Imouto Sae Ireba Ii returns with another great volume.
Don't actually read this thread if you want to eventually read the official English releases, but at the rate Yen Press is going, it's going to be at least 2-3 more years before you get to material not covered in the anime.
Itsuki and Nayu fall into a deep depression after their mutual breakup. Upon returning to her apartment, Nayu runs into Miyako's arms bawling her eyes out, and Itsuki drinks himself half to death to numb the pain. When Haruto visits Itsuki the next day (to talk to him about rejecting Chihiro half a month ago), he finds Itsuki not having eaten or slept, asking him for more booze. Whenever Itsuki would fall asleep he would have nightmares, so as he woke again he continued to drink. Haruto tries to snap Itsuki out of it by talking about how he's just come from a meeting about his new series, trying to bring out Itsuki's competitive drive. Itsuki doesn't care though, he's long since given up on anything beyond mediocrity. Frustrated, Haruto says a bunch of chuuni shounen sports manga lines like >I'm going to surpass you while you're standing still. I'm not going to just wait for you and then leaves, only realizing afterward that he forgot to ask about Chihiro.
Chapter title: Aoba Route (trap) A few days later, Aoba is at Itsuki's place doing her usual cooking and cleaning. Itsuki has stopped giving any fucks and continues drinking right in front of her. Desperate to bring Itsuki out of his depression, Aoba offers to do ANYTHING, and then explicitly specifies that she means including sex when Itsuki is taken aback. Overtaken by grief and lust, Itsuki actually takes her up on her offer and jumps her, and we actually get a more explicit sex scene than any of Nayu's. Waking up in the morning, Itsuki is arrested by the police. Aoba's parents had questioned her about returning late and figured out what happened, then reported Itsuki for statuatory rape. Aoba tries to salvage the situation by saying it was consensual and under the premise that marriage was to follow, but Itsuki admits himself that it was nothing but primal, animal lust. His professional career is in ruins, and all his friends and family, including his father and Chihiro, break all ties with him and he wanders the streets with nowhere left to go. Suddenly, a bright flash and a loud crash sends him into brief, agonizing pain. When he awakes, he is confronted by a goddess calling herself Aquarius who has given him a second chance in an alternate world and obviously this is a dream gotcha. He wakes up for real and asks Aoba how much of it was a dream. Aoba confirms that her offer to have sex actually happened, and Itsuki emphatically refuses and chastises her to value herself more. Aoba agrees but reponds that Itsuki is the one who should really be valuing himself more. After she leaves, Itsuki is so shaken by the experience that he dumps out all the alcohol in his fridge, shaves his head, and buys a monk constume to cleanse himself of sinful thoughts.
Am I looking at double CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT right now? What the fuck.
David Watson
At the same time, Nayu has closed herself off in her room. When Miyako walks in to give Nayu her dinner, she sees Nayu naked and sitting in front of her screen, playing a third person shooter and swearing like a sailor. >Nayu: "Fuck! Shit! Fucking fuck! I understand "Fucking Jap" at least!" She's been at this since last night and hasn't eaten or showered. This continues on for a while until one day Miyako finds Nayu with her hair cut. Nayu sees no point in having to take care of her long hair. >Nayu: "Not like I have anyone to fuck even if I make myself pretty." Eventually, Nayu misses an important meeting for the live action movie of her LN and just decides to quit writing on the spot. When informed of this, the head editor lowers his head to Miyako and begs her to save their company by bringing Nayu back, saying he'll give her any personnel and resources she needs.
After a brief strategy meeting with Haruto, Miyako returns to try to convince Nayu to go back to being a writer. She emphasizes how many people need her, her fans, the publishers, all the staff of all the adaptations that have their jobs on the line. However, Miyako is soon left speechless when Nayu asks why Miyako is trying to convince her, and whether Miyako herself needs Nayu to be a writer. Miyako comes to the conclusion that she really doesn't have any stakes in this, and returns to the office defeated, and gives up on convincing Nayu to return to writing. The next day, Miyako and Kaiko grow progressively more worried as Nayu fails to return late into the night. Miyako starts to panic and wants to call the police, but Kaiko remains calm and convinces her to hold off, try to contact other people, and look for some sort of evidence that something bad has happened before acting rashly. Nayu eventually returns and it turns out that she was just at the arcade. Miyako and Nayu hug while in tears and Miyako promises to stop asking Nayu to go back to writing, and just wants Nayu to never disappear on her again. Nayu promises to not worry Miyako ever again and also promises to continue being a womanchild who does nothing but play vidya. >Kaiko: "So, are you guys gonna fuck? Can I sketch you?" >Miyako: "NO!" >Nayu: "Aww, I kind of want to." After this Nayu started to take showers with Miyako and even sleep together all the time, basically being a big baby.
Middle aged loser author Kaizu Makina has been invited out by rookie author Kamo Tadashi, to thank Kaizu for solving his tax troubles by introducing him to Ashley. Eventually he reveals that he's interested in Ashley and asks Kaizu about her hobbies and interests. Kaizu helps him, but for the first time in his life he took a kouhai up on the offer of a free meal instead of paying for himself. Later, Kamo goes on his date with Ashley, taking her to small cosy bars and B movie horror flicks (and eating steaks after, because of course you'd want something bloody after watching slasher films. Ashley loved it but Kamo didn't seem to have an appetite). Of course all of this is suspiciously close to Ashley's tastes and she figures out pretty quickly that Kamo is interested in her and that he got Kaizu's help. She rejects Kamo's confession. Ashley invites Kaizu to a bar to talk about his involvement, and the conversation quickly turns to Kaizu's love life. Kaizu reveals that he doesn't think he's financially stable enough as a mediocre author to feel comfortable with what, in his view, is dragging someone else down with him. >Ashley: "Marry me." (in the way one would issue a command) >Ashley: "I'm the only one who'll be able accept your stupid way of life until the end." >Ashley: "Don't get me wrong, it's not like I like you or anything. You're just the only one I can allow to follow me all the way to hell." >Kaizu: "Feel free to abandon me once you're bored with me." >Ashley: "You know me, I'll get bored with you right away." >Kaizu: "Fast and heavy, huh?" >Ashley: "At least say my love is heavy."
