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Chapter 79: The Butterfly Effect of an Assistant
Mashiro didn't care about the schemes or the school's social hierarchy. She only wanted to draw, and if the spotlight made more people look at her manga, she was genuinely happy. Besides, with Kouka Miyauchi acting as her self-appointed personal bodyguard, Renji wasn't worried about anyone bothering her.
Admittedly, Renji's plan essentially used Utaha Kasumigaoka and Eriri Spencer Sawamura as stepping stones. However, Eriri was desperate to hide her secret life as a doujin artist, and Utaha was the type who thrived on being the center of high-stakes drama. After receiving Renji's suggestion, Utaha didn't hesitate; she nodded in firm agreement.
She had seen Mashiro's character designs. The male lead in the manga was a far cry from Aki Tomoya. Aside from a few shared traits that might make Aki himself think, "Hey, that sounds like me," the protagonist was visually modeled after Renji. Since Eriri had already signed off on the project, Utaha saw no reason to complain.
"He wants to use our notoriety to launch Mashiro... Renji Miyauchi really is a terrifyingly competent assistant," Utaha thought.
Yet, as she stood there, she felt a strange sensation of being "overshadowed" by the quiet girl at Renji's side. Shaking off the thought, Utaha took the initiative to ask Renji for his contact information. Having gained 1 Reading Value just by accepting his first tip, she realized that being proactive was the most efficient way to farm points.
She glanced at Mashiro's reaction. The blonde artist remained calm, but her presence next to Renji felt unshakeable—as if she were a permanent fixture in his life.
After swapping numbers, Utaha tried to squeeze in a few more "consultations." The story Renji had used to mock Eriri—the theme where a "female lead falls for a man after he's been molded by other women"—sounded agonizingly bitter, but the more Utaha thought about it, the more her writer's intuition tilled with excitement. It was a theme that sang to her hidden, more obsessive nature.
Just as Renji opened his mouth to explain further, the preparatory bell rang, slicing through the conversation.
"It seems we'll have to pick this up later," Renji said, cutting his explanation short.
He knew exactly why Utaha was hooked. This was the hallmark of Fumiaki Maruto—the architect of her own existence. From White Album 2 to Saekano and Engage Kiss, his worlds were built on twisted emotional entanglements. Combined with Utaha's secret yandere streak, she was the perfect audience for that kind of "poison."
Utaha, having earned a quick 3 Reading Value this morning, felt a twinge of regret but bid them farewell. She could earn 10 points a week; there was no need to look desperate.
As Utaha's dark-stockinged figure receded, Kouka's face was a mask of suspicion. "Renji, that woman... she didn't just ask for your number; she demanded it. And the way she looked at you several times... something is definitely wrong!"
Kouka mentally tallied Utaha's features: long black hair, legendary legs, senior status, and a figure that could make most girls weep. Compared to this, can my little brother even resist?
"I'm telling you," Kouka whispered, nudging him sharply with her elbow. "Mashiro is fine. Even Mayuzumi or Megumi-chan would be okay. But don't you dare have improper thoughts about that woman! She's a bad woman, Renji! A man-eater!"
"Stop talking nonsense," Renji replied, though his mind was elsewhere. He was analyzing Utaha's "commission."
Does she gain points for every question I answer? Or is it a cumulative reward for following my 'genius' advice?
He felt a bit slighted by his own Diary. The girls were getting intricate RPG-style mechanics, while his Death Note only offered a morphing function. Are you playing favorites, Kage? As if sensing his complaint, his Diary finally flickered.
System Update: By assisting Diary holders in completing commissions, the Owner receives progress. Reward: At 100% progress, unlock a "High-Level Targeted Gacha" (No junk items).
Renji's current strength—his physical stats and Ripple—were raw numbers. He lacked mechanisms. He needed Domain Expansions, the Transparent World, or even Ultra Instinct.
"So if I don't complain, you just hide the good stuff, huh?" Renji realized the Diary's intent. It was baiting him to get closer to the girls. If he helped them directly, he'd reach "Invincibility" faster.
But Renji's core principle remained firm. "I'll help Mashiro because she's here. I'll guide the others through the group chat from behind a screen. But I am not exposing myself until I am truly invincible!"
While Renji waged a battle of wits with his stationary, the girls of the first batch were struggling with their own tasks. Most found their "easy" commissions surprisingly tedious. Only a few, like Utaha—who had gamed the system by latching onto Renji—felt their luck had turned.
Utaha, flush with her 3 points, felt embarrassed to share her secret in the group. "Listen to a boy and do what he says" sounded far too compromising to post publicly. She planned to keep Renji as her private "Reading Value fountain," at least until she had reached her weekly cap.
Meanwhile, in a sunless laboratory in Tokyo, Shiho Miyano poured a cup of coffee.
It had been a month since she received her Diary. Aside from the day she was "doxxed" by the Mysterious Person—revealing that the Black Organization wasn't the invincible juggernaut she feared—she had lived in silence.
None of her comments had been chosen since that first day. She watched as an idol, a photographer, and a girl nicknamed "Bocchi" were featured repeatedly. The Mysterious Person clearly had a "preference" for the social recluse Guitar Hero, even gifting her songs that seemed to come from another lifetime.
"Has he forgotten my story?" Shiho wondered with a bitter smile.
Before the Diary, she was a ghost. Born under surveillance, educated under watch, and now trapped researching her parents' legacy. Her only joy was meeting her sister once a month. But yesterday, her sister had said something chilling: "It will be over soon."
That night, Shiho had a nightmare. She dreamed of losing her sister in a cold alleyway.
She looked down at the three commissions glowing in her Diary:
C+ Rank: Successfully escape the Organization. (Bonus if sister joins).
B+ Rank: Investigate the Organization's true truth.
A- Rank: Finalize APTX4869 and create a non-lethal antidote (10% efficacy min).
Shiho's eyes locked on the C+ rank. The others were years away. APTX4869 was a poison; as the Mysterious Person had said, except for one mouse and a certain "Famous Detective" who had shrunk, it only brought death.
"If I stay here, the nightmare becomes real," Shiho thought, her hand trembling against the cold lab table.