After finishing the clothes for Sajuna, Akira put away the Succubus Liz outfit he had made.
Although his relationship with Sajuna had become increasingly harmonious recently, and Sajuna was no longer as shy as before, wearing such clothes was still a bit embarrassing for her.
Long-term interaction had already made Sajuna understand her appeal to Akira.
She no longer felt inferior because of her figure, nor would she blindly compare herself to others, after all, her boyfriend liked her so much…
After finishing the clothes, Akira began to prepare for the light novel's publication, sending the new manuscript to the editor, and then discussing the content of the illustrations.
『Haruno Kyoko: Pillow-sensei, the illustrations in the previous volume were really good!』
『Haruno Kyoko: It's hard to imagine they were created by a newcomer. Will Kan-sensei still be in charge of the illustrations this time?』
『Akira: Yes, she will handle most of the future illustrations.』
…
After finishing his conversation with the editor, Akira prepared to contact Sajuna to ask how the illustrations were coming along.
The call didn't go through, so Akira wondered for a moment, then found Shinju's contact information and called her.
"Shinju."
"Hmm, is that Aki-Kun? Is something wrong?"
"Is Sajuna not home? My call to her didn't go through…"
"Eh, didn't big sister go to your place?"
"Did she go to Kyoko big sister's place?"
"Okay, I'll go look, thank you, Shinju…"
Akira hung up the phone, feeling a sense of familiarity.
Previously, due to the light novel's publication, Akira insisted that Sajuna make her debut in his book, but Sajuna felt her drawings weren't good enough and disagreed.
After the argument, Sajuna decided to run off to her best friend's house to hide from him, hoping to make Akira give up.
In the end, she couldn't resist Akira's persistence, and he even asked the editor to find several artists to guide Sajuna before she agreed to put her illustrations in the work.
Of course, Akira also severely "punished" Sajuna for not listening to him afterward, making her repeatedly exclaim that she would never dare again…
What kind of trouble was she stirring up this time…
Akira rubbed his temples, not expecting Sajuna's ambition to be so surprisingly strong now…
He had used all his tricks, but still couldn't make her yield…
However, he also liked Sajuna, who worked so hard to realize her self-worth.
…
"Ah… Marin, I'm really so stupid…"
Sajuna sat on the sofa in Marin's house, wiping her tears, while Marin anxiously handed her tissues from a tissue box.
"I'm so slow at learning everything, and I don't draw very well, but Aki-Kun still wants me to draw illustrations for him…"
"He wasn't so serious before, and he knows my skill is actually still far from good…"
"I've seen the light novel Akira-kun published, and Sajuna-chan's illustrations in it are super amazing!"
"It's not like that, it's because the artists Aki-Kun found have been guiding me and helping me revise; I couldn't draw to that extent by myself…"
"Even though I know Aki-Kun wants to help me, my drawings are clearly not very good yet…"
"Just promoting him on Twitter already made me very happy…"
"Sajuna-chan is already so excellent…"
Marin awkwardly held up the tissue box; it seemed she didn't have any other career besides being a model.
Magazine modeling didn't earn much, at least not as much as Gojo-kun's Hina doll making, nor Akira-kun's best-selling light novels…
Compared to Sajuna-chan, her Twitter account was even less popular than Sajuna-chan's, and Sajuna-chan was Akira-kun's exclusive illustrator for his light novels…
The more she tried to comfort her, the more she felt like Sajuna-chan was showing off!
Marin thought with a bit of helplessness.
While comforting Sajuna, the doorbell rang, signaling a visitor.
"Kitagawa-san, are you home?"
Wakana's voice came from outside the door.
"Eh, why is Gojo-kun here?"
Marin said, puzzled, then stood up from Sajuna, pulled out a few tissues, and gently wiped Sajuna's tears.
"I'll go ask Gojo-kun what's up. Sajuna-chan, you can stay in my bedroom for now."
Sajuna, with red eyes, nodded.
Marin walked to the door and opened it.
"Gojo-kun, what's… Eh, Akira-kun?"
Marin said, surprised.
"Sajuna is here, isn't she?"
Akira asked, his tone full of certainty.
"Sajuna is probably throwing a tantrum again. Her phone is off, and she didn't answer my call, so I guessed she was hiding here with you."
Akira explained, "Guessing that Kitagawa, you also wanted to see Wakana, I forcefully dragged Wakana over."
"Sajuna-chan is here, but she just cried."
"I understand. Leave the rest to me."
"Oh, okay."
Marin nodded, "Good luck, Akira-kun!"
Leading Akira to the bedroom door, Marin stepped aside, allowing Akira to enter.
"Thank you, Kitagawa."
Akira thanked her, pushed open the door, and walked in.
"Marin…"
Sajuna subconsciously looked up and called out, only to see her boyfriend.
"I clearly didn't tell Aki-Kun…"
"You've already troubled others for the second time, Sajuna. We'll have to go thank Kitagawa later tonight…"
Akira walked over, reaching out to stroke Sajuna's hair, but she turned her head away, dodging his hand.
"Aki-Kun, you always act with such gentle kindness, thinking it's for others' good, but you never consider if others will agree…"
"So, is Sajuna upset with me? Why did she secretly run to her friend's place to cry?"
"It shouldn't be a problem with our relationship, right?"
"How could it be a problem with our relationship? Aki-Kun clearly knows it's about drawing…"
"Aki-Kun clearly knows, and we've already argued, but he's still so gentle…"
"He clearly said Sajuna's drawing skills aren't good, so Aki-Kun thought of other ways…"
"While such things are wonderful, they also come with pressure…"
As Sajuna spoke, tears streamed down her face. Akira reached out and slowly wiped them away.
Sajuna didn't dodge this time, so Akira pulled her into his embrace. Sajuna then wrapped her arms around Akira's waist and slowly began to sob.
"Alright, alright, it's all my fault."
"I'll be more careful in the future, I'll be more careful…"
Akira gently patted Sajuna's back. Sajuna's emotions slowly calmed down, and, tired from crying, she gradually began to breathe steadily in Akira's arms.
He sent a message to Marin, who, upon receiving the notification, pushed open the door and came in, then helped Akira put the sleeping Sajuna on the bed.
…
Back home, Akira took out the clothes he had made and handed them to Sajuna…
"Aki-Kun, do I really have to wear them?"
"Sajuna has promised me for a long time…"
Akira said with a resentful tone.
Sajuna looked at the clothes in her hand, clearly hesitated for a moment, then tentatively said, "There shouldn't be any problem, right?"
"None!"
There certainly wouldn't be any problem with wearing the clothes!
Thinking of what Akira had been doing recently, Sajuna's cheeks couldn't help but flush, then she took the clothes and returned to the bedroom.
"Aki-Kun, no peeking!"
"Okay."
Akira said calmly; he was still very patient.
After the rustling sounds of changing clothes, Sajuna's shy voice came from inside.
"Aki-Kun, I've changed…"
"You can come in now…"
When Akira pushed open the door and entered, he saw the adorable Sajuna wearing the Succubus Liz outfit. Her cheeks were flushed, as if she was thinking of her boyfriend's affection for her, and she slowly exhaled a breath.
"Phew…"
"I'm Succubus Liz now, right… "
"So, fulfilling Liz's wish is also perfectly normal, right… "
"Aki-Kun, I'm going to get my revenge!!!!"
Sajuna pounced forward, flailing her arms and legs.