It started drizzling in Tokyo after nightfall.
Amidst the sparse spring rain, a late-night taxi drove through the roads of the residential area, its tires rolling over the pavement, creating bursts of soggy 'splashing' sounds.
Watanabe Yu sat cross-legged in front of the small square table, rapidly typing on his keyboard while glancing at the time displayed in the lower right corner of the screen.
It was already half past one in the morning.
His original plan was to finish work by eleven at night.
Unfortunately, plans couldn't keep up with changes.
At eleven o'clock, only the final three chapters of *Norwegian Wood* remained. In other words, if he pushed himself, he could finally bring this matter to a close tonight.
So, he did just that.
And he kept grinding until now.
Hoo.
Watanabe Yu leisurely exhaled a breath of turbid Qi, stopped his actions, stretched his hands, and took a short rest.
He was becoming increasingly adept at copying novels now.
One reason was his increased familiarity with the keyboard.
Previously, he could only input about 130 characters per minute, but now his speed had reached between 140 and 150. This meant he could output at least 600 more characters per hour, an efficiency increase of 7%.
The other reason was that he was getting more into the zone.
Thinking of this, he unconsciously shifted his body backward and then lay down on the tatami mat.
Looking back now, the meal at the Hayakawa Residence at noon had been enjoyable.
Throughout the entire meal, he hadn't felt any restraint; by the end, he was even finding joy in it.
Firstly, Hayakawa Naoko had a youthful mindset; she understood the meaning of many things he said, and communicating with her didn't carry the pressure of talking to an elder, but was very relaxed; secondly, with Hayakawa Naoko present, the reserved Hayakawa Yuki also relaxed, returning to her usual natural self.
With everyone relaxed and getting along well, the interaction was naturally easy and pleasant.
During that meal, Hayakawa Naoko even showed off a little, allowing him to genuinely experience what a live performance from a former diva was like.
Although the entire performance was only a short three minutes, Hayakawa Naoko effortlessly and casually demonstrated all the necessary techniques.
She played the guitar as if it were an extension of her arm while cheerfully executing multiple true/false voice transitions, vocal range leaps, chest and head resonance techniques, lightly showing off something formidable.
But what amazed him the most was Hayakawa Naoko's voice.
Her voice was extremely, extremely distinctive.
It was the type that could capture a listener's ear with just one line.
It was truly to the extent that heaven itself fed the meal directly into her mouth.
Hayakawa Yuki's assessment of her mother was indeed completely free of 'mythologizing,' carrying no filter whatsoever; everything she said was an objective fact, and perhaps even quite modest.
In any case, based on the intuitive feeling of him, the only other audience member, after listening, Hayakawa Naoko's vocal skills had surpassed the scope of his ability to evaluate. A thousand words could only be condensed into four:
Awesome, beautiful!
If he weren't genuinely rushing to copy novels, he would have rolled up his sleeves and declared that today is as good as any day, and they should start lessons right now.
But regrettably, life has no 'if.' Food must be eaten bite by bite, and roads must be walked step by step.
Heh.
Listening to the sound of raindrops tapping on the awning, Watanabe Yu chuckled softly and returned to sit in front of the computer screen.
He lightly patted his cheeks, refocusing his attention on the screen before him.
In the room, the sound of the keyboard rang out once more.
Time slipped away bit by bit, and segment after segment of text appeared on the screen.
Two in the morning.
【All that entered my sight were people rushing past me from an unknown place, hurrying by. And I could only stand in that nameless spot, continuously calling out Midori's name.
After typing the final two sentences of the entire text, Watanabe Yu stopped typing, leaned back, and let out a genuine, long sigh. The skin on his neck involuntarily broke out in goosebumps, which quickly disappeared.
As of this moment, *Norwegian Wood* was declared completely finished.
After saving the document twice as usual, Watanabe Yu turned on his mobile phone hotspot, connected his computer to the Wi-Fi, and then logged into the Akiba Publishing House webpage.
After confirming multiple times that the webpage and the submission email were correct, he casually selected an editor who looked more pleasing, copied their email address, and sent the manuscript along with his contact information via email.
What happened next was no longer his concern.
What he needed to do now, and absolutely had to do,
—was rest.
Turning off the computer and the light, Watanabe Yu burrowed into the pre-made bed and closed his eyes.
"Good night!"
As if triggering a keyword, after whispering this phrase, sleepiness surged like a tide, and fatigue instantly engulfed him.
*
"What is all this writing!? Even if we are friendly to new authors, we don't accept every submission! If they can't even articulate their thoughts clearly, shouldn't they first consider how to express themselves properly!"
In an apartment building in Chiyoda Ward, Kuriyama Akie closed the document and vigorously rubbed her hair, complaining dissatisfiedly.
Ever since Akiba Publishing House announced that policy favoring new authors, the workload for editors like them had suddenly increased significantly.
Yes, the President had simultaneously adjusted working hours when the policy was implemented.
They were allowed to arrive late three days a week, as long as they clocked in before noon, and from the start to the end of the new policy, an extra 20% salary would be issued monthly as a bonus.
Yes, the salary increased, so everyone's motivation was certainly higher.
But many things follow a basic principle: money is hard to earn, and excrement is hard to eat.
Kuriyama Akie couldn't remember how many manuscripts she had reviewed today.
Her pupils were starting to glaze over.
Yet, her responsibility was right there. Even manuscripts that made her frown from the very first paragraph, she had to hold her nose and force herself to read at least ten thousand characters before making a judgment.
That was the greatest torment.
"Sigh, forget it, next one, please."
Kuriyama Akie sighed heavily, moved the mouse, and just as she was about to click on the next submission, a new email notification caught her attention.
【Watanabe Yu, *Norwegian Wood*
"This name..."
Kuriyama Akie raised an eyebrow, her eyes suddenly lighting up.
Just this name was already two grades better than *That is Snow* she had just read, and more than five hundred times better than *Fading Youth* she was supposed to read next.
"Sorry, even a shit-eater bound by duty has the right to yearn for the light!"
Finding an excuse for herself, Kuriyama Akie unhesitatingly chose to read this manuscript first.
"No matter what, this will be the last manuscript I read today."
Kuriyama Akie stroked her smooth chin, downloaded the attachment, and clicked it open.
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