"I didn't expect to make you wait for me." Yuto stood beside Utaha, sounding somewhat resigned.
"Since I'm meeting my editor today, I ended up moving faster without realizing it," Utaha smiled softly as she looked at him.
"Yeah, I get it," Yuto nodded understandingly.
His response made the girl sigh quietly to herself, but she decided not to say anything more.
"Where are we headed?" he asked.
"Shibuya."
Shibuya—the heart of Tokyo's pop culture scene and a hub for various cultural industries.
Light novels could certainly be considered one of the leading representatives of that pop culture.
Yuto vaguely remembered the name of the publishing house Utaha had mentioned when she submitted her work.
It was something like... Futabasha Bunko, wasn't it? Its headquarters were located right in Shibuya.
"Are we going straight to the publishing house?" Yuto asked curiously.
"Ms. Machida arranged to meet me at a café." Utaha shook her head, already looking a bit nervous.
"Relax, let's go." Yuto gently patted her shoulder.
He could tell she was tense, if she was already this nervous before the meeting, what would she do when they actually sat down face-to-face? He sighed inwardly for her.
Utaha took a deep breath, as if his reassurance had helped a little.
The two then headed into the station to buy their tickets.
The fare from Shinjuku to Shibuya was 150 yen—not expensive at all.
At this time of day, the train wasn't as packed as it was during the morning or evening rushes, though there still weren't any empty seats.
That was already good enough.
Yuto had once witnessed a morning commuter train, it was like a meat transport truck.
People were crammed together with absolutely no space to spare, utterly helpless like drifting weeds. Unable to move on their own, they simply swayed back and forth with the train's starts and stops.
Back then, Yuto took one look at that scene and went straight home.
Riding a bicycle was definitely better!
Once they boarded the train car, Utaha stood near the inner doors.
She was wearing a blue-and-white dress today and hadn't even put on the dark stockings she usually wore.
It made her seem less mature than usual, but it also gave her a bright, youthful energy.
The moment she stepped onto the train, she caught the attention of many, and some even quietly moved closer to where she was standing.
Yuto consciously positioned himself in front of her. Facing her, he raised his hand to grip the hanging strap, naturally creating the appearance of embracing the girl.
His actions caused the people who had been quietly closing in to gradually disperse, though he had to endure a wave of hostile gazes in the process.
He paid them no mind.
"Pfft, so Kamisaka-kun knows how to protect a girl too," Utaha said, her eyes carrying a hint of teasing and amusement.
When she spoke softly into his ear, her warm, moist breath brushed against him.
If Yuto weren't so experienced, he would have blushed right then.
"Don't talk right into my ear," he warned her in a low voice.
They were on a train, speaking even slightly louder would attract unwanted attention.
Both kept their voices very, very soft—so soft that only the two of them could hear.
"Hmm? What's wrong, Kamisaka-kun?" Her low voice carried a trace of mischief.
She didn't take his warning seriously at all.
Instead, she boldly blew a gentle puff of air toward his ear.
"Haa—"
Yuto retaliated, giving the disobedient girl a taste of her own medicine.
He leaned close to her face, near enough to feel the warmth of her skin. Then, with a slight turn of his head, he blew a soft stream of air directly into her ear.
Her hair stirred faintly, and the girl's face instantly flushed red.
Their behavior was somewhat inappropriate—at the very least, to outsiders, they looked exactly like a lovey dovey couple!
Watching Yuto and Utaha intimately whispering to each other, the young people around them were practically grinding their teeth with envy.
"Kamisaka-kun, you're so petty..."
"Kasumigaoka-san, can we be reasonable here?"
"You're just petty."
"..."
Yuto sighed inwardly.
She was the one who didn't listen to him, he had only retaliated in the exact same way!
How did that make him the petty one in the end?
Ah—she's just unreasonable!
....
Exiting Shibuya Station, they saw a bronze statue of a dog. Even Yuto knew the story behind this statue; a memorial ceremony for the loyal dog had been held not long ago, and he had heard about it at the time.
"Hey, Kamisaka-kun, do you think Hachiko was foolish?" Utaha gazed at the statue, her eyes distant and thoughtful.
Women are emotional creatures.
When Utaha first heard Hachiko's story, she cried.
Waiting and waiting... waiting and waiting... an entire lifetime slowly passing by.
Even in death, he refused to leave.
So foolish.
Why couldn't he understand? Hachiko, that person was already gone.
Even now, Utaha couldn't bear to dwell too much on the story, every time she thought about it, she couldn't help but shed tears.
"Perhaps. But... perhaps we're the foolish ones," Yuto sighed softly.
He had seen many things in his two lives, many of which he preferred not to dwell on.
But occasionally, he couldn't help but reflect: sometimes, humans truly aren't as sincere as a dog.
"Waiting for someone for ten years..." The girl seemed to think of something, murmuring softly to herself as if she had countless things to say.
But in the end, she quietly held her words back.
"Let's go," Yuto said, worried that if she stayed here any longer, it might affect her upcoming meeting.
Utaha nodded silently.
On the way, Yuto had learned that the publisher she submitted her manuscript to was indeed Futabasha Bunko.
He had also been given a crash course on light novel-related knowledge.
Futabasha was one of the top three publishing houses in the country, and it was the most welcoming to newcomers.
The editor who accepted her was named Machida Sonoko, a recent female university graduate.
This put Yuto somewhat at ease.
"Which café did you arrange to meet Machida-san at?" Yuto asked.
They had already arrived in front of the Futabasha building, which was situated right on the main commercial street—clearly well-funded.
"This one." Utaha checked her phone and then led him into a nearby café.
The interior was decorated in a relaxed style, and there weren't many people inside at the moment.
By the window, a short-haired woman in an office outfit smiled when she saw them.
"Over here, over here."
Utaha led Yuto over.
This short-haired woman was Machida Sonoko. Though dressed in a mature outfit, her face still held a touch of youthfulness, she clearly hadn't been out of university for long.
"Is this Kasumi Utako-sensei's boyfriend?" Machida asked.
Kasumi Utako was Utaha's pen name, and editors commonly referred to their authors by their pen name followed by sensei.
Even though Machida was older than Utaha, it was an industry custom.
"Cough!" Utaha immediately coughed violently, as if startled.
Her face flushed bright red.
"No, just a friend," Yuto replied with a gentle smile.
Though misunderstood, there was no real harm done. He was accompanying Utaha to meet her editor, if he acted cold and aloof to correct her, it wouldn't reflect well on her.
Besides, he wasn't used to being cold and distant anyway.
"That's right, just a friend," Utaha also regained her composure and calmly explained.
Machida's eyes shifted between the two of them.
She understood and said no more.
"Sorry, I misunderstood," she quickly apologized.
As an editor, she was really giving Utaha plenty of respect, though part of it was because she was a new editor herself.
"It's fine, let's get down to business," Utaha waved her hand to indicate it was no problem, and they moved into the formal discussion phase.
The conversation mainly revolved around Utaha's work and contract matters. Yuto listened quietly from the side.
Although he didn't understand the operational model of light novels, he had some basic knowledge of commercial law.
After hearing Machida explain the terms, he found nothing particularly unfavorable.
Finally, Machida produced a contract.
Once Utaha signed it, her work would be published under Machida's name.
The girl looked somewhat helplessly at Yuto, she clearly didn't quite understand this kind of legal document.
"May I take a look?" Yuto asked Machida.
"Of course, please review it carefully," Machida said very seriously.
Yuto took the contract and examined it meticulously, trying to identify any clauses or loopholes that might be disadvantageous to the girl.
Fortunately, everything seemed perfectly fine.
While he was reviewing the document, Machida felt somewhat puzzled.
When she first saw him, she thought he was just another high school student.
But now, watching him handle the contract, she inexplicably felt he seemed like a seasoned professional—even more mature than herself.
'Strange, why would I have such an illusion of him like that...'