Tuesday, May 22nd

The day finally arrived – my first day working with Kurotsuki, or Keiyu, as I now knew him. As I left my classroom and the school building, I exchanged farewells with Satoshi.

"You going to be alright for your first day?" he asked, concern lining his eyes.

I smiled at him, feeling a mix of excitement and nerves. "Y-Yes, I think so. I'm just a bit nervous, to be honest."

Satoshi gave me a reassuring smile, "Don't worry, you'll do great. Just don't overexert yourself, okay?

"Of course, thanks for the concern," I replied with a grateful nod, I left Satoshi behind and stepped outside the school gates. I then checked my phone and found the message Keiyu sent me yesterday. It contained his address and a link to the Maps version of it. Now that his address is right here, it's time to begin my journey.

Oh.

I took a few confident steps forward before abruptly stopping, realizing that I had no idea where I was going. My sense of direction was, to put it lightly, terrible. Thank goodness Keiyu had sent the Maps link. I tapped on it, relieved to see his home address pinned on the map.

Surprisingly, it was just a couple of blocks away from my apartment building. It would be a relatively short walk from home, but since I was starting from school, it was a bit farther.

After a tiring walk, I finally arrived in front of Keiyu's place. It had a modern look to it, which stood out among the more traditional Japanese houses in the neighborhood. Gathering my courage, I walked up to the front door and rang the doorbell.

The intercom crackled to life, and I heard Keiyu's voice. "Who's there?" he asked.

"It's me, Imaizumi," I announced.

"Ah, please wait a moment," he replied.

After a short while, the door opened to reveal Keiyu wearing an oversized shirt and sweatpants, a stark contrast to the casual yet professional-looking attire he wore at our meeting in Hikari Suisei. Despite his casual look, he still appeared quite handsome, and seeing him this way stirred something within me, it felt weird.

"Welcome, Pinkie-san," he greeted warmly, inviting me inside. I took off my shoes at the entryway, muttered a polite "pardon for the intrusion," and followed him into the house.

As we walked, I couldn't help but notice the sleek, clean, and somewhat empty atmosphere of his home. It seemed like Kurotsuki-sensei was a minimalist, using only what was necessary for his daily life.

As if sensing my nerves, he reassured me, "Don't be nervous. It's just the two of us here; I live alone."

I nodded, trying to put my unease aside as we continued to the workplace where we'd be working together.

As we entered his home office, I immediately noticed the three distinct workspaces. One had an expensive-looking computer, another was filled with art equipment, including a drawing tablet and a laptop, and the last one had piles of papers strewn across it.

Keiyu gestured towards the art workspace. "That's your spot. It was my previous illustrator's workspace, and I'll be right here working at the computer."

The arrangement made sense, as it provided him with the necessary space to focus on writing while still being within reach for collaboration.

I set my school bag down and took a seat at my designated workspace. Keiyu then brought over a cup of cold water for me, clearly noticing that the walk had tired me out. I gratefully accepted the drink, my cheeks warming as I realized his concern for my well-being.

We then both settled into our respective spots, and the room fell into an awkward silence. The stillness began to overwhelm me, and I struggled to find a way to break the ice.

"U-Um, Kurotsuki-sensei," I began hesitantly. "What should we start with? Is there anything specific you'd like to discuss or work on today? Though I know how to draw, I-I still don't know how to work as a co-writer."

"Ah, don't worry," Keiyu reassured me, "Since it's your first day, we'll take it easy. Your first task as my co-writer will be to read one of my draft manuscripts and give me your opinion on it." He handed me a stack of papers that seemed to be a draft for a one-shot story in the fantasy genre, although it didn't have a title yet.

As I began reading the manuscript, Keiyu continued to explain, "Just read through it and let me know what you think.

You'll notice that the grammar isn't polished yet; I usually leave that for the final steps."

I then started to read with full focus for several minutes, I was impressed by the quality of Keiyu's writing, even in this draft form, as expected from the golden rookie Kurotsuki. However, I realized that the story was a simple isekai tale, a popular but often overused trope.

After finishing the manuscript, I voiced my concerns to Keiyu. "Kurotsuki-sensei, even though the idea of an isekai story is still popular, I think that this one-shot may have trouble going against other similarly themed stories, if there are any. It's interesting, but it may come across as bland if we stick too closely to the isekai stereotype. Following mainstream formats can be good, but the isekai format is so widely used that it's difficult to stand out."

"Right," Keiyu nodded thoughtfully. "Okay, thank you for your feedback. So, do you have any ideas you can share?"

I hesitated for a moment, unsure of my own abilities as a writer. "I don't really have any experience with writing, but what if we tried creating a more traditional fantasy story without any isekai elements?" I suggested.

Keiyu seemed to consider my idea for a moment before agreeing. "Good point. I'll try writing some plots and see if we can find something that'll be a hit." He then encouraged me to use the drawing tablet while I waited for him to finish.

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

However, I insisted on just watching Keiyu work. To my surprise, he quickly came up with six unique plots for the fantasy genre. They weren't full drafts, just outlines. He handed me a sheet of paper with the outlines written on it, asking me to pick out three stories that I thought had potential.

After reading through the outlines, I selected three stories:

A magical forest where mythical creatures coexist with humans and work together to protect their world from dark forces.

A young mage who discovers a hidden academy for magic users, and must uncover a secret conspiracy that threatens the magical community.

A story of two kingdoms at war, where a group of unlikely heroes from both sides must unite to prevent the destruction of their world.

I then explained to Keiyu why I didn't choose the other three stories. "The story about the cursed artifact was interesting, but the characters felt like it'd take a long time for them to develop with their abilities. The one about the lost city of gold was exciting, but it might be too focused on the treasure hunt aspect, and the story about the enchanted garden felt a bit too predictable."

Keiyu listened carefully and nodded in agreement. "Got it, thanks for your input, Pinkie-san. We'll work on the three that you selected. Then I'll flesh out all the contents out as we go."

"So, do I need to draw anything right now?" I asked him, eager to start working on the illustrations.

"For now, you can sketch some illustrations for the three stories we've chosen, characters or something else, your choice," Keiyu replied. I nodded and began working on my sketches while he got to work and busied himself with writing drafts for each story.

I agreed and got to work, while Keiyu busied himself with writing drafts for each of the stories.

As we worked, he briefly explained our timeline. "Let's aim to finish the one-shot proposals by Thursday. I'll bring the drafts to Kaname-san for screening, and we'll polish one story that he sees fit and create a full-fledged illustration for it by Saturday. I'll submit the final manuscripts and the illustration at Hikari Suisei. If accepted, it'll be in next month's Hikari Monthly Magazine, the June issue."

I felt a bit overwhelmed by the tight schedule but voiced my determination. "I hope I can keep up with your pace, Kurotsuki-sensei"

Keiyu reassured me with a warm smile. "Don't worry, Pinkie-san. I'll make sure that I won't give you too much workload. Just enjoy your time here."

"Thank you, Kurotsuki-sensei." I replied gratefully.

As we continued working, I focused on sketching illustrations for the three plotlines Keiyu had written earlier. Within an hour, I had a few character sheets, designs, and even some background settings drawn out. Meanwhile, Keiyu had completed the draft for one of the stories.

It took him an hour to finish a draft... how difficult is his job?

Handing over my illustrations, I watched as Keiyu examined them.

"These are great, Pinkie-san. Hard to believe that these are just sketches," My cheeks flushed with pride, it was different to hear praise coming from someone like Kurotsuki.

Despite Keiyu suggesting that I could leave early, I insisted on staying until dinner time. It was my first day, and I wanted to prove my dedication. Keiyu appreciated my commitment and mentioned he was working on another plot idea, asking if I could review it later. Eager to help, I nodded in agreement, happy to wait for his new idea.

While I waited for Keiyu's new plot idea, I found myself captivated by his intense concentration. His golden-amber eyes were focused, and his hair framed his face perfectly. I even noticed the gentle whisper of his voice as he thought aloud, pressing keys on his keyboard.

But as I admired him, a droplet of confusion and hurt resurfaced. I once again remembered that day when he didn't intervene as I was being bullied.

Why would he act like he never knew me?

We were classmates...

Suddenly, I realized that Keiyu had caught me staring. "Need anything, Pinkie-san?" he asked me.

Embarrassed, I looked away and stumbled for words. "N-no, I was just... thinking about something."

Keiyu's demeanor slowly changed, and he spoke more casually, as if he wasn't Kurotsuki, but just himself. "Must be thinking about whether I remember you or not," he said with a voice so gentle and sincere. "You know... I'm sorry, for leaving you alone that day."

"E-Eh? Kurotsuki-sensei?"

My eyes widened in surprise, and I looked back at him, taking in the remorseful smile on his face. It seemed like there was more pain in his heart than I had ever realized.

He continued, "I haven't forgotten if it weighed down on me, must be strange hearing it from someone you haven't seen since middle school. Anyways, I want to apologize and make it up to you," He bowed his head in apology.

I quickly tried to reassure him, "It's okay, K-Kurotsuki-sensei."

As he raised his head, a genuine smile spread across his face. "A lot happened since that day, got my own karma as well. But let's leave it at that for now. To be honest, I still can't believe that 'Pinkie' turned out to be you, quite a shock," He turned back to his drafts as he continued to speak. "I'm glad that it's actually you..."

I smiled back at him, feeling myself blush as I looked to his eyes with pure delight. "I-I couldn't believe that you're Kurotsuki-sensei as well. All the more reason that we should give our best for the stories."

He nodded in agreement. "Right, let's do our best and focus on our work for now."

Minutes later, Keiyu completed the outline for the additional idea he had mentioned earlier. He handed it to me, having even come up with a concept title for the story: "Rose of Vermillion." It was a tale of a princess who was sent to war to fight for her country, with her love interest being the prince of the opposing kingdom.

I marveled at the fact that Keiyu could create so many unique ideas in a single day. He had already generated six earlier, and now he had produced another intriguing one. His creativity was nothing short of astounding, and I felt incredibly fortunate to be working alongside him.

After reading the outline, I shared my thoughts with him. "I think the fantasy aspect is well-executed, and it's a good idea to include romance, even though it's complicated. The political tension adds an interesting layer to the story, and the character development seems promising. I really like this concept, Keiyu."

Keiyu smiled and ruffled his fingers through his hair, "You know, for someone claiming to have no experience in writing, you have a good touch with giving critique."

Caught off guard by the compliment, I looked away as I handed the paper back to Keiyu, "E-Eh? Really? I mean... I've been reading light novels for a while now."

"It's actually impressive." He chuckled.

"I-I don't think it's anything too impressive though," I replied.

Then, a few more minutes later as he kept writing while I tried to sketch some illustrations for "Rose of Vermillion", Keiyu glanced at the clock and announced, "Ah, time to wrap up for the day, Pinkie-san."

"Oh, you're right," I checked my watch and agreed, realizing that it was almost time to prepare dinner and get ready for my evening art livestream. I gathered my belongings, put them into my school bag, and stood up.

As I was about to leave, Keiyu spoke up, "Hmm, it's getting dark out. I'll walk you home."

I hesitated for a moment, feeling slightly embarrassed by the idea of having Keiyu accompany me. My cheeks flushed as I nervously replied, "Um, you don't have to, you know... I mean, I can manage on my own."

Keiyu gave me a reassuring smile. "What kind of person would I be if I let my co-writer slash illustrator walk home? I'd be held responsible if something happens to you."

I considered his words for a moment, then finally nodded with a shy smile. "Y-You're right, well I guess it's okay. Thank you, Kurotsuki-sensei."

"My pleasure," he answered back as he put on his shoes, and I followed suit.

As we stepped out of Keiyu's house and started making our way toward my apartment, silence eventually fell upon us.

We then occasionally engaged in small talk every now and then to break the quiet atmosphere, but it was quick to end. Surprisingly, even though we didn't talk much throughout the trip, the tranquility of our walk was enjoyable.

Upon arriving at my apartment, I turned to Keiyu and thanked him for walking me home. He smiled warmly and said, "I'll see you on Thursday, Pinkie-san. Good work today."

"Yes, good work today too, Kurotsuki-sensei, thank you!" I nodded excitedly, echoing his soft enthusiasm, before saying our goodbyes.