The morning sun spilled over the windowsill as Michiya Gōshin's phone vibrated incessantly on the desk.
He glanced at the copy of Love Letter on his desk. Thanks to the massive sales explosion on Sunday, Fujikawa Bookstore and Kodansha had worked through the night to restock.
Not only that, but the second batch of Love Letter featured a recommendation from Dean Onishi on the cover. He heard a director from Kodansha had personally gone to speak with him. It was just a short sentence, but it carried the immense weight of a literary role model.
"True affection reveals itself in the smallest details—a gentle confession belonging to winter."
"Hello? Nakahara-san?"
Answering the phone, Michiya Gōshin's voice was still raspy from sleep. Because of Love Letter's great success, both Kurokawa Akane and Sakurajima Mai had called him yesterday to offer their congratulations.
Kurokawa Akane had even talked for a long time, her excitement palpable through the phone, which resulted in the young man not getting to sleep until nearly two in the morning.
Nakahara Kazuya's irrepressibly thrilled voice came from the other end of the line.
"Thirty thousand of the initial fifty-thousand-copy print run have already been sold. Editor Machida just called. The publisher has ordered an emergency reprint of one hundred thousand copies. The printing factory is now running 24/7."
"One hundred thousand copies?"
Hearing this, the fatigue instantly vanished from Michiya Gōshin's body. He vigorously rubbed his face, his voice becoming animated.
"The hundred thousand reprinted copies will probably start being shipped to major bookstores tomorrow. You've really hit it big this time, kid."
Nakahara Kazuya's voice was thick with envy. He was just a high-level salaryman; even though his annual salary exceeded four million yen last year, it was earned through grueling overtime.
But Michiya Gōshin could easily earn several million yen from the royalties of Love Letter alone. And when the film adaptation project eventually launched, that would be another huge sum of income.
"Heh, I'll treat you to dinner next time, Nakahara-san. You pick the place."
Holding his phone, he walked to the window. The winter sunlight streamed through the glass onto Michiya Gōshin. Though it lacked warmth, it kindled a gentle heat in his heart.
The Twitter page on his phone screen was still open to Fujikawa Bookstore's post about the reprint. The hashtag #LoveLetterPhenomenalBestseller remained high on the trending list.
He tapped his fingers lightly on his phone case, his gaze fixed on the distant Tokyo Tower.
"Now that Love Letter's sales have stabilized, isn't it time to put the book signing event on the schedule?"
As soon as he said this, Nakahara Kazuya's excited voice erupted from the phone.
"I was just about to tell you! President Kato already gave the green light during a meeting with the senior staff just now. Since we've had this move planned all along, we have to use the book signing to completely debunk those rumors and wash away all the mud Johnny & Associates has slung. Only then can we consider this storm truly over!"
Although Michiya Gōshin had successfully debuted as an author, he had no intention of giving up his work in the entertainment industry.
To completely erase the impact of being "blacklisted" by Johnny & Associates, he had to make his voice heard at the book signing to truly turn the tide of public opinion online.
"You don't think Johnny & Associates will just... not show up, do you?"
"Don't worry. They care about their reputation more than anything, and they're also the most vindictive."
The agent sneered. "We just need to set the stage. There's no fear of them not participating!"
"Alright."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
At the same time, in the top-floor office of Johnny & Associates, the atmosphere was so cold it could have frozen over.
Mizushima Ryo slammed a stack of newspapers onto the conference table. The pages scattered across the floor, the headline on the top sheet— "Love Letter Sales Officially Surpass 30,000 Copies"—was as piercing as a needle.
"Useless! A bunch of useless trash!"
His voice was hoarse, his normally well-groomed hair was a mess, and he looked like a furious beast.
"How much money did we spend on online trolls? How many smear campaign articles did we release? And what's the result? His book is selling better and better!"
A junior assistant stood to the side, his head bowed so low it nearly touched his chest. "Director Mizushima, it's mainly... mainly because Dean Onishi recommended it. He's a titan of the literary world and a Naoki Prize judge. As soon as our trolls went to the comment sections to stir things up, they were cursed out by his students and people from literary circles..."
"Onishi Keiji?!"
Mizushima Ryo spat the name out through gritted teeth, his eyes sinister yet laced with a hint of apprehension.
"Why would that old geezer take a liking to this piece of trash? Doesn't he know that Michiya Gōshin is someone our Johnny & Associates specifically blacklisted?"
"We've looked into it."
The assistant quickly handed over a file. "Dean Onishi genuinely loves the book. He even recommended it to his students during a public lecture at Todai yesterday, saying Love Letter captures the delicate emotions that modern people have lost. People in the literary world are all reposting it. Our trolls can't get a word in."
"And Dean Onishi also wrote the recommendation for the book cover yesterday, which made sales climb even faster."
"..."
Mizushima Ryo paced agitatedly around the office, his leather shoes making dull thuds on the floor.
It wasn't that he didn't want to retaliate, but Dean Onishi's standing in the cultural world was simply too high. Some of his students were even currently serving as powerful politicians. Even the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Internal Affairs had to show him deference.
While Johnny & Associates could command the entertainment world, they would absolutely not dare to openly offend this titan.
Directly attack Dean Onishi for recommending Love Letter?
That would be tantamount to declaring war on the entire Japanese literary world.
"Are we just supposed to watch him make a comeback?"
Mizushima Ryo stopped abruptly, his chest heaving. "He thinks he can clear his name with a single book? Doesn't that make our blacklisting efforts a complete joke?"
"But Director Mizushima..." the assistant said cautiously.
"We have to give Dean Onishi some face, right? Making a move on Michiya Gōshin now is the same as slapping him in the face directly. Besides, I heard Fujikawa Bookstore has already announced a reprint of one hundred thousand copies. That shows the market response is excellent. If we continue to suppress Love Letter... it might..."
"Get out!"
Mizushima Ryo roared, grabbing a coffee cup from the table and smashing it on the floor. The sound of shattering ceramic was particularly jarring in the quiet office.
"A bunch of useless fools! Can't even handle a rookie artist who just debuted!"
The assistant flinched and didn't dare say another word.
Only Mizushima Ryo's heavy breathing remained in the office. He had promised Johnny-san that he would definitely take care of Michiya Gōshin, but the current situation was beyond his comprehension.
The agency could cut off Michiya Gōshin's resources as an artist, they could hire trolls to tarnish his reputation, but they couldn't stop his novel from becoming a bestseller, and they certainly didn't dare confront a highly respected literary titan.
This meticulously planned blacklisting had suddenly devolved into a frustrating, powerless rage.
"Damn it!!!"
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