Before long, afternoon arrived.
Fujino's detective agency welcomed a guest.
He was a man with dark circles under his eyes, dressed in the classic suit of an overworked corporate drone. He looked thoroughly gloomy, every inch of him reflecting his status as a salaryman.
Fujino took out a teapot, poured him a cup of black tea, and handed it over. "Mr. Kinoshita, right? Kaori mentioned you on the phone before. Please, sit. No need to be so nervous."
"That's right..."
Kinoshita accepted the tea and sat stiffly on the sofa. "My name is Yuzo Kinoshita. I'm an editor at Kadokawa Publishing."
Fujino casually took a seat on the sofa and asked, "So, what brings you here? Kaori mentioned this matter to me, but she didn't say what the commission was specifically about."
"It's a commission concerning a code."
Kinoshita answered, "I wonder if you've heard of Kikukawa Karyu..."
Fujino had already gotten the information from Kaori Niina, so he immediately replied, "You mean that writer who hasn't published a new book in years?"
"That's right." Kinoshita continued, "Mr. Kikukawa used to be an extremely popular realist writer. Although he hasn't released a book in many years, we publishers still have to compete for his rights. Given his former reputation, any new book he releases is bound to sell well."
"There were so many publishing houses involved that everyone had descended into a complete mess. So Mr. Kikukawa came up with a solution—on the day of his birthday banquet, he would hold a code game to decide which publisher would get the rights."
"Mm, I roughly understand."
Fujino responded, then narrowed his eyes and stared into Kinoshita's. "So, Mr. Kinoshita, how much is Kadokawa Publishing willing to spend on these rights?"
Kinoshita considered it before answering, "Kadokawa has prepared a commission