I.
Winning an award was a good thing, but doing something like this made him feel like he was being scammed.
Seiji called Editor Yoshizawa to ask about this situation.
"The special selection system has been in place since the very beginning, but because the standards are so strict, there's almost no precedent for it," the editor explained. "Brother Monogatari's selection was decided unanimously by all the judges, and it was the same for winning the award, so there were no problems with the system."
"But it caused a lot of controversy." Seiji smiled wryly.
"We'll make an announcement to explain the details.
Even so, there will still be people who find it unacceptable … I'm happy that I won an award, but it doesn't feel good to have such a commotion as the price. " Seiji paused for a moment. "Or is it that the editor's goal was to create controversy and create controversy?"
She fell silent for a moment.
"Brother Monogatari's selection and award were all personally arranged by the editor." Saki didn't give a direct answer. Instead, she spoke in a low voice.
"… Is it inappropriate for you to discuss this from your standpoint?" Seiji acutely detected this.
"It's currently work time."
"You mean that there won't be any problems after work?"
"Yes."
"Alright … then we'll talk about it after you get off work." Seiji thought about it. "By the way, can I directly talk to the editor?"
"The editor is currently very busy."
This meant that it was impossible, or that there was no meaning in talking to her.
"Understood, that's all for now."
They ended the phone call.
The editor personally arranged this … Perhaps she wanted to hype up Brother Monogatari's sales.
Seiji didn't want to see his and Little Shi's story being criticized, but it was understandable if she did it to attract attention.
Quality was the most important factor, but not everything. Marketing was also an important factor that would greatly affect sales. Seiji was quite clear about this.
It was only natural for the editor to do such things in order to increase sales. As a newcomer, it was already quite an honor for the editor to pay attention to his story and even personally promote it.
"Although I understand … I'd still like to be informed beforehand if possible." Seiji sighed.
If he wasn't a newcomer, but a veteran author with outstanding achievements, the situation wouldn't have been like this.
It would change in the future!
He then called Little Shi and told her about the scheduled release date, the award, and other relevant information.
…
Harano Seigo asked for leave again.
It was no longer strange for him to take a leave of absence, but there were still people who were curious about what the Mystic Dragon was going to do. One of the jokes was surprisingly close to the truth —
"Perhaps Harano -san is actually a Spiritual Ability user, and he applied for a leave of absence in order to go fight against demons."
The reason why this kind of joke would appear was obviously because of the influence of the online media.
The Night of One Hundred Ghosts continued, and the number of normal people encountering strange occurrences increased day by day. Even though the Psionic Society was constantly processing the relevant information, it was inevitable that the trend would gradually take shape.
Abnormal phenomena, demons, ghosts, Spiritual Ability users …
Most ordinary people treated these as popular things, but some of them would really encounter them and come into contact with the hidden truth.
Some people would choose to escape or even pretend that nothing had happened. Some people would try to convey the truth, while a very small number of people would work hard to pursue and uncover the truth.
On the surface, it seemed calm, but under the surface, there was an undercurrent. It was still unknown whether the storm would eventually subside, or whether an even greater storm would emerge.
"Could it be that Seigo is really going to fight against demons?"
Genji asked Mika and Chiaki during lunch break.
"Something like that. You can think of it that way."
"I want to know the truth."
"Asking too much won't do you any good, Special Agent Asamiya." Chiaki put on the serious expression of a middle-aged man.
"I know what I'm doing, Special Agent Wakaba," Genji responded with a simple line. "Tell me, what's he busy with?"
"Killing people."
The purple-haired girl's gaze sharpened upon hearing this.
"Fighting against evil Spiritual Ability users?"
"There's no such thing as good or evil in our work. Don't be so naïve, Special Agent Asamiya," the tomboy continued with a serious expression as she spoke in a low voice.
"Stop acting. Please speak seriously."
"It's the same even if I speak seriously. He's going to kill people."
Chiaki retracted her serious expression and low tone as she folded her arms.
"You wouldn't be so naïve as to believe that he's just a nice guy, would you? An absolutely righteous hero? "
Genji remained silent for a moment.
"Seigo really will kill people. He's the type of person who'll definitely kill when necessary … I believe that. " Chiaki looked directly at Chiaki. "If you have any unrealistic fantasies about him, then I'd advise you to give up as soon as possible."
"Chiaki …" Mika looked towards her friend.
"Mika, you as well." Chiaki also looked towards her.
"After Seigo told you about the situation this morning, it's only natural that you're worried about him. However, you seem to have overlooked something else.
Let me ask you, have you ever imagined Seigo killing people? If he killed someone in front of you, how would you feel? What would you think? "
Mika's expression froze over.
She recalled what the Wanhua student council president had said to her. Although she had made her decision at that time, she hadn't thought too deeply about it afterwards. That was because killing people … she didn't want to think about it. She reflexively felt that it was something far away.
Only now did she clearly realize … that it wasn't so far away.
Seigo was going to duel … in other words, he was going to kill someone!
Killing someone at the risk of being killed was the true meaning of a duel.
Chiaki recognized this and said, "I really want to see it."
Juumonji-sensei didn't say anything, but with how mature she was, she probably recognized and accepted it as well.
As for herself … she hadn't really thought about it yet.
Mika fell silent as well.
Everyone remained silent for a while.
"Seigo … Haruta Seiji is a real person, not some fictional hero of justice in a shonen manga," the tomboy stated calmly.
"You've all been saved by him before, and you view him as a hero. That's not wrong. I also believe that he's a hero, a realistic hero.
A realistic hero might not necessarily be righteous, and even if he's righteous, not everyone will agree with him … I choose to agree with him. Even if he kills someone right in front of me, I'll still believe in him.
What about you guys? What do you think a hero is like? Or, what do you think Haruta Seiji is like? Do you recognize the real him? "
"You don't have to answer me, but you need to think about it for yourself."
After saying this, Chiaki began eating her lunchbox.
Mika and Genji silently exchanged glances.
"What do you think? Uehara -san, "the purple-haired girl asked.
"I … need to think about it," Mika said. She also wanted to have a chat with Seiji. She said this in her mind.
"What about you? Asamiya-san. "
"To be honest, I received quite a shock, and I need to think about it as well." Genji sighed as she glanced at Chiaki. "But no matter what, I won't give up on him so easily."
She then said goodbye to both of them and turned around to leave.
"Tsk, I thought that she would at least visibly waver, but she didn't … Her Royal Highness is so difficult to deal with."
Chiaki had a sinister expression as she watched Genji leave.
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