Crossover Anime: I'm Kasumigaoka Utaha's Brother

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Chapter 0179 Isuzu Can't Smile! (First Update, Please Subscribe)

"Hurry up! Alessa! I told you to get up early today, look at the time!" Schutte hurriedly threw his backpack onto the back seat of the car, straddled it with his long, white legs, and waved to Alessa, who was still tidying up outside: "It's 8:30! 8:30! Do you know what that means? The new books for 'Your Name' and 'The Monkey King' have started selling!"

"Hmm..." Alessa rubbed her still blurry eyes—she was so excited last night that all she could think about when she closed her eyes was "new book release" and "concert." She only managed to doze off for a short while at three in the morning because she couldn't resist the sleepiness. Right now, her mind was completely blank!

"We already bought 'Your Name' and 'The Monkey King' at the comic convention, so we don't need to get up so early, right? Haha~" Alessa couldn't help but let out a long yawn, her eyes full of confusion as she looked at Shute—if her half-asleep brain remembered correctly, "360," they should have already bought two light novels at the CM comic convention two weeks ago...

"Are you really still half asleep?" Schutz's eyes widened as he pulled Alessa into the car, closing the door behind him while deliberately lowering his voice: "Concert tickets! What's the point of going to the Muse concert without tickets?!"

"Oh right! Right, right, right!" The mere mention of "tickets" instantly cleared Alessa's foggy mind—of course, this clarity also meant she was recalling a certain "tragic" event...

On the day the Muse concert tickets went on sale online, the two logged into the Shinazugawa Bunko website on their phones. After refreshing the page hundreds or thousands of times, the "404" error message was finally replaced with something else. Just as they were excitedly about to choose their seats and pay for their concert tickets, the words "Online ticket purchase has ended" suddenly popped up in the center of their phone screen, plunging them into despair!

Eight thousand tickets! A full eight thousand tickets were sold online! And they were all gone in such a short time?!

It's all this damn phone's fault! If only it were even a little more reliable...

Fortunately, just as the two were looking utterly hopeless and about to smash their phones in frustration, a message on the Shinazugawa Bunko website caught their attention: "The remaining two thousand tickets will be given away as a prize in a raffle on the day of the sale. Fans who didn't get tickets, please be sure to participate! It's all up to you!"

Raffle! Tickets! Lucky readers! Concert!

A glimmer of hope rekindled in the eyes of Aresa and Shute—even if there was a 99.99% chance of not getting it, they were willing to try as long as there was a 0.01% chance!

And so...this is how the current scene unfolded...

"Driver! Go..." Before Schutt could finish speaking, the taxi emitted a "buzzing" sound like a race car, and then shot off like an arrow!

"I know, you must be going to Amagi Glory Amusement Park too, right? These past few days, all the young people who ride in my car are going there!" The driver grinned, glancing at the rearview mirror: "You guys seem to be in a bit of a hurry?"

Alessa and Schutz exchanged a glance and nodded with bitter expressions: "Yes, because we don't know when the lucky reader draw will start, so..."

"So you'd better hold on tight!" The driver's smile grew even more mysterious as he steered the car through a maze of turns onto a secluded mountain road. He rested his left arm on the window sill, adopting a very casual driving posture. "Don't let my current appearance fool you. Back in my day, on Mount Akina, I was known as the God of Cars!"

...

"Please keep order and do not chase or play around in the park. If you need any help, you can go to the help points by the roadside for consultation! Mofru!" Mofru, the uncle of Latifa, Gan Hui's most popular mascot, was carrying a huge megaphone and directing a large number of tourists into the amusement park.

However, even though he tried his best to direct and guide the passengers, the number of people queuing outside to buy tickets did not decrease at all, and in fact... even increased?

(The number of passengers today is probably more than Gan Hui's entire year in previous years, isn't it?) Mofulu couldn't help but think of this, and his gaze turned to the other side of the gate—there, Latifa and Isuzu were dressed as ordinary staff members, constantly handing out flyers to everyone.

"This is a map of the amusement park. The book launch and subsequent concerts will be held at the Radiant Convention Center in the second area. The map shows the way! Have a great time!"

Latifa handed the flyer to the nearest girl, receiving a "thank you" in return. A radiant smile spread across her face – more than half an hour had passed since the park officially opened at 8:00 AM, and she had lost count of how many flyers she had handed out or how many times she had repeated the message, but even so, she didn't feel particularly tired…

The sheer number of passengers brought an abundance of soul power, so much so that it could be described as "off the charts"—soul power that could weaken Latifa to the point of exhaustion, but could also make her incredibly energetic!

“Please… take a look…” Beside Latifa, Isuzu raised her hand with a stern face. The passenger she was facing trembled and took a step back in fear, only then did he see what she was holding in her hand—just a thin leaflet!

"Th-thank you..." The passenger thanked her somewhat flusteredly, took the form, and quickly disappeared from Isuzu's sight. Isuzu tilted her head, watching his retreating figure, somewhat puzzled—(Am I that scary? Why does everyone avoid me?)

"Isuzu, you can't do that! Smile!" Latifa noticed the unease and temporarily put down her work, smiling at Isuzu: "Look, like this, it's very simple, try it..."

Give it a try? ...Isuzu took a deep breath and tried to control the muscles in her cheeks in an attempt to make them show something called a "smile"—but soon, Latifa gave up.

A faint smile did appear at the corners of her mouth, but this was based on half her face twitching uncontrollably. Rather than a "smile," Isuzu's expression at this moment was more accurately described as a "cry": "Okay, okay, I understand. Just stay the way you were before, Isuzu. Making you smile is really too much for you..."

Whew... Isuzu silently let out a long breath and looked at Latifa with gratitude—for her, "smiling" was probably something she could never "learn and put into practice" in this lifetime.

Picking up another stack of flyers from the table beside her, Isuzu's gaze swept past the layers of people and looked toward the Radiant Convention Center: "I wonder... how things are going with Professor Hyakusei? Did it go smoothly?"

"Hmm..." Latifa tilted her head and thought for a moment. As she moved, her long golden hair swayed in the sunlight, making people unconsciously squint. A healthy blush appeared on her fair cheeks.

Her azure eyes, clearer than the sky, gazed at the busy Mofru and his group not far away. A mysterious smile played on her lips as she stood on tiptoe beside Isuzu: "Isuzu, how about... we sneak in together?"

Chapter 0180 Please Don't Let It Be a Tragedy Anymore! (First Update, Please Subscribe)

The enormous building, named "Radiant Convention Center," was already packed with people from all over the world, both inside and out—some incredibly wealthy, some destitute, some possessing the power to instantly kill everyone present, and most simply ordinary people...

Everyone spontaneously followed the convention center's rules; no one resorted to force or coercion to give up a prime spot. After all... everyone was gathered here for the same hobby. When you look around with this in mind, you'll find yourself thinking, "Hey? Are all the people here really this lovely?"

Of course, words like "cute" that can influence subjective judgment can only be used as a prefix when applied to "people who share the same interests." For example, the general term "cute 5 Centimeters Per Second Party" refers to people who think, "5 Centimeters Per Second is the best! No matter what light novel Hyakusei-sensei writes afterward, it can't compare to 5 Centimeters Per Second!"

"Ha! 'Your Name' has only just finished its first volume. It's too early to say it can compare to '5 Centimeters Per Second'! Besides, '5 Centimeters Per Second' realistically records the love between Takaki and Akari, while 'Your Name' is mixed with mystical forces. It's like comparing a documentary to a science fiction film; the two are simply incomparable!"

"So what if it's a mystical power? Our world is a place where technology and magic coexist. 'Your Name' is closer to reality than '5 Centimeters Per Second'! Although the second volume hasn't been released yet, just based on the quality of the first volume, it's definitely a more popular romance light novel than '5 Centimeters Per Second'!"

"Tsk! Since you like 'Your Name,' then we have nothing more to talk about! Time will prove '5 Centimeters Per Second' is a classic!"

"Hmph! Just you wait and see!"

No matter where you are in the convention center, you can always hear arguments like the one above—everyone is arguing endlessly about their "best light novel," trying to convince others to agree with their point of view, but in the end, it's all just a waste of effort... After all, people's beliefs don't change easily; the only thing that can be changed is "a lack of firmness in their beliefs"...

The hall was filled with the sounds of debate, but everyone consciously kept their voices at a level that would not disturb the normal progress of the sales event. Bai Lixiao sat next to Kasumigaoka Utaha with a faint smile on her lips. The latter was handing a signed copy of the collector's edition of the light novel "Your Name" to the reader in front of her—a girl who looked to be only seventeen or eighteen years old.

"Thank you, thank you, Ms. Kasumigaoka Shiho!" The girl made no attempt to hide her excitement, formally accepting the novel with both hands and holding it to her chest. Her eyes, gleaming with an unreadable light, darted back and forth between Kasumigaoka Shiho and Hyakuri Akira, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

Seeing that the girl showed no sign of leaving, Kasumigaoka Utaha smiled gently, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear: "What's wrong?"

"Um... Ms. Kasumi Shiko, I have a question for you!" The girl's chest heaved rapidly, and she squeezed her eyes shut before finally mustering the courage to speak: "Could you, could you please not write 'Your Name' as a tragedy like '5 Centimeters Per Second'... I, although I haven't read the novel yet, I was so curious that I searched for spoilers online and found posts saying... at the end of the first volume, Taki Tachibana actually forgot about Mitsuha's existence..."

As she spoke, the girl's cheeks flushed even more—she knew perfectly well how rude her request was, and she also knew that even if she did it, the story's inevitable ending wouldn't change, but... she couldn't control herself...

The impact of "5 Centimeters Per Second" was too depressing for her, even shaking her definition of "love"... As a high school student in the prime of her youth, she didn't want her expectations of love to be shattered too soon...

"If you don't want to, then don't read it"—this thought wasn't uncommon for the girl, but no matter where she hid the "5 Centimeters Per Second" light novel, she would always find herself taking it out again within a day...

Because of her fascination with "5 Centimeters Per Second," upon learning that "Kasumi Utako-sensei has released a new book," even though she couldn't buy "Your Name," she couldn't control her curiosity and found a post that spoiled "Your Name"...

However, at the end of the first volume, the protagonist, Taki Tachibana, completely forgot about Mitsuha Miyamizu. His diary, used as a "communication" memo, and all his memories of her vanished... as if Mitsuha had never existed at all...

This kind of pacing, no matter how you look at it, seems like a development that would only lead to a tragedy!

"Ms. Kasumigaoka Utaha, I know what I did was wrong, but..." The girl seemed to want to offer some explanation for her actions, but after stammering for a long time, she still couldn't get the words out—interfering with a light novel author's creation of their own work (the child) seemed utterly inadequate from any perspective—biting her lip tightly, the 360-degree girl took a slight step back and abruptly bowed to Kasumigaoka Utaha: "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry for making such an unreasonable request to Ms. Kasumigaoka Utaha, I, I..."

“No, to have a reader say such a thing to me, honestly, is my honor…” Kasumigaoka Utaha slowly stood up, and under everyone’s gaze, walked across the signing table to the girl’s side, her slender white hand resting on the latter’s shoulder: “This proves that you really, really like both novels, right?”

Seeing the faint smile on her lips, the girl felt a sudden sense of calm amidst her anxiety and shame, and nodded vigorously: "Yes!"

"As a light novel author, the works I write are already destined the moment I pick up my pen, and there will be no change..." Kasumigaoka Utaha's red eyes quietly gazed at the girl—she could see the increasingly obvious "I knew it" disappointment on the latter's face—the curve of her lips grew wider and wider: "But don't be disappointed yet, because of spoilers, I can't say much, I can only tell you... Regarding the ending of 'Your Name,' all you need to do is wait with anticipation for me to tell you this story!"

Chapter 0181 Let's begin the game! (First update, please subscribe)

"Are you looking forward to it?" The girl was taken aback at first, then understood the unspoken message from Kasumigaoka Utaha. A joyful smile appeared on her face, and she nodded vigorously: "Kasumigaoka Utaha-sensei! I look forward to your second volume! No matter what, I will always support you!"

"Thank you." Kasumigaoka Utaha whispered her thanks—as an author, having a reader who loves her work so much is a rare and precious thing, one could even say, "Even if everyone else dislikes it, I will finish this book just for this one person!"

Sitting behind the autograph table, Baili Xiao silently watched Shi Yu's back, a smile involuntarily curving his lips—seeing his younger sister reach this point step by step, he could finally say the words the system had always said: "Nurture her into a talent (seduce her)!"

"How does it feel to be asked by a loyal reader?" With a teasing tone, Baili Xiao placed a bottle of purified water next to Kasumigaoka Utaha. The latter's red eyes flickered slightly, and she complained in a low voice, "If it weren't for your insistence on writing '5 Centimeters Per Second' as a tragedy, I think... the readers wouldn't be so worried, right?"

"Probably..." Bai Lixiao shrugged noncommittally—even though Kasumigaoka Utaha had discussed with him several times while lying in bed, "Is it really impossible to change the ending of [5 Centimeters Per Second]? Even a side story would be fine," he still insisted on the view that "it must be a tragedy."

It's not for any other reason than that I don't want the "5 Centimeters Per Second" in my mind to become something else entirely in this world...

"So, brother, what exactly are you trying to do here?" Kasumigaoka Utaha opened the bottle cap, took a small sip, and while rubbing her aching wrists, stared at Hyakuri Xiao with a meaningful look: "You're not participating in the autograph session, so standing here only attracts attention; I can't think of any other purpose... In my memory, brother isn't the kind of person who likes being watched..."

Sensing the sarcastic undertone in Shiyu's words, Baili Xiao's breath hitched slightly. Raising an eyebrow, his right hand slipped under the table, reaching up to the former's thigh clad in black pantyhose, and gently pinched it through the stockings: "Of course there's something I need to do, something even more important than 'teaching the Muse to rehearse'!... Come to think of it, Ms. Kurosaka should be ready by now...~"

Before he finished speaking, a glint flashed in his eyes—in the northwest corner of the hall, Akane Akasaka and Sonoko Machida, exuding mature feminine charm, appeared, followed by Latifa and Isuzu.

The presence of Latifa and the other person here means one thing—"the flyers with the map of Gan Hui Amusement Park have been distributed!"

"Clap clap clap!" The crisp sound of clapping wasn't noticeable in the large hall; in fact, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was "completely inaudible." But at that moment, everyone stopped what they were doing—whether it was Kasumigaoka Utaha and Eriri, who were in charge of the signing event, or the readers waiting to buy the light novels...

Although everyone was doing different things, at least half of the attention would occasionally fall on Baili Xiao—simply because of his special identity.

"The head of the [Huaxia] Studio, the teacher of all the teachers, not only conceived the plots of [5 Centimeters Per Second] and [Your Name], but also nurtured the muse who is about to hold her first concert!"—Regardless of her identity, she is someone everyone "must pay attention to"!

That's why everyone was able to react immediately when Baili Xiao stood up and applauded.

"Everyone, please be quiet." Baili Xiao coughed lightly, trying to raise his voice so that everyone could hear him clearly—he regretted not bringing a megaphone: "Some of you at the book launch just want to buy a couple of light novels, but most of you are probably here for tonight's Muse concert, right?"

(Here he comes!) Many people thought to themselves, their eyes shining with eagerness as they stared intently at Baili Xiao—they could guess what he was going to say next, and they were thrilled by it!

"Regarding the Muse concert, a total of 8,000 tickets have been sold online. The remaining 2,000 tickets will be drawn for lucky readers during the book signing event during the day—which is now!" Bai Lixiao's smile grew increasingly mysterious. Amidst the expectant gazes of the crowd, he slowly picked up an A4-sized piece of paper from the table beside him... It was the flyer that Latifa and Isuzu had distributed at the amusement park entrance!

"This time, the lucky readers will be selected differently from those at our usual book launch events. We've added a 'hidden surprise' element... I'm sure you're all familiar with hidden surprises, right? This time, we'll use hidden surprises from the game to decide who's the luckiest!"

"See this amusement park map in my hand? The remaining two thousand concert tickets are hidden throughout the amusement park, for any ride! So everyone... please don't waste your time queuing here, go play the games! Whether it's the roller coaster or the drop tower, as long as you go, you might just get a ticket!"

"Oh, by the way! Today only, all the activities are free... Of course, some are not suitable for children and the elderly, so those facilities will not qualify for 'adult or senior citizen tickets,' so please don't force yourself to try them!"

Baili Xiao paused slightly, his tone suddenly lowering, and the pleasant smile on his face gave everyone watching him an inexplicable sense of unease.

"Alright! Let's start the game!"

...

Three days ago, in Red Maple Castle, Latifa.

Bai Lixiao, Hongsaka Akane, and others sat on the sofa with furrowed brows, pondering the same question—how to allocate the remaining two thousand concert tickets.

"Judging from the current situation, the concert's popularity far exceeds expectations. The two thousand tickets that were initially thought to be unsellable are now even more important..." Akane Akasaka crossed her slender arms in front of her chest, her eyes quietly looking at Hyakuri Xiao: "Hyakuri-kun, you may not know, but online, the price of tickets for Muse's first concert has already been inflated to more than ten times the original price! And no one is willing to sell them!"

"Hmm." Baili Xiao responded with a slight frown and a wry smile: "Ms. Hongsaka means that countless people are now concerned about the whereabouts of the last two thousand tickets, right?"

“Yes… Don’t underestimate this one-fifth of the total votes; for fans who couldn’t get tickets online, they are the last hope…” Machida Sonoko, who was next to Akane Kousaka, answered Baili Xiao’s question. At this moment, the worry on her face was the most obvious: “Or… should we use the method we’ve been using to distribute tickets? The kind where you randomly draw tickets from those who attend the sales event?”

"It's so unoriginal. We've been using it for so many years, it's about time for a change, isn't it?" Akane Akasaka, who usually acts mature and magnanimous, made an unprecedented sarcastic remark. Sonoko Machida's breath caught in her throat. She glared at Akane fiercely and protested, "Why don't you come up with something 'original'? Are you just picking a fight by constantly rejecting my suggestions?"

Silence fell over the living room for a moment—wasn't it because they couldn't come up with anything "original" that everyone was sitting here discussing this?

"Teacher, games, games!" Just as everyone was deep in thought, Yamada Elf, who had just entered, suddenly appeared with shining eyes. She moved her slender legs, encased in white stockings, at lightning speed and instantly appeared beside Baili Xiao: "Let's decide the ticket quota with games! Just like the lottery in those mobile games! Those who can draw SSRs are 'British (European) people,' while those who can't draw SSRs... are naturally the so-called 'unlucky ones' who are eliminated!"

For the first time, Baili Xiao had the thought, "So being addicted to games has its benefits?" It was precisely because of Yamada Fairy's casual suggestion that the problem of "what to do with the two thousand tickets" was finally perfectly solved!

Let the game decide everything! (Clasp)

Chapter 0182 The Game Begins! (Two chapters, please subscribe)

As soon as Baili Xiao finished speaking, many people froze, their expressions incredibly varied.

"Illustration? Is that the one they gave us when we first came in? Holy crap! I threw it away!" A man in his thirties shivered, his lips trembling as he searched through all his pockets. After checking three times, he finally showed a look of utter despair.

His companion, standing next to him, frowned slightly, looking at him with some confusion—"When you encounter someone handing out flyers on the street, you politely accept them and then just put them in a trash can around the corner." This kind of thing should be commonplace, so why the big reaction?

"It's okay, it's okay, it's just a map. Even if it's gone, will we still get lost?"

His friend's words of comfort had no effect; in fact, they acted as a fuse, igniting the man's already explosive temper: "What do you know! Tickets are limited. If you have a map, you can get to other facilities faster than others, which means you have a greater chance of getting a ticket... Damn it!! If this kind of mistake happened in a game, it would be a fatal 360 error!"

"Not bad, it might even give you a notification like 'Important clues lost'!" The people around him looked at the uncle with "pleasant" smiles, not forgetting to add a few sarcastic remarks. As expected of "loving" comrades, they showed no mercy when they started!

As soon as Baili Xiao finished speaking, many people froze, their expressions incredibly varied.

"Illustration? Is that the one they gave us when we first came in? Holy crap! I threw it away!" A man in his thirties shivered, his lips trembling as he searched through all his pockets. After checking three times, he finally showed a look of utter despair.

His companion, standing next to him, frowned slightly, looking at him with some confusion—"When you encounter someone handing out flyers on the street, you politely accept them and then just put them in a trash can around the corner." This kind of thing should be commonplace, so why the big reaction?