The next morning, the sky was dimly lit.
The chirping of small birds could still be heard from outside the window, and a soothing sense of relaxation always filled one's heart.
Kotomi Izumi, who had been coding in front of her laptop all night, only then realized that she had unknowingly written novels for an entire night.
"I haven't slept all night, dedicating the entire night to coding. I truly am a diligent and good author. My readers must have saved the galaxy in their past lives to fall in love with such a hardworking and adorable author like me." Kotomi Izumi smiled, stretched lazily, and finished the last sip of the energy drink by her hand.
When she first started writing, she felt a little nervous, but the moment she opened Word and placed her hands on the keyboard, all her emotions and thoughts were poured into the creation. She also found the writing process to be very smooth.
Kotomi Izumi rubbed her eyes and checked her progress from the night.
"The next morning, I put on a bright pure white coat and set off with Asuna for Gran Sam, the fifty-fifth floor."
"From today onwards, I will be active as a member of the Knights of the Blood Oath. That being said, the rule was originally to proceed with a five-person party, but due to the Vice Commander Asuna exercising her privilege, it became possible for just two people to form a party, so in reality, the situation was no different from before."
"However, an unexpected order awaited us at the guild headquarters."
Kotomi Izumi was quite satisfied with the speed of writing the plot development of Volume 1 up to Kirito joining the Knights of the Blood Oath in one night.
The most important thing in writing novels is quality. Although she had the talent for fast typing as a bonus, Kotomi Izumi would reread and check every paragraph after writing it. She would correct typos or revise previously written sentences into more suitable ones.
This, in turn, slowed down her progress.
However, Kotomi Izumi felt that instead of pursuing speed, it was better to refine the content thoroughly.
After all, this was the first light novel she had written in this life, and for her first submission, she chose to participate in the Dengeki Novel Contest, which was known in the industry as having "hell-level" difficulty.
Many already famous authors participating in the Dengeki Novel Grand Prize could not guarantee that they would advance to the top three, and a slight misstep could very likely lead to elimination.
And Kotomi Izumi was well aware that she was currently just a pure novice author. It would not be easy to stand out in the Dengeki Novel Contest and win the Dengeki Novel Grand Prize. Only by maintaining the novel's content at the highest level she could achieve would her chances of success be greater!
"The title for Volume 1 of "sword art online" will still be Aincrad, just like in my previous life."
After Kotomi Izumi decided, she created a new folder within the "sword art online" folder and then renamed it: Volume 1 Aincrad.
After saving the manuscript she had written last night, Kotomi Izumi finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"The plot has already reached the Knights of the Blood Oath. Give me two more nights, and I should be able to finish Volume 1 of "sword art online."
After a rough calculation, her coding speed would definitely allow her to finish "sword art online Volume 1: Aincrad" before school started.
The time displayed on the computer was already six o'clock in the morning.
"Ha…"
Kotomi Izumi yawned, feeling a little sleepy. She had been energetic just a moment ago, but after saving the finished manuscript,
sleepiness instantly swept over her.
"I should catch up on some sleep first. I don't want my beautiful little face to have dark circles."
With that, Kotomi Izumi turned off her computer, drew the curtains, took off her pajamas, revealing skin as delicate as fresh winter snow, and lay down on the bed.
Soon after, she fell asleep.
For the past two days, Kotomi Izumi had been coding late into the night, often pulling all-nighters.
Kotomi Izumi couldn't help but wonder if she had merged with an owl when she reincarnated?
Otherwise, why would she love coding so much late at night?
Every time she wrote until six in the morning, she would stop her small hands, which had been typing on the keyboard all night, and go back to bed to sleep.
However, each time she woke up from her nap, it was usually around eleven in the morning, and even after waking up, she still felt a bit sleepy.
Akina Izumi, who was serving rice, saw Kotomi Izumi yawning again, ungracefully, and put down her rice bowl, asking with concern:
"Kotomi, have you not been sleeping well these past few days?"
Kotomi Izumi, who was asked, just shook her head: "No, no, it's just that I've been going to bed a bit late these past few days."
"Is it really just a bit late?" Akina Izumi said, smiling with narrowed eyes. Her tone was not at all like a question, but more like a statement, as if she already knew that Kotomi Izumi stayed up until six in the morning every day.
Akina Izumi's gaze made Kotomi Izumi feel a little embarrassed, and she turned her face away before quietly saying:
"I've been busy with something lately… that's why I often pull all-nighters."
Kotomi Izumi didn't want to tell Akina Izumi that she was writing a novel yet. How to put it, she just felt it would be embarrassing for her family to know she was writing a novel.
Even if she were to tell them, Kotomi Izumi wanted to wait until she earned royalties before telling her family about her writing.
Only by earning royalties could she better ensure her family accepted her writing and recognized her pursuit of writing as a profession.
It was fine to want to be a writer, but the prerequisite for it being a profession was being able to make a living from it.
"What is it?"
Akina Izumi's tone became serious. She could tell that Kotomi Izumi wasn't lying; if she had been pulling all-nighters playing games, she definitely wouldn't have shown such embarrassment, but would have tried every means to change the subject.
"Mom, can I not tell you yet?" Kotomi Izumi said quietly: "But please rest assured, I haven't done anything bad. I've just suddenly decided on the profession I want to pursue. In some people's eyes, it might be a childish and naive hobby, but I want to turn this hobby into a profession to earn money. I'm working hard for it now!"
Seeing Kotomi Izumi's rare serious tone, Akina Izumi felt, for the first time, a sense of her precious daughter having grown up.
"Unknowingly, you've already reached the age where you like to think things through for yourself…" Akina Izumi tucked a strand of hair behind her ear with her fingertip, saying with a smile: "Alright, then Mom will wait until you want to tell me."
Seeing Akina Izumi accept it so openly, Kotomi Izumi felt a little surprised and subconsciously said: "I thought, Mom, you would ask me with an attitude of needing to find out today."
"I'm not an overbearing person, Mom." Akina Izumi laughed.
"Mom, thank you for your understanding."
"It's nothing. As long as you don't do anything bad, I'm very willing to see you do what you love. But there's one thing I need to remind you: you're about to start High School. While developing your hobbies, you also need to take good care of your studies."
"I will do my best in my studies." Kotomi Izumi nodded.
She didn't need to worry about her studies; she had the knowledge reserves from her previous life. Although she wasn't an academic genius in her last life, at least her grades in all subjects were pretty good.
Except for math.
When a person is extremely angry, they can do anything, except math problems.
And physics and chemistry…
However, she didn't need to worry too much. In this life, she had the god-level heroine system to help her, so she could easily handle her studies.
Akina Izumi nodded with a smile:
"Then I, Mom, will look forward to when you tell me. Although studying diligently for three years of High School and getting into a good University is a good path, since you have your own hobbies, Mom naturally won't object, and will even support you. I, Mom, think it's a truly remarkable thing if a person can turn their hobby into a profession that earns money!"
"Mom, you seem very happy…?"
"Of course, I'm happy."
Akina Izumi stood up and stroked Kotomi Izumi's small head:
"Although I, Mom, don't know yet what hobby can make you so serious, just thinking that my daughter is doing something truly remarkable makes me involuntarily happy for you. If your father knew, I'm sure he would say the same thing."
After speaking, Akina Izumi continued to serve rice. After serving, she went upstairs to call Izumi Aimi, who was still frantically catching up on homework in her room, to come down for lunch.
Sitting on the chair, Kotomi Izumi ate her rice in small bites.
Getting her mother's understanding made her very happy. The slight nervousness she had felt earlier vanished imperceptibly.
"Tonight, I must finish Volume 1. Then I'll officially submit it!" Kotomi Izumi said, clenching her small fist.
If she weren't holding chopsticks at that moment, this scene of a young girl's determined resolve would have been incredibly inspiring!