I really don't want to be reborn.

She and her brother held hands, their lives marked by the gentle warmth and resilience of time.

If she had to describe it, Kirino would probably think of it as a faded scene from an old story, where someone is half-deaf and half-mute and loses their voice.

Because I still like you.

------

Please vote for me!

Two updates already!

Chapter Thirty-Nine, 80,000 words. I'll see if I get a recommendation spot today.

In 1992, Kadokawa Shoten's president, Haruki Kadokawa, and his younger brother, Tsuhiko Kadokawa, the vice president, had a disagreement over the company's business strategy. Tsuhiko Kadokawa then left the company, taking a group of core members with him.

Starting two years ago, Kadokawa Shoten changed its name to Kadokawa Holdings and split many of its businesses into subsidiaries, one of which was Fujimi Shobo, which was spun off and established as "Fujimi Shobo Co., Ltd."

Kyosuke remembers clearly that in 2006, the following year, Kadokawa Holdings will be renamed "Kadokawa Group Holdings" again, its business will be further split up, and it will also acquire many other companies.

That would be a huge business opportunity, and from any perspective, Kyosuke Kousaka was prepared to reap some benefits from next year's pie-sharing. However, that was a matter for next year; what he was concerned about now was the Dengeki Bunko Awards.

Also during the restructuring of Fujimi Shobo two years ago, the three Dengeki Game Awards were renamed the three Dengeki Awards, and both were renamed the "Dengeki Novel Awards".

The results will likely be announced around May (the manga awards are announced in November, but I can't find out which month the novel awards are), and as far as he remembers, the award this year includes Shikigami.

He remembered the other person because they were from Chiba, just like him, and more importantly, the other person's winning work was called "Spice and Wolf".

Holoye!

Four years after his works began to become clichéd, he would certainly remember this rare work that allowed him to relax and savor it slowly. When he thought of Lawrence and that cute wolf, Kyosuke Kousaka would occasionally recall Holo's words and smile knowingly.

Hey, what did that stupid wolf say?

"Well," she said, "it's nothing to worry about. All males are just jealous fools..."

Yes Yes.

"...However, females are also fools who would be happy about this, so whether male or female, they are all fools."

What adorable lines!

He let out a soft breath, ending his call with the editor codenamed Pudding, Ryunosuke Kumagai, and frowned as he pondered for a long time.

A steaming cup of tea was placed beside me.

"Thank you—oh, it's Kirino."

Amazingly, his younger sister, Kirino Kousaka, actually poured him tea herself. How incredible! He must have encountered a fake younger sister.

It's normal for Kyosuke Kousaka to be surprised.

In his mind, his real-life sister was very well-behaved and obedient when she was young, but she would become troublesome when she grew up, especially since expecting Kirino to mature at her age was simply a pipe dream.

As for his interpersonal skills, he's alright at school, but once he gets home, he's like a monster in a monkey's eyes—his true colors are revealed.

Kyosuke was already thankful that she didn't treat her brother like a servant, and his current expression clearly showed that he was flattered, which made Kirino both angry and amused: "What do you mean by that expression? Are you looking for trouble?"

He smiled broadly: "Thank you, my lovely little sister, thank you so much."

"Ugh, that laugh is disgusting..."

Kirino got goosebumps, not because she was sarcastic, but because Kyosuke's smile, which was hard to tell if it was a cold laugh or a forced laugh, was indeed a little scary: "What were you frowning about just now?"

He blew on the tea and said, "Hmm..."

"Could it be that he had a falling out with Kasumigaoka Utaha? Was he distanced from by her? Or was he verbally attacked by her?"

"It's about the publication of the novel..."

Kirino immediately dropped her feigned concern and asked seriously, "Is it about that grand prize? Is it not going to work out?"

"The results aren't out yet. Pudding told me that there are over 1,700 long stories and over 1,200 short stories this time. Their workload is huge, but I'm not in a hurry."

Kyosuke was slightly worried about the publication. It wasn't that submitting a novel would guarantee its immediate publication; there were even novels that won major awards but were not published for two years.

As a reborn individual, he naturally understood very well that in the next few years... no, in the next few decades, the vast majority of the light novel market would be in the hands of the top authors, while everyone else would be eating the scraps left over.

It's not much different from the development of online novels in China, but now, in the fifth year of the 21st century, that phenomenon is not yet very obvious.

"Actually, I would prefer to wait until I win the award before publishing it, but given the current situation, it doesn't really matter whether it's sooner or later."

After light novels became popular, although various publishing houses accepted submissions, fewer and fewer people chose to debut through submissions—because if you don't participate in various competitions and don't win awards, it basically means you won't receive special training, and whether you can make it depends entirely on your own luck.

To put it simply—a featured spot! OK!

Kirino, of course, had no idea about any of this, and after racking her brains, she finally came up with a stupid question: "Could we publish a standalone volume?"

Kyosuke waved his hand: "I don't deserve that treatment."

He knew that from this year until 2009, Japan's CPI growth rate would experience a short-term rebound—to put it bluntly, a temporary resurgence—and that after 2009, deflation would seem to begin again. He also remembered that this year was the first year that the population experienced a natural decline.

"I have a faint sense of urgency, an urgency to make money. Actually, I've even considered smuggling drugs or something..."

He is not at home right now.

It's the weekend, and Kasumigaoka is strolling along the street with her best friend and classmate when she looks at him with surprise: "Did your family go bankrupt...? No, isn't your father a civil servant? Why are you suddenly so desperate for money?"

"Because I am indeed short of money."

She opened her mouth slightly, as if she wanted to say that if it wasn't enough, she could lend it to her, but before she could finish speaking, Kyosuke's next words cut her off.

"I'm short of money. Kirino sometimes needs money to buy games, and I need money to buy nice things. Besides, my parents actually have a vague control over where my allowance goes each month."

She shut her mouth and said nothing.

She had no interest in finding out what kind of game it was or what kind of "good stuff" it was, and simply sighed, "Drug trafficking is a crime punishable by imprisonment."

"If I were to sell drugs, would you report me?"

He asked this half-jokingly, and the girl thought for a moment before shaking her head seriously.

Kyosuke Kousaka smiled knowingly, and her shaking her head meant that she believed she wouldn't do such a thing.

This is probably what trust is.

Within the bounds of human flesh and imagination, obtaining maximum trust and the longest possible guarantee of everything can absolutely be elevated to the level of love.

Kyosuke's face lit up with emotion, but the expression didn't last long.

Kasumigaoka quietly met his gaze: "I'll tell your father."

"..."

"Your father would definitely beat the son of a criminal investigator to death if he went into drug trafficking."

"A vicious woman."

He stood up and stretched: "I'll rest today. I don't want to go to the movies or the bookstore. I want to wander around. Want to come with me?"

Kasumigaoka didn't say anything and followed behind.

Too much talk!

------

If this word count doesn't even qualify for a recommendation, then I don't know what to say.

Chapter 40 is fine, it's fine, but I just don't like it.

Spring is in full bloom.

This phrase describes both the blue sky and white clouds and the bright sunshine of today, as well as the beautiful appearance of young girls.

Kyosuke Kousaka let out a long sigh, his feelings a mix of emotions, as he turned his gaze away from his sister's bikini.

After all, any older brother would have mixed feelings seeing his younger sister wearing those kinds of clothes and striking all sorts of alluring poses.

No, don't misunderstand!

The bikini outfit he was seeing wasn't a real person, but a photo album from a magazine, specifically a special feature on page 175.

These pages have a title in a very large font.

"Summer Special - If you want to make a wish, this is it! A magical item for 'enchantment,' Cinderella on the beach!"

Besides the innocent or alluring bikinis, there are also sparkly bracelets and earrings that look like prayer beads. Swimsuit-clad models with brown hair adorned with these fancy little items, striking cool poses on the beach, are naturally the younger sisters.

In the photo album, next to the younger sister is a girl with long, straight black hair wearing a blue bikini.

They're quite cute.

With that thought in mind, he handed the magazine to Ms. Kasumigaoka for her to appreciate.

To explain why he was looking at his sister's magazine shoot from last year in this place would be a bit of a long story, so to put it simply—he was out for a walk with Shiyu, a girl he really liked.

The process of young men and women getting along is just like that, especially since they are still in the stage of testing each other, so the popular love hotels are naturally still in a state of being locked.

Today, Kyosuke didn't want to watch a movie or read a book. He just wanted to take advantage of the nice sunshine and go for a walk. To put it simply, he wanted to enjoy the spring scenery. As they walked, they came to a park and took a break on a bench under a tree.

Then... here's the important part: they saw the fashion model's photoshoot and ran into Kirino, the younger sister.

Then they were naturally invited to observe, or rather, Kirino kept killing them with her eyes, as if he wouldn't be able to sleep tonight if he dared to leave.

The staff readily agreed, not only inviting them but also showing them last summer's special edition.

Firstly, it's expected that family members would be present during the student model photoshoot, and secondly, they were drawn to Kasumigaoka Utaha's appearance...

At that moment, a short-haired woman reached out her hand to Shino and asked if she wanted to try working as a model, explaining all the benefits. The girl glanced at Kirino with a half-smile and calmly declined.

The reason for her refusal was quite touching, and Kirino is still reeling from it.

"Sorry, I'm not suited for this job, because I rely on this place for my livelihood."

Kasumigaoka Utaha pointed to her head.

Oh dear, Kyosuke Kousaka has a headache—the way that great writer Kasumigaoka looked at the geisha almost made his sister turn on her on the spot.

"I think what you just said went too far. Models may make a living with their bodies, but it's also very hard work."

"Kousaka-kun, there is nothing wrong with what I said, and there is no insinuation or mockery involved. If you think there is something wrong, it means that you also think her job is lowly."

He paused for a moment: "I admit I don't really like other people seeing my sister's body, but there's nothing wrong with this profession."

"I can understand the mentality of someone who is obsessed with their younger sister."