A newbie's anime life diary

Eriri immediately realized her tone was off and softened her expression: "Sorry, I spoke too loudly."

Sawamura Sayuri finally understood; something must have happened between her daughter and Aki Tomoya that she didn't know about. However, she didn't want to ask any further and shook her head, saying, "It's alright. The things were indeed sent by Tomoya-kun, and there was one for Yukiteru-kun too, so I just put it here."

After placing the items on the coffee table, Sayuri Sawamura left the bedroom.

The only sound in the room was the game playing on the television.

Seeing Eriri remain silent, Yukiteru picked up the controller and ended the game. Then he picked up the remote and muted it. Looking at her, he said, "The game should be finished by now. The winter expo is in a few days."

Eriri nodded silently, stood up, picked up the bag, and took out two game boxes from it.

This is the finished product of a doujin game initiated by Aki Tomoya, for which Eriri initially participated in the artwork but later withdrew.

Holding two simply packaged CD cases, Eriri sat down on her cushion, handed one to Yukiteru, and then picked up a piece of paper sandwiched between the two cases. It contained a message from Aki Tomoya, which didn't say much, only leaving the booth number he had applied for at the exhibition, hoping that Eriri, Yukiteru, and the others would come and visit.

"Although the packaging is far too rudimentary compared to other officially published games, it's still a first step towards realizing his dream." Looking at the game in his hand, Xuehui sighed. Although he couldn't agree with some of Aki Tomoya's actions, he couldn't deny that the guy had worked part-time to raise funds while teaching himself programming and actually completing the game, which he admired.

"So, would you like to play?"

Eriri paused, holding the game, and sighed, saying, "It's not fun at all. I already knew the plot, so it's really boring."

He's still not being honest. He clearly wants to see the results of this game, but is it just because of his relationship with Aki Tomoya?

Upon seeing this, Xuehui shook his head and said, "Regardless of the circumstances, you created the character designs and most of the scenes. Even if you don't care about the plot, you should at least consider the quality of the final product, right?"

As he spoke, he took the box from Eriri's hand, opened it, took out the disc inside, and then went directly to Eriri's computer, put the disc into the CD drive, and opened the installation program.

Watching Yukiteru's fluid movements, Eriri pouted in dissatisfaction, stood up, sat in the computer chair, and said, "Hmph, since you want to play, then take a look. Also, check out the abilities of the guy who's taking over my job, Hashima Izumi."

Eriri's reaction was exactly what Yukiteru expected, and he didn't have any other thoughts; he was just concerned about the game.

The game installation would take a few minutes, so Xuehui decided to go to the restroom first.

After coming out of the restroom, he saw Sayuri Sawamura waiting in the hallway.

"Does it seem like you have many questions?"

"Yukiteru-kun, could you answer my question? I think if I ask Eriri, she definitely won't tell me." Sawamura Sayuri looked at Yukiteru with a rare serious expression on her face.

No matter what, she's still a mother who cares about her daughter.

Nodding, Yukiteru followed Sayuri Sawamura into the study and briefly recounted what he had overheard after Eriri got drunk.

"Eri doesn't know that I've told her these things, and I haven't told her either. I guess she still thinks it's a secret."

Leaning against the door, Xuehui spoke softly.

After listening, Sayuri Sawamura took a long time to recover: "I didn't expect Eriri to do this... So, Yukiteru-kun, what are your thoughts on Tomoya-kun and Eriri?"

"Me?" Yukiteru paused, looking at Sawamura Sayuri, who was sitting quietly in her chair watching him, and replied, "Aki Tomoya's actions, while seemingly using their relationship to force Eriri to help him, are not directly involved, so I can't say much. However, I don't think he's the kind of person with such ulterior motives; it's just that one wrong step led to another. And Eriri... what do you want me to say?"

"I hope Eriri will be happy in the future."

“I can’t guarantee that. Strictly speaking, I’m even worse than Aki Tomoya. He was unintentional, while I knew what I was doing.”

"...I won't interfere with these matters; you can handle them yourselves. Alright, Eriri must be getting impatient; Yukiteru-kun, you should hurry over there."

After the conversation ended, Yukiteru nodded and left the study to return to Eriri's room.

At this moment, the girl had been waiting for a long time in the game menu.

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Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Without breaks, my slacking off has gotten even worse.

Chapter 266 A Girl Like a Loser

"Ugh! This is so slow! Are you constipated?"

Eriri finally saw Yukiteru return, and looked at him with great dissatisfaction.

"It's alright, only about ten minutes. Also, girls shouldn't use such vulgar words." Pulling up a chair, Yukiteru sat down next to Eriri with a smile. "Is the game installed? Then let's get started."

"Ah, oh! Begin!"

Seeing Yukiteru leaning halfway back in her chair, Eriri frantically grabbed the mouse and clicked "Start".

The game's script was written by Shiyu, and it's a standard school-themed visual novel script, but it includes some plot elements such as a younger sister from a past life, making it more interesting than typical school-themed stories.

However, since it is a low-budget fan work, there are only a limited number of straight paths that can be followed, and there are only two routes that can be completed.

As she watched the characters she had designed unfold their story in the game, Eriri, though initially reluctant, couldn't help but smile.

"Hmph, it seems my public persona is still pretty good."

While laughing, Eriri's hands didn't stop moving as she quickly tapped the chat box: "I've read Kasumigaoka Utaha's script to death, skip, skip, skip!"

Seeing Eriri's expression, Yukiteru shook his head. However, he was clearly very familiar with the script; Eriri probably just wanted to check the game's smoothness.

I walked both routes from beginning to end, and it took me less than an hour in total.

Looking at the word "END" on the screen, Eriri breathed a sigh of relief: "Well, at least no one will complain when it's sold. I guess it's a passing grade."

"Oh? Just passing grade?"

In response to Yukiteru's question, Eriri proudly raised her chin and pointed to the computer screen, saying, "In the end, it's just a product of self-entertainment. There are still too few side stories and romanceable quests. Even if you watch the story bit by bit, it will only take about two hours. Of course, the production cost is what it is, so I can't ask for too much. It's enough to sell at doujinshi conventions. With the production team, Aki Tomoya's future as a producer has begun, right?"

. . . . . .

No one responded. Eriri paused for a moment, then turned around to see Yukiteru smiling at her.

The next second, Eriri's face turned deathly pale.

"Ah, um, Yukiteru-kun, it's not what you think, um, I just... ugh... um..."

Just as Eriri was about to cry, Yukiteru reached out and grabbed her hands, pressing them back onto his lap. Then, he stroked her head and said, "It's alright. I wasn't thinking anything else. I know you're just happy that the character you designed has actually become a game character. Aki Tomoya really did work hard, and your previous achievements haven't been wasted."

"Really...really?"

"I don't see any reason for me to lie to you about these things, do I?"

"Um...I...I understand." With her head down, Eriri didn't dare to look at Yukiteru, but just shrank back. "Um, can you let go of my hand now?"

"Hmm? Why? I feel quite comfortable." While refusing, Yukiteru moved his hand on Eriri's head slightly. "Although blonde tsundere twin tails are the standard, Eriri looks quite pretty with straight hair like this sometimes."

Eriri's body trembled slightly. The warmth from Yukiteru's palm made her feel comfortable, but she felt ashamed to go along with it.

Finally, Xuehui seemed to have had enough and put his hand down.

Just then, Eriri seemed to have mustered up her courage, looked up at Yukiteru, and asked somewhat nervously, "Yukiteru-kun, do you like girls with straight hair, especially long, straight black hair?"

"Huh? Why would you have such a thought?" Yukiteru was stunned. When did Eriri have the guts to ask such a question?

"Look, like Yukino and the others, aren't they all long, straight black hair? Their long, black hair is so beautiful."

It's not just Yukiteru; Aki Tomoya also seems to like black hair. Kato Megumi seems to have switched back to her old hairstyle, but she did have long hair before, and Aki Tomoya even complimented her on it...

As expected, it was all just wishful thinking on my part...

Although Yukiteru-kun has always helped me, it must have been limited to his perspective as a collaborator; it seems I'm just indulging in unrealistic fantasies...

The more Eriri thought about it, the more disappointed she became, and she lowered her head.

In the brief moment that Yukiteru was stunned, he noticed that Eriri, who had been silent, had inexplicably started sobbing.

"Oh, oh, no... I'm sorry, Yukiteru-kun, I don't know why the tears started flowing. I'll wipe them away quickly, it's okay." Eriri shook her head and hurriedly raised her hand to wipe her eyes.

But I just couldn't stop it.

I embarrassed myself again! Why am I so useless?! Stop crying!

Eriri didn't want things to be like this at all, but she kept recalling the past.

Kasumigaoka Utaha always calls me a loser, and she's right, I'm really useless...

Suddenly, Eriri, feeling lost, found herself in a familiar embrace.

She experienced it too on Christmas morning.

"Yuki...Yukiki-kun?"

"Yes, I'm here." Gently hugging Eriri, Yukiteru didn't ask her why she suddenly cried, but he had some guesses. "Don't worry, Eriri is very cute. If others don't like her, it's because they have no taste."

"But...I...I'm a homebody. I don't dress up at home, I always like to play adult games and draw in doujinshi, and I'm also nearsighted..."

"So what? These days, it's rare to find a good-looking otaku girl. I really like Eriri. You don't have to worry about her being tricked by someone. She can just stay at home and be well taken care of." Half-jokingly, Yuki expressed his thoughts.

"Keeping it at home sounds more like keeping a pet..." Eriri grumbled, then froze. "Um... Yuki-kun, you... you just said... you like..."

"Hmm? What's wrong? I mean, I really like Eriri."

"No...aren't you trying to comfort me? Doesn't Yukiteru-kun like long, straight black hair?"

"Emmmm~" Tilting her head, Xuehui said somewhat embarrassedly, "It's true that I really like long black hair, but I never said I didn't like anything else. But saying that is a bit shameless, isn't it? I'm sure many people don't like someone like me who builds a harem, right?"

"No, I wouldn't!" Eriri suddenly lifted her head from Yukiteru's embrace and looked at him, saying, "Although many people may not approve of this kind of thing, aren't Yukino and the others happy now? That's enough!"

"Really? Thank you, Eriri." Yukiteru was genuinely surprised by Eriri's sudden support. He looked away and could only manage to utter this dryly.

"Um, Yukiteru-kun."

"Huh? What..." Upon hearing Eriri's shout, Yukiteru turned his head back, and then his mouth was sealed shut.

Was I forcibly kissed?

A second time?!

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Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

What goes around comes around; the homebody method is great.

You think Eriri's storyline ends here? Think again!

Chapter 267 Carnivores

I never expected this, I really never expected this. Today, Yukiteru feels completely confused. How could he be forcibly kissed? And by Eriri?