Chapter 301: End of the Celebration
The closing ceremony was held on Sunday night, but Minami and Haruka had already boarded the high-speed train back to Saitama with their classmates, and the students, including Shiori, also returned to school.
The final performance of the voice actors took place at night. The crowd of spectators was larger than on the first day, and even the hallways were filled with people. Just by seeing this scene, Takumi knew that the celebration had been a complete success and felt a great sense of relief.
"Thank you for your help these two days."
He expressed his gratitude to Akari and the others. If it weren't for the help of these fans these two days, such a large number of people would have undoubtedly ruined everything.
"You're welcome. We had a lot of fun too," Akari replied on behalf of the other fans. Then, hesitantly, she said, "Mirai-sensei, I've heard that Hinotori Publishing is moving to Suhua. Will this be the last celebration in Osaka?"
"...Perhaps..." Takumi nodded. He couldn't hide it. He could only comfort her, "But we won't move everyone to Suhua. We'll only move the main office there. Manga distribution in Osaka will remain the same. You don't have to worry too much. Well... I'll come back if I have time."
It's unrealistic for all employees to move to Suhua. Some Hinotori Publishing employees have houses in Osaka and find it difficult to leave. Some mangakas won't leave either. So this move is simply the relocation of the main business. The Hinotori Building in Osaka will continue to exist as a branch, but future market expansion will be focused on Suhua.
Takumi believes this is a good development opportunity. Hinotori Publishing's readers in Osaka are already saturated. If they continue to develop, they will have to open up the true circle of the manga business. Kanto Manga Company has its sights greedily set on Osaka. It's not good to oppose them. The Suhua area can offer Hinotori better development opportunities. And there are many discounts; Takumi believes there is more potential there.
"Really?" Akari nodded and suddenly blinked, "By the way, Mirai-sensei, is Hinotori Publishing still short-staffed?"
Takumi looked at Akari, "Do you want to come to our company?"
"Yes... After all, I'm also your die-hard fan." Akari smiled and said, "And I have a great reputation among your followers and a wide network of contacts. Many of the shops participating in this celebration were brought by me. I think, Mirai-sensei, you will definitely need me!"
She didn't mention it impulsively. After observing the celebration, Akari had already vaguely understood Takumi's idea. Although this celebration was simple, any intelligent person could see that it was a manga business experiment. Furthermore, Hinotori Publishing was moving to the city of Suhua. If the experiment were carried out at that time, Hinotori Publishing's plan would be obvious: it would undoubtedly create a business circle centered on manga when it arrived in Suhua.
However, a business circle cannot be built with a single operator. Akari predicted that, in addition to the main body of Hinotori Publishing, many operators would be needed, and among them, readers who are fans of Mirai-sensei's manga would undoubtedly be an important part. These manga lovers would be delighted to start a business or open a shop there, as in this celebration.
So Akari was sure that someone like her, with a wide network of contacts among readers, would be valued by Takumi.
"Alright." As expected, Takumi agreed instantly, "I'm going back to Jidong tonight. When you resign, come find me and we'll talk in detail."
He agreed without even asking what skills Akari had. However, Takumi tended to believe her. After all, she was the manager of such a large group, and the work arrangements for the last two days had also been very good. She wouldn't be bad at all; maybe she could even be a good helper.
"No problem, Mirai-sensei!"
Akari enthusiastically took out her mobile, "Can I have your number? It'll be convenient to find you!"
After exchanging numbers, the woman left happily. A short while later, someone came down from the stage. It was Yuki.
"Is the show over?" Takumi asked her.
"Well... I guess I'll be in second place!" Yuki smiled and looked at the stage again, "That girl has a beautiful voice; her votes will surpass mine."
The one singing on stage was Akina, who captured all eyes and looked dazzling.
"Her performance was truly excellent." Takumi looked away, a bit strange, "But if she gets more votes than you, it's not normal. Yuki, you let her win on purpose, right?"
Yesterday it didn't seem strange to him, but today he noticed one thing: Yuki didn't sing any classic songs, not even the interludes from Gundam SEED. This left him a bit confused. Seeing the impact of Dawn Car last night, Yuki should have sung the song Takumi gave her.
But she didn't sing. Yuki's popularity was so high that Takumi was surprised. It should be easy to get first place. But she didn't show all her charm at the celebration, instead deliberately letting Akina win.
"Because she is really better than me." Yuki didn't deny Takumi's statement, but smiled and said, "Mirai-sensei, I've heard that after this celebration, you want to make us famous, right?"
He assured her it was true. This celebration was just the prelude. Takumi successfully introduced Yuki and Akina to the readers and attracted media attention. After that, he will launch his singing girl plan. This plan is linked to the popularity of Gundam SEED. That animation is just the beginning, and the coming months will be the focus.
There is also Akiko in Japan. Takumi has already contacted her agency, and they are delighted to take advantage of the animation boom to promote her.
"Since you know I want to promote you, why are you giving it to Akina?" Takumi asked, a little surprised, and asked, "If you get first place in this celebration, wouldn't that be a greater advantage for you?"
"But if I come in second, won't Miss Akina be more attractive?"
Yuki replied. In fact, that was Takumi's original plan. Takumi liked Akina more.
"Mirai-sensei wants to use us to transform the voice actor industry, but this burden is too heavy and I don't want to be at the forefront." Yuki sighed and said, "I don't have enough ability to lead everyone and reach the top, but Miss Akina has talent. I believe that even if her popularity is not as high as mine now, she will soon surpass it."
So Yuki didn't want to compare herself to Akina; it was pointless. But she felt that the most suitable person to face the voice actors and handle the pressure from the entertainment industry was Shiori. Akina was capable, but Yuki wasn't sure if her personality was right to be a leader, but she believed that the strong Shiori could do it.
Takumi was a little surprised by Yuki's words. He smiled and said, "You have a very open mind." Hearing this, Yuki felt a little embarrassed; Akina was her favorite. This girl's talent far surpassed Yuki's.
"This isn't being open-minded. I'm very satisfied to have been chosen by you, master. I feel very lucky..." Yuki smiled with bright eyes and said, "Mirai-sensei, I've always wanted to tell you something..."
"What?"
"Thank you..." She smiled and said, "On behalf of the company's voice actors, I want to express my gratitude, Mirai-sensei. It is you who gave us an opportunity and a new path. Please accept our gratitude."
After Yuki finished speaking, she stepped forward and hugged Takumi. Takumi was stunned for a moment, and then smiled bitterly.
"Really..."
But he didn't refuse. Receiving thanks from others was something worthwhile.
Then, the celebration ended.
The voice actor who voted first was Akina, the second was Yuki, and the third was a male voice actor... Hinotori Publishing has relatively few male voice actors, but Takumi discovered that this one was very popular, so he decided to let Genji promote him. Perhaps he would be useful in the future.
It was time to give out the awards. The top three voice actors received different monetary rewards. Takumi promised that the three would be directly selected for the voice actor list for the next job without selection. After the awards ceremony, Takumi also promised to play the piano accompaniment for the champion, Akina. Now, the room was buzzing.
"Mirai-sensei is going to play the piano!?"
"I knew there would be a surprise at the end, hahaha!"
"I have no regrets... The joint performance of Miss Akina and Mirai-sensei to close this celebration is simply incredible!"
The audience was very excited, but on stage, Akina said something strange:
"I don't want accompaniment." Suddenly, she said this, and the entire audience froze. Just when everyone was confused, the girl added, "I've already sung the song and everyone has heard it several times. I want to see Mirai-sensei's performance... I want to hear Castillo en el Cielo. Could Mirai-sensei play it for me?"
She looked up and asked Takumi. After a moment of silence in the room, a roar was heard.
"Well done, Miss Akina!"
"Mirai-sensei, we also want to hear Castillo en el Cielo!"
"Yes, we want to see Mirai-sensei perform alone!"
Takumi was stunned. He looked at Akina and saw the expectation in her eyes. He couldn't help but sigh, "It's the first time I've seen a little star give up the stage to someone else... Well, in that case, I will put an end to this celebration..."
He nodded, and the piano was brought onto the stage. Takumi hadn't played this instrument in a long time, but that wouldn't affect his performance.
After two busy days, a quiet closing song sounded in the room.
"So quiet... so elegant..."
Akina whispered to Takumi, who was playing the piano at the side of the stage.
"Are you referring to his song or to him?" a voice asked. Akina turned and saw a tall, blonde sister by her side. She also looked at the stage with a complex, hard-to-understand gaze.
"That boy has improved a lot with the piano. He's grown so much. No wonder he refused to perform last night..."
Alice thought. If Takumi had come out last night, perhaps he would win first place in the voice actor contest.
- - - - -
Hello everyone!
Great news! Starting today, Thursday, October 23rd, and running through Friday, October 31st, all subscription tiers on my P@tre0n will be 50% off.
Use the code 26DEA at checkout to activate the promotion and get access to hundreds of advanced chapters!
P@tre0n/ iLikeeMikee