"Sagiri, come out already. Stop hiding, didn't you say you wanted to meet Eri Kashiwagi-sensei? She's already here at our house," Mrs. Izumi called out as she led Eriri into the living room.
Hearing her mother's words, Sagiri stopped hiding and shyly stepped out from the corner of the wall not far away.
Although Sagiri was currently a shut-in, her condition was much better compared to the original story, since she had never experienced the loss of her mother.
So she was still capable of interacting with people outside of Mrs. Izumi. The reason she avoided Eriri earlier was simply because she was feeling shy.
After coming out of her hiding spot, Sagiri suddenly broke her usual timid demeanor and excitedly ran over to Eriri, her eyes sparkling as she looked at her like she was an idol.
"Eri Kashiwagi-sensei, your two manga are amazing! I love them so much! When will the next volumes be released?"
Some time ago, Mrs. Izumi had brought home a few manga that Eriri gave her, and naturally she had recommended the two wholesome yuri works to Sagiri.
After reading just a bit, Sagiri became completely hooked and soon became one of Eriri's devoted fans.
Unfortunately, there was only a volume one for each series. After finishing them, Sagiri eagerly searched online for any information about the sequels, but could only find data on the first volumes.
So she turned to Mrs. Izumi for help. Since she already knew from her mom that the author was someone she knew personally, she asked her to invite Eriri over.
Seeing her daughter's excited expression, Mrs. Izumi lightly cleared her throat and gently scolded, "Sagiri, be polite, don't make sensei uncomfortable."
"Oh, I know..." Sagiri mumbled a bit sulkily, then looked a bit embarrassed and said to Eriri, "Sorry, Eri Kashiwagi-sensei, I got too excited. Please don't mind it."
She knew her behavior was rude, so the apology came from the heart.
But Eriri wasn't the type to mind such a small thing. She simply reached out her right hand and gently patted Sagiri's head.
"It's fine. Sagiri is so cute—how could I possibly be upset?" Eriri said with a soft chuckle. "You want to read the next volumes, right? I actually brought volume two with me today. Want to see it?"
"Really? Yay!"
Eriri's words immediately lit Sagiri up with excitement. Even Mrs. Izumi couldn't hide the anticipation on her face when she heard "volume two."
After calming down a bit, Sagiri suddenly looked a little embarrassed and asked, "Eri Kashiwagi-sensei, since volume two hasn't been published yet, are you really okay with showing it to me in advance?"
"Of course! It's not something I need to keep secret," Eriri replied casually.
With that, she took two neatly bound manga volumes from her storage space and handed them to Sagiri.
However, Sagiri didn't immediately take them. Instead, she stood there with her mouth agape, staring at Eriri in astonishment.
At that moment, Mrs. Izumi suddenly shouted in amazement.
"Eriri! Just now—what was that? Was that a storage ring?! No wait, you're not wearing any kind of ring… could it be spatial magic?!"
A flurry of excited questions spilled from Mrs. Izumi's mouth. Clearly, the sight of two books appearing out of nowhere had utterly shocked her.
But more than shock, what filled Mrs. Izumi now was excitement—and an insatiable curiosity for the unknown.
As an illustrator, many of the light novels Mrs. Izumi had worked on over the years involved supernatural settings.
And as a veteran otaku, she had read countless fantasy stories, so she wasn't unfamiliar with these kinds of phenomena.
Sagiri soon recovered as well. Her eyes burned with curiosity as she stared at Eriri, mumbling, "So amazing…"
"Hey, hey, Eri Kashiwagi-sensei, are you a psychic or something? Is it like our world isn't as normal as it seems, and there's a hidden world underneath it? A world where supernatural powers exist but the people from there aren't allowed to show their abilities in front of ordinary folks?"
Just like her mother, Sagiri was overwhelmed with curiosity at the sight of Eriri's powers.
"Haha, you two have such vivid imaginations. But sorry, you're both wrong~" Eriri replied with a playful smile.
She then raised the two manga volumes in her hand and added, "Sagiri, aren't you more interested in reading the next volumes of these?"
"Of course I am!" Sagiri quickly took the manga from her hands, cradling them like treasures.
Then she looked back up at Eriri, her face tinged with curiosity again.
"Um… Eri Kashiwagi-sensei, if what Mom and I said was wrong, then how did you manage to make those manga books appear out of nowhere?"
Hearing Sagiri's question, Mrs. Izumi also looked at Eriri with interest.
Eriri didn't answer immediately. Instead, she reached out to pat Sagiri's head again and gently said, "Just call me Eriri-nee. 'Sensei' sounds too formal."
"Okay, Eriri-nee," Sagiri responded without hesitation, a cheerful smile spreading across her face.
Mrs. Izumi, hearing her daughter's new form of address, had a strange expression cross her face.
After all, Eriri called her "Chisa-neesan," and now her daughter was calling Eriri "sister." Their family hierarchy had clearly become a bit of a mess.
Still, she didn't mind too much and quickly pushed the thought aside.
Titles were just words, and besides, it wasn't unusual for people to use different terms based on personal relationships.
After getting Sagiri to adjust how she addressed her, Eriri finally said, "As for how I pulled out the manga out of nowhere… let's just say it's a special ability~"
Although creating an independent storage space was easy for her, Eriri always relied on the chat group's storage function, so calling it a special ability wasn't wrong.
Hearing this, Mrs. Izumi quickly raised her hand and objected, "Wait, that doesn't make sense! You said we were wrong, but if you're saying it's a special ability, then supernatural powers do exist after all!"
"Hmm… you're right, Chisa-neesan," Eriri nodded in acknowledgment, but then her tone shifted, "But did I ever say I was from this world?"
"Eh? EH?!"
Eriri's words were like a bombshell to both mother and daughter, causing them to cry out in shock.
"Eriri-nee isn't from our world?" Sagiri asked in disbelief.
"That's right~"
Eriri had decided it was time to reveal everything to the Izumi family. After all, she had never intended to keep her identity a secret from them.
...
Over an hour later, after Eriri's detailed explanation, both Mrs. Izumi and Sagiri finally came to accept the fact that Eriri was from another world.
Not only that, Eriri also shared various details about supernatural powers and even took them on a firsthand adventure into the extraordinary.
At the same time, both mother and daughter came to understand that their world was just an ordinary one—there was no hidden underworld.
This realization brought with it both disappointment and a sense of relief.
After all, if a hidden supernatural world truly existed, then the world wouldn't be as safe as it appeared on the surface—something they were both keenly aware of.
Like the fable of the man who claimed to love dragons, they admired the idea of a supernatural world in light novels and manga, but if it were real, they would likely be terrified.
Unless they could become top-tier powerhouses like the protagonists of those stories, they wouldn't be able to survive in such a world.
But clearly, becoming a powerful supernatural being was just a fantasy. They understood how difficult such a path would be.
What they didn't know, however, was that for Eriri, granting them strength even greater than that of most protagonists in light novels was as simple as waving her hand.
Still, Eriri didn't mention that. Her relationship with Mrs. Izumi and Sagiri wasn't yet at the level where she'd reveal something like that.
That said, with time, the day when they would receive their own energy seeds probably wasn't far off.
At that moment, Mrs. Izumi glanced at the clock on the living room wall and exclaimed, "Ah, it's already this late? Time to start preparing lunch."
Eriri had arrived at the Izumi household around 10 a.m., and after more than an hour of chatting, it was already past eleven.
"Oh my, is Chisa-neesan cooking herself today? Then I'm really looking forward to it," Eriri said with interest.
At that moment, Eriri was lounging on the sofa in the living room, while Sagiri lay next to her, completely absorbed in the two new manga volumes.
"Hehe, my cooking's pretty average though. Don't get your hopes too high," Mrs. Izumi said with a sheepish smile.
Without waiting for a response, she turned and headed straight for the kitchen.
To prepare for Eriri's visit, Mrs. Izumi had gone to the supermarket early that morning and bought a variety of ingredients.
That said, her cooking really was as modest as she claimed. She could only manage basic home-style dishes.
As a professional illustrator, there were times when work got so busy that she didn't even have time to eat. On many days, she relied on takeout just to get by.
Naturally, she hadn't had much time or motivation to improve her cooking skills.
She had even made a backup plan—if the food didn't suit Eriri's taste, she'd just order a gourmet meal from one of the better restaurants nearby and have it delivered.
As for why she didn't just dine out or order from the start, she felt that cooking something herself was a more sincere gesture.
Once Mrs. Izumi left for the kitchen, only Eriri and Sagiri remained in the living room.
Looking at the even more petite and childlike Sagiri compared to her first appearance in the original story, Eriri couldn't help but ask, "Sagiri, have you been learning to draw from your mom?"
While Eriri knew that in the original story, Sagiri began to seriously pursue illustration at age nine after meeting Masamune Izumi, things had clearly changed.
In the original timeline, she became a partial shut-in at eight due to her parents' divorce, but she gradually opened up again after meeting Masamune online.
However, in this version of events, Sagiri had remained a full shut-in from age eight to ten, transitioning from mildly reclusive to completely withdrawn.
It wasn't hard to reach a conclusion—Sagiri had never met Masamune Izumi online.
Which raised the question: would she still be motivated to seriously pursue art like in the original?
Of course, Eriri could easily read Sagiri's thoughts directly, but under normal circumstances, she wouldn't do such a thing.
"I don't want to learn drawing from Mom, and I don't want to become an illustrator like her either," Sagiri huffed.
As expected, without Masamune Izumi's influence, Sagiri's mindset was the same as it had been at the start—while she liked drawing, having seen the less glamorous side of being an illustrator through her mother, she had no real motivation to improve her skills or consider taking over her mom's job someday.
"Oh? Is that so? But I think being able to draw is amazing. I love drawing. When I was your age, I already had some pretty impressive skills, you know~"
While Sagiri's talent—or lack thereof—wouldn't make a huge difference, Eriri still hoped she could one day become the new Eromanga-sensei.
After all, what kind of Sagiri wouldn't draw lewd art?
Before Sagiri could react, Eriri continued, "And don't you want to create your very own manga, just like I do?"
Sagiri, whose attitude had slightly softened after Eriri's previous comment, now made up her mind completely after hearing that.
"Okay, I got it! Starting today, I'll work hard at learning to draw—I won't let you down, Eriri-nee!"
Lifting her eyes from the manga volumes, Sagiri looked at Eriri with determined sincerity.
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