"But fortunately, she agreed to let me bring someone." Homura patted Nayuta's little head.
"Yatta!" Nayuta exclaimed happily. "Senpai, you're awesome!"
"Don't get too excited yet. Let's see if you can still be this lively when you meet the others."
"No problem! As long as Senpai is by my side, I fear nothing!" Nayuta responded fearlessly.
Elf looked puzzled and thought to herself, 'What is Homura up to? And tutoring... it must be those two, right?'
Homura became even more convinced that his guess was correct.
After all, some connections between people are truly inexplicable...
===
"Homura! We're over here!" From a distance, Eriri waved her hand to greet Homura and the others, not afraid of being recognized!
Beside Eriri were Utaha, Megumi, and Nanami. It was another gathering of the group, although they would each return to their own homes shortly.
"What's this? Did everyone plan this? Gathering together again." Homura walked over with a smile.
"Isn't it a tradition?" Utaha smiled. "Today, it's not just about your manga, but also about Mashiro's. We wanted to come and see."
"That's right." Megumi nodded. "If it weren't for Honoka and the others having practice, they would have come too."
Homura raised an eyebrow. If all of them came, it would be strange if they weren't noticed by people!
Things would get even more chaotic then.
"There are indeed a lot of people today..." Elf exclaimed. "It's almost like the day 'Your Name.' was released."
"It's due to various factors..." Homura scanned the crowd. "First, 'Your Name.' is gaining popularity and become a hot topic, so many people came for the manga. Second, 'Love Live!' is based on reality, which is a huge selling point. Finally, the news was released early, giving people who were already excited to have more time to prepare..."
"All these factors coming together is quite rare."
Elf agreed, "Hmm... if we want to achieve or even surpass today's numbers, it'll probably be during the release of 'Fate/stay night'."
"I actually think... Muse's concert will surpass today..." Nanami expressed a different opinion.
"That's for sure." Elf nodded. "But I was referring to works from Another Dimension. The concert is not related."
Homura smirked, "But Muse is also a part of Another Dimension, right?"
Elf: "..."
'Can that be counted as well? Wait, their songs also work of Another Dimension, or rather Homura, right?'
Elf opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but ultimately remained silent.
"Does everyone come here every Saturday?" Muramasa looked at the crowd and asked the question.
Homura and Elf were both surprised. Muramasa had started showing interest in things beyond novel now?
"Yep..." Homura affirmed. "The fact that these people are here shows their deep interest in your work. It's such a delightful thing."
"Muramasa, you're actually quite special..." Elf added. "You write novels for self-satisfaction, but for us, it's not just about enjoying them ourselves; we also want other people to appreciate them."
"After all—" Homura looked at Elf.
"—Interesting works aren't enjoyable if only we get to read them." Elf continued, glancing at Homura.
""It would be too boring!""
Both of them said together and simultaneously turned their gaze toward Muramasa.
In discussions like these, the two were always on the same wavelength, but Muramasa remained silent after listening.
Homura didn't mind and continued, "People are ultimately social creatures. Different people read and watch, then discuss with each other. The sparks of thought that come from such collisions can sometimes bring inspiration to creators, making their works more interesting."
"And more interesting works will lead to more heated discussions." Elf interjected once again. "Although it's quite idealistic, it does happen from time to time. Many books have become more popular through this positive cycle."
"Of course... There are pros and cons, but ultimately it depends on how the creators choose." Homura summarized and ended the topic.
"The doors are about to open!" Nanami, who had been watching the crowd, noticed some commotion.
"Should we go over?" Eriri asked.
"There are quite a lot of people... Sagiri probably won't be able to handle it, right?" Homura shrugged.
"...It's, it's fine, Nii-san..." Sagiri tugged at Homura's sleeve. "As long as we don't get separated, I'll be okay..."
"Oh? Eromanga-sensei is making progress!" Elf said with a mischievous smile.
"I don't know anyone with that name!"
Utaha shook her head with a smile. "Same as always..."
"Right." Eriri chimed in, laughing. "Only when Sagiri accepts that title will it be considered true progress."
Blushing, Sagiri kept shaking her head. "No! It's too embarrassing!"
Homura ruffled Sagiri's hair and said with a smile, "Shizuka is the original Eromanga-sensei, right? How come she doesn't seem embarrassed at all?"
"Isn't that because..." Sagiri muttered. "She doesn't have any shame..."
"Eh?" Eriri exclaimed. "Shizuka-nee is the original Eromanga-sensei?! This is the first time I've heard of it!"
"Yeah... Shizuka taught Sagiri how to draw, but Sagiri hasn't learned everything from her."
"Hasn't learned everything?" Nanami was also surprised. "Just how amazing was the original Eromanga-sensei?"
"You can ask her yourself when you get the chance. It's a bit embarrassing for me to talk about it." Homura quickly shook his head. This wasn't a topic he could discuss.
Seeing that Eriri seemed quite interested, Homura hurriedly said, "Alright, let's go over there."
After speaking, Homura pulled Sagiri along, and Haru naturally stood on his shoulder. With so many people, they couldn't let the little one wander on the ground by herself.
The girls could only follow reluctantly. When they reached the vicinity of the crowd, they stopped.
"There are really a lot of people. We can just stay here; there's no need to squeeze in. This kind of scene isn't good for Sagiri and Nayu."
Upon hearing this, the girls didn't say anything, but Nayuta remained silent. She felt that Homura had found out about her secret.
"The doors are opening! They're opening!"
Shouts came from a distance, and instantly, the atmosphere among the crowd became lively.
"Finally, the doors are opening! We can finally see the true face of the new manga!"
"Are you here for the new manga, buddy? I'm not. I came here for the manga adaptation of 'Your Name.' by Shiina Mashiro."
"Bro, why bother making such a distinction? They're all in the same issue release anyway..."
"..."