Chapter 5

* * * “Incredible… I’ve imagined it so many times, but to see my own book selling right before my eyes…” After school. The bookstore in the station. Students in Seijou Academy uniforms flooded the area around the new-release section. “Which one is The Great Giggling Battle?” “The one over there with the hot spring on the cover.” “Excuse me, but I’m looking for the new release from Mayu Sasaki?” They were all hunting for Mayu Mayu’s book and heading to the register with copies in hand. The one copy that had been stuck on a shelf was immediately snatched up, and after that, so many people must have been inquiring where they could find The Great Giggling Battle that soon all the copies of Steam from Another World The Great Giggling Battle—How a NEET like Me Reincarnated in Another World, Used My New Superpowers to Excavate a Hot Spring, and Formed a Harem! had been returned to the new-releases display. The pile of books disappeared in the blink of an eye. Sitting beside them, the books from the Suzuhito Narihira series remarked: “Oh, what’s this? You girls are really mounting some good competition against us!” “I’ll be sure to remember your title!” All of Steamy’s sister books shouted words of gratitude: “Thank you for buying me!” “I’m so happy! Thank you!” “I love you! Thank you!” They also showered Mayu Mayu with praise: “Mayu Mayu, you did it!” “You can put out a sequel, Mayu Mayu!” As for the author himself, he was in a tizzy. “Is this a dream? Did I die suddenly in my sleep and get reincarnated in another world?” From that point, The Great Giggling Battle continued to sell, and when all the copies at the bookstore in the station building sold out, they sent a rush of orders to get it in. Some students ran to buy it from other bookstores, while many others purchased it online. “Thank you, Musubu, thank you!” Overcome with emotion, Mayu Mayu grasped my hands and pumped them up and down. Two weeks passed before I heard from Mayu Mayu that he had been officially notified by his head editor of the cancellation of Steam from Another World The Great Giggling Battle—How a NEET like Me Reincarnated in Another World, Used My New Superpowers to Excavate a Hot Spring, and Formed a Harem! We were in a sitting area of the station building when he told me that sales of The Great Giggling Battle had exploded in one very small region, but the book hadn’t made a dent nationally. They didn’t have the sales figures to warrant putting out a sequel, and they made the decision to cancel the series. “Oh no…” When I had received a message from Mayu Mayu asking me to meet him after school because there was something he wanted to tell me, I was sure he was going to reveal that a sequel was in the works. Steamy and I had been ready to celebrate. Now, sitting on my lap, Steamy was equally shocked at the bad news. “I’m sorry. I talked a big game, but I was completely out of my depth.” I hung my head. “Absolutely not! I’m extremely grateful to you, Musubu,” said Mayu Mayu, grinning. “I got to see books that I wrote flying off the shelves right before my eyes. My dream became a reality. And for the first time ever, the title of my book and my pen name made it onto the weekly sales list posted in the front window of the bookstore. I took a picture as a memento!” This was the first time I had ever seen Mayu Mayu so bubbly. He also showed me screenshots he had taken of online book reviews, where he had received many delighted reactions. A super-fun read! The plot develops quickly, and it was exciting! Easy to read, I finished the whole thing before I knew it. The girls are cute and comforting. I want to read it again. The foreshadowing has me so curious… Can’t wait for the next one! This was the first time I read one of Mayu Sasaki’s books, but it was all-engrossing. I’ll definitely buy the next one. I’ll be so happy if it picks up where this volume left off! As he showed me one image at a time on the small screen of his smartphone, Mayu Mayu was smiling broadly, beaming with happiness. He kept going on about how delighted he was and how this was the treasure of a lifetime. “Also, look, there was stuff like this, too.” The next picture he showed me with a grin was a group photo of kids in cool poses or holding up peace signs, showing off the covers of their copies of The Great Giggling Battle. They wore Seijou Academy uniforms, so maybe it had been taken on campus? The photo was tagged: The book taking our school by storm! A super-fun story! There were also photographs of the book posed with stylish mugs, delicious-looking pancakes, and cute stuffed animals. “I think this is the first time in my seven years as an author that one of my books has been enjoyed and loved so much. I’ve never felt like this before. It may have gotten canceled in the end, but I’m glad I wrote it. This book got to live a really happy life, I think.” From my lap, Steamy added, “Mm, that’s right, Mayu Mayu. Everyone seems to be having lots of fun. They seem so happy.” For a book, there was no greater joy than knowing that the person turning your pages was enjoying themselves. The pictures Mayu Mayu had shown me were all overflowing with a warm sense of joy, and the books in the photos all looked happy and lively. “I won’t be able to publish it, but I’m thinking about writing the sequel and making it available online. I want to do something to give back to all these people who have loved my book so much. Besides, someone from another publisher who read the new releases got in touch with me and suggested I try writing it at home. Apparently, he saw my book being posted on social media and read it out of curiosity. He told me the book’s pacing was outstanding and said he definitely wanted to work together sometime.” “Amazing! That’s great, Mayu Mayu!” “That’s wonderful news!” Both Steamy and I raised our voices in delight. After he giggled bashfully, a peaceful look came over Mayu Mayu’s face. He stared into my eyes as he spoke. “I had made up my mind to give up writing if I got canceled this time. But now I’ve decided to keep trying. It’s all thanks to you, Musubu. Thank you.” After that, there was a bit of a light novel boom around Seijou Academy. To my surprise, I even found Haruto in the conference room of the music hall reading a light novel with a girl on the cover. “It’s quite interesting.” He recommended it to me. It was Mayu Mayu’s previous book, which Haruto had gone to the trouble of ordering online. Apparently, Haruto had taken a liking to Steam from Another World The Great Giggling Battle—How a NEET like Me Reincarnated in Another World, Used My New Superpowers to Excavate a Hot Spring, and Formed a Harem! after all. Mayu Mayu was working on the sequel to The Great Giggling Battle concurrently with writing his newest original work. Steamy was still at my house. I was having her stay on the bookshelf in my older sister’s room, where I peeked in on her from time to time. Whenever I was in a bad mood or feeling worn out, I went to secretly chat with Steamy while leafing through her as a pick-me-up. Ah, I bet this must count as cheating, huh? I felt a small sense of guilty pleasure as both Steamy and I looked forward to the day when Mayu Mayu would release the next part of The Great Giggling Battle online.