Confession and ASCII Building

"Kashima-kun. Then what do you want to talk about."

Before this...

It all came to this:.

It was supposed to be a typical day, but hearing my friend talk about Shirakawa and how many guys were chasing her made me lose all self-control.

I could not help but stare at her figure walking ahead of me while she fiddled with her hair as I ascended the stairs, and I could not bring myself to look away.

Ah, I want to date a girl like her! That was what filled my entire mind.

"Kashima-kun."

"Yeah..." Her voice woke Kashima out of his stupor. "Sorry for the trouble, but for some reason., I could not bring myself to keep it silent for a while."

But after looking at her face, for some reason Kashima found his own determination, wanting to be with this girl, which became a will that was ignited within his heart.

In the end, he was just a useless man, not a genius who could revive his family; after all, there had been nothing remotely romantic about his former life, and even his marriage had been manipulated out of familial favor and dependence.

"I would like to ask you out on a date because I truly do not want to lose out to anyone else for your attention." He tried to remain composed as he said those words, and then, as soon as he was done, a strange sense of calm came over him, and he looked directly into her eyes.

"Ahh, for a date today! Hmm, I am fine, but can we go on another day. We should probably reschedule our date for tomorrow since I am not wearing my best outfit and it is a weekend day. Nevertheless, I am totally fine with being your girlfriend."

The girl appeared quite surprised by everything, which made Kashima smile.

He reasoned that now he really did not have to worry about finding her a date; all he had to worry about was finding a way to make her happy or spend more time with her.

'Spend more time with her.'

"So, um, Shirakawa-san, may I ask if you can accompany me today? I have an appointment after school, and my caretaker asked me to bring a friend because of my leg."

"Eh, something to do, huh! Then I will come with you." "Is it far? Then I will ask Maria to tell our mother about it." After that, Shirakawa continued to talk a lot, so much so that neither of them had lunch during the break.

However, Ryuuto was happy to have a conversation like that with Shirakawa because it put him in a good mood.

However, Itsuki ended up harassing Ryuuto for the next three classes, which made Ryuuto feel extremely uncomfortable.

Even though it was coincidental and Shirakawa quickly withdrew it out of embarrassment, all it took for Ryuuto's mood to improve was Shirakawa holding his hand.

However, this time, Itsuki experienced singleman's burn instead of Ryuuto, who fully recovered.

"Ahh, that legendary item 'love' is really bad; it can deal a devastating blow to a loner like me and bring its host back to full health." Hearing Itsuki description. Ryuuto could not contain his laughter as he walked out and patted his friend back.

Upon realizing that the seniors had left the school, he called Ayame Kagurazaka-san, who answered his call promptly, and inquired about bringing the document containing Volume 1 to the ASCII building.

"Hmm, you are going to this building. That's awesome, but I think I will wait outside, so you should go and do your work, and I will be waiting around that corner."

Ryuuto nodded in agreement as she pointed toward the shopping area, not realizing that someone they knew was glaring at the two of them with a menacing smile.

'Hmm, why am I having this kind of chill during the daytime.' Ryuuto wondered. Mayumi discovered the girl approaching her, and Ryuuto appeared to be turning in the novel as he entered the ASCII building.

'He could have waited for another few days to recover from his injury. Why is he such a hard nut to crack, not to say? He could have taken few more leaves.' She muttered, and after that, she decided to go and talk with the girl who came here with Kashima-kun.

"Hello! Kimi."

"Hmm, Hello."

"This is rather spacious." It was Kashima's first impression of the ASCII building. After greeting the receptionist, he received a call from Ayame-san. One of them gave him a kind smile and led him to the seventh floor, where Ayame-san was waiting for him with a broad smile.

+++++++++++++++++++++++

"Oh my, welcome, Ryuuto-kun." When Kashima first entered the room, he saw a pretty woman dressed professionally conversing with a child of a similar age who appeared to be quite familiar.

However, Ryuuto soon recognized two of them from another anime main character and main female character after spotting a short silver girl hiding behind him.

"Oh, these two are among my most notable employees, so feel free to unwind a little, Ryuuto sensei. I brought them here to help with your work illustration."

When Ayame noticed Kashima staring at Masamune Izumi and the young girl Sagiri—also known as Ero-manga sensei—she wondered if Kashima was protecting Masamune Izumi from them or something.

"It is not like that, Ayame-san; it is just that I am a fan of Izumi sensei's previous work, so I was a little surprised to see him here, like this." This is not totally untrue, as his former host was an avid admirer of Izumi's writings.

Izumi, who was then in his sophomore year of high school, gained notoriety for his recently published novel, which was not portrayed in that anime.

"Hello, Izumi sensei, my name is Kashima Ryuuto; it is a pleasure to meet you." Although Ryuuto was still tempted to tease the little girl after noticing her hiding behind her brother, she refrained because the girl appeared to be afraid of strangers.

"It is nothing; I am also happy to make acquaintances with Kashima-san. Sorry, but my little sister is still a bit scared in front of strangers. My sister's name is Sagiri; she is an illustrator and a popular one at that."

Izumi smiled awkwardly, holding onto Sagiri's hand and patting her head.

"Not at all; I am okay with it. You do not have to trouble Sagiri-chan for it." Ryuuto replied, as he did not mind how Sagiri was hiding behind her brother, but still looking at the little girl's terrified look, he felt a little pity for her, seemingly suffering from something like this.

"Haha, it is good that three of you became acquainted, so Ryuuto, if it is okay, I would like to show two of them your novel, given Sagiri had tendencies to draw a few selected ones."

The fact that Sagiri was drawing for other people surprised Ryuuto, but upon further reflection, it was more surprising that she was present because in the anime, she was a recluse who rarely left her room, especially in front of her brother or any other person.

"Obviously, I am overjoyed. Additionally, Izumi sensei, if you have any criticism for my story, please share it with me; it could help me in the future."

Ryuuto handed them the print and glanced at Sagiri and Izumi as they read the novel slowly and intently to the point where they became fully absorbed in it, forcing him to forget that Shirakawa Runa was waiting for him outside.