Chapter 112: How Many People Will There Be?

Chiyoda Ward, 8:30 in the morning.

Akiwara Yuto was lying on his bed in the bedroom reading a book, while outside the window, a torrential rain was pouring down, drumming "pitter-patter" against the roof.

Just then, the sound of a telephone ringing came from downstairs.

Akiwara Yuto stood up and walked to the stairs; he picked up the receiver, and before he could speak, he heard a familiar man's voice.

"Akiwara-sensei, the sales figures for the second week have been tallied. Additionally, the first-day sales and projected sales for the third week are also out."

Akiwara Yuto recognized the voice on the other end as Akutsu Goichi, so he said, "Please tell me about last week first."

"Right," Akutsu Goichi didn't waste any words and reported last week's results, his voice carrying a hint of excitement.

"According to data statistics from bookstores and distributors across multiple channels, the total sales for last week were approximately 4,500 copies, which is quite a bit higher than previously estimated."

Akiwara Yuto thought for a moment and immediately understood the reason for Akutsu Goichi's excitement.

Generally speaking, without book reviewers or other special marketing tactics, book sales should be highest in the first week and then gradually decline each week.

Therefore, based on the 4,000-copy figure for the first week of *The Devotion of Suspect X*, the second week should have been slightly lower, for instance, between 3,500 and 3,800.

So, what could be the reason? Could it be the traffic from the forum?

But it has only been serialized for three installments; logically, that shouldn't be the case...

Just as he was thinking, Akutsu Goichi's voice came through the receiver again, "Akiwara-sensei, there is a rather peculiar situation I should tell you about."

"Please go ahead."

"According to feedback from several bookstores, some readers tend to grumble while buying the book, and some, when purchasing *The Devotion of Suspect X*, ask the bookstore clerks if they have a book called *Death of a Mystery Novelist* for sale."

He added, "It's very strange, though; I checked the books on the market and couldn't find a book called *Death of a Mystery Novelist*."

Upon hearing this, Akiwara Yuto subconsciously twitched the corner of his mouth; since it was serialized online, of course you wouldn't find it.

But then again, it really was the effect of the forum traffic...

Akiwara Yuto coughed, not answering the question. He didn't want to expose himself as the author of *Death of a Mystery Novelist* yet, so he asked, "President Akutsu, what are the projected sales for this week?"

Akutsu Goichi hesitated for a moment but still said, "Based on the data feedback from these past two weeks and yesterday's first-day sales, we might be able to sell 5,000 copies this week."

Akiwara Yuto nodded. At this rate, the first printing of 30,000 copies could be sold out in as little as two and a half months, and he would be able to recoup his capital very quickly.

"By the way, President Akutsu, how are the preparations for the autograph session going? What are the arrangements for the venue and time?" Akiwara Yuto asked another question.

"Everything is basically finished for now. We will first arrange the autograph session at Yamazaki Bookstore in Setagaya Ward, and then go to bookstores in other areas," Akutsu Goichi said in a sincere tone, "Akiwara-sensei, I'll be counting on you then."

"No need to be so formal; after all, this is our mutual interest," Akiwara Yuto replied with a smile, "And the time?"

"I will come to pick you up early the day after tomorrow. Just put on a formal suit," Akutsu Goichi replied.

Akiwara Yuto said "Understood" and ended the call, preparing to go to the kitchen to have some bread for breakfast.

Time quickly reached the morning of the day after tomorrow.

Akiwara Yuto changed into a suit and sat in the business sedan driven by Akutsu Goichi, heading toward Setagaya.

Watching the scenery receding in the rearview mirror, Akiwara Yuto pondered a question: just how many people would show up for this autograph session?

To be honest, he was still a bit unclear about his current standing.

When he was serializing in *New Fiction*, with the help of the Mangansha platform and book reviewers, the *ZOO* series truly had over a hundred thousand readers and fans, and he was even called a so-called "thriller genius."

But he hadn't expected that after leaving Mangansha and turning to self-publishing, it would be so difficult to sell even ten thousand copies, forcing him to constantly rack his brains to find various ways to drive traffic.

However, Akiwara Yuto had a hunch that many of his original readers and fans didn't know he had ended his collaboration with *New Fiction* and might still think he was in a dormant period, not having released any new books.

After all, online channels were not well-developed in this era, and there were no platforms like Weibo or Twitter for rapid information dissemination; the main reliance was still on newspapers and television.

Akiwara Yuto thought for a moment and then asked a question to Akutsu Goichi, who was driving.

"President Akutsu, regarding this autograph session, how was the specific promotional work arranged beforehand?"

This had to be clarified; after all, the greater the promotional effort, the more readers would know he was releasing a new book, and the easier it would be to attract fans.

Akutsu Goichi kept his eyes on the road ahead but replied, "We put up posters in over 30 partner bookstores and arranged for staff to be stationed there, distributing a total of ten thousand flyers intermittently."

"Akiwara-sensei, don't worry. Based on current sales and my personal experience, at least several hundred readers will come to the scene to have you sign their books."

Akiwara Yuto nodded and said nothing more.

Several hundred readers—not too few, but not too many either; it could only be called average.

However, Akiwara Yuto was still a bit skeptical, wondering if Akutsu Bookstore would bring in "plants"~

In his past life, he had seen news about a manga artist in Japan holding an autograph session, only for a dozen or so real readers to show up, which shocked the publishing house in charge of organizing the event.

To prevent the manga artist from falling into a slump, the publisher immediately arranged for "plants," organizing bookstore clerks and the families of publishing house employees to come to the scene with books to get them signed.

But the most awkward part was that during the signing, the manga artist asked a few questions and discovered that most of these people hadn't even read his manga.

The manga artist didn't call them out, just continued to sign honestly.

After the autograph session ended, the manga artist bowed to the staff and, while saying "thank you," expressed his hope that they wouldn't do that again, leaving the publisher very embarrassed.

Akiwara Yuto felt a bit uneasy, worried that he might end up in the same situation as that manga artist.

After all, there were too many factors involved in an autograph session; no one could say for sure how many people would actually show up.

But never mind, he should rest for a while and recharge for the upcoming signing.

Akiwara Yuto ended the conversation, leaned back against the passenger seat, and closed his eyes.

The car continued forward, and after more than 30 minutes, it arrived at today's destination, Yamazaki Bookstore in Setagaya Ward. Akiwara Yuto woke up at this moment.

He looked at the scene at the entrance of Yamazaki Bookstore, couldn't help but widen his eyes, and asked Akutsu Goichi, who was also looking on in disbelief.

"President Akutsu, is this what you called a few hundred people?"