Chapter 10
The comforting scent of nikujaga and simmering miso soup still lingered faintly in the air as Katsuragi Kokoro stepped out of the upstairs bathroom, drying his hands on a towel.
The second floor of the Katsuragi household was quiet, warm with soft lighting. Down the hall, the door to his younger sister Yui’s room was cracked slightly, soft pop music drifting out. Past her room was his sanctuary.
Kokoro opened the door to his room and slipped inside.
Unlike his quiet, almost withdrawn school persona, his room was anything but plain. The walls were a soft grey-blue, his bookshelves lined with manga volumes and light novels stacked neatly by genre and author. Sleek action figurines of anime heroines stood proudly in their display boxes—some holding swords, others with mischievous winks and detailed outfits.
A large monitor sat on his desk, flanked by a high-end laptop and a professional-grade drawing tablet. Above the desk was a wide rectangular window, offering a peaceful view of the quiet residential neighborhood outside. The night sky was beginning to stretch its velvet curtain across the horizon, the last hues of orange melting into indigo. A gentle breeze rustled the curtains as he opened the window slightly.
The soft evening air carried the faint sounds of bicycles and distant voices.
To the right side of the room, now above a low dresser, hung a corkboard pinned with rough character sketches, plot notes, and outlines for his current manga project: a fantasy-action story about a masked rogue who secretly saves the kingdom while working as a librarian by day.
He sat in his chair, letting it swivel once before pulling himself toward the desk.
Click.
He opened his laptop and launched his writing software. A recent draft blinked back at him—a Chapter from his ongoing web novel series titled "Chronicles of the Shadow Archivist."
Under a pen name, K.K. Raven, Kokoro had quietly built a modest but loyal fanbase online ever since middle school. Few knew the masked writer’s true identity, and Kokoro liked it that way.