Tokyo Soft Rice King.

Page 17

"That's right, so you can call me P-san from now on."

Kuroba Akira tugged at his uniform tie in a pretentious manner, trying to look like a professional, but in reality, he had hardly ever worn a suit.

After all, in his previous life he worked at a game company where there were no dress requirements. He even had the experience of wearing slippers and pajamas to work... but that wasn't to show off his personality; it was a painful memory.

I had just changed into my pajamas when I was urgently called back to the company, so I greeted the rising sun in my pajamas.

Have you ever seen the Bund at 4am?

The more he thought about it, the more miserable he felt. Hei Yuming secretly swore to himself that he would never be a corporate slave again in his life.

I'm determined to train this ultimate beauty into a top-tier voice actress! I am the Idolmaster!

Unfortunately, the girl did not use this default form of address, but instead gave him a cold look, signaling him to continue.

"As for your partner's life, that's your private life. Whether it's cultivating hobbies, traveling and eating delicious food, raising cats and dogs... In short, you can do whatever you want in your private time. Just try not to be photographed by paparazzi. I will not interfere with your private life in any way."

So that's what he meant by "half of life"...

The girl felt ashamed of her distorted thoughts and decided that she would no longer be swayed by the boy's words.

"Well, but if anything happens that damages your reputation, I will still intervene... So, first question, are you a virgin?"

"……what?"

The girl frowned, revealing a displeased expression, her recently calmed emotions surging violently once again.

Why is he asking this?!

Does the question he/she ask mean he/she has those kinds of thoughts about my body?

Akira Kuroba raised his hands to indicate that he had no intention of offending anyone.

"It's okay if you don't want to answer, but remember, if anyone asks you this question in the future, you should politely express that you are still a virgin, and preferably have zero dating experience, understand?"

"……Why?"

"Because I want you to adopt the persona of a pure, aloof goddess."

"Innocent type... Cold goddess?"

"Yes, it's about making everyone feel that you are an untouchable, inviolable goddess. So the first impression you leave on the public must be 'clean.' Even for voice actors who don't show their faces, this impression is very important. It will also give your voice a 'clean' label, thereby expanding your fan base."

Of course, there's another half that Kuroba Akira didn't say: this impression actually stimulates people's fantasies and possessiveness.

The cleaner something is, the more people want to defile it.

The goddess, high above all others, has never been touched by anyone.

This fact gives fans the illusion and expectation that 'maybe I'm the lucky one who might get to kiss my idol.'

You should know that being an idol is a profession that sells dreams.

"So in front of the public, you'd better remain a virgin forever, and keep it until you retire."

"I understand, I am a virgin."

"Great, that's it, but don't be so direct. It would be better if you could be a little shy."

"I...I don't have any experience in that area yet..."

"Yes, yes, that's exactly the feeling!"

Kuroba Akira nodded in satisfaction.

Although the girl with long, straight black hair could barely maintain a blank expression, she was actually so ashamed that she was about to faint on the spot.

I actually had to emphasize this point over and over again in front of him...

And the key point is...

She really is a virgin.

Chapter Nineteen: Murasaki no Miyako Shion

"Now that we've talked about the character design, let's discuss the specific path. Do you know how to become a voice actor?"

The girl with long, straight black hair shook her head.

At this age, JK (high school girl) students probably haven't even decided on their future career, let alone which university to apply to.

Although Japan has career surveys, students who really know what they want to do in the future are still a minority.

Most students are still enthusiastic about club activities, or they are thinking about where to go after school, what songs to sing at karaoke, and what to eat.

They were all singing the praises of youth, still carefree and without any plans for the future.

Therefore, someone like Akira Kuroba, whose goals and methods are extremely clear, can be considered an anomaly among students.

"Let me tell you. Generally speaking, if you want to become a voice actor, you first need to go to a specialized school or voice actor training center for training. Then you need to participate in the new talent recruitment of voice actor agencies. If you are lucky, you will be registered as a formal voice actor by the voice actor agency. Then you start by voicing minor roles, showcasing your own characteristics, accumulating experience, and gradually taking on important roles. You continue to build your seniority and eventually become a well-known voice actor in the industry. This is roughly the normal path to becoming a voice actor."

"Ah."

The girl listened attentively to the explanation and gained a basic understanding of her future.

"Then there's the second route, which is to join a theatre company now, gain experience there, and then switch to voice acting. Because your acting skills and vocal techniques are honed through the live performances of the theatre company, you'll be able to pick up voice acting quickly. And with a theatre company background as a gateway, you might be able to land important roles more quickly."

"Ah."

"In short, it is 'absolutely' impossible for an outsider to quickly enter the industry and become a voice actor."

"Hmm...huh?"

The girl was listening attentively, but then she suddenly realized that the 'amateur' he was referring to was none other than herself.

"And if you are unwilling to show your face, then your appearance will turn from an advantage into a disadvantage, and will become a huge obstacle preventing you from becoming a voice actor."

"Why!"

"Because sponsors prefer to choose voice actors with better looks in order to increase the sales of the works, if you refuse to appear, the voice actor agency will think that your idea is wasteful and pretentious."

"..."

The girl fell silent after hearing this; her willfulness would ruin her career path... Indeed, this appearance was a curse.

But since I've already made up my mind to build a career with him, I guess I have to abandon my naivety.

Just when the girl decided to tell Kuroba Akira that she was okay with showing up, Kuroba Akira said.

"But it doesn't matter. I've already thought of a solution."

"Is there a solution?"

"Of course, this is the third path we need to take. After all, whether it's receiving training or joining a theater troupe, you need money as a stepping stone. However..."

Kuroba Akira shrugged, indicating that he had no money.

A runaway girl and a boy living under someone else's roof; together they couldn't even afford a single coin.

Moreover, the cultivation cycle for these two routes is too long, and Kuroba Akira doesn't want to waste his time.

"So you need to hone your acting skills and voice through self-study."

"He actually learned it all on his own...?"

"Yes, it's the only option we can do. After all, we have nothing. People who switch to voice acting from completely unrelated jobs, the so-called dream chasers, all started by teaching themselves."

"Um……"

It is indeed zero cost, but... can self-study really work?

If you could become a voice actor just by teaching yourself, then everyone could be a voice actor, right?

It's precisely because they can't figure out the way and don't know how to learn that they need someone to guide them.

But the boy, with confidence from who knows where, gave the girl a thumbs up and said...

"Don't worry, I'll tell you what you need to practice and how to practice. As long as you practice hard, you'll become a famous voice actor very soon!"

Although Kuroba Akira has never been a voice actor, he worked as a character dubbing supervisor when he was making games in his previous life. That is, he selected suitable candidates from multiple voice actors, then went to the recording studio to listen to the voice actors' dubbing to see if it was good enough, and gave suggestions on the direction of modification.

Therefore, he has an accurate judgment on whether this voice is suitable for this role.

Moreover, as the "client who selects and criticizes," he is very clear about the needs and knows very well what kind of voice actors can be selected.

Therefore, he is confident that he can train the girl to become a voice actress who can stand on her own.

"Once you've practiced enough, we'll record a voice-over ourselves and send the audition file to the voice acting agencies we're interested in. We'll win them over with our voices first. That way, even if they see your face later, they won't care so much about your looks. It's that simple."

"..."

So... he had thought about all this.

He was serious about becoming a voice actor.

"So, you're going to be very busy! So busy that you'll even want to borrow a cat's paw!"

"So busy I need to borrow a cat's paw" is a Japanese proverb meaning extremely busy.

Kuroba Akira tried to grab Kuroo's claws to show off, but ended up getting scratched twice by Kuroo instead. He's really not cooperative at all...

After being scratched, the black tail ran to the black-haired girl's feet and meowed, still wanting milk.

The girl squatted down, unscrewed the cap of the milk bottle in her hand, then used the cap to collect the milk and placed it in front of Kuroo.

Kuroba Akira was a little surprised. Wasn't she going to drink it herself?

Would you trade half your life for a bottle of cat milk?

However, exchanging milk for one's life is already outrageous enough.

Selling your life cheaply means you don't want to leave yourself a way out.