"Thank you, Izumi-kun, you've been a great help!"
Takasago Tomoe looked at the new addition to her friends list and thanked him.
"It's nothing."
Izumi Chihiro said indifferently.
"Well, it's about time to go back. I didn't see anything useful."
Eriri stood up.
Although Takasago Tomoe and Elmi talked a lot, one thing was very clear: Elmi cared more about Izumi Chihiro, her gaze occasionally falling on him...
'Perhaps, is she still dwelling on the previous rejection?'
She wondered to herself.
The three walked back the way they came, then gradually parted ways.
When Izumi Chihiro returned home, he found Sagiri sitting on the sofa, engrossed in a book, so much so that she didn't even notice his return.
His sister's delicate brows seemed to be shrouded in a dark cloud.
"How could this be! This is too awful! These people...!"
Sagiri murmured as she flipped through the pages.
The book she was reading was, of course, "A Silent Voice", which he had bought.
Because he thought his sister might like it, he had bought an extra copy when he came back earlier.
"I'm so angry! It's infuriating! This is too painful...!"
Sagiri's expression gradually changed from anger to sorrow, completely moved to her core by every word in the text.
This was the charm of Kani Nayuta's writing, the abundant emotions, the pervasive feelings that could make you utterly succumb without resistance.
Her unparalleled ability to evoke empathy was Nayuta's winning strategy.
"Hm? Ni-san? You're back."
As he walked past her, preparing to return to his room, Sagiri still noticed him.
"Yes."
Izumi Chihiro nodded, then asked first, "You've been reading for a few hours now, how do you feel?"
"It hurts so much...! Ni-san, could this be everything Nayuta-sensei once experienced? It's too painful, too sad...!"
Sagiri clutched her chest tightly, her voice heavy.
"There's still a difference, after all, this is just a novel… If you're talking about Nayuta's own feelings, they probably aren't as exaggerated as what you felt, hmm… Nayuta just wrote it too well."
Izumi Chihiro chose to comfort her.
He certainly didn't know what Nayuta's psychological state was at the time, and he didn't want to bring it up again, but the emotions Nayuta described were just too real. The style of "Silver Season" was already exaggerated enough, let alone a work like "A Silent Voice," which was a tear-jerking masterpiece.
"Is that so…"
Sagiri chose to believe him.
She didn't understand the inside story from back then either, but trusting her brother was always the right choice.
Afterward, Izumi Chihiro also finished reading the first volume of "A Silent Voice" himself.
He could only say… it was incredible!
"As expected of Nayuta!"
Izumi Chihiro wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes.
This heart-wrenching emotion was so profound that even he, who considered himself to have a heart of stone, became soft.
At this level, he didn't know when he would be able to catch up…
["Wow! The first volume made me cry so much! Wuwuwu… Shoko is too pitiful!"]
["I knew Teacher Kani Nayuta writing this kind of work would make me cry buckets, but I still couldn't resist taking a look, and sure enough, I couldn't stop…"]
["Such social disorder should really be rectified! But everyone does nothing… Damn it! I don't have the power to change any of this!"]
["I confess, I also hurt other people when I was little. At the time, I didn't realize the harm I was causing him, but unfortunately, it's too late now. We've long lost contact, and I don't even have the chance to apologize to him."]
["I hope everyone can make the right decision when they encounter such things; don't be an abuser, and don't be silent!"]
["Easier said than done; otherwise, this social phenomenon would have been resolved long ago…"]
After the release of "A Silent Voice," thanks to Kani Nayuta's immense popularity, it had a considerable impact, instantly sparking a huge wave of discussion.
Some reflected, some spoke out righteously, and some held pessimistic views.
In any case, it was better that someone brought up such issues than for no one to ever mention them.
…
In the blink of an eye, another half a month passed.
While Izumi Chihiro continued to work hard, the people of this world weren't just standing still, accomplishing nothing.
"Wife, aren't you working a bit too hard lately?"
Elmi looked at Yamada Elf, who had just finished typing and was resting.
According to how things used to be, Elf would only frantically rush her manuscript when the deadline was approaching, spending the rest of her time primarily on games, occasionally reading novels and manga.
"Is it because of Izumi?"
She naturally thought.
The only cause for the abnormality was their recent meeting.
"Izumi Old Thief, I must surpass him and thoroughly slap his face! How dare he ignore me, the strongest beautiful girl light novelist in history! The savior of the light novel world! It's truly too humiliating!"
Yamada Elf's expression was resentful.
More importantly, it was because she realized the risk that her best partner might be taken away, which was why she suddenly became so diligent.
"…"
Elmi's expression was speechless.
She spoke as if it were true! We'll just see how long Elf can keep it up!
Based on her understanding of Elf, if she could last a month, that would be a miracle.
As for surpassing Teacher Izumi, she might as well go to bed… The only two people who could surpass Teacher Izumi at the moment were those two, and Elf didn't possess that kind of astonishing talent.
Of course, she wouldn't dare say such things to her face, otherwise, it would severely wound Elf's self-esteem.
…
"My ranking has gone up another spot, getting closer and closer to debut! Teacher Izumi's training is too powerful!"
Gokou Ruri took a moment to check her phone during a break from typing, and when she saw her work's ranking had risen another level, she was overjoyed.
In the comment section below, the arc of positive reviews was also quite high, which indicated that if she continued to write well, she could eventually debut this way.
She really wanted to share this happiness.
"However, making a fuss over just one rank increase and telling Teacher Izumi would be too low!"
Gokou Ruri opened her phone, her finger hovering in mid-air.
She should at least wait until she had a chance to debut permanently before telling Teacher Izumi that his disciple hadn't wasted his teachings!
[Congratulations, KuroNeko, you've advanced another spot. Keep it up, you'll be able to debut soon.]
Suddenly receiving a new message at this moment made her smile bloom.
It turned out that her teacher was still paying attention to his convenient disciple!
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💯 PS = 2 bonus chapter