She Reads So Carefully
Aria seemed to read novels really carefully.
I'd recommended quite a few books to her by now.
You might ask how a man who'd only just become Ivan Cluers could possibly have read enough novels to recommend several of them… but the truth was, I was a modern person who'd spent his whole life hooked on dopamine. There was nothing I could do about it.
I still missed my smartphone, okay?
Cut the dopamine cold turkey for even a single morning and the withdrawal hits hard — so I had no choice but to top myself up with novels just to keep the symptoms at bay.
Which meant I could say with confidence that every novel I'd recommended delivered at least a solid hit of dopamine. These were books that had passed the rigorous screening of a dopamine-starved modern man. Reliable dopamine you could trust.
And if I had to pick the one I'd enjoyed most, I could name it without a second's hesitation.
It wasn't some grand epic with elegant psychological portraits, meticulously planted foreshadowing, and a lesson that stirred the heart…
Well, of course not. Kids would have a hard time reading something like that.
Given Aria's age, recommending something easy enough for a child made sense. Honestly, I probably should have been recommending picture books instead of novels… but I wanted to talk about books I'd actually enjoyed reading.
…Fine. I indulged a little self-interest. So what if I did? A little self-interest is allowed. If she said it was too hard, I could always hand her a fairy tale then.
Anyway — back to the point. The novel I could name without hesitation as the most entertaining of the ones I'd recommended to Aria was, in short, a story where the protagonist kept winning. Crisis would show up now and then, but he'd resolve it in no time. A simple story, and all the more fun for it.
Critics liked to say it had no depth… but for a modern person addicted to dopamine, it hit the spot perfectly. And for all the criticism, it was popular. Depth or no depth — it was fun, and that was what mattered. People always come looking for what's fun.
Whether that novel was popular with noble young ladies, though… that was another story. Apparently what young ladies liked were books that gently stroked their emotions — the kind that tickled every feeling just so.
You might think Aria would end up preferring those over anything I'd recommended. And sure, she might. She was a noble young lady, and a little girl. Statistically, she was more likely to like what most young ladies liked.
But I still thought there was a real chance my recommendations would suit her tastes. Evidence? Of course I had evidence. You think I'd recommend books to Aria with nothing to back it up?
In the Korean web novel market — and the Japanese light novel market — overpowered isekai stories were all the rage. And once they got popular, people started analyzing why. One of the reasons that kept coming up went something like this: reality is harsh and scraping by is hard, so watching a protagonist get dropped into another world and steamroll everything gives people a vicarious thrill. That's why they sold.
Alright. Assume that theory is correct, and apply it to Aria's situation.
It was still only a hunch, but Aria had lived a hard life — abused in a ducal household. And if the reason overpowered isekai took off really was that vicarious satisfaction… then a novel where the protagonist kept winning, just like those isekai stories, might give Aria exactly the same kind of satisfaction.
That was why I'd confidently slipped it into the pile of books I recommended.
And then—
"…Um, d-does this author have any other novels? It doesn't have to be by the same author. Something with a similar feel would be fine, so…"
Apparently the book I'd recommended had landed right in Aria's heart.
This was better than I'd hoped for. All I'd been aiming for was a shared hobby — showing up, asking if she'd enjoyed the novel, and getting a polite "it was pretty fun" in return. That was the ceiling of my expectations.
But not only had we secured a shared hobby, not only had she enjoyed a novel I'd loved myself — Aria had asked me for something. For the first time. Of her own accord. And she hadn't even waited for me to bring up novels first.
That was more than enough to celebrate. You could fairly call it proof that Aria was starting to open her heart to me. Of course it was worth celebrating.
And people always say the first step is the hardest, right? Aria had taken that first step. From here on, the odds of her asking me for things more often were very high — and the distance between us would close naturally as a result.
As expected of a nadena-de novel. The effects are guaranteed.
And there was one more happy fact…
…This means I don't have to confess!!!
I breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Honestly, I'd been a little worried.
Anyway. Being happy was fine — but I still had a job to do.
"Of course. I'll get you as many of that author's novels as I can by the end of the day, along with anything similar. By the way… I'm glad you enjoyed it."
Alright. A shared hobby — excellent conversation material. And Aria had made a request of me first. There was no way I was letting this moment pass. Right now, a real conversation with her actually felt possible.
"…Yes."
Aria nodded as she said it, then looked away from my gaze.
…Or not? Still too soon?
"What did you like about it?"
I asked anyway, just in case. If she said she wasn't sure, I'd take that as a sign the timing was wrong and end the conversation there.
"……I think I liked watching the protagonist grow so quickly. And the way he acted was so straightforward and refreshing. It never felt frustrating while I was reading, so… I think that's why I liked it…"
She didn't say she wasn't sure. Her voice was small, but she laid out the things she'd found fun about the novel in a clear, orderly way. No need to cut the conversation short after that.
"You're right — the pacing is so clean and free of frustration that it just pulls you along. And whenever it feels like things might start to drag, something happens right away and keeps you locked in."
"Yes, exactly! The whole time I was reading, I kept thinking, how does something always happen at such a perfect moment… so it even startled me a little…"
She'd gotten excited for a second, then immediately reined herself back in. Watching her voice jump up with enthusiasm and then shrink right back down made me think, ah, she really is still a kid. Still — an excited Aria was far nicer to look at than one who kept glancing away and reading the room.
I had no intention of pointing that out, though. The moment I did, embarrassment would shut her mouth for good. We'd finally gotten a proper conversation going — ending it right there would be far too disappointing. Better to just keep the talk rolling.
"Personally, I think my favorite scene was the one where the protagonist awakens. You can tell the author knew it was an important moment and really put everything into it. What did you think?"
"Um… I was a little disappointed, actually."
"Oh, really? What about it disappointed you?"
"The protagonist had been handling everything on his own so well, and then he awakens with help from the people around him… I kind of… I wanted him to do it alone, all the way to the end."
"I see…. So you wanted the protagonist to manage it by himself?"
Mm. That was good just now.
Summarize what Aria said, show empathy, ask a question — if I could just keep riding this flow… I might close a huge amount of distance with her today.
While I was thinking that, Aria nodded.
…If I stay quiet here, the conversation dies. Brain, work! Manufacture some words somehow…!
"That's a perfectly fair way to feel. He'd only ever shown strength and superhuman grit up to that point, and then for the first time he looked weak. I just sat there impressed watching him awaken, but… Aria, you seem to read novels really carefully."
…That wasn't half bad. Managing to land a natural compliment angle right there — maybe I've actually got a talent for praise?
"…Really?"
"Really, really. Honestly, I didn't expect the conversation to flow this well. I think that's all thanks to how well you understood the novel. When two people share what they felt after reading something, the conversation only works if they're on a similar level of understanding. If you'd finished this book and said something like, 'I don't know why it was fun, but it was fun,' would we still be talking right now? Probably not."
My tongue is starting to scare me. That whole speech had come flying out without passing through my brain, and it still somehow sounded convincing.
"I-is that so…? Were we really on a similar level?"
Anyone looking at Aria right now would say she was a person being persuaded. After hearing all that, her confidence had to have gone up a little — her self-esteem, too.
In which case…
"At least, that's what I think. So how about we talk about novels again next time?"
Time to lock in the next appointment.
Not that skipping a formal promise meant we wouldn't talk about novels. I could just show up the way I had today and bring it up naturally. But if we set a next time, she'd have to talk about novels again — which meant she'd read a little more carefully. I'd catch that, praise her for it, and her confidence and self-esteem would climb again. Confidence and self-esteem climbing would make it fun. Fun would settle into a real hobby.
Aria had once said she didn't know what she liked. Giving her a proper hobby would be proof she was living in a happier environment than before — which would mean she was walking the path of a nadena-de novel protagonist just fine.
A virtuous cycle. Was there any reason not to make the promise? Not a single one.
I wasn't worried about being turned down. Anyone could see this wasn't a rejection kind of moment.
"…I'm okay with that."
And just as I'd expected, Aria didn't refuse.
Then someone knocked.
"Come in."
The person who opened the door was… the Head Butler.
"My lord, the craftsmen have arrived."
"The craftsmen…?"
Ah. Right. The blankets and pillows. What impeccable timing.
"Looks like we'll have to leave the conversation here. And…. when you pick out a blanket or a pillow, choose carefully — something you truly like. It'll be the blanket you sleep under and the pillow you rest your head on from now on. Understood?"
Aria gave a small nod. I almost reached out to pat her head before I left, then decided it was still too soon and simply walked out.
Anyway — with that, the next appointment was set. At this point, I really couldn't help saying it one more time.
Nadena-de novels are easy!