How to raise a random guy's wife

"There's nothing to explain, is there?" Heian Mingyuan's voice rang out. "Welcome to the entertainment industry. These kinds of inexplicable scandals are part of the entertainment industry, and you have to experience them."

"I believe in your character," Hazuki Ren's voice followed closely. "Now I understand why my family didn't want me to get involved with you."

“This kind of thing is very common. The key is how to handle it.” Tang Keke’s tone became more relaxed. “The pace suddenly became so fast, and the timing was so perfect. Obviously, someone is deliberately causing trouble.”

"Those messages are obviously fake," Lan Qiansha chimed in. "Where are you going to find a better girlfriend than Hui?"

Shibuya Kanon concluded, "We trust you, so just tell us how to cooperate with you."

“Well…” Kobayashi Sora paused, “Just focus on your training, and read some news in your spare time as a pastime.”

Is this all?

“Of course,” Kobayashi Sora said softly. “Since someone has taken such action, I don’t need to pretend to be a gentleman anymore.”

I just hung up the phone with Shibuya Kanon, then I received a call from Sagara Mayu, followed by Sakurako-sensei, Hashima Iori, Machida Sonoko...

Even Kobayashi Megumi received a call about going out to sea from Hashima.

Having finished her conversation with everyone and finally having some free time, Kobayashi Sora decided to... join the people who were denouncing her.

Rumors were flying everywhere, and Kobayashi Sora added even more to the list.

Just as the hashtag #BoycottLiella!Superstar was gaining traction.

Kobayashi Sora posted a list using her own account.

When the rumors became so outrageous that Kobayashi Sora's mere glare could impregnate someone, people gradually began to realize something was amiss.

As the people on the list began to apologize one by one, the flow of money finally changed.

"The original work destroyer known as the 'completely useless talent', the person behind the Sea Corner Library, the team leader whose employees I poached, the production team member who was kicked out of 'Chronicles of the Universe XIII' by Sister Zhu Yin, the illustrator who ran away, the middleman who lost money, and the classmate who led the bullying of me when I was a child..." Kobayashi Sora's eyes narrowed slightly, "If these guys were even a little bit clean, they wouldn't have had it so easy."

Spreading rumors is illegal.

If it constitutes defamation, the circumstances are even more serious.

When Kobayashi Sora used her intelligence network to move online activities offline, she even offered fruit to those who were emotionally agitated...

An apology seems to be a pretty good option.

As for the subsequent account deletion and disappearance, it became less important when various revelations emerged, professional online trolls were caught, and the wave of apologies topped the trending searches.

Kobayashi Sora realized more and more that Kobayashi's father was right.

If we hadn't been aware of our many enemies, investigated their information, and taken precautions early on, even if we had resolved this crisis, the game's sales and subsequent plans would have been greatly affected.

Thanks to Kobayashi Sora's well-prepared response, this alarming momentum was successfully transformed into buzz for "Liella! Superstar," propelling it back onto the trending topics list.

Chapter 457 New President Hui

"Was all of this part of your plan?" Kasumigaoka Utaha looked away from her phone screen.

"Black and red marketing?" Eriri looked skeptical.

Kobayashi Sora shook her head. "Not this time."

Kasumigaoka Utaha understood the unspoken meaning: "I've done it before."

“I’m not surprised at all,” Eriri pressed. “Why not this time?”

"Because the risk is too great." Kobayashi Megumi turned her head to look at Kobayashi Sora. "Right?"

"My wife is right."

"Then please explain further, Mrs. Kobayashi." Kasumigaoka Utaha was quite curious about the reason.

Rice Cake: "Meow~"

Eriri was taken aback, then looked at Kobayashi Sora, "What did you do to the mochi?"

"You'll go with Sister Zhu Yin next time you're checked," Kobayashi Sora reminded her. "You should get your brain checked thoroughly."

"While negative publicity can be very profitable, it also carries significant risks and can create resistance among those unfamiliar with the project," Kobayashi Megumi explained with a smile. "It's a great approach when you're unsure about sales. But for a work like 'Liella! Superstar,' which has received acclaim from Akane-san, there's absolutely no need to resort to such an aggressive, almost gambling-like method."

“So,” Kasumigaoka Utaha also realized, “taking a gamble doesn’t seem to have anything to do with Sora.”

A control freak like Kobayashi Sora would never participate in gambling, an activity where luck plays a huge role.

Eriri asked, puzzled, "Hasn't he used this method before?"

“That’s just a short-term cash grab,” Kobayashi Sora explained. “Since we’re not going to make any money anyway, being infamous or famous is still fame. For long-term projects like this, you have to be extremely careful, even if you suddenly become famous, let alone be infamous.”

"So," Eriri exclaimed, "isn't this extremely dangerous?!"

“Yes.” Kobayashi Sora’s eyelids drooped slightly. “It’s very dangerous.”

-

"Due to this controversy, *Liella! Superstar* has received far more attention than expected, with many physical stores placing additional orders." Kobayashi Megumi pointed to the data on the demo screen. "Because the Star Cluster members took on voice acting duties, the voice actor fees were significantly reduced, as were the costs for the BGM and OP/ED songs. What remains are internal costs for original artwork, script, color, and programming, as well as external costs for backgrounds and OP/ED animations. In addition, there are advertising and promotional costs such as posters, flyers, free distribution items, magazine ads, and website ads. Adding the production costs of the physical game, and without considering the company's operating costs, the current sales have already recouped the production costs."

In the relatively niche market of visual novels, such results can already be considered a major success.

But as Kobayashi Megumi said, such sales are due to the quality of the game, the hard work of Star Cluster fans, and the attention brought about by this incident.

"With 'Liella! Superstar' as a foundation, the development of the subsequent mobile game can now be officially put on the agenda. We need to collect player feedback through various means, as well as conduct research on similar games in the market, from game style to system design..." Kobayashi Megumi methodically assigned tasks, concluding the seminar.

Afterwards, he attended another meeting with Kobayashi Sora.

RER meeting.

Looking at Kobayashi Megumi beside her, Kobayashi Sora felt a strange sense of emotion.

Akane Akasaka was sitting in his seat, while he was standing next to Megumi Kobayashi.

Kobayashi Sora smiled as her gaze swept over the heads of the various production teams on either side of the conference table, as well as other relevant personnel. "Today's meeting is very simple, so I'll keep it brief. As you all probably know, I've been busy with the Superstar project and produced a game called 'Liella! Superstar.' But just before its release, a controversy arose centered around me. Although this controversy was successfully resolved and even boosted the game's sales to some extent, it was ultimately caused by me. To prevent similar incidents from happening again, I've decided to resign."

Kobayashi Sora stood up and gave up her seat. "The third president of RER will be Kobayashi Megumi, who performed exceptionally well in the Superstar project and the production of 'Liella! Superstar'—please give her a round of applause."

In the conference room, people looked at each other, their expressions varied.

"I will be serving as the president's secretary, assisting President Kobayashi in his work." Kobayashi Sora's eyes narrowed into crescents, like a smiling fox, but his smiling mouth seemed ready to unleash a snake's tongue at any moment. "I said... please welcome me with applause."

Kobayashi Sora was the first to applaud, followed by more applause, creating a wave of applause in the conference room.

Kobayashi Megumi slightly raised her hand to stop the applause. "Thank you everyone. Next, we need to discuss the matter of changing the RER Club into RER Co., Ltd..."

Kobayashi Sora looked at the radiant Kobayashi Megumi beside her, her gaze softening even more.

No one dared to ignore her presence.

-

"Is this really okay?" Kobayashi Megumi was still a little dizzy when she returned home after the meeting.

"If you make a mistake, you have to accept the punishment." Kobayashi Sora held Kobayashi Megumi's hand, which was wet. Clearly, she hadn't been as relaxed as she appeared during the meeting. "So I can only rely on you."

"No~" Kobayashi Megumi shook her head, "I mean, am I really capable? There must be someone more suitable than me, right?"

"Actually..." Kobayashi Sora twitched the corner of her mouth, "there really isn't."

"what?"

"Your abilities are quite good, and you have a great respect for creators. With my assistance, completing the work shouldn't be a problem."

"There must be someone more capable, more experienced, and with greater achievements than me, right?"

"Yes, it does exist, but it's not part of the Superstar project."

"Other production teams should have it."

“But I don’t know,” Kobayashi Sora replied matter-of-factly. “Ever since I became president, they’ve only sent me emails. Even when I achieve something, the only people who really let me participate in important decisions are the Superstar production team—why should I hand over the presidency to them?”

Kobayashi Megumi was a little worried, "Won't this have a bad influence?"

"This is RER. Only those who are more capable than Sister Zhu Yin can have an impact on RER."

Chapter 458 Heading Towards You

In other companies, it would be virtually impossible for a high school student like Megumi Kobayashi to become president.

But RER is different.

Akane Akasaka's company has a distinctive feature.

Everything revolves around her.

Akane Akasaka adheres to the principle of prioritizing the work itself, and all her companies are dedicated to creating better works.

Until someone can create better content than her, we'll listen to her.

That's why Kobayashi Sora was able to become the president of RER.

With such a precedent as a warning, there's nothing wrong with Kobayashi Megumi becoming the president.

As is widely known, Kobayashi Sora is an extension of Akane Akasaka's will.

Previously, Akane Akasaka had to recruit people herself and negotiate cooperation with various companies.

After meeting Kobayashi Sora, she handed over all these matters to him and focused on her creative work.

Kobayashi Sora did a great job.

The recent Maltz incident further proved his ability.

If you want to compete with Kobayashi Megumi for a position, you either need to surpass Akane Akasaka in creative ability or Kobayashi Sora in administrative ability.

People whose creative abilities surpass Akane Akasaka's will not work at RER.

Someone with superior competence to Kobayashi Sora wouldn't pass up such a great opportunity as Maltz.

Therefore, in some ways, Kobayashi Megumi's position as president is now more secure than when Kobayashi Sora took over.

After all, Kobayashi Sora only stepped down; she didn't leave RER like Hashima Iori, nor did she stop caring about RER like Akasaka Akane.

To many people, it's just a change of name.

But after Kobayashi Sora stepped down, there was no need to worry about the same kind of turmoil as before.

Even he couldn't gather much information about Kobayashi Megumi, let alone the others.

“So don’t overthink it,” Kobayashi Sora comforted her. “You are the most suitable candidate.”

Kobayashi Megumi tilted her head. "In many people's eyes, I must be your mouthpiece, right?"