Anime rating game

"President, I'd like to ask about the background settings that weren't mentioned in the original work."

"Okay, what aspect would you like to know more about?"

"Judging from the fact that the protagonist, Masamune Makabe, lives in a detached house, he shouldn't be rich enough to buy the office building next door, right?"

"... "

Masamune couldn't help but laugh. What was this? Was reality being confused with the story?

"In other words, you want to know about my family situation? I can tell you, but please don't include it in the animation to avoid causing family conflicts."

"no problem."

"The Makabe family is a prominent family in Shinshu. Although they lost their title as castle lords due to the decline of the samurai class, they still hold a large amount of land and are effectively castle lords without the title."

"Should we start from so long ago?"

"It's almost here."

Masamune paused for a moment, then continued:

“My maternal grandfather had two daughters, and my mother was the younger one. My aunt was the type to marry down, as the man's financial situation wasn't very good. Plus, my mother was petite, so she was more pampered at home.”

"Although my father's family was well-off, they were still quite different from the Makabe family. His eldest daughter married down, and his second daughter followed suit, rather than marrying into the family. As a result, my maternal grandfather disliked him for many years."

"In order to gain my grandfather's approval, and because of his own personality, my father was busy from the beginning to the end of the year, and was involved in all kinds of industries. He not only gradually developed the Hayase family, but also took over some of the Makabe family's assets. The two families have a very good relationship."

"That's why I changed my surname from Hayase to Makabe in the anime. It's really just a matter of a single sentence."

"Our house isn't very big because we bought it a long time ago. Even now, my mother likes to do housework and take care of people, and she doesn't like to hire maids or anything like that. If we move to a bigger house, one person wouldn't be able to manage the cleaning, so there's no need for that."

Kinoshita Seiichi seemed to be deep in thought, his mind racing, and soon an idea came to him:

"If that's the case, could you add a post-credits scene at the end of episode twelve?"

"The protagonist takes Adagaki Aki back to the Makabe family in Shinshu to introduce his lover to his family, and at the same time shows the audience that he has truly let go."

“No problem.” Masamune’s eyes lit up and he nodded repeatedly. “This Easter egg is great, it echoes the beginning. From the audience’s perspective, the protagonist comes from Shinshu at the beginning, vowing to take revenge on Adagaki Ahime, and at the end he brings his lover home, which also puts his grandfather’s mind at ease.”

"Since the president agrees, I'll go and draw the storyboard now."

Not long after Kinoshita Seiichi left, another knock sounded at the door.

The next moment, Miyamori Aoi and Karasuma Gojo walked in one after the other.

"What's the matter with you?"

“We just happened to run into each other at the door, you go first.” Miyamori Aoi quickly stepped aside.

"I'm here to report on my work. I currently have two main roles: the male protagonist in a shoujo manga and the second male lead in a harem manga. The rest are mostly minor characters."

"Huh...? You got a lead role so quickly?" Miyamori Aoi asked curiously, lowering her voice, "How much did it cost?"

"I didn't spend any money; it was mainly based on personal connections."

"I see, it's true what they say, it's good to have a big tree to lean on."

Karasuma Gosho avoided her gaze and instead asked:

"President, is our firm still hiring?"

"Of course. Now that the location has expanded, we naturally need to hire more employees. At the very least, once your fame gradually grows, you'll need a dedicated agent. After that, we'll also need to buy some recording equipment for daily voice-over training."

"Can I recommend someone? It's my younger sister, Chitose. She's also been clamoring to become a voice actress, and she seems quite serious about it."

"no problem."

"…Thanks."

He thought he would have to explain for a while longer, but the president agreed immediately, which disrupted Karasuma Gojo's pace and made him swallow back what he was going to say.

"President, Shizuka, whom I recommended before..." Miyamori Aoi couldn't help but say.

"Just have her come over directly."

"No, she refused to use connections and believed that she could get ahead on her own merits."

"Oh."

"President, is there any way to get her to agree?"

"Forcing others to do things they don't want to do doesn't make you a good friend."

"But watching a friend waste their time doesn't make you a true friend."

"Only she can figure this out herself. If all else fails, you can try a self-inflicted injury."

"??I see!"

Although it was unclear what she had understood, seeing Miyamori Aoi leave with a smile, Masamune also smiled.

"Wasamaru, once the renovations next door are finished, hire a few more people, and then you can bring your sister over to report for duty."

“Well… she hasn’t actually started voice acting training yet and knows nothing about the work of a voice actor. I plan to have her go to a training center for a period of six months or a year to learn.”

"It's okay, you can come here and register first, and receive a basic salary every month. This will alleviate some of the pressure of tuition fees. At the same time, you can also practice by doing voice acting for minor roles in different anime to gain more experience."

"Is this really okay? Usually, voice actors train for a year or two before joining an agency and gradually getting opportunities."

"No problem. Rather, it's better to become famous as early as possible."

"Too."

Let's not tell that idiot the good news yet, otherwise she'll get too cocky.

Not long after Karasuma Gojō left, Watanabe Hayato knocked on the door and came in.

"President, should we allocate more funds for publicity?"

"Have we reached the publicity stage yet?" Masamune asked curiously.

Understanding that the president didn't know much about animation production, Watanabe Hayato carefully considered his words and explained:

"Due to a series of unexpected events involving Taro and several other newcomers, the V-editing was not expected to be completed until mid-June or the end of June, which is when the entire animation was finished."

"We are on a tight schedule. Although the production of all twelve episodes is proceeding at the same time, we are currently focusing on the first three episodes due to time constraints and the principle of prioritizing quality."

"In this way, even if the later episodes cannot be completed on time, we can reserve some time in advance based on the pattern of one episode being broadcast on TV every week."

"Moreover, these are all ideal scenarios; no one knows whether an accident or tomorrow will come first."

"Therefore, we need to start working on the publicity aspect now."

"The initial PV for the animation is being produced at an accelerated pace and is expected to be completed the day after tomorrow. Before that, preliminary preparations need to be made."

"No problem." Masamune nodded slightly. "I'm not very familiar with this, so just follow your plan. Approximately how much additional funding do we need?"

"My plan is to release the PV during prime time on Saturday night, and also promote it online simultaneously to generate buzz in advance. In terms of funding, I need about this amount."

Watanabe Jun produced a detailed breakdown of the funds used.

"No problem, I agree. Even the best wine needs advertising; promotion is indeed very important."

While the primary goal is to achieve high ratings, increasing sales and preparing for the next animated series is also essential.

Seeing that Masamune signed the document readily after reading it, Watanabe Hayato felt a surge of motivation.

Is this what it feels like to be rich and powerful?

Compared to the situation six years ago, where they were hesitant and had to listen to constant criticism from the original creators, resulting in an animation that could be considered a black mark on their history, original animation is definitely better.

Moreover, they have plenty of money and ample funding. Is this paradise?

Chapter Fifteen: I don't remember doing anything that would warrant resentment.

In mid-May, on the first day that the PV for "Masamune-kun's Revenge" was broadcast on television, around 7 p.m., Masamune and his young daughter's mother sat in front of the television at home as usual.

Although I've seen my work many times at the company, this is the first time I've seen it with my family.

"Ten seconds left, so exciting, so exciting..."

Hayase Kyōe stared intently at the television, clutching the landline phone in her arms.

"Why are you holding the phone so much, Mom?"

"Of course, it's to show off to everyone. Here we go, shh..."

After the commercial ended, accompanied by music, the animated character Masamune Makabe appeared on the television.

"...To be honest, I used to be fat and was bullied a lot at school..."

"And now, I'm back after I've become a handsome guy."

"That's right, my goal is to take revenge on that hateful woman—Adagaki Aki!"

As the last frame ended and the next advertisement began, Hayase Kyūe suddenly rushed over, looking at Masamune with teary eyes:

"Zongjun, I'm sorry. It's all my fault. I didn't care enough about you when you were little, which is why you were always bullied."

"No, I don't care about what happened when I was a child. Otherwise, I wouldn't have made an animation about my past and released it for everyone's amusement."

"So...did Zongjun succeed in his revenge? How did you take your revenge?"

"No, rather, there's a huge gap between reality and animation."

Masamune smiled and shook his head, then began to recount past events.

"Actually, unlike in the anime, in reality, after I escaped from the Adagaki family, I deliberately avoided that place and never saw her again..."

"Does Zong-jun like that girl?"

"No, I probably liked her when I was a kid, but now I've almost forgotten what she looks like, so I wouldn't say I liked her. The reason I made this animation is just to reminisce about my lost youth."

"Zongjun, don't cry."

“I didn’t cry either,” Masamune couldn’t help but laugh, then added, “By the way, from Mom’s perspective, how was my voice acting? Did it feel out of place?”

"Absolutely perfect!" Hayase Kyūe smiled and gave a thumbs up. "It really makes you feel Zong-kun's anger from the bottom of his heart, hehe... I'm going to call the ladies next door and brag about it, let them see how amazing Zong-kun is."

"Don't do that, it's embarrassing."

……

Meanwhile, at Adagaki's home.

Adagaki Aki didn't pay much attention to the content before the PV, only feeling that the female lead in the TV show looked somewhat like herself.