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After ironing out the details about payment, the mood in the room got way more relaxed.
Machida Sonoko couldn't help but bring up a question about the story.
"Author Twilight Sky, who's your favorite heroine? And who's the male lead gonna end up with?"
She knew spoilers could ruin the fun, but she just couldn't resist asking.
Andrew's mouth twitched.
That question felt almost as awkward as being asked about his sexual preferences.
I mean, he is the author. Whoever the male lead ends up with totally depends on how he writes it.
So Andrew smiled and tossed the question back at her.
"Miss Machida, why does the male lead have to choose?"
Machida Sonoko gave a surprisingly thoughtful answer.
"Because love is selfish. I mean, I kinda expect the male lead to eventually choose one girl and live happily ever after, while the others end up as the losers. People have to make choices, right?"
"In your book, the characters are gonna graduate from high school, then go to college—and that's usually when choices happen."
She wasn't wrong.
From a realistic point of view, that totally made sense.
But... this is a light novel!
People read this stuff to relax. If they can also get a little emotional connection from it, even better—they'll be more likely to buy it.
So Andrew answered her calmly:
"Why not just have all of them?"
"Huh?"
Machida Sonoko stared at him, wide-eyed and dazed.
She even swallowed nervously.
"You mean... a harem ending? Let the guy be a total playboy?"
Wow, this is the real Mr. Twilight Sky?!
Andrew waved his hand, quickly explaining, "No, no, I mean an open ending. Let the readers decide for themselves."
"Whoever they like, they can imagine that's who the protagonist chooses. Even better if they start fighting over it online—that kind of buzz helps get the book trending."
Honestly, this novel was kind of a "stock pick" kind of story anyway. He couldn't go full demon mode and have the guy literally choose everyone.
So an open ending was the safest bet. Let readers fight it out in the comments.
Machida Sonoko was speechless.
"Why do I feel like... aside from not knowing the publishing process very well, you're even more like an editor than me? You've got all the tricks! If you joined my company's PR department after graduation, I'd hire you on the spot!"
"But whatever. As long as you know what you're doing. Just hurry up and keep writing, I wanna see what happens next!"
She started pressuring him for updates right in front of his face.
Andrew was also a little fed up.
"I told you already, I can't write nonstop. I'm not a machine!"
Machida Sonoko burst out laughing. "Haha, I was just messing with you! I'm only doing this 'cause I really love your work!"
Andrew rolled his eyes. "Then why do I get the feeling you actually want to lock me in a dark room and make me write day and night?"
"Ahem! Of course not! I'm just doing my job as your editor. What editor doesn't hound their authors for updates?"
As they kept chatting, Andrew and Machida Sonoko started getting more comfortable around each other.
"Wait, Andrew, you're a high school student? And you go to Seijo high Academy?"
When she heard that, Machida Sonoko looked... pretty stunned.
"Yeah, why?"
Andrew was confused by her reaction.
"Ahem... so... do you know Kasumigaoka Utaha? She's kinda famous at your school."
"Nope. Honestly, I got hit by a car on the first day of school, missed the opening ceremony, and only got discharged from the hospital a few days ago. I don't know any of the school's big names."
"Why, is this Kasumigaoka person a big deal?"
Andrew tilted his head, pretending not to know.
Machida Sonoko smirked. "Yeah, she's pretty well-known. I bet you'll feel kinda familiar when you meet her. She's also one of my light novel authors. I have a feeling you two will cross paths eventually."
She couldn't help but imagine: what would little Utaha think when she finds out some guy used her as a model in a novel—and that he actually wrote a story even better than Love Metronome?
Just thinking about it was exciting.
Andrew's new story really did feel like volume two—or the upgraded version—of Love Metronome.
"Alright, Andrew, I'll stop bothering you so you can get back to writing. I've gotta go prep the marketing campaign for your book. Catch you later!"
"Yeah, see you later, Miss Sonoko."
Before she left, Machida Sonoko quickly exchanged personal contact info with him and headed out.
Andrew finished his coffee, admired the maid café girl's long, fair legs one more time, and finally left.
Just as he was leaving, he found a slip of paper with a phone number in his pocket.
He couldn't help but laugh.
Man, this irresistible charm of mine...
Looks like that cute maid thought he was hot and secretly slipped him her number.
Nope. Can't leave evidence behind.
If little angel Mahiru saw that, she'd definitely think he was flirting with other girls behind her back.
After leaving the café, Andrew headed straight for the convenience store where he'd worked yesterday.
The manager there was Saionji Odoriko, and that alone was enough to make him uneasy.
Her real name? Inou Odoriko.
Her father? Shuichiro Sawaki Yoshi—aka the final boss of School Days.
Yeah, that guy.
A total degenerate. Practically the human embodiment of chaos.
The female characters in School Days? Almost all of them had either direct or indirect ties to him. Some were even his actual kids.
It was total chaos. That guy was the definition of evil.
And Andrew was a demon—there's no way he'd let someone more evil than him walk around freely, putting girls in danger.
So yeah... that guy had to go.
"..."
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