The morning weather was a bit muggy, and Akira felt the sunlight streaming directly through the window even before he opened his eyes, making him regret not having closed the blinds last night.
Akira sat up, the air conditioner at the other end blowing cold air, which, combined with the sunlight shining through the window, gave him a sensation of both hot and cold.
Outside the window was an endless, colorful sky, with white clouds drifting across it, their movement seeming only to block the sun's rays for a moment.
After crawling out of bed, Akira finished his morning routine and sat back down at his computer desk. Although he had essentially handed over the light novel operations to Haruno Kyoko, reducing his own public appearances, this came at the cost of a compressed submission deadline.
"But then again, the new book must be selling well, given how much the editor is rushing me," Akira thought.
After all, he had only attended one signing event and hadn't inquired about the light novel's sales since then. He figured the sales must be quite good, as the editor was already urging him to submit the manuscript for the third volume.
As he was thinking this, Akira's phone rang. He picked it up and saw a message from Haruno Kyoko.
『Haruno Kyoko: Pillow-sensei, are you free right now?』
『Akira: I am free, Haruno-san, please speak.』
『Haruno Kyoko: This is about your royalties. Although Pillow-sensei's work has been on sale for less than two months, there will still be royalties distributed in this quarter's settlement.』
『Akira: They're being distributed so early? I thought it would be at least half a year later.』
『Haruno Kyoko: Sending file "Dengeki Bunko Author Pillow, Q2 Royalty Details."』
Akira quickly clicked on the file Haruno Kyoko sent. After opening it, he saw the sales data written inside.
"Rascal Does Not Dream Of Bunny Girl Senpai " Volume 1.
『Total print run: 12,000 copies.』
『Bunko edition price: 600 yen.』
『Royalty split: 10%.』
『Pre-tax royalties: 720,000 yen.』
Akira rubbed his eyes, looked at the data on the screen again, and then confirmed the details below.
With sales like this, it must have been an instant hit, otherwise, how could it have sold so many in less than two months…
『Haruno Kyoko: Pillow-sensei, do you have any questions about the royalties?』
『Akira: I'd like to know when the royalties will be paid.』
『Haruno Kyoko: They should be deposited into your bank account within the next two days. Please keep an eye out for it.』
『Akira: Okay, thank you, Haruno-san.』
『Haruno Kyoko: Also, please continue writing the next chapters. Due to the excellent performance of Volume 1 and Volume 2, the Bunko will increase promotion for the work.』
『Akira: I understand. I'm also looking forward to my next work.』
…
After finishing his chat with Haruno Kyoko, Akira leaned back, lying on the tatami mat, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Although the money he received wasn't more than what was in his bank account, a strange feeling emerged in Akira's heart, as if he had suddenly found his footing.
He had considered using his acquired cooking and other skills to earn money, but such things would inevitably make him miss out on this period of youth, entering the stifling social competition prematurely.
However, his current routine made him unable to do anything out of the ordinary, making it impossible for someone who had lost both parents to confidently acknowledge Sajuna. It was a sense of defeat, as if his entire life would be ruined once the money in his bank account ran out.
Akira had always been caught in this dilemma. Even with the confidence to provide for Sajuna's future, not having acted on it left him with a sense of guilt, as if he was deceiving Sajuna and making empty promises to himself…
But with the distribution of royalties, Akira's heart immediately settled. Moreover, with the continuous publication of the novel and the various promotions promised by the editor, he knew that the royalties from "Rascal Does Not Dream Of Bunny Girl Senpai " would only increase. The 720,000 yen he had now was just a small fraction, not even comparable to the savings in his bank account…
After finishing the light novel content in the morning, Akira made himself lunch. After eating, he went back to bed for a nap. After about half an hour, he woke up, and Sajuna knocked on his door about ten minutes later.
This was their recent daily routine.
"Good afternoon, Sajuna."
"Good afternoon, Aki-Kun."
Sajuna nodded, then bent slightly and walked into Akira's house, taking off her leather shoes, her feet in white stockings stepping onto the floor.
Thanks to Sajuna's frequent visits, Akira had developed the habit of cleaning regularly, so he didn't have to worry about dirtying Sajuna's socks.
Otherwise, whether Sajuna would feel bad was one thing; Akira would definitely be the first to feel bad.
Pristine white socks getting dirty was just… too much…
Akira held Sajuna's hand and led her to the studio, where their daily routine began.
Sajuna sat on a cushion on the tatami mat, practicing her painting skills on the easel in front of her, while Akira moved his computer desk over and wrote his light novel.
This went on for several hours when Akira suddenly seemed to remember something.
"Sajuna, has your aunt said anything about you coming here so often?"
"No, but Mom said Dad has strong opinions because he's always worried Aki-Kun might do some naughty things."
Sajuna's hand holding the paintbrush paused, and then a faint blush appeared on her cheeks.
Naughty things, it seemed some had already been done…
"Naughty things, huh…" Akira repeated with a sigh, then reached out and hugged Sajuna's waist, resting his head on her shoulder, and asked in her ear.
"For Sajuna, what kind of things are naughty?"
After Akira finished speaking, he rubbed his cheek against Sajuna's, immediately feeling the warmth of her cheek.
It was really warm, soft, and fragrant. He wanted to rub it a few more times.
"Does this count?"
"Aki-Kun…" Sajuna whispered, reminding Akira.
"Aki-Kun, you clearly know what naughty things are."
"You've already done them before…"
Sajuna's toes, clad in white stockings, wiggled nervously a few times, as if recalling past encounters and trembling with fear.
"Then does Sajuna dislike it?"
"Dislike it, I don't really dislike it…" Sajuna said in a soft, sweet voice, not as shy as before, as if she was adapting.
"It's just, I always feel like Aki-Kun has become strange."
Sajuna looked up at Akira beside her, a worried expression in her eyes.
"I always feel like Aki-Kun has been preoccupied since he came back from the countryside. If anything's bothering you, you must tell Sajuna."
"Sajuna will definitely help Aki-Kun."
After Sajuna finished speaking, she leaned up and kissed Akira's forehead.
Akira felt the sweet scent of the girl slowly permeate from the skin of his forehead into his heart. The problems he had been pondering since returning from the countryside seemed to slowly dissipate.
With Sajuna's companionship, and the infusion of their affection, the feelings between them had long since sprouted and taken root. Akira gently bit Sajuna's ear and blew a breath.
"Shall we kiss?"
Seeing Sajuna nod, Akira cupped her cheeks and kissed her.
Sajuna felt her cheeks flush and her body go soft. She shyly wanted to pound Aki-Kun's chest a few times, but it turned into a gentle caress.
The boy's abandon and the girl's shyness wove the scene within the room.