Life is a Mess Ever Since My Mother Won an Ero-Novel Grand Prize - Chapter 3.3
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Chapter 3.3
Wow, even the gate is so stylish. Peeking into the store, which was full of fashionable men and women. I wondered if it was okay for someone like me to enter such a place.
I gulped, at any rate, I went inside and headed for the counter.
A major lifetime challenge was about to begin!
“Beverage menu? What’s that? Frappuccino? Sakura Ale… eh? What about the sizes… Tall? Grande? Venti? Isn’t there an M size? Uh… I’m sorry, I just want a regular…! With just coffee”
I was drenched in sweat, but somehow managed to survive that fierce battle.
“Oh god… That was a pretty tough opponent…”
Rinka stared at me with unsettled eyes.
“You’ve never been to Starbucks?”
“Don’t say that! And don’t put me in the same category as a JK like you! I’m a novelist! There’s no way I could possibly be cute and fancy all the time.”
“Well, I happen to be a novelist, as well…”
Damn, that’s right. This girl was a heretic, an active JK novelist.
I took a breath and wiped the sweat off my face.
“Oh well. What did you order?”
“Creamy vanilla Frappuccino with espresso shot, tall, custom caramel with no-fat.”
“What’s with that chant? Is it some kind of magic?”
“No, it’s not as bizarre as you think it is… More importantly, look, there’s Senri-senpai, with her hands up.”
I looked at the direction she was pointing, and sure enough, that legal loli right there was Senri. She was sitting at a table with her Macbook open, wearing an Apple watch and a fancy earpiece.
As I sat down at the table, the first thing I said was,
“Do you really think it’s acceptable for a novelist to write a romantic comedy in Starbucks with a Macbook open? It’s blasphemy against the Starbucks brand! Stop disturbing the fashionable customers and close your Macbook right now!”
“What’s with this idiot all of a sudden? In the first place, I don’t write romantic comedies! And more importantly, I’m not a novelist! I’m just a regular writer who writes about serious social issues, which happens to be published under a novel label!”
“I see, there sure are such misunderstood writers who claim to be general literature writers.”
“Yyyy-you dare to mock me! This guy’s too cocky for a junior!! I mean, why do you come to Starbucks to eat regular American food? Don’t you have other things to do?”
“Ssss-shut up!”
The two of us argued about things that were completely off topic.
“Well, you’re both being too loud…” Rinka said with a sigh and a sip of something called creamy vanilla… or something like, café au lait.
“So, what were we talking about?”
“It was about whether it’s acceptable for a novelist to write in a Starbucks with a Macbook open or not?”
“No, it’s not! We’re not talking about that kind of nonsense! Hey, Senri-senpai!”
“Yes, it was about whether we should call a kid who orders a regular American at Starbucks a chicken or a dandy.”
“That’s not it either! Those are two completely different things! And why did those things become important! I’m talking about why we were gathered here today!”
“Yes, you should explain why there are two women for one man in this situation.”
Rinka was startled by a voice that suddenly interrupted her.
“What!!!??? Who is that woman in the back seat? Do you know her, Shimomura? She’s wearing a shirt that says ‘Son❤️Love’…”
“Ah? It’s nothing! I am just a mom passing by! Nevermind!”
The passing mother huffed and went back to her table. As if she recalled something, she immediately covered her face with a wide brimmed hat and sunglasses.
Rinka and Senri looked at me with puzzled eyes, “What’s her problem…?”
But I was the only one who understood. So I was being followed from home. She even wore a bad disguise. Normally, I would have noticed it earlier, but I was so worried about the conversation with Senri that I was distracted.
More importantly, I didn’t want to be questioned about the “Son❤️Love” shirt or anything, so I cleared my throat to draw their attention.
“So, Senri-san. What was the reason you called us here today?”
“That’s what I wrote in the email.”
“I couldn’t read it, because I was too conscious!”
“Well, you’re a newbie and still in high school, it’s no wonder you can’t keep up with me. Ha~h.”
“No, you don’t have to say it like, you know, I’m so conscious that I’m in trouble and the people around me can’t keep up with me at all, Ha~Haa. Words that are not understood by the other person are meaningless.” I let out a sigh and asked, “Is this mostly a continuation of what happened last time?”
“A continuation?”
Rinka rolled her eyes, but Senri grinned as if she knew.
“Yes, the continuation. At that time, Kimeseku stood in the way, after all.”
“So you’re sneaking around picking on your juniors when the top writers aren’t around? That’s not cool.”
“Don’t get me wrong.” Senri waved her hand lightly. “Let’s play a game on equal terms.”
“”Equal terms?””
My voice overlapped with Rinka’s.
Senri nodded and began to make hand motions as if turning a wheel.
“The theme of family love is old-fashioned, and if you are a writer with a low consciousness who is happy to write such a thing, you should get the lowest rating and never write another novel again. But you guys said that’s not true, that family love is eternal, and that it’s still applicable today.”
“Well yeah, that’s pretty much it.”
At that time, it was mainly Kimeseku-sensei who argued with her. It was mostly a clash of opinions between the judges.
For an author, it was just a story that would end up being received in different ways by different readers.
So, rehashing this conversation won’t help.
But there was something off about Senri.
I wonder where this discrepancy came from? When did the gap start?
“… In short, the biggest point of the argument is whether or not works with the theme of familial love can be accepted today.”
“That’s not a point, but an issue.”
“Yes, I know that! Issues, issues! I was just using words that are easy for high school students to understand!”
Why is she getting so desperate all of a sudden?
Senri went back to her claims rather forcefully, “So, let’s see what the readers actually think. Which would be more accepted, a novel about family love or general literature about the downfall of a family?”
“General literature? Senri-san is also a novel writer, right?”
“No, I’m not! I actually write general literature, but it just happens to be published by a light novel label!”
Again what’s with this desperation?
“You know what?” Rinka said, “What kind of game are you talking about?”
“It’s simple,” said Senri, nodding and turning the display of her Macbook towards her.
A certain online novel site was displayed. It seemed to be a special page for a competition.
“This competition is open to all professional and amateur web novel writers. However, the judges are a little different from the other ones we have. Normally, professional writers, critics, editors, anime directors and producers are involved, but this competition is open to the general public. The judging is based on a voting system, with one vote per account. The results are then announced in a ranking format.”
“I see.”
I got the idea.
“So you post a story here with no pen name, and the one with the highest ranking wins.”
“I see. As long as you hide your identity, the conditions are the same for everyone. I guess it’s just a matter of how well you can write a novel that captures the reader’s heart.”
Rinka nodded, and Senri responded.
“However, I’m your senior, so I’ll give you a handicap. If either one of you is better than me, I’ll lose.”
“Oh, that’s the extent of it…? I’m still a rookie, you know. If the two of us had the same number of votes, we could still win…”
Rinka was uneasy, but I shook my head shallowly.
“No, this is enough of a handicap.”
“Shimomura?”
“It’s not everyday that a professional is eliminated and an amateur wins the award. In the end, it’s a world where talent and taste are required more than experience. At least, you don’t need too big a handicap if you’re both winners.”
… Yes, if they truly are award winners…
But I was not.
I never won a prize by myself.
“Well, too big a handicap would rather deny your talents. I’m not denying the talent of the Mating Press or Karin’s writing. I’m just saying that they should go into other fields and not come here. You can be a news reporter, a blogger, a freelance writer, whatever. Just don’t become a Light Novel Writer.”
Yeah, that’s why I even bothered to come to this meeting.
I have to get over this without any handicap.
“Shimomura…? Are you all right?”
Rinka was worried about me.
“Kinda scary, isn’t it?”
“… It’s no big deal.”
My eyes weren’t really on Senri but rather on the laptop screen, or more specifically, on the special page of the competition. On the page, there was the title, “300,000 prize money for the author who comes in first in the ranking! In addition, an editor will be attached and the two of you will work together to make a book!
In other words, for me, this was just like submitting to a regular competition.
I want to win a prize and become a professional writer.
Yes, that’s what I want to be.
I don’t want to be a news reporter, a blogger, a freelance writer, or anything else. I want to be a novelist. I want to go head-to-head with a professional novelist and win. Win with my own skills.
I don’t want to try my hand at something naive.
I want to do it on my own, not with anyone else’s.
With my talent and all the hard work I’ve put in it.
I want to challenge the pros…
Yes, to win, to make my debut as a writer, and to confess my love to you, Rinka…!
“Senri-san, no, Senri Ebidensu-sensei.
Of course, I didn’t say I’ll play it for free. If it’s a game like this, there should be a penalty if you lose, right?”
Penalty? Rinka tilted her head.
“Yes. The loser has to do whatever the opponent says.”
“Fine by me.”
“Wait Shimomura!” Rinka was concerned, but I didn’t care.
“What are your demands, Senri-sensei?”
“If you lose, you will never write another novel again.”
“Senri-senpai! What kind of demand is that?”
“All right.”
As I replied, “Shimomura!” Rinka shouted with concern.
It’s okay, Rinka.
I’ve been trying to create for four years now, and I haven’t had any success. If I force myself to get in touch with the professionals and still can’t even beat Senri, that only means that I have no talent whatsoever.
It will probably be better to give up once and for all.
Rinka is… not something I can give up on, but if I can’t prove to be a man here, then I’m just not good enough for a beautiful and talented girl like her from the start.
…But
What if I win?
“If I win… I want Senri-sensei’s next work to be about family love.”
“!!!”
Senri was appalled.
“‘You’ve got some nerve…! You little shit…!”
The two of us glared at each other intensely.
Rinka anxiously tugs at my sleeves.
“Oh no, you can’t do this, Shimomura…”
“Rinka, you need to withdraw from this game.”
So, this isn’t a team play where the Mating press and Karin team up to fight Senri Ebidensu.
It’s a story about an amateur named Haruma Shimomura, who is trying to win a prize in a competition.
Then again, it’s a battle for the life of a writer, challenging a professional writer named Senri Ebidensu.
Above all, Rinka — I want to prove myself a man worthy of you.
If I lose… this will be my dead end.
But it’s time for me to push myself to the limit. I’m not going to allow myself to be naive and think that if I fail the competition, there’s always… another time.
This is one of the reasons why I accepted the game.
Ah but, there is another reason as well.
Kimseki-sensei said that Senri was not blessed with a good family.
That must have distorted her in many ways. I can guess that much.
—”Say, What exactly is family?”
At that time, Senri spat it out in a tone of clear contempt.
—“It’s always about this family, that family, their family… isn’t it the same as a flower garden?”
What’s wrong with family?
The reason why she denies family love is probably because she doesn’t know what real a family is. I don’t know the details of the situation, but she must have faced some kind of family problem, and she gave up on overcoming it, so she believes in the downfall of family rather than loving. For Senri, it’s the reality.
But don’t be fooled, my Shimomura family is unlike any other family.
Though my mother has a pink brain that only talks about off-color humor, and I haven’t been able to play an active role, so maybe my sister is the only one who is decent.
But the bond we have is surely stronger than anything else in this world.
I’ll show you what a real family is.
“… Trust me.”
I wasn’t meant for Rinka or for Senri either.
“Yeah, I’m not sure what’s going on, but you’re doing great, Haru-kun.”
I knew my mother would always believe in me… I felt assured as I heard a whisper from behind the seat.
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