Tokyo: Oreimo

Ryosuke continued.

"Of course, please follow me."

Hayakawa Rumi led the way, and Ryosuke stood up, took one last look at the tracker in his hand, and stuffed it into his backpack.

The important business is done; it's time to go and complete Mother's task.

Go check if the figure you saw when you got off the elevator was just an illusion.

Chapter 5 Grievance

In the meeting room of the manga editing department at Kadokawa Pictures.

Takashiro Ryou sat anxiously at one corner of the conference table, with an older woman wearing glasses sitting opposite her.

The other party was her editor, Iori Setsuna. From self-recommendation to signing the contract to the animation adaptation, everything was handled by the other party.

"Ling Nai, I don't know where you heard these rumors, but you know me. I went against everyone's opinions to sign your self-recommended work and gave you the highest standard per-copy fee. You agree with that, right?"

"But... Editor Iori, a friend told me that works that get animated should receive copyright revenue, and I even saw a Moon Witch doll in a shopping mall in Shinjuku..."

Takashiro Ryouko also hesitated, unsure whether she should question the editor who had been guiding her.

Moreover, she did indeed earn a considerable income because of him, even more than her father, Takashiro Isamu, a detective in the Public Security Bureau, earned in a whole year.

"Is your friend an industry insider? She might not understand at all. You're a newcomer, so you're already very lucky to receive this kind of treatment."

Iori Setsuna put her arm around her shoulder and spoke softly.

“She’s my classmate. She works part-time as a model, and she came with me this time.”

What? An outsider.

Iori breathed a sigh of relief.

Seriously, I'm speechless. The comic's storyline is almost finished, and now they're coming to demand an explanation. Since they've already signed a contract, they should fulfill it properly. Kids are such a hassle.

If it's a written agreement, an adult should swallow the bitter pill at this point and honestly dedicate themselves to the cause of comics.

"She must be jealous of you, so she said some hurtful things to try and sow discord between us."

"Impossible, Liuli isn't that kind of person!"

Takashiro Ryouno suddenly raised her voice, and her tone became somewhat displeased.

I stepped on a landmine.

Iori's smile froze on her face. She never expected that this little girl would react so strongly to just one sentence.

"My friend would never lie to me. I demand a new contract. Editor Iori, forget about the previous one, but you must pay me the copyright fees you are owed for the rest of the contract!"

Ling Nai adopted a fierce stance and glared at him.

"Kids will be kids, so childish and troublesome."

Iori Setsuna took off the glasses hanging on the bridge of her nose and casually tossed them onto the conference table.

"Who are you calling a child? I'm a high school student!"

The other person's tone made Takashiro Ryouno very unhappy.

What?! I'm about to go to high school, and I've already earned so much money through my own efforts.

He actually called himself childish!?

"Shut up! Stop talking!"

Iori Setsuna slammed her hand on the conference room table, the loud noise immediately stopping Takashiro Ryouno, who was about to continue her attack.

"You signed the contract, how can it be changed so easily? You should learn your lesson and swallow it. Coming here to cause trouble will not do you any good!"

Iori Setsuna's tone was stern, with a hint of mockery in her smile.

This isn't 'overseas'. Now that we've entered the industry and signed the terms, they're legally binding. The copyright of the work 'Moon Witch Transformation' is no longer related to the author.

Even if the other party is a minor, going through legal channels will yield the same result.

"you!"

Takashiro Ryouko gritted her teeth in anger, her hair falling over her shoulders trembling.

"Just as Liuli said, you deliberately signed this contract for me."

"So what? As a complete newcomer, you should be grateful to get a contract like this. At least you've earned a considerable income from Kadokawa in the past year and a half, haven't you?"

Iori Setsuna was a little tired and didn't want to play house with Takagi Ryouno anymore.

"Finish drawing the rest of 'Moon Witch Transformation,' and I'll apply to the editorial department to give you a larger royalty payment. As for revising the contract, don't even think about it!"

"asshole!"

Takashiro Ryouno never expected that the editor who had always maintained the image of a caring older sister in front of her was actually this kind of person.

But she had no way to deal with the other party.

Liuli once said that if the other party is unwilling to amend the contract, then try to play the victim, gain sympathy, and try to get more benefits back.

But Takashiro Ryouno just couldn't bring herself to say it.

She couldn't bring herself to bow to the female editor before her, whose facade had been stripped away to reveal her true, fanged nature.

An impasse occurred in the meeting room.

Compared to Takashiro Ryouno's anger, Iori Setsuna was quite relaxed, looking like she had her cornered.

She's just a little girl who got lucky and created this piece of art, yet she dares to yell at her.

Today I'm going to teach her a lesson and make her understand the importance of respecting elders and juniors.

If she's willing to apologize, Iori wouldn't mind taking pity on her and giving her more royalties.

After all, it was thanks to the other party's foolish signing of the contract that she had the opportunity to get the attention of the editor-in-chief and even have her name remembered by the film's executives.

If this manga successfully concludes, given the current trend of anime adaptations, it will definitely be popular for a long time.

With this work, she will definitely be able to secure her position as deputy editor-in-chief.

The stalemate lasted for five minutes. Iori watched as Takashiro Ryouno went from excitement to anger, and then from anger to grievance, her eyes beginning to glisten.

She didn't feel sorry for the other person; on the contrary, she was extremely pleased.

It has to be me. I can handle her so easily. Kids' psychological defenses are so fragile.

Fortunately, she's just a child. If she were a reckless young person who stopped updating her comics at this stage, she would be in real trouble.

After a brief stalemate, Takashiro Ryouno could no longer contain her grievances, and large tears streamed down her face.

He then walked silently toward the exit of the conference room.

"Think it over carefully, young lady. I hope you can bring the remaining manuscript of 'Moon Witch Transformation' when we meet next time."

As she was leaving, Iori Setsuna's laughter was like a sharp knife, causing Takagi Ryouno a sharp pain, and she fled the conference room as if escaping.

.....

The conference room door was pushed open, and Takashiro Ryouno ran away without looking, but she didn't expect someone to be standing at the door, and she bumped into him.

"Ouch!" came a soft cry of slight pain from the other side.

"sorry."

Takashiro Ryouno subconsciously apologized, tears still on her face, and looked up to meet someone's gaze.

"Oh, what a coincidence."

The voices came from Takashiro Ryosuke and Hayakawa Rumi, who had been waiting at the door for a long time.

The two of them had been eavesdropping for a while.

He rubbed his chest, marveling at how stubborn his stepsister was.

"What are you doing here?" Takashiro Ryou quickly wiped away her tears and glared at him fiercely.

Before Ryosuke could speak again, she strode towards the elevator lobby.

Golden hair tips drifted past Ryosuke, carrying a fragrance.

"Damn it, of all people I hate have to see me like this."

Ryosuke Takashiro grew angrier and angrier, and then burst into tears again. It wasn't until the elevator doors closed that Ryosuke's gaze left her face.

"This is outrageous! How can they bully a young girl like this?"

Hayakawa Rumi's expression was somewhat complicated; she even felt ashamed because she was also an employee of Kadokawa Pictures.

"Yes," Ryosuke's light voice came through, "He's a little angry."

Hayakawa Rumi looked over curiously, "Is he an acquaintance of Shigizawa-sensei?"

Judging from Takashiro Ryōno's previous reaction, the two obviously know each other.

Could they be classmates?

Hayakawa Rumi thought to herself.

"We both share the surname Gao Cheng."

"Huh?"

Before Hayakawa Rumi could react, Takashiro Ryosuke pushed open the conference room door, just in time to run into Iori Setsuna, who was organizing documents and preparing to leave.

"Who are you? Who gave you permission to enter the meeting room? Are you newcomers so ignorant of the rules?"

Iori Setsuna's expression darkened, and stern words slipped out.

Hayakawa Rumi looked embarrassed and almost couldn't help but bow and apologize. The other party was the editor in charge of the manga department, who was about to be promoted to deputy editor-in-chief, which was already a foregone conclusion.

As a newcomer, even someone like Setsuna Iori from the next department, would have to greet her first.

However, the conversation she had just overheard made her somewhat reluctant, and she hesitated to greet them.

Ryosuke Takagi smiled, walked up to the other person, and extended his right hand.

"Hello, let me introduce myself. My name is Ryosuke Takagi, and I am Ryōno Takagi's older brother."