Saturday morning.
Under normal circumstances, Xia Chuan would have slept in a little later.
But remembering that this was Utaha Kasumigaoka’s first autograph session, he still got up early.
After washing up and having breakfast, he got himself ready and headed toward the destination.
When he arrived at the chain bookstore operated by Fushikawa Bunko, Xia Chuan saw the line of people already waiting for Utako Kasumi’s autograph session.
Perhaps because he had arrived early, the area was relatively quiet.
The number of people inside the bookstore wasn’t much different from an ordinary day.
Only the autograph-session line was somewhat livelier.
There were roughly sixty or seventy people at the moment.
Even accounting for those who might arrive later, Xia Chuan estimated that there would probably be around three hundred attendees at most.
This gave him a rough idea of Utako Kasumi’s current popularity.
The first volume was only attracting this much attention.
No wonder the later volumes of the series had eventually been cancelled.
The competition surrounding light novels in Japan was incredibly fierce, after all.
After looking over the line, Xia Chuan shifted his attention to the seat at the very front.
A black-haired girl wearing a white headband was sitting there.
She wore a white, elegant one-piece dress.
Her posture was graceful, her bearing refined, and her entire appearance perfectly embodied the image of a beautiful literary girl.
Making full use of the advantages that came with being a female author while keeping her voluptuous figure hidden beneath the desk, Utaha Kasumigaoka was currently observing the line of readers waiting for her.
She was slightly disappointed by the number of people.
But they were all her readers.
That alone was enough to make her feel happy.
Then she noticed Xia Chuan.
Utaha froze.
As a second-year student at High Sobu Academy, she was naturally familiar with Xia Chuan.
Even quite a few girls in her class had talked about him.
She had also happened to see him once before.
But she hadn’t expected this famous junior from her school to be one of her readers.
Utaha was surprised.
At the same time, an inexplicable sense of kinship emerged in her heart.
Before long, following an announcement from the security staff, the autograph session officially began.
The crowd gradually started moving forward.
More than ten minutes later, it was finally Xia Chuan’s turn.
“I didn’t expect Utako Kasumi to be you, Kasumigaoka-senpai.”
Xia Chuan handed over his copy of The Metronome in Love, speaking with genuine surprise.
Utaha wasn’t surprised that he had recognized her.
She wasn’t trying to brag, but she was also quite popular at High Sobu Academy.
And ever since she had noticed Xia Chuan earlier, she had been somewhat looking forward to his turn.
She accepted the book from him.
Then she noticed something different from the other copies.
His copy of The Metronome in Love was noticeably worn.
It looked like it had been read many times.
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Utaha’s lips.
“I didn’t expect to meet a junior from my own school here either.
And not just any junior, but one who’s quite famous.”
“You know about me too, Senpai?”
Xia Chuan was surprised.
He then pointed to the first page of The Metronome in Love.
“Could you sign it here?”
“Of course.”
Utaha nodded lightly.
She picked up her pen with her right hand, and elegant handwriting quickly appeared on the page.
At the same time, taking advantage of the moment while she was writing, Utaha quietly asked,
“Xia Chuan-kun, what do you think of my work?”
“It’s pretty good.
I’ve read it several times.”
Xia Chuan paused.
“But it’s not perfect.
I think some parts of the story are a little too flat.
They feel like they’re missing something.”
Utaha had originally been about to politely thank him for his support.
Instead, her gaze sharpened.
She lowered her head slightly and immediately began thinking about his words.
Then she raised her head again.
“Could you tell me which parts you think are lacking?”
“Why don’t we find a chance to talk about it after the autograph session?”
Utaha realized that they were still in the middle of the event.
After thinking for a moment, however, she extended an invitation.
“In that case, Xia Chuan-kun, would you mind waiting for me after the autograph session?”
Recently, she had been suffering from writer’s block.
Her editor, Akane Kōsaka, had also pointed out some of the weaknesses in her work, much like Xia Chuan had just done.
Since that was the case, she wanted to hear the perspective of this junior reader.
“Of course.
No problem.”
Xia Chuan naturally had no reason to refuse.
He took the signed book and left the line.
On his way out, he happened to notice Tomoya Aki standing in the queue.
Aki also happened to notice him.
But he quickly turned his head away, pretending not to see Xia Chuan.
It was almost as though the two were naturally incompatible.
Xia Chuan didn’t bother with him either.
After all, he had effectively intercepted the connection between Utaha Kasumigaoka and Tomoya Aki.
He felt absolutely no guilt about it.
No…
Judging from the current situation, Utaha Kasumigaoka and Tomoya Aki hadn’t even established any connection yet.
In that case, why shouldn’t the capable person be the one to take the opportunity?
Speaking of Tomoya Aki, Xia Chuan suddenly remembered another outstanding first-year student.
Eriri.
…
Although the crowd wasn’t particularly large, the autograph session ultimately attracted roughly three hundred people, just as Xia Chuan had predicted.
Besides signing books, Utaha also spent some time talking with the readers.
From beginning to end, the entire event lasted several hours.
“So this is how exhausting an autograph session is…”
After the event ended, Utaha Kasumigaoka collapsed over a wooden table in the backstage area.
Simply signing all those books had already consumed a considerable amount of energy.
On top of that, she had needed to interact with all kinds of people.
Even someone as outstanding as Utaha, who stood out far above the average high school student, now felt mentally and physically exhausted.
“Utaha, this doesn’t even count as a large autograph session.”
A woman with short black hair and a rather imposing figure laughed beside her.
“Once you’re able to hold an even bigger one, your hands might not even be able to move afterward.”
She paused.
“Of course, who knows whether you’ll even get another opportunity like this.”
Utaha didn’t even lift her head.
“For an editor, saying something like that really does suit your personality, Machida.”
“I’m trying to motivate you!”
Machida Sonoko emphasized her words.
Her eyes were filled with anticipation and encouragement.
“Look, quite a lot of your fans came today.
You should work even harder for their sake.”
“Although I didn’t expect one of your fans to be a fellow student.”
She smiled.
“That enthusiastic glasses-wearing student…
and, of course, that tall and handsome junior~”
When Machida mentioned Xia Chuan, her excitement noticeably increased.
A handsome high school boy was certainly a feast for the eyes.
“Aki and Xia Chuan?”
Utaha didn’t bother wondering what kind of state Machida was currently in.
Instead, she thought about the two juniors who had particularly caught her attention today.
Both were fans who supported her work.
But if she had to compare the impression they left on her, Xia Chuan clearly had the advantage.
After all, compared with an ordinary classmate, having a famous student at school become one of her fans gave her a greater sense of accomplishment.
“Speaking of which, aren’t you going to get up?
Someone has already been waiting for quite a while.”
Utaha pushed herself upright and glanced at Machida.
“Don’t worry about me.
Of course I know.”
As though she had instantly recovered her energy, Utaha picked up her small bag and walked directly out of the backstage area.