章 233: Akihabara Rendezvous (II)

Although Ayano really wanted to go for a stroll and shopping, now wasn't the time for that. Arriving at the designated spot, her car was parked by the side of the road.

Homura walked over and knocked on the car window.

"You're quite early..." Ayano said in surprise as she emerged from the car and greeted everyone.

"I have some other friends coming too, so of course, I had to come early." Homura said while opening the passenger door and placing a cooler box on the seat.

"What's this?"

"Sandwiches. Want one?" Homura grinned and patted the box.

"Sandwiches, huh…" Ayano pursed her lips. "Even if you're skilled, sandwiches are just sandwiches, right…"

Homura raised an eyebrow.

"Do you really lack confidence in me that much? Besides ham, I didn't buy anything pre-made. I even left the lettuce untouched. Everything else, I made myself y'know."

"What?!" Even Elf was surprised. "You made sandwiches like that? That's not something just anyone can pull off…"

"I had no choice." Homura shrugged. "I annoyed myself with my own perfectionism, so naturally, I wanted to make them as best as I could."

"..."

The dedication of a true foodie.

"Okay, give me one!" Ayano reached out. "I didn't eat much for breakfast."

"Huh? Why is there another box inside?" Ayano looked at the box and Homura had just opened.

"Oh, that's Haru's lunch." Glancing at the sandwiches, Homura asked, "What kind do you want?"

"They come in different types?" Ayano stared in disbelief. "Are you planning to create a masterpiece out of the sandwich?"

"Just a whim... or should I pick for you?" Homura wrapped several sandwiches in plastic wrap and handed one over to Ayano. "It's corn and egg."

"Not bad, not bad... I quite like this one." Ayano eagerly prepared to eat after taking it. "Mmm... delicious! I must admit you've won me over! Looks like I should really crash for meals whenever I can."

"You always said that, but I haven't actually seen you do it."

"*Nom* *Nom* I'm busy, y'know. I have so much on my plate." Ayano munched while speaking.

"Why don't you just trust other Mangakas to others? Keep only Homura and Mashiro for yourself, and you won't be busy anymore." Elf suggested.

"Though it's tempting, it's not possible." Ayano shook her head. "I'm not Maeno from Monthly Girls. I'm a responsible editor, okay!"

"Why does every conversation about editors lead to Maeno?!" Homura's lips twitched.

"Isn't it your fault!" Ayano grumbled. "Monthly Girls is becoming more and more popular, so naturally, Maeno became famous too. Although he's a comedic character in the manga, in reality, if someone does what he does, it's infuriating."

"Did you know that countless readers are curious, going to various manga editorial departments to ask if there's an editor like that!"

Homura and the others were all taken aback. What kind of readers were those? How could they do such things?

Could it be that because they read eccentric manga, their behavior also became eccentric?

Taking a hearty bite of her sandwich, Ayano continued.

"But what's strange is, they actually found a pretty similar one in a certain publisher..."

"..."

"Is there actually someone like that?!" Nanami was totally surprised, nearly blurting it out in amazement.

"How did they find out?" Elf asked curiously. "Did the readers who rushed in catch the editor in the act?"

"Caught in the act?" Mashiro pondered. "Like eating instant noodles on the manuscript? And even spilling soup on it?"

Ayano rolled her eyes, stuffed the sandwich into her mouth, and swallowed it.

"No, not that extreme. But isn't that even worse than Maeno? At least Maeno didn't spill soup."

"Ayano, your commentary is a bit weird. It's like you're defending Maeno." Homura teased about her sarcasm.

"By the way, I want to know how that editor got caught in the first place." Elf interrupted everyone, inquiring again.

"It's true that this editor did things similar to Maeno, like not taking care of the manuscript. Oddly enough, this editor also has a habit of slacking off by blogging all the time while ignoring the manuscript, even to the point of the manuscript not being edited at all."

"I think I can guess how it went..." Elf covered her face.

"No, you can't guess it." Ayano shook her head.

"???"

"Other people just didn't pay attention, but the author who had their manuscript treated like this did care. However, this author is quite timid and could only endure it silently."

"Now I've got it..." Elf continued. "After Homura's manga became popular, this matter drew attention. So, of course, the editor who had similar bad conduct as Maeno felt uneasy and erased the evidence. But... this editor didn't expect that the author had already saved all the evidence and directly exposed it, right?"

"Yeah, something like that." Ayano clicked her tongue.

"This is really..." Nanami shook her head. "They brought it upon themselves..."

"Okay, let's not talk about this annoying stuff anymore." Homura shook his head.

"Homura-shi, we're here!"

Suddenly, Saori's voice came from a distance.

Homura looked puzzled as he waved at Saori and the others.

"Why are you here so early?"

"Because we arrived in Akihabara very early. As soon as we got the location, we rushed over." Kuroneko answered while yawning.

"That's really hard work..." Homura chuckled.

"Mwahaha, everyone! It's great to see each other again, de gozaru~!" Saori enthusiastically greeted Elf and the others. "Ayano-san, long time no see!"

"Makishima-san too still as spirited as ever."

"Iya~ just call me Saori, please."

"Minamiya-sensei, when will my cousin and her friends arrive?" Kirino scanned around and asked Homura.

"They should be here in about an hour." Homura checked the time. "It's not good if they arrive too early."

"Yeah... you're right. If they arrive too early, it might attract attention, and then more people will gather."

"Speaking of which, Ayano, when will the car arrive?"

Ayano also glanced at the time.

"Soon... Besides the car with the audio equipment, there's one for changing outfits. I've already told the girls to change clothes over here."

"Obviously it has to be here." Elf rolled her eyes. "If they show up in their performance outfits, they might end up all over the internet even before they start the concert."

"Other idols are afraid that people won't know about them, while our idols are afraid that people will find out too much, huh..." Homura found it quite amusing.

"Other idols don't have you helping with publicity, right?" Ayano chuckled.

"It's the fans who support them not me. Gotta stay low-key, low-key." Homura raised his hands in defeat.

"Homura-niisan!"

A voice came from a distance.

As everyone heard the voice, they had smiles on their faces.

The Light Music Club also arrived!