As expected, the shinkansen from Tokyo to Kyoto was delayed.
According to the announcement, it was a delay, but they weren't sure when it would depart. Optimistically, it should leave within two hours.
"A two-hour delay right off the bat... Even the shinkansen can't avoid things like this," Hibiki Naegi sighed deeply. Thankfully, she had the foresight to buy some food back at the Chiba train station. Otherwise, waiting two hours and then sitting through the ride to Kyoto would mean no lunch until the afternoon.
"The only silver lining is that the Green Car waiting lounge is completely different from the regular one~"
Kotomi sat comfortably in a plush single sofa inside the Green Car lounge, and Mashiro Shiina quickly and quietly claimed the seat directly across from her.
You get the service you pay for—just like airport lounges for first-class passengers, the Green Car lounge for the shinkansen was luxuriously furnished. The seats weren't the usual cold metal benches, but soft, individual sofas.
If you got hungry or thirsty while waiting, you could even order food.
"Once you've experienced first-class, it's hard to go back to economy," Kotomi said, half-closing her eyes and leaning back into the chair. She quoted a classic line from a drama—a line spoken by the second female lead to the main heroine.
Hibiki raised her eyebrows slightly: "Kotomi, it's best not to think that way, okay? It's easy to go from frugal to luxurious, but hard to go back. Only enjoy the level you can afford. If you want more, you have to work for it."
Kotomi chuckled. Hibiki had misunderstood her reference. But it wasn't really Hibiki's fault—if you hadn't seen that particular show, the deeper meaning behind the quote would be hard to catch.
"Haha, Hibiki-senpai, you misunderstood. That line wasn't about luxury or indulgence. It was about..."
Kotomi leaned in close to Hibiki's ear and whispered softly.
After hearing the whispered explanation, Hibiki froze for a moment, then her cheeks turned visibly red at an alarming speed. The bandage stuck to her collarbone even fell off, which Kotomi tactfully pretended not to notice.
"T-That's shameless!!! Kotomi, what kind of shows do you even watch?! That line could corrupt the youth beyond repair!"
Hibiki blushed furiously, flustered and waving her hands.
Kotomi glanced at the very obvious "hickey" on Hibiki's collarbone and thought silently: You're one to talk, considering how wild you are in private.
Meanwhile, Mashiro tilted her head, not understanding what the two were whispering about. Seeing Kotomi whispering to Hibiki made her pout in displeasure. She stood up with a swoosh and sat down in Kotomi's seat.
Just as Kotomi finished explaining the quote, she turned around to sit back down—only to see Mashiro had taken her spot. She assumed Mashiro wanted to switch seats with her and was about to head for Mashiro's previous chair, but before she could take a step, Mashiro grabbed her wrist and firmly pulled her down beside her.
Although both Kotomi and Mashiro had graceful figures, Kotomi was a bit more full-figured. Sharing a single seat made things rather cramped.
"Mashiro, this is a single sofa—meant for one person. It's a little tight for both of us," Kotomi murmured, softly pressing her lips together in a small protest.
Mashiro Shiina acted as if she hadn't heard anything, clinging tightly to Kotomi, occasionally shifting her body like a... kitten trying to leave her scent on her owner.
All Kotomi had to do was take a light breath and she would catch Mashiro's pure, elegant, and alluring fragrance wafting gently into her nose.
"Mashiro..."
"Shh, Kotomi... I'm sleepy. I want to nap."
Does sleeping while sticking to me make it more comfortable...? Kotomi groaned silently to herself. Even though the Green Car lounge wasn't crowded, there were still other people around.
If anyone saw them... Oh, wait. In other people's eyes, this probably just looked like two close girlfriends.
In that case, it was fine.
Kotomi let it go and allowed Mashiro to stay snuggled against her. After all, having Mashiro close like this felt rather nice, too.
Hibiki Naegi glanced at them and, for a moment, almost thought that Kotomi and Mashiro were like her and Seiko Kirigiri—quietly keeping their same-gender love a secret. She was just about to sigh and think, "So I'm not the only one..."
But she caught herself just in time. Unless Kotomi admitted it herself, she couldn't make such a bold assumption. After all, a girl cuddling up to another girl didn't necessarily mean romance. It didn't automatically mean they were gay.
On the contrary, they might be straighter than steel beams.
Only straight girls joked around that intimately without hesitation. Unlike her and Seiko, who always had to be careful and reserved.
Thinking that, Hibiki was glad she hadn't spoken out loud. If she had, she might have accidentally outed her and Seiko's relationship... and that was absolutely not an option!
"I'm going to the restroom," she said, using it as an excuse to temporarily leave the Green Car lounge.
Kotomi looked down at the small head resting on her shoulder, Mashiro's eyes gently closed. She let out a silent sigh. Originally, she had planned to use this delay to work on the first volume of her novel Redo of Healer on her laptop.
But that clearly wasn't happening now. Her laptop was in her backpack, and she could easily unzip it—but her left arm was being gently hugged by Mashiro.
She wasn't exactly a one-armed martial artist who called out to their aunt all the time. Sure, she could manage to pull the laptop out one-handed, but typing one-handed like usual? Sorry, not happening.
Her plan to get some writing done while waiting was now just a fantasy.
Though, honestly, even if Mashiro weren't clinging to her, Kotomi probably wouldn't have written anything anyway.
More likely, she would have put on her headphones, opened drive D, and booted up a galgame.
Buzz buzz—
Her phone, which had been set to vibrate, buzzed in her pocket. Kotomi pulled it out and saw a message on Line from Haruno Yukinoshita.
[Kotomi, the first print run of Sword Art Online Volume 1 sold out even faster than expected! All 100,000 copies are gone! Luckily, Dengeki Bunko already approved the reprint. The next batch is currently being printed and bound. By next weekend, the printers should be able to ship out the first 30,000. The remaining 80,000 copies should reach bookstores sometime between early to mid-November.]
[Hanayui-sensei is currently reading through Volumes 2 and 3. She said she'll probably begin working on the illustrations by the end of the month. Once we have the artwork for both volumes, we'll begin prepping for publication. We're aiming to have Sword Art Online Volumes 2 and 3 on shelves by the end of the year.]
So Haruno was reporting work to her.
Sometimes, Kotomi thought how nice it would be if Haruno could become her full-time assistant. Life would be so much easier.
Ever since Haruno had become her editor, her skills and efficiency had earned Kotomi's wholehearted admiration.
Maybe I should really make her my assistant... If that ever happened, I could just sit back and hand off all the annoying stuff to her. Kotomi half-joked to herself.
She quickly sent a reply:
[Got it. Thanks for your help, Haruno Onee-san~]
Seeing Kotomi call her "Haruno Onee-san" again, Haruno Yukinoshita gripped her phone with both hands and shouted internally, "YES!" Whatever sisterly energy Yukino lacked, she was definitely making up for with Kotomi.
[No problem! Just leave everything to your big sis!!!]
[Hey, Kotomi, are you coming to Tokyo in the next few days? Volume 1 of Sword Art Online has been a massive hit, and the editor-in-chief and deputy editor want to treat you to dinner.]
Worried Kotomi might get nervous, Haruno followed up with several more messages:
[Don't worry—I'll be there with you. It's nothing formal, just the four of us: the chief editor, deputy editor, you, and me. They're both really nice. Last time, I even said to the chief editor, 'We should take turns being chief—next year it's my turn,' and she didn't dare say a word in response!]
[If possible, try to come before tomorrow night, since the deputy editor, Sonoko Machida, is going on a business trip the morning after. If you're coming, just let me know your location and I'll drive over to pick you up. After dinner, your big sis will personally drive you back home~]
[PS: Don't feel shy! If you really feel bad about it, after I drop you off, you can let me stay the night and share your bed. I absolutely won't say no!!!]
After reading Haruno's extra-long follow-up, a bead of sweat ran down Kotomi's forehead.
Forget the content—how did she even type all that in under a minute?
Kotomi could already picture Haruno furiously tapping her phone screen, or hammering away at a keyboard in front of a computer.
Back to the point, Kotomi was a little stunned. Her first volume had sold so well that both the editor-in-chief and deputy editor wanted to take her out?
Now that was recognition.
If they were offering dinner, she wasn't going to be shy about it. She wouldn't ask for anything fancy, but she definitely wanted one serving of every meat dish.
Under normal circumstances, Kotomi would've accepted without hesitation and already sent her location to Haruno so she could pick her up.
No need to go all the way to Chiba—she was in Tokyo now anyway. But since Haruno said it had to be before tomorrow night, there was no way.
She'd be boarding the shinkansen to Kyoto in just a little while.
With that in mind, Kotomi quickly composed her response:
[No need to go out of your way. I'm about to board the shinkansen to Kyoto. Please tell them: Thank you so much for the invitation, but I'll be in Kyoto for the National Art Exhibition for the next few days. I won't be able to make it before the deputy editor's trip. Once we're both back, let's schedule a dinner together then.]
Haruno was probably staring eagerly at her screen right now, waiting for a reply. As Kotomi was her only assigned author, she always responded instantly to Kotomi's messages.
[Oh really? That's a shame. Alright, I'll let the editor-in-chief and deputy editor know. If I hadn't read the second half of your message, I almost thought you were eloping to Kyoto with your beloved~]
[I was getting excited, thinking you had finally rebelled against my overbearing mother and whisked my sister away to Kyoto. From then on, severing all ties with the Yukinoshita family. Hehe~]
Kotomi covered her face lightly. What on earth was Haruno even talking about?
How did she manage to interpret this as Kotomi running away with Yukino to Kyoto?
Besides, she'd never even met Mrs. Yukinoshita... though judging from Haruno's description, she sounded like a very domineering woman.
More importantly, Yukino wasn't even here.
The one by her side was Mashiro Shiina.
If she wasn't worried about causing misunderstandings, Kotomi might've cheekily replied: Yes, I am eloping—but not with Yukino. With Mashiro.
But she didn't send it. If Haruno got mischievous and forwarded that to Yukino, and then Yukino showed it to Yuka and Yui...
Well, she might as well not return from Kyoto.
Honestly, it wasn't that she was enchanted by Tokyo's scenery or Gion's traditional music—she'd just be too scared to come back.
Kotomi sent a penguin sticker with its back turned, walking away silently.
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