Twenty-three minutes passed. Shimazaki Yuna stared blankly at the 2,192 characters-per-minute typing speed displayed on the computer.
Was this really a speed a human could achieve?
Kira Yoshikage typed so fast that she did not even have time to watch...
While the girl was spacing out, Kira Yoshikage had already closed the document and shut down the computer.
"Are you not going to keep writing?" Shimazaki Yuna asked instinctively.
"It's already eleven."
Kira Yoshikage said this flatly, walked straight to the bed, and lay down. At the same time, he turned off the lights.
"Mm~"
Shimazaki Yuna was at a loss. Was she supposed to leave?
Kira Yoshikage pointed at the tatami on the floor:
"You can sleep on the floor. There are blankets in the cabinet. You can also sleep on the bed, but two people will be a little cramped on a single bed..."
"That's fine."
Shimazaki Yuna walked toward the bed with a trembling voice, gently lifted the covers, and lay down.
Under the moonlight, the girl's fair cheeks were already flushed red.
To think she had voluntarily crawled into the blankets of a strange man she had known for less than three hours. Surely people would think she was a girl waiting for someone to shelter her?
But she had nothing now.
If this could help her find someone to rely on again, perhaps it was not a bad thing.
After all, he had saved her!
Kira Yoshikage gazed at the girl's still-delicate features in the darkness and slightly furrowed his brow.
He was not surprised by the girl's choice. Clearly, someone who had chosen to commit suicide by jumping onto the tracks had long since lost all attachment to this world.
And Kira Yoshikage, who had risked his life to save her from the subway, would undoubtedly become the sole motivation keeping her alive.
But facing a pretty, charming young woman and smelling the faint citrus fragrance emanating from her, Kira Yoshikage was already BOKI, yet he was not excited. Instead, he slightly furrowed his brow and ordered bluntly:
"Give me your hands."
A beautiful girl without hands was meaningless!
Shimazaki Yuna blinked and obediently extended both hands...
Kira Yoshikage did not hold back. He needed those hands to help the House of Commons pass the bill.
Chapter 8: Kitagawa Marin
7:50 a.m.
After sleeping for eight full hours, Kira Yoshikage was refreshed. The stress he had released allowed him to greet the new day without leaving behind any fatigue.
After spending five minutes washing up, Kira Yoshikage poured himself a glass of milk, then sat down in front of the computer and began working.
He planned to write another fifty thousand words before going to school. The submission requirement for the major light-novel publishers in Japan was one hundred thousand words, which was also roughly the length of a published light novel volume.
With Kira Yoshikage's superhuman typing speed, the fifty thousand words took only fifteen minutes.
The girl, who had woken up at some point, blushed slightly as she recalled what had happened the previous night. Her palms seemed to retain a sticky sensation even now, despite having already washed her hands.
She came to the computer barefoot, tucked a strand of hair away from her forehead, and asked in surprise:
"You've already finished?"
Shimazaki Yuna did not know when Kira Yoshikage had woken up, but the word count displayed on the computer had already exceeded one hundred thousand. Judging by the typing speed Kira Yoshikage had shown the previous night, he had probably written those hundred thousand words in less than an hour.
"Which publisher do you think I should submit to?"
Kira Yoshikage suddenly asked as he looked at the girl beside him.
"Huh? You're asking me?"
Shimazaki Yuna was a little nervous. She glanced at Kira Yoshikage's novel again. Although she could not read as quickly as Kira Yoshikage wrote, she could still make a rough judgment from some of the keywords she had picked out: it was a school romance comedy.
After hesitating, the girl suggested softly:
"Hmm~ Of the three major light-novel publishers, Fumishigawa Bunko has always mainly published school-romance light novels. By comparison, Dengeki Bunko mainly publishes Isekai adventure light novels, and school-romance stories have never been taken seriously there. No matter how well it's written, it probably won't win the Grand Prize..."
After a pause, Shimazaki Yuna hesitated to mention the other reason. Dengeki Bunko's submission deadline was April 10, which was only a few days away.
Fumishigawa Bunko's submission deadline was in August, giving her plenty of time to create the illustrations. So if they submitted to Fumishigawa Bunko, her illustrations could be submitted together with Kira Yoshikage's work, perhaps increasing their chances of winning.
But that would be somewhat hurtful, as if Kira Yoshikage would definitely be unable to win without her illustrations.
After hearing the girl's analysis, Kira Yoshikage answered without hesitation:
"Good. Then I'll submit to Dengeki Bunko."
Shimazaki Yuna's small mouth fell open. Was it possible that she had actually been recommending Fumishigawa Bunko?
Kira Yoshikage's fingers flew across the keyboard. He searched for Dengeki Bunko's website, clicked to apply, registered an account, and submitted the novel in one smooth motion.
Kira Yoshikage rose from the computer desk and spoke at the same time:
"I'm in a hurry. There are a new towel and toothbrush in the bathroom. You can take them when you're done. Also, remember to close the door when you leave."
The girl gently tugged at Kira Yoshikage's sleeve and looked at him pitifully:
"C-can I go to school with you?"
Kira Yoshikage looked at the girl's pitiful expression without reacting.
But then he lowered his head and glanced at the girl's fair little hands...
Cute. He wanted to lick them.
Kira Yoshikage fell silent for a moment before slowly speaking:
"Five minutes."
"I'll be quick."
Shimazaki Yuna nodded happily, ran barefoot to the bathroom, found the new toothbrush placed in an obvious spot and the neatly folded towel, and finished washing up as quickly as possible.
Shimazaki Yuna stood before the washstand and looked at herself in the mirror. Almost unconsciously, she raised her hand to the tip of her nose.
Mmm~
The girl's pretty face flushed crimson. Even though quite a while had passed, she seemed to be able to smell it still.
"Kira-kun."
With her cheeks flushed, the girl opened the bathroom door and came to the entryway. She said softly, "I'm ready."
"Put your shoes on."
Kira Yoshikage pointed at the shoes and socks neatly arranged in the entryway.
"Mm."
Shimazaki Yuna obediently crouched on the floor, pulled the black socks back over her fair feet, then slipped on her leather shoes with a tug of her index finger.
"Let's go."
Kira Yoshikage opened the door and closed it again only after the girl had left.
The apartment was less than a hundred meters from the nearest subway station, so it took them only five minutes to board a train bound for Minato Ward.
As long as nothing went wrong, they would arrive at school before classes began.
"Kira-kun."
On the subway, Shimazaki Yuna, sitting beside Kira Yoshikage, took out her phone and asked cautiously, "Could you add me on LINE and send me the novel? I-I'll finish the illustrations as soon as possible..."
"Sure."
Kira Yoshikage thought for a moment and decided it was indeed necessary. He took out his phone, added Shimazaki Yuna as a LINE contact, and then sent her the document saved on his phone.
The moment the girl received the document, she began reading it seriously, afraid of missing even a single word.
Ding!
At 8:40, the subway arrived at Mita Station.
Kira Yoshikage glanced at Shimazaki Yuna, who was absorbed in the novel beside him, sighed softly, and took the girl's hand as he led her out of the subway.
Shuchiin Academy was not far outside the subway station, less than two hundred meters away in a straight line.
However, Kira Yoshikage and Shimazaki Yuna attended different schools, so they had already parted ways by the time they exited the station.
At 8:45, five minutes remained before class.
The students in the classroom were gathered in groups of three or five with their familiar friends, speaking in low voices.
Kira Yoshikage's arrival made the classroom fall silent for a moment, but the silence did not last long. After all, although a blond man nearly six feet tall was hard not to fear, this was still a school.
Kira Yoshikage crossed the crowd and sat in the second-to-last seat by the window, quietly watching the cherry blossoms drifting outside.
Although he had decided to maintain a peaceful life with the income from light novels, that would not happen overnight.
It was early April, and the deadline for the Dengeki Bunko Newcomer Grand Prize was April 10.
After the deadline, Dengeki Bunko would conduct a total of four rounds of judging for the submitted light novels.
Each round lasted one month, and most of the works would be eliminated.
The fourth round was the final selection, whose purpose was to choose the shortlisted works that would enter the finals from among those that had passed the first three rounds.
Depending on the number of Main Prizes and Sub Prizes awarded each year, the number of shortlisted works ranged from four to eight.
In other words, from the time Kira Yoshikage submitted his novel until he could win an award, receive the prize money, and even have it published, at least four months would pass. He could not live off his savings during those four months, which meant he still had to find a job first...
"Kira-kun?"
A fair hand waved in front of him, pulling Kira Yoshikage back to reality.
Kira Yoshikage's gaze followed the withdrawing hand and saw its owner.
A girl with long golden hair, its ends dyed a gradually deepening pink, and a brilliant smile that seemed permanently fixed on her face.
Kira Yoshikage recalled the class roster and matched the girl with the name in his memory--
Kitagawa Marin.
"Good morning, Kira-kun."
Kitagawa Marin gave him a cheerful smile and greeted him openly.
Chapter 9: Ammonia, Zinc, Coal, Technetium
"Good morning, Kitagawa-san."
Kira Yoshikage looked at the girl's fair little hand, its fingers covered with nail tips, and replied calmly.
It was a good hand, but he preferred them completely natural.
But this hand in front of him had clearly been wasted, like chicken ribs—tasteless to eat, yet a shame to discard.
Even setting her hands aside, Kitagawa Marin and he were people from completely different worlds. They had only been in school for a few days, yet she had already successfully organized her own little group. She was a genuine social butterfly.
And in the eyes of Kira Yoshikage, who longed for a peaceful life, people like that were practically disasters.
Kitagawa Marin felt that Kira Yoshikage's gaze was somewhat strange, but she still explained seriously:
"It's like this, Kira-kun. A girl named Aoyama Nanami was looking for you just now. Do you know her?"
"Aoyama Nanami?" Kira Yoshikage's gaze shifted upward, as if he were seeing what the girl looked like for the first time.
"Mm."
Kitagawa Marin nodded lightly. "She seemed to have something very important to tell you, but since you were never around, she asked me to pass along the message. Um, could I ask you to add her on LINE? Even if you only exchange a few words."
Kitagawa Marin pressed her palms together. Her sincere expression made it difficult to refuse.
"LINE?"
Kira Yoshikage pondered. Although he and Aoyama Nanami worked at the same bookstore, they had no contact beyond work. They had not even added each other on LINE privately.
"Sure."
Kira Yoshikage nodded lightly and took out his phone.
Before you continue