The next day, early morning.
Liyue Harbor.
"Phew."
Fang Qiu opened her eyes with effort, propping her body up with her slender arms as she sat up in bed.
Seeing the sunlight shining through the gaps in the window, Fang Qiu couldn't help but wipe the cold sweat from her forehead. She let out a long breath, her face still full of lingering fear.
She had finally made it to dawn.
This night had been incredibly difficult to endure. The moment she closed her eyes, her mind was filled with that thump, thump, thump sound.
In the end, her body simply couldn't resist the drowsiness any longer, and only then did she fall into a deep sleep.
"Time to get up and write..."
Fang Qiu sighed slightly, walked to the window, and pushed it open.
The gentle sunlight sprinkled over her body, feeling exceptionally warm. As the soft sea breeze blew past, Fang Qiu smiled faintly. After washing up, she returned to her desk and sat down gently on the Jumpy Dumpty.
The soft Jumpy Dumpty plushie immediately wrapped around Fang Qiu's delicate waist and hips.
"Next time I see Miss Ganyu, I'll recommend this Jumpy Dumpty to her. At the very least, when she's tired, she can just cover herself with a blanket and sleep inside it. It's certainly better than sleeping sprawled on a desk."
Fang Qiu smiled and muttered to herself as she picked up the manuscript on the desk and glanced at the content ahead.
Hmm...
The plot had almost reached the end of the first volume; she should be able to wrap it up very soon.
By then, she would be able to publish the book.
But then again.
She wondered if Sister Beidou had arrived in Inazuma yet...
Was her book actually popular in Inazuma or not?
Although she believed the quality of her book was quite good, just as people's constitutions couldn't be generalized, Inazuma and Liyue couldn't be generalized either.
Just like Xingqiu's book: nobody read it in Liyue, but the moment it arrived in Inazuma, it was instantly hailed as a classic of the literary world.
Could her own book become a hit in Inazuma?
Fang Qiu glanced at the Vision glowing faintly at her waist, then cast her gaze toward the other side of the sea.
At this moment, on the other side of the sea.
Inazuma.
Yae Publishing House Editorial Department.
"So tired... We've been working overtime for several days, and we have to start work so early today... This life is unbearable..."
Editor Ah Mao lay sprawled on his office desk. Looking at the large pile of data reports in front of him, he had a look of utter despair on his face.
"Hurry up and organize the data. Lady Miko wants to personally check the detailed sales data for this issue..."
Editor Kuroda also looked exhausted.
These past few days, they had been working overtime until the early morning every day.
Although their wages kept rising, their fatigue levels were also skyrocketing.
Yesterday, the moment he got home from work, he collapsed onto his bed and fell asleep immediately. When he woke up, it was time to go to work again.
Life was just a line between two points: the editorial department and home.
"Stop complaining and get to it. Once we survive these few days, we can properly enjoy our vacation. Plus, there's a hefty bonus to be had."
Sitting not far away, Editor Aratani lifted her teacup, took a sip of bitter tea, and spoke.
"Understood."
Kuroda and Ah Mao responded listlessly. They took out the reports submitted by the major branch stores yesterday; they needed to organize yesterday's sales data.
"Speaking of which, which books do you guys think will be in the top three of the sales chart this period?"
Kuroda suddenly asked.
"First place is definitely Teacher Zhenyu's A Legend of Sword."
Ah Mao said.
"Saying that is equivalent to saying nothing. The ones with controversy are definitely second and third place."
Kuroda rolled his eyes at Ah Mao and said.
"That's true, but regarding second and third place, there is still quite a bit of controversy. For second place, I'm quite optimistic about The Senior Disciple of the Guhua Clan which you are in charge of, Kuroda. As for third place, I'm more optimistic about Junior Sister, Go Easy, Senior Sister Hurts. After all, the first-day data for this book was second only to the former two."
Ah Mao coughed and said.
"I recall that Junior Sister, Go Easy, Senior Sister Hurts seems to be written about the love between a woman and a woman, right? I took a look at it the other day; there is a lot of borderline explicit content inside. As expected, this type of book is very popular."
Kuroda recalled for a moment and said with a face full of exclamation.
"Relying on risky elements won't get you far. Once readers get tired of the risky stuff, they'll drop the book."
Aratani interjected, her eyes full of disdain.
"Although it won't go far, it moves fast. As long as it's finished in a timely manner, it can still leave behind a decent reputation."
Feeling Aratani's disdainful gaze, Ah Mao coughed, feeling somewhat awkward.
After all, he was the one in charge of that book...
The book told the story of Senior Sister Zi Ling and Junior Sister Li Qiuyao of the Guhua Clan.
"Then what does Miss Aratani think?"
Kuroda asked.
"I don't have much of an opinion on the first two books Ah Mao mentioned; after all, the quality is indeed very high. As for third place, I originally had high hopes for a book called Your Lie in April.
However, although the quality of that book is very high, because the title has no gimmick and the author has no fame in Inazuma, the first-day results were not ideal, ranking dozens of places down. Although yesterday's sales volume hasn't been tallied yet, it will at most be the same as the first day, basically destined to have no connection with the sales charts."
Aratani sighed and said.
"Eh? Your Lie in April... This book title indeed has no gimmick. Hearing it gives one no desire to buy."
Kuroda shook his head and said.
"Is this a new book you are in charge of, Aratani?"
Ah Mao asked with a puzzled look.
"No, she is a popular new author from Liyue. However, I was responsible for the secondary proofreading of her books. There are two in total: one called Your Lie in April and one called The Eternal.
I read them in passing while proofreading. The quality of both books is terrifyingly high. Whether it's the pacing, the plot structure, or the writing style, they can be said to be impeccable. In my opinion, the quality can even rival Teacher Zhenyu."
Aratani said with a serious face.
Hearing Aratani's words, everyone present was stunned.
The quality of the books could rival Teacher Zhenyu?
This...
Wasn't that a bit too exaggerated?
Teacher Zhenyu was a hall-of-fame figure in the Inazuma literary world. Could a new author from Liyue really be mentioned in the same breath as Teacher Zhenyu?
But seeing Aratani speak so definitively, they couldn't say much more, so they hastily ended the topic.
During work, Kuroda flipped through the reports tallied yesterday and found the first-day sales for Your Lie in April.
Three hundred copies.
This...
Wasn't this too low?
For a book like this, the second day would at most only have half of the first day's sales.
At Yae Publishing House, this result couldn't even be considered average...
Just as he shook his head and put the report back in its original place, he then flipped open yesterday's sales reports from the various storefronts.
The first sheet was data from the Yae Publishing House main store.
First place, A Legend of Sword.
No suspense there.
Second place, The Senior Disciple of the Guhua Clan.
As expected.
Third place, Junior Sister, Go Easy, Senior Sister Hurts.
Indeed, just as Ah Mao predicted.
The top three remained strong.
Fourth place, Writing Novels in Inazuma.
Not bad, this book became a hit just as he expected.
However, when he moved his gaze downward, his pupils suddenly constricted, and he froze.
Sixth place, Your Lie in April.
Seventh place, The Eternal.
________________________________________
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