Chapter 63: Kasumigaoka Utaha Is Your Responsibility Now

……

Sunday, as always, was the day Himekoji Akito contacted his editor to discuss work updates and report his writing progress.

Usually, when editors met authors, the meeting place was set at the publishing house or a café.

However, ever since that time three times ago when Himekoji squeezed his editor’s breasts thanks to an ‘option’ prompt, the thirty-year-old single female editor Machida Sonoko refused to have any private contact with him again no matter what he said or did.

All work communication since then was only through phone calls or email.

So, same as usual today.

“How’s Volume Eight of the novel coming along?”

From the phone came the sound of a lazy and slightly hazy female editor voice.

If he was hearing right, during the pauses in her speech, there was also a big yawn.

Had she just woken up?

So when she flatly refused to meet at a café, it wasn’t actually to dodge me… she probably just wanted to sleep in!

Definitely that!

Himekoji rubbed his chin and made this self-deluding judgment.

“Volume Eight?”

This flashed through his mind before he found himself genuinely puzzled by her question.

Hadn’t he already sent the entire Volume Eight straight to her inbox days ago?

“Ah, ah, I’m not rushing you. We’ve still got plenty of time till the deadline, so no need to hurry. Also, Himekoji-kun has to write books while keeping up with school, that’s hard. If you’re too busy, volume 8 can even wait two months…”

“Hold on, I sent you Volume Eight ages ago, editor.”

Seeing his editor get further off track, Himekoji hurriedly cut her off.

“Huh? Pfft! Cough, cough, cough…”

Sounds of choking and water spraying came in quick succession from the other end.

The noise continued for quite awhile.

Then, that soft, slightly mature female voice finally registered shock as if waking from a dream, and the editor’s surprised tone followed from the receiver—

“You already sent me Volume Eight? Joking, right! Risque Jokes Volume Seven just went on sale not long ago!”

“See, you’re totally scattered, Editor…”

Himekoji felt rather speechless, shaking his head.

He used his shoulder to clamp the phone handle, routinely carrying on this work talk while somehow managing to frantically draw manga at an incredibly exaggerated speed with both hands – One-Punch Man.

“You called me without even checking the manuscript in your inbox? Editor, really… Oh, and by the way, I already sent you Risque Jokes Volume Nine, the finale, yesterday too.”

Himekoji Akito dropped another bombshell over the phone.

“Huh huh huh?! Vo-Volume NINE?! You finished Volume NINE too?! Wh-WHAT?! M-meaning… you’ve FINISHED the whole series?! You wrote an entire nine-volume light novel series in less than a year?!”

Editor Machida Sonoko was badly shocked, stammering horribly.

And that reaction wasn’t surprising.

After all, the chapter-writing speed in Japan’s light novel scene was nothing compared to the Chinese web fiction world.

In Japan, the overwhelming majority of serious light novel authors kept a writing pace of around three volumes per year – one every four months.

Even so, those authors endlessly complained, offering every imaginable procrastination tactic.

Machida Sonoko had worked in this industry for years. She wasn’t unfamiliar with famously fast authors – take famous author Kawahara Reki, who wrote Accel World. He was known for his insane writing speed, but even he only published one new volume every two months.

But Himekoji?

He wrote an entire nine-volume light novel in less than a year! From penning the start to finishing the end, only nine months stood between them… What kind of insane pace was that?!

A whole volume per month!

A tentacle beast? A human typing machine?

“Yep, yep…”

Himekoji dismissed his editor’s shock completely, brushing it off with a vague response.

After all, he was just copying the source text. If it weren’t for his constantly insufficient 2D Points, knocking out one volume a week would be so easy for Himekoji Akito, seriously no big deal.

“Oh right, finishing two volumes that fast… the quality won’t suffer, will it? Chasing speed while throwing away quality is putting the cart before the horse.”

“That’s why I’m saying… Editor, you need to start editing them! I sent the drafts nearly a week ago, and you haven’t even opened them yet…”

Himekoji sighed.

“Ah, ah… Well see… I’m busy! The publishing house is in an expansion phase. We’re understaffed here and undermanned there. I haven’t even had time lately to check little Uta’s new work.”

Himekoji had only made a small complaint, unexpectedly, his editor Machida Sonoko immediately started unloading a heap of complaints onto him.

“Sigh, it’s super exhausting being an editor! Busy everywhere in the publishing house, getting bossed around non-stop. Finally finish a day’s work and head home only to have no peace either – editing drafts, doing research content, contacting authors and illustrators…”

“Since you’re short staffed… hire more people…”

Himekoji Akito looked exasperated, beads of sweat almost forming.

Seriously, what use is telling him? Could it be she still expects him to help shoulder her workload?!

“Right! Since all Akito-kun’s current project writing is complete, how about I have you take responsibility for little Uta’s new work? What do you say?”

Huh? Am I hearing right…?

Is my amazing editor really cooking up such a rotten idea?!

“How about NO?!”

Himekoji Akito instantly refused.

“But little Uta has already agreed to it.”

Huh?! Wait a minute!

That proposal… wasn’t it just something you randomly thought of right now? How on earth can you claim it’s already settled?! Hey?!!

“Since when?!”

Himekoji suddenly felt as if he’d walked into a trap…

“Just seconds ago. I emailed little Uta asking her. Little Uta replied straight back to me. Want me to forward you the email details?”

“You always ignore manuscripts emailed inside your inbox! Yet when emailing folks… somehow you’re faster than anyone! Also… casually throwing your author off to another author? Seriously, what kind of slapdash editor dumps responsibilities like this?!”

Himekoji was practically in awe. So stunned he had completely lost his urge to draw manga, throwing down his pen, placing a frustrated hand against his aching forehead.

The ‘little Uta’ Sonoko mentioned was the full name Kasumigaoka Utaha. She happened to be the one and only other author acquaintance of Himekoji Akito inside light novel publishing spheres. By coincidence or fate? She was also his school senior – his Senpai.

The two became acquaintances since they both signed contracts with the same publisher and worked under the same editor.

Perhaps because both coincidentally attended the same school and were similar in age, they naturally fell into friendship.

Unfortunately, the term ‘friend’ always seemed destined to clash with Himekoji –

Their ‘friendship’ turned out rather short-lived; after experiencing some rather… complicated events, they cleanly drifted apart into merely being fellow authors or school acquaintances.

From that point onward, whether meeting at school or encountering each other at the publisher’s office, they didn’t even exchange greetings, let alone actually converse.

That’s why being forced to suddenly cowork now… what even is this?! The awkwardness will be absolutely crippling!

Plus, Kasumigaoka Utaha was being weird too. Why ever would she agree willingly to such a reckless proposal from Sonoko-nee?!

……

“Alright alright, so it’s happily settled then.”

Happily my butt! Who allowed such careless decision-making?!

“Work hard, the publisher won’t mistreat you.”

Oh please stop throwing empty promises around already…

The publishing house specializes most expertly in squeezing useful labor resources dry!

“Well then, I have one condition.”

Himekoji Akito thought for a bit and finally opened his mouth to speak.

“Tell me!”

Machida’s voice came crisply from the receiver’s other end. Extremely energetic, extremely enthusiastic.

“If you agree to let me give you just one ‘relaxation’ massage…”

“Beep beep beep——”

Himekoji Akito’s words hadn’t finished when the connection was ruthlessly terminated by that “extremely energetic” and “extremely enthusiastic” Miss Machida Sonoko.

Following the abrupt hangup arrived a threatening text message.

“Just recorded what you said! So——you better take good care of little Uta’s new work! Unless you want being sued for Sexual Harrassment? And this ain’t your first offense either!”

Himekoji Akito: “……”