The Red Violet Literature meeting room was silent, but not for long. The editors, who just a second before had been heatedly discussing the merits of another work, abruptly ended their conversation when the assistant placed the next stack of manuscripts on the long, well-polished wooden table. It was the second novel of the afternoon, and no one intended to waste time, especially in a serialization selection meeting, and even less so in this particular issue, where only one slot was available for publication in the prestigious Red Violet magazine.
If a single novel took a few minutes to discuss, and dozens of novels were reviewed, the meeting would still take two or three hours to finish. Therefore, no one dared to make superfluous comments. The pace was almost military: read, evaluate, score, move on.
The "pending" status that some stories received was not an empty compliment. It meant that the first chapter of this novel had been approved by the editor-in-chief, Yuki Hashimoto, and was of sufficient quality to be serialized in the main magazine. However, if it wasn't the best submission at this serialization meeting, it wouldn't stand a chance, as there was only one spot available.
The pressure was immense.
Meanwhile, at Minami High School, the atmosphere was completely different. The early spring sun shone on the courtyard as the opening ceremony for the second-year semester took place.
An exhausted student and an unexpected guilt.
Among the impeccably aligned rows of class 2-3, Ren Yamamoto struggled to keep his eyes open. The dark circles under his eyes betrayed the effort of the last few days. He had been pulling all-nighters revising and rewriting the script he adapted from the anime Ao Haru Ride, transforming it, with almost obsessive dedication, into seven chapters of romantic prose.
For any ordinary person, this would already be a lot. For a student juggling classes, assignments, recent emotional turmoil, and an avalanche of other people's memories invading his mind… it was nearly impossible.
Then, memories of the girl watching other anime resurfaced in the last two days: romance anime like 'Suzuka' and isekai (otherworldly) anime like 'Kyou Kara Maou!' and 'Healing Hero'.
'Suzuka' was good; Ren was quite absorbed watching it through his spiritual memories. But 'Kyou Kara Maou!', although he had only watched a few episodes in his spiritual memories, was something that really made him uncomfortable after watching it. If he wasn't mistaken, it was a BL (Boys' Love) anime.
And the worst part was that, for Mizuki Ito, all of this was normal. This cute girl with bright eyes devoured all kinds of content as if it were summer refreshment.
Ren, however, didn't have the luxury of choosing. He needed his memory and his "internal episodes" to quickly return to the plot of Ao Haru Ride. If he was lucky, the important scenes would reappear, allowing him to complete the following chapters accurately. The serialization meeting was happening at that very moment, and if his work was approved…
He swallowed hard.
"If the serialization of 'Ao Haru Ride' is approved at today's meeting, I don't want Miyuki showing up at my house with a knife in a few weeks, demanding the manuscript like some literary yakuza!"
"Come on, Mizuki Ito…" he pleaded mentally, barely concealing his desperation. "When you 'run the next episode,' please skip straight to the right scenes! I really don't need to see this…"
While he was lost in thought, the ceremony progressed. In a few minutes, the director concluded the standard annual speech, followed by perfunctory applause and general dispersal. Starting tomorrow, the second semester of the students' third year officially begins, the one preceding the intense pre-university preparation period for the national entrance exams.
The class teacher, Mr. Kenji, then gave a passionate speech to the class, encouraging everyone to work hard, strive, and put aside novels, anime, games, and other entertainment products to focus on their studies. Well, almost no one paid him any attention.
"There are approximately four hundred days left until the National Exam!" he announced, as if revealing a state secret. "It's time to sacrifice novels, games, and any distraction! Total focus is required!"
Most students simply shook their heads or discreetly fiddled with their cell phones. It was already a tradition to ignore most of Mr. Kenji's sermons, a tradition as old as the school itself.
However, what bothered Ren a little was that his girlfriend - no, his ex-girlfriend, the class representative, Rina - was sitting in the next row, just a meter away.
Wearing her impeccable white uniform, her hair tied back with a light blue ribbon, her posture elegant… she caught the attention of many classmates, especially the boys. She was the kind of girl whose presence naturally lit up the room.
During the winter holidays, due to a family crisis involving Ren, she ended the relationship immediately upon learning what had happened. However, since they were classmates, she couldn't avoid seeing him and could only deliberately ignore him to avoid embarrassment.
There was no room for misinterpretation. The message was clear: continuing with him meant getting involved in problems, becoming the target of malicious comments, perhaps even being asked for money… all concerns she herself admitted, but not aloud.
Since then, she treated him as if he were invisible. And the most ironic thing was that this indifference made Ren completely abandon any remaining affection he still felt for her.
There was no sadness, but a somber acceptance.
But not everyone seemed to have understood the situation.
"Hey, Rina," whispered a classmate in front of her. "Weren't you and Ren really close before? Why aren't you talking to him today?"
Rina froze.
"Close what? We're just classmates. Don't worry about it." Rina glanced at Ren.
His mother had died young, his father had committed suicide during the winter holidays, and his family had gone bankrupt. The fact that he hadn't dropped out of school surprised Rina.
"He probably has some relative paying for his studies."
"It doesn't matter, whatever the reason, he's probably one of the most miserable people in the whole school right now. Continuing to date him will only make my friends laugh at my bad taste, and there's no benefit to it. He might even come asking me for money."
Several scenarios ran through Rina's mind. It's a shame she didn't become a novelist.
The two only confirmed their relationship at the end of last semester, and it lasted less than a month before ending during the winter holidays. It was a very short time, so no one in the room knew about the relationship.
A gentle breeze entered the classroom, making the students' hair ripple slightly.
Ren was absorbed in his thoughts about the serialized novel, becoming increasingly focused. Rina frowned. The more she tried to ignore it, the harder it became. His indifference towards her, the school, and everything else made her uncomfortable. She had the feeling that the person she had broken up with was more distant than she was.
Tomorrow, classes begin.
Meanwhile, in the meeting room on the other side of town, the selection continued. The name of the next work echoed in the room:
"Next, the twenty-second novel of this conference, 'Ao Haru Ride', with the goal of being serialized in the magazines Momentary Blossoms and Seeking Sound."
Miyuki stood up and presented the information about 'Ao Haru Ride' to the editors present.
Meanwhile, the others were busy leafing through the manuscripts of the novels.
Five works were vying for the two open spots at Momentary Blossoms, with great engagement from the female audience. The competitive atmosphere was almost palpable.
Within the first thirty seconds of reading, several editors subtly changed their expressions.
It was rare for a first chapter to surprise them; most of the submitted works had slow plots, long introductions, or characters without immediate brilliance. But 'Ao Haru Ride' was different.
First, it establishes the unrequited love between the male and female protagonists.
The central part of the story, their reunion three years later, just when everyone thinks their old feelings have rekindled, is marked by the protagonist Kou's cold declaration: "We can't go back to how we were!", defining their relationship once and for all.
The phrase cut the protagonist's heart and, unexpectedly, the editors' hearts as well.
At the end of the chapter, Futaba's emotional narration, expressing her refusal to accept that the story would end like that, created a delicious tension, the kind that makes the reader turn the page immediately.
The descriptions of the interpersonal relationships, emotions, and state of mind of the female protagonist, Futaba... after reading the first chapter, everyone felt a subtle sadness and a sense of hurt.
They've read too many romance novels; mediocre romances simply can't evoke the emotions of these editors.
"Hmm, very good indeed."
"The quality is really good," another agreed.
But a third raised the issue:
"I don't think it's good. The first chapter makes the interpersonal relationships so straightforward. The male protagonist says so calmly to the female protagonist, 'Our past is over,' how will the plot develop? The female protagonist chasing after the male protagonist? Many female readers hate this kind of plot; nobody likes reading stories about girls in love."
Some nodded in agreement.
"Wait a minute, this author is a newcomer? And I'm sure I didn't misread the information about the author? Male? And a student?"
"Seriously?" "A high school student writing a shoujo romance?"
"Is this something a boy could write? Seriously? Are high school students these days so good at understanding girls' feelings?"
"Honestly, it's a little strange for a boy to want to serialize a shoujo romance. Even if the first chapter is good, the plot will probably fall apart later. I don't believe that these high school students who have never had a girlfriend can write a shoujo romance that female readers will love."
The debate instantly turned into chaos. The editors, who were competitors, didn't hold back at the serialization meeting, relentlessly attacking each other on every point.
Compared to previous discussions, the discussion about "Ao Haru Ride" was noticeably more heated.
"I carefully read the first three chapters of this submitted novel, and the situation isn't as everyone is saying. In fact, the plot of 'Ao Haru Ride' intensifies from the first to the third chapter," Miyuki said calmly.
Some editors wrinkled their noses, skeptical.
"Personally, I even think 'Ao Haru Ride' would have reached the top 3 even if it had been serialized in 'Red Violet'. I suggested placing it in 'Momentary Blossoms' only because the author is a newcomer. I hope that when people question this novel, they will focus on discussing the plot instead of paying too much attention to the author's experience. The country is huge; there are many light novel authors who become famous overnight."
The rival publisher, realizing that their own submission would completely lose in terms of quality, retorted:
"But that's just your opinion. Words like 'I think', 'maybe', 'if', etc., indicate an uncertain outcome. Our publisher doesn't need to take that risk. After all, 'Momentary Blossoms' is our third best-selling magazine. I suggest serializing 'Ao Haru Ride' in 'Seeking Sound'," she said.
She knew very well that the novel she had submitted was far less exciting and impactful than 'Ao Haru Ride'. In terms of quality, the novel she proposed for serialization in the magazine "Momentary Blossoms" was a complete failure. Now, it's natural to steer the conversation in the right direction, eliminating a strong competitor.
The atmosphere heated up. Miyuki narrowed her eyes, but remained professional. Still, it was evident that she was struggling not to respond vehemently.
It was then that the editor-in-chief, Yuki Hashimoto, gently raised her hand. Her gesture was discreet, yet authoritative, and the room fell silent. A chaotic discussion would not produce results, but having someone to make the decisions makes all the difference.
She thought for a moment and asked her assistant to bring the manuscripts of the last two chapters of "Ao Haru Ride," distributing them to the editors.
The assistant, already prepared, delivered the additional stack of manuscripts, spreading them across the table.
Normally, they would never read more than one chapter during the meeting. But, when the discussion reached an impasse, especially when the potential was real, they made an exception. After all, serial publishing meetings value efficiency. Reading two or three chapters, fifty or sixty thousand words of plot from each novel, would be very tedious.
Five minutes passed.
The dozens of editors in the meeting room fell silent.
One by one, the editors put down their papers with expressions somewhere between perplexed and impressed. Indeed, the first three chapters of "Ao Haru Ride" were becoming increasingly captivating.
The female protagonist, Futaba, was becoming more and more endearing. Her developing relationship with the male protagonist, Kou, and the depiction of their daily lives with friends and schoolmates… everything recalled the feeling of pure youth that many there thought they had left behind.
And then came the inevitable question, silent yet deafening:
How could a sixteen-year-old boy write this?
Unbelievable!
Yuki Hashimoto closed the manuscript elegantly. His voice was firm but gentle:
"Approved."
Although he was in his forties, his bearing and voice were remarkably elegant. But none of the editors objected to his decision.
After three such excellent chapters, it's pointless to attack her with previous arguments.
Miyuki let out a long, relieved sigh. The victory tasted sweet and deserved.
End of Chapter 9