As a driver who had worked for the Yukinashita Family for many years, Mr. Ito was as taciturn as ever, doing more than he said. But as he drove Yukino home, he asked one extra question: "Should the Yukinashita Family step in and help that young girl?"
Yukino shook her head.
Mrs. Nishimiya was a very stubborn woman with a strong sense of pride. In her view, having the chance to attend Soubu thanks to social assistance was already more than fortunate enough. They could make the most of that opportunity and work toward a better future.
She believed there were plenty of people in the world who deserved help more than the Nishimiya family did.
After returning to her apartment, Yukino did what she usually did: she worked through a test paper to clear her head, then opened her phone. She found a message from Shoko Nishimiya asking if she had gotten home safely, as well as the usual barrage of messages from Kasumigaoka.
Yukino replied to Shoko first. [I'm home.]
The reply came quickly.
[Today was really fun. Thank you, Senpai! y∩__∩y]
The message Kasumigaoka had sent more than an hour earlier was a screenshot of one of Utako Kasumi's tweets. It said that Utako Kasumi's new book had been confirmed for publication.
As the most popular newcomer in light novels over the past two years, news of Utako Kasumi's new book had attracted plenty of attention. The tweet had easily racked up tens of thousands of retweets and comments.
Yukino glanced at the new book's subject and synopsis, then realized it was one of the story openings Kasumigaoka had shown her earlier.
Utako Kasumi really seemed to be fond of Kasumigaoka. Not only was her pen name connected to Kasumigaoka, she was even willing to show her