Tanaka Masao didn't notice anything unusual about Kawasaki Saki, he just said very humbly.
"Oh, it's just a hundred million, just a drop in the bucket. It's just a small goal for me."
"I didn't realize it before, Tanaka-kin, but you have quite an appetite. A hundred million is just a small goal for you now."
Yukinoshita Yukino retorted.
Her family's financial situation was good; she could be said to have no economic pressure whatsoever, but she didn't have a hundred million in savings.
Even her elder sister or mother, who managed the family business, would need to think carefully when faced with such a sum.
For some reason, Yukinoshita Yukino suddenly felt a sense of being outdone by Tanaka Masao.
In this world, there are many ways to measure a person's ability and value.
And making money is the simplest and most direct of them.
While his peers were still immersed in the wonderful campus life, Tanaka Masao was already a successful person with a net worth of over a hundred million.
Moreover, he achieved this entirely through his own personal ability and talent, without relying on anyone else's help.
In the business world, this is called building from scratch, and those who succeed are respected and praised.
If he wrote a few more books, wouldn't he surpass his own family?
While she was still thinking about gaining her family's approval, Tanaka Masao was already planning to make his family gain his approval.
In Yukinoshita Yukino's perception, Tanaka Masao was a stubborn, prank-loving, and somewhat nasty guy.
If Tanaka Masao had any good qualities, it was his strong endurance.
Cough, cough, of course, she was referring to his resilience; he worked hard to lose weight but managed to stick with it.
And before meeting her, Tanaka Masao didn't seem to be particularly outstanding; he was overweight and his grades weren't good.
It was she who supervised his weight loss and tutored him, helping him go from last in grade to first in grade.
[So Tanaka-kin owes all his success today to me?
I actually, unknowingly, cultivated a monster. I really am...
Amazing.]
Well, although Yukinoshita Yukino felt that she had helped Tanaka Masao change, this novel probably had little to do with her.
Before reading the novel, she had thought that Tanaka Masao's novel was adapted from their experiences, but after reading it, she found that was not the case.
Not to mention that she had little to do with the female protagonist, even the male protagonist had little to do with Tanaka Masao.
In fact, Yukinoshita Yukino's first reaction upon seeing the novel was that it was something Tanaka Masao could never have written.
However, considering that it was just a novel, it didn't necessarily have to be based on real experience; it could be achieved through imagination.
...
Hearing Yukinoshita Yukino's obviously sour words, Tanaka Masao felt a bit smug; he had successfully gotten the upper hand again.
This feeling of gradually becoming excellent from a weak and incompetent fat otaku, surpassing the excellent Yukinoshita Yukino in every aspect, and seeing her unwilling and humiliated expression, was truly wonderful.
Rising above someone once feels good, but constantly rising above them feels even better.
However, if he continued like this and completely surpassed Yukinoshita Yukino, it would become boring.
Yukinoshita Yukino: Do I exist just for Tanaka-kin to enjoy the satisfaction of rising above? Hmph, you really think you can do it. How dare a mere Tanaka-kin underestimate me?
Not only was Yukinoshita Yukino annoyed by Tanaka Masao's humblebragging, but the other two also rolled their eyes at him.
Sensing their gazes, Tanaka Masao spoke.
"Alright, actually, a hundred million isn't a small goal for me."
Everyone: I knew it...
"I'm not interested in money at all. I've never even thought about making money."
Everyone: ...
Sometimes, you're truly a jerk. Now that you're rich, you're not interested in money, huh?
When you had no money, you clung to the tiny bit in your wallet, wishing it would never leave.
Now...
Hmph, men.
After a few seconds of silence, Kasumigaoka Utaha spoke.
"Junior, do you know that sometimes, you're really asking for a beating?"
Besides interest, she had also considered becoming a professional writer to earn money, so she couldn't say something like Tanaka Masao did.
Kawasaki Saki also asked.
"Tanaka, you write novels not for money, is it purely out of interest?"
Tanaka Masao shook his head.
"You're only half right. My novels aren't just for interest."
"Then what for?"
"It's to make readers feel pain. The thought of others looking pained because of my novels excites me."
"How awful!" x3
Watching Tanaka Masao speak, even showing expressions of enjoyment and pleasure, the three girls simultaneously showed expressions of disgust.
Tanaka Masao became even more excited.
Yukinoshita Yukino looked at him as if he were trash.
"I knew Tanaka-kin you were a pretty nasty guy, but I didn't expect you to be this nasty. Who writes novels just to see readers suffer?"
Saying you write for money is vulgar but understandable. Writing for ideals and interest is elegant, but few people manage it.
But writing to make readers suffer is purely inhumane.
Even Kawasaki Saki, who had a good impression of Tanaka Masao and thought he was a good person, now felt as if she was re-acquainting herself with him, but...
"Is the novel Tanaka wrote a tragedy? It makes people feel a lot of pain, so why do so many people still read such a novel?"
Among them, she was the only one who hadn't read Tanaka Masao's novel, so she wasn't clear about the specific content.
This also made her a bit confused; why would so many people read a novel that made them feel sad and pained?
Do people nowadays just like that kind of thing?
Hearing this, Kasumigaoka Utaha explained to Kawasaki Saki.
"The novel Junior wrote ends with the female protagonist dying, so it's a tragedy. However, the process of the male and female protagonists meeting, getting to know each other, and falling in love is very warm and beautiful, which is why many people enjoy reading it."
Kawasaki Saki nodded.
"I see. This type of novel shouldn't be uncommon, right?"
"It's not uncommon, but originally the female protagonist had a terminal illness and was supposed to die from it."
"So she didn't die from illness?"
"That's right. After the male and female protagonists confessed their feelings to each other, the female protagonist died on the way to their date."
Looking at the silent Kawasaki Saki, Kasumigaoka Utaha continued to add.
"By the way, in Junior's latest novel, a character suspected to be the female protagonist dies right at the beginning."
"What! The female protagonist died again!"