How to raise a random guy's wife

It's rare for the two of them to be alone at home, so Kobayashi Sora and Kobayashi Megumi might...

Kobayashi Megumi glanced at her. "It's daytime now."

Upon realizing he had been seen through, Bo Shima's face flushed red.

Kobayashi Sora handed the coffee to the two of them, saying, "Here, try it and see if it suits your taste."

"Thank you..." Bo Island picked up the coffee cup and used the steam to cover his face.

"It smells amazing~" Mayu Sagara took a deep breath, sang softly, then her expression froze. "Um... um... can I have sugar and coffee?"

“Of course.” Kobayashi Sora stood up. “Bags or cubes?”

"Sugar cubes." Mayu Sagara scratched her head. "I feel a little embarrassed, even though I made this coffee using such a professional method."

Kobayashi Sora handed the candy to Sagara Mayu, saying, "It's just a drink; what matters most is that you like it."

"Thank you~" Mayu Sagara happily enjoyed her sweet coffee.

“I thought you would come to see us later,” Kobayashi Megumi said, rising slightly, straightening her skirt, and moving a little closer to Kobayashi Sora, who was sitting next to her.

How natural... Hashima Izumi's gaze lingered for a moment on the two thighs pressed together. "I originally planned to come after I came up with a clearer idea, but after thinking for two days, I still had no results, so Mayu and I came directly."

"Stories between girls..." Kobayashi Megumi tilted her head slightly, "There must be quite a few works like that, right?"

"Most of it was just everyday school life, and doing things together with the girls," Kobayashi Sora searched her memory. "Like opening a coffee shop, camping, fishing, beach volleyball, playing games, drawing comics, getting into real estate..."

"Real estate?!" Mayu Sagara exclaimed incredulously. "This kind of thing exists?"

"It's called real estate, but it's actually a dark past of two races buried beneath the warm daily lives of four girls," Kobayashi Sora smiled. "But it is indeed a house for sale."

Chapter 915 Self-Reconciliation

“There are many anime like this, where girls do fun things together,” Kobayashi Megumi’s eyes flickered slightly. “Familiar everyday things, plus cute girls, if the content is more in-depth and professional, the subject matter alone will have a considerable audience—it’s a fairly stable genre, and your idea is very good.”

Bo Island was completely bewildered when it set sail.

So that's what I was planning?

I really chose a great topic.

"However, according to the existing data, most works of this type start with a lot of viewers, but the number of viewers decreases as the series progresses, and the slowdown is much greater than that of other types of animation," Kobayashi Sora explained frankly. "To retain viewers or readers, you have to add more content. But if you add too much, it will dilute the atmosphere at the beginning and make some viewers feel betrayed—the balance is delicate and difficult to control."

Bo Island's expression froze as he went out to sea.

This predicament is indeed widespread.

I really chose a very difficult topic.

“That’s exactly what I’m worried about when we go overseas,” Mayu Sagara said, blowing on her coffee. “On the one hand, I’m afraid no one will watch it, and on the other hand, I’m afraid of adding too much that deviates from the original idea.”

Kobayashi Sora and Kobayashi Megumi exchanged a glance, then got up and fetched paper and pen.

Kobayashi Megumi took the drawing and said, "Let's organize our thoughts. First, you want to draw a story about girls, so what do you want to describe?"

Bo Island noticed the tacit interaction between the two just now, and thought, "I want something like that."

"Hmm?" Kobayashi Megumi tilted her head, making a puzzled sound.

"You didn't say anything, and Kong Qing went to get paper and pen—it's that kind of unspoken understanding, but you know, I know, you know I know, and I know you know. It's not a big deal, but if you notice it, you'll feel a sense of 'How wonderful.'"

“Hmm…” Kobayashi Megumi picked up her pen and wrote on the paper, “The main subject of the description is the details of daily life. The deep feelings between girls are shown by depicting the warm daily interactions between them.”

“Yes, yes, yes,” Po Island nodded repeatedly, “that’s it.”

Seeing how quickly Kobayashi Megumi understood the meaning of going to sea from Hashima, Sagara Mayu began to doubt her own comprehension abilities.

“It’s quite different from the style of ‘Mononoke’,” Kobayashi Megumi looked up. “Why not choose a similar theme again?”

"Huh? Why?" She hadn't really considered this question before going to sea on the island of Hashima, but when she heard Kobayashi Megumi ask this, she subconsciously started to think about it.

Yes, why is that?

The previous work was quite good, so it should be easier for the new work to continue the previous style.

At least it won't be like now, where there's only a vague idea and no concrete plan.

The reason I don't want to continue with my previous style is probably simply because I want to...

“Simplicity.” Hashima Izumi realized his own thoughts. “I want to create a work that can be simply enjoyed.”

"Huh?" Mayu Sagara looked at the departure of the ship to Hashima Island. This departure to Hashima Island had not been mentioned at all before.

"Hmm..." Kobayashi Megumi drew two circles on the paper, "Like Takagi-san?"

“Yes, that’s it.” Izumi Hashima further explained, “Mononoke contains mystery, monsters, human hearts, conspiracies, battles, and a lot of thought-provoking content. When viewers see a character appear, they start to think about what bad things this character has done or what tragic experiences he has had. I also do the same thing during the creative process. In my new work, I want to eliminate this kind of thinking.”

"You want to create a light and enjoyable story that readers and viewers can easily enjoy without worrying about the characters, and simply experience the heartwarming everyday moments in the story." Kobayashi Megumi wrote down, "With the aim of creating a heartwarming and healing experience."

"Hmm, when I was making *Mononoke*, I felt like I was creating a unique work in the world. But after it was finished, I suddenly realized that I had only made a work." Izumi Hashima's thoughts were a little scattered. "How should I put it... well, I'm not the only choice for the audience. They'll watch *Mononoke*, they'll watch *Yamishibai*, they'll want to see smooth action, excellent works like *Dragon Ball*, they'll want to see profound themes, masterpieces like *Ghost in the Shell*... I don't need to bring together a lot of elements in an attempt to attract everyone who is interested in those elements. It might sound a bit unambitious, but I want to create a story that satisfies people who are interested in one or two elements."

Kobayashi Megumi nodded. "You explained it very clearly. I understand."

Mayu Sagara asked directly, "How did you understand?"

"Because she looks a lot like Sora Aoi." Kobayashi Megumi patted Kobayashi Sora Aoi's leg.

“I’m a control freak… I don’t think I need to say that myself.” Kobayashi Sora smiled. “At first, I liked to control everything I could control in order to satisfy my desire for control. Until Megumi came along, I realized that I didn’t need to control everything, nor could I truly control everything. It was a process of self-discovery and reconciliation. My desire for control stemmed from my insecurity. No matter how much I satisfied my desire for control, my insecurity never disappeared; it was only temporarily relieved.”

Kobayashi Sora put her arm around Kobayashi Megumi's shoulder. "After I felt truly at ease, my desire to control gradually disappeared, and what remained were mostly habits I had developed before."

“I understand.” Sagara Mayu clenched her right fist and tapped it against her left palm, making a crisp sound. “When she went to sea to create ‘Mononoke,’ the complex elements in it were a manifestation of her desire for expression, but this desire for expression stemmed from her idea of ​​creating works that people could enjoy. After ‘Mononoke’ was completed, she achieved self-expression and realized that it was impossible to create works that everyone could enjoy. This was the opportunity for her to reconcile with herself. From wanting to satisfy everyone, to wanting to satisfy a portion of people.”

“So that’s what I was thinking…” Hashima Izumi murmured, then nodded, “Yes, that’s what I was thinking.”

Mayu Sagara asked helplessly, "Is it really true?"

“After hearing what you said, I finally understand,” Hashima Izumi laughed. “When I first started drawing doujinshi, I wanted people who liked the same works as me to like them. That was when I was happiest.”

Chapter 916 Things I Want to Do

Mayu Sagara didn't know much about Kobayashi Sora's transformation, since he was already wearing his wedding ring when she met him.

In subsequent collaborations, most of the time was spent in contact with Megumi Kobayashi.

Therefore, even though Kobayashi Sora shared her experience, Sagara Mayu was unable to understand the problems faced by Hashima's seafaring journey through Kobayashi Sora's transformation.

But she still understood.

Because of Kobayashi Sora's personal experience, Sagara Mayu learned how to understand other people's problems by combining her own experiences.

For quite some time, Mayu Sagara was very interested in the expansive seascape of Hashima Island and always wanted to experience it.

Could it be that she admires the open-air spirit of Boi Island?

Yes.

But not entirely.

Specifically, she did not feel satisfied after the experience.

It wasn't until she worked with Izumi Hashima on "Mononoke" and studied the details of the characters that she realized what she wanted was not physical contact, but a connection of hearts.

The open-mindedness of Izumi Hashima is to Mayu Sagara what "Mononoke" is to Izumi Hashima.

Mayu Sagara's longing for a closer relationship is the same as Hashima's desire to gain the approval of a certain group of people.

What people strive to obtain over a period of time is not what they truly desire, but rather a superficial appearance.

If you can't see beyond appearances to your true needs, you'll only end up exhausted both physically and mentally chasing after superficial appearances.

Her desire to gain audience approval drove her to overemphasize expression, resulting in "Mononoke" incorporating too much of her own thoughts.

There was so much to say that without Kasumigaoka Utaha's help, she wouldn't even know how to end it, because after expressing so much, she wanted to express even more.

She only satisfied her desire to express herself, but did not satisfy the root cause of that desire—the need for recognition. Therefore, the satisfied desire to express herself will only give rise to more desires to express herself. If one strives to satisfy the desire to express herself, then such efforts are destined to be in vain.

Izumi Hashima loves "Mononoke" and poured his heart and soul into its production, which has garnered recognition from many.

But that's not enough.

Just like Mayu Sagara admires the open-mindedness of Izumi Hashima, she also puts in a lot of effort to bring it under her control, and eventually gets closer to Izumi Hashima.

However, this true enjoyment is quite different from what one really wants.

"Recognize what you truly want, and make a fresh start with that goal." Mayu Sagara looked earnestly at Ueshima Hashima. "That's what you want to do, isn't it?"

"You feel the same way?" Bo Shima asked, looking at her with surprise. "I knew you'd understand!"

“Ah…” Mayu Sagara avoided Hashima’s gaze a little embarrassedly, “Hmm… I feel the same way.”

"It aims to satisfy the target audience, focuses on the details of daily life, and portrays the deep feelings between girls by depicting their warm daily interactions." Kobayashi Megumi tapped the paper lightly. "Is it not to resonate with more people, but to deeply touch a certain group of people? It feels like a love letter."

The carefully crafted words are not meant to be liked by many, but to be deeply loved by one person.

"A love...love letter?!" Mayu Sagara's heart skipped a beat.

"It's too difficult," Kobayashi Sora pointed out bluntly. "It's like removing all the other female characters from a visual novel and leaving only the main heroine. People who don't like this kind of thing simply won't watch it, while those who do like it might give up on the story for various reasons. Superficial resonance is relatively easy because the basic needs of the general public are somewhat common. But to deeply touch a specific audience is extremely difficult."

From a basic needs perspective, everyone likes things that look good.

However, to truly resonate with a segment of the audience, it is necessary to deeply understand their needs.

So here's the problem: the more you understand someone, the more different their preferences become.

They're all beautiful, but some people like long hair, some like short hair, some like phoenix eyes, some like peach blossom eyes, some like beauty marks under the eyes, some like ambitious people, some like centaurs, some like mermaids, and some like big mushrooms...

How can that satisfy everyone? In the end, it can only satisfy a small portion of the preferences of a very small number of people.

Bo Island realized the seriousness of the problem; the more it wanted to deeply resonate with a segment of the population, the more it had to abandon a larger audience.

In essence, she can only satisfy a tiny fraction of a tiny fraction of her audience...

The image of thousands of readers leaving behind only one or two is already vivid in my mind's eye.

“That is indeed a problem,” Kobayashi Megumi turned the paper toward the sea voyage to Hashima. “You came to us because you trust us, so we are responsible for that trust. We will tell you the advantages, disadvantages, and potential difficulties honestly. However, Sora and I have never interfered too much with your creative process, and the final decision is up to you.”

Mayu Sagara noticed the struggles Hashima was facing in setting sail. "Is there really no way?"

"Of course there are solutions," Kobayashi Megumi said with a look of pity. "But do you really want to hear them?"

"Huh?" Sagara Mayu was confused.

“There’s a solution to everything, and there are many successful examples.” Kobayashi Sora explained the situation clearly. “As I just said, going overseas is a very difficult path. If we back down now, it would be a wise move.” Kobayashi Sora paused. “But if we tell you the solution now, we’re giving going overseas a vague hope… like trying to run a mountain only to have your horse die from looking at it.”