becoming the childhood friend of another girl… A very unusual romantic comedy.

Currently, 5 volumes have been published.

It’s been really popular since its release and there’s already an anime in the works.

By the way, “Hakushi Shirando” is a nickname that gives the impression that the author is a male, but she’s an author in her 20s. She’s young, very young…

“The ending of the last volume ended up being quite exciting, and I thought that Reiji and Akina would finally end up together… But their relationship started to stumble again. I can’t approve this setting.” I said clearly.

It was something difficult to say, but it wouldn’t be good for either of us if I didn’t.

The draft’s setting of the sixth volume was clearly terrible.

It wasn’t something that the usual Shirando-sensei would write.

I was wondering if there was a reason for it, but the subsequent answer from Shirando-sensei cleared my doubts.

“I see… So you wrote it thinking about the anime adaptation.”

“——”

“I understand that you want to prolong the series as much as possible if it’s going to get an anime adaptation. After all, if the plot advances and the main characters end up together, the anime series would be shorter.”

“——”

“Frankly speaking… I can’t say there won’t be any risks of sales lowering if they end up together. For the romantic comedy genre… it’s undeniable that people tend to lose interest when the conclusion is getting closer.”

I think there are many different ways to enjoy romantic comedies… but I think one of them is because you want to find out how its conclusion.

The conclusion… the ending of the story.

In harem romantic comedies, the story ends the moment the protagonist picks one of the heroines.

Or in romantic comedies with only 1 heroine, the story ends when the two main leads date after many mishaps within the plot.

The process of reaching those conclusions is one of the best parts of romantic comedies… The readers want to enjoy the development of relationships in real time.

As if it was a live show.

Since the love story’s ending is not yet decided, they’re excited to see what’s next.

And on the other hand.

If you know how it’s going to end, there’s a risk of people losing interest in the story’s romance… Like that sensation you get when a festival reaches its conclusion.

“Pairing up the protagonists before the anime begins… could have negative repercussions for the anime. A lot of spoilers could spread on the internet and people might just say ‘I already know who he’s going to end up with, so what’s the point of watching?’”

But despite that, I kept going.

“The most important part of a literary work is to be interesting.” I said. “The anime is the anime, and the original work is the original work. If you get obsessed with the anime, it will have a negative effect on your writing. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying prolonging the series is wrong in itself… But in this case, it’s very obvious that you’re forcing it to prolong the story.”

“——”

“Of course I noticed. After all, I’ve been in charge of you since your debut.”

“——”

“Shirando-sensei, please don’t worry about the anime and write a story you’re satisfied with. You don’t have to worry about prolonging it. For the sake of your writing and the characters, it’s better if you write something that’s as natural as possible, without worrying about external factors like those.”

“——”

“Yes. Plus, the fact that they become a couple doesn’t mean that the story ended. I believe many readers will want to see what happens after they start going out. So, to meet your reader’s expectations, I think you should keep writing what happens to them after they start dating.”

“——”

“Yes, right. In the first place… if they don’t start going out after the emotional way the previous volume ended, the readers will be very disappointed. ‘Those 2 are still playing dumb? You can’t be serious’, that’s probably what they’ll think. Hesitating indefinitely… they know their feelings are mutual, but they keep beating around the bush… There’s a limit to how indecisive people can be.”

“——”

“Anyways, prioritize how to make your novel interesting, and leave the anime to us, LightShip. We’ll do everything possible so the anime lives up to your expectations. Right, Oinomori-san?”

“Yes, leave it to us.”

In he shared screen, Oinomori-san, who was next to Shirando-sensei, nodded.

The three of us were having a meeting today.

“…I’m sorry, Oinomori-san. You’re here with us, but we’re the only ones talking about this topic.”

“No, it’s fine, I don’t mind. I was the one who forced you to include me here after all.” She shook her head and started laughing. “’KimiOsa’* is going to be an important project for our company. I just wanted to see how you usually hold your meeting, but there doesn’t seem to be a problem. Keep up the good work you two.” TL/N: Kimi means you, Osa is short for osananajimi which means childhood friend.

“Ahaha. Thank you very much.”

“——”

“What are you saying now, you’re giving me too much credit, Shirando-sensei! I haven’t done anything special. The series become a hit and got an anime because of your own hard work.”

After going through some of the remaining details about the adaptation, Shirando-sensei left the videocall.

Only Oinomori-san was on my screen.

“Shirando-sensei looked really motivated.”

“Yeah. After all, this is her first anime adaptation.”

Anime adaptation.

For a light novel author, I think it’s something special.

Obviously, it was for us editors as well.

“It’s great that she’s motivated, but make sure she doesn’t push herself too much.”

“I know. The author’s health is above everything else.”

“And of course, same goes to you. And sorry for scheduling a meeting at this time despite you just getting back home.”

“It’s fine. Shirando-sensei is also working hard during her Obon week. I can’t be the only one taking things easy.” TL/N: Obon (お盆) or just Bon (盆) is a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one’s ancestors. Dates vary due to different calendars as it’s celebrated the 13^th to the 15^th of the 7^th month (August in the lunar calendar).

While I said that, I looked at my surroundings.

This wasn’t the usual house Miu and I lived in.

I was in the second floor’s room of the house where I lived during my childhood.

It was mid-august.

First day of the Obon break.

Miu and I were visiting my hometown at the north of the prefecture.

I was at my parents’ house.

We had arrived around noon and were planning to stay here for a few days.

Since this house finally got the Wi-Fi network installed, I managed to do some work for a laptop I brought with me.

“…I’m looking forward to seeing the anime adaptation of KimiOsa.” I said happily.

“Now that I think about it, this is the first time for you.”

“Yes, this is the first anime adaptation from something I’ve been working on from the start.”

There have been several projects I’ve been managing halfway through, but this is the first one that I’ve been doing from the beginning that has received an anime.

That’s why I was feeling very happy, and naturally, very excited.

“If given the chance, I’d like to get involved in as many things as possible… but, well, guess that’s not possible. Life in Tohoku isn’t that easy.”

In this modern era, where even places in the countryside, like my parents’ house, has Wi-Fi, long distance work is even more recommended.

Although I lived in a suburban area, I somehow managed to land a job as an editor for an agency… but when we talk about anime, the story is a bit different.

Unlike publishing a book, there are many different industries involved in the creation of an anime.

Editorials, animation studios, recording studios, marketing companies… It’s an enormous project that gathers professionals from different scopes to sell that content.

That’s what it means to get an anime adaptation.

Getting involved in this huge business, even in the current world where you can work through the internet, it’s incredibly hard if you don’t live in Tokyo, or at least the Kanto Region.

“I’ve been thinking of some promotional material I want to make for the anime… but since I live here, it’s impossible to me to work actively on this. I’ll send you a proposal and you can decide whether to accept it or not.”

“…”

“I’ll keep working with Shirando-sensei in the original work, so I’ll let the anime related stuff to you all.”

“…Hm, well, I guess we have no choice but to work like this, at least for now.” Said Oinomori-san after thinking for a bit.

She looked like she wanted to say something else, but before I could ask her what it was, she said:

“By the way,” She said, changing topics. “What happened with Takumi Aterazawa-kun after that?”

“…”

I couldn’t say anything.

My entire body got rigid in an instant.

“W-Well…”

“You’re starting to act suspiciously all of a sudden. Even though when you were working a bit ago, you were speaking so fluidly and you really looked like a very reliably editor.” Oinomori-san showed a teasing smile. “Geez, you’ve become a great editor in these last 10 years, Katsuragi-kun, but when you deal with romantic matters, you become quite pitiful.”

“Ugh…”

“Are things still awkward between Aterazawa-kun and you?”

“…Yes.” I nodded.

That’s all I could do.

 “I can’t believe you kissed him and you’re still not dating… Geez, what are you doing now?” With a sarcastic tone, she continued. “It’s basically like that, right…? In your own words, aren’t you prolonging this too much?”

“Ugh…”

“It’s very disappointing to not see you two dating after the emotional way it ended. You’re all still playing dumb. Hesitating indefinitely… You know that your feelings are mutual, but keep beating around the bush… There’s a limit to how indecisive you can be.”

“U-Uuh…”

All the words I had proudly spoused a while back were just used against me.

“…T-That’s not fair, Oinomori-san. You can’t mix fiction and reality… Not every author and editor that work in romantic comedies are love experts.”

“Ahaha. Well, you’re right.” She laughed heartily. “Not only authors and editors, but everyone. Dealing with fictional romantic comedies, celebrities having affairs or the romantic relationship of a friend… When it’s about other people’s matters, anyone can talk as if they were an expert. But when it’s about yourself, nothing goes like you planned. That’s just how love works.”

“…”

I think that she’s completely right, no matter how much I hate to admit it.

As an editor or reader, you can look at the situation calmly and give a logical opinion.

The protagonist’s behavior isn’t manly at all, the heroine lacks assertiveness and is stressing, those kinds of developments tend to be disliked by readers. And it’s not limited to just romantic comedies, everyone can speak wisely about this and that about celebrities’ affairs and divorces.

But.

When you’re the one involved, you’re surprisingly unable to act like you want to.

You can’t choose the best solution, and even if you know it in your head, you can’t put it into practice.

Your heart and body act on their own and you end up behaving in a weird way.

To the point where you start to hate yourself.

“Why don’t you try looking at yourself objectively? Look at yourself from an editor’s perspective. What should the editor Ayako Katsuragi do so that the heroine in a romantic comedy story about age difference, Ayako Katsuragi, becomes a more attractive character?”

“…No, I’m not a heroine. I mean… It wouldn’t be easy. A heroine in her thirties and with a daughter?”

If a writer proposed me a story like that one, I’d definitely reject it. I’d try to persuade him, telling them ‘No matter how much the age of readers is increasing nowadays, light novels are directed to middle and high school students.”

“Well… it’s certainly may not be easy. But what if you directed the story to an adult audience?”

“…I’m an adult heroine?”

“With those breasts you got, yes.”

“M-My breasts have nothing to do with this!”

Well, they may have something to do!

If it’s for both adults and middle and high school students, the breast size can be an important factor for sales.

“Well, jokes aside.” Said Oinomori-san. “Since you’re now back at your childhood house, this is a great opportunity for you to get away from him for a while. Take this chance to… think calmly. About him and yourself.”

“Haa…”

I let out a small sigh.

And then, slowly, I started to remember.

Everything, from that day, from that impulsive kiss to this day, when I returned to my parents’ house.

And about how awkward things were between us now.

After overcoming all the obstacles, we were supposed to be together, but our romantic relationship… amazingly continued without any progress in the end.

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Meant to release this earlier, but got busy with other stuff throughout the week. Since my birthday is in a few days, next chapter will take a bit longer. Some last minute comments… uh… The novel mentioned in the story I believe it’s 君の幼なじみになりたい (Kimi no osananajimi ni naritai) and it actually sounds like a great read (No I haven’t bought the volume yet to verify). Oh and volume 5 is coming out May 10 for those who didn’t know.