I, Aki Tomoya, will not be a simp.

"What do you think I was thinking when I saw the title 'The Suspect Taki'? (bitter smile)"

He didn't want to look at it, but the title of the book made it impossible for him to control his hands.

Upon seeing Aki Tomoya's reply, Kasumigaoka Utaha couldn't help but laugh.

Who told me about Chapter 277 again? (1/?)

Kasumigaoka Utaha laughed at Aki Tomoya's slightly conflicted expression.

It's not about revenge, it's just that it's quite interesting.

There was no particular reason for using that title; I just did whatever came to mind.

I wrote a novel under a pseudonym as an attempt to change my image, but I didn't really have much hope that anyone would read it.

Even after talking to Aki Tomoya, Kasumigaoka Utaha was convinced that this person would definitely not be very interested in her novels.

As for the author he used to like, but that's in the past. Now, Kasumigaoka Utaha knows very well that Kasumigaoka Utako's novels don't hold much appeal for him.

I did wonder what Aki Tomoya would be like after reading her book.

Now that I know that the book's title and the story caused Aki Tomoya to struggle, I find it quite interesting.

"I didn't do this on purpose. There's nothing I can do if you don't like it, An Yi."

Kasumigaoka Utaha felt as if she had returned to the time when she first met Aki Tomoya.

"Then I wish your novel great success!"

Aki Tomoya is already at a loss for words.

What a terrible title, "The Suspect TAKI".

He didn't even know how to comment on Kasumigaoka Utaha's perverse sense of humor.

The idea, born out of a whim, has left Aki Tomoya a little conflicted.

"Thank you for contributing to my sales, haha..."

After seeing Kasumigaoka Utaha's reply, Aki Tomoya scratched his head.

For a moment, I felt like I was being mocked.

"But Aki, you don't need to overthink it. Apart from TAKI, other aspects don't really have much to do with you. If you don't treat TAKI as a protagonist based on you, you won't feel so guilty!"

"..."

Surprisingly, I was comforted instead?

Aki Tomoya's eyes held a hint of helplessness.

At the same time, I sighed twice at Kasumigaoka Utaha's teasing words of comfort.

The more the other party said that, the more Aki Tomoya thought about the protagonist in the novel.

How could a good person be the prototype of a bad person?

No, that's not right. The person's prototype wasn't him at all; it was just "TAKI".

But to be fair, Kasumigaoka Utaha's writing skills have been steadily improving.

As for the story, Aki Tomoya neither liked nor disliked it, but it left a deep impression on him after watching it.

It wasn't because of the book title or the protagonist's name, TAKI; I just remembered it after reading it.

When I said that Shiwa's novel was a bestseller, I wasn't being sarcastic.

He transitioned from a light novel author to a popular novelist.

From the time they first met until now, when they had only known each other for a short time, Aki Tomoya could never have imagined what Kasumigaoka Utaha was doing at this very moment.

Nobody knows what the future holds...

"When I first saw the title 'The Suspect Taki,' I thought it was Keigo Higashino. Turns out it's my senior. It's a great idea to reference him here!"

"Who was it that told me to read more Keigo Higashino?"

While they were discussing the book's title, Kasumigaoka Utaha's rhetorical question left Aki Tomoya speechless.

Did he make such a suggestion?

Thinking about it carefully, it seems like I do have some memories of it...

I suddenly felt like I'd shot myself in the foot.

Among Japanese writers, Aki Tomoya doesn't know many. The one who impressed him the most was Haruki Murakami, who is often dragged out and criticized, followed by Keigo Higashino.

When Kasumigaoka Utaha said she wanted to change her career path, Aki Tomo didn't say much else, just gave her some simple advice, telling her to look at the works of authors who were selling well.

Like Eriri, Kasumigaoka Utaha was born with exceptional talent. One used to draw doujinshi, and the other used to write light novels that could be revived through illustrations.

Now, both of them are very capable.

Eriri successfully gained admission to Tokyo University of the Arts; she's definitely a rising star.

Kasumigaoka Utaha's light novels are selling very well, and now she's trying to transition to popular fiction, and it seems to be working out well.

Is this what you call getting on the right track?

Aki Tomoya thought that the two of them had never derailed their lives; they had just taken different paths.

The ACGN industry is on the right track. The achievements that Eriri and Kasumigaoka Utaha have made in it can only be described as success.

Thinking of this, Aki Tomoya sighed again. If he had actually gone to work in the game industry when he met Kato Megumi during that spring break, he didn't know what would have become of him.

He might succeed, or he might fail, but Aki Tomo will not regret his choice to study hard because he was scared by that idea.

Just kidding. Now he's sitting at the University of Tokyo, a dignified third-year science student, a member of the Pathology Department in the Faculty of Medicine. Regret?

How do you write the word "regret"?

He still has a little time left this year to work towards the scholarship!

If I let him choose again, knowing that he could get into the University of Tokyo, he would definitely still choose this path.

When recalling his choice back then, Tomoya Aki could only offer a few words of reflection.

If I had actually chosen to make games back then, there wouldn't have been anything wrong with it, it's just uncertain whether I could have succeeded.

And now that I think about it, if he really wanted to make games, he would never make any bishoujo romance games. If he wanted to make games, he would learn from Hideo Kojima. If he wanted to make money from games, he would want a certain fat guy with the surname G and Pony Ma.

Thinking about all this, it really feels like you can have anything in your dreams!

"Actually, back in my second year of high school, when I met you and Eriri, who are both so amazing, I even thought about getting you two to join me in making games!"

At this time, Aki Tomoya told Kasumigaoka Utaha about what happened back then.

"...Back then, you might have actually done something like that, doing whatever came to mind immediately."

Kasumigaoka Utaha was initially surprised, but then looked completely understanding.

If it were before Aki Tomoya retired from being an otaku, he might indeed have done such a thing. His decisiveness back then was exceptional, otherwise he wouldn't have become one of the three famous figures of Toyonosaki Academy.

Which otaku is as high-profile as Aki Tomoya?

At that time, she most likely wouldn't have refused.

Not to mention Eriri, she'll definitely act all tsundere first, then run over excitedly. Kasumigaoka Utaha can practically picture that scene.

"By the way, I also really like Kudo's story. Your struggles in the academy are quite captivating. I've never worked so hard for a goal with anyone before."

However, Aki Tomoya did not do that at that time, but instead quit his job and went to study hard.

Through Sayaka Kudo's novel, she also learned about Tomoya Aki's time at Aomine Academy.

To be honest, Kasumigaoka Utaha has never experienced the kind of intense effort that many people put in to get into university.

After all, he's someone who can easily pass the Keio University entrance exam.

In stark contrast, Sayaka Kudo's journey was fraught with hardship.

Chapter 278 is somewhat different (2/?)

Sayaka Kudo is also in the Faculty of Letters at Keio University, and is a second-year junior to Utaha Kasumigaoka in the Faculty of Letters.

However, it took Kudo Sayaka much more effort than Kasumigaoka Utaha to get into Keio University.

Genius is 99 percent inspiration and 1 percent inspiration.

Effort is important for everyone, and Kasumigaoka Utaha is also working hard.

But the results of hard work vary from person to person.

Despite Sayaka Kudo's hard work, her chances of getting into Keio University were still not optimistic.

Now, Kasumigaoka Utaha's lament about not having worked that hard left Aki Tomoya speechless for a moment.

The fact that the other person would read novels written by Sayaka Kudo didn't surprise Tomoya Aki at all.

The two women are senior and junior colleagues, and they know each other.