Tokyo: Starting with taking on his wife's debts

"How's your boss?" Hideaki pointed to Riko, who was busy behind the cashier, and then asked, "Is she your boss?"

"Excuse me, sir, this is my first day at work, I don't know anything. Please buy a bento box! It's really cheap."

As Chieko spoke, she didn't forget to pack a bento for another customer. Suddenly, she felt that Hideaki was acting strangely; was this the kind of question she could answer?

"How much does she pay you? Is it enough to live on?"

"I'm sorry, sir, I'm still in my probationary period and don't know anything about this. Please buy a bento box instead!"

This person's question is so strange... Eri-chan said that Mr. Hideaki might be secretly observing me... and also said that Mr. Hideaki is very tall and handsome... Could it be him?

"I'll go inside and take a look." Xiuming went into the store.

Chieko glanced back curiously.

Riko, behind the cashier, smiled with delight at the man.

"really……"

Chieko's heart was pounding; she didn't know if she had passed the test.

I'll ask Eri-chan again later what Hideaki-san's personality is like, what he likes... I really need this job.

"Hey," Eri ran around the shelves, slipped out of Hideaki's blind spot, and quietly stood next to Chieko, asking in a low voice, "What did he say to you?"

In Eri's eyes, Chieko was a standard beauty, with a delicate, sickly beauty.

Riko only shows this feeling when she feels wronged. The way Hideaki treats Riko, Chieko's words definitely hit Hideaki's aesthetic point.

Come over and check the results, see if there's any hint at anything, after all, he's the male protagonist of an hentai anime.

"It seems they only asked if my salary was enough to live on..."

"I get it! He wants to..."

"What are you talking about?" Before Eri could finish speaking, Hideaki walked over and then headed towards the massage room. "Eri, come in for a moment."

"Okay!" Eri replied, quickly following after them, then turned back to give Chieko a fist bump, "Go for it!"

The massage room was brightly lit, and the heavy burgundy curtains hanging on the glass wall had been drawn, allowing a clear view of the intersection and everyone passing by.

On the beige tatami mat, there were two large denim backpacks, round and bulging.

"Whose is this?" Hideaki sat on the tatami mat and patted the backpack, which seemed to contain clothes and a blanket.

“Chieko,” Eri said, sitting on the massage bed. “Debt collectors keep coming to harass her, so she’s afraid to stay at home.”

Chieko's parents-in-law and in-laws are all under seventy years old, still capable of taking care of themselves, and can even help her look after the children. Because the police had been called multiple times, the debt collectors couldn't find the responsible party, and since it was a very close-knit residential area, they didn't dare to be too outrageous.

Of course, Chieko didn't dare stay in such a bright and spacious massage room. Instead, she temporarily stayed in Ayako's office, which was partitioned off, meaning she lived next door.

I had just picked up my luggage when the busy lunchtime arrived, so I left it here for the time being.

"Alright!" Xiuming nodded casually.

I just asked Riko, and she seems quite satisfied with Chieko.

When Hideaki saw how thin Chieko was, he felt like he could crush her bones with a single squeeze. Riko would also get angry.

As for personality and work ability, only time will tell.

Suddenly I thought of her clothes. The store didn't have uniforms for the staff yet, but Ayako's studio next door had a lot of beautiful and high-end fabrics.

He continued, "If you have time, use your drawing skills to design a set of uniforms for our store, and then give them to Ayako. Don't design the kind of erotic stuff you have at home."

"Okay, okay," Eri said, her face flushed. "Can't you just forget about it all? I only bought it to find inspiration."

The first season of her adult anime is already in the works, and she has already received a copyright fee of 30 yen. If it becomes a hit later on, the copyright fee for the second season will be increased.

Paying off a debt of 60 yen is incredibly easy.

That heartless woman, Ezaki, only lent me 10 yen, but she bleeds me dry of 50 yen. I'm going to draw her ruthlessly, have Hideaki turn her into all sorts of shapes, and torture her in every way possible, yet she still begs me not to break up with her.

"You agreed too readily, I'm not comfortable with that. What kind of comic uses those kinds of erotic clothes for inspiration? You're not going to draw me into a hentai anime, are you?"

"I'm a girl!" Eri exclaimed, her eyes wide and her fists clenched. "I have a sense of shame! If you keep slandering me like this, I'll sue you! Hey? Isn't this ugly guy Shota?"

Outside the mirrored glass curtain wall, Shota, dressed in a blue suit, white shirt, with hair wax and black leather shoes, was leaning over the mirror, picking at his teeth with his fingers. There was a fish bone stuck between his teeth, which he couldn't remove. Sticky saliva and blood dripped onto his hand, and he looked pained.

"Go and call him in."

"Okay!"

Eri's decisive manner made Hideaki even more suspicious that her comics were not serious. Oh well, with her inconsistent creative work, she probably wouldn't be able to produce any masterpieces.

Outside the curtain wall, Shota was still picking at his teeth.

Eri stood next to him, giving him a look as if he were trash, and said, "Hey! Don't be disgusting here, okay?"

When Shota entered the Tokyo Financial Center building that morning, he also bought a pen at the supermarket. The two had already met and successfully become enemies from the bottom of their hearts.

If you want Shota to cooperate, simply inviting him won't work.

Shota's pained expression vanished instantly, replaced by a look of disdain. "What right does a woman without dignity have to look down on me? Get lost!"

"You still want to get something for nothing, you piece of trash."

“You’re the one selling it, aren’t you? I’m just trying to save money.” Shota continued picking at his teeth without any regard for his image, but still couldn’t get it out. “Give my game console to someone else. Go away, I don’t want to talk to you.”

“The man who plays your game console is inside,” Eri pointed to the mirrored glass curtain wall. “He’s going to invest in a game development studio.”

"Game development?" Shota suddenly turned his head.

“He can go to the bubble bath shop every day, while you have to save up money and swear that you, this piece of trash, will never be able to go there in your entire life.”

After saying that, Eri turned and left.

Shota pulled out his resume from his pocket: programmer, game developer... His expression changed repeatedly, and he gritted his teeth and followed.

Xiuming watched the whole thing from inside, but he couldn't tell what was being said just by looking at the lip movements, so he could only wait quietly.

A moment later, Eri called out, "I need to help out outside," and then didn't come in.

Shota came in.

A brief self-introduction, since I had already met him at Eri's house before.

Shota's expression wasn't good when he looked at Hideaki; he seemed to have a sense of being cheated, like "you played my game console."

Since he had been clicking his teeth and not saying a word since he came in, Hideaki had no choice but to start with an opening remark: "I heard from Ezaki that you are a top student at the Kyoto Computer Academy?"

“You played my game console,” Shota said, clicking his tongue.

"Oh!" Xiuming nodded, then asked, "Do you have a job now?"

"You played my game console."

"Okay! Go to the cashier and ask Riko for a toothpick. Pick your teeth and then come in."

Shota left decisively, took a free toothpick, picked his teeth, and came back in.

Xiuming asked, "Can you develop games?"

"Yes! Of course I will! But you played on my game console."

"Didn't I make it up to you with toothpicks?"

“I used to work at SNK and was involved in the development of Fatal Fury.” Shota picked his teeth after saying that, and then added, “This compensation isn’t enough.”

Fatal Fury is SNK's crown jewel, and Mai Shiranui, the beloved goddess of otaku, is a product of this series.

"If I give you the inspiration for a new game and the direction for its development, and then let you become the head of this game development studio, can you do it? Money is not an issue."

Shota was stunned. "I just wanted more money... My skills aren't that great... I've never managed anyone before... I'm only twenty-two... I... I... I'm just an ordinary programmer, I've never even been a team leader... How could I possibly be doing something so big?"

Could he be teaming up with Eri to play a trick on me?

Shota rubbed his hands together and asked, "Um, what level of inspiration and direction are you referring to for the new game you mentioned?"

"Sign a confidentiality agreement first, and I'll tell you everything."

Are you serious?

“When I talk to men, I only get to the point and don’t chat. Can you do it? If not, introduce me to a few skilled people, preferably key technical personnel from SNK. I’ll give you a commission for those who successfully join. I will be setting up a game development company with a total investment of no less than 10 billion yen, and we plan to go public in the future.”

"President, may I sign a confidentiality agreement and take a look first?"

A multi-billion dollar investment, and an upcoming IPO—it's exhilarating!

"of course can."

Sign a simple contract with your personal seal.

Hideaki also handed Shota detailed information about the Pokémon games.

Shota looked at the game's name and it seemed increasingly familiar.

"I feel like I've seen this game name somewhere before."

When he went to Game Freak, a game development studio in Chiyoda Ward, for a job yesterday, he saw a project department with a sign like this hanging at the door, but the department was empty.

Xiuming raised an eyebrow and asked, "You've been to Game Freak?"

"Oh, right, right, that's it. They also started a development project for this game, even the name is the same... uh?" Shota was stunned. "You stole it?!"

"How far along are they?"

"Of course they'll keep it a secret. I was just applying for a job, how could they possibly know?"

"So, I don't even know where their studio is. How can this be stolen?"

"But why are they the same?"

"Perhaps we thought of the same thing! Even novelists sometimes have strokes of inspiration, so why can't game developers do the same?"

"Uh……"

"Tell me the truth, do you really want to make money?"

"Who wouldn't want that!"

"Then why are you still worrying about this?"

"People should have a conscience, shouldn't they?" Shota said, his face turning red.

"Do you think that if you go to a bubble bath shop with a clear conscience, they'll give you free services?"

"I……"