The Sunday streets were bustling with people. Thanks to a major push by Fujikawa Bookstore and Kodansha, major bookstores across Tokyo had all set up sales displays for Love Letter.
Although the internet was swarming with hired trolls, many young people had become quite curious about Love Letter.
In front of the Shinjuku Bookstore, a considerable crowd had gathered around the Love Letter display.
A girl with a ponytail was engrossed in the sample copy, her finger unconsciously tracing the passage where "Watanabe Hiroko received a reply letter."
Her friend next to her nudged her, "How is it? Are you going to buy it?"
When the girl looked up, her eyes were sparkling. "Yes! Not only is the beginning captivating, but the descriptive style is so delicate. I really want to know what happens next!"
Not far away, two men who looked like office workers were hesitantly examining the book's spine, discussing it in low voices.
"I hear the author is that male actor who's been getting all sorts of dirt dug up on him online recently," one of them said. "Could this be a book that's more hype than substance?"
The other man flipped to the author's bio on the flyleaf. Printed there was a photo of Michiya Gōshin, wearing a simple white shirt, his gaze clean and clear.
"But Fujikawa Bookstore rarely publishes bad books, right? And the writing in that sample was genuinely good. Why don't we just buy a copy and see?"
"Alright, let's give it a try."
In the line for the cash register, some readers were already waiting with copies of Love Letter in hand.
As the female cashier scanned the barcode, she couldn't help but glance at it a couple of times, muttering, "A lot of people are buying this book today. We just restocked it this morning."
A girl in the line smiled and held up her book: "That's because it's really well-written!"
Of course, this being the first day of its release, not everyone in the bookstore was willing to buy it.
In a corner of the display area, a middle-aged man flipped through a few pages of the sample before putting it down with a frown. "Another one of these unrequited love stories for young people. Nothing new here."
An auntie next to him chimed in, "I'll wait for the reviews to come out. What if it was ghostwritten like they say online? It would be a waste of money."
There were many who, like them, chose to wait and see. They looked at the bustling display, their eyes filled with hesitation.
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At Hoshino Talent Agency, Michiya Gōshin and Nakahara Kazuya sat in a small office.
A laptop was placed in front of the agent. He was browsing online reviews while another tab displayed the current sales data for Love Letter.
"There are still so many people cursing you out..."
Nakahara Kazuya scrolled through the comments, his tone somewhat dejected. "There are still people who believe the ghostwriting claims. It might really affect your appeal to the general public."
Michiya Gōshin let out a soft sigh and comforted him, "That's normal. Johnny & Associates won't let them stop."
He glanced at the sales data on the computer. Of the initial 50,000-copy print run, just over three thousand had been sold. Below Fujikawa Bookstore's tweet, there were still many comments like "waiting and seeing" and "waiting for reviews."
A few hours later, at some point, the data on the computer screen suddenly began to fluctuate wildly. A single refresh showed an increase of over a hundred copies.
"Eh, what's going on?"
Michiya Gōshin looked up, puzzled, only to find his agent staring at his phone in utter astonishment.
"What's wrong?"
"D-Dean Onishi recommended your book!"
"Who?"
"Dean Onishi! Onishi Keiji, the Dean of the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Letters!"
Nakahara Kazuya was incredibly excited, his face flushed red as he shot up from his chair.
"Look!"
Michiya Gōshin took the phone. Under the tag #MichiyaGōshin'sLoveLetterOnSale, one tweet had already been retweeted many times, quickly rising to the top.
"I happened upon Mr. Michiya Gōshin's Love Letter, and it has been a long time since I was so deeply moved by a book."
"The book's capture of the details of unrequited love is astonishingly precise. The prose is as clean as the first sun on a field of snow, yet the emotions are as deep as an old well. A work like this deserves to be seen by more people."
"It has been a long time since a work like this has appeared in the Japanese literary world. If Mr. Michiya Gōshin wishes to participate in next year's Naoki Prize selection, he may click this link..."
This tweet was like a thunderclap dropped on Twitter, instantly detonating the entire trending list.
Dean Onishi was a titan of Japan's literary world who specialized in classical studies. Because he had taught at the University of Tokyo for many years, many of the young, powerful politicians of today were his former students. As such, the old man's influence was extremely formidable.
His tweet was like a signal, instantly triggering a wave of retweets from countless authors and figures in the education sector.
In less than ten minutes, mystery novelist Miyamoto Miyuki retweeted, "Anything recommended by Teacher Onishi is guaranteed to be a masterpiece. I've already ordered Love Letter and look forward to reading it."
Historical novelist Yamazaki Toyoko followed close behind: "A work that can move Teacher Onishi is a must-read."
A chain reaction erupted.
Past winners of the Naoki Prize, editors-in-chief of major literary magazines, university literature professors... more than half the literary circle retweeted the post. The comment section was filled with voices saying "going to buy it now" and "looking forward to the Naoki Prize judging."
The hashtag #DeanOnishiRecommendsLoveLetter shot up to the top of the trending list like a rocket, its popularity instantly crushing all the negative topics.
The tide of online opinion had completely turned.
The casual observers who had been hesitating and waiting all jumped in.
"Even Dean Onishi recommended it! How could this be a bad book? I'm going to the bookstore right now!"
"A Naoki Prize candidate? Is Michiya Gōshin crossing over to become an author?"
"To everyone who was slandering him so harshly before, does your face hurt now? The man can let his work do the talking!"
The impact of these comments was ultimately reflected in the sales of Love Letter. The numbers on the computer screen began to climb rapidly.
"This really is... a dramatic turn of events."
Although Michiya Gōshin had never heard of Dean Onishi, seeing Nakahara Kazuya's sheer excitement, another thought suddenly occurred to him.
The copyright royalty contract he had signed with Fujikawa Bookstore for Love Letter was for 10%. The book officially went on sale at seven this morning, which meant the money would arrive in his account on time today.
Thinking of this, Michiya Gōshin eagerly pulled out his phone.
Sure enough, a huge sum of money had been added to his bank account.
2,750,000 yen.
Because the initial print run was 50,000 copies, according to the contract, that ten percent had to be paid to him immediately, even if not a single copy was sold in the end.
This was the right of an author.
"Being an author really is profitable."
Michiya Gōshin ruffled his hair, a satisfied smile finally appearing on his face. He didn't need to split this money with Hoshino Talent Agency at all; it was purely his personal income.
"Michiya!"
Just as the young man was looking at his account balance, his agent, Nakahara Kazuya, suddenly shouted his name.
"What are you shouting for?"
"Fujikawa Bookstore just sent a message! Love Letter is sold out in both Shinjuku and Bunkyo wards! The Shibuya store has already restocked three times, and there are still people lining up!"
"This time, you're really going to make a huge comeback!"
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