Female protagonists from various anime/manga crossovers? They'll all regret it for the rest of

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Yuto waited a while and then pressed it again.

ding dong -- ding dong --

Still silent.

“Kasumigaoka-senpai, it’s me, Itsuka Yuto.” He raised his voice. “I came to see you.”

After a long while, a muffled voice came from behind the door, clearly hoarse and impatient: "Didn't I tell you, I want to be alone?"

“I know,” Yuto said patiently, “but I’m a little worried. Editor Machida is also concerned about you.”

"Go back, junior. I really don't want to see anyone right now." Kasumigaoka Utaha's voice sounded very weak.

"I brought your favorite black tea cake." Itsuka Yuto lied; he hadn't actually brought anything.

"..." There was a moment of silence inside the door. "I have no appetite."

"Then I'll leave it at the door. Remember to take it inside and eat it." Yuto pretended to put down the "air cake" in his hand.

"and many more."

With a click, the door opened a crack, revealing half of Kasumigaoka Utaha's pale face.

"Come in." She stepped aside to make room for her, her voice low.

She didn't see any cake in Itsuka Yuto's hand, but she didn't say anything.

As Yuto stepped into the entryway, he immediately felt the oppressive atmosphere of the apartment.

The curtains were drawn tightly, the light was dim, and the room was filled with the smell of instant noodles.

Kasumigaoka Utaha was wearing a wrinkled set of pajamas, her long black hair was disheveled and draped over her shoulders, and the white headband she usually wore was nowhere to be seen. Her eyes were a little red and swollen, obviously from crying.

This dejected appearance is completely different from the radiant Kasumigaoka Utaha who was dazzling at school and charming during the training camp.

"You've come," she said weakly, turning and walking towards the living room.

"I'm here." Yuto changed into a pair of women's slippers and followed behind her.

The situation in the living room wasn't much better.

On the coffee table were an empty instant noodle bowl and a coffee can. The laptop was on, displaying a light novel forum page.

Yuto glanced at the screen, which was filled with criticisms of the third volume of "Love Metronome".

"Is the author out of their mind? Writing this kind of plot?"

"This is outrageous! Forcibly elevating Makoto and Yuika is unacceptable; Sayuka shippers are dropping this book!"

"Xia Shizi, your talent has run dry, you should stop writing now!"

"This novel is trash; it's a waste of my time and money!"

These harsh comments would be difficult for Kasumigaoka Utaha to bear, let alone if his "Farming King" received such negative reviews.

Kasumigaoka Utaha sat down on the sofa, curled up into a ball, and stared blankly at the computer screen.

"You saw it all." She laughed self-deprecatingly. "They're all cursing me."

“Only a portion of the readers.” Yuto sat down on the single sofa next to her, trying to make his tone sound as light as possible. “There are also a portion of readers who really like this story.”

“Sales figures don’t lie.” Kasumigaoka Utaha shook her head, her voice trembling slightly. “I’ve failed, junior. I’ve let you down, I’ve let down Editor Machida’s comfort, and I’ve let down the readers’ expectations. I… I’m a failed author.”

“A fluctuation in the sales of one volume doesn’t mean anything,” Yuto comforted him.

“No, this means I have let everyone down.” Kasumigaoka Utaha’s shoulders began to tremble slightly. “I thought I could write a story that would satisfy everyone, but I overestimated myself.”

She looked up, tears welling in her eyes: "Perhaps I simply don't have the talent for writing."

No.

Yuto Itsuka denied it in his heart.

He knew better than anyone what it meant to "lack talent".

In his past life, he was a struggling writer who worked tirelessly every day, but could only earn a meager income and have a handful of readers.

The despair of seeing no hope and living each day in a daze can only be understood by those who have experienced it.

Even in this life, he didn't consider himself a genius writer; he was just a slow bird that got a head start.

In his eyes, this senior student from Kasumigaoka was indeed a talented and brilliant writer who reached her peak right from the start. He felt that even if he hadn't recommended her work, it wouldn't have been overlooked.

That's true talent.

If you start to belittle yourself and say you have no talent because of one setback, that is an insult to all ordinary people who work hard but do not get rewarded.

That's what he thought.

If Eriri were sitting across from him right now, Yuto would definitely yell at her to wake her up without hesitation.

Putting aside the relationship between the two, Eriri is well aware of her own talents, and she will not deny herself because of this.

But he couldn't do that to Kasumigaoka Utaha.

He knew that this senior student had a stronger sense of self-esteem than anyone else, and what she needed now was not criticism, but affirmation and support.

Yuto Itsuka tried to make his voice sound gentle: "Kasumigaoka-senpai, I won't allow you to talk about yourself like that."

Kasumigaoka Utaha looked at him in surprise.

“You are the most talented writer I have ever met.” Yuto looked directly into her eyes. “Your writing is delicate, your emotions are sincere, and the characters you create are lifelike. This is an undeniable fact.”

"But……"

“No buts.” Yuto interrupted her. “You just made some mistakes in the plot arrangement, which led to dissatisfaction among some readers. This is not a matter of talent, but a matter of writing skills.”

"Writing techniques?"

"Correct."

Yuto nodded, stood up, walked to the coffee table, picked up her laptop, and said, "Let's analyze together where the problem lies."

He placed the laptop on his lap and began quickly browsing the comments while simultaneously pulling up the electronic manuscript of the third volume of "Love Metronome".

"Senior, come here." He patted the spot next to him.

Kasumigaoka Utaha hesitated for a moment, then moved and sat down next to Yuto.

A faint fragrance wafted over, but Yuuto had no time to pay attention to it.

“Look here.” He pointed to a scene on the screen. “At the end of the second volume, the male protagonist was still thinking about Sayuka, but at the beginning of the third volume, he suddenly fell for Makoto. This change was too fast and lacked foreshadowing.”

"I...I wanted to create conflict..." Kasumigaoka Utaha whispered in defense.

“Conflict is necessary, but the characters’ logic cannot be sacrificed,” Yuto said seriously. “Readers like Sayuka because she established a deep emotional foundation with the male protagonist in the first volume. If you let the male protagonist easily fall in love with someone else now, readers will naturally feel betrayed.”

"Then... what should I do?" Kasumigaoka Utaha's voice was tinged with confusion.

“It’s simple, balance,” Yuto said. “You need to rebalance the roles of the two female leads in the upcoming storyline to make the male lead’s wavering seem more reasonable. At the same time, you also need to give Sayuka some highlight moments to keep her supporters on the side.”

Yuto, from the perspective of a professional writer, began to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the plot with Kasumigaoka Utaha and discussed the direction of revisions.

Instead of offering empty words of comfort, he went straight to the heart of the problem, using rational analysis and professional advice to help Kasumigaoka Utaha rebuild her confidence.

Under Yuto's guidance, Kasumigaoka Utaha gradually emerged from her self-doubt and regained her writer's way of thinking.

"What if we added a flashback scene from the male protagonist here?"

"No, that's too deliberate. Let Sayuka take the initiative and create an incident."

"Isn't this incident a bit too melodramatic?"

"It doesn't matter if it's melodramatic, the key is that the emotions must be genuine."

The two engaged in a lively discussion, exchanging ideas back to the days when they first started sharing their creative insights online.

Time passed by unknowingly, and the sky outside the window gradually darkened.

Gollum-

An untimely sound came from inside Kasumigaoka Utaha's stomach.

The two stopped their discussion at the same time and looked at each other in bewilderment.

“Uh…” Kasumigaoka Utaha’s cheeks flushed slightly. “I think… I’m a little hungry.”

Yuto also felt the emptiness in his stomach.

He arrived in the afternoon, and several hours have passed since then, without having a drop of water.

“Me too.” He put down his laptop and stood up. “Senior, do you have anything to eat at home? Instant noodles are out of the question.”

"It seems... there are only eggs and rice left," Kasumigaoka Utaha said somewhat embarrassedly.

She's been immersed in negative emotions for the past few days and has no appetite for cooking, surviving on instant noodles and fast food.

“Eggs and rice? That’s enough.” Itsuka Yuto rolled up his sleeves and headed to the kitchen. “I’ll make fried rice.”

"Junior can cook?" Kasumigaoka Utaha was somewhat surprised.

"I know a little bit," Yuto said without turning his head.

Kasumigaoka Utaha followed him into the kitchen.

The kitchen was in no better shape than the living room, with several unwashed dishes piled up in the sink.

Yuto skillfully tied on his apron and began rinsing and cooking the rice.

While the rice was cooking, he washed the dishes in the sink and wiped the stove down.

Kasumigaoka Utaha stood to the side, watching his busy figure with a complicated expression in her eyes.

This junior always seems to appear when she needs him most.

Even when the sales of "Love Metronome" were sluggish, he spontaneously recommended it online.

Even now, when she is caught in self-doubt, he rushes over without hesitation to help her regain her confidence.

He was like a ray of light, dispelling the gloom in her heart.

"Junior, sir," she called softly.

"Hmm?" Yuto was cracking eggs, his movements swift and efficient.

"Thank you."

"What are you thanking me for? It's just mutual help." Yuto smiled. "Besides, I'm still waiting to see the sequel to 'Love Metronome'."

"As a light novel author, you can't afford to fall here."

“…Hmm.” Kasumigaoka Utaha nodded, a faint smile appearing on her lips.

The rice was cooked in no time.

Yuto scooped out the rice to cool, and then started frying the eggs.

With a sizzle, the golden egg liquid quickly solidified in the pan, releasing an enticing aroma.

He added rice, quickly stir-fried it to coat every grain of rice with egg, and finally sprinkled it with salt and chopped green onions. A plate of delicious fried rice was ready.

"Alright, try my cooking." Yuto brought the fried rice to the table.

The two sat facing each other. Kasumigaoka Utaha picked up a spoon, scooped up a spoonful, and put it in her mouth.

"Delicious!" Her eyes lit up. "I didn't expect my junior to be such a good cook."

"It's alright, enough to make a living." Yuto started eating too.

The simple fried rice tasted especially delicious at this moment, and the two ate their meal in silence.

"Junior," Kasumigaoka Utaha suddenly spoke up, "Do you really think I have talent?"

Yuto stopped eating and looked at her: "Of course, I have no doubt about that."

"But this time, I..."

“This was just a mistake,” Yuto said. “Every writer makes mistakes; the key is to learn from them. You already know where the problem lies; the next step is to correct it.”

"What if... what if the sales of the next volume are still not good?" A look of unease flashed in Kasumigaoka Utaha's eyes.

“Then keep writing, until the readers are satisfied,” Yuto said. “You are Kasumi Shiko, aren’t you? The talented, never-say-die Kasumi Shiko.”

Kasumigaoka Utaha looked at him, her fighting spirit rekindled in her eyes.

“You’re right.” She nodded vigorously. “I am Kasumi Shiko, and I will not be defeated like this.”

“That’s more like you.” Yuto smiled.