My daily life in various anime crossovers can't possibly be this sci-fi.

"Seriously, you guys are like animated characters living in the real world!"

"This...this kind of cat!" Rin Hoshizora exclaimed in shock, "Even someone like Rin...is like this..."

"Nonsense!" Jiang Jinghua became more agitated than ever before. "Have you ever seen a mentally sound person constantly using verbal tics like 'meow'... Ah, sorry, Lin, I didn't mean that..."

“We can see that,” Eri said. “Jiang-kun, you’re just saying that Rin’s personality has many admirable qualities compared to ordinary people, right?”

“Ah, yes, that’s exactly what I mean,” Jiang Jinghua said. “Even when you don’t need to pretend at all, your personalities are still quite exaggerated and distinct.”

"Let's get back to our previous topic. Since the most important thing for idols is their persona, then the most important promotional work for idols is to get the public to accept that persona. To this end, besides songs, you must also show your image to the public in every aspect of your lives. What kind of girls are you? What are your hobbies? What are your views on life, the world, and values? What kind of life do you lead every day...?"

“In that case…” Umi’s expression turned somewhat grim, “It feels… a bit like we’ve been placed on a glass shelf for public display…”

“That’s right,” Jiang Jinghua said coldly. “Haiwei, you’ve got the point.”

"To 'sell' one's own image as a commodity to others. That is the true essence of the idol profession."

……

No one speaks.

"Therefore, in order to create an image that can be sold as a product, I came up with the idea of ​​a 'cross-media idol project'. I firmly believe that this is a plan that can give full play to your strengths and will be of great benefit to your future development."

what

Chapter 83: Jiang Jinghua Lets Himself Go Free

"Um, can I ask a question?" Minami Kotori raised her hand. "Since Jinghua-kun has said so much, could you summarize your thoughts on idols in a few short sentences?"

"Ah, of course."

Jiang Jinghua lowered his head and supported it with his hands.

“Idols are the most adept at touching people’s hearts in the world,” Jiang Jinghua said softly. “They are shrewd and cunning chameleons, who know their surroundings like the back of their hand. No matter the circumstances, they can always show the world their most glamorous side. Their every move, every word, every smile seems to have an irresistible power. They are good at manipulating the psychology of the masses, making everyone willingly give their all, whether it is emotional or material. And the reward they give in return is only one ten-millionth of what they give in return.”

As if his spine had been removed, Jiang Jinghua slowly slumped down and collapsed onto the table.

"They are the masterpieces of the far-reaching modern entertainment industry, exquisite tools for absorbing wealth and success... They are the shepherds, and we are the lambs... No, at best, they are just sheepdogs. The real 'shepherd'... has always been that most terrifying dictator in the world, called 'capital'."

"...Capitalism does not believe in miracles."

……

About half a minute later, Jiang Jinghua finally sat up from the table again.

“…I don’t know what possessed me just now.” Jiang Jinghua scratched his head. “Uh, please don’t mind those strange words. Let’s continue talking about the publicity…”

According to Jiang Jinghua's plan, he would start with a light novel depicting the daily lives and development of μ's. In this industry dominated by moe (cute/moe) themes, this type of novel is actually not uncommon, and there are quite a few successful examples. In this way, μ's in the real world and the virtual world can achieve a positive interaction and promote each other.

With its popularity gradually rising, the next step should be to release comics. After all, images are often more effective at evoking emotions in the public than words.

"...Although I said a lot of strange things before, you don't actually need to do anything special," Jiang Jinghua said. "You just need to live your lives as before. What I need to do is record your real days, process them a little, and present the best aspects to everyone."

“You are ‘school idols,’ which means that the so-called dark state of the industry has little to do with you. Moreover, being an idol is just a side job for you, after all, aren’t you all spellcasters?” Jiang Jinghua lowered his voice.

"Yeah, that's true!" Honoka nodded in agreement. "The most important thing about being an idol is to be happy! While making everyone happy, you also have to be happy yourself!"

"Just keep this mindset." Jiang Jinghua nodded with a smile.

After that, everyone discussed a lot of technical details before starting the training on job skills.

As for Jiang Jinghua, since it was obvious that he couldn't join the ranks of those working, he wandered around the area, observing everyone's rehearsals.

Like him, the one who is relatively free is Minami Kotori, who is already very experienced.

The other seven were already busy at work. Some were practicing various terms needed for front-of-house work, some were learning how to assist with simple food preparation, and others were practicing odd jobs like washing dishes...

They were as energetic as ever, and it was great that they weren't affected by their own inexplicable words.

Just then, Jiang Jinghua suddenly realized something was wrong: his recent situation was very similar to what he had experienced in the other dimension. Both times, he had inexplicably been overwhelmed by negative emotions. However, there were some differences: he hadn't had any strange dreams yesterday; in fact, his sleep quality had been quite good these past few days.

So, what's the reason this time...?

Jiang Jinghua took out his phone, intending to use the antimetacatalysts stored in the phone to perform some simple self-treatment.

He hated the feeling of not being able to control his own mind.

After about five minutes of the simple self-check process, Jiang Jinghua noticed that Nan Qinli had suddenly ended her conversation with someone from μ's and quietly moved closer to him.

"Lord Jinghua, may I come out for a moment?" Qinli asked softly.

"Of course. Kotori, what did you want to see me about?"

Jiang Jinghua was led by Qin Li to the back door of the shop. After leaving the shop through the back door, they came to a relatively narrow open space. Unlike the bustling street outside, there was no one there.

After Jiang Jinghua stopped, he looked at Qin Li in front of him.

She was looking down slightly, her long eyelashes like a veil of smoke, making her amber eyes appear blurry.

“You just said some strange things, like ‘capitalism doesn’t believe in miracles’ and such.” Nan Qinli raised her head and looked directly at Jiang Jinghua with her beautiful eyes. “Although I don’t understand what those things mean, I can sense that you must have been quite indignant and painful when you said those things. I even think that emotion could be called ‘hatred’.”

"Um, if I may ask, did something unpleasant come to mind?" Minami Kotori asked. "If so, are those 'unpleasant things' related to your idol?"

“No, that’s not true.” Jiang Jinghua shook his head. “Do you remember when I was in the other dimension, I did a self-examination according to the Foundation’s standard procedures? At that time, I found that I might have some mental problems caused by illusions or memes. I think the reason I said those things just now might be because of that.”

"Is that so? In that case, it's essential to get treatment as soon as possible." Minami Kotori nodded.

She gently bit her lower lip, clasped her hands together at her waist, and rubbed her fingers together gently.

"Perhaps it is indeed because of illusion magic, but apart from that, I hope that if you really have something that makes you unhappy, you must tell us. After all, we should be considered friends, right?" Minami Kotori smiled. "These things should never be kept to yourself."

"It's not that I don't want to talk, it's just that there's really nothing to say..."

That's the absolute truth. Even Jiang Jinghua himself doesn't understand why he said those things just now.

It took about fifteen minutes to transmit, and this is how it turned out.

Anyway, this book's been dead for ages, so it's no big deal if I just do a little bit of work on it, right?

The title of Chapter 84, Section 84, was mistakenly written as "hamburger meat".

“If there’s really nothing to say, that would be for the best.” Minami Kotori laughed. “Well, we’re supposed to be an idol group that brings smiles to everyone… If even someone like Jinghua-kun, who’s right next to us, has a long face every day, then we’ll lose face.”

"Yeah, don't worry," Jiang Jinghua said. "I'm not unhappy, I just have a bit of a mental illness that comes and goes intermittently."

"Huh! Doesn't that sound even worse?" Minami Kotori laughed.

……

Meanwhile, inside the store.

"Huh? Chuunibyou? What's that, meow?" Rin Hoshizora asked curiously as she neatly arranged the washed dishes from the sink on the table. "Is there such a thing as 'chuunibyou'?"

"Um... Rin-chan, do you know about 'chuunibyou'?" Honoka said. "You know, some people around the second year of middle school suddenly develop a very strong sense of self-identity, like 'this world is mine now,' 'I'm different from everyone else, I'm the chosen one...' Uh, never mind, it's the same for both men and women, that's the feeling, right? And another typical symptom is that you feel for no reason that the world is very dark and very dangerous... that feeling?"

"Oh! So, you think Senior Jiang is a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) patient because what he just said was so negative, meow?" Hoshizora Rin suddenly realized.

“No, I think that guy’s condition is more like a high school sophomore’s syndrome than chuunibyou.” Nishikino Maki, who was cutting ingredients, shook her head. “That deep-seated inferiority complex left a very deep impression on me.”

“…While that’s one way to look at it, as spellcasters, we must take certain ‘abnormal factors’ into account.” It was Ayase Eli, who was practicing cleaning the stove nearby, who calmly offered this opinion. “If it’s due to some kind of meme…then it’s probably something we can’t help with.”

"In that case... we need to think of a way."

Tojo Nozomi put down her tools and stood in the middle of the group of people who were working.

"Let's first confirm the main objective of this operation," hope said with her signature beaming smile. "The objective is to make Lord Jinghua more confident in his own attitude. Does anyone have any objections?"

"No!" the other seven answered.

"Then, let's take this goal as a starting point and discuss the means needed to achieve it."

The crowd began to whisper amongst themselves.

Of everyone, the first to speak was Nishikino Maki.

She took a deep breath and surveyed the other seven people with her calm, pale purple eyes, her delicate face radiating a serious and solemn expression.

"Please listen to my opinion first." She slowly raised her hand and began to speak. "I... talked to him about this when we were in another dimension. Based on what I know about him so far... the reason he feels inferior is entirely because... he has never tried to understand what value he has to others."

Yes, that's true.

On that clear, moonlit night, the image of a lone boy walking on a foreign beach once again surfaced deep within her heart.

Questioning one's own value and meaning—that is the worst and most unforgivable mistake.

Maki Nishikino can proudly declare that in the past fifteen years of her life, she has never spent even a single second wondering about pointless questions like "Where will my future lead?" It is precisely for this reason that, putting herself in Jiang Jinghua's shoes, she feels both pity for his misfortune and anger at his lack of ambition.

Her chest, wrapped in pure white fabric, began to rise and fall visibly with each deep breath, and her fists, hanging at her waist, were clenched so tightly they seemed to be able to squeeze water out of them.

A blush appeared on her cheeks: not from shyness, but from the excitement of her emotions.

“…To resolve this situation, I think the most effective way is to ‘do something.’” Maki Nishikino looked up. “Let that guy join our team and do something with us…whether it’s preparing for the upcoming qualifiers or something like his so-called ‘cross-media idol project’…in short, we must work together towards a goal and achieve it perfectly.”

"I think this method is probably the most effective way to make that damn pretentious guy realize that he is someone's partner, right?"

"This is my opinion. What do you all think?"

After a brief silence.

The first to break the silence was Honoka Kousaka.

"That makes a lot of sense, Maki!" Honoka's hands began clapping rapidly at an extremely high frequency, producing a series of dense clapping sounds like cannon fire. "Alright, let's do it that way!"

“The Love Live! preliminary rounds are starting soon, so this is a perfect solution.” Koizumi Hanayo nodded in agreement. “Then let’s do it this way!”

"Alright, meow! Then, let's begin the battle immediately..."

"What kind of operation?"

Unbeknownst to them, Jiang Jinghua had already returned to the shop through the back door and was looking at the other eight people who had suddenly become excited with a puzzled expression.

"Ahahaha, it's nothing, it's nothing..."

Everyone reacted quite quickly: some people quickly returned to their work stations, some started chatting about unimportant topics, and as for Hoshizora Rin, who couldn't find a place to pretend to work or anyone to chat with... she just stood there whistling nonchalantly, like a character from a medieval comedy anime.

……

What are they doing...?

Jiang Jinghua looked at the eight people who were trying to cover up their misdeeds and felt a mix of amusement and exasperation.