Japanese Entertainment: A Comeback Beginning from Bankrupt President

The Prime Minister was not there, but Yumi Kazama was, because this was still her recording studio.

"Alright, alright, don't hurt him," Kazama Yumi said, stopping the speechless Sawashiro Kazuya while lecturing the teenager Amano Aki. "Amano, you too, Kazuya must have his reasons for doing this. You should trust his decision."

Kazama Yumi was fine if she hadn't brought this up, but Amano Aki got really angry as soon as she did.

Because she believed in Kazuya Sawashiro's decision, she has been getting scolded for the past week. It feels like all the scolding she hadn't received in the previous twenty years has come back to haunt her.

That teacher's mouth is really...

Amano Aki admits he can teach, but it's undeniable that he's also very sharp-tongued, behaving exactly like a Showa-era remnant.

She squatted on the ground with a bitter face, muttering to herself, "Of course I believed him, otherwise I wouldn't have gotten so much scolding. That teacher is indeed very strict, but he never considered that I'm still a girl, and my ability to withstand pressure isn't actually that high..."

Only she could hear these words, but judging from her expression, Kazuya Sawashiro knew what she was muttering.

Kazuya Sawashiro himself could never forget the roar he heard that night.

Amano Aki is indeed pitiful, but that's the price of growing up.

"You've worked hard this week," Kazuya Sawashiro said, patting Aki Amano's shoulder gently. "But you can feel how much you've grown this week, so please continue to work hard for our future."

Ok?

That statement is quite ambiguous.

Amano Aki stopped muttering and turned to look at Sawashiro Kazuya, asking, "I've worked hard here. What are you doing over there? I heard from Tachibana that you've entrusted her with contacting the school."

"Contact the school?" Kazama Yumi, who had been preparing to create some alone time for the two of them, stopped in her tracks, her curious gaze falling on Sawashiro Kazuya. "What's the point of contacting the school? A singer shouldn't need classmates to help them debut, right?"

She had never heard of this.

"You're so quick to talk!" Kazuya Sawashiro glared at Aki Amano, then smiled and turned to explain, "I don't need my classmates' help with my debut, but how successful I am depends on the quality of my songs and how well I promote them. I'd like to ask my classmates who have nothing to do during summer vacation to help me with the promotion, so I asked them for help."

"Ah...I see," Kazama Yumi raised her chin, a hint of admiration flashing in her eyes. "Young people certainly have time to do these things. Do you need me to help you make connections? I know quite a few music teachers at schools."

"That's great! If Yumi-nee is willing to help, it will save me a lot of trouble," Kazuya Sawashiro replied with a smile.

It's one thing to not refuse to help, but what Kazama Yumi asked them to do after she called for help is another matter entirely.

He could easily use the same excuse he just made to have Kazama Yumi's classmates do the publicity, such as using the new song as background music to shoot short videos, or simply having them hand out tissues on the street.

Anyway, there will always be a place for them.

Why did Amano Aki speak so quickly? And when he was in trouble, he refused to help. Isn't that strange?

Judging from Amano Aki's expression, she was full of questions.

Why did he suddenly glare at her? Is he dissatisfied with her in some way? And if Kazama Yumi is helping with the publicity, then isn't Sawashiro Kazuya just standing by cheering without doing anything?

"No, no, no... This is definitely strange," Amano Aki suddenly stood up from the ground, her intelligent eyes fixed on Sawashiro Kazuya, "I did the singing, Yumi-neechan did the recording and production, the fan club handled the publicity, and Ayase-sensei wrote the lyrics and music, so what did you do?"

"Me?" Kazuya Sawashiro, who had fallen on his butt, pouted and acted cute while touching his chin. "I came up with this project and then gathered so many people to help produce the single. The 1 is preceded by a 0, and this important 0 is me."

"Huh?!" Amano Aki was so surprised his jaw dropped.

Kazuya Sawashiro was absolutely right. If it weren't for him, so many people wouldn't have shown up to support him.

From this perspective, all I need to do is learn to sing well, and it couldn't be easier!

I've heard that songwriters and composers aren't exactly known for their good tempers. I wonder how much it took for Sawashiro Kazuya to get help from others, since he rarely mentioned production costs from the beginning. Amano Aki, who was involved, knew nothing about it and even suspected that Sawashiro Kazuya was slacking off...

My bad, it turns out I was the one who had the easiest time.

"Hahaha..." Amano Aki chuckled as he pulled Sawashiro Kazuya up from the ground, surrounding him and asking him if he was alright. "How about we move you to an internet cafe with a private room? We also provide free breakfast, lunch and dinner, so you can be more comfortable in your cramped quarters."

"No."

"Don't be so polite with me. You've worked so hard, you deserve some reward," Amano Aki persisted, determined to compensate Sawashiro Kazuya in some other way. "Or how about I treat you to dinner? How about the 1000 yen Mapo Tofu set meal at a Chinese restaurant?"

Judging from her excited expression, I thought it was some kind of high-end French meal set meal costing 60,000 yen, but it turned out to be just a set meal costing 1,000 yen.

Kazuya Sawashiro refused her again: "No need. If you want to reward me, you should learn the song well in these 20 days. That way, I can use the money I earn to pay off the agency's loan, understand?"

"How much money do you owe?" Amano Aki only knew that he had debts, but he didn't know exactly how much he owed.

"Fifty million."

"..."

Amano Aki remained silent.

She's already struggling to make ends meet with 5 yuan, because Watanabe Entertainment offered her a newcomer contract, which means the agency takes 9% of the salary unconditionally. Plus, she's a newcomer, so the production team's offer to her was a package deal.

Despite being the female lead, her salary was calculated to be the same as that of an extra who spends a lot of time online. Yet, Watanabe Entertainment pocketed 9% of that fee.

Not to mention the regular company employees, even high school students who work four days a week at convenience stores earn more in a month than she does.

The firm made a fortune, but then demanded that she sell her body to serve the higher-ups. Unable to bear it any longer, Amano Akira kicked the then-department manager, only to discover afterward that he was the firm president's son. She then paid the price for her kick.

Looking back, she no longer regrets kicking him.

Her only regret was that she had dragged Sawashiro Kazuya down with her afterward. She had actually come to say goodbye that day, but after hearing Sawashiro Kazuya's words, "Beat Watanabe Entertainment to a pulp," she felt, for the first time in a long time, that she was a living person and that her blood was hot.

"We owe a lot..." Amano Aki spoke again, but she was no longer as mischievous as before, and had become a passionate girl. "But it's okay. As long as we work together, we will definitely be able to pay off the debt soon."

"Don't overthink it. If you don't practice your singing well, I'll beat you up." Kazuya Sawashiro waved his fist, reminding the inexplicably hot-blooded Aki Amano.

When faced with a passionate young woman, the most direct way to teach her a lesson is to use your fists.

If there is one, it must be a pair of fists.

"No, no, no... I'll practice properly, okay?"