Chapter 94: Public

Chapter 94: Chapter 94: Public

Haruki discovered the review on Monday morning.

He wished he hadn’t.

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The video appeared at the top of three different recommendation feeds.

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One hundred thousand views.

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Then two hundred thousand.

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Then more.

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The title alone caused damage.

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Did Threadless Gate Just Lose Its Nerve?

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Haruki stared at it.

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Then clicked.

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A mistake.

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A very human mistake.

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The reviewer wasn’t cruel.

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Cruel would’ve been easier.

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The reviewer was thoughtful.

Detailed.

Respectful.

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Which made everything worse.

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The video analyzed the transition from Chapter Twenty-Three to Twenty-Four.

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Scene by scene.

Choice by choice.

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Then reached the conclusion.

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"The newer Chapter is more exciting."

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A pause.

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"But less honest."

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The sentence landed like a punch.

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Because it echoed exactly what Haruki already felt.

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The review continued.

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"This feels like a creator responding to pressure."

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Another pause.

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"Not a creator following the story."

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The video ended.

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Haruki closed the laptop immediately.

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Too late.

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The damage already existed.

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Not career damage.

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Personal damage.

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The uncomfortable kind.

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His phone buzzed.

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Takeda.

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Then another message.

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Akari.

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Then another.

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Kenji.

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Nobody mentioned the review directly.

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Which somehow confirmed they all saw it.

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Wonderful.

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Absolutely wonderful.

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At noon, Haruki entered a publisher meeting already irritated.

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A terrible mindset.

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The conference room contained representatives from Mirai Media.

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The newest publisher in the negotiation war.

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Young executives.

Aggressive strategy.

Rapid growth.

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Everything looked impressive.

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Everything felt dangerous.

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The presentation started smoothly.

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Growth projections.

Marketing plans.

Expansion opportunities.

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Then the executive smiled.

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Haruki immediately became suspicious.

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The smile belonged to someone about to say something expensive.

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"You’ve shown excellent adaptability."

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There it was.

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The phrase sounded harmless.

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It wasn’t.

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The executive continued.

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"Chapter Twenty-Four proved you’re willing to adjust according to audience demand."

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Silence.

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The room suddenly felt smaller.

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Much smaller.

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The executive didn’t notice.

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Or worse.

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Did notice.

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Haruki sat completely still.

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Because for the first time, somebody openly praised the exact thing he regretted.

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The presentation continued.

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Future growth.

Reader targeting.

Market optimization.

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Haruki heard almost none of it.

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Because one sentence repeated endlessly.

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Excellent adaptability.

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The meeting ended forty minutes later.

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Outside, Tokyo greeted him with cold wind and crowded sidewalks.

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His phone rang.

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Mizuno.

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Of course.

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She always appeared when things became inconvenient.

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"What happened?"

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Haruki explained.

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The review.

The meeting.

The executive.

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Everything.

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Mizuno listened.

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Then asked a question.

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"Which publisher was it?"

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"Mirai Media."

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Silence.

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Then:

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"Decline them."

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Immediate.

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Certain.

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Haruki blinked.

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"What?"

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"Decline them."

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Again.

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No hesitation.

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The editor rarely sounded this direct.

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That alone mattered.

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Haruki frowned.

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"Why?"

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The answer arrived instantly.

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"Because they liked the wrong thing."

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The city noise faded.

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Not literally.

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Emotionally.

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Because the statement cut directly through the problem.

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They weren’t praising the manga.

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They weren’t praising growth.

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They weren’t praising storytelling.

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They were praising compromise.

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The call ended shortly afterward.

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Leaving Haruki standing beside a crowded intersection.

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Traffic lights changed.

Pedestrians crossed.

Tokyo continued.

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For several minutes he remained motionless.

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Then his phone buzzed again.

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Unknown Number.

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Actually known.

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Kuroda.

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The message contained a photograph.

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Nothing else.

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An old magazine cover.

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A creator interview.

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A younger version of Kuroda.

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The headline read:

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"Giving Readers Exactly What They Want"

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Haruki stared.

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Then another message arrived.

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Worst decision I ever made.

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That was all.

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No explanation.

No lesson.

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No guidance.

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Just evidence.

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The rest of the day became impossible.

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Work stalled.

Focus disappeared.

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Even Chapter Twenty-Five resisted him.

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Because the story now sat at a crossroads.

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Continue the altered direction?

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Or repair the damage?

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Neither choice felt painless.

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That evening, Yui arrived carrying takeout.

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She took one look at him.

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Then pointed toward the balcony.

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"Outside."

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Haruki blinked.

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"What?"

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"Outside."

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Again.

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A command.

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Not a suggestion.

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Ten minutes later they sat beneath the evening sky.

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The city stretched around them.

Lights.

Noise.

Movement.

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Neither spoke initially.

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Then Yui handed him a drink.

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"Bad day?"

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Haruki laughed.

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A tired laugh.

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"Very."

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The explanation came slowly.

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The review.

The publisher.

The criticism.

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Everything.

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When he finished, Yui remained quiet.

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Thinking.

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Actually thinking.

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Then:

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"Do you know what I hate about my job?"

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The question completely derailed the conversation.

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Haruki frowned.

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"What?"

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Yui looked toward the city.

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"People always want shortcuts."

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A pause.

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"Quick recovery."

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Another.

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"Quick solutions."

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Then:

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"Real recovery takes time."

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The words lingered.

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Because she wasn’t talking about healthcare anymore.

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Not entirely.

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Haruki understood.

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The consequences arc.

The criticism.

The rewrite.

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Everything connected.

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For the first time in days, the path forward became slightly clearer.

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Not easy.

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Clear.

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The distinction mattered.

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Damn it.

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Apparently some habits survived everything.

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Below them, Tokyo glowed against the night.

Above them, clouds drifted across the sky.

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And somewhere between public criticism and private regret, Haruki finally began accepting a difficult truth.

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The mistake wasn’t making the wrong Chapter.

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The mistake was abandoning the right one.

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Now he had to decide whether he was brave enough to fix it.