The Red Violet Literature meeting room was filled with a silent tension that didn't stem from open discussions, but from something far more exhausting: conflicting expectations.
The clock on the wall showed almost noon when Yuki Hashimoto finally rested her palm on the glass table and sighed, signaling that this round of debates was drawing to a close. The meeting had already lasted almost three hours, and even the most experienced editors showed clear signs of fatigue. That day had stretched far beyond the usual.
For Miyuki, however, this was the kind of fatigue that brought satisfaction, and she would return home with a full schedule.
She sat cross-legged, the tablet resting on her knee, but her attention wasn't on the screen. From the beginning of the meeting, her eyes had taken in every expression, every small change in posture of her colleagues as the works considered for serialization were discussed one by one.
That was the most important moment for any editor.
The only thing I needed to be careful about was that other members of the editorial department, due to their concerns about Ren's status as a beginning student, attacked this point, causing the serialization proposal to fail.
After all, the serialization meeting primarily decided which novel would be published based on its quality. Only when two competing novels presented similar quality would external factors, such as the author's previous professional experience, stability, and popularity, be considered.
The magazine 'Momentary Blossoms' was not just another periodical within Red Violet Literature. In Japan, it ranked third in sales among all literary magazines of the genre. Gaining a spot there provided national visibility, resulting contracts, and, for many authors, the real start of a professional career.
That morning, five novels competed for only two spots.
And Miyuki had bet everything on two of them.
From the beginning, Miyuki believed in the potential of 'Ao Haru Ride', the novel organized by Ren. Even though he was a novice author and still a high school student, the quality of his work was evident. His narrative was clean, emotionally solid, and above all, possessed a rhythm and sensitivity notably seen in such young writers.
It wasn't a perfect work.
But it was honest.
And that, in today's market, was rare. However, of course, some editors raised objections.
"I still think he's a veteran," said one of the editors, adjusting his glasses. "An author without any track record. He might simply give up halfway through. For a magazine like 'Momentary Blossoms,' betting on a newcomer is a risk."
Miyuki expected that.
"If we're going to use that as absolute benchmarks, half the big names that currently support the publishing house would never have made it past the first submission," he replied, without raising his voice. "What we're evaluating here is the quality of the text. And, in that aspect, Ao Haru Ride is above the others."
Others murmured in agreement.
The text was too good. At the meeting, the main draw was never about resumes. When two works had similar levels of quality, then external factors came into play: the author's experience, fan base, reliability in deadlines. However, when one story clearly stood out, everything else became secondary.
And Ren, even without knowing it, had written something that made it difficult to say no.
Miyuki had to defend the project, of course, but much less than she expected. The strength of the novel crushed the objections one by one.
Miyuki took a deep breath, but it wasn't over yet.
The real test came next.
The Light of Yesterday's Stars, by Shiori Haruki.
The novel was elegant, sensitive, and emotionally well-structured, but it started slowly. In a market where many readers decided whether or not to continue a story based solely on the first chapter, this was a risk.
Miyuki knew this.
She liked the text, but she knew its limitations. The real high points emerged in the second and third chapters. Therefore, she believed that the work would probably end up being relocated to another magazine from the publisher 'Seeking Sound', which had a more tolerant profile towards gentle beginnings.
That's why, when she heard the first comments, her heart sank.
"The beginning is too slow."
"It lacks an immediate hook."
But then, Yuki Hashimoto asked for the histories of the other three competing authors to be presented.
Things are unpredictable; advantages and disadvantages can change in an instant. An experienced author submitting a new work to a serialization meeting certainly has a relative advantage over a newcomer. But what if that author has a history of literary scandals?
One of the authors had, years before, abandoned a series halfway through after a personal scandal involving her husband. The story turned into chaos, the ending was practically thrown away, and the publisher received hundreds of complaint letters.
Another was famous for starting promising stories and ruining them halfway through. Three of his four works had been canceled due to a brutal drop in readership. He was blacklisted and is known for his anticlimactic writing style.
There was another author whose novel, during its serial publication last year, failed to find anyone to submit manuscripts, causing the publication to be temporarily suspended for three issues. It was later discovered that he had lost a great deal of money gambling, lost interest in writing, and abandoned his novel to wander the world, living a life of unrestrained freedom.
After these embarrassing stories were revealed by other editors at the serial publication meeting, the editor-in-chief immediately frowned and made a definitive decision.
She preferred to trust another first-year high school novelist instead of considering the works of the other three.
Since Ren, a high school student, had his work approved at this meeting, the acceptance of Shiori's work would undoubtedly be much greater. Therefore, Miyuki had made a fortune at this serial publication meeting.
"If we're going to bet on someone, let it be on someone who hasn't yet had the chance to disappoint."
Thus, the decision was made. Two serialization slots became available in 'Momentary Blossoms,' the third best-selling magazine of Red Violet Literature, and Miyuki secured them.
When the meeting finally ended, Miyuki could hardly believe it; she had left having won both slots.
Two serialization contracts in the third best-selling magazine of Red Violet Literature.
Both in her hands.
As she left the building, her long legs, covered in black stockings, moved forward with light steps. Her hair, tied in a high bun, swayed gently. Her delicate, soft features radiated confidence; she was beautiful, but her aura was even more so.
"Miyuki."
Yuki Hashimoto called to her before she reached the street.
"You haven't had lunch yet, have you? Let's go together."
Miyuki's expression hardened, but, faced with the editor-in-chief's enthusiastic invitation, she couldn't refuse. After all, her job as an editor had been arranged by Yuki, and she was directly under her supervision.
At a mid-to-high-end restaurant near the publishing house, the two sat down. Red wine and Western food were served soon after.
"Speaking of which, you've been at Red Violet Literature for a year now, haven't you?" Yuki took a sip of red wine and looked at Miyuki.
"Yes."
"Your father has been calling frequently, asking you to stop wasting your time here and go back to his company..."
"No way!" Miyuki protested. "I love novels, anime, stories. Being an editor already makes me happy. I don't want to work with that grumpy old man," Miyuki said quickly.
Yuki looked at her intently for a moment, then smiled and said softly,
"By the way, you're working for that grumpy old man and getting yelled at. Miyuki, I respect your choice, but your father said that if you don't obey, your credit card will be suspended starting tomorrow. He doesn't want to argue with you, so he asked me to pass on this message."
"Huh?" Miyuki's beautiful face was completely perplexed.
"He's a demon? How despicable!"
Miyuki clenched her fists.
"I'm going to spend all the credit card limit he gave me this afternoon. Heh, anyway, I get paid from my job as an editor at Red Violet Literature. I'm not going to starve".
Seeing this, Yuki delicately picked up her wine glass, took an elegant sip, and accompanied the wine with some seafood.
The morning session ended, and the long speech by the class teacher, Mr. Kenji, came to a close. Today was just the opening ceremony; classes would officially begin tomorrow.
After the meeting, everyone prepared to go home and get organized for the new semester. Ren was about to leave school when someone touched his shoulder.
"Ren!"
"Takeru? What is it?"
"You… know Shiori?"
"Of course I know her! She's been the best student in the school since the beginning. She's been first in every subject since the start of the semester. She hasn't missed a single test, not even the monthly ones, much less the final one. She's beautiful, rich, and a very well-known rich girl at school. Who doesn't know her?" Ren paused before answering.
"Um, I'm not talking about that. I mean, have you ever had any contact with her? Like, do you know each other personally or are you friends?" Takeru's face was full of curiosity.
"No. Why are you asking? If you like her and want to give her a love letter, but you're too shy, I can help you deliver it, but I really don't have any connection with her," said Ren.
"It's nothing. I was just asking out of curiosity. Don't think I'm asking out of boredom," replied Takeru, laughing quickly, grabbed his backpack and left.
Ren looked completely perplexed.
Takeru, who had already walked away, also seemed somewhat confused.
"That's strange. Rean doesn't even know Shiori, so why is he asking me about her?" Takeru murmured to himself.
Shiori and Takeru were classmates in elementary school, but after entering high school, they almost lost contact, only greeting each other when they happened to meet in the school hallways.
But today, after the opening ceremony, Shiori mysteriously stopped him, aiming to get information about Ren.
"Could it be that Shiori has a crush on Ren?" A glint of mischief passed through Takeru's eyes, but disappeared in less than half a second.
"Forget it, how could that be possible? She wouldn't have such bad taste. Maybe Shiori has a crush on me, but she's too shy to say it directly, so she mentioned Ren to get closer. Hehe." A mischievous smile appeared on Takeru's lips.
Around 2 PM.
Ren, at home, revising the manuscript of the sequel to "Ao Haru Ride," and Shiori, playing the piano at her house, awaited the outcome of something and tried to calm their anxious hearts.
They received calls from Miyuki, one after the other.
"The publication of 'Ao Haru Ride' in 'Momentary Blossoms' magazine has been approved. Come to Red Violet Publishing to finalize the publishing contract when you have time!"
"The publication of 'The Light of Yesterday's Stars' in 'Momentary Blossoms' has been approved. Come to Red Violet Publishing when you have time to finalize the contract!"
After hanging up the phone, Ren let out a huge sigh of relief.
He understood that if the contract was successfully signed, he would receive a substantial amount of royalties, which would at least help him avoid a short-term survival crisis, both for his studies and his livelihood.
On the other end of the line.
After hanging up the phone, Shiori's heart raced, her face flushed, and her fingers, which had been gliding across the piano with unwavering speed a minute before, now trembled slightly.
"Approved. The publishing contract will be signed."
At that moment, she couldn't contain the wave of satisfaction that washed over her, much greater than the one she felt the previous year, when she consistently outperformed her competitors in school exams and remained firmly at the top of her class since entering school.
Being first in her class was routine for her, from first grade to the second year of high school. Falling to second place would be a disaster.
But having her novel published serially so easily was the unexpected surprise and joy in her life.
She clenched her fist slightly. From now on, everything would be different.
End of Chapter 10