— — — — — —
"Just finished it."
"It really is an excellent light novel. The writing style carries a bit of a Natsume Sōseki vibe, though in some places it feels different."
Even Yukino Yukinoshita, who usually just lurked in the chat, offered a calm, objective review.
"I… I finished it too. It was really good!"
That was Saika Totsuka.
He wasn't part of either the Service Club or the Literature Club. Hachiman Hikigaya just added him to the group.
Which, honestly, made it seem like Hachiman might have a thing for cute guys.
That said…
Saika Totsuka really was ridiculously cute.
Even Oikawa had caught himself more than once wishing Saika were a girl.
"..."
Kawasaki, as usual, said nothing.
Given her personality, she probably wasn't the type to read light novels anyway.
But that was fine.
Before the second volume of Your Lie in April came out, Oikawa was absolutely going to find a way to make her read the first.
"Huh? What are you guys even talking about? I don't get it…"
"What's Your Lie in April? Is that the name of a light novel? I've never even heard of it!"
Yui Yuigahama remained as adorably clueless as ever, always just a little out of sync with everyone else.
Oikawa explained, "Your Lie in April is the latest grand prize winner from Dengeki Bunko. I heard the author's actually a seventeen-year-old high schooler."
"Man, comparing people really is depressing. We're the same age, and he's already successful and wrote something this captivating. When am I ever going to catch up?"
Behind the phone screen, Oikawa was grinning like a complete schemer as he typed those lines.
Playing the underdog like this felt amazing. Every cell in his body seemed to buzz with satisfaction.
"Don't be discouraged! You might write something even better someday."
"Oikawa, I believe in you. Do your best!"
Only Yui responded seriously. The rest of the group more or less ignored him.
Well, not completely ignored.
Everyone else dropped a quick emoji, basically saying "good luck."
…That wasn't nearly as satisfying.
Oikawa thought about adding something else, but decided against it.
…
…
Meanwhile, in the group chat for authors who debuted around the same time—
Everyone was tagging Oikawa like crazy, though the tone was… a bit sour.
Sour might not even be the right word. It was closer to jealousy.
After all, no writer could stay indifferent after seeing a novel this good.
"Damn it, this is way too good. I'm so jealous!"
"You're young, write insanely well, and revise fast too. Oikawa, I seriously can't stand you!"
"Oikawa. You're definitely not getting away with this. Next time we meet, you're treating us to something fancy. We're talking wagyu!!!"
"Yeah, I'm absolutely going to bleed you dry."
"Same here. This makes me lose confidence in publishing."
"Online reviews for Your Lie in April are overwhelmingly positive. I'd say at least 200,000 copies sold, no problem."
"200k? More like 300k!"
After lurking for a while, Oikawa finally replied, "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. I'm not nearly as optimistic as you guys. I'm already prepared to play dead if it doesn't break 300k sales."
"Haha! Relax, your sales are going to be great."
"+1."
"Same, +1!"
After chatting with the other authors, Oikawa felt a lot more at ease.
Writers, more than anyone, could judge the quality of each other's work.
If they rated it this highly, readers definitely wouldn't think otherwise.
And just as Oikawa expected—
Your Lie in April was receiving incredible feedback.
Even readers who had been on the fence started buying it, curious to see what the hype was about.
Very quickly:
Sold out on day one.
Sold out on day two.
Sold out on day three.
Sold out on day four.
Still sold out on day five.
Large bookstores had decent stock, but smaller shops that had only ordered a hundred or so copies were completely wiped out.
Those stores all began contacting Dengeki Bunko.
"Hello, is this Dengeki Bunko?"
"This is Sakura Bookstore in Akihabara. We need 300 copies of Your Lie in April. Please arrange delivery immediately."
"If possible, we'd like them today."
…
"Section Chief, it's another request for Your Lie in April. What do we do?"
"What do we do? How should I know?! It's not like I can conjure books out of thin air! Call the editorial department and have them request a reprint immediately!"
…
Ayame Kagurazaka received the call.
Without wasting a second, she hastily filled out a reprint application form and sprinted toward the editor-in-chief's office.
.
.
.