In crossover anime, who isn't a childhood friend?

"Rent a boyfriend?"

Despite being on guard, Shiyu's sudden use of such a word caught Yuan Qianye off guard, and he couldn't help but repeat it after her.

"Mmm." Kasumigaoka nodded obediently.

She warned herself that from this moment on, every smile and frown of hers had to be carefully calculated, and she had to be serious and not show any obvious calculation.

"The so-called 'rent-a-boyfriend' means exactly what it sounds like: renting yourself out for a certain fee to act as the boyfriend of the client for a specific period of time. Of course, this rental behavior will not exceed the scope of the law, and the so-called boyfriend is just a superficial relationship."

Kasumigaoka raises one finger with each hand, explaining the scientific concepts while demonstrating simple gestures.

"Um, wait a moment..." Yuan Qianye also raised his hand.

The palm of his hand was pressed against Shiyu's thigh, and the soft touch was wonderful, but the feeling of simply touching her without being able to do anything more was still quite torturous.

It's like having a beautifully presented dish in front of you, but you can only look at it and not eat it.

So it's better to be more decisive, take your hands off, and directly cut off those itchy feelings.

"...It's not that I don't understand the term 'renting a boyfriend,' I just don't quite understand why you suddenly brought this up, Shiyu?"

"There's no particular reason; it's a fairly common situation. Qianye, you're a novelist too, so you must have encountered this situation before."

"I've encountered that too..."

"Yes, for text content creators, there is a fairly common project called 'source gathering'."

"...!"

Having said that much, Yuan Qianye immediately understood.

It was a bit unexpected.

But this situation seems perfectly acceptable to him.

Kasumigaoka faced Minamoto no Chiya, her expression unchanged, and continued speaking earnestly.

“During the creative process, we novelists often encounter creative blocks, and we cannot continue the subsequent content due to a lack of professional knowledge and understanding.”

At this point, simply sitting at a table racking your brains often yields no useful results. Forcing yourself to write with such a muddled mind will likely produce unsatisfactory content, predictably unacceptable to readers. Therefore, to solve this problem, targeted research often proves surprisingly effective.

Knowing everything, Yuan Qianye nodded slightly, like a straight man in a comedy routine. Knowing the unfolding plot, and now cooperating with Shi Yu, who believed her plan was proceeding flawlessly, he revealed a slightly enlightened expression.

"If you say that, it means that you are currently experiencing a situation similar to Kaven's, and that's why you're feeling quite troubled."

That's right.

"But what does this have to do with you mentioning renting a boyfriend?"

Chiya Minamoto's acting skills, honed through various aspects of life, played a significant role at this moment, allowing her to proceed with the conversation entirely based on her own perceptions of the situation.

Kasumigaoka, completely absorbed in her plan and happy that things were going so smoothly, kept telling herself to restrain herself and be patient. The next step was crucial, and she absolutely could not let Chiya realize that she had ulterior motives, lest all her hard work be in vain.

She sighed, her face showing a hint of melancholy, as if she had truly encountered some difficulty and was extremely troubled.

"That's right, the novel I'm currently writing, Love Metronome, has already progressed to the middle of its plot."

Gen Chiya nodded in agreement at just the right moment.

"Yes, it's definitely noticeable. The relationship between the male and female protagonists in the latest volume is already showing clear signs of development. The previous ambiguity has disappeared, and the upcoming school festival arc should be about the two of them further deepening their relationship and laying the groundwork for their future interactions."

"That's right!"

For a moment, Kasumigaoka seemed exceptionally excited.

Because she knew that Yuan Qianye had been very busy recently.

Even with such a busy schedule, he still managed to finish reading the latest volume of his novel.

Judging from what he said, he not only watched very carefully, but also analyzed and predicted the subsequent plot developments very seriously.

What does this represent?

This shows that he has always cared a lot about his novels!

He values ​​her highly, which, after rounding up, means he pays considerable attention to her. Her importance in his heart is perhaps far greater than she realizes.

While we may keep our inner thoughts to ourselves, we must continue discussing the crucial points.

Compared to before, Kasumigaoka is now much more confident that its plan will succeed.

"Just as you said, Qianye, my novel [Love Metronome] is about to reach a very important plot point. The next volume will usher in the first major climax. My fans and readers have been discussing it a lot recently, and they are looking forward to the subsequent development between the male and female protagonists."

I had already finished the outline of the later part of the novel, but for some reason I couldn't put pen to paper this time. Even when I forced myself to sit in front of the computer, I couldn't type a single character with my hands on the keyboard. I tried several times and it was the same. My writer's block was more severe than ever before.

After much thought, the reason for this problem, besides the fear of failing to write this crucial plot and letting down my enthusiastic readers, is ultimately my lack of imagination.

"Imagination refers to..."

"To put it simply, I can't put myself into the story I'm about to create."

A more detailed explanation of Kasumigaoka

"Throughout the writing of this novel, I have always put myself in the shoes of the characters I create, thinking about how I would react and what kind of psychology I would have if I encountered the things they went through and met different people."

"I see. It's probably similar to the Method acting approach in theatrical performance."

The so-called experiential learning approach can be summarized in one sentence: starting from oneself, living in the context of the character, and becoming one with the character.

This is also a very practical acting technique. Famous actors such as Marlon Brando studied under Strasberg and played the Godfather of the Mafia. He was completely immersed in the character's psychology and truly brought the character to life, making it a classic worthy of being recorded in film history.

Kasumigaoka nodded.

"Yes, it does feel somewhat like that, but perhaps I just don't have the talent for it. I used to do this a lot when I was writing novels, and the results were pretty good, but now that I'm at an important plot point, I just can't get into the characters I'm writing about no matter what."

Yuan Qianye frowned and thought for a moment, then spoke with a worried expression.

"Could it be that you're pushing yourself too hard, Shiyu? Too much pressure can really affect your creative enthusiasm."

"No, I don't think it's that reason. When my novel was on the verge of being canceled, I was under much more pressure than I am now. I was not only depressed every day, but I also often couldn't sleep at night and would stay up all night. But even so, I was still able to produce text content normally back then, although the efficiency was not very high, but it was not like now, where I am completely stuck and making no progress."

"Really……"

Yuan Qianye paused for a moment, then gently patted Shiyu's arm.

"...I'm sorry, I don't really know much about campus romance novels, so I can't give you any specific advice. But if there's anything I can do to help, please let me know."

Shi Yu seemed relieved and as if she had breathed a sigh of relief.

"I knew you would say that, Qianye. Actually, I think I have already figured out the reason and thought of a specific solution. I just wanted to hear your thoughts, Qianye."

After all this time and effort, we're finally getting to the main point.

"You said."

"I think my biggest problem right now is that I lack relevant experience, which prevents my imagination from functioning properly. So the solution is simple: go and investigate and experience things for yourself. That might significantly improve the situation."

"Shiyu, when you say you lack relevant experience, do you mean by 'relevant'...?"

"Yes, that's right, it's the central theme of the novel 'Love Metronome': the innocent, budding, and pure love between young boys and girls."

"Wait a minute!" Yuan Qianye pressed one hand to his forehead, looking thoughtful, before quickly concluding, feigning sudden realization: "So what you meant by 'renting a boyfriend' at the beginning..."

"Well, I came across this term online by chance and learned about the existence of this profession. I suddenly had a thought: what if I went to a platform and ordered a 'rent-a-boyfriend' to experience firsthand what it's like to be a couple? Maybe that would solve my problem. Qianye, what do you think of this plan?"

That's certainly not the truth; Kasumigaoka Utaha would never do such a thing.

Even if she hadn't realized that the person she liked was Yuan Qianye, she would never get involved in such a thing.

Her girlish heart, which yearned for love so much, simply could not accept a man she had no feelings for pretending to be her boyfriend and being by her side.

In her mind, the existence of professions like renting boyfriends or girlfriends is no different from that of hostesses and gigolos who are only after money; they are just called by different names.

She said that on purpose as a little trick to achieve her goal, and also to confirm Yuan Qianye's reaction.

As for Yuan Qianye's reaction, it can't be said that it met expectations; in fact, it was almost too good.

"Not very good!"

Yuan Qianye stood up abruptly, his tone of reply carrying an unquestionable resolve.

Kasumigaoka stared at him blankly, then quickly lowered her head.

She couldn't help but do it; she really couldn't resist. Qianye's reaction made her so happy she almost laughed out loud.

Hold on... hold on!

"Even if you can't write a novel and want to find material, using this method to break through creative bottlenecks... the idea is good, but I feel the method is still too risky."

Yuan Qianye's expression was serious at this moment, even though he had vaguely guessed Shi Yu's thoughts from the middle of the conversation.

But after hearing what she just said and imagining the specific scenario, even knowing it was fake, she wouldn't do it. But she still felt uncomfortable and couldn't accept it.

Therefore, his current reaction can be considered a genuine expression of his true feelings.

"Who knows if the person you found, Shiyu, has bad intentions? Society is so chaotic these days. You're a delicate girl; it's best not to try something so dangerous so easily. Actually, there are other, better ways to do things, like..."

Plop plop plop!

My heart rate is getting faster and faster, and it's becoming more and more intense.

Amidst Kasumigaoka's intense anticipation, the next moment, Gen Chiya, still somewhat shy, squatted down in front of her.

"...For example, you can consider someone you trust more, there is no risk, and they will definitely cooperate."

It wasn't explicitly stated who it was, but there's no need to. His meaning was clearly conveyed.

Ah ~

Overwhelmed with emotion, Kasumigaoka's eyes turned into a pool of spring water, and her perfectly sculpted legs, encased in black stockings, were pressed tightly together.

The brain was trembling, and certain emotional reactions seemed to be materialized in certain parts of the body.

This is exactly what I wanted to hear!

But you can't, you can't get so excited and agree immediately.

Be reserved.

You need to show your consideration on your side.

Success is just one step away...

"Chiya... I'm really happy that you said that, but you've helped me so much all this time..."

"So it's no big deal to help again."