Iruma-san wants to win the Akutagawa Prize

Just after the practice continued for a while, Takamatsu Deng suddenly said.

In fact, it is always difficult for Takamatsu Touma to speak, and since she is the lead singer, everyone will take whatever she says seriously.

"Record it for Xiang to listen to?"

Toyokawa Shoko asked back slightly.

"Yeah! I wanted to tell Xiang that everyone is waiting for him to come back to practice, and I'm also working hard... singing..."

Gao Songdeng said the last two words with some force, which sounded like her usual singing style.

It seemed like she actually mustered up the courage to say these words, and it was a rare moment of bravery.

"That's a good idea. I'll use my phone to record it then."

When Toyokawa Shoko was about to agree, Nagasaki Suyo spoke first.

She moved even faster, and was the first to move her phone to the recording position. From this position, it actually looked like she was the center of attention, having originally been standing to the side.

Of course, no one noticed this small action.

Even Toyokawa Shoko is the same.

But everyone quickly agreed to this idea.

Shiina Riki was actually a little nervous.

But she had already developed muscle memory for the fight in "Kasuga Shadow", so it didn't matter.

No matter how difficult the situation, I'm sure she can play the Kasuga Shadow well, even if the drumsticks fly away during the performance.

During this recording process, everyone felt the effort of Takamatsu Deng——

Shiina Riki's feelings are actually more profound.

Probably from the time when Hibiki Iruma handed over the responsibility of band rehearsal to her, Shiina Riki took this matter very seriously and paid more attention than usual to everyone else except Toyokawa Shoko who was not there at the time. So in her impression, Takamatsu Touma performed particularly well today. She faced the end and sang as if she was calling Hibiki Iruma.

Plus the lyrics of the song "Spring Shadow" -

Don't know why.

Shiina Riki suddenly felt that Takamatsu Touma wanted to shout to Iruma Hibiki who was not there.

【makes sense. 】

Then this thought suddenly popped up in her mind.

After all, when Hibiki Iruma and Shoko Toyokawa were still around, Tomokazu Takamatsu was always very close to them.

【I'm a little envious.】

In the middle of the performance, Shiina Riki suddenly came up with this idea. Her drum set did not stop, and she accurately played each sound according to her muscle memory.

Until his physical strength became slightly exhausted and he began to feel a little out of breath, Shiina Riki no longer had the time to think about anything else.

So she began to try her best to show herself, as if she was infected by Gao Songdeng's lover, Menger Lengba⑸O论氵'VI|Jiu Xu.

"Spring Shadow", which was missing a corner, now blooms with some of its brilliance.

Iruma Hibiki, who was wearing headphones, was on the other side and saw Nagasaki Suyo's delicate face appear in front of the camera. She then smiled lightly and adjusted the position of the camera on her mobile phone.

This location——

The careful Iruma Hibiki noticed the subtle arrangement of Nagasaki Suyo.

……

Then he fell silent, feeling a little troubled.

Until Takamatsu Touma's "Spring Shadow" sounded.

-

It was really great, especially the singing of the lights, it was amazing!

Iruma Hibiki tried his best, and his excited heart at this moment only allowed him to give such praise.

【It’s still missing. 】

Then he quickly saw Gao Songdeng's reply.

【I'll be back soon, Deng.】

At this moment, Iruma Hibiki responded to Takamatsu Touma with an affirmative smile on his face.

[Next, let’s form a lifelong band! ]

Then——

With some seriousness, and perhaps with the feeling that this was a slogan unique to Crychic, Iruma Hibiki sent this message to the group.

In the rehearsal room, Takamatsu Deng, holding his mobile phone in both hands, looked at the reply from Iruma Hibiki and suddenly felt like crying.

Perhaps she was born for this moment to join Crychic.

Takamatsu Deng felt this sense of destiny.

A feeling of finally being recognized, accepted and acknowledged after all the hard work filled Gao Songdeng's heart.

"Haruhi no Shadow" is a truly remarkable song.

Hibiki Iruma sent a new message again.

Such news is a recognition of Takamatsu Deng.

I won't let go, everyone!

-

When the third message came, Gao Songdeng's joy had reached its peak.

Because I have received too much criticism and cold eyes in the past.

Therefore, the Takamatsu lantern, as a container of happiness, has a very small capacity.

Now there is a slight overflow.

43 The Weight of Iruma Hibiki

Probably when the emotions echoing from "Kasuga Shadow" had not yet dissipated for a long time, Iruma Hibiki received a call from the long-lost Fuzuigawa Bunko.

Machidaenko.

When this familiar and natural name appeared, Iruma Hibiki actually sighed slightly.

"Mr. Iruma, you should know why I contacted you today, right?"

Facing the inquiry from the other end of the phone, Iruma Hibiki was silent for a moment before replying:

"Editor Machida, I understand. Actually, I also have something I want to discuss with you."

"Eh?"

On the other end of the phone, Machida Sonoko was slightly surprised, and then had a bad feeling.

"Wait, Iruma-sensei, this isn't a new work—"

"..."

Iruma Hibiki was silent for a while.

"That's right, Editor Machida."

But in the end he chose to confess.

Yes, writing is completely different from band work. This is a purely commercial activity that doesn't allow for too much willfulness or complacency.

After realizing this, Hibiki Iruma pondered for a long time and made his own decision:

"Actually, the idea of becoming a writer in the beginning was, how should I put it... it was part of my obsession, and it was a desperate decision made after I made a promise with a very important friend."

"At that time, I probably had nothing else to do except writing, so I wrote my first book and met you, Editor Machida."

"But now, I seem to have found something more important than writing. So, Editor Machida, I'm sorry, but could you please halve the frequency of my new book releases? From four books a year, down to two? That way, at my current age, I'll be able to keep up."

……

Iruma Hibiki's words left Machida Sonoko, who was sitting opposite him, silent for a long time.

"Teacher Iruma, have you made up your mind? Honestly, you're just a fledgling author, a rare newcomer who's achieved some success and built a reputation. If you delay the release of your new book this far, unless your subsequent works are of excellent quality, you'll slowly fade from everyone's radar."

"Is it okay even if that's the case?"

"By the way, if you do this, Iruma-sensei, it will be difficult for me to deal with the subsequent resources from headquarters. Your new work may not receive as much publicity resources as expected. This is a very important matter, Iruma-sensei, please consider it carefully."

"but--"

When she said this, Machida Sonoko fell silent. In front of her sat a woman who was staring at her impatiently, waiting for her comment.

"If this is your decision, Mr. Iruma, then I can't refuse. Enjoy your youth, Mr. Iruma. Speaking of which—"

"Actually, I feel the same way. Your first book, Iruma-sensei, is more of a love letter to that person than a novel."

"Sorry, Editor Machida, I've broken up with her."

"Ah... I'm sorry."

Although she said she was embarrassed, when she heard about the breakup, Machida Sonoko still showed a gloating smile.

"It's okay. By the way, the above decision is actually the result of my careful consideration. Maybe in the future I will resume high-quality and high-frequency innovation, but in the near future, I will probably focus more on the current affairs."

"So, Mr. Iruma, the work you're working on now—"

"I will complete this work, please rest assured."

"Then I'll feel at ease."

As the call ended, Iruma Hibiki breathed a sigh of relief.

After he made this decision, he did not feel much regret, but instead breathed a sigh of relief.

This trip back to Tokyo was not in vain. Not to mention that the kiss he gave was the second kiss after his first kiss, at least he brought his guitar.

There has been no phone chat with Toyokawa Shoko in the past two days.

The frequency of chatting has also become less frequent.

It seemed that Toyokawa Shoko still felt a little shy about what happened that day.

In fact, the same is true for Hibiki Iruma.

Whenever he came across Shoko Toyokawa's account, he would always touch his lips, thinking about the feeling at that time.

Then, without realizing it, I had read every blog post of Toyokawa Shoko.

Shoko Toyokawa started updating her blog when she was in elementary school.

In addition, she seemed to like sharing her photos and life habits, so Iruma Hibiki saw the growth of Toyokawa Shoko in the past few years.

although--

【I am a cooking genius! 】

This kind of blog is so funny no matter how you read it.

But it's cute, isn't it?

From an objective point of view, the silence between the two people now is nothing more than two people who are very unfamiliar with love and are at a loss after suddenly getting close to each other.

Actually, from that day on, Iruma Hibiki became somewhat—

It started to feel strange.

He began to frequently miss the feeling of hugging Toyokawa Shoko. At night, while holding the quilt, he would imagine himself hugging Toyokawa Shoko, sucking her hair hard, and then rolling around on the bed like a twisted maggot.

Then, in his own fantasy, he imagined a series of strange and excessive pictures until his brain melted, his desire reached its end, and then he fell into deep self-blame.

Having a lover as the object of fantasy may be common, but it made Iruma Hibiki feel a little ashamed.

On the other hand, Toyokawa Shoko is actually in the same situation.

Her longing became so deep that what happened on Nagasaki Suyo's side became a small episode.

She began to calculate the time.

Every day since Iruma Hibiki came back seems to be extra long.

She was actually a little uncomfortable with this feeling.