Kato Yusuke, who was alone at home, received a call from the old editor-in-chief of Suzuki——
"I have already heard from Okimura about the specifics. If Mr. Fujimotoshu is willing and can submit the manuscript regularly, the space in the magazine can be increased. It is just a single volume... I hope you understand."
The other party informed him like this.
Although it's a bit regretful that the single book was published, it's not bad to be able to accomplish another thing.
So Kato Yusuke agreed without any objection, and the two parties ended the call after a brief condolence.
In fact, he had anticipated that the single book would be suspended, so he did not have much emotional fluctuations.
Perhaps for the Immortal Sichuan Comics Club, which has been in this embarrassing situation for a long time.
Although the release of a single book can indeed bring more revenue, if the plot progress of the single book exceeds that of the magazine, it will become a blessing and a disaster.
After all, although the income from a single volume is high, if it in turn affects the sales of the magazine, the old editor will obviously not be happy.
At least now that "Chainsaw Man" is becoming popular, the other party must be hoping to use this to increase the sales of the magazine, so naturally they will not make a counterproductive choice.
It is not that Kato Yusuke cannot understand such considerations, and at the same time he has no complaints.
Anyway, as long as the speed of serialization is accelerated, it is actually equivalent to speeding up the release of single books in disguise, and the final result is the same.
In addition, the manuscript submitted yesterday passed the review without exception, and the 2.29 million in royalties will be remitted to his account on Monday.
Just when he was thinking about these things aimlessly——
Ding dong~
A sweet doorbell sounded from outside the door.
After opening the door, what came into view was a girl holding a suitcase.
"I'm here to disturb you~ Yuu-chan."
"Shi Yuxue..."
Before Yusuke Kato could finish his words, the other party let go of the lever, took two steps forward, and hugged him without any explanation.
——It gives people the momentum as if they are flying towards you.
The pleasant fragrance hits your nose, like a gerbera in full bloom.
Hiss~
Shiyu, who put her chin on his shoulder, sniffed gently and said, "Hey~ why does it smell like other women? Did you go somewhere to steal something yesterday?"
After reacting, Kato Yusuke raised his hands, grabbed her shoulders and pushed her away gently. His eyes fell on the suitcase behind her and asked: "Why are you here?"
"Really, Yuu-chan, I said I would go back to Tokyo today, have you forgotten?"
"What's the suitcase?"
"Um, well, inside are my cosmetics, underwear and pajamas, as well as a laptop and other necessary items that allow me to live outside at any time. In other words, it is a cohabitation set."
"In other words, senior sister came here directly. Does your family know?"
"...A boring man shouldn't have such a cold reaction at this time, right? As an energetic male high school student, wouldn't you be excited when you hear the word "living together"?"
Shiyu tilted her face slightly, as if she was dissatisfied.
The trance in Kato Yusuke's eyes passed briefly, and then he nodded, saying that since you are here, come in, and helped carry the suitcase outside the door into the entrance.
"——Speaking of which, what's the answer to the smell of other women just now on you?"
"I take a shower in the morning and evening recently, so there's no need to say this."
The two of them walked into the living room together.
The black cat was sleeping in a cloth bag on the cat climbing frame. He was lying around looking extremely enjoying himself. Even when he heard the two people coming in, he just opened a small gap to take a look, and then continued to sleep soundly.
After telling Shiyu that he could sit wherever he wanted, Kato Yusuke asked, "Coffee and oolong tea, what would you like, senior?"
"Hmm~ Let's have coffee, without milk." Shiyu said as she knelt down on the carpet, acting reserved and polite.
Kato Yusuke then took out the mug from the cabinet and started making coffee.
"Ah~ By the way, remember to ask for latte art for my coffee, the kind with hearts on it."
"Sorry, I don't know how to do that, and doesn't the senior sister not add milk?"
There was no answer, only laughter like silver bells.
It took more than ten minutes, and two cups of black coffee were quickly brewed.
When Kato Yusuke cleaned up the machine and turned around with the mug, he saw that the girl who was sitting at the low table just now had disappeared.
Instead, there was something squirming under the quilt on the bed.
Her signature long black hair is exposed, and the quilt wrapping her body rises and falls briefly with her breathing.
Haha...huhu...
"...Shiba-senpai?" Kato Yusuke couldn't help but shout.
The squirming in the quilt stopped.
A second passed.
The girl with slightly messy hair popped her head out from under the quilt and asked with a smile: "What's the matter? Yu-chan."
"What are you doing?"
"Well, of course it's leaving a smell so that you can always think of me. Besides, the uniform I'm wearing has been washed well, so there's no need to worry."
Shiyu explained in an understatement and held a corner of the quilt to his nose.
——Hiss~
"..."
"..."
Kato Yusuke paused and said, "I put your coffee here, senior."
"Thank you~ I'll drink it later... By the way, Yu-chan, would you like to come in and lie down too?" Shiyu lifted up the quilt with a mischievous expression and extended an invitation.
Kato Yusuke said no, then walked to the desk with his cup of coffee and sat down on the swivel chair. After taking two sips of hot coffee, he was ready to continue working.
Now that the additional serialization has been decided, we naturally have to hurry up and rush the manuscript.
Seeing him leaving like this, Shiyu in the quilt couldn't help being a little dumbfounded, and then complained: "Wait a minute, your lovely girlfriend is lying in front of you, but you don't do anything? Yu-chan."
"do what?"
"...At least we should have some close contact instead of running to work, right? Just like that morning~~~"
A brief silence.
"I won't take action against you." Kato Yusuke said in a calm voice.
Shiyu lightly tapped his lower lip and made a joke with a "ha" sound.
"...What? You are also an ethical herbivore..."
Halfway through, he closed his lips again and stopped.
About two or three seconds passed.
The girl put on her smile again, lifted the quilt off her body, then slowly got up and walked to the desk.
"Hey, Yuu-chan, if I said I wanted to stay here tonight, what would you do?"
"??"
"If there's a reason... I'll think about it and tell my family that I want to stay in Hehe City for one night~?"
"Stop joking about this kind of thing, senior."
"Oh~ I even brought my luggage, but you still think it's a joke?" Shiyu said with a half-serious smile.
Kato Yusuke stopped writing, turned his face slowly, paused and said: "...If you are serious, I will seriously think about it before rejecting you seriously."
"Oh? So you are serious about me?"
"Well, if you ask seriously."
The moment the words reached her ears, Shiyu suddenly fell silent, and then she laughed as if to hide something. She naturally picked up the mug on the desk and took a sip as if nothing had happened.
"...Well, that's what I said. I've earned money by being able to get you to be serious about me. I'll go home, so why don't you have lunch with me?"
Kato Yusuke glanced at the clock on the wall. The hands on it showed the time of 10:45, so he pondered for a moment and asked, "Do you want to go now?"
"No rush." Shiyu shook his head and said, "I haven't drunk my coffee yet. You can continue working first. We will go out later."
After saying that, he put down the mug and sat down at the low table again.
…
Half an hour later.
Kato Yusuke opened a can for Black Cat, and then began to change the clothes for going out...
Having said that, I actually just put on a sports jacket over my original T-shirt. As for the bottoms, I was already wearing sports pants, so I didn’t need to change them.
After asking Shiyu's opinion, Kato Yusuke decided to go to the Chinese restaurant he went to last time.
The two people left the apartment together and walked downstairs, preparing to walk there.
at this time--
"Eh~? Katozai."
A familiar voice reached their ears, causing the two of them to stop at the same time.
Kato Yusuke turned around and saw Asami, who was holding a nutritional drink in her mouth and raising her hand to say hello.
She was wearing a black long-sleeved shirt with triangles printed on it, a pair of gray Levi's jeans on her lower body, and the red Converse on her feet was quite conspicuous.
"An'an~ Are you going out?"
Kato Yusuke nodded slightly in affirmation, and just as he was about to answer, Shiyu next to him suddenly poked his head out from in front of him and looked towards Asami.
"Hey, Yusuke, who is this person?"
"——Wow, what a beautiful girl!!"
Asami seemed to be startled when she saw Shiyu's face clearly, and then turned her curious eyes to Yusuke and asked excitedly: "What, what, is this your girlfriend? Katozai~"
After hearing this, Shiyu blinked his eyes twice, nodded gracefully, and returned a polite smile.
And Kato Yusuke also spoke: "No, this is my senior sister in school."
"What, it's the senior sister..." Asami lowered her shoulders with a bored expression, and then seemed to feel that this was not good, so she laughed twice in embarrassment, with a very rich expression on her face.
"..."
The excitement in Shiyu's eyes subsided a little, and then he began to look at the girl who suddenly appeared, while also observing Yusuke's expression without any trace.
Finally, he coughed slightly and said hello politely.
"...Hello, Kasumigaoka Shiu, I am Yusuke's prospective girlfriend."
"Huh? Prospective girlfriend??" Asami blinked twice in surprise.
"Yes, prospective girlfriend." Shiyu nodded without further explanation.
Kato Yusuke frowned slightly, but did not deny it.
"This, that's it... By the way, I'm Asami Yuuki, and I'm also a resident of this apartment. Hello."
Asami scratched the back of her head nervously, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed for no reason, so she quickly said goodbye after saying hello.
Yusuke and Shiyu also walked towards their destination.
Shiyu became very silent on the road, and this situation lasted until he arrived at the restaurant.
Because they were delayed for a while, when they arrived at the store, there were already many customers dining there.
In the noisy environment, the two of them came to a table in the corner and sat down together.
The waiter quickly brought menus and ice water, and was holding a pen and notepad to record.
Kato Yusuke ordered the mapo tofu set and fried dumplings, and chose the extra spicy flavor.
Shiyu hesitated about the menu for a while, and finally ordered the mapo tofu set meal on his recommendation. It was slightly spicy and had a vegetable salad.
The waiter who remembered the order left quickly.
The delicious aroma is wafting in the air, and the smell of chili is strong, not spicy, but spicy.
Kato Yusuke took a sip of ice water, moistened his throat, and then said slowly: "After dinner, senior, go back. Your parents should be very worried about you."
"'Because it's very troublesome, I hope you can go back quickly.' That's what you said." Shiyu said leisurely, picking up the cup and taking a sip of water.
"I don't think so. If Senior Shiyu wants to, she can stay until night."
——Boom, the cup was gently placed on the table.
"Well, now it sounds like I'm making excuses for myself again, a bad hero."
Kato Yusuke frowned and said nothing, while Shiyu glanced at him secretly, and then gently stretched out a hand.
"Hey, can you lend me your cell phone?"
"do what?"
"Anyway, give it to me first."
Kato Yusuke then handed over his mobile phone.
As if she was startled by his cheerful behavior, Shiyu looked a little surprised and couldn't help but stare at him for a while. However, his face was always calm, making it impossible to see through the emotions hidden beneath it.
"...Can I watch Line?"
"what ever."
"So simple?"
There was no answer, as if he was acquiescing or indifferent.
Shiyu held his mobile phone and involuntarily tightened his lower lip, feeling a little nervous for no reason.
Kato Yusuke's reaction made her feel a little elusive, it seemed to be calm, but it also seemed to be something else...
She was hesitant and timid, and her original will gradually began to waver.
At this moment, the mobile phone in my hand seemed to have suddenly turned into a hot potato, making it impossible to look at it or not look at it.
Shiyu's eyes wandered between the mobile phone and Yusuke opposite her, but no matter how many times she looked at him, the other party never said a word, just drank water calmly, and didn't even urge her.
After being so hesitant for a while—
"I'm sorry to borrow it, but this is the mapo tofu set, fried dumplings, and vegetable salad you ordered. Please use it slowly!"
The waiter shouted energetically, and quickly placed the food on the tray in front of the two of them one by one, and then left quickly.
The sudden accident broke the last bit of hesitation in Shiyu's heart, making her sigh softly and then returned the phone.
"...Sure enough, forget it. I'm sorry that I made such a willful request suddenly."
"nothing."
There was silence for a moment.
"...And one more thing, Yu-chan, can you take me home later?"
"good."
"Yeah~Thank you, that's enough for today."
Shiyu smiled softly, his eyes dimmed slightly.
Kato Yusuke lowered his head as he ate his meal, his expression a little dull.