pdf-ebookys Chapter 64 Going Out with the Black Cat
Chapter 64 Going Out with the Black Cat
"Don't thank me, just don't blame me." Natsumi quickly helped Yukino Yukinoshita up, who had been looking down.
"You forgot? If I hadn't been careless, the slime wouldn't have escaped, and your mother wouldn't have been attacked. It's my fault."
"No, you are not wrong." Yukino Yukinoshita shook her head.
"We don't know enough about that place yet. Your probing is correct. We need to know more information, and we also bear responsibility for letting the slime escape."
"Yes, Natsuo, don't blame yourself. If you say that, we also have a responsibility. You weren't the only one who went to that place," Shiina Mahiru added, trying to comfort her.
"But......"
"Well, isn't everything alright now?" Yui Yuigahama suddenly interjected.
The three of them looked at her together.
"Um...Is Yukinoshita's mother alright?"
"I'm fine, I was just a little frightened."
perhaps?
Xia Sheng looked at her with a puzzled expression.
"Since nothing's wrong, then there's no problem, right? The Black Mist Man has been dealt with, so you don't need to share the blame," Yui Yuigahama advised.
"That makes sense." Yukino Yukinoshita nodded, then looked thoughtfully at Natsuo.
"Okay, I'll do as you say."
Natsumi smiled at Yui Yuigahama, then looked at Yukino Yukinoshita.
"Let's call it even. You don't need to thank me, and I won't feel guilty. Besides, aren't we companions and friends?"
"Friend... I understand. Let's call it even then." Yukino Yukinoshita smiled faintly.
"That's more like it~" Yui Yuigahama laughed along.
"I have a question. Yukinoshita, how did you know that it was your mother who was attacked last night? Did she tell you directly?" Shiina Mahiru looked at Yukinoshita and asked seriously.
"Xia Sheng informed me."
"Natsuo?" Shiina Mahiru looked at Natsuo doubtfully.
"I saw that woman last night... she looks a lot like Yukinoshita, so I guessed she might be her mother and mentioned it to her," Natsuo explained.
"Won't Auntie...?" Shiina Mahiru asked, voicing her concerns.
"Don't worry, my mother didn't say anything to me last night," Yukino Yukinoshita reassured her.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Shiina Mahiru looked at her, puzzled.
If she didn't tell him anything, wouldn't that contradict what she said earlier?
"Yes, that's what I guessed. Mom probably didn't want me to worry, and she didn't want outsiders to know what happened last night. Natsuo, did you say anything to my mom?" Yukino Yukinoshita asked Natsuo.
"Just tell her to act like nothing happened."
"Then you can rest assured, my mother really won't say anything," Yukino Yukinoshita said with a smile.
"Since you, my daughter, have said so, I certainly believe you."
"Okay, I believe you too," Shiina Mahiru added.
"So, does that mean we don't need to worry about anything anymore?" Yui Yuigahama asked happily, letting out a sigh of relief.
She's been very worried these past two days because of the Black Mist Man.
"That's hard to say," Yukino Yukinoshita said with a serious expression.
"Yuhihama, your slime turned blue that night. So, something might happen to us that night too. This week could be a bit dangerous."
"What... what should we do?" Yui Yuigahama became nervous.
"We'll just have to... improvise."
......
On Wednesday morning, Natsuo finished assembling the second volume of "Konosuba" and changed into the brown hooded sweatshirt that Shiina Mahiru had chosen for him before heading out.
He didn't call out to Shiina Mahiru. He came to the train station alone, waited for the train to arrive, and then got on and sat down.
After riding for two stops, he got up and got off the bus.
"teacher!"
As soon as Xia Sheng stepped off the tram, a woman dressed in a black suit walked towards him.
The woman had her long, glossy black hair styled in an updo, and her face was cut in a princess style. Her fair complexion gave her a slightly youthful appearance, but the small black mole under her left eye added a touch of maturity.
Her posture was graceful; although she was wearing a suit, she gave off the feeling of a Yamato Nadeshiko (ideal Japanese woman).
A kimono would definitely suit her well.
"Good morning, Black Cat Editor." Xia Sheng smiled slightly and greeted the woman who came over.
Today is the release date of his novel. Besides wanting to buy a copy for himself, he also wants to see how well it sells.
The black cat came to keep him company; after all, she had staked everything on it.
Xia Sheng also knew that things wouldn't go well on the first day; it needed to gain traction, it needed someone to promote it, and someone to recommend it.
But he couldn't resist coming out to see what was going on, since he had nothing to do at home anyway.
"Good morning, teacher. Let me lead the way." The black cat looked a little reserved.
The two mainly chatted on LINE, hadn't met in person much, didn't know each other well, and didn't know how to get along.
Black Cat usually deals with light novel authors in a purely business-like manner, without needing to consider anything else.
"Okay." Xia Sheng nodded without saying anything more.
Getting to know someone takes time.
The black cat began to lead the way, taking Xia Sheng to a nearby bookstore.
The bookstore wasn't far from the tram stop; the two arrived in just a few minutes' walk.
The bookstore is quite large, with two floors, and there are quite a few people at the entrance, mostly young people.
It was during the holidays, and most of the people reading novels were teenagers. With nothing to do at home, they would naturally come to the bookstore to browse.
Xia Sheng saw the poster at the door; it was the cover of the first volume of his novel, "Konosuba," which was quite a bit of publicity.
This isn't the treatment a new author gets when publishing a novel; it can only be attributed to Black Cat.
"Black Cat, thank you for your hard work."
"Huh?" The black cat paused for a moment, looked at Xia Sheng, and followed his gaze to the poster.
"No, it's what I should do."
"This novel definitely won't disappoint you. Let's go in and take a look." Xia Sheng led the way into the bookstore.
"Yes." The black cat followed closely behind.
The two entered the bookstore, and Xia Sheng only glanced around before spotting his novel in the new book section.
That cute blue-haired girl was so eye-catching.
Perhaps because of its cute cover, many people stopped when they passed by, picked it up, glanced at it, and then took it with them.
The arrangement was also very irregular, with obvious bumps and depressions, indicating that quite a few had already been sold.
"Teacher, it seems to be selling quite well," the black cat whispered excitedly beside him.
Xia Sheng smiled and shook his head: "There are posters all over the door, so it's bound to sell well. The important thing is the word-of-mouth afterwards."
No matter what kind of novel it is, the usual posters displayed at the bookstore entrance can attract readers.
But it's not very useful in reality; we'll have to see how readers who buy and watch it rate it.
Good or bad, it will spread within the relevant circles.
That's when sales really exploded.
Natsumi isn't worried about the reputation of "Konosuba"; he's only afraid that no readers will help him promote it.
But there are some people online who do this, reviewing new books, recommending or not recommending them. He found them online, and they have quite a few followers.
Therefore, all he needs to worry about is when these people will review his book.
Of course, he can also proactively recommend them for review.
It's all for the sake of making a living, nothing to be ashamed of.
"I'll buy two...four copies too." Xia Sheng went to his novel and took four copies.
"Why is the teacher buying so many things?" the black cat asked curiously.
"I bought these for my friends; they've recently become obsessed with this type of light novel."
"I see. So, do they know that the teacher is the author?" the black cat asked with a smile.
"I guess... I can guess."