Advising Rukia

Writing novels during work hours is so comfortable.

In the blink of an eye, today's work hours were over.

Gaoyu looked at his 20,000-character manuscript and happily put it into a file bag.

He had plans to go out to eat with Shūhei today, and he figured he could talk to him about submitting his work to 'Seireitei Communications' over drinks.

Shūhei was the Vice-Captain of the Ninth Division and the responsible editor for Seireitei Communications. Besides Kaname Tōsen, the chief editor, he held the most authority. So, of course, he had to talk to him about submissions.

Since he hadn't brought Shūhei along last time they were at Daruma House, they were going to drink there again. Moreover, the food at Daruma House tasted great, and the quality of the drinks was excellent.

This time, it was just Gaoyu and Shūhei. As soon as they sat down, Gaoyu placed the file bag in front of Shūhei.

Shūhei took the file bag with some curiosity and asked, "What is this?"

"I wrote a novel. See if you can arrange for it to be serialized in Seireitei Communications?"

Shūhei exclaimed in surprise, "A novel?! You can write novels?!"

"What's wrong? Can't I write novels?" Gaoyu retorted. "I really enjoy reading."

"Really?" Shūhei took out the manuscript from the file bag and read a couple of pages before quickly becoming engrossed.

It wasn't until Gaoyu had finished two bottles of sake that Shūhei finally put the manuscript down.

He said with a look of shock, "This is too amazing. It feels even more captivating than Captain Ukitake's 'Pisces' Rejection'."

"Naturally," Gaoyu said smugly. "Of course, I'm not saying Captain Ukitake's 'Pisces' Rejection' isn't excellent."

"It's just that 'Pisces' Rejection' always tries to teach people lessons. While that makes it an excellent and educational novel, it inevitably falls short in terms of sheer entertainment value."

"Alright, I'll take it. Don't worry, I'll find a good spot for you in Seireitei Communications. I guarantee it'll be a bestseller!"

If the sales were good, he, as the chief editor, would also receive some income.

Unlike Gaoyu, he wasn't a noble with savings. Although he had become a Vice-Captain, his expenses were still too high.

After discussing the novel with Shūhei, Shūhei was eager to make arrangements for it, so he left after only a few drinks.

Gaoyu smiled as he watched Shūhei walk away, then shook his head and prepared to head home.

However, just as he was about to leave, he saw Kuchiki Rukia.

Daruma House was relatively close to the Kuchiki residence, so it wasn't strange to see Rukia.

He thought for a moment and decided to go over.

He hadn't had many opportunities to interact with Kuchiki Rukia for a long time, so he had to actively create some.

Currently, there was almost no communication between the various divisions of the Gotei 13. Each division only had its Captain and Vice-Captain attend meetings together at the First Division during the regular Captain's Meetings.

And during these meetings, the Captains mostly mingled with other Captains, and the Vice-Captains with other Vice-Captains.

Because of this situation, many Vice-Captains didn't even know the Captains of other divisions.

By the time the story began, Renji didn't even know who the Captain of the Tenth Division was, which was utterly ridiculous.

Gaoyu also didn't have many opportunities to meet Captains from other divisions. Moreover, barging in to meet someone was inherently impolite.

Therefore, Gaoyu mostly adopted a wait-and-see approach.

He decided to solidify his own foundation first.

However, because Kuchiki Rukia's abilities were too important, Gaoyu decided he needed to make contact.

"You are..."

Walking up to Kuchiki Rukia, Gaoyu said, "Kuchiki Rukia, right?"

Rukia was startled. She looked at Gaoyu, who had suddenly appeared before her, with some confusion.

She was from the Kuchiki family, and everyone in the Sixth District knew it. Everyone looked at her with respect, making it impossible for her to make friends.

And she basically knew everyone who frequented the Sixth District. But now...

Who was this?

Rukia felt that Gaoyu looked somewhat familiar, as if she had seen him somewhere before.

"I'm Renji Abarai's friend," Gaoyu introduced himself first. "I'm also a graduate of the 2061 class, so I'm technically your senior. I'm currently the Vice-Captain of the Fifth Division, Gaoyu Kouun."

"Renji's friend..." Rukia was a little surprised, then bowed. "So you're Vice-Captain Gaoyu. Is there something you need?"

"Huh?" Gaoyu was surprised. He quickly took two steps back and said, "Please don't let anyone else see you do that. Although I'm a Vice-Captain, you're from the Kuchiki family, so our statuses are equal."

Legally speaking, a Vice-Captain and an ordinary member of a noble family were indeed considered equals.

Of course, if he were her direct superior, he could accept Rukia's bow.

But he wasn't a Vice-Captain of the Thirteenth Division, so he couldn't order Rukia around.

"Vice-Captain Gaoyu, what did you want to see me about?"

"I wanted to talk to you about Renji. I was just eating here, would you like to come in and sit for a bit?" Gaoyu gestured towards Daruma House.

Rukia hesitated.

After a moment, she said, "Alright, but I can only stay for ten minutes. If I'm late getting back, my brother will be unhappy."

"No problem."

Ten minutes later, Gaoyu led Rukia back into Daruma House.

Before going in, Gaoyu casually grabbed another bottle of wine.

"Want some?"

"No thanks," Rukia shook her hand.

Gaoyu poured himself a drink and said, "Renji is in the Fifth Division now. He mentioned you, and I got curious. I wonder what kind of person could be adopted by the Kuchiki family."

Rukia gave a wry smile. "Now that you've seen me, are you disappointed? If I didn't look similar to Hisana, I wouldn't have been qualified to be adopted by the Kuchiki family."

"..." Gaoyu said somewhat strangely, "Why wouldn't you be qualified? Miss Rukia, you just graduated from Shino Academy and already possess this much Spiritual Power. I think in a few years, you'll be a Lieutenant."

"Is... that so?"

Rukia lowered her head. Although he was praising her, she didn't seem very enthusiastic.

During this period, Rukia felt a degree of 'inferiority complex'.

Gaoyu shook his head and said, "Actually, some things can be seen in the details. Perhaps what you believe to be true isn't actually true."

"...What do you mean?" Rukia looked up at this point, asking with some confusion.

"Miss Rukia, you like sweets, don't you?"

"Huh? Did Renji tell you?"

Gaoyu didn't answer, instead offering a mysterious smile. "The food you eat at the Kuchiki household is all sweet, right?"

"...Yes..." Although she was a noble, Rukia spoke without much confidence.

"But Mr. Byakuya likes spicy food," Gaoyu added.

"?! Impossible!" Rukia became somewhat agitated at this point. She couldn't help but say, "When we eat at home, the food is clearly sweet!"