I really just want to grind for entries related to crossover anime/manga.

He saw the business director's initially scrutinizing gaze gradually relax as he turned to the third chapter; he saw the young people in the planning team become increasingly moved as they read on.

Most importantly, there was Machida Sonoko—a very famous female editor in the publishing industry—who was leaning slightly forward, her fingers pressing on the paragraphs of the manuscript, her expression extremely serious.

Time slipped away silently as they read, the clock on the wall ticking away, each tick like a chord in everyone's heart.

Genkawa Yu watched the birds flying past the window, his expression remaining calm.

"call--"

About forty minutes later, Machida Sonoko finally closed the manuscript, let out a long sigh of relief, took off her glasses and rubbed her temples. When she put them back on, her eyes seemed to still be moist.

"Sorry to keep everyone waiting."

President Kato Arashi leaned forward slightly; she cared about this collaboration even more than Genkawa Yu. "Editor Machida, what do you think?"

Machida Sonoko did not answer immediately, but looked at Genkawa Yu with undisguised admiration in her eyes.

"Mr. Genkawa, this is truly a moving work, especially the reconciliation at the end. Although it wasn't deliberately sentimental, it still brought tears to my eyes."

"Such precise capture of the details of unrequited love and gentle interpretation of regret are too rare in today's literary market."

The business director adjusted his glasses and took over the conversation with a very professional air.

"From a market perspective, the core of the story is universal enough, the theme of unrequited love has a wide audience, and the writing is delicate and suitable for dissemination."

“We conducted preliminary research a couple of days ago. Although Mr. Yuan Chuan has had some negative news recently, the topic of ‘actors crossing over to write pure love novels’ is still very attractive. Coupled with the high quality of this book, it definitely has the potential to become a hit.”

Finally, the two young people from the planning team spoke up, with the girl adding to the discussion.

"I think the images of library cards, snow scenes, and libraries in the book are very suitable for visual communication. We can design corresponding gimmicks and topics, and with the help of marketing, we should be able to attract many young readers."

With the endorsement of these publishing house members, Kazuya Nakahara finally felt relieved. He quietly tugged at Yuu Minakawa's sleeve and whispered something.

"They seem to have high hopes for your book. If it becomes a bestseller, the online reviews about you will definitely reverse."

This was a judgment made by the agent from the perspective of a writer. After all, writers are one of the few professions in Japan that can be respectfully addressed as "sensei" (teacher), and their social status is even higher than that of entertainers.

"We have already come up with a preliminary idea regarding the first print run of this book."

Machida Sonoko turned to the key page of the proposal, her tone becoming serious, "Considering the potential of the subject matter and the author's inherent popularity, we recommend an initial print run of 50,000 copies."

The moment the words were spoken, the conference room fell silent.

Kazuya Nakahara and Yu Genkawa exchanged a glance, both somewhat surprised by the number.

The agency's president, Kato Arashi, was equally surprised. Her eyes widened slightly as she stared at the publishing team opposite her with disbelief.

"Fifty thousand copies? Isn't that a bit too many?"

Generally speaking, the first print run of a new author's debut novel is usually only 10,000 to 20,000 copies. Even for well-known actors who cross over into publishing books or photo albums, a first print run of around 20,000 copies is considered top-tier treatment.

It's simply unbelievable that Yu Genkawa, an actor who has only ever played supporting roles, could earn 50,000 copies of his book!

Although he was very confident about "Love Letter", the number still far exceeded Kato Arashi's expectations.

She looked at the business director of Kodansha, trying to find any trace of a joke on his face, but only saw a calm expression.

After a while, Machida Sonoko revealed a meaningful smile, looked at Genkawa Yu, and spoke.

"Of course we didn't just set those numbers randomly; there's another issue involved."

"What's the problem?" Genkawa Yu asked.

"It takes a lot of courage to print 50,000 copies in the first print run, but I think Mr. Genkawa must have some other ideas besides wanting to publish this book. After all, there are many cinematic scenes in your story, which I could tell at a glance."

"..."

"You really have a sharp eye."

Genkawa Yu said with a smile.

"Since you really have this idea, why not prepare for it sooner?"

The business director had already anticipated this, and a sly smile spread across his face.

“We not only hope that Mr. Genkawa can entrust the entire publication of this book to Fushigawa Bookstore, but also that once the reprint exceeds 500,000 copies, we can directly begin preparing for the film project. Our bookstore would like to have a 30% investment share. Would you be willing to accept that?”

"..."

"Kanzuki-san...you really have guts!"

Upon hearing her words, Kato Arashi, the president of Hoshino Agency, immediately understood what was going on. The fact that a new author like Genkawa Yu dared to offer a first print run of 50,000 copies was actually a setup for this.

But on second thought, it really is a true win-win situation.

However, the most crucial thing is to see what Genkawa Yu's opinion is, so everyone's attention turned back to the young man's face.

Genkawa Yu smiled slightly, "Of course I agree to the film adaptation project. It's a great thing for both the agency and me."

"Then it's settled. I'd love to cooperate."

After the initial cooperation agreement was reached, the atmosphere in the meeting room immediately became more relaxed.

Machida Sonoko glanced at the handsome blond youth, a slight smile playing on her lips. She decided to tell a girl what had happened there that night.

The other party was an author she worked with who wrote romance novels; her writing style was delicate and her emotions were lingering.

She'll definitely like this book, "Love Letters".

Volume 1 The Shining Morning Star: Chapter 30 Mai Sakurajima Wants to Lend a Helping Hand

After finalizing the cooperation agreement with Shinazugawa Bookstore, Hoshino Entertainment consulted with Yu Genkawa and decided to set the release date for this Sunday.

On the one hand, Kodansha needs to contact various large bookstores to prepare for the distribution of the new book. On the other hand, the initial print run of 50,000 copies does require some time to complete, but printing sample copies is quite fast.

After the meeting in the morning, Yu Genkawa received a sample copy of "Love Letter" from editor Machida the next day.

The book's cover design features a plain white background with the title printed in light blue handwritten pen on the left. A yellowed replica library card is embedded in the lower right corner, with the three characters "Fujii Itsuki" slightly faded by sunlight.

The book jacket is printed with a line he wrote in silver foil: "Unsent letters when the snow falls, and the library card holds my whole youth."

"It feels pretty good, just waiting for the official release."

On Wednesday morning, Tokyo was enveloped in a biting chill at six o'clock.

The white breath that Yuan Chuanyou exhaled condensed into frost in the air. He maintained a steady pace. After starting his morning exercise, the young man had become accustomed to this rhythm of exercise.

I glanced at the system screen, and a new notification popped up on the [Entry Production Platform].

[Production Sequence 1: Long-Distance Running Expert]

Experience points: 61/100

Experience points: 62/100

Experience points: 63/100

"call--"

Adjusting his breathing rhythm, Yuan Chuanyu finished his last lap along the riverbank. His sweat-soaked sportswear clung to his back, and a gust of cold wind sent shivers down his spine.

He slowed his pace, preparing to finish his workout. The towering Tokyo Tower was faintly visible in the distant morning mist. He let out a long sigh, expelling the stuffiness from his chest.

"Let's go back."

As he turned the last corner, the familiar apartment came into view. Just as Genkawa Yu was about to take out his keys to open the door, he caught a glimpse of a slender figure out of the corner of his eye.

A girl wearing a black baseball cap and a mask was leaning against the door, carrying a pale yellow paper bag in her hand.

"Mr. Genkawa, you're finally back~"

Mai Sakurajima pulled down her mask, revealing her incredibly delicate and pretty face. She wore light makeup today, making her already bright purple eyes even more dazzling, and her cherry lips glistened with moisture in the morning light.

The girl wore an oversized denim jacket over a white knit sweater, and her slim-fit jeans accentuated her perfect leg lines, making her look very attractive.

"Sakurajima-san? What brings you here?"

Although Yuan Chuanyu was somewhat surprised, he quickly opened the door and welcomed the girl inside.

"Have you been waiting long?"

"It didn't take long. I didn't expect that Genkawa-san would still have the leisure to insist on going for a morning run. It seems that what happened on the internet has not affected you at all."

Mai Sakurajima followed him into the apartment, the scent of her citrus perfume filling the entrance hall.

"Of course, but what is this?"

Upon entering the rented room, Yuan Chuanyou noticed that the girl had opened the paper bag in her hand.

"These are gifts of comfort."

Mai Sakurajima handed over what she was holding. “Didn’t Genkawa-san remind me to bring a very expensive gift last time? This shop is famous for its yokan and rakugan cake. I got up early to queue up and bought them. They cost me a full 5,000 yen.”

"So, is that enough to satisfy your request?"

She winked half-jokingly, a delicate smile appearing on her face.

Having known Mai Sakurajima for several weeks, Yu Genkawa knew she was easy to get along with, so he went along with her.

"Thank you so much, Sakurajima-san. As expected of a big star, you gave me five thousand yen right away. That's several days' worth of food money for me."

"Hmph, Genkawa-san, you're covered in sweat...don't you need to take a shower?"

Mai Sakurajima glanced at the young man, whose hair was covered in sweat, and said somewhat irritably.

"I always take a shower right after my morning run, but we have guests over today."

Yuan Chuanyou thought about the temperature this morning. The fact that the other person had made a special trip to visit him warmed his heart, so his voice became much gentler.

"Does Sakurajima-san not have any filming scheduled for today?"

After all, she is the female lead in "49", and generally needs to be on set from Monday to Friday.

"I've finished filming my recent scenes, and the next two episodes will feature the male lead, so I can relax a bit this week."

Mai Sakurajima gazed intently at the young man's face and asked seriously, "More importantly, how's the manuscript of 'Love Letter' coming along? So many days have passed, Genkawa-san should have finished writing it by now, right?"

“Inside the bedroom…” he pointed to the inner room, “but…”

However, it was not the original manuscript, but a sample book that had already been bound.

But before he could finish speaking, Mai Sakurajima rushed inside like a child who had discovered a treasure.

Genkawa Yu shook his head with a wry smile, placed the gifts the other party had brought on the table, and then called out to the girl's back, "Sakurajima-san can take your time looking at this, I'm going to take a shower first," before turning around and walking into the bathroom.

Fifteen minutes later, when he came out of the bathroom drying his hair, Mai Sakurajima was curled up on the sofa with a sample copy of "Love Letter" open on her lap, looking as focused as a student preparing for an exam.