章節 32: Chapter 31 The leisurely mood of Hikigaya Hachiman
"Wow, Mr. Hachiman, your current savings must be an amount I can't even imagine."
"The more you earn, the more taxes you pay. After printing the bills twice, I've already paid more than 50 million yen in taxes. It makes me sad whenever I think about this," Hikigaya said, rubbing his temples with both hands.
"If it doesn't work out, Mr. Hachiman, you could learn from that great writer and live abroad forever," Naho Imamura suggested jokingly. One of Japan's top writers has lived abroad for many years, claiming he needed to find inspiration for his writing to improve. However, according to readers' speculation, he might just be trying to avoid taxes, though there is no concrete evidence of this.
"Forget it, I'm fine staying in Japan. I definitely won't be able to get used to life abroad. Besides, if I leave, won't I never see you again?"
Hikigaya meant that if he left Japan to live abroad, he wouldn't be able to seek advice from his editors, Imamura and Machida, like he was doing today. Many things are difficult to explain over the phone or email; offline meetings facilitate better communication. As he spoke, the two women next to him blushed. Hikigaya thought that they often had a tacit understanding.
"This boy really exudes charm without realizing it. Charm is not such an inconvenient thing..." Naho Imamura thought helplessly. She wondered what kind of man this talented young man with excellent temperament would become in a few more years.
"Hey, senior, what do you mean by that look? You don't have any ulterior motives toward Mr. Hachiman, do you? My finger is on the alarm button at any time," Machida Sonoko said, a bit shy herself but deciding to point the finger at others first.
"Hehe, I don't know which junior school girl said something like, 'If I were ten years younger, I would be obsessed with him' when she met Mr. Hachiman some time ago."
"I say, you two, saying these things in such a public place can easily lead to misunderstandings," Hikigaya reminded them. At fifteen, he was still at an age where the Minor Protection Act was comprehensive and strict. Even if they had any ideas, they would have to wait until he turned sixteen.
A few minutes later, they finally returned to their normal discussion.
"So, Mr. Hachiman, will this novel take you a long time to write?"
"Yes, it may take a year or even longer. The publishing frequency of my first two books was a bit too fast, with only a six-month gap. I'll have to ask my readers to wait a little longer for the third one," Hikigaya said with a smile, although he did not intend to fade out of the public eye during this year-long hiatus.
"However, during the long process of writing 'The Clock Museum Incident,' I still serialized some short stories in 'All Reading.' Writing short stories does not require any technical skills; it is purely for relaxation."
"Oh? A short story? Will it also be a mystery story?" Machida Sonoko asked curiously.
"That's right, but unlike ordinary mystery stories, the short stories I will be serializing will be somewhat experimental in nature. They explore the various possibilities of dismemberment, which is a common theme in mystery novels," Hikigaya explained. The two women on either side seemed not to fully understand, but they were definitely intrigued.
In fact, what Hikigaya was talking about was "Causes of Disintegration," written by Yasuhiko Nishizawa in his previous life. The book consists of nine independent stories. The first eight cases are separate, while the ninth story connects the previous eight. Since Yasuhiko Nishizawa's layout ability is quite poor, the ninth story suffers as a result. With so many characters, the descriptions are messy, and readers often need to revisit the previous stories themselves for clarity. Hikigaya had not yet decided whether to serialize the ninth chapter.
His approach to 'dismemberment' in murder cases is humorous and nonsensical, analyzing the motives a murderer might have for using such methods. As Yasuhiko Nishizawa's debut work, the writing style and plot are unrestrained, with motives that are straightforward. Despite this, the book is entertaining and well-suited for serialization.
"I will write one or two stories and send them to you later, but be prepared for them to be very different from my previous style."
"I believe that no matter how Mr. Hachiman writes them, they will be wonderful."
Naho Imamura's eyes sparkled as she clenched her fists and spoke. As expected, she received another cold stare from Sonoko Machida. It was unclear whether Sonoko despised the flattery from her senior or if she was simply irritated by the interruption.
The three of them chatted for a long time before they finally dispersed. As they were leaving, the two editors insisted on sending Hachiman home. They eventually gave up when they learned that Hachiman would just take a taxi. They watched him get into the taxi with envy in their eyes.
Spring break ended soon, and after school started, Hikigaya became a proud junior high school student. Thanks to his excellent grades from the previous semester, he was assigned to Class A, which was responsible for the school's enrollment rate and overall quality. When he surveyed the members of Class A, he discovered that aside from him, only two students from his original junior high class remained. It seemed that the previous class had not fostered a strong learning atmosphere.
Upon arriving in the new class, Hikigaya noticed that the seats were arranged according to the rankings from the final exam. Starting from the first seat in the front row by the window, Hikigaya Hachiman, who ranked sixth in the grade last semester, was assigned the second-to-last seat by the window. This arrangement made him very happy.
"I feel a bit like a protagonist now," he thought.
Although Hikigaya didn't watch much anime, he still had a basic understanding of these memes.
As for the subsequent election of male and female class monitors, Hikigaya and his classmates didn't pay much attention. As a preparatory class made up of the top thirty or so students in the grade, the environment was entirely focused on hard studying, and their relationships were largely superficial.
Hikigaya was very satisfied. Students should focus on their studies. Even so, only a little over one-third of the students in this class would be able to enter Municipal Sobu High School. The competition was fierce.
"I need to work hard to ensure my name makes it onto the Sobu High School admission list next March," Hikigaya vowed to himself. At that moment, exactly one year had passed since he arrived in this world.
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