Chapter 36 Akihabara
As expected, Akihabara on the weekend was extremely lively. The streets were bustling with tourists, and there were many young women dressed in maid outfits and JK uniforms handing out flyers.
The exterior walls of the buildings on both sides were plastered with advertisements for games, anime, and light novels. Kaede even saw an advertisement for the new volume of konosuba.
Eriri also looked up and saw it, smiling as she said, "Speaking of which, tomorrow is the release of the fifth volume of your novel. Are you really not planning a signing event?"
Kaede replied without thinking, "Of course not. Let me ask you, why don't you show up in person at the doujinshi conventions?"
"These two things can't be compared at all!"
Eriri glared at Kaede, puffing out her cheeks. If she hadn't been dressed so ladylike today, and if they weren't outside, she would have kicked him already.
"That's true." Kaede knew well that it wasn't good to tease Eriri too much today, so he said with a smile, "We've arrived at our destination. Today, I'm mainly here to accompany you. Where do you want to go first? Figure shops? Or games?"
"Hmm~~~~"
Eriri tapped her chin, thought for a moment, and then said, "Let's go to a light novel bookstore first and see how well the stores here are promoting your novel!"
Kaede looked at Eriri with a hint of surprise, not expecting her to suggest something like that. A warmth spread through his heart.
"Alright, let's go see. But I'm still quite confident in the Bunko's arrangements, and my novel's sales aren't bad either."
The two walked towards the bookstore Eriri knew, chatting and laughing.
Along the way, although there were also couples out having fun, a pairing with such good looks as Kaede and Eriri was quite rare on the streets. Especially since Akihabara tends to attract more male visitors, Eriri was constantly the focus of many gazes.
Eriri's attention was drawn to many shops along the street, so she didn't notice much. Kaede, who did notice, chuckled softly and said, "Eriri, thank you."
"Huh? Why are you suddenly thanking me?"
Eriri turned to look at Kaede, her face full of confusion.
"Because Eriri dressed up so beautifully today, I, as your male companion, feel very honored."
Eriri was initially confused, but when she saw the envious glances from some men around them, she immediately understood. Blushing, she began to defend herself.
"I... I don't need you to thank me. I just wore these clothes because they looked good. It has nothing to do with you, okay?!"
"Yes, yes, yes, I know."
Kaede knew very well that when Eriri was flustered, it was best not to go against her, so he agreed with a full smile.
Seeing Kaede's expression, Eriri puffed out her cheeks and whispered, "I feel like you're just humoring me."
Kaede naturally didn't offer any further explanation. He looked at a shop ahead and immediately changed the subject: "There are taiyaki. Want some?"
Eriri also saw it and smelled a sweet, fragrant aroma, nodding repeatedly.
With her half-British heritage, she had a great love for sweets. Many of the wagashi Kaede brought during their cherry blossom viewing earlier had ended up in her stomach.
Queuing up, they each bought a red bean taiyaki. Kaede took a bite and felt it was alright. He glanced at the shop's product list again, looking at the matcha-flavored, cream-flavored, and bacon-flavored ones, feeling that the flavors were getting weirder and weirder.
Eriri blew on the steaming taiyaki, took a bite, and smiled contentedly.
"Hmm, the taste is alright, but... I feel like it can't compare to those wagashi you brought before."
"A taiyaki and a wagashi are different things, and you're comparing them?" Kaede looked at Eriri amusedly and said, "If there's a chance, I'll take you to that shop. Their stuff is really delicious."
"Mhm mhm!" Eriri nodded happily, like a little food connoisseur.
After finishing their taiyaki, the two arrived at the bookstore. The shop was filled with many customers at the moment, and at the entrance, there was also a konosuba billboard displaying the release date of konosuba Volume 5, which was tomorrow.
Inside the shop, Eriri immediately found the display shelf for Kaede's books, which was also a very good area in the store. Eriri also heard several book fans around them asking the staff if the books would be available as soon as the store opened tomorrow and if there would be enough stock.
Waving at Kaede, Eriri whispered, "If these book fans knew that Kurenai Momiji was here, you probably wouldn't be able to leave, right?"
Kaede smiled and said, "Likewise, if you told them, you wouldn't be able to leave either. You'd be stuck here with me, being squeezed."
Eriri imagined the scene: the two of them pressed tightly together, squeezed in the crowd. Her face immediately turned red: "Uh... then let's not. We've seen it, let's go out quickly."
"Aren't you going to look at other light novels?"
"No, I've already bought all the popular novels, and there are no new volumes of other books being released recently."
So, the two left the bookstore, which made the staff who had seen them enter very confused. They came in, looked for a few minutes, and then left quickly. They didn't understand.
After leaving the bookstore, Kaede was dragged by Eriri to several figure shops. Compared to the bookstore earlier, these shops made Eriri stay for a longer time. After all, even Eriri couldn't own every figure; she only bought some that she liked.
"Ah, I don't have this Snow Miku figure, I really want it! This Boa Hancock one is also good!"
Pressed tightly against the glass cabinet, Eriri looked at the figures inside, making sounds of desire.
Kaede, standing beside her, said, "If you want it, just buy it. You're not short on money."
"That's easy to say." Standing up straight, Eriri said somewhat helplessly, "But the small bookshelf in my room can't hold that many anymore. I can only look for now. Changing furniture is quite troublesome. What about you, Asakura? I noticed you didn't have much desire to buy anything after coming in."
Shrugging, Kaede said, "When it comes to figures, my interest isn't that high. I've bought several Miku figures. This Snow Miku you're looking at is currently on my bookshelf in my bedroom. Although bookshelf space is limited, I created a mezzanine in my room, so most of my otaku merchandise is stored away, and I rotate a batch onto the bookshelf regularly."
Upon hearing this, Eriri immediately thought of an anime character: "You're like Kousaka Kirino?"
Kaede smiled and nodded: "Yes, but at least my family doesn't object to my hobbies."
Eriri also seemed to be deep in thought.
Oh, right, it's true that you don't have to display everything you buy. So, should I... Her gaze shifted back to the figures.