I Am an Emperor in a World of Mixed Anime

With Higashino Akira's direct affirmation, Kawasaki Saki's face flushed red, and she instantly shed her aloof facade, becoming soft and sweet. She looked at the man in disbelief and stammered out a non-aggressive and somewhat illogical rebuttal.

So cute!

"Without a doubt, I have feelings for you, Saki Kawasaki."

“If you continue like this, even if I keep it a secret, working day and night will only lead to one result: you will not only lose your studies, but your health may also be ruined, making your family’s already difficult financial situation even worse.”

"So, shall we make a deal?"

Kawasaki Saki was clearly still a bit taken aback by this turn of events. "What?"

Akira Higashino looked at her and said seriously, "Sell your life to me."

"Become one of mine, and you can still go to school, make friends, and no longer worry your family. You won't be exhausted every day, you can contribute money to your household expenses, and you can go out to sing, shop, and enjoy delicious food with your friends."

Chapter Six: Imperial Conferment of the Title of Talented Lady

"what!"

Upon hearing this, the blue-haired girl with the ponytail instantly bristled, her ponytail almost sticking up.

"How much determination did you have to say that! You're just an ordinary student, not much older than me, and you're dressed very plainly. Can you really take responsibility for someone else's life?!"

"Don't ask for things you can't do!"

"This is outrageous! You're so selfish, all you ever think about is yourself!"

Higashino Akira waited quietly for Kawasaki Saki to speak before nodding and affirming, "I can do it."

Saki Kawasaki was taken aback by what she heard.

Akira Higashino got up, took the girl's hand, and led her out of the store. They found the nearest ATM and withdrew 300,000 yen in cash, which he then placed in Saki Kawasaki's hand.

"Obviously, I can do it."

His tone was calm, without any sense of pride or joy at having outshone the girl; he was simply stating a fact.

"For you, the pressure of fate that can push you into a corner and make you struggle desperately to find a way out is nothing more than drinking poison to quench your thirst. For me, it is not heavy or a burden."

"Just like no one would think that encountering a cute little stray cat on the street and spending a little money to buy some food to feed it would bankrupt them."

"Please think of this as a buyout job that you can't quit. I can give you a monthly salary of 300,000 yen, which will increase with seniority. You don't need to feel ashamed of this. I'm just exchanging my surplus for your time and even your health. But at least I will care about your health. You don't need to worry about being laid off by me one day after you lose your value."

"The job is to learn to do things like a girlfriend would do with a lover, and then not to think about getting promoted or moving up the ladder."

"You can also claim to be lovers in public. If conditions allow and time permits, I will help you cover it up so that you won't feel embarrassed."

Kawasaki Saki opened her mouth, her voice slightly hoarse, "What's the difference between this and being lovers?"

“After graduating from school and entering the workforce, you think you can have a 9-to-5 job and enjoy a pleasant weekend rest. But in reality, you have to work overtime and compete fiercely to keep your job. You use your meager salary to buy cigarettes, alcohol, and coffee to keep yourself awake and prolong your life. In the end, you wear down your health and get laid off. How is that any different from being a slave?” Higashino Akira asked rhetorically.

Reality is not so wonderful. The concept of enjoying life is usually not for the general public. The only thing that ordinary people can decide is whether they choose to be slaves or are forced to be slaves.

300,000 yen? Not much.

It's roughly equivalent to a month's salary for an average wage earner. It's enough for Kawasaki Saki's family to maintain a decent standard of living for a month. It's the money she saved by working day and night for more than two months without eating or drinking at several part-time jobs. It's enough to enroll in a good tutoring class and receive tutoring in a subject under the guidance of an experienced tutor.

All of this was within her grasp, but at the cost of her own life.

The naive pride of a young girl and her yearning for the beauty of love made Saki Kawasaki want to directly refuse, but the cold reality made the words of refusal well up in her heart, but she couldn't bring herself to say them.

For a moment, Kawasaki Saki was somewhat lost in thought as she stared at the banknotes in her hand.

Higashino Akira noticed her wavering, but he did not despise her silence, because he was not a noble person, nor was he worthy of despising a girl who was not selling her life out of vanity or promiscuity.

He was just a despicable realist, driven by self-interest and a preference for efficiency and control.

Therefore, when he discovered that even the average person in the crossover anime world was quite good-looking, but their luck level often couldn't reach the blue stage of the system's judgment standard, he quickly narrowed down his hunting range to the characters in the anime he had watched, selected suitable prey, took the initiative, and captured her in the most time-saving and effortless way.

He took her hand again and led her away. Kawasaki Saki did not resist, but her tired face was filled with heaviness and uncertainty about the future.

The hotel, a moment of spring night is worth a thousand pieces of gold, several times the fish and dragon dance, the sudden rain has just stopped.

Looking at the girl lying in his arms, her pretty face tired and her brows furrowed as she slept soundly, Higashino Akira gently tucked the blanket around her.

"Kawasaki Saki was granted the title of Junior Talent."

[Consumes 1000 Qi]

"Observing the Qi (vital energy)."

[Consumes 100 Luck]

[Name: Saki Kawasaki]

[Official Rank: Talented Person without a formal rank]

[Fortune: Deep Purple]

After the imperial decree was completed, the concentration of Kawasaki Saki's fortune, which was originally only light purple, changed, but unfortunately it did not reach the gold level.

[As emperor, please appoint a concubine within three days to appease the people. Completing this task will reward you with an extra chance to draw a "Talented Advisor" item.]

[Current progress: Completed]

After adding Kawasaki Saki, who possesses purple luck, to your harem, the reward you receive in the main quest "Branching Out" is +3000 luck and +30000 money per day.

That's 900,000 yen a month. Even after giving 300,000 yen to Kawasaki Saki, there's still 600,000 yen left.

This amount of money is considerable, but compared to the snowballing expansion that can be achieved by simply buying land, branching out is far too troublesome. After all, this isn't a doujinshi or adult fiction world. Anime production needs to convey truth, goodness, and beauty, especially in school-themed anime. Most characters, while not necessarily wealthy, are also relatively few in dire need of money. Those who might go astray due to financial problems are ultimately a minority.

It's unrealistic to think you can build a harem of high-quality anime beauties by spending money, and it's even less worthwhile to spend a lot of time and energy trying to win them over emotionally.

Why talk about feelings when money can solve everything? Once feelings are involved, just look at how much money Wang Duoyu spent to win over Xia Zhu.

[Emperor: Akira Higashino]

[Spirit: 9]

[Constitution: 6]

[Fortune: Red (300)]

[Authority: Astrological observation, imperial decree]

[Land area: 100.3 square meters]

[Harem: 1]

If we also include the daily rewards for the current progress of the expansion main quest, that's a net monthly income of 900,000 yen. With this money, it becomes much easier to carry out many things and plans.

Just as he was pondering this, a phone rang, interrupting Higashino Akira's thoughts.

Kawasaki Saki, who had been fast asleep, was also awakened by the familiar ringtone of her cell phone. She looked at the man beside her with complicated eyes, and couldn't help but feel her cheeks burning slightly.

She didn't know if she had lost her mind or what, but she actually agreed to something she had never imagined before.

But this man is young and handsome enough that he at least doesn't make her feel too disgusted or repulsed in this respect.

"There's still a long time before checkout, why don't you rest a bit longer?"

While you might say he cares about people, there's not much special warmth in his eyes; he's just consistently calm.

Kawasaki Saki avoided his gaze, groped around on the bed following the sound of the phone, and whispered, "I have a phone."

Chapter Seven: Liang, Paying Homage to the Lord

Kawasaki Saki answered the incessantly ringing phone without making any attempt to avoid Higashino Akira.

Then, Higashino Akira heard a familiar voice on her phone. It was Hiratsuka Shizuka calling to ask Kawasaki Saki why she was skipping school without a reason. Kawasaki Saki gave a vague answer, saying she was feeling unwell.

It turns out that Higashino Akira learned from Hiratsuka Shizuka that she was currently the homeroom teacher of Class F in the second year of Sobu High School. After hearing her complain about the bizarre essays of the students in her class, and that this year's students were even more difficult to manage than when he was in school, he realized that he was at a certain point in the Oregairu storyline, which is why he approached Kawasaki Saki.

After Kawasaki Saki hung up the phone, she felt embarrassed to continue observing the man beside her. Leaving directly would seem too immature, and she was also too tired, so she could only turn around, close her eyes, and shrink into the blanket like an ostrich.

Even so, the subconscious tingling sensation where her body touched the other person, along with the lingering afterglow of her first experience, still made her feel waves of shame.

"Quit those part-time jobs after that. With me here, you don't need to get stuck in these repetitive jobs that don't offer growth opportunities."

Kawasaki Saki bit her lip, trying to suppress the strange pleasure that almost made her moan as those large hands stroked her lower abdomen and even gently kneaded her upper body. She responded in a muffled, low voice, "Mmm."

"If you're content with just having enough to eat and wear each month, then there's no need to work harder. But if you want to increase your salary here as soon as possible, I suggest you don't give up on learning. The salary level and growth potential of college students and high school students are different, and this is true even in the outside world."

"I like to see you working hard, so if you can get into university and increase your self-worth, I will be happy to add value to your worth."

"Perhaps one day, if you are capable enough, you can become my assistant and receive additional bonuses on top of your fixed salary."

Akira Higashino's words are very realistic, and there is nothing false about them. He doesn't want to taint a perfectly good, simple, and material relationship with the uncertainty of emotions.

But this method of communication.

Surprisingly, sweet words without any material basis made Kawasaki Saki feel more at ease and more recognized than flattery.

Kawasaki Saki didn't say anything more, but huddled even closer to Higashino Akira.

Young bodies are always full of vitality and will inevitably attract attention. Higashino Akira is no exception. He also has desires, and at the peak of his youth, he is not lacking in either desire or physical ability. However, when faced with a young girl who is new to sex, he may not understand romance, but he can still be tender and gentle.

At least for Akira Higashino, Saki Kawasaki is definitely not a consumable item; at the very least, she is a collectible that may have considerable potential for appreciation.

Until Kawasaki Saki gradually fell asleep again, Higashino Akira did not make any further progress.

In the evening, Saki Kawasaki slowly woke up. Although she was still feeling unwell, the fatigue from working long hours and juggling multiple jobs day and night was gone. She felt refreshed and her complexion was much rosier.

She skipped class all day today, and Ms. Hiratsuka even called her cell phone. Her family probably knows she skipped class too, which is quite different from when she usually sleeps in class.

To avoid worrying her family, after taking a shower and getting dressed at the hotel, Kawasaki Saki exchanged contact information and hurriedly left.

Higashino Akira checked out alone, and as darkness fell, he leisurely left, heading away from the crowds, and disappeared into a dark alleyway where there were no security cameras or other people around.

"This is it, take it."

As soon as he finished speaking, a large number of light spots appeared out of thin air, gathered in front of Higashino Akira, and gradually condensed into a human shape.

In a moment, the light dimmed and disappeared, revealing a figure inside.

"Two memorials repay three visits, a pair of memorials are enough for a thousand autumns."

"Liang greets his lord."

The familiar Mandarin reached my ears.

"Prime Minister, please rise! No need for such formalities!" Dongye Ming quickly stepped forward and helped the other man to a proper position.

It's stable, everything is stable!

The gold medal was awarded immediately, marking a historic peak!

He's still an all-around genius. Zhuge Liang looks like a middle-aged man, and with modern medical technology, he can work for at least several more decades!