Swimsuit Shopping

"Now that I think about it, I was the one who first used this name, so, I'm the one being infringed upon, no?"

Homura spoke with a teasing laugh.

"Don't talk nonsense! This plan has been in the works for a long time, and all sorts of online rumors have been circulating before your manga even came into existence!" Kosuke retorted.

"Okay, okay, calm down, Dad. I admit I used it last. So, what did you do?"

"What do you mean by admit..." Kosuke sighed tiredly, then scratched his head. "It's not about admitting, but our family is also one of the organizers. We still have some say in this. Think of your manga as a way for our family to promote ourselves."

"That's quite a lazy way to promote..." Homura said, shaking his head.

"I'm just reminding you to feel at ease using this name."

"Of course, I'll use it without worries. Moreover, people will speculate that this tournament is riding on my popularity, right? You can't deny that, can you?"

Hearing his son's reasoning, Kosuke pondered for a moment and agreed.

"That's true... Your manga is really popular right now. Introducing a tournament with the same name, even if it's been rumored for a while, still makes people think it's organized by you or suspect it's just trying to ride your popularity. Otherwise, why didn't the main organizers start this tournament earlier?"

"It's precisely because of this rumor that I'm using this name. Therefore, even if our family isn't one of the main organizers, they might come to us for help at some point. It's a win-win situation. Otherwise, if I change the name of my manga, it's uncertain if anyone will participate in this tournament. After all, my manga is based on real life, which will naturally draw more attention from the start." Homura stated calmly.

"Kid, you're not that old, but you already think about a lot of things." Kosuke complimented his son for once.

"Isn't that a good tradition in the Minamiya family?" Homura responded calmly.

Father and son exchanged some business-related flattery, whether it was awkward or not was known only to them.

"Are the girls you had me send someone to pick up last time the school idol from your manga? How about them? Will they participate in this tournament?" Kosuke asked again.

Homura thought for a moment, then answered.

"Unless something unexpected happens, they will."

"Alright... Then I'm good. Oh, by the way, Shizuka might come back this weekend. If you're free, don't go out."

"I've started on a new work here, so I'll be mostly at home."

"Oh?" Kosuke's voice was filled with surprise. "You started today? Not bad... I have to admit, your works are quite impressive, young man. I'm looking forward to it. Alright then, Goodbye, son."

"Yeah, Dad. Goodbye."

*Tut~Tut*

"If you're worried, just say it straightforwardly. Always beating around the bush... Are you a tsundere?" Homura shook his head with a smile. 

However, as he imagined his father acting like a typical twin-tailed tsundere, he shivered and shook his head vigorously.

Putting his phone in his pocket, Homura returned to the activity room.

"Uncle Minamiya?" Eriri asked.

"Yeah, he said there might be copyright issues with 'Love Live!', but he's sorted it out for me." Homura replied.

"Copyright issues...?That tournament?" Megumi thought for a moment and understood the key issue.

"Yep."

"Can he really sort that out?" Nayuta's voice came from behind the curtain.

"Yeah, since my family is one of the organizers, so it's not a problem."

Hearing that, the girls fell silent for a moment.

The Minamiya family was involved in many entertainment industries, so it wasn't surprising that they were one of the organizers of such a tournament. But the coincidence of it all was quite mind-boggling!

Those who didn't know might actually think it was a publicity stunt by the Minamiya family.

"By the way, Sagiri, Shizuka might come back this weekend." Homura turned to his little sister.

"Mom's coming back?" Sagiri was calmer than expected. "Well, that means I can ask Mom for more drawing tips again... I hope I can learn the ultimate technique too..."

Hearing that, Homura had a dark line on his face.

The so-called 'Eromanga-sensei Ultimate Technique', with a name like that, couldn't be anything strange, right?

However, he remembered that there was another annoying technique where Shizuka could see almost like X-ray vision! Its effect was to draw underwear through outer clothing!

As he pondered, Homura still found it full of plot holes. How did Shizuka come up with such nonsense techniques? How did that work anyway?

"Hahh... Finished some part..." Muramasa stretched her body.

Elf immediately leaned in.

"Hana! Which part did you write?"

"The prologue and the summoning..." Muramasa replied calmly while glancing at Elf.

"Prologue and summoning, huh?"

Elf nodded thoughtfully and began discussing how their respective storylines would connect, how the romantic scenes would be intertwined, and how the plots of the game and the anime would be arranged.

They continued discussing until everyone went to sleep and rested.

===

The next day.

Everyone went to school as usual, leaving only a few behind—Elf, Muramasa, Sagiri, and Nayuta.

Nayuta remembered what Homura had said yesterday. Even though he had already come up with a solution for her naked problem, she still wanted to try on a swimsuit. What if it worked on him? It was a kind of reward after all!

With this in mind, Nayuta approached Elf.

"Elf... let's go to the store!"

"Huh? Store?" Elf, who was engrossed in her handheld game, looked up, puzzled. "What store?"

"Umu!" Nayuta declared firmly. "I want to try on a swimsuit!"

Upon hearing this, Elf finally caught on.

"Oh? Let's go!"

She tossed her handheld console aside without even saving her progress.

"Aren't Eromanga-sensei and Hana coming?" Elf asked, referring to the two who were currently busy drawing and writing.

"I don't know anyone with that name..." Sagiri mumbled.

"Yes~ yes~ you don't know that name, okay?" Elf continued. "So... Are you two coming or not?"

Sagiri's dilemma immediately showed on her face; she didn't want to go out, but the idea of a swimsuit excited her.

Seeing her conflicted expression, Elf couldn't help but smile.

"Today's the first day of school, and the store will definitely be empty! It's a rare opportunity y'know..."

"Alright!" Sagiri suddenly stood up. "I'm going!"

"Great!" Elf excitedly nodded. "Let's go!"

With that, they dragged Muramasa, who was still busy writing, out the door.

"Wait! I'm not going! I want to write!" Muramasa struggled desperately, but it was in vain.

Sagiri thought for a moment, then helped Elf to pick up the unwilling Muramasa. Even if Muramasa were going to refuse to enter the store later, they would figure it out later!

"Let's go!" Elf raised her fist.

""OHHH—!"" Sagiri and Nayuta responded.

"MY STORYYY—!!!" Muramasa's wails echoed through the sky.

===

"Wow, they're amazing..."

Sagiri had a blissful smile on her face, gazing at the dazzling array of swimsuits, wishing she could draw each one of them. Surprisingly, no store employees were stopping her from bringing a cat inside.

Meanwhile, being the old-fashioned one, Muramasa blushed and didn't know where to look.

Elf and Nayuta carefully examined the pros and cons of each swimsuit, like which body type it suited best.

Speaking of which, these four were at an age where they were growing. Sagiri was twelve, and the other three were fourteen. Twelve-year-old Sagiri was inevitably on the shorter side, yet the fourteen-year-old Elf was unexpectedly in the same boat.

As for Nayuta and Muramasa, they had much more growth potential than most fourteen-year-old girls, but they still didn't quite reach the level of Izumi.

"Yosh! Let's start picking!"

With that, they took Muramasa into the store and started browsing around.