"Then I'll see you later."
Arthur didn't hesitate for even a moment at Akashiya Moka's invitation.
He agreed right away.
After all, he had nothing planned for the afternoon.
He had been planning to play some games—
But when a beautiful girl invites you out, how could you possibly say no?
Once they settled on the time and place, Arthur stayed sprawled on the sofa and opened another message.
Kasumigaoka Utaha:
"Junior-kun, are you feeling better?"
Her full name was Kasumigaoka Utaha.
The very same black-stockinged senpai from Saekano.
She wrote light novels under the pen name Kasumi Utako, and was also a top student with outstanding grades.
Backtrack two and a half years.
After transmigrating and figuring out the world and his own situation, Arthur came up with a plan.
How to make money and improve his life.
After weighing the options—odd jobs, finding a rich sugar mama—the most fitting path for him was clearly the ACGN industry.
Anime, manga, games, novels.
He didn't agonize over it. He chose light novels.
After some market research and prep, he debuted under the pen name Daydream.
His first work, The Game of Gods.
He entered it into the Shinsei Awards at Fushikawa Bunko, and took the grand prize—winning not only the prize money but also promotional support across multiple channels.
The first volume sold over 100,000 copies in its debut week.
He instantly became the rookie king.
Through his editor, Machida Sonoko, he later met Kasumigaoka Utaha, who at the time was going through a slump. Over time, they grew close.
They'd known each other for a year now.
Their relationship was… let's say, ambiguously intimate.
Arthur looked at her message and curved his lips into a smile.
Arthur:
"I'm fine now. Actually, I feel great. Doing push-ups seven times a night is nothing."
Meanwhile, in Taitō Ward.
On the twelfth floor of a luxury apartment.
Kasumigaoka Utaha sat at her desk, dressed in a slightly loose white pajama top.
The collar hung open, her delicate collarbones fully visible.
Lower down… it was clear she was generously endowed.
Her silky black hair draped down her back, and her refined, porcelain-pale face curved into a small smile as she looked at her phone.
"…Seven times a night?"
Her gemlike crimson eyes narrowed slightly as she read his reply.
Then, realizing what it could imply, her cheeks bloomed with a faint blush.
A flicker of shyness passed through her gaze.
Her slender fingers danced across the screen:
Utaha:
"Junior-kun, this 'push-up' you mentioned… Do you mean the normal kind of push-up?"
Arthur's response popped up almost instantly.
Arthur:
"Of course the normal kind. Is there some other kind of push-up? If there is, you'll have to show me—I'm curious. Better yet if Senpai can teach me hands-on."
"…Hands-on…"
Her mind immediately conjured up… paywalled images.
A deeper flush spread across her cheeks, like an ink drop blossoming in water.
A peach blossom in full bloom—gorgeous, and just a little dangerous.
Shoving the images aside, she steadied herself and typed:
Utaha:
"Ara, so Junior-kun isn't even hiding his perverted desires anymore. In that case, shouldn't I agree to your request?"
Elsewhere, in Nerima Ward.
Seeing her message, Arthur's lips curved higher, amused.
Arthur:
"Do you really need to ask? After all, look at our relationship."
Utaha blinked slowly, a hint of expectation flickering in her eyes.
Utaha:
"Oh? And what is our relationship?"
"Are we senpai and kouhai? Senior and junior? Or… something else?"
Arthur:
"What do you think it should be?"
Utaha:
"I asked first. Answer me."
Arthur:
"Fine. I think it's the kind of relationship where we can do all sorts of things together in a room."
Utaha immediately caught the innuendo, her face warming as she bit her lip.
Utaha:
"What exactly? Care to explain?"
Arthur:
"You know."
"The kind of thing that's sometimes intense, sometimes gentle—and leaves both sides very satisfied afterward."
"…"
She knew full well he was deliberately leading her astray.
But still—her imagination betrayed her.
Scenes both fiery and scandalous popped unbidden into her mind.
Her eyes flickered, and her long, pale, shapely legs shifted together, pressing close.
Suddenly, the room felt a little too warm.
When her reply didn't come as swiftly as before, Arthur chuckled.
As they grew closer, their conversations had become increasingly casual.
He knew Utaha's personality well.
On the surface, she was the picture of a quiet, graceful beauty.
But in conversation, she could be shockingly blunt—dropping lines so bold they could make you choke.
She had a streak of poison-tongued wit as well.
Though she used it sparingly, and only in just the right measure.
To put it another way: high offense, but low defense.
If one were to compare her maturity to fruit, she'd be a banana—yellow on the outside, but still white on the inside.
Time slipped by.
An hour later, after finishing his chat with Utaha, Arthur tidied up and headed out.
He put on a mask and a cap.
Better to lower the odds of being hit on.
Plenty of people lusted after his body.
Without some disguise, someone would definitely approach him.
Girls were one thing.
But guys?
This world was complicated. Even boys had to take care of themselves when going out.
Near the station.
At the café where he'd arranged to meet Moka, Arthur ordered a coffee and waited.
Not for long.
In less than five minutes, Moka arrived.
"Moka, over here."
Arthur stood and waved.
"Arthur!"
The moment she saw him, her face lit up like a flower blooming, and she hurried toward him.
Ever since parting ways yesterday, she'd found herself thinking about him again and again. I want to see him.
It confused her a little.
She wasn't sure if it was because she wanted to see Arthur himself, or because she wanted another taste of his blood.
But maybe… it didn't matter.
Because both were true.
She genuinely wanted to see him again—
He was, after all, her very first friend in the human world.
And she did very much want his blood again.
Unlike the bland taste of bagged blood, his had been… indescribably satisfying.
When she sat across from him, a server came over.
Moka studied the menu, hesitated a bit, then ordered a cappuccino.
"Please wait a moment," the server said, and left.
Moka turned to Arthur, eyes wide with surprise.
"Arthur, did you… change somehow?"
Somehow, he looked even better today.
At first glance, nothing seemed different. But the feeling he gave off—more striking, more pleasing—wasn't the same as yesterday.
Arthur only smiled faintly.
"Maybe because something good happened yesterday. I slept well, so I'm in a better mood."
"After all, your mood affects your whole aura."
"…Is that so?"
Moka tilted her head, thinking. It did make sense.
Then she leaned forward with a curious smile.
"So what good thing happened yesterday?"
Arthur's lips curved.
"Oh, quite a few. For example—becoming friends with you, Moka."
"Eh?!"
Moka's eyes widened slightly.
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