My dear wife, I still love you more.

So Hasegawa wore the suit that Hiratsuka Shizuka had taken him to buy, and even put on his silver-rimmed glasses to make himself look more mature.

With his glasses on, Hasegawa exuded a more scholarly air, which made it less likely that people would doubt his identity. After all, he looked like a cultured person, so it was only natural that Hasegawa could write bestselling novels.

“Mr. Hasegawa, why are you dressed like this?” Machida Sonoko’s expression was a little strange after seeing Hasegawa’s attire: “You look too mature. You don’t look like a high school student at all.”

“I know, I just want to appear more mature so people will think I’m more reliable, right?” Hasegawa shrugged.

“But, but, when we were promoting it to the outside world, we, we promoted it as a high school student writer. The way you are now, isn’t that a bit too much—” Machida Sonoko said with a strange expression.

"What? A high school student writer? You...you guys didn't even tell me, and besides, I don't want to use that kind of publicity." Hasegawa frowned.

"I'm so sorry, it's all my fault, all my fault. I didn't tell you beforehand, so things turned out like this. Otherwise, I'll go buy you a set of clothes so you can change. Don't worry, the publishing house will cover the cost." Machida Sonoko was on the verge of tears. And while she said the publishing house would pay, she was actually prepared to pay out of her own pocket; the publishing house most likely wouldn't reimburse her.

"No need for that, I think I'm fine as I am now." Hasegawa shook his head again.

Hasegawa has never been particularly interested in autograph sessions or the like, and now that this has happened again, he's too lazy to change his appearance.

"Well, okay. Although it seems a bit too mature, it's still alright. Let's just say it's too mature for its age." Machida Sonoko sighed, both happy that she could save some money and worried about her mistake.

Staff placed signs, tables, and chairs outside, along with boxes of physical copies of the Tokyo Ghoul manga.

Although the scheduled book signing hadn't started yet, a group of people were already waiting outside the bookstore. And these people looked exceptionally excited. Clearly, they were die-hard fans of *Tokyo Ghoul*.

"Mr. Hasegawa, please don't be nervous when it starts. Just stay calm. Those people outside are all your fans, and they might be a little excited, so please try to be patient. I also suggest you don't talk to the fans too much, as that could take up too much time and make it difficult to allocate the autograph session properly. Also, when you're signing autographs, it's best to only write your own name. Avoid writing anything like well wishes. Because there are so many fans outside, your hand will get tired and painful if you write too much."

Machida Sonoko stood next to Hasegawa, constantly pointing out things to keep in mind once the autograph session started. These were all based on her own experience.

Hasegawa listened attentively, taking in all the words.

Time ticked by, and finally, the autograph session was about to begin.

Hasegawa was wearing a silver-gray suit and silver-rimmed glasses, making him look like a college student, or a college student about to enter the workforce.

Although Hasegawa doesn't look handsome, in the eyes of his fans, he appears exceptionally handsome at this moment, which is a significant bonus.

Hasegawa sat in the chair behind the table, watching the rows of excited fans. A quiet sense of satisfaction washed over him. As a novelist, to have his readers enjoy his work was the greatest compliment he could receive. Well, money aside, of course.

"Hello, Hasegawa-sensei! I'm a huge fan of yours. I absolutely love the book *Tokyo Ghoul*. The character descriptions, the plot, and even the world-building are all fantastic. I love it so much! So, could you please sign this for me, Hasegawa-sensei?" A guy who looked just as ordinary, wore glasses, and seemed a bit of a shut-in, spoke to Hasegawa with extraordinary excitement and even fervor.

"Thank you, thank you for liking my work. The second volume will probably be published soon, and I hope you will support it then." Hasegawa said with a smile, his tone calm and gentle.

"Yes, Hasegawa-sensei, I will definitely buy it after the second volume is published, at least three copies or even more!" the otaku shouted excitedly.

"No need for more. In fact, even just buying one copy is already a way of supporting me," Hasegawa said with a smile, trying to calm him down.

"I am the most loyal fan of Tokyo Ghoul. I will buy at least three copies: one for myself, one for spreading the word, and one for my collection."

"Really? Then thank you very much for your support." Hasegawa maintained this gentle smile throughout. It was a smile that was both professional and genuine. Such a smile, ironically, made most people feel comfortable.

Especially considering Hasegawa's own temperament, just like this book lover, who is clearly older than Hasegawa, it's as if he's facing an older brother in front of Hasegawa.

After getting the autograph, even though he was still a little excited, he stepped back, which was very polite. Then the second fan came up to Hasegawa with the book he had just bought.

Chapter 46 Enthusiastic Book Fan Girl

These readers and fans were all very enthusiastic, with undisguised excitement on their faces. Some shook hands with Hasegawa, and some even hugged him.

However, since it was a novel signing event, handshakes were fine, but hugs were out of the question. Some of the ladies' hands were indeed quite soft, but for the guys, well, let's just leave it at that.

One signature after another fell on the book. Gradually, Hasegawa found that he seemed to have forgotten how to write. It was a strange feeling. He knew the words, but when they were on the paper, they seemed a little unfamiliar.

"Mr. Hasegawa, please sign this for me." It was another voice, tinged with excitement.

"Oh—Tomoya? What brings you here?" Hasegawa looked up and saw a familiar face: Aki Tomoya wearing glasses.

“Didn’t I already say I was coming? And how could I possibly miss something so important? But, Hasegawa-sensei, why are you wearing glasses? If I didn’t know it was you, I would have thought I had mistaken you for someone else.” Aki Tomoya grinned, while also being very curious about the glasses Hasegawa was wearing.

"Well, I guess you could call it a disguise. Besides, I felt too immature, so this makes me look more mature." Hasegawa smiled.

"Yes, he has indeed matured a lot."

In the short time it took to say just a few words, people behind them were already urging them on. Aki Tomoya and Hasegawa knew that now was not the time to chat, so after signing Aki Tomoya's autograph, they left and went to sign for the next person.

While signing autographs with a smile, Hasegawa was also thinking about how Aki Tomoya had actually come to the event. He could have just asked for an autograph back at school. But then again, it seemed Kato Megumi had said she would come. So, did she come?

Looking up at the crowd, I saw quite a few people, probably several hundred or even close to a thousand. While it couldn't compare to a pop star's concert, it still nearly filled the area in front of the bookstore. Fortunately, they all knew to queue, so it wasn't chaotic.

There were too many people, and Hasegawa couldn't spot Kato Megumi at all, so he simply gave up looking for her.

"Mr. Hasegawa, you're so handsome! Do you have a girlfriend?" A young woman with a face value of over 60 points blinked her big eyes at Hasegawa.

"Sorry, this is my privacy. I usually don't answer these kinds of questions. But it's not important, so I'll tell you: I don't have a girlfriend yet." Hasegawa quickly wrote his name on the young lady's novel.

"Huh? Hasegawa-sensei is so handsome, doesn't he have a girlfriend?"

"Thank you so much for your compliment, but I'm aware of my own limitations. The word 'handsome' doesn't really apply to me. But I'm still very happy, since no one would refuse to be praised." Hasegawa smiled and handed the book back to the young lady.

"Then, can I be Hasegawa-sensei's girlfriend?" The young woman looked at Hasegawa longingly.

"Um... Sorry, I'm not thinking about finding a girlfriend right now." Hasegawa was a little taken aback, but quickly realized what he meant and refused.

It has to be said that even if a person is not handsome, as long as they have outstanding achievements in a certain area, in the eyes of some people, an ordinary face can become handsome.

Take Sun Honglei, for example. Is he handsome? His face doesn't look like that of a good person at all. But after filming a few good dramas, he attracted a lot of fans and now his face actually looks a bit more handsome.

Therefore, it's perfectly normal for some girls to confess their feelings to Hasegawa at the event.

The young lady's confession was just a brief interlude at the autograph session, which will continue as scheduled.

From morning until noon, when it was almost lunchtime, there were still quite a few people waiting for autographs. Hasegawa looked up at the crowd, feeling a bit hungry himself. But these people were all waiting for him, and Hasegawa couldn't just leave them behind and go eat alone; that would be too much of a waste.

After taking a sip of water to fill his stomach a little, Hasegawa continued to smile and sign autographs for the remaining fans.

"Mr. Hasegawa, please give me your autograph." The familiar tone, that calm, seemingly emotionless voice, made Hasegawa pause for a moment.

"Kato? You really came?" Hasegawa was a little surprised, but also a little delighted.

“Of course, I actually arrived quite a while ago. It’s just that I didn’t expect your fans to be so enthusiastic. Even though I didn’t arrive late, there were already so many people ahead of me, so I could only wait until now,” Kato Megumi said calmly.

Clearly, Kato Megumi didn't understand the fervor of her fans, so she probably just arrived at the last minute for the book signing, only to find that there were already many people queuing up when she got there.

"I'm so sorry, but it's best to come as soon as possible for things like this."

Yes, that's right.

After exchanging a few brief words and signing her name, Kato Megumi turned and left without wasting any time.

Time passed slowly, and the sun gradually shifted, moving westward from overhead.

"Phew—it's finally over." Hasegawa saw off the last fan, put down his pen, and rubbed his aching wrist. Even though it was just a name, after writing it over and over again, more than a thousand times, Hasegawa still couldn't take it anymore.

"Mr. Hasegawa, you must be hungry too. Have a bento to fill your stomach first." Machida Sonoko walked over with a bento box on her face with a big smile.

"Thank you. I am indeed hungry." Hasegawa had been hungry for a while, so he became quite impatient upon seeing this.

"Mr. Hasegawa, this book signing was a great success! Not only did over a thousand people attend, but we also sold three thousand copies of the novel." Machida Sonoko smiled happily.

For a new author, achieving such results at their first book signing event is truly remarkable and can be considered a great success.

"So many?" Hasegawa was a little surprised.

"That's right, that's all. And it will also bring in some news traffic, which will boost the sales of the novel. That's why many light novel authors hope to hold autograph sessions."

Hasegawa nodded. He understood that what Machida Sonoko said was true. But the most important thing now was to eat. Opening the bento box, seeing that it was quite upscale, his stomach growled even hungrier.

"Mr. Hasegawa? It might be a bit late, but could you please sign my autograph?"

I feel like I should add an extra chapter today. I'm just a few more monthly tickets away from adding an extra chapter, and I'm also a little short on the donations.

Chapter 47 The Cunning Haruno (Bonus Chapter for Monthly Tickets)

"Of course—"

Hasegawa put down the bento box and resumed his previous polite yet friendly smile. However, the moment he looked up, his smile froze.

"You, you, how did you get here?" Hasegawa stammered.

"Why do you ask that? I thought you would know I was coming," Yukinoshita Haruno said with a smile, looking at Hasegawa.

"How would I know?"

Yukino Yukinoshita didn't speak, but simply pointed behind her.

Hasegawa followed Yukinoshita Haruno's finger and looked in the direction she was pointing. Opposite him was a high-end building, but with a large sign that read: Yukinoshita Group! Now he finally understood why Yukinoshita Haruno had appeared.

Hasegawa's gaze was somewhat vacant. He hadn't paid any attention to these things before. If he had known earlier, he would have definitely insisted on changing the location of the autograph session.

"Let me see, Hasegawa-sensei, the famous genius high school writer. High school student? Tsk tsk tsk." Yukinoshita Haruno looked around curiously, then saw a sign used for promotion, and read out the slogan on it almost word by word.

Hasegawa broke out in a cold sweat instantly. He had been trying to figure out how to cover it up. But he'd forgotten about the promotional slogan: "High school student, genius high school writer?"

"Mr. Hasegawa, are you alright?" Machida Sonoko sensed something was amiss. Especially Yukinoshita Haruno, who, despite her smiling face and seemingly beautiful appearance, felt an inexplicable pressure. Seeing Hasegawa covered in sweat, she immediately realized something was wrong.

"No, I'm fine, Editor Machida, you don't need to worry." Hasegawa forced a stiff smile and said to Machida Sonoko.

Machida Sonoko glanced at Hasegawa, then at Yukinoshita Haruno, who made her feel immense pressure, shrank back, and immediately turned to leave. It wasn't that she was afraid of anything, but the book signing was over, and it was time to pack up; she couldn't afford to waste any more time. After all, continuing like this would disrupt the bookstore's order.

Watching Machida Sonoko turn and leave, Hasegawa opened his mouth but couldn't call out. But when he turned his head again and saw Yukinoshita Haruno smiling, her face full of amusement and amusement, Hasegawa felt particularly uncomfortable.

"Hey, should I call you Mr. Hasegawa, or Mr. Hasegawa, or maybe—brother-in-law?" Yukinoshita Haruno sat in front of Hasegawa, her elbows on the table and her hands on her chin.

"Ahem, well, actually, actually I—"

"I'm really curious about you, Kenichi. You're a high school student? Does Shizuka-nee know that?"

"of course I know."

"Oh? So, you two are in a teacher-student relationship? Forbidden, forbidden, Hasegawa-kun." Yukinoshita Haruno extended a finger from her other hand and gently tapped Hasegawa's nose.

Hasegawa slightly shrank his neck to avoid Yukinoshita's fingers.

"No, that's not how it is, Miss Yukinoshita—"

"You used to call her Haruno, but now you're calling her Miss Yukinoshita. How heartless of you, brother-in-law."

"Please don't call me that. There's really nothing between me and Hiratsuka-sensei," Hasegawa quickly said.

"Hiratsuka-sensei? So, Hasegawa-kun is actually Shizuka-nee's student?"

"No, that's right." Hasegawa nodded, forcing a smile.

"He's clearly a student, yet Hasegawa-kun accompanied Hiratsuka-sensei to meet her parents, and as her boyfriend no less. Tsk tsk tsk." Yukinoshita Haruno's eyes were full of laughter. Sure enough, things had developed in a way that was somewhat unexpected, but this made it even more interesting, more interesting than she had imagined.

"My relationship with Hiratsuka-sensei is purely that of teacher and student. There is nothing more to it," Hasegawa explained.