Bres and Qiao Anni were sitting side by side on the sofa.
Although the space was a bit narrow, there was no helping it, since that giant man had taken up an entire seat by himself.
The giant man said nothing, just sat there with his arms crossed and eyes closed, his aura reminiscent of a temple’s stone statue.
And the thing he brought—to be precise, a small robot with a camera and sound device—was giving a speech on the table with “great animation”… though it couldn’t actually manage “great animation” either.
“Please allow me to introduce myself. I am a writer, with the pen name ‘Farry’. I’m sure you’ve both heard of me?”
The man deliberately paused, as if expecting some reaction from Bres and Qiao Anni.
But all he saw was the two of them with confused expressions.
“S-sorry, we really haven’t heard of it.”
…The office was a bit too quiet.
As if to ease the awkward atmosphere, Farry coughed twice vigorously.
“It’s fine, it’s fine. It seems my fame in the Lower City District really needs improvement.”
“Fame in the Lower City District? You mean…”
Bres asked.
“Mm-hmm! As you can see, I’m from the Upper City District.”
‘…How could he see where he was from through a camera?’
Bres didn’t say it out loud.
“Oh, found it.”
Qiao Anni used her terminal to search for the entry on “Farry” and showed it to Bres.
Flowers in the Rain, Summer City—Farry’s works were mostly romance novels. But as he said, he had considerable fame.
“Ah… to be honest, I originally planned to come in person. After all, making a trip to the Lower City District is a rare experience… but in the end, I canceled!”
“Why did you cancel?”
Qiao Anni interjected from the side.
‘And why does he say something that’s supposed to express regret as if he’s happy?’
“Because the company won’t allow it—ah, to be precise, the publisher won’t allow it!”
“Why does the publisher care where you go?”
“After all, we signed a contract. I have to supply them with manuscripts for over twenty years? And going to the Lower City District is a ‘risk behavior’ marked in the contract that might affect its performance. If I go, my benefits and insurance will be canceled, so my editor stopped me.”
Even though the procedures and tickets were ready, he muttered softly.
‘I feel like the topic is straying further and further off track.’
Bres quickly pulled the topic back.
“So, what do you want to entrust us with?”
“Indeed, I almost forgot the main point. Ahem, it’s about my new book… ah, Gunther, help me wipe it.”
Hearing this, the giant man moved for the first time since sitting down.
He reached into his suit jacket pocket, pulled out an embroidered handkerchief—which really didn’t match him—and then wiped the lens with unimaginably gentle movements.
“That’s right, just like that. Phew, there really is a lot of dust here.”
After wiping the lens, Gunther turned back into the temple’s stone statue.
“In any case, I’m about to write a new book! My editor suggested I try a new genre. So this time, I want to try writing a hard-boiled detective story!”
“…What is this?”
Bres was dumbfounded.
“Think about it—a detective alone in the city at night, fighting the crime festering in back alleys, confronting vicious criminals, bringing peace to the city. Don’t you think it’s a very appealing theme?”
“Probably.”
For those Upper City District folks, this kind of theme really must be eye-catching—after all, they don’t have to deal with criminals or thugs every day, Bres thought.
“After coming up with this theme, I was so excited. My editor also agreed with my idea. We hit it off right away—and then we ran into a problem.”
“What problem?”
“I can’t write it.”
“That’s a serious problem.”
“After all, most of what I wrote before were romance novels and the like, and this genre is completely new territory for me.”
“Then why not go find some material? There have been plenty of detective-themed literary works over the centuries, haven’t there?”
Qiao Anni said from the side.
“I’ve tried that, of course… but it didn’t work at all. After reading what I wrote, my editor said it didn’t match the target genre at all. And as I wrote, it kept veering back into romance. ‘How can a detective story have so much lovey-dovey stuff!’ That’s what he said.”
“We deeply regret this.”
“Deeply regret.”
The two echoed Farry’s words.
“So I’ve been thinking, do I really need to go see and experience it myself to find that feeling? This thought has been lingering in my mind, I just can’t shake it. Over time, I couldn’t even write. That’s right, it must be that way—only by experiencing it firsthand can I write the good story I want!”
“That’s not necessarily true,” Bres said.
“Those who write about superheroes haven’t actually been superheroes.”
“At your age, you still read those?”
Qiao Anni mocked with a laugh.
thump
“Ouch.”
“When adults are talking, don’t interrupt. You wouldn’t understand romance, you little brat.”
Bres scolded Qiao Anni.
After Bres finished scolding Qiao Anni, Farry spoke up again.
“It’s true that most writers are like that, but I guess I’m one of the exceptions. At least, I need this kind of ‘firsthand experience.'”
Bres’s expression turned somewhat strange.
“Wait, you mean… the stories you wrote before were also adapted from your personal experiences?”
‘No way.’
“Yeah?”
‘He actually admitted it?’
“Certainly not as convoluted as in the novels, but I have indeed dated over a dozen girlfriends.”
Farry’s tone sounded matter-of-fact.
‘Do such winners in life really exist?’
Qiao Anni patted Bres’s shoulder, who was almost grinding his teeth into dust.
“Hold on a moment, Mr. Farry.”
Bres turned his head, took a few deep breaths to calm his emotions.
“Please continue.”
The smile on Bres’s face was more standard than before, and also more lacking in warmth.
“I asked around everywhere, and finally I met Ms. Sabrina. She is truly a kind and amiable person!”
Recalling the scene of meeting and chatting with Sabrina, Bres got goosebumps.
“She is indeed a kind lady.”
“Right? After hearing my request, she gave me your address. She also said that since you’re in the detective business, you must have special insights on this!”
Bres scratched his head sheepishly.
“So what do you need me to do? An interview? I do have a few big cases I could tell you about—”
“I hope you can take this!”
The robot laboriously moved a few steps and jumped in front of Bres.
“?”
Farry smiled and announced his true intention:
“I want to observe you for a few days through this and experience a real detective’s life!”
…
Bres’s expression turned serious.
“I say, Mr. Farry, isn’t this a bit inappropriate? Some clients might not want their privacy leaked…”
Farry quoted a number.
“I’ll handle it properly.”
Ignoring Qiao Anni’s eye roll, Bres put his almost-dropped jaw back in place.
“Great! Let’s have a pleasant cooperation these few days!”
Bres shook hands with that robot.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.