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“Have you heard?! They’re revealing Mister Gorou’s image at Yae Publishing House!”
“With this, That’s Life’s readership will skyrocket…”
Incessant chittering among the citizens filled Hina’s ears, clogging her brain. The pair of canine ears twitched, and a bushy tail to match flipped once. She’d need a different spot to sit down and write. Somewhere quieter. Maybe less populated, at this rate.
The shoulder pad above her “battle kimono” brushed past the rush of people who aimed to go the opposite direction as her - towards the lower half of Inazuma’s capital city. Most appeared to be girls her age, with few younger and older stragglers. She paid them no heed. There were still a few more questions to answer before her deadline.
“Heheh, there certainly won’t ever be a shortage of smitten young girls once Mister Gorou’s face is revealed...I mean, he was already popular with ‘em, but now with a face to go along with his words…”
“Well, I’d always be a fan of Mister Gorou, even if he chose to never reveal his face. It’s his personality and intelligence that hooked me!”
“He truly is a different breed of man. All the guys >I< know are always so dense…he’s not just knowledgeable in romance, but in the womanly heart in general.”
Once she found a spot at the edge of town, Hina plopped down and took out the last three letters of the latest batch. Why Yae Miko would ever ask a general - especially one from “the Resistance” - to answer the troubles of the common folk was above her, even if things were more peaceful now. The shrine maiden always unnerved her in a way no one else could. Not even Kokomi, Sara, or the Raiden Shogun, which slashed her theory of it being an older and/or higher ranked woman being naturally fearsome to her. It had to be something else about her...perhaps her scheming, or unparalleled social intellect (very different than Hina’s military intellect).
However, despite the slight conflict of interests, Hina only had issues with the Shogunate. Citizens outside of Watatsumi Island were innocent; they suffered from the ridiculous decrees, too. In fact, some of their recruits came from the other Inazuma islands - even the very city Hina was in now. And really, reading their letters, she could see there was little difference between them, too. If a reader didn’t specify their location, Hina really couldn’t tell where in Inazuma they could be living. There were some struggles that apparently were universal. Such as…
I’ve read in previous editions that you advise to just tell dense boys how you feel, but my crush is a bit the opposite...There’s been many girls after him, but he “refuses to see any girl he feels love his face more than his heart”. This boy is my childhood friend, and even though I admit he’s very handsome now, I’ve liked him since his days as a gross, rough-houser. How can I confess my feelings in a way that’ll let him know this?
-Hopelessly Friendzoned Victim #124
Usually, letters like this got Hina eye-rolling. This was due to the easy solutions that often needed repeating. Although she had to admit, this one could be a bit more of a challenge. The mystery boy sounded like he was overly suspicious, so easing his mind was more of a priority than actually wooing him. But how to break that careful barrier?
If this were a battlefield - which was how Hina usually went about considering these situations - a cautious enemy was more dangerous than a careless one. They were more likely to scrutinize their surroundings and catch on to your plans. Encounters with them often required different rules.
“Don’t forget that you have an advantage that most of those other girls don’t. You already have a strong relationship with your friend. You know him more than a distant admirer would. What displays of affection would he appreciate most? What lesser known interests does he have that you could incorporate into your courting? If nothing else, focus your efforts on highlighting what drew you to him as children, and he’ll surely pick up on the sincerity.”
She really wished the girl luck on her endeavor and hoped her advice was enough. The thought that she could potentially lead someone astray...that she could be critically wrong...it was another reason why Yae Miko’s choice confused her.
What added to the pain was the genuine connection she was beginning to feel with the readers. They trusted her. Like her soldiers back at Watatsumi, though...this relationship branched in a different way. While she and her soldiers’ deep connection was fire-forged, there would always be a paradoxical distance caused by the respect her rank demanded. Citizens had to adhere to that respect, as well. Or scorn - depending on their views of the civil war.
But through these letters, which were never signed with their actual names, a new avenue was allowed for Hina to interact with others. And these people truly felt like friends. At least, they spoke to her in that way. They came to her with the most intimate of problems and never held back with their words.
Well, now my cousin is just upset with me. Said I was just being unreasonable and selfish, and refused to keep the conversation going unless I apologized. But frankly, she’s the one who should be apologizing! I don’t know what else to do…
-Not A Babysitter
Hina’s eyes glared at the page, as if it were the reader’s cousin. This was the fifth letter now - all started when an unruly cousin dumped her children at “Not A Babysitter’s” doorstep in the early hours without so much as knocking. The reckless child endangerment caught Hina’s attention more than the plea for help in keeping the family from falling apart, although luckily an investigation was underway by letter three. That was another endearing factor of this job - how some readers would continue to update Hina on their situations, even when the details were technically unnecessary.
But that wasn’t the issue now. The issue was how this ungodly woman was immune to peace offerings, diplomacy, even basic empathy. Letter four wasn’t even about the babysitting incident anymore! This shrew stole jewelry from her deceased grandmother the day of her funeral, all to pawn it off before the rightful inheritors could have them!
“I’m sorry to say, my friend, but it's been on my mind for a while. I know how we cherish the family lines our blood binds us to, but this is a two-way street. Your cousin has betrayed not just yourself, but the entire family by this point. She’s expressed a clear lack of love for you. Cutting her out, at this point, is a natural consequence of her actions. No one would blame you. Not even your grandmother.”
They never held back with their problems, and Hina never held back with her answers. Severing a familial relationship - the type that should be the deepest, given its base in shared blood - was perhaps the toughest to do. Hopefully, it could be done without any guilt now that the one who would’ve been hurt the most was now passed on. Perhaps, at this point, the grandmother’s soul would even be approving. After all, she ended up betrayed as well.
But what if it turned out to be the wrong decision? What if Hina led one of these desperate readers astray? Would the failure sting less off the battlefield, given that there were no lives at stake in this scenario? Or would a ruined life be a worse fate than an ended one?
I’ve worked hard to build up muscle, style my hair, even buy new clothes. Yet I still fail to catch any potential sweetheart’s attention! I don’t care what kind of girl notices me, just as long as it’s >someone<! I noticed one reading your magazine, and you’ve somehow got a large following without ever showing your face. How do you do it?! What secret have I missed, oh masterful one?!
-Your Obedient Student
What is this? Hina thought to herself. I’ve had confounding questions sent in before, but…>I< don’t even know what I’ve done here. How could I ever explain it to this person?
Shifting her spot on the ground, Hina let the arm holding the letter sag while she succumbed to a blank stare. From an outsider’s perspective, she could pass as a dead statue. However, the truth was, her mind was whirring underneath.
“...you’ve somehow got a large following without ever showing your face…”
“He was already popular with ‘em, but now with a face to go along with his words…”
“...refuses to see any girl he feels love his face more than his heart…”
“It’s his personality and intelligence that hooked me!”
“...and he’ll surely pick up on your sincerity.”
Bringing her pen up to the response section, Hina’s finger practically moved on its own.
“If you ask me…it’s because my readers have come to know me with just my words. As I’ve given each response, a part of me slipped in each time, revealing my character. It is this character that keeps them coming back. Not any sort of body or fashion. And their words have revealed their characters, too. Ask yourself: who >are< you underneath all that muscle, beneath that hair, under those clothes? You may not mind who it is that comes to you; but if that person hates who you truly are, would you really be happy with them? We may be drawn to judging a book by its cover - but if the contents aren’t interesting to us, we’ll end up putting it down anyway. And if a friend recommends us a book by its summary, without ever showing what the cover looks like, that itself can be convincing. Ultimately, it might take some time for someone to come into your life; and even then, it might not work out in the end. I don’t think you should feel pressure about it, though. Live on with your life. Something will happen that will serve as a beacon to love’s attention. And you’ll feel better that you waited for it rather than going with the first person who found you pretty to look at.”
With the last response written, Hina got up and stretched herself out. It was just in time, too. She’d have to jog a little to make it back before the deadline, but it would be doable. Just as long as the foot traffic hadn’t worsened, that is. It seemed like an event was going to be happening near that part of the city.
That last one turned out longer than usual, Hina noted to herself as she started moving. Hopefully it won’t be any trouble. I don’t think that one could be trimmed down without losing anything important.
As she somewhat expected, the crowding had grown. She had to squeeze to make it to the front of Yae Publishing House’s building. A few people muttered about impatience; but when she explained she had a deadline and would be leaving right after, they relented. The clerk also seemed relieved she wouldn’t be staying, for some reason. Maybe so it’d be one less body in the crowd to worry about?
In truth, it was because Hina did not know the truth regarding the magazine she had been roped into. It was not General Hina of the Watatsumi Army being credited for the responses - no one even knew it was a woman at all. Had Hina stayed at the front of the audience for another minute, she would’ve caught the image of “Mister Gorou” - the character Yae Publishing House had created as the supposed ask-columner for That’s Life magazine.
Perhaps that was a good thing for her, though. While Yae Miko had proposed a fictional man to be the face of the magazine, his revealed design took heavy inspiration from Hina. He was a large man with bulging muscles, sure; but his light brown hair had the same white streaks, his canine features were virtually the same, and his green eyes were shaped similarly to hers. Even his robes were in the same color as her armor. If the excitement of the reveal hadn’t distracted everyone’s minds, the ones who saw Hina might’ve wondered if she was perhaps his little sister or something of the sort.
In any case, she would become confused when she was asked to answer letters back at base and just send the responses via messenger. It would confuse her more when people stopped to ask her about any brothers or cousins. And why would anyone think every canine-looking person in Inazuma would know each other, or even look like each other? Hina just hoped her reputation as a rebel soldier didn’t negatively impact whoever this apparent lookalike - “Mister Gorou-geous” - was.