Based on those two points, along with the confirmed train schedule and route, if nothing unexpected happened, he would see the target in about ten minutes.
Image: "Anyway, um", location: "Images/1755784420-100446961-113752435.jpg"
The Daily Life of Attracting Bees and Butterflies: Thoughts on Going Premium (Please Read to the End If You Can, the Author Can Do Anything!!)
The time had finally come.
First of all, my deepest thanks to everyone who has made it this far. Thank you for liking this work and reading it up to now.
As my first work, I had to say that many little incidents happened along the way. They taught me a lot and gave me experience I had never had before.
As that deleted letter said, for various reasons, this book's traffic hasn't been very good, and its future earnings can be expected to be less than ideal as well.
Call it writing for love, or call it stubborn self-satisfaction.
No matter what, I can promise everyone this: even if I have to be a Perfect Attendance thief, I will definitely finish this book properly. I won't drop it halfway through—unless some unavoidable accident happens in real life. Then there'd be nothing I could do. Though the chances should be... forget it, no jinxing it. Staying alive matters most.
After going premium, while ensuring the quality isn't affected, I'll do my best to increase the daily word count.
Also, judging from the content and timeline, everyone should be able to tell that there are still some major characters and plotlines that haven't appeared yet. Since I arrange the story according to the timeline, some popular characters originally scheduled to appear after the school term begins have yet to make their entrance.
I wanted to write up to the April school opening before going premium, but I'm rather slow at controlling the pace of progress. Guomai nasai!
Based on when some characters appeared in their original works, everyone should also be able to guess a few of the characters who will appear later in this story. For example, music girls, or certain popular school characters.
Speaking of music, although some readers tagged this book as band girls, those who have made it this far should be able to tell that what I actually want to write is simply an omni-anime urban story. It isn't limited to bands; it just so happens that quite a few band girl characters have already appeared or will soon appear...
As the synopsis and tags say, this is a genuine harem-oriented work. I hate those fake harem stories that play faction wars and bait-and-switch tricks the most. I believe many esteemed readers feel the same way, so I won't deliberately pull a gender-swap or some huge stunt at the end just to disgust people. As for the deeper interaction scenes some readers are looking forward to, they will naturally come once the relationships grow deeper...
Some readers may also worry that with too many characters, they will become background props with too few appearances and no plot, or that the protagonist will be too promiscuous.
I've considered these issues as well. So later on, I'll do my best to add more plot, stuffing fragmented storylines for more different characters into relatively short stretches of the timeline, just like before, and increasing their presence as much as possible. After all, multi-threaded operation is one of this book's selling points.
In short, everyone should be able to see that, in plot arrangements and everyday actions and dialogue, I have been working hard to make every character's personality fit the original work as closely as possible. Even the times and places of their appearances were decided only after carefully analyzing the original plots, all to avoid OOC as much as possible and prevent unnecessary conflicts between the original stories and this one.
If you don't feel that way—then that's purely because the author's ability isn't good enough and still needs improvement. I apologize to you here, and I will reflect and improve.
So, just as I said at the end of previous chapters, if there are any characters you like, feel free to post about them in the comments or chapter comments anytime. Don't worry about timing. If they get lots of likes, I'll add them. Even if they get few likes, they might still be added, because perhaps I was already planning to write them...
If enough people want to see them, I'm even willing to catch up on an anime I haven't watched for your sake. So please don't be shy about commenting. Of course, let me put on some armor first: if the characters everyone wants are too varied, I can't possibly write every single one. But even if your opinion isn't ultimately adopted... there's no loss in saying it, right?
If you have any opinions or suggestions about this book, you can also leave them in the comments. If everyone thinks they make sense, and I see them, I'll make changes. As long as they aren't excessively abusive insults or simple emotional venting, everyone is welcome to express their opinions anytime.
The best place to post opinions and comments is at the end of each day's updated chapter, because more readers following along will see them there, then like, comment, and discuss them, making it easier to arrive at the best view.
Everyone should be able to tell that this work's main plot basically revolves around the male protagonist being "forced" to pursue the paths of many female protagonists in order to solve the trouble caused by his own constitution, leading to a series of story events. Compared to other normal youth urban stories, it may therefore be a little different, and more characters inevitably appeared in the early stages—because this isn't a story taking place in one fixed setting, so there's only so much that can be done.
Of course, some readers may hope the number of female protagonists can be kept under control. After all, too many really can be hard to manage and may lead to the problems mentioned above. But according to the outline, new characters will inevitably continue to appear later. If you want the number of female protagonists kept especially low, to the level of a school romance in a fixed setting—that isn't very realistic either. At most, the later parts will place more focus on certain characters. As for casting, most of them are currently fairly well-known characters, so they shouldn't be too hard to remember...
But I don't know how many readers currently think this way, so I hope everyone can actively share their thoughts in later chapters. If not, you can at least give a like to show agreement with someone else's opinion.
For example, which female protagonist's plot you want to see more of, what kinds of plot you prefer, whether you value everyday romance more or advancing the story... and so on. (I can already imagine being criticized for padding when I write slow-paced daily romance later on, and then being criticized for lacking character depth when I advance the plot. Please go easy on me; I'm trembling.)
But no matter which side's view prevails, I'll do my best to avoid the possible problems. The solution is as I said above. And I'll try my best to preserve the highlight scenes everyone wants to see, striving for a win-win outcome—even though some readers may feel that's difficult, or think I'm being too greedy, I still want to give it my all.
Because the only goal of this book from here on is to let readers willing to continue enjoy themselves to the fullest, and to tell a story that everyone can roughly find satisfying and acceptable.
As for the technical issues of prose, pacing, and so on, I also discovered some of my own shortcomings while writing. For example, some plots should have been designed to be more interesting, descriptions should have included more scene details, emotional writing should have been given more space, the title and synopsis should have been clearer, and the pacing of the early chapters should have been faster...
In short, it seems I stepped into quite a few pitfalls and got many details wrong.
Part of that is because I've written too little and lack experience, while another part is because I have too many ideas and want everything, so the writing became somewhat scattered.
So if the earlier parts didn't make for a very enjoyable read, I can only apologize. From here on, the author will continue learning and improving through criticism and self-criticism.
There's also the matter of illustrations. I think I've collected quite a lot of nice pictures. Some of the ones posted before were okay, while some felt a little lacking. For future illustrations, I'll do my best to choose prettier ones.
Lastly, no matter what, whether everyone is willing to continue reading this book afterward or not, thank you all for making it this far.
Special thanks to the fans who voted, commented, tipped, and sent blades to urge updates. Your feedback made me feel that these days haven't been so lonely and gave me the motivation to keep writing.
To the readers willing to continue this journey with me, I will do my utmost to bring you even more exciting stories.
This was the completion of one milestone, but not the end of the entire journey.
If possible, I hope we can meet again later—even if it's just by contributing a first subscription to encourage the author. (Shy, hopeful gaze.)
The official premium chapter should be the latest chapter updated tonight, Friday—if nothing goes wrong. It's my first time going premium, so I don't really have any experience.
Now that I've written this much, I realize I got a little carried away. This is almost as long as a regular chapter. Sorry for taking up a bit more of everyone's time. Well, I'll stop here.
—The author who loves you all (blows a kiss)
The Daily Life of Attracting Bees and Butterflies: Arriving in Kawasaki with the Little Miss
At exactly 18:00, Sakurakoji Talent grew a little impatient as he looked at the time that popped up on his phone.
No way, could it not be today? Or had he missed her?
He shouldn't have missed her. There shouldn't have been any problem with the timing either. He remembered clearly that the train's return time was 17:54. If she got off two minutes early, plus the time it took to walk through the station, it should be about now.
But if he failed to run into her because of some accident, then he had taken leave for nothing today.
Still, considering she was unfamiliar with the area, she might have taken more time. He decided to wait a little longer.
Another ten minutes passed like that.
Just as he was hesitating over whether to look elsewhere, a purple-brown-haired girl in a red hoodie came into view. She was pulling a red suitcase, walking while staring down at her phone.
That foolish yet inexplicably serious and stubborn expression, that rustic outfit, those movements that practically had the words "I'm from the countryside" written all over them, and the way she kept muttering under her breath were simply too distinctive. Even in a crowded station, she belonged to the particularly eye-catching sort.
Sakurakoji Talent's eyes immediately lit up. She had finally appeared!
Pulling her suitcase to the automatic gate, she mistakenly thought her card had scanned successfully and walked forward, only to bump into the gate. After trying several more times, she finally passed through and entered the golden hall.
Looking up at the magnificent building before her, Inoseri Nina was stunned, her face forming a little "wow."
After her brief surprise, she looked around, found the sign pointing toward Yokohama, and continued hurrying along in quick little steps.
Sakurakoji Talent hurried after her. He loosened the scarf around his neck, revealing more of his face so he would look less suspicious.
He didn't go up and speak to her directly, because someone as wary as her might think he was some kind of suspicious person. He simply followed silently from a short distance away.
The two soon boarded another train. The carriage was packed, with barely any room even to stand. People were practically pressed against one another.
In the crowded environment, the girl in red was jostled into a stagger as well.
While guarding against possible pickpockets and gropers, and keeping a close watch on the girl two meters away, Sakurakoji Talent waited patiently.
There would be plenty of opportunities, and one should appear soon.
The train slowly started up, gradually leaving the station and racing beneath the vast sky. The little snow sprites scattered outside soon drew the attention of the people inside the carriage, especially one person who had been staring out the window with a miserable face, seemingly deep in thought.
"It's snowing!"
At one point, she noticed the beautiful scenery outside as well. Delighted, she pulled out her phone, wanting to photograph and preserve the precious, beautiful sight. Then—
"Eh? Ehhh!!!"
A wail rang through the carriage, drawing annoyed looks from a small group of nearby people—those farther away couldn't see through the dense wall of bodies at all.
The chance had come!
Seizing the opportunity, Sakurakoji Talent squeezed past several people in front of him and arrived beside her a few seconds later.
"Excuse me, may I ask what happened, miss?"
"Eh?" Inoseri Nina had yet to recover from the tragedy of her phone dying and forcibly shutting down. Hearing a voice from beside her, she looked over in confusion. A head of snow-white long hair entered her sight first, followed by the impression of a fashionable urban beauty wearing oversized sunglasses.
How should she put it? She felt so dazzling, completely unlike herself. Was this what a big city was like? Inoseri Nina murmured inwardly.
"Um, my phone ran out of power and shut down." After hesitating for three seconds, Inoseri Nina replied awkwardly, "Sorry for causing you trouble."
"I see. That really does happen sometimes. Being without a phone when you're out can be very inconvenient, so be more careful next time."
"Yes, I learned my lesson today." Her face was full of bitterness, as if she had gained an even clearer premonition of the disasters awaiting her in the days ahead.
"That's good. Here." Sakurakoji Talent handed her something he had prepared in advance.
"Oh, what's this?" Inoseri Nina took it instinctively, then asked.
"A power bank. An essential item when traveling far from home." Sakurakoji Talent smiled and gave her a thumbs-up.
"Ah!" Inoseri Nina realized what it was. "Thank you so much!"
The space around them was too crowded for her to bow, so she could only express her gratitude verbally before hurriedly connecting her phone to the power bank.
What a kind person! She hadn't expected to meet one so quickly. Inoseri Nina's previously bewildered heart found a little comfort. Who said people in big cities were all cold and heartless? That was all rumor!
"By the way, are you alone? Is this your first time in Tokyo?"
"Ah, yes! I was supposed to get off at Shinagawa Station, but I fell asleep and rode past it." Once her phone was connected to the power and turned back on, Inoseri Nina let out a long breath. Her sense of security instantly returned in full.
"Haha, that does happen occasionally." Sakurakoji Talent agreed, smiling beneath the sunglasses.
"Where are you from, miss?"
"Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture..."
"I know that place. It's Kumamon's hometown, right?" Sakurakoji Talent raised his tone, seeming very interested and enthusiastic.
"Mm, yes..." Inoseri Nina cautiously glanced at him a few times, then relaxed again.
Thank goodness. Thank goodness this Kyoto Gentleman hadn't treated her like some bumpkin from the sticks!
Speaking of Kumamoto, it was one of the two countryside regions, along with Hokkaido, that often got mocked online. One was in the south and the other in the north. Although Kumamoto wasn't Japan's southernmost prefecture, for some reason its reputation still often suffered.
Before coming to Tokyo, she had worried that she might face regional discrimination. Fortunately, the person before her seemed to be a good person.
But the people around them might not be. Inoseri Nina furrowed her brows and shot fierce looks at several people nearby who had quietly snickered and worn silently mocking expressions earlier.
"I'm heading to Kawasaki next. What about you, miss?"
"Ah! I'm going to Kawasaki too!" Inoseri Nina's brows loosened. Clutching her phone and power bank tightly in both Hands, she looked at him in surprise. "My uncle told me to go to Kawasaki in Tokyo. He found a place for me there."
"I see, what a coincidence... but Kawasaki isn't Tokyo." Sakurakoji Talent's conscience pricked slightly before he shattered her illusion.
"Eh?" Inoseri Nina's expression froze. "What do you mean?"
"Exactly what I said. While we are indeed in Tokyo right now, Kawasaki belongs to Kanagawa Prefecture next to Tokyo. It's merely close to Tokyo."
"Eh? Don't tell me... I was tricked?" Inoseri Nina looked at Sakurakoji Talent blankly, her expression somewhat foolish.
"Uh, probably, maybe, more or less?" Faced with her hopeful gaze, Sakurakoji Talent swallowed. "Maybe they wanted to rent you an unused room. How much is it per month?"
"Fifty thousand... no wonder it was so cheap."
"I see. Then that's indeed possible." Seeing her expression grow even more dejected, Sakurakoji Talent hurriedly comforted her. "But you don't need to worry too much. They're very close together, only ten or twenty kilometers apart in a straight line. You can get there quickly by train!"
"That's true. There's nothing I can do about it now anyway. I came here because I was being willful." After her brief disappointment, Inoseri Nina's tone became resolute.
"Mm—though this may be meddling, I still want to ask: why did you come to Tokyo alone? You look like you're still a high school student."
"...Because I had nowhere to belong anywhere. Because I didn't want to lose. I didn't want to admit that I was the one in the wrong." Inoseri Nina's face grew grave as she spoke in a low voice, as though an aura-shell were gradually wrapping around her.
Sakurakoji Talent seemed to see a hedgehog's armor made of countless red needlepoints. An invisible force field pressed against his heart, making him breathe harder.
Oh no, Gravity had deployed!
He hurriedly interrupted her casting. "It seems there are some difficult circumstances behind this, so I won't pry any further."
"But living alone away from home will probably bring many difficulties. Um... how about this? This is my business card." He handed her a smooth black card.
"If you run into anything you find difficult, contact me with this. I'll help within the limits of my ability."
"How can I possibly accept that! This is far too much trouble for you!" Inoseri Nina hurriedly tried to refuse.
"Think of it as fate. It's only for emergencies anyway, because I like helping children who strive desperately and chase their dreams. I have no dream, but I can protect dreams!"
Inoseri Nina had no particular reaction upon hearing that. Perhaps she had never seen that famous scene. But the looks some people in the carriage gave him changed, gradually turning into disgust and awkwardness.
These days, you could run into Chūnibyō anywhere.
"Thank you once again!" Inoseri Nina's expression was sincere. If they had been outside, she might have performed a formal bow to Sakurakoji Talent. "Um, my name is Inoseri Nina. Just call me Nina. Please take care of me!"