Night.
Lin Zhi leaned back in his chair, hands clasped behind his head, staring at the computer screen in thought.
"Fanfiction scripts, huh… I still can't wrap my head around how Eriri ended up being a doujin artist. And she's supposedly the daughter of a British diplomat? Seriously?"
Even though he'd known Sawamura Eriri for quite some time, he realized he didn't actually know much about her personal background.
Of course, she didn't know much about him either.
Still, their relationship was something a little more than just friends.
"Unbelievable," Lin Zhi murmured, shaking his head with a faint smile.
He and Eriri had been collaborators for a while now — their "work," naturally, being fan projects.
As for how they'd met… well, that was a long story.
He opened his chat app, hesitated for a moment, then clicked on Eriri's avatar and sent her a message.
"So, have you thought about what I mentioned before?"
She replied almost instantly — clearly still by her computer.
"You mean serializing my manga on your website?"
"Yeah. What do you think?"
"Well, I do want to make a proper debut someday, but you know I'm terrible at writing stories."
"Anyway, shouldn't you be focusing on finishing my script first? Idiot!"
Somewhere across the ocean, inside an English-style manor, Sawamura Eriri bared her cute little canine teeth as she glared at her monitor, fingers flying over the keyboard.
"I am thinking about it! It's still a while before the summer Comiket, isn't it?"
"Hmph. Fine. If you can give me a manga script I'm satisfied with after this one, maybe—maybe—I'll serialize it on your site."
What a tsundere princess.
"Alright, alright. I'll make sure to present Miss Kashiwagi Eri with a script she'll love."
"Go to hell! If you dare call me that name at school, you're dead!"
After chatting with Eriri for a while, Lin Zhi received another message — this time from Ryuunosuke.
"The thing's done. Transfer the money to my account."
"And if you need updates later, it's gonna cost extra."
A few moments later, a new email arrived with an attached zip file.
Lin Zhi downloaded and unzipped it, then transferred the installation package to his phone.
Curious, he tested Ryuunosuke's work.
Everything he'd requested in his previous email had been implemented — and some features were even optimized beyond his expectations.
The app's interface was still a bit crude, but it was definitely a huge step forward for their website.
After experimenting with it for a while, Lin Zhi jotted down the bugs and areas for improvement, planning to hand them over for the next update.
"Not bad," he murmured, genuinely impressed.
Ryuunosuke really was a genius.
Lin Zhi had studied some programming himself, but reaching that level was still far beyond him.
Once satisfied, he sent the installation package to Aki Tomoya.
"Tomoya, the website app's ready. The promotion and upload work are yours."
He waited a bit, but there was no reply. Who knew what Tomoya was busy with now?
With a shrug, Lin Zhi opened the site's backend and checked the data. Everything seemed stable.
Business was going well — a few small publishing sites were trying to poach users, but the impact was minimal.
As long as the big-name publishers stayed out of it, they'd be fine.
And honestly, why would those giants even bother? Their reputation alone attracted countless creators begging to publish with them.
Glancing at the clock, he noticed it was already eight in the evening.
"I wonder if Yukihira Diner's still open…" he muttered, patting his stomach.
After a moment of indecision, laziness won out — delivery it was.
He remembered grabbing a few flyers earlier that day on his way home through the shopping district.
Sifting through them in the living room, he found one advertising a delivery ramen shop.
"Modern life really is amazing," he said with a grin. "You don't even have to move to eat."
He dialed the number.
"Hello, this is Satou Ramen. What would you like to order?"
"One tonkotsu ramen, please. Delivery to Aoyama Apartments, third floor, room two."
"Got it. Anything else?"
"No, that's all. Thanks."
While waiting for his food, Lin Zhi sat back down at his desk, lost in thought again.
He had some free time — might as well finish Eriri's script. Otherwise, he'd have no leverage when asking her for favors later.
Though honestly, was she really a rich young lady?
He had his doubts.
Sure, she looked like she had some mixed heritage, but could a proper lady really be drawing adult doujinshi? That just sounded too absurd.
Shaking his head, Lin Zhi pushed the thought aside and focused.
A blank document filled his screen.
After a pause, an idea flashed in his mind — he typed out the title:
"Perverted Choices in My Head!"
Yes… that would do.
Once the idea clicked, his fingers danced across the keyboard, typing out line after line of scandalously vivid prose, completely immersed like a monk in deep meditation.
I am a man without emotions.
...
A sudden knock on the door broke his concentration.
"Coming!"
He quickly saved the file and glanced at his phone — perfect timing, it must be the delivery.
"Hello, your order."
Opening the door, he found the delivery girl standing there in her shop uniform.
What surprised him, though, was how young and beautiful she looked — a bright, energetic girl with her hair tied in a high ponytail.
But her face was pale, almost ghostly white, and her lips had lost all color.
Lin Zhi frowned slightly. "Hey, are you okay?"
The girl forced a weak smile and shook her head. "I'm fine… just a little cold. I'll be alright after some rest."
"Hold on a second, I'll grab the cash."
"Alright."
He turned back inside, opened his wallet, and counted out the money as he walked toward the door.
But when he looked up—
His eyes widened.
"Hey! Are you alright?!"
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T/N:
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