I took a careful look today and found that my earnings for this month so far were only 250. I probably won't qualify for the full-attendance bonus.
This is my first time writing a novel. I know I haven't written it very well, and I'd already expected this outcome, but having it confirmed still hurt a little. I'd planned to make up two chapters today, but now I'm not really in the mood.
First, I'd like to apologize to all my dear readers!
I'm taking one more day off today to settle my feelings and sort out the plot while I'm at it.
This book is my first work, and I'll keep writing it. Thank you, dear readers, for enjoying my novel all this time.
My sincere thanks!
Updates will resume tomorrow.
On a summer afternoon, I felt languid, as though the blood throughout my body had stopped flowing, and only the long, drawn-out cries of the cicadas outside the window reminded me that I was still alive. The sun shone brilliantly, its white glare dazzling, baking the courtyard's concrete until it was scorching hot. Even the air seemed slightly warped by the heat, rising in trembling waves. I sat indoors and watched through the glass as the light sliced the world imperiously in two: one half a searing brightness, the other a quiet darkness. An inexplicable irritation stirred within me.
At last, unable to bear the stuffiness filling the room, I pushed open the door and wandered outside. A wave of heat struck me full in the face, like an invisible wall. Almost as though fleeing, I hurried toward the old locust tree in the corner of the courtyard. Before I even reached it, I could feel a crisp coolness seeping from that great expanse of dense green shade.