It's a romantic comedy for everyone, so why am I the only one single?

"He already has a girlfriend!"

"Even if he's already broken up with that girlfriend from another school, he still has Shiina, right? The two of them were just secretly holding hands!"

"Accepting invitations from other girls while having a girlfriend is just too much of a womanizer, isn't it?"

"Even though I've only accepted the invitation and haven't actually started dating yet, this still doesn't seem right, does it?"

For a moment, Kono Sakura, who had just returned to her seat, secretly glanced at Iura Shu with an incredibly complicated look in her eyes.

However, surprisingly, this complex gaze did not contain contempt or disgust; instead, it contained a hint of frustration, a touch of resentment, and a hint of restlessness.

"Then can I do it too?"

"No, no, no, Sakura Kono, you can be a proper girl, how can you have such thoughts! It's so shameless!"

"But Hori-san, she..."

Kono Sakura shook her head vigorously, trying to shake off the dangerous thought in her mind. But the more she did this, the more the thought took root and grew stronger in her heart, making her look at Iura Hide with a strange expression.

Meanwhile, at Toyosaki High School, next to a beverage vending machine at the end of the corridor outside the classroom.

While chatting and laughing with Oozora and the others, buying drinks, Kitagawa Kaimu, unaware that she suddenly had so many competitors, was being scrutinized and sized up from afar by a pair of dark red eyes.

Suddenly, Kitagawa Kaimu seemed to realize something, paused in her speech, and turned to look around.

But just a second before, a voice suddenly rang out from behind the owner of those eyes, causing her to turn her gaze away.

"Hey, what are you looking at so suspiciously?"

"Hehe, Eriri-kun, haven't you ever heard the saying?"

"What?"

"In the eyes of a dark-minded person, everything in the world is dark."

"You actually said I have a dark side?!"

"Congratulations, you answered correctly."

"!!!"

Seeing Kasumigaoka Utaha's sidelong glance and the 'you're so smart' look on her face, Sawamura Eriri was instantly furious.

She should have expected that nothing nice would come out of Kasumigaoka Utaha's mouth, yet she still foolishly asked out of curiosity.

At that moment, she realized how incredibly stupid she had been.

Even if she really is an idiot, she won't allow Kasumigaoka Utaha to say that!

"Humph!"

"My editor just sent me a message."

"My fan comic has sold over 10,000 copies as of yesterday, the weekend!"

Eriri proudly raised her chin as she spoke, glancing sideways at Kasumigaoka Utaha as well.

However, contrary to her expectations of shock and dismay, Kasumigaoka Utaha simply asked expressionlessly, "So what?"

This startled Eriri, and a sense of foreboding crept into her heart.

However, she was still somewhat unwilling to give up and continued, "I remember your book, 'Love Metronome,' only sold a little over eight thousand copies, right?"

"Oh, you mean the sales of my book 'Love Metronome'? When I went to the publishing house last Friday, my editor told me that by noon on Friday, the sales of my book 'Love Metronome' had already reached 100 copies. Now that another weekend has passed, it should sell another hundred or so copies."

Kasumigaoka Utaha's voice remained calm, as if she were talking about something trivial.

However, Eriri was completely stunned, as if struck by lightning.

"What!?"

"Your book, 'Love Metronome,' actually sold over 10,000 copies last Friday?"

"How can this be!?"

Moreover, although the difference may not seem like much, for light novel authors and fan comic artists of their caliber, it represents a significant gap.

It's like getting 95 points on a test versus getting 90 points on a test. It seems like there's only a 5-point difference, but in reality, the gap is quite large.

Of course, what infuriated her the most was Kasumigaoka Utaha's attitude at that moment.

In the past, Kasumigaoka Utaha would have looked at her with disdain and mocked her mercilessly. But now, Kasumigaoka Utaha didn't even glance at her, and her tone was so calm that there wasn't a trace of sarcasm in her voice.

Is this a complete disregard for her, a sign that she's no longer considered an opponent?

Check it out!

This is so infuriating!

She considers Kasumigaoka Utaha her lifelong rival!

Yes, that's right. Even if Aki Tomoya didn't exist in this world, after Kasumigaoka Utaha accidentally discovered that she was the 'famous' doujinshi artist Kashiwagi Eri, and she also discovered that Kasumigaoka Utaha was the 'unpopular' light novel author Kasumi Utako, the two of them seemed to be destined rivals and inexplicably started competing with each other.

Of course, it's not impossible to explain it scientifically.

Just like Hori and Miyamura who accidentally discovered each other's secrets, Kasumigaoka Utaha and Eriri's concern for each other changed from the moment they discovered each other's hidden identities.

However, since they are both girls and are inherently competitive, they can only be enemies since they can't be lovers or best friends.

But now, this nemesis is ignoring her. Has their relationship faded? They agreed to be rivals for life.

Eriri couldn't help but clench her fists, her fangs unconsciously showing. Her eyes kept darting around Kasumigaoka Utaha's body, as if she was thinking about where to punch or bite Kasumigaoka Utaha.

However, Kasumigaoka Utaha completely ignored even such a 'threat', turning her eyes back to Kitagawa Kaimu's departing figure. She really didn't take Eriri seriously!

But it’s no wonder.

If the average person's combat power is only five, commonly known as a weakling, then Eriri, who always crouches down to defend herself, would only have a negative power.

If Eriri really had a sudden urge to ambush her, she felt she could easily recreate those famous scenes from anime and games, placing one hand on Eriri's head so Eriri couldn't reach her.

Therefore, Kaimu Kitagawa is still more important.

After all, this concerns Hideaki Iura, and whether he can write a romance light novel that surpasses "April".

Frankly, anyone with a high IQ would be completely baffled by her logic.

But it's okay, as long as she feels okay about it, then there's no problem.

"Is this his girlfriend?"

She is quite pretty, but only about the same age as me.

"She doesn't have a better figure than me, she's just better at dressing up. But for guys, Black S is the eternal goddess. I wouldn't lose to her even if I were just wearing a school uniform."

"And this girl is hot."

Kasumigaoka Utaha's brows furrowed unconsciously.

In school, although the status of a "hot girl" is higher than that of a socially awkward nobody like Boqi Jiang, or those who are ostracized and bullied, it is still a derogatory term in the eyes of respectable people.

Regardless of gender, most people look down on hot girls.

Many of them take it for granted that "hot girls" are synonymous with promiscuous girls and promiscuous bitches.

And indeed, that's true. If Kitagawa Kaimu and the other three weren't the female protagonists, it's hard to say what they would be like.

While Kasumigaoka Utaha isn't quite that superficial, she doesn't have a good impression of gyaru (gal) girls either.

Therefore, in conclusion

"What exactly does that guy see in Kitagawa Kaimu?"

"Is it just because she's pretty?"

"That's far too superficial!"

Perhaps it's because "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" that she felt that Iura Hide, who could write such a perfect piece as "April," shouldn't be such a superficial person.

Indeed, Iura Hide is not so superficial as to judge solely on appearance.

But Kitagawa Kaimu's advantages are not just her good looks!

These attributes—being a niche anime and game enthusiast—are also significant strengths for otaku culture lovers like Hideaki Iura.

Chapter 109 Pochi-chan's Little Thoughts

Unfortunately, Kasumigaoka Utaha can't see these things.

Even though she looked down on Kitagawa Kaimu, there was nothing she could do except sulk and complain about Iura Shu's poor taste.

After all, she can't very well become a mistress, can she?

At most, she would only fantasize about it in her head; she definitely couldn't actually do it.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?"

"Ok?"

Eriri's loud voice finally brought Kasumigaoka Utaha back to her senses.

Then she merely frowned slightly, glanced at Eriri, and turned to walk towards the stairs, preparing to return to the classroom.

If this had happened in the past, Eriri would have at least said something in return.

This time, Eriri was not angry at all; instead, she was overjoyed.

Kasumigaoka Utaha did not ignore her!

They are still lifelong enemies!

"Just you wait! Don't think you're anything special just because you're a little ahead of me right now! It won't be long before my doujinshi sales surpass your light novel sales!"

"idiot!"

Kasumigaoka Utaha, listening to Eriri's shouting behind her, couldn't help but mutter a complaint under her breath.

However, Eriri's mention of it made her think of "April".

So how can her "Love Metronome" surpass "April"?

"Damn it, the classroom is so noisy, and class is such a waste of time. It's really affecting my writing flow!"

Although it might seem like she was trying to shift the blame, at this moment, she genuinely wanted to take leave and go home to properly strategize for the next part of the story in "Love Metronome".