After receiving the contract email from Being, Akira and Rin arrived together at the entrance of the Being headquarters building the very next day.
They were both in Minato Ward, so it took less than half an hour to get here, which was quite convenient.
Standing outside the main gate, Rin couldn't help but take a deep breath. Seeing this, Akira smiled and asked, "Are you a little nervous?"
"Mm, a little bit." Rin nodded honestly.
Although this wasn't her first time discussing a contract with a record label, this situation was completely different from before; this was the closest she had ever been to realizing her dream.
Furthermore— "Do you think there's any chance we might run into Sakai Izumi today?"
"Sakai Izumi," or simply "Sister," was the nickname fans used for Sakai Izumi.
"Huh?" Suddenly jumping to another topic, Akira almost didn't react in time, then looked at her with a wry smile.
"Are you actually nervous?"
"Of course I am." Meeting his gaze, Rin blushed slightly and defended herself in a low voice, "I was just curious..."
"Alright." Akira shook his head with a smile and continued, "I think even if we don't see her this time, if we can successfully sign the contract, there will always be a chance to meet her in the future."
"Mm, I know." Rin nodded again, her expression becoming serious.
Seeing this, he smiled again and said, "Of course, don't push yourself too hard. Don't forget our core demands."
"Mm."
Their core demands were for the most free and lenient terms possible, specifically regarding song copyrights and performance rights.
To secure these rights, they were willing to make some concessions regarding financial benefits.
Of course, going too far wouldn't be acceptable either.
They entered the lobby of the Being headquarters, where the initial procedure was similar to when he had visited the Shonen Jump Editorial Department to meet with Hisashi.
After identifying themselves at the reception desk, the receptionist asked them to wait a moment while she made a call to notify the relevant personnel.
Before long, a female staff member named Kurokawa Keiko came to them, introduced herself briefly, and led them up to the third floor.
Finally, they followed her to a door and stopped. Kurokawa Keiko knocked gently and said, "Department Manager Watanabe, the guests have arrived."
"Please, come in."
Inside was a dedicated reception room, where a middle-aged man in a suit, looking very sharp, was sitting on the sofa.
Seeing them, he took the initiative to come forward and introduced himself with a smile, "My name is Watanabe Shingo, and I am the head of the A&R department."
"You must be Mr. Akira and Ms. Rin of the group 『Tsukirin』, right?"
As he introduced himself, a flash of surprise crossed Watanabe Shingo's eyes.
Being required newcomers to include personal profiles and photos when submitting demos, so they had long known that Akira and Rin were a rare and attractive duo.
However, seeing them in reality, both of them were noticeably more handsome and beautiful than in their photos.
As for their ages, it was rather unremarkable.
In this line of work, 18 wasn't even considered particularly young; newcomers who were 16 or 17, or even younger, were everywhere in the industry.
"Hello." Akira and Rin both nodded in greeting.
Before coming, Rin had briefed him on some relevant knowledge.
For instance, the A&R department mentioned by the other party was generally responsible for signing newcomers, production coordination, and artist development, so it was normal for the department head to meet with them.
"Alright, let's sit down first."
Akira and Rin sat together, facing the two people from the company.
Watanabe Shingo smiled and said, "Our boss, Mr. Daiko, is a man of action who doesn't like small talk, so I've adopted his approach and will skip the pleasantries."
"Let's get straight to the point and discuss the contract."
"Kurokawa-san, if you would."
"Yes." Kurokawa Keiko immediately responded, took out the prepared contract, distributed it to the two, and explained with a smile:
"Because the company highly recognizes the capabilities of you both, the contract prepared for you is the highest-spec newcomer contract within our company, and arguably within the industry."
"Please, take a look..."
Watching the eloquent Kurokawa Keiko and then looking at the calm and composed Watanabe Shingo on the side, Akira was momentarily speechless.
So much for not liking small talk; he was just slacking off!
Complaining aside, he followed the explanation and carefully read through the contract.
In reality, since he was a complete layman and Rin had experienced negotiating contracts with record labels several times, understanding some of the pitfalls, she was the one mainly vetting it.
However, as he listened, even he, the layman, gradually felt that the conditions offered were actually quite good.
First, regarding copyright: the copyright for lyrics and composition, as well as performance rights, belonged to them. Being required a 5-year exclusive right to use the recording copyright of the works, and both parties would jointly register the publishing rights.
Second, regarding activity obligations: First, they were required to produce at least 2 works per year with sales exceeding 80,000 copies. Second, during song promotion, at least one member was required to attend television music programs in principle, while variety shows and radio appearances were voluntary; they could refuse magazine interviews involving their private lives. Third, in principle, Being would not interfere with their private lives, but if their own words or actions were exposed by the media, causing damage to the company's reputation or finances, they would have to compensate for losses and could even face contract termination.
Regarding these two aspects that they valued most, the conditions offered basically met their demands.
As for the 2 songs with over 80,000 sales... considering the era, it might be a bit difficult to have every single one sell a million.
But as a transmigrator, if he couldn't even achieve 2 songs with 80,000 sales a year, he really ought to just restart his life.
Besides that, things like a 10% royalty on record sales, 5% on copyright usage fees, 40% on licensing fees...
As a complete layman, he wasn't sure if these percentages were high or low, but referencing manga royalties and the entertainment-themed web novels he had read before, it seemed decent.
He just didn't know if there were any hidden traps.
So, he turned his inquiring gaze toward Rin beside him.
However, at this moment, the shock Rin felt was far greater than Akira's.
Because she had met with many record labels before and had seen many predatory contracts, she found the terms in the contract before her even more incredible.
This is way too generous!
Is this the legendary contract term that only singer-songwriters are qualified to receive?
Even the contract term was only 3 years; in all the contracts she had seen before, none had been shorter than 5 years.
...Could there be some sort of trap?
Thus, Akira and Rin exchanged a glance, feeling that things seemed to have become a bit strange.